In the most recent episode of Star Trek: Lower Decks, “Fully Dilated,” Brent Spiner guest stars as an alternate universe version of Data. Perhaps the appearance has given you a hankering for more Data stories.
For this week’s Trek Tuesday, we’re revisiting seven stories featuring Data. Did we include your favorite in the mix?
Datalore
First, let’s revisit the episode that first examined Data’s backstory and introduced a few key figures in his mythology. In Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 1’s “Datalore,” the U.S.S. Enterprise-D travels to Omicron Theta, where Data was discovered. However, things get complicated once they arrive.
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There, they meet Lore (Spiner), Data’s “evil twin.” It turns out he teamed up with the Crystalline Entity that destroyed all life on the planet before Data was found. Awkward. Lore will continue to be a problem for Data throughout the years.
The Offspring
In The Next Generation Season 3’s “The Offspring,” Data builds himself a child. Many viewers cite this episode as one of their favorites of the series. Indeed, it is hard to forget the memorable but short-lived relationship that Data shares with his daughter, Lal (Hallie Todd).
Throughout Lal’s short life, she learns a lot about human behavior. And in the process, she teaches Data some invaluable lessons. But all good things must end, and Lal tragically dies before the episode’s conclusion. However, her memory lives on within Data, as well as within the hearts of Trekkies everywhere.
Brothers
In The Next Generation Season 4’s “Brothers,” Data is remotely controlled by his creator, Dr. Noonien Soong (Spiner). It turns out that Soong escaped death at Omicron Theta. Furthermore, he creates a chip allowing Data to experience emotions.
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However, not only has Soong brought Data to his door, he’s also summoned Lore. Using subterfuge, Lore tricks Soong into installing the chip in his brain instead of Data’s. The result is messy. However, Data learns an important lesson about brotherhood.
A Fistful of Datas
In The Next Generation Season 6’s “A Fistful of Datas,” a Holodeck malfunction causes many of the characters in an Old West simulation to resemble (and possess the abilities of) Data. This creates a serious issue for Worf (Michael Dorn), Alexander Rozhenko (Brian Bonsall) and Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis).
The episode allows Spiner to further stretch his acting chops, often in comedic and unexpected ways. Plus, it is undeniably one of the more creative Holodeck storylines.
Birthright, Part I
The Next Generation Season 6 episode “Birthright, Part I” sees the Enterprise-D visiting Deep Space 9. There, Doctor Julian Bashir (Alexander Siddig) can give Data some guidance when he experiences a vision.
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In the vision, Data witnesses several dreamlike images. Eventually, he meets a younger version of his father, Dr. Soong. Ultimately, Data concludes that these “dreams” were intentionally installed by his father and meant to activate at a certain stage of his development. And hey, Bashir gets to write a paper about them, too.
First Contact
Star Trek: First Contact is the first big screen Franchise outing to focus entirely on the crew from The Next Generation. And fittingly, it has a significant subplot for our favorite android.
In First Contact, Data is kidnapped by the Borg Queen (Alice Krige). Drawing upon his long-standing desire to be human, the Queen tempts Data to betray his crew. However, Data’s resistance does not turn out to be futile.
Surrender
And finally, Star Trek: Picard Season 3’s “Surrender” sees the rivalry between Data and Lore come to its final evolution. An updated version of Data had been retrieved from Section 31’s clutches two episodes earlier. Naturally, Geordi La Forge (Levar Burton) attempts to activate him. However, this is complicated by the fact that not only Data but also Lore is contained within the android’s programming.
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Soon, Data and Lore are facing off against one another in their shared mindscape. But only one can emerge victorious. Will it be the good twin or the evil one?
All of these episodes and the movie are currently available for streaming on Paramount+.
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