Star Trek: The Next Generation (TV Series) Pen Pals (1989) User Reviews

Perhaps Data is the most humane of all...

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 14 November 2014]

This episode shows a situation where the Prime Directive is a really annoying thing! The ship has arrived at a very unstable star system-- unstable because the planets are tearing themselves apart! The ship is there to monitor---but Data ends up changing the purpose of the mission all by himself. It seems that on the planet below which is being destroyed, Data has established voice contact with a scared little girl--and Data would like to do something to help. But, during a conference, many of the crew (including the Captain) recommend doing nothing to help, since the Prime Directive guarantees no intervention in the normal evolution of a planet and its people. So, in essence, they recommend that the Enterprise do nothing. But, Data is insistent...and the child begins calling out for help. What's next?

I liked this episode because it is a wonderful example where Data shows more humanity and compassion than most of his crewmates. It helped to establish his compassion and decency and, at times, the show touched my heart. Well done and worth seeing.

I think this is an underrated episode

[snoozejonc · 8/10 · 5 June 2021]

Data makes contact with a little girl on the surface of a planet being studied by Enterprise.

This is a strong episode with a great look at leadership and the ethical decisions leaders have to make.

The plot is heavy handed in how the themes are presented, but it's an effective look at command from the perspective of the a young inexperienced ensign and a seasoned ship's captain. In the same breath it makes good use of the prime directive in the story's main dilemma.

I imagine many young leaders have been in the position of commanding older and more experienced colleagues. I know I can identify with the position Wesley is put in during 'Pen Pals', so the episode is worth watching for the realism and good advice he receives during his moments of self doubt.

The Data story puts Picard in an equally difficult position but with enormous challenges in terms of ethical decision making and what's at stake. Data, Pulaski and the other commanders give strong contributions to the problems at hand.

I enjoyed this visuals, with decent use of locations for the holodeck scenes and some good set design for the planet surface sequences.

Personally I thought cast were on good form with all giving equally good contributions aside from Patrick Stewart who always stands out as an excellent performer.

Picard's Dilemma

[Hitchcoc · 8/10 · 12 August 2014]

Once again the prime directive gets put to the test. Because of the subjectivity of this directive, it is often up to the captain to be the interpreter. When Data makes contact with a young alien on a dying planet (due to geological issues) he makes a plea to Picard to save her and her family or even the whole planet. This puts the Enterprise in the position of playing god. Still, she is a child and pulls at our heartstrings. Coincidentally, Wesley is given his first significant position on the ship, leading a geological team in analyzing the planet's surface. He is torn between his given authority and the ages of those under him (he is, of course, wet behind the ears). So his issue with commanding others is his issue. The two plots eventually will come together. While I think it's sort of contrived and a little too easy for things to work out, it's a decent episode. Data's programming seems to contain a fair amount of humanity. His desires and his altruism must have been there from the start or we wouldn't have episodes like this.

Happy ending prime directive episode

[thevacinstaller · 7/10 · 9 March 2021]

I enjoyed how the themes of command and 'taking charge' of a situation was a major part of both plots in this episode.

The prime directive arc ends with a memory wipe. This is clearly the smart choice to make but I would have been very interested to see a very real consequence or implied consequence occur from saving the planet from destruction. We are definitely getting the feel good happy ending in this one despite the topic of consequences being discussed as a potentiality.

It was fascinating to watch Data being the moral/ethical compass for Picard's decision.

I have no malice towards Wesley Crusher and I am thankful his story arcs have moved towards discovery and learning through experience rather than being a space einstein. Trust your instincts seems to be the message being conveyed here ---- And you know what? You should trust your instincts ---- We have them for a reason.

A solid episode but put the brakes on a challenging exploration of the prime directive despite some wonderful dialogue about it. In my fan fiction I have a 20 year fast forward to Sarjenka pounding her fist on a podium fanning the flames of some catastrophic political movement caused by insanity due to some singing stones affect upon her species.

Pals from afar.

[russem31 · 15 April 2006]

ST:TNG:41 - "Pen Pals" (Stardate: 42695.3) - this is the 15th episode to air in the second season of The Next Generation. While exploring severe geological disturbances beneath Drema Four's surface, Data finds a pen pal on that planet - a girl named Sarjenka (played by a young Nikki Cox).

At the same time, this is also the first time Wesley is given command responsibilities overseeing the planetary mineral surveys, even from those who are much older than him - a great responsibility indeed.

Trivia: you see Picard riding a horse. Oh, while he does this, Troi recalls having a Betazoid kitten once - and her mother and the kitten reacted "badly" to each other!

Exemplifies why the Prime Directive is required.

[wwcanoer-tech · 7/10 · 7 January 2022]

This show exemplifies why the Prime Directive is required because they NEVER discuss the possible implications of their actions!

What if the energy driving the volcanoes provides the heat that critical ocean plankton need to grow, so the plankton die off, the fish that feed on it die, resulting in a planet-wide famine that decimates the population?

They may well still decide to act but the fact that they do not consider the possible ramifications shows why Star Fleet must resort to a directive instead of letting people think for themselves.

Note: They broke the current lattice structures but presumably they will reform and the situation will become the same in the future, so if they really want to save these people, then need to visit every few millennia to break up the new lattices.

To have a directive that we will not help people unless they have warp drive is ridiculous even though a goal of non-interference is valid there are obviously times that interference is warranted.

Pen Pals

[Scarecrow-88 · 10/10 · 9 June 2012]

I am amazed "Pen Pals" isn't considered one of the best Trek episodes of the entire series. I, for one, found it profoundly moving and fascinating at both ends examining the Prime Directive and how far the Enterprise is willing to go to disobey what is their fundamental method of operation in the universe, a guide that keeps the Federation from interfering in the natural order of other lifeforms and their way of life, a protection from getting involved when the risks are too great. Data has communicated with an alien girl named Sarjenka, who lives on a planet that is geologically unstable (later determined by Ensign Crusher's staff (yes, he is given his first "trial command" to determine what is causing planetary bodies to disrupt into little more than asteroid remains within the unmapped, uncharted sector the Enterprise is exploring, the first ship to do so) to be an imbalance in the tectonic plates of the planets). Data appeals to Picard to save her and the people on her planet from destruction. Here is where Picard's dilemma comes in: to interfere with the planet's natural order would be a violation of the Prime Directive. Do you allow a planet to die, including the people on it? Are those on board the Enterprise gods? How far can Picard go? When they listen to a plea of help from a frightened little girl to Data before he is to "sever communication", Picard decides, against his better judgment, to try and help save her planet. Crusher's team might have an answer… While "Pen Pals" focuses on the Prime Directive and its purpose, with all senior officers convening in a secret meeting to determine if the Enterprise should help the planet from going in its natural path, taking a complex look at the difficulties such a decision entails, the episode also dedicates a minor subplot to Wesley Crusher, his training in understanding what it is like to have command and all that such duties require of an officer. It is just a geological survey, but Crusher does get to see what it is like to face opposition from members of his staff, challenging his order to check an ico-spectrogram; and, this is a good decision (obviously, since it is wunderkind making it), which leads to an answer as to how to correct the problem currently unstable in the planet's geological structure. Picard and Riker understand how deep their problem is as Data continues to challenge the Prime Directive in order to save Sarjenka, and the noose around their necks tighten with every step their android takes that opposes their chief method of "law" that keeps them out of moral entanglements. While I guess some find episodes about the Prime Directive exhausting, I love how the complexities for which the Enterprise often face when challenges against it arise (like "Justice" where Wesley unknowingly breaks a law that carries the sentence of death on a planet whose laws are considered ridiculous to many), the show thrusting Picard and company into psychological/emotion crises often provoking intellectual/philosophical debate. I think this is a stellar episode that deserves re-examination. Picard and Troi's scene involving animals (preferably Picard's fondness for horses) is rather illuminating regarding their banter about how creatures and humans interact with each other, curing loneliness/emptiness. Because of Data's incapability to understand emotionally the fundamental wreckage that could result from his actions, the way the situation causes stirs among his crewmates (such as his taking the child to the Bridge, as Chief O'Brien, Riker, and Picard all have issues with such a decision) adds an interesting dynamic to the story. Some great dialogue scenes include the aforementioned "meeting of minds" of the senior staff and Riker's talk with a concerned Wesley over the demands of a command.

Wesley should get a shiny badge or at least 2 chocolate sundaes for this one.

[amusinghandle · 7/10 · 14 January 2024]

After Wesley's team develops a method for transforming an entire world from catastrophe to normality and saving the lives of millions (?) he gets a heartfelt 'atta boy' from Riker.

I totally would have been that grumpy guy looking sideways at this 15 year old telling me what to do. What do you know kid? I have busted my ass going through starfleet academy to work in this lab and play with space rocks .... Oh sure, you saved the enterprise 10 times last season but what have you done for us lately Wesley?

I enjoyed the prime direction conflict throughout the episode. They ended up going a bit limp on the end with the memory wipe solution. I like actual consequences but I guess the entire enterprise crew can feel just dandy about the quality job they did on this one ---- this is a flag ship alpha crew after all.

Unstable planet and that pesky prime directive

[bkoganbing · 8/10 · 21 March 2019]

This TNG story is known for Data showing the most humanity of all on the Enterprise and for Nikki Cox's wonderful performance as Sarjenka an alien child who Data begins a kind of pen pal correspondence.

The Enterprise is heading for a system where their surveys show that the planet is undergoing severe seismic changes that could destroy it. On that same planet Data answered Nikki Cox's transmissions into unknown space and they begin a pen pal type relationship.

The Prime Directive comes into play and the key scene in this episode are the TNG regulars sitting around in Patrick Stewart's conference room. Note here that it is the women Diana Muldaur and Marina Sirtis who support Data. But it is the android who Brent Spiner plays who shows the real concern. Just a few episodes before StarFleet was considering disassembling him for study and Patrick Stewart had to prove his humanity.

TNG fans and others you really have to see this one.

"Is anybody out there?"

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 9 November 2023]

Heading into the Selcundi Drema Sector, the crew of the Enterprise notes that planets in the system are tearing themselves apart and turning into asteroid belts. With an eye to studying the phenomenon, Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) puts Ensign Wesley Crusher in charge of his first team assignment conducting a planetary mineral survey. The story follows Wesley's insecurities in dealing with older and more experienced crewmates, getting valuable advice from Dr. Pulaski (Diana Muldaur) and Commander Riker (Jonathan Frakes) along the way. At the same time, Lieutenant Commander Data (Brent Spiner) comes in contact with a young girl's voice, weakly heard through the static and noise of planet Drema IV. Realizing that she and her parents are in jeopardy because of the planet's instability, she is asking for help and relies on Data to come to her aid. At this point, the episode becomes one of those Prime Directive stories which calls for non-intervention on the part of the Enterprise. Captain Picard holds fast until hearing the young girl's plaintive voice asking for help.

Aside from the fact that if things went haywire, Data could have been charged with kidnapping young Sarjenka (Nikki Cox) when he had her beamed aboard the Enterprise with no approval or even discussion with her parents. All for a good cause because the scriptwriters figured out an end game for a thoughtful resolution. Discovering a way to stabilize the planet (again in violation of the Prime Directive), the Enterprise causes a reaction in its mineral core that halts the destructive activity tearing it apart. To solve the Sarjenka dilemma, Picard asks Dr. Pulaski to remove her memories of Data and the Enterprise. Returning the girl back to Drema IV, Data leaves behind an Elanian singer stone which Sarjenka found fascinating. It made me wonder what the girl would think when she woke up from her mind wipe.

What I really liked about the conclusion of this story was the conversation Picard had with Data. Remarking on Data's resolve in helping the young girl and how the experience affected him, Picard spoke about remembrance and regrets, and how both afforded his android officer a closer insight to humanity, a concept Data had been trying to understand since the beginning of the series.

Why is the Prime Directive so bad?

[fmbr-1 · 5/10 · 8 January 2021]

I'm confused, does the Prime Directive prevent Star Fleet from preventing natural disasters on planets? Even if this will be completely unknown and cause no change to the culture, except to, you know, save it from extinction?

Picard mentions all sorts of natural disasters and everyone is in agreement that they should act, but then when he gets to war, they are, understandable, more reticent. That is because natural disasters are not at all under control of the culture - but war is.

The Prime Directive is there to protect cultures from advanced knowledge and technology, but it shouldn't be a lead weight tied to a culture so that it dies or suffers.

Star Fleet is starting to look like fair-weather friends. Willing to help societies that don't really need it but refusing to help those with a real need.

Sarjenka

[gritfrombray-1 · 10/10 · 1 July 2007]

This story centres around Wesley being given command responsibilities. He nervously accepts the task and encounters conflicts from the onset which he handles quite well. Data is monitoring the planet's radio waves and picks up a lonely transmission from a young girl who is frightened by the volcanic activity on the planet, the very phenomena Wesley and his research team are studying. Data contacts Picard who orders all contact to cease. We once again see the Prime Directive coming into play. Wesley suggests a procedure to his older intimidating team members and is dissuaded by their lack of enthusiasm. In a brilliant scene, he consults Riker and asks what to do. Riker gives him a needed wake up call and Wesley braces himself and orders Ensign Davies to proceed. Much to Wesley's surprise, Davies replies 'you got it!'. Wesley's vigilance identifies the problem and then Data's friend, Sarjenka gives a heartbreaking plea for help and the Prime Directive is put aside and the planet is saved. Brilliant. Sarjenka was played by the lovely pin up girl Nikki Cox... Wow

Everyone Turns Out To Be Human

[anarchistica · 7/10 · 26 March 2020]

In this episode a grown man (well, technically a built one) befriends a young girl without her parents knowing about it. He lies about who he is, visits her bedroom while her parents aren't around, kidnaps her and erases her memory.

Wait... what?!

Yeah, so this episode comes across as really really wrong to people living in the Internet age. And honestly, it was pretty disturbing even before that. The storyline itself is quite good and shows how messed up the Prime Directive is. Basically TNG is making excuses for the way the US conducts foreign policy. I'm pretty sure Picard would even let the Holocaust happen because of this dumb rule.

The other storyline is another "Wesley comes of age" plot. It isn't bad, though it does drag the episode down a bit. What is nice is that it shows Wesley to be insecure. Long gone are the days of Wunderkind Wesley. He turns out to be human after all. And so do Data, Pulaski and even Picard.

Data Makes a Friend

[Samuel-Shovel · 5/10 · 8 August 2019]

In "Pen Pals" the Enterprise explores a new sector and finds a group of planets that were reported to be thriving now all diving. A geological team headed by Wesley is tasked with figuring out why. Wes struggles with the responsibility and being in charge of older people. Data befriends a young girl via the radio but doesn't tell anyone about it for weeks. Her planet is dying and he tells Picard they should intervene, Prime Directive be damned! The team has a philosophical discussion about what to do and decide to save the planet without telling the inhabitants.

Data beams down to rescue the girl and ends up having to bring her aboard the Enterprise. The crew figures out a way to save her home planet but Picard says, for the girl's sake, they must wipe her brain with any memory of Data. Data has to say goodbye to his friend and returns her home, leaving her with a token of their brief friendship she will never remember.

I didn't really have a fun time with this episode. Wes's issues with being a manager plays out like a corporate training video and the crew's moral hand-wringing over the Prime Directive is akin to a Philosophy 101 class. In the end they don't even follow it. If they have the capability to wipe memories like MIB anytime they intervene in a society, why don't they do it more often?

While not a disaster, this episode did bore me a bit. Probably the most exciting but is when Data's on the planet's surface. I also like when Wes shows up and ruins the date Riker seems to be on. Besides that though, there's not a lot here.

Most underrated episode ever

[lloyd-hinshelwood · 10/10 · 16 April 2020]

The best Star Trek Episode ever. Has all the elements that make this the best season of trek moral dilemmas politics.

Data's first Girlfriend

[XweAponX · 10/10 · 10 September 2013]

And I don't mean that little fiasco he had with Michele Scarabelli. I have a lot to say about that, but not here.

This episode is book-ended in the Season 7 episode "Thine Own Self", which is similar in a lot of Ways. Both Wesley in this episode and Troi in the latter are exploring the upper limits of Authority: Both are exploring the Ensigns of Command.

The Enterprise enters the Selcundi-Drama sector, which has Planets like Bruce Willis: they "Live fast and Die Hard" - Riker tells Worf "This is Geology, not Malevolence" and Picard calls for his usual Conference before assigning Wesley Crusher his first Command task in finding out why these planets turn into Asteroid belts for no reason.

But one of these doomed planets has an intelligent humanoid life-form, and Data starts talking to what amounts to a little girl playing with a Shortwave Radio Set.

But the Planet does not have Warp Drive nor does it know about life outside of it's degenerating sphere. As Picard, says, "Oops!"

The next planet due to be destroyed is Drama IV, the planet of Data's little girl friend (Sarjenka - Nikki Cox). Will the Prime Directive be ignored? Picard decides that if the reason why these planets blow up is discovered, and a solution is forthcoming, Drama IV can be spared.

Which lays a lot of responsibility on Wesley's young shoulders. And he had already saved the Enterprise from being destroyed at least twice in Season 1. Can he, and SHOULD he do it again here?

I say YES. This shows Wesley as he should have been in Season 1 - Not just a snotty know-it-all kid, but a gifted kid that when given the proper tools, Instruction from the best Officers in Starfleet and a team of planetary specialists under his command, can SPEARHEAD a group of people whose working together can solve this conundrum and find a working solution. This shows that Wesley CAN believably save the day, when put into the position where he can question his own ideas of how to go about it. And to stand up to older crew-members who have a lot of experience, believing in himself and that his order for a certain difficult test was the right decision.

So because Wesley stood up for himself, the people of Drama IV did not have to become a new asteroid Belt.

There is also a reference to the Anne Mccaffrey "Crystal Singer" books- Sarjenka picks up a singing rock in Sickbay and is told by Dr Polaski that it is an Alanan Singer-Stone, and in the books the Singers basically sing the stones out of the ground.

In reference to Season 7 "Thine Own Self", Data also saves a little girl and her immediate civilization - Only in that case, his memory gets wiped rather than the little girl's memory, as Dr Polaski does to Sarjenka here.

I just watched this again, for maybe the 20th time. This really is one of the best second season next generation episodes, and we know that the show was still having problems with "writers-go-round" (see "chaos on the bridge", A recent film by William Shatner that describes the musical writing department of next generations first two seasons) -But this episode marked the spot where some genuine quality entered the series. Of course the story was written by Hannah Louise Shearer, and the telaplay by Melinda M. Snodgrass, who I believe had some history writing Star Trek novels.

Look for Nick Cascone and Ann Gillespie before they had parts in deep space nine, Ann had become one of Dr. Bashir's assistants, Nick became a Trill Symbiont-Herder.

A Senior Trekker writes................

[celineduchain · 5/10 · 3 January 2022]

The Second Season of Star Trek the Next Generation has often been downplayed due to multiple production and writing staff problems, and several major cast changes. Although of mixed quality, it does contain some outstanding and brilliant episodes. Senior Trekker is extremely grateful to all those people who worked so hard under difficult circumstances to keep it on our screens.

Wesley's leadership test is a well-realised segment about the challenges faced by an inexperienced young officer leading an away team for the first time. He doubts himself when challenged by an older team member (and just about everyone on the Enterprise is older than Wesley) but sticks to his original plan and makes a success of it. Considering how much Will Wheaton's character was disliked by now (apparently some viewers competed to think up the worst possible end he could come to), it is quite a satisfactory attempt to make him more relatable.

Data, on the other hand, REALLY screws the pooch. He falls for the cute kid's "only you can help me" line, breaks the Prime Directive and endangers the ship all because it felt like a good idea at the time. Captain Picard's decision not to discipline him (or better still disassemble him) is totally inadequately explained. Senior Trekker would like to have been a fly on the wall in the writers' room when this idea was mooted.

(Senior Trekker scores every episode with a 5)

Literally mind erased!

[steveclute · 8/10 · 3 June 2023]

Literally mind erased a child to protect a child and a civilization and the crew! Holy nuts! Did not go as I expected throughout the episode! What did they put in the logs? Supposed to let planet explode, found a solution, civilization saved, but they never saw the four photon torpedoes launched and wouldn't have any lore about that saving them?? Good episode! I guess I need another 215 characters of comments so I'm going to say good character development of data also, showed compassion, caring, and damn the prime directive! You go data! Keep growing and becoming human! Q episode next, trying to hit the character requirement needed. Boom, I'm there, finally!