Star Trek: The Next Generation (TV Series) Rascals (1992) User Reviews

Great idea for an episode, but don't think about it too hard.

[doodler · 7/10 · 11 December 2014]

My rating of 7 is for the interesting premise of this episode. I imagine writers sitting around a room and suddenly someone says "Hey, how about an episode where some of the characters become children. Star Trek Babies"!

And with that idea the episode provided many great laughs, plus a few tidbits of the character's history. The mini Guinan and Ro nailed their older selves perfectly. Mini Picard less so and mini Keiko was not really believable.

The reason I didn't rate this higher was a number of eye-rolling moments. The Enterprise's shield power is all over the place in various episodes, but in this one it was particularly weak. It took only a couple of Klingon ship phaser strikes to knock it out? Really?

And then there was Worf, missing a Ferengi with his phaser at a distance of only 15 feet or so? Come on. He should have been demoted for that embarrassment.

And of course, now they know how to use the transporters to change anyone's age. Immortality for everyone! Oh, wait, I guess that usage is quickly forgotten.

Their younger selves

[bkoganbing · 7/10 · 15 November 2017]

This has to be one of the silliest episodes in the entire Star Trek franchise history yet it probably is one of the most engaging.

Patrick Stewart, Rosalind Chao, Michelle Forbes, and Whoopi Goldberg while returning to the Enterprise in a shuttle craft encounter an energy storm and return to the Enterprise as they were when they were just about hitting puberty. Gates McFadden thinks with a little work, some genetic readjustment they can be restored. If that was possible Dr. Crusher would get a Universal Noble Prize and be honored more than the discoverer of Viagra.

When some Ferengi however take over the Enterprise it's these younger selves who save the day. It's all quite amusing.

If this is the secret of eternal youth. I'm not sure why these four want to be adults again. They get a chance to do something every one of us dream about, a lifetime do over.

It's that universal lament that I've said thousands of times, "if I knew then what I know now". These kids really do.

Turn off your brain and you'll enjoy this one...

[planktonrules · 7/10 · 27 November 2014]

The plot for "Rascals" is kind of dumb, I'll admit. But it is an enjoyable episode of "Star Trek: The Next Generation". It's the sort of thing that you can easily enjoy, though you really need to avoid thinking--lest the silliness of the plot will give you a headache!

Through a transport malfunction, the Captain, Ro and Guinan are all transported back to the ship...as children! Why this happened is important but how to get them back as they were--that's a serious problem. But, the problem turns out to be a blessing when the ship it taken by rogue Ferengi. How? See the show.

Apparently the person who wrote the show also thought this was a dumb idea for a show. But, he did manage to make the most of it and the show has some cute moments. Well worth seeing but immensely silly and inconsequential.

To be young again.

[russem31 · 29 April 2006]

ST:TNG:133 - "Rascals" (Stardate: 46235.7) - this is the 7th episode of the 6th season of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

While en route back back from visiting a planet, a shuttlecraft carrying Picard, Ro, Guinan, and Keiko O'Brien are caught in an energy field and is about to explode. Chief O'Brien (in his last real-time performance on TNG before transferring to DS9) is able to transport them back to the Enterprise after some difficulty, but now they are children! Though their minds remain intact, they have the bodies of 12 year olds. Soon, they are relieved of duty until a cure can be found. When Dr. Crusher does find one, before she can implement, 2 Klingon warships attack the Enterprise and at the same time Ferengis materialize onboard and seize the ship! Now it's up to the "children" to find a way to free the Enterprise!

Trivia note: the "kids" (who do a great job acting like their adult counterparts) include David Birkin as the young Picard (he also played Picard's nephew in "Family"). Guinan states her father is 700 years old. Hana Hatae begins her role as Molly, the daughter of Miles and Keiko O'Brien (she would reprise her role throughout Deep Space Nine).

Also, this episode is directed by Adam Nimoy, the son of Leonard Nimoy (aka, Spock).

Rewatching after several years.

[CzyboutFlix · 7/10 · 2 November 2021]

Thanks No. 1! Fun watch BUT now critical thinking kicking in after a 3rd go round finds me wondering how two Klingon warbirds crewed by Farengi! WTF!? Enterprise having trouble breaking orbit and Warf with a fully charged phaser array and he couldn't disable nor destroy one of the warbirds. Anyway...save by the children...er, minors was fun to watch.

A Really Fun Episode!

[Hitchcoc · 9/10 · 25 September 2014]

PIcard, Ro, Guinen, and Keiko are accidentally filtered through an ion cloud. When they are transported on board they have returned to their childhood body, but with all their adult intelligences intact. This is a puzzle for sure, but when a couple Klingon vessels attack and ultimately board the ship, they have bigger troubles. As it turns out, it is not the Klingons; it is a group of Ferengi rogues who have commandeered the old Klingon vessels and now have moved on to the Enterprise, the purpose to sell it to the Romulans. The regular crew is transported to a planet that was to be explored and the children are left behind, among them the four mini-adults. Of course, the plot takes an expected route when the Ferengi begin to be too comfortable on the ship, full of themselves as usual. It allows the children (who are in grave danger) to begin a plot that feeds off the stupidity of the Ferengi. This is one of those just plain fun episodes that isn't to be taken too seriously, but there is still an element of danger.

Squeakers in space.

[thevacinstaller · 6/10 · 17 April 2021]

This episode gets elevated to a 6 out of 10 for the wonderfully awkward scene between Miles and squeaker Keiko. I am also giving it a few points for the introduction of the most adorable child actress in trek history ---- Molly.

The premise sounds like a winner but it just didn't work for me. Maybe it's because I am a grumpy old man and I tend to not like child actors ----- although I do enjoy Jake Sisko/Naomi Wildman and Molly.

I did get a few laughs ---- Captain Picard pushing his hands through his glorious thick mane was hilarious and the same with Riker's misdirection on the Ferengi.

I do ponder how much gold pressed latinum the Ferengi could get for the enterprise D?

I wanted to throw a sock at the tv when squeaker Guinan and Ro started jumping on the bed but I just covered my eyes until it was over instead --- and I am a big Guinan and Ro fan!

I am the fun police and there will be no fun aboard the enterprise today.

Miles O'Brien is given a Middle Name.

[XweAponX · 10/10 · 13 September 2013]

Premise: Four Next Generation characters are reverted to Children, but keep their adult memories.

Everyone who watches this episode says "I Wish". Most of us would want to stay that way, I know I would.

But there is always one person who will be a Party-Pooper: Here, it is Ro Laren. In Sharp Contrast to Guinan who is having the time of her 500- year plus life. But Ro has a point. Most of us when remembering Childhood don't have fond memories of it, because we were short, awkward, and bumbled around until we were 17 or so. Ro can't be blamed much, because her Childhood included starvation, torture, terrorism, and finally escape from an internment camp much like Velos II. But as far as Guinan is concerned, she knows how to make any situation into a party, which she does here and drags Ro right along with her.

David Birkin makes another appearance on Trek, originally he was Picard's nephew Rene in the 4th Season 2nd episode "Family". This is ideal, as there would be a family resemblance- This gives the episode a lot of clout, especially when dealing with Picard.

As far as Keiko, Ro and Guinan, Caroline Junko King from "3 Ninjas Kick Back" looks a lot like a younger Rosalind Chao (Despite really being Japanese). Megan Parlen from "Hang Time" does a very convincing Mini-Ro, but the prize goes to Isis Jones as Young Guinan- and in fact the only other film or Television credit she has is for playing a younger version of Whoopi Goldberg in "Sister Act 2".

It wasn't enough just to find kids that looked like Picard, Keiko, Ro and Guinan - The physical attributes were not enough to make us believe that these were all younger versions of our principles victims of the week's conundrum - It was the way these kids actually became our four "Conundrumites" down to the last earring of Ro's and Facepalm of Picard's.

Megan and Isis when having their little arguments are a lot like Whoopi and Michelle when they first met in Ten Forward. Isis is intrusive and gets right into Ro's business- Just like Guinan did to Ro in her debut episode.

Caroline and Colm are still "Mr and Mrs O'Brien" and Caroline's every movement is what Keiko would do, down to the pulling of Colm's ear.

And David Birkin's Picard is nothing else but perfect, especially in talking to his Number One "Dad" Riker.

It was all just so much fun- if anything, Trek is supposed to be fun as well as whatever else it is- and here, it is.

As far as the other aspect of this episode goes: The Enterprise D could easily vaporize two old Klingon Jalopies. And of course, the D was taken by surprise. We can suspend disbelief by just assuming these Ferengi were Lucky Shots. Ultimately, they were merely Ferengi and outsmarted themselves. Mike Gomez is Daimon Lurin, who is "In Business for Himself" and not part of the Ferengi Alliance. I never thought actual members of the Ferengi Alliance would be as stupid as he was, even though they had been "Foolish" a number of times. But here they are bumbling, inept fools. Tracey Walter re-appears again as a Ferengi, this time "Berik", and one other, "Morta" played by Michael Snyder.

This episode is a clear revelation of what happens when The Three Stooges try to take over a Galaxy Class Starship - They get their asses handed to them on platters by Kids. But that is par for the course, Ferengi always kick themselves in whatever glands they use when they start thinking of Females...

And Profit.

Edit: this is in reference to somebody's review who made a comment that "their uniforms shrunk"- well, their uniforms did not shrink, when the "children" are first beamed onto the transporter pad, you can see that their clothing is several times too large. In fact there was a scene in Picard's quarters where he is fitting himself into a newly tailored jacket, made for a smaller version of himself. Their clothing did not magically shrink when they got caught in the energy field, they were issued new uniforms. Also: Ensign Ro talks about being back at her station in her "own uniform", indicating that she is wearing a new uniform.

Riker command incompetence; O'Brien squirms; Ro and Guinan shine; Crusher cures death

[snarky-trek-reviews · 7/10 · 29 July 2017]

The child actors are great with young Ro and Guinan as obvious stand outs. Several delightfully awkward moments between O'Brien and young Kieko as well as Riker and young Picard. Speaking of Riker, it seems his inability to fight off Klingon Birds of Prey while in charge of a Galaxy Class star ship precedes Generations. Worf needs target practice. In fact, the enterprise crew ought to be court marshaled for allowing the Ferngi to gain control of the ship so easily. Crusher devises a way to use the transporter to change people's age, effectively ending the problems of old age and death.

If only we could!

[emswan2004 · 10/10 · 11 September 2010]

It's every adults dream, to be his/her young self again but with the knowledge gained as adults e.g.- "If I knew then what I know now...". Very funny, interlaced with real drama.

Wonderful episode, one of my favorites, with excellent performances by the young actors playing the adult stars characters in 12 yr old bodies. One could actually believe them to be their adult counterparts.

Star Trek TNG is my favorite show of the series, followed by Voyager. With a very elegant ship and excellent actors, TNG also quickly did away with the mini-skirt costumes, thank goodness, paving the way to more respect for the women of the future and for Voyager to break ground being the first to have several female characters in the major roles of captain, engineer and science officer. A great role model show for developing young women today.

Getting back to this episode, I found it one of the series most entertaining.

Reasonably good but could have been better

[snoozejonc · 6/10 · 13 November 2021]

Captain Picard, Ensign Ro, Guinan, and Keiko O'Brien are physically transformed into children due to a transporter accident.

This had a lot of potential to be a great episode. Unfortunately there were some creative decisions that do not quite work for me, but overall it is not bad.

The plot involves a great concept that has so much potential entertainment, and in some scenes it delivers, but unfortunately it shifts direction when the Ferengi arrive and all the possible humour and awkwardness is substituted for a silly Enterprise takeover.

It starts off superb for me, with scenes like young Keiko and her family and young Picard on the bridge being suitably awkward and compelling. The different outlook on childhood between Guinan and Ro Laren is also a great idea that starts and finishes very strongly, but the less said about the 'you were a jumper' scene the better.

The scenes involving the Ferengi are ill conceived and as one other reviewer already stated you have to switch off your brain to appreciate them. They will likely irritate those who take Trek too seriously, but fortunately I do not. However, I think it would have been so much better if they had just focussed on more awkward scenes of interaction with the central characters going about their normal lives in the twelve year old bodies.

The child actors do a decent job with the material they have, particularly David Birkin and Megan Parlen. I like how all four portray their characters' body language perfectly. Also, little touches like young Picard running a hand through his hair is cool. Jonathan Frakes has a pretty decent episode, especially playing all the technobabble for laughs.

I think it comes down to how funny you find the overall episode to judge its success. It has some strong moments but I think it missed an opportunity be excellent.

Little men & women

[gritfrombray-1 · 10/10 · 22 June 2007]

When the shuttle craft carrying Captain Picard, Guinan, Ensign Ro Laren and Keiko O'Brien is enveloped by an energy field the Enterprise beams them off and they materialize as 12 year old children but only in body as their minds are not affected. Watching the crew's reaction to Picard in particular was quite funny, especially his first scene on the bridge. Keiko's exasperation with her husband, Miles is a scream as well. Poor guy is uncomfortable sitting with a twelve year old girl! The younger Keiko emulates Rosalind Chao spot on though. Isis Jones pulls off one hell of a performance as the 'small' Guinan and takes full advantage of being 12! Megan Parlen as the younger Ensign Ro even pulls off one of her turns on one heel and walks away! The Ferengi later attack in two Klingon ships and the Enterprise is taken over and they must work together to win it back. Picard throws a tantrum in front of a Ferengi and gets to see his 'Dad', Commander Riker who releases the computer, and they eventually regain the ship. When Doctor Crusher restores the afflicted to normal, Picard's first action is to put his hand on his head and feel for the head of hair he has just lost, again! Trivia fans should know the younger Picard was played expertly by David Tristan Birkin who had earlier played Jean Luc's nephew Rene in 'Family, and Isis Jones reprized her role as a younger Whoopi Goldberg having previously played her in the box office smash 'Ghost'.

Great premise for both serious commentary about age and childhood fun BUT...

[wwcanoer-tech · 7/10 · 5 February 2022]

It was a great premise that's let down but the writing.

It was hilarious to see the four crew appear on the transporter pad as children but this scene is both inconsistent and illogical. As Sci-Fi viewers, we'll readily accept that a transporter malfunction can turn us into children but the changes need to be consistent. It would have been so simple to place the child actors in the adult costumes but instead they made inconsistent costumes. Keiko and Guinan's and Picard's only had slightly long sleeves and pants whereas Ro's were way oversized. There's no reason for that incongruence, so many viewers will be annoyed.

In contrast, many viewers know that Picard has an artificial heart and will recognize that it would be too big for a child but most will readily ignore that for the sake of a good story.

The writers could have had all oversized clothes and made a joke of it, and could even have young Picard to have chest pains or trouble taking a full breath because of his oversized heat.

There was no reason to clutter the opening scene with the distress call. It didn't add anything. It would be more interesting if that call came in just before or while young Picard was first visiting the bridge and the confusion as to whether Riker or Picard was in charge of responding.

It was odd that young Picard stepped to each of the stations on the bridge to give his orders. I haven't seen Picard do that before. I didn't feel that the actor played a young Picard very convincingly but that's certainly a difficult task for a teen.

We all laugh at how easy it is to take over the Enterprise and accept that it's necessary for interesting plots, but, again, make it plausible. For example, have the two Klingon ships both focused on hitting the shield generators, lose the aft shields and then have reports of people disappearing because they're being beamed down to the planet. Then, lose the forward shields, Data says "we're now losing many people from the saucer section ..." and then he's beamed away (ideally mid sentence), the Ferengi beam onto the bridge, Warf raises his phaser and is beamed away before he can shoot. That would make far more sense than capable warrior Warf missing a 5 meter shot! It would flow.

It annoyed me that young Picard retained his 4 pips because as soon as he realized what was happening he should have removed them, so that the Ferengi didn't realize his importance. In fact, he and Ro shouldn't even have their uniforms once relieved of duty.

It's disappointing that we didn't see Ro discover childhood and contemplate doing it again so that she could experience the things that she missed during her childhood. Rather than the contrived jumping on the bed with Guinan, she could have found joy playing with the children, doing something that she never had the chance to do when she was growing up during a civil war. I suppose that we did get a moment of that with the crayons at the end but would have been more profound if introduced earlier. For example, if a child had asked her to draw and she initially said "no", but then did draw with the child, have fun, and then reprise that at the end as a discovery of the joy that she missed.

If they were in civilian clothes, then the other children would not know who they are and invite them into their world. This could happen at a chance encounter in the hallway when a child says "I haven't met you before, would you like to join me doing ..."

Mile's challenges relating to an apparent teenager Keiko was very good. There could have been much more exploration of the issues involved in a teen with an adult mind and experience.

I haven't watched the fan-made episodes of Start Trek but now perhaps I should go see how fans do it. I'm curious, if the fans were given the same premise as an existing episode, how would they do it differently?

It was a good episode, but it could have been more.

Maybe a different threat would've helped

[Mr-Fusion · 5/10 · 15 June 2017]

'Rascals' is the first TNG episode in a long time to . . . eh, it just doesn't do anything for me. It's clear that they were going for something light-hearted with a title like that, but it's the execution that's a problem. The science involved is flimsy (it's just there to explain the problem away) and even though the child actors are able, the absence of Patrick Stewart just saps this of any dramatic wright.

And then the Ferengi walk in, and things were already silly enough.

5/10

REVIEW 2022

[iamirwar · 7/10 · 24 September 2022]

Ro, Keiko, Guinan and the Captain are aboard the shuttlecraft Fermi having visited the fascinating planet Marlonia. Some sort of energy field envelopes the shuttle... beam them aboard the Enterprise, Mr O'Brien...

We've got KIDS?

This episode can only go one of two ways. It can be surprisingly great, or it can get lost in its own vacuum. Is it to be a light-hearted romp, or are we going to get serious?

Yeah, how did their uniforms shrink? Maybe we shouldn't take these things so seriously.

I always find it interesting that those inflicted by any virus onboard the ship, always remain confident that a cure will soon be found to reverse their current predicament.

As far as the story is concerned, we've hit the buffers a bit. Now that we've got over the shock of the rugrats, what do we do with them to make it an interesting story?

Surely, Guinan would have been better crawling through the tubes had she taken her big purple hat off.

I have to say, the young lad who plays the part of the Captain has portrayed him brilliantly and the finale was cute. This episode certainly was a lot of fun

This Episodes Clue: Rene (Answer's to all episode clues will appear in the reviews of season seven, episode 25: All Good Things, Part One.)

Ridiculous premise but a fun episode

[Hughmanity · 8/10 · 25 June 2020]

The Enterprise continues it's long standing reputation as having terribly lax security, and Worf his personal reputation for being the worst security chief ever. Once again he gets beaten to the punch (or phaser in this case), misses his shot and allows two puny Ferengi to take over the Bridge. Then a token crew of SIX Ferengi take over the entire Enteriprise ship of OVER A THOUSAND people.

Assuming that ridiculous premise, the rest of the episode is a fun romp of Picard, Ro and Guinan in kid bodies duping the Ferengi and getting the ship back. The kid actors do a great job of acting like their adult counterparts.

"We look like children, maybe it's time we started acting like children."

[classicsoncall · 7/10 · 17 March 2024]

The first thing that struck me with this episode's opening was how the away team had none of the usual suspects. It sounded like Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart), Ensign Ro Laren (Michelle Forbes), Guinan (Whoopi Goldberg), and Keiko O'Brien (Rosalind Chao) were returning from a holiday of sorts and not an actual mission, so I guess that's why the unusual cohort. With the shuttlecraft they were in experiencing danger, all were beamed back aboard the Enterprise, but a malfunction in the transporter created a molecular reversion field, and brought them all back as pre-teens! Fortunately, their adult memories remained intact, which would serve them in good stead when a band of rogue Ferengi attacked the Enterprise after hijacking a couple of Klingon warbirds. That didn't say a lot for either the Klingons who lost their ships, or the Enterprise for getting gobsmacked by some pesky Ferengi, but you have to go with that premise for the rest of the story. Which was pretty lively, with the youngster foursome using their technical smarts to retake the ship's computer system and beam the individual Ferengi back where they came from one by one. The best moments in the story occurred when the young Picard (David Birkin) sought out his 'dad', Commander Riker (Jonathan Frakes), and Riker using all that scientific gobbledy-gook to frustrate Ferengi Morta (Michael Snyder). In another episode, all that nonsense might have actually meant something. Eventually, with the transposition matric locked into the transporter system, Chief O'Brien was able to return all the adolescent crew back to normal, which in his case would have been a relief, as daughter Molly objected to her younger mother (Caroline Junko King) reading her a bedtime story!

Say, I wonder if the Ferengi sent away wound up as teenagers?

Super silly fun

[stevenjlowe82 · 9/10 · 4 June 2023]

This episode is hands down one of my all time favourite comedic episodes of TNG. It's just super silly fun from beginning to end and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I love it when shows that are somewhat more drama/adventure based lean into comedy and do it well. The silliest part of the episode for me believe it or not was not the adults becoming children but it was how easily the Ferengi managed to take over the Enterprise. It felt like there was only like 5 and we all know Data could have easily taken the 2 on the bridge. Of course though it made sense that then the Ferengi were so easily duped and sent packing.

The casting of the younger versions of Picard, Ro, Guinan and Keiko were mostly well done although I wasn't a particular fan of the young Picard, that accent was grating. The elephant in the room surrounding Miles & Keiko was actually well handled and that initial scene of them sitting uncomfortably next to each other and she holds his arm was awkwardly funny.

The whole episode was just silly but done well so bravo to the writers etc.

A younger captain!

[Tweekums · 8/10 · 30 July 2015]

As Capt. Picard, Lt. Ro, Guinan and Keiko O'Brien return to the Enterprise in a shuttle they enter an anomaly which threatens the craft; Chief O'Brien manages to beam them out but something goes wrong; they materialise as twelve year olds! Dr Crusher confirms that while their bodies have returned to a preadolescent state they are still mentally and emotionally there true ages. While Dr Crusher works to find a way to fix what happened those affected and those around them are having to deal with the changes; it is hard for those on the bridge to take orders from a child and Chief O'Brien is understandably disturbed to find himself married to a twelve year old! Just as the doctor thinks she has come up with a solution the Enterprise is attacked by two Klingon warships. The Enterprise is then boarded but not by Klingons; a group of Ferengi seize the ship with the intention of making a nice profit. Most of the adult crew are beamed down to the surface of a planet leaving just a handful of crewmembers and the children aboard. This does of course mean that Picard is still aboard to lead a plan to retake the ship in a way that takes advantage of the childlike appearance of himself and the other three who were on the shuttle with him.

I thought this was going to be an annoying child-centred episode but it turned out to be rather fun because the characters weren't emotionally and mentally immature; just physically. This led to plenty of amusing moments; Picard realising his voice was rather squeaky and his pretending to be Riker's son to trick the Ferengi were particular highlights. It isn't all played for laughs as we see Keiko having to deal with the fact that her daughter doesn't recognise her and the relationship with her husband will fundamentally change. There are also some nice scenes between Guinan and Ro as the former encourages the latter to stop sulking and enjoy her chance of a second childhood as her first hadn't been good. The fact that the Ferengi left the children aboard was of course rather convenient but lead to more good scenes and a nice resolution to the story. The young actors did a good job playing the adults trapped in young bodies; nicely capturing the characters they are playing. Overall a rather fun episode which proved to be better than I expected.

Fricking love this episode!

[MadokaTomoyo · 10/10 · 24 April 2021]

Funny, interesting, unique, and a good story to boot. Everything one looks for in a good episode, but I wish it was an hour longer! Easily my favorite.

Admittedly fun, but so silly

[gus-33688 · 4/10 · 19 June 2016]

Even though I give this episode a pretty sour rating, I still have to admit that I enjoy watching it. It has some good moments. Ferengi: "I'm not stupid, HUMAN". Rike: "No, of course not." Well, the funny is in the delivery.

I think what bothers me most about this episode though isn't even how silly it is that a transporter malfunction caused 4 people to materialize as adolescents (and where the hell did that "energy field" come from that caused it?) But the thing is, this is what everybody has dreamed of for centuries. A fountain of youth. They would be able to simple grow again into adults. Chief O'Brian has discovered immortality, and all they can do is fret as if their lives are over and look for a "cure" to this problem.

Troy does mention that this "could be considered a gift". Yeah, no kidding. It's not like they have a terminal disease. All they get is a replay of youth without losing any of the memory or skills they've acquired.

And that's maybe the most fun thing about this episode, is makes you imagine how you would react given the same opportunity. And I wouldn't react like they did. (Well, maybe Guinan)

So much fun!

[amylpuls · 9/10 · 16 August 2023]

One of my favorite episodes. So much fun. The kid actors did a superb job playing their adult counterparts. I love Star Trek for so many reasons, not the least of which is that it never takes itself too seriously and is not above a little comedy. Of course the handful of Ferengi would never be able to take the Enterprise so easily but that was necessary to set the plot in motion. Picard calling Riker "Dad" was just hilarious. I loved it when Picard touched his head after being "fixed" in the transporter by the always genius Dr. Beverly Crusher, to see if his lush thick younger hair was gone. Need more characters...

I guess Patrick Stewart Wanted the Week Off...

[Samuel-Shovel · 4/10 · 10 June 2020]

In "Rascals" a transporter accident leaves Guinen, Keiko, Ro, and Picard as 12 year olds in the midst of a Ferengi hostile takeover.

I didn't love this episode (as you can tell from my rating). Little kid Picard is really, really annoying; the rest of the child actors are better but the script just doesn't do it for me. Ferengis taking over a pair of Birds of Prey and somehow gaining control of the Enterprise? A foursome of tweens outmaneuvering them and getting it back? I just never bought into this suspect premise...

Aaaaaaaargh!!!

[3823bram · 2/10 · 18 August 2020]

What could have been a decent episode was ruined by two things.

1) The terrible acting of David Birkin.

2) The decision to use The Ferengi as agitators.

An absolute catastrophe.

A descent into silliness

[robert3750 · 3/10 · 27 August 2020]

The premise of adults reverting to children is appealing. What adult hasn't thought about re-experiencing childhood? Of course, the episode is fantasy, despite the efforts of the writers to explain the change with technobabble. What makes the episode annoying is the Feregeni subplot. We're supposed to believe that a mere handful of them can take total control of a 700 meter ship with over a thousand people on board? Ludicrous.