"Star Trek: The Next Generation"
Conspiracy (1988)

Director:

Cliff Bole

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (creator)
Tracy Tormé (teleplay)

TV Series:

"Star Trek: The Next Generation" (1987)

Original Air Date:

7 May 1988 (Season 1, Episode 24)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi

Plot:

After diverting to a secret meeting with an old friend and some of Starfleet's finest commanders, Picard finds the Horatio blown to bits just hours after the meeting and he returns the Enterprise to Earth looking for answers. |

Plot Keywords:

Boothsby | Ferengi | Warp Core | Holodeck | Number One

Cast

Patrick Stewart	...	Captain Jean-Luc Picard
Jonathan Frakes	...	Commander William T. Riker
LeVar Burton	...	Lieutenant Geordi La Forge
Denise Crosby	...	Lieutenant Tasha Yar (credit only)
Michael Dorn	...	Lieutenant Worf
Gates McFadden	...	Doctor Beverly Crusher
Marina Sirtis	...	Counselor Deanna Troi
Brent Spiner	...	Lt. Commander Data
Wil Wheaton	...	Wesley Crusher (credit only)
Henry Darrow	...	Admiral Savar
Ward Costello	...	Admiral Gregory Quinn
Robert Schenkkan	...	Lt. Cmdr. Dexter Remmick
Ray Reinhardt	...	Admiral Aaron
Jonathan Farwell	...	Captain Walker Keel
Michael Berryman	...	Captain Rixx

Trivia:

The original version of this episode made no mention of alien parasites; the conspiracy in question was a military coup within Starfleet. Gene Roddenberry bitterly opposed this, saying that Starfleet would never do such a thing, and the alien angle was introduced.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: As Worf is thrown against the wall in the Admiral's quarters the replicator shakes for a moment revealing the fact that it's a prop.

Quotes:

Lt. Cmdr. Dexter Remmick: You don't understand... We mean you no harm.
[stands up, his neck pulsing with alien parasites]
Lt. Cmdr. Dexter Remmick: We seek peaceful coexistence!
[Riker and Picard open fire, blasting Remmick and the creatures to bits]

Wish that there had been a sequel

"Conspiracy" ranks as one of the most disgusting installments in episode television history. The story line involves an infiltration of Star Fleet by "intelligences" bent on the destruction of the Federation. A longtime friend of Beverly Crusher visits the Enterprise and brings with him a sinister secret, revealed in a stunning confrontation with Worf.

As the conspiracy widens, Capt. Picard and Ryker return to Earth and come face-to-face with the "mother" of the conspiracy, setting the stage for one of the most dramatic and jaw-dropping scenes in Trek history.

'It's too bad that the producers didn't decide to continue with a follow-up episode that would tie up some of the loose ends from this memorable show.