The Last Outpost (17 Oct. 1987)

The Enterprise encounters a race known as the Ferengi, a race believed to be more pirates, than traders. But, in the course of pursuit, all power is lost in the ship, just as the alien ship... See full summary »

Director:

Richard A. Colla

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (creator), Herbert Wright (teleplay),

Stars:

Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton

Cast

Episode cast overview:
Patrick Stewart	...	Captain Jean-Luc Picard
Jonathan Frakes	...	Commander William T. Riker
LeVar Burton	...	Lieutenant Geordi La Forge
Denise Crosby	...	Lieutenant Tasha Yar
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)
Armin Shimerman	...	Letek
Jake Dengel	...	Mordoc
Tracey Walter	...	Kayron
Darryl Henriques	...	Portal
Mike Gomez	...	Daimon Tarr

Storyline

The Enterprise encounters a race known as the Ferengi, a race believed to be more pirates, than traders. But, in the course of pursuit, all power is lost in the ship, just as the alien ship comes to bear. But surprising results await upon contacting the other ship.

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Plot Keywords:

24th century | speaking klingon

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Sci-Fi

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Details

Release Date:

17 October 1987 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Television

Technical Specs

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The music track that plays in the background when Captain Picard answers Data's question about death is "Gynopedie No. 1" composed by Erik Satie.

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Goofs

When Doctor Crusher says that they "...won't have to worry past 70 below...", Picard replies that "It feels like that now." One would expect that if it feels that cold, their breath would be visible.

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Quotes

Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Sometimes, Riker, the best way to fight is not to be there.
Commander William T. Riker: Yes, sir. "He will triumph who knows when to fight, and when not to fight."
[citing Sun Tzu]

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Connections

Edited into Star Trek: The Next Generation: Shades of Gray (1989)

User Reviews

My review of TNG's "The Last Outpost"

In this episode, the crew of the Enterprise-D is introduced to the Ferengi, a feral-capitalist race that values commerce and trade above all else. And they are quite an aggressive race of aliens, with their super-strength (inspite of the their dimunitive size), large ears for better hearing (at least, better than humans), sharp teeth, and violent whips that they lash out at anyone that gets in their way.

For some reason, the Enterprise-D and a Ferengi Marauder are pulled together to a nearby planet and a location of a long abandoned outpost of an ancient civilization called the Tkon Empire. While the human crew members (Riker, Data, Tasha, Geordi, and Worf) try to find a solution to their quagmire using benevolent means, the Ferengi attempt to use subversive methods, deception, violence, and sneaky outright lies to gain an upperhand during their same predicament.

The Ferengi portrayed here are quite an aggressive, violent race. They are formidable, and a race of aliens not easily to be messed with. I also liked the fact that this episode employed a few humorous scenes, most notably Data with his Chinese finger-cuffs. The use of a holographic projecting in the ready room to study the Tkon Empire was quite a treat to the viewers, too. This was quite a tense, mysterious, and action-packed episode, but which ultimately proved that using peaceful benevolent methods was the way to go in resolving differences rather than using overtly violent means.