With the Enterprise docked and receiving repairs at McKinley Station following the events of 'The Best of Both Worlds', members of the officer crew have time for much needed rest and recuperation. Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) returns to his family home in the small village of Labarre, France, while Lieutenant Worf (Michael Dorn) awaits the arrival of his adoptive human parents aboard ship. Dr. Crusher (Gates McFadden) finds a holographic message she had almost forgotten about, left by her husband for their son Wesley when he was just ten weeks old.
The Captain finds that his estranged older brother Robert (Jeremy Kemp) is still somewhat antagonistic toward him for leaving the family vineyard to go off to fulfill his dream of exploring in space. At a certain point they come to blows, and almost as quickly dissolve in fits of laughter over how foolish they have been toward each other. For Picard though, there was a darker moment when he admonished himself for an inability to resist the influence of The Borg when he was taken captive aboard their ship and transformed into Locutus (See 'Best of Both Worlds, Part 1 and 2'). After an inner struggle, Picard determined that he was not willing to remain behind on Earth to head up the Atlantis Project, a complex undertaking to raise the ocean floor proposed by a longtime friend.
Though initially embarrassed by his parents, Worf managed to successfully reconnect with them over the course of their stay, while Wesley encountered the holographic image of his father with some trepidation. He needn't have worried, as the heartfelt message left by Jack Crusher (Doug Wert) helped him understand what a good father he might have been had he survived into Wesley's adulthood. Of all the scenarios, the one with Wesley was perhaps the most emotional as it spoke to a father's love for a son he never got to really know.
The Captain finds that his estranged older brother Robert (Jeremy Kemp) is still somewhat antagonistic toward him for leaving the family vineyard to go off to fulfill his dream of exploring in space. At a certain point they come to blows, and almost as quickly dissolve in fits of laughter over how foolish they have been toward each other. For Picard though, there was a darker moment when he admonished himself for an inability to resist the influence of The Borg when he was taken captive aboard their ship and transformed into Locutus (See 'Best of Both Worlds, Part 1 and 2'). After an inner struggle, Picard determined that he was not willing to remain behind on Earth to head up the Atlantis Project, a complex undertaking to raise the ocean floor proposed by a longtime friend.
Though initially embarrassed by his parents, Worf managed to successfully reconnect with them over the course of their stay, while Wesley encountered the holographic image of his father with some trepidation. He needn't have worried, as the heartfelt message left by Jack Crusher (Doug Wert) helped him understand what a good father he might have been had he survived into Wesley's adulthood. Of all the scenarios, the one with Wesley was perhaps the most emotional as it spoke to a father's love for a son he never got to really know.