Q Who 

Q tries to prove that Picard needs him as part of their crew by hurling the Enterprise 7,000 light years away where they encounter the Borg for the first time.

Director:

Rob Bowman

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (created by), Maurice Hurley

Stars:

Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton

Cast

Episode complete credited cast:
Patrick Stewart	...	Capt. Jean-Luc Picard
Jonathan Frakes	...	Cmdr. William Riker
LeVar Burton	...	Lt. Geordi La Forge
Michael Dorn	...	Lt. Worf
Marina Sirtis	...	Counselor Deanna Troi
Brent Spiner	...	Lt. Cmdr. Data
Wil Wheaton	...	Wesley Crusher
John de Lancie	...	Q (as John deLancie)
Lycia Naff	...	Ensign Sonya Gomez
Colm Meaney	...	Chief Miles O'Brien
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Guinan

Storyline

Q pays the Enterprise another visit, much to Captain Picard's disapproval. He wants Q to keep his part of their earlier bargain and stay away. Q insists that Picard needs him on his side and to prove his point, hurls the Enterprise far into the galaxy. There, the Enterprise crew meet the Borg and their strange, cube-like space craft. The Borg are a race that is part biological and part machine that exists within a collective consciousness. They are also a formidable foe that can out power, out run and out fight the Enterprise. With their shields weakened, it's left to Picard to decide if they really do need Q's help.

---

Plot Keywords:

hot chocolate | bartender | shuttlecraft interior | returning character | cup of hot chocolate | 

---

Genres:

Action | Adventure | Mystery | Sci-Fi

---

Certificate:

TV-PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

The aliens who infiltrated Starfleet in Star Trek: The Next Generation: Conspiracy (1988) (as well as the starbases disappearing in the following episode Star Trek: The Next Generation: The Neutral Zone (1988)) were both originally to be part of the whole Borg storyline. However, once the writers and producers worked out what the Borg were, the tie to the aliens was dropped, though the disappearing starbases plot element was retained. This was revealed in the text commentary on the fan pick Borg DVD set.

---

Goofs

Picard requested to be taken to Deck 9, crew quarters on the Turbolift, yet his quarters are on Deck 8.

---

Quotes

Commander William T. Riker: [of the Borg] They're carving us up like a roast.

---

Crazy Credits

The episode's credits begin a full minute after the theme music.

---

Alternate Versions

To fit more commercial time, BBC America cuts bits and scenes from episodes. In their edit for this episode, the final conversation between Guinan and Picard while played chess is completely excised.

---

Connections

References Star Trek: The Next Generation: Hide And Q (1987)

---

Soundtracks

Star Trek: The Next Generation Main Title
Composed by Jerry Goldsmith and Alexander Courage

User Reviews

Q was right.

he may have been cocky, sarcastic, amusing etc. but he was right:they were not ready. But he also did us a hidden favor.The Borg were apparently coming anyway and now we know what we'd be up against, or at least know that they are out there. in my opinion it was more than a "kick in our complacency". this episode had at least one other interesting feature.

I found myself disagreeing with the protagonists. Picard said it was "not smugness not arrogance!", but that's what it seemed like to me. OK I'd seen the other Borg episodes before this one so I KNEW they weren't ready. I realize that I am giving a lower rating than my comment might indicate but there is some really dull and ultimately pointless stuff in the episode before Q shows up. it is unfortunate that the "dealings" were never explained. The ending is great! 3 of 5 stars. And what happened to the Borg not having a single leader.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

6 May 1989 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

46 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1