The Dauphin 

Ens. Wesley Crusher suffers from the pangs of first love when the Enterprise is tasked to transport a young woman, Salia, back to her home where she is to become the leader of her people. ... See full summary »

Director:

Rob Bowman

Writers:

Gene Roddenberry (created by), Scott Rubenstein

Stars:

Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
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. Commander Data
Wil Wheaton	...	Wesley Crusher
Diana Muldaur	...	Doctor Pulaski
Paddi Edwards	...	Anya
Jaime Hubbard	...	Salia (as Jamie Hubbard)
Whoopi Goldberg	...	Guinan
Colm Meaney	...	Chief Miles O'Brien
Peter Neptune	...	Aron
Mädchen Amick	...	Teenage Girl
Cindy Sorenson	...	Furry Animal (as Cindy Sorensen)

Storyline

Ens. Wesley Crusher suffers from the pangs of first love when the Enterprise is tasked to transport a young woman, Salia, back to her home where she is to become the leader of her people. Traveling with her is her guardian and teacher, Anya, who is more that just a bit overprotective. Wesley very much wants to be with her - and her likewise with him - but there are few opportunities and Anya continually interferes. Guinan and others provide him with advice. When Salia reveals her true self to him, he re-evaluates his feelings.

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Plot Keywords:

starship | u.s.s. enterprise ncc 1701 d | outer space | warp speed | male android | 

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Mystery | Sci-Fi

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Certificate:

TV-PG

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 February 1989 (USA)

Filming Locations:

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

Company Credits

Production Co:

Paramount Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

45 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Fans have somewhat derisively referred to this episode as "Wesley Reaches Puberty".

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Goofs

When Wesley takes Salia to the holodeck, the area around their feet decreases in size. This forces Salia to move closer to Wesley and put her arm around his waist. In the very next shot the same arm is now linked with Wesley's.

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Quotes

Anya: You'll be happy to see me leave.
Lieutenant Worf: No. You are a worthy opponent.
Anya: Thank you. At heart, we are very much alike.
Lieutenant Worf: Yes, we are.
Anya: Perhaps we shall fight again. On the same side?
Lieutenant Worf: It would be an honor.

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Connections

Featured in Cinemassacre's Monster Madness: Robot Wars & Robo Warriors (2010)

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Soundtracks

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

User Reviews

Well Worth Watching

I think that this episode is receiving a fairly low rating just because it revolves around most people's least favorite "The Next Generation" character, Wesley. Well, it's not one of the best TNG episodes, but it's definitely one of its better ones. It has a few unexpected, genuinely funny comedic twists and a light and entertaining romance story. I was actually impressed by the youngest actors' performances in this one, and the script is fairly solid.

I think that its rating might also be suffering because it follows one of the best Next Generation episodes of all time ("The Measure of a Man"). But it's well worth seeing. In comparing it to another episode that also featured Wesley fairly heavily, it's not the ridiculous, crushing bore that "The Naked Now" was.