Data's Day (TNG episode) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Overview

Data (Star Trek)

Lieutenant Commander Data is a character in the fictional Star Trek universe portrayed by actor Brent Spiner. He appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and the feature films Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek...

records the events of a single day of his life, which include Chief O'Brien

Miles O'Brien (Star Trek)

Miles Edward O'Brien, played by Colm Meaney, is Chief of Operations in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Before DS9, he appeared as a recurring transporter chief in Star Trek: The Next Generation...

and Keiko's pre-wedding jitters, learning to dance and the investigation of the loss of a Vulcan

Vulcan (Star Trek)

Vulcans, or sometimes Vulcanians, are an extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Star Trek universe who evolved on the planet Vulcan, and are noted for their attempt to live by reason and logic with no interference from emotion. They were the first extraterrestrial species in the Star Trek...

Ambassador in a transporter accident.

Plot

The episode begins as Data composes a letter to Commander Bruce Maddox (a cyberneticist at the Daystrom Institute, who was first introduced in "The Measure of a Man"), detailing a normal day in his life, with a focus on friendship. Since Data does not yet sleep (this happens later in the series), this episode both begins and ends with Data in command of the night shift on the Enterprise's bridge.

One of the several sub-plots is the impending wedding of Transporter Chief Miles O'Brien

Miles O'Brien (Star Trek)

Miles Edward O'Brien, played by Colm Meaney, is Chief of Operations in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Before DS9, he appeared as a recurring transporter chief in Star Trek: The Next Generation...

and civilian botanist Keiko Ishikawa, which Keiko decides to call off, telling Data in frustration that it will make her happier. Data delivers this news to Chief O'Brien, believing that since O'Brien wants to make Keiko happy, he will be pleased. He, of course, is not. Geordi

Geordi La Forge

Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge is a regular character in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and its feature films, played by LeVar Burton...

assures Data that the wedding will proceed as planned.

The other important sub-plot includes a Vulcan

Vulcan (Star Trek)

ambassador, T'Pel, who has arranged a secret meeting with a Romulan

Romulan

The Romulans are a fictional alien race in the Star Trek universe. First appearing in the original Star Trek series in the 1966 episode "Balance of Terror", they have since made appearances in all the main later Star Trek series: The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager...

ship. Data is assigned as her escort while she is on board. T'Pel asks Data about the Enterprise's defense capabilities, which Data finds suspicious, but after Data informs her that he has the same safeguards as the ship's computer regarding reporting such requests to Picard

Jean-Luc Picard

Captain Jean-Luc Picard is a Star Trek character portrayed by Patrick Stewart. He appears in the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and the feature films Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek Nemesis...

, she drops the question, claiming she was interested only in testing Data's safeguards. Because Vulcans do not lie, Data decides not to pursue the issue.

Data then asks Dr. Crusher

Beverly Crusher

Commander Beverly Crusher, M.D. , played by actress Gates McFadden, is a fictional character on the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and its subsequent spinoff films...

to teach him how to dance, having discovered from her service record that she won dance competitions. She agrees to instruct him on the condition that he not share this information with the rest of the crew, for fear of again being called 'The Dancing Doctor.'

Chief O'Brien asks Data to persuade Keiko to go through with the wedding. He fails yet again, and talks to Counselor Troi

Deanna Troi

Commander Deanna Troi is a main character in the science-fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and related TV series and films, portrayed by actress Marina Sirtis. Troi is half-human, half-Betazoid and has the psionic ability to sense emotions. She serves as the ship's counselor...

to try to understand Keiko's decision.

In the holodeck, Data almost instantly learns how to tap dance

Tap dance

Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sound of one's tap shoes hitting the floor as a percussive instrument. As such, it is also commonly considered to be a form of music. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses more on the...

from Dr. Crusher before telling her that he is ready to dance at the wedding. Telling him that tap dancing is inappropriate for social dancing

Social dance

Social dance is a major category or classification of danceforms or dance styles, where sociability and socializing are the primary focuses of the dancing...

she attempts to instruct him in ballroom dancing

Ballroom dance

Ballroom dance refers to a set of partner dances, which are enjoyed both socially and competitively around the world. Because of its performance and entertainment aspects, ballroom dance is also widely enjoyed on stage, film, and television....

, but Data finds it much more difficult, as he cannot watch Dr. Crusher's feet. Dr. Crusher is then called away to sickbay to deliver a baby, and Data is left alone with a holographic partner.

The Enterprise
USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)
The USS Enterprise is a 24th century starship in the Star Trek fictional universe and the principal setting of the Star Trek: The Next Generation television series...

rendezvous with a Romulan warbird and, despite Picard

Jean-Luc Picard

's unease about the situation, T'Pel transports aboard. However, something interrupts the transporter

Transporter (Star Trek)

A transporter is a fictional teleportation machine used in the Star Trek universe. Transporters convert a person or object into an energy pattern , then "beam" it to a target, where it is reconverted into matter...

signal and the ambassador is killed.

Finding no flaw in the transporter system, Data uses the principles of Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes

Sherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...

to come to the conclusion that T'Pel was not really killed: The Romulans beamed her off the ship themselves and left behind genetic material designed to fool the crew into thinking that she died in a transporter accident.

Picard speeds back to intercept the Romulans in the middle of the neutral zone. He confronts the Romulan Admiral Mendak and learns that T'Pel is actually a Romulan spy. Before shots are fired, another Romulan warbird appears next to the first one and three more enter the sector, minutes away. Picard is forced to retreat into Federation space.

Data approaches Keiko to make amends. She informs him that she is not angry at him, and that the wedding will proceed as planned. Miles and Keiko are married by Captain Picard.

Data notes that although there are many emotion

Emotion

Emotion is a complex psychophysiological experience of an individual's state of mind as interacting with biochemical and environmental influences. In humans, emotion fundamentally involves "physiological arousal, expressive behaviors, and conscious experience." Emotion is associated with mood,...

s that he does not understand and cannot share, he does understand the emotion of love

Love

Love is an emotion of strong affection and personal attachment. In philosophical context, love is a virtue representing all of human kindness, compassion, and affection. Love is central to many religions, as in the Christian phrase, "God is love" or Agape in the Canonical gospels...

and belonging.

Later, in sickbay, the captain and Data visit the newest member of the Enterprise crew—a baby born while the Enterprise was in mortal peril.

External links

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