Well, they blew the Prime Directive all to hell in this episode, didn't they? Commander Riker (Jonathan Frakes) throws in a caveat at the end of the story by stating that what the Enterprise had done by taking members of the colony on Moab IV aboard was okay because they were human. I don't see how that makes any difference, but of course the Enterprise had to intervene earlier, or the entire planet might have been destroyed by the stellar core fragment heading straight for it. There's a nice contrast here between growing up in a perfect society where everyone and everything is bio-engineered, and one in which we're allowed freedom to make our own mistakes and develop as human beings. That's what was lacking on Moab IV, and what scientist Hannah Bates (Dey Young) came to understand by helping Commander LaForge figure out how to power up the Enterprise's tractor beam to divert the star fragment from crashing into the planet. I wish the writers would come up with a story that didn't require the Enterprise itself to just barely miss a deadline that would terminate life support. What was it, like five seconds here? The closing dialog between Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) and Riker brought little consolation to questioning the whole Prime Directive argument, but seeing as how they saved an entire planet from destruction, I think the captain would have been able to sleep well that night.
A minor nitpick - ever since Wil Wheaton left the cast as Ensign Wesley Crusher, the replacement ensign has never been addressed by name. Sheila Franklin has been sitting in the ensign's chair for a number of episodes by now, and I don't think her name as Ensign Felton has ever been mentioned.
A minor nitpick - ever since Wil Wheaton left the cast as Ensign Wesley Crusher, the replacement ensign has never been addressed by name. Sheila Franklin has been sitting in the ensign's chair for a number of episodes by now, and I don't think her name as Ensign Felton has ever been mentioned.