Synopsis: The U.S.S. Cerritos is tasked with escorting a Doopler emissary to Starbase 25, which is also the site of an exclusive Starfleet party.
This episode can be seen as illustrations of what Carl (C.G.) Jung called complexes, when bits of unconscious material becomes perceivable by the conscious ego.
In “An Embarrassment of Dooplers” the U.S.S. Cerritos is tasked with bringing a Doopler emissary to Starbase 25, which also happens to be the location of a legendary annual Starfleet party that Ensign Beckett Mariner wants to attend, although she is not invited. The Doopler emissary is treated with extreme care the entire time he is on the Cerritos because his species duplicates when the slightest perceived insult occurs. Just before docking at the starbase, Cerritos is hailed by Captain John Anderson who asks Captain Carol Freeman how the trip to the starbase went. Freeman expresses relief that the mission has come to an end just as the Doopler emissary appears on the bridge. This causes the Doopler emissary to duplicate, and continue to duplicate until Cerritos is overrun by them. In exasperation Freeman eventually breaks down and tells the Dooplers that they are too easily upset. This makes the Dooplers angry and causes them to recombine. Freeman orders the entire crew to act hostilely toward the Dooplers, to make them recombine until only the original Doopler emissary is left. Meanwhile, on Starbase 25, Mariner is unable to gain access to the party, but finds a better place to have a drink.
In this episode, the duplicating of the Dooplers can be compared to bits of unconscious material that has been suppressed by the conscious ego, in that after they can only be contained for so long until they need to be acknowledged. But once the Dooplers are dealt with, then the threat of them overrunning the ship goes away. This can be compared to when the conscious ego acknowledges the bits of unconscious material that make up a complex, and uses it as a way to gain self-knowledge. This is how Jung thought of complexes—not a negative thing, but as a learning opportunity.
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