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Synopsis: After being struck by a power surge from an alien probe, Lt. Barclay obtains superhuman mental acuity. As the title to this episode suggests, “The Nth Degree” can be interpreted in depth psychological terms as an illustration of inflation, that is identifying too closely with the god-like power that one can feel when one… Continue reading Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 19: “The Nth Degree”

Synopsis: Lt. La Forge is infected with a parasite that reproduces by taking over the host body. In my last post, on the episode “Night Terrors” I wrote that “from a depth psychological perspective, the devastating effects of not being able to dream can literally be seen as this field’s worst nightmare. Depth psychology by… Continue reading Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 18: “Identity Crisis”

Synopsis: The Enterprise becomes trapped in a rift in space that seems to be causing her crew to be unable to dream. From a depth psychological perspective, the devastating effects of not being able to dream can literally be seen as this field’s worst nightmare. Depth psychology by definition concerns the study of the unconscious… Continue reading Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 17: “Night Terrors”

Synopsis: The Enterprise becomes a surrogate mother for a previously unknown life form after Captain Picard ordered the destruction of its parent to save the lives of his crew. This episode is an illustration of various archetypal energies that are universal. That of the senex, the wise old man or father figure; the puer, the… Continue reading Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 16: “Galaxy’s Child”

Synopsis: Commander Riker is injured while undercover on a first contact mission and Captain Picard is forced to take extraordinary measures to ensure his safe recovery and the peace on the planet. This episode is a lesson of what happens when the best laid plans go awry. And it is also a lesson in the… Continue reading Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 15: “First Contact”

Synopsis: Lt. Commander Data is ordered to deceive the crew of the Enterprise in order to save them. In “Clues” the crew becomes increasingly distrustful of the one individual on board that they feel they can count on, the android second officer, Lt. Commander Data. They trust him because they know that he has been… Continue reading Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 14: “Clues”

Synopsis: The crew of the Enterprise encounter a female alien who claims to be the devil. In this episode the irrational unconscious archetypal figure of the anima, here in her most negative form, is seen in confrontation with the rational conscious ego. The anima in the form of the character Ardra, the rational ego embodied… Continue reading Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 13: “Devil’s Due”

Synopsis: The Enterprise is sent to stop another Federation vessel from breaking the peace with the Cardassians. It is so interesting that this episode is titled “The Wounded,” because that in and of itself sets it up for a depth psychological analysis, as Carl (C. G.) Jung taught that it is from our psychic wounds… Continue reading Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 12: “The Wounded”

Synopsis: A day in the life of Lt. Commander Data is recorded in a correspondence to Commander Maddox. In “Data’s Day” viewers observe human interaction through the perspective of the android second officer of the USS Enterprise, Lt. Commander Data. And what is amazing is how much emotional material he comes in contact with on… Continue reading Season 4, Episode 11: “Data’s Day”

Synopsis: While the Enterprise is being pulled through space by organisms it cannot comprehend, Counselor Troi loses her empathic abilities. In this episode Counselor Deanna Troi, the half-human half-Betazoid Ship’s Counselor temporarily loses her empathic abilities. The one thing that she believed made her effective at her job. She feels lost and alone, and as… Continue reading Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 4, Episode 10: “The Loss”