“The Naked Now” is episode three of season one of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
The Enterprise is heading for a rendezvous with the science vessel SS Tsiolkovsky which has been monitoring the collapse of a red supergiant into a white dwarf. They have come because of a series of strange messages suggesting that something has gone wrong about the research vessel. The Enterprise is currently communicating with the Tsiolkovsky and the person on the com doesn’t seem right. She mentions that there is going to be a real blowout here and someone in the background says to do it. Then there is a roaring noise. Data says it doesn’t seem possible; that sounded like an emergency hatch being blown. Worf states there are no lifesigns aboard the ship now.
Data, Geordi, Tasha and Riker beam aboard. They split up to search the place. According to Data, it bears the indications of what humans would call a wild party. He and Riker activate a viewscreen to the bridge; there’s a hatch open to space. Riker says everyone was sucked out. Data corrects him; blown out, a common mistake. Tasha is in engineering, where there are frozen people because someone was tampering with the environmental controls. Geordi is in the crew quarters, where there are more frozen people, partially or fully unclothed. He opens a shower and a fully dressed frozen woman falls out, whom he catches. Riker contacts the Enterprise to report that everyone is dead.
The Enterprise is downloading the Tsiolkovsky‘s data, and Captain Picard is concerned about being so close to the star. The Tsiolkovsky‘s records should predict the time the star will finally collapse. Dr Crusher can find nothing unusual in the tricorder readings sent back. Madness, mass hysteria, delusion; Counselor Troi suggests any or all. The doctor wants the away team to go through maximum decontamination and be brought for examination and observation when they return.
According to the doctor, if Data was any more perfect, he’d be in a textbook. It seems he’s already in several. Geordi appears normal too, but he’s perspiring. His responses to questions are a bit off too; angry and snarky. So Beverly wants to run more tests. She contacts the captain and says she’s confining Geordi to sickbay. She doesn’t know if there’s a problem yet. Riker wants Data to help him with some research. He remembers something about someone taking a shower in his or her clothing. He thinks what happened here may have happened before.
Beverly is working on Geordi, but foolishly leaves him alone. He removes his combadge and wanders off. Well, that’s not good. Beverly notices he’s gone and contacts security. Captain Picard orders a ship wide search. Geordi is currently with Wesley, who is demonstrating a tractor beam he built, and recordings he patched together of the captain’s voice. Geordi claps a hand on Wesley, and to an inquiry says he doesn’t feel so good, and leaves. Tasha finds Geordi staring into space. He wants to see like normal people do. He may see more, but not better. He touches Tasha.
Geordi is taken to sickbay and Tasha briefs the captain. Beverly and Troi are with Geordi; Beverly can still find nothing wrong with him. He looks as if he is running a temperature but the readouts say he isn’t. Picard is worried about a disease being loose on his ship. It’s not a disease, whatever it is. Troi would say, if she didn’t know better, that Geordi was intoxicated.
Data wants more info to narrow his search and, after Riker quotes a proverb, Data questions it, Riker explains, Data mentions the word historical, Riker remembers. It came from his reading of past starships called Enterprise. Specifically, the TOS episode “The Naked Time”. They have the formula originally used to cure the problem. Given how early it is in the episode, you can guarantee it isn’t going to work.
Tasha is in Troi’s quarters, as she’s affected. Whilst there, she passes it onto Troi. Troi informs the captain that Tasha has it too, whatever it is, though she doesn’t realise she herself now has it. Wesley is in sickbay, demonstrating his tractor beam; his mother tells him to stay in their quarters for now. Tasha is now sashaying through the ship, eyeing up the men.
Picard is told that, if the star explodes, they can outrun any stellar matter at half impulse. Meanwhile, the Chief Engineer is ordered to report to the bridge by the captain, and the assistant to medical. Only it was Wesley using his recordings. He then has a recording announce he is now acting captain and in control. Not good.
You can now guarantee that, when things start to go boom, the Enterprise won’t be able to outrun them. The cure doesn’t work, the infection is spreading and even Data doesn’t appear to be immune. The story is not merely inspired by “The Naked Time”; it’s essentially a rewrite of it, apparently partially necessitated by a writer’s strike. Given that this is only the third (or second) episode in the entire series, having characters act out of character before their characters are even truly known or established, this seemed an odd script to use.