The Most Underrated Episodes Of Star Trek: The Next Generation

"Star Trek" has never been afraid to explore different genres, delving into horror, romance, and even the occasional Western. There have even been plenty of comedic episodes, many of which are hugely underrated. One of the best in "The Next Generation" is the Season 6 episode "Rascals," a story that's always been divisive. Many have knocked it for being preposterous and overly silly, but there's no denying it delivers good, clean fun and gives new insight into several secondary characters.

The episode begins with Picard, Ensign Ro, Guinan, and Keiko O'Brien being turned into children through a transporter accident. While Dr. Crusher works on a way to change them back, Picard struggles with the idea of having his life stripped away from him. Ro's experience brings back memories of a childhood lost on war-torn Bajor, and Keiko worries her marriage to Miles may be over. When a group of Ferengi pirates takes over the ship, it's up to the teenage Picard and a team of children to fight back.

Sure, the plot is ridiculous, but somehow "Rascals" makes it work by just being so much goofy fun, and the cast of child actors is surprisingly good as younger versions of our four favorites. Those who like their "Star Trek" more dramatic have never been fond of "Rascals," but for those who enjoy the franchise's humor, it's a winner and definitely deserves more love than it gets from critics.

"Star Trek: The Next Generation" was always more of a character-driven series. Many of its best episodes boasted stories that served as mere frameworks to hang compelling character drama on, with the audience's deep investment in the relationships between Riker, Troi, Geordi, and Data being the reason they came back week after week. Never was this more evident than in "Disaster," one of the show's best ensemble episodes.

The drama breaks when the ship is struck by a mysterious phenomenon that disables the Enterprise's critical systems and cuts off power and communication throughout the ship. With Picard trapped in a turbolift with a group of school children and gravely wounded, Troi is left in command on the bridge, unsure how to proceed. Riker and Data attempt to regain control of the ship while in between decks, and Geordi and Crusher struggle to stay alive in the cargo bay, where a radiation leak threatens to slowly poison them. Meanwhile, in Ten Forward, the normally stoic warrior Worf is forced to play midwife as Keiko O'Brien goes into labor.

Though the stakes may not be galactic, the tension is real and the problem-solving is clever and satisfying. Seeing characters like Picard, Worf, and Troi unexpectedly thrust into unfamiliar situations also helps shake things up, giving audiences a new glimpse into their characters. It gives everyone something to do, even several of the lesser-seen recurring characters.

The original "Star Trek" series is famed for its gung-ho captain, James T. Kirk, who would lock horns with various aliens week after week. Though "Star Trek: The Next Generation" is known for more cerebral, less action-oriented stories, series star Patrick Stewart did take the gloves off from time to time. Most fans sing the praises of the gritty Season 3 episode "Captain's Holiday," but the Season 5 entry "Starship Mine" deserves just as much attention.

With the Enterprise undergoing maintenance that requires a sweep of deadly radiation at an orbital station, the crew is offloaded for a formal reception on the planet below. But just as Picard is about to be the last to leave, he spots a few suspicious technicians and realizes they're about to be hoodwinked by a group of sinister thieves. Alone and trapped aboard the ship, and with no way to get help from his crew, Picard may have to become a cold-blooded killer if he's going to stop them from making off with a dangerous chemical weapon, all while trying to escape before the radiation sweep kills them all. At the same time, his crew must deal with the thieves' accomplices down on the planet's surface, who hold them hostage when their plan is exposed.

Described as "'Die Hard' on the Enterprise" by writer Morgan Gendel, the episode shows that Picard can be a heroic man of action, even if he's usually more comfortable in his ready room. But, more than just a send-up of a popular action movie, "Starship Mine" is a satisfying, nail-biting thriller right up until the very end.

"Star Trek" crossovers usually go down well with fans, with episodes featuring Spock and Scotty in "The Next Generation" among the highest rated in the series. Before they met either of those "The Original Series" stalwarts, the Enterprise crew were visited by another classic "Star Trek" icon in a Season 3 episode that is often overlooked. Perhaps because it came on the heels of the classic cliffhanger "The Best of Both Worlds," the episode "Sarek" is easily one of the most underrated of that season.

Famed "Star Trek" guest star Mark Lenard returns to the franchise to reprise the role of Spock's father Sarek, who had appeared in both "The Original Series" and several movies. Sarek arrives on the Enterprise to negotiate what is to be his final treaty as a Federation ambassador, as he is due to retire shortly thereafter. Upon his arrival, the crew begins to exhibit strange and violent emotional outbursts, which are soon traced back to the aging Vulcan, who they discover is suffering from a rare degenerative disorder and is in denial about his condition.

A statement on aging and the social stigma of disease, "Sarek" is a powerful allegory that gives Mark Lenard and Patrick Stewart some of their best material. While most fans of "The Next Generation" will point to "Yesterday's Enterprise" and "The Offspring" as the show's early highlights, "Sarek" is a great watch and shouldn't be forgotten.

Wesley Crusher has been a controversial character in "Star Trek" history for years, even while Wil Wheaton, the actor who plays him, has gone on to become a pop culture icon. It doesn't help that Wesley's early episodes take place during the show's first, troubled season. He left in Season 4, but the character returned for a pair of episodes in Season 5. While "The First Duty" is popular for its powerful moral message — not to mention one of Captain Picard's best speeches — his earlier comeback in "The Game" has long been overlooked as mere fluff.

In the episode, Riker returns from a trip to the pleasure planet of Risa and brings back a game that he shares with his shipmates. Unbeknownst to the crew, the game is both addictive and mind-altering, putting them under the spell of an alien enemy who wants to take over the Federation. While most of the crew become addicted, Wesley manages to avoid it thanks to his budding romance with Ensign Robin Lefler (a young Ashley Judd in her first role). The two young officers are left to save the ship from an alien takeover, all while the crew attempts to force them to submit to the game's mind control.

Though there's no deep message here (other than the insidiousness of addiction, perhaps), but "The Game" is still an effective action thriller along the lines of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers."

Season 4's "The Wounded" is another episode that explores the horrors of war and how it takes a toll on those who live through it. It's also an important story that really digs into the history of recurring character Miles O'Brien — we learn that he is a veteran of a long war.

It's only been a year since the Federation's war with the Cardassians, an alien race that makes its debut in this episode. The war has taken a toll on many of those who served, and it weighs heavy on starship captain Benjamin Maxwell, who has seemingly gone rogue and started hunting down Cardassian ships in a recently created demilitarized zone. Picard and the Enterprise escort a group of Cardassian observers into the zone to locate Maxwell and bring him in. When they find him, Maxwell doesn't surrender easily, instead making stunning accusations about the Cardassians and their intentions.

Though often remembered for featuring Bob Gunton (best known for playing Warden Norton in "The Shawshank Redemption") as Maxwell, and for the first appearance of the Cardassians (who would become the recurring antagonists on sister series "Deep Space Nine"), the episode is rarely noted for just how good it really is. We learn that O'Brien is a war veteran who is still haunted by his service, and that he harbors prejudice against his former enemies, a story that would wind its way through years of further stories on "DS9."

A shocking twist in the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" Season 4 finale "Redemption, Part 1" saw the first real appearance of the Romulan Commander Sela, the daughter of an alternate reality version of crew member Tasha Yar. However, often overlooked is Sela's role in the earlier episode "The Mind's Eye." Though Sela is never actually seen here, remaining in the shadows, she teases her upcoming debut with a hint at what's to come.

Essentially a sci-fi remake of "The Manchurian Candidate," the episode begins with Geordi La Forge leaving the Enterprise for some much-needed shore leave on the pleasure planet Risa. Before he can get there, he's kidnapped by Romulans and subjected to a brutal form of torture and brainwashing. When he's deposited back on the Enterprise, a visiting Klingon — in league with the Romulans — uses a handheld device to manipulate Geordi's visor, sending him subliminal instructions to assassinate the Governor of a Klingon colony.

As effective an episode of "Star Trek" as the "Manchurian Candidate" is a film, "The Mind's Eye" continues the ongoing story arc that saw factions of Klingons and Romulans working together to destabilize the Federation. A taut thriller from start to finish, it's anyone's guess why nobody ever talks about how great this episode truly is.