Time Squared (Star Trek: The Next Generation)
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| Star Trek: TNG episode | |
| "Time Squared" | |
 The second Picard about to enter the Mobius. |
|
| Episode no. | 39 |
|---|---|
| Prod. code | 139 |
| Airdate | April 3, 1989 |
| Writer(s) | Kurt Michael Bensmiller |
| Director | Joseph L. Scanlan |
| Year | 2365 |
| Stardate | 42679.2 |
| Episode chronology | |
| Previous | "The Royale" |
| Next | "The Icarus Factor" |
"Time Squared" is the 39th episode of the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation.
In this episode, the crew of the Enterprise encounter a double of Captain Picard from the future.
[edit] Plot
While en route to their planned destination, sensors pick up a lone shuttlecraft drifting through empty space, with no power or fuel reserves. When La Forge and Riker use the tractor beam to bring it into the shuttlebay, they find it has the same name (El-Baz, named for Egyptian born geologist and engineer Farouk El-Baz) and registry as the neighboring shuttle. Inside is a double of Captain Picard, barely clinging to life.
After the double is brought to sickbay for treatment, Data and La Forge power up the shuttle, but only after a lengthy period of trial and error. It is then discovered that the shuttle's internal clock is about six hours ahead of the ship's chronometer: this means that the shuttle, and therefore Picard's double, is from six hours into the future. They recover a very poor quality sensor log video that shows the Enterprise falling into an energy vortex and being destroyed.
Dr. Pulaski determines that the incoherent double's biological functions are out of sync, but are improving as the future Picard draws nearer to his own time. Picard orders that his future self be revived, but is unsuccessful in extracting any information from him. Picard is disquieted at the idea that he would abandon his ship and its crew.
As the crew members talk about what they need to do to avoid their destined destruction, they decide simply to let nature take its course. They encounter the vortex, but are unable to move away despite running warp engines at maximum, and only become drawn in further. They send a probe into the vortex which explodes upon impact. Beams emanating from the vortex that scan the Enterprise seem to concentrate on Picard, leading him to understand that his double had left the ship to draw its attention, an unsuccessful maneuver. It is theorized that the vortex may be a form of life.
At this point Picard's double, now almost completely aware and coherent, sets out to escape the Enterprise as he had done before. Picard follows him and attempts to learn the solution to the predicament. The double only mumbles about how impossible the solution is. As the double is boarding the shuttlecraft, Picard proclaims that the cycle will be broken, and fires at him with a phaser. It is not established whether he is dead or merely stunned.
Picard returns to the bridge and orders that the Enterprise fly straight into the center of the vortex; the Enterprise comes through the other side into normal space. The doubles of Picard and the shuttlecraft disappear. The Enterprise resumes its course.
[edit] Trivia
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- The idea of meeting one's duplicate is not a new idea as Capt. Kirk met his as well (TOS episode "The Enemy Within"). Riker and Data have also met their doubles as well in these episodes respectively ("Second Chances" and "Datalore" as well as "We'll Always Have Paris" for Data). In fact most of the DS9 Crew (alt universe episodes) and the entirety of Voyager's crew have all met their duplicates. Worf encounters a similar phenomenon while he is shifting through different alternate versions of the Enterprise ("Parallels")
- In the opening scene when Dr. Pulaski arrives bearing ale from Enin VI, she says to Riker "Your omelets deserve no less." However, Riker later prepares what appear to be scrambled eggs.
- An earlier version of the script featured Q as the entity causing the time loop, and would have led into the episode "Q Who?".
- Worf (and Geordi La Forge) speak the following lines, which are used in the Orbital songs "The Moebius" and "Time Becomes":
- "There is the theory of the moebius, a twist in the fabric of space, where time becomes a loop." [and] "When we reach that point, whatever happened will happen again."
- For a moment in the first sickbay scene, when Captain Picard enters the room, he is initially transparent and the hallway wall behind him is briefly seen.
- In this episode, the second Picard is seen to be suffering from being 'out of his time'. However, in many other episodes, including "Yesterdays Enterprise", characters can be 'out of their time' and appear to be fine.
