Interesting to see that Barclay is shoehorned into this episode. Season Seven; everyone knows it's going to be the last so we'll wheel them all out. And why not?
What do the transporters do? They filter out viruses we know that from earlier episodes so when Beverly realises that there is a viral infection aboard, why doesn't she transport a few folk to see whether they can be cured by that?
Spot pregnant? I don't know a whole lot about feline pregnancies, but, well, in 'Phantasms' Data clearly says to Worf "Tell him he is a good cat", so being male how can he be pregnant?
The Ten-Forward scene is interesting for several reasons. Firstly, why would Troi want something salty to eat if she's got a raging thirst, and secondly, why does the waitress hand over a glass of water? Troi never ordered it, after all. I know the idea is to alert us to the fact that the crew are beginning to behave strangely, but in terms of continuity it makes no sense. Perhaps the waitress was empathic also, and Troi ordered it telepathically. Nope, that can't be, because she ordered the caviar verbally. Oh well.
No Ensign Gates in this episode, presumably because Helm has a speaking part this week. Just as well she wasn't around, some might say, as Helm gets murdered later on.
I thought Gates (McFadden) once again put in some fine acting in the venom scene. She also directed, so my theory that she responds well when given sympathetic direction is maybe given more credence.
Just in case you hadn't noticed, this is yet another bottle show. That's three in a row we've had now.
When Data and Picard are on the Bridge and have just found the dead crewman, Data says he can detect one thousand and eleven life forms all showing signs of having altered DNA or some such. Actually, he says one thousand eleven, presumably because he's been programmed in American. Why are there one thousand and eleven, I wonder? We know that the ship's compliment is one thousand and fourteen, so if we deduct Data, Picard and the dead Helmsman then OK, that's one thousand and eleven but, and it's a big but, what about Spot? Or had she not changed yet? What about her kittens? Why didn't they register as life-forms? OK, maybe they did but Data didn't mention it. Why would he not mention them?
What about the male cats he mentioned earlier in connection with Spot's pregnancy? Why would he forget them too? Remember when Alexander, Worf's boy, was playing with live thingies many shows ago? What's happened to them?
When Worf is banging away on the Sickbay doors, we can see from our perspective, i.e., inside the room with Data, Picard et all that he is putting some hefty dents in it. When we cut to a shot of Worf outside, though, the door is fine. Oops!
And one last thing. Just why did the weapons guidance system malfunction?
Descent Part Two Liaisons Interface Gambit Part One Gambit Part Two Phantasms Dark Page Attached Force of Nature Inheritance Parallels The Pegasus Homeward Sub Rosa Lower Decks Thine Own Self Masks Eye of the Beholder Genesis Journey's End Firstborn Bloodlines Emergence Preemptive Strike All Good Things Part One All Good Things Part Two