Summary
"The Naked Now" was a crucial early mistake in Star Trek: TNG due to its airing early in the season, before viewers became familiar with the characters.
The episode, intended as a follow-up to TOS' "The Naked Time," resembled more of a reimagining with familiar elements yet distinct responses to the contagion.
Despite facing writer issues behind the scenes during its debut season, TNG managed to establish the foundation for future seasons' exceptional narratives, albeit within a disorganized work atmosphere characterized by frequent rewrites.
Star Trek: The Next Generation had some issues in its early seasons, including its second episode, "The Naked Now." This episode is a continuation of the original series' episode "The Naked Time." "The Naked Now" revolves around Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and the crew of the USS Enterprise-D, who unintentionally get intoxicated by polywater. The Enterprise meets up with the USS Tsiolkovsky, only to discover that the entire crew is dead. Further investigation reveals that the Tsiolkovsky crew deliberately disabled the environmental controls and depressurized the bridge.
During the exploration of the crew quarters, Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton) comes across a crew member frozen in the shower, still fully dressed. Geordi catches her when she collapses, unknowingly infecting himself with the polywater. Although Geordi appears physically fine upon returning to the Enterprise, he soon starts displaying abnormal behavior. The intoxication quickly spreads throughout the ship, causing the crew to lose their inhibitions and behave as if they are drunk. Eventually, Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden) develops a cure based on research conducted by Dr. Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley) in the original series' episode "The Naked Time."
Why Star Trek: TNG's 2nd Episode Was A Crucial Early Mistake
"The Naked Now" contains several elements that lack coherence, but one major mistake made by TNG was airing this episode so early in the season. The infection causes characters to act out of character; however, since the characters' normal behavior had not yet been established, the odd conduct of the Enterprise crew members would have had a greater impact if viewers were more familiar with them. Furthermore, the episode fails to explain why the android Data (Brent Spiner) would be susceptible to the intoxication or how the fifteen-year-old Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) could easily take control of the Enterprise.
While "The Naked Now" intends to be a sequel to the TOS episode "The Naked Time," it comes across more as a remake. The story follows similar beats, but the crew of the Enterprise-D reacts differently to the infection, resulting in more carnal outcomes. Although Commander Riker and Data mention the events from TOS' "The Naked Time" in passing, it is merely a brief reference. They hardly acknowledge Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and completely neglect to mention Dr. Leonard McCoy, despite his visit to the Enterprise-D in the previous episode.
Star Trek: TNG Season 1 Had Behind The Scenes Writer Problems
Star Trek: The Next Generation had a rocky first season due to numerous issues in the writer's room. In his book Gene Roddenberry: The Myth and the Man Behind Star Trek, Joel Engel reveals that the creator of Star Trek, Gene Roddenberry, became unpredictable and often added more sexual innuendo to scripts through rewrites. One such script was "The Naked Now," which led D. C. Fontana, the original writer, to use the pseudonym J. Michael Bingham partly because of Roddenberry's revisions and their falling out.
By the halfway point of its first season, TNG had gained a reputation for its dysfunctional work environment, resulting in the constant turnover of twenty-four writers during the show's first three seasons alone. These internal problems contributed to some missteps in TNG season one, and it wasn't until season 3 that the show truly found its stride. Despite the unevenness, season 1 still had its moments and laid the foundation for the incredible stories that unfolded in later seasons. Even in its flawed beginnings, Star Trek: The Next Generation and its ensemble cast successfully captured the magic of the Star Trek universe.
