A Matter of Time (TNG episode)

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Star Trek: TNG episode
"A Matter of Time"
Rasmussen and Data in "A Matter of Time"
Episode no.	109
Prod. code	209
Airdate	November 18, 1991
Writer(s)	Rick Berman
Director	Paul Lynch
Guest star(s)	Stefan Gierasch Matt Frewer
Year	2368
Stardate	45349.1
Episode chronology
Previous	"Unification"
Next	"New Ground"

"A Matter of Time" is the title of an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation from the series' fifth season.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

1 Plot summary
2 Awards
3 Trivia
4 External links

[edit] Plot summary

On the way to Penthara Four, the Enterprise encounters a temporal distortion, and discovers a small pod containing a single human. Once aboard, the pilot indentifies himself as Professor Berlingoff Rasmussen, who has come back from the 26th century to study history. Rasmussen sets about examining the ship and interviewing the crew, but reveals little about himself. This is necessary, he insists, because he does not wish to alter history.

Back to the mission at hand, the Enterprise heads to Penthara Four, which is suffering a drop in temperature across the planet courtesy of a recent asteroidal impact. The crew prepares to use the Enterprise phasers to release carbon dioxide in the planetary crust, and thus create a greenhouse effect. The plan works, and Rasmussen, claiming this is a very important historical event is overjoyed. Rasmussen continues his interviews, in a somewhat irritating manner, and even makes a failed pass at Dr. Crusher.

Suddenly, a series of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions begin rocking Penthara Four, an unanticipated result of the drilling. The volcanic ash being thrown into the air is dense and threatens to block out the sun and cause an ice age. Geordi and Data come up with a plan to sweep the dust away with an ionizing phaser blast into the planet's upper atmosphere. However, there is no margin for error and if done wrong the blast will burn off Penthara Four's atmosphere, and everyone on the planet would be killed.

Picard pleads with Rasmussen to reveal the course of history, but the Professor refuses, pointing out that, as far as he's concerned, the planet's current population are already dead regardless, and he dare not risk altering the outcome of events. Ultimately, Picard agrees to Geordi and Data's plan, and fortunately it is completely successful.

Having finished his study, Rasmussen heads to the shuttlebay to leave but is surprised to find the Enterprise crew there blocking his way. Picard mentions that several small items (a tricoder, for example) have gone missing from around the ship, and his believes Rasmussen is the thief. Rasmussen refuses to allow his ship to be searched, but eventually agrees to let Data come in and have a look, Picard's reasoning being that Data alone will be certain not to mention his discoveries about the future to the rest of the crew.

Data discovers all the stolen items inside, but Rasmussen pulls a phaser on him. The Professor reveals that he is not a historian from the future, but rather a disgruntled inventor from the past - in particular 22nd century New Jersey. Rasmussen had stolen the time pod from its real owner, a 26th-century historian, and planned to take the items he stole back to his own time where he would pose as their inventor, and end up wealthy as a result. He now intends to take Data along as a further invention, but Rasmussen's phaser has been deactivated by the ship's computer and he is easily subdued.

Data hauls Rasmussen out into the shuttlebay along with the stolen items, and the now empty time pod automatically jumps back to the time where it originated. Stranded in time, Rasmussen is left to the mercy of 24th-century justice.

[edit] Awards

This episode was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Special Visual Effects.

[edit] Trivia

After some encouragement from his friend Whoopi Goldberg, Robin Williams was set to make a guest appearance as Rasmussen, but he had to cancel due to a scheduling conflict.