| "The Wounded" | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Star Trek: The Next Generation episode | |||
| Episodeno. | Season 4 Episode 12 | ||
| Directed by | Chip Chalmers | ||
| Story by |
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| Teleplay by | Jeri Taylor | ||
| Featured music | Dennis McCarthy | ||
| Cinematography by | Marvin Rush | ||
| Production code | 186 | ||
| Original air date | January 28, 1991 (1991-01-28) | ||
| Guest appearances | |||
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| Episode chronology | |||
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| Star Trek: The Next Generationseason 4 | |||
| List of episodes | |||
"The Wounded" is the 86th episode of thesyndicated Americanscience fiction television seriesStar Trek: The Next Generation, the 12th episode of thefourth season.
Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of theStarfleet crew of theFederation starshipEnterprise-D. In this episode,Picard is shocked when the highly respected Captain Maxwell apparently turns renegade and begins destroyingCardassian vessels. Maxwell claims that the Cardassians, who recently signed a treaty with theFederation, are secretly rearming for war, but he has no proof. Picard demands that Maxwell—Transporter ChiefO'Brien's former commanding officer—surrender his ship, but Maxwell refuses. Reluctant to fire on a fellow officer, Picard asks O'Brien to convince his old comrade to surrender peacefully.
This episode is noted for introducing the Cardassians, who would go on to have a major role in theStar Trek franchise.[1]
While patrolling nearCardassian space, the starshipEnterprise is suddenly attacked by a Cardassian vessel.Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) is able to convince its commander, Gul Macet (Marc Alaimo), to stand down, and learns that Macet's attack was in retaliation for aFederation ship attacking a Cardassian science station two days prior. Picard confirms this withStarfleet, and is told that the starshipPhoenix, commanded by Captain Benjamin Maxwell (Bob Gunton), was responsible, and ordered to locate the vessel. Picard invites Gul Macet and two of his officers to come aboard as observers to maintain the fragile peace between the Federation and Cardassia. As theEnterprise looks for signs of thePhoenix, Picard discovers that transporter chiefMiles O'Brien (Colm Meaney) was a former crewmember under Maxwell on theRutledge during the Cardassian war, and invites him to join a briefing with Gul Macet. There, O'Brien reveals he still harbors some resentment for the Cardassians, revealing that Maxwell's family was killed by Cardassians. Gul Macet infers that Maxwell must be out for revenge, but O'Brien denies this.
TheEnterprise locates thePhoenix on an intercept course for a Cardassian freighter, but they will not be able to reach it in time. Picard lets Gul Macet relay the position of thePhoenix to a closer Cardassian cruiser, but Maxwell outmaneuvers and destroys both the warship and the freighter, killing over 650 Cardassians.
Shortly thereafter, theEnterprise rendezvous with thePhoenix, and Maxwell transports aboard, greeting O'Brien as an old friend. Alone, Maxwell asserts to Picard that the Cardassians are re-arming themselves; the science station was a cover for a military base, and the freighters are carrying weapons. Picard admonishes Maxwell for his behavior unbecoming a Starfleet captain, and gains his assurance that he will pilot thePhoenix directly back to Federation space. However, en route, thePhoenix breaks course towards another freighter. Maxwell is poised to destroy the freighter, demanding that the Federation officers be allowed aboard to see proof of the Cardassians' deception. TheEnterprise crew notes that the freighter is equipped with a field that blocks their scans. Picard prepares to fire on thePhoenix to maintain the peace, but O'Brien requests permission to beam over to thePhoenix, using a transporter trick to sneak past its shield, and talk to Maxwell. Aboard thePhoenix, O'Brien and Maxwell reminisce about their time aboard theRutledge and sing a song from their past (The Minstrel Boy). O'Brien is able to convince Maxwell to stand down. Maxwell transfers his command to his first officer and thePhoenix starts its return to Federation space, while Maxwell returns to theEnterprise with O'Brien, to be held there pending return to Starfleet.
As the Cardassian observers are returned to their ship, Picard cautions them that while Maxwell's actions may have been improper, his suspicions are not without merit; the so-called "science station" is located in a strategic military position with little scientific value, and the shields on the freighters were specifically designed to block Federation scanning. He cautions Gul Macet that the Federation will be watching the Cardassians very closely in the future.
The Cardassian uniform costumes were designed by Robert Blackman.[2][3] The makeup for the Cardassians was developed by Michael Westmore.[3]
Empire ranked "The Wounded" the 31st best out of the top 50 episodes of all the 700-plusStar Trek television episodes. This film magazine notes that Captain Picard must juggle the difficulties of a renegade Starfleet captain, as political and military considerations pile up on the border between war and peace with the newly-introduced Cardassians.[4]Gizmodo rated "The Wounded" the 80th greatest episode ofStar Trek.[5]Business Insider listed "The Wounded" as one of the most underrated episodes of theStar Trek franchise at that time.[6]
Den of Geek ranked it in the top 25 "must watch" episodes ofStar Trek: The Next Generation.[7]
TrekMovie.com suggested it as viewing forSaint Patrick's Day due to its Irish content, in particular for Captain Maxwell and Miles O'Brien's rendition of the Irish ballad "The Minstrel Boy".[8]
RegardingStarfleet's Benjamin Maxwell,IGN ranked Maxwell as the 25th best character ofStar Trek.[9]Wired ranked Maxwell as the 94th most important Starfleet character in theStar Trek universe.[10]
This episode was released in the United States on September 3, 2002, as part of theStar Trek: The Next Generation season fourDVD box set.[11]
On April 23, 1996, this was released onLaserDisc in the United States, paired with "Data's Day" on one double-sided 12 inch disc.[12]
CBS announced on September 28, 2011, in celebration of the series' twenty-fifth anniversary, thatStar Trek: The Next Generation would be completely re-mastered in 1080p high definition from the original35mm filmnegatives. For the remaster almost 25,000 reels of original film stock were rescanned and reedited, and all visual effects were digitally recomposed from original large-format negatives and newly created CGI shots. The release was accompanied by 7.1DTS Master Audio.[13] On July 30, 2013 "The Wounded" was released on 1080p high definition as part of the Season 4 Blu-ray box set in the United States.[14][15] The set was released on July 29, 2013, in the United Kingdom.[16]
