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The Best Episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 2

Every episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 2 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 2!

Follow the intergalactic adventures of Capt. Jean-Luc Picard and his loyal crew aboard the all-new USS Enterprise NCC-1701D, as they explore new worlds.
Genres:Sci-Fi & FantasyAction & AdventureDramaMystery
Network:Syndication

Season 2 Ratings Summary

"The Child" is the best rated episode of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" season 2. It scored 5.8/10 based on 4155 votes. Directed by Rob Bowman and written by Maurice Hurley, Jon Povill, Jaron Summers, it aired on 11/21/1988. This episode is rated 1.2 points higher than the second-best, "Where Silence Has Lease".

  • The Child
    5.8/104,155 votes

    #1 - The Child

    Season 2 Episode 1 - Aired 11/21/1988

    Stardate: 42073.1. Troi undergoes a mysterious pregnancy when the Enterprise tries to escape from a system that has recently fallen victim to a deadly plague.

    Director: Rob Bowman

    Writer: Maurice Hurley, Jon Povill, Jaron Summers

  • Where Silence Has Lease
    7.0/103,913 votes

    #2 - Where Silence Has Lease

    Season 2 Episode 2 - Aired 11/28/1988

    Stardate: 42193.6. A mysterious life form known as the 'Nagilum' threatens the life of the crew in his attempt to understand humanity.

    Director: Winrich Kolbe

    Writer: Jack B. Sowards

  • Elementary, Dear Data
    8.1/104,612 votes

    #3 - Elementary, Dear Data

    Season 2 Episode 3 - Aired 12/5/1988

    Stardate: 42286.3. Data and Geordi become involved with a holodeck program about Sherlock Holmes and his investigations, when they create Sherlock's arch nemesis, Moriarty; however, modifications to the Moriarty character include the capability of out-smarting Data, which leads to some unexpected consequences.

    Director: Rob Bowman

    Writer: Brian Alan Lane

  • The Outrageous Okona
    6.2/103,980 votes

    #4 - The Outrageous Okona

    Season 2 Episode 4 - Aired 12/12/1988

    Stardate: 42402.7. The Enterprise is placed in a compromising situation when the captain of a disabled starship places the crew in the middle of a love triangle.

    Director: Robert Becker

    Writer: Burton Armus

  • Loud as a Whisper
    6.5/103,753 votes

    #5 - Loud as a Whisper

    Season 2 Episode 5 - Aired 1/9/1989

    Stardate: 42477.2. A deaf-mute mediator meets with disaster while being escorted by the Enterprise.

    Director: Larry Shaw

    Writer: Jacqueline Zambrano

  • The Schizoid Man
    6.9/103,768 votes

    #6 - The Schizoid Man

    Season 2 Episode 6 - Aired 1/23/1989

    Stardate: 42437.5. Data is possessed by the consciousness of a brilliant scientist. However, it has a disturbing impact on Data's personality.

    Director: Les Landau

    Writer: N/A

  • Unnatural Selection
    6.5/103,600 votes

    #7 - Unnatural Selection

    Season 2 Episode 7 - Aired 1/30/1989

    Stardate: 42494.8. A mysterious hyper-ageing sickness kills the crew of a Federation cargo ship, and Dr. Pulaski must race against time to find a cure.

    Director: Paul Lynch

    Writer: John Mason, Mike Gray

  • A Matter of Honor
    8.0/104,216 votes

    #8 - A Matter of Honor

    Season 2 Episode 8 - Aired 2/6/1989

    Commander Riker participates in an officer's exchange program which lands him an assignment on a Klingon Bird-of-Prey. Meanwhile, a Bezite ensign has trouble assimilating to the routines of the Enterprise.

    Director: Rob Bowman

    Writer: Burton Armus, Gregory W. Amos

  • The Measure of a Man
    9.1/106,568 votes

    #9 - The Measure of a Man

    Season 2 Episode 9 - Aired 2/13/1989

    Stardate: 42523.7. When Data's rights as a sentient individual are placed under trial, Starfleet forces Riker into a position where he must prove that Data is only an Android.

    Director: Robert Scheerer

    Writer: Melinda M. Snodgrass

  • The Dauphin
    6.2/103,791 votes

    #10 - The Dauphin

    Season 2 Episode 10 - Aired 2/20/1989

    Stardate: 42568.8. Wesley falls in love with a passenger the Enterprise is escorting, who has the secret ability to shape-shift.

    Director: Rob Bowman

    Writer: Scott Rubenstein, Leonard Mlodinow

  • Contagion
    7.6/103,771 votes

    #11 - Contagion

    Season 2 Episode 11 - Aired 3/20/1989

    Stardate: 42609.1. A strange power source disables the Enterprise's computer systems, damages Data's programming and leaves the ship and crew vulnerable to a Romulan attack.

    Director: Joseph L. Scanlan

    Writer: Steve Gerber, Beth Woods

  • The Royale
    6.6/103,973 votes

    #12 - The Royale

    Season 2 Episode 12 - Aired 3/27/1989

    Stardate: 42625.4. An away team is trapped in an alien environment based around a novel entitled 'The Hotel Royale.'

    Director: Cliff Bole

    Writer: Tracy Tormé

  • Time Squared
    7.5/103,897 votes

    #13 - Time Squared

    Season 2 Episode 13 - Aired 4/3/1989

    Stardate: 42679.2. Picard encounters his double from six hours in the future, whose Enterprise had been destroyed.

    Director: Joseph L. Scanlan

    Writer: N/A

  • The Icarus Factor
    6.2/103,434 votes

    #14 - The Icarus Factor

    Season 2 Episode 14 - Aired 4/24/1989

    Stardate: 42686.4. Riker is promoted to Captain of another Federation ship. Worf must confront his past and his Klingon heritage.

    Director: Robert Iscove

    Writer: Robert McCullough, David Assael

  • Pen Pals
    6.8/103,681 votes

    #15 - Pen Pals

    Season 2 Episode 15 - Aired 5/1/1989

    Stardate: 42695.3. Wesley must investigate the causes of strange tectonic activity on the planet where Data's pen pal lives.

    Director: Winrich Kolbe

    Writer: Melinda M. Snodgrass

  • Q Who
    8.9/105,345 votes

    #16 - Q Who

    Season 2 Episode 16 - Aired 5/8/1989

    Stardate: 42761.3. Q hurls the Enterprise into the Delta Quadrant and introduces the Federation to a powerful new enemy that may destroy the Alpha Quadrant: The Borg.

    Director: Rob Bowman

    Writer: Maurice Hurley

  • Samaritan Snare
    6.5/103,510 votes

    #17 - Samaritan Snare

    Season 2 Episode 17 - Aired 5/15/1989

    Stardate: 42779.1. A race known as the Pakleds kidnap Geordi La Forge. Picard must face surgery when he is left in a near-dead state.

    Director: Les Landau

    Writer: Robert McCullough

  • Up the Long Ladder
    6.2/103,735 votes

    #18 - Up the Long Ladder

    Season 2 Episode 18 - Aired 5/22/1989

    Stardate: 42823.2. Picard must convince two dying civilizations that they must co-exist on the same planet to survive, however, they have other plans to ensure their survival: in the form of clones of the Enterprise crew.

    Director: Winrich Kolbe

    Writer: Melinda M. Snodgrass

  • Manhunt
    6.1/103,504 votes

    #19 - Manhunt

    Season 2 Episode 19 - Aired 6/19/1989

    Stardate: 42859.2. While being escorted to a Federation conference by the Enterprise, Lwaxana hunts for a man to satisfy her needs when her sex-drive is quadrupled during a natural mid-life cycle.

    Director: Rob Bowman

    Writer: Tracy Tormé

  • The Emissary
    7.5/103,875 votes

    #20 - The Emissary

    Season 2 Episode 20 - Aired 6/29/1989

    Stardate: 42901.3. Worf is re-united with his former lover, K'Ehleyr, while the Enterprise is ordered to intercept a Klingon ship whose crew has been in stasis for a century.

    Director: Cliff Bole

    Writer: Richard Manning

  • Peak Performance
    7.7/103,785 votes

    #21 - Peak Performance

    Season 2 Episode 21 - Aired 7/10/1989

    Stardate: 42923.4. Trouble begins when a Ferengi warship stumbles over a war simulation between Riker and Picard, each on different ships, and begins attacking them.

    Director: Robert Scheerer

    Writer: David Kemper

  • Shades of Gray
    3.3/104,231 votes

    #22 - Shades of Gray

    Season 2 Episode 22 - Aired 7/17/1989

    Stardate: 42976.1. Riker is infected with an alien organism that takes over his mind. Dr. Pulaski must force Riker's mind back to a state where it can access primitive survival skills.

    Director: Rob Bowman

    Writer: Maurice Hurley, Richard Manning, Hans Beimler