In the “Star Trek: The Subsequent Era” episode “The Offspring” (March 12, 1990), the android Information (Brent Spiner) has determined that he wish to be a father. Utilizing his personal android physique as a template, he builds an android youngster in a positronic lab, naming the brand new being Lal. At first, Lal (Leonard Crofoot) is a considerably shapeless being with sharp, metallic options. Information feels that Lal ought to be capable to select their very own gender and look. Lal decides to be a younger girl (Hallie Todd). The majority of the episode includes Information, along with his personal restricted perceive of human interplay, educating Lal every thing he is aware of. When Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) questions the ethics of a synthetic life kind like Information creating one other with out permission, Information simply defends himself. Nobody else on the Enterprise requires permission to breed, so why ought to he?
“The Offspring” was the primary episode of “Star Trek: The Subsequent Era” that was directed by Jonathan Frakes. Frakes performed Commander Riker on “NextGen,” and he was keen to maneuver previous appearing, feeling he could be snug within the director’s chair. /Movie has spoken earlier than in regards to the course of he needed to undergo to get permission, and the prolonged “boot camp” he was required to attend, shadowing different administrators and actually attending to know the craft. Frakes has additionally joked that when he lastly began directing, different “Star Trek” actors started making comparable calls for, inflicting no small quantity of complications for the present’s govt producer, Rick Berman.
Frakes additionally revealed that he was pleased to direct a Information-centric episode, as he at all times felt that Spiner’s character supplied the present’s greatest tales. Extra lately, Frakes additionally revealed, in a 2022 interview with StarTrek.com, that “The Offspring” was particular as a result of it was written by first-time Trek contributor René Echevarria, a author who would come to be an essential determine within the Trek household.
Jonathan Frakes was pleased to get a script by René Echevarria
Echevarria would solely start his profession on “Star Trek” with “The Offspring.” He would go on to have writing credit on 79 extra episodes earlier than changing into one of many central producers on “Star Trek: Deep House 9.” He additionally wrote 24 episodes of that sequence as properly. After “Star Trek,” Echevarria would write episodes for “Medium,” and “Darkish Angel,” and would co-create the reveals “The 4400” and “Carnival Row.” In case you watched sci-fi TV within the early 2000s, it is doubtless you noticed one thing he was concerned with.
Frakes knew that Echevarria was somebody to have a good time, so he was doubly fortunate when it got here to “The Offspring.” He acquired an ideal Information story, but additionally an ideal script. As he put it:
“Along with being a Information episode, it was René Echevarria’s first episode. As you already know, he turned considered one of our stalwarts, in addition to a producer on ‘Deep House 9.’ He was a member of that unimaginable writing employees that Ronald D. Moore, Ira Steven Behr, [Naren] Shankar, Brannon Braga, and that group assembled. Because the story has been informed to me, [‘The Offspring’] was his spec script that he had submitted to Michael Piller, who was beneficiant sufficient to learn unsolicited scripts from younger writers. Michael was fabulous, and an exquisite piano participant.”
The names he listed had been all producers or head writers on “NextGen,” and most of them are accountable for guiding the complete franchise in a constructive course. Frakes went on to reward Hallie Todd’s efficiency as Lal, and was grateful that he had gone by his directorial boot camp, because the taking pictures crew all took him severely. He additionally mentioned that his fellow solid members did not take him in the least severely … which he appreciated. Plainly Frakes likes a playful, unfastened ambiance on set.
After that, Frakes directed 28 extra episodes of assorted “Star Trek” reveals and two motion pictures. begin to a great profession.