Narrative Connection
How these two moments in the story relate
Why These Connect
The narrative assertion
"Data's defeat in Strategema (Episode 21) establishes Troi's recognition of emotional responses as vulnerabilities or tools. This sets up her ability to interpret Riker's memories as biochemically active states in Episode 22."
inferred by llm_cross_episode_character
Why This Matters Across Episodes
The longer arc this connection carries
The earlier focus on Data's post-defeat emotional/epistemic vulnerability enables Troi's later medical empathy with Riker's infected neural state, where emotions directly affect physical health.
About Causal Connections
A directly causes B. The first event sets forces in motion that produce the second. These are the load-bearing connections of plot--remove one and the story structure collapses.