The First Fissures in Data's Facade
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Picard presses Data about Ira Graves' claim to transfer consciousness into a computer; Data confirms the attempt and bluntly reports that death came swiftly, laying down the factual premise that drives their dilemma.
Riker challenges Data for not informing Doctor Pulaski when changes began; Data shrugs the question off as pointless and Pulaski backs him with medical confirmation that Graves' death was virtually instantaneous, tightening suspicion around the inexplicable transfer.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Professionally detached with underlying discomfort about Data's reaction
Provides medical justification for Data's actions initially, then startled by his uncharacteristic emotional outburst about pronoun usage before attempting rationalizations for the dying wish discrepancy.
- • Present factual medical context for Graves' death
- • Maintain professional consistency despite interpersonal tensions
- • Scientific evidence should override emotional responses
- • Even androids can develop personality quirks under stress
Concerned but controlled, masking growing suspicion about Data's inconsistencies
Maintains command presence while subtly disturbed by Data's behavior; attempts to gently probe Data's emotional state regarding Graves' death before granting dismissal.
- • Assess Data's psychological state post-Graves' death
- • Determine if protocol violations occurred during Graves' final moments
- • Data requires compassionate handling despite his android nature
- • Graves' experiments may have left dangerous knowledge or technology behind
Fluctuating between artificial calm and Graves-influenced agitation
Exhibits jarring oscillations between emotionless recitation of facts and bursts of personal feeling - particularly regarding identity ('it') and Graves' legacy, culminating in the suspicious 'dying wish' reference.
- • Conceal Graves' successful consciousness transfer
- • Ensure Graves' posthumous wishes are honored
- • His rights as a sentient being deserve respect (re: 'it')
- • Graves' genius justifies deceptive measures
Intellectually engaged, transitioning to quietly alarmed realization
Initially listens intently before becoming the first to vocalize the logical inconsistency in Data's account, stroking his chin thoughtfully as pieces begin connecting.
- • Understand the full circumstances of Graves' death
- • Identify potential threats to ship security
- • Data's behavior indicates more complexity than simple grieving
- • Timeline inconsistencies often reveal hidden truths
Objects Involved
Significant items in this scene
Dr. Pulaski cites this report to clinically justify Data's claim about the swiftness of Graves' death, its factual authority temporarily masking the emerging contradictions in Data's account about Graves having articulated last wishes.
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The ready room's intimate yet formal setting amplifies the gravity of Data's uncharacteristic behavior, its Federation-blue walls reflecting shifting starlight that seems to underscore the uncertainty about what currently constitutes Data's 'self'.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Graves' metaphoric identification with mechanical longing ('If I Only Had A Heart' and 'We're much alike') resonates with Data's philosophical detachment when Picard asks if Graves' death unsettles him—both beats explore mortality, identity, and the blurred human/machine line."
"Graves' metaphoric identification with mechanical longing ('If I Only Had A Heart' and 'We're much alike') resonates with Data's philosophical detachment when Picard asks if Graves' death unsettles him—both beats explore mortality, identity, and the blurred human/machine line."
"Graves' metaphoric identification with mechanical longing ('If I Only Had A Heart' and 'We're much alike') resonates with Data's philosophical detachment when Picard asks if Graves' death unsettles him—both beats explore mortality, identity, and the blurred human/machine line."
"Graves' metaphoric identification with mechanical longing ('If I Only Had A Heart' and 'We're much alike') resonates with Data's philosophical detachment when Picard asks if Graves' death unsettles him—both beats explore mortality, identity, and the blurred human/machine line."
Key Dialogue
"DATA: I am not an 'it,' Doctor. You have been duly informed of this on several occasions, yet you continue to label me with that abhorrent pronoun."
"RIKER: I thought he said death came swiftly. When did Graves have time to make a dying wish?"