Star Trek The Next Generation
Character
Doctor
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Nel Apgar

ambitious innovative/experimental collaborative risk-tolerant scientifically rigorous focused/obsessive about research emotionally volatile in interpersonal conflict solitary / operates in isolation brittle desperate vulnerable
Nel Apgar (Dr. Nel Apgar) is the lead planet‑side research scientist on Tanuga Four whose experimental work on advanced energy fields (Krieger Waves / Lambda Field generator) is central to a transporter/station explosion and the subsequent criminal/forensic investigation. Deceased at the time of investigation, his station's destruction and last reported actions (an agitated confrontation, an active generator with a distinctive recharge cycle) drive holodeck reconstructions and diplomatic/political consequences. Apgar's technical work and death create both the procedural puzzle (Geordi, Data, Wesley analyzing the generator) and the narrative accusations that implicate Riker.
27 appearances
Experimental Energy Research (Krieger Wave development)
Also known as: Manua's spouse, DOCTOR APGAR, Doctor Apgar, the defendant, Dr. Apgar, Apgar, the accused, Nel Apgar, Dr. Nel Apgar, Doctor Nel Apgar

Nel Apgar's Journey

A timeline through the narrative

27 moments
S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Data's Clinical Intrusion

Not present physically; his implied death and research generate tension and urgency offstage.

Referenced indirectly by Data as the subject of the away team's survey at Tanuga Four; his work catalyzes the mission update that intrudes on the class, making him a narrative …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Mission Log — Tanuga Four: Transporter Anomaly and Station Explosion

Absent physically but implicated — his ambition and experimental apparatus cast a shadow over the bridge, suggesting possible professional stakes and danger.

Dr. Nel Apgar is referenced in Picard's log as the Tanuga Four scientist experimenting with Krieger Waves and the person who requested to speak with Riker; his experimental work is …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Picard Probes Geordi; Tanuga Four Station Explodes

Not directly shown; implied pre-occupation with his Krieger Wave experiments and then abruptly endangered or obliterated by the detonation.

Referenced off-screen as the Tanuga Four scientist who wanted to speak with Riker; implicitly affected by the explosion which destroys his station and likely endangers or kills him and his …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Public Log, Technical Dead End

Deceased—emotionally inert in the scene but narratively charged as the cause-and-effect fulcrum around which blame and motive rotate.

Referenced as the sole occupant of the destroyed station and the central victim of the incident; although not physically present, Apgar's work and possible presence at the scene govern the …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Extradition Standoff — Conditioned on Holodeck Reconstruction

Deceased/absent — his presence is felt only through evidence, testimony, and the moral urgency of the investigation.

Not physically present; Dr. Apgar functions as the deceased subject of the investigation — his exploded science station and last actions are the focus of testimony and reconstruction that drive …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Picard's Holodeck Gambit

Not applicable personally (deceased), but his death casts a pall of gravity and moral urgency over the conversation.

Doctor Apgar is referenced as the victim whose explosion and alleged prior threats frame the dispute; he is not present but functions as the factual and emotional pivot for both …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holodeck Deposition: The First Meeting Recreated

Irritable and guarded; feels pressure from external oversight and embarrassment from his wife's behavior.

Apgar's hologram 'comes to life' as an older, brusque scientist: impatient, defensive, and mildly hostile to the early arrival of Starfleet officers while insisting the meeting proceed on his terms.

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holodeck Deposition: The First Meeting Reconstructed

Irritated and humiliated — keen to control the narrative about his research but undermined by domestic embarrassment.

Apgar's hologram is polite but cold and defensive, brusquely accommodating the inspection while bristling at his wife's behavior; he attempts to protect his work and mask humiliation.

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Manua's Toast — Private Flirtation Becomes Public Evidence

Humiliated and irritated — wounded by his wife's public diminishment and suspicious of outside interference.

Apgar scowls and refuses to join the toast; he vocalizes suspicion about Starfleet's presence, attempts to reassert professional boundaries, and grows sullen and withdrawn when Manua's social gambit sidesteps his …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holographic Freeze — Krag's Accusation

Humiliated and suspicious—resentful that outside authorities impinge on his work and keenly sensitive to perceived slights.

Apgar scowls, refuses to join the toast, articulates grievances about schedule and Starfleet's unexpected presence, then goes silent under Manua's smooth hospitality—his resentment and professional discomfort plainly visible.

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Sanctuary Breach — A Threat Made Visible

Humiliation and rage dominate; his anger is mixed with wounded pride and a desperate need to reassert control.

Dr. Apgar bursts into the room, accuses his wife, slaps her across the cheek, lunges toward Riker and storms out threatening retaliation; later in the lab holoprogram he sits at …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holodeck Confrontation — From Personal Rupture to Damning Reconstruction

Humiliated and enraged, alternately wounded and vengeful — compelled to reassert control through threat of official complaint.

Apgar bursts into the guest quarters in the holographic recreation, slaps Manua, lunges at Riker and then storms out threatening formal grievance — he also appears in Krag's alternate overlay …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Krag's Holographic Indictment: Riker at the Reactor

Angry and defensive, alternating with shame; his behavior suggests a bruised dignity that could supply motive in an accusatory frame.

Doctor Apgar is rendered in the holodeck as furious and humiliated; he confronts Riker, strikes Manua, threatens grievance, and then sits at a console—his actions and emotional collapse are the …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holographic Intimacy: Manua Consoles Apgar

Desperate and tense outwardly, striving to maintain dignity while clinging to the hope that extra time will validate his work and protect his family.

Apgar appears impatient and brittle in the replay: pleading for time, exchanging a brief kiss with Manua, promising future rewards, then exiting toward the other room as though summoned to …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Domestic Ceremony, Predatory Gaze

Irritated and tense, masking worry about his research's progress and about outside scrutiny from Starfleet.

Apgar is brusque and anxious, insisting on his work and resenting Riker's early arrival. He accepts Manua's intervening gestures reluctantly and withdraws with Geordi and Tayna to attend to records …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Toast, Tension, and the Collimation Claim

Surface eagerness masking anxiety—driven by the need for recognition and validation, while feeling pressure from the room's scrutiny.

Apgar raises a toast, then leans into a nervous technical demonstration—standing, pacing, clearing his throat—using the convivial frame to announce he's 'very close' to being able to collimate a Krieger …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
A Request, a Demonstration, and a Charged Look

Pressed and anxious but defensive; proud of his work and eager to validate it as a means of control and approval.

Seated on the couch, Apgar initiates a toast, senses pressure when Riker requests to stay, stands and begins to pace as he launches into a technical exposition about being close …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Confrontation in the Guest Quarters — Accusation, Assault, and a Vow

Outwardly raging and wounded; beneath the anger a vulnerable, humiliated pride that converts into vindictive resolve.

Apgar storms into the simulated guest quarters, verbally confronts Riker about perceived intimacy, lunges with a wild punch, is physically overpowered by Riker's defensive strikes, collapses, and vows revenge while …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holodeck Testimony: Manua Breaks, Troi Confirms

Humiliated rage that flips into pain and terrified resolve — angry and convinced of personal betrayal.

Apgar is the simulated instigator: he confronts Riker, throws a wild punch, doubles over from Riker's counterblows, and utters a vengeful threat as he collapses — the holodeck rendering centers …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Hearsay, Law, and a Forced Concession

Referenced as agitated and deceased; his prior emotional state (upset) colors the deposition and raises suspicion and urgency.

Doctor Apgar is not present alive but his reported upset state and final words are the content of Tayna's statement and the basis for the reconstruction; his absence drives the …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Jealousy Ignites — Apgar's Violent Confrontation

Outwardly enraged and jealous but with a focused, almost clinical violence—rage channeled into effective physical control rather than chaotic flailing.

Apgar bursts through the door into the holodeck reconstruction, quickly assesses the embrace, evades Riker's wild punch, then executes a precise, forceful flurry to Riker's stomach and jaw before calmly …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Krag Freezes the Holodeck—Violence Recast as Evidence

Righteously enraged and vindictive — anger over betrayal fused with a need to reassert dignity through action rather than words.

Apgar bursts through the door, confronts Riker and Manua, avoids Riker's wild punch, then retaliates with a fast, focused flurry of punches that floors Riker and declares he will report …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Wesley Identifies Apgar's Killer

N/A as a living emotional state; narrative presence is of a tragic, motivating absence that provokes investigation.

Not present physically; referenced as the deceased scientist whose generator and death are central to the forensic revelation and who becomes the subject of Wesley's identifying accusation.

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holodeck Replay — The Setup Unmasked

Portrayed as worried and furtive in holographic replays — the simulation implies premeditation and professional desperation.

Appears as a holographic simulation in multiple programs: defensive in one, touchingly earnest in another, and finally shown touching a panel to activate the generator — his staged actions supply …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holodeck Reconstruction: The Converter's Reflection

On-screen persona appears defensive and furtive — the projected Apgar reads as someone concealing an active, instrumental agenda.

Represented by holographic renditions that alternately plead, deflect, and finally touch a console — the frozen facsimile's panel activation is the pivot that, in the simulation, triggers the converter to …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holodeck Reconstruction — The Fatal Pulse

Holographic urgency and calculation — the recorded Apgar alternates between plausible scientist and a man cornered by motive and fear.

Apgar appears only as holographic playback — defensive then earnest in different programs; in the live simulation his hologram activates a panel that triggers the generator, an action that becomes …

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S3E14 · A Matter of Perspective
Holodeck Proof: Apgar's Frame Unraveled

Not applicable (deceased); his actions prior to death cast a tragic and culpable shadow over the present moment.

Absent and deceased; referenced by Picard as the subject of the forensic conclusion that reframes his death as an act during an attempted murder-suicide.

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