Riker urges Data to embrace love’s risks
Plot Beats
The narrative micro-steps within this event
Riker encourages Data to pursue a relationship with Jenna, emphasizing the potential rewards despite the inherent risks of disappointment and hurt. He acknowledges Jenna is aware of Data's limitations but has chosen to take the chance, highlighting the profound experience that can come from successful relationships.
Data, seeking clarification, presses Riker to quantify the benefits of a romantic relationship versus friendship. Riker playfully deflects, suggesting Data is about to discover the answer himself.
After careful consideration, Data expresses his gratitude to Commander Riker for his advice, signifying his decision to act. Data exits the scene.
Who Was There
Characters present in this moment
Genuinely invested in Data’s emotional growth, balancing his role as a superior with that of a trusted friend. There’s a quiet confidence in his advice, rooted in his own experiences with love and risk.
Riker leans slightly forward in his chair, his expression a mix of mentorship and personal warmth as he engages Data in a rare moment of emotional vulnerability. His tone is pragmatic yet encouraging, blending Starfleet discipline with the wisdom of someone who has taken his own romantic risks. He frames love as a transformative experience, urging Data to step beyond logic and embrace the unknown.
- • To guide Data toward a human experience he has long sought
- • To encourage Data to take an emotional risk, despite his logical reservations
- • Love is a worthwhile risk, even for an android
- • Data’s emotional development is possible, given the right guidance
Conflict between logical certainty and the allure of an unknown emotional experience, tempered by gratitude for Riker’s guidance but still anchored in hesitation.
Data stands in the Observation Lounge, his posture rigid yet contemplative, as he voices his internal conflict to Riker. His fingers twitch slightly—a tell of his processing emotions he cannot fully grasp—while his voice remains measured, betraying only a hint of vulnerability. He exits thoughtfully, the weight of Riker’s words lingering in his positronic mind.
- • To resolve his internal paradox about love and pain
- • To understand the emotional rewards Riker describes, despite his limitations
- • Love is an illogical risk that cannot be reciprocated by an android
- • Human emotions are beyond his capacity, yet he is drawn to the idea of experiencing them
Not directly observable, but implied to be hopeful and determined, given her prior actions in pursuing the relationship.
Jenna D’Sora is referenced indirectly as the emotional catalyst for Data’s dilemma. Though physically absent, her presence looms large in the conversation, symbolizing the human vulnerability and risk-taking that Data struggles to comprehend. Her willingness to take the chance on love—despite Data’s limitations—serves as the counterpoint to Data’s logical reservations.
- • To be loved and understood by Data, despite his android nature
- • To experience a deep emotional connection, even if it is one-sided
- • Love is worth the risk, even with an android
- • Data is capable of growth, even if he doesn’t yet understand it
Location Details
Places and their significance in this event
The Observation Lounge serves as a neutral yet intimate space where Data and Riker’s conversation unfolds, its curved viewports framing the Mar Oscura nebula’s eerie glow—a visual metaphor for the unknown emotional terrain Data is being urged to explore. The lounge’s quiet, reflective atmosphere contrasts with the urgency of their discussion, amplifying the weight of Riker’s advice. The setting is deliberately chosen for its privacy, allowing Data to voice his vulnerabilities without the prying eyes of the crew.
Narrative Connections
How this event relates to others in the story
"Worf's warning to Data about mistreating Jenna prompts Data to seek more advice, this time from Riker, as he continues to gather information to understand human relationships."
"After careful consideration, Data decides to pursue the relationship, then seeks Captain Picard's counsel, continuing his meticulous approach to understanding romance."
Key Dialogue
"DATA: Jenna has clearly demonstrated how she feels about me. But I am not capable of returning those feelings."
"RIKER: Jenna knows that. And she's obviously decided to take the chance. Data, when it really works between two people, it's like nothing you've ever experienced -- the rewards are far beyond simple friendship."
"DATA: How far beyond, sir?"
"RIKER: Well, that's what I hope you're about to find out."