10 Times Star Trek Broke The Fourth Wall

10. Dealing With Ferengi - The Price (The Next Generation: Season 3, Episode 8)

Before they came to be the greedy little intergalactic clowns we all love, there was a time where Gene Roddenberry genuinely thought the Ferengi would be a legitimate threat to follow the Klingons. Although their ultra-capitalist worldview does indeed put them at odds with the post-money ethos of the Federation, their diminutive stature and slightly goofy appearance made taking them seriously as a villain particularly difficult.

Sure enough, following a disastrous introduction in season 1, subsequent Ferengi appearances in TNG had them demoted to bumbling secondary villains and comic relief. When a wormhole to the Gamma Quadrant (no not that one) opens up near the planet Barzan II, and delegations are sent to procure rights to its use, the Ferengi are naturally at the table. Characteristically bullish in their negotiations, the Ferengi employ bribes, aggression and even poison in their bid for the wormhole.

Captain Picard eventually finds himself at the receiving end of DaiMon Goss’s ire, and reacts the only way a sane man can: with an exasperated look, directly down the camera lens. While some may argue that this is just a mistake as opposed to a fourth wall break, it’s worth noting that Patrick Stewart is a very highly regarded Shakespearean actor, and logic would state he’s professional enough not to look at the camera during takes.

Furthermore, this isn’t a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment, but a full stare, ‘Parks and Rec’, style at the kind of idiocy with which he is forced to suffer. Call it a slip up or a fourth wall break, whatever the case, we’ve all been there.