10 Stand-Alone Star Trek Episodes More Important Than You Realise
8. The Naked Now
The Naked Now is a straight-up remake of the Original Series episode The Naked Time. This drew ire from George Takei, who described the episode as 'children wearing their parents' clothes'. To be fair - he really did have a point for this episode specifically.
However, the episode, while generally a forgettable comedy, became a watershed moment for the character of Data. While it will frustrate some that Tasha Yar was simply a plot device, in this episode, for the android - later episodes gave this moment between them a little more depth than was originally intended.
Their sexual encounter is referred to in the trial to decide Data's humanity. In that case, it was proof that though technically without emotion, Data had the capacity to grow attached to others - something crucial in the argument of his being. Star Trek: First Contact would later reference this episode when the Borg Queen asks Data how long it had been since he had demonstrated the fact that he was 'fully functional, and programmed in multiple techniques.'
It may not quite be the legacy that fans had hoped for Tasha Yar, but at least they were gifted Yesterday's Enterprise two seasons later.