10 Most Hated Star Trek: The Next Generation Episodes

When William Riker gets infected by foreign parasites on an alien planet that looks more like a soundstage, the only method to repel them is to induce him to relive his past experiences with happy memories strengthening the parasites and painful ones weakening them. Basically, it’s a clip show.

The big issue though is the absence of any new revelation about Riker or any character growth that happens from remembering these moments. There is nothing for him to reflect on upon waking up making it a boring and pointless trudge through memory lane. To make matters worse, most of the scenes are from the most awful episodes so far torturing us by making us relive such painful events.

The framing scenes between flashbacks occur mostly in sickbay exposing the episode’s lack of resources while filling our ears with repetitive dialogue. The conversations between Troy and Dr. Pulaski feel like an endless loop as they regurgitate the same info about how there is no cure for the parasite and that memories are the key to saving Riker. Meanwhile, the cinematography is bland constantly utilizing basic shots from the same angles, and the set looks bare with nothing but a medical bed and some computers revealing that this was all shot cheaply and in a rush. To top it off, there is a droning musical score which feels more suitable for a hypnosis session as it keeps repeating the same three notes ad nauseum.

It’s apparent that Shades of Grey exists solely to meet the required season episode count and is thus, wholly unworthy of being remembered.