Star Trek: 11 Greatest Unfinished Story Ideas

5. The Parasite Infiltration Of Starfleet (TNG: Conspiracy) Conspiracy stands as one of the stronger episodes from the inaugural season of TNG. In its original conception, the infiltration in question was conducted not by parasitic aliens but by a type of nanotechnological species that would have served on a certain level as a precursor to the Borg. This storyline was eventually abandoned and what fans are left with is far more disturbing than nanites and frankly much more gruesome. In their adolescent stage, these alien parasites enter the host body through the mouth and reside in the chest cavity, where they grow at an alarming rate, allowing them to control the host both physically and mentally. In one of the more graphic scenes of the series, Picard and Riker kill the alien queen by blowing the head of the unwilling human host to bits. The queen bursts through the host's chest, only to succumb to a barrage of phaser fire by the Enterprise's captain and first officer. While there is an allusion to the investigation of the parasites in the fourth-season episode The Drumhead, nothing else is ever said concerning the events of Conspiracy. With presumably dozens of high ranking Starfleet officers having been infected, this was another storyline that could have been brought back to terrific effect. It comes across as a somewhat glaring omission that something that had nearly brought the Federation to its knees was never explored again. Instead of being simply an odd exclusion, never returning to the parasite infiltration feels more like a huge missed opportunity.