Star Trek: Every Q Episode Ranked Worst To Best

Q's perfect partner is Picard. This was summed up perfectly in the best episode to feature Q, Tapestry. This episode stands alone from the rest of the Q episodes in that it is focused entirely on the bond, however reluctantly, that has developed between them both.

Faced with losing Picard, he instead offers him a chance to live again. The story began life as a sort of Dickensian Christmas Carol, with Q bringing Jean Luc back through some of the bad events of his life, but the idea never gained much traction. The story settled on the stabbing incident.

The audience knew that Picard had an artificial heart but this hadn't yet been depicted. Instead of a Christmas Carol, it became something closer to It's A Wonderful Life, something that producer Michael Pillar was not as enthused about. The strength of the story lies not in the actual events on screen but in the significance of Picard's reaction to them. As a wise older man, he feels that he knows better but ultimately Q knows even more than he does. He simply steps in the way of Picard's path to whatever lies beyond and offers him a do-over. Only Q could have managed this.

Having an entity with the powers of a God can offer as many challenges as opportunities, yet here the exact nature of what this character can do is shown. He is not there as a deus ex machina. He is a guide, never better depicted than in this season six episode.