8. A Matter Of Perspective
The Next Generation took a stab at a good old fashioned murder mystery, and I personally think they pulled it off quite well, but some more lackluster acting at key points throughout the episode made an otherwise great one lost in the test of time. Riker and Geordi are sent to meet an independent scientist, Dr. Apgar (Mark Margolis,
"Breaking Bad") to evaluate a potential new power source for the Federation, but Dr. Apgar's space station explodes right as Riker beams back to the
Enterprise, and Apgar is the only man left on the station when it explodes. When the planet's chief investigator beams aboard, he immediately arrests Riker for suspicion of murder; a phaser blast was detected directly from Riker's beam out position when the station exploded. An interesting concept involved using the holodeck as a courtroom to recreate events as they happened from each side's point of view, which makes this episode worth watching. Again, there are some lines that make you wonder how this script left the writer's room, including: Riker: "You're a DEAD MAN, Apgar! A dead man!" (Watch the delivery if you get a chance and try not to laugh) Apgar's wife: "I just know he did it... *tear* he killed my husband."