February 14th, 1994, "Thine Own Self"
As a prelude, I agree with SF Debris that Troi's promotion should've been a subplot for multiple episodes, possibly triggered by the events of "Chain of Command" (which should've been three episodes, now that I think about it).
The Episode
TROI: I didn't expect to find anyone up except Data.
I won't repeat the entire "there should be an experienced staff on the bridge 24/7 because the Romulans won't be polite enough to attack during the day shift" screed again, but it still applies.
CRUSHER: Data's away on assignment. A Federation deep space probe went off course and crashed on Barkon Four. Some of the material in the casing was radioactive, so Data was sent to recover it before it could contaminate the biosphere.
I don't like the idea of one person away teams in general, but especially in cases where the mission is away from the ship. At the very least there should've been an ensign stationed in the shuttle waiting for Data to come back. Furthermore there have to be species (Horta? Gorn?) that would be immune to simple radiation to accompany him.
TROI: Fine. It was good to see some old friends. I'd lost touch with most of them.
I'm still confused about how anyone in the Federation could lose touch with anyone else. The computers seem to keep track of where everyone is unless you are explicitly a crackpot scientist who chooses to become lost. And it's not like there's such a thing as "long distance charges" in the future.
CRUSHER: I like to put in a little Bridge time now and then, stay on top of operations, tactical procedures. The truth is, I like it. It's not every doctor who gets to command a starship, even if it is the night shift.
This should've been established much earlier.
TROI: May I ask you a personal question? Why did you decide to become a Commander? I mean, you didn't need the rank in order to be Chief Medical Officer, so why put yourself through all the extra work?
This is used to explain Pulaski's lower rank. It does raise further questions about how there can be senior officers with ranks lower than Lieutenant Commander, but that's another screed.
CRUSHER: Oh, I don't know. I never even thought about my rank for a long time. It seemed pretty trivial compared to being a doctor. But then, about eight years ago, I started to feel like I wanted to stretch myself a little.
2362. We actually know nothing at all about Beverly's life between Jack's death and arriving on the E-D. If you go by the novels, however, in 2360 she helped Admiral Uhura on a Starfleet Intelligence mission. Perhaps she was made aware of greater capabilities within herself during this mission.
TROI: Is something wrong?
CRUSHER: No. I wanted to let Data know there'd be a delay in picking him up for a few of days. We have orders to rendezvous with the Lexington and take some medical supplies to the Taranko Colony.
TROI: But he's not responding.
CRUSHER: Geordi said that the radiation from the probe might interfere with communications. I just thought I'd try anyway.
And this is why you'd want an ensign in a shuttle in orbit. For that matter, you'd think they could zip over to Barkon IV, drop off the saucer section to look for him, then have the stardrive handle Taranko Colony.
(Riker is practising his trombone when Troi strolls in. He finishes the piece and then blows two notes)
TROI: Is that supposed to be a question?
(parp parp)
TROI: Because if you're asking me if I liked what you were playing, then the answer is yes.
(paarp parp)
TROI: You know, this is a much better way of communicating for you. It's far less confusing than the way you normally speak.
(parp!)
Always a great scene.
TROI: Do you remember when the Enterprise hit that quantum filament and I was in command on the Bridge?
RIKER: I do.
TROI: Well, when that happened, I was overwhelmed. But when it was over I realised that a part of me missed it. Not the actual disaster, but the experience of being in command.
And here we are, the biggest plot hole in the episode. I'm not going to claim that passing the test should be required for commanding the ship, but it wouldn't be a bad idea. Then again, you'd think every Starfleet Academy student has to take a few command courses, since all of them will command a work team, away team, or even the ship itself at some point.
Upon thinking about it, is there a difference between "having the bridge" (i.e. you have to call a senior officer to take over at the first hint of trouble) and "acting captain" (you're trusted to handle everything short of an actual war or First Contact situation)? That's another screed waiting to happen.,
RIKER: Deanna, if you take the Bridge Officer's test, you'll have my complete support. But as First Officer, I'll be the one judging your performance, and you should know I am a pretty tough judge.
I get the purpose of this for storytelling purposes, but in the real world I would have to assume that this would require specialized training akin to what Wesley had to go through back in "Coming of Age".
TALUR: No headaches, palpitations, sluggishness, indigestion?
DATA: No. But I cannot have indigestion since I have not eaten.
TALUR: Ah. Malnutrition.
That seems like a leap of logic.
TALUR: Yes. You probably come from a race of people who lived in the snow and ice of the Vellorian mountains. Your skin and eye colouration are a result of prolonged exposure to harsh winter conditions.
I do like the attempt to use science and logic here. A repeat of "Who Watches the Watchers" would be unwelcome.
(Skoran hits it with a hammer on the anvil)
SKORAN: It's obviously been tempered and milled.
Tempered means heating and slow cooling to increase toughness (ability to deform without fracturing). Milled means the surface has been cut away revealing a uniform surface. I had to look this stuff up, I've always been more comfortable with woodworking than metalworking.
SKORAN: The metal's malleable enough to make some jewellry.
We're never told what this stuff is beyond "radioactive". Uranium can be worked and I assume other radioactive metals can as well.
GIA: Father, are you all right?
GARVIN: I've been tired since this afternoon. I'm sure it's nothing.
Fatigue is a symptom of radiation poisoning, but it's surprising that nausea is never even mentioned.
DATA: Where is your mother?
GIA: She died about a year ago. Father says she went to a beautiful place where everything is peaceful and everyone loves each other, and no one ever gets sick. Do you think there's really a place like that?
(Data gazes out at the moon and stars)
DATA: Yes. I do.
Another great scene.