[Nate the Great]

RIKER 2: Remember, I'm the one who wanted to make Captain by the time I was thirty five.

So he turned down the Aries...why? Furthermore, this seems rather myopic. If your sense of self-worth is dependent on attaining a position of power ASAP, you've got bigger problems.

RIKER 2: Sometimes I would look up into the sky and I'd think, if I tried hard enough, I could make you feel my presence. That if I could let you know that I was alive, maybe you'd wait for me. I know it sounds crazy, but there were times when I could've sworn. What am I talking about?

The telepathic range of people in Trek seems to be rather set. You just can't concentrate extra hard to extend it.

In the novel "Guises of the Mind" Deanna was a prisoner along with an untrained telepath. She was able to take control of the telepath's ability to extend the range of her telepathic distress signal. Seriously, the early TNG novels were really good.

PICARD: Lieutenant Riker has been to see me to talk about the away mission. He believes that the only way to retrieve the database is by directly accessing the main core underneath the station.
RIKER: The seismic activity makes those caverns very unstable. In my opinion, it's too risky.
PICARD: He said that he was down there recently. He seemed confident that it could be done safely.
RIKER: There's a good chance we will be able to retrieve the database from one of the consoles inside the station.
PICARD: But if it doesn't work, we won't have another chance for eight years.
RIKER: Lieutenant Riker's plan is more dangerous, but it does have a better chance of succeeding.
PICARD: Given the importance of the data, I think that it's worth the risk.

This is a pointless rehash of the Riker/Shelby rivalry in "The Best of Both Worlds." Furthermore, the seismic instability is rather pointless except for artificial drama at the end. This screentime should've been devoted to more important things.

RIKER: I just met with the Captain about your mission recommendation. I would appreciate it if next time you came to me first.
RIKER 2: I tried talking to you yesterday on the station. You wouldn't hear me out.
RIKER: I heard you, Lieutenant. I rejected your plan.
RIKER 2: May I ask what the Captain decided?
RIKER: The Captain has decided to go with your recommendation, but that's not the point.

Another rehash of BOBW. Ugh.

TROI: It's really hard for me to separate my feelings for them.

It is? Will loves what you are NOW, Tom loves what you were THEN. Will loves real things about you, Tom loves the idealized version of you that he's created in his head. Furthermore, if Deanna wanted to be with Will that much she could've resigned her commission and stayed on as a civilian specialist.

(and now she has him on the floor, lips connect in a prelude to horizontal jogging)

Ick, Chakoteya. Ick.

RIKER: Do me a favour. Be careful.
TROI: Will, I know you and he have had some problems.
RIKER: That's not what I'm talking about. If he had gotten off the planet instead of me, don't you think he would have made the same choices that I made? I just don't want you to be hurt again.

On the surface this is a fair question, but the butterfly effect does still apply. We make major life decisions based on the most frivolous reasons sometimes.

RIKER: Why don't we get this over with? I'll call your three, and I'll raise you anything you've got left. Well?
RIKER 2: Take it. You always had the better hand, in everything.

Better hand? Another short-sighted decision. They are IDENTICAL. I see no reason why Tom wouldn't have the exact same career that Will did. At the time they were separated they had the same feelings for Deanna and their careers. They would've ended up as a "Will" and a "Tom" regardless of whether Riker Pattern A or Riker Pattern B was rescued.

RIKER 2: Captain Picard made has some inquiries. He managed to get me a posting on the Gandhi. And considering how long I've been out of commission, it's an amazing opportunity.

I get wanting to honor the man, but I doubt he would be in favor of a warship being named after him.

Furthermore, I'd think Tom would need to return to the Academy to catch up on the last eight years. Not just the technology, but the entire geopolitical status of the quadrant! When he was stranded the Federation was at war with the Cardassians, the Romulans were still in isolation, nobody had ever heard of Q or the Borg, etc.

RIKER 2: Deanna. After I've served for six months, I'm eligible to bring family aboard. If we got married--

What? Where did that tradition come from? Either a ship is family-compatible or it's not. And the Gandhi is Ambassador-class, so I doubt that it is. Furthermore, we're not talking about kids yet, we're talking about a married pair of Starfleet officers. Is there a counselling position open on the Gandhi or not?

TROI: You said those exact words to me before you went to serve on the Potemkin.

Really? The Potemkin is Excelsior-class. I don't think those are rated for families. Furthermore, at that earlier time Riker would've been so focused on his career that a long-term stay on any ship would've been out of the question, so families would not have been on his mind.

TROI: It's not just that. I've worked hard to make a life for myself on the Enterprise. I'm happy here.
RIKER 2: If the situation were different, I'd stay. But I can't. Not while he's aboard.
TROI: I know.

This is an interesting situation. If Tom stayed on as helmsman, he'd be in continual contact with Will. But if he transferred to Security there would be less risk of that. He wouldn't have a conflict with Worf, and Worf is honorable enough to not let his feelings for Will interfere with a working relationship with Tom.

DATA: Lieutenant, I am curious about something. If you met a double of yourself, would you have difficulty interacting with him?
WORF: I think so.
DATA: Why?
WORF: I am not easy to get along with.

Oh, do I get that. I would find a duplicate of myself insufferable.

Conclusion: What was resolved here? At no point do they talk to each other about their feelings and sort out what they're going to do. The episode is just drama until it...stops. That's bad writing.

The Fiver

Riker: Who are you?
Lt. Riker: (mockingly) I know you are, but what am I?

That joke is exceedingly juvenile and I never liked it.

Lt. Riker: That's easily fixed. One stroke of the razor and I'll once again be as smooth as an android's bottom.
Picard: Okay, that was one image I did NOT need replayed in my mind.

That was a good bit in Insurrection, even if I don't like how Frakes looks without a beard.

Lt. Riker: Sorry I'm late, I'm still getting used to the time zone difference.
Data: You realize, Lieutenant, that all Federation outposts have synchronized chronometers and that the time on the planet is the same as that on the Enterprise.

Wait...what? Do all outposts use the same time, or does the ship synchronize with whatever city they're hovering over? Those are mutually exclusive things!

Troi: Ooh, Will left me another note on the warp core.
La Forge: Aaaaaagh! He taped it on! I spent hours polishing that!

Putting aside the fact that by the 24th century there have to be adhesives that won't leave a residue, why would Geordi need to polish the warp core? That's what the drones hidden in the consoles are for!

Riker: Here, I'd like you to have my trombone.
Lt. Riker: Great! I haven't played one of these for years! Well, I'm out of here. Take care of her, Will.
Troi: Aww, I want you to play me "Nightbird!"
Lt. Riker: I take that back. Cause her great, great pain.

Hehe. It's a shame that a subplot involving Tom replicating a trombone and perfecting "Nightbird" during his exile wasn't included. He could've even written a song in Deanna's honor!

Memory Alpha

* There seems to be confusion among the creators about what job Tom would've taken. Helmsman makes sense, security officer makes sense, but Jeri Taylor thinking Operations does not.
* First episode directed by Burton.

Nitpicker's Guide

* Phil brings up Riker's feelings about clones from "Up the Long Ladder". Whether this is applicable to Tom is complicated. Or maybe Will has just matured since the second season. Or maybe "Up the Long Ladder" has been reduced to pseudo-canon along with most of the first two seasons.
* If Will was promoted for his actions during the mission, why wasn't Tom?
* Phil also brings up the bad idea of sending Tom to another assignment, but he specifically mentions counselling. I forgot about that.
* Phil suggests combining the transporter tech from this episode, "Relics", and "Lonely Among Us" to create disposable duplicates of crew members for dangerous away missions. If the crew member returns you can dispose of the double in transporter suspension, if they don't you can rematerialize the double. Truly a philosophical headache that I'm glad the creators didn't think of.
* Phil forgot the name "Night Bird". He was embarrassed to have to be educated on this point by Max Grodenchik.