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This article is about the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode. For information on coming-of-age ceremonies, see coming of age.
"Coming of Age" is an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, from the first season. Its episode number is 119, and it first aired on February 3, 1988. In the Star Trek timeline, the events occurred on stardate 41461.2.
Plot
The first sequence in the episode
The episode's first sequence occurs as follows.
The USS Enterprise orbits the planet Relva VII. As Wesley Crusher is transported to the planet to be given an entrance exam for admission to Starfleet Academy, Admiral Gregory Quinn, an old friend of Picard's, requests to see the captain. He beams aboard, accompanied by Lt. Commander Dexter Remmick. Given his traditionally friendly relationship with Picard, he and Mr. Remmick act surprisingly short with Picard. Thus, the primary plot of the episode unfolds.
The remainder of the episode
The remainder of the episode follows two plots: Wesley's entrance exam, and Quinn's and Remmick's activities aboard the Enterprise.
Wesley's entrance exam
Wesley's three competitors in the entrance exam are introduced. One is a human—or human-like—female; another is a Vulcan female; the other is a Benzite male. The administrator of the exam is Lt. Chang. During the objective portions of the exam shown in the episode, the four candidates sit in a room together while they answer questions presented to them by a computer. One of the questions asked was what a matter/antimatter "intermix" ratio for spacecraft propulsion should be—the correct answer is always 1:1. In another surprise "question," Wesley is confronted by a Zaldanian whose culture dictates that one must be offended by meaningless, polite conversation. To pass this confrontation, Wesley must treat the person in a way appropriate to the person's culture, and he succeeds.
The portion of the exam that most worries Wesley is the portion in which the examinee's psychological strength is tested. This portion is colloquially referred to as the "psych test." For Wesley's psych test—which he passes—he is confronted with a situation in which people are about to die, and he must not hesitate by spending too much time before making a decision.
During the course of the exam, it is revealed that the human, or human-like, female, has a crush on Wesley.
In the end, Wesley is not the winner of admission to Starfleet Academy.
Quinn and Remmick
The portions of the episode concerning Admiral Quinn and Lt. Commander Remmick consume approximately the same amount of time as do the segments concerning Wesley's entrance exam. Quinn's and Remmick's story is briefly outlined as follows.
Because Quinn suspects the existence of certain conspiracies within Starfleet, he finds it necessary to launch investigations of certain personnel, to determine whether they are participating in any insubordinate activities. One of these personnel is Picard, who Quinn orders Remmick to investigate. After Remmick reports—with Picard present—that he has uncovered nothing of importance about Picard, Quinn offers to promote Picard to the rank of Admiral and give him a high position at Starfleet Academy, an offer which Picard refuses. It is implied that the cause of his refusal is that the job would involve too much politics for his liking.
These portions of the episode were followed by and resolved in Conspiracy, which aired seven weeks after Coming of Age.
References
External link
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