Today in Star Trek history: Star Trek: The Next Generation, “Disaster”

Colm Meaney as Chief Miles O’Brien in Star Trek: The Next Generation “Disaster”

It was today, October 21st, back in 1991, that the Star Trek: The Next Generation season five episode “Disaster” first aired. In the episode, a collision with a quantum filament disables the Enterprise and the rest of the episode continues with the crew separated into four storylines: Troi, Ro and O’Brien on the Bridge; Crusher and LaForge in a cargo bay; Worf and Keiko (in labor) in Ten Forward; and poor Captain Picard suffering with a broken ankle while stuck in a turbolift with a group of children.

This is the episode that gave us Worf as midwife, Riker carrying Data’s disembodied head, and Crusher and Geordi trying to blow themselves out into space. All told, an excellent episode of Star Trek.