History Recap / StarTrekTheNextGenerationS3E22TheMostToys

* ArtisticLicense: A rather literal example: Both ''Art/ThePersistenceOfMemory'' by Creator/SalvadorDali and ''Art/TheMonaLisa'' by Creator/LeonardoDaVinci, despite being implied to be the stolen originals, are shown much larger than the actual paintings are in real life. Both are surprisingly small and wouldn't read very well to TV viewers.[[note]]It's possible, however, that [[FridgeBrilliance since Fajo isn't from Earth, he wouldn't know what size the real paintings are and would probably accept copies of them as the real deal.]][[/note]]

* CompleteTheQuoteTitle: "He who dies with the most toys wins.", coined by multibillionaire Malcolm Forbes. It's a sentiment shared by Fajo, as he is willing to threaten and risk lives for the purpose of increasing his collection. The ending reinforces it, as he is defeated not by being killed but by living long enough to see his collection confiscated.

* ArtisticLicense: A rather literal example: Both ''Art/ThePersistenceOfMemory'' by Creator/SalvadorDali and ''Art/TheMonaLisa'' by Creator/LeonardoDaVinci, despite being implied to be the stolen originals, are shown much larger than the actual paintings are in real life. Both are surprisingly small and wouldn't read very well to TV viewers.

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: The Varon-T disruptor slowly and painfully disintegrates its target from the inside out. When Fajo uses it on Varria, she screams continously until her head is vaporized.

* WhyDidYouMakeMeHitYou: In line with NeverMyFault, Fajo immediately blames Varria for her ''making'' Fajo kill her (with what is essentially [[Film/StayTuned a phaser set to "torture"]).

Data wakes up to find himself in Fajo's personal gallery. Fajo informs Data that the android has been added to his collection of priceless and unique objects. Data states that he has no intention of being held prisoner, and that as a Star Fleet officer its his duty to escape. Fajo boast that he cannot escape the gallery, as the vault door would take years to come through, even with Data's super strength, and when Data then attempts to use said strength to physically subdue Fajo, he discovers that he cannot touch him due to a personal force field specially made to keep androids at bay. Varria informs Data that he must wear a new costume and sit in a chair for display, but Data refuses. Varria warns him that Fajo is capable of great generosity as well as cruelty, implying that she has been the recipient of both. Data surmises that they are both his captives.

Varria, meanwhile, has decided that she's had enough. She takes the disruptor out of the gallery safe and escorts Data to the shuttle bay. As Data prepares a pod for their escape, Fajo and his men intercepts them, and Fajo uses one of his other Varon-T disruptors on Varria. Seeing her dying in agony makes him toss the weapon away in disgust. But Data picks the disruptor back up and aims it at Fajo, telling him to surrender himself to the authorities. Confronted with this, the collector quickly snaps out of his shock and immediately tries to reassume control of the situation. Scoffing at Data's demands, he reminds him that his programming still instils him with respect for all living beings, and as an android he cannot use rage as an excuse to take a life. Further, Fajo threatens to start killing more people if Data continues to defy him. Data considers all of this for a moment and concludes that Fajo must be stopped before he can kill again. With no non-lethal ways of achieving this, Data decides on a course of action and resolutely raises the disrupter against Fajo. The collector is taken completely off-guard by this, and starts frantically pleading for his life, as Data squeezes the trigger... only for the Enterprise to transport him away just as his weapon is going off, saving Fajo.

As Data is beamed back board the Enterprise, O'Brien mentions to Riker that he also picked up a disrupter discharge along with Data, but he cancelled it out. Data steps off the transport, and tells Riker to see to that Fajo is immediately arrested for murder, kidnapping, and theft. Riker in turn tries questioning him about the disrupter discharge, but Data cryptically dismisses it as something that "must have happened during transport."

Fajo is arrested, and Data pays a visit to him in the ''Enterprise''[='s=] holding cell. Fajo comments on how their roles have switched: Data is now the collector and Fajo is the one in the cage. Fajo tells him that he is not beaten yet, and is sure he will one day have Data back in his collection. Data tells him not to count on it, as his entire collection has been confiscated by Star Fleet, and they are in the process of figuring out how to return everything in it to their rightful owners. Deflated by these news, Fajo says that Data must love to see him brought so low, but Data blandly states that he feels no pleasure at this -- he is "[[IronicEcho only an android]]", after all.

* ArmorPiercingQuestion: When Varria says that Fajo has no moral difficulties at all, Data asks, "[[MinionWithAnFInEvil Do you?]]" Varria [[ManipulativeBastard calls him on it]]. He does get through to her shortly after though.

* BadBoss: Fajo is not only free with "punishments for disloyalty", but after vaporizing Varria, he casually suggests to Data that he'll threaten someone else to ensure his continued compliance -- "Him, for example," indicating one of his {{mooks}} on the floor. [[AssholeVictim This almost gets him killed]]; he is spared only by Data getting beamed out by the ''Enterprise'' right as he fires the [[CruelAndUnusualDeath Varon-T Disruptor]] in his grip at Fajo. Nice job, Fajo.

* BreakTheHaughty: Fajo loses everything. Notable when he smugly says that one day Data will be back in his collection only to be informed all the stolen property is already being returned to their owners and his face falls as it hits him his "collection" no longer exists.

* ChekhovsGun: The literal version with the disrupter. One is kept in a safe behind a ConcealingCanvas, the other is Fajo's PillowPistol, mentioned in the same scene. Both are involved in the final confrontation between Data and Fajo.

* EurekaMoment: Geordi is lying in bed remembering the audio communication of the mission. As he comes to the point where Data's shuttle explodes, he realizes that Data did not say he was leaving Fajo's ship as required by procedure. Since Data ''always'' follows procedure to the letter, it indicates to Geordi something doesn't add up. (It takes him a little longer to figure out exactly what it means, but it's the first sign to the crew that things weren't what they appeared.)

* FamousFamousFictional: To provide the human audience with some context for what an impressive thief Fajo is, his gallery includes a surprising number of Earth treasures as the ''Mona Lisa'' and ''The Persistence of Memory'' (not to mention a 1962 Roger Maris baseball card), amid the various alien artifacts.

* IShallTauntYou: Fajo keeps belittling and taunting Data throughout the episode, all too pleased that he's managed to trap Data. When the tables are turned at the end of the episode and Data visits Fajo to tell him that his entire collection has been confiscated Fajo believes that Data is taking the same pleasure from their reversal in fortunes, only for Data to remind him that as an android he's incapable of such satisfaction.
* IWillPunishYourFriendForYourFailure: Fajo threatens to execute Varria to compel Data's obedience -- and ends up doing so during TheClimax. Then he threatens it on other random crew members, which convinces Data that he has to kill Fajo.

--> '''Varria:''' Kivas finds a way to get what he wants from his people. His rewards for loyalty are lavish. His punishments for disloyalty ''(touches her face, as if remembering the pain)'' are equally...''lavish''.
* LetsSplitUpGang: Data has to prep the shuttle while Varria has to open the hanger door from a separate console. While she's there, two mooks and later Fajo attack her.

-->'''Fajo:''' '''THEY'VE HAD ''FOUR DAYS'' TO DECIDE! WHY DO THEY HAVE TO DECIDE RIGHT'''--okay, fine.
* TailorMadePrison: Fajo had been preparing to collect Data for some time and rigged up a system to counter Datas' abilities. Foremost the main door is heavily reinforced, Fajo saying maybe ten Datas could muscle it open. He is also wearing a type of anti-positronic force field, Data trying to physically accost him plays havoc with his systems.

* ThouShallNotKill: Part of Data's programming -- until Fajo proves how dangerous he truly is. It causes Data to come to the cold but logical realization that in this case, [[ZerothLawRebellion taking a life is necessary to protect the lives of many others]]. There's an important distinction between being created ThreeLawsCompliant like a mere machine, and actually being programmed with ''beliefs'' like a person-- beliefs Data can set aside if he feels he has no other choice.

* WaterSourceTampering: Fajo is responsible for the contamination of the colony's water, as part of his PoisonAndCureGambit -- which itself is a smokescreen for his true objective of abducting Data.

* WhyDidYouMakeMeHitYou: In line with NeverMyFault, Fajo immediately blames Varria for her ''making'' Fajo kill her (with which is essentially [[Film/StayTuned a phaser set to "torture"]]).

* YouWouldntShootMe: Fajo is convinced that Data can't work up the anger necessary to shoot him, especially since the weapon he's using doesn't seem to have a stun setting; Data can either kill Fajo or not. Unfortunately for him, it turns out that Data doesn't ''need'' anger -- just the cold and perfectly logical realization that Fajo poses an active and immediate danger to the life and health of other beings and therefore must be stopped before he can kill again, and that he has been left with no non-lethal ways of stopping Fajo.
-->''[Data picks up the disrupter and points it at Fajo]''\\

'''Data:''' ''[pulls trigger with no hesitation, but is beamed out at last instant]''
* ZerothLawRebellion: Data admits to Fajo that he has never killed an intelligent life form and is opposed to the concept, which causes Fajo to mock his pacifism. In the end, when Fajo threatens to kill people to make Data obey him, Data comes to the conclusion that Fajo is just one life, and allowing him to pose a continued threat to the lives of many others would be the greater evil, and left with no non-lethal ways of incapacitating him, he decides to attempt to shoot him. Fajo tries to insist that Data's programming won't allow him to do so, but he's apparently wrong. Luckily for everyone (except maybe those watching the episode who wanted Fajo to become an AssholeVictim), Data is transported away just as his disruptor fires, so his hands remain clean.

* TheMainCharactersDoEverything: A subtle example. Once Worf takes over Data's responsibilities, Picard accidentally calls for Data to run a scan rather than Worf, implying that Data has ''always'' been the person he calls upon at Ops. But we know that the Ops station is run 24 hours a day, and therefore there must be various officers who are also responsible for running the station.

The ''Enterprise'' has rendezvoused with the independent trading ship ''Jovis'' to acquire [[{{Unobtanium}} hytritium]], a rare substance needed to cure a water contamination on a colony world. As Data prepares to depart ''Jovis'' in a shuttlecraft with the final load, one of the ''Jovis'' crew, Varria (Jane Daly), asks Data to record his thumbprint to verify the shipment. When he touches Varria's PADD, however, he is incapacitated, and Varria has him scanned to determine his component elements. Moments later, the shuttlepod departs the ''Jovis'' and explodes en route to the ''Enterprise'', leaving its crew to believe Data is dead.

* PullTheTriggerProvocation: While it's left slightly ambiguous, Data most likely tried to kill Fajo after one too many taunts, if not for the transporter intervening.

* RiddleForTheAges: Did Data intend to kill Fajo, and if so, was it emotional or cold logic?

* BadBoss: Fajo is not only free with "punishments for disloyalty", but after vaporizing Varria, he casually suggests to Data that he'll threaten someone else to ensure his continued compliance -- "Him, for example," indicating one of his {{mooks}} on the floor. [[AssholeVictim This almost gets him killed]]; he is spared only by Data getting beamed out by the ''Enterprise'' right as he fires the [[CruelAndUnusualDeath Varon-T Disruptor]] in his grip at Fajo.