History Recap / StarTrekTheNextGenerationS2E21PeakPerformance

Picard gives Riker the freedom to choose anyone for his crew save for Lieutenant Commander Data, and he chooses, among others, Worf, Geordi, and Wesley. Kolrami is perpetually condescending toward Riker, which irritates the other bridge crew. Riker decides to earn Kolrami's respect by challenging him to a game of Strategema, of which Kolrami is a 3rd degree grandmaster. THe game involves controlling dots on a grid via sensors on your fingers in an effort to capture the entire board. Riker does not expect to win and simply wants a challenge, but Kolrami crushes him embarrassingly.

Riker and his team beam over to the ''Hathaway'' and begin fixing her up, but they don’t have much to work with. Geordi looks over the engines and deems the ship incapable of warp drive, since even if he got it running, he doesn’t have any antimatter to fuel it with. Wesley is dejected and believes they're simply being set up to fail, but Riker insists that the test is about being innovative. Suddenly Wesley says he needs to return to the ''Enterprise'', because he left an experiment running and needs to shut it down. Picard allows it, on the condition that he be escorted and not allowed to do anything but shut down the experiment. Wesley announces that his experiment is busted and needs to be transported outside of the ship to dispose of safely. Geordi is surprised to see the experiment materialize right in the ''Hathaway'''s engine room. With that, the ''Hathaway'' will have warp drive after all... for two seconds, at warp 1. It’s not much, but Riker thinks it may be useful as a surprise tactic.

Pulaski has decided that Kolrami needs to be brought down a peg and twists Data's arm into challenging him at Strategema. The crew eagerly gather to watch their comrade best the cocky tactical expert, but Kolrami takes only a little while longer to defeat Data, leaving the crew stunned, as well as the android himself. He reasons that if a humanoid could defeat his computer brain, then he must be a malfunctioning. He withdraws from bridge duty until he can locate the error. Even after Troi and Pulaski assure him that he's fine, he remains absent from duty.

The battle begins. Worf uses his security knowledge of the ''Enterprise'''s computers to hack into it and make it see a Romulan warbird. As Picard struggles to address the threat, the ''Hathaway'' attacks. Picard orders a counterattack while Riker prepares to make his warp jump. But at that moment a Ferengi ship appears, and this one isn’t Worf’s doing. With weapons offline, both ships are at the Ferengi’s mercy. Kolrami immediately tells Picard to abandon the ''Hathaway'' to save the majority of the crew, but Picard is unwilling to do so. He hails the Ferengi, who want to know why two Federation ships were fighting each other. They assume the ''Hathaway'' has something valuable aboard.

* TheAllegedCar: The U.S.S. ''Hathaway'' is chosen as the ship to engage in combat simulations with the'' Enterprise''. The ''Hathaway'' is a decommissioned old broken-down rustbucket of a ship that barely works. Fortunately, Geordi and Wesley are there to give it a sorely needed tune-up...

Picard gives Riker the freedom to choose anyone for his crew save for Lieutenant Commander Data, and he chooses, among others, Worf, Geordi, and Wesley. Kolrami says that he expected Picard to choose Riker’s team, because it’s always a fair fight when you get to choose your own opponents, right? Pulaski finds Kolrami’s smug, self-assured attitude intolerable (not that she’s one to talk), but Data replies that Kolrami can be as big an ass as he wants because he’s awesome at a game called Stratagema. Stratagema is a computer game played by waggling one’s fingers randomly, which somehow controls dots on the (for some reason, spinning) screen to move around and enclose areas for each player until one player captures the entire screen. Riker challenges Kolrami to a game, just for a challenge, and Kolrami predictably kicks his ass.

Riker and his team beam over to the ''Hathaway'' and begin fixing her up, but they don’t have much to work with. Geordi looks over the engines and deems the ship incapable of warp drive, since even if he got it running, he doesn’t have any antimatter to fuel it with. On the plus side, Worf has a little scheme cooked up. Because of his knowledge of the ''Enterprise''’s computers (make note of that, because he says that specifically) he can fool the ''Enterprise''’s sensors into picking up an enemy ship that isn’t there. Wesley suddenly says he needs to return to the ''Enterprise'', because he left an experiment running and needs to shut it down. Picard allows it, on the condition that he be escorted and not allowed to do anything but shut down the experiment. And if the officer Picard tasked with watching him were in any way competent at his job, this would have worked and Wesley wouldn’t have gotten away with what he got away with, but of course this is Wesley Crusher we’re talking about; anyone around him magically becomes an idiot just so he can look good. And thus, with his escort paying absolutely no attention to him, he’s able to swipe some antimatter and beam it to the ''Hathaway'', under the excuse that the experiment is ruined and needs to be beamed into space. With that, the ''Hathaway'' will have warp drive after all... for two seconds, at warp 1. It’s not much, but Riker thinks it may be useful as a surprise tactic.

Pulaski urges Data to challenge Kolrami to Stratagema, to deflate his ego a bit. To everyone’s surprise, although he does better than Riker, even Data loses pretty quickly. Pulaski in particular is stunned, and it leaves him in something of an existential crisis: if someone beats him at something, he must be malfunctioning. This causes him to withdraw from the bridge to run diagnostics on himself, and also raises some questions about Pulaski’s bedside manner.

Kolrami continues talking smack about Riker, until Picard pulls him aside and asks what his problem is. Kolrami says that Riker could never be a good leader because he doesn’t take things seriously. Picard rightly calls Kolrami an idiot, and points out that Riker’s jovial attitude is how he gains loyalty from his men. Again, you wouldn’t think a strategic mastermind would have to be told that, but there you go. Picard then confronts Data, and tells him that yes, he might make mistakes, and even if he doesn’t he might still lose, but this doesn’t mean he’s malfunctioning. It’s just a part of life. Data takes his words to heart, and returns to his post.

The battle begins. Worf uses his trick to make the ''Enterprise'' see a Romulan warbird, and the ''Hathaway'' attacks during the distraction. Picard orders a counterattack while Riker prepares to make his warp jump. But at that moment a Ferengi ship appears, and this one isn’t Worf’s doing. With weapons offline, both ships are at the Ferengi’s mercy. Kolrami immediately tells Picard to abandon the ''Hathaway'' without considering any other options (truly a brilliant mind at work), but Picard prefers to actually, you know, strategize and stuff. He hails the Ferengi, who want to know why two Federation ships were fighting each other. They assume the ''Hathaway'' has something valuable aboard. Picard doesn’t mention the training exercise, because... that just wouldn’t sound plausible, I guess?

Picard and Riker cook up a plan: the ''Enterprise'' will fire at the ''Hathaway'', and the ''Hathaway'' will use its warp drive at just the right time to make it look like they were destroyed. So far so good. Next, Worf will fool the Ferengi’s sensors into seeing another fake ship, and wait, wait, time out. Remember back when Worf was talking about this trick and he specifically said he could only do it because he was familiar with the ''Enterprise''’s computers? What happened to that? Yeah, it’s a big plot hole, but somehow he can do it to the Ferengi now, too. So they put their plan into action and it all goes just as planned. The Ferengi ship withdraws after picking up another Federation ship nearby that wasn’t there. In the episode’s closing scene, Data challenges Kolrami to a Stratagema rematch. Instead of trying to win, he purposely keeps the game going for so long that Kolrami eventually loses patience and quits. So the moral seems to be: if all else fails, troll your way to victory.

** The plot does this--the arrival of the Ferengi seems to happen solely to avoid having to answer the question of who would win the war game exercise.

* BunnyEarsLawyer: Granted, we never learn enough about Zakdorn culture to say whether or not Kolrami's behavior is normal for his species, but by Human standards he's a real oddball.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Actually more of a case of an outright {{Retcon}}, but even while everyone is insisting that Starfleet is not about fighting wars, according to [[Recap/StarTrekTheNextGenerationS4E12TheWounded "The Wounded"]] two seasons later, the Federation is at war with the Cardassians ''during this episode''!

* RageQuit: Kolrami is practically unbeatable in a straight match of Stratagema, so long as his opponent is playing to win like he is. After Data alters his goal in the game to preventing Kolrami from winning by playing for a perpetual stalemate, Kolrami stops the game in a tantrum and accuses Data of making a mockery of him.

The ''Enterprise'' has agreed to take part in a training exercise using the run-down USS ''Hathaway'' as its opponent. Joining the crew to oversee the exercise is a supposed strategic mastermind named Kolrami. Worf calls that reputation into question pretty fast, pointing out that because Kolrami’s race is seen as a race of brilliant strategists, no one ever dares fight them, which means they might be terrible at it for all anyone knows. Kolrami outlines the plan: Riker will take command of the ''Hathaway'', and he will have forty-eight hours to prepare it before the exercise begins. Each ship’s weapons systems will be temporarily disconnected and replaced with harmless lasers, which the computers will read as damage, shutting down systems that would be affected by a real attack. Picard and Riker both state that they have reservations about the exercise, since Starfleet is meant to explore, not fight, but they concede that with the Borg threat hanging over them it is wise to have options.

* PlanetOfHats: We are introduced to the Zakdorn race, whose hat is [[TheStrategist strategic thinking]]. Apparently they are so unbeatable that no other race has dared to challenge them for a very long time. Worf points out some FridgeLogic here; they have no actual combat experience, so as a ProudWarriorRaceGuy he finds this reputation meaningless.

* DoWellButNotPerfect: Data's winning tactic for winning Stratagema: ignore openings that might lead to a win and consistently play for the tie. His opponent cannot understand why Data isn't falling for his gambits and eventually RageQuits.

Pulaski urges Data to challenge Kolrami to Stratagema, to deflate his ego a bit. To everyone’s surprise, although he does better than Riker, even Data loses pretty quickly. Pulaski gives him a pretty hard time about losing a contest he only entered because she made him and never said he was good at, and it leaves him in something of an existential crisis: if someone beats him at something, he must be malfunctioning. This causes him to withdraw from the bridge to run diagnostics on himself, and also raises some questions about Pulaski’s bedside manner.

* CurbStompBattle: Kolrami whups Riker at Stratagema. Then again, Riker has no delusions of winning.

* JerkassHasAPoint: Kolrami's advice to abandon the ''Hathaway''. The crew on the Hathaway are in no way expendable (there's several key officers on that ship) but staying ''would'' put more than a thousand lives on the ''Enterprise'' at greater risk.

* JerkassHasAPoint: Kolrami's advice to abandon the ''Hathaway''. Picard won't hear of abandoning any of his crew, but Kolrami is right that staying would put more than a thousand lives on the ''Enterprise'' at greater risk.

* InsufferableGenius: Kolrami is confident to the point of arrogance and has the strategic knowledge and skill to back it up.

* IdiotBall: ''Everyone'' when the Ferengi arrive. At no point does Picard ever attempt to explain to the Ferengi that they are conducting a military exercise. At no point does anyone even ''advise'' him to attempt to explain it to them. Would the Ferengi believe him? Possibly not. Would the whole mess with the Ferengi continue anyway? Possibly. But ''they don't even '''try''''' to explain the situation to the Ferengi.

[floatboxright:
Series: ''Series/{{Star Trek The Next Generation}}''\\
Episode: Season 2, Episode 21\\
Title: "Peak Performance"\\
Previous: "The Emissary"\\
Next: "Shades of Gray"\\
Recapper: Vengeance Karl]

* FictionalSport: Strategema provides an example of TNG's typically incomprehensible games.