History Recap / StarTrekTheNextGenerationS5E9AMatterOfTime

Data takes Rasmussen back outside and reveals the whole plot. Picard immediately points out the hypocrisy of all his secrecy and reveals that once the door to the ship opened, they were able to scan inside and remotely deactivate all the devices. Rasmussen tries desperately to get back inside his ship, even pleading to Crusher, who is decidedly unmoved by his plight. It's too late for Rasmussen, whose ship disappears, stranding him in the future forever. Picard points out to Rasmussen that some ''real'' historians at Starfleet might have a lot of question for a human from the 22nd century, and he is rather looking forward to turning him over to them. The episode ends with Worf hauling away a horrified Rasmussen as Picard welcomes him to the 24th century.

* IfYouWontIWill: In the final scene, when Rasmussen hesitates to open the timeship, Worf threatens to do it for him -- with explosives.
* InsufferableGenius: Subverted. Professor Rasmussen certainly acts like this to the crew, but in the end, it turns out he's not at all the "genius" he touted himself as.

* VillainBall:
** Rasmussen goes to great lengths to pass himself off as a futuristic conman, but the meat of his plan is ultimately revealed to be pocketing gadgets and hoping no one notices. Had he simply asked for permission to take a few trivial pieces of technology with him for study, the crew probably would not have seen it as an issue.
** Even after being accused of theft, Rasmussen suddenly has very little ability to talk his way out of the predicament. He could have tried to play it off as part of his historical research and feigned ignorance that the crew would have any issue with it, but instead he denies everything and concedes to have his ship searched by a crewmember, which ultimately proves to be his undoing.
** In spite of his ability to pretend to understand all of the future technology around him, Rasmussen never apparently figures out that the ship has a computer, which he could have accessed to give him an almost inexhaustible amount of information about future technology. He also would have had a much easier time justifying taking info from the computer than stealing equipment from the ship.

* TimeTravelingJerkass: [[spoiler: Rasmussen]].

[[caption-width-right:350:[[TheOneWith The One Where]] ''Series/MaxHeadroom'' trolls Picard.]]

** After an entire episode of being very good at pretending to be a historian and smoothly coming up with excuses for his behavior, Rasmussen suddenly has very little ability to talk his way out of stealing a number of minor items around the ship. He could have tried to play it off as part of his historical research, but instead he denies everything and concedes to have his ship searched by a crewmember, which ultimately proves to be his undoing.
** In spite of his ability to pretend to understand all of the future technology around him, Rasmussen never apparently figures out that the ship has a computer, which he could have accessed to give him an almost inexhaustible amount of information about future technology. He also would have had a much easier time justifying taking info from the computer than stealing equipment from the ship.

On Penthara IV, an asteroid has struck an unpopulated continent, a catastrophe which has thrown a heavy mass of dust into the atmosphere, threatening to create an impact winter. La Forge and Data are hard at work in Engineering coming up with a plan to save the inhabitants, but on the bridge, Worf notices a temporal distortion and traces it to a small, curiously-designed ship, approximately five meters in length. They receive a message that only says, "Move over." Captain Picard proclaims that the ''Enterprise'' isn't going anywhere, but their visitor meant Picard himself -- as soon as Picard steps aside, a lanky gentleman beams onto the bridge right where Picard was standing and introduces himself as Professor Berlinghoff Rasmussen (Creator/MattFrewer), a historian from 26th-century Earth.

Rasmussen immediately begins treating the ship like a museum, leering at everything with comments about how certain aspects of the ship look in "history books." The crew, of course, are in disbelief as to why this guy chose now, of all times, to show up on the ''Enterprise'', but Rasmussen invokes the [[PrimeDirective Temporal Prime Directive]] every time they inquire about the future. He does, however, imply that he's here to witness an interesting piece of history. A scan of the timeship's hull reveals "some kind of plasticized tritanium mesh," a material not on record and impossible to scan through, which is evidently enough to convince Picard of his credentials. Rasmussen asks the crew to complete some questionnaires he's prepared for them, and Data then shows him to his quarters, where Rasmussen treats him like an indentured servant.

The crew are hard at work using phasers to drill into Penthara IV to release carbon dioxide, increasing the greenhouse effect to warm the planet. As they continue to ponder a solution, Troi is [[ProperlyParanoid increasingly distrustful]] of their guests motives, sensing that he's hiding something from them. The gregarious historian is unfazed by her suspicions and even takes a pass at Crusher while he's at it, though she coolly turns him down.

Picard, with little alternative, decides to consult a source he's never really had before: the future. He explains the plan to Rasmussen and asks the historian to tell him which decision will work out best. Asking for a time-traveller's perspective is not something Picard would normally do, but he now has "twenty million reasons to do so." As before, Rasmussen staunchly refuses to provide any details from the future for fear of changing his timeline, even invoking HitlersTimeTravelExemptionAct. Picard insists that the future from his perspective is unwritten, but Rasmussen is callously unmoved.

Rasmussen is tickled to see the crew lining his timeship to see him off, until Picard reveals that they're really there to ''inspect'' the timeship for some valuable tools that have gone missing. Rasmussen insists that only Data make the inspection, since an android can absolutely be trusted to not reveal any details of the future they'd glimpse while inside. Data agrees, and with an identifying handprint, Data steps inside with Rasmussen, only to find that the missing items are indeed laid out all over his dashboard. Data turns around to find he's being held at phaser-point, and then we get TheReveal -- Rasmussen isn't a historian, and that's not even his ship. A real 26th-century historian had the misfortune of traveling back to the 22nd century and being mugged by Rasmussen, a struggling inventor, who plans to "invent" one piece of the stolen equipment a year. And to his delight, he now gets to make off with Data as well. With the ship's auto-timer set to transport them back to 22nd-century UsefulNotes/NewJersey in two minutes, he prepares to stun Data, only to find his phaser has been deactivated. [[OhCrap Uh oh.]]

Data takes Rasmussen back outside and reveals the whole plot. Picard immediately points out the hypocrisy of all his secrecy and reveals that with the door to the ship open, they were able to scan inside and remotely deactivate all the weaponry. Rasmussen tries desperately to get back inside his ship, even pleading to Crusher, who is decidedly unmoved by his plight. It's too late for Rasmussen, whose ship disappears, stranding him in the future forever. Picard points out to Rasmussen that some ''real'' historians at Starfleet might have a lot of question for a human from the 22nd century, and he is rather looking forward to turning him over to them. The episode ends with Worf hauling away a horrified Rasmussen, as Picard welcomes him to the 24th century.

* LargeHam: Rasmussen is just a ball of energy in this episode. (Of course, this is Creator/MattFrewer of ''Series/MaxHeadroom'' fame playing him, so '80s pop culture aficionados will know what they're in for.)

** After an entire episode of being very good at smoothly coming up with excuses for his behavior and pretending to have vast amounts of knowledge about the "past," Rasmussen suddenly has very little ability to talk his way out of stealing a number of minor items around the ship. He could have tried to play it off as part of his historical research, but instead he denies everything and concedes to have his ship searched by a crewmember, which ultimately proves to be his undoing.

* CutLexLuthorACheck: Rasmussen is using a time machine to steal objects from the near-future and take them back to his timeline to reverse-engineer and market their technology.

** He is utterly confused by Data's ability to listen to four songs at the same time, even though this is only a fraction of Data's abilities. Since Rasmussen claims familiarity with androids that have come after Data, you'd think he'd already know that.

** The first time we see Rasmussen's facade crack is at the end of the big PatrickStewartSpeech, when he meekly says, "Please don't ask me to help you, Captain. I can't help you." No, Picard, ''he literally can't.''
** Better yet, check out his face when they fire the deflector dish. He looks incredibly tense... probably because he doesn't know at all if this is going to work.

** He refers to Data as the "Model T" of androids, but then later says that very little is known about Data's efficiency records, and also claims not much of Dr. Soong's work was preserved to the 26th centuriy. If Data were the basis for future androids, as Rasmussen's analogy implies, surely they'd know something of his design specifications.

* HoistByHisOwnPetard: When the crew begin to suspect Rasmussen of thievery, he consents to allowing Data to inspect his timepod, thinking that he can take Data back with him to the 22nd century. And in doing so, ends up getting caught defenseless by the one crewmember (with the likely exception of Worf) whom he'd never have a prayer of taking on in hand-to-hand combat.

* IdiotBall:
** Rasmussen sets himself up for failure by focusing on physical equipment, the absence of which could be noted. If he had instead shmoozed his way into access to the ''Enterprise'' computer, he could have stolen far more in schematic form, including critical technology that couldn't be pilfered, e.g. replicators.
** Putting aside the dubious decision to take Data into the shuttle with him, the one crewmember Rasmussen couldn't possibly overpower, his ship was set to automatically travel back in time in ''two minutes'' -- if he had just done a better job stalling, or even just timed his departure a little tighter, he would have gotten away with it all.

* ImpossiblyTackyClothes: Those big brown things Rasmussen is wearing.

* {{Jerkass}}: Rasmussen fits this to a tee, the way he constantly hovers over everyone and talks down to people. By the end of this episode, you'll wonder why Worf hasn't taken a bat'leth to this guy.

** Makes even more sense when considering the character was originally written with Creator/RobinWilliams in mind.

** Rasmussen spends the first half of the episode making vague comments about coming to the ''Enterprise'' on the right day and looking forward to a specific upcoming time, and later makes comments that imply he specifically knows what's going to happen with Penthara Four and that it's going to be a momentous event. Being that he's from the 22nd century and is making it all up, his comments only serve to make the crew suspicious of him and prompt Picard to probe him for information -- if he had been more discreet and given a HandWave that the date he chose for his arrival was completely arbitrary to him, he probably could have maintained his cover better.
** Picard points out that if Rasmussen had stolen only a few items, it's unlikely they would've been suspicious, but he stole enough that it got their attention. It's also unclear why he feels the need to steal the items when he could have just asked for them and claimed he wanted them for a museum or something. Minor items like neural stimulators, phasers, and tricorders, the ''Enterprise'' could just replicate one for him to take back, and they probably wouldn't have minded too much if he sold his story better.

** Since ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' would later introduce the Office of Temporal Affairs, likely once Rasmussen was removed from active influence in changing the timeline they would have been able to go back and confiscate it.
** All of which leaves the question of what happened to the ship's creator after Rasmussen stole it.

On Penthara IV, an asteroid has struck an unpopulated continent, a catastrophe which has thrown a heavy mass of dust into the atmosphere, threatening to create an impact winter. La Forge and Data are hard at work in Engineering coming up with a plan to save the inhabitants, but on the bridge, Worf notices a temporal distortion, and traces it to a small, curiously-designed ship, approximately five meters in length. They receive a message that only says, "Move over." Captain Picard proclaims that the ''Enterprise'' isn't going anywhere, but their visitor meant Picard himself -- as soon as Picard steps aside, a lanky gentleman beams onto the bridge right where Picard was standing and introduces himself as Professor Berlinghoff Rasmussen (Creator/MattFrewer), a historian from 26th-century Earth.

Rasmussen immediately begins treating the ship like a museum, leering at everything with comments about how certain aspects of the ship look in "history books." The crew, of course, are in disbelief as to why this guy chose now, of all times, to show up on the ''Enterprise'', but Rasmussen invokes the [[PrimeDirective Temporal Prime Directive]] every time they inquire about the future. He does, however, imply that he's here to witness an interesting piece of history. A scan of the timeship's hull reveals "some kind of plasticized tritanium mesh," a material not on record and impossible to scan through, which is evidently enough to convince Picard of his credentials. Rasmussen asks the crew to complete some questionnaires he's prepared for them, and Data then shows him to his quarters, where Rasmussen treats him like an indentured servant. (Geez, at least Dr. Pulaski actually had a proper dialogue with him!)

As expected, Penthara IV proves to be in pretty bad shape upon the ''Enterprise's'' arrival. As Picard speaks with Dr. Moseley on the planet about how to use Federation technology to help, Rasmussen goes to Ten-Forward (sadly, Guinan does not appear in this episode) and Engineering, and delivers to the crew, as promised, his questionnaires. Attempts to get him to open up a bit are met with Rasmussen condescending to them, and talking too cryptically and vaguely to get anything out of him. On the other hand, he certainly has an awful lot of questions for ''them,'' and has taken to pocketing random pieces of equipment from around the ship.

The crew are hard at work using phasers to drill into Penthara IV to release carbon dioxide, increasing the greenhouse effect to warm the planet. So far, so good, though there's still the issue of their guest lumbering around with that big smirk at everything they do. Troi, having [[ProperlyParanoid sensed]] all episode that their guest is trying to confuse them, makes no secret of her disdain and tells him she doesn't trust him. No sweat off his back, as he then proceeds to hit on Dr. Crusher outside of Sickbay (and none too subtly at that). Beverly doesn't mess around with pick-up artists, so she puts him in his place:

->'''Crusher:''' I could be your great, great, great, great grandmother.\\
''[{{beat}}]''\\
'''Rasmussen:''' ''[[[ScrewThisImOuttaHere walks off]]]''

While Riker and Picard are on the bridge discussing what in the blue hell the professor's questions are about, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions devastate Penthara IV. [[NiceJobBreakingItHero Seems their phaser idea didn't work like they'd hoped,]] and instead they dramatically increased seismic activity, worsening the ash cover. La Forge and Data figure they can ionize the upper atmosphere with their deflector beam and a modified phaser blast, which will somehow clear the air, but, as Data relays to Picard, they have to do this maneuver precisely or risk burning off the entire atmosphere from the planet.

Picard, with little alternative, decides to consult a source he's never really had before -- one Berlinghoff Rasmussen. He explains the plan, and points out that Rasmussen knows the outcome of this plan. Picard points out that asking for a time-traveller's perspective -- namely, whether this plan succeeds or not -- is not something he would normally do, since Picard is pretty by-the-book. However, he now has "twenty million reasons to do so." This turns into a heated debate, in which Rasmussen hesitates to offer any information and even tries to invoke HitlersTimeTravelExemptionAct. Picard finds himself flummoxed that Rasmussen, faced with the chance to do the right thing and possibly save ''twenty million people,'' callously refuses to budge on his beliefs, simply because the entire sector, Rasmussen's past, could completely change.

->'''Rasmussen:''' However you come to terms with your beliefs, Captain, I must tell you, I'm quite comfortable with mine.\\
'''Picard:''' How can you be? How can you be comfortable watching people die?

Back to square one, Picard goes out to the bridge and decides to go for it, and Dr. Moseley on the surface agrees to make the attempt, though as La Forge points out, they only have one shot at this. The ''Enterprise'' fires their deflector dish, and after a few tense moments, successfully returns Penthara IV to its original climate. Rasmussen seems satisfied having seen this unfold, and then announces he's off to pack and leave the ship, though not before a few more smug comments. By this point, the crew have heard ''more'' than enough from this guy.

Rasmussen is tickled to see the crew lining his timeship to see him off, until Picard reveals that they're really there to ''inspect'' the timeship. Before he can invoke the Temporal Prime Directive again, Picard points out that valuable tools are missing from various corners of the ship. Rasmussen responds by asking Data to make the inspection, since an android can absolutely be trusted to not reveal any details of the future they'd glimpse while inside. Data agrees, and with an identifying handprint, Data steps inside with Rasmussen, only to find that the missing items are indeed laid out all over his dashboard. Data turns around to find he's being held at phaser-point, and then we get TheReveal -- Rasmussen isn't a historian, and that's not even his ship. A real 26th-century historian had the misfortune of traveling back to the 22nd century and being mugged by Rasmussen, a struggling inventor, who plans to "invent" one piece of the stolen equipment a year. And to his delight, he now gets to make off with Data as well. With the ship's auto-timer set to transport them back to 22nd-century UsefulNotes/NewJersey in two minutes, he prepares to stun Data, only to find his phaser has been deactivated. [[OhCrap Uh oh.]]

Data takes Rasmussen back outside, and reveals the whole plot. Picard immediately points out the hypocrisy of all his secrecy, and reveals that with the door to the ship open, they were able to scan inside and remotely deactivate all the weaponry. Rasmussen tries desperately to get back inside his ship, even pleading to Crusher, who is decidedly unmoved by his plight. It's too late for Rasmussen, whose ship disappears, stranding him in the future forever. Picard points out to Rasmussen that some ''real'' historians at Starfleet might have a lot of question for a human from the 22nd century, and he is rather looking forward to turning him over to them. The episode ends with Worf hauling away a horrified Rasmussen, as Picard welcomes him to the 24th century.

* IdiotBall: Putting aside the dubious decision to take Data into the shuttle with him, the one crewmember Rasmussen couldn't possibly overpower, his ship was set to automatically travel back in time in ''two minutes'' -- if he had just done a better job stalling, or even just timed his departure a little tighter, he would have gotten away with it all.

** Since ''Deep Space Nine'' would later introduce the Office of Temporal Affairs, likely once Rasmussen was removed from active influence in changing the timeline they would have been able to go back and confiscate it.

* TrappedInAnotherWorld: With his ship gone, Rasmussen winds up stranded in the 24th century.

* IfYouWontIWill: In the final scene, when Rasmussen hesitates to open the timeship, Worf threatens to do it for him--with explosives.

* JerkAss: Rasmussen fits this to a tee, the way he constantly hovers over everyone and talks down to people. By the end of this episode, you'll wonder why Worf hasn't taken a bat'leth to this guy.

* HeKnowsTooMuch: Probably why the ''Enterprise'' crew look totally unapologetic about Rasmussen's horrible fate--with all the information he got from them while he was on the ship, he's become a serious liability to the timeline.

Rasmussen is tickled to see the crew lining his timeship to see him off, until Picard reveals that they're really there to ''inspect'' the timeship. Before he can invoke the Temporal Prime Directive again, Picard points out that valuable tools are missing from various corners of the ship. Rasmussen responds by asking Data to make the inspection, since an android can absolutely be trusted to not reveal any details of the future they'd glimpse while inside. Data agrees, and with an identifying handprint, Data steps inside with Rasmussen, only to find that the missing items are indeed laid out all over his dashboard. Data turns around to find he's being held at phaser-point, and then we get TheReveal--Rasmussen isn't a historian, and that's not even his ship. A real 26th-century historian had the misfortune of traveling back to the 22nd century and being mugged by Rasmussen, a struggling inventor, who plans to "invent" one piece of the stolen equipment a year. And to his delight, he now gets to make off with Data as well. With the ship's auto-timer set to transport them back to 22nd-century UsefulNotes/NewJersey in two minutes, he prepares to stun Data, only to find his phaser has been deactivated. [[OhCrap Uh oh.]]

On Penthara IV, an asteroid has struck an unpopulated continent, a catastrophe which has thrown a heavy mass of dust into the atmosphere, threatening to create an impact winter. La Forge and Data are hard at work in Engineering coming up with a plan to save the inhabitants, but on the bridge, Worf notices a temporal distortion, and traces it to a small, curiously-designed ship, approximately five meters in length. They receive a message that only says, "Move over." Captain Picard proclaims that the ''Enterprise'' isn't going anywhere, but their visitor meant Picard himself--as soon as Picard steps aside, a lanky gentleman beams onto the bridge right where Picard was standing and introduces himself as Professor Berlinghoff Rasmussen (Creator/MattFrewer), a historian from 26th-century Earth.

On Penthara IV, an asteroid has struck an unpopulated continent, a catastrophe which has thrown a heavy mass of dust into the atmosphere, threatening to create an impact winter. La Forge and Data are hard at work in Engineering coming up with a plan to save the inhabitants, but on the bridge, Worf notices a temporal distortion, and traces it to a small, curiously-designed ship, approximately five meters in length. They receive a message that only says, "Move over." Captain Picard proclaims that the ''Enterprise'' isn't going anywhere, but their visitor meant Picard himself--as soon as Picard steps aside, a lanky gentleman beams onto the bridge right where Picard was standing and introduces himself as Professor Berlinghoff Rasmussen, a historian from 26th-century Earth.

Picard, with little alternative, decides to consult a source he's never really had before--one Berlinghoff Rasmussen. He explains the plan, and points out that Rasmussen knows the outcome of this plan. Picard points out that asking for a time-traveller's perspective--namely, whether this plan succeeds or not--is not something he would normally do, since Picard is pretty by-the-book. However, he now has "twenty million reasons to do so." This turns into a heated debate, in which Rasmussen hesitates to offer any information and even tries to invoke HitlersTimeTravelExemptionAct. Picard finds himself flummoxed that Rasmussen, faced with the chance to do the right thing and possibly save ''twenty million people,'' callously refuses to budge on his beliefs, simply because the entire sector, Rasmussen's past, could completely change.

Rasmussen is tickled to see the crew lining his timeship to see him off, until Picard reveals that they're really there to ''inspect'' the timeship. Before he can invoke the Temporal Prime Directive again, Picard points out that valuable tools are missing from various corners of the ship. Rasmussen responds by asking Data to make the inspection, since an android can absolutely be trusted to not reveal any details of the future they'd glimpse while inside. Data agrees, and with an identifying handprint, Data steps inside with Rasmussen, only to find that the missing items are indeed laid out all over his dashboard. Data turns around to find he's being held at phaser-point, and then we get TheReveal--Rasmussen isn't a historian, and that's not even his ship. A real 26th-century historian had the misfortune of traveling back to the 22nd century and being mugged by Rasmussen, a struggling inventor, who plans to "invent" one piece of the stolen equipment a year. And to his delight, he now gets to make off with Data as well. With the ship's auto-timer set to transport them back to 22nd-century New Jersey in two minutes, he prepares to stun Data, only to find his phaser has been deactivated. [[OhCrap Uh oh.]]

** Rasmussen spends the first half of the episode making vague comments about coming to the ''Enterprise'' on the right day and looking forward to a specific upcoming time, and later makes comments that imply he specifically knows what's going to happen with Penthara Four and that it's going to be a momentous event. Being that he's from the 22nd century and is making it all up, his comments only serve to make the crew suspicious of him and prompt Picard to probe him for information -- if he had been more discrete and given a HandWave that the date he chose for his arrival was completely arbitrary to him, he probably could have maintained his cover better.

** Makes even more sense when considering the character was originally written with Robin Williams in mind.

* LargeHam: Rasmussen is just a ball of energy in this episode. (Of course, this is Matt Frewer of ''Series/MaxHeadroom'' fame playing him, so '80s pop culture aficionados will know what they're in for.)