Star Trek: The Next Generation/Cause and Effect

Cause and Effect
Season 5, Episode 18
Airdate	March 23, 1992
Written by	Brannon Braga
Directed by	Jonathan Frakes
Stream
← 5x17 The Outcast	5x19 → The First Duty
Star Trek: The Next Generation — Season Five

This article about an episode needs to be expanded with more information. Please help out by editing it.

Cause and Effect is the eighteenth episode of the fifth season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and the one hundred eighteenth episode overall.

Starring: Patrick Stewart (Capt. Jean-Luc Picard), Jonathan Frakes (Cmdr. William Riker)

Also Starring: LeVar Burton (Lt. Cmdr. Geordi La Forge), Michael Dorn (Lt. Worf), Gates McFadden (Dr. Beverly Crusher), Marina Sirtis (Counselor Deanna Troi), Brent Spiner (Lt. Commander Data)

Guest Stars: Michelle Forbes (Ensign Ro Laren), Patti Yasutake (Nurse Alyssa Ogawa)

and Kelsey Grammer (Captain Bateson)

Plot Overview

The Enterprise becomes trapped in a time loop, forced to repeat the same sequence of events until they find a way to break the loop and prevent the destruction of both their own ship and a ship from the past.

Trivia

Behind the Scenes

• As an in-joke connecting their background from Cheers, the production staff wished to hire Kirstie Alley to reprise her role as Saavik in the background of the Bozeman's bridge behind Kelsey Grammer. However, the salary she was asking was too high for the show's budget.

Allusions and References

• This episode was the first of many mentions of Bozeman, Montana, the hometown of episode writer Brannon Braga.

• The registry number of the U.S.S.Bozeman was NCC-1941, a tip of the hat to Steven Spielberg's movie 1941. Star Trek model maker Gregory Jein provided miniatures for that movie.