YMMV / Star Trek The Next Generation S 7 E 11 The Pegasus

• Alternate Character Interpretation: Pressman is clearly meant by the episode to be in the wrong, but whether the episode sticks the landing is a subject of some debate. On the face of it, giving up cloaking technology for peace certainly sounds foolish, and the Romulans are clearly established before and after to have a Not Cheating Unless You Get Caught attitude to The Neutral Zone, so one could argue that the Federation is under no obligation to uphold the treaty, making Pressman Unintentionally Sympathetic. However, there's an alternate viewpoint: being banned from using cloaking devices doesn't inherently prevent the Federation from developing technology to defeat them, and given the previously established limitations of cloaking devices, they're most useful in a preemptive strike scenario—something that is generally very against the Federation's ethos. Especially given their present alliance with the Klingon Empire, the Federation can potentially afford to cede the tactical initiative in the interests of maintaining the peace, since the Romulans cannot possibly defeat both Starfleet and the Imperial Klingon Defense Forces simultaneously.
• Funny Moments: The opening, with Riker playing with one of the Picard dolls and doing a hilarious impression. "I don't know, I think the resemblance is rather striking. Wouldn't you agree, Number One?"
• Pop Culture Holiday: Trekkies still celebrate Captain Picard Day every June 16th, which is the date that corresponds to the stardate in the episode. Even the trailer for Star Trek: Picard shows what a big deal Captain Picard Day was, and the pilot episode shows that despite his misgivings about the holiday, Picard kept the banner stored with other cherished keepsakes.
• Retroactive Recognition: Terry O'Quinn was already a well-established character actor by the time of his appearance in this episode, but he would later become a big TV star with his performance as John Locke in Lost.
• Strawman Has a Point: Admiral Pressman developing cloaking technology in secret doesn't seem like the heinous crime the episode makes it out to be given the Romulans routinely violate their treaties with the Federation and are actively engaged in clandestine military action against the Federation. Having it as a trump card, illegal or not, would also be a good weapon against things like the Borg or Dominion (and was in the later case). It was clearer in the story that the way he did it was the problem; running the experiments in secret and jeopardizing his ship and the lives of his crew. It's also in-character for the Federation to prefer the Honor Before Reason approach, i.e. upholding its end of the treaty regardless of whether its counterpart does the same.

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