Star Trek The Next Generation
S3E6
· Booby Trap

Silent Defeat at Ten-Forward

Geordi enters Ten-Forward drained and wordless after an aborted holodeck date, collapsing into the bar where Guinan moves in with quiet care. Wesley reads the posture and translates the scene for an initially literal Data, exposing Geordi's emotional vulnerability without fanfare. The moment humanizes the chief engineer and calibrates audience sympathy—this is a private low point that foreshadows the personal stakes of the crisis to come. The beat ends with Riker's urgent summons, yanking the scene from intimacy into immediate shipboard danger.

Plot Beats

The narrative micro-steps within this event

2

Geordi enters Ten-Forward dejected after an aborted holodeck date.

community bustle to personal isolation ['Ten-Forward bar']

Wesley recognizes Geordi's romantic failure through body language.

observation to concern

Who Was There

Characters present in this moment

4
Guinan
Ten-Forward bartender
 primary

Calm, gently concerned; ready to receive and hold another's pain without needing to fix it instantly.

Guinan moves from her post to the bar to serve and attend to Geordi; she positions herself to offer quiet, nonjudgmental presence rather than overt counsel, stabilizing the moment emotionally.

Goals in this moment
  • • Provide steady, private comfort to Geordi.
  • • Create a safe, unpressured space for him to recover.
  • • Gauge whether escalation (intervention or referral) is necessary.
Active beliefs
  • • Presence can be more healing than advice.
  • • Crew members need a human anchor during emotional lows.
  • • Emotional wounds should be treated with discretion aboard ship.
Character traits
attentive compassionate discreet emotionally wise
Follow Guinan's journey
Wesley Crusher
Acting Ensign
 primary

Concerned and mildly amused; he reads the social scene lightly but with genuine care for Geordi's feelings.

Wesley stands at the windows with Data, watching the debris and then noticing Geordi; he speaks up playfully with 'Uh oh,' then takes on an explanatory role, translating a social idiom for Data and summarizing Geordi's failed date.

Goals in this moment
  • • Explain human social cues to Data.
  • • Informally check on Geordi's well-being by signalling the problem.
  • • Diffuse awkwardness through gentle humor.
Active beliefs
  • • Social cues are teachable and worth translating for non-literal minds.
  • • Friends should notice and respond to each other's low points.
  • • A light touch helps normalize embarrassment.
Character traits
observant empathetic communicative helpful
Follow Wesley Crusher's journey
Data
Second Officer
 primary

Curious and plainly receptive to new social information; shifts quickly to professional readiness when called by command.

Data stands at the Ten-Forward windows analyzing the Orelious Nine debris, responds literally to Wesley's idiom, absorbs the social explanation about Geordi, and then immediately obeys the bridge summons without delay.

Goals in this moment
  • • Understand the historical and social information presented (debris and Wesley's idiom).
  • • Learn and internalize the meaning of human expressions.
  • • Comply immediately with shipboard orders to return to the bridge.
Active beliefs
  • • Language and social cues must be defined to be useful.
  • • Operational orders have priority over social interaction.
  • • Accurate understanding aids both social functioning and duty performance.
Character traits
analytic literal dutiful inquisitive
Follow Data's journey
Geordi La Forge
Chief Engineer
 primary

Forlorn and humiliated on the surface; inwardly embarrassed, seeking silent consolation rather than exposition.

Geordi enters Ten-Forward drained and wordless, takes a seat at the bar with defeated posture; he offers no explanation and accepts Guinan's proximity rather than pushing others away.

Goals in this moment
  • • Find a quiet place to process personal rejection.
  • • Avoid making a spectacle of himself among crewmates.
  • • Allow a trusted confidant (Guinan) to provide comfort without verbalizing his pain.
Active beliefs
  • • Personal failures (romantic rejection) are best handled privately.
  • • Showing vulnerability publicly risks professional embarrassment.
  • • Trusted shipboard friends will offer discreet support rather than broadcast his shame.
Character traits
vulnerable withdrawn embarrassed stoic under shame
Follow Geordi La …'s journey

Objects Involved

Significant items in this scene

1
Ten-Forward Serving Rail (Bar Counter)

The Ten-Forward serving rail functions as the physical anchor for Geordi's collapse: he seats himself at the bar, the rail framing his isolation while Guinan approaches across it to offer attention. The counter organizes the intimate exchange and visually separates public space from the small private interaction.

Before: Polished and in active use as the social …
After: Occupied by Geordi who leans against it while …
Before: Polished and in active use as the social hub's bar counter with patrons nearby; clean and service-ready.
After: Occupied by Geordi who leans against it while Guinan stands nearby; continues to function as the locus for quiet counsel.

Location Details

Places and their significance in this event

2
Main Bridge

The Main Bridge is present only through Riker's off-screen comm; it functions as the operational foil that interrupts the intimate scene, asserting command urgency and redirecting personnel (Data) back to duty.

Atmosphere Not directly seen but implied as tense and authoritative through the urgent summoning.
Function Immediate command center whose orders displace social moments and demand adherence to ship protocol.
Symbolism Embodies institutional authority and the primacy of duty over individual emotion.
Access Operationally restricted to bridge crew and those summoned by command; protocol-driven access.
Sharp, clipped communications and a low command hum implied by the off-screen com. The presence of an active chain-of-command that can abruptly redirect personnel.
Orelious Nine

Orelious Nine functions as background exposition visible through Ten-Forward's windows: the shattered debris field supplies historical context and visual melancholy, reinforcing themes of loss and the shipboard crew's professional preoccupation with ruins and danger.

Atmosphere Distant, haunting, and ruin-laden—a silent testament to a decisive, ancient conflict.
Function Expository backdrop that thematically underscores vulnerability and the cost of conflict.
Symbolism Symbolizes large-scale destruction and the contrast between historical catastrophe and current personal disappointment.
Glittering field of broken hulls and frozen fusion plumes visible through Ten-Forward's windows. Visual sense of scale and ruin that invites technical and emotional reflection.

Narrative Connections

How this event relates to others in the story

No narrative connections mapped yet

This event is currently isolated in the narrative graph

Themes This Exemplifies

Thematic resonance and meaning

Loneliness, Intimacy, and Professional Identity
5
Geordi's private emotional life threads the tactical plot: his embarrassed solitude after a failed holodeck date and his recourse to a synthesized Leah reveal how …
Youth, Guilt, and the Weight of Competence
23
Wesley's arc threads a quieter theme about young competence confronted by unintended consequences. His transition from shy technician to inwardly panicked participant shows how junior …

Key Dialogue

"WESLEY: "Uh oh...""
"WESLEY: "Commander La Forge had a big date with Christy tonight. He's been working on the perfect program for days. Looks like it ended kinda early.""
"RIKER'S COM VOICE: "Commander Data to the bridge immediately.""