Damnit, I knew I recognized her. I kept yelling at the screen (Erik's out of town) "Picard, why aren't you giving her the same speech you gave Wesley when he killed his classmate?"

I do sort of like Nurse Ogawa. In fact, probably the biggest appeal to the episode is having some fresh blood on the show, even if all we hear about for Ogawa is Dr. Crusher asking awkward questions about Ogawa's shaky relationships. In Trek terms, that's like an encyclopedia written about a red-shirt.

I'm guessing Sam went the way of Ben, the waiter. Which brings up the question: if you aren't a member of Starfleet, or family of Starfleet, how do you get on board the Enterprise? And why, of all things, do you wait tables in a society that has eliminated the need for currency? Or food preparation? Or food transport? Is it... fulfilling to learn about Troi's love for chocolate, only to have her snap at you "Don't tempt me!" when you bring it up again?