‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’ Retro Recap – ‘The Most Toys’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Obsession is a word that carries quite the negative connotation and understandably so. After all, we’ve heard too many stories about people that lock onto something or someone in an unhealthy manner and chase it/them to the point where it damages their life, their finances or causes great harm to others. Simply because they cannot let go of an idea or a notion, and that’s quite unfortunate, since obsession is something that can actually be a healthy thing. Because being obsessed with helping others in need or achieving your career goals are indeed worthwhile obsessions, but the sour behaviors of others ruin that word for good people and leave the rest of us quite curious.

Because this kind of behavior is something that few of us understand in the slightest, and as is often the case with human beings, we believe that if we can just garner some kind of rudimentary understanding of the problem at hand then maybe, just maybe, we can begin to work toward fixing it. Which is why fiction is a wonderful place to explore the power and the dangers of obsession, since we can witness first-hand, in a safe and secure environment, exactly what drives these individuals to crave more and stop at nothing to get it, and really all of this is relevant to our discussion today, simply because the next episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, dives deep into the toxic motivations that create unhealthy obsession.

A feat that ‘The Most Toys’ accomplishes by putting Lieutenant Commander Data in dire straits. For shortly after loading up his shuttlecraft, with a dangerous element needed to save a planet’s ailing water supply, he is captured and his death is faked by the crew of this merchant ship. All so that he can become the property of a slimy little man named Kivas Fago, who collects only the rarest items in the galaxy and there is nothing rarer than a Soong Android, and he is ecstatic that one that is about to become the centerpiece of his collection. Which is a prospect that Data of course wants no part of, and that’s when the story begins its grand and unsettling exploration of obsession. 

One that makes it clear that often times, people who immediately plunge themselves into this unhealthy place have no purpose or direction in life, and they tend to think they’re not worth anything, either. But becoming focused upon a singular goal gives them everything they need, as evidenced by how proud Fago is when he unsuccessfully tries to parade Data around to his friends. Since it speaks volumes to how desperately he wants to be loved and admired by someone or something. But where this examination truly shines, is when it explores the dangers of letting obsession get out of hand. Since men like Fago are willing to do whatever it takes to maintain those feelings of joy, a chilling point that is hammered home by Kivas’ actions at the end of this tale. Which is a shockingly dark twist for certain. One that also manages to explore how men of Fago’s standing can in fact… push good beings to their breaking point since Data was ready to wax the guy to end this mess.

But what matters more, is that this story was an enlightening exploration of obsession, and really in the end, this was quite the powerful tale when all is said and done. Because it definitely pushed the envelope and went to some supremely dark places and it deserves serious credit for doing that. Because few shows are ever brave enough to spotlight that kind of awful behavior in such a frank and honest manner, but sometimes an exploration of the human condition requires us to look at aspects of our society that are unsavory in nature and it is good to know that TNG is/was willing to do that in order to tell a quality story. And now that this sour journey has come to a close, it’s on to a milestone episode, one that brings a supremely important character from the TOS era back to the forefront of the franchise. Until next time.   

---