Tin Man

TNG Season 3 Episode 20
Air Date: April 23rd, 1990

Plot

A Federation Betazoid emissary Tam Elbrun is beamed on the Enterprise from the USS Hood with a mission to go into the neutral zone and recover an alien ship that is in a system that is about to go supernova. Deanna knows Tam from when she was studying psychology on Betazed who was a patient she worked with. Tam is more telepathic then most Betazoid which is distracting and even painful at time.

Tam knows that Tin Man is a engineered life form used as a ship by an extinct race. Tin Man is the last of its kind. They are racing two Romulan warbirds to the system since it is assumed that there is a technological value to recovering it. When Tam boards Tin Man he mentally binds with it and is able to knock the Enterprise and the Romulan warbird away and the two go off and live in the galaxy together.

Commentary

Tin Man was a living being more then it was a ship. It was in the star system with the intention of dying when the star went supernova. In a sense Tam saved Tin Man and Tin Man saved Tam.

Quotes

"I witnessed something, remarkable. Individually, they were both so" - Data
"Wounded. Isolated." - Troi
"Yes. But no longer. Through joining, they have been healed. Grief has been transmuted to joy, loneliness to, belonging." - Data
"Data? You do understand?" - Troi
"Yes, Counselor. When Tin Man returned me to the Enterprise, I realized, this is where I belong." - Data