Star Trek: Aquiel

Episode: "Aquiel"

Series: Star Trek: The Next Generation

Season 6, Episode 13

Original Air Date: February 1, 1993

via Memory Alpha

The Enterprise stumbles upon a murder mystery and Geordi La Forge falls for the prime suspect.

The whodunit tale is alright but the love story is cringe-worthy.  Why is it that Geordi personal life stories seemingly always fall flat?  We love Geordi but there's no denying at this point, with the considerable improvement of Deanna Troi over time, that he is TNG's weakest principal and will remain so through the end of the series.  The actor is strong enough.  The character concept is fine.  Development is genuinely attempted but it never goes very far.  The aborted love stories always feel forced.  What could have worked better?  The playboy who falls in love?  Already married as Miles O'Brien is in DS9?  The frustrated but occasionally successful wingman?  1993 was too early to portray the gay experience with any fidelity but that would have been more interesting.  One TNG weakness is the desire to fix all of the principals on the good side of the moral spectrum.  Some ambiguity might have been good from time to time, perhaps especially for La Forge.

The coalescent species concept is genuinely interesting, a new wrinkle in Trek's long shapeshifting history.

Acting Notes

via Ultimate Soap Fan Wiki

Renée Jones (Aquiel Uhnari) was born October 15, 1958 in Opa-locka, Florida.  She signed with Ford Modeling when she was 19, then made her screen debut in The White Shadow.  She had recurring roles on Knot's Landing, 21 Jump Street and LA Law.  

Jones was a regular on Days of Our Lives for 20 years as Lexie Carver.  Films include Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives, The Terror Within II and Talkin' Dirty After Dark.  She retired from acting in 2012.