Frame of Mind (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

"Frame of Mind" is the 21st episode of the sixth season of the science fiction television series Star Trek: The Next Generation. It first aired in May 1993.

The episode revolves around Commander Data, portrayed by Brent Spiner, who experiences increasingly disturbing hallucinations and delusions that challenge his perception of reality. Data is asked to participate in a play on board the Enterprise, but his involvement becomes intertwined with strange events and a feeling of being trapped in another reality.

The central plot involves Data experiencing periods where he believes he is in a psychiatric hospital on an alien planet, under the care of Dr. Syrus, played by David Warner. He struggles to differentiate between these "hallucinations" and his normal life on the Enterprise. He also develops a paranoid suspicion of Captain Picard and other members of the crew.

As the episode progresses, the audience is left to question the true nature of Data's experiences. Is he genuinely suffering from a mental breakdown, or is there a more sinister external force at play? The crew of the Enterprise attempts to understand the source of Data's distress and unravel the mystery of the alternate reality he is experiencing. The narrative explores themes of sanity, identity, and the power of perception, ultimately revealing the cause of Data's altered reality to be an experiment conducted by an alien species using a telepathic device. The experiment aims to transfer Data's consciousness into an alternate reality so they can study him.