“The Naked Now” is a sequel to the original series episode “The Naked Time,” in which some members of the Enterprise crew are infected with a weird alien virus that makes them act like a bunch of college students on spring break. They’re basically drunk and horny and start pairing off, giving fans the very first instance of the future romance between Stewart’s Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the ship’s doctor, Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden). Stewart felt that the horniness was just a bit too much, saying:
“Dr. Crusher gets horny for Picard, Picard gets horny for Dr. Crusher, and Tasha Yar gets horny for nearly everyone before focusing on Data. Denise’s and Brent’s dialogue has become notable in Star Trek lore. Tasha, writhing in a midriff-exposing outfit, asks Data if he, being an android, is ‘fully functional.’ He responds, ‘I am programmed in multiple techniques – a broad variety of pleasuring.'”
“The Naked Now” is a bit of tonal and emotional whiplash after the show’s pilot, going from a serious science fiction story to a silly sex comedy with the main gag being the sexual prowess of an android, but it is pretty fun. There’s always been an appreciation for the silly and the sexy in “Star Trek,” so why not show fans that “The Next Generation” was just as capable as the original series?