The plot surrounds the people of the planet Aldea, who, for reasons unbeknownst to them, have become sterile. In an effort to prevent the extinction of their society, they kidnap (by some sort of telekinetic transport) a select group of children—including Wesley Crusher—from the U.S.S. Enterprise. Meanwhile, Dr. Beverly Crusher investigates the cause of the Aldeans' sterility, and traces it to radiation poisoning caused by a partial or complete depletion of Aldea's ozone layer. (As an interesting side note, she compares the depletion to a similar catastrophe that occurred to Earth in the twenty-first century.) (Shearer & Manners, 1988)
This discovery of the cause of the sterility, however, is of little consequence in the ultimate rescue of the children. The most important enabler of the rescue is a successful effort by Data and others, to find a way to transport organisms through Aldea's shields. During a visit to Aldea (purportedly to negotiate the current diplomatic situation), Picard gathers the children and prepares them for transport back to the ship, against the will of Radue (Shearer & Manners, 1988). It is implied in the episode that Radue's reluctance to let the children go was caused by his ignorance of the real cause of the Aldean people's sterility; even when he was informed of the true cause, he apparently didn't believe it.
Toward the end of the episode, a minor event occurs that might be interpreted as an error in directing. When Wesley Crusher enters the bridge, accompanied by one of the other children (Shearer & Manners, 1988), it is implied (through both audio and visual content) that they entered from the captain's ready room. However, it is unlikely that the two would have actually been in the captain's ready room at that time. One can surmise that they should have entered from a turbolift, but that this was overlooked by the director.
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