Masks (Star Trek: The Next Generation) the entire "Star Trek: The Next Generation" series. Technically, it was chosen as second-worst, but Empire decided that ""—its initial choice for worst episode—didn't count, because "Shades" was a flashback 'clip' episode. Masks (Star Trek: The Next Generation) "Masks" is the seventeenth episode of the of the American science fiction television series "", the 169th episode overall. An alien archive, like an alien Library of Alexandria, initially appearing as a rogue comet because of accumulated matter, transforms the "Enterprise" as well as adapting Lieutenant Commander Data for a re-enactment of its culture's mythology, including the creation of two masks which
Brent Spiner films. As a main character, he appeared in all but one of the series' 178 episodes; he was not in the episode "". He reprised his role in the spin-off films "Star Trek Generations" (1994), "" (1996), "" (1998), and "" (2002). Although billed as the final "Trek" movie for the "TNG" cast, the ambiguous ending of "" suggested a possible avenue for the return of Data. However, Spiner opined that he was too old to continue playing the part, as Data does not age, whereas Spiner had already aged considerably during the years in which he played the role.