Star Trek’s So-Bad-It’s-Good 46-Minute Episode Is Still the Perfect Gothic Horror Watch

“Sub Rosa”, a 46-minute episode of *Star Trek: The Next Generation*, follows Dr Beverly Crusher as she returns to her grandmother’s home on Caldos IV and becomes entangled with Ronin, a ghost who has pursued women in her family. The article argues that the episode’s melodramatic Gothic horror, odd plot turns and sincere performances make it an entertaining example of “so bad it’s good” television.

Ronin is revealed to be an anaphasic alien who depends on a plasma-based candle for survival; Beverly destroys it with her phaser, ending his hold over her. The episode also features a Scottish-themed colony, a possessed corpse and a weather subplot, alongside scenes the article highlights for their comic awkwardness. Its earnestness, the article says, is what makes the episode more than simply bad.