Original artwork, not a still
It is possible to commit no mistakes and still lose.
— Star Trek: The Next Generation ‧ 1987
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
Picard is talking to an android who thinks losing means malfunction, and the line is the kindest thing the show ever said about failure: sometimes the opponent is better, the odds are bad, or the world changes, and none of that is a flaw. Fans quote it beyond Star Trek, as a reminder that outcomes are not verdicts. Data later plays Kolrami to a stalemate.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for Star Trek: The Next GenerationShow the scene
In "Peak Performance" (Star Trek: The Next Generation, season 2, 1989), Starfleet stages a war game between the Enterprise and the old Hathaway, commanded by Riker. Before it starts, Data is beaten at the strategy game Strategema by the grandmaster Sirna Kolrami, and withdraws from the bridge convinced that his circuits must be at fault, although his diagnostic finds no error. An hour before the battle Picard goes to Data's quarters and tells him he may err but his duty remains the same, and says that it is possible to lose without making mistakes.
Sources (1)
- Memory Alpha: Peak PerformanceSummary Act Four and Memorable quotesReference checked
Context reviewed
