Kinda smart to be honest

i thought it was because she is an empath and could sense the feelings of the shitbags on the big screen. also boobs

i thought it was because she is an empath and could sense the feelings of the shitbags on the big screen.
Alien on the screen: If you don't do as we demand we will destroy your ship!
Troi: I sense hostility
- Just once, I'd like to have seen: "I sense total bullshit, Captain."
edit: in all seriousness troi is a great character. more information on how sirtis developed troi into much more than just onscreen sex appeal: https://www.cbr.com/star-trek-tng-deanna-troi-wear-uniform/

I remember reading an article in the early 90s where they opined that 'the thing that would really date TNG was the presence of a therapist on the ship'.

Mental health - a total 80s fad, right?

This is Dr. Gabers Migleemo erasure and I won't stand for it!

They really should have made Troi a diplomat like her mother. While it makes sense to have a counselor on the ship, the counselor doesn't need bridge duty. In contrast, an empath who is a diplomat would have been really valuable on the Enterprise bridge.

I definitely dig the idea of the Enterprise carrying a therapist, as a recurring character, possibly a civilian contractor so they can wear something other than a standard uniform so we can have some visual variety, and occasionally show up at planning meetings or whatever when psychology is at play.
But Gene Roddenberry wanted a pair of legs in the center of the frame so she wore a minidress and sat next to the Captain with nothing to do. She wasn't occasionally called up to the bridge the way Dr. Crusher or Geordi were, she was just always sitting there.
Meanwhile Guinan the bartender was hell and gone a better counselor than Troi ever was.
- And a diplomat with legs would be a valuable person to have on the bridge. There are a ton of episodes where they had to do an exposition dump regarding treaties and diplomatic relations. Having Troi do that would have been a lot more valuable.
I love the fact Troi was sat directly on Picard's left. I felt like it recognized the importance of emotion in being a human and how greatly that affects everything we do. She was like an emotional navigator and as important as the First Officer.
But then it felt like the writers had no idea what to do with her, so she just ate chocolate & crashed the ship. What a colossal waste lol.

I always respected that they brought in Troi so often. We all need therapy, and it was a strange comfort to see that counselors were still needed in a utopian future.

My only question is why Picard is the only captain to apparently have done it before or afterward (aside from Janeway in Prodigy, and keeping the kids under control during the secret mission would require special circumstances).

If I'm remembering correctly, Troi's seat was reserved for subject specialists, so the captain could immediately consult with an expert on whatever it was they were dealing with at that time. An empath and counselor makes sense for Picard as one of Starfleet's best diplomats, I think. I suspect other Starfleet captains we meet have other priorities (ahem, Janeway on VOY)!
- Before she became First Officer and switched seats, Commander Shelby sat in that seat.
- That does make sense.
Aren't you forgetting someone?
- That crew is as stuffed with mental issues as a Thanksgiving turkey is stuffed with stuffing.
- You are correct. I did forget him.
TNG tried a lot of things. remember the outright hostility towards wesley crusher? not doing that again lol
also they brought up the question "what if your lover was trill and got a new host body of a different gender," which DS9 answered beautifully
Because the time frame that TNG takes place in. It was a peaceful era and the Galaxy Class ship was designed for prolonged exploration and ambassador missions. Due to the long periods in space the Federation designed the ship to accommodate families of the Starfleet officers. That's also why the ship could separate, the battle bridge could go into combat while the civilians stayed behind in the saucer section. With these long voyages and family aboard they thought it was important to include mental health being an importance, so important that Troi was a bridge officer.
Voyager was a smaller ship made purely for scientific research and wasn't supposed to be gone for so long. Also, after the discovery of the Borg, the Federation changed their ship designs to have more combat in mind.
- discovery of the Borg, the Federation changed their ship designs
  They hired a Klingon consultancy firm which suggested 'Shoot first, and then have diplomatic conversations with their corpses.' as the improved Federation policy.
  So really, don't need an empathic counselor.

LOL they put her in that seat because cleavage

made a lifetime viewer out of me at least

Facts