Talk:Brothers (Star Trek: The Next Generation)

This was the final episode to be directed by Rob Bowman, who had been the show's lead director during the first two seasons.

The final draft of the script was dated July 13, 1990, and revisions were made as late as August 6.

Brent Spiner plays three of the main characters in this episode: Data, Lore, and Dr. Noonian Soong. He received billing for the latter two in the end credits.

At one point it appeared having Spiner in three distinct roles would not be feasible and several older Asian male actors (including Keye Luke) were considered for the role of Dr. Soong.

Bowman, Spiner and Robert Legato spent three days rehearsing on the Stage 16 set. Producer David Livingston recalled, "They worked out some of the motion control shots and did a lot of preparation in terms of figuring out what to do, because that kind of preparatory time on the stage when everybody is standing around is not a good idea. What we did was we taped out the floor like in a stageplay or a multicamera show, and then actually blocked it out and staged it. I'm glad we did, because it saved us a lot of time. If we hadn't, it would have been really dicey."

During filming in Soong's lab, Spiner shot one day as Lore and Data, and the next as Dr. Soong. Spiner recalled, "It was difficult because I had to hear dialogue that I hadn't read yet coming out of somebody else's mouth before I would get to it. [I had] to remember where I was when I was Data, and so on." To help Spiner, the set was closed during the two and a half days in which the actor performed solo.

The song which Lore sings to Dr. Soong comes from the poem Abdul Abulbul Amir, written by William Percy French in 1877. That poem has been frequently misquoted and parodied, and the excerpts in this episode are also not accurate to the original text.

In April 2007, the Pakled costume worn by Spiner as Lore in this episode was auctioned off in the It's A Wrap! sale and auction and sold for $2,155.00.

Comic book artists Jerome K. Moore and Arne Starr met Spiner on set during the filming of this episode. Starr presented Spiner with a caricature of Spiner as Superman, titled "The Man of Shlameel". Written on it was the phrase "It's a bird, it's a plane, no... It's Spinerman!" Spiner reportedly kept the picture on his desk in his office for many years, so Starr was told.

Rehearsal shots with Brent Spiner's photo doubles Brian Tomlinson, Guy Vardaman, and Dana Vitatoe were filmed on Thursday, July 26, 1990.}

The dinosaur skeleton head seen in Dr. Soong's laboratory was rented from the Museum of Natural History.

First UK airdate: April 20, 1994.