Star Trek: Explaining The Strange Career Moves Of Dr. Beverly Crusher

gamerant.com:

One thing that Star Trek is known for, alongside a magnificent array of science fiction technology so great it has influenced the real world, is a fantastic and diverse set of characters. From the stoic and often morally complex commanding figure of Captain Sisko, to audiences' least favorite chef (Neelix), there has always been a large amount of variety in the cast.

Some of the most memorable bunch are the main bridge crew from The Next Generation, which included Gates McFadden’s character of Dr. Beverly Crusher. It might surprise casual viewers then, that despite her role as one of the main characters, she was in fact missing for an entire season. What happened to the doctor, and why did she return?

Star Trek: Is The Prime Directive Unethical?

Dr. Crusher appears during the first season of TNG, but was absent during the second. The explanation was that she got a promotion, forcing her to leave not only the Enterprise D, but her teenage son too. She was replaced by Dr. Katherine Pulaski, played by Diana Muldaur, who, through no fault of the actress, was poorly received by fans. Many viewers thought she was too much of a bully to other characters such as Data, and kept looking for problems and picking arguments with Picard. While this might have been the biggest reason, it was also in part that audiences missed Dr. Crusher. For that matter, so did the cast, a tight-knit group of good friends at this point who did not appreciate McFadden being replaced.

The real-world reason for the promotion/removal of Dr. Crusher was largely down to a man named Maurice Hurley, the head writer and later co-executive producer. He was hired by Gene Roddenberry during a time when Roddenberry’s health was taking a downward spiral. Having