"Star Trek: The Next Generation" (1987)TV series 1987-1994

Creator:

Gene Roddenberry

Seasons:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Release Date:

26 September 1987 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi

Tagline:

New Stars. New Stories. New Worlds To Explore.

Plot:

Set decades after Captain James T. Kirk's 5-year mission, a new generation of Starfleet officers in a new Enterprise set off on their own mission to go where no one has gone before.

Plot Keywords:

Boothsby | Academy | Number One | Impulse Engines | Andorian

Awards:

Won 18 Primetime Emmys. Another 11 wins & 51 nominations

US TV Schedule:

Mon. Aug. 11	7:00 PM	SCIFI	Ship in a Bottle	#6.12
Mon. Aug. 11	8:00 PM	SCIFI	Face of the Enemy	#6.14

Cast

Patrick Stewart	...	Captain Jean-Luc Picard / ... (176 episodes, 1987-1994)
Jonathan Frakes	...	Commander William T. Riker / ... (176 episodes, 1987-1994)
LeVar Burton	...	Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge / ... (176 episodes, 1987-1994)
Marina Sirtis	...	Counselor Deanna Troi (176 episodes, 1987-1994)
Brent Spiner	...	Lt. Commander Data / ... (176 episodes, 1987-1994)
Michael Dorn	...	Lieutenant Worf (175 episodes, 1987-1994)
Gates McFadden	...	Doctor Beverly Crusher / ... (154 episodes, 1987-1994)
Majel Barrett	...	Enterprise Computer / ... (98 episodes, 1987-1994)
Wil Wheaton	...	Wesley Crusher / ... (85 episodes, 1987-1994)

Also Known As:

Star Trek: TNG (USA) (promotional abbreviation)

Runtime:

45 min (176 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Klingon | French

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:L (some episodes) | Iceland:LH | Australia:M (some episodes) | Australia:PG (some episodes) | Canada:PG | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant - 6100 Woodley Avenue, Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Television

Trivia:

Two characters on the show were named after real people: The alien "Q" was named for Janet Quarton, a British fan; and Geordi La Forge was named after another Trek fan, George La Forge, who was confined to a wheelchair.

Goofs:

Factual errors: Any time Data plays the part of Sherlock Holmes he's shown as wearing a deerstalker cap and smoking a goose necked pipe. Holmes only wore a soft cloth cap (drawn as a deerstalker though never said to be one by Holmes creator Arthur Conan Doyle) when in the country, not in the city. Also Holmes never once smoked a goose necked pipe. That was an alteration made by an actor who found that it was the only pipe he could hold between his teeth and still be able to say his lines clearly. Finally, Sherlock Holmes never once spoke the words "It's elementary, my dear Watson." That was something else added in a script but never once written by Doyle. An android would get these details right.

Quotes:

[Worf moves in on Q]
Capt. Picard: No, Lieutenant Worf! You will make no move against him unless I order it.
Q: Pity, you might have learned an interesting lesson, Macrohead. With a microbrain!
Lieutenant Worf: Grrr...

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Magic Sword (#5.11)" (1992)

To boldly go where no one has gone before.

Nearly twenty years after the original Star Trek was cancelled by NBC, Gene Roddenberry and Paramount sought to capitalize on the enormous success of TOS in syndication and on the big screen. Roddenberry decided to make the new series with few connections to the original, so that it could stand on its own. Many fans didn't like the idea of new characters, but Roddenberry pressed ahead, and Star Trek: The Next Generation was born. British stage actor Patrick Stewart assumed the role of Frenchman Captain Jean-Luc Picard, bringing gravitas, phenomenal acting skills, and an English accent that would become the boon of many jokes; Jonathon Frakes became William T. Riker, the Kirk-esque "Number One" with a love for the ladies and jazz; Brent Spiner was cast as Data, the android who envied human emotion; Gates McFadden was Dr. Beverly Crusher, the CMO with a complicated past with Captain Picard; Wil Wheaton was her irritating son Wesley, who would long annoy the fans; Michael Dorn brought a distinct presence to the recurring role of Klingon officer Worf, so much that he was promoted to regular. Marina Sirtis looked good as Deanna Troi, the psychiatrist who had once been involved with Riker; LeVar Burton was cast as Geordi LaForge, the blind Conn Officer; finally, Denise Crosby was Security Chief Tasha Yar. Also in the pilot was an unnamed conn officer played by Colm Meaney, who would later become Transporter Chief Miles O'Brien.

The first two seasons were of average quality, but they did a good job of setting up the characters and expanding the Trek universe. The series gathered its own following, although it continued to exist in the shadow of TOS. Q became an ongoing presence, appearing twice more after the pilot. His third appearance had him introducing the crew to the Borg, the fearsome cyborgs who would become Trek's most famous villains. Denise Crosby left TNG near the end of the first year, saying that her character wasn't being given enough to do. The producers also removed Gates McFadden's Dr. Crusher, introducing Dr. Kate Pulaski (Diana Muldaur) to induce more conflict. The fans did not take to Pulaski, so McFadden was brought back for the start of Season Three. That season was when TNG really came into its own, ending with the reappearance of the Borg. The Borg abducted Captain Picard, and turned him into one of them; Riker, now in command, gave the order to destroy the Borg Cube, while Picard was still onboard. That was the greatest cliffhanger in TV history, and TNG received a great deal of media attention as a result. Droves of new viewers tuned in for the fourth season premiere, which many perceived as a bit of a letdown after all the hype; but the viewers stayed, and TNG soared in the ratings, producing more and more quality episodes. While it did lose a bit of steam in its final year, it finished with an incredible series finale, All Good Things..., and then launched a movie franchise of its own.

TNG Top Ten Episodes: Conundrum; The Next Phase; Data's Day; The Best of Both World Parts I & II; Redemption Parts I & II; Reunion; The Defector; Face of the Enemy; The Pegasus; Elementary, My Dear Data;