Star Trek: The Next Generation (Season 1)
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| Star Trek: The Next Generation | ||
| Season 1 | ||
| Blue-ray cover | ||
| Starring | Patrick Stewart Jonathan Frakes LeVar Burton Denise Crosby Michael Dorn Gates McFadden Marina Sirtis Brent Spiner Wil Wheaton | |
| Country of origin | United States | |
| No. of episodes | 26 | |
| Release | ||
| Original network | Broadcast syndication | |
| Original run | September 28, 1987 – May 16, 1988 | |
| Season chronology | ||
| Next → Season 2 | ||
| List of episodes | ||
The first season of the American television science fiction series Star Trek: The Next Generation commenced airing in broadcast syndication in the United States on September 28, 1987, and concluded on May 16, 1988, after 26 episodes were broadcast. Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of the crew of the Starfleet starship Enterprise-D. It was the first live-action television series in the franchise to be broadcast since Star Trek: The Original Series was cancelled in 1969, and the first to feature all new characters. Paramount Television eventually sought the advice of the creator of Star Trek, Gene Roddenberry, who set about creating the new show with mostly former The Original Series staff members. An entirely new cast were sought, which concerned some members of The Original Series crew, as Roddenberry did not want to re-tread the same steps as he had in the first series to the extent that well known Star Trek aliens such as Vulcans, Klingons and Romulans were banned at first.
The characters in the series gradually changed during preproduction, with adjustments made to the names, genders and ethnicity. When the cast was announced at first, LeVar Burton was the main actor highlighted because of his work on the Roots mini series; his character, Geordi La Forge was named for a disabled fan. Before Star Trek: The Next Generation, Burton had also worked on the 1983-2006 PBS series Reading Rainbow. Although the casting was managed by producers Rick Berman and Robert H. Justman, Roddenberry intervened to switch the characters assigned to Marina Sirtis and Denise Crosby. Sirtis took over Crosby's role as Deanna Troi, and Crosby became Tasha Yar, who had been named Macha Hernandez while Sirtis held the part. Behind the scenes, the writing team became chaotic. Eddie Milkis had quit prior to casting, with Berman taking over from him. Roddenberry's insistence on re-writing scripts and unusual behaviour alienated some staff. Longtime Star Trek contributor D.C. Fontana quit, filing a claim with the Writer's Guild of America as she had been acting as story editor but was unpaid in the role. Such were the troubles that the series had a problem recruiting potential writers halfway through the season. By the end of the second season, all the writing staff recruited during season one except for Rick Berman had quit.
As the series was being launched directly into syndication, there were concerns that it could affect the ratings. "Encounter at Farpoint", the pilot, was broadcast to Nielsen ratings of 15.7 percent, and after a lull seeing ratings for "The Last Outpost" reach a season low of 8.9 percent, they increased again and by the end of the first season, it had become the most popular syndicated series on television. While highly anticipated, initial reviews other than for "Encounter at Farpoint" were poor. The second episode, "The Naked Now" had fans and critics concerned that The Next Generation would re-hash plots of The Original Series, and "Code of Honor" was seen as racist. The season continues to attract mixed to negative reviews, though the episodes "The Big Goodbye" and "11001001" have frequently been singled out for praise. It was nominated for seven Emmy Awards, winning in makeup, costume design and sound editing. "The Big Goodbye" was awarded a Peabody Award, while cast member Wil Wheaton was nominated for an award at the 9th Youth in Film Awards. The season was first released on DVD on March 26, 2002, on Region 1, and was subsequently released in other regions. The region-free Blu-ray releases came in July 2012.
Contents |
Production
Crew
Casting
- Main article: List of Star Trek: The Next Generation cast members
Reception
Ratings
Reviews
Accolades
Cast
Main cast
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Recurring cast
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Episodes
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | U.S. viewers (millions) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 2 | 1 2 | "Encounter at Farpoint" | Corey Allen | D. C. Fontana and Gene Roddenberry | September 28, 1987 | 15.7 |
The new starship Enterprise begins her maiden voyage by uncovering the mysteries of an advanced space station. The crew's mission is threatened by an omnipotent being named Q, who puts them on trial for the crimes of all humanity.
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| 3 | 3 | "The Naked Now" | Paul Lynch | S: John D. F. Black S/T: D. C. Fontana[a] | October 5, 1987 | 11.5 |
| The crew of the Enterprise find the crew of a scientific vessel dead. They soon fall prey to a mysterious, communicable contaminant causing the crew to experience symptoms similar to alcohol intoxication, threatening the lives of all aboard the ship. | ||||||
| 4 | 4 | "Code of Honor" | Russ Mayberry | Katharyn Powers and Michael Baron | October 12, 1987 | 9.5 |
| Lt. Yar is abducted by the leader of a people who abide by a strict code of honor, which requires her participation in a fight to the death. | ||||||
| 5 | 5 | "The Last Outpost" | Richard Colla | S: Richard Krzmeien T: Herbert Wright | October 19, 1987 | 8.9 |
| An unknown force immobilizes the Enterprise during the Federation's first encounter with a new alien threat—the Ferengi. | ||||||
| 6 | 6 | "Where No One Has Gone Before" | Rob Bowman | Diane Duane and Michael Reaves | October 26, 1987 | 10.5 |
| Warp efficiency tests send the Enterprise traveling far beyond known space, where the crew's imagination takes on real form. First appearance of Eric Menyuk as The Traveler. | ||||||
| 7 | 7 | "Lonely Among Us" | Cliff Bole | S: Michael Halperin T: D. C. Fontana | November 2, 1987 | 12.1 |
| An alien entity possesses Dr. Crusher, Worf, and Picard while the Enterprise is transporting delegates from two feuding planets. | ||||||
| 8 | 8 | "Justice" | James L. Conway | S: John D. F. Black[b] S/T: Worley Thorne | November 9, 1987 | 12.7 |
| Wesley breaks an idyllic world's trivial law by accidentally stepping on flowers and faces the death sentence. | ||||||
| 9 | 9 | "The Battle" | Rob Bowman | S: Larry Forrester T: Herbert Wright | November 16, 1987 | 10.5 |
| A Ferengi captain returns the abandoned Stargazer to its former captain, Jean-Luc Picard. Picard, who experiences severe headaches, begins to relive the "Battle of Maxia" in which he lost the ship. | ||||||
| 10 | 10 | "Hide and Q" | Cliff Bole | T: Gene Roddenberry S/T: Maurice Hurley[c] | November 23, 1987 | 11.0 |
| 11 | 11 | "Haven" | Richard Compton | S: Lan O'Kun S/T: Tracy Tormé | November 30, 1987 | 10.3 |
| Lwaxana Troi visits her daughter, Counselor Troi, and prepares her for an arranged marriage. | ||||||
| 12 | 12 | "The Big Goodbye" | Joseph L. Scanlan | Tracy Tormé | January 11, 1988 | 11.5 |
| A computer malfunction traps Picard, Data, Dr. Crusher, and Whalen in a Dixon Hill holodeck program set in early-20th-century Earth. | ||||||
| 13 | 13 | "Datalore" | Rob Bowman | S: Maurice Hurley T: Gene Roddenberry S/T: Robert Lewin | January 18, 1988 | 10.3 |
| The Enterprise crew finds a disassembled android identical to Data at the site of the Omicron Theta colony—where Data was found—which was destroyed by a life form dubbed "the Crystalline Entity." The reassembled android, Lore, brings the Crystalline Entity to the Enterprise. | ||||||
| 14 | 14 | "Angel One" | Michael Rhoades | Patrick Barry | January 25, 1988 | 11.4 |
| The Enterprise visits a world dominated by women to rescue survivors of a downed freighter. | ||||||
| 15 | 15 | "11001001" | Paul Lynch | Maurice Hurley and Robert Lewin | February 1, 1988 | 10.7 |
| Bynars upgrade the Enterprise's computers in spacedock. Riker and Picard become distracted by a surprisingly realistic holodeck character. | ||||||
| 16 | 16 | "Too Short a Season" | Rob Bowman | T: D. C. Fontana {tooltip|S/T|Story and Teleplay by}}: Michael Michaelian | RFebruary 8, 1988 | R10.9 |
| he Enterprise transports a legendary elderly admiral who must once again negotiate a hostage situation involving a man from decades earlier in his career. The admiral however, is mysteriously growing younger the farther along their mission progresses. | ||||||
| 17 | 17 | "When the Bough Breaks" | Kim Manners | Hannah Louise Shearer | February 15, 1988 | 10.2 |
| A planet formerly existing only in legend uncloaks and requests help from the Enterprise. The planet's inhabitants are sterile and want to adopt children from the Enterprise—by force, if necessary. | ||||||
| 18 | 18 | "Home Soil" | Corey Allen | S: Karl Geurs & Ralph Sanchez {tooltip|S/T|Story and Teleplay by}}: Robert Sabaroff | February 22, 1988 | 9.0 |
| The crew of the Enterprise discovers a crystalline lifeform with murderous intelligence that has been killing the scientists on a terraforming project. | ||||||
| 19 | 19 | "Coming of Age" | Mike Vejar | Sandy Fries | March 14, 1988 | 10.1 |
| While Wesley takes a Starfleet Academy entrance exam, the senior staff of the Enterprise are placed under investigation by Starfleet. | ||||||
| 20 | 20 | "Heart of Glory" | Rob Bowman | S: Herbert Wright & D. C. Fontana {tooltip|S/T|Story and Teleplay by}}: Maurice Hurley | March 21, 1988 | 10.7 |
| Fugitive Klingons seeking battle attempt to hijack the Enterprise, and ask Worf to join them. | ||||||
| 21 | 21 | "The Arsenal of Freedom" | Les Landau | S: Maurice Hurley and Robert Lewin T: Richard Manning and Hans Beimler | April 11, 1988 | 10.4 |
| rapped on the surface of an abandoned planet, an away team becomes unwitting participants in the demonstration of an advanced weapons system. | ||||||
| 22 | 22 | "Symbiosis" | Win Phelps | T : Richard Manning and Hans Beimler S/T: Robert Lewin | April 18, 1988 | 10.8 |
| Picard tries to mediate a trade dispute between two neighboring planets, one of which is the sole supplier of a drug to treat the other's apparently fatal disease. | ||||||
| 23 | 23 | "Skin of Evil" | Joseph L. Scanlan | T : Hannah Louise Shearer S/T: Joseph Stefano | April 25, 1988 | 9.7 |
| An evil, tar-like creature holds Troi hostage on an alien world. During the rescue mission, one of the Enterprise's senior staff is killed. | ||||||
| 24 | 24 | "We'll Always Have Paris" | Robert Becker | Deborah Dean Davis and Hannah Louise Shearer | May 2, 1988 | 9.7 |
| Picard meets an old flame, whose husband has been affected by an accident involving a dimensional experiment. | ||||||
| 25 | 25 | "Conspiracy" | Cliff Bole | S: Robert SabaroffT : Tracy Tormé | May 9, 1988 | 9.4 |
| The strange behavior of high-ranking officers—which earlier prompted the investigation of the crew (in "Coming of Age")—leads Picard to uncover a conspiracy within Starfleet. | ||||||
| 26 | 26 | "The Neutral Zone" | James L. Conway | S: Deborah McIntyre & Mona Clee T : Maurice Hurley | May 16, 1988 | 10.2 |
| A derelict satellite is found containing cryonically frozen humans from the 21st century as the Enterprise is sent to investigate the destruction of outposts near Romulan space. | ||||||
Home media release
Notes
References
External links
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