(1987-1994)

The cast of ST:TNG (L-R) 1st row- Marina Sirtis (Counselor Deanna Troi), Patrick Stewart (Capt. Jean-Luc Picard), Gates McFadden (Dr. Beverly Crusher). 2nd row- Jonathan Frakes (Cmdr. William Riker), Brent Spiner (Lt. Cmdr. Data), Whoopi Goldberg (Guinan), LeVar Burton (Lt.-Lt. Cmdr. Geordi LaForge), Michael Dorn (Lt. Worf); the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-D; the relatively spacious and comfortable bridge of the Enterprise.
Summary

Introduced in 1986, Star Trek: The Next Generation was what was initially thought to be a futile attempt to resurrect Star Trek as the first new series in almost twenty years. No longer starring the now-famous Captain Kirk and crew, the show took place in the mid-24th century, almost seventy-five years from Kirk's time. The new flagship of Starfleet was the Enterprise-D. To show the obvious technological improvements over this and Kirk's time, the first few episodes were spent outlining the advanced and efficient warp engines, computer core and the such. Her crew was commanded by a new Captain Jean-Luc Picard, and manned by a new cast. The show did poorly ratings wise in the first two seasons, as the series did not pick up with many fans of the original series and its movies. In addition, the storyline did not attract many Trek converts. It was not until the third season that visual effects and the series storyline was beefed up that ratings began to climb. Climb indeed they did, and The Next Generation became of primetime's most popular shows. The series ran for seven long seasons, a golden standard that it has set for every Star Trek series to follow in its footsteps. In 1994, the series produced a movie, Generations. After the completion of The Next Generation in 1994, three additional films were made - First Contact, Insurrection and Nemesis.







Play or Download Star Trek: The Next Generation starting theme


Website ©2005 Andy San Juan

All Star Trek content ©Paramount Pictures Corporation www.paramount.com