Until 1987, when anyone thought of Star Trek, they pictured Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, Lt. Uhura, and space as it was seen in the 1960s—before the moon landing. Then, on Sept. 28, 1987, everything changed. Star Trek: The Next Generation warped onto syndicated TV, and suddenly the captain of the USS Enterprise was Jean-Luc Picard, a bald Frenchman who spoke with an English accent. He was in charge of an all-new starship Enterprise leading a completely different crew. It took some time, but once TNG hit its stride it won over legacy fans and cultivated followers of its own. And its influence only grew from there. It’s hard to imagine the Marvel Cinematic Universe or the Star Wars franchise on Disney+ without TNG bravely proving that pop culture mythologies can be expanded, reshaped and redefined. Star Trek: The Next Generation transformed Gene Roddenberry’s original creation and entertainment as we know it—and it almost didn’t happen. This is the story of a sci-fi miracle.
THE BRIDGE • TNG IS THE PIVOTAL LINK BETWEEN STAR TREK’S PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE
THE NEW MISSION • JUST WHEN PARAMOUNT WANTED MORE TREK ON TV, GENE RODDENBERRY WANTED TO RETIRE
THE CAST • RECRUITING THE RIGHT CREW FOR TNG WAS A CHALLENGE
LOST IN SPACE • AFTER A STRONG PREMIERE EPISODE, THE FIRST TWO SEASON OF TNG WERE A MIXED BAG
WARP SPEED • IN SEASON 3,TNG BECAME THE SHOW FANS LOVE
STARTING A UNIVERSE • AT ITS PEAK, TNG OPENED A PORTAL TO AN EXPANDED FUTURE
END OF AN ERA • IN THE EARLY 2000S, THE FRANCHISE PREPARED TO REACH ITS FINAL DESTINATION
THE NEW STANDARD • THE LEGACY OF TNG HAS HAD A LASTING IMPACT ON ALL OF SCI-FI
CALL IT A COME BACK • HOW TNG NOSTALGIA EVENTUALLY RESULTED IN AN ACTUAL RETURN
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE • WAS PICARD SEASON 3 THE END FOR THE CREW—AND FANS—OF TNG?
Star Trek: The Next Generation
PHOTO CREDITS