What are the best seasons of Star Trek The Next Generation ?

Q Who was brilliant! I don't remember Elementary Dear Data. I'll have to give it another whirl.

 

Seasons

4
3
5
6
7






2
1

The first season sucks for the most part. Poorly written and derivative (with one episode doenpright offensive). Season 2 improves the game Slightly.

The fact is that the less involvement that Gene had with the series, the better it got. They had an issue with rung through writers during season 1 and 2. David Gerrold was on staff season one and basically created the "bible" for the series and co-created the show (he later sued because Roddenberry and Paramount under paid him, failed to deliver on promises, etc. Roddenberry was kind of a douch bag during the second series...he kind of was during the origjnal season as well but it got worse with time.

 

The Best Of Both Worlds is my favourite STNG episodes. I still remember when Locutus/Picard says "you, will service, us". First thing I thought was "I want to speak English like this" (I'm Spanish), which I eventually got. Thanks Mr. Stuart.

 

Dr. Pulaski was an important character. She helped develop Mr. Data into the wild and crazy android we all love. I'm just fine with her and I'm OK with Dr. Crusher returning.

Riker's father was a lame episode, for sure! It's a TV show and they always have cheap to make, lame episodes here and there.

The big change from the second season to the third was that the head writer was replaced.

 

Elementary.... is the Sherlock Holmes game in the Hallow Deck. The crew gets Professor Moriarty as an adversary. I forget which season, but there's a sequel episode a few years later called Ship In A Bottle.

 

I believe that's season two.

 

Which ones have less Wesley?

I purchased season three.

After rewatching the series on Netflix, season two surprised me with sophisticated writing and solid episodes, with the best ratio of good to bad episodes for any season. So, IMO, seasons two and three, and if you have too much time on your hands, maybe one or two of the later seasons, but be prepared for many tired plot lines.

 

Elementary.... is season 2. Ship In A Bottle is the sequel and it's season 6.

 

Season one is tough to get through, but I enjoy the series starting with season two.

 

I can't watch it anymore

 

I watched it last night after reading about it in this thread. Good episode.

 

Measure of a Man is a very good season 2 episode.

 

I like Pulaski now. She brings a lot of sassiness to a dull cast (dull coming out of season one). Plus, she's a better actor than McFadden. So I don't hate season two as much as others do.

Back then, though, I hated Pulaski. She was mean to Data and took the place of my beloved ginger doctor. But now, I wish we'd gotten more than a season from Muldaur.

 

I never hated Pulaski. I thought Muldaur was a big part of improving the series. I was fine when she left too. I wasn't gonna let a little detail like who the doctor was bother me.

 

The actor left during the 4th season, so from then on almost no Wesley at all. He did come back for a couple of episodes, but just a couple.

 

Yes, part two is amazing and difficult to watch, but part one is rather mundane and is nothing like part two. Part one is just a padded set up for the excellent part two.

 

Since Nimoy, Deforest, and Doohan have passed their episodes carry more poignancy.

 

I agree with previous posters- seasons three, four, and five are the best. Elementary Dear Data from season 2 was an outstanding episode (most other episodes from season two were pretty poor), and, to me, the majority of the episodes in season 6 and season 7 were not very good.

 

She was beyond mean to Data, especially at the beginning of season 2. She made some terrible assumptions about him, said some awful things to him, and more or less considered him to be a second- or third-class member of the crew. I'm watching S1E01 right now on BBC (the ridiculous one where Troi has a mystery alien baby) and the scene where she mispronounces Data's name and then says "what does it matter?" was just on. Makes me want to punch the TV...

 

I generally concur with you but like season 2 more than you. Season 2 has some dog episodes but i could see the show improving steadily.

 

In real life there's always people that act like Pulaski towards people they percieve as different. Data's reactions to her helped build his character up. Without Pulaski's prejudice how would of Elementary Dear Data worked so well as an episode....??? It was elementary dear Pulaski that made it all happen.

 

Would agree with this. Season 1 is ruined by the awful Tasha Yar and Season 2 by the just as bad Dr Pulanski. Season 3 started getting better. Id also say it started getting better when Gene Roddenberry had a less hands on role with it.

 

Doing a quick scan of the episodes on Wikipedia, I agree with others that each season has a few good episodes along with a few clunkers. I think the series hit its stride in Season 3, but it is in Season 2 that the actors and writers started to get a handle on the characters. But even the first season had a few great episodes.

Among the best is "Too Short A Season." I remember reading somewhere that originally it was going to feature James T. Kirk and would be his farewell story (it might have been a sequel to one of the Original Series episodes). If you watch it, it does have a feel of the classic Trek and Jameson's actions are something that I think Kirk might have done under certain circumstances.

 

Certainly important things happened in season 2, but I'd still argue that the series was still trying to find it's footing.

Isn't the general rule of thumb that if Ryker doesn't have a beard, then viewer beware!!?? (IIRC, he started with the beard in season #3.)

EDIT: I see now that "The Beard" started at the beginning of season #2 -- so I guess #2 is better than season #1 (better than I remembered).

BTW, the opposite of "Jumping The Shark", is apparently "Growing The Beard" (aka "Finding The Beard").

 

The beard is not an accurate indicator of anything. Season 2 is where the series found it's footing. The writers and the actors found their grooves. The actors didn't look comfortable or confident with what they were doing during season 1. I was pleasantly surprised how things went as season 2 progressed. I nearly gave up on the show during the first season.