TNG : 1987 - 2002

[Kegg]

in a sense, we did get to see what TNG would have looked like... we got Star Trek: Voyager.

I once read that for conveinence in production the first season of Voyager was numbered as the eighth season of TNG - 8x01, etc. I don't know if that's true or not (probably not) but Voyager - which included a lot of the writing staff current in TNG's final year - did follow the show's model pretty closely.

And, in turn, Enterprise learned experiences from Voyager. It's no accident that the final episode of Enterprise was also a tribute to the Next Generation - it was the end of over a decade of science fiction television that TNG was directly responsible for. Much of the staleness that creeped into both of those programs were in the sense they kept sticking to TNG's mold.

That said, yes, TNG went out on a high note... it also went out on its weakest year since the first two. I love the show, always will, but that was the right time to end it.

As far as why rebooting with Kirk and Spock and not Picard and Data... well, I'm sure there's many reasons - they're the original crew, they're the ones J.J. Abrams would have grown up with, they're more iconically marketable, and while they were last seen in 1991 Picard and company punched the clock in 2002. I don't think rebooting the Next Generation is a terrible idea, and I think of all the sequel programs it's the only one with a real (if small) chance to be revisited like that.

 

[RAMA]

TNG should have gone on forever. I think it could have, if :

• Paramount diverted all the creative resources it had into refreshing TNG somewhere around, say, season 5.
• New cast were introduced (O'Brien and Ensign Ro breathed so much fresh air into TNG - other new characters could have really shaken things up), and others were allowed to exit.
• All the writing talent (that was arguably spread too thinly across the TNG films, DS9 and VOY) was concentrated on TNG only.

The ratings never drop off, and TNG wraps up around 2002, with its status firmly cemented as one of TV's greatest and most successful shows.

Could it have happened that way? Or would the audience have drifted away the way it did over the years with DS9, VOY and ENT?

Would you rather have seen more televised TNG? Or should they have quit when they did, and made DS9, VOY and the TNG films?

The ratings never dropped off.

 

[BillJ]

TNG should have gone on forever. I think it could have, if :

• Paramount diverted all the creative resources it had into refreshing TNG somewhere around, say, season 5.
• New cast were introduced (O'Brien and Ensign Ro breathed so much fresh air into TNG - other new characters could have really shaken things up), and others were allowed to exit.
• All the writing talent (that was arguably spread too thinly across the TNG films, DS9 and VOY) was concentrated on TNG only.

The ratings never drop off, and TNG wraps up around 2002, with its status firmly cemented as one of TV's greatest and most successful shows.

Could it have happened that way? Or would the audience have drifted away the way it did over the years with DS9, VOY and ENT?

Would you rather have seen more televised TNG? Or should they have quit when they did, and made DS9, VOY and the TNG films?

The ratings never dropped off.

He never said they did. He was talking about a hypothetical situation in which TNG continues to run beyond its original 1987-1994 airings.

 

[Ryan8bit]

ST09 focusing on the original crew can pretty much be summed up by the quote by Wayne in Wayne's World:

"Ah yes, it's a lot like "Star Trek: The Next Generation". In many ways it's superior but will never be as recognized as the original."

Sure, it had more ratings or whatever, but it didn't stick in the public consciousness as firmly. But there's several other sensible reasons as well.

New cast were introduced (O'Brien and Ensign Ro breathed so much fresh air into TNG - other new characters could have really shaken things up)

Didn't anyone feel like pointing out O'Brien being in Farpoint?

 

[Steve67]

ST09 focusing on the original crew can pretty much be summed up by the quote by Wayne in Wayne's World:

"Ah yes, it's a lot like "Star Trek: The Next Generation". In many ways it's superior but will never be as recognized as the original."

Sure, it had more ratings or whatever, but it didn't stick in the public consciousness as firmly. But there's several other sensible reasons as well.

It's all the more baffling in that TNG has been heavily and aggressively syndicated since 2001 on SPIKE TV and is always found lounging around BBC America, as well. Ten years of public exposure plus an alleged content superiorty, yet the franchise fizzled and a reboot wasn't considered. It doesn't add up. Maybe fantasy geeks were too focused on Hobbits and Matrix movies to give Trek attention. Add to the mix three vastly inferior Trek spinoffs, and we get a franchise running its course. It may have been time for the classic crew to make a comeback; it seems positively macho by comparison.

 

[Anwar]

Trek isn't mainstream, and Paramount kept thinking it was. They over saturated the market in the mid-90s until it collapsed.

 

[Warped9]

I think it's not entirely unreasonable to think that TNG could have become the science-fiction answer to ER or Law & Order.

Agreed. IF they had had the imagination to see that. Around Season 5 they could have pulled some cast changes in any number of ways. Many of DS9's stories could have been adapted to TNG.

To this day I still think it was stupid as hell to run DS9 while TNG was still in production (and VOY while DS9 was going). I know it was done years later with L&O: SVU and L&O: CI while L&O Classic was still on and it worked for a time (and ditto for the CSi shows), but SF draws from a smaller audience than something as mainstream as cop shows.

 

[Warped9]

It had the perfect ending. S7 was going downhill anyway, but the AGT was spectacular. In many ways TNG was the apex of trek, it was highly cerebral and showcased humanity had progressed to a less warlike species in many respects, within the context of the TNG series universe. Starfleet was defensive/scientific/diplomatic organization rather than a militaristic one. AGT was brilliant because it tied up what the point of the show was kind of about. Q judges humanity to be a violent primitive stupid species and throughout the run of the show we learn that for all its faults the human race is improving. The final episode is focused on an existential connundrum so to speak and when Picard realizes the nature of the temporal paradox Q states that this is what awaits humanity. Its a positive message and fairly high minded television which I like. I don't think it could have ended any better.

You're really over thinking this and reading too much into it.

"All Good Things" was far from perfect. It came off as so contrived because Q orchestrated the whole thing. And by now I was thoroughly sick of Q and John Q. DeLancie.

TNG was not cerebral. It seemed that way because it wasn't as action oriented as TOS, but it certainly was no smarter or more cerebral than TOS.

And Starfleet was never militaristic. Having a military structure does not automatically equate with being militaristic. Again this is an accepted myth that is nonsense. But it's fed by seeing so many touchy-feely stories dealing with personal angst and family oriented stories.

 

[CaptainStoner]

ST09 focusing on the original crew can pretty much be summed up by the quote by Wayne in Wayne's World:

"Ah yes, it's a lot like "Star Trek: The Next Generation". In many ways it's superior but will never be as recognized as the original."

Sure, it had more ratings or whatever, but it didn't stick in the public consciousness as firmly. But there's several other sensible reasons as well.

It's all the more baffling in that TNG has been heavily and aggressively syndicated since 2001 on SPIKE TV and is always found lounging around BBC America, as well. Ten years of public exposure plus an alleged content superiorty, yet the franchise fizzled and a reboot wasn't considered. It doesn't add up. Maybe fantasy geeks were too focused on Hobbits and Matrix movies to give Trek attention. Add to the mix three vastly inferior Trek spinoffs, and we get a franchise running its course. It may have been time for the classic crew to make a comeback; it seems positively macho by comparison.

Well I do think there is also just a natural cycle, or cycles, involved here. Questions about which series is superior are, at best, a pleasant diversion.
The core characters for each contain a spark of chemistry and genius. So it stands to reason that at some point, the TNG characters will be as ripe for a reboot as TOS was. You can see it already beginning.
But for now, we still have Shatner and Nimoy tearing it up out there. They have mass impact as individual artists, with or without Star Trek. And it's just very damned cool that Shatner and Nimoy can now, as men in their 80's, go to a Star Trek movie, and hopefully, like what they see and what it has to say.

 

[Greg Cox]

The ratings never drop off, and TNG wraps up around 2002, with its status firmly cemented as one of TV's greatest and most successful shows.

As I understand it, TNG was not cancelled because the ratings were dropping off. It was simply a matter of accounting. After seven years, they already had enough episodes for syndication, costs and cast salaries were rising, and they were looking at less return for more expense. Money-wise, it just made sense to call it a day and focus on movies instead.

Due to the economics of tv production at the time, seven years was apparently the natural lifespan of a successful show. BUFFY lasted six or seven years, XENA lasted six or seven years, VOYAGER and DS9 were shut down after seven years. It wasn't about ratings. It was about spreadsheets.

Shows like LAW & ORDER are the exceptions.

 

[RAMA]

TNG should have gone on forever. I think it could have, if :

• Paramount diverted all the creative resources it had into refreshing TNG somewhere around, say, season 5.
• New cast were introduced (O'Brien and Ensign Ro breathed so much fresh air into TNG - other new characters could have really shaken things up), and others were allowed to exit.
• All the writing talent (that was arguably spread too thinly across the TNG films, DS9 and VOY) was concentrated on TNG only.

The ratings never drop off, and TNG wraps up around 2002, with its status firmly cemented as one of TV's greatest and most successful shows.

Could it have happened that way? Or would the audience have drifted away the way it did over the years with DS9, VOY and ENT?

Would you rather have seen more televised TNG? Or should they have quit when they did, and made DS9, VOY and the TNG films?

The ratings never dropped off.

He never said they did. He was talking about a hypothetical situation in which TNG continues to run beyond its original 1987-1994 airings.

Hmm I read 1992, instead of 2002 somehow, my bad. That's what I get for hit and run reading.

Anyway, it really doesn't matter, the show didn't end because of low quality or because writers were at DS9, it ended because the original crew was too old to continue movies, the contracts for the tv crew were done, and it was going to cost more money to continue the show than Paramount was willing to spend in syndication. So the speculation isn't accurate from the word go.

 

[Starbreaker]

I can't believe it's almost been 10 years. Makes me feel old.

 

[RAMA]

I can't believe it's almost been 10 years. Makes me feel old.

10 years? Its been 17! NOW that is old!

 

[Starbreaker]

I meant almost 10 years since Nemesis.

 

[RAMA]

I meant almost 10 years since Nemesis.

Time flies. After a long time away from ST lit, I have found some solace in the Destiny and Typhon Pact novels.

RAMA

 

[Arpy]

I could never really get into the TNG movies. I've seen and enjoyed them all to a point, and yeah FC was the best, but for me the series ended with "All Good Things..."

I'm glad it ended when it did though - at the top, or thereabouts.

 

[Saxman1]

I could never really get into the TNG movies. I've seen and enjoyed them all to a point, and yeah FC was the best, but for me the series ended with "All Good Things..."

I'm glad it ended when it did though - at the top, or thereabouts.

Agreed: sometimes I like to pretend the TNG movies never happened.

 

[swaaye]

I think in retrospect that ending at 7 seasons was for the best. It could have gotten really stale. Season 7 certainly was showing some warning signs.

sometimes I like to pretend the TNG movies never happened.

Yup they were rather unfortunate overall.

 

[DoctorJones]

Nah, as great as TNG is, 7 seasons is more than enough.
Overall I think 10 seasons should be an absolute maximum for any sci-fi series, like for Stargate SG-1.
Any more, and you get stuck with repetitive story arcs (i.e. bad guy almost dies, but miraculously escapes and comes back next season), or you realize that the series had far too many 'filler' episodes.

 

[Saxman1]

Nah, as great as TNG is, 7 seasons is more than enough.
Overall I think 10 seasons should be an absolute maximum for any sci-fi series, like for Stargate SG-1.
Any more, and you get stuck with repetitive story arcs (i.e. bad guy almost dies, but miraculously escapes and comes back next season), or you realize that the series had far too many 'filler' episodes.

Reminds me of the recent Rene interview on the official site where he remembers telling someone involved with ENT when he did his guest shot on that show that he thought it was a great story and enjoyed doing it first on DS9 (about a holo-village in DS9, later a holo-crew in ENT), LOL!