Ever since the high definition restoration of Star Trek: The Next Generation was announced last year for Blu-ray, the show’s third season was the one all the fans have really been waiting for. Year three of TNG was the “now we’re cookin’ with gas” season, where the show finally stepped out of the shadow of the original Star Trek, and became a legitimate pop culture phenomenon of its own. By the time the season came to its end, and Captain Jean-Luc Picard was assimilated by the Borg in Trek’s first ever cliffhanger, arguments like “is Picard a better Captain than Kirk?” seemed like relics of the past. TNG had finally carved its own niche.
Star Trek: The Next Generation had a rough first two seasons creatively…and that’s kind of putting it mildly. Although the show was a ratings hit from day one, TNG had serious creative problems from the get go. Writers and producers came and went, and two original cast members left early on; Denise Crosby (Lt. Tasha Yar) left at the end of season one, and Gates McFadden (Dr. Beverly Crusher) was fired around the same time. The 1988 writer’s strike cut down the number of episodes in season two, and by the end of that particular season, the show’s replacement chief medical officer (Diana Muldaur) had departed the series as well. The Next Generation wasn’t a show that was living up to its premise or its cast, and by the end of the second season, TNG was a series in crisis.
Enter Michael Piller, the series’ new show runner and head writer. Piller was in charge of the writing staff on season three, and he made two massive changes to the way the show was run that changed the series’ fortunes forever. First, he made a declaration that from now on, the series would shift away from “alien of the week” or “guest star of the week”, and focus on character, first and foremost. Any given episode would be a Data episode, or a Worf episode, or Picard episode, but they all had to be focused on one of the series’ main characters and their emotional journey, and not just the moral quandary or “lesson” of the week.
Michael Piller, the man who saved Trek.
Secondly, Piller instituted an open door policy in regards to script submissions, which meant fans and amateur screenwriters could send their scripts to Paramount in hopes of catching their big break. Most of the scripts ended up in what they called the “slush pile,” with most never to be used. But the cream rose to the top, as within that pile were some true gems. Some fan favorite episodes that season began as fan submissions. Add to that a new director of photography, Marvin Rush, who gave the show a more lush, filmic look, sleek new uniforms for the crew and a brand new opening credits sequence, and from the first episode that year, Star Trek: The Next Generation season three was almost like a soft reboot that the entire series needed. And it paid off, in spades.
Now these episodes are finally being released on a six-disc Blu-ray set from CBS Home Video, and if you consider yourself a Trek fan at all, I highly recommend going on Amazon or hitting Best Buy or wherever on April 30th when this puppy is released. Skip the first two seasons if you must, but this particular set belongs on your shelf.
The Episodes
The original Star Trek had their best year from a creative standpoint during their first season on the air. By the time they reached their third season, having barely made it back on the airwaves, and with their budget slashed in half, the quality of the show went down the drain. In that third and final year, the show’s cancellation was something of a mercy killing. Next Generation had the opposite problem–after two years of struggling, the show came together in year three, and because of that, they boldly went where the previous Trek never did; into a fourth season. And a fifth, and sixth, and so on.
After struggling for so long, TNG found its groove, and most of the season three episodes range from good to great. In fact, unlike most other seasons of the show that have some obvious stinkers, I can only think of one out of 26 episodes in season three that would really qualify as bad in any way (and for the record, that episode is Menage a Troi, a “comedic” episode focusing on Deanna Troi’s mother. Every season had one of these Mrs. Troi episodes, and 90% of them were terrible. This one is no different.) But the rest of the twenty five episodes on this Blu-ray set are the cream of the crop for this series. Episodes like The Offspring, Sins of the Father, The Bonding, Who Watches the Watchers, Tin Man, Hollow Pursuits, Sarek, and most especially Yesterday’s Enterprise and The Best of Both Worlds, are among the very best episodes of the show’s entire seven season run.
Episodes Rating: A-
Data and his daughter Lal, from the episode “The Offspring.”
The Restoration
The team at CBS Digital has once again done an astonishing job on the HD restoration of the series, surpassing their work on season one. As someone who has seen these episodes dozens of times over the past twenty plus years, it is still amazing to see them in such jaw dropping clarity. In many ways, I feel like I’m watching them for the first time. One could never really see all the details on the sets, or the costumes, or the model work before in such great detail, and it is a true testament to everyone involved just how well everything holds up to the unforgiving clarity of high definition. The folks at CBS Digital have set the standard for how one restores classic television shows from before the high-def era for modern audiences, specifically those shot on 35mm film, but edited on video tape. If you’re only used to watching the show the old way, or in re-runs on Sci-Fi Channel or BBC America, then you’ve never seen the show. Because of this restoration the colors and details pop like never before, and the show looks like it was shot yesterday, not twenty three years ago.
Restoration Rating: A+
The Extras
Once again, the team at CBS, spearheaded by Robert Meyer Burnett and Roger Lay Jr, have created the definitive look back at this seminal series with various behind-the-scenes documentaries. There are two all-new hour length documentaries; the first is Inside The Writer’s Room; hosted and moderated by Family Guy creator Seth McFarlane, himself a massive Next Gen geek. This feature reunites four of the writers from the glory days of the show, Ronald D. Moore, Brannon Braga, Rene Echevarria and Naren Shankar. This feature is pretty loosey-goosey in terms of how it is structured, but it’s a blast to watch these four just get together in a room and shoot the shit about the glory days of the Trek franchise. Everyone is pretty candid about not only the good times, but also the bad times, and some of the crappier episodes they produced (they had to churn out 26 of these in a nine month period every year…they’re not all gonna be classics people.) All four of these guys have gone on to long careers in the television business, but it is obvious how much they all still love Trek and look back fondly on that part of their lives.
The other main documentary Resistance is Futile: Assimilating the Next Generation, is split into three parts- Biological Distinctiveness, Technological Distinctiveness, and The Collective. This covers the show’s transition is season three from a troubled show looking to find its voice, into a pop culture phenomenon by the end of that year. Co-executive producer Ira Steven Behr is mainly featured in this documentary above most of the other writers, and has great stories to tell, mostly about butting heads with the other series main producers Rick Berman and Michael Piller (an ailing Gene Roddenberry was still in the mix at this point as well, although most of his crazier suggestions were mostly ignored by just about everyone, kind of like everyone’s crazy ol’ grandpa.) Ira Behr was only on staff for that third seasons, and is pretty candid about the show being hell to work on at the time. In his words, no one back then knew they were in the middle of the show’s creative renaissance, they were all just trying to make it from week to week and not go totally crazy. And there were many times were they came this close to a staff mutiny, especially when dealing with the less than warm and cuddly Michael Piller.
There are other great features here too, including four audio commentaries for some of the most beloved episodes of the season The Bonding, Yesterday’s Enterprise, The Offspring and Sins of the Father. Three of these feature Ronald D. Moore, who has some particularly funny stories to tell about his very first gig in Hollywood, long before he was the much lauded creator of the new Battlestar Galactica. Once upon a time, he was the guy who happily came in to work on holidays and brought everyone donuts, mostly afraid that someone on staff would realize he was only hired there on a week-to-week basis, and some higher-up would figure it out and fire him.
A fifteen minutes tribute to the late Michael Piller is included here as well. Piller of course steered the course of the show that third season, and stayed a part of the Trek family throughout the rest of Next Gen, co-created Deep Space Nine and Voyager, and stayed with the television franchise all the way until the second season of Voyager. He also wrote Star Trek: Insurrection. Sadly, he died of cancer in 2005. Interviews with the former writing staff and his own wife and son are showcased here, a fitting tribute for a man for whom the Trek franchise owes its continued existence to. While it is clear that his writing staff often butt heads with him, it is clear that just like a stern dad that pissed them all off on occasion, they all still loved the hell outta the guy, and miss him dearly.
Rounding out the extras are an HD Gag Reel, and several scenes with the late actor David Rappaport (Time Bandits) from the episode The Most Toys. He originally played the villain in that episode, Kivas Fajo, but only a few scenes of his were shot due to a suicide attempt he made during the time he was making the episode. (He was replaced by actor Saul Rubinek.) Not long after he was replaced, he succeeded in killing himself, but during the restoration of the episodes for HD, his footage he did film was discovered, and is included here–a rare glimpse into what might have been. An all the special features from the old DVD sets are included here as well, in standard definition of course. No stone was left uncovered.
Extras Rating: A
But WAIT! That’s Not All!
Also on April 30th, CBS Home Video is also releasing a special stand alone release of The Best of Both Worlds two part episode, featuring the famous Borg cliffhanger from season three, and the second part from the as-yet released season four, edited together as one epic movie. This single disc release has its own series of extras, unique to this release, including a gag reel, an audio commentary (not on the season three set, I might add) and a behind-the-scenes documentary about the making of this now classic two-parter. Of course, some fans might feel it’s a cash grab, and truth be told, it kind of is. But what self respecting Trek nerd doesn’t want The Best of Both Worlds: The Movie on their shelf? You know you’ll watch it more often than most of the Next Generation feature films.
Overall Rating For Both Releases: A
CBS Digital has gone above and beyond the call of duty for these Blu-ray restorations, and the discs show just how much TLC was put into these releases. The work from everyone involved here has been nothing short of amazing. I simply can’t wait for seasons 4-7, and The Prophets willing, Deep Space Nine in the not-too-distant future. Both Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 3 and The Best of Both Worlds are available everywhere April 30th, 2013, and are highly recommended.