Was the first few seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation really that bad?
There’s a belief among many long-time Star Trek fans that the first few seasons of The Next Generation are among the worst in not just the show’s history but the franchise’s history. This has spun out to now be a “theme” of sorts, where fans will often expect the first season or two of a show to be bad. It’s become a built-in excuse now for anytime a show receives negative reviews.
“You have to give it time, The Next Generation got good after season two (and or three)”. I don’t buy the idea that a show needs time to “find its legs”, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise all had strong first seasons, even if some fans don’t want to believe it. Moreover, The Original Series’ best season was its first. Thus cannonballing the argument right there.
No, the first season of Star Trek isn’t expected to be bad, and you certainly don’t have to wait for it to “get good”.
That’s what they say at least, but is there any validity to the argument that the first few seasons of the Next Generation were that bad? After all, this whole idea that you have to give Trek shows a chance if they’re bad in season one is because of The Next Generation. So is the Next Generation really that bad early on?
Well, Screen Rant sure thinks so, as they ranked seasons one and two the lowest out of all of them in their recent article.
There is some proof to back up the calamity that was Star Trek: The Next Generations’ first few seasons
Liking something is subjective. Maybe you think the first season of The Next Generation is the Citizen Kane of Trek. Maybe you think it’s the meaning of life. Who’s to judge? However, there is some behind-the-camera stuff that went on that would help justify the disdain of the first few seasons.
There was the creation of the Ferangi and the failed attempt to make them the new big bads’ of the franchise. There were issues with the show’s treatment and writing of female characters. To the point that Denise Crosby, who played Tasha Yar, was asked to be released from her contract. In retaliation, the showrunners killed off Yar.
Later on, Maurice Hurley, a producer for The Next Generation, fired Gates McFadden, who played Beverly Crusher. Hurley didn’t like that McFadden called out things she perceived as sexist, and in turn, Hurley got rid of her. He was going to do the same to the whole cast for season two but that plan didn’t come to fruition.
All of this turmoil led to Patrick Stewart leaning toward opting out of his contract at the end of season three, resulting in the crew developing the Best of Both Worlds storyline, where Picard gets abducted by the Borg and William Riker closes season three by seemingly killing the now Borg-ified Picard.
The ending gave them an out should Stewart leave, but thankfully for those involved, Stewart returned and had a great run of seasons with the show. None of this even factors in the disruptions that were going on with Gene Roddenberry constantly butting heads with everyone.
Clearly, there was turmoil going on, and that did affect the show’s production. It’s not a surprise that when names that were causing issues, like Roddenberry, and Hurley left, and guys like Rick Berman got more power into season three that the show turned around.
So yeah, it’s fair to say that The Next Generation’s first few seasons were “bad” but it had nothing to do with the show needing time to find its footing. Instead, it was about getting the wrong people out of key positions. Once the right people were in place, the show started to hit on all cylinders.