Star Trek: The Next Generation showrunner didn't think there was one bad episode in season four

When it debuted in 1987, Star Trek: The Next Generation got off to a rough start, with several episodes in the first season that are too cringeworthy to rewatch. That happens in the first season of many television series. The writers and producers are finding their feet, and The Next Generation had an especially tumultous time during the first season. Things began to improve over the course of the seasons, and when showrunner Michael Piller took over in season three, the episodes did pick up in quality.

As recorded in The Fifty-Year Mission The Next 25 Years From The Next Generation To J.J. Abrams by Mark A. Altman and Edward Gross, Piller said he didn't think there was "one clinker in the whole group" of episodes in season four. While that season had consistently more high quality episodes, critics and fans alike would disagree with the idea that there were no bad ones. And while others may disagree, there are three episodes in particlar that stand out as skippable.

Devil's Due, Galaxy's Child, and Night Terrors have all been ranked poorly by reviewers and fans with even series star Jonathan Frakes calling Night Terrors "a yawner" while a reviewer from TechRepublic named it as one of the five worst episodes of The Next Generation ever.

Galaxy's Child brings to life Geordi La Forge's holographic fantasy, Dr. Leah Brahms, which turns into an embarrassing and complicated mess when she discovers his holodeck program that's all about her. And Devil's Due is basically Captain Picard outsmarting an alien who claims a planet as her own because of a thousand year old deal. It's a struggle to get through.

Backing up to Night Terrors, the crew is caught in a rift which prevents them from achieving REM sleep. Deanna Troi has weird dreams which actually end up being a message. She has to go back to sleep to communicate with a ship of psychic aliens who are also trapped in the rift. Overall, this episode is the epitome of clunky.

There's no denying Star Trek: The Next Generation produced some stellar episodes in season four, but these three couldn't possibly be included in that list.