STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION SEASON THREE

By: SCOTT COLLURA
Review Date: Wednesday, July 31, 2002

The third season of STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION was important for two significant reasons. One, the crew of the starship Enterprise finally got fashionable collars on their formerly jumpsuit-styled uniforms. Man, what a difference a starched collar can make! But secondly, the writing team of the show was almost completely revampedagainbut this time it was for the better, with newcomer Michael Piller coming aboard early in the season. Piller would prove to be a key creative force in the TREK universe, heading up the writing staff of TNG beginning with season three and eventually teaming up with producer Rick Berman to co-create DEEP SPACE NINE and VOYAGER and even write the feature film STAR TREK: INSURRECTION.

But it was his contribution to season three of TNG that is perhaps most noteworthy. The show had an uneven track record at best during its first two years, but once Piller came onboard he was able to give the program the focus, maturity and depth of character that had so long eluded it. That, along with an evermore sophisticated visual style, a cast of actors who had truly grown into their roles, and a willingness among Piller, Berman and their writers to explore key aspects of the TREK mythology that had previously been too long ignored by the NEXT GENERATION, all added up to a great season that would rarely be topped by this or any other TREK show that followed.

As with the first season box set (but not the second, which ran a bit short that year), this collection gives us all 26 episodes of season three on seven discs, broken into four episodes per disc. The seventh disc features the last two episodes of the season (including the all-time classic "The Best of Both Worlds") as well as several new featurettes devoted to the third season and the show in general.

The season begins with "Evolution," where we join the crew of the Enterprise as they are preparing to observe a rare stellar phenomenon that only occurs every couple of centuries. Along for the ride is an eminent scientist who gets a bit worked up when young Wesley Crusher's experiment with nanitesmicroscopic robotsgoes awry and the tiny creatures threaten not only the mission but also the ship. Meanwhile, Gates McFadden returns from the exile of the previous year as Dr. Crusher, replacing the never-to-be-seen-again Dr. Pulaski. Next we have "The Ensigns of Command," a somewhat dull outing that introduces the hostile and mysterious Sheliak race who are threatening a long forgotten human colony that only Data can save. The episode suffers acutely from the fact that all of guest star Grainger Hines' dialogue had to be re-dubbed by a different actor in postproduction, though the stirring of romance between Data and one of the colonists is interesting. In "The Survivors," Captain Picard and crew discover a planet devastated by nuclear war where only two elderly people have inexplicably survived. It's a solid episode burdened chiefly by Counselor Troi's awful emoting and that old Trek reliance on an omnipotent entity to tie everything together by the finale. "Who Watches the Watchers" is a standout episode that ponders what harm the Federation's meddling can do to less developed races. After the inhabitants of Mintaka III accidentally learn of a nearby Federation research mission, the locals come to believe that Picard is their god!

Disc two

starts with "The Bonding," a significant episode in that it was the first script written by Ronald D. Moore, who would become a key Trek staple and genre TV writer. The segment explores the ramifications of a different kind of Trek staple: the near-weekly deaths of red shirts and other non-essential Enterprise personnel that had been occurring since Kirk's earliest voyages. Here, a dead crewman leaves behind an orphaned son who bonds with the unlikely Worf. "Booby Trap" picks up a long string of painfully odd moments for Geordi La Forge as he finds himself unlucky at love. But there's always the holodeck, of course, as Geordi learns when he calls up a hologram of Enterprise designer Dr. Leah Brahms while searching for a solution to the title snare that the ship finds itself in. A cool episode, and Geordi finally gets some action (albeit the holographic kind). The season continues to get stronger with "The Enemy," wherein Geordi is stranded on the inhospitable world Galorndon Core (excellent name, huh?). There he must team up with an equally inhospitable Romulan officer in order to survive, while back on the ship Worf is faced with a moral test that he, frankly, doesn't pass. "The Price" is a more lightweight outing, as the Ferengi return to the series to barter for the rights to a valuable wormhole. Meanwhile, Troi becomes romantically entangled with a suave delegate, but the kicker of the episode is the fate of the two Ferengi (who would show up years later in an episode of Voyager).

"The Vengeance Factor" starts off disc three, and it's a less than interesting outing involving two warring factionsone group of whom look like a bunch of renegades from an '80s hair bandthat Picard must mediate between. "The Defector" is another Romulan episode, and an excellent one at that, wherein a defector from that enemy race (played by recurring Trek actor James Sloyan) comes to Picard to prevent a war with the Federation. It's a real highlight of the season, with a poignant ending that works to great effect and reminds us how rarely the Romulans have been used properly. "The Hunted" is a real clunker though, with its Vietnam vet themed tale of a former soldier who has been discarded by his society. A low point of illogic in the series' often high-end technology is found here: somehow this genetically altered soldier is able to resist a transporter beam through shear force of will! "The High Ground" isn't much better story-wise. Dr. Crusher is kidnapped by a group of terrorists, and while some philosophical ground is covered as a result, these particular terrorists seem even more docile and toothless than ever in this post 9/11 world.

"Deja Q" is one of the best of the Q episodes. The omnipotent bane of Picard returns to the Enterprise in the form of a mere mortal, with no powers and completely at the Captain's mercy. Much humor results, as well as a satisfying exploration of John de Lancie's beloved character. "A Matter of Perspective" is another stinker though, a RASHOMON rip-off that utilizes the holodeck to recreate a disastrous explosion that Commander Riker is accused of causing. Different versions of the same incident are told throughout the episode, but none of them are satisfying. "Yesterday's Enterprise" is a fan favorite, and rightfully so, with its foray into time travel and alternate dimensions. A different starship Enterprise from 20 years in the past appears in the present, altering the timeline with the result being a world where the Federation is on its last legs in a war against the Klingon Empireand Tasha Yar, the ill-fated regular cast member from season one, is still alive. The return of Denise Crosby as Tasha affords the character some much needed closure after her impromptu execution of two years earlier, while the episode itself offers some of the most thrilling action of the series to date. The fourth disc is rounded out with another memorable episode, "The Offspring," where Data builds a "daughter" for himself in the person of female android Lal (an excellent Hallie Todd). This happens to be the first episode directed by Jonathan Frakes, who of course would go on to helm many more segments as well as two TNG feature films.

Disc five begins with another family themed episode, "Sins of the Father." Worf begins to explore the truth behind his father's death when his long lost brother appears on the Enterprise. This episode is the beginning of a veritable Klingon saga headed up by writer Ron Moore that would continue to have ramifications for Worf and the Klingon Empire well into the final season of Deep Space Nine. We also get to see the Klingon homeworld for the first time here. "Allegiance" is a fun if insubstantial episode that sees Picard kidnapped for an alien experiment and replaced by a duplicate who sends the crew into a tizzy when he takes to romancing Dr. Crusher and singing drinking songs in Ten Forward. "Captain's Holiday" is another romp, this time with Picard taking a vacation on the interstellar Playboy Mansion known as Risa. There he finds romance, with recurring character Vash (Jennifer Hetrick in her first appearance), and adventure when faced with a treasure hunting Ferengi (Max Grodenchik, who would go on to play Rom on DS9). "Tin Man" is a more grave, but equally satisfying episode about a space-faring creature (think Moya from FARSCAPEbefore there was a FARSCAPE) that becomes a point of contention between the Federation and the Romulans. Harry Groener (later The Mayor in BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER) appears as Tam Elbrun, a highly sensitive Bajoran empath who is a former patient of Troi's and the only one capable of communicating with the title creature of this almost operatic episode.

Disc six [IMG3L]introduces another recurring character in "Hollow Pursuits." Lieutenant Barclay (Dwight Schultz) was an interesting notion when first seen here: an incompetent Starfleet officer (we always knew there must be such a thing) who is addicted to the fantasy world of the holodeck (knew that would happen too). Schultz is perfect in the role, and the segment is a kicka highlight would have to be Picard's referring, by mistake, to the put-upon crewmember by his mean spirited nickname, "Lieutenant Broccoli." Alas, the character would become too homogenizedlike the rest of Starfleetin subsequent appearances. "The Most Toys" guest stars Saul Rubinek (FRASIER, UNFORGIVEN) as an unsavory merchant who kidnaps Data and forces the android to become part of his collection of unique collectibles. "Sarek" was something of an event for fans when it was first broadcast in 1990, and it remains one of the best, if most underappreciated, episodes of THE NEXT GENERATION ever produced. Spock's father, and occasional CLASSIC TREK guest Sarek (Mark Lenard), travels on the Enterprise for his final mission, a peace initiative with the mysterious race known as the Legarans. Sarek, however, is elderly now and stricken with the Vulcan form of senility known as Bendii Syndromea disease that not only allows his long-repressed emotions to seep to the surface, but also telepathically causes those around him to erupt with emotional outbursts. The result is an acting tour de force for Lenard and Patrick Stewart, who must mindmeld with Sarek in order to save the mission. Additionally, the episode is mined with hints as to what happened to Spock in the years since the original STAR TREKa mystery that would be solved in season five when Leonard Nimoy would appear on TNG himself. The final episode on the disc is the forgettable comedy "Ménage à Troi." Troi's mother Lwaxana (Majel Barrett) returns, again, and is promptly kidnapped by the Ferengi. The episode is worthwhile only to see the good Counselor and her mother literally beamed out of their clothing.

Disc seven features the last two episodes of the season, plus the four featurettes. "Transfigurations" is an adequate yarn involving an amnesiac alien with amazing healing powers who Dr. Crusher takes under her wing, but the coup de grace of the season is Michael Piller's cliffhanger finale "The Best of Both Worlds" (a fact Paramount seems intent on pointing out by giving this episode, and this episode only, a unique, Borg-themed menu screen). Considered by many to be the best overall episode of THE NEXT GENERATION, "Best of Both Worlds" features the epic return of the Borg as they stage an invasion of the Federation with Earth, and Picard, as their chief targets. The first of the TREK season cliffhangers that have now become all but expected, the episode ends on a near nihilistic note with the Federation in jeopardy, Picard transformed into a Borg, and Riker ready to destroy his former Captain in a last ditch effort to save day. Interestingly, the segment's emotional core is Riker's story, as the Executive Officer of the Enterprise realizes that his career is in neutral the longer he stays on his beloved starship and avoids taking his own command. Aggravating this is the presence of Elizabeth Dennehy as Lt. Commander Shelby, a smart and ambitious upstart who wants Riker's job. It all comes together perfectly and remains one of the most satisfying of TREKs ever, TNG or otherwise, and a worthy finale to an overall strong season. And damn if that wasn't a long summer back in 1990 waiting for the conclusion to this story to air in the fall.

The transfers look better here than they did on the seasons one and two box sets (owing no doubt to the more sophisticated look of the series as it matured), and audio is offered in Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 Dolby Surround. The four featurettes, "Mission Overview," "Selected Crew Analysis," "Production" and "Memorable Missions" are all worthwhile, but most interesting is the chance to hear Piller's take on the many episodes of the season that ultimately shaped the feel and overall tenor of THE NEXT GENERATION after it had floundered in its first two years. The return of Dr. Crusher is also discussed, however briefly, as is the resurrection of Tasha Yar that took place in "Yesterday's Enterprise," with Denise Crosby piping in on the subject. 

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