Star Trek: The Next Generation was the series that made the franchise we know today. While it wouldn’t exist without the previous generation, it set the template for the Star Trek saga that followed. It created a TV genre boom, where shows had to either copy or react to it, including later Star Trek series. Decades on, it’s no coincidence mistake that we’re still watching the animated tribute to the era, Lower Decks, and the sequel Star Trek: Picard.
Many Star Trek series take a while to find their feet, and it took a couple of years for TNG to hit its stride. The result was an incredible success in ratings, syndication, and critical acclaim before it headed to the movies for a not-too-shabby four features. It was a time before story arcs, where long syndicated seasons necessitated a variety of character-driven episodes. All the main cast earned their time in the spotlight, but the show’s real strength was its ensemble.
Tough as it is to pick 10 stories from the influential show, these episodes demonstrate what TNG could do. Whether you’re planning to boxset the series for the first time or preparing to catch Star Trek: Picard’s later adventures, these are the stories you need to watch.
Elementary Dear Data (season 2)
Yes, we’re kicking off with a holodeck gone wrong episode. They quickly became overused, but you might say, Watson, that this is one of the originals. If you suspend your disbelief that two senior crew members can get into this mess, it’s a treat. It’s newly appointed Chief Engineer Geordi who makes the fundamental mistake of asking the ship’s 3D simulation tech to provide a foe capable of beating Data rather than Sherlock Holmes, inadvertently creating a sentient version of charming fictional villain James Moriarty.
A fable on the responsibility that comes with advanced technology, this episode blurs the lines between good and evil, themes of self-determination, and nature versus nurture that would become essential parts of the series.
The Measure of a Man (season 2)
TNG’s rocky start saw it recycling concepts from The Original Series, but its promise became apparent in its second year. Penned by sci-fi writer Melinda Snodgrass, The Measure of a Man is where the show found its feet. It built on the tech morality of episodes like Elementary Dear Data and confronted the blunt prejudice that season stand-in Dr. Pulaski continually shot at the crew’s android.
It’s a visiting Doctor who creates the real problem. Cyberneticist Bruce Maddox arrives on the Enterprise seeking to dismantle and replicate Lt. Commander Data as Starfleet property. Picard takes the matter to court to defend his third in command’s self-determination. Strands of The Original Series were there, but the way the story unraveled was freshly TNG. Issues of slavery merged with the ethics of artificial intelligence in a discussion ahead of its time. It’s no surprise that this episode influenced Star Trek: Picard’s first season.
Yesterday’s Enterprise (season 3)
With growing confidence, TNG confronted its fraught beginnings and turned them into a strength during these dark and influential 45 minutes. When the Enterprise-C, lost 22 years before, appears from a space-time distortion, the crew of its successor has no idea they’ve been shunted into a dystopian parallel timeline.
There’s action, danger, and a new Enterprise to pore over, but being Star Trek, the episode rests on relationships. Picard and Riker are antagonistic, defined by a long-running war with the Klingons that the Federation can’t win. Meanwhile, the emotional heft is carried through the burgeoning relationship between two lieutenants — Castillo, forced into command as he faces almost certain death in the past, and Tasha Yar, who shouldn’t exist aboard the Enterprise-D.
Like Season 2’s Q Who? it’s a rare glimpse at the dangers of space travel, where there are brutal deaths and few easy answers. A nod to the past that would have significant implications in the seasons and series that followed.
The Best of Both Worlds (seasons 3 and 4)
It’s hard not to think of The Best of Both Worlds as TNG’s peak. It’s Aliens to Q Who?’s genuinely eerie Alien, the episode that introduced the Borg a season before.
As sequels go, it’s practically pitch-perfect. The first half, anyway — the second part, like all follow-up Borg stories, struggled to match the blistering 45 minutes that ended in one of the greatest cliffhangers of all time: Riker ordering the Enterprise to fire on its captain. It’s Star Trek with the safety protocols disabled, where no crew member is safe, and thoughts and prayers were with Patrick Stewart’s contract during a long summer break. Michael Pillar’s script isn’t just exemplary Star Trek, but an astonishing moment in TV history.
The Drumhead (season 4)
Another one of Star Trek’s great court dramas — brilliantly cast, superbly written, and the third episode directed by a certain Jonathan Frakes. The Next Generation had tackled conspiracy at the heart of Starfleet before, but this time it’s a witch hunt that turns the light on obsession and relevancy.
The stand-offs between Patrick Stewart and screen legend Jean Simmons, guest-starring as formidable Admiral Norah Satie, are electric. The episode’s name refers to the summary justice of battlefield court-martials. It’s one of Trek’s inspired moments linking the utopia of the 24th century to the past.
Darmok (season 5)
A thoughtful update on the legendary Kirk versus Gorn scrap of the classic Original Series episode Arena. Encountering a new species that the universal translator can’t understand, Picard is unwillingly transported to a dangerous planet with his alien counterpart, Dathon. It’s the only way the alien captain believes the Federation can learn their uninterpretable language, whatever the cost.
This episode’s a lyrical slice of first-contact science-fiction that overcomes any shortfalls thanks to two pivotal performances from Stewart and franchise veteran Paul Winfield.
The Inner Light (season 5)
Rightly held up for another phenomenal performance from Stewart, at the center of this episode shines an emotive science fiction concept. When an alien probe targets Picard, minutes pass for the crew of the Enterprise while their captain lives a complete and fulfilling life as a scientist on a planet doomed by a supernova.
Few things sum up the TNG ethos like the alien threat revealed as a peaceful message of hope. This Hugo-winning entry is regarded as one of the greatest in the Star Trek canon and a favorite of the TNG crew.
Cause and Effect (season 5)
Time travel has been a regular part of Star Trek since 1966, which each series finding derivative and innovative ways to propel its crew back and forth. Cause and Effect is one of the most memorable, especially for its famous last-minute cameo. While Yesterday’s Enterprise emphasized the human impact of temporal paradox, this irresistible time loop drama highlights special effects and our favorite crew’s deductive powers.
Cause and Effect is as tightly wound and action-packed as The Next Generation got, as long as you can bear to see the Enterprise repeatedly destroyed.
Chain of Command (season 6)
TNG warmed up the reptilian Cardassians for a central role in the successor series Deep Space Nine, but they were already taking shape.
Again, there are two strong performances at the heart of this two-parter. David Warner stepped in at the last minute to play the vicious Gul Madred, who captures and tortures Picard to learn Starfleet’s plans. This second episode doesn’t skimp on the extreme methods the Cardassian uses to break his prisoner’s will, with Madred a calm force under which Picard, the show’s usual source of stability, crumbles.
Star Trek’s version of 1984 puts perceptions of reality under the spotlight. While Picard is stripped down to base human spirit, his temporary replacement aboard the Enterprise showcases his leadership skills in his absence. Probably Stewart’s finest performance in a role that already had him tagged as an all-time great captain.
Lower Decks (season 7)
The Next Generation was heading for the big screen, but there was time to twist the format — an extraordinary risk for a syndicated show in the early 1990s.
Superbly written by script editor René Echevarria, Lower Decks gave us a chance to see events from a new angle — from the lower rungs that only glimpse parts of the plans put in place by the top team. At the same time, the clever narrative draws parallels between the command team and aspiring ensigns, whether bluffing at the poker table or knocking back synthehol in Ten Forward. There’s comedy in this deceptively simple piece and an unexpectedly emotional wallop at the end.