Okay, full review of Season 1 of TNG:
Season 1 was certainly an interesting start for Next Generation. And by "interesting" I mean mostly "eh," but also with a good number of really solid episodes to make it worth it.
Encounter at Farpoint was a fairly strong start to the series. Perhaps not an instant classic, but enough to hook the audience on what should be a promising new Star Trek series. But then we got a hefty dose of disappointingly lame episodes, most of which just recycled plotlines from the Original Series, with only a few decent episodes to sate us. Not to mention the exceedingly lame Klingon replacements in the Ferengis. I guess it was around Datalore the writers started to pull their act together, giving us episodes that were all at least decent and some that were really damn good. And then of course there was the superb Conspiracy, which…well, if you weren't hooked on the show by then, that episode clinched it.
So to summarize, good start, disappointing first half, better second half, and a superb climax towards the end. Yeah, I think I'd greenlight this for a second season. And sure enough, they did.
Favorite Episodes
Encounter at Farpoint
Datalore
Coming of Age
Heart of Glory
Skin of Evil
Conspiracy
Characters: Thus far, my favorites are Picard, Data, Worf, and Q. As for the others, well…
Dr. Crusher: Not really a bad character, but…there's just not much to her. Yeah, she's got the mother angle going on and they kept hinting at these feelings of inadequacy between her and Picard, but they just didn't really do much with her. And unfortunately it looks like I'm going have to wait another season to see if she gets better development. Here's hoping Pulaski is tolerable.
Wesley: Wow did I hate this little snot at the beginning of the series, just as so many did Trekkies before me. But, to be honest, he grew on me. This is, of course, due in no small part to the fact that the writers stopped riding his dick, put his character in perspective, made him relatively ineffectual (as a kid should be) and…well, put him in fewer episodes. But still, he's only gone up from hateable to tolerable and I'm not sure he'll ever get further than that. I'm just not sure that a kid works in Star Trek.
Deanna Troi: She's a fascinating character and seems like she would have a lot of room for development with her being an empath and all. But again, she just wasn't as fleshed out as she could have been. Yes, she had Haven, but all that really told us was that she had an annoying mom. And she did have a pretty good moment in Skin of Evil, but still, mainly she's just kind, rational, and….well, empathetic.
Tasha: Ah, poor Tasha. Just a blip on the radar of Star Trek main characters. I'll admit, she was actually a pretty decent character. She had the hinting of a harsh backstory going on, but sadly it never expanded beyond that. And when it comes right down to it, yeah, she was kind of bland and superfluous, which I guess was mostly due to the writers just pushing her into the background, which ultimately resulted in Denise leaving the show. A shame as I thought her character could have been developed well, given the proper attention, but at the same time it's good that the writers will be able to focus on the other characters. But, from what I understand, this isn't the last we'll see of her.
Geordi: So close to being on my favorites list, but…dangit, he just needed a little more development. Yeah, he's got a fun personality and a cool gimmick with the visor thing, and he got some decent development when he took charge of the Enterprise. But I just wish we knew a little more about who he really is as a character.
Riker: Good lord this guy needs some development, FAST! I mean, does this guy have any role outside of being Picard's good-looking right-hand man who gets to sleep with alien babes, because -eww- who wants to see Patrick Stewart get it on? I hope that beard comes with some personality, Riker.
So yeah, while it wasn't as great a start to the series as it could have been, Season 1 still stayed true to the spirit of Star Trek and ultimately salvaged itself at the end. If you're a diehard fan of Star Trek, by all means, watch the whole season. If you're a more casual viewer and you want to get to the good stuff, you can probably get by with the episodes I mentioned and 1 or 2 other that are necessary for the plot.
Well, next up is Season 2 and looks like I've got a lot to look forwad to, including Dr. Pulaski, Whoopi Goldberg, the continuation of the parasite storyline, Riker's beard, and so much more.