Star Trek: The Next Generation-- Greatest Hits

[Substance Abuse]

I’ve been doing a rewatch of TNG, and adding to a note list on my phone. Each entry just gets:

- episode number & title
- 1-line description
- rating from 1-10

I will just copy-paste it here, for any fellow nerds interested.

season 1:


1-1 Encounter at Farpoint
Wishgranting jellyfish is slave-starved
9

1-2 The Naked Now
Sexy suicide virus spreads
8

1-3 Code of Honor
Tasha Yar kidnapped by Wakandans
6

1-4 The Last Outpost
Ferengi negotiation. People act weird
4

1-5 Where No One Has Gone Before
Engine tune-up sends Enterprise 1 billion light years
8

1-6 Lonely Among Us
Electric spirit possesses the crew
6.5

1-7 Justice
Orgy planet says keep off of grass
7

1-8 The Battle
Ferengi give Picard a headache
5

1-9 Hide and Q
Q puts on pig war reeanactments, & knights Ryker
6

1-10 Haven
Troi engaged to nice painter guy
5

1-11 The Big Goodbye
Picard is a holodeck gumshoe
5

1-12 Datalore
Lore’s 1st appearance, crystal entity
7

1-13 Angel One
Women run the world, crew is sick
2

1-14 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1
Enterprise tune-up, binaries, jazz club
5

1-15 Too Short a Season
Admiral Benjamin Button
5.5

1-16 When the Bough Breaks
Children kidnapped by weirdos
4

1-17 Home Soil
Lazer tries to kill Data, Microbrain, Worst actor ever
3

1-18 Coming of Age
Wesley Starfleet test, crew grilled
6

1-19 Heart of Glory
Klingon stowaways test Worf’s loyalty
7

1-20 The Arsenal of Freedom
Boobytrap planet, Geordi separates the saucer
5

1-21 Symbiosis
Blonde people have heroin cargo
4

1-22 Skin of Evil
Black Tar / Ooze / Goop / Blob kills Yar
6.5

1-23 We’ll Always Have Paris
Manheim Time Loop, multi Datas
6.5

1-24 Conspiracy
Parasites take over Starfleet
7

1-25 The Neutral Zone
3 Freezer humans awaken. Romulans
5

I love this. Your one sentence descriptions are hilarious.

 

[Joe_Armstrong]

I always liked 'The most Toys'
Where Data is kidnapped to be in a collection of rare things.
In the end, he did fire on the collector.

The collector is actually Saul Rubinek and later played Artie Nielsen on Warehouse 13.

 

[VulcanNervPinch]

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Game_(Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation)
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sins_of_the_Father_(Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation)
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redemption_(Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation)
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conspiracy_(Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation)

 

[Law Talkin’ Guy]

I’ve been doing a rewatch of TNG, and adding to a note list on my phone. Each entry just gets:

- episode number & title
- 1-line description
- rating from 1-10

I will just copy-paste it here, for any fellow nerds interested.

season 1:


1-1 Encounter at Farpoint
Wishgranting jellyfish is slave-starved
9

1-2 The Naked Now
Sexy suicide virus spreads
8

1-3 Code of Honor
Tasha Yar kidnapped by Wakandans
6

1-4 The Last Outpost
Ferengi negotiation. People act weird
4

1-5 Where No One Has Gone Before
Engine tune-up sends Enterprise 1 billion light years
8

1-6 Lonely Among Us
Electric spirit possesses the crew
6.5

1-7 Justice
Orgy planet says keep off of grass
7

1-8 The Battle
Ferengi give Picard a headache
5

1-9 Hide and Q
Q puts on pig war reeanactments, & knights Ryker
6

1-10 Haven
Troi engaged to nice painter guy
5

1-11 The Big Goodbye
Picard is a holodeck gumshoe
5

1-12 Datalore
Lore’s 1st appearance, crystal entity
7

1-13 Angel One
Women run the world, crew is sick
2

1-14 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1
Enterprise tune-up, binaries, jazz club
5

1-15 Too Short a Season
Admiral Benjamin Button
5.5

1-16 When the Bough Breaks
Children kidnapped by weirdos
4

1-17 Home Soil
Lazer tries to kill Data, Microbrain, Worst actor ever
3

1-18 Coming of Age
Wesley Starfleet test, crew grilled
6

1-19 Heart of Glory
Klingon stowaways test Worf’s loyalty
7

1-20 The Arsenal of Freedom
Boobytrap planet, Geordi separates the saucer
5

1-21 Symbiosis
Blonde people have heroin cargo
4

1-22 Skin of Evil
Black Tar / Ooze / Goop / Blob kills Yar
6.5

1-23 We’ll Always Have Paris
Manheim Time Loop, multi Datas
6.5

1-24 Conspiracy
Parasites take over Starfleet
7

1-25 The Neutral Zone
3 Freezer humans awaken. Romulans
5

I always liked Arsenal of Freedom. I thought it was kind of a fun episode, with that creepy dude from Ghost.

I always laugh at the scene when one of those robots takes a shot at the away team and Data grabs Tasha by the arm and absolutely launches her through the air saying “look out!”.

Edit: at about 10 seconds on this vid

 

[Deleted member 110072]

I always liked 'The most Toys'
Where Data is kidnapped to be in a collection of rare things.
In the end, he did fire on the collector.

The collector is actually Saul RIbinek and later played Artie Nielsen on Warehouse 13.

I'd say that's a rare case of an episode of TNG which felt like it was taken out of latter TOS yet worked excellently.

 

[flashNsmash]

i was thinking about bitcoin mining the other day and thought of the math problem/virus they infected hugh with to kill the borg. kinda similar, devoting ever-increasing amounts of resources & computing power to solve incredibly complex math calculations while tnat effort could be better used elsewhere

 

[Bargey]

List of episodes:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation_episodes#Episodes
Memory Alpha Fan Wiki alternative:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation_episodes#Episodes

With the launch of the second season of Discovery I thought Trekkies might appreciate this thread which celebrates the greatest episodes of what many-- a plurality I would even dare to venture-- regard to be the best (and truest) of all Star Treks: The Next Generation.

My personal favorite has always been "The Inner Light". Hit like a truck. I actually didn't copy over the IMDb list until last because i was interested to see individual critic/staff/fan lists first. Well, I'm not unique. Yeah, it's the best the show ever made. Some personal favs that don't seem to make any lists that I loved were "Genesis" (pure entertainment value), "Home Soil", and pretty much any episode that involves Lore (ex. "Brothers", "Datalore"). I also remember really enjoying "It's Elementary, Dear Data", and that only made a single list below.

It's no surprise that you see the same episodes appear in list after list, and that IMDb has already concentrated these using sheer math about as capably as I can with a human eye.

I've attempted to tier the Top 20 episodes below (technically 22). In your opinion, what about this consensus sucks? What is the great episode that's missing?


Tier I

• The Best of Both Worlds, Parts I & II
• The Inner Light
• The Measure of a Man
• Yesterday's Enterprise

Tier II

• Tapestry
  
• Cause and Effect
  
• Q Who
• Chain of Command, Parts I & II
• Lower Decks
  
• Darmok
• I, Borg
  
• All Good Things...

Tier III

• Parallels
  
• Deja Q
• The Offspring
  
• The Pegasus
  
• Relics
• Sins of the Father
  
• The Drumhead
• Family

Spoiler: Source Lists

Note: Timescape, Ship in a Bottle, The Defector, Unification (Parts I & II), Time's Arrow (Parts I & II), Redemption (Parts I & II), Sarek, Skin of Evil, Ensign Ro, Frame of Mind, Descent, & Conundrum are the most cheered that didn't make the cut.

IMDb Voters: Top 25, ranked



Nerdist: Top 11, ranked



Variety: Top 15, ranked



The Hollywood Reporter: Top 25, ranked



Gizmodo: Top 26, ranked (extracted from Top 100 for all Star Trek shows)



Den of Geek: Top 25, unranked, listed in recommended viewing order (which appears chronological)



Trekranks [a superfan]: Top 30, ranked (cropped from his complete series rankings w/dbl episodes combined)

The Measure of a Man - probably my all time fave - Stewart, Frakes and Spiner all killed it.

 

[Aegon Spengler]

List of episodes:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation_episodes#Episodes
Memory Alpha Fan Wiki alternative:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Star_Trek:_The_Next_Generation_episodes#Episodes

With the launch of the second season of Discovery I thought Trekkies might appreciate this thread which celebrates the greatest episodes of what many-- a plurality I would even dare to venture-- regard to be the best (and truest) of all Star Treks: The Next Generation.

My personal favorite has always been "The Inner Light". Hit like a truck. I actually didn't copy over the IMDb list until last because i was interested to see individual critic/staff/fan lists first. Well, I'm not unique. Yeah, it's the best the show ever made. Some personal favs that don't seem to make any lists that I loved were "Genesis" (pure entertainment value), "Home Soil", and pretty much any episode that involves Lore (ex. "Brothers", "Datalore"). I also remember really enjoying "It's Elementary, Dear Data", and that only made a single list below.

It's no surprise that you see the same episodes appear in list after list, and that IMDb has already concentrated these using sheer math about as capably as I can with a human eye.

I've attempted to tier the Top 20 episodes below (technically 22). In your opinion, what about this consensus sucks? What is the great episode that's missing?


Tier I

• The Best of Both Worlds, Parts I & II
• The Inner Light
• The Measure of a Man
• Yesterday's Enterprise

Tier II

• Tapestry
  
• Cause and Effect
  
• Q Who
• Chain of Command, Parts I & II
• Lower Decks
  
• Darmok
• I, Borg
  
• All Good Things...

Tier III

• Parallels
  
• Deja Q
• The Offspring
  
• The Pegasus
  
• Relics
• Sins of the Father
  
• The Drumhead
• Family

Spoiler: Source Lists

Note: Timescape, Ship in a Bottle, The Defector, Unification (Parts I & II), Time's Arrow (Parts I & II), Redemption (Parts I & II), Sarek, Skin of Evil, Ensign Ro, Frame of Mind, Descent, & Conundrum are the most cheered that didn't make the cut.

IMDb Voters: Top 25, ranked



Nerdist: Top 11, ranked



Variety: Top 15, ranked



The Hollywood Reporter: Top 25, ranked



Gizmodo: Top 26, ranked (extracted from Top 100 for all Star Trek shows)



Den of Geek: Top 25, unranked, listed in recommended viewing order (which appears chronological)



Trekranks [a superfan]: Top 30, ranked (cropped from his complete series rankings w/dbl episodes combined)

TNG is the goat TV show in my opinion, because it has quality episodes and just tons and tons of them. The seasons were very long but it’s still an incredibly well acted and put together show.

The Wire was great but they weren't putting out 20+ quality episodes a year.

It definitely has to be the best episodic TV show of all time, if nothing else.

And I always felt like Q might be Picards great great (Etc) grandson. They have a kind of “distinguished grandpa and his genius grandkid” vibe going on.

 

[Law Talkin’ Guy]

The crappiness of Discovery and Picard just make me more appreciative of how excellent TNG was in its prime.

 

[Law Talkin’ Guy]

I’ve been doing a rewatch of TNG, and adding to a note list on my phone. Each entry just gets:

- episode number & title
- 1-line description
- rating from 1-10

I will just copy-paste it here, for any fellow nerds interested.

season 1:


1-1 Encounter at Farpoint
Wishgranting jellyfish is slave-starved
9

1-2 The Naked Now
Sexy suicide virus spreads
8

1-3 Code of Honor
Tasha Yar kidnapped by Wakandans
6

1-4 The Last Outpost
Ferengi negotiation. People act weird
4

1-5 Where No One Has Gone Before
Engine tune-up sends Enterprise 1 billion light years
8

1-6 Lonely Among Us
Electric spirit possesses the crew
6.5

1-7 Justice
Orgy planet says keep off of grass
7

1-8 The Battle
Ferengi give Picard a headache
5

1-9 Hide and Q
Q puts on pig war reeanactments, & knights Ryker
6

1-10 Haven
Troi engaged to nice painter guy
5

1-11 The Big Goodbye
Picard is a holodeck gumshoe
5

1-12 Datalore
Lore’s 1st appearance, crystal entity
7

1-13 Angel One
Women run the world, crew is sick
2

1-14 1 1 0 0 1 0 0 1
Enterprise tune-up, binaries, jazz club
5

1-15 Too Short a Season
Admiral Benjamin Button
5.5

1-16 When the Bough Breaks
Children kidnapped by weirdos
4

1-17 Home Soil
Lazer tries to kill Data, Microbrain, Worst actor ever
3

1-18 Coming of Age
Wesley Starfleet test, crew grilled
6

1-19 Heart of Glory
Klingon stowaways test Worf’s loyalty
7

1-20 The Arsenal of Freedom
Boobytrap planet, Geordi separates the saucer
5

1-21 Symbiosis
Blonde people have heroin cargo
4

1-22 Skin of Evil
Black Tar / Ooze / Goop / Blob kills Yar
6.5

1-23 We’ll Always Have Paris
Manheim Time Loop, multi Datas
6.5

1-24 Conspiracy
Parasites take over Starfleet
7

1-25 The Neutral Zone
3 Freezer humans awaken. Romulans
5

Who is the worst actor you’re referring to in Home Soil?

 

[Deleted member 110072]

TNG is the goat TV show in my opinion, because it has quality episodes and just tons and tons of them. The seasons were very long but it’s still an incredibly well acted and put together show.

It definitely has to be the best episodic TV show of all time, if nothing else.

And I always felt like Q might be Picards great great (Etc) grandson. They have a kind of “distinguished grandpa and his genius grandkid” vibe going on.

Non comedy yeah I might agree with that, during its best years it was just so consistent(more a question of picking out episodes that weren't good than those which were) were as say the X-files or Quantum Leap had more ups and downs.

It is interesting the way it handled its more serial elements as well, rather than just having 1-2 over arching plots you had about half a dozen(Q, the Borg, Lore, The Romulans, Westletys evolution, etc) that drop into the story every so often and get(often only somewhat) concluded after a handful of episodes total.

I know some people rated season 7 a bit lower but personally to me it felt like a show that never overstayed its welcome to the degree that a lot of the plot elements it introduces actually end up making up significant parts of DS9 and Voyager.

 

[Pacemaker Joe]

Doesn’t Riker try to fuck him too? Or am I thinking of another episode?

There's another episode where Riker falls for a hemaphrodite.

 

[Pacemaker Joe]

One of my favourites that I haven’t seen mentioned yet is Reunion which set the prelude for the Klingon civil war which began with the season 4 finale. The Chancellor dies, we’re introduced to Gowron, Duras murders Worf’s baby-mama, and Worf gets his revenge on that bitch ass traitor.

Plus it led to the cleavage window in Duras's sisters' armor.

 

[OverCoronavirus Pressure]

Measure of a Man

Data says fuck you.

There's another episode where Riker falls for a hemaphrodite.

That whole thing felt contrived. I couldn't believe Riker would fall instantly and desperately in love with that freak.

 

[Iroh]

Still one of the best vids on teh intrawebz.

 

[Aegon Spengler]

Non comedy yeah I might agree with that, during its best years it was just so consistent(more a question of picking out episodes that weren't good than those which were) were as say the X-files or Quantum Leap had more ups and downs.

It is interesting the way it handled its more serial elements as well, rather than just having 1-2 over arching plots you had about half a dozen(Q, the Borg, Lore, The Romulans, Westletys evolution, etc) that drop into the story every so often and get(often only somewhat) concluded after a handful of episodes total.

I know some people rated season 7 a bit lower but personally to me it felt like a show that never overstayed its welcome to the degree that a lot of the plot elements it introduces actually end up making up significant parts of DS9 and Voyager.

Yeah, non-comedy I guess. It's hard to compare Seinfeld and Star Trek. Although if I had to pick...

Spoiler

 

[Cool Hand Luke]

Measure of a Man

Data says fuck you.

That whole thing felt contrived. I couldn't believe Riker would fall instantly and desperately in love with that freak.

Riker would fuck anyone























I think he might be Brasilian.

 

[Pacemaker Joe]

I think he might be Brasilian.

He's Alaskan, so I guess he's brought up to take anything he can get.

 

[OverCoronavirus Pressure]

Riker would fuck anyone























I think he might be Brasilian.

 

[Philo-Publius]

Another one of my favourites, also from season 4, was Mind’s Eye where the Romulans kidnap and brainwash Geordi to make him an assassin to try to kill that Klingon governor and start a war with the Federation. Always loved this scene at the end of the episode when Data figures out what’s going on and they stop Geordi just in the nick of time. So tense.

How were TNG and DS9 so consistently good for their last 4 seasons (respectively)? We didn't know how good we had it.