Star Trek: The Next Generation {Encounter at Farpoint (1987)

The first three episodes of "Star Trek: The Next Generation"

"Encounter at Farpoint" (Written by D.C. Fontana and Gene Roddenberry, First aired September 28, 1987) was the two-hour pilot "movie" that introduced us to the new crew of the new starship "Enterprise-D" as they come together for the first time on "Star Trek: The Next Generation." The initial mission for the Galaxy-class starship is to check out Farpoint Station, which has been created on Deneb IV. Captain Jean-Luc Picard is not only trying to negotiate an agreement for Starfleet to use the station, but to try and learn how the Bandi built something that is clearly beyond their technological capabilities. But before they even get to the station, the "Enterprise" runs into Q, a mysterious and powerful being who puts the crew on trial for the sins of humanity. If Picard cannot convince Q to overturn the verdict, the crew will die (Warp 4).

In the second "part" of the story, the mission to Farpoint will be Picard's opportunity to prove the worth of humanity, but Q gives him only 24 hours to make his case. At Farpoint, Picard meets his new first officer and the rest of his crew, and on the planet's surface is surprised to discover that your wishes come true. Then a strange "ship" appears and starts blasting the Bandi city. You all know how small the Star Trek universe really is, so everything ends up being related and the "Enterprise" passes this initial test, because there are more episodes to come after this one (Warp 4.5).

In terms of the plot lines the first encounter with Q is of much more importance than solving the mystery of Farpoint Station. Little did we know that the trial would become the bookends for the series, but then I am betting that the creators did not know that either as the beginning. There is also a delightful cameo by DeForrest Kelly and the infamous "Imzadi" mental exchange between Riker and Troi that the producers quickly regretted (although eventually it would give us the best STNG book of the same title by Peter David). However, the masterstroke was the creation of Jean-Luc Picard and the casting of Patrick Stewart. Face it, one look at Picard and you know he is not Jim Kirk, but as soon as you hear that voice you just do not care.

An incredibly bad choice as the first episode to follow the two-part pilot, "The Naked Now" parallels "The Naked Time" episode from the original series. The key difference is that we had a much more solid understand of the characters on Star Trek before we watched them be stripped of their facades. The scene where Spock weeps for his parents and Kirk talks of his love for the Enterprise are emotionally significant because they have been set up by our complete understanding of these two characters. In "The Naked Now" the crew of this new Enterprise are still character types more than fully realized characters.

Consequently, this particular episode makes more sense out of context, if you fill in all that you learn about the characters in the years to come. But even from that perspective this a very shallow exploration of Picard and the others and just not worth the effort. "The Naked Now" continues some of the character and relationship exposition from the pilot, providing our first real proof of boy genius Wesley Crusher and the first hint of any feelings between Captain Picard and Doctor Crusher. The toss off scene of Tasha seducing Data does become poignant following her death, but right now it is just a joke (Warp 3).

I remember when I first watched this episode thinking it was not a good sign that the producers were already trying to rip-off the original Trek. When you watch the first season it becomes pretty clear that was exactly what they were trying to do with the vast majority of episodes. However, this particular episode represents the absolutely worst way to do so. The best, of course, would be the Deep Space Nine episode that blends so seemlessly with "The Trouble With Tribbles."

"Encounter at Farpoint" is worth a second look just to see how they laid the foundation for what was to come and even, in the show's second season, kicked it into warp drive. I still remember people actually gathering at my house to watch the first new "Star Trek" episode in two decades. As much as we cherish the original series because it gave us something so different from what we had to endure before in terms of science fiction on television, "Star Trek: The Next Generation" is really the flagship series in the franchise. February 22, 2006

A MUST HAVE!!

I LOVE IT SO MUCH THAT ITS LIKE A BIBLE TO ME!!!! March 16, 2002

A MUST HAVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I LOVE IT SO MUCH THAT ITS LIKE A BIBLE TO ME!!!! March 16, 2002

A Must- Have for Trekkies Worldwide!

This cd is very good. It contains music from the pilot episode of Star Trek- The Next Generation, including the theme song. The music is very clear, without a lot of backround noise. It has provided many hours of enjoyable listening. I would recmmend this cd for all Star Trek fans. Also, check out the collection of Star Wars cds. They are really good too! July 10, 2000

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