Star Trek: The Next Generationisn’t just one of the greatest creations of theStar Trekfranchise; it’s one of the most groundbreaking, original, and timeless television shows ever made. While the series was not without its struggles early on, over time audiences began to feel won over by the beloved characters of CaptainJean Luc-Picard (Patrick Stewart), Commander William T. Riker (Jonathan Frankes), Lieutenant Worf (Michael Dorn), Commander Data (Brent Spiner), Doctor Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden), Commander Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis), Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), and many others. While the originalStar Trekseries was canceled after its third season,The Next Generationgot to live on to its fullest potential before delivering a riveting series finale with “All Good Things.”
Unfortunately, it’s been a downward spiral for these incredible characters ever since. The films starringThe Next Generationcast never reached the same critical and financial success as those starring the crew from the original series. In particular, the final two entriesStar Trek: InsurrectionandStar Trek: Nemesiswere cited as highly disappointing, incompetent films that didn’t understand the mythos of the franchise at all. WhileStar Trek: Picardhad the potential to at least give Stewart something new to do with one of his most iconic roles, the first two seasons were so disappointing that it caused some fans to give up hope entirely. While this legacy of disappointment is unfortunate, it should be noted that 1994’sStar Trek: Generationsis where everything went wrong.
Focusing Too Much on Captain Kirk
WhileThe Next Generationfeatured many guest appearances from veterans of the original series like Leonard Nimoy and DeForest Kelley, William Shatner nevermade an appearance. This prompted a lot of anticipation forGenerations, as fans were excited to see the meeting of the two iconic captains together in a cinematic event. Unfortunately, Kirk’s story had already been concluded in a perfect way with 1991’sStar Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. Having Kirk receive an honor with his crew after creating peace between the Federation and the Klingon Empire was the perfect way for Shatner to leave the role behind.
Generationsessentially ruins this ending by giving Kirk an unnecessary continuation that felt unearned. It felt odd to see him on so many adventures without the other characters, and he essentially becomes the second lead of the film after he agrees to take down the main villain Tolian Soran (Malcolm McDowell) with Picard. The triumphant meeting of the two captains lasts only a few moments within the Nexus, and Shatner turns in one of his worst performances as Kirk. There’s not enough time given to show Picard and Kirk bonding over their shared experiences.
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To make things worse, Kirk and Picard have to take down Soran in a cheesily constructed action sequence where they don’t get to show their intelligence. Having Kirk meet his death on a random planet after a generic action sequence only tainted the legacy of one of the greatest characters in science fiction history.
Neglecting rhe Supporting Characters
Outside of being disrespectful in its own right, the over-emphasis on Kirk inGenerationsonly means less screen time for the rest ofThe Next Generationcast. One of the reasons thatThe Next Generationis the greatestStar Trektelevision show is that it equally balances all the characters, giving them each episodes that spotlight their individual story arcs and development. None of that nuance is present inGenerations, as the focus is squarely on Picard. While Stewart gives a solid performance and Picard’s concerns over the legacy of his family line are interesting, he’s treated like an action hero and not the well-balanced, reasonable man he was in the series.
The brief roles given to the rest of the cast feels like they are only playing caricatures of the original characters. Although Data’s complexity and contemplation of his own humanity was one of the most interesting storylines in the series, he is treated as nothing more than a comedic device inGenerationsafter being given a human emotion chip. Riker is reduced to nothing more than Picard’s inferior, and constantly makes false assumptions instead of reasonably thinking out the scenarios ahead of time. Even though Worf receives a promotion, he has to stay on the ship for a majority of the story instead of joining any of the major conflicts. Troi doesn’t show any foresight in any situation and fails to give Picard proper therapy after he reveals the tragedies within his family, and Dr. Crusher is barely given any screen time other than thankless scenes where she’s reacting to imminent danger.
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Leading to Future Disappointments
Unfortunately,Generationslaid the groundwork for the cinematic franchise to continue in its erroneous ways. Despite mixed reviews from critics and fans,Generationswasa box office success, and seemingly embedded its depiction of the characters as the definitive interpretation moving forward. WhileStar Trek: First Contactwas able to redeem some of its errors by bringing back the Borg as a primary antagonist, the later films only reverted to the same issues that plaguedGenerations. It was simply a version of the characters that was meant to appeal to mainstream viewers and not fans of the show.
The boosted comedic role of Data inGenerationsmeant that he was only given additional mischaracterized narrative arcs inInsurrectionandNemesis. It was clear thatGenerationsintended for Picard and Datas’ relationship to resemble that of Kirk and Spocks’ in the original series and its films, even though inThe Next Generation, Data’s primary friendship was with Geordi. Data continues to malfunction inInsurrectionand receives a disappointing death inNemesisthat didn’t boast any of the emotional weight that Spock’s death inStar Trek II: The Wrath of Khanhad.
The template thatGenerationsestablished continues to haunt the franchise.An analysis ofPicardexplained that the new series had the same lack of actual science, dull characterization, focus on action sequences, and lack of clever dialogue that had been such an issue inGenerations. Hopefully, a day will come when futureStar Trekstorytellers look towardsThe Next Generationfor inspiration and not the disappointing 1994 film that butchered its return.
