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he journey couldn't continue forever. Nonetheless, when it came time to say goodbye to Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1994, it seemed as if the end had come too soon. The actors and writers were still in their prime, and the series was at the top of its game, consistently turning out episodic sci-fi hours that felt fresh and captured the imagination.
Granted, not all of the season's forays were home runs. But weaker episodes were bolstered by the rich tapestry already woven for the crew of the Enterprise over the course of the six previous years.
From a dramatic standpoint, this was one of Next Generation's best seasons ever; it even garnered the first, and only, Best Drama Emmy nomination for a Trek series. The year started out with the action-packed conclusion to the renegade Borg saga "Descent Part II," and closed with the series' gripping end game, "All Good Things ...", which brought the series full circle with the return of Q (John DeLancie) and its tale of past, present and future coming together. In between, we had such episodes as the wonderfully intricate two-parter "Gambit," the emotion-laden and personal "Attached" and "Lower Decks," a different take on life on the Enterprise. As a whole, the season provided numerous opportunities to grow and nurture the characters, and it even addressed social issues (to wit: "Force of Nature," a middling episode that tackled environmental issues and made it so that we'd rarely ever again hear the words "warp nine—engage").
As one watches the season progress, it becomes clear that writers benefited from knowing at the outset that this seventh season would mark the show's final TV voyage (this and many other interesting tidbits are discussed in the featurettes on the last disc of this seven-disc set). There's a tremendous through-line and consistency with events of the past, such that loose ends and long-forgotten plot elements are addressed—i.e., the long-simmering undercurrent between Crusher (McFadden) and Picard (Stewart) in "Attached", Worf (Dorn) and Troi's (Sirtis) burgeoning relationship in "Thine Own Self", Wesley Crusher's (Wil Wheaton) destiny with the Traveler (last seen in season one) in "Journey's End"—and of course there's Q's test of humanity (which harkens back to the pilot) in "All Good Things ...".
Other episodes of note from this season: "Lower Decks," which focuses on a cluster of ordinary crewmembers of the Enterprise; "Genesis," the episode directed by McFadden in which the crew de-evolves; "Parallels," in which Worf moves between universes; and "Dark Page," which features the ever-inimitable Majel Barrett Roddenberry as Lwaxana Troi.
Disc seven features five featurettes of varying length and quality, including an overview of the season, a tribute to Picard, perspectives on the production of the season and the series as a whole, and a look at the making of the finale, "All Good Things ...".
Mission accomplished
The complete seventh-season DVD shares many of the same standard elements as its predecessors, such as "Mission Overview: Year Seven," and "Departmental Briefing: Year Seven." And, as in prior seasons, these two featurettes could be better organized—for example, the departmental briefing is all over the map in terms of its discussion of production issues in season seven, and twice it oddly references an episode that's not even from this season.
This season does a particularly good job with stitching together interview soundbites from the past and present to create a cohesive featurette. While there are several elements that stem from 1994, most of the interviews were conducted in the last couple of years, which gives the actors and producers a chance to reflect on the series just as we, the viewers, have as we watch the DVD.
Of the five original featurettes on this disc, three deserve special mention. The 16-minute featurette dubbed "A Captain's Tribute" mixes footage from Picard's command over the years with Stewart's reflections on his character and his interactions with the rest of the crew (this is mostly culled from an interview done in 2001).
The Making of "All Good Things" runs about as long, and is packed with the contemporary reflections by the producers (including Brannon Braga, Ron Moore, Rick Berman and Michael Piller), as well as the makeup artists, designers and visual-effects folks. Although it is surprisingly light on the cast input, there are some snippets with Denise Crosby, Sirtis and Colm Meaney circa 1994. Most interesting tidbits here come from Piller (believe it or not, there's a connection between the plot of "All Good Things ..." and yoga) and from makeup effects maestro Michael Westmore, who talked about how he approached the dramatic aging necessary to reflect the characters' shifts in time throughout the episode.
With a running time of nearly 30 minutes, the nostalgic "Starfleet Moments and Memories" plays like a who's who of Next Gen's history: Most, not all, of the actors, producers and writers from the show are represented, as are many of the behind-the-scenes folks in production. It's not as complete a tribute as we would have liked to have seen, and there's an unabashed, self-congratulatory tone to some of the comments, but the 30 minutes will entertain dedicated fans nonetheless. The majority of the reflections are interesting ones, and come from recent interviews.
When it first aired, I remember not enjoying season seven as much as past Next Gen seasons (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6). Perhaps the knowledge that it was the final season of the stalwart favorite made viewing some of the episodes a bittersweet experience at the time. But, after revisiting the season as a whole, I found much more to like—starting early in the season, and ending with the series' final, and very satisfying, journey, "All Good Things ...". — Melissa
Also in this issue: The Core
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