Star Trek The Next Generation - The Complete First Season
Warping into syndication in 1987,Star Trek: The Next Generationsuccessfully launched its seven-season "continuing mission" of the starshipEnterprise, and this classy DVD boxed set gathers the show's inaugural  season in crisp picture clarity and dazzling 5.1-channel sound. A ratings leader  with a sharp ensemble cast, this revampedTrekhonored series creator  Gene Roddenberry's originalTrekconcept, nurtured by returning veterans  like producer Robert H. Justman and writers D.C. Fontana and David Gerrold.  Several first-season episodes have original-series counterparts, and while the  season was awkwardly inconsistent for all involved (including Roddenberry's heir  apparent, producer Rick Berman), in retrospect the series began on remarkably  solid footing.Patrick Stewart was perfect asEnterpriseCaptain Jean-Luc Picard, while  Marina Sirtis struggled with a wretched hair bun and an ill-defined character,  eventually blessing Counselor Troi with delicate nuance. Denise Crosby made a  strong but underutilized impression as Security Chief Tasha Yar, and left the  series before season's end, allowing writers to develop Klingon Lieutenant Worf  (Michael Dorn) into a fan favorite. Brent Spiner transcended Spock comparisons  with his triumphant portrayal of the android Lieutenant Commander Data; and  while Jonathan Frakes was accepted as First Officer Will Riker, fans ultimately  rejected Wil Wheaton as ensign Wesley Crusher, the teenaged son of the ship's  doctor (Gates McFadden). Still, these 25 episodes laid a firm foundation for  subsequent seasons, and highlights include the Raymond Chandleresque "holo- novel" of "The Big Goodbye," Data's backstory in "Datalore," the Klingon rituals  of "Heart of Glory," and a Romulan encounter in "The Neutral Zone." The DVD  supplements (all on the seventh disc) are good enough to make anyone wish for  more: four featurettes recall myriad first-season challenges, filled with  insider perspective and enoughNextGentrivia to satiate all but the most  obsessive Trekkers back on Earth. Looking back, it's easy to see whyNextGenlived long and prospered.--Jeff Shannon