Reviews of The Next Generation were written retrospectively from 2005-2013. Initially envisioned as a short project, the review format was shorter in the early seasons, but got somewhat longer as the project went on. Note: All reviews contain spoilers.
Content Listing
Season 3 (1989-1990)
9/25/1989. Evolution — When the ship's computer begins malfunctioning on the eve of a once-in-a-lifetime scientific experiment, the crew learns that a newly developing artificial intelligence may be responsible.
10/2/1989. The Ensigns of Command — Data must convince the inhabitants of an illegally located colony to give up their homes before the alien race that owns the planet arrives to colonize it.
10/9/1989. The Survivors — The crew must determine why a Federation colony of 11,000 was completely destroyed except for one elderly couple and their house.
10/16/1989. Who Watches the Watchers — A mishap at an anthropological research station leads to one of the primitive subjects of the study witnessing the observers and concluding that Picard is a god.
10/23/1989. The Bonding — The crew must inform a 12-year-old boy that his mother has been killed on an away mission.
10/30/1989. Booby Trap — Geordi must race against the clock to free the Enterprise from an ancient booby trap designed to kill its captives with deadly radiation.
11/6/1989. The Enemy — Geordi is held prisoner by a Romulan who survived a mysterious crash on a desolate planet along the Neutral Zone.
11/13/1989. The Price — When the Enterprise hosts negotiations for the acquisition of what appears to be a stable wormhole, one of the negotiators falls in love with Troi.
11/20/1989. The Vengeance Factor — Picard attempts to mediate a deal that would return a lawless band of criminal outcasts to mainstream society, but a murderer threatens to derail the talks.
1/1/1990. The Defector — A Romulan defector crosses the border into Federation space and claims that a Romulan invasion plot is imminent.
1/8/1990. The Hunted — A biologically enhanced soldier escapes a government prison on his homeworld and runs loose on the Enterprise.
1/29/1990. The High Ground — Crusher is captured by a ruthless terrorist organization that plans to use her as a bargaining chip to force the government to consider its demands.
2/5/1990. Déjà Q — Q, having been stripped of his powers by the Q Continuum, expresses his desire to join the Enterprise crew.
2/12/1990. A Matter of Perspective — When Riker is accused of murder, an extradition hearing is convened in the holodeck to consider witness depositions.
2/19/1990. Yesterday's Enterprise — The Enterprise's predecessor, the 1701-C, passes through a rift in time, arriving in an alternate future where the Federation has been at war with the Klingons for 20 years.
3/12/1990. The Offspring — Data creates an android that he calls his child, and Starfleet's resulting interest in studying her threatens to separate her from her father.
3/19/1990. Sins of the Father — When Worf's deceased father is accused of being a traitor, Worf decides to stand trial before the Klingon High Council in order to clear his family's name.
3/26/1990. Allegiance — Picard is kidnapped and replaced with a duplicate. While the duplicate takes the Enterprise on a new course, Picard and his cellmates attempt escape.
4/2/1990. Captain's Holiday — While vacationing on Risa, Picard is pulled into an unanticipated conflict, romance, and a hunt for a mysterious item from the future.
4/23/1990. Tin Man — With the help of a Betazoid with exceptional telepathic abilities, the Enterprise races to make contact with an unknown form of life before the Romulans can.
4/30/1990. Hollow Pursuits — Geordi attempts to reach out to an officer whose career suffers from awkward social skills, tardiness, and an addiction to holodeck fantasies.
5/7/1990. The Most Toys — A collector of rare items kidnaps Data and fakes his death in a shuttle explosion, intending to add him to the collection as its crown jewel.
5/14/1990. Sarek — When Vulcan Ambassador Sarek comes aboard the Enterprise to negotiate an alliance, unexplained anger in the crew leads to violence that threatens the negotiations.
5/28/1990. Ménage à Troi — Riker, Troi and Lwaxana are kidnapped by a smitten Ferengi opportunist.
6/4/1990. Transfigurations — Crusher rescues a critically injured man who cannot remember who he is or where he came from, and he turns out to have extraordinary healing abilities.
6/18/1990. The Best of Both Worlds, Part I — The Enterprise prepares for a deadly encounter with the Borg, who have invaded Federation space.
— When the ship's computer begins malfunctioning on the eve of a once-in-a-lifetime scientific experiment, the crew learns that a newly developing artificial intelligence may be responsible.