Star Trek: Why TNG Improved So Much After Season 1

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Star Trek has become one of the greatest staples of science fiction media since its creation in the 1960s, amassing a whopping 12 different television shows and 13 different movies. Some of these shows were better received than others. The Original Series was a sometimes cringe-worthy affair, but was the start of the legacy; meanwhile, Voyager has been a particularly sore spot with some fans. Some shows, however, are remembered much more fondly.

One of the most beloved Star Trek shows isThe Next Generation with Sir Patrick Stewart's iconic re-imagining of what it means to be a Starfleet captain. Despite it generally being well received, the first season of TNG really didn’t live up to the shows' legacy; in fact, it is home to some of the worst episodes in the franchise's history. This begs the question: how did the show improve so much come Season 2, to become the legend it is today?

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The biggest reason is unfortunately down to creative disagreements between creator Gene Roddenberry, the studio Paramount (whose streaming service now hosts all things Star Trek) and the writers. Roddenberry had struck gold with The Original Series, but it was a product of its time. It was slow and political, often a masterpiece in story telling, but it was dated by the time TNG came around. He created Star Trek with a very specific idea in mind, one of a utopian future where cultural diversity and conflict, at least on earth, were all things of the past.

Roddenberry became an obsessive micromanager when it came to writing the show, something that only got worse when TNG was being filmed. He had a very strict view on narrative and characters, wanting all the Federation officers to avoid conflict