The Next Generation featured a new crew: Patrick Stewart as Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Jonathan Frakes as William Riker, Brent Spiner as Data, Michael Dorn as Worf, LeVar Burton as Geordi La Forge, Marina Sirtis as Deanna Troi, Gates McFadden as Dr. Beverly Crusher, Denise Crosby as Tasha Yar, Wil Wheaton as Wesley Crusher, and a new Enterprise.

Roddenberry, Maurice Hurley, Rick Berman, Michael Piller, and Jeri Taylor served as executive producers at various times throughout its production.

[3][4] Due to its success, Paramount commissioned Rick Berman and Michael Piller to create a fourth series in the franchise, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, which launched in 1993.

[5][a] In 2013, the Writers Guild of America ranked Star Trek: The Next Generation #79 on their list of the 101 Best Written TV Series, tying it with Upstairs, Downstairs, Monty Python's Flying Circus and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

The series was the most popular syndicated television program 17 years after cancellation,[9] and the Harve Bennett-produced, Original Series-era Star Trek films did well at the box office.

Roddenberry hired a number of Star Trek veterans, including Bob Justman, D. C. Fontana, Eddie Milkis and David Gerrold.

[15] A more lasting change was his new belief that workplace interpersonal conflict would no longer exist in the future; thus, the new series did not have parallels to the frequent "crusty banter" between Kirk, Spock, and Leonard McCoy.

[9][15] Paramount increased and accelerated the show's profitability by choosing to instead broadcast it in first-run syndication[18][11][19]: 123–124  on independent stations (whose numbers had more than tripled since 1980) and Big Three network affiliates.

The Next Generation was shot on 35 mm film before being converted to analog tape for post-production, and the budget for each episode was $1.3 million, among the highest for a one-hour television drama.

[27][18][28] While the staff enjoyed the creative freedom gained by independence from a broadcast network's Standards and Practices department, the first season was marked by a "revolving door" of writers, with Gerrold, Fontana and others quitting after disputes with Roddenberry.

[20]: 222 [29] Roddenberry "virtually rewrote" the first 15 episodes because of his "dogmatic" intention to depict human interaction "without drawing on the baser motives of greed, lust, and power".

[30] Mark Bourne of The DVD Journal wrote of season one: "A typical episode relied on trite plot points, clumsy allegories, dry and stilted dialogue, or characterization that was taking too long to feel relaxed and natural.

"[31] Other targets of criticism included poor special effects and plots being resolved by the deus ex machina of Wesley Crusher saving the ship.

The season finale, "The Neutral Zone", established the presence of two of TNG's most enduring villains: the Romulans, making their first appearance since the Original Series, and through foreshadowing, the Borg.

Beverly Crusher was replaced as Chief Medical Officer by Katherine Pulaski, played by Diana Muldaur, who had been a guest star in "Return to Tomorrow" and "Is There in Truth No Beauty?

Because of the strike, the opening episode, "The Child", was based on a script originally written for Star Trek: Phase II, while the season finale, "Shades of Gray", was a clip show.

[38] Benefiting from Paramount's commitment to a multiyear run and free from network interference due to syndication, Roddenberry found writers who could work within his guidelines and create drama from the cast's interaction with the rest of the universe.

The season finale, "Redemption", was the 100th episode, and the cast and crew (including creator Gene Roddenberry) celebrated the historic milestone on the bridge set.

[51] Although the cast members were contracted for eight seasons,[52] Paramount ended The Next Generation after seven, which disappointed and puzzled some of the actors, and was an unusual decision for a successful television show.

[53] An eighth season also would likely have reduced the show's profitability due to higher cast salaries and a lower price per episode when sold as strip programming.

The god-like entity threatens the extinction of humanity for being a race of savages, forcing them to solve a mystery at nearby Farpoint Station to prove their worthiness to be spared.

The Next Generation's average of 20 million viewers often exceeded both existing syndication successes such as Wheel of Fortune and network hits including Cheers and L.A. Law.

[63] On October 7, 2006, one of the three original filming models of the USS Enterprise-D used on the show sold at a Christie's auction for US$576,000, making it the highest-selling item at the event.

Beyond that, it's like professionalism takes over and you just kind of do the best you can and not make yourself look bad.Star Trek harnessed the emergence of home video technologies that rose to prominence in the 1980s as new revenue and promotion avenue.

The European laserdiscs were released in the PAL format and included the ten two-part telemovies as well as a disc featuring the episodes Yesterday's Enterprise and Cause And Effect.

Between March 2006 and September 2008, "Fan Collective" editions were released containing select episodes of The Next Generation (and The Original Series, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager) based on various themes.

CBS announced on September 28, 2011, in celebration of the series' twenty-fifth anniversary, that Star Trek: The Next Generation would be completely remastered in 1080p high definition from the original 35mm film negatives.

[106] For example, for Saint Patrick's Day BBC America planned a marathon with the episodes including "The Best of Both Worlds", "Time's Arrow", "Chain of Command", "Tapestry", and the series finale, "All Good Things...".

The three-episode story arc consisting of "Borderland", "Cold Station 12", and "The Augments", with a Soong ancestor portrayed by The Next Generation regular Brent Spiner provides some backstory to Data's origins.

"During these past years, it has been humbling to hear stories about how The Next Generation brought people comfort, saw them through difficult periods in their lives or how the example of Jean-Luc inspired so many to follow in his footsteps, pursuing science, exploration and leadership.