Description: 26 episodes on 7 discs: Redemption Part II, Darmok, Ensign Ro, Silicon Avatar, Disaster, The Game, Unification Part I, Unification Part II, A Matter of Time, New Ground, Hero Worship, Violations, The Masterpiece Society, Conundrum, Power Play, Ethics, The Outcast, Cause and Effect, The First Duty, Cost of Living, The Perfect Mate, Imaginary Friend, I, Borg, The Next Phase, The Inner Light, Time's Arrow Part I.
Amazon.com: The fifth season of Star Trek: The Next Generation saw some of the very best of all 178 shows. "Darmok" had the feel of a "classic Trek" episode, dealing with language as metaphor. "The First Duty" challenged Wesley Crusher's loyalties. The season closer "Time's Arrow" (which concluded in year 6) ranks as one of the best TNG cliffhangers, and treats fans to canon-changing story lines and tons of in-jokes. Best of all was the painfully melancholy "The Inner Light," in which Picard experiences an alternate lifetime. There were great guest stars--Paul Winfield ("Darmok"), Ashley Judd ("The Game"), Kelsey Grammar ("Cause and Effect"), Famke Janssen ("The Perfect Mate"), and Jerry Hardin ("Time's Arrow")--and as always there were contributions from Q, Lwaxana, and Barclay, too.
After the confidence of the previous two years, however, year 5 often disappointed by not seeing a good idea through to the end. Denise Crosby was swept back under the carpet in the Klingon soap opener ("Redemption, Part II"). No one could make the prospect of Deep Space 9 attractive enough to Michelle Forbes, so her fantastic performance as Ensign Ro seems wasted in retrospect. And no one could reschedule Robin Williams to guest star, so we had Matt Frewer instead ("A Matter of Time"). Of all stories to use Leonard Nimoy in, "Unification" wallowed in Romulan politics instead of anything emotionally engaging. Gene Roddenberry wanted to introduce a gay character, but mere months after his death all we got was the trite "The Outcast." This was inarguably where the series weakened, without the Great Bird overseeing what was going on. Worst of all, his hard-as-nails bad guys the Borg were given a touchy-feely side in "I, Borg." Fans and critics now appreciate that the behind-the-scenes focus had shifted from The Next Generation to the next spinoff, and it would never fully return.
Neutral I found the episodes in season 5 to be a bit lackluster. There seems to be a very large change in the writing staff. Many of the episodes felt like reused ideas from earlier seasons and the more original ones just weren't very good in my opinion. Too much Troy and Riker, not enough Data. There is almost no Picard. While he is in almost all the episodes, he doesn't ever do anything (except squeel "Abandon Ship" once like a scared girl, totally out of character). I was VERY surprised at how many episodes there were in season 5 that I had not ever seen before. That was a pleasant surprise, but I think I see now why these episodes are not re-run very often. One of the episodes in season 5 is one of the best of all the TNG episodes. Inner Light is the title I think. I still plan to buy season 6 however.
Best TV Series EVER! I finally have all 7 seasons, and I will cherish them forever. Finally I can watch Times Arrow part one and two! I would have to say Measure of a Man was my absolute favorite episode, but this Times Arrow is my favorite two parter.
revisited i grew up with Star Trek: the Next Generation. At some point in my life, i have probably seen every episode, whether on it's original broadcast date, or some late-night syndication. That being said, a couple of years ago, i was the recipient of season seven as a white elephant gift. Since then, i decided to revisit the series, only backwards. So far, i've found that season five is the weakest of the three i own. It seems very much like a soap opera, featuring some overly dramatic material that i don't think the cast (aside from Patrick Stewart, of course) were prepared to handle. This all aside, though, i eagerly await Season Four.
Star Trek TNG Season 4 This season is great. Maybe the best. The characters are well developed, the drama is great, a lot of laughs too. They do not make quality television like this any more.
More uneven than seasons 3 and 4, but worth watching Season 5 is a weird one. It features some of the very best episodes in the series' entire run, but also quite a few really weak ones. That's in contrast to the 3rd and 4th seasons, which weren't uniformly brilliant but had a fairly strong sense of quality control.
As far as the classics - "Inner Light" obviously tops the list as probably the best in the series' entire run, but it's closely followed by "Darmok", "I, Borg", "The Perfect Mate", "The First Duty", "Cause and Effect", and "Conundrum".
The clunkers list is unfortunately just as long, headlined by "Imaginary Friend" and "New Ground". There are at least half a dozen episodes that are comfortably skippable on repeat viewings. Not sure whether the writers got lazy, were pressed for time, or simply ran out of ideas.
Nevertheless, this package is worth getting for the great ones.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Trevor
