Ten best Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes

By Cory Casciato Mon., Jul. 23 2012 at 7:59 AM

Categories: Film and TV

Star Trek: The Next Generation fans will get a special treat tonight, when National CineMedia brings two episodes of the classic series (complete with newly polished special effects) to the big screen, including the United Artists Denver Pavilions 15. That's the good news. The less good news is the episodes they chose: "Where No One Has Gone Before" and "Datalore," two season one episodes. While it's true that those two episodes are among the best season one had to offer, that's the definition of damnation by faint praise -- even most diehard fans acknowledge that season one was pretty rough going.

Considering there were many fantastic TNG episodes over the full seven seasons, we can't help but feel like this is a bit of a missed opportunity. With that in mind, we combed through the series to pick out ten truly great episodes, presented here in chronological order, that would have made far better choices to feature on the big screen.

"The Measure of a Man"
"Datalore" is certainly not a bad episode, but for Data-centric TNG episodes it's hard to top "The Measure of a Man." Everyone's favorite android is ordered to present himself for study by a Starfleet researcher who plans to disassemble him to learn more about how he works. Data (Brent Spiner) refuses and a trial is set to determine if he is, in fact, a sentient being who enjoys rights and protections under Federation law, or merely Starfleet property. This season two episode explores some thought-provoking territory, including questions of what it means to be alive, slavery and free will, and is arguably the show's first genuinely great episode.