from: Paramount
List Price: $455.95You Pay Only: $279.99 You Save: $175.96 (39%)Prices subject to change.
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: DVD
Brand: PARAMOUNT PICTURES
EAN: 0097361311746
Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, DVD-Video, NTSC
Label: Paramount
Manufacturer: Paramount
Number Of Items: 49
Publisher: Paramount
Region Code: 1
Release Date: October 02, 2007
Running Time: 8085 minutes
Sales Rank: 2229
Studio: Paramount
Theatrical Release Date: September 26, 1987
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Editorial Review:
Product Description:
Nearly two decades after the cancellation of the original STAR TREK television series creator Gene Roddenberry launched the first of what was to be four phenomenally successful spinoffs with STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION. Set in the 24th century (nearly 100 years after the stewardship of Captain Kirk) the series introduced an all-new cast of intergalactic travellers exploring the farthest reaches out of outer space on a mission to chart new planets and alien civilizations. Ship commander Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) anchored the crew of the Starship Enterprise-D with a sensitive reserve that marked a distinct contrast to his trigger-happy predecessor whose role was assumed by the Kirk-like second-in-command William Riker (Jonathan Frakes). Rounding out the cast were the Spock-like android Data (Brent Spiner); blind officer Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton); Klingon officer Worf (Michael Dorn); ship doctor Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden); her teenage son Wesley (Wil Wheaton); and psychic psychiatrist Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis). THE NEXT GENERATION was considered one of the best STAR TREK spinoffs for its intelligent writing and superb sci-fi special effects. This collection presents the series in its entirety.System Requirements:TRT: 7722 mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: TELEVISION/SERIES & SEQUELS Rating: NR UPC: 097361311746 Manufacturer No: 131174
Amazon.com:
After Star Wars and the successful big-screen Star Trek adventures, it's perhaps not so surprising that Gene Roddenberry managed to convince purse string-wielding studio heads in the 1980s that a Next Generation would be both possible and profitable. But the political climate had changed considerably since the 1960s, the Cold War had wound down, and we were now living in the Age of Greed. To be successful a second time, Star Trek had to change too.
A writer's guide was composed with which to sell and define where the Trek universe was in the 24th Century. The United Federation of Planets was a more appealing ideology to an America keen to see where the Reagan/Gorbachev faceoff was taking them. Starfleet's meritocratic philosophy had always embraced all races and species. Now Earth's utopian history, featuring the abolishment of poverty, was brandished prominently and proudly. The new Enterprise, NCC 1701-D, was no longer a ship of war but an exploration vessel carrying families. The ethical and ethnical flagship also carried a former enemy (the Klingon Worf, played by Michael Dorn), and its Chief Engineer (Geordi LaForge) was blind and black. From every politically correct viewpoint, Paramount executives thought the future looked just swell!
Roddenberry's feminism now contrasted a pilot episode featuring ship's Counsellor Troi (Marina Sirtis) in a mini-skirt with her ongoing inner strengths and also those of Dr. Crusher (Gates McFadden) and the short-lived Tasha Yar (Denise Crosby). The arrival of Whoopi Goldberg in season 2 as mystic barkeep Guinan is a great example of the good the original Trek did for racial groups--Goldberg has stated that she was inspired to become an actress in large part through seeing Nichelle Nichols' Uhura. Her credibility as an actress helped enormously alongside the strong central performances of Patrick Stewart (Captain Picard), Jonathan Frakes (First Officer Will Riker), and Brent Spiner (Data) in defining another wholly believable environment once again populated with well-defined characters. Star Trek, it turned out, did not depend for its success on any single group of actors.
Like its predecessor in the 1960s, TNG pioneered visual effects on TV, making it an increasingly jaw-dropping show to look at. And thanks also to the enduring success of the original show, phasers, tricorders, communicators and even phase inverters were already familiar to most viewers. But while technology was a useful tool in most crises, it now frequently seemed to be the cause of them too, as the show's writers continually warned about the dangers of over-reliance on technology (the Borg were the ultimate expression of this maxim). The word 'technobabble' came to describe a weakness in many TNG scripts, which sacrificed the social and political allegories of the original and relied instead upon invented technological faults and their equally fictitious resolutions to provide drama within the Enterprise's self-contained society. (The holodeck's safety protocol override seemed to be next to the light switch given the number of times crew members were trapped within.) This emphasis on scientific jargon appealed strongly to an audience who were growing up for the first time in the late 1980s with the home computer--and gave rise to the clichéd image of the nerdy Trek fan.
Like in the original Trek, it was in the stories themselves that much of the show's success is to be found. That pesky Prime Directive kept moral dilemmas afloat ('Justice'/'Who Watches the Watchers?'/'First Contact'). More 'what if' scenarios came out of time-travel episodes ('Cause and Effect'/'Time's Arrow'/'Yesterday's Enterprise'). And there were some episodes that touched on the political world, such as 'The Arsenal of Freedom' questioning the supply of arms, 'Chain of Command' decrying the torture of political prisoners and 'The Defector', which was called 'The Cuban Missile Crisis of The Neutral Zone' by its writer. The show ran for more than twice as many episodes as its progenitor and therefore had more time to explore wider ranging issues. But the choice of issues illustrates the change in the social climate that had occurred with the passing of a couple of decades. 'Angel One' covered sexism; 'The Outcast' was about homosexuality; 'Symbiosis'--drug addiction; 'The High Ground'--terrorism; 'Ethics'--euthanasia; 'Darmok'--language barriers; and 'Journey's End'--displacement of Indians from their homeland. It would have been unthinkable for the original series to have tackled most of these.
TNG could so easily have been a failure, but it wasn't. It survived a writer's strike in its second year, the tragic death of Roddenberry just after Trek's 25th anniversary in 1991, and plenty of competition from would-be rival franchises. Yes, its maintenance of an optimistic future was appealing, but the strong stories and readily identifiable characters ensured the viewers' continuing loyalty. --Paul Tonks
Customer Reviews
Average Rating: 
Rating:  - Becareful what you buy...
This set you see here from Amazon is the Authentic Anniversary Collection set from Paramount. The set called the "Chosen Collection" is bootleg. I am bringing this up because someone posted the pictures of the "Chosen Collection" next to the authentic set. Be careful of fakes.
I am happy with the Authentic Anniversary Collection set from Paramount.I am glad I have the entire series.
Rating:  - broken
The special box came broken because it wasn't boxed properly!I would give it NO STARS!!!!!
Rating:  - Chosen Collection
This is just a quick review of the chosen collection version, and not this new release, and mainly to help the newbie buyers (like me) not to get the wrong product.
First off, SPEND MORE FOR THE EXPENSIVE VERSION! The Chosen Collection which I was unfortunatly saddled with is definatly cheaper, but the age old adage "you get what you pay for," is true in this case. The disks are flimsy, and so thin when held up to the light you can see right through them. The picture printed on them almost looks like someone cut out paper and glued it on the disks, which only helps to cement the fact this is indeed a cheap set. The disks come in a very, very cheap paper sleeves, with absolutely no episode directory to help the viewer flip through to find their desired episode. The box itself is alright, it is sturdy enough, but the back of it gives a quick overview of the actors supposidly involved in the show, actors which I never heard of, and if are indeed in the show, are likely the extras and of no importance. You'd think it would have Patrick Stewart listed, but no, just no-names.
I know some reviews about the Chosen Collection have stated that disks lock up, and I personally can't testify to that as I have yet to go through all of them, but after seeing the poor condition of the disks themselves, such an occurance would not suprise me in the least. As it is, the sound quality is very poor, and the picture is not the best. However, if you really don't care all that much about perfection, ... Read More
Rating: - Hard-core STNG fans will love it!
STNG fans will be hard pressed to tear themselves away from their DVD media players with this one! All seven STNG seasons plus some great interviews and how-they-did-it extras are in this one package. The STNG-feel of the DVD user interface adds a wee bit of ambiance, and evolves as the show evolved: getting better and better with every season. The quality of the video and audio is excellent. To top it all off, NO COMMERCIALS ;-)
I'd have given the STNG Complete Series 5 stars had the set come in a higher quality container. Borrowing a line Michael Dorn delivered so eloquently as Worf in "Qpid", "I am NOT a marry man...." when it comes to the packaging. The individual, unmarked plastic trays are taped together into three bricks. Functional, but it gives the set a cheap feel, and makes it a bit tricky to find particular episodes you'd like to watch. You have to flip through the trays to look at the disks themselves to see what episodes are provided by each disk. Each disk is very well marked, though, showing which season, disk in the season, and episodes you can find on each disk. The date each episode first aired is also provided with each episode's name. There is a poster that describes highlights of each season, but it doesn't provide an episode-by-episode-by-disk listing. The packaging for the original Star Trek series and seasonal packaging for STNG look far superior. If you don't care about how the packaging looks or the lack of exterior clues to what you can find on each tray, ... Read More
Rating: - Great DVDs, Packaging could be better.
I got mine from ebay for 245 bucks with shipping,which is reasonable this set I think. I agree Star Trek seasons are overpriced. When you consider
1) It is an older show
2) doesn't have as many extra features (i do like the ones included though)
3) other sets (of similar shows) cost around 35 and go on sale for less sometimes.
The packaging could be better for sure. The seller from ebay put enough cushioning and it arrived with no trays broken or any damage. I know from experience Amazon just puts one air bag for most DVD sets. While this is ok for most box sets, this set needs to be packed more carefully.
The Voyager sets have similar (but cooler looking transclusent ones) design in packaging but since the sets are smaller they dont break as much.
It is a pain flipping through the trays on the set, however. So I put my DVDs in a DVD binder. I put the box in the closet for storage. That way it will stay in excellent condition.
I've watched all the discs up until Disc 5 of season 4, I didn't have any problems with audio as one reviewer mentioned.
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