‘Star Trek: The Next Generation’ Retro Recap – ‘The Neutral Zone’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

One thing that is truly fascinating about television shows in general, is how sometimes particular stories that were viewed as average and boring episodes when they originally aired, ended up being supremely important to the future of the franchise. Which is something that only hindsight can reveal, since we don’t think of it until we revisit the episode in question, years later. But doing so is just a sheer delight through and through as you see the pieces of the puzzle come together and it just so happens that the season one finale of Star Trek: The Next Generation fits into that particular mold. Because ‘The Neutral Zone’ is a story that debuted to ho-hum fanfare back in the day, when in fact its decisions to foreshadow and bring an iconic villain back into the fold, helped to set the stage for some important moments in regard to the future of TNG and the Star Trek Universe as a whole.
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But before we dive into all of that, it is best we take a moment and discuss what made this episode so forgettable back in the day, which comes courtesy of the B Plot. For before the good stuff gets underway, Data and Worf retrieve some frozen and unfortunate souls from the 20th Century. Who underwent cryonics in the hopes of being revived in the future in order to have their ailments cured by future medicine. Which of course is something that Doctor Crusher is able to do, which gives this trio of everyday Americans a second lease on life and well, this is a plot line that offers mixed results. Partly because, it’s stuff we’ve seen before, and also because the resurrected characters just aren’t that compelling when all is said and done, making this segment a bit of a waste. 

But once you look past that particularly boring plot line, you’re treated to the good stuff in question. Some of which comes by way of the Enterprise’s investigation of bases that have gone silent along the border of The Neutral Zone, since said investigation reveals some unsettling facts. Specifically, how each of these bases and outposts have in essence disappeared, as though they were scooped up by some great force along the way. Which at the time was nothing more than mere mystery. But now we know, that this was the first ever appearance of the Borg on the series, in a hidden manner of course, since the ‘The Best of Both Worlds, Part I’ reveals that the colony on Jouret IV was scooped up in a similar manner and seeing that here again, with what we know now, adds incredible gravity to this story since it won’t be long before the 1701-D encounters its first Borg Cube. 

Plus, this is also the episode that features the return of the Romulan Empire, which really is quite the treat for certain since we learn that this is the first face to face meeting between the Empire and the Federation in decades. But what matters more here, is how significant this meeting would serve to the future of the franchise as well. For these mysterious aliens would become quite the focus for TNG in the years to follow and of course, they would be intertwined with Jean-Luc’s fate for decades to come since his actions would almost lead to peace with this ancient enemy in the late 24th Century and it is just quite powerful to know that this tense encounter and the productive conversation that followed, would lead to so many important and beautiful moments down the line.

Which makes this episode far better than it was originally given credit and truly, time is the only way that one could appreciate the wonder of this tale. Because it really did feel like a hodge-podge of ideas when it originally aired, and it was a fairly pedestrian season finale as well. Especially when one considers the fact that this series would go on to invent the modern cliffhanger in season three. But seeing as to how this was still year one of the journey, mistakes can certainly be forgiven. For this series really was trying to figure out its future and what it was going to stand for and bumps like this happen. But what matters more, is that we’ve reached the end of that rocky first year, which means that great wonders await us in season two, and after a short little hiatus on this end, we will dive right into everything that year two has to offer. Until next time.  

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