Some of the best episodes of Star Trek TNG would not have been made if Gene Roddenberry had his way.

Key Takeaways

• Fans saved Star Trek from cancellation, leading to The Animated Series and the first movie.
• Paramount wanted Roddenberry out of The Next Generation (TNG), but eventually brought him back.
• Despite the initial strict rules, Roddenberry's TNG restrictions were eventually broken in favor of a better story.

When Star Trek: The Original Series (TOS) canceled in 1969, fans of the show thought they would never see the Enterprise crew again. But only the fans made sure it didn't happen. The series was so popular in syndication that Paramount made a sequel Star Trek series: Star Trek: The Animated Series (TAS). don't TAS lasted only a year and a half, the continued interest in Star Trek leading to the development of a second live performance. The latter turned out to be the former Star Trek movies, Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

As the 20th anniversary of the first show approached in 1986, Paramount decided to create a new one. Star Trek series. According to Star Trek: The Next Generation — The Continuing MissionParamount wanted to develop the new show without Gene Roddenberry, the creator of the franchise, at the helm. The studio has always been at odds with Roddenberry, who has fiercely defended his creative vision and his own lawyers have described him as a ruthless shark. After much consideration, the studio decided that this was not possible Star Trek without Roddenberry. So they brought them on board for the new series, which is going to be Star Trek: The Next Generation (TNG).

The Roddenberry Principle

In fact, Roddenberry took creative control of the new show as soon as the ink was dry on his contract. To ensure that the new show would implement his vision to a high standard, Roddenberry brought in many loyal writers from TOS to help develop the show.

When the Author's Guide Star Trek: The Next Generation is complete, with several pages of rules about what not to do on the show, a list that has been informally named Roddenberry's Rules. Several writers who worked on TNG said that any script that did not follow Roddenberry's rules, regardless of quality, was immediately rejected. This caused a lot of friction in the writers' room, mainly because even Roddenberry's most loyal writers disagreed with some of his rules for the show.

As it turns out, there was good reason for the disagreement. If the author followed all the rules of Roddenberry, some of the most loved episodes LPG there won't be.

Rule #1: Nope TOS The nature or the offspring

One of Roddenberry's particular insistences was the absence of characters The Original Series. the LPG's The Author's Guide states:

It's like we love the first player […] we need the audience's attention to focus on our new characters.

Roddenberry believed that the alien appearances of the original characters would be overshadowed Price of LPG characters, and he was sure it would ruin the new series. This belief is not valid. Trekkies have made it clear that they are not happy with the news Star Trek with another set of characters. They were so unhappy, that when news of the new show broke, they shot at Paramount Studios. Trek fans are nothing if not dedicated. So, all the usual forms TOS is prohibited Price of LPG story – even though Roddenberry broke his own rule Price of LPG the very first episode when Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy.

departure TOS superstars may have been needed at the beginning of the season, when Trekkies met and learned to love the new characters. But that didn't matter when the show was set up. Fortunately, the writers realized this and started writing cameos for the beloved TOS font. If they didn't, fans wouldn't have gotten the excellent episodes “Sarek”, “Parts 1 & 2”, and “Relics”.

Rule #2: No Vulcans

In the same spirit as prohibition TOS characters, this Roddenberry Rule is translated into one clear statement:

We are determined not to imitate ourselves and believe that there must be other interesting aliens in our galaxy of billions of stars and planets.

The feeling is right; no one disputes that. By not relying on stories involving Vulcans, the author of LPG forced to think of a new kind of wonder. To date, over 300 alien species have appeared or been named in the franchise. But that could have happened even with some Vulcan-based episodes in the mix. And apparently, the principle of “not copying ourselves” applies only to the characters, because the first series of LPG is a remix of TOS distribution.

the LPG The author followed this rule very well, and LPG is the Star Trek performance with the least Vulcan. But they broke the rules for the aforementioned “Sarek” and “Parts 1 & 2,” and fans are glad they did.

Rule #3: No conflict with the Klingons or the Romulans

Roddenberry didn't immediately ban Klingons and Romulans LPG as he did with the Vulcans, but he insisted that the writers stay away from the story of the Federation's conflict with those species. Even if this ban existed, it encouraged a part of not relying on the same idea as TOSRoddenberry was further driven by the idealistic vision of the 24th century. He believed that at that time, 100 years after the first crew of the Enterprise, the Federation would not be involved in a major conflict with the entire species, especially the familiar ones like the Klingons and the Romulans. .

However, the author originally broke this rule, at least for one of these species. Since the Klingons were allied with the Federation in the 24th century and there were Klingons on the bridge of the Enterprise-D, the Klingons could not be a major opponent of the LPG. But the Romulans were free, and they made such good villains. Therefore, the ban on fighting the Romulans was lifted at the end of the year Price of LPG first period.

In the third season, the ban on confrontation with the Klingons was also lifted. Although they remained allies of the Federation, several incredible episodes showed a tense encounter with the Klingons, hinting that peace was meaningless.

The list of sections that have been removed from LPG if this rule was followed, it would be great. Some of the best ones include “A Matter of Honor,” “Redemption, Parts 1 & 2,” “Family, Parts 1 & 2,” “Mind's Eye,” “The Fugitive,” and “Face of the enemy.”

Rule #4: Follow the first instructions

Roddenberry was adamant that Starfleet should not interfere with the development of other worlds' species and cultures. This guideline has been discussed, but is rarely followed TOS. In LPG, However, Roddenberry insisted that it should be kept. He was so insistent, in fact, that the ruling in the universe, formerly known as General Order One, became the Prime Directive.

However, the reason behind it LPG We soon found that forcing the Enterprise crew to decide whether to obey the Prime Directive made for a compelling story. Should the crew obey the Prime Directive if it means leaving an entire planet to be destroyed? Should they interpret it to prevent genocide? In the second season, the Prime Directive was a frequent source of tension LPG episode, and Captain Picard decided to interpret it in an often surprising way.

The author made the right decision in breaking this Roddenberry Rule. If they didn't, fans would have missed out on great episodes like “Pen Pals,” “Who Watches the Watchers,” and “Homeward.”

Although Roddenberry had strong justification for most of his strict rules about who was not allowed to enter LPGthe writers eventually proved that most of them could be cut without harming the performance of the show. And in the end, the fans benefited from that decision.

Source: Author's Guide Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: The Next Generation — The Mission Continues