Season One of Star Trek: The Next Generation debuted with the double-length “Encounter at Farpoint”, and it ended that way as well. Across its seven seasons, it’d provide a bunch of two-part shows, some of which spanned years and some of which came in-season.

With May 1994’s All Good Things, we find our final televised Next Generation adventure. We’d not hear from the crew of the Enterprise-D until the theatrical release of Generations about half a year after this show’s broadcast, and it finished Season Seven. A telefilm itself, Things offers a double-length episode that doesn’t split into two parts, unlike almost all of the series’ extra-long programs.

In this program, Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) starts to experience some odd shifts in time. He varies between the present, 25 years into the future, and seven years into the past, back when he first gained command of the Enterprise. The episode follows his attempts to come to terms with these changes in chronology, and when Q (John de Lancie) appears, the plot thickens.

In fact, it thickens enough that I won’t divulge anything else about the story; Things provides so many twists and surprises that I don’t want to give away its surprises. Suffice it to say that “Things” ends the series on a satisfying note. The program seems lively and clever, and it finishes the televised run of Next Generation in a fine way.

Star Trek: The Next Generation – All Good Things appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.33:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This was a pleasing presentation.

Sharpness remained pretty good. The series’ style of photography favored a slightly soft look, but within those parameters, it maintained a good sense of accuracy and clarity. No issues with jaggies or moiré effects materialized, and I saw no edge haloes. With a nice layer of grain, I didn’t witness digital noise reduction, and the show lacked print flaws.

Colors tended toward the earthy spectrum typical of TNG. The Blu-ray handled these tones well and made them effective and clear. Blacks were dark and tight, and low-light shots demonstrated solid delineation. This was a consistently appealing presentation of difficult visual subject matter.

I’ve always felt pleased with prior TNG remixes, and the DTS-HD MA 7.1 version of Things worked well. The soundscape favored action enough to give it a solid sense of life and environment. Much of the material focused on general ambience, but the track kicked into higher gear when necessary, and that left us with some exciting action sequences. Those delivered well-placed material that moved around the spectrum in a smooth, vivid manner.

At all times, audio quality seemed solid. Speech was concise and crisp, without edginess or other issues, and music appeared bright and full. Effects showed good clarity and accuracy, with deep lows that added a strong blast at the right times. This was another satisfying remix.

The disc throws in a few extras, most of which are exclusive to the Blu-ray. We get an audio commentary from writers Ronald D. Moore and Brannon Braga. Accompanied by Blu-ray special features producer Roger Lay, the writers sit together for a running, screen-specific look at story/characters, topics related to the end of the TV series and the shift to movies, cast/performances, alternate ideas and deleted scenes, sets and locations, and various connected subjects.

Moore and Braga have participated in many commentaries over the years, and their experience comes through during this solid chat. They cover a good range of subjects, with the logical emphasis on story/character domains, of course. We find a nice examination of Things itself as well as the state of Trek in 1994.

A new featurette called The Unknown Possibilities of Existence lasts 26 minutes and offers info from Braga, Moore, executive producer Rick Berman, production designer Richard James, director of photography Jonathan West, model maker Greg Jein, and actors Patrick Stewart, Brent Spiner, Gates McFadden, John de Lancie, Denise Crosby, Jonathan Frakes, Marina Sirtis, LeVar Burton, and Michael Dorn. “Existence” covers aspects of the show’s story/character elements/script, production design and cinematography, editing and effects, cast and performances, and the end of the series. “Existence” delivers a nice overview of the final episode.

In addition to episodic promos for Things, we find fivedeleted scenes. These fill a total of seven minutes, 49 seconds and give us mostly expanded character moments. Some of the clips add to the narrative as well and expand story moments in a modest manner; we get a hint of an abandoned plot point. Nothing scintillating occurs but the sequences can be enjoyable to see.

The disc opens with ads for Chain of Command, Next Generation: Unification, and Next Generation Season Five, Season Six and Season Seven.

With All Good Things, Star Trek: The Next Generation finished its televised existence in a positive manner. One of the series’ best programs, it gave the show a good send-off before it launched onto the big screen. The Blu-ray boasts solid picture and audio as well as some interesting supplements. If you already own – or plan to buy – the complete TNG Season Seven set, those bonus features become the only reason to get this separate release, but fans who just want a taste should enjoy this Blu-ray.

To rate this show, visit the original review of NEXT GENERATION: SEASON SEVEN