Cast changes solidified the team, with the return of Dr Crusher and LaForge now promoted to Chief Engineer. Worf got a meaty story arc all of his own ("The Sins of the Father") and Data made himself a daughter ("The Offspring"). Picard had a romantic vacation in "Captain's Holiday", and semi-regular crewmember Reg Barclay showed us that not everyone in Starfleet was perfect ("Hollow Pursuits"). By the time it reached its breathtaking Borg cliffhanger "The Best of Both Worlds, Part 1", there was no longer any doubt that this show really was going where none had gone before.

On the DVD Star Trek: The Next Generation's third season on disc comes packaged in the now-familiar solid grey outer casing containing a seven-disc fold-out. The extra features follow the same pattern as before, with a "Mission Overview" for Year 3 and "Selected Crew Analysis", in which the new, old and returning cast members talk about this season in then and now interviews. The "Departmental Briefing" looks behind the scenes at the Production, with comments from, among many others, executive producer Michael Piller, visual effects supervisor Dan Curry, technical advisor Mike Okuda, and new composer Jay Chattaway. The "Memorable Missions" looks at the many season highs. The 1.33:1 picture quality is better than ever before, as is the vivid Dolby 5.1 surround. --Mark Walker