Actor Jonathan Frakes’ Commander William T. Riker was the backbone of the USS Enterprise-D crew, making him a fan-favorite among Star Trek fans. However, Star Trek: The Next Generation, which introduced Riker, wasn’t an instant success, especially since it had big shoes to fill.
The series initially struggled to find its footing, primarily because of fans loving Star Trek: The Original Series. Frakes was aware of TNG‘s initial struggles and opened up about the same during an interview. Here is what Frakes had to say about TNG‘s early struggles and when he realized that the series wasn’t a disaster.
Jonathan Frakes Revealed When He Realized Star Trek: The Next Generation Isn’t a Flop
Jonathan Frakes is known for his performance as Commander William T. Riker in Star Trek: The Next Generation. However, the series wasn’t an instant hit and initially struggled to live up to the legacy of the original series.
During an interview with NBC, Frakes opened up about some of the early issues of the show, especially in terms of connecting with the audience who were already in love with the original USS Enterprise crew. Frakes stated:
We were received so skeptically when we initially aired because of the loyalty, the fans of the core audience had for Kirk and Spock and Bones, understandably.
Frakes explained that TNG had to convince the fans that they were worthy of their attention and love, which admittedly took some time.
I personally didn’t realize until third or fourth season, and I think that was based on sort of the reaction.
Frakes made the above statement, explaining that it took him some time to realize that the audience was warming up to the new cast and eventually began loving TNG.
Hence, Frakes’ words perfectly sum up some of the initial issues the series faced because fans loved the characters from the original series so much. At the same time, Frakes also implied TNG itself took some time to get into its stride, with some of its latter episodes cementing the series as a classic.
Jonathan Frakes Talked About Riker’s Breakthrough Episode on Star Trek: The Next Generation
During the same interview, Frakes also touched upon his character Riker, who serves as the First Officer and reports to Patrick Stewart’s Jean-Luc Picard. Initially a by-the-books officer, Riker showed a much more fun side of himself as the series progressed.
Frakes cited the eighth episode of season 2, titled A Matter of Honor, as one of his personal favorites from the series because it portrayed Riker’s playful side, hinting that it was the character’s breakthrough episode.
That was one of my fondest memories. I’m a big Klingon fan. I kid about having a Klingon experience that others don’t.
Frakes made the above statement expressing his affection for the episode, which allowed him to show a different side of his character.
At the same time, Frakes also admitted that his affinity for directing started with the episode, eventually leading him to shadow the directors of the series. Frakes went on to direct several episodes of shows across the Star Trek franchise and even the first two of the theatrical films based on TNG.
Star Trek: The Next Generation is streaming on Paramount+.
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