Wesley Crusher device. Commentators have observed at least seven times in which Wesley, "who has trouble getting into the Starfleet Academy" and is on a ship "filled with Starfleet's best and brightest crew members", has come up with "the needed solution". Fans' dislike for Wesley Crusher has become something of a pop-culture meme, reflected in other TV shows such as "The Big Bang Theory", "Steins;Gate", and in a 2009 "Family Guy" episode, "Not All Dogs Go to Heaven", which included the main "The Next Generation" cast and featured Wil Wheaton in character as Wesley being bullied by Patrick Stewart. Wesley Crusher Wesley
Star Trek: The Next Generation viewers. "TNG" premiered the week of September 28, 1987, drawing 27 million viewers, with the two-hour pilot "Encounter at Farpoint". In total, 176 episodes were made (including several two-parters), ending with the two-hour finale "" the week of May 23, 1994. The series was broadcast in first-run syndication with dates and times varying among individual television stations. Several "Star Trek" series followed "The Next Generation": "" (1993–1999), "" (1995–2001), "" (2001–2005), and "" (2017–present). The series formed the basis for the seventh through the tenth of the "Star Trek" films, and is also the setting of numerous novels, comic books,