Picard’s Enterprise Has A Big Difference From Kirk’s, And Star Trek: TNG Finally Made It Matter

With Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and the USS Enterprise-D, Star Trek: The Next Generation introduced a new kind of starship that was very different from Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and his USS Enterprise in one particular way. Not only was the Enterprise-D significantly larger than Kirk’s Enterprise in Star Trek: The Original Series, but it also housed the families of many of the officers on board. Picard’s Enterprise was meant for exploration and potentially long missions in deep space, and the United Federation of Planets at the time was experiencing a period of peace. During Kirk’s time as Captain of the Enterprise, the Federation had a conflict-filled relationship with the Klingons and threats like the Romulans asserted themselves.