I think it would be fair to say that the Borg are perhaps the finest villains ever devised for Star Trek; the part organic/part machine drones that function as part of a hive mind are a stroke of genius. The concept has been watered down and altered slightly to the needs of later episodes, but their appearances are still chilling. Although the film First Contact made good use of them, as have some of the later Voyager episodes, their most memorable hour was in the classic two part, The Best of Both Worlds. Any series that has the lead character assimilated by an almost indestructible enemy at the end of a season has got to an exciting way to finish.

Perhaps a little unfortunately, The Best of Both Worlds followed the pattern for most Star Trek cliffhangers, the first part was a lot more exciting than the second. I suppose any conclusion, no matter how exciting, was going to be a touch disappointing. The same goes for Ron Jones' score, which has probably become the most popular Next Generation score and as such was afforded a proper, full length release. Jones' masterstroke is the theme for the Borg itself, a synthetic choral motif that is even more effective than that written by Jerry Goldsmith for the film. Without wishing to read too much into it, a synthetic chorus seems to suggest both humanity in the form of voices, but that has been mechanised. Of course, the real reason is that the budget doesn't stretch to a real chorus, but in some ways a synthetic one is more effective.

The highlight of the score is undoubtedly the First Attack, sort of Jerry Goldsmith on a budget, where Jones makes every part of his fairly modest orchestra and synth setup work for their money to produce a crowd pleasing slice of action. It must go down as probably the best stand alone action cue the recent Treks have produced. It is counterpointed in the second half with Intervention, which is somewhat more upbeat and heroic and makes good use of a slightly mutated snippet of Goldsmith's title theme. The quieter sections are generally effective, particularly those when Picard is seen aboard the Borg ship. The final couple of cues as Picard has to deal with his experience after being rescued are moving, yet with a distinct chill to them.

That Ron Jones was ultimately removed from Star Trek is a testament to Rick Berman's inability to recognise good music if it slapped him firmly across the face with a kipper. It is fortunate that his stance has seemingly softened recently, but too late for Jones and so this must stand as the highlight of his musical legacy to The Next Generation. Of course, these days, big budget television is either afforded full symphony status or entire synth efforts, but at the time, this was television scoring on a grand scale and if the limitations of the orchestral palette are occasionally disappointing, there is little doubting the effectiveness of the composition.

Rating ~

  1. Star Trek: The Next Generation Main Title (1:40)
    Alexander Courage & Jerry Goldsmith
  2. New Providence (1:19)
  3. Hansen's Message (1:28)
  4. Borg Engaged (1:16)
  5. First Attack (4:56)
  6. Borg Take Picard (3:03)
  7. Death is Irrelevant (1:35)
  8. Away Team Ready (1:15)
  9. On the Borg Ship (1:27)
  10. Nodes (2:55)
  11. Captain Borg (3:51)
  12. Energy Weapon Fails (3:52)
  13. Humanity Taken (0:56)
  14. Contact Lost (0:34)
  15. Cemetery of Dead Ships (1:45)
  16. Intervention (4:21)
  17. The Link (2:58)
  18. Sleep Command (3:52)
  19. Destruct Mode - Picard is Back (1:36)
  20. Picard's Nightmare (1:00)
  21. Star Trek: The Next Generation End Credit (1:02)
    Jerry Goldsmith

Total Time ~ 46:56