Star Trek: The Next Frontier

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Like its predecessors, Deep Space Nine will explore philosophical questions and social problems. Plots in upcoming episodes deal with topics like racial prejudice and single parenthood. Captain Sisko is played by African-American actor Avery Brooks, who beat out 100 other contenders from all racial / backgrounds for the job, making him one of the few black actors to star in a dramatic series. Others in the cast include former model Terry Farrell as science officer Jadzia Dax, an alien who combines the personalities of a 300- year-old androgynous life form and a 28-year-old female in one being; Rene Auberjonois as security officer Odo, a displaced alien with shape-shifting capabilities that allow him to change into any form; Nana Visitor as first officer Kira Nerys, a former member of the Bajoran underground; Armin Shimerman as Quark, the money-grubbing bartender who provides comic relief; and Siddig El Fadil as medical officer Dr. Julian Bashir, a human doctor who adds hunk appeal.

But the real stars of the new series are set designer Herman Zimmerman and special-effects wizard Rob Legato. The basic set, which fills three sound stages at the Paramount studios, includes a five-level operations command center, the crew's cavelike sleeping quarters and the 80-ft. promenade. A good chunk of the $2 million-per-episode budget goes toward eye-popping optical effects, like travel into the wormhole that provides shortcuts through space and gives the station its strategic significance.

Before his death, creator Roddenberry "had gotten awfully mellow, and the show had begun to lose some of the excitement and nonsense and folderol that can make it fun to do," says his widow Majel Barrett, who provides the voice of the computer on all three series. Deep Space Nine "lends itself to a lot more excitement. It will be different, and yet it will fit into his universe." As Roddenberry knew all along, there are no final frontiers in the world of Star Trek.