Star Trek: Picard airs Thursdays on Paramount Plus.
After months of anticipation and speculation over where the new season of Star Trek: Picard would take Admiral Picard and the team, not only did the season 2 premierer not disappoint, but, for what felt like the first time in a very long time, I was watching Star Trek once again.
I would like to preface all that might come after this by saying, I have seen very little of Star Trek: Discovery so I find myself unqualified to comment on whether or not it feels like Star Trek or not. Now that that has been stated, let me just say that I watched all of season one of Picard and loved it and found it to be a brilliant piece of science fiction television. Not only that, but I found it to be a deep and profound look at a beloved character in former Captain now Admiral Jean-Luc Picard.
Star Trek: Picard returned to its Star Trek roots.
Having said all of that, while I greatly enjoyed season one, it was very much a reflection on Picard’s struggles with mortality, both his own, and dealing with the death of his dear friend Commander Data. The first episode of season two provided quite the contrast, with space battles, explosions, red alerts, and phaser blasts, and all that before the opening credits.
Over the course of the next 55 minutes, more space battles would take place and Picard’s reunion with Guinan (which very nearly brought tears to this Trekkie’s eyes). I saw a StarFleet comms badge pinned to Picard’s uniform for the first time in thirty years and the return of two of the most feared villains in all of Trek, the Borg Queen and Q himself, played by the absolutely fantastic John de Lancie.
No one misunderstand me. I have enjoyed what I have seen of Star Trek: Discovery so far as well as season one of Picard as I mentioned, but for me, the season two premiere gave me the impression that the franchise is returning to its roots and bringing the series back to what makes Star Trek Star Trek, and in my humble opinion, what makes Star Trek the best science fiction series on television.
I am so incredibly excited to see where the season goes, and will be on my couch when episode two drops this coming Thursday, but in my mind there is no doubt, this feels more like Star Trek then anything I have seen in nearly twenty years.