Star Trek: Picard failed to explain one major plot point in the season finale

This post contains spoilers of the season two finale of Star Trek: Picard.

When season two of Star Trek: Picard began, viewers thought Q, the omnipotent quasi-villain, was up to his old tricks again. He sent Admiral Picard and his crew on a mission to save the universe from a totalitarian society, leaving us to believe that he had nothing but games and tests in mind. As it turns out, Q, played as exceptionally as ever by John de Lancie, had something much more serious going on. Q was dying, and, after realizing he was doing so alone, he decided to make sure Captain Picard, whom he still referred to as mon capitaine, didn’t end up suffering the same fate.

While it was a beautiful gesture on his part, it does beg one question: how was Q dying? Never in the history of Star Trek, since John de Lancie made his debut on Star Trek: The Next Generation’s “Encounter at Farpoint,” has a member of the Q continuum died. They could be cast out because of their behavior and stripped of their powers which, most likely, would have resulted in them eventually dying as a human, but de Lancie’s Q still had his powers when season two of Picard began. In fact, he had them until the very end when he used the last of them to send Picard and the remaining members of his team back to the 25th century.

Star Trek: Picard omitted a golden opportunity to illuminate the reason behind Q’s death.

Had the Continuum chosen to end Q’s life cycle? If so, why? Or had the rules changed to the point where immortality no longer existed among the Continuum? Neither of these questions were answered, and it seems odd that Picard wouldn’t have asked Q this fundamental question. How can an immortal be mortal?

Q was never particularly close to Picard in the sense that they were friends, and while it’s understandable that Q might have felt some remorse over his actions when he realized his life was coming to an end, it was out of character for him to be so different. He manipulated the lives of Picard and his crew once again all because he was dying and wanted to “help” Picard. And Picard didn’t ask any questions other than “why” and “why me?”

After the numerous times Q played mind games, Picard just believes him when he said he was dying? It was out of character for Picard to not want to know more, especially after all of the turbulence Q put him through one last time. And since John de Lancie won’t be returning in season three, these questions will remain unanswered…at least for now. It’s possible somewhere down the line, we’ll learn how a Q’s life cycle can end. Just not now.