Why Star Trek: Picard season 3 felt like Star Trek

Star Trek: Picard season three closed out the series perfectly

When news broke that Patrick Stewart would be reprising his role as Captain Jean-Luc Picard (to a promoted Admiral) for his own spinoff series, the expectations could not have possibly been higher for the success of the show. I am not ashamed to admit that, being a huge fan of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Picard being one of my all-time favorite captains, I was probably one of the fans driving that particular band wagon.

After months of waiting, the series finally aired, and let’s just say, that those lofty expectations for the return of one of the greatest captains in the Star Trek franchise were not exceeded, nor in the opinions of most Trekkies, were they even met.

Is that to say the show was hated or was a bad show? I would not go quite that far, but despite the presence of Patrick Stewart, other familiar faces, and fan favorite villains such as Q and the Borg, for whatever reason, the show just didn’t feel like Star Trek to me. It was a decent show in its own right, but just never really felt like true Trek, that is, until season 3.

Star Trek: Picard season three may have brought the nostalgia, but it did so very well.

You can call it nostalgia, or you can call it fan fair, and you know what, I would not argue with either one of those statements, but I don’t care. Picard season 3 just felt like Star Trek.

Season 1 of Picard had its merits and was probably my second favorite out of the three, whereas despite the presence of Q and the Borg Queen (two of my favorite villains in Trek), for whatever reason, I had a rather difficult time getting invested in the second season at all. The second season took place primarily on earth, and in my personal opinion, unless you are Star Trek VI: The Voyage Home, it is difficult to have a series or film of Trek take place on earth and still feel like Trek for more then an episode or so. Of course there are some very memorable TOS episodes that would contradict this point, but I just didn’t feel it worked for an entire season.

Season 3 of Picard put the aged Enterprise captain (admiral) right back where he belonged, in space, on a ship, engaging in inter galactic diplomacy and space battles, and as much as some complain about fan fair, the presence of familiar faces such as Riker and Geordi made it even better. And the season finishing off on the Enterprise D, where so many adventures had taken place, could not have been more perfect.

Without fail, each and every episode of season 3 had me laughing at parts, tearing up at others, and with a cliffhanger ending at the end of each installment, I was eagerly awaiting the next week’s resolution.

Star Trek: Picard season three provided a solid reason for bringing the crew of Star Trek: The Next Generation back.

Season 3 did a great job of not just bringing back the TNG cast to satisfy rabid fans like me, but it also gave each and every one of them a deep emotional reason and backstory to be where they were, rather than just being forced into the narrative to please the fans. Every TNG character had their own story to tell, and their own motivations that drove them, and they were not just simply the supporting cast to Stewart’s Picard.

Season 3 also featured what was no doubt the best plot of the three seasons. The story wove a web through the lives of nearly every character involved, but it especially answered questions  regarding matters such as a romance between Picard and Dr. Crusher that was always hinted at but never confirmed. It fleshed out even more of the story behind Picard’s own assimilation into Locutus. It provided a strong villain in Captain Vadic, who I would have liked to have seen even more of, and gave us the original Borg Queen wonderfully portrayed by Alice Krige. It also  gave another look at the Dominion War and the Changelings, topics that were really only explored in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Star Trek: Picard didn’t wrap up each episode too neatly so it left us wanting more.

Also, because of the ever changing nature of TV shows these days, as I have noted above when discussing cliffhangers, everything wasn’t perfectly wrapped up with a bow at the end of each episode, and absolutely no one was safe. There was constantly a possibility that any character could be killed off at any time, and with the cliffhanger ending to each episode, suddenly real drama of the edge of your seat, nail biting variety  had just been added to Star Trek.

Honestly, by the end of the final episode, I found myself more surprised that the entire TNG cast survived than I would have been if one or more of them had been killed off.

Finally, I loved the ending of the season and what appears to be the show itself. Everything is wrapped up nicely with a bow… almost. In keeping with the cliffhanger endings that were trending throughout the season, the final episode is no exception, and I hope it is a promise for more of John de Lancie’s Q and a Jack Crusher spinoff.

So perhaps I have fallen for fan fair and familiar faces. Perhaps my high praise for season 3 is nothing more than a sense of nostalgia, but even if that’s true, it doesn’t matter. Are you going to sit there with a straight face, and tell me I am the only person who teared up and smiled at the end of episode 9 when the whole crew was back on the Enterprise D, and Picard said “engage!” C’mon. Fan fair that might be… ok…definitely is, but that doesn’t mean it’s not awesome.

To put is simply, season three of Star Trek: Picard had everything a fan could want.

Season 3 of Picard was fantastic. It brought us a captivating story that took place not on earth or even on a planet but nearly entirely in space. It brought us characters that we know, love, and have been already invested in for years but did so while adding brand new color and drama to each character and their story.

This season of Star Trek: Picard was filled to the brim with non-stop action and drama that left you at the edge of your seat at the end of each episode, counting the days until the next installment. There were many moments of Trek’s brand of humor, and many moments that tugged at the heart strings of those of us who have loved these characters for years, and an ending to the series that promises even more.

I am happy with how things turned out for each of the TNG cast, and for a show that had such high expectations in the beginning, and frankly under delivered, if this is the end for Admiral Jean-Luc Picard and the crew of the USS Enterprise D, season 3 is a very strong conclusion.