Introduction
Star Trek: Picard season 1 had a lot going for it. The acclaim for Star Trek: Picard season 3 went a long way to rehabilitating Patrick Stewart's Star Trek spinoff, but Picard season 1 still has a lot of good things going for it. Prior to Terry Matalas' Star Trek: The Next Generation reunion season, Picard seasons 1 and 2 were tonally uneven and had some serious pacing issues. There was also a harsher edge to the spinoff, particularly in Picard season 1, that felt more akin to Star Trek: Nemesis than the optimism of TNG. However, beneath the harsh exterior of Star Trek: Picard season 1's graphic violence and f-bomb dropping Starfleet admirals is a decent story for Jean-Luc. The ending of Star Trek: Picard season 3 simply would not have had the same impact if the first season hadn't allowed Jean-Luc to confront the demons of his past in the Borg Collective. It's just one of many positive elements of Picard season 1 that prove Alex Kurtzman, Michael Chabon, Terry Matalas et al. set out to give Jean-Luc a fitting conclusion.
Picard Season 1
Star Trek: Picard season 1, episode 1, 'Remembrance', the pilot perfectly sets up Jean-Luc's new life. Star Trek: Picard season 1, episode 1, achieves a lot in a single hour of television. It establishes where Jean-Luc is at this stage of his life, from his ailing health to the reasons that he left Starfleet. Brilliantly, it neatly ties into the potential future shown to him by Q (John de Lancie) in the original Star Trek: The Next Generation finale. Diagnosed with irumodic syndrome and living out his retirement in the Picard family vineyard, Jean-Luc gets a new mission to return a favor to an old friend and make sure that their sacrifice was not in vain. It's a solid season opener that demonstrates how much thought went into the journey that Picard would have had in the intervening decades since the events of Star Trek: Nemesis.
Star trek picard commander Oh romulan
Irish Romulans are the best Romulans. One of the best additions to Château Picard was the two former Romulan intelligence operatives who now help to make the Picard family wine. Laris (Orla Brady) made an instant impression, handling security at the vineyard and clearly having a close bond with Picard. It clearly outlined Picard's closeness to the Romulans following the events of Star Trek: Nemesis. The chemistry between Orla Brady and Patrick Stewart was clearly strong enough to convince the writers to pursue a romantic plotline between Laris and Jean-Luc in Star Trek: Picard season 2.
picard-laris-st-picard-season-1
The Federation abandoned their principles, but it made perfect sense. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's Dominion War established that Starfleet and the Federation can make extraordinary sacrifices to preserve their utopia. Star Trek: Picard season 1 took this a step further by exploring how Starfleet and the Federation would respond to a devastating terrorist attack. The devastation of the Utopia Planitia Shipyards not only left Starfleet with a vastly reduced armada, it also hardened their views on both synthetic life forms and their ongoing mission to rehome Romulan refugees in the wake of the supernova disaster. Starfleet's redemption arc is another underlying storyline across Star Trek: Picard's three seasons, and it's set up beautifully in season 1.
An android plots the Mars attack in Star Trek: Picard season 1
The Star Trek: Voyager star was perfect for Picard. While the controversy over the brutal dispatch of Icheb is justified, Jeri Ryan's storyline as Seven of Nine in Star Trek: Picard is an affecting one. Teaming up Picard and Seven is great because it demonstrates the hypocrisy of Starfleet's position. Jean-Luc Picard was welcomed back with open arms after his time in the Collective, while Seven was left in the cold. Picard was, therefore, a perfect mentor for Seven, bringing her back from the fringes to coax out the hero she was always supposed to be. Seven's relationship with Raffi (Michelle Hurd) also felt more fitting than the ill-advised romance with Commander Chakotay (Robert Beltran) in the final season of Star Trek: Voyager.
Casey King as Icheb in Star Trek Picard and Jeri Ryan as Seven of Nine in Star Trek Voyager
The Legacy of Characters
It was one of Star Trek's most interesting Borg stories in decades. The concept of the rehabilitation of Borg drones, and the scientific coalition between the Federation and the Romulan Star Empire was fascinating. The Artefact Cube and the return of Hugh (Jonathan Del Arco) was one of the most interesting Borg stories since 'Unity' in Star Trek: Voyager season 3. The xBs were tragic figures, as the ban on synthetic life forms and lingering prejudice against the Borg made it difficult to fit back into society. This was brilliant foreshadowing for the assimilation of everyone in Starfleet under the age of 25 in Star Trek: Picard season 3, hopefully meaning that the surviving xBs will be able to live far more fulfilling lives in Star Trek's post-Borg future.
Hugh Borg in Star Trek Picard with Patrick Stewart
Data's daughter brilliantly continued his legacy. Playing twins Soji and Dahj Asha in Star Trek: Picard season 1, Isa Briones was a fitting successor to Brent Spiner's dual roles as Lt. Commander Data and Lore in Star Trek: The Next Generation. She also had strong chemistry with Patrick Stewart, as the old Starfleet legend and young synthetic woman worked together to expose a huge Starfleet conspiracy. Created by Bruce Maddox (John Ales) and Altan Soong (also Brent Spiner), Soji and Dahj were specifically designed as the next generation of the technology used to build TNG's beloved android. Saving Soji became Picard's way of honoring the sacrifice that Data made to save his own life at the end of Star Trek: Nemesis.
Soji Asha and Jean-Luc in the Star Trek: Picard episode "The Impossible Box"
The lives of Captain William T. Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Counselor Deanna Troi-Riker (Marina Sirtis) are idyllic but belie a gut-wrenching tragedy. The tragic death of Troi and Riker's son Thaddeus is a further disappointing example of Star Trek: Picard season 1's bleak tone, but the scenes of the Riker family at home provide a welcome injection of warmth. It's comforting to know that Picard remained firm friends with Will and Deanna after they left the USS Enterprise for the USS Titan. The Will Riker pizza party is a much-needed change of pace that updates viewers on some more of Star Trek: The Next Generation's beloved cast.
Jean-Luc Picard and Deanna Troi in Star Trek: Picard
Commodore Oh was a fascinating Star Trek villain. Romulan/Vulcan hybrid Zhat Vash operative Nedar (Tamlyn Tomita) became one of the most successful of Star Trek's Commdores. Her fear of artificial intelligence, and her infiltration of Starfleet drastically changed the course of Federation history. While Commodore Oh's fears may have had some foundation, the way she went about enacting her plan to avert the rise of AI made the lives of the Riker-Troi family and the xBs more painful as a result. Oh was a fascinating villain with compelling motivations, and it was alarming to discover for how long she was able to work within Starfleet.
Star Trek Picard Captain Riker return
Conclusion
Star Trek: Picard season 1 left an indelible mark on the Star Trek universe, setting the stage for the captivating journey of Jean-Luc and his companions. The season's exploration of complex themes, the introduction of compelling new characters, and the emotional depth of its storytelling have cemented its place as a pivotal chapter in the Star Trek saga. As the legacy of Star Trek: Picard continues to unfold in subsequent seasons, it's evident that the impact of its first season will resonate throughout the franchise for years to come.
A close-up image of Data in Star Trek: Discard
