Star Trek has always been about hope. Hope that things will get better. Hope that the future of humanity is brighter than today. The first season of Star Trek: Picard exemplifies that forward-looking philosophy.
From the first episode, it appeared that bright, promised future had dimmed, much like the state of our world today. In fact, through much of the season of Star Trek: Picard, we witnessed desperate times and desperate people in a darkening state of galactic affairs. I am happy to say the finale of Picard, brought the light back to the galaxy. Our future, much like our past, is a cycle of good times and bad times.
Good times typically happen through the hard work and sacrifice of good people. This is the central lesson of Star Trek: Picard. A better future isn’t something that cruises along on autopilot. It requires constant maintenance.
SLOW AND STEADY
I’ve read reviews and online comments pointing out the show has a slow pace. These critics are not wrong. The season was slow. And that’s good. Star Trek: Picard is a drama, not an action-adventure series. Great drama gives the viewer time to process what’s happening. Sure, there have been some amazing action sequences in Season 1, but these have been used sparingly, like real life. If every moment of our lives involved heart-racing action, we’d soon grow very tired of that pace.
The pace of Star Trek: Picard allows us to get to know the characters. We learned the backstories of characters like peeling an onion. With each layer we, the viewer, got closer to the core of each individual. Whether a character is good or bad (or something in between), they are real instead of a cardboard cutout of a person.
CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT
The best character development in Star Trek: Picard was cyberneticist Dr. Agnes Jurati (Alison Pill) and Romulan spy Nurek (Harry Treadaway). Agnes is a brilliant scientist but has always been more of a follower. The lack of confidence in herself holds her back. It was through experiencing difficult situations that Agnes begins to understand the strength inside her.
From the start, Nurek’s allegiances seemed clouded, but he eventually proved himself a loyal Romulan. However, as he gains a better understanding of Soji, the other synthetic life forms, and the true meaning of the Romulan Armageddon myth, Nurek’s moral compass swings North in time for him to join our heroes in saving the day.
THE FAULT IN OUR STAR TREKS
Like all real things, Star Trek: Picard is not without its faults. The biggest for me was the need to suspend belief on multiple occasions. There are scenes that are way more fantasy than science-fiction. Then again TOS and subsequent Star Trek series used fantastical elements to serve the narrative. Season 1 of Picard employs a number of MacGuffins to move the story forward. Balanced against the solid storytelling, acting, and effects, the MacGuffins can be forgiven—or at least overlooked.
One other thing that bothered me was the use of profanity. Swearing doesn’t bother me. In fact, I believe profanity to be one of the best parts of language. Unlike many who’ve complained about the profanity in Star Trek: Picard because they think profanity doesn’t belong in Trek, it’s more practical for me. I can’t watch the show with my young child when the f-bomb is being dropped multiple times per episode.
When I was my daughter’s age, I would watch re-runs of TOS on Saturday nights with my dad. Now, I can’t share this experience with her because characters are talking about “fucking.” Not the expression, but the act. That’s not what I want my 7-year-old hearing on a beloved series. To quote Picard, the writers suffer from a “failure of imagination” instead of finding creative ways to express the same meanings as profanity. They should take a lesson from Battlestar Galactica.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The deeply complex relationship between Picard (Sir Patrick Stewart) and Data (Brent Spiner) culminates in a satisfying way in Season 1. Star Trek: Picard serves as intermediary to express Star Trek fans’ love of Data. We never really got to mourn Data’s sacrifice in Star Trek: Nemesis. Not like Spock’s death in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Yes, Data died two decades earlier, but Picard still manages to give the character the send-off he deserved.
Stewart and Spiner are two of finest actors alive in my opinion. Their interaction in the season finale is just wonderful.
The season finale also deftly explored the concepts of humanity and mortality. The show raises some important questions. What does it mean to have humanity? Does one need to be born naturally to have humanity, or can a manufactured individual also possess it? Does life have meaning if it never ends?
The title of the two-part episode is “Et in Arcadia Ego,” which translated from Latin is “Even in Arcadia, there am I.” The interpretation of this memento mori is that even in paradise, death is present. I think what Star Trek: Picard is getting at is that just because things get better in the future, doesn’t mean it’s easy or safe. It’s a constant struggle to keep humanity (and the thousands of other species in our quadrant of the galaxy) moving in the right direction.
The final lesson from Season 1 of Star Trek: Picard is that it takes teamwork to make good things happen. Star Trek has always been about teamwork, but within a military structure. In this series, we have a team that exists without a hierarchical structure, yet they work well together without ranks.
The series finale sets up the next season with an even more cohesive crew of the La Sirena. We’re excited to see where they go in Season 2.
