Star Trek: Picard

Back in the day when my wife Andrea and I were dating and before she converted to Whovianism, pledging her undying devotion to Doctor Who, Star Trek: The Next Generation was our jam. 

 

How deep were we in the weeds for Next Gen? At the reception following our wedding, our official intro music was the theme ST:TNG theme. Oh, we were such nerds. 

 

While Doctor Who sits firmly atop our fandom, Star Trek: The Next Generation still has a warm and welcoming spot in our hearts.

 

So the release this weekend of the first trailer for the new CBS All Access series Star Trek: Picard was cause for celebration.

 

There at least three SQUEEE worthy moments near the end of the trailer:

 

1. Picard gets a visit from Seven of Nine from Star Trek: Voyager. Seven has loosened up a bit after 20 years on Earth. Good for her!
2. Picard with his new space faring crew ready to serve thrust a commanding finger at the camera and says “Engage!”
3. The very last moment shows Picard playing cards with Data! DATA?!?!?

 

SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

Now there is more than just fan nostalgia being served in this clip. Picard has a new mystery to solve and a new quest that will take him back to the stars. As the graphics tell us in the trailer, “the journey is far from over.”

 

For all the appeals to nostalgia, Star Trek: Picard represents something that Star Trek fans having been wanting for years but not getting: a chance to move forward.

 

From the 2009 Star Trek movie reboot to TV series from Enterprise to Discovery, everything has been geared to Star Trek’s past. Picard is the first Star Trek project in two decades to look beyond the past and ask, what happens next? Picard gives a familiar foundation to stand upon and then take that next step into the future beyond what we know and into what we can only imagine lies out there among the stars. 

 

Still, there is a natural desire to catch up with old friends. We learned this weekend that Mirana Sirtis and Jonathan Frakes would be reprising their roles as Deanna Troi and Will Riker. I wonder what Will’s reaction will be if he learns that Picard has a dog he has named “Number One”?  

 

The trailer promises that Star Trek: Picard will be arriving early 2020. Oh, that is too long a wait.