Beyond The Holodeck, Picard what we know so far
2019 looks to start strong for the Star Trek Universe. With the alleged cancellation of J.J. Abrams’ fourth produced Kelvin Star Trek film, all eyes now shift towards CBS All Access and the upcoming series of Star Trek. Discovery has kicked things off on a steady but critical note for the Star Trek franchise. While the series has been received favorably by some of its fanbase, others have cited critical issues with the 1st season of Discovery. CBS has done all they can to keep interest in the franchise steady and strong since the season finale of Discovery. Short Treks has been a surprise hit and has given hope to the direction of Star Trek Discovery’s second season. That being said, Discovery will not be the only Star Trek series CBS will use to galvanize and reinvigorate the Star Trek Universe. Last year, the announcement that Star Trek would once again return with another series was met with excitement. That excitement grew to epic proportions when it was announced that the series would be centered around arguably one of the most beloved characters of Star Trek, Jean Luc Picard. Not only that but Patrick Stewart would return and reprise the role that made him Trek’s most beloved captain of the USS Enterprise. Buzz around the series has been picking up as small details have been released here and there. Here’s what we know so far about the announced Picard series.
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It takes place after the destruction of Romulus
In an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Executive Producer Alex Kurtzman said, “–Picard’s life was radically altered by the dissolution of the Romulan Empire.” This is a reference to an event from the first J.J. Abrams reboot movie, 2009’s Star Trek; but also it’s a continuation o the Romulan storyline from the last TNG film Nemesis (2002). In the 2009 introduction of the Kelvin timeline, the story starts off with Spock trying to save the Romulan Empire from a supernova catastrophe while the Romulan Empire is crumbling and dying, which he fails and ends up getting sucked into a black hole with Nero and the Narada. By Star Trek chronology this event is placed eight years after we see Picard in Nemesis. In Nemesis, we are introduced to the character of Shinzon, who turns out the be a clone of Picard. Shinzon tells Picard about the beginning of the end of the Romulan Empire, which was a plot point throughout the film. Picard tries to broker a peace treaty with the Romulan’s who are in a weakened state as an Empire. This will be interesting because it will tie together the two Star Trek universes, The Prime and Kelvin, without disturbing the work of the cinematic universe and the television universe. How Star Trek Discovery fits into the puzzle with the Picard series will be a question that also will also be raised. The exciting part of this information is that we will see the Star Trek universe after its last known prime storyline. This will give us a chance to see more glimpses of the future of Star Trek rather than seeing prequel storylines. This shows that Star Trek is always going boldly forward.
The Picard Series will have a much different tone than Discovery
Speaking of how Discovery will coincide with the Picard Series, In an interview with Entertainment Weekly Kurtzman explained, “–It’s an extremely different rhythm than Discovery–,” said Kurtzman. “Discovery is a bullet. Picard is a very contemplative show. It will find a balance between the speed of Discovery and the nature of what Next Gen was, but I believe it will have its own rhythm– ‘More grounded’ is not the right way to put it, because season 2 of Discovery is also grounded. It will feel more … real world? If that’s the right way to put it. Without revealing too much about it, people have so many questions about Picard and what happened to him, and the idea we get to take time to answer those questions in the wake of the many, many things he’s had to deal with in Next Gen is really exciting.” To Kurtzman it sounds important that the two series maintain a difference in tone so we could be looking at a more character drama driven series for Picard. This makes sense when you take into context who Picard as a character was. Picard is a negotiator, a politician, and a diplomat. Much of Picard’s adventures were more character growth with his crew and those he met. Discovery harkens back to the days of Captain Kirk and Spock boldly going where no one has gone before. For a character like Picard, the adventure was more internal, seeing if humanity or even himself was worth the gift of going out to space. If the Picard series were to succeed it has to remain true to the character of Jean Luc.
Jean Luc Picard has some unfinished business
In the same Entertainment Weekly interview, Alex Kurtzman says that the new series will finally give fans the opportunity to get some answers about the beloved character. “Without revealing too much about it, people have so many questions about Picard and what happened to him, and the idea we get to take time to answer those questions in the wake of the many, many things he’s had to deal with in Next Gen is really exciting.” Since the end of Star Trek Nemesis, it was thought that Jean Luc Picard’s story was at its end. However poor reception and handling of Star Trek Nemesis have left a lot of fans wanting more from the character of Jean Luc. A lot of fans have also been hesitant to see the handling of Jean Luc after the critical reception of Nemesis. Those fears, however, have been lessened by the care and attention the series has received not only from Alex Kurtzman but also Patrick Stewart himself. In an interview with Digital Spy and other media, Kurtzman explained the process of getting Patrick Stewart to return. “Obviously, Patrick’s gone on record saying he could never play that part again,” Kurtzman said in the interview. “Getting him to say yes was its own amazing thing because Patrick is incredibly brilliant and motivated from a place of real heart and love.” Kurtzman went on to explain, “He was there [in the writers’ room] for two weeks at the beginning of the experience, sitting with the writers. Everybody was talking together about what they wanted this show to be, and that’s very special. Patrick will send us beautifully written emails about what he feels about Picard and where he feels Picard has been. That’s so inspirational. What Patrick understood so deeply over so many years is how much Picard influenced people’s lives and how of all the captains in the world of Trek in many ways he was the one that was the biggest beacon for people. In some ways, even more than Kirk.” Knowing that the character of Jean Luc Picard will be properly handled gives a nice feeling for returning fans who are burnt out from the Hollywood trend of reboots. The Picard series looks to be a continuation rather than a step back into Star Trek lore.
The series looks to be on a fast track for 2019
Alex Kurtzman also offered further information on where the project is in terms of development. While Stewart remains the only actor cast in the series so far, Kurtzman says, “The writer’s room has broken about eight episodes and we’re moving quickly and I couldn’t be more excited about it.” The series of Picard is slated to be released in late 2019 so there is a lot of anticipation on when shooting will begin. However with with the announcement that filming with take place in California production is looking to start sometime in April. The choice of filming in California might help the process of getting the series done on time without any delays.
With all the dozens of questions, the series is gaining momentum very quickly. Will we see other characters make a return? Will the Picard series tie the Kelvin universe and Prime universe together? This series is gearing to be one of the most anticipated series of 2019 and while Discovery hopes to start 2019 on the right foot for the franchise, Picard is gearing to return the franchise to fan dominance it hasn’t seen since the beginning of 2000. If there is one character that can do it tough, it is Captain Jean Luc-Picard of USS Enterprise.
If you’re interested in finding out more about the destruction and dissolution of the Romulan Empire, check out the prequel 2009 comic book that was designed to lead directly into the events of J.J.’s 2009 Star Trek film.
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