15 Reasons to Watch Star Trek: Picard

Star Trek: Picard is the newest addition to the Star Trek universe, and after watching the whole first season with bated breath, we can now say it is one of the best additions to canon yet. If you haven’t watched the first season, now is the perfect time to catch up. 

Whether you’re new to Star Trek or you’re an old fan who hasn’t gotten around to watching Picard yet, here are 15 reasons why you should start! 

1. Topical Storylines Set in the 24th Century

While Star Trek: Picard is set a good 500 years from now, the overarching themes of this first season and its storylines are extremely topical to the times we are living in today. The main narrative of the season explores xenophobia in detail through the lens of Star Trek, as the federation has turned to rely on fear and hate over trust or compassion.  

On Star Trek: Picard Jean Luc Picard shows us all how to approach our neighbors.

Whether they be Romulan or Synthetic, everyone’s life matters to him. He stands in the face of the very institution he once stood for and demands that they fight to protect and uplift every kind of life rather than isolate themselves in fear because it’s the right thing to do. 

2. Patrick Stewart

It’s no secret that Patrick Stewart is one of the greatest acting talents of our time, and he has only continued to improve his craft with age. After 18 years away from Jean Luc Picard and the world of Star Trek, Stewart steps back into the role easily with unprecedented grace and power.

He is still a force of nature and watching him embody Picard again is honestly breathtaking. Steward also still does all of his own stunts as Picard and gives new life to this character. Picard has never been perfect, and Stewart embraces those flaws in the character and causes him to grow from those places to become something even stronger. 

Picard has always been a good captain, a good leader, but on Star Trek: Picard, he learns to be a better person, a better friend. He builds off of his final moments on Star Trek: The Next Generation and finally learns what it means to let himself love his crew and his friends. 

3. Seven of Nine is Gay 

For decades fans have theorized, head-cannoned, and believed Seven of Nine to be somewhere on the LGBTQIA spectrum, and Star Trek: Picard decided to finally deliver on those hopes and dreams.

Seven was introduced on Star Trek: Voyager and her connection with Captain Janeway made their relationship one of the most popular wlw ships in fandom history. 

On Star Trek: Picard, we learn that since returning to the alpha quadrant, Seven has been in relationships with women. The show introduces that bit of background information subtly and effortlessly.

Season 1 also previews the budding romance between Seven and Raffi, the ship’s first officer. Showrunner Michael Chabon shared on Instagram that their relationship will be explored further on Season 2. 

Actress Jeri Ryan shared on Twitter that she plays Seven as pansexual, and she’s delighted by the overwhelmingly positive reactions to this revelation of this part of her character. Ryan also does an incredibly good job coming back to this character; she gives Seven the power and agency she was always meant for but never afforded on Star Trek: Voyager. 

4. Powerful Ensemble Cast 

A considerable part of the power of pretty much every Star Trek series lies in the fact that it is an ensemble show with a captivating cast of characters played by a talented group of people. Star Trek: Picard is jam-packed with heavy hitters delivering performances that blow you away.

Santiago Cabrera portrays La Sirena‘s rugged, weathered captain with a heart of gold and all five of the ship’s emergency holograms. He differentiates between them all with all of the talents of Tatiana Maslany on Orphan Black, making each of them feel like completely different pieces of the same man from their mannerisms down to their accents.

Michelle Hurd really settles into Raffi and makes her one of the most compelling characters on the show. She’s funny, she’s smart, she makes you want to grab a beer with her, give her a hug, and let her spin you a story about the wildest conspiracy theory you’ve ever heard. 

The rest of the cast is filled with talented actors who deliver fantastic performances that leave us wanting to see more and more of their stories. From Orla Brady to Peyton List to Tamlyn Tomita, every minute of Star Trek: Picard is brimming with talent. 

5. It’s Got Jokes 

This show is funny! A lot of dramas make the mistake of forgetting to have moments of humor and levity between all of the grit and suffering, but not Star Trek: Picard.

Star Trek has always been a mix of humor and poignant social commentary among the show’s dramatic base, and this iteration brings that out just as it’s predecessors, possibly with even more care. 

It’s light where it needs to be, creating moments of humor that bring each of the characters closer together and reveals layers to the relationships between them. It peppers in moments of physical comedy and bits of dry humor that stick with you.

This show is going to take you on an emotional journey, and it’s going to make sure you get some good laughs along the way. 

6. It Will Make You Cry

On that journey, it’s also going to make you cry. Throughout the first season, there are several moments filled with emotional intensity. Moments of life and death, moments of extreme vulnerability, moments of love and friendship, and joy and heartache.

The writing caliber of Star Trek: Picard is phenomenal. Within hours you will fall in love with these characters, and their stories will get right to the heart of you. Both new and old characters alike experience impactful moments that will leave you feeling all the feels. You’ll be crying but filled with a profound sense of hope at the same time. 

If you’re looking for a show that will give you an emotional catharsis, look no further. 

7. Isa Briones

Isa Briones is truly the breakout star of Star Trek: Picard. Playing our synthetic heroine Soji, and her sister Dahj, Briones delivers a complex layered performance, these characters showcase her immense talent and range. She gets to be angry, scared, intelligent, romantic, apprehensive, determined, and so many other things. 

She brings a depth of humanity and a beautifully subtle innocence to her character as we watch Soji figure out who she is and who she wants to be. 

8. Dynamic Relatable Characters

Every character on Star Trek: Picard is fleshed out the moment we meet them, and they only become more captivating, relatable, and lovable as the story goes on.

All of Star Trek is known for bringing fans an abundance of unique characters to see themselves in, to root for, and to fall in love with. Star Trek: Picard continues that tradition by introducing an incredible group of new characters. 

You’ve got brilliant, yet awkward scientist Agnes Jurati who’s never been in space before, but she can certainly hold her own when push comes to shove. Captian Rios is weathered and imbittered from his tragic backstory, but it doesn’t keep him from fighting for what’s right and caring for the people closest to him.

Raffi is equal parts conspiracy theorist, ship mom, and loyal friend. Elnor is the most ferocious killer while also 100% being the baby of the team, he doesn’t need our protection but we want to protect him anyway. 

There’s also Laris and Zhabon, Picard’s live-in Romulan refugee couple. I would watch an entire series about these ex-Tal-Shiar operatives turned fugitive winemakers. The history, the chemistry, the love, we have to stan. 

9. Jonathan Frakes, Marina Sirtis, and Brent Spiner

Star Trek: Picard is a continuation of Star Trek: The Next Generation as it follows Jean Luc Picard 20 years after the events of the last TNG movie, Star Trek: Nemesis. While it certainly isn’t necessary to have seen any Star Trek before watching Picard, having seen TNG and the movies adds a layer of nostalgia and easter eggs for those viewers. 

The best of those easter eggs are guest appearances from beloved TNG characters, Will Riker, Deanna Troi, and Commander Data.

Riker and Troi appear in the back half of the season as a respite for Picard. They’re still married and perhaps stronger than ever for what they’ve been through. Marina Sirtis delivers arguably her best performance as Deanna Troi on “Nepenthe” as she and Riker help Picard find the courage to see his mission through.

We also finally get to see Jonathan Frakes as Captain Riker, which is, if you ask me, absolutely worth the wait. Frakes also directs two episodes of Season 1 with all the warmth and grace only he can present. 

Data plays a crucial role in Star Trek: Picard Season 1, as he is the motivating force behind Picard as he finds a reason to get up and join the fight again for the first time since Data’s death. Brent Spiner does an incredible job carrying the emotional weight of Data and what he means to Picard and how he’s shaped this story. 

10. Message of Hope

So much of television has fallen into the Game of Thrones curse, believing that a story has to be gritty, tragic, and hopeless to be good.

Which is, in fact, so incredibly far from the truth. In these increasingly dark and strange times, now more than ever we need stories filled with hope and love, and reasons to keep going, to keep fighting. 

Star Trek: Picard brings us a story that could have very easily fallen into the former category in the hands of lesser writers, actors, and creators. Instead, the show brings us a realistic story of a powerful institution showing it’s corruption, while clearly siding with the ragtag group of rebels still fighting for what’s right in the face of all of that power. 

The Federation has never been perfect, and Picard reveals it for what it really is, a flawed force of nature in desperate need of a reminder of what it really should stand for. Sound familiar? Patrick Stewart wanted to make a statement with this show, and boy did we all need to hear it. 

11. Interesting Plot, Lore, and Mysteries

Star Trek: Picard gives the audience a whole new mystery to dive into and theorize about. From the mystery of Dahj and Soji’s creation to the connections to the Borg and an unprecedented exploration of Romulan culture, this show is packed with content that continues to build on the expansive Star Trek universe. 

The world of Star Trek can seem daunting at first, but it is truly just a giant playground for your imagination. Picard gives fans even more new toys to play with. 

12. Let Star Trek Take You Somewhere New

With the introduction of every new Star Trek series in history there has always been pushback from fans who believe something new is too different to truly be Star Trek.

But in time each series has become as beloved as the last and each has brought in a new generation of Star Trek fans who are all to be celebrated for their love of such a wonderful series no matter where they start. 

But don’t take it from me take it from Spock himself:

Leonard Nimoy: Open your mind! Be a Star Trek fan and open your mind and say, “Where does Star Trek want to take me now.”

Star Trek: Picard is telling a new story, and it is absolutely one worth listening to. 

13. The Aliens

Star Trek loves its aliens and there are so many different species to love in this universe, but Star Trek: Picard gives a little extra love to the Romulans, Synthetics, and even the Borg than the previous series’.

There’s a plethora of species and cultures to explore within this world, but these are ones that have existed for quite some time with only surface exploration. 

Sure we’ve seen a lot about the Borg on TNG and Star Trek: Voyager, but Star Trek: Picard builds upon the existence of ex-Borgs (or xBs) like Seven and Hugh, by showing us Hugh’s rescue operation to reclaim individuals from the collective and Seven’s journey as the most infamous xB turned vigilante. 

We also see Romulans in a new light as we finally get to experience this universe through their eyes and through the perspective of so many different types of Romulans who each grew up so differently within the same culture. From Laris and Zhabon, to Narek and Narissa, to Elnor we get to see this species like never before. 

Meanwhile, the main crux of the season is whether Synthetic life deserves the right to exist as any other biological life form. 

14. The Relationships 

I am an out and proud shipper fangirl who thrives on the relationships in any show I watch, and Star Trek: Picard is rife with quality relationships to obsess over.

Both romantic and platonic, the relationships on Picard are all compelling in a variety of ways. In the romance arena, we have Agnes and Rios, Laris and Zhabon, Riker and Troi, Raffi and Seven, and more! (You can ship Soji and Narek if you want, but if you do I’m giving you a pretty strong side-eye.)

And over on the platonic playing field, we have Raffi and Rios, Picard and Raffi, Soji and Picard, Elnor and everyone, Seven and Rios, and Picard and everyone.

The connections between each character on this show lend themselves to an interesting dynamic no matter which two people the writers throw into a scene together, every pairing has something magical about it. 

15. The Women

I cannot express enough how incredible the women of Star Trek: Picard are, or how many of them there are to root for, love, hate, and want to be like.

On this show, women get to be the hero and the villain, the love interest and the protagonist. There are women in the forefront, women in the background, women in single episodes, and they all stand out as fully formed people with their own stories to tell. 

From tiny spitfire, Kestra, to hardened badass Seven of Nine, to unabashedly evil Narissa, and magnificently brilliant Soji Star Trek: Picard is full of complex women that have more agency and power than they’ve ever had before.

This is what a show looks like when the writer’s room makes a conscious effort to bring to life a varied, group of complicated women that represent many different walks of life, and my god it’s refreshing. 

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Have you watched Star Trek: Picard? What are your favorite things about the new series? If you haven’t, come take a ride on La Sirena with us and boldly go where you’ll absolutely have a good time!

Share your thoughts with us in the comments below, and be sure to catch up with our reviews of Star Trek: Picard Season 1 right here.

Star Trek: Picard is available on CBS All Access. 

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