INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Star Trek TV shows generally take a while to get good — but if any of them was going to have a strong start, you&d think it&d be &Star
Trek: Picard.&
After all, it returns Patrick Stewart to the role that made him famous, that of one-time Starfleet captain Jean-Luc Picard
Plus, the writing team was led by Michael Chabon, author of beloved novels like &The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier - Clay& and &The Yiddish
Policemen Union.& (He also wrote a lovely New Yorker piece about writing for Star Trek while his father was dying.)
As we discuss on the
latest episode of the Original Content podcast, the resulting show doesn&t quite avoid the standard first season growing pains, with a
fast-paced pilot followed by several slow, setup and exposition-heavy episodes
Throughout the season, the writers still seem to be figuring out what kind of show they want to be making, and it all ends with some
preposterous, clunky twists in the two-part finale.
But even if &Picard& didn&t quite live up to our expectations, it still a pretty good
It was genuinely moving to see Stewart on the bridge of a spaceship again, and to greet returning friends like Brent Spiner as Data (who
died in the movie &Nemesis& but appears here in an opening dream sequence), as well as Jonathan Frakes as William Riker.
And despite its
occasional clunkiness, the story finds new emotional notes for Picard as he struggles to overcome decades of disillusionment and become the
There also fresh science fictional territory, as &Picard& treats artificial intelligence and synthetic life more seriously than any previous
Star Trek show.
You can listen to our review in the player below, subscribe using Apple Podcasts or find us in your podcast player of choice
If you like the show, please let us know by leaving a review on Apple
You also can send us feedback directly
(Or suggest shows and movies for us to review!)
And if you&d like to skip ahead, here how the episode breaks down:
0:00 Intro
0:19 &Star
Trek: Picard& season 1 review
24:28 &Star Trek: Picard& spoiler discussion
