Picard: New Nemesis gives Star Trek’s Next Generation a thrilling swansong

REVIEW: “A point comes in a man’s life when he looks to the past to define himself – not just his future.”

Retired Starfleet Admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) might have made peace with the prospect of sipping Saurian brandy and thinking about writing his memoirs, but, as the third-and-final season of Star Trek: Picard (which begins streaming on Prime Video today, February 17) opens, he admits to preferring a new adventure, rather than a legacy.

It’s still a shock though when the opportunity suddenly present itself. Having not heard from his old friend, Enterprise’s one-time chief medic Dr Beverley Crusher (Gates McFadden) in two decades, he suddenly receives a distress signal from deep space.

Clearly injured and terrified, her encoded message implores Picard to help her, but with a perplexing caveat. “No Starfleet…trust no one.”

READ MORE:
* Why Patrick Stewart came back for one final season of Star Trek: Picard
* Star Trek: Picard, Funny Woman, Rūrangi: Rising Lights among February’s must-see TV
* Star Trek: Picard: Amazon’s Next Generation spin-off takes a bold step forward
* Star Trek: Lower Decks: A crass Amazon workplace comedy boldly going nowhere
* Picard: Star Trek re-enters the Next Generation with bold new series

Naturally, there’s one man he feels he can share this knowledge with – the “handsome elder statesman of Starfleet”, his former No. 1 Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes). Together they hatch a plan to get themselves to Crusher’s last-known position just outside Federation controlled-space. A snap “inspection” of the USS Titan should do the trick.

However, while “Annika Hansen” (Jeri Ryan’s ex-Borg drone, better known to all as Seven of Nine) is more than happy to see them, the ship’s captain is not a friendly face. When his guests (“a retired admiral and a captain without a chair known for their wildly exciting and equally irresponsible adventures,” as he pithily notes) propose a sojourn in the opposite direction to the edge of space that will take twice as long as what he had planned, Captain Liam Shaw (Todd Stashwick) immediately turns them down.

“How do we pivot?” Riker laments, “short of mutiny, I’m at a loss.”

Fortunately, someone else onboard can see the desperation and is more than happy to oblige, no matter what the cost to their own career prospects.

However, once they arrive at their destination, they’ll not only have to potentially face the consequences of their actions, but also the very thing dear Dr Crusher was so afraid of.

Designed as the proper send-off for The Next Generation crew 2002 feature film Star Trek: Nemesis failed to deliver, this 10-episode adventure certainly gets off to a rollicking start.

As well as a cunning and dangerous new adversary, there’s also a sub-plot involving a deadly weapon that could spell curtains for the Federation itself.

Trekkers will note more than a few similarities to classic plots past, especially the beloved Wrath of Khan, Search for Spock and The Undiscovered Country ,as Picard comes face-to-face with a few demons from his past.

There are twists and turns and space battles aplenty in the opening instalments, as well as that nice line in humour that’s always been a hallmark of the best of Trek. “Your hands are stiff, my knees are killing me – so long as we don’t have to run or shoot we should be fine,” Riker laughs when our less-than-dynamic duo find themselves in what looks to be the first of many sticky situations.

Symbolism and sentiment never seems to be far away here, but with some solid special-effects and evocative, emotion-filled storytelling Picard’s final frontier looks like a voyage sci-fi fans should definitely consider joining him and his mates on.

The third and final season of Star Trek: Picard debuts on Prime Video on February 17.