Today on "Star Trek: Sorry About Nemesis"

I'm sorry, would you prefer I talked
about the real world? No? Thought not.

I just watched the finale of Star Trek: Picard, and I have feelings about it and well, this being the internet, I thought I'd share them in the one-way conversation that is blogging. If you haven't already seen it go watch it. Or don't. I'm not the boss of you. I mean, I like, it but it's not for everyone. I am however going to talk about it regardless so if you want to go into it unspoilt, now's the time to bail out. Still with me? Because I'm serious, totally going to talk about how it ends.

Last chance. Still there? Ok. I'm really into this show as a show. Like, I support what it tries to do, which is to tell a new story with an aged Jean-Luc Picard in a grittier, more real version of Star Trek's future utopia. One that's more reflective of the complicated times in which we live now. And I think it pulls that off for the most part.

Again, I said for the most part.

"Hey there, me again. Uh...fuck."

-Admiral Clancy

Not just in terms of how the world is a grayer, more nuanced place than it was on TNG, but everything just feels more real. Everyone swears, Riker and Troi have experienced serious loss and Picard is as feeble and mortal (we'll get to that) as you'd expect for someone in their nineties to be. Well, their nineties in the 24th century which I guess translates to one's late 70's in 21st century Earth years, which is conveniently Sir Patrick Stewart's age. The world of Picard feels like what the world of TNG would be like if it were a real place.

All that was missing was a
scene set in a well-lit cave. 

But this last episode, and the part one that came out last week, felt a little more like a old TNG episode. For both good and ill. It had all the trappings. There was a face off with a Romulan Commander. An evil android twin and another Dr. Soong who looks exactly like Brent Spiner. There was a nefarious scheme unmasked at the last second and then Picard saving the universe through the awesome power of moralizing soliloquies. But let's face it, that's what we came for even if it does walk back some of the show's strides towards a more grounded Star Trek.

Fortunately Star Trek's never been guilty
of the fake-out death scene before.

But then Picard died, and came back as an android which...I don't know. I should have known he wasn't going to be permanently dead. I mean, Riker just peaced out after staring down Commodore Oh's fleet, and it would have been incredibly weird for them to kill off Picard without Riker there. Especially with Jonathan Frakes already in the episode. Still though, it was a genuinely emotional death scene they kind of undermined by bringing him back two minutes later.

Yes, this. More of this.

Over all though, it was a solid end to a worthy follow-up to TNG. It's great that we're not stuck with Nemesis as the farewell for these characters anymore and I say bring on more TNG cameos. That said, can I...do you mind if I do some nitpicking? You don't? Super. I mean, again, loved it. But as a nerd with internet access, I feel obligated to point out the things that I didn't love or the things that didn't make a lot of sense.

On the other hand, Wolf 359 didn't go that
well, so maybe they're hedging their bets?

So first of all, the ship-tease. We waited all season for Starfleet to show up and then when we get Riker's fleet to the rescue, it's not the Titan (Riker's ship mentioned in Nemesis) and it's not the Enterprise. Instead it's a fleet of like a hundred identical and not terribly interesting starships. Usually when we see a fleet of Federation ships, it's a bunch of re-uses of old models and eclectic one-offs the art department threw together, but these were all kinda generic. And how'd they throw together that many ships on short notice? Like, they could only manage forty for Wolf 359 and that was a Borg invasion.

Still though, it makes more
sense than her and Chakotay. 

Also, I am thrilled that the final shot hints that Raffi and Seven of Nine are a thing now. That's super. Star Trek is finally making up for decades of being behind the curve when it comes to queer representation. But for real, when did this happen? Maybe I need a re-watch from the begining, but I don't remember them having much screen time together in Stardust City Rag much less enough to suggest that they'd be doing couple fingers over the table at the end. Here's hoping season two fleshes this out somehow. Probably with flashbacks. This show loves flashbacks.

Look, I'm not not happy to see Data, and
I'm glad they finally fixed his wig, but
I mean, Q. Q! It would have been great.

And finally that scene with Data. Don't get me wrong, it was touching and wonderful, and my issue with it isn't a criticism of the show, it's just me. So the scene opens with a shot of Picard, who was presumably dead, sitting by a fire place facing an empty chair. And for a brief moment I expected Q to pop in and bring Picard's story full circle. After all, in Tapestry, Q It's a Wonderful Life'ed Picard after he's injured on an away mission and it just seemed perfect that we'd see John DeLancy in some amazing surprise ending.

But alas, it was not meant to be. Instead we get a poignant farewell with Data, something Nemesis really dropped the ball on. It was great, just not as great as the thing I briefly thought it was going to be. Does that make sense? No, but I'm looking forward to more and I absolutely won't criticize the writers for not doing the thing I thought they would. Still though, it left me feeling a little, you know...you know?

"Of all sad words of tongue or pen,
the saddest are these, "it might have been."

-John Greenleaf Whittier, 

describing this exact thing