Are the Borg really beyond saving? When can you trust an omnipotent trickster?
Captain Jean-Luc Picard had some pretty heavy decisions to make aboard the USS Enterprise,
keep watching to see the absolute best!
In the series premiere of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," Riker first meets his new
captain in a ready room and is given his first order right away. It's an order given sternly,
and sets the tone for Picard as a cold, by-the-book commanding officer. But over the
course of the series, the two would form one of just a few genuine friendships for Captain Picard,
and his choice to appoint him his first officer would alter the trajectory of his life.
In that same first episode, one of Picard's next acts as captain was to instruct his
new number one to prevent him from "making an ass" of himself with the children on the ship.
"I'm not a family man, Riker. And yet Starfleet has given me a ship with children aboard."
Over the course of the series, Riker would help Picard go from
a stoic stick-in-the-mud who preferred to stay an arm's length from his crew,
to a man with friendly relationships with those under his command.
One could argue that the mere act of recruiting Data could be one of the
boldest decisions Picard ever made, despite the android having a long and distinguished
service record that would warrant just about any starship captain bringing him aboard.
But while other officers may have seen Data as a mere machine, Captain Picard and those on the
Enterprise learned to see him as so much more, even though visitors were routinely surprised.
"I must admit, Commander, I didn't think you'd be so… personable."
Aboard the Enterprise, Picard and his crew saw Data as a person, and when his rights
as an individual came under attack, they leapt to his defense. And when Data was ordered to
be turned over to Starfleet as property in "The Measure Of A Man," it was Picard who was at the
forefront of the fight, demanding they could judge and decide his status. It was Picard who
acted as his defense counsel, in one of the most important acts he'd perform as captain, an act
with consequences that continue to reverberate through the "Star Trek'' universe even today.
In the first season of "The Next Generation",
there didn't seem to be any set chief engineer on the Enterprise. But in the second season premiere,
Picard would promote helmsman Geordi La Forge to the permanent spot at the head of
the ship's engine room. To audiences it may have seemed like an odd jump for the young officer,
but it proved to be one of the key changes on the ship after its first rocky year.
La Forge went on to become one of the standouts on the series,
and was even ranked by ScreenRant as the franchise's best engineering chiefs.
He'd solve crisis after crisis — including several galactic threats — and it never
would have been possible if he'd stayed a mere pilot, or been moved to a different post.
One of the most unexpected turns of events in the entire run of "Star Trek: The Next Generation"
occurred in the third season episode "Sins Of The Father." Essentially a sci-fi political drama,
the episode brought the action to the Klingon homeworld with the sudden accusation of treason
made against Worf's dead father. Turning up on the Enterprise is Worf's long-lost brother Kurn,
who wants Worf to travel home and defend their family's honor. But when Kurn is
the victim of an assassination attempt, Worf finds himself alone — and Captain
Picard steps in to help. Not as captain of the Enterprise, but as a trusted friend.
With Picard's assistance, new evidence is discovered, along with a direct eyewitness that
clears Worf's father of the crime. To prevent a civil war however, Worf takes the fall, but averts
a death sentence — thanks to the evidence Picard revealed — leaving justice for another day.
In season three's "Hollow Pursuits" we met a very unusual Starfleet Officer:
Lieutenant Reginald Barclay. Barclay was far from the steady, skilled, and capable men
and women of Starfleet. Barclay was awkward, clumsy, and lacking in confidence; he was a
social outcast who struggled to fit in among the more gregarious and bold crew of the Enterprise.
"I've examined Barclay's psychological profile. He has a history of seclusive tendencies."
When it became known that he wasn't measuring up, Commander Riker wanted him off the ship,
insisting he had no place on the Enterprise, and suspecting that
Barclay's previous commanders might have given him recommendations just to get rid of him.
But just when it seemed like Picard might follow Barclay's previous captains and send him packing,
he decided to do something nobody had done before: reach out to Barclay with a caring,
compassionate helping hand. Instead of transferring the so-called problem officer,
Picard instructed Geordi to "become his best friend."
"With all due respect sir, my best friend?
I can barely tolerate being in the same room with the man."
Eventually, the crew came to appreciate Barclay for his unique talents and skills,
and together helped him come out of his shell. Eventually,
he'd help bring the stranded crew of Voyager home safely, saving hundreds of lives.
The mischievous Q was initially presented as a malevolent, godlike entity with sinister
but mysterious motives. He tormented the crew in the premiere episode and popped up again
throughout the series to cause mischief and mayhem aboard the USS Enterprise.
"Au contraire, mon capitaine! He's back!"
But it's in the third-season episode "Deja Q"
that Picard makes his most important decision regarding the all-powerful Q.
Exiled from his own people, Q was turned into a mere mortal,
and sought refuge on the Enterprise. When he became the target of a vengeful alien race,
Picard chose to help him, and provided Q with a safe haven. Mostly.
"Seems human enough to me."
It wasn't an easy call, and few would have blamed him if he hadn't agreed to come to his aid,
particularly as Q's presence proved to be a danger to the ship. But helping Q showed
the trickster how special humans — and Picard — really were. Q later felt he owed Jean-Luc a debt
of gratitude he'd repay in "Qpid," "Tapestry," and in the series finale, "All Good Things,"
helping him learn life lessons and save mankind, too. Had Picard not intervened, we also may never
have witnessed the Q civil war on "Voyager" — nor his return in Season 2 of "Star Trek: Picard."
"Who Watches The Watchers" may be one of the most quintessential episodes of "Star Trek:
The Next Generation." It all starts when a secret Starfleet research team is discovered
by a pre-industrial society called the Mintakans, and in the ensuing confusion where the Enterprise
comes to assist, begin to believe that Picard is an all-powerful god. The prime directive
demands they not interfere, but the damage is done, and while the Starfleet expert advises
they hand down a set of religious tenets to mitigate the damage, Picard outright refuses.
Instead, the captain speaks directly to the primitive people and plainly explains the
situation. In the end, the Mintakans begin to understand the truth of what happened,
and agree to go their separate ways — but not before gifting
Picard with a hand-woven tapestry to remember their time together.
One of the major guest stars to appear on "Star Trek:
The Next Generation" who originated in "The Original Series" was Mr. Spock's father Sarek.
The elder Vulcan Ambassador had appeared in the original series, and in three of the five feature
films before he showed up on TNG in the season three episode, "Sarek." Coming aboard the ship
to conduct final negotiations with a mysterious alien race, it's soon discovered that the aging
Vulcan is afflicted with a rare disease that is sapping him of his mental abilities — and
his logic. In the climax of the episode, Picard selflessly agrees to a dangerous mind meld with
Sarek in order to help stabilize his condition so he can follow through with his final mission.
The meld is a success, but not without consequences,
and Picard undergoes some serious trauma as a result.
"Give me back my control."
Picard's joining with Sarek's mind gives him a more centered and
measured sense of control. It also gave him a profound connection to Ambassador Spock,
who he'd meet — and meld with — in the episode "Unification," which in turn may even have helped
fuel his desire to help the Romulans in the follow-up "Star Trek: Picard."
When the Enterprise first made contact with the Borg they were shown to be
little more than a robotic hive mind, intent on absorbing life into their collective.
But in the episode "I, Borg," Doctor Crusher convinces Picard to bring aboard an injured and
dying Borg they find at the site of a crashed Borg ship. Initially, Picard wants to use the
drone as a weapon against the collective, using a computer virus to sabotage their entire network.
"A terminal one."
But as the Borg recovers, it begins to show signs of individuality, eventually taking the name Hugh,
and showing an unusually strong moral compass.
Ultimately, Picard chooses to respect Hugh's right to autonomy and lets Hugh make his own choice
about his future. Hugh decides to return to the collective, and Picard's greatest hope is realized
: that Hugh's sense of self and morality could be just as contagious to the Borg as any virus.
Throughout the fourth season, trouble was brewing in the Klingon Empire, beginning with the death
of the former Chancellor K'mpec. It's determined that Duras — the same man who had framed Worf's
father — is guilty of the assassination, as well as the murder of Worf's ex-girlfriend.
That's enough reason for Worf to kill Duras in ritual combat.
The mysterious Gowron is named the new chancellor. But Duras' powerful family haunts the Empire,
and it all comes to a head in the two-part season ender, "Redemption." With Gowron about to take
his place as leader of his people, the House of Duras, with the outside help from the Romulans,
attempts to take control themselves. Torn between his people and his duty,
Worf sides with Gowron and asks that Picard — and Starfleet — join him.
Unable to get directly involved in what is deemed "an internal Klingon affair,"
Picard instead hatches a plan to expose the Romulan alliance with the House of Duras.
The plan works, Gowron is installed as Chancellor thanks to Picard's help, and Worf finally
regains the honor he had lost in "Sins Of The Father." It's a bold and risky move for Picard,
but it sets off a chain of events that would have after effects for years, spilling over into "Deep
Space Nine" years later, as Gowron owes much of his legacy to Starfleet and Picard's assistance.
Recruited by a corrupt admiral to help locate a supposed Bajoran terrorist, Ensign Ro Laren
was brought to the Enterprise against Picard's explicit objections. But when Ensign Ro uncovered
a plot to supply Cardassian militants with illegal weapons, she didn't know who to trust. With
help from Guinan, Ensign Ro placed her faith in Captain Picard to help her out of the situation.
"Guinan is very selective about who she calls a friend."
Rather than toss her into the brig for taking part in a corruption scandal,
Picard — impressed by her integrity — asks her to remain on the Enterprise.
It may have seemed like an obvious choice for viewers in the moment,
who saw Ensign Ro distinguish herself in the episode, but she was coming from
a Federation penal colony, and her reputation was less than stellar.
Giving her a position on the bridge of the flagship of the Federation was a risky call,
and it paid off in spades, as Ro became a standout officer and a fan-favorite character.
When "Star Trek: The Next Generation" first debuted in 1987 it was living in the shadow
of the original "Star Trek" series, and Picard himself was being measured harshly
against his counterpart, James T. Kirk as played by franchise legend William Shatner. Thankfully,
Patrick Stewart played the role masterfully, and Picard eventually became equally as beloved in his
own way. In the first "Next Generation" film in 1994, "Star Trek: Generations," the two captains
of the Enterprise would come face to face, thanks to a fateful decision by Captain Picard.
Both captains become trapped in a mysterious, time-bending anomaly called "The Nexus."
When Picard attempts to escape and stop the villainous Soran, he discovers Kirk inside the
Nexus, and recruits him for the task. Together they stop Soran, and in the melee, Kirk dies at
Soran's hands, but saves millions of lives in the process. The decision to bring Kirk back for one
more mission may be the most important choice he ever made. Not just to save lives, but to
give Trekkies the moment they'd been waiting for: the meeting of the two best Enterprise captains.
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