Being a lifelong Trekkie, I have eagerly jumped into each new series, including the late 1980s series ‘The Next Generation’ with fan favourite captain Jean-Luc Picard (splendidly played by Sir Patrick Stewart).
But we almost didn’t get him…
The story goes that Gene Roddenberry (Star Trek creator) had wanted a completely different captain for the series, one who was ‘masculine, virile, and had a lot of hair’.
But you couldn’t get further from this with Stewart, who was a middle-aged, bald, Shakespearean actor with a rich British accent.
After weeks of convincing, Stewart finally met with Paramount executives – toupee on head – but on arrival to the offices Roddenberry ordered Stewart to remove the “awful looking” hairpiece and Star Trek got it’s first bald captain.
So you can imagine my excitement when the eighth Star Trek series, ‘Picard’ was announced as a deep dive into the world of Jean-Luc, 20 years later and now in retirement from Starfleet and living on his family’s vineyard.
With three seasons now completed, ‘Picard’ is a more emotional and intuitive journey where we really get to know Jean-Luc. With storylines completing over the season (rather than the tidy episode formula of usual Star Trek series), the show explores more complicated relationships and darker subject matter.
And yet, it is exactly this broody vibe which has let it down. Despite the superb performances by a strong ensemble cast, the script feels heavy-handed with characters repeating the same emotional loops over and over throughout the show.
It is of course, just like life – but playing beyond the ordinary has always been one of Star Trek’s greatest strengths and ‘Picard’ only gets a m’eh rating from me.
