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Posted in: Paramount+, Review, Star Trek, streaming, TV | Tagged: Jonathan Frakes, LeVar Burton, Michael Dorn, paramount, patrick stewart, Review, star trek, Star Trek Picard, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Terry Matalas
Star Trek: Picard Finale Will Live Long, Prosper in Our Hearts: Review
Star Trek: Picard showrunner Terry Matalas adds an exclamation point to easily the franchise's best single season with "The Last Generation."
While we have less than eight months of 2023 left, it would be difficult to top arguably the best season in Star Trek franchise history. Sure Strange New Worlds is getting back to its sea legs with season two imminent, but The Next Generation crew's final bow in Picard season three is one for the ages in the finale "The Last Generation." Here is your minor spoilers warning.
Star Trek: Picard's Final Stand with a Mortal Enemy
While 1991's The Undiscovered Country dealt with Kirk's bitter rivals in the Klingons in a dramatically different fashion, that was never going to be the case with TNG's biggest enemy in The Borg. The original Collective exists only to homogenize or eradicate, aside from those who were freed in the previous canon, like Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) and the Jurati Borg. Here you get the sense it is a true last-ditch effort, and I'm glad executive producer and showrunner Terry Matalas (who wrote and directed the episode) brought the original Borg Queen actress Alice Krige back into the fold.
As we come to find in her reveal, the Future Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) virus from the Voyager finale did a number on the core collective, leaving her largely a shell of her former self in probably the most H. R. Giger way possible. When we last left Jack (Ed Speleers) in the previous episode, "Võx," he confronted her only to be assimilated as the final catalyst of the Queen's plan in her final attempt to conquer Earth. Meanwhile, Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and company are back on the U.S.S. Enterprise-D trying to break the Borg's hold on the synchronized Federation fleet, which has been assimilated and threatening Earth. They locate the Borg's place of operations to try and stop their attack. It's got all the elements you expect with an away mission, the Enterprise-D trying to stave off ship defenses. Maybe it's not so ironic, but there are serious Star Wars vibes there since Star Trek does owe its resurgence to the 1977 film's existence that allowed 1979's The Motion Picture to exist.
The third front involves Seven and Raffi (Michelle Hurd) as they try to retake the U.S.S. Titan-A, which is a welcome break narrative-wise since they largely dwelled in the shadow of the TNG crew all season, not that there was anything wrong with that, but this development was needed. They're not alone as there were crew older than 25 years of age who help them, but it does tack on the already exciting final confrontation.
For anyone looking for more holy shit moments, the season was already loaded as hell. What was already revealed this season was plenty, and I appreciate Matalas sticking to the landing into the finale. That being said, there was a touching nod to The Original Series and Kelvin films providing one of several potentially teary moments. The episode's heartwarming message on family that's been the recurring theme all season, even up through the epilogue. Everyone in the ensemble cast shines across the board – Stewart, Jonathan Frakes, Michael Dorn, Marina Sirtis, LeVar Burton, Gates McFadden, Speleers, Todd Stashwick, and Brent Spiner. The series not only allows the proper farewell to the TNG cast we never got in 2002's Nemesis, but we also have a launching point for a true 25th-century sequel if Star Trek: Legacy becomes a reality or whatever the final name ends up being. While there will be much more to write about this finale and series over the next few days, weeks, months & years, Matalas & his team can take satisfaction in knowing that they kept their promise to the fans and left the franchise in an excellent position to live long and prosper.
Star Trek: Picard Season 3 Episode 10 "The Last Generation"
10/10
As most shows play catch up to tie as many loose ends as possible, sometimes at the risk of sacrificing quality storytelling, Paramount+'s Star Trek: Picard never had to worry about that as the season built amazingly to the excellence that was "The Last Generation." With such a large ensemble to focus on, everyone had nuanced parts and meanings, a difficult move to execute creatively. No one was ever "just there for the ride." Terry Matalas solidified himself on the Mt. Rushmore of Star Trek creative giants, and I'm confident he'll continue to live long and prosper in the franchise with Paramount's blessing.
Credits
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Terry Matalas
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