Star Trek: Picard sent fans’ expectations into warp drive when it promised a reunion with The Next Generation cast for Season 3, as the show's final outing will feature an adventure that will heavily involve members of Jean-Luc Picard’s original bridge crew. Production on the season wrapped some time ago, per Jeri Ryan, but fans hadn’t seen any photos of the key characters slated to return. San Diego Comic-Con has changed that, however, as a brief trailer and some character posters that dropped during the event have provided our first looks at the returning Geordi La Forge, Beverly Crusher, Worf and nearly all of the other starring characters in Season 3.
While the mere prospect of the Enterprise crew returning was exciting enough, the new footage and posters only make their reappearances feel more real. Let’s talk out what was learned from the San Diego Comic-Con reveals, as well as what's most exciting about the updated looks the Star Trek: The Next Generations stars will sport in Picard.
Worf
I’m not sure if there’s anything more stunning or epic in this first look than “old man Worf.” The white hair really cements the sheer amount of time that's passed and, at the same time, his overall posture and stance show just how some things haven’t changed. Worf sounds like he's still committed to duty, and during his moment in the trailer, he says, “Do not presume to know what I have, and have not sacrificed for this.” I’m sure there’s a greater story to be told on that front. Maybe there's even something in that narrative that will allow Michael Dorn to launch that Worf-centered series he’s been pitching to Paramount for so long.
Beverly Crusher
Beverly Crusher is back, and while we know that her son Wesley won’t be along for the ride, there are a lot of expectations tied to her role in Star Trek: Picard. Fans have wondered for years why The Next Generation never pulled the trigger on the Picard and Crusher romance and, while speaking with CinemaBlend a while back Gates McFadden confessed that she’s tired of fielding questions about it. Perhaps this adventure will finally put any assumptions to rest and also remind fans why Bev is one of the best Chief Medical Officers to ever serve in Starfleet.
Geordi La Forge
It's great to see Geordi La Forge again, and it would appear that the beloved character still no longer needs his iconic visor. I absolutely love Geordi’s line in the trailer in which he states that his time on the Enterprise made him “A better man, a better father, a better friend.” It have no doubts that that is indeed the case, and I'm eager to see Star Trek: Picard Season 3 explore his relationship with the titular character in the present and to learn about the future that La Forge built for himself. I mean, am I the only one wondering what Geordi’s kids are up to?
Other Familiar Faces
This new material from Star Trek: Picard’s Season 3 also showed us some other familiar faces. Said characters are Jean-Luc Picard, William Riker, Deanna Troi, Raffi and Seven of Nine, with all of their respective actors reprising their roles from previous seasons. If there's any downside to this new season, it's that pulling in the new cast meant that other characters that originated from the show had to be cut, like Laris and Elnor. Interestingly, one classic Trek actor not shown in this trailer is Brent Spiner, who will again take on a new character on the show following Data’s final scenes in Season 1. Surely the producers want to keep that a surprise, I'm assuming. Hopefully all of this will make for a fantastic send-off for these characters and one that encourages any fans still wavering on that Paramount+ subscription to join up.
Star Trek: Picard Season 3 will premiere on Paramount+ in 2023. That’s still a ways away but, thankfully, there are plenty of other Star Trek shows on the way that will only added to the wealth of content that's already available on the streamer.
