It’s Q. That’s who.
The Star Trek: Picard second season teaser trailer dropped yesterday (appropriately enough, on Captain Picard Day). This is the second teaser for the Paramount+ series. (Formerly known as CBS All Access.) The first was just a setup, a true tease that hinted at the series direction, with nothing but Patrick Stewart’s voice, as the camera explores Picard’s home study. This time, we see mementos and connections to his past, as we hear about the nature of time. And then, the big reveal…
The new teaser delivers a little bit more in the action department. We get our first look at footage from the upcoming series, and John de Lancie shows up as the enigmatic trickster, Q. Check it out, below.
It looks like whatever is going on, time is being messed with. And time has always been a plaything for Q. Many of his stories show him manipulating time, in both large and small ways. Star Trek: Picard Season 2 looks like it will be continuing that trend.
The trailer goes on to show the cast of Picard, all living their lives. But things appear different. Well, different than Picard expects them. Picard returns to his home, not sure where his friends are. His house staff is missing. None of the La Sirena crew are with him. Only Q is there.
Where are the others? Well, Elnor (Evan Evagora) and Raffi (Michelle Herd) look to be on the run. Isa Briones’ Soji looks resplendent in white. Or maybe it’s Dohj? Who knows? Time is being manipulated. Dr. Jurati (Alison Pill) appears to be in a less celebratory situation, and Captain Rios (Santiago Cabrera) finds himself back in the Starfleet uniform (well, a Starfleet uniform). The La Sirena also suddenly has Starfleet markings on its bridge. But it’s Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) who discovers just how big the changes to time are. She wakes up in a strange place, finds a strange badge, and then the big reveal… She discovers her ocular implant is gone. And look, she’s married!
It is also interesting what we don’t see here. That is, none of Picard’s friends from the Enterprise are around. Brent Spiner is reportedly appearing in the new season, and Patrick Stewart personally invited Whoopi Goldberg to return as the Guinan, the Enterprise-D’s enigmatic bartender she played on Star Trek: The Next Generation. But neither appears at all in the teaser. Rumors of Michael Dorn and Levar Burton appearing have cropped up and have been shot down. But Marina Sirtis also said she wasn’t going to return to play Troi… until she did.
What is going on? Sadly, time is working properly here, so we will have to wait a while to find out. Star Trek Picard won’t beam down to Paramount+ until sometime in 2022.
