Picard's Trauma
Jun. 15th, 2025 10:41 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
enujaI have always had very modest goals. I've often put on dating apps "My fondest ambition is to never own a car," which really helps appropriately exclude a lot of people from my dating pool.
But, much earlier, in middle school, I got really, really into Star Trek, The Next Generation (TNG). And I very much admired Captain Jean-Luc Picard. In particular, Patrick Stewart was able to play him as very "comfortable in his own skin," and he became one of my main role models.
When Picard came out a few years ago, I watched it. One strong theme of the first season of Picard was aging: Captain Picard had become admiral Picard, but he wasn't at the top of the chain of command, and people didn't really trust him or believe him any more, because they thought he was senile and out of touch. That resonated with me, because aging is going to happen to all of us who last that long.
And then season 2 of Picard came out. Q is back, and Picard has A LOT of unresolved childhood trauma to work through. Also, we've got a dark mirror universe, time travel to 2024, and different characters in different times being played by the same actor: all long standing Star Trek tropes, none of them particularly well executed here. I was definitely not a fan of the idea that Picard has been emotionally stunted all these years by his childhood trauma.
I was not the only one who thought that Picard season 2 was a mess. My friend Drea recut those 9 hours of very messy TV into a two and a half hour movie, which I was privileged to watch on Friday night. However, Drea presevered (and very much improved) the theme that Picard has had largely unresolved childhood trauma this whole time.
Don't get me wrong, Picard got a lot of trauma over the years on TNG; he was Locutus of Borg, he was tortured by the Cardassians. I'd be perfectly happy to watch TV about Picard dealing with that trauma. But not some new, invented drama that should have have relevant all these years.
Picard season 2 uses the excuse that Picard hasn't been in long term relationships (which, in reality, was caused by the episodic nature of TNG and the ineligibility of the captain to date people in his command), even though there was that one episode where he lived a whole lifespan and has a wife and all, and he kept the flute from that episode.
So I really, really did enjoy Drea's recut movie from Picard season 2, but the flaws from the original version were still too big for me.
But, much earlier, in middle school, I got really, really into Star Trek, The Next Generation (TNG). And I very much admired Captain Jean-Luc Picard. In particular, Patrick Stewart was able to play him as very "comfortable in his own skin," and he became one of my main role models.
When Picard came out a few years ago, I watched it. One strong theme of the first season of Picard was aging: Captain Picard had become admiral Picard, but he wasn't at the top of the chain of command, and people didn't really trust him or believe him any more, because they thought he was senile and out of touch. That resonated with me, because aging is going to happen to all of us who last that long.
And then season 2 of Picard came out. Q is back, and Picard has A LOT of unresolved childhood trauma to work through. Also, we've got a dark mirror universe, time travel to 2024, and different characters in different times being played by the same actor: all long standing Star Trek tropes, none of them particularly well executed here. I was definitely not a fan of the idea that Picard has been emotionally stunted all these years by his childhood trauma.
I was not the only one who thought that Picard season 2 was a mess. My friend Drea recut those 9 hours of very messy TV into a two and a half hour movie, which I was privileged to watch on Friday night. However, Drea presevered (and very much improved) the theme that Picard has had largely unresolved childhood trauma this whole time.
Don't get me wrong, Picard got a lot of trauma over the years on TNG; he was Locutus of Borg, he was tortured by the Cardassians. I'd be perfectly happy to watch TV about Picard dealing with that trauma. But not some new, invented drama that should have have relevant all these years.
Picard season 2 uses the excuse that Picard hasn't been in long term relationships (which, in reality, was caused by the episodic nature of TNG and the ineligibility of the captain to date people in his command), even though there was that one episode where he lived a whole lifespan and has a wife and all, and he kept the flute from that episode.
So I really, really did enjoy Drea's recut movie from Picard season 2, but the flaws from the original version were still too big for me.
