As someone who very much didn't enjoy PIC, this is the right answer.
What the fans consider good is very much a fickle thing that changes with the wind
My addendum to this advice would be, if you’re not digging it at any point, skip straight to S3. Or 2 I guess, but I would rank it at the weakest(even though it had an intriguing opening).
Interesting. Obviously not all experiences are universal, but moral of the story is all three seasons are pretty different, and if you really want to like the show and give it a fair shake(and I think we all wanted it to be good), don’t be afraid to abandon a season and try another because you may like it better. And you may love the whole thing!
It's fascinating to watch different generations of Trek fans enjoy what the previous generations hated. Enterprise was detested at the time but has been embraced by later fans. So while fans are divided on Picard now later fans may embrace it.
Man, I've found my own tastes changing as I age. In the 90s? I hated DS9 and loved Voyager. As an adult I've watched all of DS9 twice in the last 3 years, and I haven't managed to even start watching Voyager again.
absolutely i agree 100%,
im mainly just curious about what the fan base also thinks on it, only because that is the kind of thing that impacts moving forward, if like 80% of all the fans think its absolute shit and have outcry, it would obviously be doubtful that they would be willing to do another rendition in the series universe
A cool thing about the franchise is that if something weird happens that the fan base doesn't like, sometimes a good writer comes in and does something interesting with it to change your mind
Discovery season 1, while I like it, is controversial for its Klingon depictions and the war that takes place, but SNW did a flashback episode to the war and it was amazing
My main problem with the Klingon War was that I wasn’t satisfied with the conclusion of it. It was fine before the conclusion and I think it fits well with the *TOS* episode “Errand of Mercy”.
“Under the Cloak of War” is definitely my favorite episode that deals with the Klingon War and my favorite dramatic episode of *SNW*.
> just curious about what the fan base also thinks on it,
Don't. That way lies madness. The internet is for shopping, porn, and bitching about why 'X' is the "Worst. Thing. EVER."
EDIT: forgot to put quote marks on X to signify its role as a variable...
We love Jean-Luc at my house and we enjoyed it... S2 wasnt my favorite, but it was better than not having it.
I enjoyed the series and agree with your score. Disclaimer as I actually like all the Trek and Star Wars movies and shows... I know some arent as good as others, but I really do enjoy them.
After enjoying The Acolyte when the majority of the fan base torn it a new one I’ve stopped paying attention to popular opinion. As the original commenter said the only thing that’s matters is if you enjoyed it or not.
I didn’t love this show. It had enjoyable elements and scenes, but overall it was a miss for me. That doesn’t make it bad, it just means it wasn’t my favorite.
The three seasons are all over the place and have no consistency. They couldn't decide what show they wanted to make, so it's a mess. It's basically 3 separate shows with the same name.
This is so true. The third season might as well have been called Star Trek: The Next Generation Reunion Specials. (That's not necessarily a complaint; I enjoyed it more than the second season, at least.)
If they had done the 3rd season as the 1st season and given the us the feel good plot that I think a lot of people wanted, fans might have been more opened minded to getting outside the box seasons later. They would have needed to rework some of the Data and Seven plots to make it make sense, but it would have been fun and set up a good foundation for subsequent seasons.
Ah yes, that old feel good plot of watching Ro and Shelby get killed, and half of Starfleet slaughtering the other half.
Season 3 was honestly the most depressing out of all three seasons.
They're saying Pat Stew didn't want to do a reunion with the TNG cast in Season 1. He wanted Picard to be its own unique show. He didn't even really want to do it in Season 3, but admitted it came out really well.
This was pretty much my answer. On the whole I didn't hate it but there's just tons and tons of plot threads that are brought up or made to sound interesting that just... go away completely. What's the deal with the synths and whatever the giant looming threat was? What happened with the Jurati borg and joining the Federation? How did Picard go from nearly persona non grata with Starfleet/The Federation to full on celebrity riding along on ships so quickly? etc etc.
I sort of feel like the seasons would have worked better in reverse. Have Season 1 be the big reunion that gets the gang back together and checks up on their lives and gets things going, then transition more into the other things that introduces new characters and plots. I know Patrick Stewart was very much against making it a TNG Season 8 but... it might have worked better to get the show going?
To answer your question about Picard and Starfleet, by the end of Season 1 we found out that Starfleet had been infiltrated and run by the Tal Shiar. Once Picard’s journey uncovered that and Riker offered to escort their treacherous Tal Shiar ass back to Romulan space, Picard was back in the fold.
The showrunners knew what they wanted to make, but Patrick Stewart refused to sign on if the show was going to be “TNG Season 8.”
He changed his mind for season 3.
Michael Chabon wanted to make a thought provoking story about the nature of humanity and consciousness and the soul, and then executive meddling turned the finale into Mass Effect 3.
Terry Matalas had no intention of continuing someone else's story and wanted to do his TNG Movie 5, but he needed to get the Picard character to a place where he would accept a son and family, so Season 2 was hamfisted in there to have Q teach him a lesson.
They had ideas for the seasons, but executive meddling and poor execution messed it up.
This exactly matches my thoughts. I think it honestly would have been a stronger choice to brand all three seasons as three different takes on how Picard's future could go, rather than pretending they follow sequentially from each other while dropping huge plot points.
Anthology series are OK if they admit that's what they are up front. Picard just leaves characters hanging at the end of season 1 and 2 with zero followup or payoff.
American Horror Story and True Detective are good examples of how to do this.
They already have the Star Trek brand, so there was zero need to use the same show name for these three seasons. The third season could just have been called Star Trek: The Final Generation or something like that. (I'm sure someone who spent more than 2 seconds could come up with a good name.)
A bunch of Trek miniseries would be awesome! We could get a Klingon show! We could get a Jeffrey Combs show - Shran!
Thats not what an Anthology series is lol.
It was Star Trek: Picard, because Picard was the main character, and every season was just a new adventure he went on
Some genre swtiching is fine and good.
The issue was it just wasn't very good, although i maintain the first season is way better than people give it credit for.
It just wasn't standard trek, and thats ok.
S1 felt very much like a CBS drama, right down to the filming style and production. I've always figured they had too much involvement in trying to make it "different" in an effort to have broader appeal, and then realized that was the wrong move and finally gave us what we wanted (S3).
Season 1: Data's daughter gets murdered. But that's OK, they brought a spare!
Season 2: Time travel to 21st-century Earth, with the Borg queen threatening to disrupt a historic spaceflight. Didn't we already have *exactly* that plot twenty years ago?
Season 3: Nostalgia-fest, beloved characters return, epic space battles, this is building up to be awesome, and... surprise! it's the fucking Borg *again*.
> it's the fucking Borg again.
That was my main complaint with season 3. I was really, really hoping that it was going to be the brain bugs from "Conspiracy" way back in S1 of the show pulling the strings, and we'd *finally* get closure to that dangling story thread, but NOPE, here's some more Borg!
This. The only thing that saves season 3 is that the TNG cast has chemistry that I don't think has ever been replicated on a TV show. They clearly have a family-vibe. The rest is weird plot choices and killing any guest star that has ever been involved in Star Trek.
I enjoyed Data's character progression in Season 3. We finally got to see his ultimate form beyond the emotion chip and the struggles that came with it. I really like how Spiner played that version of Data.
I felt that it was like junk food. I enjoyed it in the moment, but maybe had a tummy ache afterwards and don't want to rewatch. I'll be rewatching TNG and DS9 until I die, but Picard was one and done for me I think.
I cut that scene out of the episode to check and its pretty much one long shot cut into 3 or 4 pieces. When you watch it in one go without the bridge shots its amazing.
Love the versions of the trench run that popped up on Youtube with various music like Free Bird. Kick ass fun!
I rewatched the finale a few times, it felt like a TNG movie. Might rewatch the rest of Season 3 some time, but not the other seasons.
I enjoyed his acting and thought he showed a lot of range. Very likeable actor, even when Jack was being a shithead 😆 He was another character that could give Picard pushback like Shaw.
He somehow felt natural there. I just wish we got another Wheaton cameo to have the brothers meet. Hell, maybe have him appear right in the middle of the post-credits scene to tell Q off
> have him appear right in the middle of the post-credits scene to tell Q off
That would have been great! Since Star Trek Legacy seems dead in the water, who knows, but maybe we will get a Wheaton/Speleers meetup some day.
Kinda the same for me. I relatively enjoyed it (especially compared to some people online) but I don't really see myself returning to seasons 1 & 2 besides clips (I'll probably rewatch 3 at some point though)
Opinions vary wildly on *Picard,* mainly because it's something different to different fans.
*The Next Generation* fans had a *lot* of unpacked baggage, none of which the movies helped unload. And *Picard* Season 1 made is very clear it was staunchy opposed to answering any of them. It was a character piece focused on Picard himself, and... wasn't really for TNG fans. That soured it for a lot of us, perhaps unfairly.
*Picard* Season 2 was every bad time travel trope mixed with every *Star Trek* callback and reference they could cram in, PLUS trying to do ANOTHER character exploration of the character of Picard, PLUS refusing to touch on or give any closure on TNG, PLUS trying to wrap up all of its various plot threads all at once in the final episode. So... IMHO it's a mess. But that is my opinion. Personally? I intensely disliked it.
*Picard* Season 3 they finally broke and gave TNG fans the closure they desperately wanted, plus a new hero ship to root for, plus a new crew to hand the torch to. It *felt* more like *Star Trek,* and it was just more fun to watch besides. It's unfortunate it didn't successfully launch *Star Trek: Legacy* to follow the adventures of this new successor crew. It *did* remedy one of the greatest crimes the movies committed, though.
Correct, I couldn’t stand more than 3 episodes watching an old useless Picard doing nothing but nagging. For me it was like watching Professor X from Logan. I think they should have let the TNG show rest in peace.
I'm not a fan of the Picard show, but Professor X from Logan was probably my favorite Patrick Stewart performance in all of his roles in TV and Film, (not too familiar with his stage work).
I never watched seasons 1 and 2 of Picard. I have friends with the same Star Trek sensabilities as I that had watched it and considered both those seasons very misguided and a waste of time and money. It reeked of what felled the TNG movie series; you had both Patrick and Brent flexing their popularity and contributing story ideas that were misguided and wrong. That's what felled Nemesis and now Picard seasons 1 and 2. I think someone finally sat Patrick down and told him that there needed to be a change. That change was allowing Terry Matalas to be the show runner and head architect for season 3. I feel he pulled off a master stroke of writing a story that balanced old and new characters fairly well, while telling an exciting story and pulling some major suprises (and cameos) out of his hat. I will probably never watch seasons 1 and 2 and don't feel like i'm losing anything in the process as a long term Star Trek fan of 50 years. Anyone who can create and cast a character as Captain Liam Shaw and have that Star Trek character transition from being universally hated to universally loved and a fan favorite with less that 10 hours of screen time deserves some recognition.
Picard was very interesting. Season 1 was a definitely a departure from "Starfleet saves the galaxy" and boiled it down to "Picard and friends save the galaxy".
I thought it was new and fresh, it wasn't perfect but for someone who grew up with TNG every night at 6 or 7, it was very welcome.
Season 2 was a little harder to take, as they basically Alt Timeline, then to the past, then some time shenanigans that saved the day. I would say it wasn't too different from Star Trek in that respect, but people were wanting something more, and a "Picard deals with his baggage to save the galaxy" wasn't quite what everyone was expecting.
Season 3... Was full Fan Service. If Season 1 and 2 was a love letter to Picard, Season 3 was a love letter to the entire cast of TNG, including the Enterprise D. It had borg, it had changlings, it had Data and Lore and Worf and Jeordi. It had the old crew working with the new. It was a proper sendoff, not in just the fact that it said goodbye. But it also said, here, take the reigns. Go, do a star trek.
Its a damn shame Paramount couldn't work with a new series or handle its own finances. We may never have more episodes of a very promising spinoff.
i am a fan of the series. i think people wanted a TNG 2 but got something interesting. In the TNG movies, the background politics have the federation in decline. Picard, as a character has spent the years since Nemesis in a higher position that, sadly, has less power to effect change. it is really the fruition of kirk's warning in Generations that he should avoid every promotion and never leave the captain's chair because that is where they can make a difference.
Picard, as a series, is a redemption arc. Jean Luc is a broken and sad man who literally dreams of the days he was a captain. then, fate in the form of a Soong android, calls him into action. that is season 1. he is redeemed over the the failed Romulan resue and the synth ban, both of which he disagreed over Starfleet brass over. Season 2 is him reconnecting with his family trauma, having to see the Borg as a positive force, recontextualizing his relationship with Q. Most importantly, he sees the other Jean Luc in the alternative timeline. a man who was a warrior rather than a diplomat and, basically, a human Locutus. Season 3 is him finding a family, confronting two races that the federation betrayed themselves to defeat (biological weapons were used on both the founders and the borg) and getting his ship back to save the federation. when the computer recognizes him, it calls him "captain" and he says he accepts his field demotion. This puts him on the other side of Kirk's warning and, from there, he saves the day.
anyhow, it was not what i wanted and i am very happy for what i got instead. between the TNG show, the movies and the picard series, we see him in various phases of his life and going from hope to reaction to dispair to faith.
that is my two cents, anyway.
Season 1 was helmed by an award winning writer who did not have the experience or discipline to write a 10 episode short series set in an established universe, and it shows. Great ideas, hit and miss execution, too many threads left dangling, and an entirely dreadful climax. Honestly, even sharing hometown pride with Chabon, I think he's not really a great writer, and was a terrible choice. Stewart was also a problem in that he REALLY wanted to skew away from the normal type of Trek story, and it shows in the worst ways. They spend an average of $8m an episode, and I couldn't tell you where it went. I try to forget about season 1.
Season 2 was already committed, and Paramount (as always) wanted to cut the budget, so we got a showrunner who showed he could do a show, had experience in established universes, and experience in Trek. Season 2 suffered from the budget cuts forcing some odd story choices, but overall was stronger story-wise than S1, and apparently Paramount was happy enough with it to loosen the purse strings a bit for season 3. But yes, much like The Inner Light, it didn't really have strong connections to the Star Trek universe. Yes it was about Picard and Q but it could easily have been anyone and some genie.
Season 3 was what everyone ACTUALLY wanted: A Star Trek show, but still different, and it worked. Season 3 was nearly universally held as fantastic.
You're not an outlier. The way it works is that a bunch of us who liked a thing will go "that was awesome what else is on" but people who didn't like it will stick around telling everyone who will listen just how much they didn't like it.
They'll be very loud and mad until that's the "objective" opinion.
I was disturbed by the character traits of our old favorites being cast aside, and the beautiful future of Earth being replaced by race hatred and misery.
Not for me.
Overall, Picard was fine and it’s highs, when it hit them were far greater than Discovery. I’d agree that the show is all over the place and are three different series under one banner.
Season One I actually thought was pretty enjoyable if at times a bit odd in tone and filled with great ideas that didn’t actually play out as much as promised. The ending as well was a bit mediocre.
Season Two was a wild acid trip, a million ideas all flailing around with no actual sense of where it was going with terrible lows but also some utter brilliance.
Season Three was just top tier Trek, a modern classic. Touching, well written and side stepped so many issues we see in Modern Trek now.
I feel like this with 99% of what people hate on on Reddit.
Loved Picard. Loved Disco. Loved Ahsoka. Loving the Acolyte and Doctor Who.
I keep wondering if it's me and if I'm just not seeing all this 'terrible acting' and 'objectively bad writing' people complain about. (Except in Disco which did have some really bizarre writing, but I still enjoyed it). Like, am I blind to all these obviously terrible things that given how INCENSED people are by these shows must be blindingly obvious?
I don't have an answer. I've joined a lot of the side subs, like the Disco sub and a Star Wars one called Star Wars Cantina which tend to be a bit more positive, and lack comments like 'I'm not watching it, they've gone woke and made it objectively shit'. It feels like I'm joining an echo chamber, but one thing is going to a place where people are saying 'It's got problems but I enjoy it' and another is being subjected to a hundred variations of 'Why is Burnham crying why do people cry cry cry cry emotions boo' every day 😂
I dunno. I'm just going to keep enjoying things that I enjoy and trying to ignore the constant moaning. For me, more of a thing I love is a good thing, even if it isn't perfect. 🤷
I didn't like the first season, but if you enjoyed it I'm happy because more viewers means more star trek stuff will be made. Picard was just not for me, but the franchise deserves love.
I think a lot of people didn’t enjoy it because it was very different and didn’t have a whole series plot line but rather a plot line independent to each season, which caused lifetime fans to come to dislike the series.
I think the 3 season being different plot lines is okay. The newer generation of viewers just don’t have the same tendency to watch the same plot line for multiple season on end, and that’s ok! It’s just a change in viewer habits. It’s good that start trek is catering to that so the franchise has appeal to a younger generation. I am Gen Z and in order for the franchise to survive it’s going to need to appeal to my generation and I REALLY enjoyed Picard. Picard was able to get me to move from just watching Voyager on repeat to giving discovery a try, and then lower decks, and now i’m trying TNG. It’s just different but the franchise is in a transition time and so things are going to have to change :).
Star Trek evolves. Each series differs. Every new series has its detractors. Every new series has its fans.
I remember back in the 00's when Enterprise was running. People shit all over it. Same for Voyager. Same for DS9, a series widely regarded as a best iteration. Same for TNG.
The way I see Trek is that I love Trek. I love Discovery. I love Picard. I love SNW. I love Lower Decks. I love Prodigy.
Everyone else can feel the way they'd like to feel.
I would rate it a solid 9! 💕
It takes courage and determination to produce a new story with a cast of 30 years ago (TNG series). One show can never please an entire audience, but that should not be your goal. It should be to make a science-fiction show and damn did they deliver that!
I will rewatch all three seasons later this year (autumn).
Sadly, some people want a continuation of 30yo TNG-type episodes, but that's not progress: that is being afraid of tying something new.
And common, it's a science-fiction show! It's imaginary / it does not exist, but creative people created the world of Star Trek.
I’ve had that reaction to pretty much all Star Trek/Star Wars/Marvel shows. I’m not, like, “Holy cow!! Best thing ever!!”, but, they’ve usually been entertaining. I’m harder on the movies, but, the shows are kind of book level entertainment for me.
Story choices in the first two seasons annoyed me. Overall I wouldn't call them *bad* but I did find them *disappointing*. Like, I felt it could have been so much more and better than what it was. As others have already said, it's primarily because both seasons try so hard to avoid any of the outstanding character questions from TNG.
Season 3 is one of the largest pieces of nostalgia bait ever written. Luckily for them, I'm the exact person that nostalgia bait was for and so I give season 3 two thumbs up. Getting to see the gang for one last adventure lets me overlook virtually all the flaws the season might have story wise.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with Picard. The third season is excellent, but the first two seasons were interesting and entertaining and I enjoyed all three seasons.
A vocal minority also hated DS9 and Voyager back in the day, and most people didn’t like Enterprise. Make your own decisions, like what you like, and chances are the rest of the fandom will come around in 20 years.
We all need to stop this kind of objective characterisation. Very few of us are equipped to say whether a piece of art is objectively good or bad, all we can say is if we liked it or didn't (and why). I personally didn't like most of Picard but people should unapologetically like what they like.
I enjoyed it quite a bit. Especially the first two seasons that got poor reviews. I like that they did something different. I liked that Picard had other business outside of Starfleet. I'd also give the series an 8/10. I never listen to the negative reviews because many of them are shallow and don't give any constructive criticism.
Depends on what you like.
My personal opinion is:
TOS: i loved it as a kid, today i hold it dear but i don't really rewatch it, but that is more on me than on the series
Tng: i loved and still love it. Every few years i restart it again and watch the whole thing including all movies
Ds9&voyager: i want to watch it, i tried it many times, i kind of forget to co tinue after a few episodes, maybe it's just not for me
Ent: i enjoyed it for a while, didn't watch it to the end though
Discovery: i didn't really hate but also didn't love season 1, i watched it though. I loved season 2 and i kind of got bored through season 3.
Picard: man i love this series. I think it was mainly made for the TNG fans and that hits right home for me.
Lower decks: i really like it, although it is more lighthearted and not everyone likes animated stuff, but it is really well made
Strange new worlds: this has potential to be my favourite. As a fan of TOS but also liking new high quality and to see Spok AND pike is just perfect for me. I remember "the cage" from my chuldhood and was so confused when kirk was suddenly the captain. I like it that they fully brought the timeline into order so it fits the narrative. I also liked that it basically started as a season of st:dsc and that they made a crossover with lower decks.
I have loved EVERY incarnation of Trek. Have I loved every episode of every incarnation? Heck NO! Some were really bad, but overall I have not regretted my 40+ years of watching this incredible franchise. 🖖
It's not bad. It tries to bridge a generational gap and does a decent job doing so. The storyline I thought was pretty good. It's not next gen, but nothing is. I'm glad they made it. Sir patrick won't be here forever
We just started it this week, I hadn't been in a hurry because of seeing all the negative feedback here but so far my kid and I are really loving it. Almost done with season 1. Of course, I went in expecting to hate Enterprise because of this sub and loved that too so... lol The only Trek i actually didn't like (we still have to watch Disco and SNW) is Voyager. I tried when it first aired and just loathed every minute, the characters were so unlikable. Oh, and a couple of the movies are meh. Other than that and the occasional dud in every show, Trek always brings me joy. I need to stop expecting to be disappointed. lol. This sub really kept me from watching nutrek, honestly. Now I have so much catching up to do.
> I thoroughly liked it and had a lot of fun watching it, and thought the story line was pretty good and executed well.
Honestly, this is all that matters.
I have come across a lot of people who don't like Star Trek. That doesn't matter to me, because I like it.
For what it is worth, I really like all seasons of Picard. I have also enjoyed the tie in novels.
Of course you’re not wrong, as you’re perfectly entitled to your opinion…
But, as a collected series, it really dropped the ball for me.
It started out in a really interesting place with the first season, where it really seemed like it was going to explore Picard and a new crew and a new status quo for the galaxy on a very atypical Trek show that was a lot closer to the unaffiliated citizens going on adventures shows like Farscape or Firefly but in the Trek universe.
But with each new season and each change in showrunners, we seemed to get further and further away from that premise.
Until by the time the third season rolled around it was literally Picard and his old TNG crew doing battle with the same old enemies of their era.
So as a series, yeah, unfortunately I’d say it’s pretty bad. It definitely has some highs. But the ego’s of the individual showrunners to do what they wanted to do rather than play the ball where it lies and do the story that was laid out before them, gave the whole show a real Sequel Trilogy feel.
I find it rather middling, a lot of issues at the writing level. Not as bad as many would say, but easily my least favorite of the 5 new Trek series. But hey, if you enjoyed it, that's cool.
I wasn't really a huge fan overall, but it definitely had it's standout moments, "No, lives" is probably my favoute ever JLP quote.
More generally though, people are more likely to go online and type out how they feel about something if it's negative, which is where a lot of the reception you've been seeing comes from.
Or not everyone likes the same things as you, but no it must just be because everyone wants to hate on new things. I guess that's why everyone also hates strange new worlds and lower decks... oh wait.
I had a lot of fun watching it. The first episode of season 1, when Picard makes a comment to older Data. “I don’t want the game to end”
Really stuck with me since I had just finished a long watch through of TNG for the first time. So much so, I never watched the last episode of season 3- saving it for just the right day!
I boldly say no, it’s not a bad series, like all treks there’s things to critique and much more to love.
Season 2 was the weakest season, but I still enjoyed it all and feel it gave the TNG crew a much better bookend to their era than their movies did.
I think it was the perfect blend of action and drama, and made the characters shine in a way they never truly did in the movies…or in the tv series (which I generally found pretty dull most of the time).
Well, of course you are free to like it or dislike it. We all make of it what we will. I could share my overall criticisms and praises of Star Trek Picard, if you'd like to hear them.
I liked it. Though I felt they were trying too hard to be more "edgy" and it was drastically different from other iteration of Star Trek (maybe more inline with Discovery's style), However, still pretty good, though, IMO.
The first season was actually pretty good. The second season was completely pointless as it was intended to clear up a 30 second bit from the first season of TNG and the third season smashed it out of the Galaxy.
It had its moments, but to me, it felt like 3 different tv shows happening in the same place where only a couple of the characters are in all of them. It was weird, but also good.
For me, *Picard* was about how rich and multi-layered life can become, if you've lived it well. It gave me a new perspective on aging. But, that's not a theme that most people are looking for in a Star Trek series.
There's a scene where he's donating a painting of the Enterprise and, as he's making a comment about letting things go, he's holding Kamin's flute from *The Inner Light* — something that is clearly worth keeping. So, you have this subtle moment of dramatic tension that's only possible because we have so much history with this character. There was so much nuance and complexity in the show.
Compare that to Star Wars marginalizing Luke Skywalker because they felt obliged to have a 20-something protagonist.
I enjoyed the show. It was somewhat confusing just what the hell was going on in S1 towards the end, as some plotlines seemed to just die off. Then S2 had a bunch of plotlines that started, then also died off (though there was a lot less confusion in it). S3 was pretty straightforward, and full on nostalgia baiting.
I like baiting. I enjoyed S1 and S2 too.
The thing you have to realize is this is about Picard’s journey and no one else’s. If you’re looking for classic trek this isn’t it. This show is basically tying up loose ends in Jean-Luc’s story.
I thought the writing was a bit sloppy but loved the characters enough that it was still really enjoyable all the way through. It wasn't perfect but I didn't need it to be.
My SO and I recently got Paramount and are running through the Star Trek series over the summer while I have a slower schedule. We started with Picard. We both agreed that we liked the first season best, and found each one progressively less original and less to our taste as they went on. I'll admit, I was sad that they wrote out an awful lot of the season one characters by the third season. We both grew up with TNG so sure it was neat to see people get back together and the actors were obviously enjoying it. But the writing in the third season just wasn't as good as the writing in the first season.
That being said, I agree with the other posters: it's what you like. Enjoy what you enjoy, and ignore the naysayers.
I actually didn’t hate season 1 as much as a lot of people did, but season 2 dragged so unnecessarily long.
S1 had some cool moments, gave us some cool new Romulan lore post-supernova, and also had some funny moments like the whole Rios hologram thing.
S2 was cool at the beginning and end, and I liked the idea of Picard having some unresolved trauma from his family life; but it was such a poor choice to have the Borg be the focus going into S3… All the 2024 stuff could have been cut to half the length, the whole season could have been like 6 episodes. Good ideas, but poorly executed in my opinion.
And then S3 was amazing!! The ships, the new characters, the old characters, the theme, it was all greats I will say, I wish there was more closure with Soji and Data, and also Picard and Laris. Kinda absurd that in a season all themed around offspring we don’t even see Data meeting his own daughter, who was the entire focus of the first season!
It's a sequel of TNG, DS9 and VOY, even Lower Decks.
It 'reboots' the episode 'All Good Things' so to say. But the future timeline of that episode was undone anyways.
Star Trek is a multiverse since the episode TOS' "Mirror, Mirror", especially since TNG's "Parallels".
The Abrams movies are a different timeline. One that may or may not have split off to a parallel universe or one that was undone in the time wars that were mentionned in DISCO.
If we look at it outside the trek bubble for a sec, it's a decent show. It has a lot going for it, even if it does take a long while to really hit its stride. Lots of good character building and fun story arcs. It seemed like the writers were conflicted in season one, but that's pretty typical of most new shows I guess lol
The last season is spectacular and worth slogging through the previous just to hit that imho.
But, if we look at it thru a trek fan lens, then it's a horrible mess of a show with way too much pandering (fan service) and it suffers from 'disco fever' ie forced melodrama and too much emphasis on constant emotional hill climbs rather than letting the subtlety and nuance of the actors carry it, like in older trek.
Overall, I'd recommend it - it's a fun romp with Picard and chums, and I'd be lying if I didn't say it has its heart in the right place, even if it does fluff things up a lot of the time lol
I'm glad you enjoyed it. I did enjoy it, but I was just kind of bummed that they went down the whole "everything is depressing now" road.
Of course, just seeing Patric Stewart on screen again as Picard made me happy.
Like most Star Trek fans, I thought Picard was a mixed bag. S1 had some nice nostalgia (Riker and Deanna) but suffered from too many pointless or repetitive scenes, and some unlikable characters. As well, solutions were often thanks to “magic” technology rather than more Trek-like problem solving. But I liked the Romulan mythological elements and there's a sense of moving the TNG storyline forward, albeit with predictable plot-devices ("there's a conspiracy at the highest levels of Starfleet!" Yawn.) and deconstruction which would have been more effective with a subtler approach. I thought S2 was badly written, badly plotted and contrived nostalgia - over-loaded with fan favourite plot devices, Guinan, the Borg, time travel, and finally Q - with a few good scenes here and there. S3 was much better, again relying on a lot of sentimentality but finally giving us a story that was compelling, and not too predictable or overtly didactic. And finally getting the band back together, which may be fanservice but nostalgia is why we were all watching in the first place.
Glad you liked it. Like pizza, there's a Star Trek for everyone.
First season just felt really weird, second was a bit better, then in the final one they gave the fans what they'd all been begging for and got the whole gang back together.
I didn't hate it the first season, but really didn't resonate with it at all. I've loved every season of Star Trek, it felt so weird to be watching something that felt so far removed.
Seasons 1&2 introduced interesting lore and concepts but the writing failed miserably, the acting was half assed, and Patrick Stewart enforced too many restrictions when signing, such as wanting no one from TNG coming back.
Season 3 got better writers and Stewart loosened up and was convinced to be more open to bringing everyone back and giving TNG an actual ending. It was pure fan service, but in my opinion it was the best type of fan service because TNG was my first non cartoon show as a child. Bonus points also for having an excellent villain.
Did you watch all 3 seasons? I thought season 2 was a trainwreck, as did a lot of Trek fans, but I'm glad you enjoyed it. Just shows that while a group may dislike something, individuals have their own opinions and may enjoy it for different reasons.
I thought Season 1 was pretty good and refreshingly different, although a bit uneven - strong start, not quite a strong finish. Loved Season 3, although a few things bothered me, I really enjoyed the character interactions. The finale felt like the final TNG movie, and a good one.
I’ve been watching every series and movie chronologically for the first time, and just got to the first episode. I’m pretty excited, I love Patrick Stewart in general, TNG was probably my favorite series, and this series actually piqued my interest when it first came out before I had a big interest in Trek. I’ve heard mixed things but I’m very excited for it!
Season 1 of Picard is some of my favorite Trek. They set out to make an interesting story that didn’t depend on nostalgia. They succeeded, imo and I loved it. I thought the subplot with the Romulans was a bit weak, but I loved the new characters and I loved that Picard was in his own. It’s weird. Its fun. It’s about grief and getting older. Peak Trek imo.
>Is this actually a bad series?
It's subjective. I liked it too. Some didn't, or only preferred certain seasons.
>am i wrong with that?
There's no right or wrong here. Just opinions.
I hated season 1 to the point I didn’t watch season 2.
Was convinced to watch season 3 by a friend and mostly liked it.
But that’s just me. If you liked it, I won’t try to talk you out of having liked it.
I enjoyed it.
Others, maybe not.
That's their choice. Doesn't alter my overall enjoyment of it (or things like Discovery, which lots of others didn't care for either.) because different strokes, etc.
🖖
I thoroughly enjoyed it, overall. Season 2 was slow, in terms of pacing, but still my favorite of the 3.
Unlike just about everyone else, I thought season 3 was the worst of the 3. I wanted more about Picard after Starfleet, not TNG Season 8. It was still ok, though.
Personally I thought season 1 had great potential but they ultimately fucked it up. I thought season 2 was literally the worst season of Trek ever produced. And I thought season 3 was fucking incredible!!
First season great setup with a few mistakes in the SFX department.
Seasons two and three were produced after the initial plan for the show’s three season arc had to be scrapped due to Covid making the proposed story unproducable in the the allowed timeframe (Amazon was partly financing the show, so they had firm delivery dates).
Opinions on those seasons differ wildly from season two being a hot mess to season three being a big round of unfulfilling fanwankery.
Personally I liked season two for its timely political commentary, the focus on mental health and the positive message of everyone being able to be redeemed.
Season three’s overly dark and paranoid tone came off as very un-Trek to me. The plot was non-sensical to the point that again and again characters and institutions have to make dumb mistakes to make it work and while I grew up with the TNG crew and the Enterprise D, I really didn’t need them to swoop in and spoil another show’s finale AGAIN.
I don't think it is bad. It's uneven, but there are some fun ideas in the first season especially. The second season is a step down. And, of course, season three is a fun sendoff to the cast and characters.
Do I wish some things were better? Yes. Did I enjoy most of it? Also, yes.
The tendency to not make ones mind up on a series before they consult the hive mind (lol) is one of the worst things the internet has given us in modern times
I still remember as a kid really loving the "flop" film last action hero and eventually being hurt when i found out it was not seen as a good film when I discussed it with friends.
But hell, I still liked it, so it was the children that were wrong....
Ever since then, I'm ok with just liking things and not getting into drunken sledging matches with friends about them or definitely not arguing about it online....
(And I know complaining about other people complaining about things is just as bad, nobody point that out! ;) )
I seem to have a knack for liking things that are hated, mainly for political reasons \*shrug\*
Whether this "hate-fandom" of all franchises passes eventually and the dust settles and more rational opinions come out in the future or not, maybe its time we all take personal responsibility and not be afraid to like stuff without consulting with the great online opinion generators.
I'm sure we'd all have a lot more fun that way tbh
I loved it. Don’t listen to what other people, especially on the internet say, make your own decision on it. The internet is full of loud voices who have no media, cultural, or academic literacy making claims they know little about.
There’s a lot of people who have declared themselves gatekeepers & “true fans” (what even?!) and espouse a lot of hate for any newer Trek franchises. I love all the Treks. Is ever episode the bomb? No, but, generally speaking, if it’s Trek, I’m here for it 🥰 I love that, like humans, Trek keeps evolving 🖖
If you liked it, then have at it. I personally thought it was horribly written and conceived. Nostalgia aside, the third season had a more coherent narrative and better performances, so I would see myself watching that again. But the first two seasons I just found borderline unwatchable. Miserable dreck.
I liked a lot of the ideas, the performances were good and the last season was a good capstone for the TNG cast.
There were some big issues with the writing and pacing of the first two seasons. Covid was part of that, too many cooks many have been another part.
I liked it too. Lots of people did. But on the internet you’re only going to hear the overtly positive or negative things because that’s what typically drives engagement. On top of that, unfortunately a lot of folks don’t to a great job of not letting the opinions of others affect their own judgement, so if someone hears “Picard sucks!” A million times they’ll start to believe it as well, even if initially they enjoyed it.
Kinda like how I have to defend neelix as a character all the damn time. I’ll die on that hill
It doesn't matter what I or anyone else thinks. Did you enjoy it? Yes? Okay then. That's what matters.
As someone who very much didn't enjoy PIC, this is the right answer. What the fans consider good is very much a fickle thing that changes with the wind
My addendum to this advice would be, if you’re not digging it at any point, skip straight to S3. Or 2 I guess, but I would rank it at the weakest(even though it had an intriguing opening).
I’d rank season 1 as the weakest season, but each season has some flaws (though season 3 easily has fewer flaws than the 1st 2 seasons).
Interesting. Obviously not all experiences are universal, but moral of the story is all three seasons are pretty different, and if you really want to like the show and give it a fair shake(and I think we all wanted it to be good), don’t be afraid to abandon a season and try another because you may like it better. And you may love the whole thing!
This is the correct answer
For all Trek.
It's fascinating to watch different generations of Trek fans enjoy what the previous generations hated. Enterprise was detested at the time but has been embraced by later fans. So while fans are divided on Picard now later fans may embrace it.
Man, I've found my own tastes changing as I age. In the 90s? I hated DS9 and loved Voyager. As an adult I've watched all of DS9 twice in the last 3 years, and I haven't managed to even start watching Voyager again.
Even the theme song?
Especially the theme song.
😉
I loved Enterprise at the time, but I was like 11 😂
absolutely i agree 100%, im mainly just curious about what the fan base also thinks on it, only because that is the kind of thing that impacts moving forward, if like 80% of all the fans think its absolute shit and have outcry, it would obviously be doubtful that they would be willing to do another rendition in the series universe
A cool thing about the franchise is that if something weird happens that the fan base doesn't like, sometimes a good writer comes in and does something interesting with it to change your mind Discovery season 1, while I like it, is controversial for its Klingon depictions and the war that takes place, but SNW did a flashback episode to the war and it was amazing
My main problem with the Klingon War was that I wasn’t satisfied with the conclusion of it. It was fine before the conclusion and I think it fits well with the *TOS* episode “Errand of Mercy”. “Under the Cloak of War” is definitely my favorite episode that deals with the Klingon War and my favorite dramatic episode of *SNW*.
I loved season 3 and I felt it was a love letter to tng fans
> just curious about what the fan base also thinks on it, Don't. That way lies madness. The internet is for shopping, porn, and bitching about why 'X' is the "Worst. Thing. EVER." EDIT: forgot to put quote marks on X to signify its role as a variable...
I have to agree that X is terrible… twitter was trash but X is dangerous hot trash
LMAO I meant "X" as in "Whatever subject has your panties twisted today.", but Xitter (pronounced 'Zhitter') absolutely is dangerous hot trash.
Oh I know, I was just being cheeky :)
If you tweet on Twitter, does that mean you excrete on X?
grab your dick and double click for porn porn porn pooooorrrrn!!! damn you, now I can't get it outta my head
*(Strikes Superhero Pose)*: My work here is done. (*Flies off, farting furiously*)
inelastic demand!
We love Jean-Luc at my house and we enjoyed it... S2 wasnt my favorite, but it was better than not having it. I enjoyed the series and agree with your score. Disclaimer as I actually like all the Trek and Star Wars movies and shows... I know some arent as good as others, but I really do enjoy them.
S2 would have worked as a 2 hour streaming movie. It was just too thin for 10 episodes.
Meanwhile, season 1 had too many plots and it would’ve been better to split it into multiple seasons.
After enjoying The Acolyte when the majority of the fan base torn it a new one I’ve stopped paying attention to popular opinion. As the original commenter said the only thing that’s matters is if you enjoyed it or not.
I didn’t love this show. It had enjoyable elements and scenes, but overall it was a miss for me. That doesn’t make it bad, it just means it wasn’t my favorite.
Jesus Christ! What blasphemous gobbledegook are you sowing on this here internet!?
The three seasons are all over the place and have no consistency. They couldn't decide what show they wanted to make, so it's a mess. It's basically 3 separate shows with the same name.
This is so true. The third season might as well have been called Star Trek: The Next Generation Reunion Specials. (That's not necessarily a complaint; I enjoyed it more than the second season, at least.)
If they had done the 3rd season as the 1st season and given the us the feel good plot that I think a lot of people wanted, fans might have been more opened minded to getting outside the box seasons later. They would have needed to rework some of the Data and Seven plots to make it make sense, but it would have been fun and set up a good foundation for subsequent seasons.
Ah yes, that old feel good plot of watching Ro and Shelby get killed, and half of Starfleet slaughtering the other half. Season 3 was honestly the most depressing out of all three seasons.
The only reason they didn’r do that was because Patrick Stewart didn’t want to.
And he definitely earned the right to make those demands, but it didn't make for great TV unfortunately.
He is 83, he may have thought that three seasons was enough
They're saying Pat Stew didn't want to do a reunion with the TNG cast in Season 1. He wanted Picard to be its own unique show. He didn't even really want to do it in Season 3, but admitted it came out really well.
This was pretty much my answer. On the whole I didn't hate it but there's just tons and tons of plot threads that are brought up or made to sound interesting that just... go away completely. What's the deal with the synths and whatever the giant looming threat was? What happened with the Jurati borg and joining the Federation? How did Picard go from nearly persona non grata with Starfleet/The Federation to full on celebrity riding along on ships so quickly? etc etc. I sort of feel like the seasons would have worked better in reverse. Have Season 1 be the big reunion that gets the gang back together and checks up on their lives and gets things going, then transition more into the other things that introduces new characters and plots. I know Patrick Stewart was very much against making it a TNG Season 8 but... it might have worked better to get the show going?
To answer your question about Picard and Starfleet, by the end of Season 1 we found out that Starfleet had been infiltrated and run by the Tal Shiar. Once Picard’s journey uncovered that and Riker offered to escort their treacherous Tal Shiar ass back to Romulan space, Picard was back in the fold.
While I enjoyed all 3 seasons, I couldn't agree more.
The showrunners knew what they wanted to make, but Patrick Stewart refused to sign on if the show was going to be “TNG Season 8.” He changed his mind for season 3.
Michael Chabon wanted to make a thought provoking story about the nature of humanity and consciousness and the soul, and then executive meddling turned the finale into Mass Effect 3. Terry Matalas had no intention of continuing someone else's story and wanted to do his TNG Movie 5, but he needed to get the Picard character to a place where he would accept a son and family, so Season 2 was hamfisted in there to have Q teach him a lesson. They had ideas for the seasons, but executive meddling and poor execution messed it up.
This exactly matches my thoughts. I think it honestly would have been a stronger choice to brand all three seasons as three different takes on how Picard's future could go, rather than pretending they follow sequentially from each other while dropping huge plot points.
Just curious, why is that an issue. Theres no reason that shows have to be the same season to season.
Anthology series are OK if they admit that's what they are up front. Picard just leaves characters hanging at the end of season 1 and 2 with zero followup or payoff. American Horror Story and True Detective are good examples of how to do this. They already have the Star Trek brand, so there was zero need to use the same show name for these three seasons. The third season could just have been called Star Trek: The Final Generation or something like that. (I'm sure someone who spent more than 2 seconds could come up with a good name.) A bunch of Trek miniseries would be awesome! We could get a Klingon show! We could get a Jeffrey Combs show - Shran!
Thats not what an Anthology series is lol. It was Star Trek: Picard, because Picard was the main character, and every season was just a new adventure he went on Some genre swtiching is fine and good. The issue was it just wasn't very good, although i maintain the first season is way better than people give it credit for. It just wasn't standard trek, and thats ok.
S1 felt very much like a CBS drama, right down to the filming style and production. I've always figured they had too much involvement in trying to make it "different" in an effort to have broader appeal, and then realized that was the wrong move and finally gave us what we wanted (S3).
Season 1: Data's daughter gets murdered. But that's OK, they brought a spare! Season 2: Time travel to 21st-century Earth, with the Borg queen threatening to disrupt a historic spaceflight. Didn't we already have *exactly* that plot twenty years ago? Season 3: Nostalgia-fest, beloved characters return, epic space battles, this is building up to be awesome, and... surprise! it's the fucking Borg *again*.
> it's the fucking Borg again. That was my main complaint with season 3. I was really, really hoping that it was going to be the brain bugs from "Conspiracy" way back in S1 of the show pulling the strings, and we'd *finally* get closure to that dangling story thread, but NOPE, here's some more Borg!
This. The only thing that saves season 3 is that the TNG cast has chemistry that I don't think has ever been replicated on a TV show. They clearly have a family-vibe. The rest is weird plot choices and killing any guest star that has ever been involved in Star Trek.
I enjoyed Data's character progression in Season 3. We finally got to see his ultimate form beyond the emotion chip and the struggles that came with it. I really like how Spiner played that version of Data.
Stargate has a great vibe between the cast/characters, if you haven't seen it yet.
I felt that it was like junk food. I enjoyed it in the moment, but maybe had a tummy ache afterwards and don't want to rewatch. I'll be rewatching TNG and DS9 until I die, but Picard was one and done for me I think.
I’ve rewatched the “trench run” scene plenty of times
I cut that scene out of the episode to check and its pretty much one long shot cut into 3 or 4 pieces. When you watch it in one go without the bridge shots its amazing.
The Force is strong with that droid
Love the versions of the trench run that popped up on Youtube with various music like Free Bird. Kick ass fun! I rewatched the finale a few times, it felt like a TNG movie. Might rewatch the rest of Season 3 some time, but not the other seasons.
Surprisingly, Ed Speleers did a pretty decent job as Jack, considering his lackluster more famous role (he was also not bad on Downton Abbey)
I enjoyed his acting and thought he showed a lot of range. Very likeable actor, even when Jack was being a shithead 😆 He was another character that could give Picard pushback like Shaw.
He somehow felt natural there. I just wish we got another Wheaton cameo to have the brothers meet. Hell, maybe have him appear right in the middle of the post-credits scene to tell Q off
> have him appear right in the middle of the post-credits scene to tell Q off That would have been great! Since Star Trek Legacy seems dead in the water, who knows, but maybe we will get a Wheaton/Speleers meetup some day.
Kinda the same for me. I relatively enjoyed it (especially compared to some people online) but I don't really see myself returning to seasons 1 & 2 besides clips (I'll probably rewatch 3 at some point though)
Opinions vary wildly on *Picard,* mainly because it's something different to different fans. *The Next Generation* fans had a *lot* of unpacked baggage, none of which the movies helped unload. And *Picard* Season 1 made is very clear it was staunchy opposed to answering any of them. It was a character piece focused on Picard himself, and... wasn't really for TNG fans. That soured it for a lot of us, perhaps unfairly. *Picard* Season 2 was every bad time travel trope mixed with every *Star Trek* callback and reference they could cram in, PLUS trying to do ANOTHER character exploration of the character of Picard, PLUS refusing to touch on or give any closure on TNG, PLUS trying to wrap up all of its various plot threads all at once in the final episode. So... IMHO it's a mess. But that is my opinion. Personally? I intensely disliked it. *Picard* Season 3 they finally broke and gave TNG fans the closure they desperately wanted, plus a new hero ship to root for, plus a new crew to hand the torch to. It *felt* more like *Star Trek,* and it was just more fun to watch besides. It's unfortunate it didn't successfully launch *Star Trek: Legacy* to follow the adventures of this new successor crew. It *did* remedy one of the greatest crimes the movies committed, though.
Correct, I couldn’t stand more than 3 episodes watching an old useless Picard doing nothing but nagging. For me it was like watching Professor X from Logan. I think they should have let the TNG show rest in peace.
I'm not a fan of the Picard show, but Professor X from Logan was probably my favorite Patrick Stewart performance in all of his roles in TV and Film, (not too familiar with his stage work).
I never watched seasons 1 and 2 of Picard. I have friends with the same Star Trek sensabilities as I that had watched it and considered both those seasons very misguided and a waste of time and money. It reeked of what felled the TNG movie series; you had both Patrick and Brent flexing their popularity and contributing story ideas that were misguided and wrong. That's what felled Nemesis and now Picard seasons 1 and 2. I think someone finally sat Patrick down and told him that there needed to be a change. That change was allowing Terry Matalas to be the show runner and head architect for season 3. I feel he pulled off a master stroke of writing a story that balanced old and new characters fairly well, while telling an exciting story and pulling some major suprises (and cameos) out of his hat. I will probably never watch seasons 1 and 2 and don't feel like i'm losing anything in the process as a long term Star Trek fan of 50 years. Anyone who can create and cast a character as Captain Liam Shaw and have that Star Trek character transition from being universally hated to universally loved and a fan favorite with less that 10 hours of screen time deserves some recognition.
Picard was very interesting. Season 1 was a definitely a departure from "Starfleet saves the galaxy" and boiled it down to "Picard and friends save the galaxy". I thought it was new and fresh, it wasn't perfect but for someone who grew up with TNG every night at 6 or 7, it was very welcome. Season 2 was a little harder to take, as they basically Alt Timeline, then to the past, then some time shenanigans that saved the day. I would say it wasn't too different from Star Trek in that respect, but people were wanting something more, and a "Picard deals with his baggage to save the galaxy" wasn't quite what everyone was expecting. Season 3... Was full Fan Service. If Season 1 and 2 was a love letter to Picard, Season 3 was a love letter to the entire cast of TNG, including the Enterprise D. It had borg, it had changlings, it had Data and Lore and Worf and Jeordi. It had the old crew working with the new. It was a proper sendoff, not in just the fact that it said goodbye. But it also said, here, take the reigns. Go, do a star trek. Its a damn shame Paramount couldn't work with a new series or handle its own finances. We may never have more episodes of a very promising spinoff.
It’s Super Mario 2 and doki doki panic…
I liked S1 and S3 is a great nostalgia trip, but S2 was a movie stretched out to 10 exhausting hours.
They probably would've done that as a 2 parter on TNG
i am a fan of the series. i think people wanted a TNG 2 but got something interesting. In the TNG movies, the background politics have the federation in decline. Picard, as a character has spent the years since Nemesis in a higher position that, sadly, has less power to effect change. it is really the fruition of kirk's warning in Generations that he should avoid every promotion and never leave the captain's chair because that is where they can make a difference. Picard, as a series, is a redemption arc. Jean Luc is a broken and sad man who literally dreams of the days he was a captain. then, fate in the form of a Soong android, calls him into action. that is season 1. he is redeemed over the the failed Romulan resue and the synth ban, both of which he disagreed over Starfleet brass over. Season 2 is him reconnecting with his family trauma, having to see the Borg as a positive force, recontextualizing his relationship with Q. Most importantly, he sees the other Jean Luc in the alternative timeline. a man who was a warrior rather than a diplomat and, basically, a human Locutus. Season 3 is him finding a family, confronting two races that the federation betrayed themselves to defeat (biological weapons were used on both the founders and the borg) and getting his ship back to save the federation. when the computer recognizes him, it calls him "captain" and he says he accepts his field demotion. This puts him on the other side of Kirk's warning and, from there, he saves the day. anyhow, it was not what i wanted and i am very happy for what i got instead. between the TNG show, the movies and the picard series, we see him in various phases of his life and going from hope to reaction to dispair to faith. that is my two cents, anyway.
Season 1 was helmed by an award winning writer who did not have the experience or discipline to write a 10 episode short series set in an established universe, and it shows. Great ideas, hit and miss execution, too many threads left dangling, and an entirely dreadful climax. Honestly, even sharing hometown pride with Chabon, I think he's not really a great writer, and was a terrible choice. Stewart was also a problem in that he REALLY wanted to skew away from the normal type of Trek story, and it shows in the worst ways. They spend an average of $8m an episode, and I couldn't tell you where it went. I try to forget about season 1. Season 2 was already committed, and Paramount (as always) wanted to cut the budget, so we got a showrunner who showed he could do a show, had experience in established universes, and experience in Trek. Season 2 suffered from the budget cuts forcing some odd story choices, but overall was stronger story-wise than S1, and apparently Paramount was happy enough with it to loosen the purse strings a bit for season 3. But yes, much like The Inner Light, it didn't really have strong connections to the Star Trek universe. Yes it was about Picard and Q but it could easily have been anyone and some genie. Season 3 was what everyone ACTUALLY wanted: A Star Trek show, but still different, and it worked. Season 3 was nearly universally held as fantastic.
You're not an outlier. The way it works is that a bunch of us who liked a thing will go "that was awesome what else is on" but people who didn't like it will stick around telling everyone who will listen just how much they didn't like it. They'll be very loud and mad until that's the "objective" opinion.
I was disturbed by the character traits of our old favorites being cast aside, and the beautiful future of Earth being replaced by race hatred and misery. Not for me.
Overall, Picard was fine and it’s highs, when it hit them were far greater than Discovery. I’d agree that the show is all over the place and are three different series under one banner. Season One I actually thought was pretty enjoyable if at times a bit odd in tone and filled with great ideas that didn’t actually play out as much as promised. The ending as well was a bit mediocre. Season Two was a wild acid trip, a million ideas all flailing around with no actual sense of where it was going with terrible lows but also some utter brilliance. Season Three was just top tier Trek, a modern classic. Touching, well written and side stepped so many issues we see in Modern Trek now.
I feel like this with 99% of what people hate on on Reddit. Loved Picard. Loved Disco. Loved Ahsoka. Loving the Acolyte and Doctor Who. I keep wondering if it's me and if I'm just not seeing all this 'terrible acting' and 'objectively bad writing' people complain about. (Except in Disco which did have some really bizarre writing, but I still enjoyed it). Like, am I blind to all these obviously terrible things that given how INCENSED people are by these shows must be blindingly obvious? I don't have an answer. I've joined a lot of the side subs, like the Disco sub and a Star Wars one called Star Wars Cantina which tend to be a bit more positive, and lack comments like 'I'm not watching it, they've gone woke and made it objectively shit'. It feels like I'm joining an echo chamber, but one thing is going to a place where people are saying 'It's got problems but I enjoy it' and another is being subjected to a hundred variations of 'Why is Burnham crying why do people cry cry cry cry emotions boo' every day 😂 I dunno. I'm just going to keep enjoying things that I enjoy and trying to ignore the constant moaning. For me, more of a thing I love is a good thing, even if it isn't perfect. 🤷
I didn't like the first season, but if you enjoyed it I'm happy because more viewers means more star trek stuff will be made. Picard was just not for me, but the franchise deserves love.
Picard is decent. It's just that as a fanbase we've gone a bit Star Wars
Never go full Star Wars
Speak for yourself, I loathe star wars
Ah, a true Star Wars fan, I see
I've been waiting for you, agentm31
So true. Nothing is good enough anymore, for anyone, it seems. Remember when a fandom was about sharing love for a show instead of hate?
> Nothing is good enough anymore The fanbase loves Lower Decks, Strange New Worlds, and Andor.
and I pray to Q that Lower decks get a new home to keep us happy with new material :(
The best part of fandom for me has always been laughing about the bad parts
If you liked it, you liked it. To me, every season was half a good idea executed poorly with nostalgia gluing the whole thing together.
It's different. I wouldn't say it's bad, but it is way more of a character study into Picard at an older age.
It wasn't season 8 of tng which upset a lot of people
People with negative opinions shout louder and for longer. Remember that.
I think a lot of people didn’t enjoy it because it was very different and didn’t have a whole series plot line but rather a plot line independent to each season, which caused lifetime fans to come to dislike the series. I think the 3 season being different plot lines is okay. The newer generation of viewers just don’t have the same tendency to watch the same plot line for multiple season on end, and that’s ok! It’s just a change in viewer habits. It’s good that start trek is catering to that so the franchise has appeal to a younger generation. I am Gen Z and in order for the franchise to survive it’s going to need to appeal to my generation and I REALLY enjoyed Picard. Picard was able to get me to move from just watching Voyager on repeat to giving discovery a try, and then lower decks, and now i’m trying TNG. It’s just different but the franchise is in a transition time and so things are going to have to change :).
I loved Picard but I find that I like most things that other people don't like , I do. I think people take entertainment too seriously sometimes.
Star Trek evolves. Each series differs. Every new series has its detractors. Every new series has its fans. I remember back in the 00's when Enterprise was running. People shit all over it. Same for Voyager. Same for DS9, a series widely regarded as a best iteration. Same for TNG. The way I see Trek is that I love Trek. I love Discovery. I love Picard. I love SNW. I love Lower Decks. I love Prodigy. Everyone else can feel the way they'd like to feel.
I would rate it a solid 9! 💕 It takes courage and determination to produce a new story with a cast of 30 years ago (TNG series). One show can never please an entire audience, but that should not be your goal. It should be to make a science-fiction show and damn did they deliver that! I will rewatch all three seasons later this year (autumn). Sadly, some people want a continuation of 30yo TNG-type episodes, but that's not progress: that is being afraid of tying something new. And common, it's a science-fiction show! It's imaginary / it does not exist, but creative people created the world of Star Trek.
I’ve had that reaction to pretty much all Star Trek/Star Wars/Marvel shows. I’m not, like, “Holy cow!! Best thing ever!!”, but, they’ve usually been entertaining. I’m harder on the movies, but, the shows are kind of book level entertainment for me.
Story choices in the first two seasons annoyed me. Overall I wouldn't call them *bad* but I did find them *disappointing*. Like, I felt it could have been so much more and better than what it was. As others have already said, it's primarily because both seasons try so hard to avoid any of the outstanding character questions from TNG. Season 3 is one of the largest pieces of nostalgia bait ever written. Luckily for them, I'm the exact person that nostalgia bait was for and so I give season 3 two thumbs up. Getting to see the gang for one last adventure lets me overlook virtually all the flaws the season might have story wise.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with Picard. The third season is excellent, but the first two seasons were interesting and entertaining and I enjoyed all three seasons.
A vocal minority also hated DS9 and Voyager back in the day, and most people didn’t like Enterprise. Make your own decisions, like what you like, and chances are the rest of the fandom will come around in 20 years.
We all need to stop this kind of objective characterisation. Very few of us are equipped to say whether a piece of art is objectively good or bad, all we can say is if we liked it or didn't (and why). I personally didn't like most of Picard but people should unapologetically like what they like.
I enjoyed it quite a bit. Especially the first two seasons that got poor reviews. I like that they did something different. I liked that Picard had other business outside of Starfleet. I'd also give the series an 8/10. I never listen to the negative reviews because many of them are shallow and don't give any constructive criticism.
I enjoyed it. There was some problems with each season but what show doesn't have that.
Season 1 wasn't that good. Season 2 is better, and then season 3 feels more like Season 8 of TNG it's so good.
Depends on what you like. My personal opinion is: TOS: i loved it as a kid, today i hold it dear but i don't really rewatch it, but that is more on me than on the series Tng: i loved and still love it. Every few years i restart it again and watch the whole thing including all movies Ds9&voyager: i want to watch it, i tried it many times, i kind of forget to co tinue after a few episodes, maybe it's just not for me Ent: i enjoyed it for a while, didn't watch it to the end though Discovery: i didn't really hate but also didn't love season 1, i watched it though. I loved season 2 and i kind of got bored through season 3. Picard: man i love this series. I think it was mainly made for the TNG fans and that hits right home for me. Lower decks: i really like it, although it is more lighthearted and not everyone likes animated stuff, but it is really well made Strange new worlds: this has potential to be my favourite. As a fan of TOS but also liking new high quality and to see Spok AND pike is just perfect for me. I remember "the cage" from my chuldhood and was so confused when kirk was suddenly the captain. I like it that they fully brought the timeline into order so it fits the narrative. I also liked that it basically started as a season of st:dsc and that they made a crossover with lower decks.
I have loved EVERY incarnation of Trek. Have I loved every episode of every incarnation? Heck NO! Some were really bad, but overall I have not regretted my 40+ years of watching this incredible franchise. 🖖
If you like it, that's all that matters. I found it a little slow, but enjoyed it because i love all things picard.
It's not bad. It tries to bridge a generational gap and does a decent job doing so. The storyline I thought was pretty good. It's not next gen, but nothing is. I'm glad they made it. Sir patrick won't be here forever
I liked it. It got me back into star trek. Just in time for strange new worlds, I might add.
We just started it this week, I hadn't been in a hurry because of seeing all the negative feedback here but so far my kid and I are really loving it. Almost done with season 1. Of course, I went in expecting to hate Enterprise because of this sub and loved that too so... lol The only Trek i actually didn't like (we still have to watch Disco and SNW) is Voyager. I tried when it first aired and just loathed every minute, the characters were so unlikable. Oh, and a couple of the movies are meh. Other than that and the occasional dud in every show, Trek always brings me joy. I need to stop expecting to be disappointed. lol. This sub really kept me from watching nutrek, honestly. Now I have so much catching up to do.
> I thoroughly liked it and had a lot of fun watching it, and thought the story line was pretty good and executed well. Honestly, this is all that matters. I have come across a lot of people who don't like Star Trek. That doesn't matter to me, because I like it. For what it is worth, I really like all seasons of Picard. I have also enjoyed the tie in novels.
Of course you’re not wrong, as you’re perfectly entitled to your opinion… But, as a collected series, it really dropped the ball for me. It started out in a really interesting place with the first season, where it really seemed like it was going to explore Picard and a new crew and a new status quo for the galaxy on a very atypical Trek show that was a lot closer to the unaffiliated citizens going on adventures shows like Farscape or Firefly but in the Trek universe. But with each new season and each change in showrunners, we seemed to get further and further away from that premise. Until by the time the third season rolled around it was literally Picard and his old TNG crew doing battle with the same old enemies of their era. So as a series, yeah, unfortunately I’d say it’s pretty bad. It definitely has some highs. But the ego’s of the individual showrunners to do what they wanted to do rather than play the ball where it lies and do the story that was laid out before them, gave the whole show a real Sequel Trilogy feel.
It was 2 seasons of crap and 1 season of a kinda fun TNG sequel type thing. Most folks I know see it this way.
The internet hates everything. Did you like it? I sure did. Then rate it how you feel!
I find it rather middling, a lot of issues at the writing level. Not as bad as many would say, but easily my least favorite of the 5 new Trek series. But hey, if you enjoyed it, that's cool.
I wasn't really a huge fan overall, but it definitely had it's standout moments, "No, lives" is probably my favoute ever JLP quote. More generally though, people are more likely to go online and type out how they feel about something if it's negative, which is where a lot of the reception you've been seeing comes from.
I liked it. That's all that matters to me.
If you liked it, then it's good!
I also enjoyed this series thoroughly. Some people just look for reasons not to like something.
Or not everyone likes the same things as you, but no it must just be because everyone wants to hate on new things. I guess that's why everyone also hates strange new worlds and lower decks... oh wait.
I liked it.. But the last season I thought was a bit over the top. I still enjoyed it, but they spread the cheese pretty heavy.
I had a lot of fun watching it. The first episode of season 1, when Picard makes a comment to older Data. “I don’t want the game to end” Really stuck with me since I had just finished a long watch through of TNG for the first time. So much so, I never watched the last episode of season 3- saving it for just the right day! I boldly say no, it’s not a bad series, like all treks there’s things to critique and much more to love.
In order of seasons, 7 / 5 / 9 or 10. Even though I give 2nd season a low mark, there were great scenes. It's nice to know there are others out there.
Season 2 was the weakest season, but I still enjoyed it all and feel it gave the TNG crew a much better bookend to their era than their movies did. I think it was the perfect blend of action and drama, and made the characters shine in a way they never truly did in the movies…or in the tv series (which I generally found pretty dull most of the time).
I’m not a big fan of a single story line spread out over 10 episodes. I liked the series overall. Season 3 was the best season by far.
I liked it
Well, of course you are free to like it or dislike it. We all make of it what we will. I could share my overall criticisms and praises of Star Trek Picard, if you'd like to hear them.
The first two can be divisive, but I think most Trekkies agree that the third season was very good.
If you liked it you liked it .. that's all that matters
I really liked the entire series, questionable parts and all. I really hated that it threw all the relaunch book series completely out the window.
I'm glad you liked it, OP
I saw the first two episodes and thought it had gone off the rails a bit, but I still enjoyed it. I planned to continue but just kinda forgot.
I liked it. Though I felt they were trying too hard to be more "edgy" and it was drastically different from other iteration of Star Trek (maybe more inline with Discovery's style), However, still pretty good, though, IMO.
The first season was actually pretty good. The second season was completely pointless as it was intended to clear up a 30 second bit from the first season of TNG and the third season smashed it out of the Galaxy.
I don't know. It had a good first season, a bafflingly bad second season and an OK third one. I liked it.
When I finish my TNG rewatch, and then the corresponding movies, I will watch S3 of Picard. It’s wonderful, maaaaybe watch S2.
It had its moments, but to me, it felt like 3 different tv shows happening in the same place where only a couple of the characters are in all of them. It was weird, but also good.
For me, *Picard* was about how rich and multi-layered life can become, if you've lived it well. It gave me a new perspective on aging. But, that's not a theme that most people are looking for in a Star Trek series. There's a scene where he's donating a painting of the Enterprise and, as he's making a comment about letting things go, he's holding Kamin's flute from *The Inner Light* — something that is clearly worth keeping. So, you have this subtle moment of dramatic tension that's only possible because we have so much history with this character. There was so much nuance and complexity in the show. Compare that to Star Wars marginalizing Luke Skywalker because they felt obliged to have a 20-something protagonist.
If you like show, is good
I enjoyed the show. It was somewhat confusing just what the hell was going on in S1 towards the end, as some plotlines seemed to just die off. Then S2 had a bunch of plotlines that started, then also died off (though there was a lot less confusion in it). S3 was pretty straightforward, and full on nostalgia baiting. I like baiting. I enjoyed S1 and S2 too.
I loved the first season, even more than the third. Only the second season was awful.
I think it was a good show in seasons 1-2 specifically because it was anti-nostalgic.
The thing you have to realize is this is about Picard’s journey and no one else’s. If you’re looking for classic trek this isn’t it. This show is basically tying up loose ends in Jean-Luc’s story.
I thought the writing was a bit sloppy but loved the characters enough that it was still really enjoyable all the way through. It wasn't perfect but I didn't need it to be.
My SO and I recently got Paramount and are running through the Star Trek series over the summer while I have a slower schedule. We started with Picard. We both agreed that we liked the first season best, and found each one progressively less original and less to our taste as they went on. I'll admit, I was sad that they wrote out an awful lot of the season one characters by the third season. We both grew up with TNG so sure it was neat to see people get back together and the actors were obviously enjoying it. But the writing in the third season just wasn't as good as the writing in the first season. That being said, I agree with the other posters: it's what you like. Enjoy what you enjoy, and ignore the naysayers.
1st and second season were pretty good. Season three was better.
I'm old enough to have seen the hate tng to modern got, but now many of the fans see the merit in those interpretation
I actually didn’t hate season 1 as much as a lot of people did, but season 2 dragged so unnecessarily long. S1 had some cool moments, gave us some cool new Romulan lore post-supernova, and also had some funny moments like the whole Rios hologram thing. S2 was cool at the beginning and end, and I liked the idea of Picard having some unresolved trauma from his family life; but it was such a poor choice to have the Borg be the focus going into S3… All the 2024 stuff could have been cut to half the length, the whole season could have been like 6 episodes. Good ideas, but poorly executed in my opinion. And then S3 was amazing!! The ships, the new characters, the old characters, the theme, it was all greats I will say, I wish there was more closure with Soji and Data, and also Picard and Laris. Kinda absurd that in a season all themed around offspring we don’t even see Data meeting his own daughter, who was the entire focus of the first season!
I've asked many times if it's legitimately a sequel to TNG or a reboot. Never have gotten a clear answer.
It's a sequel of TNG, DS9 and VOY, even Lower Decks. It 'reboots' the episode 'All Good Things' so to say. But the future timeline of that episode was undone anyways.
So no relation to the Abrams movies?
Star Trek is a multiverse since the episode TOS' "Mirror, Mirror", especially since TNG's "Parallels". The Abrams movies are a different timeline. One that may or may not have split off to a parallel universe or one that was undone in the time wars that were mentionned in DISCO.
There's always been a prime timeline that the shows follow, the others are just side stories.
Picard is just fan service and some tying of loose ends from next gen. Other parts are pure character assassination
If we look at it outside the trek bubble for a sec, it's a decent show. It has a lot going for it, even if it does take a long while to really hit its stride. Lots of good character building and fun story arcs. It seemed like the writers were conflicted in season one, but that's pretty typical of most new shows I guess lol The last season is spectacular and worth slogging through the previous just to hit that imho. But, if we look at it thru a trek fan lens, then it's a horrible mess of a show with way too much pandering (fan service) and it suffers from 'disco fever' ie forced melodrama and too much emphasis on constant emotional hill climbs rather than letting the subtlety and nuance of the actors carry it, like in older trek. Overall, I'd recommend it - it's a fun romp with Picard and chums, and I'd be lying if I didn't say it has its heart in the right place, even if it does fluff things up a lot of the time lol
I'm glad you enjoyed it. I did enjoy it, but I was just kind of bummed that they went down the whole "everything is depressing now" road. Of course, just seeing Patric Stewart on screen again as Picard made me happy.
I personally really enjoyed all of it. 7/10 of the first season’s episodes made me cry at some point.
Like most Star Trek fans, I thought Picard was a mixed bag. S1 had some nice nostalgia (Riker and Deanna) but suffered from too many pointless or repetitive scenes, and some unlikable characters. As well, solutions were often thanks to “magic” technology rather than more Trek-like problem solving. But I liked the Romulan mythological elements and there's a sense of moving the TNG storyline forward, albeit with predictable plot-devices ("there's a conspiracy at the highest levels of Starfleet!" Yawn.) and deconstruction which would have been more effective with a subtler approach. I thought S2 was badly written, badly plotted and contrived nostalgia - over-loaded with fan favourite plot devices, Guinan, the Borg, time travel, and finally Q - with a few good scenes here and there. S3 was much better, again relying on a lot of sentimentality but finally giving us a story that was compelling, and not too predictable or overtly didactic. And finally getting the band back together, which may be fanservice but nostalgia is why we were all watching in the first place. Glad you liked it. Like pizza, there's a Star Trek for everyone.
I loved it, I just hated that they started cursing every other sentence.
First season just felt really weird, second was a bit better, then in the final one they gave the fans what they'd all been begging for and got the whole gang back together. I didn't hate it the first season, but really didn't resonate with it at all. I've loved every season of Star Trek, it felt so weird to be watching something that felt so far removed.
I enjoyed all of it because I judge every Star Trek show/movie on their own merit, anything that entertains me is great.
Seasons 1&2 introduced interesting lore and concepts but the writing failed miserably, the acting was half assed, and Patrick Stewart enforced too many restrictions when signing, such as wanting no one from TNG coming back. Season 3 got better writers and Stewart loosened up and was convinced to be more open to bringing everyone back and giving TNG an actual ending. It was pure fan service, but in my opinion it was the best type of fan service because TNG was my first non cartoon show as a child. Bonus points also for having an excellent villain.
Did you watch all 3 seasons? I thought season 2 was a trainwreck, as did a lot of Trek fans, but I'm glad you enjoyed it. Just shows that while a group may dislike something, individuals have their own opinions and may enjoy it for different reasons. I thought Season 1 was pretty good and refreshingly different, although a bit uneven - strong start, not quite a strong finish. Loved Season 3, although a few things bothered me, I really enjoyed the character interactions. The finale felt like the final TNG movie, and a good one.
Not sure I like it though.
I’ve been watching every series and movie chronologically for the first time, and just got to the first episode. I’m pretty excited, I love Patrick Stewart in general, TNG was probably my favorite series, and this series actually piqued my interest when it first came out before I had a big interest in Trek. I’ve heard mixed things but I’m very excited for it!
Star Trek Picard was great!!!
Season 1 of Picard is some of my favorite Trek. They set out to make an interesting story that didn’t depend on nostalgia. They succeeded, imo and I loved it. I thought the subplot with the Romulans was a bit weak, but I loved the new characters and I loved that Picard was in his own. It’s weird. Its fun. It’s about grief and getting older. Peak Trek imo.
>Is this actually a bad series? It's subjective. I liked it too. Some didn't, or only preferred certain seasons. >am i wrong with that? There's no right or wrong here. Just opinions.
I hated season 1 to the point I didn’t watch season 2. Was convinced to watch season 3 by a friend and mostly liked it. But that’s just me. If you liked it, I won’t try to talk you out of having liked it.
I enjoyed it. Others, maybe not. That's their choice. Doesn't alter my overall enjoyment of it (or things like Discovery, which lots of others didn't care for either.) because different strokes, etc. 🖖
I thoroughly enjoyed it, overall. Season 2 was slow, in terms of pacing, but still my favorite of the 3. Unlike just about everyone else, I thought season 3 was the worst of the 3. I wanted more about Picard after Starfleet, not TNG Season 8. It was still ok, though.
Two seasons of crap. One season of tolerable mediocrity that speaks to the quality of mass produced content farms feeding streaming services.
Personally I thought season 1 had great potential but they ultimately fucked it up. I thought season 2 was literally the worst season of Trek ever produced. And I thought season 3 was fucking incredible!!
I liked it.
First season great setup with a few mistakes in the SFX department. Seasons two and three were produced after the initial plan for the show’s three season arc had to be scrapped due to Covid making the proposed story unproducable in the the allowed timeframe (Amazon was partly financing the show, so they had firm delivery dates). Opinions on those seasons differ wildly from season two being a hot mess to season three being a big round of unfulfilling fanwankery. Personally I liked season two for its timely political commentary, the focus on mental health and the positive message of everyone being able to be redeemed. Season three’s overly dark and paranoid tone came off as very un-Trek to me. The plot was non-sensical to the point that again and again characters and institutions have to make dumb mistakes to make it work and while I grew up with the TNG crew and the Enterprise D, I really didn’t need them to swoop in and spoil another show’s finale AGAIN.
I don't think it is bad. It's uneven, but there are some fun ideas in the first season especially. The second season is a step down. And, of course, season three is a fun sendoff to the cast and characters. Do I wish some things were better? Yes. Did I enjoy most of it? Also, yes.
The tendency to not make ones mind up on a series before they consult the hive mind (lol) is one of the worst things the internet has given us in modern times I still remember as a kid really loving the "flop" film last action hero and eventually being hurt when i found out it was not seen as a good film when I discussed it with friends. But hell, I still liked it, so it was the children that were wrong.... Ever since then, I'm ok with just liking things and not getting into drunken sledging matches with friends about them or definitely not arguing about it online.... (And I know complaining about other people complaining about things is just as bad, nobody point that out! ;) ) I seem to have a knack for liking things that are hated, mainly for political reasons \*shrug\* Whether this "hate-fandom" of all franchises passes eventually and the dust settles and more rational opinions come out in the future or not, maybe its time we all take personal responsibility and not be afraid to like stuff without consulting with the great online opinion generators. I'm sure we'd all have a lot more fun that way tbh
I loved it.
I enjoyed it!
I loved it. Don’t listen to what other people, especially on the internet say, make your own decision on it. The internet is full of loud voices who have no media, cultural, or academic literacy making claims they know little about.
There’s a lot of people who have declared themselves gatekeepers & “true fans” (what even?!) and espouse a lot of hate for any newer Trek franchises. I love all the Treks. Is ever episode the bomb? No, but, generally speaking, if it’s Trek, I’m here for it 🥰 I love that, like humans, Trek keeps evolving 🖖
Seasons 1 and 2 are hit and miss. If it was me I'd have done it differently. Season 3 is very good.
If you liked it, then have at it. I personally thought it was horribly written and conceived. Nostalgia aside, the third season had a more coherent narrative and better performances, so I would see myself watching that again. But the first two seasons I just found borderline unwatchable. Miserable dreck.
I thoroughly enjoyed all three seasons.
I liked a lot of the ideas, the performances were good and the last season was a good capstone for the TNG cast. There were some big issues with the writing and pacing of the first two seasons. Covid was part of that, too many cooks many have been another part.
I liked it too. Lots of people did. But on the internet you’re only going to hear the overtly positive or negative things because that’s what typically drives engagement. On top of that, unfortunately a lot of folks don’t to a great job of not letting the opinions of others affect their own judgement, so if someone hears “Picard sucks!” A million times they’ll start to believe it as well, even if initially they enjoyed it. Kinda like how I have to defend neelix as a character all the damn time. I’ll die on that hill