Happy First Contact Day! Or, as we in Earth's current timeline call it, 5th April. The team behind Star Trek: Picard took the opportunity of the significant date to announce a good news/bad news situation for the show: more of Patrick Stewart's former Star Trek: The Next Generation co-stars will show up for Season 3. Huzzah! But that will also be the series' final season. Boo!
While Jonathan Frakes, Marina Sirtis and Brent Spiner all reprised their roles (Will Riker, Deanna Troi and Data/various characters) during Season 1, the third season will see LeVar Burton's Geordi LaForge, Gates McFadden's Dr. Beverly Crusher and Michael Dorn's Worf all appear, as teased by a new video...
"I remember watching the premiere of Star Trek: The Next Generation almost 34 years ago with my father like it was yesterday. It was the spark that ignited my love for science fiction," says, Season 3 showrunner Terry Matalas. "So, it’s most fitting that the story of Jean-Luc Picard ends honoring the beginning, with his dearest and most loyal friends from the USS Enterprise. It would be an understatement to say that giving these characters a proper send-off is an honor. The entire Star Trek: Picard team and I can’t wait for fans to experience this final, high-stakes, starship-bound adventure in season 3!" 34 years... if anyone needs us, we'll be over here, slowly turning to dust.
The final season is a ways off yet, though, despite shooting shortly after the second wrapped. That season is only mid-way through a storyline that sees the return of another Next Generation favourite, omnipotent alien nemesis Q, played by John De Lancie.
Star Trek: Picard episodes arrive weekly on Paramount+ in the US and via Prime Video in the UK. And in case you're still wondering about the First Contact Day thing, 5 April 2063 is when humans made initial contact with Vulcans, as portrayed in the TNG spin-off film First Contact. Yes, we'll accept this .gif in response...