Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) returned to the screen on 23 January, 2020 with the launch of Star Trek: Picard. Set some twenty years after the events of Star Trek: Nemesis, the pilot episode, Remembrance, was written by Akiva Goldsman and James Duff from a story by Goldsman, Micheal Chabon, Kirsten Beyer, Alex Kurtzman and Duff.

Picard is still haunted by the death of Data (Brent Spiner) and his dreams are filled with his friend, the Enterprise D, and a horrific attack on Mars that led to the banning of all synthetic lifeforms, their study and creation.

We learn that following the events of the Romulan Evacuation, caused by their sun exploding, Picard left Starfleet, retiring to his family vineyard, where he, his dog Number One and two Romulan caretakers, Laris (Orla Brady) and Zhaban (Jamie McShane) live a quiet existence.

That is until a strange young woman, Dahj (Isa Briones) shows up at the vineyard, having survived a brutal attack, and driven by an image of Picard in her head.

Investigating, Picard discovers a strange connection between Dahj and Data, and begins to believe she may be a flesh-and-blood synthetic being. Before his beliefs can be confirmed, Dahj is killed by a group of Romulan attackers, and Picard is forced to go to the Daystrom Institute to consult with Dr. Agnes Jurati (Alison Pill) about the possibilities of new synthetic life.

As Picard learns that Dahj may have had a twin, we are introduced to Soji (Briones) and a Romulan named Narek (Harry Treadaway) who are working at a Romulan reclamation site… a Borg cube!

It’s a beautifully shot episode, looks stunning, and it’s fascinating to see Stewart return to the character and the changes Picard has gone through over the past twenty years and the events that have shaped the Federation and Starfleet in that time. He’s older, he’s disappointed in the way the Romulan Evacuation played out, and he’s upset with Starfleet, it’s a believable change in the character and Stewart does it justice.

Maps and Legends was written by Chabon and Goldsman and was first broadcast on 30 January, 2020.

The opening teaser shows a brief and brutal look at the Mars attack by the synthetics, showing us the horrible events that caused the banning of synthetics.

Picard and Laris investigate Dahj’s apartment, attempting to find clues to where her twin could be, and they learn that she is off-world, but not exactly where. Picard decides the best course of action is to go to Starfleet and request to be returned to active duty, something his old doctor from the Stargazer, Benayoun (David Paymer) is reticent to give after seeing Picard’s latest results.

Picard is ill.

Laris reveals the existence of the Zhat Vash, an even more secretive operation than the notorious Tal Shiar, and she believes they may have been behind the attack on Dahj, driven by the Romulan society’s hatred of artificial and synthetic lifeforms.

The meeting with Starfleet does not go well because of Picard’s outspoken comments about the Federation and the Romulan Evacuation, but reveals to the audience that the Zhat Vash are real and have infiltrated Starfleet in the form of Lt. Rizzo (Peyton List), a surgically modified Romulan embedded in Starfleet Command.

She is also the sister of Narek who continues his secretive romance with Soji as he watches her work on the Borg cube, where she is hoping to revive and restore the reclaimed Borg, their cybernetic attachments being removed.

Narek is hoping to gain information from Soji, while Picard reaches out to Raffi Musiker (Michelle Hurd) his former first officer from the Romulan Evacuation mission for help and a ship.

The pieces are on the board, and this is my first rewatch since the series aired, and I am really getting into it. The details, the performances, the look. I’m enjoying it even more this time around.

Star Trek: Picard is available in individual seasons, in a series pack, or as part of the gorgeous Star Trek: The Picard Legacy Collection, a limited edition boxed set available from Paramount Canada. Boldly go!