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Agnes Jurati

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Doctor Agnes P. Jurati was a female Human cyberneticist who worked at the Daystrom Institute during the late 24th century . ( PIC : " Remembrance ")

After an encounter with the defeated Borg Queen of an alternate timeline , a trip into the past, and her own assimilation, Jurati returned four hundred years later, and reunited with her friends, now as the Queen of a small Borg Cooperative. ( PIC : " Farewell ")

• 1 Daystrom Institute career
• 2 Joining Picard
• 3 Joining the Stargazer crew
• 4 Queen of the Borg
• 5.1 Relationships
• 6 Key dates
• 7 Memorable quotes
• 8.1 Appearances
• 8.2 Background information
• 8.3 External link

Daystrom Institute career [ ]

Jurati was recruited out of Starfleet by Bruce Maddox to aid in his android research, and characterized their work as "coming close" to being able to create an advanced android similar to Data . However, after the banning of synthetic lifeforms following the Attack on Mars , as well as the disappearance of Maddox, much of her research was stalled and ground to a halt.

She was approached by retired Admiral Jean-Luc Picard at the Institute's Division of Advanced Synthetic Research in 2399 , and they discussed the possibilities of creating a new, flesh-and-blood android comparable with previous Soong-types via fractal neuronic cloning . ( PIC : " Remembrance ")

After Picard related his experiences with Dahj Asha to Jurati, she researched Dahj, who had recently been offered a fellowship at the Daystrom institute. Jurati told Picard that Dahj's identity, including records of education on Regulus , appeared to have been fabricated only three years prior . ( PIC : " Maps and Legends ")

Joining Picard [ ]

Shortly after her second meeting with Picard, Jurati received a visit from Commodore Oh , the head of Starfleet Security . Oh questioned Jurati about the latter's communications with the retired Admiral, and told her that Picard was likely to go looking for Bruce Maddox and Dahj's twin sister Soji . Via mind meld , Oh showed Jurati the Admonition , leading her to believe it was a record of a long-dead civilization that was destroyed after they built sentient synths. With this, Oh convinced Jurati that the creation of sentient synths would once again bring about the end of all organic life in the Galaxy, and Jurati needed to "atone" for her role in developing these synths. Oh ordered Jurati to join Picard on his mission, and to kill Maddox and Soji. Oh also placed a psychic block to prevent Jurati from revealing exactly what she saw. Finally, Oh gave Jurati a viridium tracker . ( PIC : " Nepenthe ", " Broken Pieces ")

Jurati subsequently appeared at Château Picard in the midst of an attack by Romulan assassins . Jurati shot one of the assassins, then insisted on joining Picard on La Sirena for his mission. She found the first part of the journey "boring", and kept herself entertained with academic journals and flirting with Cristobal Rios , the captain of La Sirena . ( PIC : " The End is the Beginning ", " Absolute Candor ")

At Freecloud , Jurati manned the transporter while the others rescued Maddox from Bjayzl . However, after Maddox was in La Sirena 's sickbay , she turned off the hematic microrepair unit keeping him alive. When the ship's EMH , Emil , tried to intervene, Jurati deactivated him. ( PIC : " Stardust City Rag ")

Jurati kissing Rios

Jurati was able to convince the others that Maddox died of the injuries Bjayzl and her cronies had inflicted, but she grew increasingly distressed. Needing a distraction and some company en route to The Artifact , Jurati had an intimate encounter with Captain Cristóbal Rios . ( PIC : " The Impossible Box ")

After La Sirena departed the Artifact, Rios discovered that they were being followed by Narek in a Romulan Snakehead . Jurati began to realize that Commodore Oh must have been working with the Romulans and the scout ship was following them because of her. Rios told her he suspected Raffi was the one being tracked, and Jurati could not bring herself to tell him about her situation before he was called away. Left alone in sickbay, Jurati injected herself with noranium hydride hoping it would neutralize the viridium tracker in her bloodstream , though this also sent her into a coma . ( PIC : " Nepenthe ")

Emil saved Jurati's life, and he and Raffi informed Picard about their suspicion that Jurati had killed Maddox. Upon waking up, Jurati was confronted by Picard, who declared she should turn herself in for the murder of Maddox once they reached Deep Space 12 . Jurati agreed and when prompted, told Picard about Oh forcing the Admonition on her and giving her the tracker and a directive to kill Maddox and Soji to prevent a repetition of the apocalypse Oh had seen in her vision. However, Jurati's resolve to go through with that mission had already been weakening, and once she met Soji in person, she decided that she would no longer carry out Oh's orders. Afterwards, Jurati gathered with the others to pool their knowledge of the situation and uncover the mystery surrounding Oh, the Zhat Vash , and the Attack on Mars . ( PIC : " Broken Pieces ")

Jurati traveled to Coppelius with the rest of the crew on La Sirena , though she thought they were still headed for DS12. When she arrived on the bridge with her bag packed, ready to turn herself in, she was delighted to find they were about to meet Soji's people instead. After the ship was drained of power by one of the orchids making up the planet's orbital defense and crash-landed on the surface, Jurati took care of Picard, who had fallen unconscious. Scanning him, she found the abnormality in his brain that meant he only had a short time left to live, prompting Picard to admit as much to the others.

Jurati joined the rest of the crew as they traveled first to the crashed Artifact, which Seven of Nine had piloted to Coppelius, and then to Coppelius Station . There, she met Dr. Altan Soong , son of Noonien Soong , and the synths he had created together with Bruce Maddox. They warned the synths they were about to be attacked by Oh's Romulan fleet. Jurati shared the Admonition with Sutra , the leader of the synths, who realized it was a message only a synthetic mind could decipher. While Rios and Raffi Musiker headed back to La Sirena to repair the ship, Jurati stayed behind with Picard, saying she wanted to help Soong finish some of Maddox's work.

When Soong and Sutra told their people that they were going to contact the extra-galactic Alliance of synthetic life who had created the Admonition, which in effect would mean the end of all organic life in the galaxy, Jurati convinced them she was on their side. While Sutra ordered for Picard to be put under house arrest, she allowed Jurati to continue working, ostensibly to help Soong transfer his mind into an artificial body, a golem , thus allowing him to be spared from the impending genocide. ( PIC : " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 1 ")

Instead of helping Soong, however, Jurati found a way to occupy him and broke out Picard. Together, they headed back to La Sirena , looking for the others, but they found the ship deserted. Picard and Jurati discussed their next steps and decided they needed to stall the Romulan fleet until Starfleet coul catch up with them. Picard also wanted to set an example to the synths by protecting them, so they would reconsider their plan to exterminate all organic life in the galaxy. Picard managed to fly La Sirena into orbit, just as the Romulan fleet arrived, and Agnes used the fundamental field replicator to execute a version of the Picard Maneuver , projecting dozens of images of La Sirena into space as decoys. After Starfleet arrived and Picard managed to convince Soji to power down the beacon, proving she was not the threat the Romulans believed her to be, the standoff was resolved and the Romulan Fleet left, escorted by Starfleet.

Picard collapsed, and Soji beamed him and Jurati down to the surface, where Picard died of his neurological disease. Just before he passed away, however, Jurati, working with Soong and Soji, was able to transfer Picard's consciousness into the golem originally built for Soong himself. When Picard, Rios, and the crew they assembled along the way left Coppelius some time later aboard La Sirena , Jurati was with them, sharing a kiss with Rios on the bridge. ( PIC : " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2 ")

Joining the Stargazer crew [ ]

By the year 2401 , two years after the Coppelius incident, Jurati had been acquitted of the murder of Dr. Maddox due to "alien-induced temporary insanity." Her romantic relationship with Rios had also ended, but the two remained friendly, despite some awkwardness.

While on Raritan IV with Soji, Jurati was summoned by Rios, now captain of the USS Stargazer , for assistance in deciphering an unknown signal coming from a spatial anomaly. After she decoded the signal, it was revealed that it was an urgent message requesting Picard's presence and an appeal to join the Federation . When Picard arrived, a Borg vessel emerged from the anomaly and a Borg Queen beamed onto the bridge of the Stargazer and began to assimilate the ship. In order to prevent the ship from falling into the hands of the Borg, Picard initiated a self-destruct sequence , which moments later destroyed the vessel and seemingly everyone onboard. ( PIC : " The Star Gazer ")

Miraculously, after the explosion, Jurati woke up in a laboratory on Earth being greeted by a talking virtual pet cat . Unbeknownst to her, Q had created an alternate timeline and replaced the alternate version of Jurati with the Jurati from the prime timeline as part of his ongoing trial of Humanity .

With the assistance of that timeline's Borg Queen, Jurati joined Picard and the others as the time traveled into the past aboard the CSS La Sirena .

Agnes is assimilated.

After arriving in the early 21st century , Jurati was assimilated by the Borg Queen, as she attempted to use Jurati to gain a 400 year advantage on the galaxy. ( PIC : " Fly Me to the Moon ", " Two of One ", " Monsters ")

Jurati and the Borg Queen would eventually agree to share Jurati's body and create a new Borg Collective that would not forcefully assimilate people and would embrace the distinctiveness and individuality of its members. Now together as one, she left Earth aboard the CSS La Sirena and traveled to the Delta Quadrant . ( PIC : " Hide and Seek ")

Queen of the Borg [ ]

In 2401 , the Borg contacted the Federation, claiming to want to join it. Unbeknownst at the time, the evolved Jurati/Borg Queen, who was clearly different than was previously encountered beamed aboard the USS Stargazer and began assimilating the ship and its fleet. In response, Jean-Luc Picard activated the Stargazer 's auto-destruct , stopping the assimilation and destroying the vessel. ( PIC : " The Star Gazer ")

In an alternate timeline where Picard self-destructed the USS Stargazer , Agnes, as the Borg Queen, was killed in the explosion. ( PIC : " The Star Gazer ") This timeline was averted when Q returned Picard's crew to moments before the explosion and Picard cancelled the self-destruct upon realizing that the Borg Queen was actually Agnes. ( PIC : " Farewell ")

Jurati returns as the Borg Queen.

Upon returning from 2024 moments before the explosion, Picard canceled the auto-destruct and allowed the Borg Queen to proceed after realizing that it was the same Queen from an alternate timeline who had merged with Dr. Jurati.

The Borg Queen revealed that a powerful energy wave was approaching and she needed the shields of the fleet combined with that of her own ship to block it. This Borg Queen had come to Picard both because he was someone in charge with whom she shared a mutual trust and because they needed the help of a friend. The Borg Queen's efforts were successful, saving countless lives, although she didn't know who was behind the creation of the massive transwarp conduit aside from it being a threat that required close observation. Picard agreed to grant the Borg provisional membership in the Federation so that they could remain there, "the Guardian at the Gates." ( PIC : " Farewell ")

Personal life [ ]

Dr. Jurati was a leading academic in her field. When she was bored during the early days of her journey on La Sirena , she read through two years of back-issues of the Journal of Theoretical Cybernetics , "including the Festschrift for Professor Kwok ", proving she was a voracious reader. She also remarked that her father had read many paper books when she was a child, and she had used to annoy him about it. ( PIC : " Absolute Candor ")

Like Picard, Jurati was fond of Earl Grey tea . She enjoyed Kasseelian opera , sushi , and red velvet cake . However, the concept of baking cookies from scratch was somewhat foreign to her. ( PIC : " Maps and Legends ", " The End is the Beginning ", " Stardust City Rag ", " Broken Pieces ")

Before joining Picard on his quest, Jurati told Commodore Oh that she had never been off-world, implying she left Starfleet Academy to join Maddox at the Daystrom Institute before she ever got substantial space flight training. When she did spend some time in space, she found it to be boring, later saying " it's cold and empty and wants to kill you. " ( PIC : " Nepenthe ", " Absolute Candor ", " The Impossible Box ")

After she saved his life in the Romulan attack on the Château, Jurati told Picard she was a "terrible liar". Towards the end of their adventure, however, after she manipulated Soong and managed to free Picard from his house arrest, she had changed her mind: " I honestly thought I was the worst secret agent ever, but I'm starting to believe I may have a gift. " ( PIC : " The End is the Beginning ", " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2 ") Something else Jurati considered a gift (somewhat jokingly) was her ability to sense when she was about to make a mistake. She called it a "superpower", though she agreed with Rios it was not a particularly useful one. ( PIC : " The Impossible Box ")

Jurati could be very talkative and often made witty comments. By 2401 , this had turned into a habit to babble when she was nervous, which could get her into trouble. However, she was also quick-witted enough to talk herself out of trouble again. ( PIC : " Absolute Candor ", " Penance ")

Relationships [ ]

Jurati developed friendships with the people she met on her mission with Picard. Although she had been manipulated into joining them under false pretenses, especially Raffi Musiker and Cristóbal Rios continued to be kind to her after they discovered the truth. By 2401, Jurati had a close relationship and easy rapport with Soji, whom she had told not to let her drunkenly call her ex. She happily greeted Seven of Nine from the bridge of the Stargazer , and she gave Elnor a delighted hug when they reunited in the dystopian alternate reality. Jurati also developed a strong friendship with Picard, often affectionately calling him "Mister". ( PIC : " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 1 ", " The Star Gazer ", " Penance ", " Assimilation ")

Over the course of their time together on La Sirena , Jurati developed a romantic relationship with Cristóbal Rios . The two shared a lot of light-hearted banter, but also grew closer when Jurati was starting to feel the weight of her secret mission. After she killed Maddox, Jurati happened upon Rios practicing soccer late at night. After some conversation, the two started kissing and were about to go off to sleep together, but Jurati pulled back because she felt like she was about to make a mistake. When Rios continued to be kind and understanding, however, she opened up to him about feeling hollow and lonely, and they decided to sleep together after all, since it might at least help her for the night. ( PIC : " Absolute Candor ", " Stardust City Rag ", " The Impossible Box ")

When Sutra tried to mindmeld with Jurati on Coppelius to learn more about the Admonition, Rios tried to stop her, since he worried about the trauma the vision had caused Jurati. Later, when he told Jurati he was headed back to the ship with Raffi, he continued to be deeply concerned about her, and the two shared a tender moment. A while later, when they were getting ready to leave Coppelius, Jurati and Rios kissed on the bridge of La Sirena , while the rest of the crew was still occupied elsewhere. ( PIC : " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 1 ", " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2 ")

The relationship with Rios ended after less than a year, just like all of Jurati's past intimate relationships had. Nevertheless, and despite their occasional bickering, the two remained friendly and Rios was deeply concerned for Jurati when she was behaving strangely after letting herself be assimilated by the Borg Queen. ( PIC : " The Star Gazer ", " Penance ", " Two of One ")

Key dates [ ]

• Joins Starfleet
• Is recruited into Daystrom by Bruce Maddox
• Is sent by Oh to join Picard, and ordered to kill Maddox and Soji Asha
• Joins Picard's quest
• Kills Bruce Maddox
• Helps Picard protect Coppelius
• Is cleared for the murder of Maddox
• Goes on a diplomatic goodwill tour with Soji
• Is transported by Q to an alternate 2401 where the Confederation of Earth exists.
• Time travels to the 21st century
• Assimilated by the Borg Queen
• Convinces the Borg Queen to create a new, better Collective and merges with her
• Arrives on the USS Stargazer seeking the Federation's help against an unknown threat

Memorable quotes [ ]

" How can I help you? " " You can tell me if it is possible to make a sentient android out of flesh and blood. " (Jurati laughs) " No, really. How can I… Is that why you've come here? " " It is. " " Even before the ban, that was… Well… W-Well a flesh and blood android was in our sights, but a sentient one? Not for a thousand years. " " That makes it even more curious that recently, I had tea with one. "

" So... space turns out to be super boring. Go figure. " " What were you expecting? " " I don't know. It's so... empty. I mean, of course, right? It's right there in the name. 'Space.' It's not like it's called 'vast quantities of stuff.' Although, come to think of it, there are over three billion stars in our galaxy alone and ours is one of two trillion. There are a septillion known planets, so maybe it should be called 'vast quantities of stuff.' Like, why focus on the negative? "

Appendices [ ]

Appearances [ ].

• " Remembrance " ( Season 1 )
• " Maps and Legends "
• " The End is the Beginning "
• " Absolute Candor "
• " Stardust City Rag "
• " The Impossible Box "
• " Nepenthe "
• " Broken Pieces "
• " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 1 "
• " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2 "
• " The Star Gazer " ( Season 2 )
• " Penance "
• " Assimilation "
• " Watcher "
• " Fly Me to the Moon "
• " Two of One "
• " Monsters "
• " Hide and Seek "
• " Farewell "

Background information [ ]

Jurati was played by Alison Pill .

She was the only character besides Jean-Luc Picard to appear in every episode of the first and second seasons of the series.

Early in the character's development, Dr. Jurati was named "Dr. Sarton," after a roboticist in the Isaac Asimov novel The Caves of Steel . [1]

External link [ ]

• Agnes Jurati at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
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What Happened To The “Good” Borg in Season 3 of Star Trek: Picard?

This article contains some spoilers for the second and third seasons of Star Trek: Picard in its discussion of what happened to the “good” Borg in Season 3 of the show.

Star Trek: Picard Season 2 ends with the Borg turning over a new leaf, with a very different queen in charge. It’s an interesting storytelling choice — and a smart one, given that the Borg have lost much of their menace. However, there’s no sign of them in Season 3, so what happened to the “Good” Borg in Star Trek: Picard?

Where Are Picard’s “Good” Borg and Their Cooperative Hive?

If you were a fan of the new Borg queen, who saved billions of lives in Season 2 of Picard , we’ve got bad news for you. They’re absolutely nowhere to be seen, and the queen (half old Queen, half Agnes Jurati) is completely absent from the show. 

They are mentioned in Season 3 by Captain Shaw, who briefly refers to them as “that weird shit on the Stargazer.” However, that was only to contrast them with the “proper” Borg, and they’re never, ever mentioned again. 

Picard co-showrunner Terry Matalas stated that they were a splinter faction and that one draft of the script referred to them as “The Jurati.” And Alison Pill, who played Agnes Jurati/The New Queen, stated earlier this year that she wasn’t involved in Season 3 of Picard. 

In theory, Jurati’s faction are still guarding the trans-warp conduit that opened at the end of Season 2 . But after S tar Trek: Picard Season 3’s full-on nostalgia trip, we’re doubtful they’ll reappear . Maybe they’ll crop up in a comic or other transmedia spin-off, but we’ll be seriously surprised to see them on the small screen. 

What Happened With Star Trek: Picard Season 2’s Transwarp Conduit?

Apart from the new Borg, Picard Season 2 also introduced a potential new menace in the shape of whoever opened that space corridor. If it wasn’t for Jurati’s Borg, the whole system would have been annihilated. Was this a deliberate attack or did whoever opened it just miscalculate?

The New Queen refers to it as “a piece of the puzzle whose final image is unclear.” Unfortunately, Picard Season 3 takes those puzzle pieces and yeets them out of the airlock. Like Jurati’s Borg, this particular plotline is also discarded. 

The good news is that, with the events of Picard Season 3, Jurati’s Borg don’t have to worry about the “main” Borg Queen taking them on. Sure, Jurati had 400 years to gather new, willing Borg, but the Borg Queen can recruit drones in seconds.

As far as Agnes Jurati’s “Good” Borg go, Season 3 of Star Trek: Picard basically ignores them. 

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Clarified: How Queen Jurati’s Collective From ‘Star Trek: Picard’ Impacted The Borg We Know

| June 1, 2022 | By: TrekMovie.com Staff 47 comments so far

It’s time for another Star Trek: Picard update, but this time it’s a clarification on a major plot point from season two. Executive producer Terry Matalas is clearing something up regarding how the season fits in with what we know of the Borg that might have  been confusing to fans.

Borgati’s “off-shoot”

The final two episodes of Star Trek: Picard season two saw Agnes Jurati become a Borg Queen. She initially merged with the queen from the 25th-century Confederation timeline, then the two were given La Sirena back in 2024 to leave and form a new type of Borg collective based on cooperation and consent instead of domination and subjugation. When the crew returned to the 25th century, it was revealed that this was the masked Queen who had taken over the USS Stargazer at the beginning of the season; however, her intentions were good and she was trying to get Starfleet to help prevent a galactic disaster.

Alison Pill as Borg Queen

This revelation of the “Borgati” Queen in the Prime Universe of the 25th century raises a big question: What exactly had she been up to since 2024? Did she, with the advanced tech of La Sirena, transform the Borg Collective, effectively rewriting everything we know about the Borg from Star Trek history? According to season two co-showrunner Terry Matalas, the answer is no. Jurati’s Borg were an “off-shoot” of the Borg Collective that “stayed out of history’s way.” He revealed this in a Twitter reply to a fan who asked how Jurati’s Borg impact the Borg we know.

They’re an off-shoot from an alternate timeline that have stayed out of history’s way. They are not the the Borg. I’d imagine the real Borg are licking their wounds still in the Delta Quadrant after Alt Admiral Janeway poisoned them. — Terry Matalas (@TerryMatalas) May 31, 2022

Matalas added he expected the traditional Borg are “licking their wounds still in the Delta Quadrant after Alt Admiral Janeway poisoned them.” This refers to the Star Trek: Voyager series finale, which had a future Admiral Janeway come back in time to help Captain Janeway get the USS Voyager home more quickly using the Borg conduit network. Admiral Janeway stayed behind, sacrificing herself to be assimilated, but in so doing she infected the Borg with a “neurolytic pathogen,” breaking the Queen’s control over the Collective.

Borg Queen (Alice Krige) infected by Admiral Janeway in “Endgame”

Matalas also revealed that an earlier draft had Starfleet give Jurati’s collective a different name to differentiate them from the other Borg, calling them “the Jurati.”

In one of the earlier drafts of the finale, Starfleet recognized them as the Jurati. — Terry Matalas (@TerryMatalas) May 31, 2022

No Borgati in season 3

Alison Pill has already confirmed she will not be in season three of Star Trek: Picard . Matalas also confirmed that season three will not be dealing with the Borg v Borg conflict, but he expects someone else to pick up that story.

I’m sure someone will write something like that, but it’s not the focus of Season 3. — Terry Matalas (@TerryMatalas) June 1, 2022

Alternate Borg ship

In other Borg news, production designer Dave Blass revealed that there was an alternate way for the Borg Queen to get on board the USS Stargazer; they designed a small Borg shuttle for the Queen that would have penetrated the Stargazer’s shields before she beamed onto the bridge. He shared the early artwork for the design by John Eaves, James Chung and Doug Drexler on Instagram.

  View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Dave Blass (@dave_blass_photography)

Star Trek Picard season 2 is available to stream now. There is no word yet on when the third season of Star Trek: Picard  will debut.

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Star Trek: Picard

‘Picard’ Season 2 Was Rewritten After Paramount Deemed It “Too Star Trek,” Says EP

Amazing. This is the exact opposite reasoning used to explain why there was no “Time’s Arrow” Guinan who recognized Picard in 21st century LA. (In that scenario, the alternate timeline infiltrating the prime timeline would’ve been the Enterprise crew from TNG coming into the prime timeline of the 19th century Earth in which Guinan was visiting. But the explanation we were given was that since that TNG timeline was wiped out, they never traveled to 19th century Earth. Here, the alt-Borg timeline gets wiped out so it can’t hang out in the prime timeline until the plot demands.)

That finale needed Janeway to show up and speak for the audience. “This is giving me a headache.”

As quickly and easily as Picard and the Enterprise-D would’ve solved the Caretaker dilemma without having to strand themselves in the Delta Quadrant, Janeway would’ve solved the Borg Queen dilemma, negating the need for all of Picard’s season two “adventure.” She would’ve sniffed out the problem and solved it by the end of the teaser.

Agreed. He’s full of it in a nutshell.

That whole concept of “no alt timeline, one overwrote the other” shot the story in the foot later. Setting the future right again would mean there was no Confederate timeline anymore, so there was never any Confederate La Sirena to travel back into the past. The switch meaning no TNG Picard to go back and meet Guinan meant, by the exact same token, switching back there was no Confed La Sirena to travel back to 2024 to fix things.

I think the explanation for all this is that Q shielded Picard and Co. from the time travel overwriting since if they got altered there would be no memory of the gift he gave to Jean Luc and it would have all been for naught.

WTF were they thinking with S2 of Picard?

Well I’m glad it was clarified. I been confused over it too but seen people cite that as a theory and they are just an alternate version of the Borg, which I’m happy about since I really didn’t like how they resolved it. But knowing that, I’m good with it. And while I am OK with changes, I still want the Borg to be the Borg basically. But having an off shoot of them can be interesting for future shows and stories.

Still, I don’t really get how they could’ve been around for 400 years and yet we supposedly never heard of them until now? But this is how time travel works I guess (and yes space is very big). And to this day I’m still confused over Endgame and how that time travel worked. The original Borg was crippled by a future Janeway from what became an alternate timeline, so shouldn’t she and her actions have been erased the minute Voyager got home 20 years sooner? Wouldn’t that just reset everything? But this is why I love Star Trek, it’s so trippy and weird lol.

In my mind, Admiral Janeway was a remnant of the alternate timeline similar to the variants in the show ‘Loki.’ The variants can get pulled out of their timelines and still exist.

“ The original Borg was crippled by a future Janeway from what became an alternate timeline, so shouldn’t she and her actions have been erased the minute Voyager got home 20 years sooner?”

Assuming that what I wrote above is *not* the case, and leaving Jurati out of the discussion at least for a moment, what is the status (in canon) of the Borg post-“Endgame”? Did Future Janeway just deal them a “crippling blow,” or did her actions eliminate them? “Picard” is canon, and my memories of season 2’s episode 1 are not clear, but I don’t recall Picard’s saying, when it became known that it was the Borg who were trying to communicate with the Federation, “WTF? I thought Janeway destroyed the Borg.”

I guess this would be a causality paradox, as Janeway needed to get Voyager home later to go through that process of going back in time to get Voyager home earlier, but getting them home earlier means older Janeway never existed to go back in time to get them home, so that means…I hate time travel 🤯

I kind of figured that the original Borg were still out there because Borgati told Seven and Raffi to tell Picard that there would no longer be a need for a Borg Slayer, at least, not from them. I assumed that meant that the Borgati were not a threat, but the real Borg collective that we’ve seen over the years is still around in the Delta Quadrant. I also figured that the artifact from season one of Picard was Borg Cube that had recently arrived in the Alpha Quadrant but had their link severed. And if sphere 634 was able to operate after what Janeway did, it’s safe to say the cooler Borg are still out there doing their thing and that the Queen self-destructed Unimatrix One to keep the rest of the collective safe from the pathogen. Plus, there was a reference on Voyager to something called a Trimatrix. They never explained what it was but I figured that this was possibly some backup unicomplex.

I am sorry, and it is rare for me to be this critical, but this “clarification” is just gobbledygook. Please let’s have a moratorium on any more time travel stories for a while. Especially ones that have little or no consistent operative principles or are haphazardly revised producing intolerable internal contradictions. It is a basic principle of the scientific method that there are universal natural laws that can be studied, experimented upon, and produce predictable results. While there can be unknowns, unresolved mysteries, and paradoxes, obvious chaos and randomness in a sci-fi genre are quite simply magic. If you’ll excuse me, now I need something for my headache.

As Chief O’Brien and future Chief O’Brien once said: “I hate temporal mechanics!”

Especially when the “mechanics” part is ill considered. :-)

Actually, it’s very simple, even for the likes of us fans:

Original Borg was crippled by a possible future Janeway who changed the present’s timeline direction, so that Voyager came home earlier (from the future Janeway’s perspective).

“Borg Cooperative”, one of which was led by Hugh (RIP).

Borgati/The Jurati, an offshoot of the Borg from an alternate future, that stayed in the shadows until now.

As established by the episode “Parallels” (TNG), a timeline doesn’t get erased; it branches off. And changes in the Prime Timeline is a result of a variant travel back through a branch to the point of divergence. At that a point of divergence, the switch to another timeline branch is made. We, as the audience, will always see the Prime Time as one timeline, regardless of any divergence that may or may not take place. It also allows the shows to get away with in-plot inconsistencies that the audience may or may not pick up.

At least, that’s how I take it…

I have found the name of my new coffee shop. All are welcome to “Borgati Cafe” – it’s in the West Village. We spike our espresso with silvery nano bits. Don’t ask for decaf!

Are we to believe that all of the Borgati setup at the end of the S2 finale, guarding the gate etc, is basically a dead-end that won’t be concluded at all?

That’s what it seems like. Just like how Picard being in a synth body was never followed up on.

“ Just like how Picard being in a synth body was never followed up on.”

Yeah. In early season 2, Jurati said to Picard, “You’re looking positively positronic.” That was the only follow-up, if it can be deemed a follow-up at all.

Hmmm… Sounds like a bit of a cop out to me since it seems like Jurarit would not wish to stand by while millions died and got assimilated at the hands of the Borg. But whatever. I questioned it but never thought it was all that important.

Jurati would recognize the need to stay out of histories way or risk undoing everything that brought everyone to this point.

Terry Matlas standard answer template: “alt time line blah blah technobabble blah blah ‘its not like that because’ add more riddlish technobabble here”

Nonsense. This Borg Queen originated from a different time and traveled back into the past of the ‘main’ universe. There is zero reason to think that would some how wipe ‘our Borg’ that were originally their from existence.

The problem for me with all this is that if you have stop and explain it after the fact, then the actual episode script wasn’t well written to begin with. This isn’t a case of having an intentionally ambiguous ending, but rather having a specific intention and not communicating it clearly.

There is always a lot of explaining after the fact, especially with Picard and Discovery; probably because both are so serialized and they never get around to answering all the questions by the end of the season. I will say with Discovery season 4 they answered everything by the end of the season which is a first for that show. Picard season one was so bad they needed an entire Q&A section to get through all the dropped plots and issues.

For all of Picard’s problems in season 2, I think it was a little better in that regard at least.

I came here to say, “If you have to explain it afterwards, it was poorly written.” You beat me to it. And your absolutely right.

Or, worse, realizing you’ve screwed it up and then scrambling to make a justification after the fact.

I wish I could just talk myself out of watching the third season. I fear many more annoyances such as the one this post is about are headed my way.

“If you have to explain it afterwards, it was poorly written.” Yes, exactly.

That’s exactly my opinion, too. There are so many plot holes that you hardly get around with it. Star Trek always was a show of continuety. They thought first, got help from scientific consultants and wrote smart stories that were not seldomly picked up in later episodes. They even drew blueprints and “invented” imaginary technologies that were so good created that they are still picked up by modern scientists (warp drive). There is a whole encyclopedia about trek and so much information on the internet that it was possible to create smart story-telling. The producers just didn’t care. One “nerd” of the old generation could have checked the stories for dis-continuety, e.g. a ten forward-pub in the 21st century and other dumb stuff like photovoltaic on the Golden gate Bridge while you have matter-antimatter-generators. Don’t want to start with the 3D-printers on the 2009 movie… What about Picards older brother in the story of his childhood. Where was he? Why did the new borg in the 21st century suddenly have weapons with a borg-green laser? And why did they have to eat batteries and stuff, while they should have evolved in contrast to the TNG and VOY-Borg, who did not have to eat anything for transforming. Why this electronics look on their skin? Why Why Why? The reason is: the producers just don’t care. They make enough money milking the “Star Trek in its name”-cow without caring for its legacy. It works. That’s the most sad part about all of that. They take some good names, put it into some crappy stories and make money like hell. The target group for this new Trek is way to young and so not-Trekkies that it works out for them. Bring some action and give it a history of 55 years and you get enough people to watch it and think “yeah, that’s good scifi”. But it’s not. It’s some CGI packed together with some random story in space. No sci there, just some bad fi.

Star Trek always was a show of continuity….

Umm no it wasn’t. There are plenty of things that Trek reworked or changed over its decades.

Yepp and they explained why in most of the cases. It’s something different if you got a hand full of discontinuity or cometely ignore it.

Wouldn’t the existing Borg have hunted them down? They don’t like to let their drones just wonder off by themselves. And… is this creates a new Queen, wouldn’t that naturally set up conflict? … And… And… so we are to beleive that the Borg Q introduced Picard to in TNG are a different set of Borg?? Wouldn’t he already know this?? This leaves us, beginning in 2024 ‘good’ Borg and ‘Bad’ Borg… Q supposidly introduced the bad Borg to the Federation during TNG, but the ‘good’ Borg knew of Earth in 2024. I just wanna know which Borg is Björn Borg??? (Google it if you do not know who he is).

“Definitely not Swedish.”

Why do you think that the “existing Borg” would even know about them in order to hunt them down? Queen Jurati would have made serious efforts to stay hidden to the “existing Borg” and there’s no reason to think that they couldn’t do it. They have the advantage of 4 centuries of advanced technology and knowlege of the galactic landscape. The Borg weren’t “everywhere” in the 21st century, or even the 24th century. Lots of places to hide…. the galaxy is a big place.

Its just stupid. They even don’t take Star Trek serious, telling us every bullshit they want with no care for the canon. This is insulting. This is no minor fact fans are discussing about to fill the gap between two episodes – this is starfleets major foe and maybe one of the most creative inventions in story telling. And they are put just shit on all of that. And the fact, that they need to clarify things after the season finale is just saying: producer, showrunner, writer – they are all very, very, very bad! I still accept Kurtzman way of going all in and do all different things because no one (especially we fans) really knows how to do a star trek series surviving the expectations of the fans and the streaming market. But I really would wish he doesn`t take that much sacrifices along the way. Its hurting.

That looks like Nero’s ship, which did use Borg technology, at least non-canon. (Which would indicate that the Romulans were exploiting captured Borg ships even before Romulus was destroyed.)

It was all so poorly written, the fact that they have to send out tweets explaining plot holes is pretty sad. I had such high hopes for season 2 and it turned out to be worse than season 1 and I didnt think that was possible. While Discovery is far from my favorite Star Trek, I was able to get into it enough to be excited for the next episode. With Picard, I was concerned with what they were going to mess up every episode.

I’ll never understand some fans’ obsession with minutiae. Star Trek is literally completely based on the concept that nearly everyone is humanoid and we can travel galactic distances thanks to technobabble. The reason we still watch is not because we’re looking for hard science lessons solely, but because we want allegories it even straight up stories about the human condition. Discovery has been telling stories about trauma and how to cope in various ways. Picard is giving us extremely personal depictions of regret and how allowing regret to control your life can have seemingly galactic consequences for the individual. Are they perfectly capturing these themes every time? No. But they’re giving us the opportunity to experience and discuss. There is a level of holding the writers’ feet to the fire expected but the extreme vitriol coming from this comment section as a whole is just so disappointing. One could even say that most commenters seem to miss the entire point of Trek in the first place. Cooperation, compassion, debate. Infinite diversity, in infinite combination.

I, for one, was happy mostly with s2 of Picard. Not just for the chore of putting together the time travel puzzle pieces, but for the issues they raised (albeit sometimes clumsily and sometimes even insensitively), the performances they gave us, and hell, even the nostalgia they dipped us in (even if they forced our heads under that particular water’s surface from time to time).

Bottom line is, I’m not a writer. If I were, I wouldn’t waste my time here with hateful comments. I’d try to spend it more constructively and hoping that old open script policy returns. I’m over the moon that we’ve been given a second golden age of Trek content and I’ll continue to enjoy it while it lasts. We can be critical. We can even occasionally get nitpicky. But, please remember what Trek is to so many people: a forum for debate on the human condition and a playground for fantastical situations in the realm of science fiction. I personally think we’ve been given that in spades.

Very well said.

If we follow the branching timelines / variant theory, there can be no grandfather paradoxes. You go back in time, kill your grandfather, but you’re still there, because now you’re a remnant of a different timeline where he wasn’t killed.

Nero’s ship goes back in time, creating the branched Kelvin timeline. The Prime timeline continued on without Nero and Spock from that point (hence, the Romulan refugees seen in Picard S1, because the destruction of Romulus still happened)

In the past Prime 2024 before the divergence that created the Confederation timeline, Borgati takes the Confed-era La Sirena to go create the new Volunteer Borg. It’s not erased because it, too, is a remnant of a different timeline.

Q snaps his fingers to return everyone to the Prime future just before the Stargazer auto-destructs, but that’s just moving them forward from Prime 2024.

What is a little hazy in the writing is the implication of linear timelines that can be rewritten (causality loops), vs. branched timelines, vs. parallel universes.

It isn’t consistent, to be sure, but there’s been so much inconsistency around time travel and causality in Star Trek that it’s probably best to not worry about it too much; it’s a storytelling device, not actual science.

Do you remember the days when the writing was comprehensive enough that you didn’t have to try to explain the convoluted plot points after the show ended? When Terry wrote that, did he ever consider ‘Hmmmm…perhaps we should have answered that rather important point in the actual series as opposed to Twitter.’

I do indeed, Trev. Serialized shows like that are still out there, to be sure. They’re just not produced by these folks.

What important point? There’s no reason to think the original Borg would be affected in any way, people just haven’t thought it through properly.

You can see that something is poorly conceived and badly written when the creators have to keep explaining things

I actually understood this was an offshoot Borg without needing an explanation so apparently not everyone needs to be spoon fed information like some do. People will find anything they can latch onto to ahit on Picard. Was it perfect? No. It has some flaws but people make it out to be way worse than it is.

Everything We Know About the Borg Queen After 'Star Trek: Picard' Season 2

Now that 'Star Trek: Picard' Season 2 has come to a close, let's unpack everything we know about the long-lost Borg Queen.

Star Trek: Picard has ended its strong, focused second season, having tossed the principal characters first into a dark alternate timeline and then several centuries into the past, all thanks to Jean-Luc Picard’s ( Patrick Stewart ) trickster-god nemesis, Q ( John DeLancie ). The major Season 1 characters returned: Captain Rios ( Santiago Cabrera ) now commands a new version of Picard’s old ship the Stargazer ; Raffi ( Michelle Hurd ) and Elnor ( Evan Evagora ) now serve together on a new Excelsior , and Seven of Nine is once again a Fenris Ranger and caretaker of Rios’ beloved La Sirena .

Dr. Agnes Jurati ( Alison Pill ) is another returning character, and for most of this second season, it seemed like the show did not know what to do with her . Then, at about the halfway mark, Jurati’s fate intertwines with one other character, who Star Trek fans haven’t seen in a long time: the Borg Queen ( Annie Wersching ). So who is the Borg Queen? Let’s take a look at her legacy and her current incarnation.

RELATED: How 'Star Trek: Picard' Squandered the Potential of Its New Characters

The One Who Is Many

1997’s Star Trek: First Contact establishes several updates to the Borg which carried over into later series, including Picard. They have the ability to assimilate via retractable cybernetic tentacles, and while we knew they were a decentralized collective, First Contact reveals the singular entity controlling this collective: the Borg Queen, played in that film by Alice Krige .

Krige would go on to portray the character in several episodes of Star Trek: Voyager , including the series finale. Susanna Thompson stepped in to play the Queen in the crucial "Unimatrix Zero" two-parter, setting up a strange mystery that to date has not been directly addressed. At the end of First Contact , the Queen is killed by Captain Picard, who severs her cybernetic spinal cord after Data ( Brent Spiner ) is able to destroy her organic components. The crew of the Voyager encounter the Borg and the Queen in the Delta Quadrant, and the show does not attempt to explain how the Queen can be alive following the events of First Contact .

The Voyager crew encounter the Borg many times during the show’s run, with the series finale centering around a future Janeway ( Kathryn Mulgrew ), who travels back in time to guide her younger self in battle against the Borg. Future Janeway knows that a Borg transwarp hub can propel the ship back to the Alpha Quadrant, and sacrifices herself to poison the Borg Queen and clear the way for Voyager ’s return.

The Borg Slayer

Fast forward to the second season of Picard , which deposits the admiral and company into a dark alternate timeline. Picard himself is a galactically-feared conqueror of countless alien species, and is set to exterminate yet another: the Borg Queen.

In Season 1 of Picard , former Borg drone and Voyager crew member Seven of Nine accessed a Queencell in the massive, abandoned Borg cube known as the Artifact. The concept of a chamber in each Borg cube which could only be accessed by the Queen was made canon. Seven of Nine then relinked herself to the rest of the collective, taking control of them all and allowing the La Sirena crew chance to escape.

The Season 2 premiere ends with a version of the Borg Queen appearing on the bridge of Rios’s Stargazer. Drawn to yet another massive spatial anomaly, Picard’s presence has been requested by an unknown species looking to formally join the United Federation of Planets. This turns out to be a previously-unknown Borg Queen, and as her massive cybernetic tentacles bury themselves in the Stargazer’s consoles and take over her systems, Picard orders the ship to self-destruct.

Jump ahead to this alternate timeline. As the main characters adjust to their surroundings, we learn that Seven was never assimilated by the Borg here. This Annika Hansen has no implants and is in fact the President of the Federation. She is about to honor Picard with the title “Borg Slayer” as he executes the Borg Queen before presumably the entire galaxy.

Echoing Timelines

The misplaced crew quickly comes together, and they learn that they're path back home runs right through the Borg Queen. In this timeline, Agnes Jurati is a scientist working for the Dark Federation and has access to the Queen, who is held in some kind of storage unit. We learn that the Borg have some kind of extrasensory perception of alternate timelines. This Borg Queen understands that the timeline has shifted, and knows who they all are and what they're doing.

Given Seven's reveal that the Queencells were not necessarily created for any one Borg Queen, the notion of a time-shift-sensitive Queen suggests that the Borg Queen could perhaps split her consciousness into many different avatars at once, allowing her to exist as simultaneous incarnations of herself. This could also explain her ability to inhabit the consciousness of Dr. Agnes Jurati. The Queen infiltrates Jurait's mind and in short order finds herself loose on the streets of L.A. in the early 21st century. The Queen needs a certain amount of elements and endorphins to grow her strength, and soon Jurati and the Queen are locked in a battle for control of Jurati's body.

The Star Gazer

The survival of our main characters depends on an internal debate which Jurati eventually wins. She convinces the Borg Queen that no matter the timeline, the Borg are always eventually defeated, whether by "a lone Borg slayer or United Federation." She convinces the Borg Queen that she and her drones will never able to overcome and achieve the perfection she seeks.

Before the season's ultimate dénouement, we watch Jurati and the Borg Queen find a common ground. Borg Queen Jurati then takes off in La Sirena, theoretically giving the Borg a 400-year head start on assimilating the galaxy. Picard and company wrap up their business in the past, repairing the timeline. With what is presumably the equivalent of his final breath, Q sends everyone save Rios (who elects to stay in the past) back to the bridge of the Stargazer, where all of this started.

Picard orders the bridge crew to stand down, cancels the self-destruct sequence, and waits. Borg Queen Jurati reveals herself, and the entire narrative comes full circle. The Borg now openly offer species the opportunity to assimilate. The Borg's request to join the Federation may not have been a ruse, after all. The finale reveal, Borg Queen Jurati tells Picard that there is a much bigger threat out there, one that will necessitate the Federation and the Borg working together. With the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation all officially returning for Season 3, we can expect the ramifications of Picard 's continuity-breaking overhaul fo the Borg to become the focal point of the show's third and final season.

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‘picard’ star alison pill talks “intoxicating” allure of becoming borg queen and nerves for that huge singing number.

From her first major stunts to an epic musical number to being overtaken by pure evil, the actress has been busy this season on the 'Star Trek' series.

By Ryan Parker

Ryan Parker

Former Senior Reporter

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[Warning: This story contains spoilers for the Star Trek: Picard episode “Mercy.”] 

Alison Pill has been on a wild ride this season of Star Trek: Picard — and it has nothing to do with space travel.

The actress, who plays the brilliant, but shy and insecure, Agnes Jurati, has shifted gears dramatically through this season after her character was overtaken by the Borg Queen (Annie Wersching). As Agnes gives in more and more to the badly needed companionship and seduction of power, she is losing herself and jeopardizing the mission and the future.

Needless to say, it was a busy production. Not only did Pill have an epic musical number in the episode “Two of One,” but the actress did her first stunts ever in this week’s episode “Mercy” when Jurati, under the queen’s consciousness, fights (and bests) Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) and Raffi (Michelle Hurd).

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Her head still somewhat swirling from it all, Pill gave a lot of credit for her masterful performances to the writers and guest directors, such as Lea Thompson and Star Trek alum Jonathan Frakes. Still, she explained to The Hollywood Reporter that the journey of playing someone who has good and evil battling it out inside them has been a joy and a unique experience.

First and foremost, how did it feel to be the Borg Queen as she took over more and more of Agnes? 

It was very exciting to get to look at the adaptations that occur in Jurati over these last few episodes, as well as spending time with Annie [Wersching] to see what her queen was becoming, because that’s who’s running the show as of now.

Agnes is sweet, but shy and lacks confidence. The Borg Queen takes what she wants. Which is more enjoyable to embody? 

Agnes has quite low self-esteem, and the queen does not. ( Laughs .) So I think the imaginary quality of suddenly believing in your own power is intoxicating, as it would be for many people. But there is a level of ego — I don’t know if Borg have egos ( laughs ) — with the driving self-force, which seems great, but it comes at the cost of so many, as I think is often the case with self-obsessed leaders.

They’re so different that they’re both equally enjoyable to play. I mean, I love Jurati so very much. So I think establishing her character more this season, seeing a bit more of what makes her tick, was really exciting. And the kind of opportunities for comedy and for pathos that butt up against each other in the scripts was really a joy. But it’s also fun to play an evil genius. ( Laughs .)

Speaking of the scripts, what did you think when you realized you were going to be the Borg Queen, at least in part, this season? 

[Executive producer] Akiva [Goldsman] spoke to me about it early on before I even saw scripts, and I was thrilled at the prospect! There was so much writing going on throughout the season, so we were never quite sure where it was all going to land, in which episode or how it would all come together. I spoke to writers about the through-line of why Agnes feels compelled by the arguments of the queen and how her influence on the queen might affect the idea of the collective more generally. I thought it was a fascinating tension to explore.

Today’s episode in particular is quite the physical Agnes. How much of that brutal fight with Seven of Nine and Raffi were you allowed to do or did you want to do? 

I was allowed to do some stunts for the first time ever, and I was thrilled! ( Laughs .) I told my daughter that I spent the day running across the tops of cars, and she was properly impressed. It’s shot in so many pieces, but there is something thrilling about making a movement and seeing somebody fly backward on a harness. It was really wonderful to be given the chance to do some of the more physical stuff that I never get to do.

Most of your scenes this season are with Annie. Can you tell me about working with her on- and offscreen? 

She’s wonderful! I think she brought such an interesting approach to the queen because you understand the deeply seductive powers that she would have over someone like Agnes or over anyone. And she projects this kind of fun, self-confident, anything-is-possible way of being that is really exciting to be around. She’s under a bunch of prosthetics and not the most comfortable costume — and still managed to be one of the crew favorites just because her demeanor was so welcoming and funny. The character wouldn’t have worked half as well with someone else, I think. She managed to capture something really important.

The wonderful Lea Thompson directed a block of episodes this season, both of which featured deep moments between you and Annie. How was it being directed by her?

It was very exciting. First, to have a female director and also to have somebody who was really interested in the emotional lives of the characters. We got the opportunity to talk about motivation and to try new things, since a lot of that was the establishment of our Borg Queen.

The grand gala scene in “Two of One” was epic. And your singing was phenomenal. Can you tell me about that production day? 

I was very glad that [Jonathan] Frakes was directing because he’s just a joy to have around generally and so funny. Any nerves that I had about it were quickly set aside by him and his demeanor and his just his comfort in the world.

I was so excited to have the chance to sing and to do this big crazy number and to walk down the stairs. But I was also really grateful to have him and his theater background and his understanding of showmanship to know how far to go and how to manage it.

Speaking of Jonathan, he told me in a previous interview that he thinks you’re one of the most versatile actors he’s ever worked with, which we’re clearly seeing. Can you tell me about your process to hit all the notes (no pun intended) you’re hitting emotionally this season?

A lot of it has been a gift from the writers in terms of these really complex scenes. The plugging in to the queen scene was one of my favorites that I’ve ever gotten to do. They really allowed me to go all over the place, which is always what I want to do. I just like pretending. ( Laughs .) Every human contains multitudes. I think the shyness and the genius of Agnes are easily shifted into different areas. Every person I meet has all of these feelings that may be hidden or all of these talents or gifts that they may not share with people but do exist, and they think exploring that is really exciting.

Interview edited for length and clarity. 

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Star Trek: Picard Gives the Borg the Ultimate Sleeper Agent

Star Trek: Picard features a radical change for the Borg Queen as she gains her own sleeper agent to continue her sinister agenda in the 21st century.

WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Trek: Picard Season 2, Episode 5, "Fly Me to the Moon," streaming now on Paramount+.

The Borg Collective is one of the most terrifying antagonists ever introduced in Star Trek , moving relentlessly through the galaxy and forcibly assimilating all organic life into their techno-organic hive mind. Boasting some of the most advanced technology in the Star Trek universe, the Borg usually overwhelm opposition they encounter rather than resort to any form of subterfuge. However, Star Trek: Picard changes that approach. With the Borg Queen as the sole figure from her empire tacitly joining Jean-Luc Picard and his crew to restore the timeline, the sinister regent adopts a different strategy: she creates a sleeper agent to secretly continue her agenda.

Awakening in a divergent timeline created by the omnipotent Q , the Borg Queen found herself a captive of the brutal Confederation of Earth and scheduled for execution to signal the complete eradication of the Borg. Picard and his friends rescued the Queen in order to gain her help traveling back in time to the point of the divergence. Dr. Agnes Jurati allowed the Queen to temporarily assimilate her in order to gather more information about the divergence and repair La Sirena after it crashed in the 21st century -- leading the Queen to take an unhealthy interest in Jurati after the experience.

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When Jurati is left alone with the Borg Queen on La Sirena while the rest of the crew departs for different missions around Earth, the Queen seizes the opportunity to fulfill her newfound desire and make her assimilation of Jurati more permanent. Kidnapping a local police officer lured into the starship, the Queen threatens to kill or assimilate him unless Jurati submits herself for full assimilation. Instead, Jurati shoots the Queen with a shotgun found on the Picard family estate, seemingly taking advantage of the Queen still being vulnerable and restrained on La Sirena.

Though the Borg Queen appears to be physically destroyed once again, her previous assimilation of Jurati wasn't as temporary as it appeared. When getting close to the Queen after shooting her, Jurati discovers that the Queen has implanted her consciousness into her, with the two psyches now sharing Jurati's mind. Though Jurati appears to be in control of herself for now, the Queen is a constant presence as she observes what her host is going through at any given moment.

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To complicate matters further, the revelation that the Queen is now inhabiting Jurati's mind occurs while she is planted as a mole inside an exclusive gala honoring NASA astronaut (and Picard's ancestor) Renee Picard. Jurati deliberately allows herself to be picked up by security and confined to their control room, giving her immediate access to the security systems so the rest of the crew can infiltrate the event safely. With the Queen still at play in Jurati's mind, the entire mission could quickly go off the rails if Jurati is compromised further.

The Queen was always something of an unlikely ally for Picard and his crew, putting aside past trauma in order to focus on restoring reality after it was tampered with by Q. While La Sirena's crew put the Queen under as much restraint as possible to prevent her from going rogue and assimilating all of them, she has succeeded in getting underneath Jurati's skin (somewhat literally). In doing so, the Borg Queen's place on the team has just changed dramatically -- and she could undo this vital mission at a time when Jurati is needed the most.

Created by Akiva Goldsman, Michael Chabon, Kirsten Beyer and Alex Kurtzman, Star Trek: Picard releases new episodes Thursdays on Paramount+.

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Star Trek: Picard just permanently changed the timeline and there’s no going back

How many different Borg Queens are alive in 2024?

The Borg Queen is loose in the 21st century. At the end of Star Trek: Picard Season 2, Episode 9, “Hide and Seek,” Jean-Luc and what’s left of his motley crew are still trapped in the past, but now with a new timeline-altering wrinkle. Although we saw an alternate future back in Episode 2, the change in this episode is a much bigger deal. Here’s why the ending of Episode 9 seems to permanently alter Star Trek history. Spoilers ahead.

Jurati and Dr. Soong in Picard Season 2, Episode 8, “Mercy.”

Jurati creates a new kind of Borg

After merging with the Borg Queen (Annie Wersching) from an alternate 2401, Agnes Jurati (Alison Pill) is now a new kind of Borg Queen. But, pivotally, Jurati wins an internal debate with the Queen’s consciousness in her own mind. She convincingly proves that in every timeline the Borg are defeated, either by “a lone Borg slayer or a United Federation.” This references a couple Borg defeats in Trek canon: Their defeat and the Queen’s demise in First Contact , as well as Admiral Janeway’s defeat of the Borg — and another Queen’s destruction — in the Voyager episode “Endgame.”

Jurati convinces the Borg Queen that the only way forward for the Borg is to change and, essentially, become a nicer hivemind. As teased by Alison Pill , this reformed version of the Borg will become a voluntary collective. While there’s been rogue Borg before, there’s never been a Collective led by a Queen with the stated goal of optional assimilation. It’s new and exciting, and it’s a subtle change to Star Trek history.

Time-traveling Borg from 2373 trying to contact other Borg from 2063.

Where are the Borg in 2024?

In the Star Trek canon, the Borg are not from the future. In First Contact, when the Borg traveled back from 2373 to 2063, they attempted to contact other contemporary Borg, who were at that time still only living in the Delta Quadrant. In Star Trek’s past there are Borg alive in 20th and 21st centuries, but they’re not anywhere near Earth.

Now the existence of Jurati’s new time-traveling Borg Queen seems to imply there are two Borg Queens alive in 2024. One is living somewhere in the Delta Quadrant running the old collective, and this new Queen is a fusion of two people from different versions of 2401. In theory, there were probably two Borg Queens around in First Contact’s 2063 too for the same reason: Time travel.

At the end of the episode, the Jurati Borg Queen leaves Earth with the La Sirena (a ship also from an alternate 2401) to go in search of the Borg of this time period. This is huge, and most likely won’t be retconned.

Jurati and the Borg Queen have a discussion in her mind in Picard Episode 6, “Two of One.”

How Jurati’s Borg Queen changes Star Trek canon

Assuming the hooded Borg Queen we saw in “The Star Gazer” is also the Jurati Borg Queen, only several centuries later, it would seem like an entirely different version of the Borg rose up in some kind of alternate timeline created by Picard and the crew coming back to 2024. Ironically, Picard and the gang travelled to 2024 to prevent a different alternate timeline from getting created in the first place.

Confused? That’s understandable. In “The Star Gazer” we’re told a fancy new Borg ship punched a hole in spacetime. Whether that’s time travel or a bridge between parallel dimensions, there are potentially three timelines at play here:

• The regular Picard timeline we see at the beginning of “The Star Gazer.”
• The evil Confederation timeline from Episode 2, “Penance,” which is the departure point for the crew’s trip to Earth’s past.
• Possibly a new “friendly Borg” timeline, in which Jurati reforms the Borg in the 21st century.

This last possibility, which seems probable, means that in one version of Earth’s past the Borg become good .

If true, what will that mean for the “Prime” Star Trek canon? Will Picard Season 2 end with some kind of hybrid timeline in which people have memories of two types of Borg? And presumably Jean-Luc and the crew will need to get back to the 25th century, but Jurati just stole their ride . S o however Jean-Luc returns to his present, history as we know it will have been altered.

Star Trek: Picard Season 2 airs its finale on May 5, 2022, on Paramount+.

This article was originally published on April 29, 2022

• Science Fiction

Star Trek: Picard Season 3 Proves That A Major Villain Needs To Be Retired For A Long Time

This post contains  spoilers for the ninth episode of "Star Trek: Picard," season 3.

In the latest episode of "Star Trek: Picard,"  called "Võx," one of the season's great mysteries has been revealed. Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers) has been having strange visions for several episodes, seeing an antique red door appearing in his mind's eye. He also seems to have acquired eerie psychic powers as well as the capability to read thoughts and project his consciousness into other people's brains, effectively taking them over. These abilities made Jack of vital importance to Vadic (Amanda Plummer), a vicious Changeling bounty hunter hellbent on kidnapping him. Vadic also, audiences have learned, hijacked Jean-Luc Picard's dead body from a Federation black site (Picard, one might recall, had his own consciousness shunted into a positronic body at the end of "Picard" season 1). 

The explanation for both Jack's psychic powers and Vadic's grave robbery is, it seems, rather dumb: when Picard was assimilated by the Borg years before, they left a mysterious genetic "mark" in his brain, a "mark" that contains ... Borg DNA? Not nanotechnology, but a Borg gene. When Picard fathered Jack, he passed the gene to his son, making Jack essentially part Borg. When Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) psychically opens up the red door in Jack's visions, she sees a Borg cube on the other side. The Borg Queen (Alice Krige) immediately begins calling.

One can't help but think this will inspire nothing but sighs of weariness from Trekkies in the audience. The Borg again? How many times must we visit the same well? 

After so many times dealing with the Borg, they have lost their specialness. They aren't a threat. And in "Picard," they are merely a lazy trope that needs to be retired posthaste.

The Borg plot, of course, is more involved than merely connecting to Jack's brain. After the Changeling cohort got the Borg DNA sequence out of Picard's frontal lobe, they implanted it into the transporters of hundreds of ships, infecting the brains of anyone under 25 who beamed anywhere. When the Queen, with Jack's help, activated their Borg-ified brains, myriad ensigns essentially became Borg drones, tying together thousands of Starfleet vessels to take over the Federation. To what end? I guess because they like to assimilate so much, the Borg are once again handy "bad guys." 

And that's an issue. When the Borg first appeared in the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" episode "Q Who" (May 8, 1989), they were terrifying and strange. Clearly inspired by the art of H.R. Giger, they had no goals other than to assimilate the technology — and the people — of the species they encountered. Their ship was a mere cube. They shared a single consciousness and erased individuality from the people they kidnapped. They could repair damage instantaneously and adapted to any weapons or tactics they encountered. Picard (Patrick Stewart) admits that the Borg have the Enterprise handily outmatched. Only literal divine intervention from Q ( John De Lancie ) can save him. The Borg were set up as so ineffable and overpowered that even the resourcefulness of the Federation was no match for them. 

Eventually, the Borg were brought back in the famous two-part episode, "The Best of Both Worlds" (June 18 and September 24, 1990). That was the episode in which Picard was assimilated. By the end of the two parts, the Borg, led by Picard, had infiltrated Earth's system and murdered thousands. Data (Brent Spiner), Troi (Marina Sirtis), and Dr. Crusher (Gates McFadden) managed to hack into the Borg's mainframe and shut down the attack. A non-aggressive finish to a spectacular story.

And that should have been where we left it. The Borg were finally defeated, but only after they killed many, many people and left Captain Picard traumatized. They could now go back to being distant, mysterious, and largely undefeatable. But the "Star Trek" writers couldn't leave well enough alone and kept going back to the Borg. And, with each visitation, the Borg became gradually less and less threatening. Like Storm Troopers in "Star Wars," they became an army of generic monsters to be gunned down. In "I, Borg" (May 10, 1992) and the two-parter, "Descent" (June 21 and September 20, 1993), it was revealed that Borgs can be taken away from the collective and cured without too many issues. 

Most damagingly, the 1996 film, "Star Trek: First Contact,"  altered the very nature of the Borg. Previously a soulless machine collective, the Borg were transformed into a beehive. They now had specific, malevolent plans and were led by a villainous Queen (Alice Krige). The Queen had a personality and talked about how the Borg were all about achieving perfection. With a human voice and a recognizable motivation, the Borg were no longer threatening. They could now be reasoned with, distracted, and bested. With a human voice, they could now engage in negotiations. This was the opposite of what they were previously. 

One can see a "Star Trek" writer straining to add some new wrinkles to the Borg's mythology in order to keep their story going, but in adding said wrinkles, they robbed the Borg of their dramatic power. 

Post-Voyager

"Star Trek: Voyager" essentially sealed the coffin shut on the Borg, having them appear as regular villains throughout the series. Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) was able to strike a deal with the Borg, arranging an exchange of technology. One of the show's main characters, Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), was a rescued Borg. Later in the series, several characters deliberately allowed themselves to be assimilated, knowing it was temporary. After that, several Borg children were rehabilitated. It seems that assimilation isn't as bad as all that. You just need the metallic implants removed. 

One of the plot points of the first season of "Picard" was that the Romulans had been operating a mass de-assimilation project, having commandeered a Borg cube of their own. The Borg are now a mere public works project. The second season of "Picard" saw Dr. Jurati (Alison Pill) threatened by a new Borg Queen (Annie Werching),  who took over her mind. Dr. Jurati, however, eventually announces that the Borg had turned over a new leaf, now believing in diplomacy and togetherness. 

The shock of seeing a Borg ship no longer bears any punch. 

When Jack Crusher opened his mind-door and a Borg ship was lurking behind it, one's reaction might be one of "Yeah? So?" Trekkies have now spent so much time with the Borg and their monstrousness has been downplayed so often, that Jack's Borg-ness hardly seems like a threat, nor is it shocking. Also, if the Borg now have motivations, one might begin to ask why the Borg felt like they needed to assimilate Earth. If it was mere revenge for Earth's prior victories, then, golly that's the least interesting motivation imaginable. 

It's time to hang up the Borg. It should have happened long ago. Their appearance on "Picard" ultimately hurt the series. 

Alison Pill Talks Jurati’s Excellent Borgventure on Star Trek: Picard

Alison Pill says she 'was thrilled' about her character's story arc in Picard.

On the second season of Star Trek: Picard , currently being released on Thursdays on Paramount+, the whole crew of the La Sirena (or is that the Star Gazer ) are undergoing a totally excellent adventure to Los Angeles in the year 2024… However, perhaps no character has further to travel than Alison Pill’s Doctor Agnes Jurati. This article includes spoilers for the second season of Picard , up to and including the eighth episode, “Mercy,” released for streaming on Thursday, April 21st, 2022.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter , Pill shared her thoughts about her character’s arc throughout the second season of Picard . The sophomore season has brought Admiral Jean Luc Picard (Sir Patrick Stewart) and his new crew face-to-face with a brand-new incarnation of the Borg Queen (Annie Wersching). That meeting has proven especially fateful for Agnes Jurati.

In the third episode of the season, “Assimilation,” the Borg Queen’s computing power was used to calculate the ship’s slingshot around the sun, the La Sirena ’s method of time travel. Later in the episode, Juarti was forced to mentally interface with the Borg Queen to find the Watcher's location in 2024 Los Angeles. While Jurati seemed to escape that encounter unscathed, it caused her to capture the attention of the Borg Queen, which is always a dangerous proposition.

Then, in “Fly Me to the Moon,” it seemed as though Juarti was forced to kill the Borg Queen, but the show soon revealed that she instead invited her into her mind. In the interview with THR , Pill revealed that she learned about this subplot early in the creative process:

“[Executive producer] Akiva [Goldsman] spoke to me about it early on before I even saw scripts, and I was thrilled at the prospect!”

Related: The Best Original Star Trek Characters, Ranked

"Two in One" Features Alison Pill Singing Pat Benatar's "Shadows of the Night"

In the fifth episode of the season, “Two of One,” directed by Jonathan Frakes, we saw the extent of the synthesis of the two characters as Juarti performed a scene-stealing rendition of “Shadows of the Night,” made popular by Pat Benatar. Pill told THR:

“I was very glad that Frakes was directed because he’s just a joy to have around generally and so funny. Any nerves that I had about it were quickly set aside by him and his demeanor and his just his comfort in the world.”

This is hardly the first musical scene Frakes has directed for Trek ! Among the others are the rendition of “A British Tar” in Star Trek: Insurrection and the eponymous song in the Star Trek: Discovery episode “Stormy Weather.” Plus, according to the commentary for the Discovery season two episode “New Eden” with Frakes and Cowboy Captain Pike actor Anson Mount, a deleted scene saw Pike performing an Old Earth hymn to win the confidence of the citizens of the pre-Warp society they’ve encountered. Sadly, this scene is not included on the DVD, but hopefully, we’ll eventually get a director’s cut of the episode from Frakes.

New episodes of Star Trek: Picard are available for streaming on Paramount+ on Thursdays.

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Star Trek: Picard

‘Star Trek: Picard’ Season 3, Episode 9 Recap: A Familiar Home

Home is where the ship is. In this week’s episode of “Picard,” the crew goes home.

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By Sopan Deb

Season 3, Episode 9: ‘Vox’

If you’re going to lean into nostalgia, might as well go the whole way. If you’re going to bring back the old cast, bring back the old ship and the old villains, too.

Resistance to fan service is futile. Recall that in this season’s premiere, Jean-Luc wanted to give Geordi a gift of a painting of the Enterprise D.

“She wasn’t the first,” he said. “But she was certainly my favorite.”

Little did he know that Geordi was preparing a gift himself the whole time: the real Enterprise D, somehow excavated from Verdian III, where the ship unceremoniously crash landed in “Generations.” It’s the ship that many of us fell in love with, just as much as we did with the characters that served on the ship. The “Picard” showrunner, Terry Matalas, has used this season of “Picard” to right many of the previous wrongs of the “Next Generation” franchise. Giving the Enterprise D a proper send-off seems as appropriate as giving the crew one.

Seeing the crew take its familiar stations on the bridge felt like putting on your favorite sweater that you can never throw out. It just fits, no matter what. Seeing the renovated ship in high definition? Even better.

It’s not too much nostalgia at the expense of story either. It turns out only an old Starfleet ship can be dusted off to save the day, not one of these newfangled, high-tech ones Starfleet is at the mercy of now.

Once again, the Enterprise crew is all that stands between — surprise — the Borg and the Earth’s annihilation. The face that Vadic was referring to the whole time was Jean-Luc’s old nemesis: The Borg Queen. Just as the “Trek” universe keeps finding ways to bring Data back to life, it does the same with the Borg. I must confess some disappointment in seeing this become the Big Reveal that the season was building up to. Ever since “First Contact,” the Borg have been the well “Trek” writers keep going back to, including in “Voyager” and both seasons of “Picard.”

It shouldn’t have been much of a surprise: Vadic hinted at this on the bridge with Seven in last week’s episode.

The Borg Queen was already a major part of the story line last season with Picard’s friend Agnes Jurati (Alison Pill). You might remember, and it’s likely you don’t, since the season was so convoluted, that Jurati became the leader of a new, benevolent Borg. This goes totally unmentioned by Jean-Luc here. This felt odd, especially when Beverly said, “No one has seen or heard from the Borg in over a decade.” Well, it has assuredly not been a decade since Season 2. And what about the Borg cube in the first season that was being repurposed as a Romulan reclamation site ? And the season ended with an unexplained transwarp conduit that Queen Jurati suggests is a threat! Worth a mention from Jean-Luc, methinks.

It’s possible there is some timeline shift or something I’m missing, and I am eager to see the comments correcting me. (Annie Wersching, who played the queen in Season 2, died earlier this year .)

Now, it’s a New and Improved Borg. When Jean-Luc was Locutus, they implanted an assimilation gene inside Jean-Luc that would be passed on to his offspring. The changelings helped the Borg place the altered DNA into the transporter systems to assimilate anybody who uses them, which explains why changelings wanted to use shuttles before. But it affects only the youngest members of the crew, not anyone over, say, the age of the main cast of “Picard.” Got it? Me either. The Borg essentially have taken over Starfleet without anyone noticing: a coup without a shot fired. Until the shots are fired. And now, Earth can be saved only by the Olds.

Poor Jean-Luc: First he finds out that he has unwittingly been an absentee father and now he may have accidentally turned his son into a homicidal robot. As Jean-Luc remarks to Beverly: “He inherited the best of you. And the worst of me.”

(Also: Poor Jack, who now doesn’t have a solid answer to his question, “How much of me is me?”)

Jack is, in many ways, not your ideal candidate to lead the Borg collective. He has long been an independent, rogue actor who doesn’t want to play by the rules, while the very notion of individuality is anathema to the Borg. Jean-Luc’s use of Starfleet protocols to try to keep him confined to quarters was always doomed to fail, especially after he told Jack that the solution was to institutionalize him on Vulcan. Not exactly a great parental approach from Jean- Luc! In his defense, he is not exactly experienced.

Jack snarls: “What about the protocols of a father? Or were you never issued those?”

A fair point, and one that stands out even more when one considers how many times Jean-Luc broke protocol in this season alone. Remember when he stole a ship and put members of the Titan in mortal danger?

Jean-Luc has not had his fastball this season, but luckily, his former teammates have. Geordi dusting off the Enterprise D was a shrewd maneuver. Beverly and Data are able to quickly figure out what happened to Jack and the plot to overrun Starfleet. Troi discovers the Borg connection to begin with. Riker and Worf are in prime quip form and absorbing punches when necessary.

Now, they’ll have to find a way to keep Jack from becoming chief executive officer of the New Borg, which they have experience with from Data’s experience on “First Contact.”

All in all, a fun penultimate episode.

Odds and ends

In the opening scene with Troi and Jack, Jack references a planet Beverly used to take him to as a boy: Raritan IV. The planet is named after Matalas’s hometown, Raritan, N.J., and is also featured in the second season of “Picard.” Soji and Jurati visited deltans there in last season’s premiere .

Beverly mentions her other son, Wesley, again. That guy just doesn’t seem to be checking his phone as the universe threatens to implode again!

Some fun ship names in the fleet: Reliant (the commandeered ship in “Wrath of Khan”); Okuda (a reference to Michael Okuda, the longtime “Trek” graphic designer; and Sutherland (a ship that Data briefly took over as captain in “Next Generation”).

Cool cameo from the now Admiral Shelby (Elizabeth Dennehy). We met her in the classic “Next Generation” episode “The Best of Both Worlds” as the ambitious commander angling to take Jean-Luc’s chair. She makes a rare reference to “Enterprise” and the NX-01. Jean-Luc points out the irony of Shelby’s schilling for a synchronous Starfleet system that is similar to the Borg, given her own history of fighting them. We don’t get to see her for very long before she is killed. At least she died doing what she loved: being in charge.

A bit unclear on why the Borg need Jack to begin with. They’re already assimilating the fleet! (This is similar to “First Contact,” in which the Borg Queen didn’t really need Data. Or going back further, did the Borg need Locutus?)

How did Starfleet set up fireworks to go off in space?

A (presumed) goodbye to Captain Shaw. He handed command of the Titan to Seven as he dies, which felt like an unearned moment given what their dynamic had been all season. Seven’s competence has been, shall we say, not exactly high, and in a similar moment earlier in the season, he gave command to Riker, not Seven. Seven hasn’t done much since then to justify earning Shaw’s trust. Even so, after all time spent being a huge jerk to the elder Starfleet officers, Shaw still dies saving them — a contribution which is barely mentioned by Jean-Luc and the rest of the crew. He also refers to Seven by her preferred name, instead of Hansen. Overall, his character seemed like a wasted opportunity.

I’m curious about the Enterprise E, which gets a glancing mention. It appears the ship was destroyed, somehow, and Worf had a lot to do with it.

Sopan Deb is a basketball writer and a contributor to the Culture section. Before joining The Times, he covered Donald J. Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign for CBS News. More about Sopan Deb

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Star Trek: Picard | Dr. Jurati Battles The Borg Queen (S2, E3) | Paramount+

When the Borg Queen (Annie Wersching) tries to take over the mind of Dr. Jurati (Alison Pill), Jean-Luc Picard (Sir Patrick Stewart) does his best to help Jurati resist.

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Star Trek: Picard - Borgati

Part Borg Queen, part Jurati

Spoilers for season two, episode seven of Star Trek: Picard to follow!

Part Borg Queen, part Jurati.

Star Trek: Picard streams exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. and is distributed concurrently by Paramount Global Content Distribution on Amazon Prime Video in more than 200 countries and territories. In Canada, it airs on Bell Media’s CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave.

8 Coolest Starships From Star Trek: The Next Generation

• The Galor-class cruiser introduced the brutal might of the Cardassian Union, setting itself apart with a fish-like design.
• The USS Pasteur, a hospital ship with a spherical hull, met a tragic end in a Klingon attack after being specialized for medical aid.
• The Borg cube, with its unique design, proved to be a terrifying opponent by easily defeating the Enterprise-D and annihilating Starfleet vessels.

Following the success of the Star Trek movies of the 1980s, the franchise returned to the small screen with The Next Generation , a sequel series set a century after the exploits of Captain Kirk. Under the command of the stoic Captain Jean-Luc Picard , the Enterprise -D continued Starfleet's mission to explore the galaxy, discovering a wide range of civilizations, scientific mysteries, and deadly new threats along the way.

Star Trek: The Next Generation's 'Skin of Evil' Explained

While The Next Generation favored philosophy and moral dilemmas over melodrama and technobabble, the series still delivered when it came to fascinating technology and innovative vessels. From the Enterprise -D itself to the rarely seen D'kora- class Ferengi Maurader, the show's seven seasons featured a bounty of notable starships.

Galor-class Cruiser

First appearance: "the wounded" (season 4, episode 12).

As well as being a showcase for tortured everyman Miles O'Brien , "The Wounded" introduces both the Cardassians and their iconic Galor -class cruisers. The fish-like shaping of the Galor -class (a design choice replicated in later Cardassian vessels) sets the starships of the Cardassian Union apart from other alien civilizations. However, despite its naturalistic appearance, the cruiser is a capable warship that serves as the backbone of the Cardassian military.

Indeed, while the Galor -class is less well known in popular culture than many ships from The Next Generation , it came to symbolize the brutal might of the Cardassian Union within both the series itself and in Deep Space Nine . The Cardassian cruiser may be something of a hidden gem, but it nonetheless deserves to be remembered as one of Star Trek 's coolest starships.

USS Pasteur

First appearance: "all good things..." (season 7, episodes 25 & 26).

Starfleet is no stranger to specialized starships: the USS Defiant seen in Deep Space Nine is a dedicated warship, while the USS Voyager , despite its heavy armament, is ostensibly a science vessel. Yet few Starfleet vessels are as practically focused as the USS Pasteur , an Olympic -class hospital ship under the command of Captain Beverly Crusher. In the alternate timeline glimpsed by Picard in "All Good Things", the Pasteur is assigned to help those suffering from Terrelian plague on Romulus.

Star Trek: 8 Best Book-Only Characters, Ranked

The Pasteur represents a radical departure from conventional Starfleet design doctrine , as the vessel's primary hull is spherical rather than saucer-shaped. This additional internal space no doubt provides additional room for laboratories, wards, and surgical theaters. Unfortunately, the Pastuer 's fate shows that no good deed goes unpunished, as it destroyed in a Klingon attack.

Ferengi Marauder

First appearance: "the last outpost" (season 1, episode 5).

"The Last Outpost" sees the Enterprise -D come face to face with a D'kora -class Ferengi Marauder. This multi-function vessel is capable of operating not only as a cargo ship (as per the Ferengi's mercantile ideology ) but also as a fearsome warship. Indeed, during the Enterprise- D's first encounter with a Ferengi Marauder, the alien vessel was able to greatly weaken the Galaxy -class starship's deflector shields using a powerful electromagnetic pulse.

The imposing D'kora -class would make several more appearances in The Next Generation and even cameoed in Voyager , albeit as a CGI recreation of the original model. Despite the prominence of the Ferengi in Deep Space Nine , this cruiser is absent from the groundbreaking series, perhaps suggesting that the Ferengi Alliance could only afford to field a few of these versatile vessels.

USS Jenolan

First appearance: "relics" (season 6, episode 4).

While attempting to respond to a distress signal from the USS Jenolan in "Relics", the Enterprise -D discovers the Sydney -class starship crash-landed on the surface of a massive Dyson sphere. Picard and his crew are 75 years late to the scene of the accident, but they are able to recover a survivor: Montgomery Scott of Captain Kirk's Enterprise , who has preserved himself in the starship's transporter pattern buffer.

However, there is more to the Jenolan than its celebrity captain. In terms of appearance, it is a deviation from the norm when it comes to Starfleet vessels, as it lacks a saucer section. That the Jenolan bears a passing resemblance to the Danube -class runabouts seen in Deep Space Nine should come as no surprise, as these auxiliary vessels were heavily influenced by the design of the Sydney -class transport.

Romulan Warbird

First appearance: "the neutral zone" (season 1, episode 26).

The D'deridex -class Romulan warbird makes its debut in the closing minutes of The Next Generation 's "The Neutral Zone". The Romulans aboard the mighty starship tell Picard and his crew that they mean business, and the sleek yet powerful design of their vessel only underlines their message. The D'deridex -class would go on to make many more appearances across the franchise, making it one of Star Trek 's most iconic villain ships.

Star Trek: Best Starships To Work On

One advantage of the Romulan warbird over its rivals is the fact that it is equipped with a cloaking device. This stealth technology, coupled with the D'deridex 's considerable firepower, makes it a dangerous threat in any military confrontation. As such, it makes sense that the starship is often deployed in intense military situations, such as during standoffs against the Enteprise -D and throughout Deep Space Nine 's Dominion War .

USS Enterprise-C

First appearance: "yesterday's enterprise" (season 3, episode 15).

Although various iterations of the Starship Enterprise play key roles throughout the Star Trek franchise, not every starship to bear the name is as prolific as The Next Generation 's Enterprise -D. Indeed, the Excelsior -class Enterprise -B makes only a brief cameo in 1994's Star Trek: Generations , while its successor, the Enterprise -C, only appears in the episode "Yesterday's Enterprise". However, despite its lack of screen-time, the Enterprise -C is involved in one of the most pivotal events in Federation history: the Battle of Narenda III.

The Ambassador -class vessel is destroyed protecting a Klingon colony from a Romulan sneak attack, impressing the Klingons and laying the groundwork for the Treaty of Alliance between the Federation and the Klingon Empire. While the Enterprise -C may resemble an awkward merging of Original Series and Next Generation aesthetics, its contribution to Federation history cannot be understated.

First Appearance: "Q Who" (Season 2, Episode 16)

The Borg are one of science fiction's most memorable villains, due in part to their relentless and single-minded push to assimilate other species. Yet much of the Borg's enduring appeal can be attributed to the excellent visual design of the Borg cube. Envisaged by writer Maurice Hurley and realized by designer Richard James, the iconic vessel is based on an architectural language that is entirely distinct from other Star Trek ships.

Star Trek: How Do Borg Nanoprobes Work?

However, the Borg cube is more than just an unusual design: it is also a terrifying opponent. The initial Borg cube seen in "Q Who" easily bests the Enterprise -D, while another cube annihilates a large flotilla of Starfleet vessels at the cataclysmic Battle of Wolf 359 in "The Best of Both Worlds". The Borg cube may look simple, but it has plenty of tricks up its sleeve.

USS Enterprise-D

First appearance: "encounter at farpoint" (season 1, episodes 1 & 2).

No discussion of The Next Generation can be complete without referring to the USS Enteprise -D, the starship that is as integral to the series as any of the show's characters. While earlier iterations of Star Trek toyed with the concept of the Enterprise as a living space as well as an exploratory vessel, The Next Generation fully embraces the idea with the Galaxy -class starship. Boasting schools, families, and a sizable civilian contingent, the ship is perhaps the best example of Gene Roddenberry's utopian future in practice—even if taking children on frequent military missions doesn't make a whole lot of sense .

As the hero ship of The Next Generation , the Enterprise -D plays a central role in shaping the Alpha and Beta Quadrants, whether through its amazing discoveries of a shared link between many of the galaxy's civilizations or its repeated battles against the Borg Collective. When it comes to Next Generation starships, the Enterprise -D is second to none.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Release Date September 28, 1987

Genres Sci-Fi

Creator Gene Roddenberry

Number of Episodes 178

Screen Rant

Star trek origin movie officially announced by paramount for 2025 release.

Paramount Pictures officially announces the next Star Trek movie at CinemaCon, which will arrive in movie theaters in 2025.

• Paramount Pictures announces new Star Trek movie for 2025, directed by Toby Haynes and written by Seth Grahame-Smith.
• Chris Pine-led Star Trek 4 remains in development, while the new film is an origin story set decades before Abrams' 2009 movie.
• Alongside the Star Trek origin movie, Paramount reveals a packed slate of exciting films for 2025-26 at CinemaCon in Las Vegas.

Paramount Pictures officially announces the next Star Trek movie, which is scheduled to arrive in theaters in 2025. As reported in January, the next Star Trek movie isn't the long-delayed, Chris Pine-led Star Trek 4 produced by J.J. Abrams, which remains in development at Paramount. Rather, the next Star Trek movie is an origin story directed by Toby Haynes ( Star Wars: Andor ) and written by Seth Grahame-Smith (A braham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter ).

Screen Rant' s Rob Keyes (@rob_keyes) is at CinemaCon in Las Vegas where Paramount Pictures confirmed the next Star Trek movie , currently called Untitled Star Trek Origin Story , to be released in 2025. J.J. Abrams is also producing Untitled Star Trek Origin Story, which takes place decades before Abrams' Star Trek 2009 movie. See Rob Keyes' Tweet below:

Paramount also confirmed Untitled Star Trek Origin Story will begin production later this year for theatrical release in 2025.

Every Upcoming Star Trek Movie & TV Show

Star trek's new movies in theaters and paramount plus explained, star trek is finally making movies again.

After nearly a decade, Star Trek i s back to making movies. Star Trek on Paramount+ has created a television renaissance for the franchise, but the theatrical side of Star Trek overseen by Paramount Pictures has languished in development hell since Star Trek Beyond bowed in the summer of 2016. Toby Haynes' Untitled Star Trek Origin Story is yet another prequel, but as it's said to be set decades before Star Trek 2009, it could very well be set after Star Trek: Enterprise 's mid-22nd century voyages but otherwise be an origin story for both Star Trek 's Prime and alternate Kelvin timelines .

Meanwhile, J.J. Abrams' Star Trek 4 , which is the "final chapter" of the USS Enterprise crew led by Chris Pine's Captain James T. Kirk and Zachary Quinto's Spock, has seen some movement with a new screenwriter, Steve Yockey ( The Flight Attendant ), tackling the long-delayed sequel. Pine and his fellow Star Trek actors, including Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban, and Sofia Boutella, have all expressed their eagerness to return if Star Trek 4 can come together.

It's a positive sign that Star Trek movies are finally coming back.

Paramount+ is making their own Star Trek movies, with the recently-wrapped Star Trek: Section 31 awaiting a release date. Starring Academy Award-winner Michelle Yeoh, Section 31 i s the first made-for-streaming Star Trek movie, and it is reportedly set during Star Trek 's "lost era" with connections to Star Trek: The Next Generation. Section 31 could get a sequel if successful, and the Star Trek: Picard spinoff dubbed Star Trek: Legacy may also become a streaming movie instead of a series. However all this shakes out, it's a positive sign that Star Trek movies are finally coming back.

Source: Rob Keyes Twitter