{"id":11691,"date":"2022-03-03T09:00:42","date_gmt":"2022-03-03T08:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.radiotimes.com\/?p=1595540"},"modified":"2022-03-03T09:00:42","modified_gmt":"2022-03-03T08:00:42","slug":"star-trek-picard-season-2-review-make-it-so-so","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/rss_feed\/star-trek-picard-season-2-review-make-it-so-so\/","title":{"rendered":"Star Trek Picard season 2 review: Make it so-so"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Huw Fullerton\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Thursday, 03 March 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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While fans were excited to see what came next for Star Trek: The Next Generation\u2019s redoubtable captain, Patrick Stewart\u2019s spin-off\/sequel series Picard<\/a> ended up getting some mixed reviews. Notably slower and less engaging than what fans had been used to in Jean-Luc\u2019s adventures, by the final episode some had written the show off entirely as a failed mission.<\/p>\n

But now Picard is back with a completely new storyline and setting, and season 2 works hard to win over audiences again. Gone are the complicated backstories about androids and synthetic bans (though the show does remind us that Picard is now a sort-of robot, thanks to the season 1 finale<\/a>), replaced by a new threat as omnipotent TNG irritant Q (John de Lancie) decides to play one final game with his old adversary.<\/p>\n

If you haven\u2019t seen the first season of Picard, well, it honestly doesn\u2019t matter too much. Apart from returning characters very little to no plot is carried over, with season 2 functioning as a soft reset that can be enjoyed on its own merits (more or less). Fans who\u2019ve forgotten exactly what went on in season 1 may also be grateful for this \u2013 after all, it was about two years ago that the finale aired.<\/p>

The season starts quietly as Picard faces a new frontier: romance! For some reason, every character and their space-dog is now obsessed with Picard\u2019s sex life, with the series implying that he first went to the stars as an escape from such difficult matters. This leads to a frankly bizarre subplot where Picard awkwardly considers a relationship with another character, and a more satisfying encounter when he goes to his old friend Guinan (Whoopi Goldberg) for advice.<\/p>\n

At this point, the series also makes about four consecutive \u201cTea, Earl Grey, Hot\u201d references, in case we didn\u2019t notice it the first time.<\/p>\n

Anyway, this intergalactic matchmaking gets largely sidelined when a cataclysmic space battle goes wrong, sending Picard back into the orbit of his old sparring partner Q. De Lancie is slightly unique in this show in that he largely channels his TNG performance rather than trying to revamp it for a \u201cmodern\u201d tone, and his and Picard\u2019s dynamic is all the better for it.<\/p>\n

With a click of Q\u2019s fingers, Picard finds himself transported to a hostile world where nothing is as he knows it. I\u2019ll try to avoid spoilers here, but something has clearly gone very wrong in history \u2013 and Jean-Luc\u2019s not the only one who knows it. Also dragged into this new reality are Picard\u2019s supporting cast, specifically Santiago Cabrera\u2019s Rios, Michelle Hurd\u2019s Raffi, Alison Pill\u2019s Agnes, Jeri Ryan\u2019s Seven of Nine (who has a bigger role this season) and Evan Evagora\u2019s Romulan warrior Elnor.<\/p>\n