There’s a moment at the end ofStar Trek Generationsthat continually annoys me, especially considering Captain Jean-Luc Picard’s (Patrick Stewart) obsession with archaeology inStar Trek: The Next Generation. The first film starring thecast ofStar Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek Generationssaw the USS Enterprise-D battle a mad scientist named Dr. Tolian Soran (Malcolm McDowell). This culminated in Picard teaming up withCaptain James T. Kirk(William Shatner), who lost his life to defeat Soran.
Star Trek: The Next Generationseason 6, episode 20, “The Chase,” highlighted Captain Picard’s fascination with archaeology. Picard’s mentor, Professor Galen (Norman Lloyd) presents theCaptain of the Enterprisewith the Kurlan Naiskos, a rare, ancient artifact that survived the end of the Kurlan civilization a millennia before. Picard is overwhelmed by this gift; an emotional Jean-Luc treated the statue with delicate care, awe, and reverence. Which is whythe way Picard treats the Kurlan Naiskos in its nextStar Trekappearance is so shocking.
Star Trek Generations Forgot Captain Picard’s Archaeology Obsession
Picard Literally Drops The Kurlan Naiskos
At theend of Star Trek Generations, Captain Picard and Commander Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) survey the wrecked bridge of the USS Enterprise-D. The Galaxy Class starship was forced to crash-land its saucer section on Veridian III while Picard and Captain Kirk were battling Dr. Tolian Soran. Jean-Luc finds the Kurlan Naiskos inexplicably among the Enterprise bridge’s debris. After regarding it for a moment,Picard immediately drops the Kurlan Naiskos on the floor. Just a year and a half earlier, Picard was jubilant to receive the Kurlan Naiskos, but he just casually tosses it aside.
Star Trek: The Next Generation’s “The Chase” was the basis for the main storyline involving the Progenitors inStar Trek: Discoveryseason 5.
30 years later, it’s still hard to reconcile how Captain Picard treats the Kurlan Naiskos inStar Trek Generationscompared to his reverence for the priceless statue inStar Trek: The Next Generationseason 6. It’s a moment indicative of how theStar Trek: The Next Generationmovies transformed Picard’s character to become an action movie hero.Captain Picard’s studious fascination with archaeology was forgotten, and his jaw-dropping disregard for the Kurlan Naiskos is a sign of this shift in how theStar Trekmovieswould present Picard going forward.
Star Trek: Picard Fixed Jean-Luc’s Respect For The Kurlan Naiskos
The Priceless Statue Was Recovered From The USS Enterprise-D’s Wreck
Star Trek: Picardrectified how Jean-Luc treated the Kurlan Naiskos at the end ofStar Trek Generations.Star Trek: Picard’s series premiere, “Remembrance,” saw Admiral Jean-Luc Picard visit the Starfleet Archive Museum, where he stored many tokens of his long career as Captain of the Enterprise.The Kurlan Naiskos was among Picard’s prized possessions, along with hisCaptain Picard Day banner, a statue of the USS Stargazer, and the painting titled “Daughter” by Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner).
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Evidently, the Kurlan Naiskos was recovered from the wreckage of the USS Enterprise-D bridge and returned to Admiral Picard, though Jean-Luc didn’t see fit to take the millennia-old artifact with him when he beamed aboard the USS Farragut at the end ofStar Trek Generations.In Star Trek: Picardseason 3, the Kurlan Naiskos found a place of honor in Jean-Luc’s studyat Chateau Picard. It took almost 30 years, butStar Trekrestored Jean-Luc’s passion for archaeology and remembered how important the Kurlan Naiskos was to him.
Star Trek: TNG Movies Changed Captain Picard
Picard Became More Of An Action Hero
Star Trek Generationsmarked the beginning of Jean-Luc Picard’s transformation from the studious and cerebral Captain ofStar Trek: The Next Generationinto a sci-fi action movie leading man. Jean-Luc’s shift was gradual, starting withStar Trek Generationskilling off Picard’s familyoff-screen. In keeping with theStar Trek: The Next Generationmovies closing out with action-packed third acts, Picard and Captain Kirk had to fight Dr. Tolian Soran, andJean-Luc became a more proactive and aggressive lead character.
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Star Trek: First ContactsolidifiedCaptain Picard’s new status as an action hero, as Jean-Luc became a phaser-firing, Borg-fighting, superhero obsessed with defeating his cyborg alien enemies.Star Trek: Insurrectionalso ended with Captain Picard battling it out with the Son’a’s villainous leader, Ad’har Ru’afo (F. Murray Abraham). Picard’s conflict with his evil clone,Shinzon (Tom Hardy), inStar Trek: Nemesisrounded out this era of Action Movie Hero Picard.
The Kurlan Naiskos is indicative of Jean-Luc swinging back to the scholar with a passion for archeology he used to be.
However,Star Trek: Picardremade the older Admiral Picard closer to the intellectual, introspective soul he was inStar Trek: The Next Generation. Although merely an Easter egg inStar Trek: Picard, the Kurlan Naiskos is indicative of Jean-Luc swinging back to the scholar with a passion for archeology he used to be. It’s harder to imagine Admiral Picard callously tossing the Kurlan Naiskos aside the way he did inStar Trek Generations.
