We don’t have long to wait until Star Trek: Picard, which will pick up the story of Patrick Stewart’s character after retiring from Starfleet in the aftermath of a life-changing mission. So far, we know that the series is going to provide a lot of surprises for Star Trek fans, while also bringing back some fan-favorite characters. The comic prequel Star Trek: Picard – Countdown #1 has now provided a tease though of who the new captain of the USS Enterprise is after Picard’s tenure.
The first issue of the prequel contains some intriguing information about what happened to Jean-Luc Picard after Star Trek: The Next Generation and its spinoff movies. We know that Picard took charge of another starship during this time, and was involved in evacuation efforts in the years before the destruction of Romulus. Furthermore, the comics by Kirsten Beyer, Mike Johnson, and Angel Hernández reveal what happened to Geordi La Forge, with La Forge noting to Picard that the new captain of the Enterprise wouldn’t give up their seat easily if Picard went back to the ship.
Picard’s reply to that is, “But I take comfort that the Enterprise is in good hands,” implying it’s someone he knows. Some of the theories so far is that it’s anyone from Worf to a version of Data, who was previously shown as the new captain in another Star Trek: Countdown prequel comic. As this comic had involvement from Picard creator Alex Kurtzman, it’s possible that this piece of semi-canon could be made more permanent in the new series.
Of course, it could be that Star Trek: Picard holds back from revealing what happened to the Enterprise, at least in its first season. While there’ll be a lot of familiar faces on the series, it does seem that the producers want to do something new with the franchise.
In any case, we’ll find out when Star Trek: Picard begins on CBS All Access on January 23rd, 2020, but in the meantime, we’re keen to see what other clues the prequel comics can give us as to what’s to come in the new series.