The premiere of Star Trek: Picard was full of Easter eggs for fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation; in addition to the obvious references to Jean-Luc Picard’s former crewmates, and the tear-jerking poker scene that harkened back to the final moments of TNG’s finale “All Good Things,” episode 1 of Star Trek: Picard also showed viewers a vault that contained various treasures from the previous show’s run.
Star Trek: Picard, episode 1, “Remembrance,” certainly invites viewers to remember. The series’ opening episode is obsessed with the past: from Picard’s dreams of his late friend Data, to his reflections on the traumatic events that occurred on Mars in 2385, to the surprise reference to Bruce Maddox, a character from TNG’s second season. The majority of the episode’s Easter eggs, however, appear in a brief scene in which Picard visits his own personal archive; there, the former Admiral passes by several objects that either previously appeared in TNG, or represent aspects of the former series and its subsequent films.
Star Trek: Picard no-doubt delighted fans when it presented the collection of TNG memorabilia onscreen. Prior to Picard’s release, there was an exhibit of Star Trek props at the San Diego Comic-Con. The collection included awards and plaques awarded to Picard throughout his long Starfleet career; such items were created for the new series, presumably for the personal vault scene in the first episode.
Easter Eggs In Picard’s Vault
The following are the identifiable items seen in the vault, and what their connection is to Star Trek: The Next Generation:
• The banner from Captain Picard Day, (June 16th) from TNG’s 7th season episode “The Pegasus.”
• A Klingon dagger and a Bat’leth, probably from when Picard served as Arbiter of Succession on at the request of the Klingon leader K’mpec during “Reunion” and “Redemption.”
• An open copy of The Globe Illustrated Shakespeare: The Complete Works. Data performed Shakespeare for Picard on numerous occasions, most notably the episode “The Defector.” In the TNG episode, Data performs Henry V for Picard, but is interrupted by news of an approaching Romulan ship. Romulans appear to be the main antagonist species in Picard.
• Model of the Stargazer (registry NCC-7100), which was Picard’s ship before he took command of the Enterprise.
• Model of the Enterprise-D, the Federation’s flagship. This is the Enterprise used for TNG’s run.
• Model of the Enterprise-E, introduced in Star Trek: First Contact.
• Model of the Captain’s Yacht “Cousteau” from Star Trek: Insurrection.
• The Kurlan naiskos, a ceramic figurine statue made by the Kurlan civilization. given to Picard by his mentor Richard Galen in “The Chase”; it also appears in Star Trek: Generations.
The archive also contained a painting done by Data titled “Daughter.” The display case inside the vault appears to hold a variety of artifacts, which references Picard’s interest in archeology as discussed in TNG episodes like “The Chase” and “Gambit.” There are also what appear to be awards — likely the same awards used for the Comic-con exhibit. Finally, there are a number of plaques and certificates on the wall; these too are references to Picard’s many achievements and commendations during his time with Starfleet. For example, one certificate (which also appeared in the Comic-Con display) references the “Picard Maneuver” — a battle tactic referenced in the TNG episode “The Battle.”
There are some obvious Easter eggs curiously absent from the display. The Ressikan flute from “Inner Light,” for example, is an iconic item from The Next Generation and was included in the Comic-Con exhibit; yet, the flute has not yet been seen on Star Trek: Picard. Perhaps the retired Admiral keeps the instrument close to him, and fans will get to see him play in a later episode.
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