Star Trek: Picard Season 3: Episode 1 Easter Eggs

“Star Trek: Picard” Season 3 is finally here and boy, is it a trip down memory lane.

This season, touted as the “final voyage,” reunites Jean-Luc Picard with the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise.

Their adventures were chronicled in “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” which ran for seven seasons from 1987 to 1994. The last time the cast shared the screen was in the 2002 feature film “Star Trek: Nemesis.”

The newest season of “Picard” picks up some 20+ years later, with Picard (Patrick Stewart) assembling his old crew to save one of their own.

Each week, we’ll break down the easter eggs and “Trek” reference from the latest episode. Of course, spoilers ahead, so proceed with caution.

“Star Trek: Picard” Season 3, Episode 1 Easter Eggs

Warning: spoilers ahead.

• The very title of this episode, “The Next Generation,” is an homage to the show that introduced us to the U.S.S. Enterprise D, its captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew.
• The episode opens on the Eleos, an aide vessel captained by Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden), the former chief medical officer of the Enterprise. The camera pans through her personal items, including theater masks (Crusher formed a theater troupe on board the Enterprise and taught acting), orchids (her favorite flowers which she was seen tending in one episode) and a storage locker belonging to Lt. Jack Crusher (her first husband who was killed while serving under Picard). There’s also a glass filled with a blue liquor — unmistakably Romulan ale.
• Beverly is replaying Picard’s log during an encounter with the Borg, in which the Enterprise hid in a nebula. Beverly is hiding the Eleos near a nebula.
• The next scene features Picard at his family winery in France. In the distance, you can hear a dog barking, likely his pet pitbull “Number One.” He is looking at a painting of the Enterprise-D. His companion, Laris, says “The first love is always the sweetest.” Picard replies “Well, she wasn’t the first, but she was definitely my favorite.” Picard’s first command was the U.S.S. Stargazer, the same ship Jack Crusher served on.
• Picard tells an assistant to give the painting to Geordi, the first mention of Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), the Enterprise’s chief engineer and now head of Starfleet’s fleet museum.
• Picard looks at more memorabilia at his desk, which include a Bajoran award. He picks up a Ressikan flute, a memento of the time he lived the life of a man named Kamin on the dead planet Kataan. The story of Kamin is told in the Season 5 episode of “The Next Generation” titled “The Inner Light.”
• That evening, Picard receives an encoded message from Beverly Crusher. He’s alerted by the trill from his old Enterprise communications badge. It’s located in a box along with his red and black command uniform from the Enterprise.
• Picard meets up with his old friend/former first officer Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) at a bar. The bartender offers up miniatures of the Enterprise-D, which she calls “fat ones.” This is an inside joke for Trek fans; the Enterprise-D saucer was unusually oblong and large; later models were more streamlined.
• Riker reveals he is spending time apart from his wife Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis), the former Enterprise counselor, and their daughter Kestra. Kestra is also the name of Deanna’s deceased sister, whose death was explored in the Season 7 episode of “The Next Generation” titled “Dark Page.”
• Picard shares the codeword “hellbird” with Riker. Riker explains that it was a term used when Picard was “incapacitated.” He’s referring to when Picard was assimilated by the Borg in the Season 3 finale of “The Next Generation” titled “The Best of Both Worlds.” The Borg gained all of Picard’s memories, so the crew had to devise a new system.
• To track down Crusher, Riker and Picard go aboard the U.S.S. Titan, Riker’s command after leaving the Enterprise. The ship has undergone a “Neo-Constitution refit.” The Constitution class is one of the most popular in Trek lore; the original Enterprise itself was a Constitution-class starship.
• The first officer aboard the Titan is none other than Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), another human who was assimilated by the Borg and rescued in the “Star Trek: Voyager” episode “Scorpion.” Seven became Picard’s ally during Season 1 of “Picard” where they helped root out Romulan spies.
• Seven introduces herself as Annika Hansen. Her commanding officer, Captain Liam Shaw (Todd Stashwick) has instructed Seven to use her human name rather than her Borg designation.
• Seven was given a field commission by Picard, but officially joined Starfleet upon the advice of Picard and Admiral Janeway (Kate Mulgrew). Janeway was the captain of the U.S.S. Voyager that rescued Seven.
• Seven invites Picard and Riker to the bridge, where they meet a smiling helmsman, ensign Sidney La Forge (Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut). Sidney is Geordi’s eldest daughter. Riker embarrasses her by bringing up her nickname from Starfleet Academy — “Crash” La Forge — after she crashed a shuttle … twice.
• A quick pan around the Titan bridge reveals a Bajoran tactical officer, a Haiilian communications officer (with little hair) and a Vulcan science officer (with no hair). Bald crewmen (or crewwomen in this case) have had a special place in “Trek” lore, dating back to Lt. Ilia (Persis Khambatta) from “Star Trek: The Motion Picture.” Other bald crewmembers include Lt. Airiam (Hannah Cheesman) from “Star Trek: Discovery,” Captain Sisko (Avery Brooks) from “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” and, of course, Picard.
• Showrunner Terry Matalas identified the Vulcan science officer as Lt. T’Veen. The actor who plays T’Veen, Stephanie Czajkowski, is a cancer survivor who kept her head shaved or short.
• As the Titan leaves spacedock, Seven tells the crew to set speed to “maximum warp.” Picard asks if she should give Engineering a heads-up before doing so, but Seven tells Picard there’s no need; it’s all automated now. During “The Next Generation,” Picard would often have to inform La Forge that he was going to push the limits of the Enterprises’ engines, despite the chief engineer’s concerns.
• Captain Shaw is not impressed by Picard or Riker, choosing to not greet them upon arrival and starting dinner before they arrive. Actor Todd Stashwick is not new to the “Trek” universe; he played Torak in the Season 4 episode of “Star Trek: Enterprise” titled “Kir’Shara.”
• Shaw tells Riker he had to purge the “bebop” files when he took command of Titan. Riker is a jazz lover and was shown to play the trombone in several episodes of “The Next Generation.” Shaw says he prefers “structure.” The music playing he’s playing in the background is a piano concerto by Chopin — classical music for a by-the-books captain.
• The “steak” Shaw is eating is blue — and we don’t mean undercooked. We don’t know the significance behind that but we wanted to point it out!
• In a secondary storyline, Raffi Musiker (Michelle Hurd) is working undercover to discover what happened to experimental weapons stolen from the Daystrom Institute. An informant gives her the clue “Red Lady” which she discovers is a red statue of Captain Rachel Garrett that will be dedicated at a Starfleet recruiting center. Garrett was the captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise C, whose fate was explored in the Season 3 “The Next Generation” episode titled “Yesterday’s Enterprise.”
• Riker and Picard make their way aboard the Eleos. While exploring the ship, Riker calls Picard “Captain” and then apologizes, saying “old habits.” Picard later refers to Riker as “Number One” — the way they referred to each other during their Enterprise days.
• Riker is ambushed by an assailant (Ed Speleers) but manages to get the upper hand. When asked by Picard what his relationship is to Crusher, he responds “her son.” So far, the only son Crusher is known to have is Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton), who lived and served aboard the Enterprise-D.
• The credits are filled with easter eggs themselves that will be revealed as the season progresses. The only one that is applicable right now is that display of the Shrike, the giant warship hunting the Eleos.

“Star Trek: Picard” Season 3, Episode 2 Easter Eggs

• We finally get the full name of Ed Speleers character — Jack Crusher. He’s named after his stepfather, Jack R. Crusher. We do a deep dive into the younger Crusher here.
• Among the Eleos’ supplies is a bottle of blue Romulan ale, one of the galaxy’s most inebriating liquors. In Episode 1, Beverly has a glass next to her bed.
• The Shrike opens fire on the Eleos, destroying the shuttle Picard and Riker flew over on. The debris reveals the shuttle’s name — Saavik. Saavik was a Vulcan officer who served aboard the Enterprise-A. She was played by the late Kirstie Alley and later by Robin Curtis.
• The Titan comes to the Eleos’ rescue and attempts to transport Picard, Riker and the Crushers aboard. However, the signal is blocked due to transport inhibitors Picard setup around the bridge. Realizing what he’s done, Picard takes out a phaser and destroys the inhibitors with surprising speed and accuracy, much to Jack’s astonishment. This is a subtle reminder that Picard is in a synthetic body with potentially better reflexes.
• Back on M’Talas Prime, Raffi meets up with her ex-husband, Jae Hwang (Randy Goodwin). Viewers previously met their son, Gabe (Mason Gooding), back in Season 1. In the Season 3 opener, Raffi gets emotional while looking at a photo of their granddaughter.
• Picard, Riker and Jack make their way to the Titan bridge, where they’re scolded by Capt. Shaw. At one point, Ensign Esmar (Jin Maley), the communication officer, calls out “Captain!” Shaw, Riker (who once commanded the Titan) and Picard all respond in unison, “What?”
• Capt. Vadic (Amanda Plummer) has dossiers on all the officers. She hints that Shaw has psychological problems. She also somehow knows that Picard is not human, saying “Admiral Jean-Luc Picard, in the synthetic flesh.”
• Jack Crusher has many aliases, among which is “James Cole.” James Cole is a character from “12 Monkeys,” the show that “Picard” showrunner Terry Matalas previously produced.
• While deep undercover, Raffi meets the Ferengi broker Sneed. Sneed is played by Aaron Stanford, who played James Cole on “12 Monkeys.” Of course, he’s barely unrecognizable under all those prosthetics.
• Sneed tries to break Raffi using the synthetic narcotic Splinter, which is administered via the eye. Given Raffi’s history of substance abuse, she is able to partially withstand its effects. Splinter is name of the technology used in “12 Monkeys.”
• Todd Stashwick, who plays Captain Shaw, ALSO appeared on “12 Monkeys.”
• Raffi’s handler is revealed to be non-other than Worf (Michael Dorn). Worf rescues Raffi by slicing and dicing his way through Sneed’s goons. The Romulan thug has green blood while Sneed’s Ferengi blood is yellow.
• Jack is about to turn himself over to Vadic when Beverly appears on the bridge of the Titan. She has a wordless exchange but it’s enough for Picard to confirm that Jack indeed is his son.

“Star Trek Picard” Season 3, Episode 3 Easter Eggs

• The episode opens with the Shrike hot on the Titan’s tail. Shaw orders the Titan to delve deeper into the nebula in an attempt to shake the Shrike. It’s an evasion maneuver seen in many Trek shows and films, notably “Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.”
• After the opening credits, a graphic appears that reads “Before.” The scene opens with a digitally de-aged Picard and Riker. They’re older than they were on the Enterprise but younger than the present. They’re celebrating the birth of Riker’s son Thaddeus, who was born on the Titan after Riker became captain. That would date this celebration about three years after the events of “Star Trek: Nemesis” and 20 years before the events of “Picard” Season 3.
• Picard and Riker’s celebration is interrupted when Troi, Riker’s wife and Thaddeus’ mom, messages them with a fussy baby in hand. Riker apologizes and calls her imzadi, which is the Betazoid word for “beloved.”
• Back in the present, Seven of Nine is confined to her quarters for insubordination. There’s a model of the U.S.S. Voyager — the ship that rescued her — on her desk. Ensign La Forge visits her and commends her for helping Picard and Riker, which is something her dad would’ve done. Seven thanks La Forge and tells her to rest, to which La Forge answers, “Yes, Commander Seven” instead of “Yes, Commander Hansen” as a sign of friendship.
• Picard and Beverly finally have a face-to-face conversation about Jack. Picard got Beverly pregnant while on shore leave two months before she left the Enterprise. She never told him because she was afraid his enemies will target their son.
• At one point, Beverly tried to tell Picard about Jack but “two Reman assassins had intercepted the ship in the Donatra sector.” Donatra was the name of the commander of the Romulan warship Valdore seen in “Star Trek: Nemesis” played by Dina Meyer.
• After Raffi regains consciousness, she meets her rescuer/handler. He identifies himself as “Worf, son of Mogh. House of Martok. Son of Sergey. House of Rozhenko, bane to the Duras family, slayer of Gowron.” These are nods to Worf’s complicated lineage. His Klingon father was Mogh, but he was adopted as a boy by Sergey and Helena Rozhenko. Worf eventually aligned himself with House Martok, whose sworn enemies were the Duras family and notably the Duras sisters, who were killed in a battle against the Enterprise in “Star Trek Generations.” In the Season 7, Episode 22 of “Deep Space Nine,” Worf kills Chancellor Gowron for undermining Martok during the Dominion War.
• Jack and Seven discover the Shrike is tracking the Titan via its verterium emissions. Gas leaks are another “Trek” trope. It’s how the Enterprise and Excelsior were able to track General Chang’s cloaked Klingon ship in “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.”
• Jack knocks out the guard stationed outside Seven’s quarters, to which she responds, “You’re insane.” Remember this for later.
• Jack is attacked by the saboteur, who is revealed to be a Changeling, a species of shapeshifters that waged war against the Federation 25 years prior (the aforementioned Dominion War).
• While exposed to toxic verterium gas, Jack has visions of a woman (in the form of Seven of Nine) who beckons to him “find me!” Is he actually insane?
• Meanwhile, Raffi and Worf interrogate Titus Rikka, a criminal played by Thomas Dekker. As a child actor, Dekker appeared as Picard’s imaginary son in “Star Trek Generations.” He also played a holographic child on “Star Trek: Voyager.”
• Rikka is sweating and shaking profusely, which Raffi thinks are drug withdrawals. However, Worf recognizes them as something else. Rikka is also a Changeling who is losing the ability to hold his solid form.
• Worf asks Rikka how long he has been separated from the Great Link. The Link is the collective of Changelings in their liquid forms introduced in “Deep Space Nine.” The Link makes decisions for all Changelings.
• Worf tells Raffi about a schism in the Link and a rogue faction of Changelings that were not able to accept defeat from the Dominion War. It seems they have now infiltrated numerous parts of the Federation. Worf learned about the schism from “a close friend within the Link, a man of honor.” While Worf doesn’t name this friend, he’s referring to Odo (played by the late Rene Auberjonois), the Changeling constable on Deep Space Nine.
• Back on the Titan, Picard tells Riker to stop running and fight, despite the “instinct to be fearful of loss.” Picard is referring to the death of Riker’s son Thaddeus at a young age. Riker tells Picard he’s out of line.
• The Shrike uses the portal weapon to literally turn the Titan’s weapons on itself. The Titan is struck by its own torpedoes. The disabled ship gets pulled deeper into the nebula where it’ll be crushed by a gravity well.

“Star Trek Picard” Season 3, Episode 4 Easter Eggs

• The episode opens on Frontier Day five years prior. Picard is trying to enjoy his lunch at a pub when several Starfleet cadets gingerly approach him and ask him out the Hirogen. The Hirogen were alien hunters native to the Delta Quadrant (think Predators).
• The cadets ask Picard if he sought advice from Admiral Janeway. Janeway and the Voyager crew were the first Starfleet personnel to encounter the brutal race while stranded in the Delta Quadrant.
• With the Titan trapped in the nebula and its systems failing, Riker has a heart-to-heart with his former captain. Riker reveals he lost hope when his son Thaddeus died, and his wife Troi, as an empath, also felt his grief. Riker reveals he went on the mission to get away from Troi. He urges Picard to talk to Jack in the few hours they have left.
• Picard takes Jack to the holodeck where they enter a replica of Ten Forward – the Enterprise bar and later a brick-and-mortar bar.
• Picard offers Jack some Chateau Picard from his own winery. Jack politely turns him down and says he prefers whiskey.
• In order to trap the Changeling saboteur, Shaw tells Seven to find its “pot.” Seven assumes he is NOT referring to cannabis, demonstrating that marijuana is still around in the 25th Century.
• Shaw shows Seven an example of a Changeling “pot.” In the bottom corner of the display is a photo of Odo (Rene Auberjonois).
• Back on the Shrike, Vadic cuts off her hand, which dissolves into a Changeling face. The face instructs her to pursue “the asset,” which we assume is Jack.
• The show jumps back to Frontier Day five years ago. Picard regales the cadets with the story of the Tamarian alien he had to work with despite being unable to understand each other. The events he describes took place in the Season 5 Episode 2 of “The Next Generation” called “Darmok.”
• Another cadet references Jack R. Crusher, Beverly’s first husband. Picard later tells his son about the time he and Jack R. Crusher blindly navigated a micrometeoroid shower in a damaged shuttle together until they got home.
• Shaw interrupts Picard’s tale and reveals he was at The Battle of Wolf 359. The battle is infamous in Trek lore and is depicted in the first episode of “Deep Space Nine.” The Borg, having assimilated Picard, used his knowledge to massacre a fleet of 40 vessels. Among them was the U.S.S. Constance, on which Shaw served.
• Shaw was only a handful of survivors from Wolf 359 (11,000 people died in that single battle). He is still suffering from PTSD decades later.
• Beverly discovers the bio-electrical pulses are actually contractions and the nebula is a life form giving birth. Jack proposes the Titan ride the pulse waves out of the nebula.
• Beverly tells Riker that they’ve encountered species that thrive in space, in which Picard replies, “Farpoint!” Farpoint was the very first mission shown in the series premiere of “The Next Generation,” in which a station was actually an alien life form.
• Riker thinks the plan is too risky, but Beverly invokes Troi’s name, making him change his mind.
• Shaw and Seven work in tandem to open the warp nacelles in order to ride the wave. When La Forge appears and offers to help, Seven is able to deduce that La Forge is the Changeling after she calls her “Commander Hansen” instead of “Commander Seven.”
• With Picard and Jack’s help, the Titan frees itself from the nebula, which gives birth to space babies. Beverly quotes the Enterprise mission, “to seek out new life,” which they have done.
• It’s revealed that Jack was in the bar five years ago listening to his father’s story. Jack asks if Picard had a life outside Starfleet, to which Picard replies, “Starfleet has been the only family I have ever needed,” which crushes Jack.
• Riker reaches out to Troi and apologizes for his behavior.
• Back in his quarters, Jack experiences visions and is once again told by a female voice to “find me.”

“Star Trek Picard” Season 3 Episode 5 Easter Eggs

• The episode opens with Jack massacring all of the bridge crew in a shootout. Luckily, it’s just a vision. “Star Trek” tends to shy away from such explicit violence, but a similar scene took place in Season 2 of “Star Trek: Discovery” when Burnham has a vision of Leland murdering the Discovery bridge crew.
• At the end of his frightening vision, Jack’s eyes turn red and he again hears voices. Is he possessed? We deep dive into his visions here.
• Shaw, Seven, Picard and Riker talk about the Changeling they encountered, who can mimic other species down to their internal organs. Beverly wants to investigate how the Changelings can now bypass the ship’s internal security systems.
• With Starfleet on it’s way to question Picard and Riker, Jack asks if he should find himself a set of restraints. Picard responds, “many a rebel from all reaches of the galaxy have found their way to Starfleet.” This is a foreshadowing of what’s — or more accurately who’s — to come.
• Raffi and Worf spar on the La Sirena, and Worf easily defeats her before taking a meditative stance. He urges patience on her part. They receive a message from Worf’s handler, who denies them access to the Daystrom Station.
• While investigating the criminals who broke into Daystrom, Worf and Raffi pull up a list of suspects. One of them is Krinn. Among the other names on the screen include Morn, a side character from “Deep Space Nine” that frequented the station bar. Morn is a play on Norm, the lovable bar patron from “Cheers.”
• Before turning them over to Starfleet, Shaw chastises Riker and Picard for previous instances when they’ve defied orders/Starfleet Command. He mentions several famous “Enterprise” adventures, including when the Enterprise saucer was “hot-dropped” on a planet (“Star Trek: Generations), throwing the Prime Directive out the window to “snog” a villager on Ba’ku (“Star Trek: Insurrection),, or they time they created a tie paradox in the Devron system (“Star Trek: The Next Generation” series finale.)
• Riker and Picard meet the Starfleet Intelligence officer, who turns out to be Commander Ro Laren. We deep dive into Ro’s past here.
• While dissecting the Changeling, Beverly confirms they can mimic internal organs and do not revert to liquid state after death. They have somehow evolved, she deduces.
• After being interrogated, Picard tells Ro that the Changeling remains are in sickbay. She diverts them to the holodeck, where Picard disables the safety protocols, so he can essentially make it a booby trap. With the protocols disabled, he grabs a live phaser from behind the bar that belonged to Guinan. Guinan was a mentor to Ro aboard the Enterprise.
• After exchanging words and memories, Ro and Picard realize they are who they say they are. They sheathe their phasers and Ro reveals that Starfleet has been compromised by Changelings.
• Worf and Raffi meet the criminal Krinn, a Vulcan gangster. They are forced to fight to the death, and Raffi fatally stabs Worf. Fortunately, it’s a ruse. Worf has learned how to feign death. Krinn gives them a key that will grant them access to Daystrom Station.
• On her way back the Intrepid, Ro’s security team plant an explosive on her shuttle. They beam off, revealing they are Changelings. With seconds left, Ro does a suicide run towards the Intrepid and crashes into their nacelle.
• The Changelings find Jack, who kills four of them with ease. He sees another vision of a red doorway.
• Before leaving for the Intrepid, Ro gives Picard her Bajoran earring. The earring has her entire investigation encrypted within it. They receive a message from Ro’s operatives, who turn out to be Worf and Raffi.
• When Beverly asks Jack how she knew the security team was Changelings, he replies, “I didn’t. I think there’s something very wrong with me.”

“Star Trek Picard” Season 3 Episode 6 Easter Eggs

• The episode opens with the Titan on the run. The ship evades capture by dropping decoy transponders. We learn that in addition to Starfleet, Vadic and the Shrike are on its tail.
• Vadic confirms the Changelings will have vengeance on Frontier Day, which is approximately three days away.
• Beverly discovers that Jack has irumodic syndrome, inherited from Picard. The syndrome drove Picard to have hallucinations and disassociate from reality in the series finale of “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” But after the events in Season 1 of “Picard,” he is in a synthetic body and no longer vulnerable to the syndrome. But as Jack is human, his condition will degenerate.
• Picard meets Jack in the holodeck bar. Jack asks how Picard survived irumodic syndrome, to which he replies, “I didn’t” — another reminder that Picard’s human body is gone … or is it?
• Raffi and Worf beam aboard the Titan. Worf thanks Picard for his annual bottle of “sour mead” aka wine from Chateau Picard, which he describes as “quite tart.”
• Seven and Raffi have a slightly awkward exchange in the transporter room, a reminder they used to be lovers.
• Worf and Raffi explain whatever the Changelings stole lies can be tracked in the Daystrom Station manifest. The station houses “experimental weapons” and “alien contraband.”
• Worf, Raffi and Riker beam aboard Daystrom and use the key from Krinn to disable the security system. Worf is glad that Raffi’s ex-lover Seven is not a part of the away team. Worf should know — his ex K’Ehleyr was killed while trying to help him in the “Next Generation” episode “Reunion.”
• Two Echelon-class Starfleet ships arrive at Daystrom with sophisticated tracking technology, forcing the Titan to flee.
• Worf, Raffi and Riker explore the inventory at Daystrom, which Worf calls “Section 31’s most nefarious table scraps.” Section 31 is a critical clandestine division of Starfleet intelligence introduced in “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine,” but has been around since the time of “Discovery.” A “Section 31” spin-off starring Michelle Yeoh was reportedly in the works several years ago.
• Among the “good stuff” they find: a Genesis device used to terraform dead worlds (seen in “Star Trek II and III), a body scan and/or remains of James T. Kirk (captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise), and a genetically modified “attack” tribble (an irresistibly cute furry alien with extraordinary reproductive capabilities.
• The A.I. system defending Daystrom pulls up files on the away team, including one on Riker. The photo, interestingly, is of a younger Riker from approximately 20 years prior.
• The A.I. system sends a holographic crow, which caws at the away team. Riker notes there is “something familiar” about the crow as they approach the station mainframe.
• As part of the security response, the A.I. system creates a hologram of Professor Moriarty (Daniel Davis), a holodeck villain created by Data to be his intellectual rival in “The Next Generation” episode “Elementary, Dear Data.”
• The Titan flees to Athan Prime, the home of the Federation Fleet Museum, which is overseen by former Enterprise crewmember and current Commodore Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton).
• Geordi beams aboard with his daughter Alandra and gives Beverly a big hug. He addresses his eldest daughter, Sidney, by her first name, to which she replies, “Sir.”
• Picard asks Geordi to clone the Titan’s transponder signal to lure them away from Daystrom, but Alandra reveals that plan won’t work because all the ships in the fleet “talk to each other” and are aware of each other’s location.
• Back at Daystrom, we see a shot of the two ships patrolling the station. There’s an off-screen conversation between the Sternbach and Cole, who are searching for the away team. Sternbach is the last name of Rick Sternbach, the visual designer who worked on “Star Trek: The Motion Picture” and several Trek shows.
• Moriarity fires at the away team with live bullets, indicating safety protocols are turned off. Riker notes he is not the same self-aware Moriarity they encountered 30+ years prior. Every few seconds, musical notes punctuate the air. Riker, a trombone player, realizes the notes are to “Pop Goes The Weasel,” the song Data was trying to whistle when Riker first met him in the first episode of “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” Riker finishes the tune, which disables the Moriarity hologram.
• Worf, Riker and Raffi reach the main chamber and discover the A.I. system, which ends up being Data (Brent Spiner) or a version of him.
• Geordi initially refuses to help Picard. At best, he’ll be court-martialed. At worst, Starfleet will come after his family, two of whom we have now met. We have yet to meet his wife though she is mentioned in passing.
• Jack takes the captain’s chair next to Seven and looks at the various legendary ships stationed at the Fleet Museum. They include the U.S.S. Defiant (from “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”), the U.S.S. Enterprise-A (from the “Star Trek” movies), the U.S.S. Voyager (from “Star Trek: Voyager”) where Seven was “reborn,” the HMS Bounty (the Klingon Bird of Prey used in “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home”). As each of these ships is shown, the musical theme from each respective series or film is played.
• Raffi notes that Data died (after the events of “Star Trek: Nemesis”) and Worf says this cannot be the Data they served with. Raffi says this Data is a hybrid synthetic with an android interface. Somehow, Starfleet was able to take Data’s memories from B4, a more primative android where Data stored his personality. They activate a hologram of Dr. Altan Soong, the son of Data’s creator and the man who created the body Picard inhabits now. He says this Soong golem in Daystrom has a bit of Lal (Data’s daughter), B4, Lore (Data’s evil twin) and Data.
• This may explain why the photo of Riker this Data has on file is about 20 years old — the last time he saw Riker “in person.” However, one would think this Data has access to the most current Starfleet files.
• Worf deduces that Data is protecting the manifest, he is the manifest. Unfortunately, the away team is discovered by Starfleet.
• Shaw, who was an engineer aboard the U.S.S. Constantine, geeks out over meeting Geordi.
• Jack and Sidney steal and install the cloaking device from the HMS Bounty, allowing the Titan to return to Daystrom Station undetected. Geordi and Alandra stay onboard the Titan to make sure the cloaking device works properly.
• Raffi and Worf escape Daystrom but Riker is captured. Geordi meets them in the transporter room and is taken aback by seeing his best friend, Data, 20 years after his death.
• With his daughters’ help, Geordi reactivates Data. All of the personalities manifest, but Data’s comes through strongest. He identifies Geordi, his best friend and calls Picard “captain,” the rank Picard held when Data died.
• Data finally reveals what was stolen from Daystrom Station: the human remains of Picard.
• Riker is interrogated by a Starfleet officer, who turns out to be Vadic. She blackmails Riker into telling Picard’s whereabouts with the one thing he cares about: his wife Deanna Troi.

“Star Trek Picard” Season 3 Episode 7 Easter Eggs

• The episode opens with the U.S.S. Titan hiding in the Chin’Toka Scrapyard. The Chin’Toka system was where several battles of the Dominion War were fought during “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.” Many Starfleet and allied ships were destroyed, and it would make sense that their debris would be in a scrapyard.
• Seven of Nine reaches out to her former Voyager crewmate Tuvok (Tim Russ) for help. The four pips reveal that he has reached the rank of captain.
• Seven deduces that Tuvok is really a Changeling by lying about her neural net. The real Tuvok stabilized her neural net in Season 5, Episode 7 of “Voyager” (“Infinite Regress”).
• Picard, Beverly Crusher and Geordi La Forge turn to the Soong golem for answers. Unfortunately, the Lore personality has taken over. Lore was introduced as Data’s “evil twin” in Season 1, Episode 13 of “The Next Generation” (“Datalore”).
• Despite Geordi La Forge warning Jack Crusher to stay away from his daughter Sidney, the two engage in some flirting. Jack is able to read Sidney’s mind — a new ability he hasn’t demonstrated before.
• The Titan crew sets a trap for Vadic and the Changelings. They make it appear the Titan is derelict and have the Changelings board the ship. Once aboard, they lure them into traps and imprison them in forcefields.
• Beverly Crusher and Picard trap Vadic in sick bay. Vadic reveals the origin of her evolved physiology — she was experimented upon as a prisoner of war during the Dominion War. Want to know more? Here’s everything you need to know about Vadic.
• Lore disables the forcefields imprisoning the Changelings and Jack and Sidney become separated. Jack “possesses” Sidney and kills the Changeling attacking her. This is another one of Jack’s previously unseen abilities.
• Vadic whistles “Three Blind Mice” — another children’s song from Earth (“Pop Goes the Weasel” was played in the previous episode). Her human captor whistled the tune while experimenting on her and the other Changelings.

“Star Trek: Picard” Season 3, Episode 8 Easter Eggs

• Vadic and the Changelings commandeer the bridge of the U.S.S. Titan. She proceeds to cut off the ship’s “eyes” (power), “ears” (communications) and the “road ahead of them” (doors). Trapped with nowhere to go, the Changelings easily hunt down the crew.
• She lines up the bridge crew, which includes tactical officer Mura, communications officer Esmar, science officer T’Veen, Seven of Nine, and Captain Shaw.
• Jack uses his special powers to take over the body of a Titan security officer, but his connection is lost when a Changeling shoots the officer and kills him.
• Vadic gives the crew an ultimatum: deliver Jack Crusher or she’ll start executing the bridge officers one by one.
• Riker and Troi reunite on the Shrike, where they’re both being held prisoner. Riker again calls her imzadi (beloved) and tells her how he came face to face with “bleakness” while trapped in the nebula. He stops short of saying what it felt like, but it’s clear he’s referencing the death of their son, Thaddeus.
• Troi says a Changeling masked as Riker visited her. She joked he was “good in bed and bad at pizza.” One of Riker’s hobbies is making outdoor pizzas, as seen in Season 1 of “Picard.”
• Jack uses his power to take over Mura’s body and input a command override code, but Vadic catches him. She forces Mura and Esmar to their knees. She is about to execute Mura, but points the phaser at Esmar. After Esmar cries out Vadic shoots T’Veen instead. This shocking scene is a play on the “Redshirts always” trope in “Star Trek.” Mura and Esmar are “yellowshirts,” whereas T’Veen is a “blueshirt.”
• Riker and Troi have a heart-to-heart conversation. Riker says they might die aboard the Shrike and “Kestra would have lost everyone,” referencing their daughter. The topic then turns to their dead son. Riker felt immense grief afterThaddeus died, but Troi used her powers to dull that grief. She, in turn, felt everyone’s grief as an empath, which drove a wedge between them.
• Troi reveals she hated Nepethe, the planet they settled on to heal Thaddeus. She wants to move back to the city to drink raktajino lattes. Raktajino is a Klingon coffee mentioned throughout “Star Trek.”
• A Changeling guard enters their cell but is stabbed from behind by Worf. Worf professes that he’s “counted the days” since he last saw her, a nod back to when they were romantically involved in the later seasons of “The Next Generation.”
• Jack, Sidney, Beverly and Picard reunite with Geordi. In order to determine whether or not Picard is who he says he is, Geordi asks him what anniversary gift he received six years ago. “A Chateau Picard bordeaux, which you said was too dry,” Picard correctly responds. There’s an ongoing joke this season about the crew not liking Picard’s wine, with Shaw turning down a drink and Worf calling it too tart.
• Jack surrenders to Vadic on the bridge to stop the executions. He reveals he’s holding a device that will kill him if she makes any moves. She cryptically teases him about his powers, and refers to the “red door” he sees in his visions.
• Before they leave the Shrike, Raffi and Worf discover why the Changelings stole Picard’s body from Daystrom Station. They removed the parts of his brain with irumodic syndrome. Remember, Jack also has been diagnosed with irumodic syndrome, which may be giving him his special abilities.
• There’s another battle happening in this episode. Within the mind of the Soong golem, Data and his brother Lore are fighting for dominance, with the latter winning. Data draws upon his memories as Lore takes over. They include a violin concerto (Data played the string instrument several times in “The Next Generation), Sherlock Holmes houndstooth hat and pipe (he enjoyed playing the detective on the holodeck), a tricorder, a holographic crystal of slain crewmate Tasha Yar, a deck of cards (poker was a favorite pastime among the senior crew) and his cat Spot.
• Lore fully takes over and Geordi is distraught at losing his best friend a second time. However, Lore’s win is short-lived. The memories he took from Data transform him. “You took the things that were me, and in doing so, you became me,” a reconstituted Data explains.
• Data regains control of the Titan. Jack uses the device he brought to the bridge, which is not a grenade but a personal forcefield generator. Picard orders the evacuation hatch opened, which sucks Vadic into space. Her body freezes due to exposure and shatters into pieces when it hits the Shrike. The personal forcefield prevents Seven and Jack from being sucked out.
• The Titan then destroys the Shrike and presumably, Vadic and Picard’s remains.
• Despite Vadic’s death, Troi senses “a great darkness” on the ship.
• Data and Geordi help with contractions, at which point Data says, “We’re good here.” Geordi calls out that Data used a contraction, something he didn’t do previously but Lore could. It was one way to discern the two.
• Troi counsels Jack and tells him they’ll open the red door together.

“Star Trek: Picard” is currently streaming on Paramount+