The Star Trek universe has expanded greatly since Star Trek: The Next Generation ended back in 1994! Now there are new series available on Paramount+ that delve further into the adventures of beloved characters. But did you ever stop and consider exactly how much time passed between these series?
Star Trek: Picard's Timeline
The Star Trek: Picard series brings Admiral Jean-Luc Picard back to our screens for some new adventures and does so, using a non-linear timeline! It might be confusing but what was shown is pretty unique!
This exciting series debuted on Paramount+ (back then known as CBS All Access) in January 2020! It ran for three seasons! Production of seasons 2 and 3 happened concurrently, to really focus on maximizing this experience, and those releases happened in 2022 and 2023 respectively!
How Much Time Passed?
The series focuses on Admiral Picard, and what really gets people hooked, is that the story gives the impression that the characters' real ages are almost mirroring the actual number of years since audiences saw Captain Picard in 2002 with Star Trek: Nemesis! However, that isn't the reality! The story actually spans the time between 2399 and 2402!
- Season 1 happens in 2399
- A whole year jumps from seasons 1 to 2.
- Season 2 and 3 takes place in 2401
- The finale (or epilogue), is 2402
Now this time jump might look weird. It uses a framing device and many might not realize, that season 2 of Picard, was actually based around a specific time- April 12-14, 2024! Even with all this jumping back and forth it truly created something incredibly epic!
How Long After TNG Did Picard Happen?
This might get even more complicated for those of you who are only recently diving into Star Trek and its universe. To fully understand the storyline and timelines. There are additional series to watch!
When Star Trek: The Next Generation originally ended it took a simpler, linear timeline of one year of Star Trek time for every year that passed in the real world! To make things even more straightforward, and especially if you ever want to map the series out! Each season in Star Trek: The Next Generation went in chronological order!
To make Picard as compelling and unique as possible it actually spans a period 29 years after Star Trek: The Next Generation ended! That’s more than what the number of years is in reality!
- It began in 1987.
- The finale was 1994
This difference also had a major effect as Patrick Stewart began filming Picard at the age of 78, but actually plays Picard, who was 93, adding an interesting layer!
Time After The TNG Movies
The world of Star Trek isn't always simple! But that's what makes the storytelling so enjoyable!
It gets a bit tricky. But fans will know the different elements. If you take the storyline of Picard compared to those prior Star Trek: The Next Generation movies the timespan for Picard is approximately 20 years!
That’s just a glimpse. Keep in mind, there's another timeline aspect! Star Trek: Nemesis was released in 2002 and sets the stage for this series, only around 18 years!
There was also a huge moment in the show's storyline that made its production timeline much different! What might confuse those tuning into this series for the first time was The Romulan Supernova which actually happened back in 2387, as seen in the JJ Abrams' Kelvin Timeline. This incident impacted Picard's timeline a great deal. It gave him time off and sets the stage for season 1 of Picard!
If you want a simpler way to think about how time progresses, especially since many of the later shows don't explicitly state time: Each show focuses on its unique timelines and is completely detached! This is how time jumps are possible!
Ultimately, what Star Trek: Picard does really well is leverage this aspect, bringing Jean-Luc Picard, and all the amazing cast to Star Trek fans and creates something very unique, interesting and compelling! While it was fun seeing those moments from Star Trek: The Next Generation again. Star Trek: Picard sets a course for Star Trek going into the future, showing viewers just how far the series might take us in new series releases for years to come!
