KenJennings

How I feel in the wake of that conclusion...

What a beautiful sendoff to the TNG crew. The finale was well earned, to the point, and left plenty of breathing room for epilogue. I can't wait to see more from Terry Matalas, and Paramount would be foolish not to see him as the future of the franchise.

PSA: If you haven't watched the finale yet, make sure you stick around after the credits.

About that... Quoting showrunner Terry Matalas. Potential (totally unconfirmed) spoilers going forward...

I actually got a little misty eyed twice. The first time was when Data silently put his hand on Picard's shoulder to comfort him. Really a beautiful moment. The second was hearing Majel's voice again.The attention to detail in this season has just been incredible.

The Pah-Wraits were non-corporeal aliens from Deep Space Nine. They were the 'evil counterpart' to the Bajoran Prophets that lived in the Wormhole. Armus was this thing. But since I last posted, I have been spoiled by some confirmed leaks about the final two episodes of Picard. And now I know roughly what's coming:

Everyone's back all at one conference table! I'm surprised to see Vadek and the Shrike dealt with so quickly; but I'm not entirely sure she won't find a way to resurface... It's clear the big bad is going to be whatever is behind the red door, and I'm excited to see what it is. I think it's going to be Armus, the black tar blob that killed Tasha Yar. It's an immensely powerful entity, it showed the ability to pull others' strings like puppets, it has a vendetta against Picard and the Enterprise crew, and it was left abandoned and forgotten last we saw.

Hearing Vadic's backstory was definitely compelling... It's nice to see Star Trek enriching itself with it's canon rather than tripping over it.

I loved seeing the original TOS constitution design, as well as the refit Enterprise A in their original glory. Affirming that Discovery/SNW did not fully retcon those iconic designs. That has been one of the bitterest pills from nu Trek to swallow, so for them to quietly reassert those designs as canon meant a lot. This series has been billed as a love letter to the "TNG era", and it hasn't fallen short. The big reveal at the end of today's episode (what was stolen from Daystrom) has me a touch nervous; but I'm still very excited and optimistic to see where this goes. If the last four episodes are half as good as what they've done, we're in for a treat.

The episode is called "Preemptive strike." It was the second to last episode of the series.

Another fantastic episode. Sweet, sweet closure for one of the biggest loose ends in TNG.

I'm starting to think Jack's psyonic hallucinations with all of the red tendrils are foreshadowing a certain four-digit adversary from Voyager...

It's funny how I already feel like I know more about the Titan's bridge crew than I ever got from Discovery's. I'll take Sidney, Esmar, T'veen, and Mura over Discovery's "and the rest" any day.

Last week was a 9/10. This week was a perfect 10. Absolutely amazing episode, one of the best episodes of Star Trek in all canon. I had only the tiniest of gripes about one detail in the whole episode, and even that was something they at least attempted to hand wave- and their attention to detail earns points even when it's a little bit weak. The effort is more than they've shown in a long time. But this episode had everything. The right amount of fan service, a perfect fast pace that allowed for contemplation and nuance, stellar character development, action sequences that satisfied as a dessert course, and plot development that moved things along and kept me hungry for more. This is everything I wanted from Star Trek since CBS announced its return to TV in 2015. I'm praying this season leads to a Titan spinoff.

Completely agreed. The biggest advantage of working in the Star Trek sandbox is the ability to play with 60 years worth of toys, and not have to build every backstory up from the ground.

Curious what you mean here. I have a few ideas; but nothing solid. i think you can do spoiler tags like this if you don't want to ruin it. [spoiler] text [/spoiler]

So Picard Season 3... This is what we've been waiting for.

I loathe Toyota in NASCAR. I'd like to say this is a totally rational position; but I'm not sure it it is. The 'rah rah America' portion of my psyche has taken a beating in the past decade; so this still feels like a good output for that resentment. That being said, the Toyota influence in NASCAR began with cheating. The Michael Waltrip jet fuel scandal showed what Toyota was up to from their first moment;s in the sport. As a company, they never appreciated the rivalry and camaraderie between the American manufacturers; and they broke the unspoken rules of NASCAR competition. Again and again, they prioritized things like team-orders and cutthorat gamesmanship over a contest of speed and consistency. There is a culture to Toyota in NASCAR. It is deeply centralized, orchestrated toward maximizing opportunity, and efficient to a fault. It lacks the soul and depth of the classic GM and Ford rivalries. (And Chrysler- you're legendary in NASCAR, please come back) Toyota may be doing everything right; but they just don't belong. We should continue to resist them; even though they may withstand it. Even winning strategies need practice adapting to resistance. Toyota sucks, but they're here. All I can do is root against them. I'm not going to apologize for that.

What an awful championship weekend.

The reactions to that one have been super divisive, but I actually really got a kick out of it. It kind of felt like a shaggy dog joke, where they take you on this ridiculous journey just to drop a weak punchline on you. I love humor like that. Peanut Hamper's whole arc was a colossal waste of time, and the about face at the end was the best "f**k you" punchline to cap it off. Loved it. I'm glad they only do these concept episodes once a year, but I'm glad they do them.

What a monster actress. She was so good at playing the role you love to hate, while by all accounts, was a lovely person in real life. A serious professional. It's a little bit sad that she will be remembered as the face of some truly hated characters, but that is a testament to her skill and craft. She's irreplaceable.

What a fantastic ending to this series, and perhaps to the franchise. My favorite moment was in the courtroom, Oakley says "That stuff about your brother wasn't even a crime", and Jimmy owns up and says "Yeah. It was." For the first time, Jimmy doesn't take the shortcut. He knows he can snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, but he chooses to face the music as Jimmy rather than steal his freedom as Saul. They nailed it. 10/10.

Nichelle was an absolute legend. She blazed trails with unparalleled dignity and grace. Her impact goes so far beyond the role of Uhura. She will not be forgotten.

The Orville really nails these Moclan episodes. It's been an up and down season, but the latest was really good. Especially loved the Dolly appearance!

Since Portnoy left, only one of their releases (Dream Theater) has been a top-10 Dream Theater album. In fact, think I'd put their last three releases in the bottom three places of all their studio work. I'd rather listen to Falling Into Infinity or When Dream and Day Unite all day ahead of The Astonishing, Distance Over Time or A View From the Top of the World.