I’m Angry That Without Picard’s Spinoff, Star Trek Will Never Answer Its Biggest Q Question

Without Star Trek: Legacy, we may never learn the answer to the biggest Q (John de Lancie) question raised by Star Trek: Picard. Patrick Stewart returned to portray Admiral Jean-Luc Picard in 2020 for Star Trek: Picard, and the show brought back many familiar faces. Q made his triumphant return in Picard season 2, sending Jean-Luc and his new friends to a dark totalitarian future, all in the name of teaching the former Captain of the Enterprise a lesson.

In the season finale of Star Trek: Picard season 2, Jean-Luc and Q meet one last time, and Q confesses that he's dying. While the show never officially explains what dying would mean for a supposedly immortal being, Q uses the last of his energy to send Picard and his friends back to the 24th century and their own timeline. Supposedly, this was the end of Q, but the omnipotent being pops up again at the end of Star Trek: Picard season 3.

With the success of Star Trek: Picard season 3, fans clamored for a spin-off that took on a life of its own, and Star Trek: Legacy became the most desired new Star Trek series. Paramount+, however, has chosen to focus on other Star Trek projects, making Legacy -- and an answer to Q's mystery -- a distant possibility at this point.

We Need Star Trek: Legacy To Explain How Q Is Alive At The End Of Picard Season 3

Q Miraculously Returned In Picard Season 3 After His Supposed Death In Season 2

At the end of Star Trek: Picard season 3, Admiral Picard and the reunited USS Enterprise-D crew thwart the Borg/Changeling plot to assimilate Starfleet. A year later, Ensign Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers), Picard's son with Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden), joins the crew of the USS Enterprise-G as a special counselor to Captain Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan). Q makes a surprise cameo in a brief scene after the credits, appearing before Jack to inform him that, while Jean-Luc's trial may be over, Jack's trial has only just begun.

When Jack says that he thought Q was dead, Q replies: "And here I was hoping the next generation wouldn't think so linearly." Q does not experience time the same way humans do, and his statement implies that the version of Q at the end of Star Trek: Picard season 3 is 'younger' than the one who died in Picard season 2. But it's possible that the Q who confronted Jack Crusher could be from some other point in Star Trek's timeline.

It's also possible that death means something different for an omnipotent being like Q, and that he has simply evolved or changed in some way that has yet to be explained. Either way, Star Trek: Legacy could explain Q's continued presence and offer more insight into his complex existence.

Why Q Wants To Put Picard's Son On Trial Is A Question Star Trek: Legacy Needs To Answer

What Does Q Want With Ensign Jack Crusher?

After Jack Crusher joins the crew of the USS Enterprise-G, Q arrives to inform him that he's being placed on trial just as his father was. Q also says that Jack has much ahead of him, which could mean just about anything. Q has never exactly been forthcoming with his reasoning, but his interest in Jack raises some questions. Before Q "dies" in Star Trek: Picard season 2, Picard asks him why he's always had such an interest in Picard and his life. Q doesn't exactly answer the question, but does say: "Even gods have favorites, Jean-Luc. And you've always been one of mine."

Perhaps Q's favoritism extends to Jack Crusher, and the omnipotent being simply wants to ensure that Picard's son survives and thrives. It's also possible the Q Continuum is still evaluating humanity, as it has been since the events of Star Trek: The Next Generation's series premiere, "Encounter at Farpoint." Over 35 years separate the events of TNG's premiere and Star Trek: Picard's finale, but that amount of time is nothing for a Q. If Paramount ever decides to continue Jack Crusher's adventures, Star Trek: Legacy must explore Q's interest in the young ensign and what it means for Jack's future.