Picard's Admiral Janeway Reveal Would've Changed Star Trek In 2 Ways
In Star Trek: Picard, Seven of Nine revealed Admiral Janeway almost quit Starfleet. Here's how no Admiral Janeway would've changed Star Trek today.
Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Picard Season 2, Episode 9 - "Hide & Seek"
Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) dropped a major revelation about Admiral Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) in Star Trek: Picard season 2, episode 9 that would have changed Star Trek in two key ways. Seven and her significant other, Raffi Musiker (Michelle Hurd), spent the last few episodes of Star Trek: Picard season 2 on the hunt for the Borg Queen (Annie Wersching), who is now sharing the replicated body of Dr. Agnes Jurati (Alison Pill). Seven and Raffi then joined the rest of Jean-Luc Picard's (Patrick Stewart) motley crew to defend La Sirena from the Borg, where the Queen saved Seven's life by turning her back into a Borg in exchange for the starship.
Seven of Nine joined Star Trek: Voyager in season 4 and the catsuit-clad former Borg instantly became the show's most popular character. The former Annika Hansen became a loyal member of the USS Voyager's crew as they made their way back to Earth from the Delta Quadrant. Seven also helped Captain Janeway defeat different versions of the Borg Queen played by Susanna Tompson and Alice Krige. Seven was part of the USS Voyager's homecoming to Earth but Star Trek: Picard has revealed that Seven's Borg implants led her to be ostracized. In Star Trek: Picard season 2, episode 9, Seven told Raffi that she tried to join Starfleet but was rejected because she was part Borg. Janeway threatened to resign her commission in protest but Seven opted to leave Earth and join the Fenris Rangers instead of Starfleet.
Janeway's noble gesture is reminiscent of Jean-Luc Picard also resigning from Starfleet to protest the United Federation of Planets abandoning its plan to rescue the Romulans after their sun went supernova. But in the years after she led the USS Voyager back to Earth, Admiral Janeway continued to impact Starfleet and the Federation. If Janeway had resigned from Starfleet to show solidarity with Seven of Nine, here's how it would have changed the course of Star Trek.
Admiral Janeway Wouldn't Have Appeared In Star Trek: Nemesis
Between 2001 and 2021, Kate Mulgrew's sole appearance as Admiral Janeway was in 2002's Star Trek: Nemesis. It was Janeway who contacted Captain Picard and gave him his marching orders to go to Romulus and meet its new Praetor, Shinzon (Tom Hardy), who turned out to be Picard's evil clone planning to destroy the Federation. If Janeway resigned her Starfleet commission, it likely would have been a different Admiral sending Picard to Romulus. Ironically, Janeway's cameo in Star Trek: Nemesis was a result of Jeri Ryan turning down her own cameo in the film, correctly citing that it made no sense for Seven of Nine to appear when she didn't know the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Star Trek: Prodigy Wouldn't Without Admiral Janeway
In Star Trek: Prodigy, Janeway is the holographic training advisor built into the USS Protostar. Hologram Janeway helped turn a ragtag group of alien teens into the Protostar's new crew. Star Trek: Prodigy's backstory has slowly revealed Admiral Janeway's role in the Protostar's original mission when the starship was commanded by her closest friend, Captain Chakotay (Robert Beltran). If Janeway resigned her Starfleet commission, it's possible that Hologram Janeway would still have been built into the Protostar in honor of Kathryn's accomplishment of bringing the USS Voyager back from the Delta Quadrant in only 7 years.
But without Janeway becoming an Admiral after Star Trek: Voyager, it may be unlikely the Protostar would have launched with Captain Chakotay in command and it's also possible the starship may not have time traveled and been lost in the Delta Quadrant, to begin with. This would result in Star Trek: Prodigy's story never happening. And it would also mean Admiral Janeway wouldn't lead a rescue mission to find Chakotay aboard the USS Dauntless. Admiral Janeway has vital new exploits in Star Trek that wouldn't have been possible if Seven of Nine didn't stop her from quitting Starfleet.
Next: Picard's Voyager Callback Missed A Perfect Star Trek Enterprise Crossover
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