Star Trek: Picard Explains Why The Show’s So Dark And Violent

Star Trek: Picard has been a hit with fans, as it means so much to a lot of folks to have Patrick Stewart back as Jean-Luc – not to mention the various other faces from the franchise’s past who’ve been popping up. However, much like its forebear Star Trek: Discovery, some have taken umbrage with the series’ tonal differences from what’s come before. Specifically, following last week’s fifth episode, “Stardust City Rag” there’s been a lot of discussion of the installment being too dark and violent.

Featuring Voyager‘s Jeri Ryan as Seven of Nine, there were several visceral, uncomfortable scenes as crime boss Bjayzl attacked ex-Borgs and stripped them of their cybernetic components, all while they were conscious and screaming. One of these victims was Seven’s surrogate son Icheb, a character who also appeared on Voyager. It was great to see Seven again, but the gloomy, gory tone of the episode left a sour taste in the mouth.

One fan complained to showrunner Michael Chabon on his Instagram page about the excessive violence and the EP penned something of an essay in response to outline why he and the writers went down the road they did. He started by saying that he totally understands the fan’s issue, explaining:

Chabon – who’s most known for being a Pulitzer Prize-winning author – went on to add that he believes violence is simply a part of all forms of storytelling, saying:

Ultimately, Chabon decided that, given the limited amount of screentime with which to tell Seven’s tragic backstory, it had to be as intense and impactful as possible, hence the need for the gore.

The showrunner has previously defended the show’s use of strong language in a similar way. No doubt there will be more shocking developments to come in Star Trek: Picardas well that Chabon will have to stand up for. But before then, episode 6, “The Impossible Box,” arrives on CBS All Access tomorrow (Thursday).

Source: Michael Chabon/Instagram

Source: wegotthiscovered.com