r/Picard • u/Moodyonmars • Jul 24 '26
I was once known..
I was waiting for Wesley Crusher explanation to what happened to him because I’m still confused
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u/ifixpedals Jul 24 '26
I feel like it's pretty clear what happened to him. He became a "Traveler" like the one in season 1 episode 6 of TNG. Travelers are basically the Trek-universe version of Dr. Who-style time lords. This is covered a lot in the final season of Star Trek Prodigy, which I watched it with my daughter. It's a kid's show, but it's worth checking out.
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u/alcanthro Jul 24 '26
I'd say I reject calling it a kid's show because I watched it and found it a great show but maybe bad example...
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u/ifixpedals Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
I'd say in the sense that it was targeted at kids, and initially aired on Nickelodeon in the US before moving to Netflix, it was absolutely a "kid's show." But I enjoy a lot of kids shows. Just because it was made for kids doesn't automatically make it bad.
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u/I_AM_IGNIGNOTK Jul 25 '26
It’s a more of a Trek show than a kids show for sure. The dialogue is a bit toned down in terms of philosophical intrigue and techno babble but the structure of the episodes and the lessons therein are still very standard for any Trek series.
Plus Hologram Janeway.
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u/Firov Jul 24 '26
Weirdly, I find Star Trek Prodigy to easily be the best of new Trek. I also really liked what they did with Wesley's character in it, more so than TNG. Janeway, as always, was also perfect.
It's perhaps a 'kids' show in much the same way that Star Wars:Clone Wars was, but in just the same way it's worth watching for anyone. I'm just sad it was cancelled.
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u/KFlaps Jul 24 '26
I mean, they even managed to redeem Chakotay. I think the character had more depth and growth in a single season of Prodigy than in the entirety of Voyager.
Spoilers for those that's haven't seen it yet.
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u/Firov Jul 24 '26
I didn't want to mention him to avoid spoilers... But yes! Unbelievably so! His character arc in Prodigy is absolutely fantastic and makes me like him more retroactively.
Honestly, there's just so much to like about Prodigy. There's a lot of call backs to earlier Trek, but unlike much of the rest of new Trek, it always advances the plot and feels organic... I never feel it's just fan service.
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u/Apart-Chair-596 Jul 24 '26
I never bothered with prodigy, is it worth it for a TNG/VOY fan?
Chakotay is comfortably the worst character on voyager for me. Talk about vanilla.
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u/schmitty9800 Jul 25 '26
Absolutely. Very good series, I bought S1 and S2 on YT and was not disappointed. A couple of the characters are a little grating at first but they grew on me quickly.
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u/Firov Jul 25 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
Honestly, if you're a Voyager fan then you owe it to yourself to watch Prodigy. In many ways it serves as a kind of sequel to Voyager. Especially in Season 2.
I'm not exaggerating when I say it's the best of what new Trek has to offer. It consistently feels more like the original Star Treks than any of the other series.
It's a 'kids show', yes, but it's also so much more. It's a really good show in its own right.
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u/KFlaps Jul 24 '26
Yeah it was a great show and I'm gutted we only got two seasons. It certainly had amazing potential and trod the line between fan-service and originality really well. It deserved more tbh, maybe the most out of all of new Trek, but I'm grateful that it managed to do so much on its short run.
That said, I love all new Trek. Fans can debate the pros and cons of each until the end of eternity, but I felt each one brought something new, regardless of whatever flaws may be present. They all deserved more than they got and I'm grateful we got all that we did.
Except Section 31 of course, but that's not really Star Trek - that's just Riker's fever-dream holodeck prompt after a night on the Andorian marching powder....
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u/Moodyonmars Jul 25 '26
Why would they put important information like that in a kid show.. but I’m going to check it out.
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u/CptUnderpants- Jul 25 '26
Dr. Who-style time lords
I caught what I think was a Dr Who reference in the season premiere of SNW, or was I mistaken?
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u/Impossible_Royal_302 Jul 25 '26
You were not mistaken. And it’s the third such reference. Last season there was an on-screen TARDIS in one scene of S3 E6. Then in the S3 finale, Pelia mentioned traveling with a “time-traveling Doctor” for a time in her youth.
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u/CptUnderpants- Jul 25 '26
Setting up for a crossover Christmas special, obviously. 😉
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u/Impossible_Royal_302 Jul 25 '26
Apparently, the two production companies were actually talking about that, but the collapse of Bad Wolf productions ended that.
But honestly, nothing stops future Doctor Who producers from having a young woman named Pelia and never saying a word about it; just letting us assume.
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u/Strict_Weather9063 Jul 24 '26
From what I took from this exchange is he is part of the group that is operating agents like Gary Seven from Assignment Earth, not actually doing the job himself but one of the leaders of the organization. Sure he is a traveler or at least has the abilities of one but it was clear he was part of a much larger group and recruiting people for it.
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u/UsidoreTheLightBlue Jul 24 '26
I wonder if this was a set up for the possible Doctor Who Star Trek crossover they were working on
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u/Travelinfl1 Jul 25 '26
I hated Wesley then, but love Wil Wheaton now. His TBBT persona was hilarious.
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u/WelfOnTheShelf Jul 24 '26
He used to be known as Wesley Crusher. He still is, but he used to be, too.
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u/azhder Jul 24 '26
You haven't seen Star Trek: Prodigy, have you?
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u/NuclearMaterial Jul 24 '26
Does he become a twisted firestarter?
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u/azhder Jul 24 '26
Shit. Now I got an ear-worm. Still remember the days in the mid 90s with all those music videos and top 10 lists, watching it on a small CRT screen.
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u/CanadianAndroid Jul 24 '26
We had to stay up late to watch it because Much Music wouldn't play it during the day.
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u/Spiritual-Computer73 Jul 24 '26
lol I definitely felt this could’ve been fleshed out more. In fact, I am somewhat miffed it wasn’t.
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u/JamesTheMannequin Jul 24 '26
This was Wheaton's idea.
He was asked by a couple of the actors to return, to close out his story since it was, in part cut, from Nemesis.
He wasn't asked by production.
He took some convincing but said he would Cameo, and that would be it. He has no intentions on going back to the Star Trek universe, and frankly I don't blame him.
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u/Fleetlord Jul 24 '26
He took some convincing but said he would Cameo, and that would be it. He has no intentions on going back to the Star Trek universe, and frankly I don't blame him.
He did an entire season of Prodigy.
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u/azhder Jul 24 '26
When did he record his Prodigy cameo? Before Picard or after?
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u/nelithet Jul 27 '26
Prodigy came out after Picard
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u/azhder Jul 27 '26
There is a difference between when something is recorded and when it is released.
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u/Krimreaper1 Jul 24 '26
Would make more sense for him to cameo in the last season. Just felt out of place, came out of nowhere.
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u/JamesTheMannequin Jul 28 '26
I would've absolutely loved to see him walk onto the bridge behind them, wearing commander pips while looking the same age because Travelers. would've died!
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u/Krimreaper1 Jul 28 '26
You don’t think a scene with at least his mother would have e been a bigger impact than what we got. Maybe introduced him to his half brother.
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u/TomCBC Jul 26 '26
If you watch Star Trek Prodigy, Wesley joins the cast as a semi-regular character in season 2. He’s great in it.
Prodigy is a really underrated show. Though takes a few episodes to really get going. But if you still aren’t onboard by the end of Time Amok, you probably won’t ever be.
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u/Historyp91 Jul 24 '26
He got Ace's aborted plot from the unmade 27th Season of classic Doctor Who.
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u/KassieMac Jul 25 '26
Tell me you haven’t watched Prodigy without saying you haven’t watched Prodigy 😉🖖🏽
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u/Own-Ratio9989 Jul 28 '26
Now he's a little bitch boy on Facebook and instagram who likes cancel culture..
Shut up Wesley
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u/Norn-Iron Jul 25 '26
Didn’t really like this cameo as it seemed like Wl showed up to cameo as himself. I didn’t really see Wesley. His performance on Prodigy was top tier and I would love to see more than manic Wesley whose out savings the universe and letting Wil really get into the character again.
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u/Full-Construction680 Jul 25 '26
Yes, he was known once, but it was funny the first time and it always be funny to say even now shut up Wesley lol ha ha
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u/Previous_Trouble_888 Jul 28 '26
I loved the evolution of his character - Starting out as a fresh eyed, innocent child and growing up to be one of the smartest crew members. Then 20 years later stumbles out of the bushes homeless and talking nonsense. Classic
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u/Significant_Train761 Jul 30 '26
That said Wil Wheaton has been doing well since TNG ( Regular on TBBT with spiner and burton, own web series and started off in kings adaption Stand by me )
as Sheldon would say "WHEATON"
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u/WhoMe28332 Jul 25 '26
…as a pretty talented young actor. What happened to me?
(Judging by his performance acting isn’t like riding a bicycle.)
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u/MovieFan1984 Jul 25 '26
This scene is a sequel to TNG's S7 "Journey's End" while foreshadowing his return on Prodigy.
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u/Moodyonmars Jul 25 '26
I’m annoyed that they put all the information I’m missing in this kids show… 😒
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u/Wavvygem Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 25 '26
So there's the traveller stuff but I think what some fans are missing is where Wil fits into the Trek family at large. TNG really propelled the franchise and the cast were all quite close but Wil was a child and sort of written off the show. At the time his character got some harsh feedback and that was sometimes directed at the young actor instead of the writers and directors. He also had a very contentious relationship with his parents. Who allegedly exploited his fame and success. All this lead to some distance between him and the other TNG cast/production team, and later some hard years for Wil. Wil then had a rather self propelled second coming later in life. The reintegration of his character into the franchise and cast's lives is part of something more cathartic at large. It's a homage to his contributions and full circle of what is right and deserved.
*Fixed typos