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The Last Generation is a national organization of students who advocate for climate action and environmental justice. They conduct research, host events, and share news on climate issues and solutions.
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In a desperate last stand, Jean-Luc Picard and generations of crews both old and new fight together to save the galaxy from the greatest threat they've ever faced as the saga of Star Trek: The Next Generation comes to a thrilling, epic conclusion. (Series finale)
Teaser
An emergency transmission by Federation President Anton Chekov warns any who hear not to approach Earth, as the Borg have used a signal of unknown origin to assimilate the planet's youth and fully taken control of Starfleet. As the USS Enterprise-D makes her way there at maximum warp, the crew listens in grim silence as the President warns of Earth's imminent fall, and of their inability to stop the Borg signal and save their young people, but also reminds his listeners of what his father would say: "Hope is never lost. There are always possibilities." Until then, however, he urges anyone listening to avoid Earth; in the background as the channel closes, his staff are urging him to enter an escape pod. Worf reports that the fleet has taken attack formation against Earth. Geordi adds that the orbital defense platforms have been destroyed, but Spacedock's defenses are repelling the assault. "For now," Riker warns, adding that the planetary shields will not stand up against the fleet, before wondering where the "cavalry" is. Data reports that emergency transmissions from all Starfleet and civilian ships have gone silent. "Apparently, we are the cavalry," he sums up. From his own experience, Picard knows the fleet is being controlled by the Borg Collective, a hive mind with a single voice – a voice that is nearby. Data scans and confirms via long-range sensors that there is a Borg vessel located at Jupiter. Picard orders a course to intercept. Arriving in Jupiter orbit, the Enterprise detects a massive Borg cube in the center of the Great Red Spot. Beverly reports it is broadcasting the Collective and puts it on audio. Picard asks if she is able to find Jack amidst the cacophony of voices. She is eventually able to narrow it down, and Worf confirms that he is indeed the command signal. Riker guesses the Borg are amplifying the signal from the cube. Picard knows that the only way to save Starfleet, and Earth, is to sever that connection, no matter the cost: "What began over thirty-five years ago ends tonight." He orders Geordi to take them in.
Act One
The Borg-controlled fleet continues to blast away at Spacedock's shields, including the USS Titan-A, with Esmar in the center chair. Sidney La Forge detects unauthorized movement on Deck 5, and the order is given: "Eliminate all unassimilated." Meanwhile, the unassimilated are able to hold their own, with Seven of Nine in the lead, making their way down a corridor and into a turbolift to the bridge. From the opposite lift, Musiker leads another team just behind Seven's, and both exchange fire with the assimilated bridge crew. But those shot by the unassimilated are taken by a transporter beam; the crew has linked their phasers to the transporter system (perfecting the "portable beam-me-up" as Seven jokingly calls it) to lock their assimilated crewmates inside Transporter Room One. Seven orders her people to seal the bridge and take their stations. One ensign protests that he is just a cook who took lunar flight training, but never finished because of problems at home. Seven interrupts by saying he was a pilot, which makes him their pilot, and encourages him to take his station. Dr. Ohk brings up the maintenance channel over communications, where the unassimilated officers of the fleet report being overrun. Seven urges her crew to find a way to get them out of fleet formation mode, preferably before the Collective realizes they have retaken the ship. At Jupiter, the Enterprise approaches the cube. Data's scans indicate it is only 36 percent operational, and what power it does have is being used to broadcast the hive mind. Picard turns to Troi, who admits she has never felt anything quite like this before, a "quiet suffering" as she puts it. Data admits he hates the Borg for all the suffering they have inflicted on so many. Troi is able to sense Jack, but he is totally consumed by the Collective. Worf asks the question on their minds: What if Jack is at the point of no return? But both Picard and Beverly reject that idea. Just then, Data detects that the cube has scanned them… and lowered shields and redirected its weapons. Picard calls it an "invitation," and says their objective is clear: Locate and destroy the beacon that is transmitting the Borg signal. Geordi warns the signal is so powerful, it is scrambling their sensors. The only way to find it will be to beam aboard the cube. Beverly asks if there are any life signs, and Data puts the readings on screen. She then has the computer narrow down the signals that mimic Human brain waves. She believes she can use those readings to pinpoint Jack's location, recognizing that Picard intends to go down himself. Picard asks her to lead him to Jack, complimenting how she had brought him that far, and asking her to let him be the one that brings their son home. Riker and Worf both volunteer to accompany Picard. Data eagerly does so as well, but Picard needs his expertise on the ship. Beverly agrees; while she wants nothing more than to tear the Borg limb from limb herself, they need every advantage they can get and that means staying on the Enterprise, to which Data reluctantly agrees. Riker shares a last, silent look with Troi, who looks pained at what she senses. Picard leaves Geordi in command, and before entering the turbolift tells his old shipmates it has been an honor serving with them. They beam aboard the cube, where Riker worriedly notes the lack of movement or even sound; on a cube that size, there should be thousands of drones. Worf notices his "disappointment" at not being outnumbered, and Riker admits he had never been in any "too-quiet situations" that ended with a pleasant surprise. "You don't leave the doors open if you want to keep the wolves out," Picard agrees. They find a Borg drone dead in its regeneration alcove, and Worf's tricorder scans indicate the necrotic tissue is being consumed. Riker wonders what they could be sustaining, and Picard grimly wonders whom. As they continue their sweep, every drone they find is dead; the cube is essentially a tomb, which explains the lack of bio-signs. Picard points out that in the absence of one army, they simply raised another. Beverly reports from the ship that she has found Jack's bio-signs in a chamber one level below him, which Picard recalls being near the unimatrix array and below the transporter platform. When Riker asks how he could know that, Beverly believes some part of Picard, even in his golem form, must still be tied to the hive – which is how Picard knows it is now time to part ways, as he can no longer be their captain, but now has to be a father. He tells them to find the beacon, and thanks Riker for his loyalty over the years, which means so much to him; as he is about to say something similar to Worf, he tells his old captain that there are two turns of phrase a Klingon never admits to knowing: defeat and farewell. As Riker and Worf leave, Picard asks Beverly to lead him to their son. She warns that she can lead him to the next level, but the interference will increase after that. As she is about to make an admission of her own, Picard assures her that she did "everything right" with Jack. As Picard proceeds alone into the cube, he finds Jack, now Võx, giving orders to the new Collective. He declares to the worlds of the Federation that their biological and technological distinctiveness will contribute to the greater whole, their cultures will evolve to serve the future, and peace and prosperity will spread throughout the galaxy. Assimilated into the Collective, they will exist in a universe without fear or loss, unbroken, perfect. Picard tries to reach out to him, saying he is there to take him home, when laughter echoes in the chamber. He looks up to see the mutilated Borg Queen, held up in the wall behind Jack. She tells Picard that Jack is home, as is Picard: "At last, Locutus has returned… to his true family, to his Collective… to me
Act Two
Aboard the Titan, as the battle rages around them, the unassimilated crew has detected the Enterprise near the Borg cube on Jupiter. Musiker wonders how they could be using it, given its age and condition, but Seven realizes Picard's plan, using an older ship that is not controlled like the rest of the fleet, and wonders how they can do the same. Musiker sees the signal as being propagated by line of sight, which means if they can't see the Titan, they can't control it... and Seven knows they have a way to be unseen. She orders tactical to upload every prefix code they have for the entire fleet and scramble their shields; they can't fire while cloaked, so they will have to be fast. The cook/pilot protests at the idea of one ship against the entire fleet. Seven tells her crew she is not asking them to give their lives for nothing, but to fight for what's below, on Earth: their families and children. The Borg took their crew and killed Captain Shaw; now, they are all that is left of Starfleet. Musiker reports the cloaking device is online, and Seven gives the order. Picard demands to know what the Queen has done to Jack; the Queen smugly replies that she could do nothing, as she has only her words, and the "soft assurances" of a mother's love. "You are not his mother!" Picard shouts in rage, as he fires his phaser repeatedly at the Queen, who is protected by a shield. The Queen goes on to say that there had been no Collective until recently, just herself, an "unimaginable loneliness" that she and Jack shared. Picard accuses her of worming her way into his head, but she retorts that Jack found her, at the very edge of space, where she had been abandoned to die of starvation and age. As the cries of her "children" died out, she heard another voice, louder and clearer: Jack's voice. Picard demands she release Jack and take him instead, but the Queen refuses. The future of the Borg does not lie in assimilation, she believes, but evolution. Riker and Worf make their way through the cube to find the beacon, and Worf is able to locate a central access terminal. Riker expresses the hope that the Borg have been too busy dying to upgrade their codecs. As Worf communicates with the Enterprise, one of the "dead" drones awakens; as Riker finds the broadcast emitter, another follows suit. Meanwhile, on Earth, the Titan weaves its way through the assimilated fleet, decloaking, firing, and recloaking to avoid being retaken by the fleet automation, attempting to buy Picard and his crew time to stop the Borg. Picard condemns the Queen as insane, consuming what little "Collective" she had left. The Queen replies that she did so only for this moment, so that Picard could stand as witness. He asks what it is he is to witness. "Your future's end," she replies. She had made the deal with Vadic and her rogue Changelings to be her weapons, because they too understood the pain of losing a generation to Starfleet. Together, they weaponized Picard's biology, rewriting the Borg machine code into genetic code. They no longer have to consume materials to continue, but could now reproduce through biology, propagating a new Collective with a single purpose: not just to assimilate, but to annihilate. Aboard the Titan, the assimilated crew manages to force their way out of the transporter room, while the drones activate aboard the cube and attack Riker and Worf. The cube begins opening fire on the Enterprise, and Geordi orders evasive maneuvers. Worf passes Riker his kur'leth, the latter being surprised at its weight; Worf directs him to the hilt, where he has concealed a phaser. The Titan continues its hit-and-run attacks, narrowly missing being hit by a photon torpedo. Musiker warns the fleet is using predictive algorithms to find them, and the pilot warns that it is working; the fleet redeploys assets to pursue them. On the Enterprise, Geordi warns Beverly that he didn't have time to work on the weapons, so she will have to fire them manually. The doctor proves more than up to the task, however, inflicting considerable damage. When all eyes turn to look at her in wonder, she smiles and shrugs, saying that a lot has happened in the past twenty years. Meanwhile, Riker wonders why Worf never used the hidden phaser that whole time, and Worf replies only that "swords are fun." Riker tells the Enterprise they should have the schematics for the beacon now. Troi examines the schematics and is able to detect the location – that's the good news. The bad news, Data adds, is that it is at the heart of the cube itself. Geordi believes it impossible to reach, even for a pilot like his daughter Sidney. Data, however, has other ideas, and takes the ship in. When the others protest, he pleads with them to trust him; while he agrees it is statistically almost impossible, his "gut" tells him he can do it. Geordi finally agrees to go with Data's "gut," and Data takes them in, weaving through the structure of the Borg cube. Troi wonders why she can suddenly sense enjoyment; as if in answer, Data has an almost ecstatic look on his face as he navigates through the cube. Spacedock finally falls to the relentless assault, and Earth's planetary shields collapse. The fleet redeploys to target all of Earth's major population centers. As Seven orders another strafe run, the ship violently shudders; Sidney and Alandra have destroyed the Titan's cloak, which will allow the Collective to retake control of the ship. Picard tries to reach out to Jack, who directs the fleet to fire on Sector 001. In desperation, Picard begins ripping out the cables connecting his son to the cube. The Queen warns that it will kill him; severing the link would sentence his mind to "insurmountable, unsurvivable shock," and that only Jack himself could choose to leave now. The Titan is neutralized, and the fleet targets Earth's major cities. Data brings the Enterprise into the center of the cube, where they see the beacon for themselves. As Beverly prepares to fire, however, Geordi stops her short, and asks if Data sees the same thing he does. Data confirms the beacon is integrated directly into the cube's systems; destroying the beacon will set off a chain reaction that destroys the entire cube, and everyone onboard. Beverly protests that there has to be another way, but Troi lays down the situation bluntly: If they destroy the cube now, they will kill everyone onboard, but if they wait, the Collective will wipe out everyone else. Geordi looks up at Beverly, who is struggling with the idea, but finally, she quietly nods. He then calls Riker, who has heard every word. They have a transporter lock on Riker and Worf, but not Picard, and prepare to beam them out. Riker, however, has no intention of leaving Picard behind. Troi warns that he will have a minute at most to get out the moment they fire, but Riker believes he owes Picard a lifetime; a minute is the least he could spare. He promises to see her soon. Worf quips that there had been a moment he was worried they might actually survive, as he joins Riker. Data reports he has lost their signal; Riker and Worf have crossed into the dead zone. Picard continues to rip out cables; the Queen now sounds worried as she asks what he is doing. Picard replies that he vowed never to return to the Collective and had been running half his life from it. But now he has something to go back for. As Riker and Worf catch up to him, Picard takes a cable and jabs it into his neck, connecting himself to the Collective. Inside, he finds Jack, who says he can hear so many voices, welcoming him – all joyful, no loneliness or fear, perfect. Picard tells him the euphoria isn't real, that perfection is not evolution, but death. He knows Jack has always felt different, hungering for connection while trying to keep people away, to keep them from seeing who he really was. Picard had been the same, having joined Starfleet to find a family he didn't have, and he had found it, and let them in. But there was always a barrier; he too thought there was something wrong with him, and he waited, waiting in his vineyard to die alone. But now, he realized that Jack is the part of him he never knew was missing. Jack insists that it was all written before his birth, that this is what he was meant to be, and this is where he belonged. Aboard the Enterprise, Geordi knows they are out of time, and hopes their friends have some left. He turns to Beverly, who nods, and targets the beacon. He gives the order to fire, and the Enterprise destroys the beacon with a barrage of torpedoes and phaser fire. Riker turns to Worf and asks if it is "good enough," and Worf agrees that it is a fine day to die with honor. As the Enterprise makes her escape, Data is attempting to lock onto the others, but the shockwave of the beacon's destruction is interfering with the transporter signal. Picard decides that if Jack will not leave, he will stay to the end, telling his son that he has changed his life, and embraces him. As he relives all of the memories with his parents, Jack finally awakens, and begins frantically tearing out the cables himself, including that connecting Picard to him. Riker speaks aloud, hoping Troi will hear him, assuring his imzadi that he loves her and will see her soon, together with their son. Troi, sensing him, realizes she knows precisely where they are, and rushes to take a seat at the helm. The Queen rages that Jack had been born there, and so will die there. Jack retorts that the time of the Borg is over. The Queen reminds him that even if he survived, he would be changed, broken, alone. Looking to his father, Jack replies that he won't be alone. The Enterprise flies in overhead and once reorienting its direction is able to beam them to safety. The Collective orders its last directive to be carried out now that the "command signal" – Jack – has been interrupted. The Queen wails at her defeat as she is taken by the fiery explosions and the Borg cube is torn apart, the Enterprise escaping just in time with flames licking at her shields. Aboard the Titan, the assimilated crew reaches the bridge, but as the Queen's cube is destroyed, the nanoprobes fade. The crew looks around at one another in confusion. Sidney, realizing she was just pointing a phaser at Seven, begins to apologize, and breaks down crying as Seven hugs her, assuring her it is over. Aboard the Enterprise, Picard emerges from the turbolift together with Riker, Worf, and Jack, who has had some of his Borg implants removed from him. On screen, Geordi is relieved to see his daughters are safe and sound with Seven and Musiker. Worf sinks into the chair to the left of the captain's seat and is briefly heard snoring to Geordi and Data's amusement, exhausted from his ordeal. As Jack is reunited with his mother, Picard welcomes him aboard the Enterprise.
"Captain's log, Stardate… shall we say one. The first of a new day for friends both old and young. Starfleet had implemented a fleet-wide transporter solution to purge our young officers of the Borg infection. A world-saving effort developed by our new head of Starfleet Medical Branch – Admiral Crusher, who also managed to spearhead technology that...
"This is President Anton Chekov of the United Federation of Planets broadcasting on all emergency channels. Do not approach Earth. A signal of unknown origin has turned our young against us. They have been assimilated by the Borg. Our fleet has been compromised and as we speak, our planetary defenses are falling. Sol Station is defending Earth as best it can. But we're almost out of time. We have not been able to find a way to stop this Borg signal and unassimilate our young. But I know if my father were here, he'd remind us all that hope is never lost. There are always possibilities. Until then, I implore you: save yourselves. Farewell."
- Anton Chekov
"What began over 35 years ago ends tonight. Mr. La Forge, take us in."
- Picard, when the Enterprise-D encounters the mammoth Borg cube at Jupiter
"So much pain. So much misery inflicted on so many. I hate them."
- Data, on the Borg
Title
•15 April 2023: Title publicly revealed by Wil Wheaton in TRR: "Võx". •The title refers to the last generation of Borg, featured in a desperate attempt to revive the Collective in this episode. While the new collective created by Agnes Jurati is still around, the original Borg appear to be mostly defeated.
Production
•This is only the second episode in the Star Trek franchise to credit the same person as sole writer and director, in this case series showrunner Terry Matalas. The first was the Star Trek: The Original Series third season episode "Elaan of Troyius", written and directed by John Meredyth Lucas, in 1968. •This episode marks the first official Star Trek series finale since ENT: "These Are the Voyages..." in 2005. It is also the first conclusion of a series, since the return of Star Trek to television with Star Trek: Discovery in 2017. However, the end of Discovery had also been announced before the premiere of this episode and the fate of Star Trek: Short Treks has been uncertain since the release of its last episode, "Children of Mars". •Terry Matalas has revealed that the initial draft for the finale included several additional character appearances, including a scene between Data and Soji, the reveal that Ro Laren had survived her shuttle's explosion in "Imposters" and was found alive alongside Tuvok, as well as Seven's promotion featuring Admiral Kathryn Janeway and Captain Harry Kim. All these appearances had to be cut due to budget limitations. •The final scene, featuring the TNG characters playing poker, was largely improvised and filmed uninterruptedly for 45 minutes. A longer cut of the scene appeared as an "easter egg" on the home video releases of this episode. •Terry Matalas approached John de Lancie with his idea for the mid-credit scene during the filming of de Lancie's final scenes for season 2. The scene was filmed under heavy time constraints in just 20 minutes. •Similar to the Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 finale, "Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2", setting up Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, this finale sets up a potential spin-off series featuring the USS Enterprise-G and her bridge crew, including Captain Seven, Commander Raffi, Lieutenant Sidney La Forge and Ensign Jack Crusher. Terry Matalas has revealed that his tentative title for this potential new series is Star Trek: Legacy. -D sequence in the Paramount+ US version… •Diligent viewers had already noticed in April 2023 that a "less interesting" visual effects (VFX) edit was used for the European streamings of the episode. This shot appeared to mimic classic VFX shots of the USS Enterprise-D going into warp from the Star Trek: The Next Generation series. It concerned a ten-second sequence, occurring at the beginning of the episode at timecode 2:06. However, it was only after it was discovered that it was the European edit that was used on the North American DVD and Blu-ray home video format releases instead of the more vibrant US edit as streamed by Paramount+ (US), that reviewers and fans alike started to take notice and began demanding an explanation from the franchise. Former Picard VFX Production Manager Shawn Ewashko was quick to point out that his VFX department had nothing to do whatsoever with selection of the alternate shot for inclusion on the home video format releases. Two weeks after the home video format release, Paramount Home Entertainment confirmed that the included shot concerned an early alternate VFX take, but that the later enhanced edit (originally produced for the theatrical screening) would henceforth be used for all pursuant home video format disc pressings. Despite the franchise's assurances though, the early VFX edit was still the one included on the respective French home video format releases.
Promotion
•One day before its debut on Paramount+, the series' finale received a by 090 Media organized limited, midday theatrical IMAX screening in ten major US cities on 19 April 2023 along with the preceding episode, "Võx", which, aside from mandatory registration on 12 April, was otherwise free for visitors. The screening was followed by a Q&A session with the primary cast and executive producers Terry Matalas and Alex Kurtzman broadcast live from the Los Angeles venue. The Q&A session was later included on the home video format releases as well. •Paramount+ had prior to the IMAX screenings already taken out a four-day add on 16 April 2023 for the two-part series finale on the massive 3D Times Square, New York City billboard, which featured an enormous USS Enterprise-D sliding into view, an add which filled showrunner Matalas with pride. This was incidentally the second time the franchise made use of the giant New York 3D billboard to promote a Kurtzman-era Star Trek production, after having taken out a similar, albeit less spectacular, add for the second season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds in April of the preceding year.
Starring
•Patrick Stewart as Jean-Luc Picard / Locutus of Borg (archive footage) •Jeri Ryan as Seven of Nine •Michelle Hurd as Raffaela Musiker •Ed Speleers as Jack Crusher / Võx
Special guest stars
•Brent Spiner as Daystrom Android M-5-10 / Data •LeVar Burton as Geordi La Forge •Michael Dorn as Worf •Jonathan Frakes as William T. Riker •Gates McFadden as Beverly Crusher •Marina Sirtis as Deanna Troi And •Alice Krige as the voice of the Borg Queen •Walter Koenig as Anton Chekov (voice) •Tim Russ as Tuvok
Guest starring
•Todd Stashwick as Liam Shaw (holographic recording) •Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut as Sidney La Forge
Apr 20, 2023 · April 20, 2023. Season 3, Episode 10: ‘The Last Generation’. “What began over 35 years ago ends tonight,” Jean-Luc Picard says, standing on his favorite bridge and glaring at his most...
Apr 20, 2023 · The final episode of Star Trek: Picard concludes the third season with a powerful and emotional reunion of the TNG cast and a showdown with the Borg Queen. Read the review of \"The Last Generation\" and how it ties up the themes of family, legacy and evolution.
Apr 20, 2023 · The last episode of Star Trek: Picard features a Borg Cube, a Borg Queen, and a father-son reunion. Read the review of \"The Last Generation\" and how it wraps up the TNG cast's story.
- Kyle Hadyniak
Explore an island threatened by climate change through the eyes of three children who call it home. FRONTLINE and The GroundTruth Project present "The Last Generation."
The Last Generation (German: Letzte Generation, pronounced [ˈlɛt͡stə ˌɡeːnəʁaˈt͡sjoːn], Italian: Ultima Generazione) is a group of climate change activists and vandals using forms of direct action and vandalism [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] which is mostly active in Germany, France, Italy, UK and Poland.
