star trek poker scene

‘Star Trek: Picard’ Showrunner on Possible Spinoff, How [SPOILER] Returned for the Finale and Getting That Final Shot

By Adam B. Vary

Adam B. Vary

Senior Entertainment Writer

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SPOILER ALERT: This story discusses major plot developments in “The Last Generation,” the series finale of “ Star Trek: Picard ,” currently streaming on Paramount+.

The last time the cast of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” cast performed together on screen — in 2002’s “Star Trek: Nemesis” — it ended with a sour one-two punch: the sudden death of Data (Brent Spiner) and the financial failure of the film, which caused Paramount to stop making movies with the cast. Effectively, after a brilliantly successful seven-season run on TV, “The Next Generation” had been canceled from movie theaters.

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In doing so, Matalas sought to rectify some of the perceived sins of the “TNG” movies: He resurrected Data and endowed him with a consciousness that allowed the android to fulfill his lifelong dream of becoming fully human. And he brought back the Enterprise-D, the starship that had been destroyed in the climax of the first “TNG” film, 1994’s “Star Trek: Generations.” 

“In the most fanboy sense, I wanted to place the action figure set neatly and safely back on the shelf,” Matalas says. “If it’s the last we see of them, we see them in a wonderful grand moment together around the poker table. Not mourning the loss of Data. The Enterprise-D not crashed, but in a museum. Knowing that there is a bright future for ‘Star Trek’ and for their families. For me, that felt important as a fan, to feel like that’s where we left ‘The Next Generation.’”

If that wasn’t enough, in the aftermath of the battle with the Borg, the U.S.S. Titan is rechristened the U.S.S. Enterprise-G, and Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) — the “Star Trek: Voyager” character who has been on “Picard” from Season 1 — is promoted to be its captain. Jack, a new member of Starfleet, is stationed on the ship, along with Geordi’s daughter Sidney (Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut). Even Q (John de Lancie) — the omnipotent being who has been a “Trek” mainstay since the “Next Generation” series premiere “Encounter at Farpoint” — shows up in a post-credits sequence in which he tells Jack that his trials “have just begun.”

That certainly seems like the set up for a “Picard” spinoff series, but in his interview with Variety , Matalas says that wasn’t quite his intention. He also shares the scenes he wanted to shoot for the finale but couldn’t, and his unconventional approach to filming that poker scene.

How much of the finale did you have in your head when you were building out the season?

A very surprising amount, actually. I knew that the initial pitch to Patrick, that he would have to assimilate himself again, to face the big trauma of his life, to save his son. I knew that they would be in the Enterprise-D for the last two hours, reunited. I knew Seven of Nine would become captain of the Enterprise. That was a delightful thing to say to Jeri, who was my old friend from way back. I was like, “By the end the season, you’ll be captain of the Enterprise.” She was like, “Excuse me, what?! ” So there was quite a bit. Some of the how and why was why you need the brilliance of a talented writing room team to help you get there and figure that all out.

There was a moment in the finale where it seemed like Riker and Worf and Picard or some combination might actually die. Was that really on the table?

No, but I really wanted you to think that it might be for the drama. I don’t have it in me to kill my childhood heroes like that. I think some creators probably would. It felt like those characters would certainly feel like this is probably our last run. So I really wanted the surprise ending to be a happy ending.

Were there any other alternative endings that you considered?

There were things that we just simply didn’t have the time and money to shoot. In the very first iterations of script, we had discovered that Ro Laren had in fact survived, and had been beamed off of her shuttle and was still being used by the Changelings for information. It was already too ambitious of a schedule, so we weren’t able to be able to pull that off. We had a scene with [the Data-based android from Season 1] Soji and Data that we were also not able to shoot. We have wanted some more “Voyager” folks to come be part of Seven of Nine’s promotion to captain. It comes down to how many pennies you have left in the piggy bank after building a Borg cube and an Enterprise.

We had discussed it. We did toy with a different name, that it might be the Picard. But ultimately, it didn’t feel as genuine and as right for the legacy of “Star Trek” and Seven of Nine as the Enterprise. And certainly when you see the Titan with that name on its hull, you’re just like, yeah, it deserves that name. It just looks so right.

Did you always know you were bringing back Q after he supposedly died in Season 2 of “Picard”?

Yes. All the way from Season 2. John’s a dear friend of mine. On his last day [on Season 2], I said, “Look, I want to bring you back literally in the post-credit sequence for this final season. I will have no time and I will have no money, but I guarantee it will be one of the coolest Q scenes and it will be touching back to ‘Encounter at Farpoint.’” And he was like, “I’m in.” 

We only had 20 minutes to shoot that scene. Right after we shot the scene in which Picard tells Jack that he’s Borg, we ushered John in in that awesome new costume and we just banged out real quick.

You’ve mentioned on social media that you’d like to continue this story with a “Star Trek: Legacy” spinoff. Have you heard from Paramount or Alex Kurtzman about the possibility of doing that?

Alex and I talk all the time. If it’s something that’s going to be done, we want to make sure we don’t rush into it. We want to make sure we do it right. That’s where we’re at with it, I say coyly. At the moment, there’s nothing developed on it. But we talk all the time.

Part of why I’m asking is that I’ve rarely seen a finale set up a spinoff series more completely than you do with this one, with the scenes on the Enterprise-G. Am I right in thinking you wanted that to seed a future show?

Well, not specifically seeding for a spinoff, as lovely as that is to think about. I definitely wanted the feeling that it could go on, that it was a passing of the torch of the last generation to the next. That I really wanted. I think that’s the spirit of “Star Trek,” that they’re going to continue exploring strange new worlds. That’s a feeling of hope. So you want to get just a little taste of what that might be — for it to be a satisfying ending, it needed to be a satisfying beginning. Having said that, of course, I want to see Jack and Seven and Sidney and Raffi and everybody go on forever. But yeah, that was the creative impulse behind it.

Do you know what’s next for you?

I do not. Do you? 

I saw your tweet that you would love to work on the “Galaxy Quest” spinoff TV show .

Oh my god, “Galaxy Quest” is like my most favorite thing ever. I just literally was showing it to my kid the other day. It remains one of the most perfect movies of all time. And I just lived it! I actually just lived it in every way. So yeah, I said put me in coach. I know what that is.

Yes. To make this a little different than “All Good Things,” I wanted the audience to feel like they were really with this cast, to have a little wish fulfillment. So I actually ran the camera for 45 minutes and let them just play. Let them be themselves. I really wanted the audience to be immersed in what it’s like to hang out with Patrick, Jonathan, Marina, Gates, LeVar, Michael, Brent. So all those smiles and all those jokes are real. And so we hang on it much longer than you normally would, so that the smiles and the jokes are genuine. They were all playing a form of poker as best as they could, you know, because they like to monkey around. Maybe when the Blu-ray comes out, we’ll have a longer chunk of it so you could see more.

Do you remember who won the game?

They played so many rounds. But I think they always made sure Patrick won.

I’m laughing because I asked Patrick that question , and he said, “I think I won.”

Yeah, I think they rigged it a little bit so he would win.

This interview has been edited and condensed.

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Star Trek: Picard's Poker Scene Was 45 Minutes Of Improv From The TNG Cast

The conclusion of "Star Trek: Picard" gave Trekkies the series finale they all deserved. Even pitted against the evil Borg Queen (Alice Krige) and her deadly Hive, the former crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise-D defied the odds one last time as a team. It was a victory that sets up Jack Crusher's (Ed Speleers) future while not being sullied by the death of a single member of "Star Trek: The Next Generation's" original cast. And that outcome led to a very satisfying final scene featuring the seven "TNG" alums playing one last hand of poker together. In the spirit of capturing the gratifying moment, "Picard" showrunner Terry Matalas let the actors improv the gambling scene for nearly an hour.

"They're maniacs, that cast," Matalas said during a roundtable discussion (via Screen Rant ). "Anytime you call 'Cut!,' they're singing, they're dancing, they're joking, they're blah-blah-blah. They're doing all the things that they tell you to do. And this isn't a movie set where you have the time built in to let them do that. It's television, you're like, 'We gotta go!' Except for this scene, I let them improvise for 45 minutes." Picard wins the first hand the "TNG" family plays, but the real winners are the fans who get to see their favorite characters share a heartwarming swan song together.

An unforgettable improv scene

During the series finale, Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) quotes some dialogue from William Shakespeare's "The Tragedy of Julius Caesar." Immediately after his epic toast, Picard whips out a playing card. And the room explodes with excitement as the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" crew draws around the table for one final poker game. True, Data (Brent Spiner) doesn't sport his trademark visor as he did while gambling on "TNG," but it's a fitting end for the iconic crew. And Matalas let the actors improv for 45 minutes to capture the magic of "Picard's" closing moments.

"I rolled the camera and just had the cameras go and let them play poker because I wanted the audience to really feel what it's like to hang out with these actors, to really feel the jokes and the genuine smiles of real camaraderie of these actors [and] what it's like with them," Matalas said during the same roundtable.

"They're really like that in real life," Matalas continued. "And so, I think on the Blu-ray, we'll see an extended version of that scene. But those jokes, those smiles are all real. And I wanted the audience to feel that for a few minutes before we said goodbye." In what was surely a calculated maneuver to evoke even more nostalgia, "Picard's" conclusion mirrors the series finale of "TNG" titled "All Good Things..." During that show's final scene, the exact same seven characters gather around the poker table to play Five-card stud.

With Its Most Thoughtful Episode, Star Trek Leveled Up And Was Never the Same Again

In the beginning , The Next Generation struggled to find its voice. But one pivotal episode changed everything.

Remember The Next Generation episode where Data learned to swim? In the first draft of one of the most pivotal Star Trek episodes of all time, “The Measure of a Man,” things were originally very different. Instead of having Data playing poker with the crew, writer Melinda Snodgrass imagined the themes of the episode could be foreshadowed by Data struggling with a swimming pool. But, because the budget didn’t allow for the swimming pool, Snodgrass created the poker scene. And with that one decision, the entire direction of Then Next Generation was changed forever.

On February 13, 1989, The Next Generation dropped what is still considered its greatest courtroom episode, “The Measure of a Man.” This ethical critique at the center of the story is obviously why the episode remains so classic and beloved. But, at the same time, the small details of this episode were harbingers of the kind of show that The Next Generation eventually became. Mild spoilers ahead.

Star Trek loves legal dramas. From the 1967 classic two-parter, “The Menagerie,” to the 1991 film The Undiscovered Country to the recent fan-favorite Strange New Worlds episode, “ Ad Astra per Aspera,” the contemplative philosophizing inherent in Star Trek’s DNA often works very well when those ideas are put on trial. This isn’t just a classic trope, it's an expedient way to drill down on a science fiction story. Even the very first episode of The Next Generation , “Encounter at Farpoint,” in 1987, framed the entire series as the trial of humanity.

Data and Maddox in "The Measure of a Man."

But, “The Measure of a Man” is easily Trek’s best courtroom episode. Briefly, the set-up is this: When the Enterprise arrives at Starbase 173, a zealous Starfleet roboticist named Maddox demands that Data be dismantled to further android research. This forces Captain Picard to create an ad-hoc trial, administered by Starbase 173’s resident judge advocate general, Captain Louvois. The logistical question of whether or not Data is the property of Starfleet initially elides the moral imperative: Is Data actually alive? And if he is a sentient being, does that mean he has the right to choose the path for his own life?

Unlike the droids in the Star Wars franchise, when Data’s off-switch is used in “The Measure of a Man,” it feels like a violation of his rights. In a sense, for longtime science fiction fans, this episode wasn’t just the trial of Data, but, in a way, the trial of Asimov’s robots, and the Replicants from Blade Runner , too. With this episode, The Next Generation, in a sense, began to take itself more seriously, not just as a mainstream drama, but as a serious work of science fiction.

When somebody says Star Trek: The Next Generation is the greatest of all of the Trek series, that statement almost always comes with a caveat. If you binge TNG from the beginning, starting with Season 1, you’ll find a deeply uneven show. And, while conventional wisdom holds that Season 3 is where the true classic era of TNG begins, many — including Brent Spiner — have long maintained that the seeds for the greatness of this version of Star Trek began in Season 2, specifically, with this episode.

Written by former attorney Melinda Snodgrass — a close friend of George R.R. Martin, and co-creator of the Wild Cards series with him — “The Measure of a Man” succeeded in 1989 for the same reason it resonates today; it was both allegorical about human rights in general but specific enough in its sci-fi premise to create a bit of doubt in the mind of the viewer. For strange legal reasons, Riker, Data’s friend, is required to be the prosecutor, an ethical wrinkle that makes the viewer wonder whether or not Data is a true living being. Riker has to be good at his job as a prosecutor, allowing us to follow the logic of his arguments, which are, at times, compelling!

Data and Picard try to prove Data is “alive.”

The title of the episode comes from a quote from Martin Luther King: “The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” As pointed out by authors Paula M. Block and Terry J. Erdmann , this means the episode title does not reference Data himself, but instead, the behaviors of humankind relative to the questions that the episode raises. How Picard, Riker, Maddox, and Louvois will judge Data is really what’s on trial.

This emotional arc is best seen in the journey of Maddox, someone who, at the beginning, couldn’t imagine Data as a person, and by the end of the episode, changes his mind. In the 2012 Blu-ray commentary track for this episode, Melinda Snodgrass noted of Maddox: “I wrote him as a true believer because I wanted him to change.”

This is the first episode of TNG in which the crew plays poker.

Canonically, this change of heart later resulted in another classic, the season 4 episode, “Data’s Day,” in which Data narrates his entire day in the form of a letter to Maddox. Additionally, Star Trek: Picard Season 1 used Maddox’s admiration for Data as the entire foundation for a season-long mystery, as well as the creation of even more intelligent android-esque lifeforms. This notion eventually resulted in Jean-Luc Picard being reborn in a “Synth” body , pushing the envelope of Trek’s definitions of “new life” even further .

And of course, there’s that poker game that begins the episode. This was the first time we saw members of the Enterprise-D crew playing poker, an image that became the last shot of “All Good Things...” in 1994, and the final episode of Picard , “The Last Generation” in 2023. From the journey of Data to the warm feelings about this Enterprise crew to great allegorical science fiction for TV, the best of The Next Generation started right here.

Star Trek: The Next Generation , Season 2, Episode 9, “ The Measure of a Man” is streaming on Paramount+.

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One of ‘Star Trek: Picard’s Final Scenes Is the Best Possible Tribute to ‘TNG’

The third and likely final season of Star Trek: Picard ends on a satisfying note. Picard and his crew save the world from the Borg, he and Jack finally cement their father/son bond, Raffaella gets to see her granddaughter, and the Enterprise is nestled safely back in Geordi’s fleet museum.

One year later, the gang gathers in Guinan’s bar for a celebratory drink. After a moving toast, Jean-Luc holds up a playing card, and everyone cheers. It’s time for one last poker game! The scene is a delightful homage to the series finale of Star Trek: The Next Generation , and fans immediately recognized its significance.

Poker was The Next Generation ‘s pastime of choice

On the Enterprise-D, there were plenty of ways to entertain yourself between missions. You could hang out in Ten Forward. You could live through your favorite novel in the Holodeck. You could take in a play or a musical performance put on by your surprisingly talented crew mates.

Or you could just play cards.

The poker table was the site of countless bonding sessions between the senior officers of the Enterprise—not to mention a staging area for existential questions. In the season 2 episode “Measure of a Man,” for example, Data learns about the concept of bluffing when Riker wins a hand with a busted flush. That scene launches the themes that the episode explores when Data is forced to either prove that he’s sentient or face a life of slavery.

Poker didn’t just serve as a vehicle for the show’s themes, though. As a high-concept series that focused on the philosophical issues around space exploration, Star Trek: TNG sometimes risked becoming so cerebral that it lost an emotional connection with its audience. That was why it was so vital to show the crew’s human (or Klingon, or android) side. The crew was what made the show so memorable. Fans love TNG not just because of the weird planets Picard and the others explored or the futuristic scrapes they got themselves into, but because of each character’s unique personality. And what better way to let those personalities shine than through card games?

Star Trek: Picard could have ended with a focus on Jean-Luc himself. After all, it’s his show. Instead, they decided to end by highlighting his deep friendship with his crew. What’s even better is that, according to an interview that showrunner Terry Matalas gave to Variety , that was a real poker game the cast was playing—and it lasted 45 minutes. Sniff. Shut up, it’s dusty in here.

Other nice little moments I noticed:

The series finale was full of other wonderful moments, too.

Worf wants a threesome . Ha! Worf saying he’ll make a “threesome” by joining Picard and Riker, and Riker saying, “Do you even hear yourself?” Juvenile. Classic. I love it.

Deanna gets distracted. I also loved the moment when Deanna’s waiting for Data to shut the hell up and get out of her office, and she starts surreptitiously browsing vacation destinations. Of course Deanna loves Data deeply, but we’ve all been in a meeting that never seems to end. William asking if Data’s still batshit is the icing on the cake.

Worf needs a nap. He may be a badass, but like the best old men, he can fall asleep at the drop of a hat. Love it.

Farewell, TNG crew. You were a formative part of my childhood, and I’m so glad I got to hang out with you all one last time.

(featured image: Paramount+)

Poker was a traditional Earth card game of chance and skill .

The game or match had many variations but all forms of poker were games of incomplete information in which the players wagered on the strength of their playing cards relative to those of the other players, at least some of whose cards are hidden from the other players at the poker table . Bets were made with casino chips .

An alert player could increase their chances of winning by observing opponents and judging by their expressions and actions the value of the cards they held. Conversely, part of the game was for players to disguise that value, called " bluffing " and/or provide as little information for their opponents as possible, such as a strictly emotionless facial expressions, called a " poker face ."

• 2.1 Appearances
• 2.2 Background information
• 2.3 Apocrypha
• 2.4 External links

Frederick La Rouque was an experienced gambler in the 1890s . ( TNG : " Time's Arrow ")

Jonathan Archer played at least one hand of poker at Jupiter Station sometime prior to 2151 . ( ENT : " Rogue Planet ")

While infected with a silicon-based virus , Hoshi Sato confessed to Charles Tucker that she had been discharged for breaking her CO 's arm over a dispute about organizing a weekend-poker game for new recruits. ( ENT : " Observer Effect ")

In 2266 , Commander Spock compared the "game" between Captain James T. Kirk and First Federation Commander Balok to chess , however Kirk commented that it was not chess, but poker. Spock was unfamiliar with poker, and Leonard McCoy offered to teach it to him. ( TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver ")

The senior staff of the USS Enterprise -D held a weekly poker game every Tuesday evening. Typically five-card stud was played. Most of them were frequent participants with the exception of Captain Picard . He had a standing invitation for several years, but never accepted it until after his encounter with the anti-time anomaly in the Devron system . ( TNG : " Cause And Effect ", " All Good Things... ")

When he was first introduced to the game in 2365 , Data believed that the game could be played with a simple mathematical strategy, but he did not yet understand the practice of bluffing, which greatly complicated matters. ( TNG : " The Measure Of A Man ") Over time, Data grew to consider poker to be an interesting forum for the study of Human nature. He designed a holodeck program in which he played poker with three of Earth 's greatest scientists: Albert Einstein , Isaac Newton , and Stephen Hawking . ( TNG : " Descent ") By 2367 , Commander William T. Riker , a notoriously good player, acknowledged that Data's skill was comparable to his own. ( TNG : " Legacy ") In addition, his inability to have emotions naturally gave him the ultimate poker face which enhanced his already considerable skill at the game. That skill proved invaluable when he was flung back in time to San Francisco in the 1890s and raised needed funds by joining a poker game and apparently cleaning his opponents out of their money (which included two known card sharks) and even some clothing. ( TNG : " Time's Arrow ")

Data once compared Picard's refusal to retreat from a Romulan Warbird to the tactic of bluffing , describing, " In the game of poker, there is a moment when a player must decide if an opponent is being deceptive or actually holds a winning hand. This decision is based not only on the odds, but also on an appraisal of the man. Is he bluffing or does he have the cards? " ( TNG : " Data's Day ")

In 2366 , Federation Negotiator Mendoza recognized right away that Commander Riker was a poker player and Picard said that Riker conducted masterclasses in poker. ( TNG : " The Price ")

In 2368, Deanna Troi experienced memories about a poker evening with William Riker. Due to the telepathic memory invasion performed by the Ullian Jev she had no good feelings about this event. In her experienced memories, several poker chips fell on the ground and Riker/Jev then raped her. ( TNG : " Violations ")

During one game in 2368 , Troi suggested that they play a " Federation Day " variant of the game, where twos, sixes, and aces were wild cards (corresponding to the Federation's founding year of 2161 ). Worf commented that the large number of wild cards was a "Woman's Game" because it "supports a weak hand". ( TNG : " The Outcast ")

Poker chips

Although the games on the Enterprise -D were usually played for common clay chips, one game between Riker, Worf, Geordi La Forge , and Beverly Crusher was wagered on an unconventional stake: if Beverly won, all of the men would shave their beards , and if any of the men won, Beverly would dye her hair brown. The game was unfortunately not finished. ( TNG : " The Quality of Life ")

Geordi was a regular poker player, and his VISOR gave him the ability to read through the cards held by his opponents; he claimed that he never looked until the hand was over. ( TNG : " Ethics ")

On the Enterprise -D, some of the junior officers held a weekly poker night as well. Among the regular players were Sam Lavelle , Taurik , Sito Jaxa , Alyssa Ogawa , and Ben , a waiter in Ten Forward . It is also revealed during their game that they mirrored their bosses. Riker and Lavelle were caught bluffing, Taurik and Geordi were the dealer, Sito and Worf were betting big and talking about the promotions, Doctor Crusher and Nurse Ogawa were talking about Lt. Powell , and Troi and Ben were swapping rumors. ( TNG : " Lower Decks ")

Jake Sisko taught his friend Nog , a Ferengi , how to play poker in 2369 . ( DS9 : " Progress ")

When Worf was assigned to Deep Space 9 , Miles O'Brien jokingly described darts as "like poker, but with pointy tips". ( DS9 : " The Way of the Warrior ")

Admiral William Ross also played the game. After Colonel Kira Nerys was successful in removing Romulan plasma torpedo launchers from Derna , he told her to remind him "never to play poker with you". ( DS9 : " Shadows and Symbols ")

Apparently, during long away missions, several members of the USS Voyager 's crew also played Poker, even at one point teaching the game to Neelix , who was seemingly less than proficient at the game. At one point, Chakotay , Tom Paris , Harry Kim and Neelix played for a morning off instead of chips. Unfortunately, before Tom could reveal his winning hand, a Borg cube appeared and interrupted the game. ( VOY : " Collective ")

In 2380 , newly-promoted Lieutenant Beckett Mariner was forced to play executive poker with the senior staff of the USS Cerritos . During the game, Captain Carol Freeman , Commander Jack Ransom and Dr. T'Ana each fold and wanting to end the game quickly and leave, Mariner goes all in and then shows she's got no winning hand and she loses, but Lieutenant Shaxs scolds her by saying they don't go all in as it's a friendly game. ( LD : " Moist Vessel ")

In 2384 , Dal R'El attempted to eavesdrop on the senior staff meeting of the USS Voyager -A , but only came away with them playing poker which was wrong. ( PRO : " Brink ")

In 2402 , a year after the Borg / Changeling plot to destroyed the Federation failed, the retired senior officers of the USS Enterprise -D ( Jean-Luc Picard , William T. Riker , Deanna Troi , Data , Beverly Crusher , Worf , and Geordi La Forge ) would have drinks at 10 Forward Avenue bar in Los Angeles in order to celebrate before playing Poker in which Picard won the first hand. ( PIC : " The Last Generation ")

Rupert Crandall 's starship the Inside Straight is named after a poker hand.

Appearances

• ENT : " The Catwalk " (Season 2)
• " The Measure Of A Man " (Season 2)
• " The Royale "
• " The Emissary "
• " Allegiance " (Season 3)
• " The Best of Both Worlds "
• " Legacy " (Season 4)
• " The Outcast " (Season 5)
• " Cause And Effect "
• " Time's Arrow "
• " The Quality of Life " (Season 6)
• " Second Chances "
• " Descent "
• " Liaisons " (Season 7)
• " Lower Decks "
• " All Good Things... "
• " Progress " (Season 1)
• " Our Man Bashir " (Season 4)
• " Badda-Bing, Badda-Bang " (Season 7)
• " Pathfinder " (Season 6)
• " Collective "
• " Remembrance " (Season 1)
• " The Last Generation " (Season 3)
• LD : " Moist Vessel "

Background information

Poker, which was first introduced in the episode " The Measure Of A Man ", was, in fact, writer Melinda M. Snodgrass ' second choice for a leisure activity in the episode's teaser. Her original treatment had Data attempting to learn to swim , but was informed by producer Maurice Hurley that the cost of locating a swimming pool and (presumably) full-body make-up for Brent Spiner was prohibitively expensive. ("The Measure Of A Man" audio commentary , TNG Season 2 Blu-ray special features)

Ronald D. Moore commented that it was a running joke among the writers that Worf could never win at poker. ( AOL chat , 1997 ) However, this joke started after season 2 , since the Klingon totally dominated the game seen in " The Emissary ".

Marina Sirtis has noted that her character, Deanna Troi, should not have been allowed to play poker, due to her empathic abilities. ( citation needed • edit )

From the Star Trek Encyclopedia , 4th ed., vol. 2, p. 172, " The weekly Enterprise-D poker game […] became something of a metaphor for Star Trek's Human adventure. It therefore seems appropriate that our final television glimpse of our Next Generation friends was around the poker table in Riker's quarters, where Picard fittingly noted that "the sky 's the limit". "

In the novel The Big Game , Quark hosted a poker tournament on Deep Space 9 in 2370 and invited a number of poker players throughout known space to come to the station to compete. Commander Riker was also invited to participate in the tournament, and planned to play. However, an emergency prevented him from taking leave, and Riker was forced to cancel his visit. Shortly before the tournament was set to begin, a Romulan player was murdered and Odo deduced that the murderer was another player who had come to play poker so he decided to enter the tournament to keep an eye out for the murderer, and keep him from striking again. After apprehending the murderer, a Human named L'sthwan that was wanted for a variety of charges by a number of different races, Odo continued to play in the tournament, doing amazingly well for someone who had never played poker before. Eventually, he and Grand Nagus Zek were the last two players in the tournament. Odo was able to defeat Zek in the final hand with a Straight Flush, Queen High. Odo then donated his winnings from the tournament to charity, much to Quark's horror.

In the novel The Wounded Sky , Commodore Katha'sat was fond of poker, as well as other card games, and constantly taunted Kirk about it.

In the novel Planet of Judgment , McCoy's favorite variation of poker was five-card stud. In 2269 , he faced a telepathic confrontation with an Irapina through the illusion of a poker game played on a riverboat in the 19th century . The Irapina cheated, manifesting nonexistent cards. One card was the Seven of Diamonds at the moment McCoy dealt it, but it had changed into the King of Green Eggs by the time it hit the table. To win, McCoy had to cheat more creatively. To save his life, McCoy was able to generate a razor-sharp playing card that killed the Irapina.

External links

• Poker at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• Poker at Wikipedia
• 1 Bell Riots
• 3 Daniels (Crewman)

• Beginner Basics
• General Concepts
• Bluffing / Plays
• Hand Reading
• Starting Hands
• Math & Probability
• Limit Hold'em
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How to Play Poker in the Star Trek Universe

SPOCK: A very interesting game, this poker. KIRK: It does have advantages over chess. MCCOY: Love to teach it to you. Star Trek, “The Corbomite Maneuver” .

For those of our gentle readers who are not card-carrying nerds, the new Star Trek movie premieres in the US on May 8. For those that are, I’m sure you have that “stardate” etched into your brains with a hand phaser by now.

But what does an ancient Earth card game have to do with TV shows about starships and aliens?

• In the series Star Trek: The Next Generation , the senior officers had a Tuesday night game of five-card draw poker with occasional wild cards.
• The android officer Data created a holographic simulation of a poker game between himself, Isaac Newton, Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking.
• In one novel (Star Trek – the Big Game) based on the characters from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , the space station hosts the biggest no-limit hold’em tournament in the Federation. Of course, Phil Hellmuth XXI still complained about bad beats and “idiots from the Delta Quadrant”.

Many players say that poker reveals more of a player’s character than any other game. What does it reveal about the characters in the fictional worlds of the 24th century?

In the episode quoted above, Spock claimed not to be familiar with the game. However, since most Vulcans are portrayed as being highly intelligent, we can assume that they could pick up the mathematical components of poker fairly easily. Their staunch adherence to logic would make them good “ABC” players who only play solid starting hands . Such solid play would also be their weakness, since the fact that they only play strong hands would make them very easy to read. Also, since they would almost never get involved in a hand while holding bad cards, they would never bluff and never call a bluff without the nuts. Players that love to make aggressive raises and re-raises would run most Vulcans out of their hands.

If there’s a polar opposite to the Vulcans, it’s the Klingons. Klingons thrive on combat and aggression. Where Vulcans are quiet and contemplative, Klingons are loud and obnoxious. If you fold to a Klingon’s raise, you’re a coward. If you call, be ready for a fight. If you re-raise, he might jump over the poker table and stab you for insulting him. There is no word in the Klingon language for “fold”; count on a Klingon to call down every bet you make. He may even raise you just to test out your courage. Put a bad beat on a Klingon and he’ll put one on you – by shoving you out an airlock and into space!

Falling somewhere between the Vulcans and the Klingons come the other major enemy of the Federation, the Romulans. While they are related to the Vulcans, the Romulans have replaced calm and logic with paranoia and deviousness. They enjoy showing off their superiority by setting traps and watching the stupid humans and clumsy Klingons become ensnared. They love to slowplay big poker hands and lower the boom on their “inferior” opponents by pushing them all-in on the river. A typical Romulan player believes he’s the best at the poker table: whether he truly is or not is irrelevant to him.

On Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , the Ferengi Quark runs a casino and sports book on the space station, but never gambles himself. For a species that prides itself on profit and acquisition, the Ferengi are exceptionally poor poker players. They see any loss of revenue as a mortal blow; so short-stack situations are extremely stressful for them. To avoid losing both profit and status, they will resort to any form of cheating available. Watch for them to mark cards or steal chips from live tables, or try to alter the software of online poker clients. (Are we sure Russ Hamilton isn’t part Ferengi?)

Put away your designer sunglasses, hooded sweatshirts and iPods if you play with a Betazoid; none of it will do you any good in hiding your emotions. Who needs to see your eyes when Betazoids can read your mind? Even half-blooded Betazoids like Counselor Deanna Troi on Star Trek: The Next Generation can read emotions as easily as you’re reading these words. One way to combat this advantage is to play your hand without looking at your cards. Mind readers can’t read what’s not there, right?

Cardassians

A Cardassian player combines the worst aspects of the Klingons and Vulcans. Due to his militaristic background and blind obedience to his superiors, he lacks the imagination to make great poker plays. Add a short temper and an overwhelming superiority complex, he becomes like a bad Phil Hellmuth impersonation, only without the talent. He wants to be sneaky like a Romulan or brave like a Klingon; he just doesn’t know how. He’ll chase weak draws like a dog chasing cars, only to get his stack flattened when he misses. His sole advantage is his photographic memory, so he’ll be able to recall how each player played each hand on each street with perfect clarity.

The most dangerous species at the poker table is, of course, the one who invented the game in the first place. To be a successful poker player truly requires the best qualities of all these races. Don’t let the shiny starships and velour Starfleet uniforms fool you; humans are the toughest players in the galaxy. Humans have shown that they can be as devious as any Romulan and as greedy as a Ferengi Grand Nagus. The most notable human players often combine the logical analysis of a Vulcan with the out-and-out bravery of the finest Klingon warrior. Some of them can read their opponents as if they had Betazoid mind reading powers and possess the total recall of the best-trained Cardassian spies.

While you may not run into any players with pointed ears, bumpy foreheads or sharpened teeth, you can always learn to recognize these traits in your all-too-human opponents. Keep cool like Capt. James T. Kirk at the tables, and Live Long and Prosper!

Author’s Note : Special thanks to Memory Alpha for all the Star Trek culture-related information. See you at the movie!

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By Gerald Hanks

Gerald Hanks is from Houston Texas, and has been playing poker since 2002. He has played cash games and no-limit hold’em tournaments at live venues all over the United States.

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For a species that prides itself on profit and acquisition, the Ferengi are exceptionally poor poker players. Gerald Hanks

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Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Begins Filming, BTS Photos Revealed

By Ryan Louis Mantilla

School is officially in session. Production has begun on Star Trek: Starfleet Academy , marked with newly released behind-the-scenes photos of the cast of Paramount+ ‘s new Star Trek series. 

The newest installment in the Star Trek universe is a coming-of-age series following a team of young cadets as they train to become officers while facing formidable threats. It is executive produced by Alex Kurtzman and Noga Landau, both of whom also serve as showrunners. 

Per the synopsis, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy will introduce “a young group of cadets who come together to pursue a common dream of hope and optimism. Under the watchful and demanding eyes of their instructors, they discover what it takes to become Starfleet officers as they navigate blossoming friendships, explosive rivalries, first loves and a new enemy that threatens both the Academy and the Federation itself.”

You can check out the Star Trek: Starfleet Academy behind-the-scenes photos down below: 

School is in session, cadets! Today marks the official start of production as the #StarTrek Stage welcomes #StarfleetAcademy . pic.twitter.com/i6Bmtz5Tuh — Star Trek on Paramount+ (@StarTrekOnPPlus) August 26, 2024

Who stars in Star Trek: Starfleet Academy?

The titular Starfleet Academy will be graced by Sandro Rosta, Kerrice Brooks, Bella Shepard, George Hawkins, Karim Diané, and Zoë Steiner, with Academy Award winner Holly Hunter joining the cast as “the captain and chancellor.” 

Some familiar faces will also return to reprise their past Star Trek roles, including Tig Notaro (Star Trek: Discovery) as Jett Reno, Robert Picardo (Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek: Prodigy) as The Doctor, Oded Fehr (Star Trek: Discovery) as Admiral Charles Vance, and Mary Wiseman (Star Trek: Discovery) as Sylvia Tilly. Meanwhile, Paul Giamatti and Gina Yashere will also appear in the series as recurring guest stars. 

“As we continue to explore more of the Star Trek universe, we’re thrilled to bring Star Trek: Starfleet Academy to fans around the world as the next chapter in this expanding franchise,” president of CBS Studios David Stapf previously said in a statement. “Alex Kurtzman and Noga Landau’s vision is a smart and thrilling take that celebrates the core principles of what Star Trek has always stood for, but through the eyes of the next generation of Starfleet’s leaders.”

No release date has been set yet for the upcoming Paramount+ series.

Ryan is a TV/Film news writer for ComingSoon.

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• August 27, 2024 | See Spock Imprisoned By Sela In Preview Of ‘Star Trek: Defiant’ #18

See Spock Imprisoned By Sela In Preview Of ‘Star Trek: Defiant’ #18

| August 27, 2024 | By: TrekMovie.com Staff 3 comments so far

This week IDW continues off the new “The Stars of Home” arc with part 2, for the ongoing Star Trek: Defiant series. Defiant is written by Chris Cantwell with art by Ángel Unzueta. We have a preview and the covers for issue 16.

Star Trek: Defiant #18

With Spock rotting in a Romulan cell aboard Sela’s ship, the rest of the  Defiant  crew readies the farmers of Antara for an invasion by General Revo and his relentless Romulan army. This leaves Worf, B’Elanna, and Ro with two crewmates down, and despite how hopeful the planet’s population is, what are three failed Starfleet officers and lowly resistance fighters to a heavily armed and technologically advanced Romulan strike team?

Cover A by Angel Unzueta

Cover B by Elizabeth Beals

RI cover by Declan Shalvey

Credits/Setup: 

Five-page preview: 

Defiant  continues on Wednesday

Star Trek: Defiant #18 arrives on Wednesday, August 28. You can order issue 18 or upcoming issues at TFAW . Or pick up individual digital editions at Amazon/comiXology .

“The Stars of Home” continues into the fall. You can see the covers for the next issues below…

New Defiant collections

The Defiant volume 2 collection of the “A Piece of the Action” arc was released in June and is available now at Amazon in hardcover for $20.63 . In December IDW releases volume 3 with the “Hell Is Only A Word” arc, available for pre-order in hardcover from Amazon for $24.99 .

Keep up with all the Star Trek comics news, previews and reviews in  TrekMovie’s comics category .

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Review: ‘Star Trek: Lost to Eternity’ Pulls At Leftover TOS Movies Threads To Spin A Fun Adventure

I love the art on this.

It looks very well drawn compared to some recent comics

Yikes. That Sela cover is really bad compared to the others.

Screen Rant

Why picard’s facepalm became star trek: tng’s most popular meme.

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10 Best Star Trek: Picard Memes That Sum Up Season 3's Ending

Recasting star trek: the next generation for a movie reboot, 34 years later, star trek's most disappointing tng character exit still hurts.

• Captain Picard's iconic facepalm meme originates from Star Trek episodes, capturing his frustration in a humorous freeze frame moment.
• The meme has become widely recognized and popular, inspiring merchandise and online jokes.
• Both Picard and Riker's facepalms are sometimes used for comical effect outside of the series, adding a humorous twist to serious moments.

Star Trek: The Next Generation 's Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) would occasionally bring his hand to his face in an expression of exasperation - and thus the Picard facepalm meme was born. As Captain of the USS Enterprise-D, Picard had the unenviable task of looking out for his crew and facing off against dangerous alien foes and bizarre space anomalies. Captain Picard rarely let his emotions show, remaining calm and collected even in the tensest situations, but sometimes, Jean-Luc got irritated enough to facepalm.

It should come as no surprise that John de Lancie's Q was responsible for Captain Picard's exasperated facepalm in the most common version of the meme. Q was often a thorn in Picard's side in Star Trek: The Next Generation , popping up at the most inopportune times to drag Jean-Luc and the Enterprise into his problems or schemes. Picard resorted to facepalming several times throughout TNG in response to various other characters. Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes), too, occasionally expressed his frustration in the same way. No other single shot from TNG has become as widely recognized as Picard's facepalm and the memes it has spawned.

Star Trek: Picard season 3 gave The Next Generation a rousing ending and sparked a number of funny memes about the finale.

Captain Picard’s Star Trek: TNG Facepalm Meme Explained

Picard had plenty of good reasons to facepalm..

The most famous iteration of Captain Picard's facepalm meme comes from Star Trek: The Next Generation season 3, episode 13, "Deja Q." When Q appears on the bridge of the USS Enterprise-D claiming to have been stripped of his powers, Picard and his crew members are less than sympathetic. As Q goes on about his misfortune, Picard brings his hand to his face in an obvious expression of exasperation. When Q calls Jean-Luc "the closest thing [he has] to a friend," Picard raises his eyes, staring at Q incredulously. The freeze frame just before Picard raises his head has since been immortalized as the now-famous meme.

Captain Picard does a similar facepalm move a few more times throughout Star Trek: The Next Generation, even using two hands to cover his face in TNG season 3, episode 16, "The Offspring." As Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) goes off on a tangent about various parenting styles, Picard briefly lets his frustration show as he tries to impress upon Data the consequences of creating another android like himself. As Picard covers his face with both hands, Data looks on in confusion, unsure how to interpret this very human expression. Picard facepalmed several times throughout TNG, generally when he was irritated or facing a particularly difficult decision.

Commander Riker facepalms in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 3, episode 14, "A Matter of Perspective," as he watches the evidence being presented against him. This image has been photoshopped with the Picard image from "Deja Q" to show Picard and Riker side by side, giving a double facepalm.

Why Picard & Riker’s Star Trek: TNG Facepalms Are So Funny

Seeing two serious characters be used for ridiculous memes is always funny..

Captain Picard and Commander Riker's facepalms are only sometimes played for laughs within the context of Star Trek: The Next Generation . Riker's facepalm in "A Matter of Perspective," for example, comes during a tense trial where Riker has been accused of murder. Similarly, Picard raises his hand to his face again in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 4, episode 21, "The Drumhead" during a serious moment just before he delivers a powerful Picard speech . The memes depicting these facepalm freeze frames become funnier out of context when combined with modern-day problems or funny Star Trek tropes.

Captain Picard's facepalm meme has become so iconic that Star Trek fans can purchase all kinds of merchandise with variations of the meme, from stickers and magnets to t-shirts, and even a $100 Picard bust.

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the term "facepalm" was not coined until 1996, two years after TNG ended. Memes, too, began gaining recognition in the mid-1990s, although they would not become truly widespread until the rise of social media in the 2000s and 2010s. Patrick Stewart and the rest of Star Trek: The Next Generation's cast, of course, had no idea that their actions would be shared around as silly photos on the internet years later, making the widespread popularity of the Picard facepalm meme even more hilarious.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

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• Jean-Luc Picard