When I first conceived of this essay, I thought it would be much more critical of Picard. I thought that writers and producers had missed the spirit of Star Trek which had captured me from behind the couch years ago. But as I reflected more, I realized that Star Trek changed because we did. It would be difficult for any writer in 2022 to imagine a utopian future.

This is something I've been trying to square with myself for a while. On the one hand, Star Trek isn't Star Trek without the optimism. The point isn't that the Federation/humanity is perfect, it's that it represented both an improvement over our current world, and a constant striving for a better one. On the other hand, how the hell is anyone supposed to look at the real world as it is and then try and extrapolate to a much brighter future? And even if they did, would we accept it?

I do think we need the optimism and utopianism back. Right now it's a constant stream of either backward-looking nostalgia, or dystopian/apocalyptic bleakness, and I personally have had enough of both. I agree with your assessment that the problems with Picard. It's not the fault of the creatives or producers not understanding Star Trek, it's that we collectively forgot why Star Trek mattered in the first place. Would love to get that back.