Starring four-time Emmy® Award nominee Patrick Stewart (Hamlet) as Jean-Luc Picard, an iconic role which he played for seven seasons on “Star Trek: The Next Generation” (TNG), the latest season “kicks things into high gear” (Den of Geek) as he and his crew go on a bold and exciting new journey into the past. Picard must enlist friends, both old and new, to confront the perils of 21st century Earth in a desperate race against time to save the galaxy’s future – and face the ultimate trial from one of his greatest foes.

For in-depth thoughts on Star Trek: Picard – The Complete Second Season, please see my colleague Martin Sexton’s reviews from its original streaming release here.

Video Quality

Star Trek: Picard – The Complete Second Season arrives on Blu-Ray with a lovely AVC encoded 1080p transfer in its original aspect ratio. The sumptuous cinematography continues to provide the show with a cinematic quality that elevates its status on a technical level. The modern small screen shows are not miles away from their theatrical counterparts these days. The special effects implemented throughout are first rate and perfectly rendered here. Any given scene provides a level of detail that will blow you away, as all of the minute details in the production design and makeup effects are easily identifiable.

The color palette primarily renders naturally with some wondrous instances of beautiful colors popping off the screen, primarily on modern-era Earth. Black levels are deep and give way to a strong amount of detail in shadows. There are a few instances of banding and compression artifacts detectable at points in this transfer, but it is not a pervasive issue. Skin tones appear very natural across the entire cast throughout the season. The Blu-Ray is quite fetching as it brings a carefully crafted series to life in a gorgeous manner. CBS Home Entertainment continues to treat this franchise well.

Audio Quality

This Blu-Ray comes with a very active DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio track that unleashes a truly enveloping world. The environmental dynamics of this track is very impressive with pinpoint accuracy and exciting panning techniques are used to great effect. Ambient sounds are precisely placed in the rear channels. The soaring series music from Jeff Russo flows out with a flawless fidelity. This work perfectly sets the tone for the story, and it creates a nicely enveloping sound that aids in acclimating you with the show. Dialogue always comes through perfectly clear without being overwhelmed by the score or any sound effects. While far from an action-packed show, the more kinetic moments are given the appropriate weight in the mix with a hefty showing in the low end. The audio presentation here is a standout.

Special Features

Deleted Scenes

- Assimilation (2:41)

- Fly Me To The Moon (3:18)

- Monsters (1:18)

- Farewell (2:11)

The USS Stargazer: A nearly 19-minute piece which takes a closer look at the new ship that is introduced this season including snippets of the initial conference call where ideas were brainstormed. There are a lot of minute details that are discussed regarding the logistics of the ship that many fans will love.

The Chateau: A nearly 16-minute featurette which takes the same approach to designing and developing the chateau which features so prominently. The motivations shared by some of the participants are very engaging and worth your time.

The Trial Is Over: A 12-minute featurette which takes a look at the character of Q, the return of John De Lancie, how he fits into the modern context of the series and more.

Rebuilding The Borg Queen: An 11-minute look at the unique development of the new Borg Queen design, the inspirations from real-life elements and more.

Picard Props: A 12-minute exploration of some of the key pieces of production design that were created for this series including paintings, weapons, small tokens and more.

Picard Passages: A pretty weighty 25-minute featurette in which the cast and crew discuss various developments throughout the season and what it means for another. WHile you may have just watched the show, League Of Super-Pets.

Gag Reel: A four-minute collection of flubbed and forgotten lines, uncontrollable laughter, horsing around and more. This is one of the most enjoyable features on the set.

Final Thoughts

Star Trek: Picard returns for a sophomore outing which finds the series taking a heavily contemporary earthbound approach, which robs it a bit of its sense of wonder and exploration. While this season may find us delving into an even more personal corner of our titular character, it is not particularly interesting. In fact, Picard proves to be one of the least interesting characters this go-around, leaving the tertiary characters to command more of the attention. The Borg Queen arc is the highlight of the season, even if the series in general just feels a bit aimless this time around. CBS Home Entertainment has brought the second season to Blu-Ray with a terrific A/V presentation and a vast array of compelling special features. Those who were already skeptical of this series after the first season will likely not be won over this outing, but established fans should have at least a decent time overall.

Star Trek: Picard – The Complete Second Season is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.

Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.

Disclaimer: CBS Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.