The Measure of a Man
It's easy to find joy in Jean-Luc Picard in his best light—but far more interesting to examine him at his worst.
Over seven seasons of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Patrick Stewart turned in hundreds of iconic performances—performances revisited this week with bittersweetness in light of his passing. There are simply too many to consider: you don't even have to put them into context; just say the name of any given episode, and people will just know. The Measure of a Man. The Inner Light. Chain of Command. Family. The Drumhead.
I could go on and on listing titles and moments, and it would never be enough to estimate the breadth and depth of talents Stewart funnelled into one of Star Trek's finest characters. But I could just as quickly name an episode of Star Trek I don't believe would be on many people's lists of iconic Picard moments, but it's one that has been on my mind over the past day as I've mourned, like so many, the loss of a talent we all thought would last for time immemorial, somehow.
That episode isn't even a Next Generation episode. It's not a Picard one, either. It's "The Emissary," the pilot episode of Deep Space Nine. I've been thinking about it as people have eulogized Stewart through Picard at his very best, because I think it paints a far more satisfying celebration of Stewart's performance of the character to examine him in a moment near his worst.