Star Trek Picard: 5 Ups & 5 Downs From Episode 2 'Maps And Legends'

2. Picard's Grim Diagnosis

Mid-way through the episode, Picard learns that he's suffering from an ambiguous medical condition, the implication being that it's a terminal illness which will eventually kill him.

It's fair to assume that Picard's affliction is most likely Irumodic Syndrome, the degenerative neurological disorder which was of course mentioned in The Next Generation's series finale "All Good Things..."

It's unfortunately one of the most cliched and predictable things the show could've done, to take the beloved "old dinosaur" character and place a dubious ceiling on their lifespan in the pursuit of easy pathos.

While we already know that Picard has been renewed for a second season, it does seem to foreshadow the high possibility that the series as a whole will end with Picard's demise, either succumbing to his disease or more likely sacrificing himself for the greater good.

And though it's definitely possible Picard somehow finds a way to combat the condition, it nevertheless casts a pretty miserable pall over the show in exceedingly by-the-numbers fashion.