Picard: Star Trek’s Federation Made A Massive Mistake With The Borg Cube

Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Picard Season 2, Episode 1 – “The Star Gazer”

The ease with which the Borg Queen (Annie Wersching) took over the USS Stargazer in Star Trek: Picard season 2’s premiere shows the United Federation of Planets made a massive mistake with its acquired Borg technology from the Artifact. Star Trek: Picard season 2 picks up a year and a half after the ending of season 1 when Admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) stopped ancient synthetics from another galaxy from attacking the Federation. Meanwhile, the Borg Cube Artifact was left derelict on the planet Coppelius, the homeworld of Soji (Isa Briones), and her family of androids.

The Artifact, a Borg Cube that was disabled in the 2380s after assimilating a Romulan vessel, was central to Star Trek: Picard season 1. By 2399, the Artifact, as it had been renamed, was under Romulan control and the site of the Borg Reclamation Project, which was headed up by its director, Hugh (Jonathan Del Arco). Unaware that she was synthetic at the time, Soji worked at the Borg Reclamation Project, where she was targeted by Narek (Harry Treadaway), a Tal Shiar agent seeking the location of Soji’s homeworld. Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) eventually took control of the Artifact and transported it via transwarp conduit to Coppelius to help Picard. The planet’s orchid defense system caused the Artifact to crash on Coppelius. When Star Trek: Picard season 1 ended, the Artifact – and the reclaimed Borg XBs who survived – remained on Coppelius.

In Star Trek: Picard season 2’s premiere, Seven of Nine told Admiral Picard that the brand new USS Stargazer was the first Starfleet ship that contained Borg technology from the Artifact. But integrating Borg circuitry into the Stargazer turned out to be a cataclysmic blunder because of how the Borg Queen was able to take over the starship with such ease. After a new Borg ship entered Federation space through a spatial anomaly, the Borg Queen was able to transport right through the Stargazer’s shields onto the bridge. Within moments, the Borg Queen was able to hack into the Stargazer’s systems and take control of the entire vessel. Picard’s only recourse was to activate the self-destruct, which wiped out not just the Stargazer but the Borg ship and the entire armada of Starfleet ships that assembled to intercept the Borg.

Evidently, in the year-and-a-half since Star Trek: Picard season 1 ended, the Federation took possession of the Artifact on Coppelius. Although the Federation had a treaty with the Romulans when the Artifact was the site of the Borg Reclamation Project, the defeat of the Zhat Vash led by Commodore Oh (Tamlyn Tomita) gave Starfleet the opportunity to get its hands on Borg technology. What became of the XBs aboard the Artifact is yet unknown, but the Federation obviously gave the go-ahead for Starfleet to integrate Borg technology, starting with the new USS Stargazer.

It may have seemed like a good idea for the Federation to utilize the technology of its greatest enemy to give Starfleet an advantage but that obviously proved to not be the case. Once again, the Federation underestimated the Borg. Indeed, the Borg Queen’s gambit was tragically successful, resulting in mass destruction and the death of Admiral Picard. It was only because of the intervention of Q (John de Lancie), who altered the timeline, that Picard has survived the Federation’s folly. Gaining control of the Borg Cube Artifact led to the Borg Queen defeating Picard and wiping out an entire Starfleet armada in Star Trek: Picard season 1’s premiere episode.

Star Trek: Picard Season 2 streams Thursdays on Paramount+.

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