Tony and Laurie talk about the WGA strike, including the impact on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. They then take a look at the brand-new trailer for Strange New Worlds season 2, which has the first clip from the show’s crossover with Lower Decks and the first bit of dialogue from Carol Kane. They discuss Star Trek: Picard‘s success on the Neilson streaming top 10 chart, Laurie’s interview with Cirroc Lofton and Denise Crosby, and Tony’s review of the Star Trek: Resurgence game. The podcasters then bring in this week’s guest, Prodigy co-EP Aaron Waltke. Aaron talks about the writers’ strike, the epic day when Star Trek creatives from across the franchise united on the picketing pavement, and what’s heading our way in season 2 of Prodigy. Then Tony and Laurie help him channel his own fandom by taking our new Star Trek questionnaire, getting his thoughts on everything from underrated Star Trek episodes to what position he’d have if he served on a starship and who his Trek crush is. The podcast wraps up with a look at a new book about composer Jerry Goldsmith and some Trek celebs playing D&D in Todd Stashwick’s game room.

After a check-in on the ongoing WGA strike, Tony and Laurie take a look at what’s coming our way in Star Trek on TV, starting with the arrival of Strange New Worlds season 2 next month, continuing through new seasons of Lower Decks, Prodigy, and Discovery‘s final season and then the new Starfleet Academy series and Section 31 TV-movie. They talk about what they know about each show, discuss their hopes and predictions, and speculate on what each show’s role is within the greater Star Trek universe, as well as the changes in the streaming industry business and how that might affect the future plans of Paramount+.  They wrap up with a look at KHAN!!!: The Musical and a great discussion with Nicholas Meyer on the Hollywood & Levine podcast.

[Terry Matalas interview starts at 14:48] Tony and Laurie talk about how the WGA strike could affect Star Trek, especially if it keeps going, and do a quick round-up of new merchandise (including Prodigy toys, Patrick Stewart’s memoir, and Jonathan Frakes’ return to Riker in the Star Trek: Resurgence game). The rest of the podcast is spent with Terry Matalas, showrunner on Star Trek: Picard season 3. With the series now complete, Terry talks to us about roads taken and not taken, scenes he wished he’d been able to include, gratifying moments, backstories, and more.

[Picard episode review starts at 22:03] Tony and Laurie can’t wait to talk about the Star Trek: Picard season finale, but there’s a lot of big news to get to first! They cover the announced return of Michelle Yeah to Star Trek with a Section 31 TV-movie, the Strange New Worlds season 2 teaser trailer, SNW’s upcoming arrival on Pluto TV, and plans from Paramount+ to develop a Galaxy Quest series. They discuss the popularity of Picard, including its arrival on the list of top ten streaming shows as ranked by Nielsen, the Enterprise-D in Times Square, and the details on the rebuild of that famous bridge. Then it’s time to talk about “The Last Generation,” the final episode of Star Trek: Picard. Tony and Laurie talk about those emotional moments and exchanges, the action-packed rescue, surprising guest stars, and the multiple, very satisfying ending scenes, as well as the way the show is set up for a follow-up series even if nothing is in development yet. They podcasters are sad to see the season end, but happy it went out so beautifully.

[Picard episode review starts at 22:55] Tony and Laurie are joined by Jonathan Frakes for part of the podcast this week! He talks about the PanCAN PurpleStride walk taking place on April 29 and how important it is to keep funding research to fight pancreatic cancer, how he and his TNG co-stars didn’t “dare hope” that they’d get to do what they’ve been doing on Star Trek: Picard, and what it was like filming THAT scene in episode 309. He also raves about the Strange New Worlds/Lower Decks crossover episode he directed and describes a new project he’s hoping will come to fruition with Brent Spiner. News-wise, Laurie and Tony talk about the upcoming IMAX screenings for episodes 9  and 10 of Picard (and the accompanying kerfuffle), and review Picard episode 9, “Võx,” discussing the revelations about Jack, the Frontier Day plans to take over Starfleet, the surprise guest star, the surprise death, and that classic ship. They wrap up with a new Star Trek event from the folks at The 7th Rule and a particularly fun episode of the Trek, Marry, Kill podcast.