Movies - TV
Star Trek: Picard Season 3 Features A Villain Who Has Done The Truly Unthinkable
By WITNEY SEIBOLD
Spoiler Warning!
This story contains spoilers for Season 3 of "Star Trek: Picard."
Captain Shaw (Todd Stashwick), commanding officer of the U.S.S. Titan-A, has become a notable new addition in Season 3 of “Star Trek: Picard.” The brusque, rude, and rules-oriented Shaw has essentially served as a kind of antagonist since his first appearance on the show, where he admitted to the most grievous of sins.
Shaw is the antithesis of the Titan’s former captain, the reckless, freewheeling Captain William Riker. During his debut episode, the viewers learn that Shaw had Riker’s sizable jazz collection deleted from the ship’s computers. Given the power of computers on “Star Trek,” Riker’s collection could very well have contained the entire history of the genre.
As jazz tends to be highly improvised, it’s no wonder the structure-oriented, hard-nosed Shaw would have an issue with erratic music on board his ship. Although Shaw has many unfavorable traits as a leader, his relatable adherence to protocol reveals a great deal of admirable integrity — it shows that there are more ways to command a starship than what fans are used to seeing.