Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) joining Starfleet in Star Trek: Picard season 3 is the feather in Vice Admiral Kathryn Janeway’s (Kate Mulgrew) cap that completes her legacy. Seven, likely going by her human name of Annika Hansen, is a Starfleet Commander and the First Officer of the new USS Titan-A in Star Trek: Picard season 3. Seven waited 20+ years to be part of Starfleet, which is something Janeway encouraged since they arrived on Earth at the end of Star Trek: Voyager.
Star Trek: Picard brought Seven of Nine back to prominence and filled in a lot of backstory after Voyager’s homecoming in 2378. When Star Trek: Picard season 1 begins 21 years later, Seven had been gone from Earth after she faced prejudice and rejection because she is a reclaimed Borg. Seven became a Captain with the Fenris Rangers beyond the Neutral Zone in Romulan space before she joined up with Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and his motley crew aboard La Sirena. In Star Trek: Picard season 2, Seven told her girlfriend, Raffi Musiker (Michelle Hurd), that Janeway went so far as to threaten to resign from Starfleet if they didn’t admit the ex-Borg, but Seven opted to make her own way in the galaxy instead.
Picard Season 3 Fulfills Janeway’s Wish For Seven Of Nine In Starfleet
Seven of Nine received a field commission from Admiral Picard at the end of Star Trek: Picard season 2, and she briefly took command of the USS Stargazer. Star Trek: Picard season 3 picks up over a year later, and Seven is now full-fledged Starfleet. This is exactly what Janeway wanted for her. Seven was a special project for Janeway after Voyager rescued her from the Borg and reinstated her humanity. Yet Seven didn’t reclaim being Annika Hansen, and her obvious Borg implants created fear and mistrust from Starfleet and the people of Earth. Although it took Picard to give Seven the final push, Starfleet Commander Seven of Nine fulfills Admiral Janeway’s plan for her.
How Seven of Nine actually adjusts as a Starfleet Officer is the question Star Trek: Picard season 3 will answer. After all, Seven can’t just unlearn two decades of being an independent freedom fighter who calls her own shots with the Fenris Rangers. Starfleet offers a noble purpose to aspire to, but it’s also a military organization with a chain of command that puts a premium on following orders. Seven achieving the rank of Commander so quickly speaks to her lifelong experience in space, but whether the former Borg can actually adjust to life in Starfleet is anyone’s guess. Janeway’s wish of getting Seven of Nine into Starfleet may prove to be easier than Seven actually staying in Starfleet.
Everything Janeway Accomplished In Starfleet After Voyager
Since her resurgence as part of Star Trek: Prodigy, Admiral Janeway has forged an impressive legacy with great accomplishments. Janeway was quickly promoted to Vice Admiral as a reward for her returning the USS Voyager and her crew home after 7 years in the Delta Quadrant, and she even gave Captain Picard his marching orders to go to in Star Trek: Nemesis. Star Trek: Prodigy reveals that Admiral Janeway oversaw Captain Chakotay’s (Robert Beltran) ill-fated mission to lead the USS Protostar back to the Delta Quadrant, and Janeway led the USS Dauntless’ rescue mission to find the missing Chakotay.
Instead, Janeway met the six heroic alien teens who became the new crew of the USS Protostar, and she helped them save the galaxy from the Vau’Nakat in Star Trek: Prodigy. Janeway then defended the kids’ effort to join Starfleet Academy, and she took them under her wing as warrant officers. Janeway also successfully argued for Starfleet to give the genetically-engineered Dal R’El (Brett Gray) a special exception to be part of Starfleet. Star Trek: Prodigy season 2 will see Janeway lead a mission to an alternate 25th-century timeline to save Chakotay. Meanwhile, Seven of Nine finally joining Starfleet in Star Trek: Picard season 3 is perhaps the most notable achievement of Janeway’s legacy.
Star Trek: Picard Season 3 premieres February 16, 2023, on Paramount+
