Star Trek: Picard Reveals Classic Character Was Original Titan Captain

By Jamie Lovett

The USS Titan's history in the Star Trek universe goes back further than fans knew. Star Trek is ramping up to Thursday's Star Trek: Picard Season 3 premiere. It began with a featurette looking back at the legacy of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Then, Patrick Stewart and Gates McFadden sat down with Wil Wheaton for a special sneak peek at the season. Now the Star Trek Logs Instagram account has been updated with "data files" concerning the season's core cast and ships. That includes the USS Titan in all three -- yes, three -- of its forms, one of which is newly revealed.

Fans already knew that the new USS Titan-A is the successor to the Luna-class USS Titan ship captained by William Riker after Star Trek: Nemesis. However, the new log file reveals that the original USS Titan was the NCC-1777 Shangri-La-class vessel launched in 2290 under the command of Capt. Saavik, which should be a name familiar to longtime Star Trek fans.

Who is Captain Saavik?

Saavik (played by Kirstie Alley in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and by Robin Curtis in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home) was a Vulcan Starfleet officer who became entangled with the crew of the USS Enterprise during events surrounding the Genesis Device. She was aboard the Enterprise when it encountered Khan Noonien Singh and later discovered Spock alive on the Genesis Planet. She was last seen remaining on Vulcan after the Enterprise crew departed with Spock in the hijacked HMS Bounty. 

The new log suggests she returned to Starfleet duty and, by 2290, had obtained the rank of captain. At the recommendation of Capt. Sulu of the USS Excelsior, the Titan became Starfleet's flagship after Enterprise-A's decommissioning and before Enterprise-B's launch. The log says the original Titan became known for its encounters with the Klingon Empire, including "the Exo-Port Takeover and Horizon Colony rescue," and proved vital in maintaining "stability" on "the frontier" before the signing of the Khitomer Accords.

When does Star Trek: Picard Season 3 premiere?

Star Trek: Picard Season 3 premieres on Paramount+ on February 16th. Star Trek: Picard streams exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. and on Amazon Prime Video in more than 200 countries and territories. In Canada, it airs on Bell Media's CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave.

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