RTR Blog: Matt's Crazy Red Angel Theory
With the next Star Trek: Discovery episode entitled “The Red Angel” set to air Thursday, the internet is abuzz with numerous fan theories attempting to determine the identity of the mysterious figure that Captain Pike and crew have been investigating throughout the course of the season. I have one such theory, although it is far fetched and is so incredibly crazy that it just might be correct (but probably isn't).
Let me start with what we know about the Red Angel:
- it is human
- it is wearing a technologically advanced suit
- it has saved several large groups of people from certain death
- it seems to have knowledge of the future
- it seems to have a strong connection to Spock and Burnham
Ready for this ... okay here is the theory in its completely crazy and insane glory:
The Red Angel is Jean-Luc Picard.
Let's let that set in for a moment.
Okay are you ready? Here's the explanation:
I believe the Red Angel is the Jean-Luc Picard we will become re-acquainted with this fall when the new Picard series airs and I believe that he has traveled back in time to stop all sentient life in the galaxy from being wiped out. If you break down each of the items above, it does kind of make sense. He is human. He is from the future and would have access to technology that would appear highly advanced from the perspective of the characters on Discovery. Picard is altruistic and even if he has been changed in the 20 years since Star Trek Nemesis, I believe it would still be in his nature to save lives given the opportunity. If he is from the future, he would have knowledge of events that have not yet passed from the perspective of the Discovery characters.
Which brings us to the last item, the strong connection to Spock and Burnham. We know Picard has a connection to Spock after their interaction in the Next Generation episode “Unification”. Remember also that Picard and Sarek, Spock's father, shared a Vulcan mindmeld in the Next Generation episode “Sarek”. This resulted a strong connection between Picard and Sarek. With this in mind, it would not be too much of a stretch to suggest that Spock would be a person that Picard would choose to influence in the past in order to help him change the course of history and avert the destruction of all sentient life. While it true that Picard would have any number of individuals he could choose to carry out his mission, Spock would be a logical choice in this timeframe because of the connection Picard shares with Spock's father.
And what about Burnham? To our knowledge, Picard doesn't even know she exists. But wait, Picard knows everything Sarek knows because of their mindmeld, so even though Burnham is never mentioned once in the previous history of Star Trek lore, Picard would know that she is the adoptive daughter of Sarek and Spock's sister. If Picard needed others in this timeframe to help him alter history to stop the destruction of sentient life in the galaxy, it would stand to reason that he would chose people that he has a strong connection to, in this case via his mindmeld with Sarek. Even though Burnham and Spock are at odds, and evidently remain at odds for the future as far as we can tell, Picard would not have any sort of connection with anyone else in this timeframe, so it isn't a terrible stretch to believe he would choose Spock and Burnham to do his bidding.
There are also practical reasons for the Red Angel to be Picard. It sets up even more mystery and intrigue for his upcoming series if we know that at some point he turns into a time traveler bent on saving the galaxy. It could also provide an unlikely tie-in for a series set some 250 years after Star Trek: Discovery. I certainly wouldn't put it past the writers and showrunners to have an entire season of Discovery revolved around a plotline that will set up the new series. Of course, assuming this theory is true, it is nothing short of a miracle that in today's world they have been able to keep a surprise appearance on Discovery by Patrick Stewart secret. This alone is probably enough to prove this theory wrong.
I know it's crazy, but it does fit with what we currently know about the Red Angel. I'm sure I will be completely wrong about it, but I like to use my imagination once in a while. Perhaps we will find out in the next episode of Discovery!
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