"I don't see why we have to do this every year," Captain Jean-Luc Picard complains in the "Star Trek: The Next Generation" season 7 episode "The Pegasus." It's Captain Picard Day on board the Enterprise and he's not thrilled with having to look at models and drawings of himself made by the Starfleet kids. June 16 is Captain Picard Day here on Earth and it's a time to celebrate our "Next Gen" hero in Star Trek style.
If you're wondering why June 16 gets the honor, it's because a lot of fans agree that the stardate of 47457.1 mentioned in "The Pegasus" matches that particular date on our Earth calendar.
Picard purposefully broke out of the Kirk mode. He wasn't beaming headlong into dangerous situations on strange planets and falling for alien women all the time. He was level-headed and downright elegant and fans love him for it.
#CaptainPicardDay is trending on Twitter, giving us quite a few entertaining musings and images from fans.
Here are some suggestions for ways to mark Captain Picard Day:
Watch "The Pegasus," the episode that sparked the annual celebration. It has Romulans, a nutty Starfleet Admiral, a lost starship and all sorts of Picard-related arts-and-crafts projects.
Drink a cup of "tea, Earl Grey, hot," the Captain's standard replicator order.
Perform the Picard Maneuver, the act of tugging your uniform top into place. Grasp your shirt near your waist and make a quick pull in a downward direction.
Reply "Make it so" to any question, regardless of whether it makes sense or not. Alternately, simply utter "Engage."
Read a book. This is one of Picard's favorite hobbies. "All I require is to sit in the sun and read my book. Alone," he says in the "Captain's Holiday" episode. So grab some Shakespeare ("Hamlet" would be a good choice") and simultaneously salute both Picard and Patrick Stewart, the actor who brought him to life.
