When Star Trek: Picard premiered in 2020, the world met Jean-Luc Picard, a man considerably changed by the decades that had passed since his days on the U.S.S. Enterprise.

And while Star Trek: Picard Season 1 took us on a new adventure with new crewmates and considered what it meant to be human, Star Trek: Picard Season 2 traveled even further -- into the past and Picard's own memories.

As the series draws to its close with a third and final season, we come full circle and return to the people we first met with Picard. TV Fanatic has screened the first six of the season's ten episodes and cannot wait to see how this adventure concludes!

You always remember your first, and many of today's Trekkers boldly went on their first Starfleet mission with the Enterprise-D under the command of Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

And while the captain could be pedantic and stern, the crew that followed him became a family we happily embraced for their warmth, support, and humor.

The anticipation we feel for the premiere of Season 3 is a magnificent crest of the breaking wave of love and welcome the fanbase has for the familiar faces about to return.

Although Jonathan Frakes's William Riker played a role in Season 1, his life with Marina Sirtis's Deanna and their daughter, Kestra, kept him from joining Picard on his mission.

Season 3 sees Riker and Picard set out together to answer a distress call from Dr. Crusher.

Along the way, they gather their old comrades like Worf and La Forge and, inexplicably, Data, who has died twice already for those of you keeping score.

And that's not to say they're ignoring those Picard has added to his fan club since his days as a captain. Far from it.

Michelle Hurd's Rafaella Musiker, Raffi, is back and looking as tortured and determined as ever. She and Worf are at different ends of their anger management skills training, but seeing them pair up is exciting.

Jeri Ryan's Seven now wears a Starfleet uniform but still looks ready to take on all obstacles Fenris Ranger-style given any excuse. And although she holds a Commander's rank, she still contends with the fear and hatred the Borg instills.

What's happened to Seven and Raffi's relationship may be more of a comma than a period, but it's a long-distance comma from what we've seen.

Riker and Deanna aren't the only ones to start a family. Star Trek: Picard Season 3 presents not one but two new La Forges in Starfleet uniforms.

Sidney's the rebel, taking a non-engineering path, while Alandra (played by Levar Burton's real-life daughter Mica) has a place at her father's side.

Geordi, now a Commodore, is reluctant to go adventuring, but his daughters are there to remind him that Starfleet once meant more to him than stability and security. It meant fighting so the universe could maintain that safety.

The two new (somewhat recalcitrant) wild cards on Team Picard are familiar faces to TV fans despite being new to the Star Trek universe.

Todd Stashwick, a recurring performer on showrunner Terry Matalas's 12 Monkeys, appears as the new captain of the U.S.S. Titan, Riker's old ship.

As seen in the official trailer, Stashwick's character, Captain Liam Shaw, is not impressed with the shenanigans Picard and Riker got up to in the good ol' days.

One would hope Starfleet will Starfleet and Shaw will prove a team player, but combative captains have never stopped Picard and Riker in the past. Shaw may captain the Titan like an immovable object, but our heroes are an unstoppable force.

That being said, the U.S.S. Titan is only one of several incredibly rendered ships to cruise through the season.

Every episode we've seen is worthy of cinematic presentation. Every battle -- and there are several --is breathtaking in action and visual artistry.

Of all the changes the decades have brought to our crew, Crusher's journey is the most dynamic and surprising. Some might deem it delightful.

Gone is the calm and soothing healer in sickbay.

The 25th-century Dr. Beverly Crusher is a frontierswoman, a singular medical corps intent on providing aid to planets on the fringe of the Federation's attention or priority list.

The other newbie rides with her. Played by Downton Abbey's Ed Speleers, he's equal parts, Han Solo and Malcolm Reynolds, with some actual medical skill mixed in.

New voices always spark new perspectives. Both Stashwick and Speleers play characters unafraid to question tradition and precedent, which sets the good Admiral back on his heels a bit.

We also have our villains. This is where things get very, very interesting.

By now, Amanda Plummer's role as an aggressor named Vadic has been picked apart and examined from every angle.

Do they represent a wronged party from Trek canon?

Are they as destructive and volatile and crazed as they appear?

Yes, but you won't believe it. And yes, possibly even more so.

They aren't the only ghosts of the past to rise up and take shape as Picard, his crew, and the Federation itself come to terms with issues left unresolved for far too long.

As seen in the trailers, Daniel Davis reprises his role as Moriarty, the holodeck program designed to outsmart Data.

Raffi's mission mires her in a world of dealers and addicts which resurrects her personal demons.

There are puzzles to be solved, leads to be followed, and dangers to be faced.

Star Trek: Picard Season 3 has a narrative arc that draws together a multitude of threads for canon enthusiasts, digs deep for new insights into our beloved characters, and soars with ambition fueled by the understanding that we live in hope. Always.

If this leads to even more series and more adventures, I'm here for it.

If this is goodbye, I am grateful.

What are you most excited for during the final season, Star Trek: Picard fans?

Are you ready for this journey to end?

Hit the comments.

Star Trek: Picard Season 3 premieres on Paramount+ on February 16.

Diana Keng was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is a lifelong fan of smart sci-fi and fantasy media, an upstanding citizen of the United Federation of Planets, and a supporter of AFC Richmond 'til she dies. Her guilty pleasures include female-led procedurals, old-school sitcoms, and Bluey. She teaches, knits, and dreams big. Follow her on X.