Star Trek: Picard just wrapped up its first season, and this week we’ve got a host of post-finale coverage set to beam down that covers all angles of the show’s conclusion — starting today with comments from two Picard stars on their characters’ journeys this season.

Speaking with The Hollywood Reporter, series lead Patrick Stewart shared that he didn’t know where Jean-Luc Picard’s story — and life — was headed until well into the season’s production.

“I only learned of [Picard’s death] way into [shooting] the first season, because that final episode wasn’t written yet, and I didn’t know it was part of the storyline. There was a moment where I thought: ‘Oh, lord, am I being killed off? What did I do wrong?’

I remember the writers worked on that up to the evening before we shot it, and I suggested one or two little tweaks to the script. And [the writers] got it so right. I was looking forward to shooting it so very much, because I adore working with Brent [Spiner].

But the content of this scene was so serious, and so important to the characters — and the affection and mutual respect — was so clear and so strong. Picard knew that this would probably be the last time that he was ever with [Data] and we — we had to address that.”

Closing out the 30-plus-year on-screen relationship between Picard and Data once and for all weighed emotionally on Stewart, and he told THR that he made sure to take home a permanent souvenir to remember the scene.

“The guilt Picard felt over Data’s loss at the beginning of the season, that the two characters never had a proper goodbye, or resolution, in [Nemesis] … We took almost the entire day, not quite, as I recall, [to shoot the scene], but it was a very, very intense experience.

The following day, when I came to work again after we shot that scene, they were stripping that set down, and there was the chair that I had sat in. I went to ask if there was any possibility if I could buy that chair. Because it was in that chair where I was, in effect, saying goodbye to Data.

It was also an incredibly comfortable chair [laughs] — so, yes, we struck a deal that everyone was happy with and now it’s in my 200-year-old house in Oxfordshire.”

Stewart wouldn’t offer any specifics as to where he sees Season 2’s adventure taking him, noting that it’s still quite early in development.

“I am having a big meeting — an all-day meeting — with all of the writing team and I might have some feeling about the way things are going to go.”

Meanwhile, co-star Michelle Hurd spoke with Entertainment Tonight to share her views on the evolution of her character Raffi Musiker’s relationship with Picard — or “J.L.” — from their contentious reunion early in the season to the season’s closing moments aboard La Sirena.

“When we first see Raffi and Picard together, she is still harboring deep feelings of betrayal. When she knows something’s wrong, she just goes after it, right? And she knew that something was wrong with what was happening in the Federation. She felt that she and Picard were going to team up together to rescue millions of Romulans, millions of lives. And when the Federation let her down, Picard let her down.

It’s something she carried and felt responsible for. She felt that it was her fault those individuals died. She drank, smoked and burrowed into her trailer in the desert because of that, left her child. When she sees Picard, it’s heartbreak, and betrayal, and anger, and rage, and frustration. But at the end of it, if there’s a possibility that she can fix or right the wrong that was done, she’s going to go for it.

The hope was, “I think he might understand that there really was something wrong and he might actually be doing this. I’m going to do it because it was to fix what was broken, what was wrong.” During the whole journey, she sees him as more human and not perfect, and having the same human traits that we all do. We all make mistakes, he’s struggling and he’s trying to do the best he can.

And when he tells them of his diagnosis, it surprises her how much it hurts her because he was more to her than just a captain. He was a mentor. He was the person that helped her get out of her addiction. He was a lifesaver. He helped her pull herself back out even though it’s been a little bumpy, and she’ll be an addict for the rest of her life. She’s been working hard to get a handle on that, and to hear that he’s got a terminal diagnosis just breaks her heart again. 

To get to the place at the end where there’s now hope, there’s now a possibility for her to stay at a sober place as best she can. It will always be up and down. But to see that he’s renewed in a way that she hadn’t seen him before.”

She also took a moment to shed light on the brief “I love you” moment shared between Raffi and Picard in “Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 1,” and how it was important for the two characters to share their feelings with one another.

“When she says ‘I love you,’ I remember we had to stop and we had to work on some other verbiage because I said, ‘I don’t want people to read into it like they’re lovers.’

But it’s important for these two adult individuals to say these words to each other for so many reasons because it’s that moment when somebody in your life has helped you in ways that you didn’t even know you could be helped, and it’s that moment in time where you’ve been able to be mature enough and forgive yourself enough, to reach your hand out and say, ‘Thank you. Thank you for helping me.’

And that’s what we really wanted to convey, that there’s been a growth on both sides…  I think that’s why Raffi really needed to say what she needed to say.”

Finally, Hurd spoke to the surprising moment shared between her character and Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) in the closing moments of “Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2,” where it seemed the two women began a bit of a love connection over shots and kal-toh aboard La Sirena.

“I have no idea what the second season is going to bring about…. I don’t know what will go forward, but I will tell you that what I would love because ‘Star Trek’ is so good about this kind of stuff. I would love for us to be able to effortlessly introduce, not even introduce, but effortlessly reveal a non-labeling sexuality for everyone. Wouldn’t it be lovely?

We already know that Raffi has a son, so we know that she’s already indulged in the man, but wouldn’t it be great if we could somehow really bring that in to these stories, embrace it and not label it, not make it taboo, but empower it? Make it almost fluid. If you think about it, Raffi and Seven, that would be pretty cool. They would totally get along. Raffi would be obsessed with what Seven of Nine does.

First of all, male, female, whatever, who wouldn’t be ecstatic if Seven of Nine looked their way? So yeah, I’m excited about that.”

Stick around as we’ve got plenty more Star Trek: Picard Season 1 wrap-coverage yet to come as the week continues!