Patrick Stewart credited as playing...
Captain Jean-Luc Picard
- [last lines]
- Romulan Captain: It would seem that we are not completely dissimilar after all - in our hopes, or in our fears.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Yes.
- Romulan Captain: Well, then. Perhaps... one day.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: One day.
- Professor Galen: Dream not of today, Mr. Picard.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: "Dream not of today"...
- [he ponders]
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: The night blessing of the Yash-El.
- Professor Galen: As I recall, you missed that question on your final exam.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Well, I've had a few years to look it up.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Counselor, this is not simply a case of me taking the Enterprise and its crew on some wild goose chase to purge myself of guilt and remorse. I will not let Galen's death be in vain. Now, if that means inconveniencing a few squabbling delegates for a few days then so be it. I will take the full responsibility.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: It's four billion years old - a computer program from a highly advanced civilization; and it's hidden in the very fabric of life itself. Whatever information this program contains could be the most profound discovery of our time - or the most dangerous. And the Professor knew that.
- Doctor Beverly Crusher: [referring to Professor Galen] If it hadn't been for you, his dream to solve that puzzle would never have been realized. You left him a wonderful legacy.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Yes, but it would have been a more fitting legacy if the message had not fallen on such deaf ears.
- Doctor Beverly Crusher: Hm... You never know.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: The Professor did not choose this gift at random - the many voices inside the one. You see, he knows that... the past is a very insistent voice inside me. This gift is meant to remind me of that.
- Doctor Beverly Crusher: And the exploration of space? Surely that must count for something?
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: I wouldn't trade it for anything; and I would still make the same choice that I made all those years ago. I just wish that I didn't have to say "no" to him a second time.
- Gul Ocett: The Yridian who sold us the information claimed that the program would yield the key to an unlimited power source.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: But until we assemble it, we will never know its purpose.
- Gul Ocett: He's right. As far as we know, it might just be a recipe for biscuits.
- Captain Nu'Daq: Biscuits? If that is what you believe, then go back to Cardassia. I will send you my mother's recipe.
- Professor Galen: What are you doing at this very moment? A study mission! You're like some Roman centurion out patrolling the provinces, maintaining a dull and bloated Empire.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: We both know that's not true.
- Professor Galen: I know this: I know that as a scholar, you're nothing but a dilettante.
- Gul Ocett: My name is Gul Ocett. Identify yourself and state your business in this star system.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: I am Captain Jean-Luc Picard of the Federation starship Enterprise, and I see no reason why I should answer to you. Cardassians have no claims in this sector.
- Gul Ocett: I suppose not. But my admittedly hasty estimate shows one Federation starship and two Cardassian war vessels. Perhaps I have miscounted.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: The Kurlan civilization believed that an individual was a community of individuals. Inside us are... many voices, each with its... its own desires, its own style, its-its... its own view of the world.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: I had a father. But he was like a father who understood me. And he had his own children, but they didn't follow in his footsteps, so... I was like the son who understood *him*.
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: [discovering an artifact in the observation lounge] Oh, my God.
- Professor Galen: Then you *can* identify that object, Mr. Picard?
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: Professor Galen?
- Commander William T. Riker: Computer, lights up!
- Professor Galen: I suppose I should say *Captain* Picard.
- Commander William T. Riker: The Professor contacted me from his shuttle about an hour ago. He suggested that we surprise you.
- Professor Galen: To clarify, I insisted and your First Officer was good enough to accommodate me. I trust I'm not being overly presumptuous, now that my star pupil is master of the stars?
- [first lines]
- Captain Jean-Luc Picard: [voiceover] Captain's log, stardate 46731.5. We are in the midst of the Volterra nebula, a stellar nursery. Our three week mission is a routine analysis of several dozen protostars in various stages of development.