YMMV / Star Trek: Picard S3E09 "Vox"

• Angst? What Angst?: The TNG cast are surprisingly chipper boarding the Enterprise-D, especially given that three of them just lost their children to Borg assimilation (voluntary or involuntary). Could be justified, as the nostalgia is giving them a coping mechanism from dwelling on the horror of what just happened at Earth. Not to mention that they would have absolutely no time to process any of it. (And as Geordi just explained, if they wanted a tool for fixing the problem, their ship is the perfect choice.)
• Awesome Music: Season Three Co-Composer Freddie Wiedmann's score for the entire episode, but in particular "Make It So" for Team Picard's reunion with the Enterprise-D and the slow, emotional, but eventual triumphant surge of the TNG theme as the 1701-D and her command crew fly to save the Federation together one more time.
• Fan Nickname: The Enterprise-D consisting of the original saucer section and the stardrive from USS Syracuse has resulted in fans giving her the nickname Syraprise.
• Harsher in Hindsight:
  • Star Trek: First Contact: Picard hearing the Collective's voice, despite all Borg technology having been removed from his body. It takes on a much more sinister context with the revelations of this episode.
  • "The Best of Both Worlds": Beverly's remark about Picard's DNA being rewritten by his implants similarly takes on a much more sinister context knowing now what's being set in motion — and what will happen when it reaches fruition thirty-five years later.
    • Furthermore, Data specifically references that they're using the Enterprise's transporter computers to link with Locutus.
  • "Dark Frontier": The Borg Queen's discussions with Seven about switching tactics to assimilate the Federation — such as deploying a nano-virus meant in Earth's atmosphere and playing the Long Game as it slowly proliferate and infected most of humanity before they could realize what was happening. This obviously plays much darker now given, a few operational details and changes aside, this is exactly the course the Queen ended up pursuing — and Seven played a small role in it.
  • "The Star Gazer": Seven and Jurati's discussion about how the Borg might have adapted after "Endgame". Seven agrees with Jurati that the Borg would change tactics to do whatever was necessary to achieve victory and in the absence of strength, they'd use deception. This exchange plays worse on the re-watch, knowing Seven and Jurati are unknowingly foreshadowing Season Three and that this is exactly what will happen — and despite correctly calling, Seven still missed all the clues and signs until it was too late.
  • "No Win Scenario": Shaw's angry remarks about how, despite the events of Season Two and Jurati's independent Borg faction, the real Collective was still out there somewhere. This becomes horrific dramatic irony on the re-watch, because we know now that Shaw's more right than he knows: He's literally surrounded by young crewmen who've all been turned into sleeper Drones.
  • "Imposters": Jack's vision of Starfleet officers using the Transporter and becoming engulfed with tendrils now takes on an even more sinister context on the re-watch. We now know that Jack is actually watching the Transporter "install" the Borg genetic malware from the corrupted Transporter Architecture.
• Hilarious in Hindsight:
  • Star Trek: Lower Decks "Kayshon, His Eyes Open": Riker is reminded of the Enterprise-D and says "Damn, do I miss that ship." Now he gets to see it again!
  • Black Comedy example. Transporter phobia has been part of Trek since almost the beginning. From Leonard McCoy onward, we've had characters across the generations like Katherine Pulaski, Reg Barclay, Jonathan Archer and Hoshi Sato, Jankom Pog, and others who've all been twitchy about using the Transporter — about how they're unreliable and you can't trust 'em and you were basically playing Russian Roulette with your own life, etc. It's usually been played for drama and laughs (more so the latter), but after the events of "Vox"? Suddenly, the Transporter paranoiacs ain't looking so paranoid anymore, are they?
• I Knew It!:
  • After the mention of Hangar 12 and Geordi's secret project back in "The Bounty", fans correctly began guessing he'd been restoring the Enterprise-D.
  • The Borg being the true Big Bad of the season and—and thus being both the Final Boss of the series and the entire TNG-era of the franchise—was expected due to the sheer amount of hints throughout the season leaning towards their return given the relevance as Picard's Archenemy.
• Most Wonderful Sound: The return of the Enterprise-D is just as much auditory nostalgia as it is emotional. With the return of the 1701-D comes the familiar pre-Picard sounds of the 24th Century: The old LCARS activation sounds and the Bridge's background ambience, the whoosh of the turbolifts, the rumble of the impulse engines, and finally the iconic, charging roar of the TNG-era Warp Drive. Special mention of course must go to the Ship’s Computer, with Majel Barrett’s iconic voice heard once again for the first time since Star Trek ‘09.
• Signature Scene: As well as being a contender across the full season, the return of the Enterprise-D is a moment nearly 30 years in the making that few fans realistically expected to see on-screen.
• Tear Dryer: The return of the Enterprise-D, not just for the nostalgia factor but because such a powerful (and non-networked) ship gives Picard and his officers a fighting chance against the Borg.
• Unexpected Character: The return of Shelby for the first time since "The Best of Both Worlds" in 1990 (or at least in live-action giving her non-speaking cameo in Lower Decks). Similarly to Michelle Forbes, Elizabeth Dennehy's return was kept completely under wraps and didn't leak. To the degree that the Enterprise-D is a "character", she counts as well.
• Unpopular Popular Character: The Enterprise-E from the TNG films from Star Trek: First Contact onward is often listed among many Trek fans' favorite ships in the franchise. Here, however, the TNG crew, excluding Worf, don't seem to think much of it, though that's probably due to their happiness in seeing the rebuilt Enterprise-D again.