Where Did the Q Come From?

[@OrangeRiver]

Where do YOU think the Q really came from? Let me know down below!

[@quantafreeze]

The Borg!

[@drhibas]

I thought they might be the future humans, but you do have a point of them not knowing what will happen in the future. So maybe they are more like the Sphere Builders, extra-dimensional.

[@wakkowarner8810]

4chan :p

[@chrishooker7727]

Perhaps from a different galaxy or universe.

[@dustysweeper]

Human evolution. They are from our own future.

[@redcoataLex]

The Q episodes were always some of my favourite in all the Star Trek series. The actor that kept playing Q in TNG did a great job.

[@Driftwood420]

He's continued in Picard too ;)

[@OffendingTheOffendable]

Picard is a trash show

[@Leaddevo]

@@Driftwood420 Thats not Star Trek. It's bad fanfic written by someone who doesn't understand it.

[@LockedInWithLovebirds]

@@Leaddevo last season is good. Forget seasons 1 and 2.

[@DannnnnyW]

@@LockedInWithLovebirdscompletely agree

[@AnthonyChinaski]

Q (or ‘The Q’ species) was the most entertaining character in STTNG. De Lancie is an amazing thespian; the dual interlocutors of Q and Picard truly displayed the actors talents

[@ninamatthews8747]

I think it was a toss up between Q and guinan as to who was the most fascinating and mysterious.

[@jonathanhampshire6856]

​@@ninamatthews8747Q was more fun.😀

[@queensapphire7717]

He was great in Breaking Bad too.

[@frostfamily5321]

1:52 Seems like the description of a robot, only they need to be repaired, and there's the Q gun. Also, vertigo is missing from that list.

[@bigfoot8103]

What the fuck did you say?

[@ellixen]

De Lancie's Q actually did state that they started out as humanoid. He told the TNG crew when he made Riker a Q. He said humanity has the potential to do what the Q did and ascend some day.

[@sealboy1211]

They could have ascended from a fungus. Fungi can communicate over distance already, let’s give them a couple million/billion years. The most powerful entity in Star Trek origins story is a fungus that achieved sentience.

[@jamescheddar4896]

@@sealboy1211 lovecraft did the cosmic fungus thing already

[@DanielAppleton-lr9eq]

@@sealboy1211 You have the Ascended in Stargate & the First Ones in Babylon 5 who also could become advanced noncorporeal beings.

[@sarahberkner]

There is a Voyager episode called Blink of an Eye (spoilers), and time goes much faster for the people on this planet than it does for Voyager and they see them advance from a primitive culture to one capable of spaceflight in a couple days, partly because of this "Skyship" that intrigues them. I think it's unlikely and it's all speculation anyway, but they could have eventually become the Q continuum.

[@DanielAppleton-lr9eq]

@@sarahberkner What about the Organians from original Trek ? Or the Medusans ( non - corporeal ) ? Maybe *they* have a common ancestor that they're all related to.

[@acidtwin]

If you check out the book "I, Q", it is heavily hinted not just that the Q are future humans, but that Picard potentially plays a huge role in that becoming a possibility. Of course, this may well have been Q playing with Picard.

[@acidtwin]

@Rockwell Rhodes and yet you had the time to read and reply... Good job.

[@McMilesE]

@Rockwell Rhodes you must get out fairly often

[@marcomoreno6748]

@rockwellrhodes7703 you're such a loser

[@RediscoveringDavid]

I just found that book and the cassette tape audio book narrated by Delancy!

[@suXses]

@Rockwell Rhodes You should try disassociating with the entire human species. Right now. You're an insult to those trees that have produced oxygen for your re__tarded a$$.

[@stevemanart]

In my own head, I choose to believe that the Q were a corporeal species very similar to humans from a now heat-dead universe, and *Q* took special interest in us because we reminded them so much of how they were hundreds of millions of years ago.

[@RicStorm616]

Or they are the human race from the far future

[@stevencoardvenice]

Q are probably a billion years old. We would have q powers too after a billion more years

[@simcha10000]

I find your comment very fascinating, perhaps the end of humanities evolution hitch hiker of the galaxy style out of sanity style concepts.

[@The1976spirit]

Time Lords they are called by Dr. Who. Dr. Who himself so is a time agent, like Frasbur or even Nevis-Latan.

[@hdbrot]

@@Gunnar001 trillions of years*

[@darthmetallus1977]

I met John at a convention here in England around 2011 or '12. I saw he was scribbling something on his autographs/breaks list on a wall, so I ran up beside him to see what he had written. At the bottom he wrote "5PM - NAKED!!!!", turned to me with a big triumphant grin & swaggered off as cool as ya like. 😂 He was there with his son Keegan (Q Jr in Voyager).

[@TonksMoriarty]

Given how the Q are presented they could've easily been decoupled from their origin in such a way that their origin being erased from the timeline would not affect them in their present day.

[@antonioskontonasakis]

It's almost like being an ex employee of a company that went out of business. If you stayed in the business, sure, you'd be out of a job- but you left 3 years before the company shut dow for triple the salary. That's like the Q. Even if their timeline is destroyed, they're no more part of the timeline. They were once, but not anymore

[@ThunderChunky101]

Then they're not omnipotent. They're just very powerful.

[@cartoonkeeper]

Well even though we might not know where the Q came from we do know where John de Lancie's Q ended up and that would be in Equestria having changed his name to Discord

[@blackshirtsocialist1457]

@@ThunderChunky101 yea they are not omnipotent just very strong or godlike power

[@kinagrill]

the Q are more of an extra-reality series of entities. Since they exist outside the space-time continuum, they wouldn't have a beginning or end in our universe... most likely they are a sort of apex pre-current-universe existence. Aka. They are literally from a time and place that was before the universe came into existence.... perhaps the last remnants of a prior universal cycle's existences.

[@pluto9000]

I like how Q makes himself age to match his favourite captain's age.

[@killy7778]

He's a Cool Dude. Very Thoughtful that Q.

[@timirish2563]

Either that (which is the idea I favor) or as a result of being human during Q's brief exile from the Continuum; he's still got a little humanity left.

[@jfbeam]

Or... you know... because he's played by a human actor who's aging like everyone else.

[@killy7778]

@@jfbeam Don't break Kfabe. Geesh.

[@alexanderthegreat2080]

@@jfbeam a bit too close to the fourth wall there bud

[@timmayer7248]

I always thought the way Jean Luc covered up his chest when Q was next to him was hilarious. John Delancie's Q was my favorite character in all of Star Trek.

[@timmayer7248]

Oh and the whole "grievously savage child-race", I wholeheartedly agree.

[@ArchangelChi]

I remember reading a Star Trek book a long time ago that said the Q were the people who built the City at the Edge of Forever before they eventually ascended - also the Q created the energy barrier at the edge of the galaxy to keep a destructive creature out they had battled as well as having imprisoned that "god" in the center of the galaxy who was about to be release in one of the Star Trek TOS movies

[@ck58npj72]

That's awesome tnx!

[@jfbeam]

Yes, the books blame the Q for many of the things seen in TOS. Along those store lines, the Q let some pretty bad things into our universe. (I think bits of this are documented at Memory Alpha if you want to explore it.)

[@JohnS-il1dr]

I read a ST novel that had Q and Picard fighting against a being infinitely more powerful than the Q. At the end the being brought the multiverse reality back restoring the Q race and all others.

[@Roxor128]

You're thinking of "The Q Continuum" trilogy of TNG books.

[@Trapinnewyork44]

😯🤔

[@jan6470]

The Q could simply be the admins of a simulated universe, in which Star Trek exists. That way they can manipulate it in any way they wish, including injecting changes into the past of the simulation. (As Q suggested when he took Picard to ancient earth and showed him the moment when life first evolved on earth) They would have to recalculate the whole simulation from that point, but for an entity that lives inside the simulation, this would be impossible to detect. But the Q would not know the future of the simulation with 100% certainty, until the simulation has reached that point in time. They could make educated guesses, or make rougher simulations of the future with less input data, but the actual full simulation can still develop differently than they expect. Which would explain why they did not expect the voyager to be in the delta quadrant.

[@jdorritie]

So is Qs reality a simulation?

[@brandonbentley5453]

@@jdorritie reality is Qs simulation

[@greenbeacon394]

Sounds a bit like the “Matrix” ?

[@kosikumah7249]

You are describing the Matrix....

[@jan6470]

@@kosikumah7249 I am just describing a simulated universe. As in the simulation hypothesis. The Matrix also had a simulated world, yes. Just like many other science fiction stories. Here is some more information: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simulation_hypothesis It is interesting to note, that the origins of this hypothesis goes way back to ancient philosophy.

[@brothermaleuspraetor9505]

I'm having a 90's nostalgia binge. It never ends well but I long for a life that passed me by while depression had me watching on, from in a cage.

[@MOSMASTERING]

It was a better time. But have gratitude you got to experience. Mame the best of what you have now. I feel the same, but I have plans and goals for my present.

[@brothermaleuspraetor9505]

Good advice right there :)I got two Kitties. They provide lots of fun and keep me busy.@@MOSMASTERING

[@koriko88]

My assumption was always that the Q were simply humans, possibly from another reality, who had eventually evolved to be able to control time and space in the far future and were sort of coming back to check out their ancestors in the hopes of helping their own further evolution, so they're not so ossified. Kind of like the Bulk Beings from Interstellar.

[@timirish2563]

I have always favored this idea. I think they are interested in their ancestors from the distant past because they (moribund in their existence) wish to know what drives humans, what fuels their curiosity, what merit do people find in adventure and exploration. Q does often seem almost envious of humans--and of Picard especially. If you recall Q's depiction of existence in the continuum, it is an unending life of ceaseless boredom--sitting in front of an old gas station in the middle of a vast desert, waiting an interminable time for a car to drive by. Oh--I used to live quite close to that gas station set in the desert. It's still there.

[@taiwansivispacemparabellum9546]

@@timirish2563 perhaps, various timeline realities are mere simulations by the continuum depicted as cars driving by the continuum gas station. That would explain interference or interaction before time and space existed, pose no causal consequences to Qs. And the barren Q continuum is just a depiction of “one” higher dimension where the Qs exist. Maybe?

[@ace4love]

From the ending of STNG I have held this thought too. I surmised that all things considered, the Q would have no interest in steering humanity one way or the other unless they had a stake in the outcome. They might play at whim and cause havoc, but there always seemed to be some lesson at the end; a pushing to learn or perhaps nudge their history in a direction that would ensure their own existence. Otherwise, why would they have any interest beyond entertainment? If they truly meant us harm, how easy would it be to erase us? I suspect that doing so would snuff them out as well. I also theorize that The Continuum is in agreement that they must ensure events lead to our evolution to them, but there could be disagreement within The Continuum as to just what events would accomplish that; thus the surprise reaction when events occur that are off according to some timeline they are familiar with. I have always heard the term, mind what people do, not what they say. It's looking at their actions that fuel my guesswork.

[@deusexaethera]

The Q are Boltzmann Brains.

[@maccharcosplaycatalogueceo6267]

If this is the case, and I'm not saying it's not, then why would Q put Picard on trial?

[@wallacelang1374]

I remember "The Squire Of Gothos" episode of Star Trek TOS where Trelene (William Campbell) had Q like powers and abilities, for this specific experience I have considered him to be the very first encounter with the Q continuum.

[@ericliggett4289]

They wrote a book about that Eluding that Trelene was Qs son. Not cannon though

[@martinhanke1670]

i haven't read that book, but i took trelene as being a young q. his attitude fits q's personality. and q is simply, trelene older.

[@jupamoers]

It has been canonized, that Trelane was a Q for a while now ;) But he was a lower developed Q, because he needs technology to use his powers to a higher extent

[@stevemcqueen7735]

@@jupamoers So a lower case q then?

[@chrismccoy2461]

Proto Q...just like there was a a proto v-ger episode

[@gishjalmr5628]

There was a Voyager episode where a Q transported the starship outside the universe and the crew witnessed the big bang. This implies that the Q exists outside our universe which lends support to the idea that they are a type V on the Kardashev scale.

[@Hakar17]

Type 5 minimum they could be far higher theoretically

[@xengen212]

We have the ability to leave earth doesn't change our rating. That's not the measure of the scale

[@timothybeaulieu5103]

The scale implies everything about the ability to harness energy of a given level, not just the collection of it.​@@xengen212

[@StacieMMeier]

@@xengen212 Yes it does (Though to be fair, we only reached the moon, so that doesnt change it, going to Mars though would and going outside the Solar System would, now the scale only counts Humans not probes going into space). That is discussed in type 3. Where a race becomes a space travelling. Now to be fair, scale deals with the ability to use energy. It really doesnt deal much with anything else. There are a few exceptions like space-travel. Now currently we still havent reached type 1. Star Trek is likely early type 3. I base them on the ability to space-travel and the fact they can and do control the weather somewhat on Earth and other planets, even though, it isnt total control, so that's why I put them early type 3.

[@xengen212]

@StacieMMeier what you are essentially doing is saying. A heavyweight boxer must be over 6ft. That is now how it is measured. If it's the ability to harness energy, we can't even harness 1% of earth's energy. Even in star trek I don't believe they can extract the whole planets energy. Or there wouldn't be an atom of it left without waste.

[@jonathanrayne]

The fact that Guinan knew that humanity wasn't supposed to meet the Borg yet says a lot.

[@MichaelMoore99]

I like to think the Q are the unstoppable force and the El-Aurians are the immovable object. The Q can powerfully change many things in the timeline, but Guinan and others will know that something is wrong. I think that it's possible that the time in the Nexus might've assisted in this.

[@urbanurchin5930]

Guinan also was aware that something was not right in the episode where Lt. Yar went back through a worm hole with the crew of a different ship to a battle that history had indicated had been lost. Eventually, it was discovered that Lt. Yar had been taken prisoner and her offspring was part human / part Romulan.

[@MichaelMoore99]

@@urbanurchin5930 That's the main reason for my theory, yeah. I figure she has subconscious contact with her Nexus echo who is outside of time.

[@mr.voidroy6869]

All el alrians have an innate connection with the flow of the universe. They can sense when something isnt right.

[@jamegumb7298]

@@MichaelMoore99 Al-Aurians made the Q afraid even, Q warned Picard about Guinan.

[@kobayashimaru8114]

If the Q are distant descendants of humanity then I think it explains their fascination with humans more not less. The never ending trial could be their way of ensuring their own existence by helping to guide humanity. This would play well into the "watchers" of Picard season 2 (at least as of ep 4).

[@skwills1629]

The Q Continuum is not Fascinated by Humans that We see, though. And I don';t Like the Idea that they just Had to be a Physicals, Humanoid Race Who "Ascended" by Evolution. Its not like We haven;t seen Non-Corporeal Species before that had Always been Non-Corporeal, so Why Assume The Q had to be? And making them Humans frm The Future Who Evovled also means there is Less not More to Our Universe.

[@greenmanjph]

It's almost like if we were able to go back in time and meet early humans and show them today's technology and how to make/use it. We would seem like gods to them and could guide them to be like "future humans".

[@sliqashell]

Loved the interaction between Q and Picard, always fun

[@wanderingfool6312]

Here’s a wildcard, they’re the descendants of Lieutenant Commander Gary Mitchell, who survived being buried by Kirk in the second pilot.

[@jonathanrayne]

Excellent!!!

[@BTScriviner]

Why not? 👍

[@starmnsixty1209]

I have wondered if Gary Mitchell really died myself; it was easily withn his power to have tricked Kirk into thinking he was dead. An interesting thought, even if unlikely that he had any connection with the Q,.

[@juliusdarby1914]

Maybe Gary Mitchell had finally came to his senses after the rock landed on to not be petty or vengeful of what his friends had done to him and his enlightened girl friend and ascended and became enlightened to continue to ascend even more. Maybe she survived with him; we don't know what happened to her body after so-called death and shortly she joined with him with no anger or regrets? Maybe Q knows and will reveal if they are the same as he is or another being of power like Guinan.... Anyway I enjoy the plots and premises of our characters and the situations they have from as Q says from time to time.. It's really interesting to say the least!!!! Peace

[@joshknight3607]

Interesting

[@kengaroo67]

You missed a case of Q being surprised... Q: "You hit me! Picard never hit me." Sisko: "I'm not Picard!"

[@OrangeRiver]

I did miss that! I shouldn't have, I think about that scene all the time lol

[@BMXyamabushi]

Low impulse control? I would've never guessed.

[@windhelmguard5295]

keep mind that omnipotence does include the ability to act surprised when you're not.

[@Great.Milenko]

@@windhelmguard5295 this seems likely to me, he knew sisko would somewhat expect the natural response to be surprise, and "automatically" acted surprised... in the same way Q make them selves look like the race they're interacting with, they also ACT like the race they're interacting with (at least to some level)

[@Dingbobber]

​@@BMXyamabushi LMAO cheeky

[@fustercluck2460]

My theory is that Q is from the zone on the edge of space seen in the episode "where Noone has gone before" In this area, thoughts manifest into reality in an instant, the crew develop abilities that are reminiscent of those seen in the Q, only less controlled. My theory is that the Q were the first space faring race of humanoids and developed the ability to travel faster and further than any other race. Eventually, the Q stumbled into this same zone and over time began to develop these same abilities. The continuum is that area, or a portion of it.

[@JeffCaplan313]

"To boldly go where no man had gone before..."

[@Brian6587]

I like this theory alot!

[@rancidpitts8243]

I have waited a long time for someone to tell me a coherent opinion on the Q. Thank you very much. I have enjoyed this very much.

[@rayruckus4446]

I never thought that the Q was a species I always thought they were basically one being and every other Q was an aspect of its personality.

[@enjoyevan]

hey now

[@Obversechaos]

This is what I thought too. They do refer to themselves and each other simply as Q. The only time they use another title is when they need others to refer to them specifically.

[@Galamoth06]

In the Robin Hood episode, Riker and the other members of the crew were able to successfully disguise themselves amongst the background extras and come to Picard's aid without Q detecting them, if I remember correctly. I always thought the idea of being able to hide from a Q just by wearing a cloak with a hood was really funny for some reason.

[@crisper1614]

I always thought that was because they were in some part of the continuum. Which is why Q told Picard that he wasn’t sure how it would play out. So they were probably in Q clothes. Or something like that. Like the Q civil war, where humans were wielding Q weapons that were basically just muskets.

[@Unethical.FandubsGames]

That or Q agreed to play by rules. It's boring being omnipotent, I suppose. Q loves to set up scenarios and watch them play out. When he joins in, I think he likes to actually be properly taking part.

[@Galamoth06]

@@Unethical.FandubsGames That makes sense. He does seem to want Picard to succeed, so it would be pointless for him to create unwinnable scenarios.

[@I_SuperHiro_I]

Literal plot armor lol

[@Gillymonster18]

Perhaps to a certain degree, being so advanced a creature has made Q especially susceptible to minor manipulations because he’s unable to comprehend being manipulated by something he considers so vastly inferior. Kind of similar to the idea that, supposedly, Einstein was so preoccupied with scientific and mathematical concepts he had trouble remembering basic information like his home addresss.

[@Nyg5618]

I always thought that humanity eventually develops into the Q. Then they go back in time and interact with their ancestors. It would explain their fascination with humanity.

[@BrettOPediaTV]

I think the Q is humanity sculpting their own destiny through space and time. Like in the show Quantum Leap, where one man is manipulating history to the best possible outcome.

[@Fleshyfletch]

Bro I've been pondering Q's existence since I was 6 years old. Thanks for finally filling that hole. Seriously. Awesome info.

[@michaeljohnson4457]

The Q look at time far different then most, and their interest in humanity being so substantial and their custodial ship of the human species, especially when Q directly helps Picard so many times, makes me wonder if the Q are just what humanity becomes in the far distant future and they are just protecting themselves in helping humanity.

[@andrewh5568]

My theory is that the Q are in a state of quantum flux, their origins are infinite and they feel changes across the continuum all the time and Q(the character) is working to ensure that it is humanity who becomes their precursor while other Q's work as guardian angels for other species trying to force some kind of universal ascension for whichever species "wins". The reason why is possibly because different species have different ideals and temperaments and the Q's like to fashion themselves(personality, temperament, appearance) around the species they take an interest in or it could be that they're fighting some kind of universal constant which they want to break and changing their own origins endlessly gives them an edge by making them impossible to exterminate as they could be borne of a million different worlds. It would also explain why they hate the Borg so much because they're muddling the waters by condensing every species into one universal Borg.

[@jinneasbushindo7554]

Or the Q could be the original Aliens that seeded all life in the galaxy billions of years ago (you know the ones that look like the Founders from DS-9). They only present themselves as humans so that humans could relate to them. This would explain some of their interest in seeing which species will come out on top. They've been watching them all since the beginning. Having access to any point in time also means they should've been able to speak with those mentally advanced giant head aliens that Barclay brought the Enterprise to when he gained super intelligence. Really sucks that they didn't record the changes he made using the holodeck. Those engines would've gotten them to the Delta quadrant & Voyager in no time. Definitely faster than Transwarp apparently. The big head aliens used skills akin to The Caretaker in order to bring ships to them over vast distances using tech much more advanced than the victims.

[@ericpowell4350]

I've always believed that's what they've been alluding to all along.

[@RobertWilke]

This is more in line to what I was thinking. In that what we see as Q now is what Humanity will become. From time to time Q have stepped in to nudge Humans in the right direction like how it was explained in the trail of Quinn in Voyager. The Q that we know had to take a more hands on approach at a key point in our development. Thus taking a direct hand in their evolution.

[@clashcitywannabe]

my headcanon is that the Q are the same beings as the Timelords in Doctor Who but we usually see them from an outsider's perspective in Trek. Think about it, in Doctor Who we're always given an inside view (or rather an inside view, of an outsider to that society) but what would it be like meeting those beings without them telling you who they were or pretending to be on your level to keep you comfortable? The end of The War Games gives a glimpse and it's very similar to the Q continuum.

[@snikrepak]

That would be a mistake in thier terms, the second we make contact, we will have begun thinking of ways to defend against such things. Even the very act of seeing something that shouldn't be there can change the very fabric of time. Direct contact would be bad, a more subtle *push* would be better, due to our way of comprehending the reality around us, we wouldn't be able to process what we would see. It would be a form of trauma, our brain in it's current state, has a very hard time putting together the senses, then processing them, filtering them, and then displaying them in your vision, now to whitness an object or a person come out of nothing, and then starts talking to you, would be a limit, it's not in our habit to just *appear* so it's not normal or even thought of that something would just appear and talk to you.

[@GermanLeftist]

Not really. I think the Time Lords are more similar to Trelane. I know a lot of books have cast Trelane as a Q later on, but other beta material does the opposite, so I stick with the alpha canon and there Trelane is a power entity that still has to use technology to pull off his stunts. Q doesn't, they exist outside of space-time as we understand it, hence they form their own continuum. If they'd thave to be compared to something within Doctor Who, I'd argue they are much closer to the Eternals.

[@marismonroe8421]

a brief examination on the Q that’s so mind-blowingly informational, it both educates me and expands the bounds of my own imagination. an outrageously good video, orangeriver!

[@JohnCastleSmokeless]

The Q are what we would call, "metacorporeal" -- similarly to the Organians. In fact, there are some interesting similarities between the two species even on a superficial level -- note the way the Organians in their TOS appearance made their exit. Slow fade up to blinding lights, then slow fade out. Like the Q's theatrical "warp flash" -esque entrance and exit theatrics, just... slower. Is it possible that the Organians _are_ (or will be) the Q? In any case, a brief definition of "metacorporeal" -- the Q exist as pure mentality. One mind, many facets, each facet able to manifest an "individual" physical avatar in order to interact with lower lifeforms. Remember how it introduced itself in Encounter At Farpoint: "We are the Q. Or thou mayest call me that; it's all much the same thing." When one facet of the mind wished to cease to exist, of course the rest of the mind resisted; when other facets of that mind permitted the one facet to discontinue itself, the mind had... well... a nervous breakdown, of a sort. As for where they came from... they're our descendants. Distant... _very_ distant... descendants.

[@gristlevonraben]

What if the creature in the OST episode called Obsession, was related to the Q? Kirk could have killed their grandma!

[@FriedSynapse]

I'm shocked that you didn't touch on the real origin of the Q. John De Lancie actually said where the Q come from in a couple interviews. He said that his Q is actually Eugine Bradford, his character from Days of Our Lives. Eugine invented a time machine in the show and faked his own death to escape the Time Police. De Lancie wasn't specific on how Eugine became so powerful... but with all of space and time as his playground, it's clearly possible.

[@brodriguez11000]

A soap opera invented a time machine.

[@IeuroI]

kinda fun to think of days of our lives & star trek sharing the same universe

[@tappajavittu]

I don't know if you've ever watched On Cinema but your "hey guys!" makes me smile and chuckle.

[@raenfox]

You brought up an interesting point - the control/influence of the Q throughout the multiverse. We are aware of the mirror universe. Everything that exists in our universe also exists there, in a different version. Not necessarily all of it is reversed (sometimes it seems only the humans are mirrored), but what of the Q? Are there Q in the mirror universe, are they different from the Q in the prime universe? Or do the Q span both or even more universes? Maybe they're not even from ours?

[@TheBeardedFrogSage]

In the book, "I, Q", a race of Q-beings known as the "M" exist, and I believe they are the Mirror Q. They're less decent and forthcoming than the Q, but share similar powers and methods.

[@raenfox]

@@TheBeardedFrogSage Decent? Forthcoming? Almost sounds like John de Q is more of a John de M.

[@K7DFA]

And perhaps we're not even a part of the "prime universe", except in our own thoughts?!?!

[@TheBeardedFrogSage]

@@raenfox His M rival is far more scathing and petulant than he is. You have no idea how tame he is until you see her and realize there's always someone worse.

[@odysseusrex5908]

Given that the Q inhabit a continuum which is separate from our space-time continuum, i.e. a separate universe, and that the existence of a vast multiverse has been clearly established, it is entirely conceivable that the Q did not even originate in this universe.

[@SupremeLordEnki]

But then again the first time the Q actually appeared was about 4 to 5 billion years ago and the very first thing they did was to kill the creators of all life in the universe or even the multiverse, which were the ancient humanoids, they were killed by the Q long after the ancients humanoids had spread all life in the universe. So the Q either come from a different type of reality outside the multiverse and all the divergence timelines or they are simply from the far future, like millions to billions of years of evolution. And we know that the last humans to ascend to a higher dimension such as 5 to 6-D level is around 30.000AD in the future which is when humans and Vulcans and others decide to leave their teachings to the new races that exist or have recently evolved in the milky way or the known universe at this point, since the ´federation or start fleet in 30.000AD they already spawn all the multiverse through all the advanced technology that they possess. so it's very possible that the Q are in fact just humans from a distant future of earth/humanity, or even a future where someone decides to migrate to a unique universe and create new life there from human DNA and this allows the Q to evolve in such way.

[@odysseusrex5908]

@@SupremeLordEnki Where are you getting all this nonsense? STD? That, utterly contradicting much of what what has been established in previous series, particularly TOS, is non canonical.

[@SupremeLordEnki]

@@odysseusrex5908 No it isn't, most people go for what has been shown only on the series, but there's more than just the tv-series my friend. Humanity starts to ascend to a higher plane of existence as in 4D+ after the year 5000/6000AD. And after the year 30.000AD there's no more races of our present time, All humans, vulcans, romulans and so on have all ascended to higher planes of existence.

[@tixxoncraft]

@@odysseusrex5908 There was a species similiar to the Q in TOS with Trelaine and his parents

[@odysseusrex5908]

@@tixxoncraft A lot of people have speculated that Trelaine was, in fact, a young member of the Q Continuum and, in fact, our Q's son. I think there are some serious problems with that theory but it makes for fun fanfic.

[@codranine6054]

I’m just now delving into Star Trek universe. Thanks for your content! Very enjoyable indeed.

[@Drebin2293]

I always assumed that the Q were either extra universal, or like Lorien from Babylon 5, or were somehow able to lock down the events necessary for their own uplift in a way that just couldn't be changed by others.

[@mauricerose3082]

...a combination of Trelane from the original Star Trek episode "The Squire of Gothos"....Charlie from the episode "Charlie X"...and the aliens in 'Errand of Mercy'...("AYELBORNE: Millions of years ago, Captain, we were humanoid like yourselves, but we have developed beyond the need of physical bodies. That of us which you see is mere appearance for your sake." --- SPOCK: Fascinating. Pure energy. Pure thought. Totally incorporeal. Not life as we know it at all. KIRK: But what about this planet? The fields, the buildings, this citadel? SPOCK: Conventionalisations, I should say. Useless to the Organians. Created so that visitors such as ourselves, could have conventional points of reference. KOR: But is all of this possible? SPOCK: We have seen it with our own eyes. I should say the Organians are as far above us on the evolutionary scale as we are above...the Amoeba.") ...why is Q afraid of Guinan's people...like when she confronted him in 10 Forward after he returned to it in the episode "Q Who?" with Picard...he wasn't even aware she was there...like she knew beforehand where they'd be...Guinan's people are Trans-Dimensional Beings who can communicate with their future and past selves simultaneously...

[@travim4314]

Wow, this video was waaay better than I expected. Awesome content. First of your videos I've watched.

[@OrangeRiver]

Thank you Travi! I honestly think my content's improved even since I made this video.

[@righty-o3585]

I'm still curious about Q's connection with Guinan. Seeing as she is supposed to be like a thousand years old, is aware of alternate realities, and for some reason Q has no power over her, and she even genuinely frightens Q to the point that Q doesn't want to be anywhere around her.

[@michaelbatts7149]

Look how when he threatened her, she took a posture as if to say, "Come on. Yeah, let's do this."

[@righty-o3585]

@@michaelbatts7149 Yeah , She is not intimidated by Q, in fact it's quite the opposite

[@elizabethpiccolo5534]

I remember reading that she was Q’s ex-wife! Lol😅

[@righty-o3585]

@@elizabethpiccolo5534 HAHA! That would be funny 😂

[@WilliamJulienNkogheOlympio]

it is explored in Picard season 2

[@frglee]

I think the Q are what we turn into in the far future. Q kind of almost seems to tell Picard this in the 'All Good Things' episode, but seems to change his mind at the last moment.

[@james-russellgause4735]

This is the first comment that most closely matches my estimation! Smiles, fellow think-a-liker!

[@ericgray4325]

that what i always thought. they are evolved humans, like a perhaps several hundred thousand years ahead. weird things is, some can still be jerks. on voyager, it is shown that they went through a stagnant age. and had a short civil war. so kinda like a few people today, have advances but still can be dumb jerks

[@FerrariKing]

I also assumed they were future human which is the reason why Q is fascinated with humans.

[@joshythehand2960]

In Wesley crushers finale appearance.. he pulls himself out of time. Then goes off with the traveler.. perhaps he was the first of the next evolution of humans..

[@K7DFA]

@@joshythehand2960 : Then what was Will Decker after the "merger" with "V-GER"? (STTMP)

[@christinerobinson9372]

I absolutely love Delancy, he's a great actor. On Stargate he was so incredibly evil, I cheered when he...don't want to spoil it for you if you haven't seen it.

[@Dr.Thirteen]

he was also on DOOL with the actress who is the inspiration for Harley Quinn

[@christinerobinson9372]

@@Dr.Thirteen Now I wish I had watched DOOL. I did manage to catch it for a while, there was an evil character dressed as an older woman so convincingly I didn't suspect he was a man until he pulled his face off! But work interfered, and I only saw a few episodes.

[@Dr.Thirteen]

@@christinerobinson9372 Stefano Dimera 👍 he was great!

[@thomasjensen3403]

Yeah It was such a great moment when he didn't want spoil the audience watching.

[@ricogoldstar]

Definitely type 4, when Q told Geordi and data to redefine gravity. Q said, "Change the gravitational constant of the Universe". Obviously Q has this power. Also, reading the Q series of books was very enlightening as to their history, what they are, and what Q can do.

[@jerryadams6799]

actually...lately i have seen two instances of scientific claims of being able to change fundamental constants. one of which was the gravity constant and the other one was the permitivity of space which is very much related to gravity. permitivity of space is the constant that defines the resistance of space and time to deformation.

[@ricogoldstar]

@@jerryadams6799 While I have not found evidence that the Q powers work on a multiversal level, we know that Q can alter or travel to multiple dimensions within our Universe. They also demonstrate the ability to be at any given point in Space Time they choose, even observing or encountering *themselves* at different points. The paradoxes would be enough to drive a Vulcan insane, but the Q seem to handle it alright.....with the odd mishap or two on occasion. 😁

[@cleebe823]

@@jerryadams6799 are you talking in star trek or reality? - we can't change constants of nature - and permitivity of space regards electromagnetism. Don't mean to be a dick, I just wanting to clarify if there's confusion.

[@jerryadams6799]

@@cleebe823 that's what i thought too. but i have seen several articles saying otherwise now.

[@____uncompetative]

@@jerryadams6799 I thought the curvature of space-time that moves mass was related to the mass making space-time curve through Newton's Gravitational constant G which has been observed by experiment since apples fell unbidden out of trees.

[@thomascoolidge2161]

Q visits the Enterprise 7 times and TNG has 7 Seasons... Qlluminati confirmed! Personally I like to believe that Q (Lancie character) is guiding, grooming, and preparing humans and the federation to either be the Q or to be the next/better version of the Q.. almost like we are their children.

[@scorpiusbalthazar4327]

Q literally said that humanity's potential is greater than the Q's.

[@thomascoolidge2161]

@@scorpiusbalthazar4327 Yes .. thats why I said I believe he is grooming us to be the next/better version of the Q.

[@robertrostad3930]

That portrait has to be one of the best photos of DeLacie ever taken. He looks like an early middle-aged Brando.

[@CaptainJonathan]

I always thought Q's claim of Omnicence never made sense. They always seem to not know what the main characters are up to. It doesn't seem they are omnipotent either. Relative to humans they may as well be omnicient, and omnipotent, but the difference between what they are and what they claim to be is infinate. It would be interesting if Q in Star Trek: Picard would drop some hints at existing in the Picard, Discovery, JJ, and the legacy/classic Star Trek universes. That could finally confirm to everyone (though it's obvious) that Star Trek is now more of a multiverse. I do concider that Q (the main one we know) may be mischevious, but I think ultimately he has humanities best interest at heart.

[@KingOfMadCows]

It's possible that Q can willingly not use his omniscience. When he actually wants to know everything, he kind of does. Look at Tapestry, Q asks Picard about how he got his artificial heart. But Q shows an image of Picard fighting the Nausicaans when Picard refuses to explain. So Q clearly knew about Picard's life, he was just pretending to be ignorant to get Picard to play along. Pretty much every time Q asks Picard a question in that episode, it's a leading question. Q already knew the answer, he was trying get Picard to find meaning in the answer.

[@charndeepbhangoo7556]

Q probably turns that ability off to keep things interesting.

[@slipstreamxr3763]

I think in a way the Q are supposed to be kind of like angels, this makes sense as they only seem to focus on humanity morality and cultural evolution vs other the races. Q at first seems to wish the destruction of humanity due to their crimes i.e sins but at the same time seems to be a sort of guardian angel to Picard and the Voyager crew trying to get them to understand that while humanity has begun to grow away from our more savage habits we still have a long way to go in terms of becoming the higher moral beings Starfleet claims humanity are so to speak. As for why Q chose Jean-Luc as humanity's representitive, Q can tell that Picard has a much higher moral and ethical center than most other Starfleet ( angels often chose to appear people who are more "Godly" than their piers) Captains so from Q's standpoint Picard is an ideal individual to appear to in order to convince humanity that while they may have come along way there is so much in the universe that they can't even comprehend and in a way they are still very much children.

[@CaptainJonathan]

@@slipstreamxr3763 That certainly makes sense.

[@macdeus2601]

@@slipstreamxr3763 Well, they're obviously very similar to gods. As far as omniscience, there's a fundamental logical contradiction between the existence of omniscience and the existence of free will. The only way anyone (even God, or a god-like entity) could actually know what will happen before it happens is if it was never truly possible for it to not happen. Every single event across the entirety of time would have to be a foregone conclusion. Any universe in which genuine possibilities exist is, by definition, a universe in which genuine omniscience cannot exist. And in a purely deterministic universe, the entire concept of "judgment" would be meaningless--you can't make "right choices" or "wrong choices" in a universe where you never get to make any choices whatsoever.

[@carldombrowski8719]

I think one way to understand their claims of omniscience and omnipotence and still being surprised is that they view the different parallel Star Trek universes as labs, while their Q-continuum is outside of that. They see that humans will achieve something in a far future and they go back to the legendary people who shaped that future, like historians with time travel ability would. And their meddling changes the time line a little bit and then humans come up with ideas which affect it even more - though only the Q can see the effect it has in a far future. Sometimes, they do something which messes up the future, but then they help their favorites a little to even out the effects, as they did with showing humanity the Borg.

[@9Written]

Amazing videos man. You're truly one of the best Star Trek channels out there.

[@OrangeRiver]

Thank you!

[@Numba003]

The Q episodes of TNG are some of my very favorites. De Lancie steals the show every time he's on there, and I love it lol. Thank you! Stay well out there everybody, and God bless you friends! :)

[@Roxor128]

I think I like the Q episodes of Voyager better. When Q shows up on TNG, he's either testing Picard or causing trouble for him. When he shows up on Voyager, he's the one in trouble.

[@dougpool4730]

I agree. 😀 I don't think about any of this stuff. I just enjoy the show. 👍👍👍

[@svensshed1564]

I have always thought that Q is actually a further stage of human evolution. His task is to Shepard humanity towards this ultimate outcome. I do think that he is fascinated by Picard and I think that as we see him in the latest show is that he is seeing if Picard is ready to ascend to his plane of being, allowed Picard to explore forever.

[@raven4k998]

or are they humanity's parents it would explain their interest in humanity

[@jamegumb7298]

@@raven4k998 It was said in TNG that Q were envious of humans. The Q were close to all powerful, no more development, humans may overtake them in the future. And since Q can see into the future, well perhaps they may be right.

[@raven4k998]

@@jamegumb7298 well of course they are right silly goose

[@JRMarquis30]

Even gods have favorites, Jean-Luc, and you've always been one of mine.

[@jamegumb7298]

@Toadskin In their little civil war they fought, it was seen there was a mass amount of supernovae going off in a particular part of space (Voyager episode). I think they have some type of physical form and they hide what it is.

[@fred_2021]

The discussion proceeds as though the events in Star Trek were reality rather than fantasy, and as if there were real answers to all the questions. Fascinating, and very amusing :)

[@amandamills4133]

I have another theory and I don't think this is the case but it is worth thinking about. As far as the origin of the Q, it reminds me of the planet Meridian, where the people were originally corporeal, but the planet would shift for long periods of time into a non-corporeal state along with its inhabitants. The people said that eventually the planet would lose its ability to shift and they would be permanently non-corporeal. Something similar to this could have also been the cause of the Q's Evolution.

[@skwills1629]

Why do People assume he Q were Corporeal Originally hen The Prophets Of Bajor were never Corporeal?

[@georget.8548]

I am big fan of Star Trek and next generation especially the Q. You did a great job. Thanks

[@tihoprskalo7719]

Same! :O

[@xcalium9346]

I think the Q could be future humans, separated so far into the future and in complexity that events happening in Star Trek don't affect them at all. For example, if an ancestor of us a million years ago fought a different tribe, it would honestly not affect anything today. But it would explain their fascination with people. We would want to know about the lives of our million year old ancestors.

[@marxtheenigma873]

In the death wish episode, it is told they can erase memories. So can they erase their own memories? If so, Quinn could have just done that. He doesn't die, but he gets to experience everything again. Seems like a good compromise.

[@Kualinar]

Maybe they can only affect the memories of material, biological, beings. Fundamentally, Qs are not material, biological beings. That would imply that they can't alter their own memories.

[@tyrant-den884]

death is a new journey.

[@TheKaiTetley]

@@tyrant-den884 Death is just the beginning

[@jessepollard7132]

depends - Quinn may have alreadey done that a few thousand times - and gotten bored with it as the same things kept repeating. From another time travel show - the last episode of Time tunnel loops time back to the first episode. (thanks Erwin Allen)

[@marxtheenigma873]

But how would he know things keep repeating if his memory gets erased?

[@darrekworkman8685]

Interestingly there was no mention of Wesley's becoming a traveler. What relationship is there between the 'travelers' and the Q? There doesn't appear to be any interaction in the show, but it's an interesting question. The episode where the crew encountered the traveler the traveler mentioned that spacetime, energy, and thought are linked, and he demonstrated the ability to manipulate it. Later on, Wesley seemed to have developed similar abilities. The question is what roll these two beings fit in the same universe? Do the Q know about the travelers?

[@eskanda3434]

Travelers are definitely NOT as powerful as the q. They are a much lesser being.

[@rixxey2048]

this is one of my favorite new (to me) channels! gonna binge these videos

[@OrangeRiver]

Thanks Rixxey!

[@MatthewCaunsfield]

A creative way to tackle a very tricky subject, since there's so little hard data to draw from Also, I've not heard of those "minus" types of civilisations before so it's always fun to learn something new! 👍

[@starmnsixty1209]

A very interesting one here! I'm unsure how reliable statements by "our" Q can always be, but they would seem to me, to be the most powerful species in the Trek universe. I tend to think that Trelane from "Squire of Gothos" was a very young Q myself, although I am unsure what canon actually says about him. Glad that you mentioned the Organians, and the Metrons also. Neither of them have been explored very much in any film, or series episodes - the Organians only twice, I believe. The full extent of their respective powers have never truly been shown, I believe. I have wondered why the Organians allowed the Dominion War to occur, when they easily stopped the conflict between the Federations, and Klingon Empire in "Errand of Mercy." In any case, their origins are certainly up for much further debate!

[@GermanLeftist]

Canon states nothing about Trelane, but the fact that he needs technology to does what he does, he most likely shouldn't count as a Q, especially because we've seen another young Q in Q2 who doesn't need that kind of aid. The Organians and the Metrons are interesting but from what we've seen they don't venture much further than the direct neighbourhood of their own star systems despite probably being able to do so and only got active to stop war between the Federation and Klingons or the Federation and the Gorn when those threatened their own territory.

[@kevinkliegl9315]

@@GermanLeftist He needed technology because he was a child Q. Notice his parents did not need technology. The other young Q was way older more like a teenager than a 5 year old Trelane. Nice try but big fail.

[@GermanLeftist]

@@kevinkliegl9315 Show me one alpha canon shred of evidence that Trelane is a Q. One. And we don't know if his parents needed technology and even if they don't, we don't know if young Q need technology. This entire theory is based on Trelane and Q having great powers and appearing in old Earth military uniforms in their first (and in the case of Trelane sole) appearance.

[@kevinkliegl9315]

@@GermanLeftist Trelane is Q and that is why he hates the federation because he feels he was thwarted by them, even though it was his parents. So obvious, screw your canon. You just stated he needed technology, you can't even keep your idiot argument straight.

[@Kronosfobi]

@@GermanLeftist We dont know what Q exactly does either. It could be technology so advanced that we just simply cannot comprehend it. Your evidence is the fact that his parents show up at the end of the episode and Spock claims them to not exist in any physical form, but to be pure thought. Which is more than enough to assume they could *be* or *equal* to Q. As we know there are more species who share same abilities such as Q, without the same goals nor mindset. I actually assumed ''our'' Q was Trelane couple decades older. They share extremely similar characteristics. Trelane fancies about early world history and asumes humanity to be a warlike species who thrive on conflict. Which excites him. Jim Kirk doesnt indulge in his games until he cannot, which he then got saved by Trelane's parents in the expense of the boy getting punished. Some time later, A mysterious entity who is able to warp reality with a mere thought is specifically after the Enterprise. He once again fancies with outdated human garments only to be bellitled for it. He is once again excited about humanity's ''violent'' nature and immidietly gets petty after he's denied the amusement, once again, by the captain of the Enterprise. Tries to ''play a game'', fails. Tries is again, fails and is stopped by his own peers. This particular Q is fairly obsessed over Enterprise rather than just humanity.

[@____xD]

The Q arose out of aspiring theater department Shakespearian stage actors playing beings imbued with the power potential of a Mother-in-Law.

[@jupamoers]

I think, the Q were El-Aurians once and despise their former humanoid form, that's why they have ascended to a higher form of being (much like the Ancients and Ori from Stargate). That could be the reason for the feud between Q and Guinan

[@bluelagoon1980]

And it would explain her raising her hands in a posture of not-to-be-messed-with-ness, and him backing right off. That has always stuck with me.

[@skwills1629]

Why do You Assume they were ever Humanoid?

[@deusexaethera]

I always thought of the Q as being a side-effect of the universe's existence, sort of like cosmic strings that got tangled together in such a complex fashion that they began to exhibit signs of intelligence. EDIT: Or to put it more succinctly, the Q are Boltzmann Brains.

[@AreaCode000]

I think that this makes a lot of sense. The Star Trek universe contains a lot of things that we would normally classify as magic and yet they also clearly have science. This *should* cause some sort of problem...unless something is manually resolving all of those paradoxes. I think that's what the Q do.

[@renatocustodio1000]

That's pretty much the Endless family from Vertigo/DC comic books.

[@deusexaethera]

@@AreaCode000 : Most of the magical-seeming things that happen in Star Trek can be explained through minor tweaks in our laws of physics, such as photons having mass so energy weapons can have knockback and the speed of light isn't the fastest possible speed. The remainder, such as the subspace mycelial network from STD, can be chalked up to bad writing.

[@cherubin7th]

3:02 If the Q can be at distant places faster than light, they can know the exact future, because according to special relativity, past, present, and future co exist. So Q can basically the entire history at once.

[@ronshelton4356]

Trelaine(Squire of Gothos) is identified as the baby Q that was the result of the mating between John Delancy & Susie Plakson's Q characters from the Voyager episodes concerning the Q Civil War in a Next Generation paperback. Unfortunately, 20 years since reading the story plus a stroke 5 years ago prevents me from remembering the title. Certainly, someone else can recall the title.

[@gristlevonraben]

Odd, I thought it might be a young DeLance Q???

[@Skorion69]

@@gristlevonraben You are correct.

[@trueLuminus]

It's called Q-Squared.

[@ronshelton4356]

@@trueLuminus Thank you. thought that might be it, but wasn't sure. Q Space was another wherein Q referred to a similar race called M that were enemies of the Q.

[@trueLuminus]

@@ronshelton4356 Yup. I read that, too.

[@underdogjourney]

As far as Q ascension, if the Q were originally a highly technologically advanced species, do you think it would make the most sense for them to “ascend” via technological means or use more of a “state of zen” method, similar to the Ancients from SG1?

[@hello-ox5rf]

They're the borg, once you're assimilated your consciousness goes into the Q continium metaverse and your body goes about assimilating folks to get your sick kicks

[@ulrikcaspersen9145]

I would think that it might be either of those methods, or maybe even a combination of those. I recall from watching the various series from the SG franchise, that at some point in the distant past the Ancients (or Alterans, as they have also been called) reached of technological level that enabled them to ascend or de-ascend. Also, it has been stated that some chose to ascend because of the "state of zen" and being tired of their corporeal existence, while others did so as a means to escape various threats such as hostile species. Also remember, both in fiction and real life, the origins of certain species, cultures, technologies and other stuff is very rarely clear or simple; most often any number of events may have had some sort of influence, be it minor, moderate or major.

[@one-re2ub]

State of ze

[@skwills1629]

I actually Hate the idea that They Evolved from a Physical Species. It also contradicts what They say on Screen.

[@harborwolf22]

Just subbed, love the couple videos that I've seen so far man. Your sense of humor is awesome

[@CFaversham2]

Lots of thanks to John De Lancie for taking Q for another spin, in Picard, Season 2 & 3 !

[@starfox8006]

It's like a dream come true. I love Star Trek Picard

[@londonrhodes2429]

Hard to believe people like that show.

[@haroldhenderson2824]

Good, through and entertaining analysis. However, I think you missed a couple of things. The Q can transport themselves into the distant future and distant past. In the episodes (All Good Things, part 1&2), where Picard is on trial for causing the destructive vortex which grows inversely thru time (bigger in "the past", but created in "the future"). That leads me to believe they are a very advanced, very old race (more like the Time Lords in Dr. Who) that has "lost" (never had?) their imagination. All the ability to influence physics and no idea what to do with it.

[@tanatos5]

Yeah, good analysis. One thing to add thought; even though the Q might have ''ran out of'' imagination, eventually (basically immortal and totally ageless across the epochs, with power to travel time and manipulate universal mechanications at will for an eternity... might eventually lead you to feel like you are ''bored'', as you have already been there and done it, whatever it is). But hence, as you said; ''All the ability to influence physics and no idea what to do with it.'' True. What I want to add is; even though the Q does not seem to have any idea what to do with all their power and the universe, *at least* they seem to have an idea about what NOT to do with the universe. I mean; from a lore perspective: maybe the Q intentionally destroyed (for fun? for science?) countless other parallel universes and all living things there and we (humans/Federation) don't know / can't even know about it. As in; we might be oblivious to what the Q really do. But, as I said above; at least we know that in Star Trek Universe (however you define it); *at-least* their (the Q Continuum's) intentions are not hostile towards living beings and/or the basic/primordial functions/balances and harmony of the universe itself. They (Q) at this point seem not to know what to do with the universe (as you said), but thankfully (for all living beings); they seem to know what NOT to do with the universe. Phew! :P Ultimate power corrupts ultimately. Maybe they (The Continuum) actually have exceeded that maxim too, somewhere along the line of... infinity.

[@reviewwithyou2]

It's basically the same thing as rick and morty, although, not quite as powerful. Rick gets bored very easily, and that is due to the fact that he has witnessed most things in, and outside his universe. While it would be "cool" to have all these powers and abilities, after a few thousand years (which is like a year or two for a Q) it would become boring, or even annoying. They also have the problem with time. Imagine living forever with no end in sight, being able to speed up time and revert it, etc. Which means so many things they cannot appreciate. Any time they want to see a loved one (if they even care) from another time, they just simply go to that time and visit with them. It sounds cool at first, but it would create a detachment, an apathy towards visiting (which they can do any time). My personal belief is that the Q are humans from farther into the future. Seeing how we do not see a klingon, romulan, etc Q, it pretty much suggests only humans evolve to this plain of existence, ..although it could be due to them distorting what humans see, so they can communicate better (sort of like Galactus from marvel comics, when any civilization sees him, he appears to look like them). Being that they appear in that form, chosen or not, it indicates that they are DIRECTING human evolution. And, IF they have no reason to actually do that out of "fun," the idea would be that they HAVE to evolve humans with a direct approach to ensure THEIR own evolution (should they have evolved from humans in the distant future). In my mind, there is absolutely NO reason to involve themselves with humans, in ANY way...unless they HAVE to. They could even just create a simulation within a simulation, and basically recreate EVERYTHING they are experiencing, but without becoming entangled in the REAL ST timeline. Thus, there really is NO need to do anything whatsoever in any universe. Their overall "weakness" could be time travel. If they came from somewhere, originally, they could be taken out by a simple time traveler or paradox. It also indicates that they are not, in fact, Gods.

[@jinneasbushindo7554]

I haven't seen much evidence that the Q have even left our galaxy. We've seen the different quadrants of the Milky Way, but I'm not certain about other galaxies. I could be wrong though. From what I'm seeing, no they haven't. So despite their power, the Q must not be able to leave the Milky Way. Their energy source or protection must stem from the super massive black hole at the center of the Milky Way and they don't have power beyond the heliosphere. The gaps between interstellar space are much larger than the width of the Milky Way, so even if the Q built the fastest vessel possible, it'd take 100-1,000 years to cross he void. Being immortal, it wouldn't have been a problem for them. I'm shocked no Q has even taken the journey and see what lifeforms would be waiting for them there.

[@Adaephonable]

@@jinneasbushindo7554 What a bunch of random and baseless conclusions to jump to. You actually said that their power must stem from the center of our galaxy. You based this ridiculous supposition on the fact that we have only seen the Q in our galaxy... on a show that only takes place in OUR galaxy.

[@wilhelmhesse1348]

Thanks for this video....answers alot of long standing questions💯

[@ravenwinger1]

The Q's first appearance was not in TNG, it was TOS. The Squire of Gothos, Trelane, was Q

[@wh5027]

Remember that episode with Trelane very well. That would be pretty awesome if he was a Q.

[@jessepollard7132]

Telane was not a time traveller and it is unlikely that his parents were either.

[@eskanda3434]

It was confirmed in the TNG novels that Trelane was a Q who had rebelled. He was killed/destroyed by the conitunium

[@deconstruct1]

Great look into the Q. However I don’t think your assessment is correct that the Federation is type 2.5. More like 1.5. They can occupy and harness the energy of multiple planetary systems. But Kardashev-2 means harness all of the energy output of an entire star. Think about the reaction of the crew encountering the Dyson Sphere in TNG:Relics. It was far more advanced than the Federation could have built.

[@jamesbizs]

The key word is CAPABLE. It can be argued, that the federation is in fact capable of harnessing the power output of the Sun. It’s just not feasible and would be pointless. If earth and Vulcan put all their resources into creating a stamp sphere; they could. But why would they, at this point?

[@jamesbizs]

Also, it’s not about the harnessing the energy output of an entire star, but harnessing the AMOUNT of energy that an entire star would have. Federation has no need for the stars power. They have more than enough power usage throughout the federation

[@pwnmeisterage]

The scale is meant to be blurred, not to present milestone thresholds. Technology is not a linear path. The Federation controls numerous star systems, it can harness material and energy from each. Yet it cannot harness the entire energy output of any given star. Compared vs the Dyson Sphere builders who could capture the entire output of a star yet evidently couldn't move beyond it.

[@Josep_Hernandez_Lujan]

Dilithium crystals are more powerfull than stars. All the energy of a star would´nt be enough to reach warp 9,9 speed. They´re beyond the energy of mere stars. Obviously dilithium crystals aren´t real and you can´t go faster than light or time travel back in time. Also solar ships are consired antiques. Ben and Jake make one like we would fly a kite

[@Kronosfobi]

Federation does not need to harness such high magnitudes of energy. Their biggest issue is managing the energy *output,* not input. Without equal engineering, unlimited energy is pretty much useless as we saw time and again in Star Trek universe. They have the ability to create objects out of thin air. Usable clean energy sources that never goes extinct due to simple fact that they can always be replicated with a simple machine. They are much closer to Type 3 than anyone else, only if it wasnt the wars that held them back.

[@blinddeagle]

What a well done video. I had skipped over it in my recommended, but now I'll sub. To me its obvious that the Q is us from the future. Links got lost and forgotten as they always are.

[@dannymaurice5543]

my personal favourite headcanon is that they, were the Elders from the charmed universe, but they got bored grew up, went to space and eventually met with humanity centuries later. nowhere in canon is this referenced or mentioned, its just my explanation for why John De Lancie played two roles as a somewhat antagonistic space deity

[@johnpotts8308]

And Starfleet HQ is in San Francisco and the Elders (IIRC) loved to hang out on top of the Golden Gate Bridge! It all fits!

[@dannymaurice5543]

@@johnpotts8308 it all fits!

[@gmork1090]

Q also.. kind of existed as Discord in the remake of My Little Pony, lmao. Same powers and everything.

[@dannymaurice5543]

@@gmork1090 typecasting much?

[@8bitnintendoguy]

These videos are great, man! I always look forward to your uploads.

[@OrangeRiver]

Thank you so much! There's a lot more exciting stuff coming down the line.

[@lilpalebluedot]

This was very informative. One of my favourite species/entities are the Q. Thanks for creating this. 🌸

[@quantafreeze]

Great video! I loved the Q story arcs!

[@ClintSprayberry]

Yes! Yes! Yes! That was fantastic my dude! And of course keep 'em coming please!

[@OrangeRiver]

Thanks Clint! Definitely more where this came from.

[@DJJonPattrsn22]

Truly outstasndingly excellent video!!! This is so well researched and produced! You did a remarkable job assembling all of the clip footage. I especially appreciate how you seem to be a neutral fan of the entire ST canon-although it seems you produced this shortly before the release of Picard S2 in which Q is an extremely consequential character. We learn a great deal about Q in this season and I have no doubt you will be releasing an addendum at some point. I've just subscribed! Thank you so much for your work!

[@beyondfossil]

Awesome video. I love the Q as they make me dream big. Episodes like STTNG:"Tapestry" and STVOY:"DeathWish" left indelible memories in me. Its good sci-fi and just good story when the episodes makes your ponder existence and your own destiny. Regarding Kardashev Type I at 6:39, it's actually not the planet's geothermal energy that classifies Type 1 but the power received from the planet's star. In the case of Earth, its a staggering 173,000 *terawatts* of energy *continuously*. This amount of continuous non-stop energy dwarfs the available geothermal and fissile material available now. Yes, we're pretty much Type 0 right now (around Type 0.0001). We live a very energy poor lifestyle and have a corresponding problems: small construction projects; not enough power for wide spread water desalination; we live surrounded in a lot of our own filth (landfill, ocean pollution, nuclear & toxic waste) because we can't economically launch waste out into the sun, into the galaxy, or just park waste into a stable orbit somewhere in the solar system; we burn fossil fuels like it was Kool-Aid and use our atmosphere as a public toilet. All these very important existential issues are just energy bound problems. Civilizations that Type I (or even Type 0.25 or so) it don't have these "simple" problems. Launching waste out into space for disposal or long-term storage is routine. Drinking and irrigation water is cheap and plentiful as air and dirt. In the case of Type II, yes, it is the energy output of the system's entire star. For us, it would be a mind boggling 386-trillion terawatts continuous. That can approached with a Dyson's sphere (STTNG:"Relics") which is improbable to construct -- better is a Dyson's Swarm with many trillions of controllable mirror-like satellites creating a virtual power redirection sphere. Even a partially constructed Dyson's Swarm would be an ideal terraforming tool to reshape entire planets. It can also just focus continuous power for various terrestrial and astro-construction mega projects.

[@Kronosfobi]

I dont think a Dyson Sphere in *our* solar system is prefable even if its doable. It would distrupt the atmoshpere of Earth and may have unseen repercussions on the solar system in the long term.

[@beyondfossil]

@@Kronosfobi Yes, doubt anyone would build a true full Dyson's Sphere around their own star. Not only would it block the solar wind, it would make plunge all the system's planets into perpetual night! 🥶 Maybe they would do it only if they plan to completely abandon everything in the system in favor of the inner surface of the Dyson's Sphere. But even that seems like a risky choice w/o a fall back plan unless the civilization has other star systems to rely on. I believe a true monolithic Dyson's Sphere would be near impossible to build anyways. A much better practical method is a Dyson's Swarm of orbiting robotic mirrors that can be command at once like they were pixels in a cosmic scale display. The solar power can be directed towards projects around the solar system as needed. One can manage some fraction of deflected light as to not cause undue harm to the natural equilibrium of the solar system. Even just a fraction of a star's concentrated output is a stupendously large amount of power. And a Dyson's Swarm provides benefit even as it is still under construction in partial operation mode. The more mirrors that are added, the more powerful it gets.

[@Kronosfobi]

@@beyondfossil Agreed. A swarm is also easier to maintain as its made off of smaller robots which can be either replaced or removed for repairs. A gigantic seal that permanently blocks out *any* sun is going to need maintanences we cannot cover for.

[@DCMarvelMultiverse]

I think no one species evolved into the Q. I remember three episodes that came close to aspects of Q. (Four if you count Trelane and count him as a non-Q) The one with the Traveler, the one with the old man who was actually a Dowd, and the one wherein a man evolved into an energy being. Were these characters ancestors of the Q? Or separate species sharing convergent evolution? Either way, they would be theoretical models on evolving into Q.

[@farscape1714]

Could be like the Ascended in Stargate. They werent just the Ancients they were many other species too.

[@davidcorreia3901]

In the book "I Q" they're not the only species that has their abilities.

[@I_SuperHiro_I]

Q Tip is an honorary member.

[@juliusdarby1914]

How about the star trek original discovery of the lifeform Trelaine in the first star trek series? I think that Trelaine qualified as a type of child like Q. What do you all think???

[@pwnmeisterage]

Trelaine was less powerful than Apollo. Or Vol. Or the extra-galactic ornithoid "Transmuters". Or the Organians, Metrons, Excalbians. And all of these required some sort of power source, machine, device, or instrument (which could be neutralized by Kirk's phasers) to manifest their powers. None of these entities is "omniscient" or "omnipotent" beyond their local sphere of control. Q has no such limitations. He just snaps his fingers, time and space instantly changes in a theatrical flash of light. I think people tend to associate Trelaine with Q because both entities behave like petulant arrogant children.

[@chaosconspectus]

My running theory is: They were humans, the end result of our evolution. Once they evolved they always existed, they existed before humans and after, always. I feel Q tests Picard specifically because Picard was the first human to think differently from the rest, even if only briefly. Their perception of time, might only be that of how long they have existed. Perhaps time is like a printer and they are existing on the edge of the next letter being typed. All Good Things being the concept of the Q having been small in the future, where they evolved, becoming more powerful the further back in time they never existed in. Q only just became Q when Q first introduces himself to Picard. It doesnt matter "when" Q became Q only that they did at some point. They existed always from that point. Meaning they only learn from that point forward, perhaps the Q have only existed 15 "standard" years before Quin kills himself. the amount of information they have been able to absorb through out history in that "standard" time would obviously still be massive in comparison to what we could learn. In "Deja Q," the now-human Q talks to Guinan in Ten Forward, when he states that he is "just one of the boys with an IQ of 2005." The millon dollar question would be, Is mirror universe Q the same Q.....

[@Alamyst2011]

By the logic; I dont think mirror universe would have a Q. Humans there will never reach a point of ascendence

[@skwills1629]

The Thing is, Q said Q did not Evolve...

[@samdevito8028]

Don't you love it when great writing and great actors create legendary characters

[@izuela7677]

The theory that the Q come from the future, and can just do whatever now and not even worry about timelines, because they exist outside of time, means they could come from anywhere. They could even be future Borg that achieved that ultimate perfection that they strived for.

[@ck58npj72]

I just went to the Borg...Omg, u should smell that sh*t....🤣

[@danielfarley8344]

Great video, I've come to look forward to your uploads they are really well done i hope you keep them coming. Hopefully the upcoming season of Picard will shed some light on the history of the Q, and also the outcome of the Civil War and how it has affected the society.

[@ClintSprayberry]

Right?! When KZbin tells me he has a new video out I immediately stop what I'm doing to watch it!

[@mikebozik]

And tackle it you did, thanks. This was well-researched and very intriguing. I actually learned some stuff. You are keeping the Star Trek legacy alive. As a metaphor, the Q represent everything we don't know...Which is pretty much everything. 😊 The topic certainly deserves more conversation in the future.

[@knitcrochettiger361]

here's a theory.....what if the reason Q has put humanity on trial when they did is because Picard will be the first human to TRANSCEND to the continuum without external help....Sisko punched Q out of frustration.....disqualified.....Janeway being a humanitarian that ruled in favor of Quin being released from his prison and made human....disqualified....but Picard on the other hand.....he befriended Data (the first truely scientient Android).....he befriended and tried to save the Romulans despite all the crap that TalShiar pulled over the centuries....he befriended the Klingons because of Worf....he tolerated Q and passed every test put to him by Q....he become loved by not 1 crew, not 2 crews, but 3 separate crews in his carreer as captain....in Star Trek Picard we saw the doctor from the Star Gazer, Riker was his first officer on Enterprise D and E, and Raffy his first officer after Riker was promoted to the Titan...he was so loved by Data that Data's descendants (possessing Data's memories) trusted him, he was the only biological other than the son of Soong they trusted.....Picard befriended so many alien races when it was not possible and he survived everything life threw at him...and now he is the first Hiuman to transform into an Android.....he was also assemilated by the Borg and not only recovered, but he came back stronger despite his nightmares.....Jean Luc Picard will ascend to become a Q at the end of Star Trek Picard.

[@mickhaha3151]

Yeah but that's only the milky way. They could go through the entire universe of galaxies. If that's all that is needed the little things Picard has done, really in the big picture its not really that great at all

[@ralphpal]

Wow I love all your facts I love all your research It would just be too early to accsend for humans

[@Mr0rris0]

Ralph! Are you bobbies brother?

[@Mr0rris0]

They did this with the fringe observers seems to me. The ol future version of us from a rogue timeline trope

[@jfbeam]

Which is why Picard (the show) is just more lame fanfic. (Picard (the character) is a politician, so it's no surprise he would befriend / make peace with everything.)

[@renzgarcia84]

I half-expected the Q to have harnessed the MYCELLIAL NETWORK

[@OrangeRiver]

I really need to make a T-shirt don't I... lol

[@renzgarcia84]

@@OrangeRiver Hell yes

[@adrianb5601]

The Q are amazing as they can basically do what ever the writer wants them to do

[@joshuapatrick682]

I love how Picard rails against "superstition" and "Fear" yet regularly encounters beings that possess the very abilities that would make them deities to any culture from our past and we are on the verge of creating synthetic consciousness. In a universe of infinite space, time and possibilities I find it fascinating that science fiction precludes the "supernatural" despite regularly portraying just that. At some point you're simply arguing semantics.

[@KyokujiFGC]

I mean, it's not necessarily supernatural if it all has some scientific basis.

[@Floninjalo]

There is a very clear and definitive difference. They may share properties, but the why and how of it all is fundamentally different.

[@Descyphal]

The supernatural is essentially a spectrum of beliefs based on the unknown. Lightning, fire, the sun, cows... these are all deistic idols and even central belief figures. Science is a process, not a thing. It's basically a verb. Testing hypothesis and creating theories. Repeating this process is scientific.

[@poopsmith6853]

​@Descyphal and there was a time in history when those two things were one in the same. We may discover in the future 'quantum fluctuations' cause computer errors or, as some have shown already, photons entering electronic hardware at certain frequencies can have unpredictable results for the hardware or software it is running. For most, it is a supernatural event i.e., I don't know. Just because they don't believe a personified diety caused it doesn't make it not. Many are animistic without realizing it. They will curse a chair they stub their toe on, etc. The OPs point seems to be that most scientific fiction presumes nothing supernatural exists, or that there's nothing people can't understand.

[@poopsmith6853]

​@@Descyphalmy reply seemed to delete for some reason. The supernatural isn't always based in idols or the unknown. Animism persists in human thought throughly. People will curse the weather, inanimate objects, etc. They anthropomorphisize frequently.

[@gmork1090]

If 18 people hadn't died on the enterprise when Q showed them the borg in Q Who, the federation would have lost everyone to the borg. He did them a favor as its found the borg were sneaking into federation space already and simply no one survived to report on them yet. Borg had to be put on hold showing up permanently because of the writers strike at the time.

[@TonyP9279]

The Borg were on their way to attack Earth anyway because in Enterprise, the Borg survivors they found in the arctic sent out a signal to the Delta quadrant with the pulsar addresses to Earth.

[@doop8436]

@@TonyP9279 That is a paradox.. If Borg didn't attack Earth in First Contact then there be no Borgs frozen..

[@doop8436]

Well if you remember one ep When Romulens 1st showed up in Next Gen.. It was because something was wiping out their colonies on the border.. And Enterprise was sent to investigate attacks on their colonies too.

[@od1452]

Clicking on this video was difficult. ... like a child going in for 8 flu shots on the same arm in one minute. Q has always been at the top of my No Xmas Card List. I quickly came to the conclusion he was a writer's schill to dump on us whenever writers' block materialized from the transporter. SO ... I did the unforgivable... I just changed channels, thus I never learned they ..? it ? .. He ? had a real story... Your research and story are wonderful ...but ,Sorry I have to stick with my original thought . Otherwise... the writers would know who and what they, it, he, is. instead... he is really everything and nothing. But I really do appreciate your and you Lovely Voiced Producer 's work.. You are great.

[@wendtchr]

If a civilization referred to itself as an Omega Minus level for long enough, you could imagine the shorthand as "O-" (a circle with a line next to it) morphing into "Q" (a circle with a line through it). Of course it breaks down as soon as you take into account language change and many other factors that would shift over millennia. But fun shower thought.

[@stephengrice1678]

The problem is the removal of Qs power. I wonder how many Q you need to do that. It also brings into doubt the Q Civil war.

[@skwills1629]

Anything on Voyager with The Q makes no Sense. Even Death Wish. But that is The Problem with Q here. People don't understand the original Concept so they assume they can be killed and they are an Evolved Humanoid Race...Somehow...

[@jaydontez5733]

That beat at the end of the credits got me! Holfix, Sam kuzel? I have to do research now. Check out some more music like that!

[@euniceprobert9060]

My headcanon is that the El-Aurians and the Q are like StarGate's Ancients and the Ori, both sides of the same species. That the El-Aurians decided not to ascend, but the Q did.

[@skwills1629]

I don;t Think The Q "Ascended". Why is it so Popular to Think they had to begin as a corporeal Species that Ascended? Its not like this is Actually the Only Way they could have come about given negelum, That Energy ball that became Troi's Son, and The bajoran pophets were never corpoeal. The Q also said they never Evolved.

[@kennethquinnies6023]

The Q havent been around forever. In one of the captain Kirk episodes Mcoy goes thru a portal back to earth during ww2 helping the germans to win causing starfleet to cease to exist. In one of the books when asked about that portal, the " all powerful Q" said the portal was ancient when the found it. The Q have no idea how it works, what powers it , what it is made from and no idea how to destroy it or run it. So much for the all powerful Q.

[@ChrisBrown-pu8sm]

Thanks for trying to answer what most fan's consider the biggest questions. Of course we want to know if their spirits or what. I didn't know Q introduced the Borg.