Will she wear a standard Starfleet uniform or own her costumes (but with Starfleet comm badge and tricorder)?
Seven's not going to be the permanent Captain of the Stargazer, indeed the Stargazer isn't even going to be in season 3. Also, there's a comic mini-series being released this summer which takes place after season 2 in which the Stargazer has gone missing and Picard must work with Seven to find it, indicating she's not commanding the ship anymore.
A comic the showrunner didn't even know existed until it was announced. Though since the season is finished, the writers probably know what isn't happening in Season 3.
I'd be disappointed if Seven was in Starfleet in Season 3. Not upset, but disappointed. In Season 1, all the main characters were either ex-Starfleet or non-Starfleet. Then all of a sudden Starfleet was the place to be in Season 2. That rubbed me the wrong way. Picard, to me, is about people who used to be inside Starfleet looking from the outside now. 90% of the S2 was outside the Federation. First with the Confederation and then in 2024. So even in Season 2, they still managed to avoid Starfleet and the Federation most of the time. I know Starfleet will be part of the show in full force in Season 3, but Seven not being in Starfleet would be a reminder of what PIC started off as.
With a title like Picard season 3: Wild Speculation I'd guess the season will focus on Picard withdrawing his retirement latinum from its safe investment portfolio and putting it all in crypto currencies, NFTs, and other high risk investments as the series reinvents itself into a show about 24th century Wall Street.
I agree with you about Seven; she's her own person and never needed or required to "fit in" or be branded in the Starfleet mold. Having the series non-Starfleet was its charm, and presented a different perspective to the world of Trek. Just wish they could move on from the Borg, Romulans and the Soong tripe. Does anyone think Picard and TNG crew would be ballsy enough to... journey into what the Borg is guarding?
Same here, she seems far too much her own boss and she's starting to get on in years to get fully recruited, water under the bridge (but she'll be fine as a ally or liaison to Starfleet in disputed buffer space).
Honestly, I’m not even sure why Picard gave her temporary command of the ship when there was an entire bridge crew that could have done that job. (Well, we all know why he did it…because Seven is a main character despite having no Starfleet training whatsoever.)
Well she kinda informally trained on the job with Janeway's crew for roughly half a decade and kept her in check? Another reason she's not Starfleet material is that she spent too long with a paramilitary group and while she had a sense of justice, when she was first introduced in S1 she was a little too dangerous and ignored Picard's misgivings. While she had that killer instinct for taking a hill held by Cardassians or Jem'Hadar, she likely got bored when failing to settle into peaceful rebuilt Earth after flunking her Starfleet admission.
She's not the same person she was twenty years ago. She might be looking to settle down (ideally with Raffi as her first officer).
Raffi is in command of her own ship. Why would she be demoted to first officer of someone who isn’t even in Starfleet? Or is this some strange usage of the term ‘first officer’ that I’m unaware of?
No. IIRC, she was just tagging along on the Excelsior as one of the supervising officers for its Cadet Cruise. According to Michelle Hurd in an interview, Raffi was supposed to be an Academy teacher at the start of S2.
The show is called "Star Trek", not "StarFleet Trek". So the show would still work if it focused on non-(StarFleet / UFP / Government) related things. Now whether or not the creatives in Paramount has the cajones to do such a thing, that's a different story. I for one would love to see the civilian adventures of Seven as a Ranger.
Its a popularity contest, Seven is entitled the rank of Captain because she's been around for 20 years and still kicks butt. It makes sense for Seven fans, so it should definitely make sense for the showrunners. It's all about the "COOL FACTOR", don't question things, just enjoy.
Being a "Provisional Captain" just means she's a substitute Captain. What she does is all well & good for the current situation, but a "Official Captain" will come in and take over Rios spot and handle the situation. Until then, Seven will do just fine. And she has the backing of Admiral JLP, and I'm sure Admiral Janeway would back Seven as well. Having two legendary former Captains, now Admirals; backing Seven is a guranteed way to have her actions stick. And the fact that these new "Borg Cooperative" prevented a Galactic Scale Event from becoming a tragedy speaks volumes on their actions. It was a bit harsh and forceful, but they can learn tact and diplomacy with time and negotiation.
Rios' ship was the star of the series, there's nothing Starfleet about his ship- interior or exterior -, again I agree there are loads of tales to tell outside from the Starfleet procedurals which the showrunners will never get right. Branch off and open the door to something fresh with the sprinkles of what PICARD introduced. I would champion more Rios, wish he didn't go.
I completely agree, I love Rio's ship as a 3rd party designed original StarShip / Fast Cargo Ship that has reasonable defense tools. In my head canon for the 26th century. The average civilian can take tests to own a AstroMobile license and traverse the stars in their own AstroMobiles that are a big larger than modern AutoMobiles. Transwarp Conduit Highways allows simple FTL without needing to own a FTL drive of any sort while AstroMobiles basically run on impulse so you can fly to any UFP Star System to visit or do business. Civilian ownership of AstroMobiles, Shuttles, StarShips would be FAR more common. I have my own "Time Travel" shenanigans on how to bring Rio's Back from the past. We all know StarFleet and the UFP eventually gains Time Travel by the 25th century.