Was Picard Wesley's real father?

[Kobayshi Maru]

Watching the first season again and listening to the Mission Log podcast made me wonder if this was ever considered.

Was the idea rejected because the producers knew it would scandalize the fans? I'm thinking of the tempest in a teapot over some language in this board's Fan Productions "Axanar" thread.

Do the sensibilities of the more sensitive Trek fans prevent more adult ideas from ever surfacing in Trek? Is Trek essentially happy-go-lucky family fare like the Abrams films - eschewing mature content for all-ages appeal?

Is one exclusive of the other?

From the moment Picard said to Wesley: "I knew your father." The way he said it, I knew that there was more to that than meet the eye or the ear for that matter. Something is definitely not quite right here.

 

[Jeyl]

If Picard was really Wesley's father, wouldn't Q have brought this up? It's hard to imagine Q not bringing this little fact up when Picard starts singing praises about how glorious humanity is and how they'll become like angels and gods. I think knocking up a married woman, playing part in deceiving the husband that Wesley is really their child AND sending the husband on a mission that would cause his death would have been a fantastic counter argument. I mean, Picard did something seriously wrong and all he wanted to do was sweep it all under the carpet so he can go on his crusade declaring how freaking awesome he is.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

From the moment Picard said to Wesley: "I knew your father." The way he said it, I knew that there was more to that than meet the eye or the ear for that matter. Something is definitely not quite right here.

Well, of course something wasn't right - Jack died while on Picard's old crew. So that alone is bound to make Picard uncomfortable whenever he talked about him.

 

[Memory Alpha]

Picard was not Wesley's father. Besides, I always got the impression that there was much more between Picard and Guinan (I recently re-watched "Time's Arrow") than Picard and Crusher. Picard was generally attracted to Crusher, but beyond that I'm not sure that much happened.

I always thought it a little artificial that Star Trek and certainly TNG went to the brink of characters having relationships and then abruptly found a way to back off. I think it would have added a dynamic to the series if they'd allowed things like that to happen. Wendy Hughes' character in "Lessons" was Picard's perfect match, and they just dropped it.