Despite being main villains since the original Star Trek in the 60's, there's only so much that Trekkies know about the mysterious Romulans. Passionate and proud, they keep their secrets close to their chest. They have spent most of their time on screen antagonizing Starfleet and threatening anyone who gets anywhere close to them.
It wasn't until DS9 that Starfleet and fans got to peer a little closer into the complex machinations of the Romulan Empire, and only because the people of Romulus were working with The Federation out of desperation. Picard, though, has started to peel back those secretive layers. After all, without one planet as their base of operations, more and more of their mystery becomes unsustainable. Also, their aggressive reaction to androids have made them far more conspicuous. Here are 10 new things that Picard taught us about the Romulans.
They Fear Androids
Even though the Romulans always play tough and offensive in almost every conflict, their abrasiveness is generally rooted in fear. They constantly fear infiltration and destabilization of their way of life, especially after they learned of their relation to the Vulcans. (Though, with the resemblance, it's a shock anyone's surprised).
However, there are few groups that the Romulans fear/hate more than synthetics. Apparently, they have deep-seeded fears and apocalyptic prophecies based on synthetics. So much so that it's possible the Romulan empire sacrified their own planet to help orchestrate the Mars attack. Or, at least, that's what Raffi's theory sounds like.
The Depths of the Tal Shiar
Everyone in The Federation already knows about the Tal Shiar, the Romulan secret police. However, that isn't the end of the Romulan secrets. In all actuality, there are even deeper subsects of the order. Very on-brand for Romulans, to be fair. They do have an obsession with subterfuge and secrets, even more than Cardassians.
The subsect in Picard is called the Zhat Vash, an order dedicated to hunting down any synthetic threats flagged by the Romulan government. After all, Romulans have a distinct fear and mistrust of all synthetic lifeforms. Considering they don't trust anyone really, the fact synthetics get a special department to themselves is pretty serious.
They Have Unique Reactions To Assimilation
While assimilation does horrible things to everyone's minds, Romulans seem to have a particularly destabilizing reaction to the process. When a Romulan scientist and her crew were assimilated, in some way shape, or form, everyone on the ship lost their minds. On the Artifact, all of the Romulan XB's are secluded to a certain area of the cube, being cared for.
However, no one seems to be able to figure out what happened to them. The only clue fans might have is that the scientist reacted violently when meeting with Soji, suggesting synthetic interference. Either way, it's only further evidence that the Romulan/Synthetic relationship is complicated and tenuous.
They're Capable Of Cosmetic Infiltration
It's been fairly well-established in the Star Trek universe that everyone uses cosmetic modifications to collect research on other species. Now, the intentions behind that data-mining is often very different. Starfleet has been known to use the cosmetic surgery to study species to help them or assess them for first contact procedures.
People like the Romulans, Cardassians, or even Klingon use it to place spies in other organizations. Notable examples are Ash Tyler from Discovery, Seska from Voyager, or Narissa from Picard. Narissa uses cosmetics to pass off as a human Starfleet officer, when actually she's a Romulan member of the Tal-Shiar.
Their Ties to Starfleet are Shaky at Best
As far as fans know, Romulan ties to Starfleet have only been implied in Picard. However, with the synth Mars attack and Narissa/Rizzo's infiltration, it's very likely that the show will reveal some collusion between the secret police and Starfleet Command itself.
While that doesn't mean Starfleet as a whole is a ruined, corrupt system, it does mean there is possibly a conspiracy going on. That would make Raffi feel vindicated, wouldn't it? It Wouldn't make up for the years she lost with her son, but it would mean her intuition was right.
They Profiteer Off Borg Tech
Out in the fringes of Romulan space, Romulans oversee the Borg Reclamation Project. While on the surface the project is a godsend to ex-Borg (nicknamed XB's), it's a re-branding of the exploitative situation they used to be in. Before, the Borg Queen used them for her own plans, furthering the Borg agenda.
Now, they have their own free will. However, that only matters so much when they can't leave the Artifact and the Romulans use them for experiments and use their tech for their own benefit. Even in the Romulan Empire's darkest moments, they still are running secret projects under the guise of something else.
They Have "Assassin Nuns"
While humans mostly only saw the rigid military of the Romulans, there was a lot more to their complex culture than just secret societies and preference for aggressiveness. For example, one organization in Romulan culture are the nuns of the Qowat Milat. These women are dedicated to protecting the people, candid honesty, and fighting for lost causes.
They are proficient in swordsmanship as well as kindness. When Picard is looking for help in his mission, he asks the Qowat Milat to pledge one of their own to their mission. Though males normally aren't allowed in the order, their ward, Elnor, joins Picard.
They Have A Unique Brand of Honesty
Considering Romulans have trouble at times with secrets, it's fascinating that subsects of their people practice complete candor. With all the intense emotions that Romulans deal with, it's probably a fairly healthy way for them to never bottle those feelings up. Though it can make them abrasive and overwhelming, it also means that not all Romulans are constantly hiding secrets.
It was just the ones in power that fiercely prescribed to that underhanded mindset. This gives fans a glimmer of understanding that there's a lot more to the Rolumans than anyone ever knew before.
They're A Fractured Society
After the destruction of Romulus, the planet's people were fractured throughout the galaxy. While many stayed on refugee colonies in nearby systems, other went to other planets, some went to Earth, others tried to rebuild on things like The Artifact. And with that fracturing also came a fracturing of their opinions.
Some were thankful for the aid The Federation attempted and protected people like Picard. Others were bitter that he fell short on the promises he made. Then there were others that wanted to denounce The Federation entirely and even work against them in their own machinations. Without unity, the Romulans have become a people without direction and without a home.
They Have Apocalyptic Prophecies
Despite having such a distinct education to information and secrets, the Romulans have also shown a sort of spirituality in recent episodes. It's not exactly a religion, but a fear of prophecies and and faith in old phobias. It seems to be the root of their current fear of androids and why they want to destroy them. They seem to tie them to apocalyptic premonitions.
While Trekkies don't fully understand this side of the Romulans, it seems to be a major part of their cultural mythos that everyone will be unraveling as the season ends. Until then, let's hope Data's daughter, Soji, doesn't become a casualty in this Romulan prophecy.