Now that the ship is traveling through space, Star Trek: Picard is starting to feel a lot more like, well, like a Star Trek show. After Seven of Nine ended up on Picard’s ship at the end of last week’s episode, we catch up on what she’s been up to since Voyager ended. Like pretty much everyone else we’ve run into from the past, she’s had a pretty rough time. The episode opens with Icheb’s borg parts being stripped out of him while he’s still conscious. Seven of Nine breaks in and shoots the doctor, but it’s too late for her to save Icheb. She holds the former Borg she thought of as her son and puts him out of him misery. This is… a much darker timeline than I expected after the end of Voyager.
We learn that Seven has spent the last few years as a ranger. Rangers being a group of vigilantes that help people with nowhere else to turn. She’s been hunting down a crime lord named Bjayzl, who likes to dissect former Borgs for parts. She was behind Icheb’s death at the beginning of the episode. Bjayzl also has Bruce Maddox in custody, and is ready to trade him to the Tal Shiar. Looks like Picard and Seven have the same target for now. Seven initially blows off Picard until he tells her about his mission. He’s trying to save someone who has no one else in her corner. Who may die without Picard’s help. Seven can’t say no to that.
Sir Patrick Stewart as Jean-Luc Picard; Jeri Ryan as Seven of Nine; Evan Evagora as Elnor; Photo Cr: Trae Patton/CBS
This episode came as a huge relief after four very serious episodes of Picard, and two mostly serious seasons of Star Trek: Discovery. Somebody remembered that Star Trek can be fun. It can still have drama and big emotional moments, but neither the original series nor The Next Generation were completely self-serious all the time. Even the most philosophical and debate-heavy episodes of TNG knew to throw in some jokes or holodeck antics every now and then. This is the first new Trek episode in a while that feels like it really got that. As the ship heads toward freecloud, everyone has to dismiss an annoying holographic pop-up ad. Nothing’s made of it, it’s a fun extrapolation of the hell world we live in now. It also perfectly sets up what kind of place Freecloud is: An even more nightmare-capitalist version of Las Vegas. Sounds like a great setting for an episode.
Seven of Nine comes up with an idea of how to get Maddox away from Bjayzl: Use her as bait. Picard and Rios disguise themselves as a broker and smuggler, each with a ridiculous and flamboyant outfit. I love the contrast between Rios, who is super not comfortable in his assigned character, and Picard, who is way too comfortable. It’s no secret that Patrick Stewart is a great actor, which is why it’s so much fun to watch him completely ham something up. As soon as he dons that black eyepatch, he puts on a ridiculous French accent that would make John Cleese tell him to tone it down. It’s absolutely wonderful, and my favorite thing the show has done so far.
Santiago Cabrera as Rios – Photo Cr: Trae Patton/CBS
They get down to the planet where Rios and Picard entice Bjayzl with an internal scan of Seven of Nine. The show cuts back and forth between the preparation phase and execution, keeping us on our toes about what’s going to happen next. It’s a fun way to build tension in the scene, mirroring the balancing act that Picard and Rios have to perform to remain undetected. Picard, Rios, and Seven get in front of Bjayzl, who shows them the captured Maddox. Seven allows Bjayzl to taunt her for a bit before throwing off her cuffs and threatening to kill Bjayzl. Picard talks her down, imploring her not to give up the humanity she’s fought to regain. Bjayzl agrees to give them Maddox in exchange for her life.
The show does some interesting things with the talk of humanity. As it reminded us earlier, Seven isn’t the only one here who used to be a Borg. Picard was famously assimilated, and that isn’t something you can just get over. When Seven asks Picard if he ever got all his humanity back, he admits he feels he hasn’t. But that’s why he continues to work at it every day. It’s a well-written, emotionally resonant scene, and ironically, it’s the most human Picard has felt all series.
Of course, warm words from Picard can’t fix everything. Seven tells Picard she’s beaming aboard a Ranger ship, but really beams back down to Bjayzl. She only went along with the trade so there wouldn’t be a bounty on Picard’s ship. She didn’t tell him where she was really going because he still believes in humanity and she wants to preserve that. Between last week’s episode’s dunking on Picard and this, Star Trek: Picard is starting to show why the character deserves his own sequel series. He’s arrogant and diplomatic to a fault, but he has an idealism that people are drawn to. No wonder we all want to be a part of his crew all these years later.
Dominic Burgess as Mr. Vup of the the CBS All Access series STAR TREK: PICARD. Photo Cr: Trae Patton/CBS
This is the second of two episodes directed by Jonathan Frakes this season, and I hope he comes back for more in Season Two. Once again, we get a fun, character-driven Star Trek adventure. Even the smaller storylines carried big emotional weight. Raffi found her son and swore she was clean now. He dismissed her, knowing that she still insists there was more to the synthetic attack on Mars than what had been reported. That exchange told us more about her character than we got from her entire episode-long conversation earlier this season. It also hinted at the larger story that’s going to play out in the second half of the season.
Picard questions a hurt, struggling Maddox who finally gives us some answers about Dahj and Soji. The Mom they talk to is an AI that protects them and guides them to safety. It also activates their defensive capabilities when they are in danger. Maddox tells Picard that Soji is at the Borg reclamation project. That he sent her there and Dahj to Earth so they could find out the truth about they synthetic ban. He thinks both the Romulans and the Federation are involved in a cover-up somehow. Between that and Raffi’s theories about the Mars attack, there’s a lot of story for the second half of the season to unpack. And that’s without there being a potential traitor on board. As the episode ends, Dr. Jurati kills Maddox, referring to things she knows that she wishes she didn’t. Well that’ll keep me interested for another week at least.
Star Trek: Picard has really come into its own these past two weeks. Ever since finally getting to space, the series has given us two exciting, thoughtful Star Trek adventures. Next week will probably get back to the bigger plot, but I’m hoping the show has truly found its voice here. If it can build off this momentum, I can’t wait to see where it’ll take this story in the season’s second half.
Star Trek: Picard streams Thursdays on CBS All Access.
- Star Trek: Picard Season 1 Episode 4 recap
- Star Trek: Picard Season 1 Episode 3 recap
- Star Trek: Picard Season 1 Episode 2 recap
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