Star Trek Picard: 1x07 (Nepenthe)
In which I could really go for a pizza right about now.
Is this too much of a nostalgia-fest, to effectively put the main plot on hold for an episode so we can catch up with the Trois? Maybe, but it was delightful all the same, gave us a chance to catch our breath, and also served to give Soji a chance to process everything that she's been put through.
A lot of people have been feeling Picard's been too dark a show, that it's gone the same route as the most recent Star Wars trilogy of just breaking the established characters and filling their lives with tragedy. I think the handling of Will and Deanna shows how to do this well, though - yes, they've been through tragedy, but it didn't destroy their relationship, and they've come out the other side stronger. I felt the backstory of the death of their son was handled well; it's a black moment in their lives, but it's not defining them, and they can move past it to raise another child.
(Who, I should note, was a great addition. I liked how her initial introduction echoed Picard meeting Rene in “Family” - “Good lord, a highwayman!” - and the actor was terrific. I think if there's one thing everyone should be able to agree on, it's that the show's had wonderful casting.)
(And being reminded of Rene should also remind us that seemingly pointless deaths for cheap drama isn't a sin that's unique to 21st century Trek...)
On the subject of cheap deaths - Hugh's death was so abrupt I'm almost convinced it's a fake-out. Surely Borg technology and Seven of Nine can find a way to revive him? I do appreciate it did provide a chance to show Narissa as a competent and clever villain - she recognised that she couldn't defeat Elnor one-on-one, so she lured him into a feint to distract him from her real target.
Back to Will and Deanna - It was great to see Riker again, but what really impressed me was the scenes with Troi. It felt like the writer was deliberately making up for the poor writing of the character on TNG, by giving her scenes where she could really shine and show her skills as a councillor, both with Picard and Soji. It was long overdue, and I was glad to see it.
(Oh, and did anyone else catch Riker mentioning the Kzinti? Now there's a deep cut lore reference - I never expected to see them referenced in a live-action series!)
Meanwhile, on La Sirena, we get some more information on Dr. Jurati's motivations, and I feel very vindicated at what looks like conclusive proof that Commdore Oh is Vulcan, and not another deep-cover Romulan. Her actions being based on what seem like visions of universal destruction calls to mind the Control storyline in Discovery, which raises some interesting possibilities. At the end of Discovery, there weren't that many people left who knew the full scope of Control's threat, but they were all well placed to pass on warnings. Ash Tyler, last we saw him, was rebuilding Section 31, who've been conspicuously absent from this conspiracy. Spock, of course, reacted very badly to the Red Angel's visions, and would go on to try and build ties to Romulus - could he have unknowingly laid the roots for Zhat Vash?
Or maybe it's just coincidence, and both series are doing unrelated AI conspiracy plots. Or Control will serve as an example of the threat of uncontrolled AI, but not the sole example. Between M-5, Nomad, and the various computer-gods in TOS, AI in the Star Trek universe has a better than even chance of going bad, after all. And we're still missing pieces to this puzzle, like how are the Borg and the Artifact linked to all of this, and what data was Soji supposed to gather through her job? Too many questions still to reach any real conclusions.
Is this too much of a nostalgia-fest, to effectively put the main plot on hold for an episode so we can catch up with the Trois? Maybe, but it was delightful all the same, gave us a chance to catch our breath, and also served to give Soji a chance to process everything that she's been put through.
A lot of people have been feeling Picard's been too dark a show, that it's gone the same route as the most recent Star Wars trilogy of just breaking the established characters and filling their lives with tragedy. I think the handling of Will and Deanna shows how to do this well, though - yes, they've been through tragedy, but it didn't destroy their relationship, and they've come out the other side stronger. I felt the backstory of the death of their son was handled well; it's a black moment in their lives, but it's not defining them, and they can move past it to raise another child.
(Who, I should note, was a great addition. I liked how her initial introduction echoed Picard meeting Rene in “Family” - “Good lord, a highwayman!” - and the actor was terrific. I think if there's one thing everyone should be able to agree on, it's that the show's had wonderful casting.)
(And being reminded of Rene should also remind us that seemingly pointless deaths for cheap drama isn't a sin that's unique to 21st century Trek...)
On the subject of cheap deaths - Hugh's death was so abrupt I'm almost convinced it's a fake-out. Surely Borg technology and Seven of Nine can find a way to revive him? I do appreciate it did provide a chance to show Narissa as a competent and clever villain - she recognised that she couldn't defeat Elnor one-on-one, so she lured him into a feint to distract him from her real target.
Back to Will and Deanna - It was great to see Riker again, but what really impressed me was the scenes with Troi. It felt like the writer was deliberately making up for the poor writing of the character on TNG, by giving her scenes where she could really shine and show her skills as a councillor, both with Picard and Soji. It was long overdue, and I was glad to see it.
(Oh, and did anyone else catch Riker mentioning the Kzinti? Now there's a deep cut lore reference - I never expected to see them referenced in a live-action series!)
Meanwhile, on La Sirena, we get some more information on Dr. Jurati's motivations, and I feel very vindicated at what looks like conclusive proof that Commdore Oh is Vulcan, and not another deep-cover Romulan. Her actions being based on what seem like visions of universal destruction calls to mind the Control storyline in Discovery, which raises some interesting possibilities. At the end of Discovery, there weren't that many people left who knew the full scope of Control's threat, but they were all well placed to pass on warnings. Ash Tyler, last we saw him, was rebuilding Section 31, who've been conspicuously absent from this conspiracy. Spock, of course, reacted very badly to the Red Angel's visions, and would go on to try and build ties to Romulus - could he have unknowingly laid the roots for Zhat Vash?
Or maybe it's just coincidence, and both series are doing unrelated AI conspiracy plots. Or Control will serve as an example of the threat of uncontrolled AI, but not the sole example. Between M-5, Nomad, and the various computer-gods in TOS, AI in the Star Trek universe has a better than even chance of going bad, after all. And we're still missing pieces to this puzzle, like how are the Borg and the Artifact linked to all of this, and what data was Soji supposed to gather through her job? Too many questions still to reach any real conclusions.