Funny title choice; “Disengage”.
It would have been the smart choice from both Captain Shaw and
Raffi as they both have good reason to do so.
Avoid risking lives of his crew, and because she was
ordered too by her superiors.
Yet by the end of the episode, both have gone against the suggestion
and engaged the enemy instead, against unbalanced odds.
First up I want to say what a spectacle Picard has been so far.
The sets of Picard have been darker than previous Star Trek series for sure, but
I have had little trouble in seeing things unfold neither
inside the ships which have plenty of colour to break things up, nor in space which seems
very well lit for a void.
Not complaining, I love being able to discern the actions scenes.
Speaking of the dynamic entry of the Titan A was fantastic,
with severing the tractor beam by warping into it, say
what you will, that was an act worthy of the Titan name, not bad for an exploratory craft.
Small elements were maintained in the ensuing crisis, such attempted beam out and I was
worried that they had forgotten about the transport
inhibitors preventing just that, established a scene
before.
But no, they remembered and addressed it, ironing out potential issues before they arose
so that nit-pickers like me can get on with other
things instead of being distracted by tiny issues, and
instead focus on the unfolding drama.
From the beginning of this episode, there is a question that is not answered until the
end, “Who is Jack Crusher?”
Riker speculates, we speculate and Picard tells him and us not to.
This dismissal is understandable from Picard considering for
the majority of his life, he has been alone, the occasional
romance sure, but nothing concrete.
Picard is a man of duty and I think that would extend to his
family, so for him to learn that he may have a son who he was not there for is a guilt
I think he would rather not confront.
Also I think there is still that element of him that is a little defensive when even
his friends push into his personal life and this is a lifelong reflex of his.
Additionally they were in a crisis at the time and Picard probably did
not want to bring added emotion into this when he needed
his wits about him.
I need this timeline set out for me though, because Ed Speleers is 35 years old
and the oldest Jack can be is 22 so…
The chap looks good don’t get me wrong, but that’s a big gap so
I want to hear a canon age for the young Crusher.
Turns out that Jack has had a long life of skirting the law and run ins with various
agencies and authorities all in the name of trying to do
good.
This has left him a wanted man and regarded as a
thief, conman and even collaborating with various governments or uprisings.
Not exactly Starfleet material and a far cry from Captain Picard
but with a brashness reminiscent of Jean-Luc in his youth.
In some ways, he also reminds me of the Kelvin universe Kirk more than Picard.
Beverly too is claimed to have changed a lot in the last
two decades, and considering Jack’s occupation and
knowledge of Starfleet regulations, I’m inclined to believe her son’s claims.
Stealing and trading in supplies, firearms included does seem a far
cry from the Doctor Crusher we once knew, but it all
seems calculated for overall good reasons.
Eradicate a plague here, deliver medical supplies there,
pay off people along the way to turn a blind eye, it all hints at someone that is still
trying to better people’s lives, just without the resources
of the Federation behind them.
This series has done a lot of that already, immersing itself in the edges of the Federation’s
life in both a geographic sense and moral one.
The system where we confront the Shrike is beyond UFP
space, the world in which Raffi is immersed is one that still operates on currency and
criminal behaviour and Jack and Beverly have been sailing
the cracks in the Federation’s reach.
That is even what elements like the Fenris Rangers were
for, they emerged in the wake of a withdrawn Starfleet
to patrol and protect the Neutral Zone and the in the wake of that withdrawal, the galaxy
has grown a little darker.
Captain Vadic gets her big introduction, played by Catpt...
ain...
Vadic?
Why did I write that?
Captain Vadic gets her big introduction, played by Amanda Plummer and I have to say, I was
unsure as to this character prior to hearing her dialogue.
She is delightfully deranged, all manners and civility with a
playful glee that does little to cover her unhinged nature underneath.
She goes to great lengths to explain the nature of the Shrike and why she
chose it and it could simply be herself she is describing.
Some shrikes are also known as “Butcher-birds” because they don’t just capture their prey,
insects and the like; they then impale them on natural
spikes for easier consumption.
An accurate reputation and framed like that, I really
would not want to see the crew caught by someone who
compares themselves to this.
Right now she feels she has the upper hand, because, well, yes, she
does, and I don’t just mean the firepower at her disposal but access to the personnel
files and psych reports from Starfleet.
I suspect an insider and I am hoping it’s not Shaw himself and this was all a
ruse, I guess we’ll find out.
That’s my wild stab in the dark theory.
Speaking of Stabbing in the dark…
When Worf enters, he does so with a the sort of flurry of efficiency and bloodshed that
we are told Klingons bring to the battlefield with their
melee weapons, but we never really have seen before
thanks to keeping Star Trek PG.
His entry into killing all the guards around Sneed to extract Raffi also
assuages concerns that just because Worf has taken on a more pacifistic approach, does
not mean he is not a badass.
Or apparently a complete pacifist now, considering he straight up merc’d about 5
criminals.
I guess now we know what Captain Worf got up to for sure after the Enterprise E, he
took a ranking role in Starfleet Intelligence.
I also appreciate the Klingon theme from the films that was
played over his appearance, except rendered in brass giving it this noble feel, which
suites Worf to a T.
Sneed was played brilliantly by the way, he came across as an experienced and dangerous
criminal, holding back on his reveals until he was certain
he had the upper hand.
Shame it did not help him stay a “head”.
Raffi also meets up with Jay, her ex-husband and Gabe’s father who adds to her
character, we learn it was her role in Starfleet, her delving into the Zhat Vash attack that
lead her down a dark path of paranoia and eventual
substance abuse which then had her cast aside, but it
looks like this was something she always struggled with maybe even coming from that life
considering her and jay’s familiarity with it.
The conflicted priorities have her once more putting duty
above her family, but Jay only sees her chasing leads that destroyed her as it has in the
past and wants that kept away from Gabe.
Raffi is repeatedly sacrificing so much for Starfleet, and wading
among the demons that she would be better served avoiding.
By the end of this episode, she has not only burnt bridges with her family, but given
up her sobriety at the chance of furthering her leads.
You can say her had was forced and that is true, but it was still a sacrifice she made.
I wonder how many others will be losing things for sake
of uncovering this plot.
Picard seeing Beverly again, awake and for the first time in over 20 years was everything
I wanted it to be, the wordless, gesture-less meeting
of their gaze across the bridge, minutes away from a crisis
lets everything else blur to the background.
The question in Picard’s mind is evident to us all,
considering the constant foreshadowing ensuring it’s what is in our head too.
“Is he?”
And her reply is equally voiceless, just letting barely
controlled turmoil of emotion bubble beneath the surface
conveys everything Picard needs to know, that Jack is his son.
This changes things for Picard, and to his credit, Captain Shaw too.
Shaw was fine to allow a wanted fugitive to be handed over to preserve
the lives of his crew, but the Admiral’s son?
That is a little too far it seems, so the order is given to
engage.
Once more, the series refrains from overloading introductions, with Beverly finally reuniting
with Picard but apart from that, Worf gets his
first on-screen appearance.
Again, I appreciate the gradual introductions of the characters, having them
organically woven into the story seems far less
contrived or for the sake of fan-service only, which is a trap this season could easily fall
in to.
So speculation once more, I think Picard and Beverly are going to have to have a talk about
things, but now is hardly the time, unless we get
a quiet moment in the nebula while they play hide and
seek.
Let’s hope there is some metreon gas pockets they can Riker manoeuvre in there.
Anyway, I reckon, much as Riker seems to piece together,
that Beverly and Picard may have tried for a
relationship post Star Trek Nemesis, however shortly after this, Picard was alerted to
the Romulan Supernova event and asked to head the taskforce
leading the evacuation.
I think Beverly firmly believed that Picard needed to do this, there
were so many lives at steak after all, but she was
already pregnant with Jack and opted not to tell Picard, knowing that it would anchor
him and take his mind away from crucial role, so she ups
and vanished and it was not amicable.
By the time the evacuation plan came apart, in 2385, Jack
would have already been 5-ish, and by that stage, I can
imagine the trepidation of her just rocking up and being like, “oh, here is your kid
by the way”.
So far, not sure what to make of him as a character,
he is being the noble rogue I think, and clearly cares for Beverly yet he also seems to enjoy
his reputation and this lifestyle, but I guess we will see
where he ends up.
Thanks for watching this review of episode 2 of Picard’s season 3, Disengage.
I’ve Been Ric and I’ll see you later for another one, thanks again
and goodbye!