 |
| Seven of Nine is back... and out for blood! |
Original Air Date: Feb. 20, 2020. Written by: Kirsten Beyer. Directed by: Jonathan Frakes.
THE PLOT:
The Fenris Rangers are vigilantes attempting to maintain some kind of order in the worlds the Federation abandoned after the Mars incident. On the way to Freecloud, La Sirena rescues one such ranger: Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan).
Picard is searching for Bruce Maddox (John Ales), the former Daystrom Institute Robotics Chair who went rogue after the synthetics ban. At about the same time as Dahj's death, Maddox's lab was destroyed by Tal Shiar agents. He went into hiding and turned to the wrong person for help: Bjayzl (Necar Zadegan), a criminal who loaned Maddox the funds to set up his lab, and who now hopes to recoup that investment by selling him to the Romulans.
Seven doesn't particularly care about Maddox - but she badly wants Bjayzl, who has made her fortune by abducting former Borg and selling their implants on the black market. After Seven agrees to help Picard, the La Sirena crew prepare a sting. They pass themselves off as criminals and use irresistible bait to lure Bjayzl into the open: Seven herself!
CHARACTERS:
Picard: After four episodes of being alternately grumpy, morose, and guilt-ridden, Picard finally gets to cut loose and have some fun! His criminal disguise is a pirate eyepatch, and he fakes a German accent that makes him sound more than a little like Werner Herzog. Stewart puts just enough ham into these scenes to make them enjoyable, and I wouldn't have minded if the German pirate act had lasted just a couple scenes longer. In more serious material, Picard acknowledges to Seven that, after his own removal from the Collective, he never felt that he recovered all of his humanity, but he adds that he and Seven are "both working on it."
Seven of Nine: Despite her concern to Picard that she never really recovered her humanity, this Seven is far more casual in her movements and speech patterns than on Voyager - which fits, after twenty years away from the Borg. Her agenda in hunting Bjayzl is more personal than she initially lets on, which, given the teaser, is no surprise. Still, she makes sure Picard is able to continue with his mission, impressed that he "still thinks there's a place in the galaxy for mercy... Somebody out here ought to have a little hope."
Capt. Rios: Goes undercover as a go-between, Picard's contact with Bjayzl's representative. Told that he needs to make himself stand out, he does so by dressing an acting like a stereotypical 1970s pimp, complete with swagger. After his part is done, he withdraws to the bar, maintaining his cover while at the same time keeping watch to make sure the plan doesn't go awry (spoiler: it does).
Dr. Jurati: Before the mission, we see her in her quarters, viewing old vids that reveal that she was more than just Maddox's colleague. She stays on the ship, tasked with the relatively simple job of beaming Picard's group out the second the deal is done. This makes her bizarrely nervous, to the point that the EMH activates to inquire about her psychological emergency.
Raffi: Reaches her destination, but she has difficulty saying goodbye. Despite her resentment of Picard, she's clearly enjoyed working with him again. "It was almost like the old days," she reflects, and is genuine in wishing him well. Unfortunately, her plan goes even more off-track than Picard's. She's come to Freecloud to reunite with her estranged son, Gabriel (Mason Gooding) - but he is less than thrilled to see her.
Ellnor: His upbringing on Vashti has made him a strong fighter, but it has left him otherwise ignorant of the outside universe. He can't quite come to grips with the sting operation, and it takes him several minutes to figure out that Picard's and Rios's disguises are because they're "pretending." His sheltered upbringing has also left him with no digital trail, making him the only member of the La Sirena crew who doesn't receive a personalized holographic pop-up ad when the ship arrives on Freecloud. The others bat their ads away with varying degrees of annoyance, while Ellnor is crestfallen at being excluded.
Bruce Maddox: It's been a good three decades since The Measure of a Man, and Bruce Madox has aged - and been recast. John Ales is fine as Maddox, and bizarrely looks more like an older version of the TNG guest character than the original actor now does. He gets relatively little to do, though, mainly being the MacGuffin that allows the story to happen. Injured by the rough treatment of Bjayzl's staff, he gasps to Jurati that there was much more to the attack than anyone realized, indicating that some of Raffi's conspiracy theories are a lot less crazy than others have treated them.
Hot Space Criminal of the Week: From what I've seen thus far, the modern Star Trek shows have mostly eschewed the over-the-top outfits of 1960s and 1990s Trek. Well, Necar Zadegan's Bjayzl is here to change that. She's introduced wearing an outfit that's sort of a cross between a negligee and a body-length condom. With glitter. Oh, and part of a wicker basket on her shoulders. She later reappears in a gown with '80s shoulder pads, a '70s collar, and a cape. Zadegan leans fully into the camp, particularly in her scenes opposite Jeri Ryan. She may clash with the more grounded aesthetic of the larger series, but it's kind of nice to see some of this type of goofiness back in Star Trek, if only for this one episode.
THOUGHTS:
For the second installment in a row, the show manages to nudge the larger plot forward while still delivering a reasonably self-contained episode. As is likely already clear, I enjoyed Stardust City Rag. It's the first episode to evoke some of the feel of old school Trek: a little bit silly, occasionally clunky, and even squeezing in a moment of moralizing by Picard when he tells Seven that "there is no solace in revenge." This is as close to a TNG episode as I suspect this series is likely to offer.
It also has clear links to Voyager. It specifically connects to Voyager after the point I gave up on it, with substantial references to a character who was apparently introduced late in that series. Is Picard trying to make me go back and finish Voyager?
As was often true in Voyager, Seven more or less takes over this story. Which is fine. Jeri Ryan remains good in the role, and Seven and Picard make for a surprisingly engaging duo. Also, while Seven's role is the central one, her spotlight doesn't come at the expense of the regulars. Soji and Narek get the week off (a good choice; they'd have just been a distraction), but the rest of the cast all receive at least a few good bits. Everyone seems to be having fun, savoring a caper pastiche in a series that's previously taken itself too seriously for such fare.
I will say, however, that the light tone of the bulk of the episode is sharply at odds with the teaser. In what's been a consistent feature of this series, we open in the past - This time, bearing witness to an ex-Borg having his implants removed without benefit of anesthesia. The scene feels like something out of a Saw movie; it certainly doesn't feel like an opening to by far the lightest Picard episode yet.
The episode ends with what's meant to be a shocking twist. It might have been one, too, if not for one problem: It was so clearly telegraphed, most viewers were probably at least half an episode ahead of it.
OVERALL:
Jeri Ryan's return as Seven is welcome, and she and Patrick Stewart work well together. The episode has its issues, with a grim teaser that's jarringly out of step with the rest of the show and a final stretch that feels more than a little rushed. Still, it's an entertaining romp, and it's the most classically "Star Trek" the series has been. I'd be lying if I said I didn't appreciate that.
Overall Rating: 7/10.
Previous Episode: Absolute Candor
Next Episode: The Impossible Box
Review Index
To receive new review updates, follow me:
On Twitter:
On Threads:
No comments:
Post a Comment