'The Enemy', was Picard or Tomalak right?

[JesterFace]

In 'The Enemy' a Romulan officers life is in danger because there's no cure for him on the Enterprise. Only thing that could save him was Worf. The Romulans could help him but are on the other side of the Neutral Zone.
Here's the question:
Did Picard do the right thing when he didn't allow the Romulan ship to enter the Neurtal Zone to help their officer?

Like Tomalak said: ”You would place territory over a mans life?”

The Romulans should not have been on the Neutral Zone. That was their mistake. But was it really worth a life to prevent Romulans to help their officer?
I think Picard should have allowed the Romulans to help their officer. Romulans had broken the rules. They should be punished for that. But that officer only had one life.

One thing might be that perhaps Picard believed Worf would eventually cooperate so the Warbird didn't need to meet them?

 

[Armus]

When Picard asked Tomalak if there were any more Romulans on the planet Tomalek lied to him and Picard knew it. Picard may have felt that Tomalek was using the injured officer as a pretense to invade Federation space.

 

[JesterFace]

When Picard asked Tomalak if there were any more Romulans on the planet Tomalek lied to him and Picard knew it.

"We have found another survivor from your one man craft"

 

[amp]

I think Tomalak was just posturing. If anything, he was mostly concerned about having Starfleet able to interrogate the surviving officer.

BTW, it's always been my head canon that after the Romulans learned about Geordi's visor during this episode they then targeted him for brainwashing in "The Mind's Eye".

 

[Farscape One]

BTW, it's always been my head canon that after the Romulans learned about Geordi's visor during this episode they then targeted him for brainwashing in "The Mind's Eye".

Excellent point and I agree.

Given there is more than a year and a half between those events, there is PLENTY of time for the Romulans to not only set up and experiment to make sure their plan works, but also to get all the intelligence needed to send Geordi's 'replacement' to Risa.

 

[BillJ]

Picard was right. Clearly. The Romulans violated the Neutral Zone twice and were ready to start a war.

 

[DonIago]

It's been a long time since I've seen the episode, but if Tomalak hadn't lied to Picard then I might be inclined to side with him. As it was, he clearly didn't seem to be negotiating in good faith to begin with.

 

[JesterFace]

Picard was right. Clearly. The Romulans violated the Neutral Zone twice and were ready to start a war.

Picard was right in protecting Federation space but.... that Romulan officer only had one life. The Romulan officer must have known the risks of this type of mission but still....
Like Tomalak said: ”You would place territory over a mans life?”

Picard or Tomalak didn't think that a shuttle could have been enough to transport the Romulan officer or bring someone to help him from the Warbird? I wonder if that might have been out of the question. The only way to transport him was to get the Enterprise and the Warbird to meet. Really? I find it weird to watch this episode because Picard is so sure of himself, "you will not cross the Neutral Zone, even if it means saving lives".

Romulans made a mistake, that's obvious. Picard was right. Still, the Romulan died.

Picard could have given the Romulans permission to get their officer in exchange for something beneficial.

 

[DonIago]

Is a shuttle even suggested as a means of conveyance during the episode? If not, that seems like a bit of a loophole.

I wonder whether Picard's decision would be viewed differently if Tomalak had been entirely honest with him and hadn't had such a snotty attitude.

 

[Farscape One]

Time was an issue, and the Enterprise is far faster than a shuttle. Plus, ashuttle wouldn't have stood a chance against a warbird, so Picard would have basically been giving away members of his crew to Tomalak.

A shuttle was never mentioned because it was a clear non-option.

 

[BillJ]

Like Tomalak said: ”You would place territory over a mans life?”

In a heartbeat.

 

[JesterFace]

Is a shuttle even suggested as a means of conveyance during the episode? If not, that seems like a bit of a loophole.

I don't think it was mentioned.

A shuttle was never mentioned because it was a clear non-option.

Federation shuttle may not have been an option but Tomalak could have sent a shuttle if Picard approved it.
No one ever suggested that.

A Romulan scout ship, like the one in 'The Defector', might be faster than a shuttle?

 

[amp]

I don't think it was mentioned.

Federation shuttle may not have been an option but Tomalak could have sent a shuttle if Picard approved it.
No one ever suggested that.

A Romulan scout ship, like the one in 'The Defector', might be faster than a shuttle?

I think Tomalak would have the same objection to sending a shuttle (or a scout ship) as Picard. Neither one would trust the other to not simply seize the ship and its crew.

 

[Mojochi]

Is a shuttle even suggested as a means of conveyance during the episode? If not, that seems like a bit of a loophole.

I'd have to think a guy who is on death's door, while in a 24th century sickbay, has vastly depreciating chances of survival when you take him out of it, to courier him in some transport shuttle. Albeit, a line of dialog to that effect would've been helpful. The original script does reflect that he is not well enough to leave sickbay

BTW, it's always been my head canon that after the Romulans learned about Geordi's visor during this episode they then targeted him for brainwashing in "The Mind's Eye".

That's a good bit of fun head canoning. It's similar to my own, of Tomalak, after being humiliated by Picard here, hatching the plan to use Admiral Jarok to lure the Enterprise into the Neutral Zone & return the favor. For sure, this little run in really rubs the Rommies the wrong way, & gets everybody's wheels turning on how to make up for it

As to the OP. No, this is well within Picard's right to refuse. They didn't just break a rule, or as Tomalak laughingly suggests, accidentally stumbled to the wrong side. There's every reason to suspect they were an espionage craft of some kind.

By all rights, them being there is a hostile act, that puts millions of lives in jeopardy. If you lose your life in a hostile act against me, you have only yourself to blame. Firstly, Picard is holding where he is to retrieve one of his people, which is delaying the return of the Romulan. That person's life is in jeopardy too, & takes precedence over the dying (Criminal) man's life.

Plus, Picard is not actually "measuring territories against a man's life". The territories have already been measured, so to protect a peace. Picard is safeguarding lives by defending it... at the cost of one criminal's life.

Frankly, it was truly magnanimous of Picard to even tell Tomalak about their lost craft & survivors. If it's me? Those 2 never go home, & their people never even hear about it, until all the investigating is done & the trial begins, & if Tomalak thinks he's going to cross over the border under any circumstance, he'll be warned, told to stop, & then be confronted, by as many ships as I can muster in that time.

This whole situation, as usual, is the Romulans taking advantage of Starfleet's generosity

 

[CDP]

I always thought that they should have separated.

Leave the saucer at Galorndon core to wait and rescue Geordi, and send the battle section with the Romulan to meet Tomalok

 

[DonIago]

Has there been a "times when the ship should have separated" thread? If not, could be fun.

 

[JesterFace]

I always thought that they should have separated.

Leave the saucer at Galorndon core to wait and rescue Geordi, and send the battle section with the Romulan to meet Tomalok

This is another theory next to the "why not use a shuttle" theory, why did they have to stay in one place, apart from keeping the story exciting.

Has there been a "times when the ship should have separated" thread? If not, could be fun.

Some might offer the explanation that if the Romulans would attack the whole Enterprise would be a better match for them, not just the saucer or stardrive section.

My personal head canon says that there is no such thing as saucer separation for two reasons.
- None of my favourite episodes uses it, there's no need for it.
- It's easier to think that there isn't that capability because it would make some episodes weird because they don't use it even if it's there.

Oh wait.... I just remembered that 'The Best of Both Worlds' part 2 uses separation, oops.
There goes my theory. Headcanon in trouble.

 

[Armus]

This ep has a big blooper. After Picard says they will escort the Romulans to their side of the border, the Enterprise just warps off.

 

[Boris Skrbic]

Picard is always right.

 

[Qonundrum]

In 'The Enemy' a Romulan officers life is in danger because there's no cure for him on the Enterprise. Only thing that could save him was Worf. The Romulans could help him but are on the other side of the Neutral Zone.
Here's the question:
Did Picard do the right thing when he didn't allow the Romulan ship to enter the Neurtal Zone to help their officer?

Like Tomalak said: ”You would place territory over a mans life?”

The Romulans should not have been on the Neutral Zone. That was their mistake. But was it really worth a life to prevent Romulans to help their officer?
I think Picard should have allowed the Romulans to help their officer. Romulans had broken the rules. They should be punished for that. But that officer only had one life.

One thing might be that perhaps Picard believed Worf would eventually cooperate so the Warbird didn't need to meet them?

¡Qué suerte! I found it rather amazing that Worf would be the only being/person/entity/walking petri dish able to help. It's not impossible but it might have felt smoother if they said they found a compatible Vulcan due to direct, much closer biological similarity. But we do use organs and things from other animals, so it's not impossible as such. Xenotransplantation.

But then there'd be no moral dilemma or implications, which is the bred bread'n'butter of this show and to be fair, "The Enemy" is rather entertaining - with "The Defector" far more so as it addressed an extension of some of the themes.

The Federation could act in peace. Would the Romulans also reach out in good faith? Later episodes such as "The Next Phase" show the Federation being good guys again, and deceived - rather more openly this time. How often does the Federation allow this? Indeed, might the Romulans turn in their latest show, "Picard"? Right now, I'd bet 2 Quatloos on

Spoiler: I have no advance knowledge of the show, but I'll embrace the spoiler marks anyway

"Oh, you bet your sweet bippy they will". Pity the odds are likely that that is what will happen and it will not violate continuity as well, unless it's really badly scripted - which I doubt. But I've not seen the show since ep 2 or scripts, so it's pure guesswork and it's probably not too late for rewrites to be filmed too.

If an enemy army (or even an ally) is on enemy lines, what might you do? What might the Federation do? What might the Romulans do? (Whatever's on the script, of course. ) But I agree, it's a conflux of very granular situations - which is one of Trek's often strong points to play with these issues like glorified Lego bricks, making something into a car wash when what's pictured on the box is a helicopter...

 

[Mojochi]

I always thought that they should have separated.

Leave the saucer at Galorndon core to wait and rescue Geordi, and send the battle section with the Romulan to meet Tomalok

That's a tougher one to tackle. That saucer separation thing was always a bit dodgy to explain away lol

If I had to though... isn't Sick Bay IN the saucer section? & if we stick to the notion that the Romulan can't be moved from sickbay to a shuttle, without further risk to his life, then for the same reason, it's the saucer which would have to be sent to deliver him, & not the battle section, & that might pose a greater risk to ship & crew. It's a thin theory I'll grant you, but it's something

 

[JesterFace]

If I had to though... isn't Sick Bay IN the saucer section? & if we stick to the notion that the Romulan can't be moved from sickbay to a shuttle, without further risk to his life, then for the same reason, it's the saucer which would have to be sent to deliver him, & not the battle section, & that might pose a greater risk to ship & crew. It's a thin theory I'll grant you, but it's something

I don't remember exactly how far away Tomalak and his ship were early on in the episode but....
If warp engines are needed the saucer couldn't transport the Romulan while he was in sick bay, only stardrive section could do warp when separated.

 

[Starflight]

Never liked Picard's actions in this episode, including his final attempt to persuade Worf. He doesn't make any kind of moral appeal at all, just the practical concern that the Romulan "is more valuable to us alive than dead" or whatever. It falls to Riker, of all people, to make the obvious case that letting someone die by refusing them access to life-saving medical care is immoral.

I also wonder if Picard was right to refuse to order Worf to give blood - on the surface it seems pretty clear-cut that you can't order someone to give up their bodily autonomy like that, but at the same time, you don't join Starfleet if you're going to let your racism result in someone's death.

Speaking of "The Enemy", it was interesting to read that Michael Dorn initially disagreed with the final script, and believed that Worf would have given his blood because it was the honourable thing to do - I agree with him, and Worf's refusal in this episode (though well acted by Dorn) always felt a little forced to me. The writers don't even go all the way with it, because of that dumb scene where the Romulan miraculously regains complete lucidity for five seconds to give Worf a moral free pass by emphatically refusing the transfusion anyway. Lame.

 

[DonIago]

...I kind of wish that after the Romulan refused Worf's blood, Our Favorite Klingon changed his mind.

Romulan: Eww, gross, I don't want Klingon blood in me anyhow! Let me die!
Worf: Oh, well in that case...