Spoilers Star Trek: Picard 1x05 - "Stardust City Rag"

[Sir Stewart Wallace]

I think Seven had a pretty good reason to murder what's-her-name. Considering what happened to her real family, I think her reaction was pretty justified.

There have been far less justifiable murders on Star Trek before.

 

[thribs]

Does feel rather cruel to do that to Icheb. It felt like any former Borg character could have been used there

 

[Tim Thomason]

Does feel rather cruel to do that to Icheb. It felt like any former Borg character could have been used there

Eh. I appreciate that they used a character Seven and the audience knows.

 

[Hythlodeus]

Does feel rather cruel to do that to Icheb. It felt like any former Borg character could have been used there

I don't think Seven's relationship to Icheb would be tranferable to any old Borg Drone

 

[Jadeb]

Perhaps this would have worked better for me had I stuck with Voyager ... I had no idea who the dude was at the beginning and was surprised when people here were reacting like his death was a big deal.

Overall, this episode felt very fannish, I thought. We start with the eeeeevil surgeon delighting in harvesting borg parts in the most sadistic way possible, because evil, then we’re drinking Tranya and loading in Trek references. Seven makes her return and looks to be a lot less important to this show than I expected. We get a ton of infodumps — scenes cut away to other scenes that exist only to provide exposition for what we just watched — and then there’s the silly business with the costumes and Picard’s outrageous Franch! accent. At the halfway point I wanted it to be over.

The second half was better-ish. They moved the series arc along, and I liked the performance by the villainess (and her costume). The business was Raffi was OK, if a bit mundane. The resolution of Seven’s subplot was interesting. (Though, of course, we have to end on her double-fisting her phasers in Hollywood action hero mode.)

I wasn’t clear why Seven had to kill the dude at the beginning. I mean, he’d already been through borg conversion, and he’s laying there having a lucid conversation. Surely 24th century medicine could have done something for him?

I wondered if the eeeevil surgeon here sources her 19th century medical equipment from the same place as the Discovery Klingons.

 

[eschaton]

Don't have a lot of time this morning, but I wanted to give my two cents in.

I liked it, but I didn't think it was better than last week's episode. I thought it was - in most ways - a step back.

The episode was well shot, acted, and plotted, but the really clunky infodumps of the first three episodes reappeared (like Picard's initial dialogue with Seven). Worse, this episode had a lot of corny overly-broad melodrama. The characters didn't actually act like real human beings would across most of the episode, which was disappointing after the much more natural flow of dialogue last week.

At the same time, there was no glacial borg cube scenes this week, which was a welcome respite. I wish I could have said the same last week. Thus even though the main plot was a lot weaker, the lack of the tedious "B plot" made the episode of roughly equal quality.

I still think Rios could be a hologram, though if he is, Raffi is "in on it." That device that Raffi handed him could have really been a mobile emitter. Notice Seven stole it before she left? This will be important later on.

 

[Hythlodeus]

I still think Rios could be a hologram, though if he is, Raffi is "in on it." That device that Raffi handed him could have really been a mobile emitter. Notice Seven stole it before she left? This will be important later on.

must be a really advanced hologram if it not only can get high by Raffi's drugs but also smells identical to a human and even changes his smell when he lies...

 

[The Old Mixer]

I still think Rios could be a hologram, though if he is, Raffi is "in on it." That device that Raffi handed him could have really been a mobile emitter.

There we go!

 

[MrPointy]

I'm guessing Seven and that lady who had Icheb killed for parts hooked up.

So C/7 didn't work out and J/7 had a chance after all.

 

[Sir Stewart Wallace]

Rios could be an android.

A very sexy android.

 

[IMC Headquarters]

Maybe Voyager would have been better off staying in the Delta Quadrant...

Poor Seven.

Poor Icheb.

I don't know what the Big Conspiracy happens to be, but I hope Picard and his lackeys bring it out in the open in order to shine a light on it like cockroaches on the kitchen countertops. I really need a bright payoff following all this darkness.

 

[Tarek71]

Are we really going to sing a Klingon dirge for how Icheb could have been better used? I was never a fan of this character. He was flat, dull and snooze worthy in VOY. There is a reason so many of us said "Oh...right!....Icheb!" during this episode. So soon forgotten. It was powerfully effective emotionally, because of Seven and how well Jeri delivered the goods. But lets not pretend that a saved Icheb would have been better. Only Soji is more snooze-worthy in this show than he would have been. Ryan sold me on her broken heart. RIP Icheb, and lets move on.

 

[Sir Stewart Wallace]

I'm guessing Seven and that lady who had Icheb killed for parts hooked up.

So C/7 didn't work out and J/7 had a chance after all.

Don't count Chuckles out. He may have traded in his cool Maquis clothes for a Starfleet uniform, but his spirit of rebellion lived on. He is a man of principle, a man of honor. He could quite possibly be...a Fenris Ranger. Would he still take Seven as his lover? I don't see why not.

 

[Demosthenes]

So did Icheb get promoted to Lieutenant before Harry Kim, then?

 

[MrPointy]

Don't count Chuckles out. He may have traded in his cool Maquis clothes for a Starfleet uniform, but his spirit of rebellion lived on. He is a man of principle, a man of honor. He could quite possibly be...a Fenris Ranger. Would he still take Seven as his lover? I don't see why not.

Chakotay is probably retired and chilling on a former Federation/Cardassian/Maquis colony with his people.

Or he fulfilled his destiny as being the most wooden person in the galaxy and turned into a tree like Tessa Thompson's character in Annihilation.

So did Icheb get promoted to Lieutenant before Harry Kim, then?

Grand Admiral Janeway would never promote Harry Kim. It's one of her guilty pleasures.

 

[IMC Headquarters]

Is the sole backbone of Picard simply that the former Locutus needs to regain his full humanity, and that he needs the compass of Data to point the way?

 

[Hythlodeus]

What I really like about the way they dealt with Icheb was not only recasting Manu Intiraymi, but killing his character off at the same time. So any chance he ever had returning to the franchise are now gone, which I approve of, after rereading his tweets about the Rapp/Spacey stuff. What a rectum

 

[Tarek71]

So did Icheb get promoted to Lieutenant before Harry Kim, then?

Yes.

51 year old Ensign Kim is serving on the SS Recycle, a Garbage Scow. He is hoping to make 3rd Mate someday.

 

[Nenya]

I kinda have a feeling that this "secret that breaks minds" will be kinda disappointing after all this buildup. Things like that usually are.

 

[IMC Headquarters]

The rank of Ensign has been abolished. You're either Lieutenant material straight out of the Academy gates, or you're dismissed. Can't afford to muck about with piddling ranks anymore.