Picard Turning His Back in The Wounded and Other Episodes

[cgervasi]

I am having difficulty identifying a particular TNG episode. I once viewed an episode where someone was at odds with Captain Picard. At the end, his nemesis attempted to reconcile with Picard. However, Picard remained silent and rotated his chair so his back was facing his nemesis. I had believed it was the episode The Drumbhead (4-21) featuring Admiral Satie, but I am mistaken. That is, unless the versions online have all edited that scene out?

I don't think Picard ever turned his back on anyone as you describe, but he was pretty pissed off with Ro at the end of "Preemptive Strike", though she wasn't there to see it. Riker delivers Picard a report and IIRC Picard just glowers the whole time.

Thank you, Admiral. It appears I must watch the entire TNG series to confirm the reports from yourself and Captain Makarov. Considering the reports are coming from yourself and a Captain, they are both compelling pieces of evidence that no such frame exists. Still, I cannot help but contemplate why I believe it does. I recall discussing this incident with a co-worker some years ago when joining Starfleet was only an idea we tossed around. I may be confusing it with an episode of Deep Space Nine where Sisko performed the maneuver instead of Picard and it was towards the end of the episode. I cannot even recall the season because I viewed the episode as a rerun well after the series ended.

I think he turned his back to Maxwell for attacking Cardassian ships Maxwell suspected were preparing for war. He also urged Picard to search some very suspicious Cardassian vessels without a warrant in violation of law and treaty that had kept the peace. Maxwell expostulates with Picard telling him how the circumstantial evidence points strongly to the Cardassians violating the treaty and preparing for war. Picard says he's a pitiable man so used to war, he's conjuring up a justification to start another war.

Then he nearly plagiarizes Maxwell's arguments that the Cardassians totally look guilty when he condemns the Cardassian captain. Picard turns his back on him too.

I thought you can't have it both ways, Picard. I understand his logic in thinking Maxwell is probably right, but he shouldn't go provoking the Cardassians. Picard thinks there is still a chance Maxwell is wrong but even if Maxwell, that does not mean the Federation needs to provoke a war now, esp when they're not prepared for one. They could find a peaceful solution. If that fails, they could get prepared and attack Cardassia at a time most favorable to the Federation.

But Picard spoils it by being so pompous. Picard doesn't give Maxwell credit for the things they agree on, even for the ideas Picard adopts. Then after developing a good working relationship with the Cardassians, he's needlessly sanctimonious. The Cardassians probably thought, "he says Maxwell will be punished, but Picard totally agrees with him and his probably high-fiving him."

The viewer sees him deal with both people, and it seems like Picard just takes any opportunity to turn his back on people.

 

[Makarov]

I think Picard believed Maxwell was probably right the whole time but his actions went off the deep end. I think he did a good job of reeling him in and then warning the cardassians too so that he doesn't appear weak. I wonder how Jellico would have handled the situation

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Just because Maxwell was right about what the Cardassians were doing does not mean he was in any way justified of going around the chain of command and attacking random ships, murdering entire crews.

 

[Mojochi]

I think Picard believed Maxwell was probably right the whole time but his actions went off the deep end. I think he did a good job of reeling him in and then warning the cardassians too so that he doesn't appear weak. I wonder how Jellico would have handled the situation

You're right. It's important to note though that none of this is Picard's choice (Though he does agree Maxwell has gone too far) Picard, Jellico, any captain really, would be under the same orders to protect the peace, which would require doing exactly what Picard did, even in the face of suspicious activity. Peace 1st, Cardassian malfeasance later is the order. That's what Maxwell couldn't sit back for

Maxwell isn't wrong about what the Cardassians are doing. He's wrong about what HE did about it. Even if you can justify them as a militant threat, based on what they're doing, that still doesn't allow him authority to open fire in peace time. So they're stockpiling weapons, so what? Don't murder them all. There's a damn peace on

It's true, he ain't shut the war off. Even O'Brien notices it at the end, & if in wartime, you saw the enemy stockpiling weapons somewhere, you'd gun it down, but the rules are different now, & those "Bureaucrats" he's bitching about, are actually diplomats, & they have the job right now to deal with it. Maxwell's job is to get evidence & make them listen

We don't know how much of that he did, but if he has, & they don't act to safeguard people the way they should, Starfleet still has long maintained a policy of not being aggressors. Bottom line is Maxwell chose by himself to find them guilty & execute a death sentence, & he doesn't have that authority, & doing so could have made things much worse for the UFP, by making them aggressors

As for who Picard's turning his back on? a violently rogue fellow officer, & an opportunistic scumbag, running a line of BS

 

[Lance]

One does wonder, in light of events subsequent to the episode and through Deep Space Nine, whether anyone looked back on Maxwell's actions and considered that he was probably right about not trusting the Cardassians. Though I concur with @JirinPanthosa that Maxwell was still wrong to take the authority into his own hands. Picard himself does something similar in Insurrection but at least then there's a scene showing him symbolically removing his pips before he starts disobeying orders...

 

[Mojochi]

One does wonder, in light of events subsequent to the episode and through Deep Space Nine, whether anyone looked back on Maxwell's actions and considered that he was probably right about not trusting the Cardassians.

I'd hope everyone would consider it right to not trust them. I just figure they're never going to look back on him unilaterally deciding to send hundreds of them to their deaths, & consider it a just action. The Maqui might however, & I'm sure he could find himself quite an important influence among their ranks

 

[Timo]

I'm not sure Picard would be able to categorically condemn Maxwell for doing the wrong thing (be it for right or wrong reasons), as he himself has played brinkmanship with Romulans many times, openly indicating the willingness to blow these opponents to bits. This is apparently part of the mandate of a starship captain (even if sometimes given to him or her by superiors in explicit briefings - Admiral Haden, the guy also presiding over "The Wounded", in "The Defector" follows his nobody-wants-a-war platitude with a mandate to at least respond in kind, after already having given Picard the go-ahead for hunting based on Jarok's information).

Murdering random starship crews is part of the job, and seldom involves declared wars. And Maxwell could always go for the Kirk excuse of "they fired back". He did stop short of firing on the unarmed ship at the end, for no good reason other than not wanting/needing to fire on unarmed opponents. (And the "unarmed science station" Gul Macet speaks about early on was not a science station in the end and may not have been unarmed, either, considering.)

But Picard seemed to be aware of a bigger picture here - of Starfleet not being willing to go to war right now because of temporary weaknesses that would get fixed soon enough. Why Maxwell would not realize this is unclear. Starfleet's post-Borg weakness or being "spread thin" did not appear to be information limited to Picard at the start of "The Wounded", and indeed he openly commented on it (at least when the Cardassians were out of earshot). Perhaps Maxwell just thought that the best way to hide the weakness would be to strike first.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Picard had the authority to play brinkmanship with the Romulans. He was assigned to represent Starfleet’s interests. He did not go rogue and start blowing up Romulan ships left and right.

It’s absurd to suggest blowing up ships with no reasonable claim you are defending yourself and no Starfleet backing is ‘part of the job’.

There are situations in the show where going outside the chain of command is morally justified by the situation and Maxwell’s crusade doesn’t even approach them.

 

[Nakita Akita]

I totally loved Maxwell.
I wish the show had been about his ship.
I'll bet his crew was way more interesting.
Not nearly as aloof and exacting.

 

[Mojochi]

I totally loved Maxwell.
I wish the show had been about his ship.
I'll bet his crew was way more interesting.
Not nearly as aloof and exacting.

I've often thought about what his crew must be like. Frankly, I bet some of them go down with him, because some of his senior staff are probably holdovers from the war, They probably had to know what he was doing, & were maybe ok with it

 

[NigellaDeanna20]

I think he turned his back to Maxwell for attacking Cardassian ships

Sorry but i don't agree with this at all. Maxwell went rogue after Starfleet had established a peace treaty with them. Additionally, he deliberately murdered nearly 700 of them when he destroyed their ship so you really can't excuse what he did, even if he was proved right in the end. Murder can never be justified under any circumstances.