Spoilers Star Trek: Picard 3x08 - "Surrender"

that needed to go. That was too dangerous a weapon.

that being said



This was a nice scene to see all of them in the same room.

 

I really, really, really hope it is not the Borg yet again. They used them in Season One, and Season Two. Can we please have something different? The Borg have been done to death now.

 

And neutered.

 

1) Nah.

2) Missing Wesley.

 

To paraphrase Vadic’s last words. Fucking Cliffhangers

Vadic said it was appropriate that Seven was still on the bridge for the big Jack reveal. What else could it be but the Borg? The mention of voices, Jack always feeling alone…

 

I thought this was a better episode than last weeks. It had a nice intensity to it, and I liked that we finally got a full-on TNG reunion. I still wish we had gotten more answers about Jack. The mystery surrounding him is tedious. I wish they would just say what it is and get on with a thrilling end. I'm guessing it will be the Borg. Who else could it be at this point?

Spoiler

I can't see it being Sela, though I am hoping that Data's holographic memory wasn't the appearance I read that Denise Crosby is supposed to make this season.

I wish the episode had established that Kestra was safe. She was mentioned once, when Riker lamented that she could be orphaned. But I wonder who is taking care of her now? Is there a Changeling Deanna? Seems like both Troi and Riker would want to check on her especially after the Titan was retaken.

I was surprised that T'Veen was killed off. Seems like they had set up the Titan bridge crew for a spin off, and I was thinking it would be a random dude that got it. I also was not expecting Vadic to buy the farm this episode (I'm assuming, though with her being a Changeling, perhaps she will just reform). If that was the end for her it was as exaggerated (struggling to find the right word here) as the character's portrayal.

I hope we finally get answers for Jack next episode so the last episode can be just the TNG crew, with hopefully some help from friends, saving the Federation.

 

It does suggest they can survive in space, but warp travel was a learned behavior for Laas, not common to all. Of course, these aren't quite the changelings of old.

 

The description for episode 9 seems to say we do

 

I thought the Nepenthe thing was unnecessarily mean-spirited. Even if you don't find it appealing yourself, the creative work that went into that episode deserved more respect than a snide joke about hippies and a scribbled retcon about Troi manipulating Riker's emotions. Left a bad taste in my mouth.

S1 wasn't really my jam for a lot of reasons, but I did like some of its world building. It wasn't afraid to introduce new things. In contrast, everything in this season comes with at least one footnote back to previous Trek. I think that's what makes the slow pace of the Jack mystery so frustrating for me. Whatever they reveal, its power is going to come from something from the old shows, not from anything they needed nine new episodes to build. So what's gained by waiting?

 

No. All the showrunner said was that there was a nod to Tasha.

And I fucking called it, it was the hologram.

 

It was nice of Vadic's crew to forget their phasers when they faced Raffi, and remembered to bring swords, otherwise they could've just shot her instead!

 

Let me express my views on this episode..........

 

It was also nice for Matalas to set this season three years after the 2nd so we can buy Raffi's ninja skillz.

 

That was better than the last few weeks.

The positives: It was great seeing the TNG crew back together. Tasha. “Fucking solids.” Deanna. Worf and Raffi. “You’re scary.” The plans to get the changelings off the ship was pretty smart. Except why would they have a hatch like that on the bridge? The tension was palpable for the execution scene and I was surprised it was T’Veen (but also didn’t think the other two would bite it either).

The negatives: The pace. Not only of this episode but this season. At some moments, it’s relentless. At others, a snail’s pace. I’m sick of the mystery box here. We’ve got two episodes left and we still really don’t know who the mastermind is, what their endgame is and what the fuck Jack Crusher is? There really still is no sense of urgency as Titan flies at impulse and we have the TNG gang sitting around the conference table talking about how Deanna talked to Beverly when she wasn’t there and how Worf wanted to send heads to them. Sigh.

The fact that none of them are changelings. I mean, come on. I get that there is a desire to see these characters together but come. On. If you’re trying to get to the son of Jean-Luc Picard and you could take the form of anything, wouldn’t the way to do that to be to be to take over someone he knows well? This is just a plot point that I can’t ignore. But I guess it’s not happening.

Data. Oh, Data, Data, Data. I’ll just leave it at: This is a cop out and despite the pathetic attempt at explaining away previous events of Nemesis and Picard season one, I think they should have left sleeping androids lie. But, here we are.

7/10. A marked improvement. But I’ve still got some concerns as we enter the final stretch.

 

They also forgot to turn to goo when encountering blades.

 

She’s special forces. She’s always had skills

 

They didn’t forget, it just seems to be harder for these evolved versions.

 

Not every upgrade is perfect

 

I thought it was a very satisfying conclusion to last week's episode. It had that great moment you want in any action or thriller when the good guys finally triumph over the villain and they get their comeuppance. It was so great when Data announced to all that he was taking back the ship.

The Data/Lore mind scene was really good. It was really clever how they used memberberries and it was a powerful idea that our memories define who we are. Data defeats Lore by giving him the memories that made him who we was. I always appreciate metaphysics. Lore of course accepted the memories because he saw them as trophies, not realizing the effect they would have on him. Data tricked Lore.

And. I know some are complaining that they brought back Data but I think it fits. As Data explains, he did experience death which was important for his exploration of humanity. That has not been undone. But this is a new Data. He is in a gollum body now. This new Data can explore humanity differently. He has the best parts of Data, Lore, B4, Lal and Soong androids. So he is a new person. I think this is a logical continuation of the character.

I am glad they killed off Vadic. She definitely got a satisfying villain death. And the blew up the Shrike too! With Vadic gone, we will undoubtedly meet who the "face" is that was giving orders to Vadic. The finale will wrap up the real threat to Frontier Day now that Vadic is out of the way. We also finally got our full TNG reunion. All the characters were used really well. I like how Troi was used and the scene between Troi and Riker was well done, with both humor and emotion.