“Murder is not justice. There is no solace in revenge.”
Jean-Luc Picard in “Stardust City Rag”
SPOILERS AHEAD!
Welp, here we are at the midway point of the first season of “Star Trek: Picard.”
The fifth episode is titled “Stardust City Rag” and it finds our heroes visiting a place called Freecloud as they search for scientist Bruce Maddox (John Ales) — the man behind twin android sisters Dahj and Soji Asha.
They’ve teased Freecloud the past couple of episodes. Freecloud’s look is sort of a cross between the casino planet Canto Bight in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” (read my review) and the “Oasis” in the movie “Ready Player One” (read my review).
I enjoyed the holographic “ads” that appeared on the bridge of La Sirena when it came into orbit of Freecloud. They were kind of a fun little detail…
We find out that “7 of 9” (Jeri Ryan) is a Fenris Ranger and that the rangers keep their money on Freecloud — so it was sort of serendipitous that they ran into her in the last episode.
This isn’t the first time they’ve mentioned “Fenris Rangers” in “Star Trek: Picard,” so I looked them up.
Fenris Rangers (according to the first season press kit) are “an independent group of peacekeepers who try to maintain a semblance of law and order on both sides of the former Neutral Zone.”
In a nutshell, they are vigilantes.
Raffi (Michelle Hurd) has been trying to make her way to Freecloud throughout the first half of the season — hence the reason she decided to hitch a ride on Picard’s mission. Her Freecloud aspirations were wrapped in mystery until this episode.
It turns out she wanted to reunite with her estranged son Gabriel (Mason Gooding). She finds out her son is about to have a baby with his Romulan wife.
It turns out she wanted to reunite with her estranged son Gabriel (Mason Gooding). She finds out her son is about to have a baby with his Romulan wife.
As is the case with estranged children in TV dramas like this, Gabriel rejects his mother’s overtures and doesn’t believe she is a changed woman. Spurned and rejected, Raffi returns to La Sirena by the end of the episode.
The whole sequence felt a bit contrived. As I mentioned, it is a fairly common narrative technique to have an estranged child reject a parent in an ambivalent manner. The technique is often employed to stir up feelings of sympathy for a character with an icy demeanor.
The whole sequence felt a bit contrived. As I mentioned, it is a fairly common narrative technique to have an estranged child reject a parent in an ambivalent manner. The technique is often employed to stir up feelings of sympathy for a character with an icy demeanor.
Picard (Patrick Stewart), Rios (Santiago Cabrera), Elnor (Evan Evagora), Jurati (Alison Pill), Raffi, and “7 of 9” hatch a plan to snatch Bruce Maddox from the grip of a Freecloud crime boss named Bjayzl (Necar Zadegan).
While the plan is somewhat ridiculous, there are some fun moments as our heroes try to bargain with Bjayzl to hand over Maddox (the ruse is built around a scenario involving a trade of “7 of 9” for the scientist).
We learned in the season premiere of “Star Trek: Picard” that Agnes Jurati had a professional relationship with Dr. Maddox.
In this episode, we find out that their relationship veered into the romantic along the way.
In this episode, we find out that their relationship veered into the romantic along the way.
That’s what makes it so puzzling when Jurati murders the rescued Maddox in the La Sirena sick bay at the end of the episode.
As Maddox gasps his final breath, Jurati tearfully says, “I wish you knew what I know. I wish I didn’t know what I know. I wish they hadn’t shown me. I’m so sorry.”
I’ve been wondering if there was more to Dr. Jurati than meets the eye. I know people online have wondered whether she might be an android herself.
I don’t know what the answer is. I don’t think she’s an android, but there is definitely something odd going on with her.
“Stardust City Rag” was an entertaining episode.
It didn’t move the needle a whole lot as far as the overall narrative goes, but at least Picard learned he needs to visit “The Artifact” to find Dahj’s twin sister. Frankly, I’m glad they’re not going to spend the entire season trying to figure that out.
I still think the show relies a bit too much on easter eggs and “fan service” moments from previous “Trek” lore. I’m hopeful the second half of the season will be able to shed the nostalgia and truly evolve into its own living, breathing thing.
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