The crew arrive at Freecloud to rescue Maddox from the grip of a local criminal.
Star Trek Picard 1.5: “Stardust City Rag” |(W) Kirsten Beyer (D) Jonathan Frakes
We open with a flashback to Icheb, a former Borg child rescued on Voyager. He was something of a son to Seven of Nine, but is now being dissected by scientists. Seven bursts in and stops the procedure, only to have to put Icheb out of his misery – the damage was too severe.
Back in the present, “La Sirena” arrives at Freecloud, a cloud city/canto bight type of planet. Eagle eyed viewers will notice a sign for “Quarks” in the background. Our Ferengi friend may have done well for himself with his little brother as the Grand Nagus. The crew discover that Bruce Maddox has been captured by a local crime lord, Bjayzl. Bjayzl runs an operation that sells Borg technology on the black market.
Seven of Nine has spent the last several years as part of the Fenris Rangers, a group of vigilante style space rangers (OMG) that patrol this sector of space. She has a past with Bjayzl and they come up with a plan to get Maddox. Bjayzl is preparing to sell Maddox to the Tal Shi’ar. The only way to get in is to offer something more valuable to Bjayzl. They decide to pose as criminals who have captured Seven and offer her as payment for Maddox. All goes to hell when we learn that Seven and Bjayzl have a past. Bjayzl worked with Seven and is the one who grabbed her “son”. The crew get into a situation, but manage to beam out. Once they are safe, Seven beams back down and kills Bjayzl and her crew in a shootout.
Raffi leaves the ship, thanking the crew for the ride. She meets up with her estranged son who wants nothing to do with her. Having no where else to go, she returns to the ship.
Dr Jurati is revealed to have had a romantic relationship with Dr Maddox. They have a reunion on the ship, though Maddox is severely injured. In a twist that confirms my theories about her, Jurati KILLS Maddox, making it look like natural causes. Her reasons are unknown, but I suspect she is working with Commodore Oh and the Zhat Vash.
Picard wears an eye-patch, beret, and plays a French accented space trader. Excellent.
Seven of Nine. Need I say any more? It is good to see how human she has become over the years. Jeri Ryan is always welcome on Star Trek. I admit though, I wouldn’t be against a Seven of Nine: Space Ranger series. lol.
Raffi’s subplot was sad this week. She had cleaned herself up and wanted to reconnect with her son, who is about to have her grandchild. Knowing that the character has substance abuse issues, I wonder if she will be relapsing soon. Excellent acting by Hurd.
Rios dressed like an interstellar pimp. ’nuff said.
Necar Zadegan, a Marina Sirtis clone (lol), plays Bjayzl. She infiltrated the Fenris Rangers to harvest Icheb and ran afoul of Seven. I maybe detected a romantic connection to Seven? Not sure, but she was an excellent space pirate,
I’ve been on to this lady since episode two or three. Jurati is revealed to be working against Picard’s mission. Although she is pained about it, she murders Maddox, her lover, to protect the Zhat Vash. I can only assume that she knows about the Destroyer thing.
John Ales steps in, briefly lol, as Bruce Maddox. I was a little sad that Brian Brophy did not return in the role. That original episode was a memorable one.
I’m beginning to sound like the infamous broken record, but this was another excellent episode! I am saddened that we have now reached the mid-point of the season, but I am anxious to see where this is all going.
The Skinny from the Fatty 