Star Trek: Picard Season 3 Episode 2 “Disengage” tackles complicated relationships and ties to Jack Crusher is revealed while a new threat looms. If watching the premiere episode of Season 3 of Star Trek: Picard was like going on a blind date and having a big hit then answering the call on a second date going into episode 2 raises the ante with much more anticipation and much more to discover.
Star Trek: Picard Season 3 Episode 2: “Disengage” –Â Backstory
To understand this episode’s importance, here is a quick backstory into the history of Jean-Luc Picard (Sir Patrick Stewart) and Beverly Crusher’s (Gates McFadden) relationship. Their relationship was one of the most prominent side stories throughout Star Trek: The Next Generation. This episode’s Jack Crusher has the same name as Beverly’s ex-husband. Who also happened to be a close friend of Picard while they both served on Picard’s first ship, the U.S.S. Stargazer. Jack and Beverly had a child named Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) who had a recurring guest role in the TNG series. Wesley also made a surprise appearance in season 2 of Picard. But this time, as part of an intergalactic group called The Travelers. During Wesley Crusher’s time in the TNG series, Dr. Crusher was very protective of him on both a motherly and professional level – he was a cadet before becoming an ensign on the U.S.S. Enterprise-D on TNG. This approach may explain why Beverly was adamant about trying to protect her second son Jack Crusher in the previous episode. And how much of an impact this would now play on the relationship between Beverly and Jean-Luc.
Disengage boldly goes into relationships and introduces a new threat
Aptly entitled, “Disengage,” the second episode beautifully and emotionally, tackles the issue of relationships. This rekindles some of the core themes of what fans loved from Star Trek: TNG. And feels like the series has updated to a level of cinematic-level storytelling.
Episode 2 begins with a time jump and takes us two weeks prior to the events of the previous episode. Jack Crusher, (fantastically played by Ed Speleers) is aboard the SS Eleos starship and is intercepted by several members of the Fenris Rangers. Fenris Rangers are a sort of vigilante force that operates to restore and establish some “rightful justice” in space. Those who remember, Seven (played by Jeri Ryan), operated as a Fenris Ranger in the first two seasons of Picard. Jack Crusher makes a deal with the Fenris Rangers to let him and his ship pass safely. Crusher is tasked with carrying on a medical mission. The Fenris Rangers agree to the deal only for them to later contact someone who goes by “Marked Woman” and inform this mysterious figure of Jack Crusher’s whereabouts. How this event plays out may be key in later episodes and what role, if any, Seven may have due to her past ties with the vigilantes.
Raffi Musiker
“Disengage” rightfully applies to almost all of the major characters in this episode. Starting with the phenomenal Michelle Hurd as Raffi Musiker, her continuing struggles with substance abuse and being apart from her family while in Starfleet have brought her to some interesting challenges and choices. This was seen in the first season of Picard and is fittingly consistent up to this season to garner interest in her motives. And pushing her limits even as Starfleet has some oversight of her activities, especially with a handler who has been watching over her.
In one scene, Raffi has to make a difficult decision while confronting her ex-husband Jae. Raffi must decide to either come face to face with her son or chase after someone possibly involved in the destruction of the Starfleet Training Academy. Without saying a word, Raffi chooses the latter, leaving her with more shame and guilt. She later encounters a Ferengi named Sneed who tests her by essentially asking her to resort to drugs in order to prove she isn’t Starfleet. This scene was a sad one to watch knowing that Raffi has already had to deal with so much, like the grief of losing her family and recurring substance abuse problems.
Seven of Nine
The relationship between Seven and Captain Shaw continues to be a very interesting one. It plays well into the conflict that we have not often seen on the bridge of a Starfleet ship. Seven’s “gung-ho” approach, especially with her ties to Riker and Picard, contrasts Shaw’s more careful and conservative approach to ensuring the lives of everyone aboard the ship, and in this episode, one could argue that both are correct.
Shaw’s animosity towards Seven begins to show as he brings up her past affiliations as a “pirate” for the Fenris as well as a former Borg. And he questions her about possible knowledge of the ship and the new threat they encounter. Seven’s frustrations with the lack of forward action lead her to act upon her own discretion by defying Captain Shaw’s orders and assisting to prevent Jack Crusher’s escape on the ship.
Picard and Riker
If there is any relationship on screen that has had a true understanding of each character both on-screen and off, it is that of Picard and Riker. This season has proved that Patrick Stewart and Jonathan Frakes have not lost any ounce of the understanding of their characters so much so that it would almost be mundane to see them in the same fashion as they did on the TNG series.
Yet, it would not mean that time and growth have somehow affected their values and perspectives in each other’s absence. With that said, Riker and Picard begin to show their disagreements when it comes to handling the situation with Beverly’s son and the upcoming conflict with a new threat. This may be due in part to Riker’s position as Captain and his considering the odds are against them in this conflict. Picard, much like his character remains steadfast in his ways to be able to negotiate with their threat instead of handing over Jack Crusher. While this may be a small disagreement, it does show that their history is not invulnerable to any rift, especially when faced with a dire situation.
Picard and Beverly Crusher come face to face
Finally, the moment came when Picard and Beverly Crusher come face to face in a very emotionally charged scene like seeing two lost loves reuniting after being far and long apart from each other. After being revived from stasis, Beverly was brought to the bridge by Riker and finally saw Jean-Luc after 20 years. Coupled with the score of Stephen Barton, what resulted was a scene that could have brought a tear to any Trek fan. This moment revealed that Jack Crusher is Picard’s son. With this new revelation, Captain Shaw decides to also protect Jack’s life on the ship by not turning him over to Vadic.
Grand Entrances
Speaking of Vadic, Amanda Plummer’s role as the antagonist this season truly brings the vile persona reminiscent of Khan played by the legendary and late Ricardo Montalban. Plummer looks to be a top contender in the history of Trek villains, and her presence adds so much command to the way she sits on the chair of her ship, “The Shrike.”
It also seems creepy that she easily identifies Jean-Luc Picard and Captain Shaw by name, which may reveal prior knowledge that she may have regarding their history. Her motives and intentions towards the crew of the Titan remain unclear, yet she is willing to go to lengths to have Jack Crusher in her possession, and she appears more than well-prepared to deal with the ill-equipped exploratory vessel of the U.S.S. Titan.
In true heroic fashion, Michael Dorn makes an impressive entrance returning to his role as Worf. At a moment when Raffi is incapacitated and vulnerable after being self-induced with drugs and facing possible death, Worf comes in to save Raffi and first impales one of Sneed’s henchmen before attacking the others and eventually decapitating Sneed. This appearance also reveals that Worf is Raffi’s handler who previously ordered her to “Disengage” from the investigation of the weapon that destroyed the Starfleet Training Academy.
Worf’s role as a handler and being coupled with Raffi as an Intelligence Officer arouses some curiosity as to Worf’s new role. Whatever that role may be, seeing Worf working in intelligence does appear to be a story worth telling and a nice evolution of his character.
Other Points of Interest
This episode appeared to focus on driving a story based on the interactions between two characters, especially with points of conflict or mutual interest. However, there were still some huge takeaways and mind-blowing moments. For example, there was that moment that got this writer pretty shaken when Vadic used her ship’s tractor beam with the SS Eleos ship in it and used it to throw the Eleos at the Titan damaging the ship’s hull and literally taking out all of the Titan’s shields with the debris from the Eleos causing even more damage to the ship.
The visual effects team behind this moment deserves a round of applause for making this scene look so amazing and scary for the crew of the Titan. In addition, the shuttlecraft that Picard and Riker used to board the Eleos had a nice easter egg for a famed character in Trek history. After the shuttlecraft was blown to bits by Vadic, a piece of the debris showed the name “Saavik.” This is in reference to Lieutenant Saavik, made famous by the late Kirstie Alley who appeared in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and later recast with Robin Curtis in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
Finally, as with the first episode, fans should also pay particularly close attention to the credits. One of the panels displays part of the Titan ship blinking in red. This alludes to the part of the ship that was damaged when it was struck by the Eleos.
The final season is being released weekly on Paramount+ from February 16 to April 20, 2023.
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