Aided by Seven of Nine and the crew of the USS Titan, Picard makes a shocking discovery that will alter his life forever, and puts him on a collision course with the most cunning enemy he’s ever encountered. Meanwhile, Raffi races to track a catastrophic weapon, and collides with a familiar ally.
Starting off with a lot of tension, Picard and Riker are stuck with Jack and his mum Bev in stasis on the SS Eleos as the Shrike threatens to decimate them all. Meanwhile Shaw, pissed off that Picard and Riker hijacked his ship with Sevens help while he slept refuses to help while kicking his ex Borg XO to the curb. And on a planet far, far away Raffi is tearing her hair out after watching a Starfleet recruitment centre be portal gunned into rubble after failing to save it.
There’s a lot of pretty cool action in this episode right off the bat. From the chaotic scenes of Picard, Riker and Jack scrambling not to be boarded after their shuttle was destroyed, to fighting to stay alive in the face of certain death. The action was nicely paced though, with the overriding plot coming right back to Shaw’s arrogance as a Captain with little to no love for the old generation. Alas, Seven was there to twist his arm and much like the first episodes moment of boldly breaking orders, here she boldly breaks his spirit by cutting down his ego and reminding him how bad his spotless record would look if he let two Starfleet legends die because he was in a huff.
For the Starfleet side of the episode it’s all just everyone figuring out what they’re trying to do. Picard’s rogue mission means saving an old friend and her son, while on the opposing side Shaw is faced with the seasons baddie; Vadic. A sadistic and somewhat unhinged villians who reveals herself in the episode with her personal mission; she wants Jack Crusher. Once Jack’s been saved by Shaw jumping into action thanks to Sevens goading, it’s all about trhe hour she gives them to turn him over and what he means to the plot.
To Vadic, he’s a prize to cash in as an apparent bounty hunter. To Picard, he’s the son of a dear old friend. To Shaw? He’s a risk. That tension between Picard, a tired old Admiral who’s lost his edge and the sarcastic and arrogant Shaw who uncovers Jack’s criminal background fills the episode. The themes of loyalty run through the episode quite nicely. Seven’s risked her career due to her loyalty to Picard. Picard’s risked an entire ship for his loyalty to Beverly and Shaw’s loyalty to both himself and the rule book all clash very nicely. Meanwhile, in the background, Riker’s got a loyalty of his own in uncovering the true nature of who Jack is and he pokes and prods Picard throughout. “Don’t you think there’s something familiar about him?”
There’s really no wasted time, nor any wasted space here. Under threat of Vadic, who proves herself just as mental as she seems by using a tractor beam to toss the Eleos into the Titan, everything just seems to merge perfectly. The performance, the pacing, the tension all combines to one moment where everything’s at risk and Riker just decides, screw it, only Beverly can give us answers and googles “how to wake up an unconscious patient” before hauling her back to the bridge to bring it all to a conclusion…
Breaking up all the tension is Raffi, still alone on her personal mission for a faceless handler within Starfleet intelligence. Despite being the obvious B plot here, there is a lot for Raffi to do. When we first met her she was isolated after spinning out of control over a conspiracy theory. Granted, she was right, but again her minds racing ten steps ahead of anything logical and her worst demons are all out on show. Avoiding the drugs and deprivation of the underbelly on M’Talas, her real addictions on show; she has to spiral down the rabbit hole of her grand theory.
It’s a really tough balance f tragedy and duty. Ignoring her handler and going it alone, she reaches out to her ex husband and the father of her son. And blows it. But not without reason. She’s just witnessed a massive event that killed hundreds. She knows theres an incredible and deadly weapon out there. She knows it’s been acquired by people on that planet. And she knows how to get to the, She just needs to convince the family she pushed away for her last big conspiracy to believe her. Given the choice, them or her mission, it’s a tough spot for Raffi and not an uncommon theme in this type of story.
Many will see her as making the wrong choice, to follow her leads and find the arrogant criminal mastermind Sneed, but it only highlights the strange tragedy of the character. She’s rough, her priorities are everywhere they shouldn’t be and she’s a complete wreck. All she wants is her family back but she’s always so locked into the mystery that she has to push them away. But with stakes so high, as much as they’ll loathe her for it, she knows it’s not just her duty to take the information her ex can give her and follow that path; it’s just whats right to do. In typical Raffi fashion, it all goes horribly wrong. Her family reject her but set up the meeting with Sneed. Sneed see’s right through her and tests her with a drug that shows her true colours.
In an episode about loyalty, hers is always for the greater good at great cost to herself. Which makes it even more fitting that the person who’s career was given a kicking for doing the opposite arrives to save her. And for a few seconds of hacking, slashing and being the saviour, seeing Worf back on screen revealing himself to be her handler was worth every second of nostalgic joy.
Where that rejection of family had to happen to save her mission, on the Titan an acceptance of it was what saves them. Look, it’s obvious from the get go who Jack Crusher is. It’s obvious all the way through that Picard’s avoiding the thought despite Riker prodding him with a stick every chance he has to speak. And when Jack’s on the run, desperate to hand himself over to save his mother, we knew where that scene was going when Riker marched Bev to the bridge. How it was done? For all the words that could be shared, for all the dialogue that could be wasted, all it took was one look that rekindled that unrequited love of their past and gave Picard the truth he didn’t ant to admit.
Just one glance was a great demonstration of the episodes approach; in it’s key moment it’s showed without telling. Not only that, but it made Picard spring into action. Instead of wallowing in the self pity of feeling behind the times, he suddenly had a real reason to be there and take charge. It also allowed us to see the first glimpse of humanity from Shaw. After spending the entire episode looking for a reason not to hand over Jack and getting no good argument, he finally had one he couldn’t ignore event if he wanted to. He’s Picard’s son.
Following on wonderfully from the first episodes cliffhanger, there was a very tight performance all round. From Picard’s denial, to Riker’s not so playful probing to Shaw’s relentless hatred of everyone who’s pretty much just ruined his day. Everything combined wonderfully and what made it better were the last few moments. Explosions, arguments, bloodshed, tension and emotion. And with all that unresolved tension and unanswered questions hanging over us? We fade into a nebula and the chase begins…
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Site & Service Updates July 2026
It's been a strange year as we adapt to then changing landscape of the Star Trek franchise with recent corporate shenanigans in the media industry, as well as adjusting to and anticipating new regulation sin our home base of the UK which has taken up more brain power than we'd expected!Still, despite distractions, we've been working away in the background with a revised Admin schedule to ensure at the very least every Sunday we can check off some items on the to do list and keep everyone updated on the changes whether minor, major or a bit pointless! On Screen Additions After being placed on the low priority list for a while, the On Screen Mission Log section has begun taking shape. Previously the On Screen section had it's own section per show since the launch of Discovery, however with […]
New Unit Application Guide
Account Academy Database Fleet Updates Calendar Latest Entries Explore Database Index Starfleet Academy Help & Support ⯇ DATABASE INDEX ACCOUNT HUB NEw Unit Application Guide Clarification This section is both for information and for making formal applications for creating or importing a new unit into SFCQ2. Applications can also be made directly to Fleet Administration. All applications are considered for review. × JOIN THE CAPTAINS TABLE Every Star Trek fans dreams of being the captain of their own Starship. Although running an SFC Quadrant 2 Unit is (probably) easier than commanding a starship, both roles require commitment and dedication.Unit’s are, and always will be, the core of SFC. It is within them that members can indulge in their shared interests for Star Trek and science fiction while enjoying the company of fellow fans and like minded people. At their best, […]
[Q2&A] Membership Handbook: Revised & Updated for 2026
With over fifty years (and counting) of history, joining SFC can sometimes be a whirlwind and while we're always focused on a more casual experience, tit can sometimes be overwhelming knowing where to start. While we offer our Academy as an induction tour of Quadrant 2's organisation and structure, and are always open to expanding more information in the Fleet Database, our Officers Pack gives you a one stop resource to highlight our core policies, membership information and more; The Membership Handbook/ Membership within Q2 is fairly laid back. But since it's inception - both overall as Starfleet Command as well as the administrative split for Quadrant 2 - out handbook has outlined who we are, how we operate and as a resource for members to be able to understand what membership entails from our core mission statement, to our […]
[Retro Review] The Galileo Seven
Pulled in two directions, the Enterprise has to deliver critical medical supplies to avert a plague and conduct vital research at the same time. Unable to turn down the order, Kirk thinks on his feet by carrying forward to save the planet, while sending Spock to lead a research team on the Galileo shuttle to carry out their mission until the Enterprise has finished it's mission of mercy. It's a good idea. Until it isn't. Isolated form the Enterprise, the Galileo runs into a bit of bother. Thrown off course by plot, the shuttle crash lands on a primitive planet. Alone with a broken ship and a people who are as barbaric as they are terrified by the shuttles sudden arrival, Spock has to lead his own team through fear and frustration with cool and calming logic. On the first […]
A Fistful of O’Brien
Entering the Star Trek world as an unnamed extra with a few bits of dialogue, O'Brien soon became a fixture on the Enterprise D as it's transporter chief before moving to Deep Space Nine to head up engineering and operations on what was thought to be a backwater outpost before it became one of the most strategically important stations in the quadrant!As the only enlisted or non commissioned officer to feature in the main cast of any Star Trek show to date, O'Brien stands as the only working class hero in the Star Trek universe with a vast and varied career taking from the front lines of the Cardassian war as a soldier, to the front lines of the Dominion War as an engineer, retrofitting DS9, keeping the Defiant from blowing itself apart, and even sniping Dominion troops. All in […]
[Q2&A] Career Track
SFC has always structured it's internal reward and recognition system on the command structure of Starfleet on screen. Newbies are cadets. When they become full members, they become Ensigns. And those eager to take on a leadership role can rank up to Commander or Captain. Even the board of directors are mirrored within the theme as Commodores and Admirals! It's always been the way, but the path of an officer isn't for everyone... Despite the original idea of all star ship personnel being highly trained astronauts, therefore nullifying the need for enlisted crew, the enlisted ranks have existed in some form since the original series. More defined in the film era, particularly under the revision of style and structure in The Wrath of Khan, they have been slightly more prominent since. Most notable of the enlisted members of Starfleet was […]
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