We’re back to focusing on one Trek show at a time this week. Even so, there’s plenty to talk about with Star Trek: Picard. We’ve got a crazy police chase, meeting up with an old friend, and the identity of “The Watcher” revealed. Let’s “engage” with this week’s episode! Here are a few of my thoughts on Picard episode 2×04, “Watcher.”
Another Car Chase!
For a show set in space, it would seem rare for Star Trek to have a car chase. And yet, this is the second car chase we’ve had in a year of Trek. Last year in Star Trek: Lower Decks, we had Boimler and Mariner take off in a Star Trek: Nemesis-style car chase in episode 2×05, “An Embarrassment of Dooplers.” Now we’ve got another car chase in Star Trek: Picard, but this time in a police car, driven by Seven of Nine while Raffi is trying to navigate using an iPad. Yes, they’re in 2024 and this is normal (save for stealing a cop car), but this was just so good! According to this week’s episode of The Ready Room, director Lea Thompson (you read that right–Lorraine from Back to the Future), all of their lines in the police car were improvised. Michelle Hurd and Jeri Ryan were actually in the car while a stunt driver was driving via an attachment on the roof, so as Jeri is trying to “drive,” the wheel is being jerked around in her hands with the two of them actually reacting to the hairpin turns and snaking in and out of traffic.
Aside from the hilarious banter and obvious humor at two women from the 24th century stealing a police car, is that these are two people who are struggling with their relationship. They’re struggling to communicate properly and while the stakes are a bit higher for this car chase, the effort that’s going into their communication here is visible. Well done to both of these actresses. This is my favorite sequence in “Watcher.”
A Drink with a Young, Old Friend
“If you’re here to drink, you’re late. If you’re here to loot, you’re early.” This is our introduction to a young Guinan, played to perfection by Ito Aghayere. The coordinates Jurati is able to secure put Picard right out front of 10 Forward, the literal address of Guinan’s bar, but also its name in Star Trek: The Next Generation. The best part of this scene is Aghayere’s monologue about the problems she sees in 2024. She says, “They’ve got one tiny ball in the entire galaxy, and all they want to do is fight!” Her delivery, her actual tears, all add up to an exquisite performance. I really hope we get to see more of Aghayere this season.
Who Watches the Watcher?
We get a reveal of the Watcher’s identity in this episode. My money was on Guinan. I mean, let’s think about it–extremely old El-Aurian, always there to give sage advice and observe. 400 years in the past would be no big deal for her. Not an entirely illogical conclusion. As it turns out, I was a bit off. And that’s perfectly okay with me because now we get to see Orla Brady as Laris again! But…she’s not Romulan? And maybe isn’t even actually Laris? Who knows. She didn’t respond one way or another when Picard called out her name. She just put a hand on his shoulder and had them slip away through some Twilight Zone doorway. Bananas! Also, the way she got Picard’s attention with all the white-eyed, possessed people? Straight out of a horror movie! As a horror fan, I am both creeped out and thrilled at her methodology. We’ll see where she’s taken him next week.
Final Thoughts
The best part of this week’s episode is hands down the dialogue. Michelle Hurd and Jeri Ryan are Queens of deadpan, sarcastic delivery. When you have lines like…
Seven: “What the hell happened to ‘No phasers’”?
Raffi: “I have no idea how this got here.”
…and…
Raffi: “I hate everything.”
Seven: “But you hide it so well.”
…you’ve made for a very happy Nerdy Blogger. This is not even to mention Rios’ (Santiago Cabrera) ability to maintain good humor while being detained by ICE.
As much as I enjoyed the dialogue, we’ve also got this tiny scene at the end with a Q monologue (John de Lancie) and apparently, his snap just ain’t what it used to be. This is bad. Q can’t just snap our crew back to where they should be. Not that he would mind you. What would be the fun in that? But still, the fact that he is surprised by this is not a good development. I hope we get more of him in the next episode.
Finally, one other line of dialogue that made me laugh out loud and answered an age-old conundrum Star Trek fans have been asking since 1987. Why doesn’t Jean-Luc Picard, being a Frenchman, have a French accent? I’ve always assumed that it’s because Sir Patrick Stewart commands the room so well, no one has ever dared question him. Thankfully, the writers of Picard have chimed in to give us a canon answer. When asked where the Picards fled during the German occupation of France during World War II, Picard responds with one word.
“England.”
Simple as that.
What did you think of “Watcher”? Leave me a comment and let’s talk Trek.
The next episode of Star Trek: Picard will air on March 31, 2022, on Paramount+.