I am having a blast with Star Trek: Picard this season, but this is the first time an episode gave me chills. I’ll dig into that in just a moment. Here are a few of the things that had me screaming, wanting to throw stuff, and gave me goosebumps in episode 2×06 of Star Trek: Picard, “Two of One.”
All Hail the Queen…AGAIN!
I’m sure I sound like a broken record, but I’ve just got to say it. ALISON PILL KILLED IT AGAIN! I didn’t know it was possible to steal the show from Sir Patrick Stewart, but here we are. By the time this series ends, I do hope we get Agnes in other Star Trek shows. She’s such an interesting and truly different sort of character for the Star Trek universe.
Watching her and Annie Wersching playing off each other is a real treat. They’ve got great onscreen chemistry. Also, Agnes can sing! Alison Pill actually used to do Broadway and even received a Tony nomination for her performance in The Lieutenant of Inishmore. But putting her in that dress, on that stage, and having her sing a jazzy interpretation of “Shadows of the Night” by Pat Benatar? I got chills, I shouted, and now I’m going to be humming “Shadows of the Night” for the next week. Again, Picard uses another cover song in their storytelling, which as I mentioned in my review of episode 2×03, “Assimilation”, plays well into the alternate reality setting. Consider this my formal request for a vinyl release of this season’s soundtrack.
Now, all that being said, I’m scared for my girl. I’m also scared of my next statement–the Borg Queen is right. She’s only right about one thing though; Agnes needs to put herself out there. Stop being afraid and nervous. She’s got this. That being said, we’ve got the Borg Queen in control of Agnes’ body and she’s walking down the street off to do who knows what. I AM NOT OKAY WITH THIS! Next week’s episode better get here quick.
An Impossible Choice
Dr. Soong is in an unenviable position. Stop Renée Picard from going on the Europa mission or losing his daughter, Kore. He’s done a horrible thing and it can’t be undone. He’s also seen how far he’s willing to go and it terrifies him. Has he gone off the ledge? Would he actually kill to see this through or is he having second thoughts? “The why of things matters,” he says, which echoes something President Rillak said in the finale of season 4 of Star Trek: Discovery–“Reasons matter.” This is really lending itself to the idea of the cross-pollination of writers’ rooms.
Kore also makes a shocking discovery about herself–she didn’t come into this world the natural way. That’s terrifying. What’s worse, is she learns that she’s the last in a line of many failed experiments. That’s sure to do a number on a person’s psyche. What will she do with this information? How can she get help? She’s effectively a prisoner in her own home because of her condition. I’m not sure how this situation will play out, but it’s going to get worse before it gets better.
A Story Told in Flashbacks
Picard has been flashing back to a particularly violent episode with his mother and father all season. We don’t know its significance yet, but the imagery we get is terrifying. Real horror movie stuff. He has many flashbacks in this particular episode and we’re not sure why. This dovetails nicely with Renée Picard having flashbacks to her failure in the simulation. Does Jean-Luc see his younger self and think of it as a failure that he was unable to protect his mother? We aren’t given a clear answer. These flashbacks hold even more weight for their real-world implications. Sir Patrick Stewart grew up with a physically abusive father and has supported the UK charity, Refuge, which aids women and children in domestic violence situations. Knowing that Stewart has experienced this horror firsthand gives much more weight to these scenes.
With Tallinn (Orla Brady) about to take a fantastic voyage into Picard’s mind in the next episode, here’s hoping we finally get some context for what’s going on with these flashbacks.
Final Thoughts
“Two of One” might be my favorite episode thus far in Picard, largely for Alison Pill’s show-stealing performance. Watching her perform as Jurati, then Jurati under the Borg Queen’s influence, and THEN as the Borg Queen herself is positively incredible. I am both eager and terrified of next week’s episode.
Finally, did anyone else besides me catch the little Easter egg in Jean-Luc’s conversation with Renée? “I was sent to fetch you. Dr. Jemison is going to make a toast.”He’s of course referring to Dr. Mae Jemison, the first African-American woman to join NASA. Dr. Jemison also guest-starred in episode 6×23 of Star Trek: The Next Generation, “Second Chances.” She remains the only actual astronaut to guest star on an episode of Star Trek, but she also was directly inspired by Nichelle Nichols’ presence on Star Trek: The Original Series and became an astronaut because of it. I thought that was a lovely full-circle moment to mention her in this episode.
What did you think of “Two of One”? Leave me a comment and let’s talk Trek.
The next episode of Star Trek: Picard will air on April 14, 2022, on Paramount+.
Loved almost everything about this episode… except for the run time! I really enjoyed seeing them all at a gala event, even if they weren’t fully enjoying it. There was a nice little moment there between Raffi and Rios. And I really loved the conversation between Jean-Luc and Renée. That conversation was well-done I thought, from the moment he mentioned the shuttle and coaxed her into speaking about it. Brent Spiner’s being the awesome guy he is… but holy moly… Alison Pill just stole the show. I had no idea she had that extensive background in singing and that scene just totally blew me away. I loved her in The Newsroom and she is shining here through and through. Now I’ve got to wait a week for the next episode?! Gah!
I’ve been thinking this through for a while since the first episode of Picard Season 2… Agnes is the new Borg Queen we saw in the first episode of this season. The clues? We don’t see her face, she doesn’t kill the crewmen, just stuns them, the wanted to join the Federation (at first?), the Borg ship isn’t a cube, and, of course, the final statement she said to Picard… “Look up”. Agnes as the queen knew she had to get things going by trying to take over the ship at first (I believe). And now that Agnes is “one” with the queen… I’m pretty sure I’m right… we’ll see.
Yes to all! Mr. Nerdy Blogger and I were talking about this episode after my review was published and we talked about how the episode title, “Two of One” is not only a Borg name (think Seven of Nine), but refers to Agnes “sharing a body with her new friend.” It also could refer to Jean-Luc and Renée being of one family–two of one (family).
Mr. Nerdy Blogger also started referring to the gala as “Astronaut Prom” and this will now be the only way I will speak of it again. Thank you for commenting! Lots of good insight here!
Bob, I really didn’t want to buy that theory when I first read it on twitter, but the more I think about it, the more I’m scared of it being accurate. Fingers crossed that this is the particular event that needs to be changed. I adore Agnes and I don’t want her to stay Borg’d! Thanks so much for commenting and “engaging” in discussion!