There is so much going on in today’s episode of Star Trek: Picard. Episode 3×05 “Imposters” gives us more threads to follow, an unexpected throwback cameo, and well, it looks like there’s no turning back from here.
Let’s jump into my thoughts on Star Trek: Picard episode 3×05 “Imposters.”
Changes in the Changelings
We’ve definitely raised the stakes with the Changelings. One of the more unsettling aspects of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is the paranoia created by the Changelings infiltrating Starfleet. Now we’ve got it again and even a John Carpenter’s The Thing-style blood test can’t confirm who’s who. *gestures at those Petri dishes Dr. Crusher had at the end of the episode* I definitely got a really eerie feeling about what may come the rest of the season. Also, I won’t be surprised if there’s another changeling on board the Titan. I doubt they only had one on board. Ensign La Forge confirming that she isn’t the changeling via vomiting is a nice bit of comic relief that helped break the growing feeling of tension I have about the Changelings, but I can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same thing.
What does this mean for our crew? I’m sure Dr. Crusher will have figured out a detection method in the next episode or two, but she better do it quickly. We’re now at the halfway mark of the season and we still don’t have the whole band back together.
Worf vs. Raffi vs. Krinn
Worf and Raffi continue to be the buddy cop duo you didn’t know you needed in a Star Trek show. Michelle Hurd and Michael Dorn are fantastic together in Star Trek: Picard 3×05 “Imposters.” When this is done, I better get a Raffi/Worf spin-off show. I love how the big dust-up with Krinn played by Kirk Acevedo (another 12 Monkeys alum) went down. We’ve got a nice lead-in with Raffi using the mobile emitter, a fake fight, and then a sneak attack. Krinn’s logic of being a Vulcan crimelord is quite interesting. It was said once in an episode of Star Trek: Discovery recently that “Vulcans deem anything that they don’t like illogical.” It’s not an entirely unfair criticism, so I suppose the reverse of that would be that anything Vulcans do like is “logical,” and thus we have Krinn the Vulcan crimelord. I doubt we’ll see much more of Krinn this season, which is too bad. I would enjoy getting to know him better.
Finally, I’m glad we’re at last getting Raffi and Worf connected back to Picard and the rest of the crew. I feel like it’s taken a bit too long to pull the rest of our crew in and yet, I’m not sure how it could have been done differently. Maybe I’m just a bit impatient. But as Raffi says, “Patience, my ass!” We best have the band back together next episode. I’ll be here tapping my foot until then.
An Unexpected Return
I was definitely expecting the full crew of the Enterprise-D this season. I was NOT expecting the return of Ro Laren played by the brilliant Michelle Forbes. If you’re unfamiliar with Ro, be sure to read up on her Memory Alpha page for some backstory, but gosh, she is still as sharp as ever. Ro is a character that grew on me, and that’s in no small part due to Michelle Forbes’ ability to play a compelling and complex character.
There’s a lot to unpack with her relationship with Picard. “You broke my heart.” “And you broke mine.” “I wish you could have seen me.” It’s sad that their mutual hurt is the thing that determines that the other isn’t one of the “Imposters.” Picard was a mentor to Ro, almost like a father figure. On some level, I think we all want to be seen and accepted for who we really are. To not experience that from a parental figure or a mentor is devastating. I’m glad Ro and Picard finally saw each other. I’m also sorry this is the last we’ll see of the brilliant Michelle Forbes. I hope she keeps showing up in other sci-fi shows I love, as she’s done in Orphan Black and Battlestar Galactica. I’m glad that she got the chance to bring closure to Ro’s story.
Final Thoughts
We still don’t know much about what’s going on with Jack. I stand by my Stranger Things/Close Encounters of the Third Kind theory that I mentioned in my review last week. Now I’m going to raise that with Jack having Chuck Bartowski’s Intersect stuck in his head. His sudden onset ninja moves taking out those Changelings without blinking an eye are definitely straight out of Chuck. One thing that keeps nagging at me though is the voice he keeps hearing. Closed captions say it’s Beverly. Is he remembering her trying to pull him out of these trances? More mysteries that I need insight on, please, and thank you.
Finally, on a completely superficial note, the Intrepid rising up to take aim at the Titan was frickin’ intimidating, even with one nacelle damaged. Our crew’s on the run, with precious few to help. Also, if they keep name-dropping Admiral Janeway and they don’t SHOW me Admiral Janeway, you’re gonna have one grumpy fangirl right here. With all the other random legacy characters showing up, why not?
What did you think about Star Trek: Picard 3×05 “Imposters”? Leave me a comment and let’s talk Trek.
The next episode of Star Trek: Picard will air on March 23, 2023, on Paramount+.
