WiC Watches: Star Trek: Picard
Episode 104: “Absolute Candor”
“Absolute Candor” opens with yet another flashback. This time, we see Jean-Luc arrive on the planet Vashti, where he and Raffi plan to relocate hundreds of thousands of Romulans fleeing the destruction of their home planet. It’s 14 years ago.
Picard meets with the leader of an all-female group of Romulans who are highly-trained warriors who use swords and pledge themselves to lost causes. At the behest of Picard, the leader agrees to watch over a Romulan boy who idolizes the Starfleet admiral because he’s the only male he’s come in contact with.
We see Picard teach the boy how to fence (classic The Next Generation Picard) as well as read him classic stories like The Three Musketeers. Toward the end of the flashback, Picard receives a call from Raffi, who tells him that the rogue synthetics have just attacked Mars. Picard pleads with the women of the order to watch over the boy and promises to return as soon as he can.
Fourteen years later, Picard finally makes good on his promise. We’re now on present-day Vashti. The Romulan people are living in poverty and have secluded themselves from anyone who isn’t Romulan. It’s not the peaceful settlement he left all those years ago, and in fact, many of the Romulans are greeting him with open hostility, as they directly blame him for the Federation’s decision to abandon the Romulans who were left on Romulus before it was destroyed.
Picard seeks out the ancient all-female warriors and finds their leader is still his old friend from 14 years past. He’s seeking one of their kind to help protect him as he looks for Soji.
By the by, we get a brief glimpse of Soji as she and the Romulan assassin/spy Narek flirt. It’s clear that Soji is beginning to have doubts about Narek’s intentions toward her, and she even accuses him of spying on her. He deflects the questions and, I kid you not, takes Soji to a secret part of the abandoned Borg ship where he does his best Tom Cruise in Risky Business slide down a slippery corridor. Delighted, Soji tries it for herself and forgets about any potential espionage.
Back on Vashti, the boy that Jean-Luc befriended way back when appears, now all grown up. His name is Elnor (Evan Evagora), and he is the only male trained by the all-female warriors. He sees Picard and initially storms off. He too blames the former Starfleet admiral for abandoning his people, but eventually warms up to him and pledges his sword to Picard’s cause.
In a very cool scene, Picard is challenged to a fight by some Romulan ruffians who throw him a rapier and demand a duel. Picard refuses to fight and Elnor steps in and warns the ruffians to stand down or else. They don’t listen, and he proceeds to cut their heads off. As green Romulan blood drips down his sword’s blade, Elnor warns everyone else to back off, and just in time, Raffi beams Picard and his new bodyguard aboard the La Sirena — the ship owned and piloted by Rios and his rag-tag crew.
However, before they can escape Vashti’s orbit, a Romulan Bird of Prey (warship) attacks the La Sirena. It seems like Picard and his crew might lose their battle before the mission really begins when a smaller ship enters the fray and begins to fire on the Bird of Prey. The Bird of Prey is beaten away, but the mystery ship — which seems to have some kind of ace pilot at the helm — takes damage and begins to crash.
The pilot hails the La Sirena and requests to be beamed aboard before their ship is destroyed. Picard obliges, and when the beams of light materialize in front of him, Picard sees none other than Seven of Nine (Jerri Ryan)! She tells Picard he owes her a ship before she passes out due to a bit of head trauma taken during the battle.
This was probably my favorite episode of Star Trek: Picard yet. I enjoyed Elnor’s backstory, and even though I felt like I was watching Star Trek: Lord of the Rings in Rivendell, I still found it very interesting that there’s an entire Romulan order of all-female warriors who exist solely to pledge their swords to lost causes. This show is finally starting to pick up the pace, and I’m here for it.