HERE THERE BE SPOILERS

Episode two of season three continues the breakneck pace established in episode one, complete with cliffhanger, but we get some questions answered that, frankly, I thought would take a bit longer. Were there surprises? Not really, but “Disengage” uses pacing and solid character beats to keep your interest, changing the narrative from “what do I think is going to happen next” to “how do I think this is going to happen,” and accomplishing that task beautifully. I still feel a touch like I’m watching that old MacGyver series finale that I referenced last week, but I’m more than willing to stick around for this particular ride.

Plot Ahoy!

The episode “Disengage” continues the A and B storyline format from the first episode, with the A story concerning Jack Crusher and his fate, and the B story exploring what Raffi does in the aftermath of the terrorist attack.

In the A story, we open with a flashback to Jack Crusher attempting to bribe a member of the Fenris Rangers to look the other way as he arms two warring factions on a planet beset by plague. Jack thinks he walks away scott-free, but the Ranger makes a call to an unidentified individual, which seemingly kicks off the epic flight of the Eleos. In the present, Picard, Riker, and Jack Crusher attempt to find a way to avoid the malevolent ship currently menacing the Eleos. Picard foils an attempt to beam Crusher away with transporter jammers, and Riker uses some sort of explosive device to foil a boarding attempt. The enemy ship fires on the Eleos, destroying the shuttle sitting docked on the hull. Just as all seems lost, Seven of Nine manages to talk an extremely hostile Liam Shaw into rescuing the Starfleet heroes, getting herself relieved of duty in the process.

However, the Titan does beam Picard, Riker, and both Crushers aboard just before the ship destroys the Eleos. Shaw attempts a parley with the alien captain, who identifies herself as Vadic, and Vadic gives him an ultimatum—turn over Jack Crusher or else. To demonstrate her seriousness, she flings the now-abandoned Eleos at the Titan. She gives them one hour to decide Jack Crusher’s fate. Predictably, Shaw wants to turn Crusher over to Vadic, even knowing that he’d be consigning the young man to his death. Picard argues otherwise, so Shaw gives him half an hour to figure out what to do with Crusher. Picard chats with the young man but gets nowhere. Riker opts to go to the proverbial source, hunting down Dr. Beverly Crusher in Sickbay and waking her up. Jack attempts an escape but is foiled by Seven and a transporter lockdown.

Picard still doesn’t want to turn Jack over, but Shaw gives the order. Riker drags Beverly to the bridge, where she and Picard have a wordless conversation. Picard countermands Shaw’s order and refuses to surrender his son to Vadic. The Titan flees further into the nebula, much to Vadic’s delight.

The B-story has Raffi refusing to disengage with the investigation, despite her handler’s orders to do so. Raffi remains unconvinced, despite the news, that a low-level Romulan is responsible for the attack. She taps her ex-husband as a resource for an introduction to a Ferengi broker. He gives her the choice between making the introduction and putting in a good word with their son. Predictably, though it breaks her heart, Raffi chooses the former. She attempts to fake her way through the conversation, and it seems to go well, despite the broker forcing Raffi to take some sort of drug, until the broker drags out the body of the aforementioned low-level Romulan gangster. He gives the order for her death, and Raffi attacks him before turning to deal with his goons. However, Worf intervenes, killing them and the Ferengi before rescuing the barely functional Raffi. He grumbles that he told her to disengage, identifying himself as the mysterious handler.

Analysis

Arguably the two big reveals from “Disengage” are that Jack is Picard’s son from his failed relationship with Beverly Crusher, and that Worf is Raffi’s handler. However, neither of these is really a surprise. “The Next Generation” episode spent a significant portion of its runtime hinting at Jack’s parentage, and even in “Disengage,” Riker does everything but ask Picard if he thinks he’s Jack’s father. We don’t get explicit confirmation from Beverly per se, but whatever Picard gleaned from his wordless conversation with her convinced him that Jack is, in fact, better named Picard, even if Beverly did name him after her deceased husband. With Worf, the use of the word “warrior” by the handler did everything but give it away, especially given the revelations from earlier Picard trailers. His appearance, therefore, was not hugely surprising, but giving him the opportunity to bring Klingon blades to bear on the bad guys was intensely satisfying.

Vadic is also interesting. We don’t really have a species identification for her, though the Shrike does share significant design elements with Nero’s Narada from Star Trek 2009. She identifies herself as a bounty hunter, which jives with what Seven knows of the ship from the Fenris Rangers. As it turns out, Shaw isn’t a fan of the Rangers either. However, she seems awfully well-informed about Starfleet officers, and even references Shaw’s apparently problematic psych profile.

Adding to the mysteries, we also don’t exactly know why Jack is the primary target here. Sure, he’s clearly been up to shenanigans, but unless Starfleet doesn’t have the entire story, hiring Vadic seems a touch overkill for such a minor player. That said, we don’t yet know how the Picard storyline will meet up with the Raffi storyline. Could Jack be involved with the theft of the Daystrom Portal Gun? It seems unlikely though not impossible, especially if the show is bending over backwards to give Picard the son he says he never wanted.

Basically, the big takeaways from “Disengage” are that there are MORE MYSTERIES, and I have to say, I’m not disappointed. I would like for Gates McFadden to get some actual lines in the next episode because Jack’s point—that no one Picard knows has remained unchanged in the twenty years since Nemesis–is a valid one. I’d even argue that Picard has not remained static in the same two decades, but Beverly has apparently raised a son, engaged in freedom fighting, and lurked on the edge of legitimacy. Did she experience the same frustrations with Starfleet that so disappointed Picard? Did she purposefully withhold knowledge of Jack from his father? If so, why? As a Starfleet physician, how did she fall pregnant accidentally? A large part of Jack’s mystery is bound up in his mother, and I suspect she has a lot to tell us to put the season into perspective. I really can’t wait to hear what she has to say.

I also want to see what next steps Raffi takes on the season’s journey. She’s obviously right about the Romulan, and she wouldn’t be Raffi if she weren’t willing to sacrifice her personal happiness for the sake of being right. Will this season temper her drive, or will it stoke her frustration, as working with Shaw has for Seven?

The big takeaway here is that “Disengage” gives us just enough answers to tee up the next parts of the story while forcing us as viewers to ask more questions. It’s a delicate balance to strike, but the episode does it well.

Rating:

Four cups of Earl Grey Tea

Stray Thoughts From the Couch:

1. If you recognized Vadic’s cheekbones, that’s because Amanda Plummer is the daughter of acting legend and former Klingon Chancellor Christopher Plummer.
2. Loved that Sidney LaForge has internalized her father’s tendency to go off into technobabble.
3. Shaw survived, and weirdly, I’m not that mad about it. Like Jellico, Shaw isn’t exactly wrong about Picard and Riker even if he’s a titanic jerk, but now that we get a hint about his profile, I want to know more about him.
4. How many times can Riker call Jack “kid” in a single episode? TBD.
5. The Eleos is apparently a Mariposa medical vessel, which seems to be a reference to Rios and the clinic his future wife runs in season two. Also, I did get the ship’s name wrong last week.
6. The shuttle that gets destroyed is the Saavik, if I read the name on the wreckage correctly.
7. There are a number of references to 12 Monkeys from the name “James Cole” to having the actor who played James Cole, Aaron Stanford, play Sneed, the Ferengi broker. Also, “splinter” was a term related to the time travel technology in that show, and it appears in Picard as a new designer drug, peddled by the same Ferengi.
8. I think I may have seen Sisko’s baseball in Sneed’s office. If I did, I have real questions for Jake.