Star Trek: Picard – 2.10 Farewell [Recap & Review]

One Who Lives, And Another Who Dies

In Star Trek: Picard – Farewell, we find ourselves at Chateau Picard as the team tries to decipher Juratti’s cryptic message and launch plans to save the Europa mission. Tallinn distributes tricorder devices to the team and transports inside of mission control – with Jean-Luc as a stow-away! When they arrive, Picard reveals that he knows Tallinn’s plan – to sacrifice her life to save Renee. She pushes back and tells him that he doesn’t need to save her – that he doesn’t need to save the universe. 

The rest of the team beams into Soong’s laboratory where they are greeted by a recording of Soong’s voice. It was a decoy to distract them while he goes after Renee. However, he left four rockets as a backup plan to take down the Europa mission should he fail to kill her. 

Back at mission control, Tallinn dons a disguise and goes searching for Renee with Soong also in pursuit. Tallinn finds Renee and confides in her who she is and what she does – look after Renee. After hearing Tallinn out, Renee Picard runs out of the locker room right into Soong begging him for help from the “crazy woman.” After a few moments, she starts to feel sick and can no longer walk. Adam tells her that he dosed her with a neurotoxin that will kill her quickly. 

Back at Soong’s laboratory, the drones have started to launch to take down the Europa shuttle. The team is able to override them, eliminating one danger to Renee Picard. 

Jean-Luc finds Renee and she tells him that she is dying, there is nothing they can do. She begs him to let her see the launch. Suddenly, we see that the dying woman is not Renee but Tallinn. She saved Renee but lost her life. As she’s dying, Tallinn tells Jean-Luc that it was worth it because she got to tell Renee how important she was. 

Even Gods Have Favorites

Back at Soong’s laboratory, Adam is listening to the successful transmissions from the Europa shuttle. His legacy in tatters, he walks around smashing things. He also finds one last gift from his daughter Kore – she destroys all of his research remotely. Despondent, he opens a safe and pulls out a file – Project Kahn.

Once she’s done destroying her father’s life work, Kore receives a message on her tablet inviting her to an address in Los Angeles to learn more. She goes and is greeted by Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton). He tells her that he is a Traveler of All of Space and Time – they select Supervisors who ensure the proper flow of time. He invites her to join them and she accepts. 

At Chateau Picard, the team packs up and prepares for their next steps. Seven suggests that they destroy their future tech and prepare to live in the 21st century forever. Jean-Luc takes the skeleton key and hides it in the place his younger self will find it three centuries in the future. 

At this point, Q reappears and applauds Jean-Luc for accepting his destiny. He explains to Picard that this journey was about forgiveness – forgiving himself. Picard asks him, “Why me?” Why has Q been so focused on him for the past 30 years? Q explains that he is dying, alone and that he does not want that for Picard. He has unshackled him from the past and now he is free to explore his own heart. This was the gift that he, Q, wanted to give him before he dies. 

The team gathers with Q in the courtyard and he tells them he will be sending them home as his “final act.” Before they leave, Rios steps away and tells them he is staying. The team says their goodbyes to him. Just before Q snaps his fingers to send them home, Picard hugs him and tells him he isn’t dying alone. Q then snaps his fingers, and they are back in the 24th century where they started, with a ship in self-destruct mode and the Borg on board.

La Vie En Rose

Picard halts the auto-destruct sequence and orders the ship to stand down. The Borg Queen retracts her mask and it is, in fact, Juratti. She explains that there is danger nearby, a galactic event that is about to destroy the quadrant. She needs the fleet’s shields in conjunction with hers to stave off the explosion. Picard gives Seven the command (a field commission) and she orders the fleet to cooperate. On the USS Excelsior, a cadet named Elnor (a last gift from Q) adjusts his shields. They are successful in staving off the explosion, creating a trans-warp conduit. Agnes asks for provisional membership in the Federation to hold off future threats. 

At ten-forward, Picard and Guinan debrief. Guinan shares with him the fates of those he loved: Rios, Ricardo, and Renee Picard. We also learn that the organism Renee discovered during the Europa mission was used to clean the Oceans. Jean-Luc then returns to Chateau Picard where he finds Tallinn, preparing to leave. He confesses to her that he wants a second chance and she gives it to him.

Star Trek: Picard – Farewell Episode Analysis

I am somewhat torn on the season finale. In many ways, it was a bit of a disappointment and left us with many loose ends and unanswered questions. On the other hand, the sprinklings of Star Trek canon, the return of Wil Wheaton, and the exchange between Q and Picard were truly touching moments. 

There are several inconsistencies in this episode and, as a season finale, it didn’t do a great job of tying up loose ends or answering our driving questions. For example, why was Rios allowed to stay in the past? What about the risk of “butterflies”? If a tricorder left behind could alter the future, surely a man with future tech (and knowledge) could do the same! 

Q’s mysterious illness and madness were also left a mystery. Even Guinan was shocked to learn that a Q could die (other than by the hands of another Q). In many exchanges between Q and Picard, Q seemed outright crazy. Yet in the end, he was lucid and just a little… lonely? Surely there were other ways for Q to help alleviate Jean-Luc of the guilt of his mother’s death. Heck, probably with a snap of his fingers. I will admit, however, that the final moment between Q and Picard really touched me in a way I did not expect – even if it felt a little contrived. Never underestimate the power of great actors to pull off a scene! 

Dr. Adam Soong remained one of my favorite characters (probably because Brent Spiner is so brilliant). We know that the descendent Arik Soong was involved with the augments so it should not be a surprise that Adam has a hand in it as well – perhaps the hand if that file is any hint. 

Wil Wheaton’s reappearance was a great one and answered the question about where these Supervisors come from (sort of). So does this mean that we will see Kore again? Or is she already in the future? 

And of course, the mysterious “danger” that Juratti warns us about at the end of the season. Is that what will drive the original cast in Season 3? Let me know your theories and reactions in the comments!

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