Wouter

I doubt she could even reach Janeway. Ro said she didn't get past her "gatekeepers", who may not forward such requests to Janeway. I also liked the episode, perhaps the best of S3 so far. While earlier emotional conflicts felt forced (particularly the one between Riker and Picard that was resolved very quickly) and I dislike the TNG bunch running the ship in episode 4 (with the actual crew, including the captain and the main helmswoman, being reduced to spectators or figurants on their own ship), the meeting between Ro and Picard really resonated. At least it was something left hanging from TNG where the conflict feels very appropriate, and where a form of resolution gets welcomed. Particularly well done was that they managed to keep the audience in doubt whether or not Ro was a changeling. While they made such a big deal of Picard's suspicions that I suspected it was the actual Ro, they did keep me doubting until Picard pulled his holo-phaser on her without anyone firing. And though Jack Crusher is not my favourite character and Picard not knowing about him is melodramatic in a rather bad way, at least I have the impression they are going somewhere with this particular mystery box. Prodigy takes place some 15-20 years before Picard S3 (Prodigy is in 2384 or 2385 I think, unclear when exactly Picard S3 takes place but it's later than 2400).

Prodigy is excellent, too, with far more natural plots/drama then Picard currently has. The animated shows are the best of the current bunch, easily.

Very good finale, it is what Voyager's "Endgame" should have been, wrapping up the entire first 20 episodes with callbacks to the first episode, an epilogue and the touching sacrifice of holo-Janeway (a great character in her own right) and also the emotional goodbye of Gwyn. I suppose we will check in on Gwyn's storyline in Season 2 though, much like we saw glimpses of Vice-admiral Janeway in season 1B. The accusation may have been partially about the Denaxi Depot, where the kids could have returned the ship but failed to because they panicked, or alternatively that part was specifically for Gwyn (who did attempt to claim the ship for the Diviner, back in episode 4) much like the accusation about "inhabiting the mind of an esteemed Admiral" was specifically for Dal and not for the others. Given that Gwyn had already talked with Janeway/Starfleet before the latter came to deliver the verdict, and yet she didn't say anything to the others, it's possible she already knew the gist of what Janeway would say (she could hardly go to Solum if she was convicted and put into some kind of youth correction program or something like that) and that the verdict was conditionnel on Gwyn cooperating and Janeway taking the others under her wing.

Excellent episode, very moving in multiple ways. I didn't think they would go this far with the carnage. Maybe they will push a reset button next episode, or if not they may at least get to stop the Construct so something can still be salvaged. I'm guessing John Noble will reprise the role of the younger version of the Diviner on present day Solum, during season 2.

Asencia doesn't look like Gwyn either. The ridges on her face are very different, much more subtle with Gwyn (who looks much like her father in this regard). The hair is also very different, and not just the way it is arranged. With hindsight, Gwyn was very right to run away from Ascenia in the episode prior.

Agreed on the miscommunication, slightly disappointing that they went this far with all the missed chances (though Gwyn's panicky reaction was understandable to some extent - but still over the top). Attempting to communicate with the Dauntless is kinda irrelevant if Dal and co don't even dare to speak to Janeway in person. I think this will only be resolved in the double episode that will be the season finale. As for the Romulans, they turn up with more firepower (presumably) which gives them "the right" to be giant pricks. With 3-to-1 (or worse, if any others are lurking) Janeway will have to retreat, I suppose.

I'm surprised that the escape pod of the relay station wasn't found (yet). Would be interesting information for Janeway. The Diviner is probably going to give all kinds of disinformation to the Dauntless crew. It was a good episode, I enjoyed especially the parts with the "living construct" and on the Dauntless. The crew of the Protostar is suicidally brave to board a Borg cube and ask for information. The resolution was a bit easy, but then Picard and Data did much the same on TNG (putting the Borg to sleep) and Zero actually has better reasons to be able to resist the collective. The Borg cube was suitably impressive.

Gywn still has her sword/tool thingy, it was already visible on her right hand while she was trying to disable the Protostar's shields in S01e10. It was funny that Dal didn't manage to cut the sarcophagus with a phaser (was it on stun or another wrong setting?), while Gwyn saves herself. It's also remarkable that Gwyn hadn't been told - and still isn't being told - what happened to her father. That could potentially still bring some problems. As for Dal and the alert, I don't think that's a good thing at all (for Dal!) allthough the kids were all happy that Starfleet seems to know what/who he is. I suspect he may be (genetically) augmented/altered, something which is still frowned upon by the Federation (traces from Khan, apparently). Once Starfleet gets an impression of what the Vau N'akat are trying to do, I guess Gwyn will be on their radar soon enough, as well. As I guess that the Dauntless is going to pick up the Denobulan officer in his escape pod, vice-admiral Janeway will likely gets description soon and the similarity with the Diviner will (likely) be noted. If the Denobulan remembers and reports correctly what was said on the station, the kid's claims about escaping from someone who kept them enslaved may ring a bell, having seen Tars Lamora. I don't think the guy was completely inept, though it was cruel of Starfleet to keep him alone in such a farflung outpost. The initial reception went well enough. Taking off like he did isn't the starfleet thing to do, but then he believed (not wholly unreasonably) that they had been sabotaging the station. The situation with the calculation of the jump at the end seemed a bit unnecessary, as the Protostar could have moved to pick them up (or used tractor beam as the ETH, did). Rok may be a prodigy but it would take Data to calculate something like that without any tools. Little detail: Janeway found Gwyn's combadge, which was crushed by the Diviner in the mid-season finale.

Starfleet does not know what happened to the ship (Chakotay and co are missing, disappeared without trace with exception of the ship suddenly resurfacing). They also don't know about the Vau N'akat (they have yet to make first contact, unless either Gwyn meeting the lone officer on the station or Janeway and co meeting the Diviner on Tars Lamora would count) and don't know about a weapon. The only they know/think is that the Protostar, with an alien crew, visited the relay station and once contact was made with the ship's system, everything went haywire (and Janeway doesn't know even that yet, she first has to pick up the Denobulan in his escape pod). The show is setting up a season long arc of vice-admiral Janeway chasing the Protostar, in order to "stop the saboteurs", reclaim the ship and get to know what happened to Chakotay and is crew. And because the Protostar crew wants to avoid contact at all costs given they know about the weapon now, they will keep evading her (until they can't, I suppose, probably in the season finale).

The relation between Gwyn and Dal is fascinating. Really liked how it was played out in this episode, with Dal pointedly not taking credit but Jankom giving it anyway, to Gwyn's obvious delight. What I think happened: holo-Janeway asked Dal "where's Gwyn?" and Dal then took it from there, without further encouragement needed from Janeway (who had earlier manipulated Gwyn off the ship by exagerating the danger of crashing, and not offering any help beyond responding to direct commands, because she didn't want to leave without everybody on board). From Jankom's perspective, it would have been entirely Dal's idea. I don't see it as a retcon in the other sense either (Dal "suddenly" caring about Gwyn), due to something that struck me when I rewatched "Dreamcatcher". At the end of that episode, the group in the "runaway" buggy see the shuttle and Protostar crashing down. It's clear they realise Gwyn has broken out again and must have been on the shuttle. Dal drives to the shuttle crash site (rather than directly to the Protostar) and when they arrive, he jumps out and runs to the shuttle in a fashion that suggests he fears to find a dead or severely wounded Gwyn. Directly after he sees she is more or less OK, his anger at her comes out again and early in the next episode he is at his meanest again. But I don't think he ever wanted her to die (he would have asked Rok to carry her if need be I think, but at that time he would not admit that he cared one iota about her unless it was absolutely necessary for survival). When they were still at Tars Lamora (before Rok activated the magic translator), Dal had almost nobody to talk to. His options seem to have been limited to Drednok and Gwyn (not entirely sure if anybody else speaks a language Dal would understand), and Gwyn obviously the more pleasant option. When Gwyn and The Diviner discuss Dal, she notes that "he talks a lot" and it is clear that she (usually) is happy to listen, though she doesn't think very highly of his intelligence. Especially the stories about the stars entice her, and Dal does seem to have a certain winning charm to him in this regard. Gwyn in turn was likely looking for affection among the captives, as she didn't get any from her own "family", and thus easily charmed. In the scene of the interrogation of Dal regarding "fugitive zero", the signals we get from Gwyn and Dal are complex and sometimes seem contradictory. It demonstrates that the balance of power in the relation is not healthy, with Dal brought in handcuffed and under guard. As we see in later scenes also, Dal likes to play it cool in such situations to show that he is not intimidated (and Zero isn't there to point out he actually is), and puts his boots on the table to the annoyance of Gwyn. She gives him the Lychees, but she does not order the removal of his handcuffs so he can eat normally, which no doubt annoys him in turn. Over the entire conversation hangs the loyalty conflict within Gwyn, as she wants to please the Diviner but also spare Dal at the same time. I imagine Dal came out of this with a bit of resentment, being send off to deep mining with a threat hanging over his head. Yet, I suppose Gwyn feels she is trying to protect him from harm and she blames Zero for involving Dal in a rebellion against her father. Gwyn is quite shocked when she cannot protect Dal from being sent to the surface, with the Diviner taking entirely Drednok's side. And she helps Drednok with the plan to let Dal escape so that he leads them to Zero. When she arrives at the Protostar, Dal reaches out to her and offers to take her along on the ride (it is of course possible he does this merely out of desperation, but I think he genuinely wants her to come with him). Her refusal (to go willingly) probably does not sit well with him, as he - and even her dream of the stars - are dejected in favour of the Diviner. During the escape of the Protostar, there is again a sign that Gwyn does not want harm to come to Dal as the editing implies she somehow realises that Drednok is going to strike a fatal blow at Dal, as she cringes at that very moment (but he is obviously not aware of that). After the escape, Dal's demeanor towards Gwyn changes and the viewer is left to wonder if the "friendship" from his side was only there out of calculation and necessity. However, I think Dal is angry with Gwyn (whom he otherwise likes well enough) and pointedly wants to demonstrate his anger because of three reasons: -her refusal to go with the escaping group when offered, and active resistance when taken by force indicating she chooses loyalty to the Diviner over him, even when she has the chance to chase her dream of going to see the stars -her cooperation with Drednok in setting up a trap for Zero and him -build-up anger over the uneven power balance, as he often seems to have been in detention and was demonstrated in the interrogation scene, which he couldn't express before since she is the daughter of the boss Dal then apparently wants to show Gwyn how that made him feel by treating her like dirt in return. However, as self-appointed "captain" this was a very bad choice because this leads to an angry Gwyn being reinforced in her loyalty for the Divinier and not only plotting her escape, but eventually even choosing to take off with the Protostar and leaving everybody behind. Luckily, Janeway interferes. Dal really should have put his feelings on hold and negotiated some sort of terms with her to avoid that as well as the escape attempts that actually happened, instead of getting "even" with her for perceived or real mistreatment. Once Gwin has finally made her choice, all this balast seems to have been jettisoned and the positive aspects of their relationship come to the fore again. Incidentally, I think Gwyn could quite easily have escaped or taken control of the Protostar at any point in the episodes 2-3-4 before she actually did it - IF she had been willing to use her multitool/weapon in a configuration to actually kill rather than deflect or incapacitate, especially as really she only needs to take out Rok and the others can't stop her.

I think Nandi will be back in a later episode. We may get more back-story (about Dal and his origins, and possibly about how/why Nandi is running a big ship quasi alone, far from Ferengi space) and Nandi was quite interested in Gwyn, noting her language skills. If she gets the chance, she may see a chance for profit there.

Time passed in between, the implication is that someone (most likely Rok, who was generally the least hostile to Gwyn) took them off.

While the weapon the Diviner was talking about is most likely a computer virus of some sort (like the one Picard had hoped to place among the Borg when they first met Hugh), I don't think the wording of the Diviner explicitly excludes Gwyn as being the weapon. He said to her that it was currently onboard the Protostar, that it needed to be "armed" and that it would send a signal that would lead to Starfleet ships turning on one another. The Diviner and Gwyn are capable of sending remote signals to their multitool thingys in orde to manipulate them and the Diviner insisted she would be on the ship, Like he turned her "heirloom" against her, he may have other nasty surprises in store.

I think she still has it. A small piece of it was visible on her right hand when Zero was scanning her at the end. I only just got round to seeing Prodidy, really surprised by the quality of this show.

This is the reason given in the show: Rand and Matt think Matt can channel, and they are afraid of what the Aes Sedai (not merely Moiraine, but also the Liandrin types) would do if they show up with what they think are clear signs that Matt can channel. Nynaeve also mistrusts the Aes Sedai.