S01.E06: The Impossible Box

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

Picard and the crew track Soji to the Borg cube in Romulan space, resurfacing haunting memories for Picard. Meanwhile, Narek believes he finally found a way to safely exploit Soji for information.

Promo:

Original air date: 2/27/20

[ElectricBoogaloo]

A+ for the casting people because the actress who played little Soji looked so much like Isa Briones.

Awwww, Elnor! My cold dead heart loves his loyalty for Picard.

[Joimiaroxeu]

Was Rios working Agnes or was she working him? Over on reddit someone said it was probaby the EIH: Emergency Intercourse Hologram. 🙂

Yes, good job with the casting of of the young Soji. They had the same prominent chin.

This show went a little Westworld-y for a minute there when Soji saw herself in pieces in mid-construction.

Is that it for Elnor or does everybody choose not to live? 🙄

Also over on reddit they were calling Narek, "Narek Greyjoy." Guess that's better than Narek "Jaime" Lannister.

[Netfoot]

Tedious, bordering on unwatchable.

[starri]

I thought the scenes with Picard and Hugh were outstanding.

[greekmom]

I hope the Lannister siblings see the end of Seven's guns on maximum kill setting.

I hope Hugh doesn't get into trouble.

I hope Agnes dies.

The scenes between Hugh and Picard were best and the end. 

That is all.

[marinw]

I think I speak for most when I say that Narek is a piece of shit.

Rios gets hotter every episode. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

Who knew that a Romulan Rubik's Cube was also part TARDIS (as it appears to be bigger on the inside) ?  Or maybe it was a different cube from the one we were shown the inside of earlier in the episode ?

That red mist/radiation didn't seem to actually physically affect Soji as much I thought it would -- I initially thought it was the molecular solvent that Maddux mentioned the Romulans used to dissolve his lab, but apparently not.

Lots of Hugh in this episode -- his scenes with Picard were excellent.

I was kind of hoping that Rios didn't hook up with Agnes.

1 minute ago, marinw said:

I think I speak for most when I say that Narek is a piece of shit.

No kidding, his turn at the end of the Zaal Mach (not sure if that's the correct spelling, I didn't have the captions turned on) was just brutal.

[dwmarch]

I liked that for all of Narek's sister's whining about how he was in love with Soji, Narek didn't hesitate to try to kill her one second after getting what he wanted from her.

On the other hand, if he had just used a conventional explosive instead of the creeping red cloud of unspecified doom, she would be dead. So maybe he did that on purpose.

Was it urgent to get to Soji or not? They did make a couple of stops along the way and then once they get there, Hugh takes Picard on a tour through the Borg Reclamation Project and asks if he'll sponsor it! Fortunately this takes exactly the amount of time needed to put them in Soji's path as the attempted murder is going on.

They messed up big time on the Queen's special transporter. They said the range was 40,000km. No, that's standard Starfleet transporter range as of the TNG era and it's nothing in space. The Sikarian transporter (from Voyager's "Prime Factors") the Borg jacked would send them up to 40,000 light years. Bit of a difference.

I distinctly recall Clancy telling JL to piss up a rope when he asked to be reinstated so why are other Starfleet characters calling him Admiral now? I suppose it's really Admiral (retired) with the (retired) part being silent but it was a little jarring to hear Starfleet all of a sudden giving him respect when they haven't to this point.

[paulvdb]

20 minutes ago, dwmarch said:

They messed up big time on the Queen's special transporter. They said the range was 40,000km. No, that's standard Starfleet transporter range as of the TNG era and it's nothing in space. The Sikarian transporter (from Voyager's "Prime Factors") the Borg jacked would send them up to 40,000 light years. Bit of a difference.

I'm pretty sure they said 40000 light years.

[dwmarch]

1 minute ago, paulvdb said:

I'm pretty sure they said 40000 light years.

I just double checked and you are correct. Not sure why I heard kilometers.

[thuganomics85]

Yeah, no surprise that Picard going back to the Borg Cube brought back a lot of unpleasant memories.  Granted, I imagine being assimilated into a collective of robotic aliens bent on galaxy domination holds nothing but unpleasant memories!  Like how they incorporated all of the archive footage during Picard's flashbacks: even getting a brief moment of the Borg Queen from First Contact.

Glad that Picard and Hugh met up, and Hugh ended up helping them escape.  Of course, that just means that I worry about his fate, since he is staying behind and isn't a regular.  I swear, if you do anything to him, Rizzo!  You better keep your creepy hands off of him!

So, basically it looks like Narek and Rizzo were using Soji to find the location of her father/builder, and thanks to the whole ritual thing, they have what they need.  And while he clearly hated doing that, Narek was fully prepared to kill her as well, when it was all said and done.  Of course, he just made the one small mistake of deciding to use a slow moving red gas to kill her, which allowed her to escape instead.  Probably not your best call, Narek.  Unless you actually wanted it to happen.

Rios and Agnes hooking up was a bit random, but I guess if you just killed your ex for mysterious reasons, and you need an outlet to release some tension, you've got to do what you've go to do!

Still indifferent to Raffi, but I did like her working her contact to get Picard into the Borg Cube.

Elnor seems on his way to stealing the show here.

Finally, 

Spoiler

if next week's previews are to be believed, we'll finally be getting our Riker appearance!

 

[SourK]

So, Narek's plan was to get the information from Soji without freaking her out, so that she wouldn't activate. Then, after talking to his sister, he tells her the thing that will most freak her out, and the whole thing ends with her activating. I think maybe he cares about her after all, and made her activate on purpose so she could protect herself from his sister, but he could still get the intel he wanted and have plausible deniability.

For the rest... I realized part way through that whatever this show tells me about Romulans isn't cannon to me.

Also, Picard has been on Borg ships lots of times since he was assimilated and he dealt with it. If anything, he should be freaking out because it reminds him of Data getting killed, but that's not the plot line they want to explore right now. I also still wish I got to hear what Seven of Nine thinks of this cube.

[Llywela]

Really strong episode, I thoroughly enjoyed this one. The characters are gelling, now that we've actually got to know them all, the sub-plots are coming together, the story kicked along at a decent pace - great stuff.

Rios playing futsal on his ship - yummy. Also, nice opportunity for Cabrera to show off his ball skills - he played semi-pro soccer in his youth. Still got the touch! Agnes seducing him has been telegraphed pretty much since they first met, she was very up-front about just needing a no-strings hook-up because she was upset, and I guess Rios has been out there on his own for long enough to be willing to just go with it, even if he doesn't really know why she's so upset. I noticed him giving her the side-eye a few times afterward, though - will he be blinded by hormones, or the first to notice that she isn't quite what she seems?

I fully expect Agnes to be redeemed by the end of the season. Narek too, probably. They are both main cast, after all.

Really, really loved the dynamic between Raffi and Rios here. She is at rock bottom, yet still burning herself out to get Picard what he needs - and where Picard himself doesn't seem to appreciate what that cost her, Rios was there paying close attention to his friend, picking her up of the floor, putting her to bed, letting her talk through her anguish. A+ friend support there, Cris, nicely done.

Rios and Raffi are my favourites.

Picard's reunion with Hugh was truly beautiful, and the journey he took from fear and trauma through to understanding and delighting in the work done on the Artifact was really nicely played.

I have never felt more engaged with Soji than I did here, as she finally reached the point Dahj was already at in the season opener: realisation of her true nature, her whole life unravelling before her eyes.

But now the cast has been divided - looking forward to seeing what happens next!

[MissLucas]

Well, the show is definitely picking up steam. 

Rios is really becoming an intriguing character beyond the obvious eye-candy. For someone who likes to play the misanthrope he certainly shows a lot of empathy. Even if hooking up with Agnes might not have been his best move - but it was certainly in the cards and did not come out of nowhere. And yes, he was a great friend to Raffi. Realizing what burning that bridge cost her - unlike Picard who seems to have been rather oblivious. And Michelle Hurd was fantastic in the sweet-talking scene. (I also decided that the show uses her hairstyle to give us a clue about Raffi's emotional state. Beehive-updo Raffi is in control, braids Raffi is spiraling.)

As much as I enjoyed the meeting between Hugh and Picard it was jarring to see Hugh give Picard a tour of the cube. Obviously Picard could not just blurt out the nature of his mission within the first minute but I really missed some sense of urgency in those scenes. I guess it was important to the main plot to put some focus on Picard's relationship with the Borg even if it caused some awkward pacing.

Poor Soji, I really expected her to scan herself with the age-detector gizmo. The scene with her call to 'Mom' was also brutal. Great casting for kid Soji. The wood grain effect of doll/puppet Soji (interesting that she never thought it could be Dahj) was freaky. And what a lucky coincidence for the Romulans that her Dad had opted for a skylight.

Speaking of Romulans: That was a good scene between Narek and Rizzo. And although it's a standard trope I think Harry Treadaway sold Narek's conflicting feelings about Soji pretty well. I wonder what he and Rizzo will make of Elnor - no spoiler, I just guess there will be some interaction next episode. Elnor keeps being a deadly delight but I had to wonder how he managed to get on the cube undetected. I'm not worried about him making it out alive in the end - not sure I can say the same about Hugh 😞

Edited February 28, 2020 by MissLucas

[marinw]

Did Hugh mention he was a Federation citizen? How did that happen? And Picard was impressed that so many people could be de-assimilated. I ask again: what about all those Enterprise E crew members after First Contact?

I agree with everyone here about the scenes between Picard and Hugh. The highlight of the show so far IMHO.

I was also impressed by that scene where Picard was doing research in his office and his head matches the image of Locutus on the screen, and it's like he's trying to get all the implants off him in the present. That was chilling.

Edited February 28, 2020 by marinw

[greekmom]

1 hour ago, MissLucas said:

 And what a lucky coincidence for the Romulans that her Dad had opted for a skylight.

Honestly, I forgot to add that I hope when those two find the "nest" it's nothing but an old house with dead orchids. And then Seven of Nine kills them.

You know like two explorers who think they will find a box of gold but at the end find nothing.

[Llywela]

1 hour ago, MissLucas said:

Rios is really becoming an intriguing character beyond the obvious eye-candy. For someone who likes to play the misanthrope he certainly shows a lot of empathy. Even if hooking up with Agnes might not have been his best move - but it was certainly in the cards and did not come out of nowhere. And yes, he was a great friend to Raffi. Realizing what burning that bridge cost her - unlike Picard who seems to have been rather oblivious. And Michelle Hurd was fantastic in the sweet-talking scene. (I also decided that the show uses her hairstyle to give us a clue about Raffi's emotional state. Beehive-updo Raffi is in control, braids Raffi is spiraling.)😞

Yes, these two actually seem to be moving in opposite directions, so to speak, Raffi unravelling rapidly, while Rios reclaims more and more of his former Starfleet self by the week. He automatically defers to Picard as former XO to retired admiral, instead of adopting the dynamic an independent ship's captain would normally have with a passenger, and is very much in caretaker mode with everyone else, offering comfort to Agnes and looking after Raffi. He sure has shown a lot of kindness for a guy who didn't want to be seen to care about anything when we first met him. Having a living, breathing crew on board has done wonders for him. But poor Raffi really is on a downward spiral, and she is going to have to find a reason to pull herself out of it, no one else can do it for her. She seems to thrive on crisis, mind, and I'm pretty sure the show has more of that to throw at her, so maybe that will help!

1 hour ago, MissLucas said:

Poor Soji, I really expected her to scan herself with the age-detector gizmo. The scene with her call to 'Mom' was also brutal. Great casting for kid Soji. The wood grain effect of doll/puppet Soji (interesting that she never thought it could be Dahj) was freaky. And what a lucky coincidence for the Romulans that her Dad had opted for a skylight.

Speaking of Romulans: That was a good scene between Narek and Rizzo. And although it's a standard trope I think Harry Treadaway sold Narek's conflicting feelings about Soji pretty well. I wonder what he and Rizzo will make of Elnor - no spoiler, I just guess there will be some interaction next episode. Elnor keeps being a deadly delight but I had to wonder how he managed to get on the cube undetected. I'm not worried about him making it out alive in the end - not sure I can say the same about Hugh 😞

Since it was a dream of something that never actually happened, it didn't matter whether or not there was actually a skylight in the real lab, as long as Soji had information about its location buried in her subconscious, that subconscious could create the mechanism to reveal it - could conjure up a skylight just as it conjured up the view from the window she'd never looked through before.

As for Elnor beaming over to the cube, I don't think there was any kind of shield in place to prevent anyone beaming over, it was just a matter of protocol that no one was supposed to do so without authorisation. How he knew exactly which coordinates to beam to is the bigger mystery.

17 minutes ago, marinw said:

Did Hugh mention how that he was a Federation citizen? How did that happen? And Picard was impressed that so many people could be de-assimilated. I ask again: what about all those Enterprise E crew members after First Contact?

Hugh and his group of former Borg would have been in contact with the Federation since the events of Descent, they were living in Federation space - it seems reasonable to me that they'd have been granted citizenship.

The trouble with de-Borging assimilated Enterprise crew would be finding them, I imagine. The Borg on the Artifact can be reclaimed because the cube has been separated from the Collective, for reasons that seem to be unknown - those former crewmembers, however, could be anywhere, there is no way of knowing which cube they are on, where that cube is, or of similarly separating that cube from the Collective even if it were traced, which is why they've been given up as lost. 

[pootlus]

The Hugh/Picard hug got me right in the feels.  "I, Borg" is one of my favourite TNG episodes.  They had better not kill Hugh and Elnor!

It's obvious Agnes is having major PTSD over her decision to kill Bruce, but she's going to have to do a *lot* to put her in the good guys column again, especially as she's probably going to try and murder Soji too.

Not surprised at Narek's betrayal but I like the observation by @thuganomics85 that he might have used a not-instant kill method on purpose.  On the other hand, it's a typical plot trait to give the heroes time to escape (brilliantly satirised, if memory serves, in one of the Austin Powers movies).

Was too distracted by Rios's...attributes to notice his ball skills, frankly.

Loved the pleading tone in Picard's voice when he was begging Soji to trust him.  His voice broke to just the right degree.

[TVbitch]

Agnes was not digging the attention Rios was giving to Raffi. So, in a 5 person crew, we already have a triangle. : D

I notice Picard barks at people quite often, whereas it took a LOT for old Picard to get angry. I wonder if that is from the condition he has, aka how dementia can make some people more agitated. 

Why didn't they all just run through the portal? 

I was sleepy, what was it that tipped Soji off that she was an android? I know she was age scanning stuff, but what happened before that? 

[Llywela]

3 minutes ago, TVbitch said:

Why didn't they all just run through the portal? 

Because the Romulans would have followed and immediately taken Soji out at the other end. Hugh stayed behind to shut down and hide the mechanism, which the Romulans may not even know exists, and Elnor stayed to protect Hugh and help cover Picard's escape.

Also, the Artifact is Hugh's home, the project to which he has dedicated his life, he may not want to abandon it to go on the run with Picard and Soji, even if he is now in deadly danger by choosing to stay.

Soji has been having doubts for some time now, I think. She keeps knowing stuff that she shouldn't know, she saw how the ex-B Romulans reacted to her, she falls asleep every time she talks to her mother - and presumably has noticed that she never gets to talk to anyone else in the 'family'. There have probably been loads of tiny clues accumulating, over time.

[oakville]

17 hours ago, starri said:

I thought the scenes with Picard and Hugh were outstanding.

It was nice to see Hugh again. I like seeing the TNG characters on this show.

[marinw]

Violent yet innocent Elnor reminds me of early Grey Worm.

[meira.hand]

16 hours ago, marinw said:

I think I speak for most when I say that Narek is a piece of shit.

After Harry Treadaway role as Brady in Mr. Mercedes, Narek is positively a sweetheart :)

[KungFuBunny]

Are Soji and Daj 100% Synths - ir are they part human?

I'm asking this because of Soji's presence on the XB Cube under Romulun control. I understand how via computers/and good docs Soji was accepted to be part of the Reclamation Corp - but aren't they all scanned as they go about this Cube - and wouldn't it have been detected that she's an android? I don't know how she could have gone undetected so long.

However, I am hoping somehow Maddox built something within each Synths system where it makes any scanning/xray device nearby read human.

I am also hoping that the Maddox that was killed by Agnes is a "Synth" and the real Maddox is still alive somewhere.

I am also hoping the "skylight with the 2 moons" is a false memory installed into Soji's mind and that the "real" homeworld is somewhere else

[Llywela]

7 minutes ago, KungFuBunny said:

Are Soji and Daj 100% Synths - ir are they part human?

I'm asking this because of Soji's presence on the XB Cube under Romulun control. I understand how via computers/and good docs Soji was accepted to be part of the Reclamation Corp - but aren't they all scanned as they go about this Cube - and wouldn't it have been detected that she's an android? I don't know how she could have gone undetected so long.

Way back in the first episode or two, Picard hypothesized that Dahj was a synthetic brain in an organic body, but I don't think we actually know for sure, we haven't seen any scans being made of either twin, never mind had any discussion about what was revealed. There are another four episodes this season, hopefully we'll learn more soon.

Also, 'ware spoilers, folks - apparently episode 7 was released early in Japan by mistake and wasn't taken down quickly enough to avoid it being watched by enough people to be spreading details around the net.

[KungFuBunny]

1 minute ago, Llywela said:

Way back in the first episode or two, Picard hypothesized that Dahj was a synthetic brain in an organic body, but I don't think we actually know for sure, we haven't seen any scans being made of either twin, never mind had any discussion about what was revealed. There are another four episodes this season, hopefully we'll learn more soon.

Also, 'ware spoilers, folks - apparently episode 7 was released early in Japan by mistake and wasn't taken down quickly enough to avoid it being watched by enough people to be spreading details around the net.

Wasn't there a mention of all Synths having been destroyed after the Mars attack?

What I was picturing was someone going through a metal detector of sorts while traveling for security reasons or entering a government or Federation building - and why if Daj and Soji are Synths why no machine/device would have picked up that they have mechanical parts. Then we've got this Borg Cube Soji is on - where security is on high alert. People are in a holding area before being allowed access to certain rooms and areas.

[meira.hand]

12 hours ago, SourK said:

So, Narek's plan was to get the information from Soji without freaking her out, so that she wouldn't activate. Then, after talking to his sister, he tells her the thing that will most freak her out, and the whole thing ends with her activating. I think maybe he cares about her after all, and made her activate on purpose so she could protect herself from his sister, but he could still get the intel he wanted and have plausible deniability.

This. He was clearly in tears when he heard her scream. This way he could get his sister what she wanted and still give Soji a chance while seeming to try and kill her.

[paigow]

Elnor is scoring a lot of XP for his kill streak while remaining at 100% health. Bonus points for allowing next enemy wave first shot.

 

 

[Netfoot]

7 hours ago, TVbitch said:

Why didn't they all just run through the portal?

Because Draaamaaa!

 

[KungFuBunny]

3 hours ago, marinw said:

Violent yet innocent Elnor reminds me of early Grey Worm.

Elnor reminds me of the elves from Lord Of The Rings. Keep waiting for Orlando Bloom to pop up with his quiver

[paigow]

8 hours ago, pootlus said:

Loved the pleading tone in Picard's voice when he was begging Soji to trust him.  His voice broke to just the right degree.

No time for niceties Picard....

[KungFuBunny]

18 hours ago, dwmarch said:

On the other hand, if he had just used a conventional explosive instead of the creeping red cloud of unspecified doom, she would be dead. So maybe he did that on purpose.

Soji was contained in that room along with the red cloud of unspecified doom (love your description!)

Since she broke a hole through the floor and escaped - is that red cloud of doom floating around the cube now and wreaking havoc and death on XB's and Romuluns?

[MissLucas]

Somewhat random question but I had not noticed it before and the mighty Google failed me. What are those tiny gizmos in Narek and Rizzo's ears? Jewelry? Ear buds? Are they listening to Zhat Vash podcasts? 

[Kromm]

Okay, I'll give this episode credit.  This was a LOT better than the others. The pacing, the character moments, the amount of plot advancement.  After being lukewarm at best on the earlier episodes, this is the first one I've genuinely liked.

[Kromm]

10 hours ago, TVbitch said:

Why didn't they all just run through the portal? 

It was dumb, and their justification only HALF worked (that it was to keep the Romulans from using the machine to follow), because it doesn't at all address how totally this wrecks Hugh's position and that they're just going to torture him to figure out where the girl went anyway.  Even Elfboy won't be able to kill enough people to stop that.

 

That said, it's the kind of classic dumb-show-logic you have to overlook in a lot of action plots, Star Trek more than most.  It didn't ruin the episode, which as I said before, was SO much better overall than the earlier ones.

Edited February 29, 2020 by Kromm

[F8.]

On 2/28/2020 at 8:56 AM, Joimiaroxeu said:

it was probaby the EIH: Emergency Intercourse Hologram

God that was so funny I nearly pissed myself 😄 😄 

[Kromm]

3 hours ago, KungFuBunny said:

Soji was contained in that room along with the red cloud of unspecified doom (love your description!)

Since she broke a hole through the floor and escaped - is that red cloud of doom floating around the cube now and wreaking havoc and death on XB's and Romuluns?

One must assume that a well equipped Borg Cube has air scrubbers somewhere.  

[F8.]

Best episode so far - loved it and can't wait for whats to come....finally it gets moving!

22 hours ago, marinw said:

I think I speak for most when I say that Narek is a piece of shit.

Rios gets hotter every episode

Rios is TOTALLY getting hotter...and Elnor starting to grow on me as well... 😉 

Edited February 29, 2020 by F8.

[Kromm]

5 hours ago, KungFuBunny said:

Are Soji and Daj 100% Synths - ir are they part human?

I'm asking this because of Soji's presence on the XB Cube under Romulun control. I understand how via computers/and good docs Soji was accepted to be part of the Reclamation Corp - but aren't they all scanned as they go about this Cube - and wouldn't it have been detected that she's an android? I don't know how she could have gone undetected so long.

However, I am hoping somehow Maddox built something within each Synths system where it makes any scanning/xray device nearby read human.

I am also hoping that the Maddox that was killed by Agnes is a "Synth" and the real Maddox is still alive somewhere.

I am also hoping the "skylight with the 2 moons" is a false memory installed into Soji's mind and that the "real" homeworld is somewhere else

They're biological. That was stated outright.  The biological parts at least seem to be somewhat human, even if they can stand up to physical activity outside the human norm.

As for the double secret false memory idea with her memories.  I think that would have required that Maddox thought of the idea of someone tricking her in that way.

The idea of him being an Android is interesting, but it's at odds with how he died.  He'd have had to have been programmed to be ABLE to die that easily and in that way. Again, it would have taken a hella lotta foresight on his part.  Possible. Just unlikely.

[F8.]

21 hours ago, dwmarch said:

They said the range was 40,000km

Nope they definitely said light years, just checked.

 

Just say you already replied on this - please ignore 🙂 

Edited February 29, 2020 by F8.

[F8.]

18 hours ago, lora said:

10. That's the first episode that I am thinking of re-watching.

Completely agree - first time I've really been looking forward to the next episode.

Although hearing him say in the trailer at the end that he had lost the ship and the crew....? I really don't want to be stuck on another planet for the next few eps, I like me some space!

[F8.]

17 hours ago, SourK said:

Also, Picard has been on Borg ships lots of times since he was assimilated and he dealt with it

You're right but I think he has shown some fragility with age and this is catching up to him. He's not as resilient as he once was and he also didn't have a crew with him so that would make him feel even more vulnerable.

13 hours ago, MissLucas said:

I really expected her to scan herself with the age-detector gizmo

That would have been fantastic - they must have decided it would push the plot forward for her faster than it needed.

 

12 hours ago, pootlus said:

The Hugh/Picard hug got me right in the feels.

Ditto - I think I even may have had to push back a tear or two lol

 

5 hours ago, KungFuBunny said:

Are Soji and Daj 100% Synths - ir are they part human?

I'd suggest they are organic synths i.e. no strings or wires inside. When you consider we are on the edge of engineering some viruses to act as gene manipulators and its only 2020 I am sure the technology to engineer a fully organic synth would have been available.  That perhaps was one of the reasons they were trying to find a way to make all synths extinct before it went too far.

[Cthulhudrew]

21 hours ago, SourK said:

Also, Picard has been on Borg ships lots of times since he was assimilated and he dealt with it. 

I don't know. I've known people for whom seemingly unrelated stimuli are triggering for other traumas they've experienced. Picard has been through a lot, and I can buy him being overwhelmed by being back on a Borg cube even if it didn't seem as harrowing before. Plus, at least until the end, he wasn't fueled by an adrenaline surge infused mission.

16 hours ago, marinw said:

Did Hugh mention he was a Federation citizen? How did that happen?

Could Hugh have been a Federation citizen pre-Assimilation? I don't know if we've ever learned if he definitively came from the Delta quadrant like most borg, or if he could have been one of the early victims of borg intrusions into the Alpha and Beta quadrants.

[paigow]

1 hour ago, Cthulhudrew said:

Could Hugh have been a Federation citizen pre-Assimilation?

Likely Yes. Hugh seemed like he had been assimilated shortly before meeting Geordi... that entire Borg crew seemed like a bunch of rookies on a training mission gone wrong...

[paigow]

What Elnor needs to wear, so he can reduce unnecessary talking...

[Hiyo]

Quote

Also, Picard has been on Borg ships lots of times since he was assimilated and he dealt with it

Wasn't it only once, in First Contact?

[marinw]

I never got the concept of a Borg queen. To plagerize Monty Python:

"We don't have a Queen, we're an autonominious collective. A cybernetic tart sticking implants in people is hardly the basis for a government!"

 

Edited February 29, 2020 by marinw

[Florinaldo]

Elnor is certainly an exceptional tracker to have found his way so quickly in that giant labyrinth that is the Borg cube, down to a secret room that even the Romulans were not aware of. Although they may be now since Hugh did not close it after they entered and security personel found their way to it. He mentioned closing it only after the others had beamed out.

It seems the ex-Borgs may have their own parallel society within the cube, doing the menial tasks but observing what really goes on; they go just about everywhere and most of them would seem to pose any danger because they appear to still be damaged and diminished. Hugh knew about Narek; he called him a "dashing young Tal Shiar agent".

His scenes with Picard were the highlight of the episode, even though I have trouble recognising the actor from his very young version in the original TNG appearances.

I would be down for an ongoing sub-quest with Hugh and Elnor teaming up.

49 minutes ago, marinw said:

I never got the concept of a Borg queen.

Same here. I guess the writers wanted to emphasize the parallels between Borgs and  insect societies on Earth but since they are a true collective mind, why would they need a mind to be at the center, one who has kept her individuality? And why a female; it's not like she performs reproductive duties like in a beehive or ant colony for example. Calling her "queen" seems to negate the basic premises of the Borg as first introduced. Same thing when Picard was assimilated and received a name instead of a numerical designation.

Edited February 29, 2020 by Florinaldo

[KungFuBunny]

14 hours ago, Kromm said:

They're biological. That was stated outright.  The biological parts at least seem to be somewhat human, even if they can stand up to physical activity outside the human norm.

As for the double secret false memory idea with her memories.  I think that would have required that Maddox thought of the idea of someone tricking her in that way.

The idea of him being an Android is interesting, but it's at odds with how he died.  He'd have had to have been programmed to be ABLE to die that easily and in that way. Again, it would have taken a hella lotta foresight on his part.  Possible. Just unlikely.

I'm hoping that Maddox did put the secret false memory into Soji. Maddox knew from the jump these advanced Synths weren't supposed to exist the creation of Synths was banned and that the discovery of their existence would mean many would seek to destroy them.

In fact, this dream sequence Soji is having could just be a fictitious memory. Soji might never have even existed as a child. I would hope as a brilliant scientist - Maddox input 1000's of fail safes into their systems.

I also wonder how much the home world monitors any Synths out there - such as Soji. She falls asleep every time she is talking to her mom. During this time are they retrieving all data of her memory bank from 24 hours previous? If so, do they know what has been happening with her and Narek? Could the home world be doing upgrades and maintenance to Soji's system while she's on the phone with mom?

I'm gonna keep the hope alive that the Maddox who died on Rios ship was a Synth-like being such as Soji. Maddox's lab blew up - he barely made it out alive. For whatever reason Bjayzl funded his work and he had to go tell her everything was gone/money lost. Knowing that, if I could send a synth - not of the same caliber as Soji/Daj but a copycat of myself - I'd send that over to Bjayzl. At the very least I'd think he'd know he would be severely beaten. This copy is expendable, real Maddox is not. Being rescued by Picard and brought to the ship, he'd take the time to feel out the players. There's a reason Agnes didn't disappear with him and there was a reason Maddox never told her about his research on Synths. Synth Maddox dying allows them to stop hunting him and he can continue his work in peace.