Whereas all that is taking place, Raffi (Michelle Hurd) is engaged on a plot of her personal. Now an secret agent for an unseen Starfleet contact, Raffi has infiltrated the felony underground — she had connections after years of drug dependancy — and is searching for a mysterious weapon stolen from a Federation area station. The weapon is, kind of, a portal gun from the online game “Portal,” however highly effective sufficient to swallow up buildings and starships. Raffi witnesses the Starfleet recruitment constructing getting sucked into the bottom, solely to be dropped once more from a mile up. The devastation is huge, however “Picard” has the nice style to proceed with the investigation reasonably than wallow in demise and tragedy. 

The episode ends with Picard and Riker on board Crusher’s ship, assembly the mysterious younger man Jack, who pronounces he’s her son (odd that he is named after her lifeless first husband). It is Jack the masked baddies at first wished. Jack is brash and felony — positively a Han Solo kind. An enormous pointy warship seems out of a nebula. Reduce to black. It is all very thrilling. 

“Picard” is clearly being written much less like a thriller collection a la “Misplaced” and extra like a characteristic movie. The change is appreciated. Stringing alongside a season-long thriller is a irritating option to watch TV; simply because it labored for “Misplaced” doesn’t suggest it is going to each time, or ever once more. The opening episode of “Picard” does not a lot plant the seeds for mysteries, however introduces parts to be explored later. We’ll get to know Jack, after all. We’ll meet up with Crusher. And, most significantly, we’ll respect the connection between these characters. 

This new season is so, so a lot better than what got here earlier than.