In Review: Star Trek: Picard (S3 – EP5) – Imposter

Synopsis: Caught by Starfleet and facing court-martial, paranoia grows as Picard struggles to uncover whether a prodigal crewman from his past has returned as an ally – or is an Imposter hellbent on destroying them all.

The Story

Having returned to Federation space after the events of last week’s episode. Picard, Riker, and Seven of Nine find that they could be facing a potential court-martial when The Titan gets a visit from the USS Intrepid and a Starfleet Security detachment led by Commander Ro Laren. Admiral Picard resents the implications of being questioned by Ro as he still feels betrayed by her due to her leaving Starfleet and joining up with The Maquis who Starfleet regarded as terrorists. But their relationship runs far deeper as is revealed in the episode as Picard tries to uncover if this is the real Ro Laren or a changeling imposter.

Elsewhere, Worf and Raffi plan a return visit to Matalas in order to go after the late Sneeds boss and obtain a means by which they can get access to the Daystrom Station. What follows is a clever game of deceit as Worf and Raffi work together to outmaneuver the Vulcan Gangster.

Meanwhile, back on the Titan. Jack Crusher struggles with some rather disturbing hallucinations of him murdering various members of The Titan Crew. However, things get rather worse for him when he single-handedly kills four changeling imposters, which is beyond what any human can do.

The Acting

This show brings us an acting masterclass as the storyline ups the paranoia levels to warp 10. We get superb performances from Patrick Stewart and Michelle Forbes as Admiral Picard and Commander Ro Laren have unresolved issues to deal with. Added to this the two characters are also trying to figure out if they are indeed the real deal. Such is the level of paranoia about the changeling plot, which is unfolding.

We also continue to witness a fun chemistry develop between Michelle Hurd and Michael Dorn as Raffi and Worf continue their investigations and eventually wind up touching base with Picard and Riker with their intelligence work.

Overall

This third season of Star Trek: Picard continues to go from strength to strength and brings us an unexpected guest appearance from Michelle Forbes who not only gets to tie up Ro Larens storylines from the TNG series but also has a substantial role in moving the story arc forward.

Overall ‘Imposter’ links up Word and Raffi’s storyline with that of the Titan crew as more light is shone onto the Changeling threat, which has pretty much taken over most of Starfleet.