Aided by Seven of Nine and the crew of the USS Titan, Picard makes a shocking discovery that will alter his life forever, putting him on a collision course with the most cunning enemy he’s ever encountered. 

This week, we hit the ground running, flashing back a fortnight to get some context around Beverly and Jack Crusher’s exploits that have led to the former being in a medpod. We also get to spend some time with Raffi, who is an undercover operative trying to track down who has stolen weapons from the Daystrom Institute.

I’m enjoying the caustic comments of Todd Stashwick’s Captain Shaw, who joins the ranks of Starfleet blowhards with little time for Picard and Riker’s perceived recklessness. He’s by-the-book, but still recognises when he has to be pragmatic. Amanda Plummer’s cigar-chomping grand villain Vadic introduces herself, a fruity performance from the school of Khan and Chang. It’s another of the series’ winks to the audience, acknowledging that this show is built on old school Trek sensibilities.

The pacing is good, old friends reunite, and there’s a couple of surprises across the hour. The VFX continues to impress, and the Star Trek motifs playbook shares a couple more audio nods.

Verdict: Solid, quality, Star Trek, giving us a better idea of the main thrust to this season. There’s plenty here to nourish the fans. 7/10

Nick Joy