Disneyland 2020: Rise of the Resistance.

WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE RISE OF THE RESISTANCE RIDE AT DISNEYLAND.

Yes, it's impressive. Keep moving. 

An officer of the First Order, The Rise of the Resistance

8:59 AM - Disneyland, Main Street, USA.  The street is filled with small groups of people, most of whom are staring fixedly at their phones and tapping rapidly on the screens.  9:01, and some of the groups begin to cheer and high five - against all odds, they've managed to get onto the exclusive digital queue for Rise of the Resistance, the latest addition to Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland.  As they say, the struggle is real.

Unlike everything else at the park, Rise of the Resistance, the incredible new ride which has only been live since January 17th, relies on an online reservation system rather than fast passes or just getting in line.  At 9:00 am every morning, the park unlocks access to the site for the ride, and people can attempt to create a boarding group that will board the ride at some point during the day.

I use the term "attempt" advisedly.  I have no idea what percentage of the park's guests are trying to get a spot in the queue, but it's generally completely full for the day within about five minutes of the reservations site opening.  This suggests that competition for slots is fierce, thereby explaining the high fives on Main Street.

We don't even try on the first of our three mornings at the park - the system requires we download the app and that all our passes be scanned in and linked together while being connected to the Disney wifi network, and we don't get into the park fast enough to make that happen in time for the release of the boarding group queue.

Day two, we're ready - we become one of the huddled clusters of people on Main Street who are staring at their phones as the clock ticks over to 9:00.  Two of us camp on the site, the others jump back and forth from the main page to the access page.  To my mild surprise, I get a spot in line for our group - we're Boarding Group 46, out of approximately 100 for the day (actual throughput on the ride varies, depending on group size - and not infrequent mechanical failures). The system will give us a two hour window to report to the ride and join the actual line.  Karli, who has done a lot of research for our visit, estimates sometime in the mid-afternoon, and she's right, our report time is just after 2:00 pm.

Day three, we decide to try again - it's an exciting experience, and what do we have to lose?  We find a spot with strong wifi, and we're ready to go at 8:59.  Amazingly, I get us in queue once again, there must be some kind of positive energy associated with being a science fiction fan.  This time we're in Boarding Group 9, so we do a quick visit to Star Tours and then head over to Black Spire Outpost and its concealed Resistance base almost immediately.

It seems so limiting to call Rise of the Resistance a ride.  Yes, there is a point in the process where you end up in a seat and get whisked away, but beyond that, Disney has brilliantly expanded the boundaries of the ride experience.

You begin by making your way past a defensive laser turret and through a dusty alien temple* that's been converted to a Resistance base, past lockers of weapons and flight suits, until you are ushered into the ready room by members of the Resistance.  Once there, you're initially greeted by BB-8, and then Rey makes a holographic appearance to explain what's in store for us as new recruits to the Resistance**, and mentions that Finn and a group of Resistance soldiers has managed to infiltrate a First Order Star Destroyer.

Poe Dameron makes a video appearance from his X-Wing's cockpit to confirm that he and his flight group will be accompanying the shuttle that's transporting us to the Resistance training centre at General Leia Organa's hidden base, the location of which must be concealed from the First Order at all costs.

We leave the briefing area, and go outside to board a shuttle commanded by Lieutenant Bek, a Mon Calamari officer, and unexpectedly piloted by Sullustan smuggler Nien Nunb, who we last saw co-piloting the Millennium Falcon with Lando Calrissian in The Return of the Jedi.  Unfortunately, shortly after takeoff we attract the attention of the First Order - our outnumbered escorts are eliminated one by one, until only Poe remains.  Forced to retreat, he promises to send us help as our shuttle is drawn into the waiting maw of a Star Destroyer.

And that's when the experience REALLY starts.  The doors through which we entered the shuttle re-open, revealing a cavernous landing bay filled with First Order officers and a threatening cohort of armoured stormtroopers.  Behind the troops, a panoramic view of patrolling star destroyers is visible through the bay's force field.

We're brusquely ordered into the ship's prisoner receiving area, where more First Order officers bark commands to stand in line as they split us up into colour-coded groups and then usher us into holding cells, where a stormtrooper monitors us from a raised walkway.

After a brief wait, General Hux and a masked Kylo Ren pay us a menacing visit, but are called back to the bridge before they can begin to interrogate us.

As we ponder our fate, there's a flare of energy and a massive hole appears in the cell wall - Poe Dameron has delivered on his promise, and we're being rescued by Finn and his Resistance team.  As two of the soldiers urge us to strap into our seats in a commandeered 8-seat First Order Transport Vehicle piloted by a black and red R5 astromech droid, I have a brief epiphany:  the last 20 minutes has actually been nothing more - and nothing less - than the most sophisticated example of line management that Disney has ever come up with.

Once we're strapped in, our R5 attempts a direct run to the escape pods, but a probe droid blocks our path.  We rapidly reverse and seek another route, only to be confronted by a pair of stormtroopers who open fire on us.

KT video frame

As laser rounds char the walls of the corridor, we once again retreat,  and enter a mammoth garage, where a pair of towering AT-ATs loom above us. Our path blocked once again, we back onto an elevator as Finn and more of his group return fire at a squad of stormtroopers on a catwalk.

As we take an elevator up, a startled officer in an AT-AT cockpit points us out to a stormtrooper who grabs for his blaster rifle and opens fire.

Attempting to find a safe refuge, our droid driver makes a bad choice, and we find ourselves below the bridge, where Hux and Kylo Ren shout orders at the crew as the Resistance fleet erupts from hyperspace and launches an X-wing attack.

A female voice announces, "Sir, the prisoners have escaped!"

Kylo Ren spins and looks down at us.

"How brave - but ultimately hopeless.  There's nowhere to run!"

The shuttle reverses again and seeks a new route.  As we board another lift and blast doors close behind us, a masked figure leaps down from above and stalks toward the transport as he activates a flaming scarlet light saber:  an angry Kylo Ren is in pursuit.

KT video frame

His anger is immediately demonstrated as the blade of his light saber plunges through the ceiling of the elevator and he begins to cut his way in.  We quickly leave the elevator and pass through a bank of ion cannons that recoil and return to firing position over our heads as they thunder away at the attacking ships that are visible beyond the gunports.  As we pass glowing red battle damage in the ship's hull, Finn commandeers the intercom system and warns all Resistance personnel to abandon ship.

Then a voice speaks from behind the shuttle.

"There's no escape! You will tell me the location of the secret base, and then I will destroy you, and the Resistance!!"

Kylo Ren has found us.

KT video frame

As he rages at us, a sudden wind springs up from behind as the ship's hull is blasted open behind him, threatening to drag Ren into the vacuum of space.  Structural beams collapse around him, giving us an opportunity to make a getaway.

We finally find the escape pods - there's a moment of free fall as we drop precipitously from the bay, follow Resistance X-Wings through a conflagration of exploding ships, and then glide through the clouds and back to Batuu, where we breathlessly leave the pod and return to the real world.

 

The Rise of the Resistance provides an astonishing and unique experience, it's  exactly like being part of a Star Wars movie.  The 17 minute multi-level escape through the Star Destroyer is a whirlwind combination of action and narrative that keeps you on the edge of your transporter seat for the entire time without giving you the feeling that it's a "ride" - there are no tracks or guides for the transporters, and the incredibly detailed interiors and views create a complete illusion of being on a gigantic starship in the middle of a battle between fleets.

The actual Disney cast members do a superb job as soldiers on both sides.  The members of the First Order who assault and pursue you during your Star Destroyer escape are a combination of sophisticated video projection and animatronics, but the result is completely convincing.  The impressive degree of involvement by so many of the actors from the final trilogy is the final touch - the only other thing they could do to enhance the rider experience would be to put you in a costume.

I'm very glad that we were able to get reservations twice - the first time, I wanted to take pictures and record the experience somehow, which hampered my ability to enjoy what was happening (a realization that made me put my phone away about half way through our escape run.)  The second time, I was simply along for the ride, and what an incredible ride it was.  Long live the Resistance!

- Sid

* Come to think of it, there seems to be a lot of this sort of thing in the Star Wars universe.  I wonder how the Catholic church would feel if a bunch of militant aliens set up a base at St. Paul's Cathedral?

** The Galaxy's Edge timeline falls between The Last Jedi and The Rise of Skywalker, so presumably we're part of the fire lit by the spark of the Resistance.

Disneyland 2020: Can I call you Steve?

Scott Lang : Ca... Captain America...
[shakes Steve's hand vigorously] 
Steve Rogers : Mr. Lang.
Scott Lang : It's an honor. I'm shaking your hand too long. Wow, this is awesome!

Captain America: Civil War

So, umm....I met a fella, at Disneyland....we held hands...I think he liked me...😌

- Sid

P.S. Look for a new Avengers-themed area in the California Adventure side of the park sometime this summer.

Disneyland 2020: Smugglers Run

Photo by Lisa T.

The full scale model of the Millennium Falcon is undeniably the centrepiece of Galaxy's Edge at Disneyland, and as such, it seems fitting that guests should have the incredible opportunity to be part of the old girl's* flight crew.  And, really, out of the all the experiences from the movies that might appeal to a Star Wars fan, piloting the Millennium Falcon would certainly be high on the list. (Personally, I'd rather run the Death Star trench in an X-Wing, just in case anyone from Disney is monitoring the internet for comments.)** 

Smugglers Run lets people do exactly that:  a group of six people take the Falcon on a mission for the Resistance (with a small side gig aimed at making a little money, as it turns out).  There are two pilots, two gunners, and two engineers, all of whom are involved in making the mission a success.

As always at Disneyland, the four of us (Karli, myself, and her sisters Stefanie and Lisa) start by getting in line - to be fair, I suspect that there aren't many times when you would be able to just walk right to the entrance to the ship.  Disney is obviously aware of this, and as such, they've made the experience of standing in line as entertaining as possible under the circumstances.

 

The line for Smugglers Run takes potential crew members through the maintenance bays of Ohnaka Transport, which has temporarily borrowed the Falcon from Chewbacca the Wookiee.  In addition to an elaborate and detailed environment, there's an ongoing comedic dialogue over the intercom, as long-suffering Ohnaka Transport employee Malta deals with his co-worker Garr, who is perhaps not the sharpest hydro-spanner in the spaceport's tool box.

Garr and Malta also receive instructions from Hondo Ohnaka, owner of the company and our eventual employer.  Hondo is a canon character - he's a Weequay who first appears in the Clone Wars animated series and later in Rebels. 

The background scenery is impressively layered and complex, and contains Easter eggs for the knowledgeable viewer, including crates of hijacked stormtrooper armour, a rack of DLT-19 heavy blasters from the first trilogy, and one of the Falcon's turret-mounted quad cannons (which probably explains why we don't have access to them during our upcoming flight.)

 

We also get a little too close to an engine that's being tested a bit prematurely, but Garr manages to get things under control before it's too late for innocent bystanders - and the spaceport.

Eventually, we meet Hondo himself, who explains that he's looking for crews to take on missions for the Resistance.  In this case, we're going to steal an important shipment of coaxium from a freight train - and, if possible, Hondo would like us to pick up a little something for him as well, Hondo isn't in this out of a sense of justice, he has bills to pay.

 

After close to an hour, we finally board the Falcon.  Strange as it sounds after waiting 55 minutes to get there, I'm a bit disappointed that they almost rush us into the cockpit, I would have enjoyed a few minutes to look around the ship's lounge.

In the scenario, the Falcon is operated by a crew of six:  two pilots, two gunners, and two engineers.  The seats are randomly assigned by a Disney employee who hands each of the six people a card with a flight crew position on it.

Karli ends up as one of the pilots for our mission, but generously gives me her card.  Equally generously, her sister Stefanie trades cards with Karli so that we can fly the Falcon together - thank you, Stef!

It's not a complicated control panel:  Karli controls left and right, and I control up and down (and the light speed drive, as it turns out.)  I hit the flashing green launch button, and the ship lifts off. I instantly discover that I actually am controlling the Falcon's flight to some extent:  unfortunately, I make this discovery by running into another ship.

 

Fortunately, at that point decades of computer gaming experience kicks in, and I'm able to fly out of the atmosphere without any further mishaps.  Karli shouts, "Right pilot, light speed!" and I realize that there's a flashing green light around one of the iconic levers on the control panel. I pull it back, and we enter hyperspace.

 

We emerge over our destination, and instantly dive through the atmosphere to our target.  The train is protected by TIE fighters, which the gunners have to shoot down, then Karli and I quickly manoeuvre the Falcon into position behind the freight cars, and the engineers launch towing harpoons to capture the shipment of coaxium - after which Hondo demands that we seize some cargo for him, as well.  We complete both parts of our mission, hit the boosters, and make our escape.

And then we're back on Batuu, with an irritated Hondo calculating damage to the ship (and subsequent Wookiee unhappiness) versus the value of the hijacked cargo to determine whether or not he's managed to make a profit. I can't have done too badly as a pilot - according to the datapad app, Hondo paid me 5,500 credits for my run in the Falcon, thereby earning me the designation of "Hot Shot".

Smugglers Run is a lot of fast-paced, edge-of-your seat fun - I spent all of my time as a pilot wearing a wide grin, and Karli alternated between laughing and squealing in delight. I'm glad that the two of us found the time to go back and do the mission a second time, simply because it's such a quick experience - flying the Falcon is a very extreme example of on-the-job learning.  At least the second time you have some idea of what's going to happen, whether you have the same crew slot or not. (In our second round, I was a gunner and Karli an engineer.)

It also gave us a chance to look around the ship's lounge a bit, which, from a geek perspective, was an extremely cool experience.***  You know, it's a shame that they haven't found a way to make the holographic Dejarik board game functional.  I'd much rather learn to play in a situation where I don't have to worry about a Wookiee tearing my arms out of their sockets if he loses - they've been known to do that.

- Sid

* No offense, L3-37.

** Initially I typed this just as a casual alternative, but now that I think about it, my god, can you imagine?  My initial thought was that the return on investment for single-person rides wasn't practical, but my well-informed wife tells me that there's a single-seat virtual reality Avatar experience at Disneyworld - on that basis, blowing up the Death Star seems eminently possible.

*** The astute observer will notice the helmet and sensor drone that Luke uses for light saber and Force practice on the shelf above me.

Disneyland 2020: "Who's a spy - this one?"

Video courtesy of KT

The First Order tightens its grip* on Black Spire Outpost...

- Sid

* No pun intended.

Disneyland 2020: Black Spire Outpost.

"It’s a millennium falcon!"

Stefanie T. (Karli’s sister) upon seeing a hunting bird overhead.

Although it's only been a couple of years since Karli and I visited Disneyland for her birthday, I was solidly on board when she suggested another birthday visit.  It's not just because Disneyland is the happiest place in the world - although it's certainly a factor - but rather because of Galaxy's Edge,  the new 14-acre Star Wars themed area which opened in August of 2019, and The Rise of the Resistance, a new ride which had only been live since January of this year.

This time we're accompanied by her two sisters, Lisa and Stefanie, but logistics are still simple and straightforward - in fact, we all stay at the same hotel from our last visit, full points to Westjet for consistency on their three-day Disneyland packages.*  We fly down on the Monday afternoon, settle into our rooms, and then we're off to the park bright and early on Tuesday morning.

Once into Disneyland, the consensus is to head for Galaxy's Edge, see what the lineup is like for Smugglers Run, in which you and five other guests fly the Millennium Falcon on a supply raid for the Resistance (and a little bit extra for the local smuggling cartel), and generally take a look at the new area.

As you leave Fantasyland, there's a transitional treed area, then you enter Black Spire Outpost, a small trading port on the planet Batuu, located in the Outer Rim Territories.  The space port is surrounded by towering rocky spires, although the actual black spire that it takes its name from is located within the port itself.

Each of the Disneyland areas have their own decor, but in the development of Galaxy's Edge, it was Disney's intention to create the illusion that visitors had just walked into one of the movies, and they've done a superb job.

Photo by KT

Tattered banners flutter in the wind as you enter through the main gate, where a First Order shuttle sits threateningly on a landing pad near the entrance, surrounded by a variety of shops and habitats.  As you go further into the outpost, you pass Oga's Cantina and enter the port itself, whose centrepiece is an impressively full-scale Millennium Falcon, currently refueling as it waits for its next mission.  Blast shutters protect the port's windows, and there's a constant thread of chatter from port operations audible over the loudspeakers.

To the left, stairs take you up to the bazaar, where food and goods are for sale.  There's also a landspeeder garage, a hidden lightsaber assembly workshop, and a droid construction facility.  To the north lies the concealed Resistance base, where new recruits are dispatched for training - hopefully without attracting the attention of the watchful First Order Star Destroyers.

 

Every inch of Galaxy's Edge has been constructed to match the look and feel of the movies and the Star Wars universe - the only exception being the EXIT signs, probably due to safety code.  The quantity and quality of the "greebly dressing", as the designers for the first Star Wars movie called the set ornamentation, is astonishing and thorough, creating an impressively immersive experience.

Even the souvenir shopping is part of the illusion: the credit card machines have been modified to match the decor, change is provided in credits and units rather than dollars and cents, and Karli's birthday button garners her several "Happy Origin Day" greetings from the staff.  It's a shame that Disney doesn't allow guests to wear full costumes, it would complete the experience for me if I were wearing Jedi robes or some similarly suitable outfit.

 

Later in the day, we have reservations at Oga's Cantina, where droid DJ R3X provides the entertainment, and a throng of villainous scum** scheme and plot over drinks served by wait staff whose hairdos owe a large debt to Queen Amidala - apparently she's an influencer.  For visitors seeking a less dangerous beverage experience, the classic blue milk*** is also available in the plaza.

But that's not the full extent of the Black Spire experience.  Unlike the other parts of the park, Galaxy's Edge has an actual ongoing storyline, based on the struggle between the First Order and the Resistance.  Armoured stormtroopers aggressively patrol the alleys and plazas, harassing and questioning passers-by, while Chewbacca the Wookiee is in constant movement to avoid being captured, and R2-D2 communicates with his fellow droids at the depot.

 

There's also an iPhone datapad app that allows you to hack into door panels, controls, and droids, and then assign the hacked hardware to either the First Order or the Resistance.  The app also scans cargo pods for possible acquisition by the local smugglers, and tracks your accomplishments, such as piloting the Millennium Falcon, assigning credits to your account that can be used to upgrade your profile with weapons and clothing.

At one point while we're exploring the outpost, an officer of the First Order demands our attention from the landing pad near the entrance, announcing that a female Resistance spy is somewhere on the outpost.  As he threatens us, Kylo Ren stalks down the landing ramp of the shuttle behind him, and Force chokes the officer to express his displeasure with the lack of results in the search for the spy, after which he enters the crowd to carry on the search himself, accompanied by a pair of stormtroopers.

At night, the experience is even better. Multi-coloured light sabers bloom in the darkness, and the visitors to the outpost achieve a kind of anonymity in the shadows, increasing the illusion.

 

My inner child, who is quite close to the surface in situations like this, was delighted by the entire experience.  I commented to my travelling companions that I could easily have spent the entire three days in Galaxy's Edge, and they were quite surprised.

"What would you do?"

"Well, everything!"

Disney is obviously aware of the desire for an even more immersive experience - a new luxury Star Wars hotel is under construction in the Epcot area of Walt Disney World in Florida, with an anticipated opening date in 2021.

"Hotel" is a bit of a misnomer, since the facility is intended to create the illusion that guests are spending two days on a galactic star cruiser, complete with Star Wars themed passenger cabins with viewports into space, an opportunity to operate bridge controls, interactive light saber games, and a new Star Wars storyline to provide a background for the experience.

Hmm, well, you know, Florida IS nice, and, come to think of it, the Kennedy Space Centre is only about 60 miles from Disneyworld, I'd love to go there again, and we have been discussing options for my next birthday...  On the other hand, part of me feels that I should go on my own.  As much as I love doing things with Karli, it seems a lot to ask for her to be an unpaid extra in my Star Wars movie for two days.

- Sid

* This is an unpaid endorsement, although I would be happy to be paid if someone at Westjet feels the urge.

** This seems a bit harsh - after all, they're just tourists like us.

*** I cautiously tried the chilled blue milk, and quite enjoyed it, although it's really more of a frosty than anything else. A friend of Karli's told her that lukewarm blue milk is available elsewhere in Black Spire - and that you do NOT want to drink it.

Wasteland.

On Monday night, my friend Chris and I went to a showing of 1917, a gripping, dramatic film which really doesn't need to rely on the additional trick of being a single extended shot (well, two shots, to be accurate, the main character is knocked out at one point in the film).  It's a timely viewing, given that I've just finished reading one of the books that I purchased during my recent Toronto trip:  1917 - Wasteland:  The Great War and the Origins of Modern Horror, by W. Scott Poole.

It's Poole's contention that modern horror finds its origins in the literally horrifying environment of the trench war: mud, blood, mold and decay, a hellish landscape punctuated by fetid shellholes, unburied bodies, and mutilated soldiers.

Art is always a window into its own time and place, and I certainly agree with his comments regarding the influence of the war on artistic movements such as Dada and Surrealism, and its role in the rise of fascist politics as a response to the chaos of the battlefield, but the connections he makes to the genre of early 20th Century horror don't have the same authority for me.

Historically speaking, almost all of the best known stories that lay the groundwork for horror as we know it today predate World War One:  Mary Shelley's Frankenstein revived his monster in 1818, Edgar Allan Poe wrote The Telltale Heart, The Cask of Amontillado, and The Fall of the House of Usher in the middle of the 19th century, Robert Louis Stevenson published The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in 1886, and Bram Stoker's Dracula made its debut in 1897.  H. G. Wells, whose writing is admittedly considered to be more science fiction than horror, released The Island of Doctor Moreau in 1896 and The Invisible Man in 1897.

The villain of The Phantom of the Opera, written in 1909, is deformed from birth, rather than due to the misfortunes of combat.  Ambrose Bierce, noted literary creator of the odd and the uncanny, vanished in Mexico and was presumed dead in 1914,  and Howard Phillip Lovecraft, commonly cited as one of the most influential figures in the development of the horror genre, wrote his first published tale of indescribable eldritch monstrosity in June of 1917, a month before the start of the war.

The equally classic horror films of the post-war era draw heavily upon that pre-war catalogue of horror fiction, with movies such as The Phantom of the Opera, 1925; Dracula, 1931; Frankenstein, 1931; Island of Lost Souls, based on The Island of Dr. Moreau, 1932; and The Invisible Man in 1933.

However, it's Poole's contention that the success of these films, regardless of their source material, reflect a specific post-war zeitgeist:  Frankenstein's patchwork monster represents the fragmentary corpses of the trenches and craters, the Phantom's mask (and ruined visage) echo the masked faces of mutilated veterans, and the bandages seen on the Invisible Man and the Mummy are the same bandages that cocooned wounded soldiers.  Dr. Moreau's surgical theatre, the "house of pain" of the movie, reflects the harrowing, nightmarish procedures of the front line hospitals.

For me, the strength of Poole's thesis lies in extending the effects of the first world war through the rise of fascism in Europe and from there into the origins of World War II, which seems far more resonant in terms of its genre influence. In my mind, World War II, or more accurately, the events of the Holocaust, represent a more significant line of demarcation than World War I in terms of its effect on the continuity of horror to the modern day.

It’s much easier for me to connect the psychopathic physical brutality of movies like Psycho, the Halloween, Saw and Friday the 13th franchises, and a myriad of other slasher films, to the Nazi concentration camps in their shared inhuman indifference and disregard for the human body.  World War II is more commonly associated with the spectre of nuclear destruction and the effects of radiation on the world, but it also revealed a more subtle and frightening truth:  the idea that the most horrifying, cold-blooded and pitiless monsters can actually be other human beings.

- Sid

And weighs as much as 16,788,000 Timbits.

And yes, the internet will tell you how much a Timbit weighs - because Canada.

- Sid

"Be the captain they remember."

Though much is taken, much abides; and though

We are not now that strength which in old days

Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are,

One equal temper of heroic hearts,

Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will

To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

 Alfred Lord Tennyson, Ulysses

From the very beginning of the first episode of Picard, it's obvious that  the series will be catering to nostalgia on the part of the Star Trek fan base, as Data and Picard play poker in Ten Forward on the Enterprise to the tune of Blue Skies, the Irving Berlin tune that Data performed at Riker and Troi's wedding in Star Trek: Nemesis - and which B4, his less sophisticated duplicate, attempts to sing at the end of the movie.

 

Sadly, it's only a dream, but a dream whose ending suggests disaster and chaos, as the surface of Mars erupts in explosive flames that engulf the Enterprise,  The explosion jolts Picard into awareness in his bedroom at Chateau Picard, where his dog, Number One, runs to greet his troubled master.

We then jump to Greater Boston, where a young woman celebrating a new job appointment with her boyfriend is suddenly assaulted by masked assassins, who kill him then restrain and blindfold her. Surprisingly, she is able to eliminate them all - while blindfolded - and afterwards has a vision:  the face of Jean-Luc Picard.

The music for the title sequence that follows is more thoughtful and introspective than the standard Star Trek themes that we've heard in the past, almost wistful - a motif that provides the theme for the first episode, aptly entitled Remembrance.

We are presented with a Jean-Luc Picard who is in retirement if not decline, withdrawn to self-imposed exile at the family estate in France, living a life of quiet seclusion and unexpectedly attended to by a pair of Romulans.  When pressed by one of them regarding his bad dreams, Picard comments that "The dreams are lovely, it's the waking up that I'm beginning to regret."

An unexpectedly adversarial media interview reveals that ten years earlier, while Picard was in charge of a humanitarian effort by the Federation to help evacuate Romulus before its sun became a supernova, rogue synthetics destroyed the Utopia Planetia shipyards on Mars, setting the entire planet on fire.  This disaster leads the Federation to withdraw from the rescue mission, causing Picard to resign in protest.

In a burst of temper, Picard verbally savages the interviewer and storms out of the room.

Later, as he consoles himself with a glass of wine, he is surprised by the woman from Boston, who has come to him for help after seeing his interview.

Her name is Dahj, and she is unable to explain why she has decided that he will be able to protect and help her. However, as they talk, she confesses to a sense of connection to Picard, from deep within her.

The next morning, after Picard has once again dreamed of Data, who is this time working on a painting, she has vanished from her room.  Disturbed by something in his dream, Picard visits Starfleet Archives to take a trip into his past in what is essentially a memory palace, a storeroom containing mementos such as models of the Stargazer, his first command, a Klingon bat'leth, and a banner from Captain Picard Day.  He extracts a canvas from storage, a 30 year old painting by Data entitled "Daughter".  The face in the painting is that of Dahj.

Leaving the archive, Picard is surprised to see Dahj again, who had left the chateau rather than take a chance of placing Picard in peril. Picard explains that she may in some way be connected to Data, but she is horrified by the suggestion that she may not be real. She then somehow senses that another kill squad is on its way, and although they try to escape, Dahj dies in battle with the assassins, who are revealed to be Romulans.

Picard, knocked out by the explosion that kills Dahj, awakens at home.  He has been returned there by the police, who claim that the security feeds showed him to be alone at Star Fleet headquarters. Spurred by what he sees as a failure to both himself and to Dahj, Picard is determined to solve the mystery set before him.

His first step is to visit the Daystrom Institute of Advanced Robotics in Okinawa, where he is met by by Dr. Agnes Jurati, one of the institute's researchers, with whom Picard discusses the possibility of flesh and blood androids.She explains that following the attack on Mars, synthetic life forms and AI research have been harshly restricted, but that even before then, they had only been able to produce relatively primitive artificial life forms.

However, Picard learns that Bruce Maddox, who unsuccessfully attempted to have Data disassembled in the classic Next Generation episode, The Measure of a Man, has vanished from the Institute following the ban.  Picard shows Jurati a necklace left behind by Dahj, which she recognizes as a symbol for fractal neuronic cloning: a theory of Maddox's positing that Commander Data's code, even his memories, could be recreated from a single positronic neuron.

Jurati then comments that this process would result in pairs of androids - twins.  Picard comments thoughtfully, "So there’s another..."

The episode concludes by giving us the final pieces of the puzzle with an enigmatic glimpse at the current location of Dajh's twin sister Soji on a derelict Borg cube being reclaimed by Romulans.

Remembrance is an intriguing and well written episode, as might well be expected given the involvement of Pulitzer-prize winning author Michael Chabon in the project, and I'm curious to see where the story will take us, and which of the characters from the Star Trek universe will make an appearance.  (It's already been teased that Jeri Ryan will return as Seven of Nine, which would suggest that the Borg cube will play a significant part in the story.)   It's also a pleasure to see Patrick Stewart return to the role of Jean-Luc Picard, bringing back the charm, humour, compassion, earnest conviction and strength of character that typified his portrayal of the captain.

However, it's obvious that neither Picard nor Stewart are young men any more.  As with his portrayal of Professor X in Logan, there are hints of King Lear in Stewart's performance as Picard, especially in his fit of rage during his interview, and his subsequent regret.  There's also an echo of Star Trek: Generations - it's easy to see that Picard, like James T. Kirk in that film, wants to matter again.

One has to wonder if this series is intended to mark the end of Picard's story in a similar fashion to that of the Professor, or Kirk - will Picard ultimately fail to survive his search for the solution to this mystery?

If this series is intended to present us with the last act of Captain - now Admiral* - Picard, hopefully it won't be too soon.  As Picard wistfully comments to Data in the opening sequence, he doesn't want the game to end - and neither do his fans.

- Sid

* "Retired!"

Geekmas 2019: And we're done here.

It's almost a month now since Christmas Day, and since then I've also received the first book in the Epic Yarns Star Wars series as an unexpected gift, bought one of the unpurchased books from my seasonal gift list at Bakka Books in Toronto, and just received a well-made NOSTROMO t-shirt and the third Epic Yarns book from Amazon™ at work today, purchased with gift cards that I received for Christmas.  So let's call it a wrap for Geekmas 2019 - no pun intended.

- Sid

Four Day Geekend: Postscript.

 

Both my pieces of carry-on luggage were carefully hand checked by airport security for my flight back to Vancouver - apparently it makes them curious if the scanner reveals that the contents of your bags are completely surrounded by symmetrical rectangular packages (and relieved when they see that they're just books).

- Sid

Four Day Geekend: Well, they're not wrong.

It's quite an inspiring slogan, and it speaks to me both from the perspectives of science and science fiction, but I'm a bit puzzled as to why this visionary statement is on the front of a marijuana dispensary on Bloor Street in Toronto that's waiting to open.

- Sid