Chain of Command, Part II

Captain Picard is in the hands of the Cardassians, whilst Captain Jellico continues to run the Enterprise in a dictatorial style.

This is one of the classic episodes of Star Trek with a great double plot of Picard's torture by Gul Madred and Jellico's time aboard Enterprise.

Jellico's command continues to be a fascinating story of the ship run in a strict military style by a direct and controlling leader. His style is domination and there are numerous great scenes of his combative exchanges with characters. The best moment for me is his cap-in-hand return to Riker where the two exchange honest opinions of each other. Ronny Cox is excellent once more and Jonathan Frakes is also great.

The stars of the show are Patrick Stewart and David Warner in their intense scenes of torture. There is nothing gratuitous about what happens but a lot of the psychological and physical torment is conveyed through Stewart's great performance. Warner is suitably cold and malevolent in his portrayal.

It is quite reminiscent of 'Nineteen Eighty-Four' with Madred's questioning style. He tries to break Picard to the point he might do and say anything to avoid suffering. This, in an extreme way, parallels the will Jellico has for domination over subordinates and enemies, and both stories parallel each other superbly. As nasty as it is, it ends in a far more upbeat way than Winston Smith's experience at the Ministry of Love.

It is not perfect. I think the notion of Riker suddenly being the best pilot around is a lazy plot contrivance, but as it leads to one of the best scenes in the episode it is forgivable.

This is one of the best acted episodes of the franchise. Stewart, Warner, and Cox are all fantastic as you would expect with this kind of material. Also regular cast members like Jonathan Frakes are at the top of their game.

Visually everything works perfectly for the intended purpose. The torture scenes are not particularly violent, but the use of lighting, stripping Stewart naked and the set design of Madred's office have the psychological affect of making it feel quite brutal.

'Chain of Command part 2' is not a pleasant experience, but sadly neither is life for people who endure suffering at the hands of others. One job it does well is set the scene for 'Deep Space Nine' where these themes and narratives involving the Cardassians are expanded.

It's a 9.5/10 for me but I round upwards.

"There are 4 lights."

A 4 second performance. The last time Captain Picard / Patrick Stewart pronounces the words has to be one of the greatest acting performances ever. He must have spoken to a P.O.W. before he did this bit to know what it's like. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1npL-TNFOAQ

Chain of Command Part I was very good, but it was missing something to make it great. Chain of Command Part II is buoyed by a fantastic Picard performance to make for an excellent episode that exceeds the one that precedes it.

Excellent guest performances by David Warner and Ronny Cox also help this episode hit another level, too. Plus some fine performances from the Enterprise crew, including a time for Riker to shine.

Without spoiling anything, there is an impending conflict between Starfleet and the Cardassians, which would be the basis for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine that premiered following Chain of Command Part II. However, the "A plot" of this episode is the battle of wills between Picard and his Cardassian captors that has a great ending.

One of the best TNG episodes. Highly recommended.

This is the second part of a two-part adventure involving the Cardassians--the new villains for the spin-off series, "Star Trek: Deep Space 9". It begins with Captain Picard in custody after a screwed up mission falls apart. Now the Cardassians are going to torture him to try to get him to betray secrets. At the same time, the Enterprise's new captain, Jellico (Ronnie Cox), is trying to somehow take a total screw-up and turn it into a Federation victory...something which seems impossible.

This is a gritty episode and much of it consists of Picard stripped naked and being tortured. There is some nudity but it isn't gratuitous and the show is very compelling--and occasionally tough to watch.

This episode is much better than part 1 as its focus is on Picard and his captor Gul Madred. Their back and forth is masterful and the B plot back on board the Enterprise plays out smoothly. Riker isn't wrong and Jellico isn't right. They both lean into their characters perfectly though one does wish Riker had moved on to captain some other starship when he had the chance.

Turns out you can easily fit 500 anti-matter mines in the back of a class-2 shuttle and it'll look like you are only carrying eight to ten. Titan's turn sounds like a lot of fun and I hope that becomes a real thing in some distant future for our species. There does seem to be some confusion over the number of lights in Picard's torture chamber but reasonable people can disagree on these sorts of things.

To complete our study of Federation leadership compare and contrast how much composure Picard displays while being tortured, versus how little Jellico displays while at the negotiating table. They put their most skilled diplomat in harms way and a war monger at the helm of their most powerful ship. What does the Federation leadership really want? Are they completely incompetent or outright malicious? I suppose it doesn't matter. If an entire fleet of Cardi ships can be spooked into retreat by a few mines they don't deserve Minos Corva anyway. Perhaps at some point in the future they will makes some friends that will teach them how to effectively challenge federation power.