"So, my brother is a human being after all." That is such a great multi-layered line in this context. It can be figurative, saying that Jean Luc isn't quite as stoic and detached as he believes himself to be. Or that he's "only human" i.e, capable of making mistakes, and shouldn't blame himself. But it's also Robert reassuring him that he is LITERALLY human, not a Borg.
And at the end he mentioned Picard can stay with him or go back into the clouds, which could be seen as emphasizing the symbolism of either being well-grounded and down-to-earth (which is what helped Picard deal with his pain and accept it) or go back to his lofty space adventures, pretty much 'head up in the clouds'.
I recently learned that little tidbit. He didn't want a "bald English guy" stepping into Captain Kirk's shoes. Gene Roddenberry was indeed a visionary but he wasn't perfect. Thank God he surrounded himself with brilliant people who weren't afraid to stand up to him.
@@bratton79 The very best leaders surround themselves with brilliant advisers that will stand up to them. Because even the smartest person can be wrong, but if you have a group of the smartest people, the chance of being wrong diminishes significantly.
That was Bob Justman. He spotted Stewart doing a reading at a university and couldn't get out of his head that he found the perfect Picard. He also went through quite a bit of campaigning to get Roddenberry to reluctantly go along with it.
Many family members don't like each other, but its still possible to love someone who you may be upset with for various reasons. Picard's relationship with his brother rings true for that depth of complexity. As hard as it is for some people to admit to, its even possible for parents to dislike their own kids, yet still love them.
There’s something about Robert’s “you have to learn to live with it” that is so caring and inspirational to me. He doesn’t say “get over it” or “deal with it” he wants his brother to be able to accept the things that scarred him and be in the best place to heal. Your trauma can’t be undone, but you can learn to live with it and not let it eat away at you. It inspired me to go to therapy and take steps to grow and be more than my trauma wanted me to be
I also love how Robert was initially like “you’re too hard on yourself”, but then once he knows why Jean-Luc was like that, he admits that it isn’t something he could help his brother with quickly and that it’s more of a long-term problem. Something that Jean-Luc has to figure out to solve by himself.
I was recently rewatching the "No!!!!" scene from "First Contact," and thought back to this scene. As a kid I remember thinking that scene where he shatters the glass was overacted, but as an adult who's been through trauma, I understand the violence and fury he has in that moment. The Borg took everything he was and made a mockery of him, and no matter how many times he fights back, foils their plans, or does good in the universe, they'll always have that on him. He'll never truly be rid of them.
"Family" is a sorely underrated episode of TNG. It was absolutely necessary to make this episode after "The Best of Both Worlds" two-parter. Picard (nor his ship) didn't just "walk it off" after such a devastating event. (like in TOS or VGR) Kudos to Ronald D. Moore for this often overlooked gem.
Ronald D. Moore really, really pushed for the writing of conflict among the characters and self-conflict (flaws) within them...against Roddenberry's well-known directive of a "perfect" crew fighting only enemies on the outside. Moore wanted characters to develop, and change...not just be sandboxes with reset buttons after every episode. And Star Trek was so much better for it. Then he REALLY took that ethos to the extreme with BSG.
This is one of my favorite episodes because it really started the process of taking the main characters and made them feel like "real people" vs archetypes to aspire to.
In what possible way would you possibly think that this episode was "sorely underrated"? Often overlooked? What in the world are you talking about? This is a fan favorite. Very highly rated, and never overlooked.
@@brians9508 It's not put on a lot of best-ofs because the show has 180 episodes, and a lot of "really good" gets put to the side in favor of "the best". Best of Both Worlds, Yesterday's Enterprise, Inner Light and the finale take up four slots in everyone's Top 10s already. Add in a couple each of the better Data and Worf episodes, this might be on somebody's top ten, but statistically it won't be on all of them. It's one of those episodes where someone else has to mention it before you go "Oh yeah, that was a good one". Especially because the non-Picard parts of the episode (Wesley seeing a hologram of his dad and Worf with his adoptive human parents) are either forgotten or even disliked. It's a fantastic episode... it just happens to be among many fantastic episodes.
This is what "Picard" should have been like - not a series of adventures, just a man growing old amidst an oblivious French countryside, trying to deal with what his life had done to him.
A very touching scene. Robert is such a bullying asshole for the whole episode, but he knew his brother needed it because it was the only way he would forgive himself.
Yeah. I felt the same the first time I watched it. And then that break down at the end. I was like, this is the greatest episode of trek I've ever seen.
There is also the episode when he meets Hugh and his absolute hatred for the Borg. I was probably the weakest of the episodes that explored Picard's feelings of hatred and revenge. And of course everything comes full circles with First Contact, when you see Picard on the edge of complete revenge mania.
Yep, sometimes an experience, or series of experiences can break something inside you. And despite what some people say, it can be permanent. You can control it, but it will always be there with you.
As the oldest brother myself, I might have to do the same thing to my brother one day...with the path hes taking...and how its affecting him. So i definitely understand why Picards brotjer did what he did....
This scene helped me with my own trauma as a kid. An untouchable hero was not strong enough and that was ok.... thank you Patrick I know this is fantasy but you gave a young boy a knowledge he needed to know it wasn't his fault.
@@gmac8586 Gene didn't like this episode. He didn't understand it when he saw the lines. Seeing Patrick in the dailys he out right said he was wrong and needed a moment
if there were any hold outs on Picard as a captain... this ended it. Picard's character started out a bit stiff and militant and had been gradually loosening... then with this arc they fully humanized him... and they did it in the most devastating way.
“I should’ve stopped them. I wasn’t strong enough.” is pretty much identical to my thoughts when I was processing my trauma. it was so validating to see this scene, especially as a man. seeing picard crying and vulnerable was seeing myself there. such an important scene. idk star trek is getting me so emotional man
This is one of the reasons people hated Sisko when we first met him. He blamed Picard for what happened at Wolf 359 yet failed to realize that Picard was just as much a victim as the rest.
The interesting thing is that the Prophets showed him that most of his anger and misery was more about his unwillingness to move on. Picard was something easy for Sisko to lock on to.
I remember wondering when I watched the wolf 359 episodes if there would be a lot of negativity towards Picard afterwards. It seems perfectly reasonable because the Federation never stood a chance when the Borg had all of the intelligence, knowledge and tactical plans of a high ranking officer who had allowed himself to get captured. It was massive defeat for the Federation, some resentment is understandable when Picard gets to return to normal life afterwards.
Outstanding performance from both men. The way Robert sits up as Picard begins to break down, the expression on his face as he sees the pain and guilt, the way he looks down as he tries to find the words to help his little brother. He saw his brother as a fearless man who could take on anything, to being a complete wreck (and rightfully so) after his treatment from the Borg. He may be jealous of his brother's accomplishments, but he is still his brother and doesn't want to see him fall. The look on his face later as he hugs Picard upon his departure, so much worry and concern. Amazing subtle things from both men that tell a lot more than the script provides.
+snickothemule -- He isn't jealous of his brothers accomplishments. He's bitter that society has always been so enamored with Picard's accomplishments (space, exploration, progress) and not equally enthralled by his own accomplishments (tradition, perfecting a craft, preserving a heritage). Society says, "wow, look at this Jean Luc!! So amazing, he's such a perfect man" _AND PICARD BUYS INTO IT WITH ALL THE FALSE MODESTY THAT ONLY FAMILY CAN SEE_. And it's so nice for his brother to see that yeah, nah, Picard's just human. Like the rest of us. And maybe _he_ can see that now too. Even if society still won't.
Or as a rape victim. His body and mind was violated against his will; an assault that’s stays with him for years afterwards, reaching its zenith in the 8th movie First Contact.
SoLoMoN DaViDSoN it takes him 30 years (by the events of ST:PIC) to finally come to face the xB’s as fellow victims of that collectivist rape of the Borg Collective, and even still those scars run deep, from his response to being called Locutus by some, to the admission to Seven of Nine that he still hasn’t completely regained his humanity since. Few incidents have defined the person of Jean-Luc Picard in the lasting way this has.
What I find so incredible about this scene is that Picard shows all the signs of having PTSD from his experiences with the Borg. The whole episode is effectively symbolic of the struggles that veterans have when they return to a "normal" life. It is also incredibly moving when you realize that Patrick Stewart's father fought during the Second World War and suffered from PTSD, which resulted in his alcoholism and violence towards his family. It seems as though Stewart is subconsciously acting through his father's pain and struggle, which was only one story of hundreds that still affect all of us today. This is truly one of the greatest episodes of TNG and one of the greatest actors of all time.
Stewart never knew his father's pain at this point. He learned all that off the TV series "Who Do You Think You Are?" which digs into your history - and was a good 20 years after this episode was filmed.. He actually had a real sit-down with his actual brother to discuss how he learned something new about his father after that show. Prior to that, he had a real dislike of his father and didn't understand what he went through during the war. On the plus side, it did turn Patrick Stewart into a strong supporter of women who were abused by violent partners. But I guess ultimately he learned that the abusers were often victims themselves, too.
It also reveals that assimilated people are still conscious, and can perceive, at least to some degree, what they're doing. How awful it must be to watch yourself do what they do, with no way to stop it.
@@Rensune Yeah, honestly at times I think Star Trek succeeded (well, ultimately, it/TNG initially struggled) despite Roddenberry rather than because of him. He laid down the groundwork and all the various talented writers give it the gravitas.
I sometimes feel like Patrick Stewart's performance wasn't fully-appreciated until much later. He absolutely nails it here. Around this time, TNG was just starting to crawl out of the shadow of TOS and fans were still too consumed with pitting Picard against Kirk as the better captain.
Season 1 was crazy at the onset in particular, I distinctly remember forums being filled with how ridiculous this bald captain was trying to play the Love Boat in space.
Sir Patrick is wonderful in this, but I'm surprised I haven't seen comments about how amazing it is that Robert (and the script as a whole) didn't expect Picard to be magically fine or "fixed" after his breakdown. The line "This is going to be with you a long time..." is one of the most powerful, most important lines in the entire scene. It gives the character - and the audience - permission to not be okay after a single conversation about a deeply traumatic experience.
I love how much Picard's experience with the Borg evolves. It starts off as denial. He denies that he's not fine. He tries to pretend that its behind him, that he's stronger than his trauma. His denial turns to grief. To an outpouring of emotion and horror at what the Borg turned him into. Over time, his grief turns to hatred for the Borg. He despises the Borg, and he relishes every opportunity to destroy them. And in First Contact, his hatred finally comes to the forefront in a suicidal showdown with the Borg. After that, he finally comes to terms with the fact that the Borg experience will always be part of him, but that he cannot let his hatred and his trauma blind him from his duty to his crew.
One of the strengths of Star Trek is showing that humans beings, no matter how far technically advanced and rigorously trained, are still human beings at the end of the day.
I love that we get to see Picard break down in front of the only person he can. His brother. Robert really is his brothers keeper. He makes Picard realize that he can still be a man of action and fight for himself, yet realize what was taken from him. Robert makes him truly realize how simple, and easy his choices really are. Jean-Luc is gonna have to deal with this no matter what, easy question is, Underwater, or in Starfleet. Brilliant episode.
It’s funny because this episode was kind of panned when it came out because it was a somewhat week and slow follow up to “best of both worlds” but in retrospect I think it was a great episode. Picard really plays “I’m ok but not ok” thing really well the whole time until this scene
They never should have killed his family offscreen, it added nothing to the story and robbed Picard of something very important to ground the rest of his life.
Proof Hollywood's obsession with deconstructing Families, Legacy, and Continuance were already present long before they lost the modern era. They were just better at hiding the ball back then.
Marxists need to deconstruct everything. When they're not just outright destroying things. Especially your heroes and cultural mythos. Antonio Gramsci writes about the strategy in exacting detail, and once you understand that so much of the asinine decisions modern entertainment industries make suddenly make perfect sense. Tear down what was, demoralize everyone, then they'll be much more accepting of the "brave new world" the Marxists present. Which inevitably bears a remarkable resemblance to the horrific old world we'd already managed to leave behind, but don't mind the details. Minding the details is for your moral and intellectual betters to worry about. So that's why Jean Luc Picard had to lose his family and his legacy. That's why when they made the Picard series, he had to be a washed-up old has-been who's constantly being told what a pathetic failure he is. Same with Luke Skywalker and Han Solo and Indiana Jones...seeing the patterns yet?
Those people who dislike Picards outburst ind First Contact clearly don't understand that this sort of Trauma wouldn't wash off in the sink. It's basically PTSD+Rape×10.
They invade our space...And we fall back...They assimilate entire worlds...And we fall back. NOT AGAIN. THE LINE MUST BE DRAWN HERE! THIS FAR NO FURTHER! AND IIIIII...WILL MAKE THEM PAY FOR WJAT THEY'VE DONE!
I can't even begin to imagine the amount of pain and angst Picard went through because of what the Borg put him through. They tore knowledge from his brain and used it to kill 11,000 people in the Battle of Wolf 359 including that Admiral who was Picard's friend. No wonder Picard was so obsessed with revenge on the Borg in Star Trek: First Contact, I'd be too not just for myself but for all of their victims.
To say nothing of the knowledge that many of the officers killed at Wolf 359 included friends and proteges from the Academy. That'd gut even the strongest person.
If they had just done that, it would be different. The borg didn't just tear knowledge from his brain, but the Borg Forced Picard to actively use that knowledge to personally kill those 11,000 people with his own hands.
"And IIIII....will make them P A Y for what they've done!!!!" I dont blame him at all for having such an overwhelming anger towards the borg.... I would too, in his shoes.
No the Revenge plot dosnt fit! Later in TNG they find a Borg Drone Name him Hugh. Picard can send him back with a Virus to kill all Borg. But he didnt do it!
After my last tour in Iraq things like this happen to me more. It’s a terrible terrible feeling knowing you have caused so much harm to life and changed many people’s worlds. Watching this stings, but the scene was well acted and hit a personal spot.
I love this episode. So heart felt and emotional. it was good to see his brother being there for what ever support he could muster in his arrogance. Robert was a pompous ass, but he loved Picard and did not want to see him suffer like this.
@@SB0780 kirk was always just trying to get laid lolol, but in all honesty when joan collins was killed in the city on the edge of tomorrow, as they were beaming up, he says, LETS GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE, it was about as emotional as a 10 year old could take
@@SB0780 Janeway came close. I think on the last episode of voyager, where older admiral janeway says to seven of nine "People who LOVE you." Her voice just shakey enough to notice. Because seven did not make the journey back to earth when Admiral Janways voyager completed its journey home.
To me this scene does the best job of any scene of humanizing Picard. Until this point in the show we never really see behind the stoic, taciturn, and professional persona he presents while on board The Enterprise. While on duty he always seems level headed and cool under pressure even under the most trying of circumstances. Until this point Picard seemed like the character that you could look up to and aspire to be like, not a character you could really relate to. This scene did a lot to remedy that. Picard will always represent an ideal that we should all strive towards and knowing that Picard is just as susceptible to the same trauma, grief, and pain that we all face at some point in our lives really helps you feel like maybe, with enough effort and time, you could one day be as good and as inspiring as he is. And that's why this is my favorite Picard scene.
I suspect part of this scene's punch, comes from the fact that alot of us Trekkies tend to deify Picard a bit (I know I'm guilty of it). "So my brother is a human being after all.." I can imagine Robert breaking the 4th wall, turning to the camera and adding "See?!"
Actually, you may have a thing. Picard is always the one in control, never really giving into his emotion. Seeing him THAT way is extremely hard to watch. It's like seeing your Old tought brother crying in front of you after knowing him and seeing him like that on less than 3 or 4 occasion at most.
Great moments when there is this close yet subtle connection between writers and audience. My Little Pony FiM did this a few times, too. They used episodes or moments to process tensions in the fandom in a tasteful, not-in-your-face way. (Not to be confused with fanservice! But even when they did that, it was glorious.)
This is what STD fails to understand. You can't just have your character cry every episode and expect to have earned an emotional payoff and your audience have empathy for them. No. Picard is normally stoic, collected, able to work through the hardest times, and constantly has to defend himself among his superiors. Externally, you would think that being assimilated didn't affect him, but knowing him in his vulnerable times tells us that it affected him deeply and his tears and pain are genuine. I have much more empathy for this.
heheheheh that word stoic keeps coming up in comments, but the only time i remember that word being used in TNG, was when Q said that about riker before the beard lololol
It's accurate. Often when someone goes through something so horribly traumatic, it doesn't actually register for quite some time until they've actually sat down and processed what's happened, and it all comes at once. It was so incredibly emotional, seeing this man we're used to being a stoic harbinger of good and righteousness, unrivalled and unshaken in his conviction, finally break down and show us just how vulnerable he feels and how much the ordeal has broken him.
"You don't know, Ethan, you don't know. It took everything I was...I tried so hard.. but I wasn't strong enough...I should have been able to stop it.."
This is my favorite episode because of this scene. Picard shows a side of himself we don't nornally see. When the brother says" Youre human after all". Its almost like he's saying "There you are Jean Luc". After everything he's gone through, this is the moment we trully see Picard return both physically, mentally, and spiritually. I was so angry when both his brother and nephew died. Picard really needed them.
It's the only other time he cries is when he loses them, and they burned to death of all the ways to die. I can't imagine how tragic and unfair that is, how messy and inhuman life must feel at times for him.
Since my younger brother was 7 I have tried to help him. I asked him few years back to define the word empathy , because I have been the human being to my younger brother and he would straight way act like the older brother . He got mad as usual knowing he didn't know or would be humble enough to ask me to explain to him. I on the the other hand always put myself in his shoes . ALWAYS . He is 60 now ,I'm still not able to say " My brother is a human being after all " I realize we can only change or control ourselves and we just have to live moving forward and if it happens like this scene , great, if not we live . This always moves me to tears . Being hard on oneself is usually hard on others before they began to look within as Picard does in this scene and now Robert takes comfort not in Picards pain , but his strength in sharing his pain . My younger brother does not do that as Picard does .
I love Roberts advice. He doesn't diminish it or rationalise it. He doesn't try and offer some faux inspirational advice. He just tells him that it happened and that one way or another, he has to find a way to move forward from here on.
In First Contact they touch on this really well, showing how Picard struggles with lingering effects of the borg's influence. He has nightmares, and carries anger that drives him to violence and vengeance. He hardly realizes how badly he's affected until Lily pretty much beats him over the head with how he's destroying himself and everything around him in his hatred. Really puts into perspective how hard it must have been for him to march back to the borg queen and offer himself up for Data's sake. I can't help but wonder if moments like this were why Data was so willing to sacrifice himself in Nemesis...
But it even goes beyond rape, doesn't it? He wasn't just violated and taken against his will, he was forced to watch while his mind and body were used to kill thousands of people while he watched. I can't even imagine what that would feel like, let alone how he manages to move on with his life. Were I in his position...I don't know if I could.
***** Its a shame that nothing like this happened in the ST TOS era, it would be fascinating to see how Kirk and his crew would handle all this. Especially Kirk, assimilated, controlled, used to kill countless people, utterly broken. Ah, shame.
+TheCrazyFereldan It would have gone against the TOS scheme too much. Kirk was all about never BEING helpless, always finding a way to give himself that one last option to save everybody. it was TNG when they started throwing the real no-win scenarios at the Enterprise crew and it wasn't until DS9 that they got really good at it..
Superknight915 I certainly couldn't. I HATE seeing much of _anything_ being killed.....I sincerely hope some race like the Borg doesn't exist somewhere. Or if it does, that we never, EVER encounter them.....
Everyone (rightly) praising Patrick Stewart's performance, but Jeremy Kemp deserves his flowers too. Two RSC actors playing off each other is a joy to see.
THIS is what modern Star Trek is missing. This depth of emotion that is so layered and connected to previous episodes and then even linked to their first movie, First Contact is the kind of storytelling that engrossed people. It hits you in the heart. We need this kind of stuff again so badly.
Let me ask you..... Was this the very first episode of Next Gen that you ever watched? Or had you watched the previous three seasons? I ask, because Picard AND Prodigy both have had moments similar in emotional depth to this, but if you haven't watched the entire series up to that point, you won't grasp the emotional importance of those scenes. Heck, even Lower Decks, being a comedy show, has had moments of "Oh... DAMN"... I wholely disagree that 'modern' trek doesn't do this sort of multilevel storytelling. Discovery doesn't, I'll grant you. But Picard has, Lower Decks has, Prodigy DEFINITELY has, even Strange New Worlds is revealing some of the interconnected storylines that you didn't even realise were there. The biggest problem I see, is that some fans get so focused on quibbling over the minutiae, that they don't invest in those storylines. They focus so much on protecting their version of what's 'canon' that they completely miss the subtlety. They forget that when they were kids, they were able to sink into the weekly narrative, because the minutiae didn't matter at that moment.
Although I understand Sisko’s anger and resentment to Picard This scene reminds me that both of them have suffered greatly by the Borg. And will continue to bear the burden of Wolf 359...
It’s a well written aspect, Sisko wasn’t being fair with his grudge against Picard, but he can’t at all be blamed for it either. Picard basically knows that and doesn’t know what to say or do, so the tension between them was always thick.
@@VulKus117 out of all the capts in the star trek series, the character sisko was the worst of the worst. even janeway was better then him an thats saying alot
I'm not a psychologist; but, I don't think this is an emotional collapse for Picard. I think it's an emotional breakthrough. He had all this vile experience and guilt bottled up inside himself and finally violently released and confronted it thanks to the bating of Robert. I think this is the start of the healing process of a catastrophic experience that will be with him a long time. By the time Admiral Satie bated Picard into another emotional response regarding his healing from the Borg incident, Picard was honest in saying that he had fully recovered.
It's even more sad when you think about what real life experiences Sir Patrick probably drew upon for this scene. When he was a little boy he often had to physically put himself between his parents to stop his father beating his mother.
And in a way he did live with it and proved he was strong enough in Picard season 3. He was willing to enter the heart of the Borg cube to get his son back, he confronted his fears, his nemesis and he was ready to spend his last moments with his son. Picard can live with it.
Agreed, and I think that Picard's words here apply to what the character himself would likely say about how kurtzman AND Sir Patrick did him so dirty in that horrid abomination. "They took everything I was. They used me to kill, and to destroy, and I couldn't stop them. I should have been able to stop them!!!"
That was actually "Chain of Command" pt I and II, with Picard's "THERE...ARE...FOUR... LIGHTS...!" being in pt. II. But... it's actually a brilliant "pull" from 1984 with Stewart playing the part of Winston Smith and David Warner (who's performance equals and compliments Stewart's) the Cardasian interrogator, takes the part of O'Brien. In 1984 it's O'Brien: "How many FINGERS do you see Winston?" Winston: "I see four fingers." O'Brien: "No, there are five, look again." While in "Chain of Command" it's... "How many LIGHTS do you see? "I see four lights..." "No, there are five lights... Look again." In 1984 Winston breaks down and is reprogrammed by "Big Brother." While Picard is defiant to the end. HOWEVER... in respect to Orwell and 1984, Picard privately admits to Troi, that... (Like Winston) "I'd of told him anything but... I actually thought I saw 5 lights."
When people criticise First Contact when they say Picard didn't show any hatred or emotion after his experience with the Borg, what the fuck dope are they smoking if they've seen this great moment? People just love complaining
"You have to learn to live with it!" And boy, was Robert correct, he kept all that and defeated the Borg again and again, liberated Hugh from the collective until the day he died (physical body). Even when the collective had taken over the entire fleet of ships, Picard still held on that he could get his son, his own flesh and blood out of the grasp of the queen herself and he did. He just said that if this was what he wanted, then Picard would allow himself to be assimilated once more to be with him.
Finally admitting "I wasn't good enough, I wasn't strong enough" is such an important thing to come to terms with and only how you'll be able to positively learn and move on from it. I'm about to send this to my gf on the topic of me keeping her safe as much as I can. I just hope I'm good, and strong enough to do so.
If you're just watching any other actor, you 'see' their performance. If you watch Patrick Stewart, you FEEL... what he feels. In fact, you know EXACTLY.... what he feels. Am I right, Jean-Luc? (morphing into Shinzon.... hahahha!)
This is one of my favorite scenes and episodes in TNG. Picard is a great man and captain but he is just a man after all and we all have our breaking point. This also illustrates how horrifying being assimilated by the Borg would be. Picard is describing what it’s like to go through that and the helplessness he felt probably for the first time in his life. Very chilling and heartfelt moment here. I love it.
And you wonder why he freaked out when he first entered the Borg cube in Picard. Jesus, when I realized those Borg holding him from the edge were REAL and not a PTSD moment....
I loved that episode, it brought Picard's whole Borg arc full circle (even if it felt a bit rushed in execution). He got to see that his liberation from the collective wasn't a unique experience, that assimilation could be undone, and he came to realize that every Borg is as much a victim as he was.
To think that the powers that be (Including Gene) didn't initially want Family to go through. Thank God for Michael Piller. This scene gets me misty every time. The only thing that could've been worse is if he had mentioned "11,000 people". You just feel for Picard. And I think it adds weight to First Contact years later, that you know how hurt he was by the whole thing.
Considering how many ships were destroyed at Wolf 359, it would have had to have been tens of thousands, not thousands. That sucks having to live with the knowledge that you were responsible for that massacre. What I always wondered about is how Robert and son died in a fire. Knowing how anti-technology Robert was, i wonder if he was morally opposed to smoke detectors in the house because it, like other technology make life "too easy" as he once put it.
Well, it was confirmed in canon that the casualty toll was 39 ships and around 11,000 people, either dead or assimilated. TNG's, "The Drumhead" even has a direct mention of this, so that's the official figure.
Picard seems to forget that even as locutus, he was able to fight back and reach out to Data and Troy to communicate with them, so he's selling himself a little short here.
I think and as Robert points out...he feels that he has to hold himself to an insanely exceptionally high standard...a really murderously high standard and if he can't measure up to the standard...and that what he did as he reached out to Data and Troi matters little in comparison to what he did as Locutus...and don't forget the veterans he will encounter later such as Sisko and Shaw.
i know a lot of the writing staff thought the stay on earth idea wasn't a great one, but actually after such a traumatic event (and it certainly was shocking to see a fleet floating in space as a mass of debris) the catharsis avenue was an important one to visit. I think acknowledging these characters were just regular human beings who could be traumatized as important. incorporating the family relationships was actually quite brilliant. Not many people can convincingly knock picard down a notch but his older brother certainly would fit the bill.
PTSD is real. And it happens to men who WEREN'T in war. And there's nothing wrong with CRYING about it, and getting the support you need to heal. And you WILL.
And if you read the final Star Trek novelverse story Coda, it was a huge reconciliation by any standard considering that Robert came around to really fully allowing his son Rene to join Starfleet. And that whenever Robert would meet up with friends at regular meetings, he would regal them with tales of Jean-Luc's incredible heroism. And when he hears this, Jean-Luc is moved to tears and wished that he had visited home more often.
Such a wonderful scene. - thank you for posting it. I think the end part is a good lesson for some that it's okay not to like your sibling's. But it's not okay not to love/be there for them.
Star Trek The Next Generation was an achievement in high art. It rivals shakespeare. Modern Star Trek is empty consumerism, and not even successful empty consumerism.
@@eris9659 No, it's just in line with Prestige TV like what we see on Amazon Prime and HBO. Meaning it had to incorporate stuff like sex, cursing, etc.
This is a brilliant scene. Great episode. You see the later effects of the trauma Picard faced in “I, Borg” and especially Star Trek First Contact. The pain, the anger, the toll it took to be tortured, mutilated, altered physically, psychologically and to be used as a blunt instrument to destroy humanity and everything you stood for. This story arc still gets me to this day.
"So, my brother is a human being after all."
That is such a great multi-layered line in this context. It can be figurative, saying that Jean Luc isn't quite as stoic and detached as he believes himself to be. Or that he's "only human" i.e, capable of making mistakes, and shouldn't blame himself. But it's also Robert reassuring him that he is LITERALLY human, not a Borg.
Brilliant insight, thank you!
And it was also some jealousy as he saw his brother as being the golden child of the family which made it hard for him to like his brother.
This is the youtube comment equivalent of when Picard realised the paradox in 'All Good Things'.
And at the end he mentioned Picard can stay with him or go back into the clouds, which could be seen as emphasizing the symbolism of either being well-grounded and down-to-earth (which is what helped Picard deal with his pain and accept it) or go back to his lofty space adventures, pretty much 'head up in the clouds'.
HE WASNT STRONG ENOUGH
Whoever cast Patrick Stewart as Picard was absolutely brilliant.
Ducksoup67 Like so many things that were successful and good about Star Trek after the 70s, Gene Roddenberry was flatly against his casting.
I recently learned that little tidbit. He didn't want a "bald English guy" stepping into Captain Kirk's shoes. Gene Roddenberry was indeed a visionary but he wasn't perfect. Thank God he surrounded himself with brilliant people who weren't afraid to stand up to him.
@@bratton79 The very best leaders surround themselves with brilliant advisers that will stand up to them. Because even the smartest person can be wrong, but if you have a group of the smartest people, the chance of being wrong diminishes significantly.
Originally Stewart was brought in to audition for Data. That would of been...weird
That was Bob Justman. He spotted Stewart doing a reading at a university and couldn't get out of his head that he found the perfect Picard. He also went through quite a bit of campaigning to get Roddenberry to reluctantly go along with it.
“I still don’t like you” means I love you.
Exactly. That was Robert's way of telling him that.
Many family members don't like each other, but its still possible to love someone who you may be upset with for various reasons. Picard's relationship with his brother rings true for that depth of complexity. As hard as it is for some people to admit to, its even possible for parents to dislike their own kids, yet still love them.
You don’t have to like someone to love them. That’s family.
@@forceoflegend3965 yep.
That's what men do. Saying something. Without saying what we truly mean.
There’s something about Robert’s “you have to learn to live with it” that is so caring and inspirational to me. He doesn’t say “get over it” or “deal with it” he wants his brother to be able to accept the things that scarred him and be in the best place to heal. Your trauma can’t be undone, but you can learn to live with it and not let it eat away at you. It inspired me to go to therapy and take steps to grow and be more than my trauma wanted me to be
I know.
We saw that in First Contact where he let his anger get the best of him when he gave the order to destroy the Enterprise-E.
I also love how Robert was initially like “you’re too hard on yourself”, but then once he knows why Jean-Luc was like that, he admits that it isn’t something he could help his brother with quickly and that it’s more of a long-term problem. Something that Jean-Luc has to figure out to solve by himself.
I was recently rewatching the "No!!!!" scene from "First Contact," and thought back to this scene. As a kid I remember thinking that scene where he shatters the glass was overacted, but as an adult who's been through trauma, I understand the violence and fury he has in that moment. The Borg took everything he was and made a mockery of him, and no matter how many times he fights back, foils their plans, or does good in the universe, they'll always have that on him. He'll never truly be rid of them.
That's right; he needs his pain...
"Family" is a sorely underrated episode of TNG. It was absolutely necessary to make this episode after "The Best of Both Worlds" two-parter. Picard (nor his ship) didn't just "walk it off" after such a devastating event. (like in TOS or VGR) Kudos to Ronald D. Moore for this often overlooked gem.
Ronald D. Moore really, really pushed for the writing of conflict among the characters and self-conflict (flaws) within them...against Roddenberry's well-known directive of a "perfect" crew fighting only enemies on the outside. Moore wanted characters to develop, and change...not just be sandboxes with reset buttons after every episode. And Star Trek was so much better for it. Then he REALLY took that ethos to the extreme with BSG.
This is one of my favorite episodes because it really started the process of taking the main characters and made them feel like "real people" vs archetypes to aspire to.
In what possible way would you possibly think that this episode was "sorely underrated"? Often overlooked? What in the world are you talking about? This is a fan favorite. Very highly rated, and never overlooked.
@@brians9508 It's not put on a lot of best-ofs because the show has 180 episodes, and a lot of "really good" gets put to the side in favor of "the best". Best of Both Worlds, Yesterday's Enterprise, Inner Light and the finale take up four slots in everyone's Top 10s already. Add in a couple each of the better Data and Worf episodes, this might be on somebody's top ten, but statistically it won't be on all of them.
It's one of those episodes where someone else has to mention it before you go "Oh yeah, that was a good one". Especially because the non-Picard parts of the episode (Wesley seeing a hologram of his dad and Worf with his adoptive human parents) are either forgotten or even disliked. It's a fantastic episode... it just happens to be among many fantastic episodes.
This is what "Picard" should have been like - not a series of adventures, just a man growing old amidst an oblivious French countryside, trying to deal with what his life had done to him.
A very touching scene. Robert is such a bullying asshole for the whole episode, but he knew his brother needed it because it was the only way he would forgive himself.
+Meow Meow It's called tough love.
Yeah. I felt the same the first time I watched it. And then that break down at the end. I was like, this is the greatest episode of trek I've ever seen.
There is also the episode when he meets Hugh and his absolute hatred for the Borg. I was probably the weakest of the episodes that explored Picard's feelings of hatred and revenge.
And of course everything comes full circles with First Contact, when you see Picard on the edge of complete revenge mania.
Yep, sometimes an experience, or series of experiences can break something inside you. And despite what some people say, it can be permanent. You can control it, but it will always be there with you.
As the oldest brother myself, I might have to do the same thing to my brother one day...with the path hes taking...and how its affecting him. So i definitely understand why Picards brotjer did what he did....
This scene helped me with my own trauma as a kid. An untouchable hero was not strong enough and that was ok.... thank you Patrick I know this is fantasy but you gave a young boy a knowledge he needed to know it wasn't his fault.
I hope you're doing well, man!
That's beautiful.
...and thank you to the writers who wrote the story and gave him the lines. But yeah, Patrick Steward is a great actor too.
@@gmac8586 just sssssssssssss
@@gmac8586 Gene didn't like this episode. He didn't understand it when he saw the lines. Seeing Patrick in the dailys he out right said he was wrong and needed a moment
The Borg Arc could not have been complete without this episode. Fabulous work.
if there were any hold outs on Picard as a captain... this ended it. Picard's character started out a bit stiff and militant and had been gradually loosening... then with this arc they fully humanized him... and they did it in the most devastating way.
“I should’ve stopped them. I wasn’t strong enough.” is pretty much identical to my thoughts when I was processing my trauma. it was so validating to see this scene, especially as a man. seeing picard crying and vulnerable was seeing myself there. such an important scene. idk star trek is getting me so emotional man
Your emotions are valid friend, I hope you're doing okay.
" I couldn't stop them."
You will one day, Jean Luc. One day, You will.
This is one of the reasons people hated Sisko when we first met him. He blamed Picard for what happened at Wolf 359 yet failed to realize that Picard was just as much a victim as the rest.
The interesting thing is that the Prophets showed him that most of his anger and misery was more about his unwillingness to move on. Picard was something easy for Sisko to lock on to.
Grief and anger isn’t always so logical.
They parted on decent terms after that first meeting, remember? I don't think they left as friends, but Sisko got over that hatred for him.
I remember wondering when I watched the wolf 359 episodes if there would be a lot of negativity towards Picard afterwards. It seems perfectly reasonable because the Federation never stood a chance when the Borg had all of the intelligence, knowledge and tactical plans of a high ranking officer who had allowed himself to get captured. It was massive defeat for the Federation, some resentment is understandable when Picard gets to return to normal life afterwards.
Sisko was a piece of shit to the end.
Outstanding performance from both men. The way Robert sits up as Picard begins to break down, the expression on his face as he sees the pain and guilt, the way he looks down as he tries to find the words to help his little brother. He saw his brother as a fearless man who could take on anything, to being a complete wreck (and rightfully so) after his treatment from the Borg. He may be jealous of his brother's accomplishments, but he is still his brother and doesn't want to see him fall.
The look on his face later as he hugs Picard upon his departure, so much worry and concern. Amazing subtle things from both men that tell a lot more than the script provides.
That was a beautiful analysis
+snickothemule -- He isn't jealous of his brothers accomplishments. He's bitter that society has always been so enamored with Picard's accomplishments (space, exploration, progress) and not equally enthralled by his own accomplishments (tradition, perfecting a craft, preserving a heritage).
Society says, "wow, look at this Jean Luc!! So amazing, he's such a perfect man" _AND PICARD BUYS INTO IT WITH ALL THE FALSE MODESTY THAT ONLY FAMILY CAN SEE_. And it's so nice for his brother to see that yeah, nah, Picard's just human. Like the rest of us. And maybe _he_ can see that now too. Even if society still won't.
+ThePolysyllabist Nevermind all that intergalactic diplomacy stuff, we need to remember those who facilitated alcoholism.
snickothemule You would think they really _were_ brothers. ^_^
this is why Sir Patrick is the best Trek actor, in ALL series...
+coalikesdesi …not to mention, his role as #AveryBullockOnAmericanDad !!
coalikesdesi Brent Spiner?
i'm sorry? no, it's him. is this OK to assert, mr. (or ms. possibly) Asperger's?
nah, you insulted me dude..lol. be a man and take it.
His brother still don't like him.
This pretty much nailed PTSD.
Ever see Captain Philips? Tom Hanks does an incredible job.
@@LukeLovesRose He wasn't taken by the Borg
And he would never fully recover.
Or as a rape victim. His body and mind was violated against his will; an assault that’s stays with him for years afterwards, reaching its zenith in the 8th movie First Contact.
SoLoMoN DaViDSoN it takes him 30 years (by the events of ST:PIC) to finally come to face the xB’s as fellow victims of that collectivist rape of the Borg Collective, and even still those scars run deep, from his response to being called Locutus by some, to the admission to Seven of Nine that he still hasn’t completely regained his humanity since. Few incidents have defined the person of Jean-Luc Picard in the lasting way this has.
What I find so incredible about this scene is that Picard shows all the signs of having PTSD from his experiences with the Borg. The whole episode is effectively symbolic of the struggles that veterans have when they return to a "normal" life. It is also incredibly moving when you realize that Patrick Stewart's father fought during the Second World War and suffered from PTSD, which resulted in his alcoholism and violence towards his family. It seems as though Stewart is subconsciously acting through his father's pain and struggle, which was only one story of hundreds that still affect all of us today.
This is truly one of the greatest episodes of TNG and one of the greatest actors of all time.
Stewart never knew his father's pain at this point. He learned all that off the TV series "Who Do You Think You Are?" which digs into your history - and was a good 20 years after this episode was filmed.. He actually had a real sit-down with his actual brother to discuss how he learned something new about his father after that show. Prior to that, he had a real dislike of his father and didn't understand what he went through during the war.
On the plus side, it did turn Patrick Stewart into a strong supporter of women who were abused by violent partners. But I guess ultimately he learned that the abusers were often victims themselves, too.
morro190 woah! Say what?
take your ridiculous brony hatred away from trek discussion
He most likely isn't but your head is so far up your own ass that you believe stereotypes on the internet
It also reveals that assimilated people are still conscious, and can perceive, at least to some degree, what they're doing. How awful it must be to watch yourself do what they do, with no way to stop it.
One of the most underrated episodes in TNG. Apparently Gene was against the concept but the writers talked him into it being a good idea!
Gene had a good idea in Star Trek but he had no motherfucking CLUE how to write a good story or make characters compelling.
Roddenberry was always against portraying Humans as anything less than perfect on ST.
Which is why it's great he never had total control.
Actually, if I remember correctly, Gene wasn’t in control of TNG after season 3, and this is season 4
It was grand that Gene invented Star Trek but many of his story ideas were crap.
@@Rensune Yeah, honestly at times I think Star Trek succeeded (well, ultimately, it/TNG initially struggled) despite Roddenberry rather than because of him. He laid down the groundwork and all the various talented writers give it the gravitas.
I sometimes feel like Patrick Stewart's performance wasn't fully-appreciated until much later. He absolutely nails it here. Around this time, TNG was just starting to crawl out of the shadow of TOS and fans were still too consumed with pitting Picard against Kirk as the better captain.
I think so too. It wasn't really appreciate about how powerful this whole mental arc was until much later.
@@grundian And that's when it's not indulging in full-blown nihilism and trying to be like Star Wars which it's not.
Season 1 was crazy at the onset in particular, I distinctly remember forums being filled with how ridiculous this bald captain was trying to play the Love Boat in space.
Sir Patrick is wonderful in this, but I'm surprised I haven't seen comments about how amazing it is that Robert (and the script as a whole) didn't expect Picard to be magically fine or "fixed" after his breakdown. The line "This is going to be with you a long time..." is one of the most powerful, most important lines in the entire scene. It gives the character - and the audience - permission to not be okay after a single conversation about a deeply traumatic experience.
I love how much Picard's experience with the Borg evolves. It starts off as denial. He denies that he's not fine. He tries to pretend that its behind him, that he's stronger than his trauma. His denial turns to grief. To an outpouring of emotion and horror at what the Borg turned him into. Over time, his grief turns to hatred for the Borg. He despises the Borg, and he relishes every opportunity to destroy them. And in First Contact, his hatred finally comes to the forefront in a suicidal showdown with the Borg. After that, he finally comes to terms with the fact that the Borg experience will always be part of him, but that he cannot let his hatred and his trauma blind him from his duty to his crew.
he pretty much goes through all the stages of grief
So my brother is a human being after all. Robert knew exactly what to say, exactly what to do to help. THAT is why Picard came home.
It's weird to see picard break down. Maybe that's why I love this scene so much. He's not invulnerable.
He is a very stolid man but as his brother said human being after all.
Agreed.
He also cried when he was mind-melding with Sarek. I loved that episode too.
@@miurtouissi1093 yea but you can argue that he was crying sareks emotions, not his own. in this episode he was crying for himself
One of the strengths of Star Trek is showing that humans beings, no matter how far technically advanced and rigorously trained, are still human beings at the end of the day.
More superb acting from Patrick Stewart.
Best acting by Patrick Stewart in a series full of his great acting.
I love that we get to see Picard break down in front of the only person he can. His brother. Robert really is his brothers keeper. He makes Picard realize that he can still be a man of action and fight for himself, yet realize what was taken from him. Robert makes him truly realize how simple, and easy his choices really are. Jean-Luc is gonna have to deal with this no matter what, easy question is, Underwater, or in Starfleet. Brilliant episode.
Him and Troi, he doesn’t have to be captain all the time in front of them
It’s funny because this episode was kind of panned when it came out because it was a somewhat week and slow follow up to “best of both worlds” but in retrospect I think it was a great episode. Picard really plays “I’m ok but not ok” thing really well the whole time until this scene
They never should have killed his family offscreen, it added nothing to the story and robbed Picard of something very important to ground the rest of his life.
Proof Hollywood's obsession with deconstructing Families, Legacy, and Continuance were already present long before they lost the modern era. They were just better at hiding the ball back then.
This.
Marxists need to deconstruct everything. When they're not just outright destroying things. Especially your heroes and cultural mythos. Antonio Gramsci writes about the strategy in exacting detail, and once you understand that so much of the asinine decisions modern entertainment industries make suddenly make perfect sense.
Tear down what was, demoralize everyone, then they'll be much more accepting of the "brave new world" the Marxists present. Which inevitably bears a remarkable resemblance to the horrific old world we'd already managed to leave behind, but don't mind the details. Minding the details is for your moral and intellectual betters to worry about.
So that's why Jean Luc Picard had to lose his family and his legacy. That's why when they made the Picard series, he had to be a washed-up old has-been who's constantly being told what a pathetic failure he is. Same with Luke Skywalker and Han Solo and Indiana Jones...seeing the patterns yet?
This is why I find Picard's actions in First Contact believable.
Those people who dislike Picards outburst ind First Contact clearly don't understand that this sort of Trauma wouldn't wash off in the sink. It's basically PTSD+Rape×10.
@@Thatslifebro_ agreed.
They invade our space...And we fall back...They assimilate entire worlds...And we fall back. NOT AGAIN. THE LINE MUST BE DRAWN HERE! THIS FAR NO FURTHER! AND IIIIII...WILL MAKE THEM PAY FOR WJAT THEY'VE DONE!
@@KH4444444444N It's such a good line
@@KH4444444444N i'm sorry you broke your little ship
And people wonder why Picard acted the way he did in First Contact.
I can't even begin to imagine the amount of pain and angst Picard went through because of what the Borg put him through. They tore knowledge from his brain and used it to kill 11,000 people in the Battle of Wolf 359 including that Admiral who was Picard's friend. No wonder Picard was so obsessed with revenge on the Borg in Star Trek: First Contact, I'd be too not just for myself but for all of their victims.
To say nothing of the knowledge that many of the officers killed at Wolf 359 included friends and proteges from the Academy. That'd gut even the strongest person.
If they had just done that, it would be different. The borg didn't just tear knowledge from his brain, but the Borg Forced Picard to actively use that knowledge to personally kill those 11,000 people with his own hands.
"And IIIII....will make them P A Y for what they've done!!!!"
I dont blame him at all for having such an overwhelming anger towards the borg....
I would too, in his shoes.
No the Revenge plot dosnt fit! Later in TNG they find a Borg Drone Name him Hugh. Picard can send him back with a Virus to kill all Borg. But he didnt do it!
It's a TV show.
After my last tour in Iraq things like this happen to me more. It’s a terrible terrible feeling knowing you have caused so much harm to life and changed many people’s worlds. Watching this stings, but the scene was well acted and hit a personal spot.
This is why Patrick Stewart is one of the best actors around - I can totally feel it.
Even after watching this,many, years ago it's still heartbreaking. Such an amazing moment.
I love this episode. So heart felt and emotional. it was good to see his brother being there for what ever support he could muster in his arrogance. Robert was a pompous ass, but he loved Picard and did not want to see him suffer like this.
Spihk Heartbust!? Spihk Heartbust internet friends for people in Car with Bozeman Hotmail Recipient in Boston Ma near a Baseball Park!
Remember when Star Trek used to mean something beautiful?
Yes indeed!
it will again someday!
Pepperidge Farm remembers...
@@TeeAiDee I fucking guffawed at that comment. Well done.
Ah yes, with Deep Space 9 showcasing the horrors and deaths of war being regarded as the best Star Trek show, truly, something beautiful
He's actually crying, he's such a good actor
Picard and Sisko both cried quite a lot. Did Kirk or Janeway ever cry?
@@SB0780 kirk was always just trying to get laid lolol, but in all honesty when joan collins was killed in the city on the edge of tomorrow, as they were beaming up, he says, LETS GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE, it was about as emotional as a 10 year old could take
we already saw this. see: Sarek
@@SB0780 Spock and David's death destroyed kirk.
@@SB0780 Janeway came close. I think on the last episode of voyager, where older admiral janeway says to seven of nine "People who LOVE you." Her voice just shakey enough to notice. Because seven did not make the journey back to earth when Admiral Janways voyager completed its journey home.
One of the Most MEMORABLE of the TNG episodes ever... and thats saying something...
To me this scene does the best job of any scene of humanizing Picard. Until this point in the show we never really see behind the stoic, taciturn, and professional persona he presents while on board The Enterprise. While on duty he always seems level headed and cool under pressure even under the most trying of circumstances. Until this point Picard seemed like the character that you could look up to and aspire to be like, not a character you could really relate to. This scene did a lot to remedy that. Picard will always represent an ideal that we should all strive towards and knowing that Picard is just as susceptible to the same trauma, grief, and pain that we all face at some point in our lives really helps you feel like maybe, with enough effort and time, you could one day be as good and as inspiring as he is. And that's why this is my favorite Picard scene.
hear hear
the inner light gave us alot more insite into who picard really wanted to be
I suspect part of this scene's punch, comes from the fact that alot of us Trekkies tend to deify Picard a bit (I know I'm guilty of it). "So my brother is a human being after all.." I can imagine Robert breaking the 4th wall, turning to the camera and adding "See?!"
PureLimbic haha
Actually, you may have a thing.
Picard is always the one in control, never really giving into his emotion. Seeing him THAT way is extremely hard to watch. It's like seeing your Old tought brother crying in front of you after knowing him and seeing him like that on less than 3 or 4 occasion at most.
Great moments when there is this close yet subtle connection between writers and audience.
My Little Pony FiM did this a few times, too. They used episodes or moments to process tensions in the fandom in a tasteful, not-in-your-face way. (Not to be confused with fanservice! But even when they did that, it was glorious.)
This is what STD fails to understand. You can't just have your character cry every episode and expect to have earned an emotional payoff and your audience have empathy for them. No. Picard is normally stoic, collected, able to work through the hardest times, and constantly has to defend himself among his superiors. Externally, you would think that being assimilated didn't affect him, but knowing him in his vulnerable times tells us that it affected him deeply and his tears and pain are genuine. I have much more empathy for this.
Well said. Characters can be developed, but they need to be consistent.
heheheheh that word stoic keeps coming up in comments, but the only time i remember that word being used in TNG, was when Q said that about riker before the beard lololol
It's accurate. Often when someone goes through something so horribly traumatic, it doesn't actually register for quite some time until they've actually sat down and processed what's happened, and it all comes at once. It was so incredibly emotional, seeing this man we're used to being a stoic harbinger of good and righteousness, unrivalled and unshaken in his conviction, finally break down and show us just how vulnerable he feels and how much the ordeal has broken him.
"You don't know, Ethan, you don't know. It took everything I was...I tried so hard.. but I wasn't strong enough...I should have been able to stop it.."
I know this has been said a million times but man this is great acting.
This is my favorite episode because of this scene. Picard shows a side of himself we don't nornally see. When the brother says" Youre human after all". Its almost like he's saying "There you are Jean Luc". After everything he's gone through, this is the moment we trully see Picard return both physically, mentally, and spiritually. I was so angry when both his brother and nephew died. Picard really needed them.
It's the only other time he cries is when he loses them, and they burned to death of all the ways to die. I can't imagine how tragic and unfair that is, how messy and inhuman life must feel at times for him.
Since my younger brother was 7 I have tried to help him. I asked him few years back to define the word empathy , because I have been the human being to my younger brother and he would straight way act like the older brother . He got mad as usual knowing he didn't know or would be humble enough to ask me to explain to him. I on the the other hand always put myself in his shoes . ALWAYS . He is 60 now ,I'm still not able to say " My brother is a human being after all " I realize we can only change or control ourselves and we just have to live moving forward and if it happens like this scene , great, if not we live . This always moves me to tears . Being hard on oneself is usually hard on others before they began to look within as Picard does in this scene and now Robert takes comfort not in Picards pain , but his strength in sharing his pain . My younger brother does not do that as Picard does .
Yet another brilliant performance by Sir Patrick Stewart.
I love Roberts advice. He doesn't diminish it or rationalise it. He doesn't try and offer some faux inspirational advice. He just tells him that it happened and that one way or another, he has to find a way to move forward from here on.
As the youth of today would say, "Real talk".
I was in awe the first time I saw this scene. Patrick Stewart was so vulnerable! Even today it floors me.
This couples so well with the very end of BOBW part 2 when he looks out at Earth with all of his actions as Locutus haunting him.
Thank you Robert. So much.
In First Contact they touch on this really well, showing how Picard struggles with lingering effects of the borg's influence. He has nightmares, and carries anger that drives him to violence and vengeance. He hardly realizes how badly he's affected until Lily pretty much beats him over the head with how he's destroying himself and everything around him in his hatred.
Really puts into perspective how hard it must have been for him to march back to the borg queen and offer himself up for Data's sake. I can't help but wonder if moments like this were why Data was so willing to sacrifice himself in Nemesis...
But it even goes beyond rape, doesn't it? He wasn't just violated and taken against his will, he was forced to watch while his mind and body were used to kill thousands of people while he watched. I can't even imagine what that would feel like, let alone how he manages to move on with his life. Were I in his position...I don't know if I could.
***** Its a shame that nothing like this happened in the ST TOS era, it would be fascinating to see how Kirk and his crew would handle all this. Especially Kirk, assimilated, controlled, used to kill countless people, utterly broken. Ah, shame.
+TheCrazyFereldan It would have gone against the TOS scheme too much. Kirk was all about never BEING helpless, always finding a way to give himself that one last option to save everybody. it was TNG when they started throwing the real no-win scenarios at the Enterprise crew and it wasn't until DS9 that they got really good at it..
***** Plus a good cup of tea, tea fixes everything.
TheCrazyFereldan Not this time......Even a hot cup of Earl Grey won't be healing those throbbing scars.....
Superknight915 I certainly couldn't.
I HATE seeing much of _anything_ being killed.....I sincerely hope some race like the Borg doesn't exist somewhere.
Or if it does, that we never, EVER encounter them.....
Everyone (rightly) praising Patrick Stewart's performance, but Jeremy Kemp deserves his flowers too. Two RSC actors playing off each other is a joy to see.
THIS is what modern Star Trek is missing. This depth of emotion that is so layered and connected to previous episodes and then even linked to their first movie, First Contact is the kind of storytelling that engrossed people. It hits you in the heart. We need this kind of stuff again so badly.
Let me ask you..... Was this the very first episode of Next Gen that you ever watched? Or had you watched the previous three seasons?
I ask, because Picard AND Prodigy both have had moments similar in emotional depth to this, but if you haven't watched the entire series up to that point, you won't grasp the emotional importance of those scenes. Heck, even Lower Decks, being a comedy show, has had moments of "Oh... DAMN"...
I wholely disagree that 'modern' trek doesn't do this sort of multilevel storytelling. Discovery doesn't, I'll grant you. But Picard has, Lower Decks has, Prodigy DEFINITELY has, even Strange New Worlds is revealing some of the interconnected storylines that you didn't even realise were there.
The biggest problem I see, is that some fans get so focused on quibbling over the minutiae, that they don't invest in those storylines. They focus so much on protecting their version of what's 'canon' that they completely miss the subtlety. They forget that when they were kids, they were able to sink into the weekly narrative, because the minutiae didn't matter at that moment.
@@Blue84Stangknob
@@RevanJJ to what are you referring?
They're hiding from Predators in this scene.
Although I understand Sisko’s anger and resentment to Picard This scene reminds me that both of them have suffered greatly by the Borg. And will continue to bear the burden of Wolf 359...
It’s a well written aspect, Sisko wasn’t being fair with his grudge against Picard, but he can’t at all be blamed for it either. Picard basically knows that and doesn’t know what to say or do, so the tension between them was always thick.
@@VulKus117 out of all the capts in the star trek series, the character sisko was the worst of the worst. even janeway was better then him an thats saying alot
@@mikekroft86 Would you care to elaborate?
What a powerful scene. I still get goosebumps when I watch this.
I'm not a psychologist; but, I don't think this is an emotional collapse for Picard. I think it's an emotional breakthrough. He had all this vile experience and guilt bottled up inside himself and finally violently released and confronted it thanks to the bating of Robert. I think this is the start of the healing process of a catastrophic experience that will be with him a long time. By the time Admiral Satie bated Picard into another emotional response regarding his healing from the Borg incident, Picard was honest in saying that he had fully recovered.
Of course we all know he never fully did.
@@andrewnlarsenThe movies ruined his character, I don’t count those
It's even more sad when you think about what real life experiences Sir Patrick probably drew upon for this scene. When he was a little boy he often had to physically put himself between his parents to stop his father beating his mother.
And in a way he did live with it and proved he was strong enough in Picard season 3. He was willing to enter the heart of the Borg cube to get his son back, he confronted his fears, his nemesis and he was ready to spend his last moments with his son.
Picard can live with it.
This one moment is better than the whole series of "Star trek: Picard".
Agreed, and I think that Picard's words here apply to what the character himself would likely say about how kurtzman AND Sir Patrick did him so dirty in that horrid abomination.
"They took everything I was. They used me to kill, and to destroy, and I couldn't stop them. I should have been able to stop them!!!"
There it is, glad somebody commented it. This is trauma and healing done right.
Robert: "This is going to be a long time with you, Jean-Luc. A long time..."
truer words were never be spoken.
Hands down, one of the best episodes. Aside from "there are four lights!" Picard was the best.
Yes, another episode that shows Picard put through Hell.
And when he had to endure Sarek's emotions
That was actually "Chain of Command" pt I and II, with Picard's "THERE...ARE...FOUR... LIGHTS...!" being in pt. II.
But... it's actually a brilliant "pull" from 1984 with Stewart playing the part of Winston Smith and David Warner (who's performance equals and compliments Stewart's) the Cardasian interrogator, takes the part of O'Brien.
In 1984 it's
O'Brien: "How many FINGERS do you see Winston?"
Winston: "I see four fingers."
O'Brien: "No, there are five, look again."
While in "Chain of Command" it's...
"How many LIGHTS do you see?
"I see four lights..."
"No, there are five lights... Look again."
In 1984 Winston breaks down and is reprogrammed by "Big Brother." While Picard is defiant to the end.
HOWEVER... in respect to Orwell and 1984, Picard privately admits to Troi, that... (Like Winston)
"I'd of told him anything but... I actually thought I saw 5 lights."
When people criticise First Contact when they say Picard didn't show any hatred or emotion after his experience with the Borg, what the fuck dope are they smoking if they've seen this great moment? People just love complaining
Picard being human. All leaders have to appear strong and be it! This was an amazing scene.
THIS SCENE WAS A ROLLER COASTER OF EMOTIONS AND I COULDN'T HOLD IT. I CRIED SO MUCH OMFG,
"You have to learn to live with it!"
And boy, was Robert correct, he kept all that and defeated the Borg again and again, liberated Hugh from the collective until the day he died (physical body).
Even when the collective had taken over the entire fleet of ships, Picard still held on that he could get his son, his own flesh and blood out of the grasp of the queen herself and he did. He just said that if this was what he wanted, then Picard would allow himself to be assimilated once more to be with him.
Finally admitting "I wasn't good enough, I wasn't strong enough" is such an important thing to come to terms with and only how you'll be able to positively learn and move on from it. I'm about to send this to my gf on the topic of me keeping her safe as much as I can. I just hope I'm good, and strong enough to do so.
Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 4, Episode 2: Family
Just watched it today on Nextflix, got every episode on the instant que
Aw man. Picard. You are amazing.
The writing they gave his character (and the series) vastly improved after the first two seasons.
Логан Кейн give Patrick Stewart some credit. He's a great actor and brought a lot of depth to Jean-Luc Picard.
After he was allowed to.
A great scene by both men. Superb acting.
The great Jeremy Kemp, sadly missed.
I watched this coming out of an abusive marriage and broke down. So incredibly powerful and universal.
Patrick Stewart is a legend, fantastic actor.
I love this scene. It shows that even the strongest of us need to be vulnerable from time to time
If you're just watching any other actor, you 'see' their performance.
If you watch Patrick Stewart, you FEEL... what he feels. In fact, you know EXACTLY.... what he feels. Am I right, Jean-Luc? (morphing into Shinzon.... hahahha!)
This is one of my favorite scenes and episodes in TNG. Picard is a great man and captain but he is just a man after all and we all have our breaking point. This also illustrates how horrifying being assimilated by the Borg would be. Picard is describing what it’s like to go through that and the helplessness he felt probably for the first time in his life. Very chilling and heartfelt moment here. I love it.
After "Best of Both Worlds", TNG became elevated to something more than the sum of its parts. What Trek was & could be rose to a creative zenith.
One of the best TNG episodes. RIP, Jeremy Kemp.
The first thing I thought of when I saw the sweeping shot of the vineyards in the trailer for Star Trek: Picard.
This is one of the most powerful scenes in Star Trek. And nobody ever talks about it.
True
One of the best scenes from TNG.
I miss this show, but I guess everything good must end eventually.
This was a fantastic episode, one of my favorites.
this was a good scene showing Picard vulnerability being forced to be a done.
And you wonder why he freaked out when he first entered the Borg cube in Picard. Jesus, when I realized those Borg holding him from the edge were REAL and not a PTSD moment....
I loved that episode, it brought Picard's whole Borg arc full circle (even if it felt a bit rushed in execution). He got to see that his liberation from the collective wasn't a unique experience, that assimilation could be undone, and he came to realize that every Borg is as much a victim as he was.
To think that the powers that be (Including Gene) didn't initially want Family to go through. Thank God for Michael Piller. This scene gets me misty every time. The only thing that could've been worse is if he had mentioned "11,000 people". You just feel for Picard. And I think it adds weight to First Contact years later, that you know how hurt he was by the whole thing.
Considering how many ships were destroyed at Wolf 359, it would have had to have been tens of thousands, not thousands. That sucks having to live with the knowledge that you were responsible for that massacre.
What I always wondered about is how Robert and son died in a fire. Knowing how anti-technology Robert was, i wonder if he was morally opposed to smoke detectors in the house because it, like other technology make life "too easy" as he once put it.
Well, it was confirmed in canon that the casualty toll was 39 ships and around 11,000 people, either dead or assimilated.
TNG's, "The Drumhead" even has a direct mention of this, so that's the official figure.
Picard seems to forget that even as locutus, he was able to fight back and reach out to Data and Troy to communicate with them, so he's selling himself a little short here.
I think and as Robert points out...he feels that he has to hold himself to an insanely exceptionally high standard...a really murderously high standard and if he can't measure up to the standard...and that what he did as he reached out to Data and Troi matters little in comparison to what he did as Locutus...and don't forget the veterans he will encounter later such as Sisko and Shaw.
Stewart is utterly amazing in this episode. The show really become special with these 3/4 season episodes.
His older brother wanted nothing more then to shread each borg apart of with his bare hands.
"I still dont like you Jean Luc!"
Jean Luc is Human after all. Powerful line and one of JLP`s best performances.
i know a lot of the writing staff thought the stay on earth idea wasn't a great one, but actually after such a traumatic event (and it certainly was shocking to see a fleet floating in space as a mass of debris) the catharsis avenue was an important one to visit. I think acknowledging these characters were just regular human beings who could be traumatized as important. incorporating the family relationships was actually quite brilliant. Not many people can convincingly knock picard down a notch but his older brother certainly would fit the bill.
I love all these comments I'm reading. I can't help but get a tear in my eye whenever I watch this scene. Patrick Stewart is brilliant in it.
PTSD is real. And it happens to men who WEREN'T in war. And there's nothing wrong with CRYING about it, and getting the support you need to heal. And you WILL.
0:36 Patrick Stewart is such a great actor.
One of the simplest, best acted and most beautiful emotional scenes in Star Trek history, Family was a truly great episode
Amazing acting. I actually cried a little during this scene. What great acting.. shit.
Everytime i watch this svene I want to give Picard a hug. He was the ultimate victim of Borg.
The scene in Generations where Jean-Luc learns of the deaths of Robert and René is tough, considering they’d just reconciled a couple years earlier. 😕
Luke Downey it’s that same high pitched cry of despair and grief to when his hand pats the photo book.
And if you read the final Star Trek novelverse story Coda, it was a huge reconciliation by any standard considering that Robert came around to really fully allowing his son Rene to join Starfleet. And that whenever Robert would meet up with friends at regular meetings, he would regal them with tales of Jean-Luc's incredible heroism. And when he hears this, Jean-Luc is moved to tears and wished that he had visited home more often.
Such a wonderful scene. - thank you for posting it.
I think the end part is a good lesson for some that it's okay not to like your sibling's. But it's not okay not to love/be there for them.
Star Trek The Next Generation was an achievement in high art. It rivals shakespeare.
Modern Star Trek is empty consumerism, and not even successful empty consumerism.
That's a bit harsh. TNG had amazing episodes, but also had stupid ones. Modern Trek isn't knock-your-socks-off amazing, but isn't bad either.
@@DrownedInExile Modern trek is bad.
@@eris9659 No, it's just in line with Prestige TV like what we see on Amazon Prime and HBO. Meaning it had to incorporate stuff like sex, cursing, etc.
@@ShadowSonic2 That's bad.
Isn't funny how Picard and Riker both solved their problems with their relatives fighting? XD
This is a brilliant scene. Great episode. You see the later effects of the trauma Picard faced in “I, Borg” and especially Star Trek First Contact. The pain, the anger, the toll it took to be tortured, mutilated, altered physically, psychologically and to be used as a blunt instrument to destroy humanity and everything you stood for. This story arc still gets me to this day.