Picard Theory: Why Q’s Powers Don’t Work On The Blonde Woman In Episode 4

Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Picard Season 2, Episode 4 – “Watcher”

Q’s (John de Lancie) powers mysteriously fail him in Star Trek: Picard season 2, episode 4, begging the question of why his snap didn’t work on the mysterious blonde woman (Penelope Mitchell) Q was stalking. All roads in Star Trek: Picard season 2 have led to Los Angeles 2024, where Q caused the divergence in time that resulted in all of Star Trek rewritten into a dark future where humanity founded the authoritarian and xenophobic Confederation of Earth. Picard and his motley crew time-traveled to 2024 to stop Q, although their efforts have focused on finding the Watcher, who turned out to be a doppelganger of Laris (Orla Brady), and a Supervisor from the Star Trek: The Original Series episode “Assignment: Earth.”

Something is terribly wrong with Q, which Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) noticed in Star Trek: Picard season 2, episode 2, “Penance.” On the surface, Q’s powers seem intact but there’s evidence that Q is actually a shell of himself. Picard pointed out that Q is “not well” and the trickster’s abilities in Picard’s early 25th century seem limited to morphing himself to appear older and vanishing or reappearing at will. Although Q’s omniscience appears to be intact, judging from how he knew the precise history of General Picard and the Confederation, as well as the changes to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine‘s timeline and aliens, otherwise, Q hasn’t displayed his usual mastery over time, space, and reality, in spite of the fact that he went to 2024 and changed the timeline.

Q’s appearance at the conclusion of Star Trek: Picard season 2, episode 4, “Watcher,” stirs the pot. Q is incognito in 2024 and he’s taken an interest in a particular blonde woman. But Q’s powers fail him at the crucial moment when he apparently attempts to alter the timeline, which left the cosmic entity shocked and confused. Why Q’s powers fail and who his target is could illuminate the greater story of Star Trek: Picard season 2.

Theory: Q’s Time Divergence Is Picard’s Ancestor

The blonde woman Q mocks from afar at the end of Star Trek: Picard season 2, episode 4 could be Jean-Luc Picard’s ancestor. Thus far, nearly everything that has been said or seen in Star Trek: Picard season 2 has been for a greater purpose. For example, Jean-Luc has made several references to “Kirk’s Enterprise,” which have tied into Picard season 2’s time travel story and even resulted in direct homages to Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home like the bus scene involving Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) and Raffi Musiker (Michelle Hurd) echoing Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and Spock (Leonard Nimoy) on a bus in 1986 San Francisco. Q himself has intimated that the timeline change that led to the Confederation is intimately tied to Picard, and Jean-Luc’s own history plays a greater role in the story.

Q stalks the mystery blonde outside the Europa Mission of space exploration, which has been part of Star Trek: Picard season 2’s Los Angles 2024 backdrop but is now moving into the foreground. Q even wears a Europa Mission labcoat and reads a copy of the Los Angeles Times with a cover story about space exploration in 2024. The blonde woman is seen reading a copy of “The Pallid Son: A Dixon Hill Mystery” by Tracy Torme, which isn’t a real book but Torme was a real-life writer on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Torme wrote the TNG episodes about Picard’s obsession with fictional detective Dixon Hill, which is referenced again by Dr. Agnes Jurati (Alison Pill) in Star Trek: Picard season 2. But the crucial callback is in Star Trek: Picard season 2’s premiere when Admiral Picard addressed Starfleet Academy and spoke of his ancestor, Rene Picard, who helped explore the solar system. The blonde woman could be Rene Picard, who may be involved in the Europa Mission to explore the moons of Jupiter.

Q even taunts the blonde woman in a similar fashion to the way he likes to mock Jean-Luc. In fact, Q’s sinister monologue about the blonde’s inner doubts about herself echoes how Q mocked Picard for his own choices and inability to change, which Q blames for creating the Confederation reality. If the blonde is Q’s divergence in time, and it’s all directly linked to Jean-Luc, then the mystery woman may well be a Picard ancestor who is crucial to the timeline. Their mutual love of Dixon Hill novels seems like an obvious clue that the blonde is also a Picard, possibly the very Rene Picard Jean-Luc told Starfleet Academy’s cadets about.

Why Q’s Powers Don’t Work Against The Blonde Woman In 2024

Q’s sudden loss of his powers is curious and he didn’t expect it to happen. But it could also be directly tied to Picard. It’s quite possible that Q was outright planning to kill the blonde woman, which would be the quickest way to delete her from the timeline. Yet Q’s powers completely failed him at the critical moment, but why? It’s possible that Q just learned that he cannot act directly against Picard – any Picard – which would further prove the blonde is Jean-Luc’s ancestor.

After all, in the scope of all of their interactions on Star Trek: The Next Generation, Q never tried to use his powers to directly harm or kill Jean-Luc, although he wouldn’t because of his affection for “mon capitane.” This heretofore unknown block that prevents Q from harming Picard might possibly extend to any member of Picard’s family lineage, and it’s something Q wasn’t aware of until he tried to attack the blonde woman in red. Further, Jean-Luc physically being in 2024 may also be a factor that’s causing Q’s powers to go haywire.

How Q Can Still Change The Timeline (& Picard Can Stop Him)

As the pieces of Star Trek: Picard season 2’s puzzle fall into place, the blonde woman – whether or not she is indeed Rene Picard – appears to be important to the Europa Mission. She is possibly the pilot of the Europa starship. Further, the Europa Mission is of critical importance to the timeline and its failure, as well as the blonde woman’s death – would eventually lead to the rise of the Confederation. Thus, it makes sense that Q is in 2024 posing as a Europa Mission scientist and has taken such a keen interest in this space mission and the mystery blonde woman. But as of the end of Star Trek: Picard season 2, episode 4, Q lost his powers when he tried to snap the blonde and erase her from the timeline.

But if Q can’t use his powers to directly change the timeline in 2024, the formerly omnipotent being may have to resort to using intermediaries. Meanwhile, thanks to Guinan (Ito Agheyere), Jean-Luc has met the Watcher, who is somehow identical to Laris. Since the Watcher appears to be a Supervisor from “Assignment: Earth,” she may be on Earth to ensure the Europa Mission is a success. Working with the Watcher, Picard and his motley crew have a better shot of stopping Q’s next scheme, especially if the cosmic entity has to lower himself to recruiting human helpers so that he can change the timeline. Q’s blonde target may be a Picard as important to the timeline as Jean-Luc is and Star Trek: Picard season 2 could hinge on the Starfleet Admiral saving his ancestor from Q.

Star Trek: Picard Season 2 streams Thursdays on Paramount+.

About The Author