

(written from a Production point of view Real World article

Captain Picard's secret mission fails, leading to him being captured by Cardassians. As he is tortured by his captors, Captain Jellico and the Enterprise attempt to prevent war with the Cardassian Union.

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Summary

Teaser

Jean-Luc Picard is drugged and questioned by Gul Madred. He sits in the middle of a dark room answering in a monotone. Picard reveals details about his mission to Celtris III and the personnel involved. Madred then asks his prisoner about the defense plans for Minos Korva. Picard truthfully states that he has no knowledge of such plans. Madred has his Cardassian subordinate increase the dosage and has Picard answer the same questions again.

Act One

"Captain's Log, stardate 46360.8: The negotiations with the Cardassians have made little progress. I believe a military confrontation may be unavoidable."

Captain Edward Jellico, Commander William T. Riker, Counselor Deanna Troi, Gul Lemec, and his aides are in the observation lounge. Despite Jellico's assurances to the contrary, Lemec divulges that he knows that Captain Jean-Luc Picard, Lieutenant Worf, and Doctor Beverly Crusher have gone into Cardassian territory and killed fifty-five men, women, and children. When asked for proof, Lemec reveals they have Picard held prisoner. The Cardassians exit, leaving the officers stunned.

Jellico then reveals the mission plans to his first officer and counselor and reveals that the USS Enterprise-D is supposed to rendezvous with the away team at the Lyshan system in eight hours. Since the negotiations have taken longer than expected, he will send Riker in a shuttlecraft.

In the interrogation chamber, Madred unshackles Picard. They briefly discuss the ruins of the First Hebitian civilization of Cardassia Prime. The ancient tombs contained artifacts made of a rare, breathtaking stone called jevonite, but were plundered by impoverished Cardassians. When Picard requests to be returned to his ship, Madred informs him that he is considered to be a criminal because he was captured attempting to invade a secret Cardassian facility. Madred offers Picard the chance to make his trial and eventual punishment civilized, provided he agrees to divulge information about the Federation's defense plans for Minos Korva. Picard reiterates that he has no knowledge of any such defense plans. Madred rejects Picard's denials, informing him that he was lured into a trap, precisely because the Cardassians believe that, as captain of the Enterprise, he would have full knowledge of the Federation's defense plans.

Madred's guards promptly enter and drag a struggling Picard to the center of the room. His captor warns him, "Wasted energy, Captain. You might come to wish you hadn't expended it in such a futile effort." Picard protests that torture is forbidden under the terms of the Seldonis IV Convention, governing the treatment of prisoners of war. His pleas are ignored, however, as Madred uses a PADD to lower a steel suspension rack from the ceiling above him. Before continuing, Madred asks Picard, "Do you have any physical ailments I should know about?" He then approaches the captain with a knife which he says is made of jevonite. As he uses the knife to cut Picard's jumpsuit, Madred tells him he will no longer have the privilege of rank or individuality. From now on, Picard will be referred to only as "Human." The guards pull Picard's clothes down to his ankles and restrain his wrists in manacles which connect to the steel rack above. The captain is left naked and suspended, by his wrists, above the floor.

Act Two

"First Officer's Log, supplemental: I have returned from the rendezvous point in the Lyshan system with Doctor Crusher and Lieutenant Worf. Captain Picard's fate is still unknown."

In sickbay , the away team is treated for minor injuries. Jellico orders Riker to have La Forge analyze the team's tricorder readings, but the first officer wants to begin planning a rescue mission for Picard. Captain Jellico believes such an attempt would be foolhardy.

"Good morning, I trust you slept well", Madred says when he enters the interrogation room. Picard has spent the entire night hanging by his arms, naked. After releasing him from his restraints, Madred sits at his desk and turns on four lights shining behind him and begins questioning Picard again, and informs him that while he was drugged, a small device was implanted in his chest. Madred demonstrates the device, causing Picard to fall to his knees in pain on even the lowest setting. He asks Picard how many lights there are behind him, wanting him to respond with "five." He says there are four and receives another painful shock.

Gul Lemec shows Captain Jellico, Commander Riker, and Counselor Troi a PADD showing Captain Picard's original, more civilized interrogation. Jellico denies Picard was acting under his orders, and Lemec suggests they will execute him. Riker reminds Lemec about the Seldonis IV Convention, but Lemec notes that acknowledging this would be almost like a declaration of war. Lemec alternately offers to release Picard in exchange for a Federation withdrawal from the sector. Jellico agrees to discuss the proposal with Admiral Alynna Nechayev. After Lemec and his aides leave, Jellico says that he's going to recommend against agreeing to Lemec's proposal, essentially abandoning Picard. Riker becomes upset at this, demanding that Jellico acknowledge that the mission was under Federation orders, thus Picard would be protected under the Seldonis IV Convention. Jellico sharply rebukes him stating it would show weakness on the Federation's part by playing right into Lemec's hands. Riker sharply objects to the captain's plan stating that one of the roles of a first officer is to point out mistakes by his or her commanding officer. Jellico will not have any of it and relieves Riker of duty, with an added threat of confinement to quarters.

Act Three

With Commander Riker's position open, Captain Jellico temporarily promotes Lieutenant Commander Data to the position of first officer. Data (wearing a command red duty uniform), Jellico, and Lieutenant Commander La Forge try to determine why the Cardassians would want to capture Picard. They decide that the Cardassians may have been interested in the defense plans for Minos Korva, knowing that the Enterprise would be assigned as command ship for the sector. Jellico orders La Forge to conduct a discreet scan of Lemec's ship to determine where they may have been recently.

Meanwhile on Celtris III, Madred is speaking with his daughter while feeding her wompat and having a discussion about whether Humans have parents. Picard is sitting in a spotlight in a red robe-like gown. Picard tries to get under Madred's skin by questioning his motives for bringing his daughter to such an installation, let alone allow her to see her father interrogating a prisoner. They banter back and forth about military power and its role in their civilizations. Madred tells his prisoner that because of the Cardassian military, his daughter will never go hungry. Picard turns this on him by saying, "Her belly may be full, but her spirit will be empty." Madred smacks Picard across the face for his comment.

Madred continues with his questioning about the lights. Picard replies, "What lights?" This infuriates Madred; he shocks Picard for his obstinacy.

Later, Madred awakens Captain Picard from his dream of his family in France. Madred compliments Picard on his strong will and informs him that he is free to go. Picard stands slowly and heads toward the door. Madred claims he will just have to get the information from Dr. Crusher. Unaware that Dr. Crusher is not also a prisoner, Picard chooses to remain as a prisoner to spare Dr. Crusher, as among other reasons she would have no knowledge of any operations.

La Forge discovers that Lemec's ship has some minor hull degradation along their warp nacelles, which indicates recent exposure to a molecular dispersion field, most likely from traveling through the McAllister C-5 Nebula. Guessing that the rest of the Cardassian fleet is hiding in the nebula, Jellico orders the ship there immediately.

Act Four

In the observation lounge, Jellico informs the senior staff that Starfleet has approved a plan to hit the fleet inside the nebula before they can leave. The crew is almost visibly disapproving of the plan. La Forge supposes it could be a scientific mission, but Jellico states he would need evidence of that. Crusher points out this is gambling hundreds of lives. He stops the conversation and orders Worf to prepare mines and La Forge to prepare a shuttle to deploy them. Finally, Crusher will need to prepare for casualties. In her deep bass-like voice, she finishes his sentence and shakes her head as she is dismissed with the rest.

Some time later, Picard awakens to find Madred having, as he explains, a small meal of boiled taspar eggs. He has one set aside just for Picard, but Picard finds that it is a raw, fertilized egg. Picard is disgusted at first, but since he is virtually starving, chooses to eat it to survive to Madred's amusement. As he has more food from a plate and drink pushed in his direction, the captor tells the prisoner the story of his childhood on the streets of Lakat at the age of six. He had found a nest of three taspar eggs and ate one on the spot "very much as you just did." He planned to save the other eggs for later but they were taken by an older boy, who had to break the tenacious Madred's arm just to accomplish it. Picard uses this to his advantage by thinking of Madred as that child who couldn't protect himself. Madred, angry, asks Picard by name about the plans for Minos Korva. Picard points this out and adds, "There are four lights." Madred shocks Picard, and repeats "There are five lights. How many do you see now?" and shocks Picard again. Picard jerks with the shock and starts shaking, but points at Madred and says "You are six years old, weak and helpless. You cannot hurt me." Picard is crying, but he begins singing in French in response when Madred demands an answer.

While the shuttle is being prepared, Captain Jellico heads down to the shuttlebay and discusses the mission with La Forge. Sitting down at the controls, Jellico is reminded of starting his career in Starfleet by piloting the Jovian Run, a shuttle route between Jupiter and Saturn done once a day, daily. La Forge tells him that he also piloted that route for a while, and they share a laugh over having performed Titan's Turn, a dangerous maneuver one is not supposed to do. La Forge claims that he could complete the mission successfully, but that the best person for the job is Commander Riker, who could do Titan's Turn in his sleep. This does not sit well with Jellico, but he nods.

Act Five

Jellico reluctantly goes to Riker's quarters and talks to him about his piloting skills, and that every shuttle pilot on the ship labels Riker as the best. Jellico and Riker drop their ranks and exchange their active dislikes for one another and expressing their disapproval for each other's roles. Jellico will not order Riker to pilot the shuttle, to which Riker smugly replies "Then ask," after which the captain does and Riker accepts. Jellico begins to leave in a hurry, and Riker adds "You're welcome," which leaves a disgusted look on Jellico's face.

Navigating through the nebula is a daunting task, with one near collision. When La Forge asks if he wants to know how close they came to disaster, Riker simply replies with "No," and continues the flight. After Riker and La Forge lay the mines, Captain Jellico initiates red alert and begins negotiations with Gul Lemec. The furious Lemec demands that the Enterprise withdraw, but Jellico interjects saying that he has mined his ships, his finger is on the button, and Lemec is in a very bad position. Lemec believes Jellico is bluffing, but the captain orders Worf to show Lemec that he is not by detonating a smaller mine. The room Lemec is in on the Reklar shakes as if it had been hit with a low-yield phaser discharge. Jellico reveals to Lemec that there's a much larger one sitting on his hull that will destroy his ship. Jellico tells Lemec that the Cardassian fleet may leave the nebula one by one only if they eject their primary phaser coils – thereby leaving them at the mercy of the Federation for the return trip home. Lemec objects, but agrees before Jellico orders Worf to detonate the bigger mine. Jellico then gives the Cardassians a final demand… the immediate return of Picard.

Meanwhile, on Celtris III, Picard awakens and tries to smash the control device used in his torture. Madred chides him rather gently for this, citing that he has many more. Madred then wrongfully informs his prisoner that the Cardassians have invaded Minos Korva and the Enterprise is burning in space. Madred reminds Picard that the Federation will not look for him since the word will be that he died with his crew on the Enterprise. He then offers Picard the opportunity to live a life of comfort and scholarly reflection, but at a price. All he has to do is admit that he sees five lights. Looking blankly at the lights before him, Picard contemplates a long moment as Madred implores him to answer. Lemec enters the room with two other officers and as he is crossing the floor, Madred quietly tells Picard that they will take him away as a prisoner for life and Madred's offer will be null and void if Picard doesn't answer before they get to them. Having reached the two, Lemec however complains that Picard should have been ready to transfer already. Lemec disgustedly orders Madred to get Picard cleaned up as a ship awaits him to return him to the Enterprise. Realizing that Madred had been lying to him, Picard continues to contemplate the lights as Lemec offers to take Picard back to his ship. Defiantly, and mustering all his remaining strength, Picard spits at Madred "THERE… ARE… FOUR LIGHTS!" On Madred, the hint of a smile plays across his lips as Picard leaves; respect for a man that would not be broken.

Back on board the Enterprise, Data has been restored to the ops position and Riker to the role of first officer as Picard is welcomed back aboard by Jellico. Transferring the command codes back to his predecessor, Jellico offers to the bridge crew that he was honored to serve with them before departing back to the USS Cairo. Counselor Troi and Picard step into the ready room where Picard is at a loss for words to explain his ordeal. Troi explains she's already read his report, but Picard offers that what he didn't put in the report was that Madred offered him the choice of a life of comfort or more torture at the price of admitting seeing five lights. Although he did not say it, the captain admits he was going to – he would have told his tormentor anything, but even more troubling to Picard was that in the end he could actually see five lights.

Memorable quotes

"From this point on, you will enjoy no privilege of rank, no privileges of person. From now on, I will refer to you only as Human. You have no other identity!"

- Gul Madred, as he begins to torture Picard



"Good morning. I trust you slept well."

- Gul Madred, to Picard after he was left hanging by his arms and naked the entire night



"How many lights do you see there?"

"I see four lights."

"No. There are five."

- Gul Madred and Jean-Luc Picard, beginning the lights mind game



"I know nothing about Minos Korva."

"But I've told you that I believe you. I didn't ask you about Minos Korva. I asked how many lights you see."

(Picard stares at the lights intensely, then pauses and glares at Madred)

"There are four lights."

"I don't understand how you can be so mistaken."

(Madred shocks Picard)

- Jean-Luc Picard and Gul Madred



"I can't believe you're willing to sacrifice Captain Picard's life as a negotiation tactic!"

- Will Riker, shouting angrily at Edward Jellico



"Then maybe it's time you found other responsibilities! You are relieved! Don't make me confine you to quarters, as well."

- Jellico, to Riker



"Do Humans have mothers and fathers?"

"Yes… but Human mothers and fathers don't love their children as we do. They're not the same as we are."

- Jil Orra, to her father Madred when she sees Picard during his torture



"When children learn to devalue others they can devalue anyone, including their parents."

"What a blind, narrow view you have. What an arrogant man you are."

- Jean-Luc Picard and Gul Madred



"Shall we begin again? How many lights are there?"

"… What lights?"

- Gul Madred and Jean-Luc Picard



"Torture has never been a reliable means of extracting information; it is ultimately self-defeating as a means of gaining control. One wonders why it is still practiced."

- Jean-Luc Picard



"In spite of all you've done to me, I find you a pitiable man!"

- Jean-Luc Picard



"Picard, stop it… or I will turn this on and leave you in agony all night!"

"Ahaa! You called me 'Picard'!"

"What are the Federation's defense plans for Minos Korva?"

"There are four lights!"

"There are five lights!! How many do you see now?!"

"You are… six years old… weak and helpless! You cannot… HURT ME!"

- Gul Madred losing control and Jean-Luc Picard resisting



"Let's drop the ranks for a moment. I don't like you. I think you're insubordinate, arrogant, willful, and I don't think you're a particularly good first officer."

- Captain Edward Jellico, expressing his feelings toward Will Riker



"Well, now that the ranks are dropped, Captain… I don't like you, either. You ARE arrogant, and closed-minded. You need to control everything and everyone. You don't provide an atmosphere of trust, and you don't inspire these people to go out of their way for you. You've got everybody wound up so tight, there's no joy in anything. I don't think you're a particularly good captain."

- Commander Will Riker, giving as good as he got to Captain Jellico



"I won't order you to fly this mission."

"Then ask me."

"Will you pilot the shuttle, commander?"

"Yes. (Jellico goes to leave) You're welcome."

- Captain Edward Jellico, swallowing his pride and asking Commander William Riker for help, with Riker rubbing it in



"Do I wanna know how close that was?"

"No."

- La Forge and Riker, after a sharp turn in the shuttle to avoid a collision



"I'm not going to argue with you, Gul Lemec. Every one of your ships has a mine on its belly, my finger's on the button, and you're in a very bad position."

- Edward Jellico



"I understand you're holding a Starfleet officer named Jean-Luc Picard. I expect him returned… IMMEDIATELY!"

- Captain Edward Jellico, dictating terms to Gul Lemec



"THERE… ARE… FOUR LIGHTS!"

- Jean-Luc Picard, exhausted but defiant, shouting at Gul Madred before returning to the Enterprise



"What I didn't put in the report was that at the end he gave me a choice – between a life of comfort or more torture. All I had to do was to say that I could see five lights when, in fact, there were only four."

"You didn't say it?"

"No! No. But I was going to. I would have told him anything. Anything at all! But more than that, I believed that I could see five lights."

- Jean-Luc Picard and Deanna Troi

Background information

Production history

Story and production

Continuity

Reception

Entertainment Weekly ranked this episode (combined with Part I) #10 on their list of "The Top 10 Episodes" to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation . [3]

ranked this episode (combined with Part I) #10 on their list of "The Top 10 Episodes" to celebrate the 20th anniversary of . Michael Piller remarked, " I can't imagine a better show than 'Chain of Command, Part II' and it had no tricks or whiz bang stuff and it was one of the least expensive shows of the season. David Warner was sensational and Patrick Stewart was even better. I don't think there's been a better show in the history of this series, and certainly there was not a better hour of television on that year. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 267)

" ( , p. 267) Jeri Taylor agreed, " It is not possible that there are five better male actors in this town than Patrick Stewart! It's probably his finest performance – he literally threw himself, physically and mentally, into that. " ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion , 2nd ed., p. 230)

" ( , 2nd ed., p. 230) Taylor noted that some viewers protested at the graphic nature of the torture scenes. " They didn't want to see Patrick Stewart or anybody else writhing in pain. They felt that it was excessive, that it went too far and that it was disturbing to children. I can't disagree. It's certainly very intense for children. I wish there had been a disclaimer. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , p. 268)

" ( , p. 268) Ronny Cox greatly enjoyed the role his character played in the two-parter. He commented, " [J]ust about everything on the ship was between Riker and Jellico. And I loved that aspect. Gene Roddenberry didn't like conflict between the characters, so my guy was the first guy to come in and sort of ruffle everybody's feathers. I liked that aspect of him. I also liked that he was a by-the-book guy. I loved it when Picard comes back to the Enterprise at the end and Jellico says, "Here's your ship back, just the way you left it… maybe a little better." " He elaborated, " I never saw him as a villain. He was a bit of a hard-ass, but not a villain. I thought he dealt with the Cardassians really well and I thought he ran the Enterprise really well, though in a completely different style from Picard. " He also joked, " I've done a lot of things in my career, and I've got people in my family who think that's the only thing of any worth I have ever done. I'm also a trivia answer. I'm one of the few actors, other than the show's regulars, to have done a captain's log on TNG. " He concluded, " But that episode had a lot going for it. Patrick was brilliant. So was Jonathan [Frakes]. So was David Warner. And the story was compelling. " [4]

Enterprise " He elaborated, " Enterprise " He also joked, " " He concluded, " " In a review for Star Trek appearing in Slate Magazine, writer Juliet Lapidos argued with its "standard Hollywood torture scene," the film failed to live up to the intellectual standard set by "Chain of Command, Part II", whose treatment of the issue she found both more sophisticated and pertinent to the ongoing debate in the United States at that time. [5]

Apocrypha

Video and DVD releases

Starring

Also starring

Guest stars

And

Co-stars

Uncredited co-stars

Stand-ins

References

ailment; alpha shift; annexation; antimatter mine; archaeology; As You Like It; Avignon; Berlin, USS; beta shift; Cairo, USS; Cardassia; Cardassian; Cardassian Central Command; Cardassian military; Cardassian Union; Celtris III; class G star; class M; delta shift; dermal regenerator; elephant; Excelsior-class (starships); Exeter, USS; Federation; Federation-Cardassian Armistice of 2367; Federation-Cardassian border; Federation-Cardassian War; Ferengi; First Hebitian civilization; France; French language; galactic center; Galor-class; gamma shift; gettle; heart; inertial damper; insubordination; jazz; jevonite; Jil Orra's pet wompat; Jovian Run; Jupiter; La Barre; Lakat; Lakat children; Lyshan system; McAllister C-5 Nebula; McDowell; meter; Merchant of Venice, The; metagenics; Milky Way Galaxy; Minos Korva; Minos Korva (star); Minos Korva planet; nest; number one; phaser coil; Picard, Yvette; Piller, M.; place of birth; prisoner of war; proximity scan; quantum resonance scan; red alert; Reklar; rescue mission (aka rescue operation); Sakharov; Saturn; Sector 21527; Sector 21528; Sector 71527; Secretary of Exploration; security protocol; Seldonis IV; Seldonis IV Convention; shuttlecraft; Solok's cargo ship; stellar cartography; Sur le pont d'Avignon; taspar; taspar egg; Tezber Planetary Evolution Model; theta-band device; Titan; Titan's Turn; Tohvun III; tricorder; trombone; Wompat

Library computer references

Starship mission status: Ajax, USS; Alderaan; Alpha Laputa IV; Ambassador-class; Apollo-class; Aries, USS; Beta Cygni system; Bradbury, USS; Bradbury-class; Charleston, USS; Constellation-class; Excelsior-class; Fearless, USS; Goddard, USS; Hood, USS; Korolev-class; Merced-class; Merrimac, USS; Monitor, USS; Nebula-class; pulsar; Renaissance-class; Repulse, USS; Romulan Neutral Zone; sector; Sector 21396; Sector 21538; Sector 22358; Sector 22846; Sector 22853; Sector 23079; Starbase 134; Starbase 434; Thomas Paine, USS; Trieste, USS; Victory, USS; Vulcan Science Academy; warp drive; Zhukov, USS



