“Monsters” Lying in the clinic and near death, Jean-Luc is lost in the recesses of his mind—and we're there with him. Also with him is a Starfleet psychiatrist, in a late 24-century uniform, who is trying to get Picard to open up. He suggests that telling a story might help, and this takes us deep into Jean-Luc's childhood and the struggles of his mother. As light is being shed on this psychological aspect of the story, Raffi and Seven learn of Jurati's assimilation and set out in search of the soon-to-be Queen in what may be a race again time for humanity's future. Meanwhile, Rios channels Kirk as he embarks on his own voyage home. But in which century will he settle down? In this episode of The Artificial Tango, hosts C Bryan Jones and Matthew Rushing discuss “Monsters,” the seventh episode of Star Trek: Picard Season 2. We talk about Jean-Luc’s view of his father and the realization that things were not as they seemed, James Callis as Maurice Picard, Tallinn's revelation that she is actually Romulan (and probably Laris), the birth of a new queen, and Rios’s reenactment of Kirk’s visit to California’s past. We also speculate about the nature of the conflict between the Q and El-Aurians, and introduce our upcoming Q detection workshop. Hosts C Bryan Jones and Matthew Rushing Production C Bryan Jones (Editor and Producer) Matthew Rushing (Executive Producer) Cornelia Reutner (Associate Producer)