A Romulan renegade is rescued from a scout ship and immediately offers the Enterprise a warning. The Romulans are gathering on an outpost on a planet in the Neutral Zone, he says, and it is up to Picard to believe him. He says he is not a traitor but he doesn't want a war. Most of the episode involves the testing of his information. These guys are the true bad guys of the universe and have vanquished many, including the killing of Worf's family. Eventually, Picard recognizes that inaction could be worse than action and proceeds to the "location" of the outpost. The strength of this offering is that it is not unlike an episode of "The West Wing" where there is political brinkmanship. Picard even asks Data to maintain a record of these events because he would be the only likely survivor of a full battle, to show how it all came about and how it ended. The episode is worth watching just to see Picard face off against the Romulans' captain. A very intelligent show with no easy answers.
Review of The Defector
