Over the years, theStar Trekfranchise has brought a plethora of amazing characters to the small screen. These characters range from wild and wacky aliens from across the galaxy, to a litany of human protagonists to caption and serve aboard their flagships. Some are liked more than others.Voyager’s Neelix andTNG’sWesley Crusher, for example, are severely hit-and-miss with audiences. However, there are some that seem to be universally adored, among fans, faults and all.Captain Jean-Luc Picard is one of these beloved characters. However, it seems that not everyone in the universe has the same opinion of the decorated captain.
Most notably, Commander Benjamin Sisko ofDeep Space 9dislikes the fandom’s favorite captain, but why? The answer is fairly simple, but the exact reasoning is a little more complex, and shows a disparity between what audiences know and what the characters within the show know. The simple answer is thatpotential war criminal Siskodisliked Picard for two reasons.
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One of these reasons was Sisko’s general attitude towards authority figures at this time in his life, as he had been basically banished from anything interesting or important to the Federation despite his good service record. TheDeep Space 9 station was at the furthest reaches of Federation space. The assignment was basically exile, as Starfleet didn’t know what to do with him after the death of his wife. This, coincidentally, is his second and biggest reason for his disdain for Jean-Luc, as he held the captain responsible for her death.
At one time, prior to the events ofDeep Space 9, Picard had been assimilated into the Borg at the time and was playing the figurehead figure of Locutus. He orchestrated and carried out thedevastating attack at the battle of Wolf 359, not only a battle that nearly crippled Starfleet, but one that resulted in the total eradication of a Federation colony of civilians. Sisko’s wife Jennifer was one of these poor souls.
Benjamin Sisko’s anger towards the man whose face was used as the figurehead of the attack is understandable. However, it demonstrates something about the knowledge shared with audiences, and the knowledge held by different members of the fictional world. People who watch the show will know that whenthe Borg assimilate their victims, all sense of individuality, personality, and free will is brutally taken from them. They are not in control, or in any way willing in the actions they are doing. As such, Picard had no control over Locutus' actions that resulted in civilian deaths. At the point of the attack, however, Starfleet knew very little about the Borg. The inner workings of assimilation andthe hive mindwere not well understood at this point, although audiences knew it fairly well. The Federation did not know the extent of how the Borg tore knowledge from the minds of its victims, so many assumed that Picard was willing in his descent to the dark side.
While this knowledge would eventually pass down to Starfleet officers and civilians alike, the scene where Sisko and Picard meet in the episode “The Emissary” takes place only three years after Wolf 359. It’s hard to imagine that Sisko was filled in regarding everything that took place that day. It’s unlikely that he holds Picard responsible, and he probably understands that his actions were not his own. But that doesn’t make it any easier to forgive him. Sisko could know intellectually that the man before him did not kill his wife. Emotionally though, it’s hard to imagine he could ever disassociate him from the atrocitiesthe powerful Locutuscommitted, especially in the dark place he was in during the first season or so ofDS9.Picard was the living manifestation of something that had basically ruined his life, and taken away someone he loved.
Some fans have pointed out the possibility that Sisko’s abrasiveness towards Picard came from a place of distrust rather than resentment of held accountability, It’s possible that Sisko was one of many who did not fully understand the Borg or how their assimilation works, and believed that there might still be some part of Locutus living within Picard. It’s not unreasonable, either. The Borg are very good at getting inside their victims' heads; why not consider the possibility that they left something there? Audiences know now that this is not the case. In fact,Picard spent years after the event dealing with the trauma caused by his nemesis, not only the assimilation but the indirect pain he caused others. He famously quoted inFirst Contact: “I should have been stronger, I should have been able to stop them.”
At the end of the day, Sisko never hated Picard as a person. He did not know the man in the slightest. He just could not be in the same room with someone who shared the face, body, and mind of a villain who took so much from him, and from watching the encounter, it appears Picard understands this. It’s similar to an assault victim who is put in a room with the identical twin of someone who assaulted them. The natural gut disdain for the person has nothing to do with them; it’s based on what they look like and how their appearance conjures up feelings in the victim. This is the trauma Sisko has to face within Picard’s ready room. His outbursts and disrespect towards the captain are fairly tame and controlled, considering the larger picture.
