I really want to like the character. He's sweet and adorable and a good-hearted person. I want to love him. I feel like we're meant to.
But he feels like a complete wasted opportunity to me. The Qowat Milat are a cool concept, and reminiscent of several things from the novels, so I do appreciate that. But in terms of the story, what do they bring? A contrast to the Tal Shiar is great, with their openness in stark opposition to typical Romulan paranoia. But they're not doing enough with that to really make it relevant (yet).
I wish the role that Elnor is filling had gone to a more "average" Romulan refugee. I love the concept of the child that Picard befriended and then abandoned, but I'd rather have seen him grow up to be someone who had to struggle to live on the streets of somewhere like Freecloud, who had to survive by his wits and street-smarts, rather than under the protection of a group of warrior nuns on the comparatively safe Vashti. I would rather see a more realistic depiction of a refugee than this cute mashup between Legolas and Pol Atreides that we've gotten.
I thought we were going to see the point to Elnor's uber-ninja-warrior status once he stayed behind on the Artifact with Hugh. If he'd managed to actually make a difference there, I think it would have gone a long way to making me feel better about the character's presence. However, so far, he just seems there to not only be another one of Picard's failures, but to fail himself.
I want to love Elnor, but damn, I'm struggling, because I see so much wasted potential in what they could have done with a Romulan character on the crew. We could have had a continuing, deeper perspective of the refugees that could have been so interesting and valuable, and instead we just...don't.
But he feels like a complete wasted opportunity to me. The Qowat Milat are a cool concept, and reminiscent of several things from the novels, so I do appreciate that. But in terms of the story, what do they bring? A contrast to the Tal Shiar is great, with their openness in stark opposition to typical Romulan paranoia. But they're not doing enough with that to really make it relevant (yet).
I wish the role that Elnor is filling had gone to a more "average" Romulan refugee. I love the concept of the child that Picard befriended and then abandoned, but I'd rather have seen him grow up to be someone who had to struggle to live on the streets of somewhere like Freecloud, who had to survive by his wits and street-smarts, rather than under the protection of a group of warrior nuns on the comparatively safe Vashti. I would rather see a more realistic depiction of a refugee than this cute mashup between Legolas and Pol Atreides that we've gotten.
I thought we were going to see the point to Elnor's uber-ninja-warrior status once he stayed behind on the Artifact with Hugh. If he'd managed to actually make a difference there, I think it would have gone a long way to making me feel better about the character's presence. However, so far, he just seems there to not only be another one of Picard's failures, but to fail himself.
I want to love Elnor, but damn, I'm struggling, because I see so much wasted potential in what they could have done with a Romulan character on the crew. We could have had a continuing, deeper perspective of the refugees that could have been so interesting and valuable, and instead we just...don't.
