http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Elysian_Council An Andorian, a Vulcan, and a Tellarite appear in "The Time Trap" as members of the Elysian Council. So you've got lost starships from the Federation core worlds there.
^ I think so. I think it's a great set up, especially when I remember that these people have never been so space like that before, it's all new and they are very green.
"Fight or Flight" The Enterprise crew hasn't gotten much done since we last saw them; after eagerly beginning their open-ended mission of exploration, they've been frustrated by their inability to actually find anything worth investigating. Quite where they are at the moment is difficult to say. Star Charts proposed that the ship had made the majority of the journey back to Earth before receiving word that their mission was going ahead, and so now they're heading out again in a different direction, rather than moving on from Qo'noS. That doesn't seem to track too well with what the pilot's ending implied, but it makes some sense, I suppose. How else could they have gotten word from Starfleet unless they were very close to home? Their Echo relay stations aren't deployed yet, after all. That said, it might make sense to have the empty region we see here placed further out past the Klingon frontier rather than too close to Earth. Later in the season, though, we'll clearly still be within Vulcan-influenced space (The P'Jem monastery outpost, other "protectorates" like Coridan and Mazar), and we'll encounter Human cargo ships. Add to this the fact that I refuse to have Qo'noS a near neighbour to Earth, and there-and-back-and-then-out-again it is. The fact that the Vulcans of this time don't engage in exploration helps to explain why there are wide unknown regions located right next door. So, off in a direction relatively unknown to the Vulcans is the big empty, with everyone bummed that there isn't anything worth sticking their fingers into. They're anxious to encounter inhabited worlds or other vessels - except for Reed, who is instead concerned about their ability to defend themselves, and thinks it's for the best that they're not bumping into anyone. Again we have the naïve assumption from much of the crew that the universe will reciprocate their good intentions. Mayweather argues that his parent's cargo ship ran into trouble only a handful of times, and Archer chides Reed for watching "too many science fiction films" when he tries to bring rifles along on the away mission. I'm glad that Reed's caution and Hoshi's general discomfort are brought into play, so that it's not simply Human exuberance VS Vulcan resistance. Not all the Humans buy into this cheery vision of pure exploration. And Archer is still very much out of his depth. Along with his relationship to the Vulcans, if there's a true arc spanning the entire series it's arguably the war between this early optimism and the harsh lessons of space Archer's forced to accept. Archer goes from eager pacifist-explorer ready to get out there and experience the wonder, through reluctant diplomat dragged into Vulcan's knot of interstellar arguments, through tortured warrior charged with protecting Earth, to uniting all of those aspects and mission profiles in helping form the Federation; the Federation being the realization of the dream that he's trying to live here. It strikes me that Earth has been extremely lucky, given how hostile much of space seems to be, even relatively close by. We have to assume that the Vulcans claimed the region that includes Sol, at least unofficially. They don't colonize many worlds or show interest in contacting species that haven't developed warp drive, but they like their buffer zones and they clearly have a rather sizable sphere of influence, a region that's probably recognized by other races as "Vulcan space". Earth is fortunate to have fallen within that space, or surely such a heavily populated, technologically inferior world would have attracted slavers and raiders all too easily? In terms of the character work, which is nothing special but generally harmless, I do wish they hadn't explicitly compared Hoshi to the slug; the analogy was working fine, we didn't need it actually pointed out. Still, like I said, it works well enough. Phlox is very interesting. He has an intriguing pragmatism blended with vibrant enthusiasm; already we're sort of getting hints that he's a potential bridge between the Human crew and Vulcan sentiments. Although we don't know much about Denobula at this point - we do learn in this episode that they don't talk while eating because it's "a waste of time", which is definitely leaning toward the Vulcan end of the scale - it is interesting to have these hints of how other non-Vulcan species are faring in what we might call the "Vulcan Hegemony". In "Broken Bow", Phlox mentioned that the Vulcans initiated the Interspecies Medical Exchange, so his people are clearly involved with them. Denobulans show an intriguing blend of Vulcan-approved traits (patience, long-term thinking, detachment, pragmatic acceptance of difference without desire to interfere) and Human-esque attributes (Curiosity, emotional enthusiasm, optimism). It's a real shame that the Axanar didn't appear again in the series (other than as background extras). For all that this is a simple character piece/morality piece with a little horror thrown in (none of these aspects particularly emphasized, either, it's a very "light" episode, really) it also serves as the first Starfleet Diplomacy story, and it would be nice to have it followed up on (The upcoming prologue to The Brave and the Bold will throw me a bone on that count). Continuity Only one in 43,000 planets has intelligent life, according to the Vulcans. Phlox knows who the Nausicaans are. Next Time: One more episode before we get the next lit piece. "Strange New World".
"Strange New World" This episode is about two things: the sense of joy and wonder at exploring uncharted territory, and the mistrust Humans have for Vulcans. The episode builds on what was definitely the meatiest part of the pilot - the dynamic between T'Pol and the Humans, in which T'Pol is the on-team antagonist but also sympathetic, being surrounded by Humans who mock and mistrust her. Showing that the potential in this complicated set up was clearly understood, this episode cranks up the existing paranoia to explore just how much resentment there is toward Vulcans. It's the pollen talking, but we all know that the underlying attitude is very real. Again, the disconnect between the Humans' innocent sense of fun and their bitterness at Vulcan oversight is one of the most interesting ideas in Enterprise. Happily, the writers seem to be embracing the complexities of the relationship, with T'Pol presented both as a killjoy who needs to lighten up and as a sympathetic character under pressure and outnumbered by those who mistrust her (clearly the writers didn't miss the sense of vulnerability inherent in the character's position that occasionally manifested in the pilot). I'm glad that while the series leans toward the Humans being right it doesn't reduce this to anything too simplistic. Introduced in the pilot and made plot-relevant here is the fact that T'Pol is actually speaking English aboard Enterprise, not relying on the translator, which has thus far been shown to be somewhat wonky, prone to shrugging its shoulders and giving up. Neither the Klingons nor the Axanar were easily understood (neither were heard "speaking English" on screen). This time, it seems that with the exception of Hoshi, none of the crew actually speak or understand T'Pol's native language. Thus far, the first season does seem to be making an effort to show barriers to communication with other species. (If I recall, later episodes where Hoshi is learning Denobula'an confirm that Phlox is speaking English too. What Silik was speaking I don't know, but then I'm sure his helix has advanced communication technologies since he's actively communicating with the distant future). It's mentioned in this episode that Trip's first encounter with a Vulcan came in the form of a scientist brought in to teach xenobiology at his school. Interesting that the Vulcans are teaching in Human schools; how common is this? Did Trip attend a private school for the wealthy, or are Vulcans brought in to teach at "ordinary" schools as part of some government program? Which schools are lucky enough to get an alien? It's refreshing to have a simple environmental threat rather than hostile aliens, especially on a world that seemed perfect for habitation. Trek can't help but have abundant Earth-like worlds, but it is odd that planets seem to come in two categories: uninhabitable or perfect Earth-mirror. Where are the almost-but-not-quite worlds? To have an otherwise perfectly Earth-like planet with environmental factors that make it uninviting or dangerous to Humans is something we should see more of. (The decontamination chamber we've seen in other episodes hints at this sort of thing - exposure to dangerous spores on Rigel X, for instance, - but we all know that the reason for the decon is underwear). Continuity The background detail from "In A Mirror Darkly" will designate this planet Archer IV (prior to that, Archer will mention today's adventure to Erika Hernandez, though without a I WONDER WHAT WE'LL END UP CALLING THAT PLANET, MAYBE WE'LL NAME IT AFTER SOMEONE INVOLVED IN ITS DISCOVERY speech somewhere where Starfleet Command can overhear). The Archer System will become a Federation holding, with colonies on Archer IV - once permanent inoculation against the paranoia-pollen becomes possible - and rich dilithium mines established on Archer IX. Among Archer IV's exports will be Archerian Slug Wine; Archerian invertebrates will rue the day they invaded Trip's sleeping bag. Meddle not in the affairs of Humans, for they are vengeful and quick to seize opportunities to make booze. First appearances of things that are important: The designation Minshara-class, clearly intended to explain "M-class". How that works with the other letter-class designations we hear in later Trek isn't explained. The Vulcan's Soul books introduce Quaris-class for Q-class planets, but if we keep that up it raises more awkward questions than it answers. The novels have confirmed Minshara as another native name for Vulcan, so these are Vulcan-class planets, a nice aversion of the Earth-centric tendencies so common to the United Federation of Planets. The Vulcan nerve pinch, though if you're not familiar with it you won't pay it much notice. T'Pol casually uses it on Mayweather while inoculating everyone. Transporter malfunction. The cave. We'll be spending a lot of time in caves over the course of the franchise, so get used to them. Next time: Back to lit, with By the Book.
By the Book I'm quite impressed by how this early novel succeeded in capturing the Enterprise crew. All of the characters are recognizable as the people we met in the three episodes we've covered so far. There are a few very minor details at odds (Novakovich had a first name change, I see) but it fits really well with what we see on screen and everyone is very much in character. Again, we have the warring facets of Archer - two essential character traits sitting somewhat uneasily alongside each other: the sheer innocent joy at exploration, at spreading your wings and getting out there, and the resentment at being held down for so long (to borrow from the theme song) - expressed here as a promise that he will "do better" than the Vulcans, that he won't make their "mistakes". Overall, this book is almost a treatise regarding the difficulties of First Contact, and it does suffer a little from having Archer as the mouthpiece for every side of the discussion, making him look a little too incompetent and confused. I don't think that's in any way a fatal flaw though, and the Fazi/Hipon situation certainly is interesting. The Fazi's vulnerability, their trouble in confronting anything outside their rigid protocol, is a rather clever way of critiquing the Vulcan's overly-cautious approach even as it demonstrates the wisdom of such and forces Archer to slow down and be a lot more cautious. There are quite a few layers here, some of them left in the subtext. Reed and Hoshi demonstrating caution from within the ranks of the Human crew (in Reed's case a military preparedness and in Hoshi's a reluctance to assume she's on top of things), again prevent this from being "Humans VS T'Pol", and I'm glad that this variety in perspectives is coming through in the books as well. Once more, the Human-Vulcan relationship is shown to be the most important and interesting part of the series mythology, and there are a lot of fruitful contrasts and comparisons to be made regarding the four cultures described here - Human, Vulcan, Fazi, Hipon. I'm not sure about the RPG plot. It was harmless enough, and the "moral" at the end - "wait, can we talk to the Martians?" actually worked quite well when you'd perhaps think it would come across as preachy, so that was nice. Overall, though, I was waiting to get back to the plot chapters every time we joined the game. An issue I have here, and in Trek in general to be honest, is the invention of new species and planets that we'll never hear from again. I like the fact that the Trek 'verse is heavily populated, but there does come a point where it gets a bit much. This is especially true in a prequel series where the action takes place close to Earth in what will become the heart of the Federation. Anything new here would be well-known in later centuries. There are plenty of established planets and races in Trek that we know next to nothing about, and which can be expanded on in any given story. I suppose the novel writers might have been cautious about using an established race when the show itself might have different plans for them - to be fair, we had the Axanar in the second episode, which is exactly the sort of thing I'm talking about, using established names, and we wouldn't want books to clash with the show. Still, I can't help but wonder why the Fazi couldn't have been, say, the Arbazan. Continuity After its introduction in The Valiant, we get some insight into telepathy here. T'Pol theorises that the Human mind is too chaotic and unstructured to resist telepathic probes. There's an interesting and telling moment when T'Pol references her own people's capacity for telepathic ability "in certain circumstances" and Archer reflects how Humans know not to press them on that point, because Vulcans don't discuss it. This works quite well with the "telepathy is a perversion" subplot that the show will introduce soon. Hoshi mentions "theories on telepathy" and the need for control to prevent insanity. T'Pol does say, though, that there are as many types of telepathy as races who have traces of it, which presumably helps explain why the many later telepathic races we meet aren't insane even though they're not all this obsessed with control. T'Pol also explains why telepathic races with the capacity to communicate mind-to-mind also tend to develop spoken language. Humans don't have the capacity to measure "psionic energy" but Denobulans do, and Phlox has been modifying. Crewman Daniels shows up, for the first time. He gets mind-probed by a Hipon and screams a lot. Not a dignified introduction. The things these temporal agents go through in the line of duty... Next Time: "Unexpected".
I personally categorize Galactic Barrier-induced psionics differently than natural psionics because the latter is clearly genetic. I don't really like the whole "Galactic Barrier can give powers" concept.
It's one of many silly things TOS gave us, yes, which don't really fit well with what the Trek universe became as it expanded beyond the one TV show. I'm sure we'll have lots of fun with them when we get to the 2260s . According to The Q Continuum, though, the barrier was constructed by the Q, so I guess having certain beings susceptible to absorbing a limited degree of Q-ness from the barrier makes as much sense as anything to do with this can? Q-ness is beyond our pitiful minds' comprehension anyway, so we can just shrug it off as magic.
They're related, though, because the Galactic Barrier enhances the abilities of preexisting espers-- it doesn't make new ones out of whole cloth.
Although there is a discontinuity there, because "Fusion" establishes that T'Pol has never even heard of mind-melding, and then "Stigma" retcons it from a forgotten practice to a well-known and socially stigmatized one. There are some pretty glaring inconsistencies between those two episodes. Exactly. It doesn't give powers, it just supercharges psionically receptive minds. Albeit only human minds, it seems, since Spock was unaffected.
Deranged Nasat I love your review of Strange New World. I too thought this was a good episode and was glad it was not about a hostile alien force but the planet's make-up that affects humans. I think it's the kind of story that fit perfectly with the first season of ENT
"Unexpected" I appreciate how the series keeps throwing up barriers to successful interaction between Humans and other species. Meeting and communicating with someone new isn't a straightforward matter, or at least so far it isn't. The translator once again takes a moment to work, and even when it does start working the Xyrillians are so stilted and formal that I get the impression that their actual tone and personal idiosyncrasies might not be coming across at all well. In other words, I really do get the impression this time that their speech is all a translation. Well done to the episode on that point. We also have the welcome environmental barriers; after teasing something similar with the Axanar, we have atmospheric composition and pressure differences come into play here, with people requiring a three-hour adjustment period moving between environments. On top of that, I really like how the Xyrillians are shown to be integrated with the environment they live in, to the point that they use native flora aboard their ships to help them metabolise. All great stuff. And, of course, we have strange alien reproduction. Okay, so the whole episode is based around a gimmick - "male pregnancy" - but I think the episode really works, and manages to avoid being reduced to that concept. Instead it incorporates the idea into something bigger, and the set-up is important in its own right, not just an excuse to get Trip impregnated so the "real plot" can begin. What Trip experiences is another complication to his effort at successful interaction with aliens. He had to adapt and immerse to their environment and it turned out something over there adapted and immersed back, to a degree that no-one expected. "Too different" becomes "too surprisingly compatible". It's great to have a parasitical breeder that isn't hostile, that isn't a monster taking over Trip's body (well, no more than any baby, I assume ). Trip and T'Pol's initial reactions also show an awareness of the sort of problems this sort of thing could potentially cause from a diplomatic viewpoint. It's clear in T'Pol's cooler-than-usual manner that she's thinking of the potential consequences in a way the Humans aren't necessarily grasping, which I thought was another good scene that subtly shows us the value of the character and her shtick. Becoming entangled in the laws, customs and honour codes governing familial relationships, mating, reproduction and other intimate matters wouldn't be fun. T'Pol's disapproval - due to her initial suspicion that Trip was making hanky-panky over there - combined with the way that Trip defends himself, makes it clear that this is the sort of thing that can blossom into An Incident. She knows it and, happily, so does he, proving that Trip isn't just T'Pol's counterweight here, he's a thoughtful person in his own right, and takes his responsibilities as a representative of Earth seriously. It's also a nice way to subtly introduce the idea of social and political tensions that might result from interspecies reproduction. Wait until you meet your actual genetic surprise daughter, Trip. You too, T'Pol. Overall, the male pregnancy angle is actually handled well, I think. Humour is definitely in there without going so far as to reduce either Trip or the situation to a joke, and the actual point of the episode is a valid and weighty one. This is about, well, the unexpected, about the difficulties that alien contact can bring. It's not a quick let's-you-and-I-visit-and-that's-that; disentangling yourself can be as hard as adapting in the first place. On another note, the Klingons are back, and once again it's made clear that they're not particularly graceful neighbours. That the Klingons are becoming shorthand for "danger" or at least "the need to tread carefully" is a nice touch, as is the sense that Archer still doesn't know what he's up against, though T'Pol has a far better idea. On that count, seeing T'Pol use her knowledge and (implicitly) her Vulcan influence for the good of the crew, and defend Archer before aliens (even if it's just for the sake of their success and not a true endorsement) is nice to see. She even comes close in this episode, at least twice, to what I'd consider the Vulcan equivalent of making a joke. She is slowly beginning to become more comfortable aboard Enterprise. I assume that the Klingons have a certain respect for the Vulcans. Between the pilot and this episode we get the strong impression that Vulcan, while certainly not having normalized relations with the Klingons (the policy is "avoid them and don't get in their way"), has gained standing enough in Klingon eyes to make the Empire take them seriously. I suppose the two races have met in battle, and the Klingons know that these are no jeghpu'wI'. First Appearances of Things That Are Important Human/Non-Human relationships and Human/Non-Human pregnancies, although this cheats a bit by having the relationship be mostly flirtatious rather than intimate (the actual mating is ambiguous) and the child genetically of one species alone. Still, it shows the characters that such things are possible. Cloaking technology. Some form of stealth technology that presumably falls under the umbrella of "cloak". I can't really count holodecks because Picard went waltzing in one, but he's from the future, and so this is the first time we see a holodeck that belongs to this time period. The Xyrillian's unfamiliar aesthetic to a familiar technology was another nice touch. I think this might be the first time we've seen a food slot in action? Here T'Pol asks for water during a nice scene where Phlox suggests she sample Human breakfast foods, and she isn't yet willing to graduate from her plomeek. Crewman Cutler isn't eating it all then. Next Time: "Terra Nova".
I agree -- I liked the way they tried to portray aliens as really alien here, with difficulties surmounting the language barrier and adapting to the environment. Most alien contacts would realistically be a bit closer to this than to the "Oh, hi, just come right on over through the airlock/transporter, because our air, temperature, gravity and such are just the same as yours." Of course, it would've worked better if it had happened more often rather than being a one-time thing, but it's understandable why you couldn't dwell on such difficulties on a regular basis.
"Terra Nova" What's that, Porthos? There's a Novan trapped down a well? This episode is the first one I had problems with; the four preceding it all strike me as quite strong. It's not to say this one doesn't have its good points - Phlox comes across well, for one, and there are some nice ideas in there somewhere - but it all depends on a set-up that doesn't really make sense for me, and feels full of holes. It's odd that Terra Nova is treated like the nearest habitable world to Earth when Trek has previously mentioned Alpha Centauri as an inhabited system (later episodes of Enterprise will also confirm that Humans have colonies there). Why did nobody head there then? Why go 20 light-years when you could go a quarter the distance? Enterprise is now heading to a point 20 light-years from Earth, then. They're that close to home? It makes sense, I suppose, that they'd be sent to see what happened, but that means they've doubled back, right? Or did the other episodes all happen within 20 light-years of Earth? Why did the ship wander out into Here There Be Axanar if Earth wanted them to check on Terra Nova? Why not head in that direction right away? Why hasn't Earth sent a ship? If Enterprise can get there in a few weeks, surely one of your existing ships could get there in six months or a year or two? If you have cargo ships bothering the Trill and colonies at Vega (and you have both those things, the latter confirmed on screen), then you can get to Terra Nova. Not quickly, but you can get there. Overall my biggest problem with the episode is the premise that nobody knows what happened to Terra Nova. Including Vulcan. Earth didn't want to ask Vulcan for help, we're told (mostly to clear that obvious solution out of the way at the start) - which itself I find difficult to buy. Yes, now Earth might be chafing under Vulcan influence and trying to show its independence wherever it can, but seventy years ago they were no doubt lapping the aid up. They would have been fully dependent on Vulcan help and begging them for more of it - that's the whole point of Archer's resentment, that the Humans wanted more help. And even if they hadn't asked Vulcan to send a ship, surely Vulcan would have sent one anyway. Spying on people is what Vulcans do. The two episodes after this will demonstrate that quite nicely (Pssst, Enterprise, they're following you). Vulcans might not be curious or open to exploration, but there's no way they're letting Humans go whooping off into the galaxy unsupervised, especially if the colonists are going to split entirely from the homeworld and threaten to shoot visitors down. I just find the whole set-up too hard to accept. Which is a shame in some ways, because I see the appeal in the basic rediscover-a-lost-colony idea, and I like the reminder that space is dangerous and that early colonization is rough - traveling all that way only to fall victim to an asteroid strike, yes, that works for me. It's not a terrible episode, but I just don't think the central idea holds together. The novels will mention Terra Nova from time to time, and give the impression that the Federation has a presence there. Presumably there are new colonies established, though whether the Novans retained a distinct identity or are just absorbed into the Human mainstream... might be interesting to see? If anyone ever has any reason to set a story on Terra Nova. Next Time: The Brave and The Bold: Prologue.
Given that the producers apparently didn't realize Rigel was a real star, I suspect they didn't know how far away Alpha Centauri was. I never thought of that. It is a problem, isn't it? The point about the Vulcans too. Yeah, I mostly like the episode. I like the idea of "aliens" who turn out to be lost colonists, and the story of winning over the hostile community and resolving the conflict peaceably.
The Brave And The Bold: Discovery A necessarily short piece. This is the prologue to a story that bridges the four remaining series, letting Enterprise join in on the action by introducing the artefacts that serve as the stories' plot hook in the context of an NX-01 exploratory mission. KRAD captures the characters very well - everyone sounds right, and their personalities come across consistent with the episodes. I like the reference to ongoing diplomatic exchange between Earth and the Axanar, our first sign that Earth is following up on what NX-01 is doing out here. Archer earning T'Pol's approval by showing an admirably wary and long-term perspective on what they've found, and his approach to sharing his recommendations and discoveries with Earth, the Vulcan High Command, and Axanar, is nice. He is learning, is trying to balance his motives and impulses to be the best captain he can. It's good to see Archer in this light. This is also our first hint, in this chronological run-through, of the wealth of extinct civilizations that inhabited the local galaxy before the present crop of spacefaring societies. Space is big, and time in turn is deep. "The Andorian Incident" Shran! This episode introduces the most important alien race besides Vulcans and Klingons that we've met so far, or will meet for some time. The Andorians are more three-dimensional than they might seem at the outset, due to the implicit complexities of the backstory. We start to get a sense of Vulcan's standing outside the sphere of Human experience. Thus far we've had the strong impression that Earth falls within "Vulcan space" and that outsiders like the Klingons look to Vulcan as the ruling power of the region. Now we begin to see that it isn't a uniform authority. Not everyone here accepts Vulcan dominance. T'Pol's dismissive analysis - "they resent our superior reasoning and advanced technology" - is revealing of a genuine hostility among the Vulcans; the Andorians' motives aren't really examined, they're just volatile and angry and troublesome because that's how they are, and it's assumed that they're rebelling against recognized and conceded superiority. Not that Shran and his commandos do a very good job selling themselves or disputing this, of course. Their paranoia and aggression recalls that shown in "Strange New World", and they don't have the pollen excuse. The episode is stronger for the series having already shown us how Humans resent Vulcan paternalism; now we see that Humans aren't alone in that, but we also get a sense of why the Vulcans are so cautious about giving "volatile" species free reign. The Andorians are irrational and suspicious, and see everything through the prism of Vulcan plotting. I particularly liked the way in which the Andorian guard tries to get a rise out of T'Pol by behaving in a sexually aggressive manner, then describing Vulcan culture in a sort-of-informed-but-contextually-twisted way that rather demonizes them - "I hear Vulcan females make their males fight to the death. Do you want me to kill someone for you?" It hints too, though, at an awareness on the Andorians' part of Vulcan hypocrisy - there's a lot they keep hidden that doesn't necessarily track with their public face. Of course, that in itself shows that other races don't really understand the Vulcans - the outer shell hiding the inner self is rather the point. But Archer has his "you think you're so enlightened!" complaint that mirrors that of the Andorians. Shran is very Archer-esque, actually - "we can't back down!" he exclaims, and it echoes things we've heard Archer say more than once. Like the Humans, the Andorians' efforts to resist Vulcan oversight show just how deep they actually are in the Vulcans' shadow. The Andorians seem to define themselves entirely around the Vulcans. For all their snooty superiority, the Vulcans are onto something here - the Andorians have internalized the assumption that Vulcans are superior even as they rage against the idea. Overall, I think this is a good introduction to the "Archer, reluctant diplomat" arc. His sheer disgust at going through all of that just to discover that the Vulcans are lying is well played. "I don't believe this!" has the right ring of naïvety and frustration. It's also an interesting way to sow the seeds of a Human-Andorian relationship. Why does Archer go out of his way to assist Shran's mission? A sense of fair play, or pettiness at being deceived? How pure is the motive? The Vulcan monk's inability to handle violence, and the Vulcans' general reaction to having Humans and Andorians rampage through the sanctuary shooting at everything is also welcome in keeping the Vulcan perspective somewhat respectable even as they're shown to be hypocrites and liars. The series is definitely getting a lot of mileage out of The Vulcan Issue. As well as their political entanglements, we also get a sense of the age of the Vulcan presence in space. They've been out here long enough to have traditional customs specific to their individual outposts and colonies, and sites of cultural significance scattered across space. They also have a stone of G'Kar. Well, J'Kah. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qZ_cJt3CmSc I note T'Pol's assertion that "Reed wouldn't be that reckless". That was almost carrying the sense of a compliment. Seeing as Reed is the most protocol-friendly and cautious member of the Human crew, as he shows again this episode with his reasonable military-style precautions, I can see T'Pol having some regard for him. It's only one short scene, but Phlox and T'Pol also have a good dynamic going. Phlox challenges T'pol and counsels her, again making use of the fact that his people are seemingly more acceptable to the Vulcans; she appears to view him more as an equal and will accept his criticism in a way she wouldn't from a Human. Again, we see that Phlox can serve as a bridge between Human and Vulcan. First Appearances of Things That Are Important: Andorians, of course! We'll be getting to know this short-tempered blue-skinned race very well, both onscreen and in the novels, and their journey will becoming very engrossing. Kolinahr is mentioned, as the ultimate suppression of emotion to which Vulcans aspire, and must train at length to achieve. Next Time: A Time to Sow, chapters one and two.
Deranged Nasat: thank you for you fantastic review of Unexpected. I have seen so many people hate on this episode, but you were able to point out why it is one of my favorite Enterprise episodes. It does a great job with the strangeness of aliens and feels like a TOS episode, the look of the alien ship is something straight out of TOS. It was just plain fun while exploring the issues alien/human interaction in a more realistic way than we have seen in much of Trek
"A Time To Sow", chapters one and two In a standard reading (that is, the intended approach), this would be our introduction to the long-standing mystery that Picard and crew are in a position to finally solve in A Time to Sow. That is to say, these opening chapters set up the history behind the mystery, a lead-in allowing an Enterprise cameo. After all, why not show us how it all originated now that we have established characters hanging around two hundred years before Picard? Here, these chapters work in a different way, giving us a bit of an evaluation of where we stand so far, while adding a new perspective - two new perspectives, actually. To start off, we have our first Vulcan POV. There are a lot of terms introduced here - Vulcan Space Service, Vulcan Science Directorate (which has exclusive authority over the decision to contact or exchange technology with a newly discovered people, we learn). The Vulcan Space Service is apparently a name for the collected forces working within the parameters of the Vulcan Space Program ("Breaking the Ice") which is overseen by the Vulcan Space Council ("Carbon Creek"), not to be confused with the organization that oversees traffic in Vulcan orbit, Vulcan Space Central ("Amok Time"), or their space station which is also named Vulcan Space Central. Meanwhile, the Vulcan Science Directorate (which, by the way, has determined that time travel is impossible, as T'Pol will remind us a fair few times) runs the Vulcan Science Academy and is presumably governed by the Vulcan Science Council ("Fallen Hero") and both this and the Vulcan Space Council, not to mention the assumed Vulcan Security Council which likely heads the Vulcan Security Directorate, answer to the authority of the Vulcan High Command, whose Administrator depends on the support of the Vulcan Council ("Kir'Shara"), which may or may not be one of these other councils, and also there's a Vulcan High Assembly which maybe is all those other Councils heading their Directorates and Programs taken as a unity? Got all that? Good. There will be a test. There's some insight into Vulcan ships here - a triangular shape to the bridge (Vulcans like triangles), more than one individual with the rank of sub-commander aboard a vessel, etc. Captain Vanik gives us a view of how a Vulcan might find worth in being out in space, intellectually stimulated by what they encounter despite their culture's current disinterest in exploration or curiosity. Seeing how Vulcans typically approach the situation of potential first contact is also rewarding. It's a short but solid view of things from the perspective of the closest these Vulcans come to an Archer. The second new perspective is that of Admiral Forrest, who naturally remains on Earth. We'll get scenes like this later in the season, but for now this desk-based perspective on the historic mission is something new, especially since Forrest is still balancing his desire to have Enterprise go boldly and break new ground with his need to keep the Vulcans mollified, and Vulcans like the ground quite the way it is, thank you very much. How Earth is dealing with the fallout of Enterprise's initial blunders, especially the recent incident at P'Jem, is worth a peak now and then. First Appearances of Things That Will Be Important: The second NX-class ship is slowly starting to be assembled. It doesn't have a name yet. It's great approaching the Trek universe like this, when as a reader you can look upon these things ominously when they're originally intended as nothing of the sort. That ship is going to indirectly be causing more headaches for Starfleet than you can imagine, Mr. Forrest. A.G. Robinson is mentioned for the first time. We'll learn more about him in season two. Next Time: We'll see exactly what went down with the recent comet incident Soval and Forrest mention, with "Breaking the Ice".