Bring back TOS colorful lighting!!! This hallway gets a pink light, this hallway gets a red light and this hallway gets a green light. Every deck is a different color. 
Spoilers General Disco Chat Thread
- Thread starter Lord Garth
- Start date
The same exact sets but with different lighting everywhere?
I like it. They need to do this.
I like it. They need to do this.
That's exactly how they did the sets for the "Andromeda Strain" movie production back in 1970.
The 5-story underground complex called "WILDFIRE", was portrayed by just painting the standing sets a different color for each level.
That's exactly how they did the sets for the "Andromeda Strain" movie production back in 1970.
The 5-story underground complex called "WILDFIRE", was portrayed by just painting the standing sets a different color for each level.
Good satin coat and some vinyl stickers and they’re away.
I think the Disco Uniforms should have bell-bottoms. Or it's not disco.
Pike should have a gold medallion and show off his chest hair.
Andromeda Strain was a good movie. I saw it on Netflix (more than) a few years ago. I wasn't disappointed.
Pike should have a gold medallion and show off his chest hair.
That's exactly how they did the sets for the "Andromeda Strain" movie production back in 1970.
The 5-story underground complex called "WILDFIRE", was portrayed by just painting the standing sets a different color for each level.
Andromeda Strain was a good movie. I saw it on Netflix (more than) a few years ago. I wasn't disappointed.
I still think it was a mistake on CBS's part not to air the first two episodes as a long made for TV movie. That's how you promote the new show
Also we're approaching the one year anniversary of the first episode. Feels like it's been longer than that.
Yeah, it's kind of like only showing half a movie.
If I were a non-fan or a more casual fan and I was watching, then they didn't show "Battle at the Binary Stars", my reaction would've been "What the Hell is this?! You mean I have to pay to see the rest?!!" At least if they showed both episodes, there would've been closure.
Another thing that annoyed the Hell out of me was that CBS aired the episode in 4:3. My thought was, "This is 2017! What are you doing?"
Huh it was aired in Widescreen in Canada.
At least on my Comcast Provider which gives me Basic Cable, it wasn't. I barely watch it. I have it as an add-on to my Internet, so I don't know how it usually is but most of the time I remember watching shows wide-screen, during the few instances (in the last 10 years) where I haven't watched something online.
I set my TV to Original Format so nothing gets stretched out and that way I can see what's 16:9 and what's 4:3. Oddly enough, I used to record government meetings for public access TV. I'd record in 16:9 but the station would transmit the images as 4:3, cropping off far-right and left of whatever I recorded. So it was either the way the station transmitting the image or the way the channel was being broadcast on the provider.
EDIT: Okay, I just put CBS on (so this is the crap that my father watches!) and, sure enough, what I'm watching is in 4:3. Turning it off.
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Shifting gears. I'm watching ENT's "In the Mirror Darkly". Nothing really that wrong with it, but I still like the DSC episodes better.
I don't know. Everything seems so matter-of-fact and by the numbers in "In the Mirror Darkly" so far. The twist on the end of FC is nice. But then we have Phlox doing torture. Sato and Forrest having some sort of relationship. Then Archer moves against Forrest, takes command, and now they're heading for the Defiant. Whatever Archer's got in mind, he's planned it out. But it all seems "check, check, check!" I like Mayweather's look. And Trip's.
Even in darkness, the NX-01's interiors seem brightly lit in the foreground. They should've gone for total darkness.
If this were DSC, there would've been a lot more build-up and what we got here would've been at the end of the episode instead of 10 minutes in. Just a comparison between how the two series are. DSC wants to build things up. ENT treats the build-up as set-up. It's less about the tension and more about getting where they need to be.
Scott Bakula's acting. He's okay as Prime Archer. I'm not quite sure what he's going for as Mirror Archer. Something seems off. Like Scott Bakula was afraid of making Archer look like Dr. Evil so he reigned it in by going a little too far. Mirror Archer seems a little too measured. He should seem more threatening and intimidating. I'm not getting that sense at all when he's talking to T'Pol.
Now Archer's making out with Sato. Say all you want about Burnham and Tyler but at least I feel tension between them. At least I feel emotion. Same with Stamets and Culber. But this? Sato: "I'm yours now!" Archer: "Let's kiss!" That easy? Sato should play hard to get. Or at least there should be some raw intensity. Like Archer is super pent-up and needs release. I'm getting no sense of that. It's just, "Hey, let's make out." Even Sato pulling out the knife feels too clinical. And Archer's, "Let's keep our relationship on a professional level" feels too neatly pat, on top of being saved by the bell.
So we get to the Tholians... I do like the Tholian! But I'm just not buying the NX-01 crew as evil. The Mirror Shenzou crew felt evil. The Charon felt evil. The NX-01? Not so much. It feels like acting. Ugh. You can tell this was made in the '00s. "Torture works" was the motto of Dick Cheney and the Bush Administration. If this were made today, the Tholian never would've cooperated no matter how much Archer tortured it.
Why didn't Archer kill Forrest from the get-go? Advancement through assassination isn't just a means for advancement, it's bad-ass and you get to show much of a bad-ass you are. Archer is way too restrained. It's like all he has is some chip on his shoulder and he likes to whisper...
Forrest: "Kill me and she'll never forgive you!" Meaning Hoshi. And Archer lets him live. What the fuck?! Really?! Really?!?!! Come on! He's too soft to be a Terran. Forrest has the killer look in his eye. This isn't the Prime Universe. It's the Mirror Universe. Archer deserves to be taken down if Forrest gets out.
The torture scene with Trip was beyond lame. And then we cut to Hoshi in bed with Archer saying "It hasn't been that good in a long time." Ummmm... even if you don't want to show anything, in TOS, they had an episode called "Bread and Circuses" that shows Kirk in bed with a woman. It implies everything, shows nothing, and still works like a charm. What they show in "In the Mirror Darkly" has no charm at all. Please stop whispering, Archer.
Nice touch how, like in TOS, in ENT the ship's computer has a male voice in the Mirror Universe.
Forrest's escape with T'Pol busting him out. Phaser fight in the corridor! Archer, wimp that he is, runs off. Cut to the bridge. Yeah. I like the uniforms in the Disco Mirror Universe waaaaaaaaaay better. It's not even close.
Forrest is on the bridge and back in command. It's bad I'm cheering that Forrest is in command. I don't think he's who I'm supposed to be rooting for.
Archer reaches the bridge. And I think I've finally figured out who he's trying to sound like! Snake Plissken! "Call me Snake!"
I'm just noticing that the guy who plays Admiral Forrest looks like he should be on MacGuyver. The one from the '80s. I don't know why. He has that type of a look.
The torture chamber in ENT looks way too bland. The one in DSC at least looks like Spencer's at the mall. And that compliments the DSC Mirror Uniforms since they look like they're from Hot Topic. That's fun. Cool Trivia, though. Reed invented the torture chamber. I guess it makes sense then why the one in ENT has no style. Reed strikes me as being way too utilitarian and to-the-point.
Starfleet wants Forrest to proceed to Archer's destination. Instead of slamming him to the ground, Forrest should've punched him in the face.
A briefing room scene in a Mirror Universe episode just feels wrong. If this were DSC, everything Archer is summing up here would've been shown in an episode right before this one.
Why would T'Pol tell Trip what she did to him? It makes no logical sense to admit to manipulating someone. It would've been better -- and more dramatic -- if Trip were suspicious and he had to figure it out. But T'Pol's like, "Nope. This is what I did!" Way to kill drama, way to kill tension. Worse is that the scene is started off with T'Pol reporting something to Trip. This is Berman-Era Trek through and through, with everything I don't like about it in one scene. Along with the briefing room scene. It's reminding me of exactly what I don't like about this style of Star Trek.
Now the NX-01 is cloaking... and it's about to reach its destination, which is... Saturn?!
Wait, no. It's not Saturn. It just looks like it. It's the Enterprise! Umm, I mean: the Defiant!
Now to see how the TOS look holds up in the 21st Century. Even though it's 2005 and still the Bush Era. The post-9/11, pre-Katrina Bush Era no less. Not to mention Social Media and Web 2.0 are in their infancy. But it's still the 21st Century.
Okay. The TOS Constitution Class looks other-timely in ENT but it works because the ship is from 100 years in the future. So it should look other-timely. In DSC, you can't get away with a Constitution Class Starship looking other-timely because it's supposed to be the same era. So either DSC had to look like TOS or TOS had to look like DSC. Discovery went with the latter.
Now they're back in the Briefing Room. Talking about the Defiant. And Trip's whispering too. Archer finally gets the killer look when he clearly has no intention of destroying the Defiant when Forrest orders him to. How could Forrest not see this? Is he really that dumb? Apparently. He should've killed Archer for insubordination. But, anyway...
Okay. So the landing party is on the Defiant. Wait a minute. This is Berman Trek. So the away team is on the Defiant... and I have to say the darkened TOS sets work. The uniforms, on the other hand, don't.
Sorry to see the Tholian die. I would've liked to have seen it escape. Even though it wouldn't have been able to survive in normal temperature. It probably would've frozen to death. I guess it wasn't long for this episode.
And they're on the Defiant's bridge! Darkened sets or not, I can't see this being the main setting of a Star Trek series made Today. For these two episodes, it's okay. But for something permanent, like it would've been on Discovery? I don't think it would've worked.
What does work is that Tholian Web! Love it.
The music gets good as the NX-01 tries to attack The Tholian Web. Shit's about to Get Real.
I'm not going to lie. Even though I don't think it would work for Discovery, I love seeing a TOS-style Constitution Class bridge with high production values in action here. This is cool.
The music gets good again, we have a Constitution Class ship, sparks are flying on the NX-01, and we've got a Tholian Web... then Forrest has to ruin it with, "Can you vent the anti-matter?" Arrgh!!!! You're spoiling the mood, Captain.
Vaughn Armstrong's acting is a little shaky when he orders the NX-01 crew to abandon ship.
As the surviving NX-01 crew watches their ship destroyed from afar, aboard the Defiant, To Be Continued flashes across the screen.
Overall, I'm going to have to give "In the Mirror Darkly, Part I" a 6 out of 10. It was "okay" but too many things that I highlight above keep me from calling it "good". This was the first time I'd watched an episode of Enterprise in almost eight years.
I don't know. Everything seems so matter-of-fact and by the numbers in "In the Mirror Darkly" so far. The twist on the end of FC is nice. But then we have Phlox doing torture. Sato and Forrest having some sort of relationship. Then Archer moves against Forrest, takes command, and now they're heading for the Defiant. Whatever Archer's got in mind, he's planned it out. But it all seems "check, check, check!" I like Mayweather's look. And Trip's.
Even in darkness, the NX-01's interiors seem brightly lit in the foreground. They should've gone for total darkness.
If this were DSC, there would've been a lot more build-up and what we got here would've been at the end of the episode instead of 10 minutes in. Just a comparison between how the two series are. DSC wants to build things up. ENT treats the build-up as set-up. It's less about the tension and more about getting where they need to be.
Scott Bakula's acting. He's okay as Prime Archer. I'm not quite sure what he's going for as Mirror Archer. Something seems off. Like Scott Bakula was afraid of making Archer look like Dr. Evil so he reigned it in by going a little too far. Mirror Archer seems a little too measured. He should seem more threatening and intimidating. I'm not getting that sense at all when he's talking to T'Pol.
Now Archer's making out with Sato. Say all you want about Burnham and Tyler but at least I feel tension between them. At least I feel emotion. Same with Stamets and Culber. But this? Sato: "I'm yours now!" Archer: "Let's kiss!" That easy? Sato should play hard to get. Or at least there should be some raw intensity. Like Archer is super pent-up and needs release. I'm getting no sense of that. It's just, "Hey, let's make out." Even Sato pulling out the knife feels too clinical. And Archer's, "Let's keep our relationship on a professional level" feels too neatly pat, on top of being saved by the bell.
So we get to the Tholians... I do like the Tholian! But I'm just not buying the NX-01 crew as evil. The Mirror Shenzou crew felt evil. The Charon felt evil. The NX-01? Not so much. It feels like acting. Ugh. You can tell this was made in the '00s. "Torture works" was the motto of Dick Cheney and the Bush Administration. If this were made today, the Tholian never would've cooperated no matter how much Archer tortured it.
Why didn't Archer kill Forrest from the get-go? Advancement through assassination isn't just a means for advancement, it's bad-ass and you get to show much of a bad-ass you are. Archer is way too restrained. It's like all he has is some chip on his shoulder and he likes to whisper...
Forrest: "Kill me and she'll never forgive you!" Meaning Hoshi. And Archer lets him live. What the fuck?! Really?! Really?!?!! Come on! He's too soft to be a Terran. Forrest has the killer look in his eye. This isn't the Prime Universe. It's the Mirror Universe. Archer deserves to be taken down if Forrest gets out.
The torture scene with Trip was beyond lame. And then we cut to Hoshi in bed with Archer saying "It hasn't been that good in a long time." Ummmm... even if you don't want to show anything, in TOS, they had an episode called "Bread and Circuses" that shows Kirk in bed with a woman. It implies everything, shows nothing, and still works like a charm. What they show in "In the Mirror Darkly" has no charm at all. Please stop whispering, Archer.
Nice touch how, like in TOS, in ENT the ship's computer has a male voice in the Mirror Universe.
Forrest's escape with T'Pol busting him out. Phaser fight in the corridor! Archer, wimp that he is, runs off. Cut to the bridge. Yeah. I like the uniforms in the Disco Mirror Universe waaaaaaaaaay better. It's not even close.
Forrest is on the bridge and back in command. It's bad I'm cheering that Forrest is in command. I don't think he's who I'm supposed to be rooting for.
Archer reaches the bridge. And I think I've finally figured out who he's trying to sound like! Snake Plissken! "Call me Snake!"
I'm just noticing that the guy who plays Admiral Forrest looks like he should be on MacGuyver. The one from the '80s. I don't know why. He has that type of a look.
The torture chamber in ENT looks way too bland. The one in DSC at least looks like Spencer's at the mall. And that compliments the DSC Mirror Uniforms since they look like they're from Hot Topic. That's fun. Cool Trivia, though. Reed invented the torture chamber. I guess it makes sense then why the one in ENT has no style. Reed strikes me as being way too utilitarian and to-the-point.
Starfleet wants Forrest to proceed to Archer's destination. Instead of slamming him to the ground, Forrest should've punched him in the face.
A briefing room scene in a Mirror Universe episode just feels wrong. If this were DSC, everything Archer is summing up here would've been shown in an episode right before this one.
Why would T'Pol tell Trip what she did to him? It makes no logical sense to admit to manipulating someone. It would've been better -- and more dramatic -- if Trip were suspicious and he had to figure it out. But T'Pol's like, "Nope. This is what I did!" Way to kill drama, way to kill tension. Worse is that the scene is started off with T'Pol reporting something to Trip. This is Berman-Era Trek through and through, with everything I don't like about it in one scene. Along with the briefing room scene. It's reminding me of exactly what I don't like about this style of Star Trek.
Now the NX-01 is cloaking... and it's about to reach its destination, which is... Saturn?!
Wait, no. It's not Saturn. It just looks like it. It's the Enterprise! Umm, I mean: the Defiant!
Now to see how the TOS look holds up in the 21st Century. Even though it's 2005 and still the Bush Era. The post-9/11, pre-Katrina Bush Era no less. Not to mention Social Media and Web 2.0 are in their infancy. But it's still the 21st Century.
Okay. The TOS Constitution Class looks other-timely in ENT but it works because the ship is from 100 years in the future. So it should look other-timely. In DSC, you can't get away with a Constitution Class Starship looking other-timely because it's supposed to be the same era. So either DSC had to look like TOS or TOS had to look like DSC. Discovery went with the latter.
Now they're back in the Briefing Room. Talking about the Defiant. And Trip's whispering too. Archer finally gets the killer look when he clearly has no intention of destroying the Defiant when Forrest orders him to. How could Forrest not see this? Is he really that dumb? Apparently. He should've killed Archer for insubordination. But, anyway...
Okay. So the landing party is on the Defiant. Wait a minute. This is Berman Trek. So the away team is on the Defiant... and I have to say the darkened TOS sets work. The uniforms, on the other hand, don't.
Sorry to see the Tholian die. I would've liked to have seen it escape. Even though it wouldn't have been able to survive in normal temperature. It probably would've frozen to death. I guess it wasn't long for this episode.
And they're on the Defiant's bridge! Darkened sets or not, I can't see this being the main setting of a Star Trek series made Today. For these two episodes, it's okay. But for something permanent, like it would've been on Discovery? I don't think it would've worked.
What does work is that Tholian Web! Love it.
The music gets good as the NX-01 tries to attack The Tholian Web. Shit's about to Get Real.
I'm not going to lie. Even though I don't think it would work for Discovery, I love seeing a TOS-style Constitution Class bridge with high production values in action here. This is cool.
The music gets good again, we have a Constitution Class ship, sparks are flying on the NX-01, and we've got a Tholian Web... then Forrest has to ruin it with, "Can you vent the anti-matter?" Arrgh!!!! You're spoiling the mood, Captain.
Vaughn Armstrong's acting is a little shaky when he orders the NX-01 crew to abandon ship.
As the surviving NX-01 crew watches their ship destroyed from afar, aboard the Defiant, To Be Continued flashes across the screen.
Overall, I'm going to have to give "In the Mirror Darkly, Part I" a 6 out of 10. It was "okay" but too many things that I highlight above keep me from calling it "good". This was the first time I'd watched an episode of Enterprise in almost eight years.
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they did call then landing parties in a couple episodes.
But it was very rare, 2 episodes in season 1 and 2 episodes in season 4.
And they only used the term Away Team in 9 episodes.
So I guess they used another term for the majority of the series? Or didn’t call them anything at all.
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It's very interesting to see the differences in how the two series handled the Mirror Universe. I can say with more even more conviction now that what they did in Discovery is show the material from a different angle. It may have returned to a familiar concept but it wasn't covering the same ground with that concept. There was more to mine from the Mirror Universe than just what we saw before.
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Continuing on with "Into the Mirror Darkly, Part II".
The main big draw here is watching the crew on a TOS Constitution Class bridge. And that they're in a Tholian Web. The bridge looks super colorful too. I like it. Great intro music.
Back to the episode. Now they're laying on the music really thick. DOM! DOM-DOM!!! DOM!!!! The Defiant takes a hit. Everything looks great but Trip's scars look better in the dark. The Defiant's tactical systems come online and they destroy the Tholian Web! The battle ends, and title of the episode appears.
Now they're trying to figure out all they can about the Defiant, get everything on it up-and-running, and Archer's researching the history. Had this episode aired a year later, I could've seen it being the 40th Anniversary Episode. I still have problems with Scott Bakula's portrayal as Mirror Archer but continually mentioning it would be beating a dead horse.
So during the first act of this episode we're in the slower part of story, while the crew acclimates to the Defiant and goes about normal shipboard business. If this is supposed to be fun, there shouldn't be a lull. The only explanation I have -- other than the different production style and pacing of the Berman Era -- is that they want the audience to savor the TOS designs. What can I say? I'm used to Discovery where nothing lets up and they shift from one thing to the next, whether it's going from action to tension to drama to humor to something else. DSC never just sits there. On a positive note, I am enjoying looking at the sets.
Oh! Looks like I spoke too soon... some ensign climbs up a Jefferie's Tube in a scene that reminds me of First Contact. "Paul? Paaaauuul?!" And Ensign Nobody gets killed off. FC did it better.
Cut to the bridge. Everyone's in TOS Uniforms now. I don't know. Is this really the way some people want Discovery to look? Anyway, we'll agree to disagree. Moving on...
An interrogation scene. And there's a Gorn on the loose. Mirror Archer sure has an inferiority complex for someone who thinks the Federation is made up of fools, including his counterpart in the Prime Universe. He's starting to see things. I think he's getting loony.
Confession Time: I like TOS's "Arena" but I've never been too crazy about the Gorn. And the Gorn in "In the Mirror Darkly" reminds me of something I'd see in a cartoon I used to watch when I was kid called Thundercats, down to the voice. I could see this Gorn in Castle Plun-Darr or taking orders from Mumm-Ra the Ever Living.
Okay. It's official. Archer has his imaginary self talking to him. He's not getting loony. He is loony. Probably not as loony as late-DS9 Dukat, but we'll see.
Good Scene as the MACOs, headed by Reed, go searching for the Gorn. Good pacing, good music, good tension. And the Gorn moves in for the kill! Archer fights the Gorn! All Archer needs now is for his shirt to get ripped. Sucks that they use TECH, like enhancing the gravity to end the fight. Moving on...
Another slow scene. I like that Phlox and T'Pol are feasting on TOS Starburst Cubes while comparing notes about the two universes. Then that ends with a Red Alert.
The Defiant, with its 23rd Century technology, heads into battle. And makes short work of its enemies while impressing Starfleet at the same time. Archer's growing into Being Evil. He lets the last Andorian ship go because "I want the other rebels to know what happened here." He's channeling the Female Shapeshifter from DS9.
Finally! Archer kills someone above him! "You're relieved Admiral." Then he vaporizes him. That's what I'm talking about! Where the Hell was this guy last episode?
Archer rallies the troops. They're getting their groove on!
When T'Pol tries to get Soval to help her to make a move against Archer, she mentions that Archer would lay waste to Vulcan. That line takes on a new meaning with the 2009 film. Added to the fact that Archer seems crazy now since he's seeing things. So Mirror Archer's like Dukat, the Female Shapeshifter, and Nero!
Now we have a bedroom scene between Archer and Sato that actually works. I like the lighting. It's back-lit and all we see in the foreground are silhouettes of them. While they talk about getting rid of T'Pol. So now both sides are planning against each other. Plotting to kill each other. It seems like the writers have finally warmed up to what the Mirror Universe should be.
"I've never been the consort of an Emperor before..."
So now we cut to the bridge and we finally have some real tension. The shot focusing on T'Pol was very deliberate. She's escorted off the bridge and Archer's large, in charge, and in command. I kind of hope he blows up the Admiral who's yelling at him after he demands that Starfleet surrender to him. He's the villain as in The Villain. I'm rooting for T'Pol and everyone else to take him down. So a villain he is. Last episode I wasn't feeling it. This episode, I am.
Sato vs. T'Pol. I'm kind of surprised Sato's holding her own in this fight... Then she's blasted down. The fights in this series are too short. They need to be longer. This fight in particular probably should've lasted twice as long as it did.
Now Archer's interrogating T'Pol, who says, "You will not prevail."
Soval learned about the mechanics of the Defiant really fast. He's a pro, instructing Phlox. Oh, well. Once Phlox does what he's supposed to, Soval attacks the Defiant. Big Berman Trek Battle. Sparks fly everywhere. Trip finds and stops Phlox and undoes what Phlox did. Primary Systems on the Defiant come back online. This feels like Star Trek As Usual again... then Archer destroys Soval's ship.
Archer's feeling like a Manly Man and he's in bed with Sato. Some great shots. Feels sensual. They drink. In hoping to become the Emperor with the help of the Defiant, Archer says the Empire is loyal to the Emperor. "They don't care who the Emperor is." Archer laughs. Then it's clear he's been poisoned with the drink... and Sato is now Empress Sato!
Once this episode got going, it got going. With only occasional lapses. I give it an 8.
.
.
.
Now I also want to say, I don't see how anyone who likes these episodes, especially Part II, doesn't like DSC's Mirror Episodes. Discovery does what Part II of this Enterprise episode did even better. Tonally, I could just jump right into the Disco Episodes from here.
I feel like dismissing the DSC Mirror Universe episodes so casually has less to do with the episodes themselves and more to do with what they think of the series in general. And no, the DSC episodes do not cover the same ground. They do more with the Mirror Universe and in their own way. Just like ENT dealt with the Mirror Universe in its own way.
The main big draw here is watching the crew on a TOS Constitution Class bridge. And that they're in a Tholian Web. The bridge looks super colorful too. I like it. Great intro music.
Back to the episode. Now they're laying on the music really thick. DOM! DOM-DOM!!! DOM!!!! The Defiant takes a hit. Everything looks great but Trip's scars look better in the dark. The Defiant's tactical systems come online and they destroy the Tholian Web! The battle ends, and title of the episode appears.
Now they're trying to figure out all they can about the Defiant, get everything on it up-and-running, and Archer's researching the history. Had this episode aired a year later, I could've seen it being the 40th Anniversary Episode. I still have problems with Scott Bakula's portrayal as Mirror Archer but continually mentioning it would be beating a dead horse.
So during the first act of this episode we're in the slower part of story, while the crew acclimates to the Defiant and goes about normal shipboard business. If this is supposed to be fun, there shouldn't be a lull. The only explanation I have -- other than the different production style and pacing of the Berman Era -- is that they want the audience to savor the TOS designs. What can I say? I'm used to Discovery where nothing lets up and they shift from one thing to the next, whether it's going from action to tension to drama to humor to something else. DSC never just sits there. On a positive note, I am enjoying looking at the sets.
Oh! Looks like I spoke too soon... some ensign climbs up a Jefferie's Tube in a scene that reminds me of First Contact. "Paul? Paaaauuul?!" And Ensign Nobody gets killed off. FC did it better.
Cut to the bridge. Everyone's in TOS Uniforms now. I don't know. Is this really the way some people want Discovery to look? Anyway, we'll agree to disagree. Moving on...
An interrogation scene. And there's a Gorn on the loose. Mirror Archer sure has an inferiority complex for someone who thinks the Federation is made up of fools, including his counterpart in the Prime Universe. He's starting to see things. I think he's getting loony.
Confession Time: I like TOS's "Arena" but I've never been too crazy about the Gorn. And the Gorn in "In the Mirror Darkly" reminds me of something I'd see in a cartoon I used to watch when I was kid called Thundercats, down to the voice. I could see this Gorn in Castle Plun-Darr or taking orders from Mumm-Ra the Ever Living.
Okay. It's official. Archer has his imaginary self talking to him. He's not getting loony. He is loony. Probably not as loony as late-DS9 Dukat, but we'll see.
Good Scene as the MACOs, headed by Reed, go searching for the Gorn. Good pacing, good music, good tension. And the Gorn moves in for the kill! Archer fights the Gorn! All Archer needs now is for his shirt to get ripped. Sucks that they use TECH, like enhancing the gravity to end the fight. Moving on...
Another slow scene. I like that Phlox and T'Pol are feasting on TOS Starburst Cubes while comparing notes about the two universes. Then that ends with a Red Alert.
The Defiant, with its 23rd Century technology, heads into battle. And makes short work of its enemies while impressing Starfleet at the same time. Archer's growing into Being Evil. He lets the last Andorian ship go because "I want the other rebels to know what happened here." He's channeling the Female Shapeshifter from DS9.
Finally! Archer kills someone above him! "You're relieved Admiral." Then he vaporizes him. That's what I'm talking about! Where the Hell was this guy last episode?
Archer rallies the troops. They're getting their groove on!
When T'Pol tries to get Soval to help her to make a move against Archer, she mentions that Archer would lay waste to Vulcan. That line takes on a new meaning with the 2009 film. Added to the fact that Archer seems crazy now since he's seeing things. So Mirror Archer's like Dukat, the Female Shapeshifter, and Nero!
Now we have a bedroom scene between Archer and Sato that actually works. I like the lighting. It's back-lit and all we see in the foreground are silhouettes of them. While they talk about getting rid of T'Pol. So now both sides are planning against each other. Plotting to kill each other. It seems like the writers have finally warmed up to what the Mirror Universe should be.
"I've never been the consort of an Emperor before..."
So now we cut to the bridge and we finally have some real tension. The shot focusing on T'Pol was very deliberate. She's escorted off the bridge and Archer's large, in charge, and in command. I kind of hope he blows up the Admiral who's yelling at him after he demands that Starfleet surrender to him. He's the villain as in The Villain. I'm rooting for T'Pol and everyone else to take him down. So a villain he is. Last episode I wasn't feeling it. This episode, I am.
Sato vs. T'Pol. I'm kind of surprised Sato's holding her own in this fight... Then she's blasted down. The fights in this series are too short. They need to be longer. This fight in particular probably should've lasted twice as long as it did.
Now Archer's interrogating T'Pol, who says, "You will not prevail."
Soval learned about the mechanics of the Defiant really fast. He's a pro, instructing Phlox. Oh, well. Once Phlox does what he's supposed to, Soval attacks the Defiant. Big Berman Trek Battle. Sparks fly everywhere. Trip finds and stops Phlox and undoes what Phlox did. Primary Systems on the Defiant come back online. This feels like Star Trek As Usual again... then Archer destroys Soval's ship.
Archer's feeling like a Manly Man and he's in bed with Sato. Some great shots. Feels sensual. They drink. In hoping to become the Emperor with the help of the Defiant, Archer says the Empire is loyal to the Emperor. "They don't care who the Emperor is." Archer laughs. Then it's clear he's been poisoned with the drink... and Sato is now Empress Sato!
Once this episode got going, it got going. With only occasional lapses. I give it an 8.
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Now I also want to say, I don't see how anyone who likes these episodes, especially Part II, doesn't like DSC's Mirror Episodes. Discovery does what Part II of this Enterprise episode did even better. Tonally, I could just jump right into the Disco Episodes from here.
I feel like dismissing the DSC Mirror Universe episodes so casually has less to do with the episodes themselves and more to do with what they think of the series in general. And no, the DSC episodes do not cover the same ground. They do more with the Mirror Universe and in their own way. Just like ENT dealt with the Mirror Universe in its own way.
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Somehow this thread has escaped my attention all this time. Huh. I'll have to check it more often.
They did also use "away mission" in "Fight Or Flight" (ENT) and "Desert Crossing" (ENT).
The rest of the time it was either "landing party" or "boarding party" I think. But there's no reason these terms shouldn't all be interchangeable where appropriate. TOS did the same thing too, sometimes (although they didn't ever use "away team"); "landing party" was used interchangeably with "boarding party" in "Space Seed" (TOS) and with "shore party" in "The Return Of The Archons" (TOS), and the term "planet detachment" was uniquely used in "And The Children Shall Lead" (TOS). Early on, TNG used "landing party" interchangeably with "away team" too, and occasionally "away party."
Someone said "away team" got used interchangeably with "landing party" in DSC, also, but I can't recall the former offhand.
-MMoM
They only used "away team" in three episodes by my count: "Fortunate Son" (ENT), "Sleeping Dogs" (ENT), and "The Augments" (ENT). In the last, it referred to the very same group that had been called a "landing party" in the previous episode, "Cold Station 12" (ENT).
They did also use "away mission" in "Fight Or Flight" (ENT) and "Desert Crossing" (ENT).
The rest of the time it was either "landing party" or "boarding party" I think. But there's no reason these terms shouldn't all be interchangeable where appropriate. TOS did the same thing too, sometimes (although they didn't ever use "away team"); "landing party" was used interchangeably with "boarding party" in "Space Seed" (TOS) and with "shore party" in "The Return Of The Archons" (TOS), and the term "planet detachment" was uniquely used in "And The Children Shall Lead" (TOS). Early on, TNG used "landing party" interchangeably with "away team" too, and occasionally "away party."
Someone said "away team" got used interchangeably with "landing party" in DSC, also, but I can't recall the former offhand.
-MMoM
See? I know what I'm talking about... even when I have no idea what I'm talking about at all!
I had a sneaking suspicion they must've slipped "away team" in there somewhere in ENT. Why? Because I may not be as familiar with ENT as most other people here, but I am familiar with human psychology, and old habits die hard.
I see where my mistake lay with 'Away Team', I also counted the episodes that said 'away team' in annotation lines, not just in dialogue.
But it's actually 4 episodes, you missed 'Anomaly':
ARCHER: Have the away teams speed it up. I want to go to warp as soon as they're back.
I stand corrected in my correction!I see where my mistake lay with 'Away Team', I also counted the episodes that said 'away team' in annotation lines, not just in dialogue.
But it's actually 4 episodes, you missed 'Anomaly':
ARCHER: Have the away teams speed it up. I want to go to warp as soon as they're back.
-MMoM
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