Deranged Nasat, how do you fit in the "Vulcan Defense Force" from Kobayashi Maru and The Romulan War and the "Vulcan Defense Directorate" from The Romulan War: Beneath the Raptor's Wing? And do you consider "Vulcan Council" synonymous with "Vulcan High Council"? *frustrated grunt* The terminology for the divisions of the Vulcan government is so convoluted.
Of course, the fact that this is the 22nd Century and the Universal Translator isn't perfect does open up the possibility that some of these are just different translations for the same office or agency. Sort of like how the leader of Israel's office in Hebrew literally translates to "the Head of the Government," but is translated into English as "the Prime Minister."
Since there's a Science Directorate led by a Science Council and a Security Directorate (also called Security Ministry, I think Sci is right that we're getting different translations for the same divisions, and we should embrace that explanation wherever possible), and a Space Program/Space Service, I assume that the Defense Directorate is just another division alongside these and that the leading Councils of all these specialized divisions collectively form the High Assembly (probably the Council or High Council is the same thing or a selected group of senior members of same?) and they support/report to/legitimate the High Command, at least prior to the Syrranite revolution. With the High Command a leadership that is supposed to run with input from the Council but really calls all the shots and has become ossified as an entrenched military power populated by former Defense Directors to the point that it's essentially, in outlook if not legally, a military government. Very Cardassia-esque in a way. The way I piece it together: Vulcan High Command Administrator, aided by ministers who form the Vulcan High Council (AKA The Council, Vulcan Council) Itself drawn from members of the Vulcan High Assembly Itself the combined leaders of the various divisions: Vulcan Defence Directorate AKA Vulcan Defence Ministry (runs the Vulcan Defence Force) Vulcan Diplomatic Corps (includes Vulcan Advisory Council) Vulcan Information Ministry (or Directorate, I assume) Vulcan Science Directorate (led by Vulcan Science Council, runs Vulcan Science Academy) Vulcan Security Directorate AKA Vulcan Security Ministry, includes the V'Shar. Vulcan Space Program (led by Vulcan Space Council, incorporates Vulcan Space Service, Vulcan National Merchant Fleet, Vulcan Space Central) Vulcan Ministry of Silly Walks... okay this one doesn't really exist. Anyway, something like that, at least!
Well, chapter one comes before the episode and chapter two comes after it, but I thought it best to read and review them together since they both deal with the Dokaalan probe discovery and splitting them seemed pointless. The references to "Breaking the Ice" are minor, so...the episode review following on from A Time to Sow chapter two is the equivalent of a FIVE MINUTES AGO... I could have done it the other way round, but since chapter one shows the Ti'Mur heading off toward Enterprise I thought I'd have that come first. Also, I follow no logic in this thread save my whims . Like the Andorians, I am not a part of this system and will not submit to rationality.
"Breaking the Ice" The series is definitely choosing to play the Human-Vulcan conflict as its dominant theme, and rightly so. The quality of these stories has been raised quite consistently by having such a complicated set-up that can be explored across multiple episodes. There's so much to work with here, and each episode contributes to the overall mythos, which I like. In this one we have a resurgence of the Humans' mistrust for T'Pol, which results in Trip snooping around in her private mail and then feeling guilty - as well as annoyed with the Vulcans for being so reflexively sneaky that they wind up looking that suspicious to begin with. I like the Trip-T'Pol relationship, in that both in a sense live down to their species' stereotypes, to how each race appears in the eyes of the other, while not being anywhere near reduced to them. Both characters embody the sense that both Vulcans and Humans have a point. Re-watching these early episodes, I'm impressed with the character work. I can't recall if it lasts - I know I consider season two weaker than season one, and indeed the weakest of the four - but for now the writers are doing a good job. As interesting as the Vulcan stuff is, most important to this episode is the reminder that Enterprise is on a truly historic mission, and they have celebrity status back on Earth because of it. Humanity as a whole is watching as best it can, invested in the success of the mission. I love the recorded question and answer scene for the children - it's funny, and it reinforces the sense that this is all new to Humans. They don't yet have a picture of what it's like in deep space. I'm glad that civilian Earth is getting a look in - that we're being given the sense that Archer and co represent Humanity as a whole, not just Starfleet. It also reinforces the sense that the issue is how Vulcans feel about Humans (yes, feel, Vulcans, don't deny it), not just how they feel about Archer. There's also a nice recurrence this episode of the sense of joy in exploration presented so effectively in "Strange New World", as Archer tells everyone to find a window and just enjoy the view. On the other hand, once Vanik arrives Archer tightens up considerably, and rebukes Reed and Mayweather for playing around, reminding them that the Vulcans are watching (and judging). (Of course, Reed and Mayweather decide to then Vulcanise their snowman before blowing it up, so I don't think they were really paying attention there...) Continuity: Vanik also speaks English to the Humans, since his line to T'Pol in a Vulcan language isn't understood by Trip and Archer; no translator in the dining room, it seems. The encounter (if that's the right word) with a Vulcan ship at a planetary nebula a few weeks prior wasn't shown on screen and hasn't featured in lit. The increased Vulcan attention makes sense after P'Jem, as A Time to Sow acknowledged. Be fair, Archer, you did help sabotage their intelligence operations after blundering randomly into the situation; they're definitely going to consider you someone worth watching now. Phlox names his home system as Denobula Triaxa. First Appearances of Things That Are Important: The beautiful Vulcan starships make their first appearance. Like the T'plana-hath from First Contact they feature a deep red hull colouration (the books, e.g. "Catalyst of Sorrows", have confirmed that red is a soothing colour to Vulcanoids, in contrast to the aggressive and dangerous associations attached to green. While Romulan ships are blood-coloured raptors, Vulcan ships are subdued, relaxing reconstructions of the IDIC symbol - a triangular point piercing a circle). They're equipped with tractor beams - not the first time we've seen those because the Evil Poachers in "Flight or Fight" used one, but the first time we're given a clear demonstration of Vulcan technical supremacy outside of speed. T'Pol's fiancé Koss is mentioned/introduced. We'll get to meet him in season four. Next Time: "Civilization". There aren't as many lit entries for Enterprise as for other series, so it'll be a string of episodes until we reach What Price Honour? Bear with me!
^ I thought that this set up nicely the slow burn of the Trip/T'Pol relationship and the fact that it would be slow. They are the pioneers of a Vulcan/Human relationship, charting new territory. Very much saw the chemistry from this first big one-on-one interaction between them.
"Civilization" Between the teaser scene in which the various phenomena within range of sensors aren't enough to interest the senior staff (neutron stars and supernova remnants, booooring) to the decision to go down in person to Akaali, it's clear that the mission of Enterprise is less about comprehensive scientific investigation and more about flying around in search of something fun to stick your fingers into. Which I quite like, actually, as it reinforces that this is an adventure for the crew, that they have no mission other than an open-ended mandate of spreading their wings and seeing what's out there. That said, Hoshi does seem very content just sitting on the bridge listening to the various native languages of the Akaali, so pure research does have its supporters among the crew. "Starfleet could've sent a probe out here to make maps and take pictures, but they didn't. They sent us so that we could explore with our own senses". Fair enough! Getting a feel for the interstellar community and for other species, and dealing with its more complicated and "interesting" elements of space travel is probably more important for a first long-range mission than cataloguing phenomena a robot could easily handle. We have our first cultural infiltration mission in this episode, and unless you count the Novans we also have the first alien culture who are technologically subpar compared to Humans. I always enjoy having the rubber foreheads be actual rubber foreheads. Though they're lucky the Akaali don't identify each other by complex scent cues or something. The translator breaks down again. A nice touch; even when it's not having problems with a language, it's still not entirely reliable. Maybe it just had an overload. Or tried to translate whatever animal Riann mentioned and couldn't come up with anything. Did you have to mention the dog, Archer? Continuity The villains are from the Malurian System. As with Axanar, this is a pleasing use of a name established back in the original series. In this case, the Malurian System was sterilized by the Murder-Probe, Nomad. (I think you misunderstood, Nomad, it was the lubricant that needed neutralizing, not the actual Malurians themselves). Still, as welcome as the use of an established name is, the episode does raise a slight problem. The eradication of the Malurians seems strange when they have powerful warp-capable starships of great sophistication a century earlier. The Rise of the Federation novels bring Garos back as a recurring villain, and offer an implicit explanation for part of this mystery - Malurian females are rather sedentary and the species has little interest in deep space as a general rule. Garos' band - his political/economic/familial "alignment" - is on the outermost circle of their society to the point that it's basically renegade. Garos himself was nothing special as a villain, but his particular form of villainy was interesting. I can see why the decision was made in the novels to make Garos' Malurians an independent criminal band, rather than working with homeworld or government support; I can't understand why the Malurians weren't brought back later in the TV series. I guess the Suliban have the "covert, face-changing enemy" down already, but there was potential in the idea of this quiet exploitation of other planets' resources. No grand plan, just unscrupulous business ventures. The Malurian ship has deflector shields, technology that is new to the Humans. Akaali is 78 light-years from Earth (Terra Nova was 20, we'll later learn that Risa is 90 and Vulcan is 16). This is actually the first mention of Tellarites. Garos apparently has a rivalry of some sort with a "rather ugly Tellarite merchant". Is this Tellarite also meddling around on Akaali? Or has been in the past? The episode does show how vulnerable technologically underdeveloped worlds are, and the Akaali are probably lucky that they aren't being regularly harvested for their lymphatic fluids by Evil Poachers, or raided by Nausicaans. **** "Fortunate Son" Now this is interesting. The episode overall is incredibly average, but the introduction of a distinct Human culture is a welcome addition to the setting. We see here that the Human freighter crews have established their own communal identity out in space. For the first time, we're introduced to Mayweather's people, the "Space Boomers", who have established their own way of life and - more to the point with some of them - their own little fiefdoms out here. There's a nice sense of resentment toward Starfleet that mirrors to some degree Starfleet's resentment of the Vulcans (we can do this ourselves, stop looking in on us!) while in another sense being nothing like it. The fact that the NX breakthrough represents change is stressed here; the freight-haulers' way of life is threatened, their generational traditions risk being rendered obsolete, and their people are poached by the expanding Starfleet. On the plus side, these advances bring increased security, and an ability to protect cargoes and livelihoods from pirates. It's nice to see some acknowledgement that the Human way of life will change as missions like Enterprise's start to become common, that all Humans are affected in some way; again, that this launch is a Big Thing, as a harbinger for change as well as embodying change itself. As with Garos and his Malurians in the previous episode, it's also good to have antagonists who function as part of an economic ecosystem out here. We're told that Nausicaan raiders have been attacking Earth shipping for years. Nausicaan pirate bands - babby's first interstellar opponent! You get to move on to Romulans after a while, and if you're really successful you'll get Jem'Hadar or even Borg. The Nausicaans are interesting in their way. These Nausicaans are more articulate than usual, since not only do they speak but they actually use full sentences, but still, my assumption with the Nausicaans is that they didn't invent warp drive or advanced technology on their own. I assume that they were introduced to it by aliens and adopted it without their culture or mindset changing very much. That they're essentially warring tribes running around with spears, and have adapted to a way of life they didn't have to work toward in the usual way. Clever, but not having to go through any great, slow process of transformation or cultural adaptation. Unlike Humans. Indeed, the Nausicaans don't turn around and say to Archer, "Oh yeah? Well we'll have bigger, shinier, kill-ier ships too, and so nothing will really change". Because they won't. I don't think we needed Archer and Mayweather's conversation about where Ryan was going wrong. The point was made well enough without that and it was a bit pat. Still, the idea that Ryan's major failing is his (perhaps unknowing) hypocrisy, in saying that he has the interests of the entire freighter community in mind while actually pursuing his own emotional gratification and in doing so putting that community at greater risk, is a good one. An interesting and slightly unconventional angle on why his behaviour is problematic. Continuity This is, I believe, the first time we've seen Archer talk directly with Earth in real time. Obviously the crew were receiving and sending transmissions - answering children's questions, etc. - but I assumed there was usually a lag, that reports were sent off in bursts. The reception isn't good here, though Archer mentions that they'll soon be dropping subspace amplifiers (spoiler: Shroomies will get them). Forrest mentions the pictures of Archer's Comet they sent in "Breaking the Ice". Next Time: "Cold Front".
However, it's worth pointing out that the excellent "Communications Breakdown" in the Tokyopop manga establishes that there were spacegoing Malurians who survived even though all life on the planet(s) had been wiped out. Not a lot, but some. Perhaps not as written, but I really liked the actor, Wade Williams, and his impressive voice. That's why I brought the character back in ROTF. Actually I think I just figured that if the dominant culture eschewed travel and colonization beyond the home system, then it made sense for a spacefaring group -- who were criminals in the episode anyway -- to be renegades among their own people. I agree. I wish the show had done more with the Space Boomers.
Deranged Nasat, just wanted to say this is the coolest thread, thank you for all the hard work so far. I'm really loving it
This always bothered me about ENT, the seeming lack of planning that went into the NX-01's mission. Surely Earth's first warp-five vessel would have a whole itinerary worked out in advance? You wouldn't just run it by having the captain wake up one day and go, "Gee, whatever happened to Terra Nova anyway?" Also, no one thought to think up an alert protocol in advance?
I like what you've established so far about the Malurian biology and how it implicitly explains their desire to stay at home. Since Malurian society apparently consists of groups of Human-sized males attending larger and sedentary females, it would make sense that the male Malurian mindset is inherently inward-looking. Even Garos is focused very much on home. I do wonder, though, what happens to those survivors you mention. Even if a few females did survive outside Maluria, is there a process wherein males can align themselves to a new female? Orphaned bands of male Malurians with nothing left to live for might cause trouble, for other alignments or to aliens... Thanks. I've been wanting to do this for a long time.
I don't think they have any protocols. Reed wants some, but he's a lone voice crying out in the wilderness and he's easily distracted by giving him explosives. Protocol? Did you just use the P-word, crewman? What are you, one of them there Vulcans?
"Cold Front" The aliens we meet in this episode show a different attitude to space travel than the crew are used to. I love Captain Fraddock's greeting - "pleased to meet you, what do you want?" The working man in space. Along with the pilgrims taking a trip to their favoured celestial phenomenon by hiring out a transport, the episode gives us a sense of the existing spacefaring community for whom it's all rather mundane; there are people out here for whom space travel isn't a great adventure but just a job, or else something that simply gets you to your destination. The introduction of a religion that includes members of several species from different worlds is also a nice touch. Okay, on to important temporal matters. We don't know what or who to fully believe or what's really going on, but at this stage it's more interesting to have questions than answers. If only the show actually answered them... Still, on its own merits what we have here is interesting enough. One day time travel will be understood, utilized, and then monitored. Everyone agrees it will be used only for research, and then they presumably all burst out laughing and fall out of their chairs. Oh, that's a good one. Research. Sure. Someone needs to enforce this Accord, and it seems that's Daniels' people. It takes a while to perfect time travel, as in the 28th Century certain factions can communicate through time but not actually travel through it, while by the 31st Century they've perfected it. Daniels is "mostly" Human, which probably references some non-Human ancestors (very common by his time if the amount of hybrids we'll see in the 24th Century is anything to go on) and/or augmentations/enhancements (if the Humans ever get over their deep distrust of such). As for what Future Guy is up to and how Daniels' organization works, we'll have to wait until we reach Watching the Clock, which will... take a while. 22nd Century sensors can't detect Suliban Cabalists, but Porthos can. Smell, I assume, or simple animal awareness of presence? First Appearances of Things That Are Important Phasing. Daniels has a device that allows him (and any untrained ape, it seems) to place himself out of phase and travel easily through the walls. As ever, the floor is a constant throughout any and all phase continuums. Movie Night! That's important... Continuity: Trip mentions his experience in the holographic chamber of the Xyrillian ship. It's good that characters are allowed to do things like this - refer back to experiences they've had in other episodes that would logically come to mind in the current situation. Earth is confirmed to still have its popular organized religions, which I'm sure it logically would have, but this is all a bit controversial to some fans. The Great Plume of Agosoria will be mentioned by Trip next season, during one of his alien buddy episodes ("Dawn", specifically, when he's stranded with an Arkonian pilot). In the novels, the Plume is mentioned in The Mirror-Scaled Serpent, a Mirror Universe story. A Vulcan artist named S'larok painted a picture of it, and the piece ends up in the possession of Gul Evek. Other than that, we haven't been back. Nor have the Borothans (the thorny-chinned people) shown up. The other Agosoria species, that of Prah Mantoos (the wavy-ridged people) hasn't been identified. Nor has Fraddock's species. Next Time: "Silent Enemy". When Mushroom Men attack!
Allegedly. We'll see "later" (in your chronological sequence, earlier in production order) that the technology to travel in time is available as early as the first decade of the 25th century ("Firstborn," "Endgame") and is routine by the 26th ("A Matter of Time"). This is one of the reasons I concluded that Daniels is a big fat liar. "Animal awareness" is simply a matter of having sharper senses of smell, vision (sometimes extending into infrared or ultraviolet), or hearing than humans have, or in some cases a tactile awareness of air currents caused by movement.
Yeah, just like NASA pointed Apollo 11 into space and hoped it came across something interesting, and figured their astronauts would muddle their way through a few days in space.
Or when Christopher Columbus sailed west and hoped for the best! Er...maybe that's not the best example.
Y'know if Daniels did indeed survive his disintegration by Silik because his agency extracted him out at thre last second or something like the crew of the timeship Relativity, then the 31st century must have fantastic transporter tech! (The temporal transporter of the 29th century Relativity seemed to take as painfully long as any 24th century transporter. Then again, Luther Sloan was somehow beamed out visually undetected in "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges".