twilight

[Newspaper Taxi]

I really can’t figure out why this episode was so critically acclaimed, or so I’d heard it was at the time it originally aired. Is it because it showed a grim future for humanity and actually shoed Earth being destroyed? Why? Right off the bat we knew that it’d have to be one of the biggest reset episodes ever seen in Star Trek, being matched only by the VOY episode it rehashes – Year of Hell. So what’s so great about reset button episodes?

From the start of the Xindi Arc you know that Earth isn't going to be destroyed because Earth exists in the future series of Star Trek so that point is somewhat moot. Most of the Xindi drama came from the Enterprise crew having to tackle a bigger challenge and adapt themselves to an unfriendly environment.

Twilight is essentially "The Bad Ending" to the third season of Enterprise. Naturally, you couldn't end the season with Earth getting destroyed because that would unravel everything -- but with this episode, you not only got to see this idea contemplated, but you also go to see it taken pretty far. Humanity was really facing extinction at that point.

While this might not seem like the biggest deal, consider the Dominion War. Did we ever get to see an episode in which the Dominion won the war and the Federation of Planets were disbanded into individual pieces of property of the Dominion? Glimpses of a dark world where even humans and Vulcans are forced to worship Vortas and Founders by penalty of death? No, we didn't. The closest we got was an episode where Bashir and a few other genetically engineered geniuses put together a theory that the Federation's victory is mathematically impossible...but by the end of the episode they realized it was a bogus theory. (EDIT: Unless I'm forgetting an episode.)

Twilight was special because it let us see "The Bad Ending" without preventing the heroes to eventually create "The Happy Ending." It's not all that often you get both.

 

[Captain X]

The thing is, Trek has done episodes like that before, and it's always pointless. It's just an excuse to kill everyone and destroy the main ship because we know that the reset button will get pushed before the end of the episode. Nothing eve comes of twilight or any other such reset button. The only one I can think of that had any consequence was Yesterday's Enterprise.

With DS9, that was a character drama. We pretty much knew that the Federation would win since they are the "good guys", so most of what happened dealt with the crew and how they were dealing with it. And for a while there, they actually considered having the Federation lose the war so the next series could be about restoring the Federation. The point is we didn't really know what would happen the way we did with ENT because ENT was a prequel. Placing Earth in danger fell flat, and showing it blown up made me roll my eyes because I knew everything would be right back to the status quo by the end of the episode.

 

[Captain59]

Hoshi's hair looked cute and much better in this episode.

Any episode that starts with Earth being destroyed is going to catch my attention. I liked the subtle evidence that T'Pol hd grown closer to Archer, like calling him Jonathan and putting her hand on his shoulder while walking by him in his Enterprise quarters.

 

[angie]

Hoshi's hair looked cute and much better in this episode.

Any episode that starts with Earth being destroyed is going to catch my attention. I liked the subtle evidence that T'Pol hd grown closer to Archer, like calling him Jonathan and putting her hand on his shoulder while walking by him in his Enterprise quarters.

I especially liked Archer's reaction to the signs of closeness--great way to enforce the idea Archer doesn't remember.

 

[SFRabid]

I don't mind the reset or the ending at the beginning. That has been done countless times on TV and in theater. The trick is pulling the audience into the story or action to a point that they focus so much on what is happening that they let go of the ending they already saw.

I don't mind parasites that live outside of time. The entire series of DS9 was built upon beings that live outside of time and their charge, The Sisko.

"That's silly" is a relative term and one I try to avoid. 90 percent of my friends think anything dealing with Star Trek is silly and impossible. It is strange to see a fan of science fiction use that term about science fiction that they don't like. To me that is like someone from Jersey telling someone from the south they talk funny.

 

[Captain X]

My biggest problem with the parasites is that they were a contrived plot device. These parasites had never been a problem associated with the anomalies before the episode and they were never a problem after it - they showed up exclusively for that episode, and exclusively infected Archer even though the anomaly passed through the ship in order to get to him, and through more of the ship as it left. T'Pol wasn't more than a few feet away and she didn't have anything to show for it, other than being made to look weak and pathetic so Archer had an excuse to "rescue" her so he'd be there to get infected and thus we have a plot. And this isn't even getting into the other character assassinations or how much of a Gary Stu it made Archer since he was literally the only one who could save humanity.

 

[SFRabid]

My biggest problem with the parasites is that they were a contrived plot device. These parasites had never been a problem associated with the anomalies before the episode and they were never a problem after it - they showed up exclusively for that episode, and exclusively infected Archer even though the anomaly passed through the ship in order to get to him, and through more of the ship as it left. ...:

Sadly that is true, but it is also a standard formula for adventure stories of any genera and media.

 

[Captain X]

Which is why the vast majority of them suck.

 

[Seven of Five]

I liked Twilight, it was a good, Year of Hell-esque plot. I agree that what-if scenarios have been played out in Trek so many times that you just expect a reset button at the end of the episode - generally there has to be one, otherwise it wouldn't be a what-if episode. The trick is whether the plot is interesting enough in the first place to draw you in to the whole madness. I certainly think Twilight was, what with the desperate future for humanity, T'Pol's devotion to helping Archer and, of course, Captain Trip. It wasn't ENT's finest hour, but it's solid Top 10 for me.

 

[commodore64]

^ Captain Tucker -- I really didn't think he was that good, nor did his captaincy take up for more than about ten minutes of the show. I really disliked the whole "Hired by who!!!!!" Over the top. Trip's best part, in my opinion and something they should've used in season 3 in general, was when he snarled that they should've sent the captured Xindi out of the airlock. Now, that's drama! Watching him seek revenge is way more interesting than watching him mope for a season. Too bad we didn't get that Trip during the true season.

More over, it was exciting seeing T'Pol so incredibly competent. Having the crew as a whole and Archer possibly in particular need her, seemed to prevent a catastrophic drug addiction. (Things that make you go hmmm.)

In addition, I liked the theme of self-sacrifice based on friendship. Archer made a sacrifice to save T'Pol and she felt compelled to do the same for him. Loyalty and caring is always touching to watch, which is why this episode remains a real treat -- in other words, no phoney baloney neuropressure/sexual tension/Decon treatment. People caring about each other without any trappings. What a concept! Kirk would've made that sacrifice for Spock and vice versa. Classic.

Not my favorite Enterprise episode, but probably my second favorite.