Cruising
through a prequel galaxy, the crew of the Enterprise has to
pay particular attention to every planet they encounter and
every species they meet. One poor choice, and they could destroy
continuity that has been established for over thirty years.
In
their second season they already don't have a clean record.
In fact, the entire show is based on the adventures of a crew
that was never mentioned before. However, Enterprise
has been succeeding at its mission. And this week was no exception.
Two
weeks ago, in the season premiere, Captain Archer was tossed
into a forgotten library of the 31st century. While there
he read the spine of book labeled "The Romulan Star Empire."
It should've been named "Foreshadowing." At the time it seemed
like a cute reference to the second rate villains we've loved
to hate since the original series. (Or a nice advertisement
for Star Trek: Nemesis to hit theaters this winter.
Or a floor wax and a dessert topping.)
In
actuality, it was a reminder that the Romulans are out there.
And we met them this week. But meeting the Romulans in the
22nd century is more difficult than the Ferengi, Nausicans
or Andorians. It can be assumed that humanity met these aliens
before Kirk or Picard did.
But
it was clearly established on the original Star Trek
("Balance of Terror" -- o.g. geek Derek)
that the humans fought a war against the Romulans and never
saw their faces. In that episode, the humans discovered that
Romulans are cousins of the Vulcans, a dramatic device created
to make the crew of the NCC-1701 Enterprise think Spock was
a spy. At the time an interesting twist - but one that was
a little too convenient, and it has now come back to haunt
Trek lore.
T'Pol
knew the Romulans by name, and described them as "a territorial
people." Just last week our favorite (okay, only) Vulcan
uber-babe rewrote history (her great grandma landed on Earth
before the first recorded human contact with aliens). And
she'll do it again, too. Place your bets now: before series'
end the crew of Enterprise will know the secret of the Romulans.
The producers of Enterprise won't be able to resist.
Nitpicking
aside, this was a very good episode. Instant classic Trek,
and not just because the Romulans cloaked around causing trouble.
The Enterprise experienced the most damage she has yet, when
a mine took a bite out of the saucer section. And the drama
of the armory officer Reed trapped by a ticking mine on the
outer haul of the ship was as suspenseful to watch as Dr.
Crusher searching for her rapidly disappearing crew members
(That's just one of my favorite TNG episodes - "Remember Me"
- you pick your own, and fill in the analogy, that way you
know what I'm talking about - kinda like a madlib).
While
admittedly Enterprise stands on the success of 4 other
Treks, it's exploring whole new territory in storytelling.
Rarely would a scene last for more than a few minutes on any
Trek (with minor exceptions - Picard's retelling of
his Nausican bar fight, and a few long winded speeches on
DS9). But it seems every other week there is an entire
act (the time between commercial breaks) that takes place
in one location, telling one story. It's like watching a staged
drama, uh, with CGI effects.
This
evolution could be chalked up to trial and error. After four
generations of spin offs we've seen some conventions stay
and others go. And Trek Darwinism selected the ready
room/war room/briefing room for extinction.
On
Enterprise, we have the very classy Captain's dining
room. How cool is it that Captain Archer has his own dinner
table? This week he enjoyed breakfast with an uncomfortable
Reed in a very funny scene. We've seen the most truth about
the characters on Enterprise in this most realistic
environment. Hey, it works at home, too. And best of all -
there are no Talaxians running around burning Denari roots.
The Captain's dining room is the simplest clever Trek convention
created since the transporter.
Beaming
into next week we learn what happens to the huge bite taken
out of the Enterprise. One of the ancient mines left a huge
hole in the saucer section, and there aren't any starbases
in the original final frontier. Fortunately, there are mysterious
automated repair facilities.
It
looks like next week is a darker episode, dealing with an
almost Twilight Zone premise possibly a crossover to
UPN's newest sci-fi drama, which just so happens to be on
RIGHT AFTER ENTERPRISE . . .
do
do do doo
do do do doo
do do do doo
do do do daaaah!
As long
as new Twilight Zone host Forrest Whitaker doesn't reprise
his Battlefield Earth role on Enterprise, we
should be fine. Now that would be creepy.
