monkee reviews 'Anomaly'
First Impression: A strong, coherent story that successfully conveys a sense of danger and desperation. Great special effects, too! If Enterprise continues like this, they'll be on the right track.
PORTHOS!!! The fearless space pup is back! I was so happy to see the little guy, and he still has great instincts! I hope some horrid anomaly doesn't turn him inside out...
Strange Things are Happening: With the ship traveling deeper into the Expanse, the frequency of odd anomalies is increasing throughout the ship. The deck plating distorts and knocks people over, food flies up to the ceiling in the mess hall, and Archer's coffee hovers over his desk. Not surprisingly, the anomalies quickly begin knocking out ship's systems as well, including the warp drive, weapons and communications. I suppose they're just lucky that none of the failures was catastrophic. I won't quibble on this, though – it was fun and creatively done.
Derelict Ship and Corpses: Forced out of warp, Enterprise detects another vessel, apparently a derelict, and limps over at impulse to investigate. All they find are corpses, though; the ship and crew were victims of an attack. They download the database, and hightail it out of there. The attackers may still be nearby.
This sequence was very well done. There's no gravity on the derelict ship, so we get to see Archer, Reed and the MACO's tromp around upside-down (down-side up?) in gravity boots. The ship is good and creepy, too, what with all those corpses floating around. ::shudder::
Not so Macho MACO's: One of the MACO's about jumps out of his skin when he finds the first corpse! Too bad Hoshi didn't see that. Maybe she'd have felt better about 'screaming like a twelve year-old' when it happened to her. I enjoyed the MACO's again this week. I like the military respect they show Archer, at least so far, and they served the ship very well throughout the episode.
Not so Modest MACO's: Inexplicably, they all suit up for the away mission in the same room. Men and women, sitting around in their skimpy underwear again. Have these 22nd Century people no modesty at all? I know, I know. Modesty doesn't bring in the ratings...There's another kick-ass tough girl MACO again this week, though – a different one from last week. I liked her, too!
The Void, Revisited: Predators prowl the expanse, hoping to take advantage of ships rendered powerless by the anomalies, much like what happened in Voyager's 'The Void.' The Enterprise soon becomes a victim. A boarding party beams aboard and begins stealing things, attacking anyone who tries to stop them. What struck me most about this sequence was how on top of things Enterprise's security was, assisted by the MACO's. There wasn't much they could do to stop the space thugs, but they were only half a step behind them all the way. In one episode, Enterprise's security managed to look more effective than Voyager's ever did! Trip even managed to capture one in Engineering, before they left the ship.
First Casualty: The consequences of the attack are significant, though. The boarding party takes weapons, half of the food stores, everything in Cargo Bay 2 and, the most serious loss, all of the antimatter storage pods. Enterprise only has enough antimatter for one month, then they're powerless and stuck in the Expanse. Most notably, Enterprise suffers its first fatality in two years – Crewman Fuller. We don't learn much about him except that he worked with Reed and knew the torpedo systems better than anyone else, but still – Archer's never lost a crewman before.
Dire Straights: The situation is so bad that the ship's first casualty is barely mentioned. There's no time for Archer, or anyone else, to ponder the implications in depth, although Reed does mention that given all the hostile aliens Enterprise has met, it's fortunate that they haven't lost even more people. Then Trip actually admits to Reed, out loud, that he doesn't think Enterprise is going to survive the Expanse. This episode did a good job showing us how quickly things can go to hell, and a ship can simply run out of options, something that Trek, in general, doesn't always do so well.
The Osaarian Prisoner: The injured man from the alien boarding party is treated and placed in the brig. He is an Osaarian, a species known to both the Denobulans and the Vulcans. He has a sob story to tell – his was one of two merchant ships, which entered the Expanse looking for trade routes. Spatial distortions damaged his ship and destroyed the other, and he and his crewmates were badly disfigured before they discovered that they needed Trillium D insulation (which is what was being mined in the season premier – a nice touch of continuity). They tried to leave the expanse, but discovered that they couldn't get past the thermobaric clouds at the perimeter going the other way. (This is news to Archer, by the way, and not good news!) They tried to hold on to their morals, but end up desperate enough to attack and kill in order to stay alive. Archer tells him that he needs what was stolen from him, and will do whatever it takes to get it back. He wants the Osaarian's assistance in tracking his ship. The Osaarian refuses, saying that he knows Archer won't torture him because he doesn't have what it takes to survive in the Expanse. It doesn't come to that, though, because Enterprise figures out how to track the ship without the Osaarian's help.
That's No Moon! Enterprise finds a large gap in the trail, and while they investigate it, they are pulled into a huge anomaly, at the heart of which is a moon-sized artificial sphere. They determine that the Osaarian ship spent eight hours there, and because desperate starship captains will tromp where angels fear to tread, Archer takes a pod, along with Reed, Mayweather and some MACO's, right into the thing! There they find modules with breathable atmosphere, which contain most of their stolen stuff, along with items stolen from many other ships.
Here's where the episode lost me a bit, because there was NO ONE guarding this stuff, so Enterprise summarily takes it all back! It was way too easy! I'll let it go, though, because the fan-boy in me really thought the sphere and all its related special effects were way kewl! It provided a really interesting backdrop and the camera angles were unique, especially later in the episode during the obligatory space battle sequence. Nice job!
The origin of the sphere remains a mystery. Although it's composed of many of the same materials found in the Osaarian ship, it's over a thousand years old, and probably wasn't constructed by them. What's more – it appears that the sphere itself is actually creating the anomalies throughout the region. I'm sure we'll be seeing more of this in episodes to come.
The Xindi Connection: Among the items found on the cargo manifest in the sphere is something that Hoshi discovers was stolen from a Xindi ship by the Osaarians. Archer goes to see the Osaarian prisoner. He wants information on the Xindi, and he wants it NOW. Earth is depending on him. The prisoner will not comply, once again mocking and goading Archer, certain that he won't follow through on his threats.
EQUINOX ARCHER: Archer is a man on the edge, though, so this turns out to be a bad strategy on the prisoner's part. Archer hauls him to an airlock and begins decompressing it while a horrified Reed looks on. The Osaarian is seconds from death when he agrees to answer Archer's questions.
Wow. The obvious comparison, of course, is with Janeway in Voyager's 'Equinox,' when she tortures Lessing for information. In both instances, the captains are angry and desperate – they've lost crewmembers, and are in danger of losing their ships. But is there a line that should simply never be crossed by a civilized person, no matter what? The point will be debated on Trek message boards for decades. Personally, I like to think there is such a line, and it should be even clearer a hundred a fifty years from now, in Archer's time. What's unsettling to me is that the episode doesn't explore this the way 'Equinox' did. There wasn't much time for it, with everything else that was going on. I'm hopeful, though, that at some point, Archer will do some soul-searching. Circumstances are changing him, and he needs to think about the implications. More on this later.
The Obligatory Space Battle: The Osaarian reveals that his ship did attack a Xindi vessel. They killed the crew, stole their stuff and downloaded their database. Archer wants that database, badly enough to risk Enterprise to get it. He lures the Osaarian ship back to the sphere. If they can just get close enough, for long enough, Hoshi can tap into their computer and retrieve the Xindi information. I enjoyed this more than I enjoy most Trek action sequences. It was tense, with both ships damaging each other and trading the upper hand several times. Both Mayweather and Hoshi play pivotal roles – Mayweather does some fancy flying and Hoshi is able to get 90% of the Xindi database before they're forced to disengage.
The Last Word: Archer leaves the Osaarian on the sphere, where his people will be able to find him. The Osaarian belligerently asserts that this just proves that Archer's morals will prevent him from being effective in the expanse. I guess the man just never learns!
I think Archer more than proved that he's capable of being a space thug, though. We'll just have to wait and see if he can, indeed, live with his remorse, or if it will cause him to question his actions in the future. I hope it does.
Challenge Your Preconceptions: I've said it before, and I'll say it again. One of Enterprise's original themes was 'challenging your preconceptions.' I find it unsettling that no one is doing that at all right now. I would like to see someone – preferably Archer, but anyone will do – question the voracity with which they are pursuing the Xindi based on so little reliable information. Yes, obviously there's a danger to Earth, and yes, they need to find the Xindi fast. But I wish someone would ponder WHY the Xindi attacked in the first place. I think, eventually, that will happen, and that's the beauty of doing such a broad arc. Right now, though, Archer is a man possessed, and if he doesn't take a step back, he may not respond rationally when he does finally find the Xindi.
In any case, I think we're in for an interesting ride!
Let's move on to the regular review features:
Character Interactions: Archer had the pivotal interactions this week, with the Osaarian, Reed and T'Pol. All were good. T'Pol was advising caution and alternatives, as a good XO should, but Archer was in no mood to hear it. His methods paid off; Enterprise now has the Xindi database to peruse, but at what cost? It may well be that T'Pol will have to be the one to make Archer see what he's become as this arc goes on. Mayweather and Hoshi both played important roles in the plot, but still didn't get much dialog or screen time. Phlox and Trip were both mired in the Vulcan neuro-pressure subplot, unfortunately, but they did have one amusing exchange.
'shipper Watch: Speaking of the Vulcan neuro-pressure subplot...it returns again this week. Trip and T'Pol aren't shown, but the time they're spending together is alluded to by both Reed and Phlox. Don't get me wrong, I am all for arcs and continuity, but it just didn't fit at all in this episode. The story ground to an abrupt halt whenever it came up. I don't mind the thread – I just think it could be blended in better. It reminded me of the old Paris/Kazon/spy subplot from Voyager's second season, which also disrupted every episode it appeared in. The ship is in serious trouble, here – why are we worrying about Trip's lack of sleep? Save it for a different kind of story next time!
Archer Watch: The character works in this kind of episode, because Archer's impatience and crankiness is truly warranted. I don't like it, necessarily, but at least I understand it. As I mentioned above, we'll need to see some Archer introspection, soon. He absolutely has to explore what he's becoming, or he won't be a sympathetic character at all. He had a terrific scene with Trip in 'The Expanse,' in which he discussed how the nature of Enterprise's mission had undergone a complete turnaround, and how he felt the weight of the world on his shoulders. I think we need to be reminded of Archer's motivations regularly with this new arc. He needs to have another heart-to-heart talk with someone. Soon, I hope. I want to see him in something other than pissed-off, desperation-driven revenge mode. I want to see him looking at all sides, considering motivations, options and alternatives. I want to see him behaving like the noble starship captains I've come to admire. I'm sure it'll happen – I just hope it happens soon.
My favorite Archer moment of the episode was a small one. He sits down at his desk, and sees the floating coffee and coffee mug out of the corner of his eye. He snatches the mug out of mid-air, and slams it down on the desk in disgust. That one action conveyed so much – a man feeling helpless as the situation spirals out of control. Good stuff.
Best Lines:
"Woof! Woof!" (Psychic Porthos, to Archer. Translation: "Dad! A book is about to fall on the floor – I can feel it in my bones! Watch your coffee!")
"Either we get away from these anomalies, or we're gonna have to re-write the book on warp theory, and I don't have to tell you how long it took Zefram Cochrane the first time around." (Trip, to Archer)
"He'll need to be under observation." "You can observe him in the brig." (Phlox and Archer, regarding the Osaarian.)
"I don't think you'd be very comfortable torturing another man. You and your crewmates are far too civilized for that. Too moral." (Osaarian, to Archer)
"I need what was stolen from me. There's too much at stake for me to let my 'morality' get in the way." (Archer, to Osaarian)
"I triple-dog-dare you to torture me!" "Okay!" (Osaarian and Archer. Not really, but that's what it amounted to!)
"All I'm saying is that this mission, whether it succeeds or not, is looking like a one-way ticket all the time." (Trip, to Reed)
"Aldebaran mud leeches. Place one on your chest, and one on your abdomen. Their secretions act as natural sedatives. Oh, and be careful to sleep on your back. If you roll over, you might anger them." (Phlox, to Trip)
"Maybe an hour a night with T'Pol isn't so bad." (Trip, to Phlox)
"The airlock is decompressing, Sir. He'll die!" "Not for another twenty seconds, he won't." (Reed and Archer)
"This is Captain Archer. Remember us? You've probably noticed that our weapons are back on-line, so STAND DOWN!" (Archer, to Osaarian ship)
"So, you let your morality get in the way after all. Mercy is not a quality that will serve you well in the Expanse." (Osaarian, to Archer. Ingrate.)
Rating: It had a few flaws, but in general, it was a terrific episode. 9/10.
Next Week: Enterprise's version of TNG's 'Genesis.' Archer de-evolves and behaves like an animal. More so than usual, I mean. <g>
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