monkee reviews 'Cogenitor'

Holy Sh*t!

Promo Impressions: Who wrote that godawful thing? I've been avoiding spoilers, so I was expecting a lightweight, ridiculous Braga and Berman sex episode. I swear, if I didn't write reviews, I'd have been sorely tempted to SKIP this one based on that promo. And just look at what I might have missed!

First Impressions: Brilliant, complex, troubling and profoundly sad. And I think Enterprise's second season has brought the show to a whole new level.

No Clear-cut Target for our Anger: The story was so complex, I didn't know WHO to be angry with. I settled for being angry with everyone.

• Charles 'Trip' Tucker: Even though his heart was in the right place, he has to top the list. The road to hell is paved with good intentions, they say, and they'd sure be right in this case. HOW, HOW, HOW could he have not considered the possible repercussions of what he was doing? Not just for the Enterprise, Archer, and Vissian culture in general, but for the cogenitor, too. Even if he was dead convinced that he was in the right on moral grounds, he went about it all wrong, and failed to consider the consequences, if things didn't work out, for the very person he was trying to help.

• The Vissians: They seemed like such intelligent, reasonable people. How could they be so deliberately obtuse? How could they completely ignore the facts in front of them? I know their ways have developed slowly over centuries, and possibly it's more complicated that the humans on Enterprise (and the human viewers) can imagine. The engineer said it was a delicate balance, and he obviously believed all was as it was fated to be. He also seemed sensitive about the issue, though. Maybe there's already a movement on the Vissian homeworld for cogenitor rights, and we just caught them in the midst of an evolutionary step. Maybe we'll find out later.

• Archer: I was mad at him, too, for not granting the cogenitor sanctuary, even though I know he was probably right not to. S/he had turned so quickly into such a likeable individual, it was impossible not to draw comparisons to Data's Lal, or Voyager's Tuvix.

• The Cogenitor: Yep, even the poor cogenitor didn't escape my wrath, because I so wished s/he could have been stronger. That's not fair, of course, but there you are. The cogenitor, or 'Charles,' as s/he had decided to be called, was only with the Vissian couple temporarily. Perhaps s/he could have created a better situation for him/herself in time. More on this later, though. S/he just couldn't be, as Timicin said in TNG's 'Half a Life,' 'the one to lead the revolution.' So, like Timicin, and Vorin, the young oral history recorder in TNG's 'Homeward,' the cogenitor was forced to take the only option s/he felt s/he had left.

Tragic Figure: For me, the name the cogenitor chose, Charles, held significance beyond it being Tucker's name. The cogenitor reminded me strongly of Charlie, the protagonist in 'Flowers for Algernon.' S/he just learned too much, too fast, and couldn't cope when it was abruptly taken away. There's a built-in manic depressive aspect to what happened to him/her, and no one is strong enough to withstand that. *Sob*

And because we'd seen him/her go from a practically lifeless automaton, to someone whose eyes were full of joy and light, the loss at the end was brutal, if predictable.

Powerful Silent Moment: When Archer enters Trip's quarters after making his decision, he didn't say a word. He didn't have to. The acting by all three was sublime. And the very next shot was of the two ships undocking. So nicely done.

Basic Human Rights: As T'Pol and Archer correctly point out, Trip is attempting to force 'basic human rights' into a situation that doesn't involve humans. But shouldn't there be 'basic lifeform rights?' I think that in order to enforce such a thing, you need to have more of a consensus. Maybe the various species in this area of space will get together and form some kind of, say, Federation for just such a purpose...It's never going to be easy, and on Star Trek we'll see humans struggling with these issues for centuries to come, and beyond.

And Speaking of Interference...Those Vissians were pretty fast and loose with their technology! They offered Enterprise and her crew all kinds of technology short cuts. It seemed ill advised. Haven't they seen 'Friendship One?' Maybe this is another good reason to form a Federation!

Shade of Gray: COUNTLESS, wonderful shade of gray, here, and I've already mentioned a few. Look at Archer. He's justifiably angry at Trip, but you can tell he's angry with himself, too, for a) failing to set a good enough example and b) probably also for not granting Charles sanctuary. The decision was difficult for him, and I'm sure he wanted to give him/her the chance to blossom into the individual s/he was capable of being, even if it meant destroying yet another First Contact. But he had to consider the repercussions of even that decision, not just on Starfleet, but also on Vissian culture. He was damned either way.

The Vissian Captain: Another nice, gray area. On many other Trek episodes, he'd have left in a huff, and First Contact would have been a complete fiasco. 'Cogenitor' was realistic and mature enough to give us a thoughtful alien leader who, though disappointed and angry at turn of events, has spent enough time bonding with Archer not to discount humans and Starfleet entirely. Andreas Katsulas is to be commended for the dimension he gave this character, and since I haven't mentioned it already, all of the guest actors, particularly the ones playing the cogenitor (Becky Wahlstrom) and the engineer (F.J. Rio), were outstanding this week.

Seducing Malcolm: Sigh. Well, it couldn't ALL be perfect. The subplot involving Reed and the seductive Vissian armory officer felt completely out of place to me, like it was added in as filler at the end or something. It was unnecessary and unfortunate, and the story ground to an abrupt halt whenever it cropped up. The episode was strong enough to be exceptional anyway, but the B-story will keep it from scoring a perfect 10. Too bad.

Character Interactions: That's what it was all about this week! Trip's with the cogenitor were the standouts, of course, but honorable mention goes to Archer's scenes with the Vissian captain, both on the Vissian shuttle, and back on Enterprise. Trip had some good scenes with both Phlox and T'Pol as well, and the final Trip and Archer scene was most powerful in the episode. More kudos to Connor Trinneer, who I think may well be my choice for the show's strongest actor.

Archer Watch: As I've mentioned before, Bakula always plays Archer too angry and brooding for my taste, but when there's a damned good reason for both, as there was this week, it's very effective! I think my favorite Archer moment of the season is the last shot of this episode, where he brusquely dismisses Trip, then stares out at the warp stars in anguish. I'm getting choked up now just thinking about it! And Archer was terrific with the Vissian captain. His 'golly gee, what a cool ship you have' approach to First Contact was a nice match with the Vissian captain's 'golly gee, tell me more about this Shakespeare' approach. The friendship they were able to develop at least salvaged something out of the unfortunate incident.

'shipper Watch: T'Pol was frustrated with Trip, who still refuses to challenge his preconceptions too much for her taste. And she was nicely supportive of the torn Archer. As I've mentioned, I could have lived without the Reed romance, but that's the way it goes...

PORTHOS! There was even an understated Porthos appearance to appreciate! Nothing major – he was just there for a troubled Archer. Nice.

Best Lines:
"Keep an open mind, Commander. You came out here to meet new species. No matter how many genders they have." (Phlox, to Trip)
"I have friends back home who are not going to believe this." "I have friends back home who will be equally impressed with Macbeth." (Archer and the Vissian captain)
"They treat her like a pet – kept in her room, not taught to read or write, no name – Porthos has a name!" (Trip, to T'Pol)
"Haven't you ever wished you could read? It won't hurt you, you know. There's nothing to be afraid of." (Trip to the cogenitor. Famous last words...)
"It's fiction. The Earth never really stood still." (Trip, to the cogenitor, after introducing her to SF films)
"They don't want to help me. They don't want me to climb mountains." (Despairing cogenitor, to Trip)
"They won't help me, but you can. I want to stay here, please." (cogenitor, to Trip)
"Don't tell me you know what I would have done when *I* don't even know what I would have done." (Archer, to Trip)
"Trip said I had the same rights as they do." "It's not our place to tell you what rights you have. I'm sorry." (cogenitor and Archer)
"I apologize, but it's easy to misunderstand someone when you know nothing about their culture." (Vissian engineer, to Archer)
"You shouldn't have misgivings. You've made the right choice." (T'Pol, to troubled Archer)
"Suicide, Trip. She killed herself." "It's my fault. I'm responsible." "You're damned right you are." (Archer and Trip)
"We're in deep space and a person is dead. A person who'd still be alive if we hadn't made first contact." (Archer, to Trip)
"You're not responsible." "Dismissed." (Trip, to Archer – and oh, but he *is* responsible. He's the captain!)

Funniest Lines:
(and no, they weren't meant to be...)
"I did exactly what you would have done, Cap'n." "If that's true, then I've done a pretty lousy job setting an example around here." (Trip and Archer)
"It's time you learned to weigh the consequences of your actions," said he who freed all those Suliban prisoners!

Rating: 9.5/10. Outstanding. If it weren't for the Reed silliness, it would have gotten a perfect score.

Further Delays: I know I haven't gotten around to reviewing 'The Crossing,' which I didn't care for, or 'The Breach,' which I loved. I'll get to them eventually, I promise!

Has anyone else noticed that Enterprise could use some snappier episode titles? The Crossing? The Breach? Come on!

Closing Credits Theme: I usually don't get to hear this. My UPN station typically plays previews for other shows over it when it airs on Wednesdays. Thanks to some VCR glitches recently, though, I've seen the show when it's rerun on the weekend instead. So after two YEARS, I've finally heard the closing theme music, and I must say, I'm very impressed! I can't get it out of my head! I still like 'Faith of the Heart,' but the closing music is nice, too.

Next Week: The Borg in a big way. I hate to say it, but I find myself fervently hoping for a great, big reset button at the end of this one. Otherwise, I can't imagine how they're going to justify this! Stay tuned...

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