monkee reviews 'First Flight'
First Impression: Very nice. I'm a sucker for character background, and space program nostalgia, and this episode had both!
Summary: Just before he sets off in a shuttlepod to investigate a possible dark matter nebula, Archer receives word that his old friend and rival from the NX test program, A.G. Robinson, has died in a mountain climbing accident. As Archer and T'Pol travel to and through the nebula, he tells her the story of the first warp two flight. We get to see it as a series of flashbacks, a device that works really well here.
The Right Stuff: Archer and A.G. (Keith Carradine) are competing for the chance to pilot the first test flight of the NX warp two prototype. Archer is obsessed about proving his father's engine. He's diligent, and putting in long hours at the simulators, but he lacks balance, and loses the honor to A.G., who is more of a risk-taker. "Starfleet doesn't just want a great pilot," A.G. tells Archer, "they want a great captain." Both characters rang true here – like the real test pilots I've read about. Archer takes the news well, and professionally – the way I'd imagine John Glenn reacted when Al Shepard got the first suborbital flight. These men know that the program always comes first, and there's plenty for everyone to do.
The first flight doesn't go well. A.G., who pushes the prototype more than he should after being ordered to abort, loses the ship and nearly dies. The Vulcans interpret this as evidence that the engine design is fatally flawed, and want the humans to design a new one, which would take decades. Archer, backed up with the support of his new engineer friend, Trip Tucker, is convinced that the design is sound and just needs tweaking, and perhaps a more conservative pilot. A bar brawl ensues, but in the end, Archer admits that he's been a tad obsessed, and A.G. agrees that a little tweaking and care just might work. Consensus! But how to convince the Vulcans...
Vulcan Watchdogs: Because they're there, of course, putting a damper on every single thing that happens. I'm with Trip on this one. "I don't get it," he tells Archer, plaintively. "It's like they want us to fail!" What gives? I still don't understand why the humans of this era are so willing to be pushed around by the Vulcans. And why the Vulcans are so involved in the first place. There's a story here, somewhere, and I'd really like to hear it someday.
Space Cowboy Diplomacy: To the Archer/A.G./Tucker trio, the solution is obvious. They'll simply steal the remaining prototype, the NX Beta, do their tweaks, and prove the Vulcan and Starfleet naysayers wrong. Desperate times call for desperate measures, I'm sure, but they're lucky they were working under Forrest and not Deke Slayton! Slayton (director of Flight Crew Operations during the Apollo years) would have understood their frustration, but still kicked their sorry butts right out of the program!
All's well that ends well. They prove the engine design sound, and the program goes on. A.G. and Archer compete again for the coveted position of Enterprise captain, only this time Archer comes out on top. He's become a more well rounded and assertive officer, while A.G. continues to be a bit of a loose canon. He's hoping to be given command of the NX-02, but unfortunately that won't happen now.
Dark Matters: I'm going to come clean and admit that I don't know anything at all about dark matter, but the special effects when Tucker's modified technobabble probe made the nebula appear were WAY cool. Heck, even T'Pol was impressed. She said "fascinating" just like Spock used to! I loved the Archer and T'Pol reaction shots to the blossoming effect. They both looked suitably awed by it. T'Pol was at her best in this outing. She drew the story and emotions out of Archer with sensitivity and compassion. In the end, her suggestion that Archer name the nebula after Robinson proves to me that she gets it – all of it. She truly understands human friendship, and their love of exploration. I think she shares that love of exploration, too, despite her protestations to the contrary.
The Start of a Beautiful Friendship: We get to see Tucker's entrance into Archer's life, and it was perfectly appropriate! "There's nothing wrong with that ship!" he insists, interrupting a conversation among the pilots. They bond quickly over a beer and a felony, and Archer promises to 'sign him up in a second' if he ever gets his own ship.
In Ruby's Arms: We meet the infamous Ruby, the woman Trip and Reed were talking about in 'Shuttlepod One,' and what a surprise – she's a barmaid with a heart of gold! She's had names chosen for her children since she was ten, and she's going to marry the first man who correctly guesses them. Maybe Malcolm got one of them right! Seriously, though, she was a nice woman. I'd love to see her again. Alive, that is.
The 602: Any good test pilot story needs a bar, and here it's the 602. I love the occasional glimpses of 22nd century Earth that we get on Enterprise. It's just nice to know that everyday life on the planet goes on, and not everyone is in Starfleet. And I find it comforting that bars will still be serving deep fried mushrooms for those late night munchies, even hundreds of years from now. Fried food...mmmmm...Who knows? Maybe they've even found a way to make it healthy!
Ships of the Line: The NX prototypes were an interesting cross between Cochrane's Phoenix and Archer's Enterprise. And I loved the launch ramp! I'll bet Cochrane designed that baby while he was listening to 'Magic Carpet Ride!'
Commodore Forrest: Not yet an admiral in this time, it was fun to see him with a bit more personality than usual. He even loosened his tie and unbuttoned his collar at the 602! As a commodore, he's even more easily swayed by the Vulcan 'observers,' but he sure has his work cut out for him with those rebellious pilots of his.
A.G. Robinson, A Footnote? I don't understand why he's not mentioned in the history books, and why T'Pol hasn't heard of him. He was the first to break warp 2, after all. He may have fallen out of favor, but he and Archer were the final two candidates for the Enterprise posting, only six months before it was commissioned. It didn't make sense to me, unless T'Pol is just not up to date on her Earth space program, which seems unlikely. Just an observation – no big deal.
Character Interactions: It was all Archer, A.G. and Tucker, and I enjoyed their scenes. In the present, Archer and T'Pol's interactions on the shuttle were quite nice, although I also enjoyed the brief show of support from present day Trip when Archer got the bad news.
Archer Watch: Gosh, I liked him better back then! I guess that makes sense, though – after all, he didn't have the weight of humanity's future in space resting solely and squarely on his shoulders in those days. I enjoyed watching the subtle changes in his personality as he became less rigid and obsessive, and more like A.G. And I was pleased that he made T'Pol LOOK at the nebula, and not take readings when the computer could do it automatically.
I'm still not sure stealing a ship is a good indication that you have the right stuff, but maybe there was just no other way around the Vulcans.
'shipper Watch: As T'Pol gets to know and understand Archer better, more of a connection between them is possible. It's nice because it's so much more subtle and realistic than having her fall with her breasts in his face, but what do I know? *I'm* not a twenty year-old male. Ahem. Sorry. Maybe I'll save that rant for my 'Bounty' review. Bottom line – I really enjoyed the Archer/T'Pol chemistry this week.
Best Lines:
"Do you remember what Buzz Aldrin said when he stepped on the moon? No one does, because Armstrong went first." (Archer, to Ruby)
"Beautiful view. Magnificent Desolation." (What Buzz Aldrin said when he stepped on the moon.)
"It does take more than piloting ability to command a starship. Fortunately, you seem to have developed the necessary skills." "Was that a compliment?" "An observation." (T'Pol and Archer)
"Optimism doesn't alter the laws of physics." (T'Pol, to Archer)
"Have a little faith, T'Pol – faith of the heart." (Archer, to T'Pol, and yes, I made that last part up!)
"Just because it took you two hundred years to crack warp two doesn't mean it's gonna take us that long!" (Insubordinate Tucker, to the Vulcans)
"It's your father's engine – his life's work. You can't let 'em do this!" (Tucker, to Archer)
"You obviously admired this man, and yet he cracked your molar." "Humans can have funny ways of forming friendships." (T'Pol and Archer)
"You think this is going to get either of you closer to warp five?" (Words of wisdom from Ruby, to A.G. and Archer, as she breaks up their bar fight.)
"When the first warp five starship is built, its captain isn't going to be able to call home every time he needs to make a decision. He won't be able to turn to the Vulcans. Unless he decides to take one with him..." (A.G., to Archer)
"By the time they figure out what's going on, we'll be halfway to Jupiter." (A.G., to Archer)
"Turn around right now, and I'll do what I can to keep you out of prison." (Forrest, to A.G. and Archer)
"Perfect." (Forrest mutters to himself, as the Vulcans enter to witness his two top pilots' insubordination.)
"We didn't build this ship to make test runs around Jupiter. We built it to explore. If my father were alive today, he'd be standing here asking, 'What the HELL are we waiting for?' " (Archer, to Forrest and the Vulcans)
"I’m just waiting for Forrest to realize what a horrible mistake he made." (Archer to A.G. and A.G. to Archer)
"Hey, I'll see you out there." (A.G. to Archer)
Rating: 9/10. Another solid winner.
Next Episode: Bounty. T'Pol IN HEAT. I'm still gathering enough strength to watch it. Stay tuned, though. I'll get to it.
Next Week: The Expanse. It looks good and dramatic, but I'm wary. I, for one, LIKED the peaceful exploration theme of Enterprise. Actually, I've always seen peaceful exploration as the theme of all Star Trek. I'd hate to see the show degenerate into one battle after another, one huge enemy after another, like so many other sci-fi shows out there. But I'll try to keep an open mind...
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