monkee reviews 'Shadows of P'Jem'
First Impression: Stunned surprise!
Here's a quote from my 'Andorian Incident' review:
"Vulcan Espionage? That was a hell of a sensor array! Why do they need it? What are they doing with it? The Vulcan's disregard for the treaty contradicts what we know about their honor and honesty. There has to be a logical reason for it – there just HAS to be! Maybe I'm being overly optimistic, but I'm convinced that there's more going on here than meets the eye, and that these events will be followed up on later. At least I hope so. My opinion of the episode will go down if they aren't."
The Andorian Incident, Part Two: Well, I'll be darned! Not only did they follow up; they followed up exactly the way I hoped they would! I just wanted someone to acknowledge that the Vulcans might have their logical reasons for monitoring the Andorians, and now they have. I'm so pleased when they listen to me! (Okay, they didn't listen to ME, exactly, but still...) In addition to the presence of the marvelous Andorians, 'Shadows of P'Jem' had other parallels to 'Andorian Incident' – T'Pol and Archer close-proximity bonding, and important Phlox/T'Pol conversations about diversity. The two episodes complemented each other perfectly, and are the high point of Enterprise for me so far. I even thought the episode title was perfect!
Breaking Up is Hard to Do: After giving the monks and 'observers' three hours notice, the Andorians level the monastery at P'Jem. No one is injured, but the Vulcans are none too happy with Archer, and are even more disappointed in T'Pol for not stopping him when they think she should have. This will likely be the beginning of the end of a hundred years of the Vulcan's intense supervision over the Human quest for the final frontier. The Vulcans pull out of Earth in a huff, and a ship is sent to retrieve T'Pol. Admiral Forrester impressed me in these opening scenes, because he's finally proving himself to be an assertive leader, capable of cutting the Vulcan umbilical. I'm still a little mystified by the Vulcan's behavior, in general – they're too arrogant and...well, downright angry...but I'm hoping this will be something we'll be exploring throughout the series.
T'Pol's Disgrace: "I was assigned to Enterprise not simply as an observer, but to represent the interests of the Vulcan people," T'Pol tells Archer. "It's clear that, in the eyes of my superiors, I haven't done that." Once the Vulcans have retrieved T'Pol from Enterprise, they plan to make her the scapegoat for the incident at P'Jem. She failed to stop Archer from interfering and, in fact, handed the scanner from the listening post to Shran personally. T'Pol accepts this calmly – seemingly resigned to her fate, although not particularly remorseful. Her passivity annoys Archer, but Phlox seems to better understand how to reach her. In a nicely understated scene in the mess hall, he points out that her accomplishments aboard Enterprise are substantial. She is truly the first Vulcan who has been able to work WITH the humans, as an integral part of a team. This should, in fact, be an important goal for the Vulcans, with their philosophy of IDIC.
Coridan: Archer finds Coridan in the Vulcan database, and decides to go check it out, the same way he decided to visit P'Jem in 'Andorian Incident.' The Vulcans have a mining agreement with Coridan, which is a nice nod of continuity to the classic TOS episode, 'Journey to Babel.' Unfortunately, the Vulcan-supported government on Coridan neglects to mention that they're having problems with a local anti-Vulcan faction, which promptly captures him and T'Pol. The Vulcans certainly seem to have their fingers in a lot of pies. Interesting. It's likely that the prime directive will be as much their idea as the Human's. Maybe it'll be the first thing they agree on!
Archer/T'Pol Bondage...no, Bonding: The hostage standoff story is pretty much by the book, with the exception of the gratuitous but amusing Archer-and T'Pol-are-tied-together scene. Yeah, it was a bit much, but I thought there was more to it than the obvious. In 'Andorian Incident,' Archer and T'Pol had to share a blanket before they could have that wonderful conversation about non-violence. Here, when they are struggling to release themselves from their bonds, in very close and awkward proximity, they have their first genuine conversation regarding their 'feelings' about T'Pol's imminent departure. I think interesting things happen when the normally aloof T'Pol is forced past her personal space comfort level.
And I'm not proud of myself, but I DID laugh when T'Pol's breasts ended up in Archer's face. That scares me a little. I'm afraid I've been watching so much Trek that I may be turning INTO a member of the 18-24 year-old male demographic! Yikes!
Or maybe I just admire Scott Bakula's comic timing. Yes. I'm sure that's it...
Shran, Shran, the Sunshine Man: (Sorry – little West Wing thing there...) I ADORE Shran! I fervently hope that he's to be a recurring character for a good, long time on this show. Jeffrey Combs is well up to the task of being the first fully fleshed-out Trek Andorian. He reminds me a little John de Lancie, in that he seems to have a spark with everyone he works with. When he's on-screen, it's virtually impossible NOT to watch him closely. More, please!
Meanwhile, Back on Enterprise...Trip got reckless this week. It wasn't completely his fault, of course. On one side, he had trigger-happy Reed egging him on, while on the other side, he had the trigger-happy Vulcans (now THAT should be a contradiction in terms!) annoying the hell out of him. Perhaps if the Vulcans had been more willing to work with the Humans, Trip wouldn't have felt compelled to go off on some half-cocked rescue mission on his own (well, with Reed). Common sense should have told him that walking around that shantytown looking for the downed shuttle was a BAD idea. Good thing the Andorians were a) paying attention, and b) owed Archer a favor. Oh well, they're just learning. I did get a big kick out of Sato's feigned innocence when the Vulcan Captain, Sopek, called. "We get shuttles coming and going all the time. It's a little like Union Station around here..."
And I guess it's nice to know that Union Station still exists...
Character Interactions: Standout character interactions this week included Shran with anybody, Archer with T'Pol and Captain Sopek, and Admiral Forrest with Ambassador Soval. I also enjoyed the mess hall scene between T'Pol and Phlox.
Archer Watch: I thought his intercession on behalf of the Andorians in 'Andorian Incident' was presumptuous, but it did save his (pink) skin here. He did all that he could do, given the situation, and I have no complaints. Also...dare I say this? Well, they aren't there yet, by any stretch, but I saw shadows of Kirk and Spock in Archer's interactions with T'Pol. He's starting to get it! When T'Pol says things like "We're only a few minutes from the Capital. Returning to the ship now would be a waste of fuel," Archer gets this 'in a pig's eye' gleam. I think he's beginning to realize that, even though it's hard to see, he really does have a command partnership, and perhaps even a friendship, with his Vulcan XO. Nice.
'Shipper Watch: Either Archer or T'Pol would have had to have been DEAD in order for there not to have been some chemistry in that bondage scene! They are a definite possibility, although I'd rather not see it happen. Not after the whole Voyager J/C fiasco. Besides, they'll be more interesting as friends. I also thought I caught a little spark there between T'Pol and Shran. Maybe I'm crazy, but I think THAT would be an intriguing pairing! Of course, I think I'd like just about anyone with Shran...
Best Lines:
"There was a time when you people sought our guidance. I regret that time has passed." (Ambassador Soval, to Admiral Forrest)
"Jon, you're doing a lot of good work, but you've got to be more careful. Earth can't be getting involved in inter-species conflicts." (Admiral Forrest, to Archer)
"You're a part of my crew!" "For another forty-eight hours." (Archer and T'Pol)
"You haven't merely tolerated this crew. You've become a part of it." (Phlox, to T'Pol)
"I don't suppose Vulcans are double-jointed." "Unfortunately not." (Archer and T'Pol)
"A STEWARD?" (Archer, to T'Pol)
"It's clear that living among humans has caused my reasoning to become compromised." (T'Pol, to Archer)
"Your people took something away from my father that meant a lot to him. They're not going to do the same to me." (Archer, to T'Pol, regarding her departure. Awwwww...)
"I'm getting' real sick of being cut off." (Trip, to himself)
"It's not Vulcan policy to negotiate with terrorists." (Captain Sopek, to Trip)
"He's not available at the moment...can I take a message?" (Sato, to Captain Sopek)
"What the hell are YOU doing here?" "Looking out for you pink-skins." (Trip and Shran)
"I'm here for only one reason. I need a good night's sleep. My debt is repaid." (Shran, to Archer)
"She's still MY science officer." (Archer, to Captain Sopek)
"You should be the one dying, not her." (Shran, to Captain Sopek)
"She can be a real pain in the ass. Stubborn. Arrogant. Sometimes she makes me so angry that I want to shove her out an airlock." (Archer, to Captain Sopek)
"I can understand why the High Command is upset, but it took a lot of courage to step in front of that plasma bullet. Do you really want to take her back home in disgrace?" (Archer, to Captain Sopek)
"That would not be possible. Leaving sickbay would violate my Doctor's orders." (T'Pol, to Archer)
"In a pig's eye!" (McCoy, to Spock. Amok Time.)
Rating: I'm going to go out on a limb with this one. As a continuation to 'Andorian Incident,' I give 'Shadows of P'Jem a 9.5/10, my highest rating yet. These two episodes are a good example of the kind of stories and continuity I want to see on Enterprise. And I really love Shran. <g>
And you know what else?
Next Week: Holy Sh*t! This one looks good, too! It's got drama. It's got angst. It features Trip and Reed. It's 'Shuttlepod One,' and I can't wait! That was the best Trek promo I've seen in ages!
monkee Recommendation: Do yourself a favor. Really, you deserve a treat – I'm sure of it! Read up on Katharine Hepburn, rent some of her best movies, then buy, beg, borrow or steal some tickets to see Kate Mulgrew in 'Tea at Five.' Both of these women seriously rock. I thought 'Tea at Five' was outstanding, and so did everyone else at the Hartford Stage last Saturday night. I hope to do a short write-up on the experience soon. Now go on. You know you want to!
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