monkee reviews 'Zero Hour'
First Impression: Nazis, AGAIN?
Second Impression: A deeply satisfying conclusion to the arc, right up until the ending, which was...well, it was Nazis. A bit weird, perhaps? Silly? Bizarre? Surreal? Déjà vu? Choose your vaguely unflattering adjective. I'm going to refrain from condemning it outright, though. Not yet, anyway. I'm opting for the 'let's wait and see' approach - something interesting could still come from all this.
No, let me put it this way. Something interesting had damned well BETTER come from all this. There's a strong danger, at this point, of them destroying a brilliant season-long arc, not to mention the entire series! I think the show's writers and producers had better consider themselves on RED ALERT!
We'll talk about the ending later, though. For now, on with the review!
The Expanse must Die! Archer promised the Aquatics that Enterprise would attempt to destroy the spheres (thereby destroying the Expanse as well), so the ship, under T'Pol's command, heads over to Primary Sphere 41 to do just that. As T'Pol points out, the Expanse poses a real threat to much more than Earth at this point. Other systems will be destroyed if the Sphere Builders succeed, including Vulcan. The mission requires delicate engineering from Trip, top-notch flying by Mayweather, and extra attention to the well being of the crew from Phlox. The Sphere-Builders, sensing the threat, are watching them carefully, and have the sphere generate an extra dense area of bubbling anomalies. Exposure to the region is going to cause skin degradation to the human crew and eventually death if they're exposed for more than fifteen minutes.
The bottom line? They are successful despite the direct interference of three sphere builders who appear on the ship and attempt to blow up engineering. Just as Phlox proclaims that the crew's health has reached the point of no return, and T'Pol orders the ship to come about, Trip calls for ten more seconds. It's all he needs. The plan works and the sphere implodes. As it does, it causes a chain reaction of implosions in all the spheres, which buckle in on themselves in the KEWLest possible way. Then - POOF - the Expanse is no more! The sphere builders on board, and presumably everywhere else, disappear. Woo hooo!
Well, what a relief! Now we know why there will be no Expanse in future Treks. And what a relief, also, to know that the skin cracking and degradation will heal, in time. Because it was quite gross!
This story line is interspersed with another one, of course, for the weapon has reached the Sol system.
Primary Mission: Archer's primary mission, on board Degra's ship, is to stop it. For this, he needs Hoshi's skills again, in order to decrypt Degra's specifications of the weapon. He plans to destroy the weapon from within; with her help, he'll be able to set up a self-destruct sequence. He must push her, in her weakened state, past her limits.
Brave Hoshi, Revisited: If you thought Hoshi was brave LAST week, you have to admire her even more this week. She's barely conscious, half-delirious, and plagued with guilt about giving the Reptilians the third code, even though she was drugged. She desperately wishes she'd been able to successfully kill herself. When you're hurting both physically and emotionally, and someone's in your face trying to get you to do something, it takes strength of character to stand the strain. Gradually, though, she gets stronger and is able to get Archer what he needs. All hail brave Hoshi!
Who's the Bad Guy, Now? At one point, Hoshi is so out of it that she starts to think Archer is the Reptilian Commander. "You got your three codes," she tells him, "so why don't you just kill me? Didn't you say you were going to kill me?" Ouch! That's got to hurt Archer on some level, since I'm sure he has his own regrets about the sort of man he's become. I'd love to see Archer have to come to terms with some of this next season. If he manages to get away from the Nazis, that is...
Nazis. Sigh.
Another Look at the Future: In the middle of all this, Daniels whisks Archer away briefly, as is his way, for another look at the future. This time it's the founding of the United Federation of Planets, seven years hence, and future Archer is addressing the assembled dignitaries " (but where's the pie?). Again Daniels begs Archer to send someone else on the dangerous mission. His presence in humanity's future is essential, he claims. Again Archer blows him off, pointing out that if Earth is destroyed, this future won't be happening anyway.
And again, this is a good decision on Archer's part. He feels that the future can't be set in stone. If he gets killed on the weapon, someone else will just have to step forward to take his place in history. Besides, he's got to be a little wary of Daniels. For all he knows, Daniels is a relatively minor player in the temporal department of the future; certainly his competence thus far has been questionable at best! 'Oops, I seem to have destroyed future Earth. Shouldn't have done that!'
Grim: Degra's ship has to get close enough to the weapon to transport Archer and his team over, but they still have to contend with the Reptilian ship, which is much better armed. The Reptilian ship even takes a short detour to destroy an earth orbital station, manned by a few dozen civilians. Things are looking grim. What they need, here, is a hero.
Who da man? WHO da man? You know it! It's SHRAN!
SHRAN! Shran appears with several Andorian ships, just in time to give the Xindi firepower, which allows Archer and his team to beam aboard the weapon. "Tell Archer that we're not even anymore," Shran tells Degra's colleague. "Now he owes ME!"
This is just a little too con-veeee-nient, if you ask me. Shran respects Archer, certainly...maybe even likes him, but there's just GOT to be more motivating him than that. It's one of the things I hope will be addressed next season. You won't catch me complaining about any Shran complications, though. I adore Shran, and think Jeffrey Combs is the finest semi-regular in Trek history!
Zero Hour: At last, the time has come. The weapon is starting its firing sequence. It is now or never, and Archer's team is there. Archer and Hoshi start the manipulations to set off the self-destruct, while Reed and the MACOs take care of the Reptilian guards.
Nameless MACO Bites the Dust: It wouldn't be an arc-ending climax without at least one redshirt death! One of the MACOs is stabbed and tossed into the abyss in the center of the weapon. I guess THAT will teach him to step forward when someone says, "I need three volunteers!' Naturally, his death is not in vain. Reed and the remaining MACOs take care of all the guards. Archer and Hoshi have the sequence almost set. Reed begs to be the one left behind, but Archer orders him to take the others to the outer part of the weapon, where they can be transported safely off.
Fitting End: Furious that all his efforts are being thwarted, the Reptilian Commander also beams to the weapon. He's too late to stop Archer, but attacks him anyway. The fight is tense and brutal, with each of them gaining the upper hand occasionally. I was hoping that he'd end up dangling into the abyss so Archer could kick his head until he fell and shout, "I. Have had. Enough. Of you!"
But no. That's not what happened. Instead, Archer manages to plant an explosive charge on the Reptilian, which he detonates using a remote just when the Commander has become aware of it. Blood and bits of Reptilian everywhere! HA! Take that, you bastard! That's for Degra! I hope his 'traitorous bloodline' thrives!
It's a deeply satisfying demise for the guy. Unfortunately, the incident delays Archer's escape. We see him running for the outer sections of the weapon, but then we see the weapon explode over Earth - another triumphant moment, tempered by our uncertainty that Archer made it to safety.
The Aftermath: T'Pol meets with the Xindi one last time. The news there is good - they are planning to reconvene the Council, and now consider humans to be allies. The Insectoids are coming around, and the rest of them believe the Reptilians eventually will, too. Perhaps the Xindi will one day be unified after all. Degra's ship arrives, and docks with Enterprise. Reed and Sato emerge from the airlock, grim. Archer did not make it.
A Crew Mourns: They're all so sad. *SOB* Reed is somber and Hoshi hugs Trip. T'Pol stands in Archer's ready room, clutching a book - one he gave her, perhaps? They set a course for Earth, and although they're pleased to see the blue orb whole and undamaged, their triumphant return has been muted by tragedy. Phlox councils T'Pol, who says, "It's not easy for a crew to lose its captain." It's also not easy for a beagle to lose his best buddy. Porthos is listless and depressed in sickbay. In the episode's most touching moment, T'Pol reaches out to the FSP (fearless space pup), talking to him, and even petting him. "You'll be fine," she tells him, "It's just a matter of time." It's clear that she is talking about herself and the rest of the crew, too.
Say it with me. Awwwwww!
*sniff*
Challenge your Expectations, or else...In many ways, 'Zero Hour' suffers from classic 'cliffhanger part two' syndrome. No matter how gratifying the resolutions to the arc are, they're still resolutions. Little by little, the tension is taken away. Even done superbly, which this is, it's bound to be anticlimactic. Even at this point, with Archer apparently dead, the solution is apparent. Archer was on the weapon. Shran was nearby. The Andorians have transporter technology. Well, DUH! Obviously, Shran had gotten him off the weapon safely, right? He was going to arrive any second and give us and the Enterprise crew their happy ending, right?
Not exactly.
I can understand why the writers wanted there to be a twist at this point. I'm just dumbfounded by the one they chose!
The Twist: As Enterprise approaches Earth, there's a mystery. They can't raise Starfleet, or any of the orbital stations, or the Lunar One colony. Inside the brains of discerning viewers everywhere TTA (time travel alert) klaxons begin sounding shrilly. Trip and Mayweather take a shuttle down to San Francisco when they can't contact Starfleet. The shuttle is greeted by anti-aircraft fire emanating from...World War II fighter jets? Meanwhile, a bunch of shady Nazis watch over an unconscious and badly injured prisoner. It's Archer, all right. One of the Nazis steps into the light. He's blue, and looks vaguely like a Reptilian Xindi. Fade to black.
Oh dear. I mean, they were doing SO WELL! Nazis? Again? The Nazis were interesting in the original series ('Patterns of Force') and it was campy fun to watch them get killed by Klingon bat'leths in Voyager's 'Killing Game.' But again with the Nazis? Do we really want to dip into the Nazi well again?
And was that J. Paul Boehmer I saw playing one of the Nazis? Because he played one of the holographic Nazis in Voyager's 'Killing Game.' So not only are they dipping into the Nazi well again, they're actually casting the same actor to play one in both series!
Forgive me. This whole thing has me a bit flummoxed. I half have to wonder if this is Brannon Braga's final f*ck you to Trekkers everywhere, as he's just announced that he'll be less involved in the series from here on out. But the truth is, I don't believe that. I'm pretty sure Braga's fond of Star Trek, and wouldn't do anything to jeopardize its future. No, I think the Trek powers that be must have sincerely believed this was a good idea. I'm going to have to give them the benefit of the doubt for now. Somehow, Archer and the good ship Enterprise have ended up in the past. Well, okay. There was a temporal cold war going on. The Xindi arc had many temporal aspects. All of this is probably related somehow, and this bizarre twist sets up another arc along those lines. Let's just hope they can find a way to make it work as well as they made the Xindi arc work.
And I'll tell you one thing right now. On the record. If Mark Twain shows up on Enterprise at any time, I am OUTTA here!
Moving on to regular review features.
Action: The two stories are well told, and well edited. The episode jumps between Enterprise and Degra's ship in an exciting way. The special effects blow you away. Enterprise is an attractive, polished show in this respect. The action is tense, and keeps you at the edge of your seat. Most importantly, though, it's balanced with some nice character moments, something the show has been doing well lately.
Character Interactions: Archer has to push Hoshi past her limits, and clearly regrets it. He has no choice, though. He's firm, but also gentle with her. When she's a little stronger, she recalls that she was sick as a dog the first time she met him with some bug she picked up in Brazil. As sick as she was, though, she still wanted to make a good impression. Archer promises her a nice long vacation someplace cold once the mission is over - somewhere where she won't be infected by any tropical bugs. "No reptiles," she adds. Hehehe. Archer and Reed have some nice scenes, too, both on Degra's ship and on the weapon. Reed is a damned fine officer, I must say. I think Archer appreciates that. I've already mentioned Phlox, T'Pol and Porthos' splendid scene in sickbay - it was a standout. That leaves Trip and T'Pol.
'shipper Watch: The slash fans will read plenty into Reed's desperate attempt to be the one, instead of Archer, to stay behind on the weapon. And there's something for the Archer/T'Pol contingent, too - she is devastated by the news of his death. *sniff* But the continuing big story on the 'shipper front, of course, is Trip and T'Pol. After the spheres are destroyed, they have a quiet conversation in which they discuss how T'Pol's skin isn't healing as fast as everyone else's is. "I guess you Vulcans are not so tough," Trip teases her. When he compliments her, telling her that she looks like an old oil painting, she misinterprets the comment and bristles. She informs him that she's only sixty-five. He can't believe she told him. On Vulcan, she admits, such a revelation is considered intimate. Awww. I guess the stage is set for more Trip and T'Pol in the fourth season. I'm looking forward to seeing how it all turns out!
Archer Watch: I've addressed this throughout the review. He was awesome - a man with a mission, and he did it well. He was firm but gentle with Hoshi, determined, competent, and ultimately successful. Plus he kicked the Reptilian's ass! Like I mentioned before, though, I hope we get to see him deal with some of the emotional and psychological repercussions of the mission next season. Once he gets away from those pesky Nazis, that is...
Mayweather Watch: He was solidly part of the action throughout the Enterprise scenes. And his superb flying undoubtedly saved the ship. Way to go, Travis! I hope they can see their way clear to giving him his own episode next year. I understand why the 'lesser' characters were underused in this arc, and I know they were desperate for ratings, but I think Trek works best when there's a strong ensemble cast. I want to see more of what Anthony Montgomery and Linda Park can do!
Best Lines:
"Their expanse will continue to grow, encompassing one system after another, including Vulcan. Your world is no longer the only one in jeopardy." (T'Pol, to Trip)
"This is a very important day, Jonathan." (Daniels, to Archer, regarding the founding of the Federation.)
"If you're killed, none of this will happen. At least not the way it's supposed to." "Then it'll happen some other way." (Daniels and Archer)
"Hope for the best - prepare for the worst." (Some Denobulan wisdom, from Phlox to T'Pol.)
"We're not dead yet. Hope for the best, Doctor." (T'Pol, to Phlox)
"When we get back home, I'll see to it that you get some R & R in Norway, or Canada. Someplace where there's not a tropical bug in sight." "Or reptiles." "Or reptiles." (Archer, Hoshi, Archer)
"I'm busy, Shran. What are you doing here?" (Archer, to Shran)
"It's time for you to work your magic, Mr. Tucker. Within five minutes, everyone on this ship is going to start dying." "No pressure." (Phlox and Trip)
"My skin's healing faster than yours. I guess Vulcans aren't so tough after all." (Trip, to T'Pol)
"I've been trying to get you to tell me your age since we left spacedock. Why now?" "To Vulcans, certain information is considered...intimate." "Intimate...hmmm..." (Trip, T'Pol, Trip)
"The Captain didn't make it, Trip." (Reed, to Trip)
"Your Captain's sacrifice will not be forgotten. Safe journey." (Xindi Primate, to T'Pol)
"Vulcans are obviously more susceptible to the effects of the mysterious realms." "I guess we're not so tough after all." (Phlox and T'Pol)
"Is there anything I'll need to treat this?" "Only time." (T'Pol and Phlox)
"He lost his best friend. But it's just a matter of time. He'll be fine again." (Phlox, to T'Pol)
"Did you hear that? The doctor says you'll be fine. It's just a matter of time." (T'Pol, to Porthos. Yes, she's talking to the dog. Illogical, but sweet.)
"Prettiest sight I ever saw, and it's all in one piece." (Trip, to the bridge crew, upon seeing the Earth they just saved)
"The Captain would have been proud." (Reed, to the bridge crew. Well, maybe he still will be. Once he gets away from the NAZIS, that is...)
Rating: There's no denying that it was a terrific end to the arc. The last two minutes were disturbing, though. I'm going to have to dock a half point for the Nazis! I'll go with a 9/10.
Next Week: Yikes! There IS no next week! At some point in the next month or so, I'll post my traditional season-end review. Otherwise, I'll see you in September. Have a nice summer!
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