Day 318: Enterprise, First Flight

Show: Star Trek; Enterprise

Episode Particulars: S2EP24, “First Flight”

 Summary: Archer believes Enterprise may have discovered a dark matter nebula, and plans to go check it out, using some tech to make the matter visible. As he’s making preparation, Admiral Forrest calls with bad news; one of Archer’s friends, A.G. Robinson, died in a climbing accident. Shaken, Archer goes out to explore the nebula, with T’Pol tagging along for both science and regulation reasons. While they’re out there, Archer winds up telling her in extended flashback about his connection to Robinson. They were both pilots testing out the various warp ships, with a kind of friendly rivalry going on. When Robinson’s (Keith Carradine) warp two flight went spectacularly wrong, the Vulcans encouraged Starfleet to put the project on ice for a little while. Archer naturally wasn’t pleased by this, but with the help of Robinson and a young Lieutenant Tucker, they were able to make a point and keep things going. Of course, the way they made their point is a little…eyebrow raising.

Standalone Thoughts: While I did enjoy this episode, I’d probably say that it’s closer to Season One quality than late Season Two quality. I think this is probably because the conflict here is minimal. There never really seems to be any danger in the framing device, and as T’Pol keeps reminding us, we know how things are eventually going to turn out in the flashback, so there’s not a lot of tension there either. Also, if you’re militarily inclined or have family/friends who are, it can be hard to reconcile the classic “taking risks to prove a point” trope with the knowledge that no military organization (people may argue otherwise, but Starfleet has at least some military aspects) would be as lenient as Starfleet is in this episode. This probably isn’t a problem for most people, but if you fall into one of those above mentioned categories, it may drag the episode down for you a little.

Where the episode succeeds, however, is character, especially Archer’s character. His describing himself as a “by the book” officer seems more like “tell don’t show” to me, but Bakula does a fine job allowing us to see Archer as a flawed but ultimately decent man. He’s visibly disappointed and jealous that he doesn’t get to command the warp two test, but when the flight actually happens, he’s able to put it aside and provide the best ground support he can, because he wants the mission to succeed. He’s incredibly invested in the warp project, which gives him determination and enthusiasm but also blinds him to potential faults. And he’s willing to risk reprimands or worse to speak his mind or make a point, which is a common trait of Star Trek captains, though one that can often lead to trouble. Most of the good material from this episode is entirely due to Bakula, and while his performance and Archer’s characterization probably won’t change the minds of those who don’t like the character much, others who are more on the fence might appreciate the fact that the show is rounding out his character a little.

The supporting cast is generally decent too. Trinneer gives Tucker a little extra warmth, so his belief in the project allows for some lighter moments, and Armstrong does a good job of showing Forrest balancing being a superior officer and being a friend. As for Carradine, he isn’t bad, but I don’t like Robinson as much as the episode clearly wants me to. Maybe you need to have a certain amount or type of life experience for that sort of thing to fully click.

Like I said, I enjoyed the episode, but I think it’s one of those ones that leaves a good impression but starts to show weaknesses if you think about it too much. I don’t know if I’d suggest just shutting your brain off for this episode, but unless you’re reviewing it like I am, it may be better just sticking with the surface instead of trying to dig for substance. That does make the episode sound worse than it actually is; a proper description of it would probably be “flawed but enjoyable”. Which, as I’ve said before, sums up early Enterprise pretty well.

How it Relates to the Whole: In addition to serving as a prequel to the series, there’s also an appearance of something from “Shuttlepod One” in there. Still, I’ll admit that this episode doesn’t contribute too much in the grand scheme of things.

Other: *As with most of Season Two, only one observation today. It’s brought up early on in the episode that it could be dangerous to go into a potential dark matter nebula alone, but Archer insists (though T’Pol reminds him of regulations and comes along anyway). My problem is, why would anyone let the captain of the first warp five starship do this mission, with or without an escort? If there’s as much risk as they think, wouldn’t it be better to send out someone more, well…expendable? I know it’s for the sake of plot and characters, and Archer’s in a mood where he wants to be alone, but sometimes I just can’t quite suspend my disbelief.

Badass Malcolm Moment: Since most of the supporting cast don’t appear in this episode (and Hoshi only gets one brief scene), it’s hard to come up with an entry for today. But because I don’t like to admit defeat, I’m just going to assume that Malcolm helped Tucker make the little dispersal probes. After all, they involve an explosion of some kind, don’t they?