I honestly don't care what Archer thinks this episode is about; it broached a subject and societal civil rights conflict in a way I found highly effective in making me feel something about it, and the sapient entities involved, while also (in the final scene) taking on a subject that doesn't get anywhere near enough focus, and always gets swept under the rug of, at least, modern societies. Even if Archer did come down hard on the spirit of the Prime Directive "law", the conversation that the actual events of the episode presents is a highly fertile one.
However, I think Archer is deflecting, and that he--secondarily to the alien society--is the most to blame for what occurred, owing to his ultimate choice he made in the end, whatever his reasoning. In instances of suicide like this, it's the people exercising collective cultural and institutional power, and creating the emotional and moral substrate within which the victim must exist, without control over their own life, or the perceptions and social context of their existence or actions. This is relevant in any instance that someone is singled out, but the instances that spring to mind are children/teens who become victims and are then viewed with shame or disapproval by their parents, school, church, religion, leadership, and peers. And far too many times, the very same thing occurs. It's religio(us dogma's) fault.
On a different note, I found it quite satisfying to see the selfish entitlement and hubris in the hopeful parents. You don't deserve to breed just because you exist, especially when you're placing a burden on someone else, and exploiting other beings to do so. Honestly, the whole thing could have been an allegory for overpopulation, or animal agriculture, and how reckless overconsumption and still overly high fertility rates of 20th and 21st century societies are stealing opportunity, ecology, life, and the pursuit of a dignified existence, both from their own offspring, and the generations of the future. And no, I'm not just talking about the fucking Boomers, although their wealth hoarding, voting, ignorance, and mismanagement has created generational poverty that leads to higher fertility, intergenerational degeneracy and poor health. Actually, considering I seem to remember my mother mentioning her mother having a "colored" maid at some point, I guess I actually am talking about the Boomers and their parents.
Review by LNeroBlockedParent2024-06-02T04:23:22Z
I honestly don't care what Archer thinks this episode is about; it broached a subject and societal civil rights conflict in a way I found highly effective in making me feel something about it, and the sapient entities involved, while also (in the final scene) taking on a subject that doesn't get anywhere near enough focus, and always gets swept under the rug of, at least, modern societies. Even if Archer did come down hard on the spirit of the Prime Directive "law", the conversation that the actual events of the episode presents is a highly fertile one.
However, I think Archer is deflecting, and that he--secondarily to the alien society--is the most to blame for what occurred, owing to his ultimate choice he made in the end, whatever his reasoning. In instances of suicide like this, it's the people exercising collective cultural and institutional power, and creating the emotional and moral substrate within which the victim must exist, without control over their own life, or the perceptions and social context of their existence or actions. This is relevant in any instance that someone is singled out, but the instances that spring to mind are children/teens who become victims and are then viewed with shame or disapproval by their parents, school, church, religion, leadership, and peers. And far too many times, the very same thing occurs. It's religio(us dogma's) fault.
On a different note, I found it quite satisfying to see the selfish entitlement and hubris in the hopeful parents. You don't deserve to breed just because you exist, especially when you're placing a burden on someone else, and exploiting other beings to do so. Honestly, the whole thing could have been an allegory for overpopulation, or animal agriculture, and how reckless overconsumption and still overly high fertility rates of 20th and 21st century societies are stealing opportunity, ecology, life, and the pursuit of a dignified existence, both from their own offspring, and the generations of the future. And no, I'm not just talking about the fucking Boomers, although their wealth hoarding, voting, ignorance, and mismanagement has created generational poverty that leads to higher fertility, intergenerational degeneracy and poor health. Actually, considering I seem to remember my mother mentioning her mother having a "colored" maid at some point, I guess I actually am talking about the Boomers and their parents.
I hate humans.