The episodes continue to be very small scale and very low stakes, but I found quite a bit to like here. The character focus was welcome and there was a sense that the episode wasn't in any hurry. In particular the scene with the bridge crew recording a message for school children back home was excellent. It gave several of the characters a moment to show who they are and did it playfully. Enterprise was at its best when it embraced its concept of showing us how a human crew first adapted to exploring outer space, and simple things like this are a wonderful reminder of it. It's also something that would have been out of place in another Trek show, so felt uniquely suited to this.
Other parts of the episode largely worked too. The awkward relationship humans have with the Vulcans is quite fun and being developed nicely. The T'Pol stuff here was fairly intriguing, and certainly sets up the beginnings of a friendship with Trip. Less interesting was all the stuff on the ice comet, mostly because it all felt so plodding and basic. Those bland rocky "alien planet" sets were looking so dated by this point (and yet, they are SO Star Trek). At least the captain reminding them they are being observed was funny. Archer's prideful arrogance really is feeling excessively immature even this early on in the show, though.
For all that this episode does well, it still does end up feeling like a bunch of unconnected stories being mashed together. The fact that it comes out of that fairly well is a testament to half decent writing, I'd say.
I do love a good pecan pie.
My plan was to review episodes of Enterprise as I rewatched them, but I'm finding I have almost nothing to say so far. The episodes end and I give a shrug and within an hour or two I've kind of forgotten them. 'Unexpected' at least has some more meaty material to think about.
At this point in the show we are still very much in a "getting to know you" mode with the characters, and the characters are currently very much defined by single traits that are being pushed to the fore. Archer is headstrong and wants to try things his way no matter the good advice he gets. Hoshi is unsure of herself but is becoming confident in her language skills. T'Pol has more common sense than the entire crew put together and will regularly remind them of that. Phlox is optimistically open-minded. Trip is Southern.
This episode manages to both allow the crew to use their traits but also throws them in unknown waters. There's a delightful sense of them just having to muddle through to deal with this situation. And it's a very silly situation, falling back on tired tropes of not being able to deal with hormones and making light of that. By and large I didn't think it was handled as poorly as it could have been, as nobody outright makes fun of Trip, but it's hardly shining a light on Trek's virtues.
The best humour comes from T'Pol, showing off the sarcastic side of Vulcan culture rather expertly, admonishing rather than mocking. And the Klingon captain's wonderful line, "I can see my house from here!".
The episode really takes a while to get going though, with the first part not quite clicking for me. All the slow semi-drugged stuff on the alien ship was unpleasant to sit through. But seeing a holodeck in action was great, along with Trip's amazed reaction to it. Once the Klingons enter the story it's more interesting and I quite like these early meetings between them and humans. Archer has no idea how to talk to them, whereas T'Pol is able to appeal to their nature.
So, I'm giving Enterprise another go! Does it deserve the bad reputation its seemed to gotten over the years? I tuned in for the initial broadcast of this pilot episode and had more or less checked out by the time the appalling theme song began, figuring that maybe I was done with Star Trek. It was several years after the show had finished that I decided to give it a proper chance and watched the whole thing through. That was quite a long while ago now and my memories of it are that I slogged through the first two seasons before finding a lot to enjoy with the final two.
The show starts out just okay. Enterprise retains a lot of the '90s sensibilities that its predecessors had and fits very much in the same style. The exception to this is that the producers finally moved into the 21st century and shot it in HD widescreen. Much appreciated. Other than that it looks like '90s Trek, sounds like '90s Trek and is performed just like '90s Trek. It's not surprising that a sense of fatigue kicked in amongst fans.
Scott Bakula is rather welcome though, even though Captain Archer comes across fairly one-note. He's easily annoyed and quite aggressive in how he gets things done. He unfortunately leans more towards arrogant than confident and shouts a lot of his lines. Voyager had a huge problem (for me) with one-note characters, and I'm not sure that Enterprise ever makes this work either. But it helps that we have some fun actors in the main roles. Trip is sarcastic and fun, similarly quick to anger, while T'Pol shows signs of being a far more adaptable Vulcan that some others. This seems to be an attempt to recreate the original series trifecta of Kirk/Spock/McCoy. But the rest of the crew have very little to distinguish them at this point, and as I recall at least one of them will have virtually nothing to do for the entire show's run.
In fact, the Vulcan aspect of this show is the most interesting thing at this point. Humanity seems to have a difficult relationship with them, making their severe disapproval of Earth's actions quite entertaining and rich.
The episode itself isn't very memorable, but does its job. There's the introduction of Klingons and Suliban (the Suliban suck), some hints about a temporal cold war, a ridiculous "decontamination" scene and lots of shooting/punching in between. It feels safe even with the more rough-&-ready explorers approach. At this point its honestly hard to care about anyone, but let's let things grow.
I'm disappointed that all of Paul Wesley's singing moments weren't done as spoken word, as a tribute.
So, this was a mixed bag for me - It's very difficult to overcome my negative feelings towards musicals. I found parts of this quite entertaining, and there was also parts where I was cringing in embarrassment. I'm not sure it's going to have any rewatch value for me. I appreciated that they at least incorporated the songs into the storyline as a mystery that needed to be solved, but am never a fan of when they lean into the music as a way to dwell on a character's emotional state. Just move the damn story forward instead of sitting in a single moment for three minutes!
Some musical parts were definitely better than others, but this was always going to be a difficult one for me. There were just too many songs here, and they were too much in the musical theatre style. I didn't like the "finale" at all (the Klingon moment should have been hilarious but literally made me cry out "oh GOD NO").
At the same time, I really appreciate that Strange New Worlds is taking risks and experimenting. This is a thousand times more interesting than the super safe Berman-Trek, even when the results don't completely work for me. The problem is that we are only getting 10 episodes per season, so episodes like this can feel like a monumental waste of storytelling time.
The best stuff here was everything that dealt with character relationships - Chapel/Spock, Pike/Batel and La'an/Kirk.
An entertaining if slightly odd beginning to season 2. It was nice to see a shift in focus to other crew members, even if that choice felt kind of jarring as a reintroduction to the show. Side-lining Captain Pike was quite bold and honestly I missed his presence, but giving a chance for Spock, Chapel and M'Benga to have centre stage was also rewarding.
Still, I found this whole episode to feel like it was throwing us into something that was already progressing and it was a little difficult to stay fully engaged with it. There was a whole backstory to the situation and characters on Cajitar IV that was reduced to fleeting dialogue, instead trusting us to just go with it and not worry about the details. I felt that could have been handled better. Obviously this episode drew from the Klingon War that happened on Discovery, and featuring its repercussions so heavily here required a shift. The deep trauma that M'Benga and Chapel seem to have experienced came out of nowhere and fundamentally altered their characters. It was great material for the actors to work with, but flew in the face of what they've established previously.
It also led to the scene which was the weakest part of the episode for me; an extended action sequence in which Chapel and M'Benga expertly fight their way through hordes of Klingons with the assistance of a drug. Exciting, yes, but tonally bizarre and again not fitting the characters. This was WAY over the top, leading to M'Benga torturing a Klingon.. Again, wrong tone.
Thankfully there was a lot of great stuff outside this. La'an has really come into her own and felt like a well balanced character here. And Spock got all the of the episode's best moments. It's great to see him playing the lute and being in charge. We're going down an interesting narrative path here with his losing his grip on his emotional stability, and honestly I'm quite up for it thanks to Ethan Peck's wonderful take on Spock. Yes, we're edging on breaking canon in several areas here, but I'm really not that worried if I'm enjoying what I'm seeing.
Overall, this episode felt kind of unsettled and over-enthusiastic in it's return, but I'm in.
Anna <3
So, this one actually quite upset me. It's a beautiful look at the qualities that make Double Fine special, and at how important it is to have the right people. People that care about their work, but even more so care about each other.
Another strong episode that balanced fun with some great emotional material. I think Worf might be stealing the show already at this point, and the Picard/Beverly discussion was simply fantastic with both actors really giving their all.
I really wasn't expecting the Changeling reveal, and I have to say that it was an extremely pleasant surprise. It's got me wondering if Riker might not be himself.
It's not all perfect - spending an entire two episodes now on a single encounter is feeling slightly tiresome, and the back and forth nature of the Picard/Riker argument was really pushing things by the end of the episode (which also gives me further fuel for the above spoiler). Part of me wanted to scream to get on with things and move the story forward, but the other part of me was delighting in just hanging out with the characters. Jeri Ryan is doing great work here even with the limited screen time in this one.
The fact that I'm very eager for more at the end of each episode is a sign that it's doing things right, but it's also very hard to judge what the overall season arc is going for right now. I feel like I know nothing about what's going on.
The de-aging effects for Picard and Riker weren't great.
Well, that's a bit more like it. While I didn't hate seasons 1 and 2 as much as a vocal minority seem to enjoy screaming, I must admit that I was always hoping for something a bit more akin to TNG 2.0. This might be it, although at this point its too early to say with any certainty.
The characters feel more alive, more energetic. There is a powerful chemistry between Patrick Stewart and Jonathon Frakes and their happiness at working together again comes flowing out of the screen. It helps also that the words they are saying feel much more like the characters we used to know. The script reflects the friendship and bond that grew between the original cast over the course of 7 years of storytelling (plus four films), allowing for a playful tone. It's got me excited to see what's going to happen when all of the original cast are reassembled.
Speaking of which, we got some wonderful stuff from Gates McFadden as Beverly Crusher, who seemingly hasn't missed a beat. Her voice was there, and it was Beverly. Jeri Ryan was on fire and felt like she was channelling aspects of the Seven of old while continuing the evolution of her character. It was also remarkable at how much the Titan's new captain set me on edge, not least by essentially deadnaming Seven; he seems to have a chip of his shoulder over the Borg and I wonder if there's going to be some interesting revelations there.
But the real magic may have been the gorgeous musical score recalling older themes and styles - I can't understate what that added to the overall vibe. It was like a warm blanket of reassurance, and the way the soundtrack flowed between styles and motifs was absolutely beautiful.
The only complaint I have is the dark, dreary lighting for the Starfleet ships. But I can live with it if the story and characters deliver. I hope this is the start of a truly exceptional season. At this point I'm optimistic, but we shall see. Also, did anybody else think, "ah, so the bad guys have played Portal"?
As someone who considers the podracing sequence to be a highlight of The Phantom Menace, I found a lot to enjoy here. Fantastically animated race sequences with a great sense of speed, and a nice guest cast too.
What a great way to end the season. From the moment we saw that maroon movie-era uniform I had a feeling that we were in for something special. This weaved itself in with an alternate take on a classic TOS episode with great skill, as well as throwing in some fun stuff.
I particularly loved the way that they altered the lighting here to match the TOS style, with actor's eyes/faces smoothly lit up in highlights.
Was it a little too on the nose in it's tribute at points? Maybe. But I'm okay with it, and it had enough of a twist on things to make it work. Introducing Kirk this way was a deft, sneaky move and I liked it. And a cliff hanger ending! SNW, you have my attention and my heart.
Wow, it just keeps getting better. Trek has done its fair share of horror stories, some poor and some good, but this is probably most effective scare episode the franchise has done. I loved the way it riffed off moments from the core Alien trilogy and managed to do some properly unsettling things in the process. Besides from having a fantastic design, the moment the blue alien dude started having trouble breathing was a wonderfully staged sequence full of dread.
The Gorn looked great and felt vicious even as infants. I love how this series is setting them up. I also appreciate how we've come to understand La'an's character up to now and her own reactions to this situation.
The most interesting part here may have been Spock. While I'm not sure the actual execution of his emotional barriers dropping was, the effect of it on the character is certainly fascinating. Ethan Peck has been KILLING IT so far and is handling this stuff so well. It's an angle that works. I quite like that the franchise is acknowledging the more emotional Spock we saw in 'The Cage' and working to bridge things to the more stoic version we are familiar with.
And damn, the episode blindsided me with the death of Hemmer. I clocked those two new away team characters as dead from the moment we were introduced to them, but Hemmer was a real shock. Especially given that he seems to have become a fan favourite. What a way to go out too - compare it to the lacklustre death of Airiam over on Discovery, which had zero impact despite the character having been there since the start. This one hit hard, with the reactions of the rest of the crew really doing it justice too.
Much like the previous comedy episode 'Spock Amok', I struggled to click with this one. It wasn't particularly bad with some massive TOS vibes, and I always loved holodeck-gone-wrong style episodes, but the problem was that once again it just felt lifeless. The jokes raised a small chuckle at most, with the majority missing the mark entirely.
This time around something I noticed was the lack of musical accompaniment to help lift the comedy. Without it there to help, things feel remarkably dead. Music was there certainly, but so completely subdued.
For the positives, I thought that Dr. M'Benga lead the episode extremely well. I was also pleased to see Hemmer back. Uhura hammed it up brilliantly. Pike/Anson Mount was kind of delightful as the coward, pitching his performance just right. Wizard Spock looked fantastic. And Ortegas seemed in her element, jousting verbally with Pike. It's just a shame that so few of these elements ended up working well together.
The episode was saved for me by the ending, where it managed to hit me hard. The performances here were top notch. At first I was a little surprised at how easily M'Benga willingly gave up his daughter, but then I realised that she is literally at death's door and has no time left (the show hasn't made this quite as clear as it could have). He knew that holding on to her only means her death.
A weaker episode, but not a terrible one. It feels a little too early in the run to do something like this when the characters haven't been fully established.
The show just keeps stepping it up. This was a joyous adventure full of fun and making full use of the characters. Ethan Peck is bringing so many good things to his portrayal of Spock. Pike's pirate excursion was delightful and I'm becoming genuinely heartbroken for how Chapel's feelings are being thrown around.
The real star here turned out to be Jesse James Keitel who absolutely slayed it, creating a character that I am super eager to see return. Slightly less impressive was the pirate Remy who felt like he was there only for joke purposes. Still fun though, especially as we got to see Pike in armoured apron.
And wow, that ending twist! I didn't even realise how much I wanted that until it happened.
Keep doing what you're doing, Strange New Worlds. This is so much fun. I just wish we were getting more Hemmer.
That was surely one of the Star Trekkiest episodes that ever Star Trekked. I could easily picture this being a TNG story. Hard hitting, tough, highly watchable. Pike's hair continues to impress.
A little bit of a mis-step, attempting to do comedy but failing to be all that funny outside of a few things (hijinks!). There was nothing wrong with the premise of the episode though, and indeed it probably could have worked great if it hadn't all been so lifeless. It's saved by wonderful performances from Ethan Peck and Gia Sandhu and a truly exceptional opening sequence that gives us a taste of the classic TOS episode 'Amok Time' (along with the wonderful music) and that gorgeous finale on the hull. I also appreciated the character work done with Chapel here.
An absolutely wonderful beginning. All the spirit of classic Trek, characters that are vibrant, a sense of fun and adventure, and it brings up relevant modern issues like Trek always has. I can't wait to see where we go from here. Anson Mount and Ethan Peck are just brilliant in their roles as we already knew, but the new cast seem to fit immediately too. Celia Rose Gooding in particular captured the vibe of Uhura very well, even though we saw so little of her. And that was a nice little surprise with the Lieutenant at the end.
What a great episode! I adored the conversation between Jurati and the Queen, and Alison Pill has been killing it this season. The themes of reconciling with the past for various characters are hitting home. I also appreciated that they noted the discrepancy with Picard's mother appearing as an old woman in that early TNG episode.
The action scenes aren't put together all that well which is letting things down. Too many interruptions to the flow. And the thing which has been a big question mark for me was the decision to use so little of Elnor this season. Did the actor only have limited availability?
And this is where the show went completely off the rails. It seems more concerned with making sure that characters get drunk/high/have sex than exploring any interesting psychological aspects.
My favourite kind of episode, a small number of characters stuck needing to figure out how to survive with limited options. This has great character work and the combination of Carter, Keller and McKay allows for the interactions and dialogue to work extremely well. This balances suspense and comedy brilliantly.
It's long past due that the time an SG team takes before their first scheduled check-in is reduced dramatically, wouldn't you think?!
The far more interesting background story of Sheppard's personal life is overshadowed by the quite dull "replicator-on-Earth" plot line. I'd rather have had a whole episode of John and Ronan dealing with the funeral and will reading honestly. I can't remember if John's ex-wife has been mentioned previously, but it came as quite a shock!
That was 45 minutes of pure Star Wars joy. I can't fault a single thing about it. Excellent character work, deep lore exploration and stunning visuals. Glorious.
Great fun episode, but where the heck is Carter? There was some big stuff to deal with here and she's nowhere to be seen. Does Sheppard just make all the decisions now?
At any rate, it's a delight to see Elizabeth again.
I missed seeing Carter in this one! You'd think they'd be using her more. I also think it would be sensible after all this time if the jumpers had their cloaking devices on by default to avoid random attacks like this!
Finnix was in rehab for 90 days but didn't go through any kind of withdrawal? After being on 400mg a day?
My goodness, this show is pretty. Maybe my least favourite episode so far due it's generic premise (and planet alien), but I have to say that seeing some of these kid's innermost desires did melt my heart a little bit. I'm still struggling to like Dal in any way, but they are setting up an arc for him which has the potential to make him so much more likable. Murf should probably be the captain, though.
I thought this double opening episode was a blast. Clearly taking cues from the Star Wars animated shows but that's not a bad thing to me. This was high energy and exciting with some good mysteries presented.
I like some characters much more than others. Rok is great, Zero is kind of fascinating. Gwyn probably has more depth than the rest of the characters put together. Dal was the problematic one, far too in-your-face, so it's a shame that he's ostensibly the "lead" role.
Visually this was glorious too. I loved a lot of the designs and use of colour.
The big questions for me:
- How did the Protostar get there, and what happened to its crew?
- The bad guy said he had been searching for the ship for a long time, but we've been told by the creators that this show is set only a few years after Voyager, so something doesn't entirely add up at this point.
- Similarly, how come there were so many Alpha Quadrant species here? Mysterious!
Great fun if all a bit silly. Tori Higginson manages to portray two different characters quite well, but Joe Flanigan seems to play both of his roles the exact same way. Some very odd decisions from people in places here - I always assumed Ronan was smarter than this - but I don't really care though because I was enjoying it all. Good to see Colonel Caldwell recovered, but his personality hasn't changed much!
Eww, bugs! This is fun and creepy, fortunately not giving us too many close up details of the little buggers. It reminds me of older X-Files shows. Yeah, this is overflowing with tropes for sci-fi episodes but I quite enjoyed having the IOC members along for the ride. Woolsey's character is becoming more faceted without totally betraying what we've seen so far. Teal'c is on form with his quick remarks. Carter is probably more fatalistic than she should be, at least in terms of morale. Daniel is surprisingly not totally freaking out given the situation.
Oh my God, they blew up Prometheus! I had completely forgotten that happened. A strong episode that winds up becoming very compelling. The previous Tagelus episode had enough juicy material to warrant this, but it really shines here. Ernie Hudson helps to lift this higher and things escalate very nicely towards the end. Strategically the SGC don't do the most clever things here, though.
John Alyward is great at playing characters you can hate.