Enterprise 4x05 - Nov. 5

ChaoZ · Post by **ChaoZ** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 1:36 pm

The episode was good.

I think the new writers that were brought on was a great choice. The plots are solid, the dialogue is believable.

The casting director though, should be fired. Those augments are pretty bad actors, as well as that scientist in the tube.

This season is shaping up to be something good if these last few episodes are to be judged. I will be eagerly watching next week.

Orpheo · Post by **Orpheo** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 2:00 pm

Brent Spiner was good. Phlox is good. I don't think anyone else in the show really acts well.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 2:44 pm

I have drifted so far away from this show...if I were to start watching it now, would I have a prayer of figuring out what's going on? Is it still episodic, or is it a serial now? What night is it on?

ChaoZ · Post by **ChaoZ** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 2:57 pm

You won't have a problem if you watched last week's and this week's show. They're doing a small arc with this story. You can pretty much ignore last season and the first episode of this season. 4x02 is about them returning home after succeeding at their mission from season 3.

Asharak · Post by **Asharak** » Sat Nov 06, 2004 5:42 pm

Agreed. Another excellent episode - 3 in a row, and 100% on the season once you discount the first episode, which had a storyline they didn't choose but were stuck with.

The torture scene was particularly good; the scientist held out for a lot longer than I expected (although the subsequent Phlox angle suffered from the usual he's-important-so-he-can't-die fallacy).

- Ash

martindemon · Post by **martindemon** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 1:26 am

Very good as all the enterprise episodes I saw; I like them all.
I can't wait to see Soong turn upon that augment leading bastard.

D.A.Lewis · Post by **D.A.Lewis** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 9:48 am

I find it interesting that both of the Augment episodes are dealing with story and not sex appeal or romantic (or lack of) entanglements. No time is wasted showing T'Pols breasts (as lovely as they are) but on the story.

When Manny Cota was doing Odyssey 5, the romance was pivital to the character and the story. Unlike what we've been subjected to in Enterprise's frist 3 years, when romance was all about sexual titillation.

On the other hand, on those few occasions when Manny did sell out to sex on O-5, man did he go all the way!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Asharak · Post by **Asharak** » Sun Nov 07, 2004 6:13 pm

D.A.Lewis wrote:I find it interesting that both of the Augment episodes are dealing with story and not sex appeal or romantic (or lack of) entanglements. No time is wasted showing T'Pols breasts (as lovely as they are) but on the story.

You're right, and I hadn't really noticed that. I had assumed from the amount of time spent on romance in the second episode of the season (the homecoming one) - T'Pol and Trip on Vulcan, when she marries what's-his-name; and Archer's mountaintop fling with the other captain - that sex was going to remain a pivotal part of this season's stories, but it hasn't carried through so far.

Now maybe they're just having too much fun with Brent Spiner to waste time on romance for the duration of the Augment story, but it will be very interesting to see if they return to any romance issues in the next few episodes or not.

Personally, I'm much happier without romance a la the first three seasons, but would actually like the well-handled romance of that single episode from this season to continue (as you put, romance that's less about sex and more about the characters and the plot).

- Ash

Dirt · Post by **Dirt** » Mon Nov 08, 2004 8:21 pm

This is the great grandpappy of Noonian right? They're trying too hard to tie everything together.

Odin · Post by **Odin** » Mon Nov 08, 2004 10:25 pm

Dirt wrote:This is the great grandpappy of Noonian right? They're trying too hard to tie everything together.

What would be the point of putting the show back at the birth of the Federation and then not drawing on any of the characters, settings, races and events that we associate with Star Trek? Granted you may or may not agree that it's an appropriate timeperiod for the show at all, but since they're in their fourth season it's a little late to change it now. I COULD see your point if they abused it. If they had Robert C. Kirk and Theodore "Muscles" McCoy and Jean-Paul Picard and Cleetus Crusher on the show every other episode, that would certainly be a bit much. But there are two reasons why the Soong thing works:

1. The augment/Soong connection draws on two story threads that run through the heart of the Star Trek Universe. It brings together the Eugenics War concepts introduced in Space Seed and carried into Wrath of Khan, then ties it into the Data/Lore mythos of TNG, which was pretty popular as I recall. And they've done it in a way that doesn't directly mention any of it. It might have been tempting to remind the non-Trekkie audience that there's a relationship here between one of the most popular Trek films or some of the more popular TNG characters, but they resisted that urge.

2. Moreover, Spiner is one of Trek's better actors. He's not perfect at all, and I actually found him annoying in the later TNG films, but I think that was the script/director's fault more than Spiner's. He's definitely done some work in TNG that I found impressive. SO, a popular, established actor who's already associated with the brand is brought in to boost ratings while playing a role that he's perfectly suited for and is an extension of the work he's already done.

Sounds like a good move to me. I know you've determined to despise anything and everything about this show, dirt, so I'm sure this falls on deaf ears, but if you'd open your mind even a little you might find that this show isn't the worst thing ever - in fact it's preferable to no Trek at all by a fairly wide margin.

Sith

Dirt · Post by **Dirt** » Mon Nov 08, 2004 10:50 pm

Maybe if it wasn't on Friday or Saturday night.

Jag · Post by **Jag** » Tue Nov 09, 2004 11:59 am

The show has been great so far, hopefully if they keep up this great writing, it will survive another season. Spiner is excellent, although he does highlight how one dimensional the other actors are. His character is a great combination of genius with some morality. It will be great to watch his ultimate realization that he has created a race of monsters.

One other ST tie in is that according to the trailor the final episode in this trilogy basically ignites the Federation/Klingon conflict that lasts until STTNG.

BTW, Voyager tried the ancestor thing as well with Millenium, having Janeway et al, building some tower. It was awful.