Enterprise 3x17 "Hatchery"

rating: **

the story: Archer becomes overly protective of Xindi-Insectoid eggs.

what it's all about: "Hatchery" is the same kind of episode as "Similitude" before it, but there's a big difference.  Where "Similitude" shown a bright light on characters and character dynamics, "Hatchery" loses itself in its episodic material.  But both are symbolic of the kind of frayed nerves the crew experience during the Xindi conflict.

Once more I must remind viewers that Star Trek for the bulk of its history was episodic rather than serialized in nature, in that episodes were conceived to be self-contained, often with metaphorical value that served the story rather than characters or the overall fictional landscape.  Where Next Generation introduced serialized storytelling, it still favored episodic storytelling even in its efforts to serialize, and even Deep Space Nine spent the bulk of its time in episodic storytelling.  Enterprise chose to do a completely serialized season, but still sought after episodic material for much of it; "Hatchery" is one of the more arc-flavored episodic stories, in that it features the Xindi, when much of the other such material didn't.  It even depicts the Insectoids as ultimately sympathetic, even though just a little later they will be depicted as one of the more aggressive Xindi species.

The bulk of the story rests on the crew mutinying against Archer, who has been chemically induced to obsess over the Insectoid eggs.  However, the character who benefits most from the experience is Hayes, the lead MACO whose primary motivation is following orders.  Despite "Harbinger" showing his progress in integrating with the regular crew, Hayes actually seems to revert here.  Still, it's interesting use of the character, about what you'd expect from a military guy, and it does emphasize the differences continue to exist.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - The increasingly impatient casual viewer ironically has no time for traditional Star Trek storytelling.
• series - The episode's usage of the Xindi-Insectoids is relatively inspired.
• character - Hayes, and the MACOs at large, receives a subtle nod.
• essential - Taking away the episodic gimmick would have improved the story in this instance.

notable guest-stars:
Steven Culp (Hayes)
Daniel Dae Kim

Enterprise 3x3 "Extinction"

rating: *

the story: Several of the crew are mutated into an alien species.

what it's all about: It's a little difficult to imagine what "Extinction" was supposed to accomplish except on a metaphorical level.  It seems to exist mostly as a concession to Star Trek fans who might have otherwise been leery of a season-long arc.  As the lone episode of the season with no overt ties to the Xindi arc, that seems to be its only reason to exist.

There have been plenty of episodes throughout the franchise with the same general plot; "Ashes to Ashes," a Voyager effort, saw the return of a crewmate everyone thought was dead, who'd been given new DNA, a new appearance.  The idea itself is sound, and "Extinction" explores it about as well as an episodic story can.

The problem is, it comes near the start of a season that was constructed for a serialized story.  No matter how slowly the arc begins, it remains methodical in its approach.  There's always something added to the viewer's understanding of the framework.  Except in "Extinction."  The only thing "Extinction" does is theoretically give the crew a little perspective; perhaps after the ethical concerns of "Anomaly," the producers thought they should pull back a little.  Archer is given a gentle reminder of his humanity, so he doesn't quickly barrel ahead to a breaking point.  But that's mostly implication. 

The truth is, if "Extinction" didn't exist, it wouldn't affect the season at all.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - An familiar episodic entry for casual viewers.
• series - Doesn't press its metaphorical significance.
• character - If Archer had been observer instead of participant, the episode could've improved.
• essential - The later "Hatchery" covers this ground much better.

notable guest-stars:
Daniel Dae Kim

Enterprise 3x1 "The Xindi"

rating: ***

the story: The crew begins its search for the Xindi in a processing plant.

what it's all about: After the big setup at the end of the second season ("The Expanse"), "The Xindi" kicks off the ambitious season-long serialized arc...in a manner that seems like a fairly slow start.  But it's got a ton of stuff it does accomplish, and its unique handling of this kickoff is itself pretty clever.

The biggest thing the episode accomplishes is introducing a host of recurring characters.  One of the things fans loved most about Deep Space Nine was its humungous assortment of recurring characters, who helped make the series feel lived-in.  Voyager never quite attempted to duplicate that, and even Enterprise in its first two seasons used recurring characters somewhat sparingly.  But the third season, at least in the third season, changes that.  Technically the only recurring character introduced in the episode to receive a proper introduction is MACO Major Hayes.  But the Xindi Council, including members who will become much more important as the season progresses (Degra and Dolim), also debuts, and it's this early peak at it that's the episode's best selling point.

Otherwise our crew attempts to make do with scratching for clues.  Some reviews upon its original broadcast remarked that it was downright disappointing to see Archer scramble through a sewer system rather than, y'know, engage the Xindi.  And it is a little disappointing that a season premiere, especially one that kicks off a major arc, has a relatively soft approach.  But it also eventually leads to a killer ending, one of the many mysteries the season will solve: why are the Xindi trying to protect a home planet that was...apparently obliterated years ago?

So in that sense, it's a really clever way to go about the premiere.  The majority of the episode is spent acclimating to new circumstances.  The MACOs are a major addition.  If none of them ultimately spends a lot of time in the spotlight, their presence alone is a key element of the season.  They even end up being featured in the later film Star Trek Beyond!  The concept itself is a fascinating addition to franchise lore, and entirely in keeping with a rougher early Starfleet still operating with spare parts from entities outside of itself (Mayweather and Reed, you'll recall, came from such origins, too).

criteria analysis:

• franchise - Casual viewers will probably end up baffled and underwhelmed.
• series - But Enterprise fans will eat it up.
• character - The incredible wealth of introductions is almost itself worth it.
• essential - Especially in hindsight, as some characters fleetingly seen here become much more important later.

notable guest-stars:
Steven Culp (Hayes)
Randy Oglesby (Degra)
Scott MacDonald (Dolim)
Tucker Smallwood
Rick Worthy
Daniel Dae Kim

Voyager 6x12 "Blink of an Eye"

**

A lot of Star Trek fans like to complain that any Star Trek series repeats the same general format as a predecessor.  By that I mean that four out of the five live action shows took the exploration format and ran with it.  It was fine when Next Generation did it.  Deep Space Nine sat in one place.  Then Voyager went back to exploration, and so did Enterprise, even if they had other layers to the narrative.  What's the point?  Genre fans perhaps don't watch Law & Order.  The point is there's always another cool way to do the same basic story.  (If there weren't, many millennia of storytellers wouldn't exist.)

"Blink of an Eye" is one of the more awesome visits to a random alien world in the whole of the franchise.  There's a key difference in this world, in that it spins far quicker than the average, and so civilization rapidly progresses in the time it takes our crew to dislodge their ship from its orbit, so that the episode is really about progress and impact, a more ambitious story than is typical.

You don't need to love Voyager to love "Blink of an Eye," and so it's essential viewing regardless of whether or not you like any of the characters (The Doctor has an understated subplot that may be worth noting), just so long as you love Star Trek.

franchise * series * essential * character

Notable guest-stars:
Daniel Dae Kim

Memory Alpha summary.