Enterprise 1x15 "Shadows of P'Jem"

rating: ****

the story: The Vulcans are upset about the crew's interaction with the Andorians.

what it's all about: Though to this point in the series less serialized than it would be later and certainly less than fans liked at the time and probably less even now, "Shadows of P'Jem" certainly catches Enterprise early in its run with an episode drawing directly from previous material.  It's a direct sequel to the events of "The Andorian Incident."  It also involves the nature of the human-Vulcan relationship as depicted in the pilot episode ("Broken Bow"), representing the first time in the series the Vulcans attempt to cut short the crew's mission. 

One of the things this accomplishes is allowing the growing family of recurring characters to show exactly what they add to the series.  Recurring characters had really only been similar to this, and on a much larger scale, eventually, in Deep Space Nine.  To see Admiral Forrest and Ambassador Soval again is one thing, but we get to see Shran again, too.  It's his relationship with Archer that grows the most over the course of the series.  Word has it that if Enterprise had gotten a fifth season, Shran would've become a regular.  If only!  Here we get to see his love-hate relationship with Archer, his vaguely racist term of affection, "pink skin," becoming a trademark already, a touch that helps add dimension to him.

T'Pol's position with the crew is threatened; her immediate recall is asked for, and only the events of the episode spare her such a fate.  This is usually something that happens in a season finale, so it's nice to see that in this series, such danger can come at any turn, sort of suggesting the later constant volatility of Discovery.

Of course, the whole thing's a further exercise in watching how Archer is put in-between the conflict between Vulcans and Andorians, a precursor to his helping build a lasting coalition between them and other aliens: the Federation.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - Seeing relationships evolve between classic aliens like Vulcans and Andorians.
• series - And how our crew helps make that happen.
• character - Specifically Archer, thanks to his relationship with Shran.
• essential - Crucial further development in the overall arc of the series.

notable guest-stars:
Jeffrey Combs (Shran)
Vaughn Armstrong (Forrest)
Gary Graham (Soval)
Gregory Itzen

Voyager 7x5 "Critical Care"

rating: ***

the story: The Doctor is kidnapped and forced to work in a hospital that has seriously messed up its priorities.

what it's all about: This is the Star Trek episode about healthcare, applying it so that it covers everyone equally.  Clearly it's still an issue today, and so here we have a Voyager story that is clearly evergreen and part of the franchise social message tradition.

In some ways, it's the Doctor's version of "The Most Toys," the Next Generation episode where Data is "collected" and makes an extraordinary decision to use lethal force (though he's thwarted by a timely beam-out) against his kidnapper, who has demonstrated monstrous inhumanity.  The Doctor makes a similar decision, although "Critical Care" doesn't pull its punches in the consequences, even if the results are an unambiguous happy ending, except for the Doctor, who wonders how he's reached the point where he can do something like that.

criteria analysis:

• franchise - It's exactly what Star Trek is all about.
• series - It didn't need to be a Voyager episode.
• character - Although of course it works well as a Doctor spotlight.
• essential - It's the one episode where the quagmire of healthcare is addressed in the franchise.

notable guest-stars:
Gregory Itzen
William Daniels

Deep Space Nine 6x12 "Who Mourns for Morn?"

rating: **

the story: This is an episode about Morn, but it doesn't actually involve Morn...

what it's all about: Morn is a character only true Deep Space Nine fans will care about, one of those gimmick characters like Wilson (never saw his face in Home Improvement) or Maris (Niles Crane's never-seen but often-referenced ex-wife in Frasier) who are basically an ongoing gag.  Morn was Quark's most famous patron at the bar, a familiar slug-like presence who never spoke but was always drinking.  (His name was an anagram for Norm from Cheers.)  This is the only time he's in the spotlight, so it's the only time I'll list Mark Allen Shepherd, the man behind the impressive husk, in the guest-star credits, even though Morn appears in virtually every episode.

So if Morn isn't in his own episode, what is the story?  Basically, it's Quark's last great escapade, the kind he originally made his name with, making deals with shady characters for quasi-justifiable reasons that are borderline criminal (Odo would remove all the quibbles from the preceding statement). 

It's basically a throwaway episode, a breather after all the Dominion War heaviness, an experience where you don't have to worry about anything, even the apparent death of a supposedly beloved character in Morn (see the title, which riffs on the classical episode "Who Mourns for Adonais?").  Even when Worf and Jadzia were getting married ("You Are Cordially Invited") or Quark was up to trouble with a bunch of other Ferengi ("The Magnificent Ferengi"), or the Mirror Universe randomly resurfaced ("Resurrection"), there was still a sense that these were meaningful stories to the overall course of the series.  This one absolutely isn't, and that's not a bad thing at all.  It's a lark, plain and simple.

The timing of its original broadcast is actually pretty fascinating.  "Mourns for Morn" came after "Waltz," a heavy Sisko episode, which came after "Magnificent Ferengi."  Rather than consider that two silly Ferengi episodes bookend a heavy Sisko episode, I'll next draw your attention to the episode after "Mourns for Morn," which is "Far Beyond the Stars," another heavy Sisko episode.  If anyone could lay claim to being truly the complete opposite of Sisko, it would be Quark.  After "Beyond the Stars" is another relatively lightweight episode, "One Little Ship," which doesn't feature Quark.  No, the irascible bartender's next spotlight is the much-derided "Profit and Lace" near the end of the season.  It should be noted that "Profit and Lace," despite whatever else can be said about it, was not conceived as a throwaway episode. 

criteria analysis:

• franchise - If you're not a fan of this series, you can skip this one.
• series - Even if you are, you can skip if you like.
• character - It is about Morn, but it's a Quark spotlight.
• essential - It's fun to watch as a fan of either.

notable guest-stars:
Mark Allen Shepherd (Morn)
Gregory Itzen

Enterprise 4x19 "In a Mirror, Darkly, Part 2"

****

The brilliance that was the first part of the Mirror Duology concludes (just in case the title of the episode doesn't explain that already).

In what is essentially a celebration of everything that made the series what it was while having as much fun with franchise lore as possible, Archer and several other members of his Mirror Universe crew don Kirk-era uniforms and battle the rebels who are trying to thwart his plans of seizing control of the Terran Empire, including T'Pol, Soval, and Phlox (this scenario is also ironic, given the events of the Terra Prime Duology that follows).

We see a CGI Gorn this episode (following a CGI Tholian in the previous entry), but the real thrill is watching Archer truly enjoy himself, and how the episode quickly centers itself around Hoshi (making this her lone spotlight of the season, though very welcome) in its conclusion.

It's all ridiculously clever.  One of the more inspired elements is the alternate opening credits for both episodes, which feature an evil version of the clips that are normally featured, and a new theme!

Not without exaggeration, but if the Mirror Duology had occurred earlier in the season, or series, fans might have finally acknowledged the effort put into Enterprise and rewarded it by, y'know, watching.

Absolutely essential.

franchise * series * essential * character

Notable guest-stars:
Gregory Itzen
Gary Graham
Derek Magyar

Memory Alpha summary.