Bounty

DVD, Enterprise S2 (Bounty)

It has come to something when both the A- and B-stories are interesting and linked to 'TOS' lore, but it's something good. Even the fact that there is a proper B-story is a positive, perhaps a sign of the sure hand of Berman and Braga rather than the newer writers on staff. It was a clever way to deal with T'Pol's Pon Farr - keeping it between her and Phlox, happening while under the influence of an alien virus or whatever, and also leaving the door open for them to do a 'proper' examination of the issue if they wanted to in future. Her behaviour reminded me of 'Strange New World' from Season 1, and makes me realise there have been few examples of the Sub-Commander getting out of character, something Spock did a little more regularly. I also felt her outlandish actions were less jarring, and thus less effective because she's a bit more emotional than Vulcans on other series', though by 'Enterprise' terms she's certainly one of the least emotional of the series. Jolene Blalock did a fine job of it, but it's a shame Vulcan superior strength didn't show itself. She might have been weakened by the virus, but I wanted to see her pick people up and throw them across rooms, not ineffectively shove them into walls!

It was wise not to hide from the famous Vulcan mating ritual, and fortunate that it was dealt with this early in the series (though comparatively, Spock dealt with it even earlier: at the beginning of the second season of 'TOS' rather than the end of the season as we are here), but as I mentioned above, it can easily be explained away as early activation by the virus meaning she could be due the real experience at any point in the series' future. I don't believe it ever was addressed again, but if the series had run for a successful length I feel sure it would have been dealt with. Then again, they also had to be wary of treading on the toes of continuity as it was an unknown custom to the crew of 'TOS,' only a century later, so perhaps the issue wouldn't have come up again, or if it had it would necessarily have had to be dealt with in a way that no, or few, humans would be aware of it.

The other interesting thing about the story was getting to know a little more about Phlox, not the least his alien physique: brown markings on his torso and limbs, and most interestingly a ribbed backbone. It was also fascinating to hear that Denobulan males are quite subdued and private, probably even more so in Phlox' case. I like the hint that he was responsible for installing curtains in the decon chamber because not everyone is comfortable with the procedure. Ironically it humanises the sequence and is also a sly nod back to the pilot when companionable decontamination was made such a fuss of! This episode also sees the return of T'Pol's white uniform, which I think had been used before, in 'Marauders' and foreshadowed her new uniforms for Season 3.

The main story and the main import of it is the first chronological appearance of that mainstay of 'The Original Series,' the Tellarites. Okay, so they weren't exactly prevalent like the Vulcans and Klingons, but they cropped up more than once and looked different enough that they were always remembered, and even mentioned in later episodes (I remember Captain Sisko talking about a Tellarite friend of his who was killed by the Klingons on 'DS9'). At the time everyone was waiting for the next race to be updated as the Andorians had been in Season 1, but it had taken this long before they finally gave us another one, preferring to chart their own course and make up new aliens. Makeup chief Michael Westmore made noises early on that he wanted to do the Tellarites so perhaps this was written thanks to his wish, who knows? I wouldn't have done the makeup quite as it was. I preferred the deeper set eyes that didn't reveal the eyeball, and the stronger pig-like nose of the original creations, but I still like this version and its 'high-res' detail (including the old hairy hands, this time with added bony protrusion), and I'm glad they mentioned the style of the species, their argumentative nature, even if it didn't come across in the two Tellarites we met in the episode.

If anything, I felt Skalaar wasn't very representative of his race, but I can understand that having him argue and obstruct all the time might have made for a difficult story, but because of this, the race didn't work out (at first), as well as the Andorians did. I think partly it was that they came along right before the big sea-change in direction away from the familiar and into the truly unknown, something that was both a blessing and a curse for the series and to be discussed when I review Season 3. As an introduction to the species it did its job, regardless of the fact it could have been any alien that had captured Archer. I enjoyed the surprise opening with Archer getting kidnapped by the burly Tellarite, but Skalaar was taking an awful risk. How did he know the Captain would be there at the airlock or that he wouldn't bring a team of security with him? He didn't, I suppose - for these bounty hunters risk is all part of the deal.

I liked that Skalaar was given a bit more backstory than we sometimes get, his troubles with his brother, his wish to get back the freighter the Klingons had impounded, helped to make him a more rounded person (and let's face it, for a Tellarite he wasn't that rounded physically so he needed all he could get!). After seeing Robert O'Reilly's name in the opening credits I was trying to work out if he was playing Skalaar, but it wasn't until he showed up in a bit part as the alien (Kago?), that the unmistakable tones of Gowron growled out at me. I like that they bring back familiar faces (or voices in this case), but, as with Casey Biggs next season, it's a shame when they aren't important to the episode.

As much as I enjoyed the content of the episode for its Trek crowd-pleasing use of previously owned aliens and lore (Orion slave girls and the Klingons' 'nasty-looking swords' also get a mention), I rarely felt excited by the action on screen. T'Pol escapes from decon and goes on the rampage but is stopped without trouble. It only needed a shot of the deck being evacuated by hurrying crew-members to make it more urgent. Similarly, the only time things really got going for Archer were in the initial scuffle with Skalaar and at the end, on the Klingon ship. But I will say I enjoyed the twist of Archer and Skalaar's collusion and the Captain running down Klingon corridors having a firefight with the warrior race. But where were all the crew of that ship? I wanted to see Archer pinned down and having to make a last desperate dive as he leaps into the escape pod, firing all the way, but I suppose that's down to a TV budget and a TV time limit and I'm not going to criticise Roxann Dawson who was back in the director's chair, for not being John Woo, as much as I might like that.

The story was also neatly tied into Archer's earlier Klingon adventures of this season, which I believe would continue into the season finale. Such continuity is always a pleasure, especially on a series that isn't known for its story arcs. Although the CGI ships and action were fine, especially when the NX-01 was involved, I found the Tellarite ship lacking in distinctiveness where most races have strong design. Another case of end of season time limits? Equally the design for the ship of alien, Kago, was lacking, although the Klingon vessel, almost boomerang-shaped, did pique my interest as being so different to the usual Birds-of-Prey or battlecruisers. I would also say it was good to see Archer having to do things the old-fashioned way, on his own, using his fists as well as his talk. I would have liked to see Skalaar again, but although he didn't return we did at least get stronger episodes for the Tellarites thanks to Season 4.

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