Revisions

DVD, Stargate SG-1 S7 (Revisions)

It's a kind of basic story that goes back at least to sixties 'Star Trek,' but it's also the traditional style of episode for this series: the team go to an alien world and find everything is fine. That doesn't make for great drama, so something must go wrong, and it's usually to do with the townspeople or the savages or whatever level the race is at technologically. This story also uses the trope of a computer system at the heart of the problem, and also the solution. But far from this being a malevolent, self-aware computer that can be talked into a logic problem that destroys it and frees the populace, it's actually more sinister because it's a faceless, characterless computer programme that's just doing its job. But because it's a computer programme and can't reason like a biological brain, it keeps the protective dome of the inhabitants' home from failing by ordering individuals out to their deaths. Trouble is, like the Borg they're all linked by a mental internet that erases memories and plants new ones so the missing people are never missed, the houses change position and nobody's the wiser. Clinical, logical survival, but at the cost of longterm growth for the community that has gone from a hundred thousand to almost a thousand in four hundred years as the dome shrinks due to the power weakening. It's not a bad story, ever more apposite for today's world with wearable tech and closer and closer brain and computer interaction. We don't know enough about the human brain to be able to control it, but that's what sci-fi is all about: showing the potential, both for good and ill.

The theme is a worthy topic to investigate, and there's a spooky, chocolate box quality to the setting that is just too perfect to be real. Lush gardens, tall trees, old-fashioned lamps and brick architecture - these people live in a kind of idealised world where technology is so integrated it barely shows, yet is at the root of everything. This is the problem and gives us some interesting questions to explore, most notably in Pallan who doesn't really want to remove his neural interface device as he thinks it will kill him instantly - I thought at first this was a continuity error as earlier his wife had happily taken it off to offer to Daniel (who wisely didn't plug in!), but like everything else it was part of the revisions of the title, with memories and behaviour altered to ensure the continuation of the dome. Because there was no 'bad guy' at the bottom of it all, not even a computer to spar with, it feels more abstract than usual. The direction emphasises this with sweeping shots and smooth motion, wide angle lenses as Daniel jogs through the maze-like streets after Evalla, or when Jack and Teal'c flee from the pursuing villagers. But there's never any violence, in keeping with the flowing nature and beauty of the place, and perhaps that's one of the reasons I wasn't as drawn to it as I was on first viewing. Now I tend to appreciate the continuity episodes a little more, so to have a standalone like this which bears no connection to anything felt a little strange. Like going back to Season 1 when they did this sort of thing all the time.

At the same time, like the equivalent episodes of 'TNG' when they would go down to a planet and calmly explore, find a problem, solve the problem and leave, it was like slipping into a warm bath. The eeriness wasn't really played up, Carter was barely out of control of the computer for a few seconds, so there was no desperate struggle against the villagers under the influence and no creeping tension or dawning horror. Maybe that hurt the potential of the story a little. Back when I first watched it I preferred these one-off episodes with the team working together and basically doing a Trek landing party on an alien world that isn't so unrecognisable, but now it feels a little out of place, as if the series had moved on. I still like seeing the four of them doing their thing, with barely a sign of the SGC, but again, though the stakes are high there was never much feeling of risk as they were allowed to contact home any time they wanted and only needed their environmental suits to leave. Pallan wasn't a bad character, giving us a sympathetic person who is coaxed and convinced into a radical action by Sam (she's the Captain Kirk figure who has to persuade to make a change), and it does leave us with a bittersweet ending as, having experienced the joys of working something out with his own mind, he asks Carter to tell him of the wife that was wiped from his memory. This has a much stronger parallel now as many people have smart phones and the capability to instantly look up any piece of information they want or need at any time, rather than trying to remember for themselves or look deeper than what could be false information.

The total sum of the episode doesn't quite do it for me, not having enough fear factor and physical danger for SG-1, though I suppose it wouldn't have looked very good for them to have been beating up or shooting these poor, deluded townsfolk who couldn't do anything else until they were forced to think for themselves. And it does look good. And it does have a happy ending with the team able to find a new place to relocate the survivors - it's just a shame Daniel couldn't have somehow followed Evalla outside the dome when she'd gone through the brick wall, as he might have been quick enough to save her.

**

Affliction

DVD, Enterprise S4 (Affliction)

Section 31, Klingon boarding parties and the launch of a new Starfleet ship: how much more intrigue can be crammed into an episode? The answer is a fair bit more as the writers juggle interpersonal problems, kidnappings, and the potential dispersal of this crew we've grown to know. Everything about this episode is confident, slick and tight. It's like they finally got the stabilisers off and were taking the NX-01 and its crew for a proper spin. Not to say the series hadn't felt like this before, but it rarely carries it off through the entirety of an episode ('Regeneration' is one that does it expertly, as did some parts of the Xindi arc). It's refreshing and exciting, with particular strengths being the direction and music, both promoting and underlining a tense and mysterious sequence of events and giving everything an aura of power and confidence in its storytelling. I'd like to say that having Klingons helped, but the truth is they've done some Klingon stories before that felt a little lightweight, and the Klingon scenes in this tend to be some of the more contemplative and sedate parts of the drama, just to be different! An example of how well everything is coming together is the step up in quality of the Targ which we see in a couple of scenes: taking some meat from just in front of the camera, and badgering (or 'Targing'), Dr. Phlox. Compare this to the basic interaction of the Targs in Season 1's 'Sleeping Dogs' and you see a strong indication of how far the effects technology had come in just four years!

What is more impressive is the use of the full cast in a true ensemble piece with all of them looking as if the group could be broken up at any time, mainly thanks to Trip following through with his request to transfer to the NX-02 Columbia, but we also hear that Phlox has been requested to take up a new position by the Interspecies Medical Exchange. And with Reed shown the brig in disgrace after apparently turning traitor, things are looking grim. The only one who didn't look like he'd be going anywhere was Travis, but they'd probably have difficulty prying him out of his seat the way he spends so much time there - I reckon he even sleeps there (could he secretly be an android?). I jest, of course, but as usual he's the only one that doesn't get anything meaningful to do, marginally more than the various extras - take the poor medical officer filling in while Phlox is incommunicado, who doesn't get a word to say, it being left for T'Pol to state the obvious and reveal that the captured boarder is in fact Klingon. Sometimes you need to give a line to an extra to make sense. Just a small niggle. There were others, of course: while it's nice to see Hoshi's combat training pay off as she takes on Rigelians, I was a bit confused about their language. We don't have Universal Translators universally, which is why Hoshi's so valuable being the human equivalent, yet the Rigelians first speak in English when addressing Phlox (unless they were speaking Denobulan and we just heard a translation…), but as they escape Hoshi catches something in their own language which is the clue to unravel the situation. I assume they knew some English and reverted to their native tongue in the heat of the moment.

One thing that was cunningly thought of before anyone could start to wonder, was why the Klingons didn't just kidnap Arik Soong, as he'd know all about the Augment virus. Aside from the fact of budget making it unlikely they'd bring back Brent Spiner again in the same season (though his contribution to the series wasn't quite finished), the Klingons admit they tried to get him, but he was too heavily guarded. So Phlox was only second choice! I like it, it makes sense and calls back to recent events in a cool way, something the series has done really well this season. It's been less saturated with a serialised continuity than Season 3, but has been at just the right level, like 'DS9' used to be, where things would have importance, but wasn't necessarily entirely relied upon for continuing drama from week to week. The Klingons are presented very well, with a rare glimpse into their caste system which is fascinating, but is has always been practically smothered by the attention given to the warriors. Yet we know a little about the differences in birth and vocation from here and there - this time we hear of the difficulty the scientists have, their work not considered as important as fighting and conquering, which is why Dr. Antaak has to stoop to the dishonourable practice of thieving in order to get his work done (though we've seen plenty of warriors do the same thing, and call it legitimate pillaging!).

Phlox stands up as much as he can to his Klingon captors, bravely accepting death rather than help create Klingon Augments, having experienced the human ones. The whole situation is brilliantly devised as a solution to the longterm question of how the Klingons on 'The Original Series' became the bumpy heads of the film series. Various pieces of the puzzle came to light over the decades, notably characters from 'TOS' showing up on the later series' with full-fledged bumps where before they'd been smoothies in the forehead department, as well as the issue being addressed 'head-on' in the wonderful 30th Anniversary tribute 'Trials and Tribble-ations.' Or not addressed, to be precise, as though Worf admits it's an issue, it's one they don't share with outsiders, a clever explanation for why no one talks about it in the 24th Century! 'Enterprise' itself gave us a few questions when it premiered with bumpy Klingons, a century before Kirk and the smoothies, thus explaining that it was indeed how they were meant to look, not the cheaper makeup used in the sixties show. But how to get them to and from that blip of oddness in their continuity? Enter this two-parter, late to the party, but better than never. And it does make sense that the Klingons would respond to the Eugenics-created Augments with the desire to make their own. It doesn't sound very honourable for a species that prides itself on its superior hand-to-hand combat and verve for battle, but pride is the operative word. As we've seen all too often a lot of Klingons talk the talk, but not so many walk the walk!

What this boils down to is that Khan was ultimately responsible for the Klingon transformation. But then isn't he always at the bottom of everything (these days, anyway!). You want to know something else that's always at the bottom of key events? Section 31. Now it isn't mentioned by name in this episode, but by piecing together selective data we can come to the conclusion that it is that nefarious, secretive agency that Reed is working for, and, more shockingly, has a prior connection with (he refers to it as a 'section,' but it's the dead giveaway of the portly Pierpoint as Harris, dressed in those shiny black suits so beloved of Sloan in 'DS9'!). Again, it's a twist on the expected coupled with the unexpected - if they were going to do 31 on the series they were sure to make the British Malcolm Reed the agent (just like Dr. Bashir), but we'd never have guessed that he was under the organisation's wing (or should I say talons), long before he joined Enterprise. One of the advantages of the characters having generally clean slates when it comes to their backstories, is that someone could come along and chalk in some detail, and while those are sparse, they give the impression there's a big story going on. When I first saw these episodes I think I was a little disappointed by the Section 31 part of the plot as in no way was it anywhere as clever as when the organisation was first introduced (in real world production chronology), for 'DS9.' Sloan was such a superb character, and Harris is just a man in black who sits in an office. Now I'm not too bothered as I've seen it done much worse, pretty much in name only ('Star Trek Into Darkness'). At least this really affects the story and has a place.

Reed having built up such a trust with Archer means his lack of cooperation is perplexing and a complete betrayal, especially after all they've been through together. Perhaps Malcolm's tight-lipped style helped him become a candidate for Section 31, the buttoned-up attitude and refusal to talk about himself ideal for such an operative. This, added to his natural shyness may have been why he was so reserved in the early part of the series, holding his Captain at arm's length because he may one day be asked to work against him by the organisation? I'm not saying this was definitely his thought, but it may have existed in his mind as a possibility. It's not yet clear how much work he's actually done for them, but you can imagine him making little adjustments to missions while he's been on Enterprise. Then again, if you look at the ham-fisted way he covers his tracks, I'm not sure how good he really was, and it's likely he hadn't done anything while serving under Archer. On the other hand, the ease with which T'Pol unmasks his deception could point to a wish to be found out, as it's not in his nature to lie to his Captain. Perhaps subconsciously he needed to be uncovered for his own sake?

T'Pol does some good detective work in the style of Tuvok, but the one area she can't fathom is Trip! She outs Reed and mind melds with Hoshi in order to recall her vague memory of an alien language being spoken after the attack on her and Phlox (why didn't he do his bloat fish head trick?), but she doesn't understand why Trip's leaving. The dream or vision sequence was mighty intelligent, neatly segueing from her meditation into Trip's daydream so that we don't really know whose mental experience it was, and likely points to both of them since Hoshi had the same dream, after her meld. It's another, and different way of approaching the mind meld (I liked that the Vulcan is unsure of it and it's Archer who can guide her in the practice after his encounter with Surak's katra!), at the same time as addressing the couple's connection. No scene is extraneous, it all gives us something about the story or about the characters, and makes the episode a fully rounded production in the manner of the previous and better TV series' it followed. An imaginative technique to have the attack replayed with T'Pol there to see what happened and advise Hoshi as events play out again.

It also looks gorgeous, with all those bright lights in dark rooms, night time shooting for outside the restaurant, even some more contemporary shots included, such as during the investigation right after the kidnapping incident where the camera's sort of hovering around and moving between people. It shows that such a style doesn't have to be used the whole time (see most modern films), but can inject some energy and tension when used in moderation. The camera's also fairly free in other scenes, such as the bridge, and it's good that it hasn't replaced the more traditional static camera shots we're so used to, but everything's being used to compliment the story. Just as the Targ looked better than ever, the Columbia is beautiful as it hangs in space-dock, the lighting giving it a silvery sheen. I wasn't so keen on the big 'warp pulse' lights at the back of the bridge, denoting the hum of the warp drive (or so I interpreted), as they could be an annoyance, but they needed something to make the distinction between Columbia and Enterprise's bridge clearer so that when we eventually see the two in action cutting between them doesn't become confusing or show up the fact that they're both the same set. Interesting that it doesn't have a situation room at the back like NX-01, maybe they've got one off to the side or somewhere else - I'd love to know about the design ethics applied to this second prototype following what they learned with Enterprise. As always, if the series had continued we'd no doubt have found out more, and who knows, maybe even a Columbia spinoff? I could have lived with that!

Captain Hernandez looks pretty cool, and has all the hallmarks of a good Captain: she listens, weighs up Trip, but so far hasn't told him what to do or how he should run Engineering. I think she'd have made a great recurring character or the star of her own series. It's a delight to see her ship set out for the first time, adding to Starfleet's power and influence in space (opening up the imagination of what could happen now, just as when we heard of other teams in 'Stargate SG-1'), since we hardly ever hear of other Earth vessels out there - we hear her last ship was the Republic, and I assume this was a space-going vessel, but we're left in the dark about whether it was non-Starfleet or a lesser warp capable ship in their fleet. I think more pomp and ceremony might have been in order with such a long-awaited ship, and it certainly doesn't have the emotional punch of the launching of the NX-01, but then this isn't 'Star Trek: Columbia' so maybe they didn't want to steal too much thunder from the main star. Even so, this doesn't happen very often, and this is one reason the episode isn't quite as terrific an episode as it could have been, despite hitting many of the details it needed to (Hernandez pointing out Trip's now redundant NX-01 patch; a subtle, but snazzy new warp effect to go with the new ship). Trip's absence also brings in the new Chief Engineer for Enterprise in Commander Kelby, someone sneakily added into the cast who'd play a key role in the very near future. I like that they introduced him in such a logical and low-key way, just another little deftness of story threading that peppers this episode.

Casting is a big deal with this one, continuing the greatest hits of Trek guest stars of the past that this season has ramped up a notch or two: James Avery hadn't been in Trek before, but he was always such a great presence and was an ideal choice to play a Klingon General, though I'm not sure he was as commanding a presence as I expected, perhaps because he shared most of his scenes with John Schuck who had pedigree with the race going back to the eighties - he was the Klingon Ambassador in both the fourth and sixth films, and had been in both of the previous two Trek TV series'. He gives Antaak a very Klingon attitude, yet also an atypical one that we rarely see: the scientist. His character has the strange conflict of ideas that some races display (saving lives is more important to him than honour, yet he is also has no qualms about euthanising a live soldier for the cause, something that Phlox speaks out about, though the argument is made moot by the General killing the man!), and this adds depth to the race in this series which was so common in 'DS9' but felt dumbed down in 'Enterprise,' where they returned pretty much to 'TOS' or 'TNG' portrayals (excepting certain individuals such as JG Hertzler's role as advocate Kolos). It's this element that adds another positive to the experience of watching this episode, which is also helped by crowd-pleasing references to both the planet Tiburon and that this plague is the greatest crisis to the Empire since the Hur'q invasion, a piece of Klingon history we'd love to have more information on!

Schuck wasn't the only familiar Trek face, as we also got Eric Pierpoint, who'd previously been in 'Rogue Planet,' one of the few who could lay claim to the accolade of appearing in all four of the modern series'. Then there was Brad Greenquist as a Rigelian kidnapper - he was used to prosthetic heads having played alien characters on 'DS9,' 'Voyager' and the 'Dawn' episode of this series. And lastly, we have Marc Worden returning to his Klingon heritage as a prisoner (though I'm not sure which, as there are several Klingons that fit that category!), previously he'd been the older version of Worf's son Alexander in two episodes of 'DS9.' So quite a nice selection, all adding to the fun factor for those keeping track of these details, and I do like to do that! One character we have yet to see is the much mentioned Admiral Gardner, the replacement for Forrest, who seems to be the point of contact for the NX-01, as Archer is often off to talk to him. I'm not sure if we ever did see him in the remaining episodes, but we shall see…

Other threads of interest running through the episode range from minor points to appreciate (Klingons speaking their language with subtitles - never fails to be a wonderful thing!; another mention for the Royal Navy, part of Reed's proud family tradition, though it starts me on the line of wondering who's King or Queen of England at this time?), to passing fancies that provoke questions (the Klingon test subject says his death sentence had been commuted - would this species have a death sentence? Surely living with dishonour is more of a punishment for a Klingon, and if they do have it, surely nothing would prevent it happening immediately!), to wondering about the age of Targs (Antaak has had Boshar since he was a boy, and now he seems pretty old - I wouldn't have thought such an overly energetic creature, presumably with a high metabolism, would live so long, but it suggests that they do, unless he just replaces it with a new one and pretends it's the same one because he's sentimental?), to the alternative style of Section 31's involvement (unlike Bashir, Malcolm's already on the inside, so his conflict of duty comes on much more strongly). The only other thing of note is the strange way the episode ends, with the Enterprise speeding through space. It was a sort of cliffhanger in that they appeared to be going faster than they wanted to (good visuals of the ship travelling ever faster, almost stretched by the angle of travel), but it wasn't completely clear, and it might have been better to make it a feature-length episode as they used to do on 'Voyager.' But otherwise, strong and pleasing - hopefully part two lived up to this one!

***

Orpheus

DVD, Stargate SG-1 S7 (Orpheus)

I'd forgotten that Teal'c no longer has a symbiote any more, though I can't recall when he lost it. I think it was 'The Changeling,' the one in which he dreams he's in another life, with Daniel Jackson coming to help him through it, as in reality he's dying by the side of Bra'tac on an alien world. That was probably the best episode of last season, and it's what Teal'c refers to when talking to Daniel. That was one of the first things I thought about this episode as I watched it (along with the thought that Teal'c's collapsing over backwards after being shot in the 'gate room could be construed as humorous if not done right), as once again it's about the big guy in danger of dying. Except in this case it really wasn't about that, but it's good that the connection was made with the earlier episode as both have the same themes of the proud Teal'c having to accept something, whether that's death (either a stray blast in the 'gate room or an execution from the camp commandant), or a lessening of his abilities. You could look at his loss of pride as a comment on growing older, out of the first flush of youth and strength, having to accept that you may not be able to do the things you used to, or at least, as easily as they were done before. What I really like about this episode, though, is that it tackles both Teal'c and Daniel in parallel, addressing both their stories in a beautifully played and subtle drawing together of the two characters.

While Teal'c has lost his pride and belief in himself thanks to the effect tretonin, the replacement drug for symbiotes, has had on him, Daniel struggles with his previous existence in ascended state. Like Teal'c he couldn't do what he wanted to do, which was help his friends, but thanks to his desire to support Teal'c in his time of self-doubt, he stirs flashbacks in his mind to a time when he was with Bra'tac and Rya'c, providing vital information for a rescue mission. Without his mysterious memory resurfacing no one would even have known the pair had been captured and were being forced to work as slave labour on a bleak world (that bears more than a passing resemblance to a quarry - what exactly were the pair of them tasked with, as they seemed to be whacking stones with metal sticks!). For once (see previous episode for contrast), everyone's quick to believe Daniel's visions (probably because they were so atmospherically shot - the series continues to look beautiful and moody on location!), with Hammond stating that after all the things he's heard while sat behind that desk, it wasn't difficult for him to accept. So why did he take so long to come around to the bizarre last episode?!

Regardless of inconsistencies, this episode is a strong one because it deals well with the characters and their motivations, it's not about any old aliens or planets, political problems or threats from the System Lords - and the series always does these large scale rescue or liberation sequences with panache. I suppose they've done it so many times that it comes naturally to all involved. But it's due to the character stakes that this is more than a simple rescue mission, as his son Rya'c means more to Teal'c than anything, even his own pride, and he'd gladly sacrifice himself in Rya'c's place, as he nobly tries to do here. The message gets a little lost in the balance, but Bra'tac's wise advice was for his former apprentice to remember that a warrior's strength comes from the heart and mind, not his muscles (a bit like Morpheus in 'The Matrix'), although it takes Teal'c having the opportunity to take down the commandant in battle for him to regain his composure and self-belief. As usual, the bad guys make the mistake of letting the good guys live long enough to overthrow them - after proving how brutal the overlords are by killing workers that weren't doing a good enough job (despite looking pretty young and healthy), for some reason (i.e: plot), the tortured Teal'c, Rak'nor, and ill Bra'tac are allowed to lie in their tent, attended by Rya'c, rather than being executed. No scouts appear to be sent out to discover if these rebels came alone or not, and overconfidence lets the bad guy side down once again.

I was wondering if the actual execution of the three remaining prisoners (after one tries to run for it), was avoided on screen for style reasons or for sensitivity, and my question was answered later by the fact that we see Teal'c snap the commandant's neck on camera - definitely a style choice, then! I suppose it's moments like that which give this season a 15 rating. Not that I minded, it was just something that made me think. Which is more than can be said for the commandant's minions: what do they do when they see their mothership starting to fall to the ground, but rush towards it. What did they think they were going to achieve? Catch it with their bare hands? I also felt Carter and Daniel were being a little overcautious when stuck aboard the ship - they could easily have mown down the Goa'uld guards standing in the ring room, as they were all bunched up close enough together that spraying the area with bullets from their automatics would have settled the matter before the staff weapons had time to be manoeuvred into position. The Goa'uld are always at a bit of a disadvantage, it seems to me, since they use such clumsy weaponry.

Obi Ndefo was back as Rak'nor again, and it's good that they have a recurring character as a face and voice for the Jaffa liberation movement, as it helps to remind us that this group are real people beyond just Teal'c and Bra'tac. What works best, as ever, is the interaction between the characters, though. Bra'tac holds so much weight, being someone we've known since Season 1, and his mix of mentor and brother to the much younger Teal'c is always a delight to see. Every time he speaks he has so much gravity and strength. It was also important to see Daniel and Teal'c - I don't think we really knew that Jackson never felt like he belonged before, and now he does, seeing that his life was too important to leave behind. It was interesting to hear that he's recovered almost all the memories of his life before ascension, though ascended life remains unclear, leaving the possibility that he could come up with further revelations or motivate the plot again, meaning his time as an ascended being wasn't a waste from the point of view of the series. I hope they play with it more, and I'm sure they will. So with a good opening in which SG-1 warn the SGC of their retreat, a look at the SGC's gym, and a character-driven rescue mission that reiterates where the characters stand, this is the best of the first few episodes. I wasn't sure what the connection with Orpheus was, from the title, but I may just be a bit slow! And Carter's hair still looks like she just got out of the shower…

***