Tuesday, 17 February 2015
Demons
DVD, Enterprise S4 (Demons)
I have to say my expectations for this episode were low. I remembered this final two-parter as one of the weaker stories, especially in comparison to the generally strong Season 4, and although some controversially consider this the feature-length finale for the series (wanting to wipe out the true finale, 'These Are The Voyages…'), I think it would have been a poor final curtain on a troubled series, if it were. That said, I did enjoy it a bit more on this viewing, simply because there's so much to take in. For a start, it's terribly exciting to see a conference for a proposed coalition of planets, attended by delegations of multiple species, some known, some not, a real thrill, especially when you notice the wonderful attention to detail in the logo on the floor of the building: United Earth Space Probe Agency. This neatly clears up one or two questions about the fluctuating name of the organisation Captain Kirk and his crew worked for, as it had different names depending on the episode in those early days. Now we know there really were multiple organisations and a mistake is retconned into a fascinating complication of history. That's what this episode is all about: history. Whether it be John Frederick Paxton's interest in the past (still our future), with his following of the infamous mass murderer, genocidal Colonel Green (shown in his post-WWIII, pre-beard days, actually giving a speech out of history on a monitor!), to recent incidents such as the Xindi attack on Earth, to the gathering alliance of various species, we feel we are at an important time in Earth's existence.
One reason I enjoyed the episode more this time was because it felt like such a relief to get back to our universe, and the characters we know, after the unsettling Mirror Universe, and shouty Captain Archer (I now expect that vessel in the opening credits just before the Enterprise appears to fire on the colony below!). Strangely, Archer isn't centre stage this time, the ensemble given its dues (though, frustratingly, probably due to time, Hoshi remains underused again), but I'm not going to complain when a genuine group dynamic comes through for the team as they each go about their various contributions to what is, essentially, a mystery tale. We begin with a teasing teaser that reveals a hybrid baby with Vulcan ears (good work on getting it to turn its little head on cue, to reveal them!), which we later find out is from Trip and T'Pol's DNA. Here's where things take a turn for the worse, and I start to see why I wasn't thrilled about the story on first viewing as it gets a bit soapy, T'Pol actually saying "I've never been pregnant, Trip." It sounds like the tag line for one of those daytime chat shows where people argue about relationships. It was also a bit much to see Travis fling himself at this woman, Gannet, that suddenly appears back on his radar (or allow her to fling herself at him). I don't know whether Anthony Montgomery was out of practice, given that he was hardly ever allowed to act in the last couple of seasons, or whether it was fatigue at coming to the end, knowing the series was cancelled, or just that I'm not used to Travis do anything other than stare, brow furrowed, at the viewscreen, like an extra from 'The Motion Picture,' but he seemed a bit rusty. I know he can act, he did some good stuff in the first couple of seasons, but this just came across as unreal.
I feel bad calling him out when it's one of those few times he got something to do, but it was so out of the blue, and his reaction was so different to the optimistic, upbeat Travis we used to know - and we haven't seen the development for him to get there, as we have with others: Trip went through a lot after his sister died in the Xindi attack; Reed's feud with the MACOs gave him some personal conflict. It didn't help that his costar was so natural that I felt like she was someone we'd seen before, though she hadn't previously appeared, even saying that they'd last met four years ago, when she'd tried to dissuade Travis from joining the Enterprise mission. She was also instantly interesting, as how often have we seen a news reporter on Trek? I can remember the flurry of coverage Kirk's appearance at the Enterprise-B's maiden voyage garnered, and I loved the parallel of the same head-mounted recording device, making the conference seem more important. Another device that excited my historical senses was the newest incarnation of the Universal Translator, now developed into a palm-sized device that sits comfortably on the chest. To the left. Like where a combadge would later be found… It's all so exciting to witness the development of these technologies that would become so integral to Trek, and it's been long enough by now that we should be seeing things happen. Unlike 'Smallville,' where they tended to deal with almost all the Superman powers in the first couple of seasons, Enterprise hasn't shown a lot of intentions to advance the tech, perhaps wisely as they could only go so far.
Something we learn from Travis is that the Shuttlepods are being used less and less as the Transporter becomes vehicle of choice. I'd have liked to have seen a bit more going wrong with it in the early days (like 'Vanishing Point'), and limitations, like they could only transport one person at a time, which would have meant difficult tactical decisions had to be made. Instead, they routinely transport multiple bodies on the pad at once, all getting swirled out together, which strikes me as something less feasible for this generation of the technology - we should have seen how this use of the device led to a terrible outcome (perhaps fusing several people together, permanently), which influenced later designs towards separate pads for individuals' safety. I couldn't help but feel slightly nostalgic as Travis gave his tour of the NX-01 to Gannet, as it felt like a farewell tour: here are the sets, enjoy them, use them, they won't be around for much longer. Considering this is such a planet-based story we do see a fair bit of the ship, with various quarters, Bridge and Shuttlebay, to name but a few. Even though the cast are being used, I still had slight problems with some of the logic or presentation: I mentioned Travis not quite seeming himself, Hoshi's moment comes with the new Universal Translator and pretty much nothing else, and Phlox has a few moments. But it was Reed and his contribution that caused the most reaction.
After all that Archer said to him about letting the side down with his loyalties to the shadowy spy organisation that remained unnamed (Section 31), in the Klingon two-parter, and not working for them any more, he decides it's time for Reed to get back in with them as they need some intel. This worked fine in 'DS9' because Sloan was such a determined recruiter, and Sisko wanting Bashir to stay open to him made sense, as it was for the fate of the Alpha Quadrant, or for taking down the organisation from within. Reed was loyal to 31, embarrassed when the truth of his complicity was revealed, and it would seem dangerous to reopen that wound again, especially so soon after he'd announced his resignation to Harris. It would seem to go against Archer's ethics, merely to get some information on a child that has apparently been created from Trip and T'Pol's DNA, it's not an Earth-shattering mission (despite the wellbeing and safety of the child being important). When Reed does meet up with Harris the guy just tells him to find the child, then all will be revealed. How helpful can you be? It just smacks of the writers thinking Section 31 is a cool idea so let's get it in there again (the same level of intelligent use of the organisation employed in 'Star Trek Into Darkness'). If they wanted to use them, fine, but at least come up with a better way to bring them in, give us some buildup, don't just say out of the blue that Reed needs to get back in contact, and then fail to give us any information of real value!
It could be that the idea of Reed being "back in the game," as Harris puts it, would have been expanded upon in future seasons as Reed was asked to do things he didn't agree with, once again finding himself in the moral quandary that is the whole point of Section 31, but they must have known during the writing there were to be no more seasons forthcoming. It also makes Section 31 look weak and a little powerless when Reed can opt in and out so easily, Harris never having an ounce of the personality that Sloan displayed, just a straight up spy handler dressed in black. I feel it was a fundamental misreading of how compelling the concept could be, and like a lot of concepts 'Enterprise' tried to use, it was used in a simple, surface kind of way that made the 'DS9' writers look like Shakespeare. Not to point to the actor, Eric Pierpoint, for the fault, he was just giving us what was written, and it was good to have a character return from an earlier episode since it wasn't as common in this series as others. It's also nice to have familiar faces in the guest cast as we come to the conclusion of, not only the series, but Trek's eighteen year unbroken run on TV. Harry Groener, the Tin Man himself from the 'TNG' episode of the same name (technically he wasn't Tin Man, that was the organic spacecraft in the episode, but he did a Commander Decker and practically became one with it by the end of the story, so I think it's fair!), one of those recognisable figures from the franchise's history (he also appeared as The Magistrate in 'Sacred Ground' on 'Voyager'). Colonel Green was played by Steve Rankin, which could be the same guy who played roles in 'TNG' and 'DS9' under the name Steven Rankin, or not. And Tom Bergeron, previously in 'Enterprise' Season 1 ('Oasis'), as the Coridanite Ambassador.
That was one of the great things about this episode: seeing all these weird and wonderful aliens, some of which we can place, others which are less well known. The Coridanites had never been seen on screen, despite being part of the galactic-political scene dating back to 'TOS,' with the occasional mention on other series', so it was a wonderful easter egg to finally see what one looked like. It's just one more of those things in this final season that makes you wish we'd had time to explore it more, as this is a race with a fascinating design: like the Orions it appears to have facial implants, but in this case it was so much more drastic, covering the entire face. What are the purpose of such things, medical reasons, a breathing apparatus for Earth's air, or merely decoration? We want to know more about Coridan's history, and it's so sad that we never get these details coloured in. It's like Michael Westmore and his team realised their long association with Trek was up and decided to try and have some fun, and give us some last great designs in these episodes, but it does make it frustrating, too, as I want to know what species these varied attendees are, and details about them.
The episode isn't really about the aliens, as upsetting as that might be, it's about the anti-aliens, those humans that have allowed their fear of outsiders to grow into violent action. The xenophobic strain of thought had been growing ever since the Xindi's vicious and apparently unprovoked attack at the end of Season 2, with Phlox notably getting attacked. We have to remember that humans of the 22nd Century were still a mixed bunch, not having come to terms with space and the interplanetary scene upon which they found themselves having a say. It seems hard to believe that there would be people there who were opposed to the NX-01's mission in the first place, although not so much that there are those resentful at aliens - even Jonathan Archer himself displayed such tendencies toward the Vulcans, who were unsupportive of his Father's efforts to get humanity out into the stars in warp ships. I wish that parallel had been highlighted when he spoke to Samuels, who himself admitted to xenophobia in his younger days, blaming his Father's death on a Denobulan pilot. This is where the episode's title comes from, as he admits that he exorcized those feelings eventually, it's about the people that haven't been able to get past such personal demons. It seems racism is a thing of the past - I wonder if the multicultural representation in Paxton's group was intentional, to emphasise the hypocrisy of different races of humans having learnt to come together, but not seeing the parallel with aliens, still needing an outlet for pent-up resentment.
The trouble is, although I could believe in such a terrorist group as Terra Prime, its leader, John Frederick Paxton, was less believable. He very much appeared to be a two-dimensional Bond villain, complete with secret lair and massive gun to threaten the world with (or, in this instance, the Solar System - where was this weapon during the Xindi attack, I have to ask?). I'm still a bit sore over Peter Weller returning to Trek in 'Into Darkness,' but not reprising this same character as I so hoped he would, as that would have tied 'Enterprise' into the canon even more strongly than seeing a model of the NX-01 on Admiral Marcus' desk. He could have been a clone, or have used time travel, any number of devices instead of just being there to be cast as someone else. Weller is known for being a very intelligent actor, which makes it so strange that the two characters he's played have both been so simplistic as bad guys, nothing to recommend them as complex characters in a franchise known for its intelligence and complexity - it's a cruel twist that he should only be in the two weakest-written arms of the franchise (plus he would have made an excellent Cardassian in 'DS9,' I might add!).
They were walking a fine line by having a half-human, half-Vulcan hybrid baby, as Spock was so unique, and although I'm not sure if he was ever stated to be the only example of the joining of the two races, that's the way it always seemed to me. Technically, this child wasn't the same, as it was a test tube baby, but still, they were treading on toes here to get a shock, and this may have been another reason I wasn't keen on the episode, coupled with the clunky, soapy aspects and one-note villain. Somehow, I was able to get past all these things this time, and enjoy seeing the characters doing their thing, and there were a lot of little references to the series and its history, used by Paxton as reasoning for his actions: Vulcans bombed an embassy, killing so many humans; the Xindi attack; Enterprise going out to other planets and letting potentially hostile species know where we are; not even being able to walk down the street without aliens scaring your children; and no reparations for the families of those who died in the Xindi attack. I like it when real, in-world events can be used as justification for a point of view, even though the actual sentiments were warped (no pun intended). It was also of interest that the story was all happening so close to home, and this may have been meant metaphorically as well as physically, racism still prevalent today, with many of the same fears and concerns that Paxton's group expressed.
So close to home was it that we actually visit the Moon, something you almost see on Trek (and here they're still calling it The Moon - we find out in 'Valiant' on 'DS9' its name is generally known as Luna, except to those that actually live there), and Mars, too. The CG effects were generally very good, especially the headquarters of UESPA by the Golden Gate Bridge, and Paxton's mining ship that blasts off the face of the Moon. The landing on Mars wasn't so good, the impression of weight really lacking, but the CG environments were starting to be fully believable, after so many years to get them to that state. I had a couple of minor quibbles with the story, but these were soon ironed out within it: I was thinking T'Pol would stand out like a sore ear on a mining colony that had so many Terra Prime members, but then I saw that there were other aliens here and there, so they obviously weren't as uncommon as I thought. But still, she's T'Pol - she and Tucker should be well known as heroes to Earth people, right? And yet no one spots them, and Trip is able to gain the trust of a guy he's just met with one conversation in which he gives the impression of being anti-alien. Except that it's revealed that Josiah did indeed recognise him and it was all a trick to get him where they wanted him, so it did make sense. In all, I did rather enjoy it and look forward to part two, which I remember nothing about.
***
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