It's the end of Alpha shift and everybody is ready for the weekend. And suddenly, CGI slipstream. ("Suddenly CGI Slipstream" sounds like a good title for something, doesn't it?)
I've been complaining about this season being horror, comedy and gimmicks. I suppose I could argue that this episode was a gimmick, too, with the split screens and the 24-like real time countdown shipboard chronometer. But this episode was just exceptional, one of the best episodes of the series. So I forgive them.
Sometimes, Enterprise feels like a luxury floating hotel in space. The bridge suddenly on its side, no life support in the corridors, the piano in Port Galley crushed under G-forces, all reminded us that they're alone out there with only inertial dampeners keeping the crew from smashing into piles of goo. The captain and second in command both led by sacrificing themselves first; Pike gave Ortegas the con before deliberately electrocuting himself in order to put up shields. And the way Una's leg actually snapped while she was trying to fix the gravity in Port Galley? Rebecca Romijn's agonized scream really got to me.
M'Benga and Chapel have been close friends for years, including partnering in a war zone. He has been thinking of leaving Enterprise, and Chapel immediately said she would leave, too. It's like Enterprise responded by saying, "Oh no, not yet" as the lab table crushed M'Benga into the wall. This was a particularly shuddery injury with only pressure holding his organs in place so that instead of instantly dying, he could continue conversing with Chapel as she tried to keep him alive.
Enter Dr. Phillip Boyce, a legacy character from the original series pilot, "The Cage," played by Brian Markinson from one of my favorite shows, Continuum. The Enterprise's former Chief Medical Officer before M'Benga became available, Dr. Boyce took over as CMO from Port Galley and ordered Chapel to leave M'Benga, who was beyond help, and come assist with the many other injured. And yes, he had a point. Although what human being could leave their closest friend to die alone under these circumstances?
Of course, all of this wasn't bad enough. A breach in Sick Bay made it worse. (I loved Chapel screaming, "You're kidding me!") Or maybe it made it better, since flash freezing was what saved M'Benga long enough for the technobabble to heal him. Strong force neutrinos, whatever they are. I'm a librarian, not a scientist. That last bit with Chapel's finger completely grossed me out, too. Things never calmed down for a minute.
Chapel made a deliberate choice to disobey Boyce and M'Benga. And in doing so, she saved M'Benga and the entire ship. There's a lesson in there somewhere about listening to your heart. I think.
A second interesting pairing here was Scotty and Cadet A'Sha, who finally showed that she wasn't a waste of space. She rescued Scotty from the turbolift and managed to transport him into the Jeffries tube, and how appropriate was it for Scotty the miracle worker to wind up in the Jeffries tube? A'Sha was also correct about cutting off life support in the corridors and extending the sensor.
The almost useless Pelia, trapped in her quarters, gave Scotty that bit of wisdom, that while all starships glitch, they're also capable of miracles. Of course they are. I loved Scotty touching the wall of the Jeffries tube and saying with absolute assurance, "The Enterprise will hold." This felt like the beginning of Scotty's love affair with the ship. It was beautiful.
It wouldn't be a Star Trek emergency without Spock saving the day, too. In an echo of The Wrath of Khan (there have been a few of those lately) Spock sacrificed himself by space walking during warp, with Pike forced to jettison Spock's pod. La'an, our other superbeing, went to the pod to retrieve Spock's all-important data and rescued Spock, who was sheltering in the pod's housing. All that and the data chip was ruined. But then again, there was the Vulcan mind meld. So La'an got to save the day, too.
This episode was a nail-biter from beginning to end. The characters were all themselves and doing what they do best. The visuals were amazing, the dialogue was sharp, the action had me glued to my chair. Why haven't we been getting episodes like this?
Bits:
— Stardate 1213.72, Chapel's log. On the way to Starbase Seven for upgrades to the Bussard Collectors.
— I loved Scotty trying an American accent to get the turbolift to work.
— Una, Uhura, Ortegas and La'an were about to have a Friday night drink in Port Galley. I'd love to be in that group. Spock was there but just looked nonplussed.
— The mylar blankets didn't seem protective enough to keep Chapel from freezing. Especially her face.
— Lieutenant Rahda (Abinaya Sivakumaran) was a character in "That Which Survives," an original series episode, where she was played by Naomi Newman.
— There was an entire original series episode, "Court Martial," that hung on exactly when Kirk jettisoned a pod during an ion storm. For what it's worth.
— In the end, Christine asked Pike for a permanent assignment on Enterprise, even if M'Benga does decide to leave. Is Boyce there to stay, too?
Quotes:
Ortegas: "It came out of nowhere. How come nav sensors didn't pick it up?"
Spock: "Indeterminate. The scan indicates extremely rare neutrino currents moving at warp speed, suctioning anything that crosses its wake."
Ortegas: "So we got yanked off course by a... giant vacuum cleaner?"
Scotty: "Can't very well transport with no pattern integrity. Inertial dampeners?"
Cadet A'Sha: "They are currently running out of power. If we lose them..."
Scotty: "We'll all be rolled into black pudding."
Cadet A'Sha: "As a vegetarian, I find your metaphor illogical."
Spock: "The manual controls are in a panel on the far wall."
Una: "I'll go."
Spock: "Unfortunately, that is where G-forces are most intense. They may already be intolerable."
Una: "Then let's hope I'm stronger than a piano."
Scotty: "It's Choose-Your-Disaster Day. Whenever I fix one problem, that causes another worse problem."
Cadet A'Sha: "Is this a human holiday I'm unaware of?"
Ortegas: "Scotty, no offense, speaking as a pilot to the smartest engineer I know, isn't that impossible? If we crossed the warp threshold, we'd..."
Scotty: "Disintegrate into hurling bits of space-time. The best pilot in the galaxy can't outfly that. Not even you, Erica."
The two of them have become a mutual admiration society.
Pelia: "Great idea, harnessing strong force neutrinos from the slipstream. Now that, that is turning lemons into lemonade. Actually, you know, lemons are a hybrid. They didn't exist before us. Life never gave us lemons, we demanded them. I know. I was there. Funny story, there was this nice lady in India who made the most refreshing brunch drinks. I think her name was Herjinder..."
Scotty: "WHAT?"
Pelia: "I'm trying to distract you. How am I doing?"
M'Benga: "I never imagined I would go out this way. But I'm grateful I'm not alone. And that my final moments are with a friend."
M'Benga: "An Aquan was invited to a Lanthanite's birthday party. And he has to bring a gift. He decided to present her with a Benzar turtle. The Aquan explains, 'This turtle is special. It lives 20,000 years.' The Lanthanite sighs and says, 'Pets. You love them, and then...'"
M'Benga: "You never let me finish my joke."
Chapel: "Well, it was taking you forever to get to the punch line, so..."
M'Benga: "'Pets. You love them, and then they go and die on you.'"
Chapel: "It's 80% there. We'll work on it."
Again, sorry for the late review. I'm having a rough summer. Four out of four strong force neutrinos, whatever they are,
Billie
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Billie Doux loves good television and spends way too much time writing about it.
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