“Damage”
Page 7 of 7very much affected by them to the point that some of them, like T’Pol, find them intriguing.
We’ve seen the Vulcans that want to feel emotions (see “Fusion”). We’ve also seen that the mainstream Vulcans put logic above feelings. There are also those that want to mindmeld while the status quo of this time sees this as a kind of perversion.
I love that these characters are flawed; that they are growing and learning but aren’t *perfect* whether it be Archer the captain or T’Pol the Vulcan. I think Enterprise and its storyline is greatly misunderstood. I think the mistake many fans make is that they compare it with the other Treks and are disappointed in that it’s not what they’re used to.
But that is what makes Enterprise so interesting to me. It’s the prototype Star Trek. It’s imperfect. It’s a growing, developing storyline. It is much like DS9 was when it first started. It developed slowly but became the greatest Trek of them all. Why? Because it dared to break the rules and Enterprise is breaking the rules and I love it.
So far the writers *have* been true to the premise of the show. There is *excellent* continuity within the series. It is coherent. What happens in an episode is not forgotten in the next. The characters and the villains are being fleshed out. There is no reset button, at least so far except for “Twilight”. The storyline is developing nicely and is leading up to something.
It’s a real pity and somewhat tragic that the show isn’t getting the ratings it deserves because they’ve followed through with what they promised much like they did with DS9. I hope there is a fourth season because I think they’ve got a great show here that not only has potential but is fulfilling it.
But to get back to this episode… The pace is solid and the dire mood is maintained throughout the episode. The music, the sets, the lighting, the f/x, are all top-notch. The acting is also good. We can feel Archer’s dilemma. We can see his inner turmoil. We can see T’Pol’s deterioration. Bakula and Blalock give us excellent performances here. In addition, Randy Oglesby’s Degra is credible. His anguish at the thought of killing innocent people make his decision to believe Archer and give him a chance to state his case understandable and believable. They’ve written him well and Oglesby is very much able to project the character’s integrity. Degra is a good man. I also enjoy Rick Worthy’s performance as the Xindi-Arboreal. He has a way of coming across as a big, thoughtful bear with a soft heart. Scott MacDonald is perfect as the *evil? (https://manhwatop.com/) * Reptilian and last but not least Tucker Smallwood adds a measure of seriousness as the other Xindi-Humanoid.
I liked Josette DiCarlo as the Sphere-Builder. She reminded me of Salome Jens, the Founder leader in DS9. She seems as cold and calculating. I also like that the Xindi-Aquatics seem to be on side with Degra et al. Again, we don’t see much of the Insectoids which is too bad.
I give this one an A+. The + because of Casey Biggs.
Gisele La Roche,?About?
iluvds9@rogers.com
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