Following last week's first contact comes another, this time with something called a "Romulan Star Empire." The show opens with one of Archer's mealtime evaluations (breakfast - *CHEF's famous Eggs Benedict and juice), this time the subject being NX-01's Armory Officer. The detection of an uncharted Minshara class world interrupts their awkward small talk; going in they strike a cloaked mine (with an eye-popping explosion ripping away a huge chunk of decks!). Hoshi is injured and Malcolm freaks at his station, distracted by his missing the minefield.

For all her damage Enterprise suffered only a few injuries and no casualties. (That's a lousy mine when you think about it - the ease of the whole situation should make it easier somehow for Starfleet to avoid a stink.) T'Pol adjusts the gamma on the grappler sensors - used to pierce Suliban cloaks, another nod towards a pointy-eared future guy - while Reed suits up for an EVA in a fun "outer hatch" moment (reminiscent of those onboard Jupiter 2!). He proceeds with his disarming smiles while Archer orders Trip to start unbolting the hull plating underneath the mine.

Making matters worse, a predatory-styled ship decloaks and fires a few warning shots. The bridge crew cannot translate the incoming messages so they deliver them to Hoshi in Sickbay. With skill Travis slowly moves the ship through the minefield and the alien ship vanishes. Reed, tinkering with the mine, catches a spike through the leg as it further grips the hull (his suit forming a cool foam-seal).

Archer then EVA's, leaving Trip on the bridge. Once out on the hull he hypos Malcolm with one of Phlox's concoctions (not a local?), then proceeds to get "talked through" the difficult disassembly. Archer can't disarm the mine but he does manage to dislodge Reed quickly enough for a scheme of portable blast shields to succeed. (Whatever Phlox gave him though, please keep Reed off it; no need for any return to suicidal histrionics. Archer may not be spit and polish so let's hope he keeps that off the evaluation - remember the evaluation?)

Hoshi translates the hails and T'Pol identifies them as "Romulans," rumored by the Vulcans to be aggressive. Yet no matter what the High Command says, these "Romulans" hardly seemed an aggressive race. With many opportunities to obliterate or exploit Enterprise using their superior technology, they never did. So what's on the M-class world - something to do with the volcanoes? Or does destroying such a puny ship not even qualify as worthy of a kill?