Give Charles Tucker III a harmonica and a purpose and he shines (at least for a commoner). On or around 12 September 2152 NX-01 is duped into assisting a royal kidnapping and Trip himself is taken, but he in turn escapes from the captors with their prize long enough to attempt a little miscegenation before being rescued. This episode was predictable enough (and about as warm as a used bath) but the pacing needed improvement, compressed at the ends and bloated in the middle - first there's barely a teaser and then after landing on Dagobah the show took only ten minutes to wrap. Yet that's when it got interesting!

The "cargo pilots" Plinn and Goff acted like TNG's Pakleds except that they're far less funny. (At least the show has moved from potty back to stinky humor.) Did I miss how these two incompetents were able to escape what must have been a massive multi-planet search for the missing monarch? As for the precious cargo herself, "Sleeping Beauty" quickly turned to "Elaan of Stasis." (What's up with the spots? And where'd she hide that nightie?). Padma Lakshmi aptly held her character Kaitaama together but only the overall caliber of the acting held the mutual scenes together; sadly I felt no chemistry between her and Trinneer.

I guess it's just de rigeur after "Aliens" that stasis pods always have a layer of frost that one wipes off to see inside. As for other displays of technology, crossing the subspace threshold in an escape pod has now been done canonically. It was cool to see the docking port rip up even if I suspect that'd be a major rather than minor problem. And what's up with this warp-killing cloud? A stupid little low-tech Warp 2 ship can cripple Starfleet's finest with a flood of "dilithium hydroxyls?" How has this weapon not been explored before?

Archer deserves a first-season smack for being so stupid losing an officer and I'd rather just forget about T'Pol's tribunal trying to get him back (complete with casual lying and severe punishments). But at least the Great Warrior didn't take a licking this time, Trip taking a few in his stead. Goff whacks Trip. Girl whacks Trip. Girl whacks Goff (don't say that quickly). For a monarch she sure was good at hitting people in the back with a stick. Trip may be no fighter but you'll notice that through it all - stripped to the waist, or just plain moving butt - his hair never gets mussed.


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