Terrarium

What an amazing episode. If only real life reflected this idea of enemies been able to find common ground and learn from one another. Melissa fully carried this episode. She owned it! This episode reminds me of why Star Trek. SNW is becoming my favorite of all Trek and this episode delivers in more ways than expected.

The creative forces behind Strang New Worlds they are masters in "borrowing" stories.

They steal plots from other movies & other series (sci-fi or not), other Star Trek series and mainly TOS.

This shows how much weak they are, either in their writing skills or the risks they could take to write something new or at least more original. But then, they would not had made a prequel.

And now they are ready to click on the Big Reset Button (worse part of the episode).

In any case, this wasn't such a bad episode, and even if it was narrating an unoriginal story it could have been much much better.

It is very annoying how they have Ortegas talk, constantly expressing her thoughts using 20-21th century expressions.

But even more annoying is the inconsistency in Enterprise's officers behavior. When their loved ones are in danger they have no problem put ship and crew in peril. But poor Ortegas...

Lt. Erica Ortegas finally gets the spotlight she deserves, and the result is nothing short of exceptional. Melissa Navia brings her to life with striking humanity, humor, and pathos. The script and direction stand among the finest that Star Trek has offered in years, delivering both tension and heart. By the closing moments, I found myself unexpectedly moved. It has left a far deeper impact than I anticipated. This is top-tier Star Trek.

Finally, an actual Star Trek episode on this series that calls itself Star Trek. This is, one might say, basic, certainly for the standards of this gimmick-obsessed series. But in this simplicity lies its strength because we get very solid character development for an underutilized crewmember, Ortegas, as well as many good moments for Uhura too.

Sure, the Enemy Mine plot is a bit tired - and the story certainly didn't need the TOS fan service twist at the end, the worst part of this otherwise excellent episode, but aside from the stunning visuals and sense of danger, the relationship between the characters is very moving, so much so that I may now harbor resentment against La'An, who of course didn't have the eduction in cooperation, trust and overcoming prejudice that Erica - and we - just had. This is the Star Trek ethos, and I'm glad that it can still be seen on this show occasionally.

More of this please and less of the comedy!

Finally after this season's ups and downs we are treated to proper science fiction! Okay so the story may have been done before, pilot crash lands on a strange planet with little hope of survival, but when done in a Trekkie way it seems original.

It's a striking episode with great effects, tension and proper science fiction! But at the heart of this episode is the hope that 2 arch enemies can become friends in their time of need.

It's a heartfelt episode with a heartwrenching twist at the end. Best of the season so far!