Fight or Flight

This episode has a whole lot of filler, a lot of it focused on Hoshi's self-doubt and utter lack of self-confidence. Boy, can she whine! I'm okay with a little bit of it but it felt like half this episode is listening to her ramble on about how she doesn't belong out here. This, mixed with the heavy-handed slug metaphor used to represent Hoshi's situation makes for an all too forgettable episode.

Captain Archer seems to act very similar to Captain Kirk thus far: Emotional, inquisitive, and has a bit of a temper. The rest of the crew seems solid, although we don't know much about Reed thus far and I'm interested to know a little more about his backstory. Dr. Phlox is my favorite character through the first few episodes: witty, optimistic, with a child-like curiosity.

Hopefully this is the last episode centered around Hoshi's insecurities. I'm not sure if I can handle much more of that.

The Enterprise moves through space and nothing much is happening. Some specimens have been brought on board, but there has been no contact with sentient beings. Hoshi is complaining endlessly and Tripp is champing at the bit to get into some action. Malcolm says that the weapons systems are still not calibrated properly. Tests reveal that he is right, leaving them with imprecise defenses. The come upon a ship, seemingly dead in space. There are life forms on board. T'Pol is intent on Archer doing things by the book, but he is like Kirk, emotional and curious. The ship contains the bodies of an alien race. They are strung up by their feet, dead, and fluids are being drained from their bodies. T'Pol talks Archer into getting out of there, but afterward he is biting through nails, knowing that someone is responsible and they aren't intervening. Back to the ship and a confrontation. Hoshi's role is extremely important as she translates and speaks to get a ship to ally with them. Pretty good first regular episode.

During the first couple of weeks of exploration the Enterprise comes across another ship and makes a nasty discovery.

I found this episode to be on par with the first. The plot isn't as exciting but it does cover a few more themes. The nature of exploration and the inherent danger that goes along with it. Also fear and self doubt are big factors in how some of the characters are portrayed, particularly Ensign Hoshi.

It's understandable that some may find Hoshi difficult to tolerate during this episode, however I do quite like this perspective on a Star Trek character. For so many years we are presented with characters who do extraordinary things on a weekly basis that take supreme skill and confidence levels. In this instance, we witness someone who has ability but no confidence and gets completely overwhelmed by situations. I found it refreshing. Things do get resolved in a rather silly way at the end, but I suppose we can't have everything.

Other characters get a bit more screen time. Phlox has some decent moments, but his slug analogy does get old quickly. Trip gives us the opposite side of the coin to Hoshi with his desperation to get off the ship and explore dangerous environments.

Archer and T'Pol continue to clash in their methods of space exploration, this time codes of behaviour is one of what feels will be many slanging matches between the two on board Enterprise. There is only so long that dynamic can go on before it gets a bit tiresome. This type of thing worked with Spock and Bones in the original series because they had excellent chemistry and Kirk's overarching authority had a perfect blend of logic and humanity.

Despite Enterprise's many detractors I haven't felt like switching off yet.

This is not a particularly great episode because it mostly focuses on Hoshi--and she is a particularly weak and hard to like character. Having her being a bit uncertain would have worked but having her being THAT indecisive and filled with neuroses was NOT a good thing at all. At every turn, she's annoying the audience with her stupid fears. One minute she's afraid she'll be space sick, another she's upset her cabin faces the wrong direction, another she's worried about going into a confined space and another she's worried about her linguistic skills during a first contact. I felt like yelling 'man up' or something like it during so much of the show. On a planet with billions of people, couldn't they have come up with someone more qualified, less stupid and more capable than this mess of a woman?! Plus, I am sure a lot of women cringed to see such a weak female leading character and she's nothing like any of the much more capable and less annoying guys!

The purpose of the episode is to show Hoshi evolving very quickly (and a bit TOO quickly) to become more confident on the ship. While an interesting episode in most ways, she isn't. Perhaps she'll get better--I'll have to revisit this in future episodes.

Fight or Flight has the Enterprise crew slightly bored with the vastness of space. There is very little out there in terms of new lifeforms.

Apart from a sick slug that Hoshi Sato is trying to nurse back to health.

There is a near mishap with a torpedo test that Reed is trying to calibrate.

Danger arises when they find a damaged vessel with the murdered alien bodies hanging upside down. Their fluid being drained.

T'Pol urges Archer to flee. Only he returns to bury the bodies and let the alien homeworld know what has happened. Only for the attackers to return.

It is a kind of episode that makes Archer out to be reckless as he tries to abide by an ethical code. While T'Pol is more logical about the safety of the crew.

The Enterprise may not be a technological match for the attackers or the aliens if it was to encounter them.

It turns out that Hoshi's linguistic abilities are put to the test.

As a character development episode it did not work. Hoshi was the second top graduate in her class and does not look cut out to be in space. Why did they not get the person who graduated first.

I could not buy how she suddenly could communicate with the aliens.

If I was a member of the Enterprise crew. I would not had been happy that my captain endangered my life unnecessarily.