Ensign Hoshi Sato is not sure if life aboard the Enterprise is right for her. But even as she struggles to settle in, her skills are needed aboard an alien ship that's been attacked by an unknown enemy. Someone or something is harvesting aliens for a chemical in their bodies... and the crew of the Enterprise might be their next target!
I noted of the Enterprise premiere that Hoshi struck me right away as one of the most likeable characters on the show. So I'm pleased to see the first regular episode focus more on her (even if, objectively, her character was probably least in need of it). While there's plenty of "external plot" to this story, the spine of it is Hoshi's character arc. She goes from being nervous, uncertain of her own skills, and contemplating that she might leave the ship, to scoring a crucial win, beginning to grow at ease with her new surroundings, and recognizing her own strengths. I love it.
Except... you have to look past the fact that the episode also kinda-sorta paints Hoshi as a self-centered brat. She wants to move quarters aboard the ship, and decides to make this the captain's problem. (Isn't this a "first officer" kind of problem?) She's swiped an alien lifeform from its home planet and can't understand why it now seems to be hovering near death. And the "happy ending" she reaches involves leaving that lifeform as a potentially invasive species on some other planet, with unknown environmental consequences.
It's not just Hoshi giving such chaotic vibes, though -- this is very much a core element of Enterprise as a series. The writers want to show that this is an earlier time, where humanity is still learning how to do Star Trek. And while that does sound like a smart choice for injecting a new tone into the franchise, it makes for jarring storytelling: to show that these characters are still learning how to be great, they have to make a lot of dumb decisions.
Reed can't get the ship's weapons to fire right, even at a stationary target; he also wants to blow up a door before even checking to see if it's locked. Phlox has no concept of "doctor/patient confidentiality," gossiping about the crew to anyone who will share a meal with him. When first meeting an alien species, Archer broadcasts every detail about Earth short of their PIN number and mother's maiden name without questioning whether that's a good idea. And we're already repeating what is going to become Enterprise's most enduring trope -- T'Pol knows the right thing to do, but we're not going to listen to her because she's a Vulcan.
Fortunately, not all the departures from "Star Trek procedure" look so foolish. It's refreshing to see the crew briefly debate whether boarding an alien ship uninvited might be an invasion of privacy. (No Star Trek before this would have bothered to ask.) Trip and Mayweather seem eager and excited for adventure, in a way all past Star Trek characters just take for granted. And as chaotic as Phlox and Hoshi each seem to be separately, I really like their interactions with each other -- Phlox is really supportive of her throughout the episode, giving Hoshi just the right amount of "tough love" when she needs it.
It still looks like a lot more money is being thrown at this Star Trek than ever before. We get a new spacesuit design (that's not handed down from a Star Trek movie to a Star Trek show). CG now lets us always see the use of shuttlecraft. Great care is taken with the lighting inside the alien ship, really emphasizing the horror elements of the story. And the production is still working hard to differentiate itself from past Star Trek: there's a lot more handheld camera in this episode than on, say, Voyager; and the musical score incorporates more overt (but interesting) synthesizer than any Trek composer since Ron Jones was fired from The Next Generation.
Other observations:
- I've said it before, and will certainly say it again, but Porthos is about the cutest animal ever on television. Him pacing along with Archer as the captain records his log is adorable.
- As much as I love the musical score generally, I don't love the orchestral take on "Faith of the Heart" that we get right at the end of the episode. (This probably won't be a common thing, though.)
I’m torn about this episode. I want to praise them for telling a very character-driven story for the first regular episode. But the message really lacks subtlety, and the foolish choices that the characters make throughout are often hard to take. (Sure, they don't know they're on Star Trek... but are they really this stupid?) So overall, I'm going to give "Fight or Flight" a B-.
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