A Night In Sickbay
Date: Unknown
Original Airdate: October 16, 2002
By Nick Sterling

The Story:

With Enterprise in need for a replacement Plasma Injector, they head to the Kreetassen homeworld to negotiate for a replacement. The scene starts off in the decontamination room with Sato, T'Pol, Archer and Porthos as they just got back from another blundered encounter on the surface. (That's right, the Aliens from Vox Sola) The Enterprise crew has once again found a way to offend the Kreetassens. (It's really not that hard to do). Phlox determines that Porthos picked up a harmful agent on the surface and needs further treatment. Archer not only has to contend with the condition of Enterprise, he must worry about his beloved beagle as well.

Phlox discovers that Porthos' condition could be life threatening, so Archer decides to spend the night in Sickbay to help his dog's healing process. Meanwhile the Kreetassens want Archer to apologize to them for offending them again. The offense this time is when on the surface, Porthos "relieved" himself on some sacred trees. If Archer doesn't go through a ritualistic apology ceremony, then they don't get the injector.

While spending the night in Sickbay, Archer and Phlox learn some interesting facts about each other, including some interesting grooming habits, and how not to catch a bat. After all of the mayhem, Porthos takes a turn for the worse. The only way to save Porthos is to kill him and bring him back to life later after a transplant operation from a chameleon.

While Porthos' fate remains undetermined, Phlox has a noticeable impact on Archer. Once defiant about apologizing for his dog's actions, Archer goes through with it. It's basically Opera mixed with an Iron man competition with futuristic chain saws. Once again, all is well with Enterprise and it's brand new Plasma Injector. Porthos' operation was a success and all go home happy. Except for the chameleon.

Analysis

The Good:

- It's good to see that the Kreetassens are being used again, and they are not just another alien of the week. The writers appear to be using a lot of the elements used in the earlier part of the series

- Porthos: What can I say, I love this little beagle!

The Bad:

- The Decontamination scenes: I just don't think that flaunting Jolene Blalock in her revealing underwear every other week is necessary. Where did this add to the story???

- Enterprise only has 5 injectors, and they are all being used? I would think to keep a spare of such an important component.

- When Archer is apologizing, how did he learn all that Kreetassen by reading his PADD? I struggle with plain English let alone an alien language with unfamiliar syntax.

Overall:

Well, I did like the episode, and it kept me entertained. I actually felt anxiety while the fate of Porthos was being determined. Since this is not a major character, it can be easily killed off. It's good to see Hoshi confident when talking to aliens. This is a big contrast from Broken Bow when she was speaking to the Klingon. I felt the "sexual tension" thing just didn't work that well with me. It really didn't add that much to the story, and felt more like a subplot to a subplot to me. Next week is just a rerun, but did anyone else catch that the official trailer called it, "Star Trek: Enterprise"?

Grade: 6/10

 

Cast:
Scott Bakula as Jonathan Archer
John Billingsley as Dr. Phlox
Jolene Blalock as T'Pol
Dominic Keating as Malcolm Reed
Anthony Montgomery as Travis Mayweather
Linda Park as Hoshi Sato
Connor Trinneer as Charles "Trip" Tucker III

Guest Cast:
Vaughn Armstrong as Kreetassan Captain

Creative Staff:
Director: David Straiton
Written By: Rick Berman & Brannon Braga