ENT: “Detained”

Date: November 21, 2021

Season 1, Episode 21

Music Video of the Day:

Interstellar News: Today was lots of laundry and some grocery shopping to capitalize on some excellent deals. I’m a bit of a coupon queen. Anyway, I watched two episodes of Enterprise today – I’m actually on Season 2 already… just a bit behind with the writing. I was also avoiding writing up this episode because it features Dean Stockwell (oh, Al) who recently passed away. Anyway, away we go…

TL;DR: Archer and Mayweather are detained by Tandarians, along with several Suliban, while they await the formality of a trial. Two things become clear: Colonel Grat wants answers from Archer about the Cabal and not all Suliban are part of the Cabal. Archer likens the Suliban imprisonment to that of Japanese internment campus during World War II. Enterprise comes to rescue Archer and Mayweather – and Archer decides to free the Suliban so they can live in freedom.

Favorite Quote:

T’Pol: I thought you decided not to interfere with other cultures.

Archer: In this case, I’m making an exception.

Captain’s prerogative? Must be nice to not have a prime directive…

“I know, I know. It’s a big problem with me. I’m just too damn curious.”: This episode advances the plot of the “temporal cold war” and Cabal stuff, shows Reed all made up as a Suliban (thanks to Phlox), and shows us why the prime directive is so needed. This is also your general run-of-the-mill racism episode. Grat is a great character. He starts off as the friend and the “I’m so sorry, it’s above my pay grade” and then slowly morphs into the man who has run out of patience and needs information now. The events of “Broken Bow” and “Cold Front” are known to Grat and his people while T’Pol and Tucker have to work together on a strategy for diplomatic relations AND saving their people.

I liked some of the pieces of this episode. Every time Archer and Grat were in the room together, my Quantum Leap heart was so happy. Mayweather and Archer both took beatings for the team, and Mayweather was NOT used as the token black guy – there was more of a focus on the similarities of Japanese internment than there was how Black folks are treated in the U.S. Archer, however, makes a decision only three seconds after meeting the non-Cabal Suliban without knowing anything else. Maybe it was unjust and maybe it sucked, but it was totally not his decision to make. I get he had to make it for things to happen later on, but that’s setting a bad precedent and it’s too much power for a starship captain to have. Porthos give this episode 4 sad “awooooos” and also wants you to listen to the lyrics of the song posted above – it’s sadly still needed.

TA Out!