Silent Enemy

ENT: "Silent Enemy" Discussion Thread...
SuzyQ -- 16 Jan 2002, 13:00 EST

...Attacked by an unidentified enemy ship, the crew struggles to get their new phase canons operational. Meanwhile, Archer realizes that no one knows Reed well enough to give him a personalized birthday gift.

(Oh, goody, a Reed episode!)

Director: Winrich Kolbe Teleplay By: Andre Bormanis

SuzyQ

Reed Rocks!
Eric -- 16 Jan 2002, 14:51 EST

I say make him Captain right NOW!

He has the potential to be as good as Kirk and Sisko if B&B let him!

Eric

Oh, goody! My favorite "Voyager" director! NIM
Nina -- 16 Jan 2002, 14:56 EST

Indeed he does.
Terry -- 16 Jan 2002, 18:42 EST

It was good to see this show where they concentrated on those characters who have shown the most promise: Reed, Hoshi, Trip, and T'Pol. I laughed when Reed refused Hoshi's invitation to her quarters.

Re: Indeed he does.
Marie -- 16 Jan 2002, 19:23 EST

Aaarrrggghhh!!!

It was pre-empted here for some silly high school basketball game, so I have to wait til Saturday to see it.

If anyone wants to post spoilers, I will read them all happily....

Marie

This has been my favorite episode so far
Ruth -- 16 Jan 2002, 19:41 EST

I am not saying that it is necessarily the BEST episode thus far, but I liked it from the time it began until the sweet closing scene. And Reed has some damn sexy forearms!

The things I liked about it were the thing I liked about VOY when it was at its best... the teamwork and camraderie. As Terry said, it was a good ensemble episode that featured the most likeable characters.

Marie, I won't provide too many spoilers, but the plot concerning Reed was cute, if perhaps a little contrived. His birthday was coming up and no one knew him well enough to do know how to suprise him. No one. Not on ENT, not his family, not his older friends. Contrived yes, but Reed was so cute with his reactions to Hoshi's interrogation. I was expecting the Doc to uncover something sad about Reed when they looked at his medical records, but it was only that he painstakingly took medication to overcome an allergy to pineapple.

Ruth

Best.......Episode.......EVER (errr....i may have said that already!
Eric -- 16 Jan 2002, 21:20 EST

But this episode was even better then the last Best One Ever!

Quick Take : This was frelling AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SPOILERS that will deep scan your brain!

10

9

8

7

6

5

4

3

2

1

On Slipstream they are comparing this to Andromeda's "D-Zero" episode...

Yes the basic D-Zero story was there but what was different was Winrich Kolbe my favorite Star Trek director. He even brought out my favorite part of his arsenal, his light the stage with flashlights. Many other director's ahve tried this little trick but they have all failed next to him. He used it on Voyager but it looks even better in Enterprise's widescreen. This made a excellent episode CLASSIC.

Also, say what you want, i like the Star Trek fighting style and i HATE Blip Warz.

Having the two ships in the same frame, or even better like they did here, having the Enterprise with that awesome leading disk rushing out of the camera onto the creepy alien ship looks cool and gives both ships a personality something that has been lacking from Andromeda even from the beginning.

And the way the alien shuttle launched from the enemy ship to the Enterprise all on camera just RULED. Foundation Imaging knows there stuff and it shows.

What else is there? Well the character stuff was fitted into the episode very nicely and i had no problems with a Jr. Officer carrying out her Captains orders. Hoshi was on the bridge when she had to be and when she wasn't she was following orders.

Also, Phlox climbs the character ladder again this week. He is quickly becoming a favorite! I love his Taste Bud lines! VERY funny in that very Phloxian way.

This one gets the very first Enterprise perfect score :

10/10

For a first time story this is amazing and i want the Science Adviser to write more! NOW!

Eric

how were the phase canons? nim
tragic fan -- 16 Jan 2002, 21:25 EST

They proved the efficacy of prayer. (NIM)
Terry -- 17 Jan 2002, 05:42 EST

Oh yeah, Reed *definitely* rocks
Vickie -- 17 Jan 2002, 06:52 EST

Once again, Ruth and I demonstrate how often we're on the same wavelength. Reed at the control console with slightly mussed hair and sleeves rolled up - gggggrrrrooooowwwwllll. Nice...forearms.

I thought this was an excellent episode.

I will confess, though, that when I first saw those crewmen laying in sick bay like zombies with their eyes open and staring, I could almost hear Bones saying, "He's worse than dead, Jim. They've stolen his brain!"

Vickie

Re: Oh, goody! My favorite "Voyager" director!
Sherry -- 17 Jan 2002, 09:50 EST

I'd likely take this one step further and say "my favorite Trek director" - of the recent TV series, at any rate. He directed some of the greatest "Deep Space Nine" episodes as well.

Sherry

Have to agree with Eric on this one...
Fliteman -- 17 Jan 2002, 10:23 EST

This was the best one so far. The only gripe I had was how the aliens moved... almost cartoonish. But their ship... the phase cannons... the overall GRITTY feel to this episode - I liked it.

Spoilers after this. Stop reading if necessary.

s

p

o

i

l

e

r

s

h

e

r

e

LOVED the target practice on that mountain... Very well done. But... didn't the aliens SEE that happen? Wouldn't they have been prepared (or at least frightened away) because of that?

Nice way to cut to a commercial - having Archer shoot the alien device. Aside from the birthday surprise, which I could've done without, there just wasn't anything bad about this one...

Re: ENT: "Silent Enemy" ROCKED!!!!!!
MindyP51 -- 17 Jan 2002, 11:13 EST

Posted this last night, but it didn't make it on as the computer kicked me off just as I was posting it. Oh, well!

Kolbe's direction was superb! The cinematography was great! The musical score was terrific!Everybody in the cast rocked!

NOTE TO ERIC: Linda Parks is the BEST "pixie" ever on a ST show!

P.S.: And Dominick Keating was absolutely fabulous!

Mindy

Totally! Absolutely! !!
MindyP51 -- 17 Jan 2002, 11:16 EST

And he's also one of the BEST ST directors!

He perfectly captured the suspense. His direction of the cinematography and lighting was awesome last night!

Mindy

I loved the aliens!
MindyP51 -- 17 Jan 2002, 11:22 EST

Not only were they not AOTW with lumpy foreheads, but they were actually CREEPY. Much more creepy than Species I-forget-the number. I loved that they didn't communicate, and that the one time they did they used Archer's communication just to bounce back their "surrender" order. It indicated they weren't interested in talking, and they learned just enough English to say, "give it up, boys."

I also loved that Archer was taking the ship back to Jupiter station; it just really compounded the fact that there are "things" out there Earth isn't ready to handle yet.

Mindy

Good episode
D -- 17 Jan 2002, 11:22 EST

Good split between the personal stuff and the action, with both segments focusing on Reed - the extremely competent Armory Officer who no one really knows. Nice to see them doing Trek technical wizardry with a relatively limited amount of techno babble.

I had hoped we'd learn a bit more about Reed than we did here, which is that he has allergies, likes pineapple and is estranged from his parents. [Is there some unwritten rule that each Trek series has to have at least one main character who is?] It did reinforced that he's a bit eccentric and basically a loner, but that was apparent anyway. Something I can't figure out - last night Archer mentioned Security personnel; is Reed Chief of Security as well as the Armory Officer?

Missed the teaser, which I assume was just the initial encounter with the alien ship and the assignment to find out what foods Reed likes. Hoshi - "Other duties as assigned" = morale officer? She did keep at it until she dug out the information so they could have some personal touch for Reed's birthday. And she seems to be getting more comfortable with being on the ship. At the beginning if Archer had suggested returning to Jupiter for repairs and upgrades she would have been urging him on. Here her only comment was, since they had backtracked anyway, at least they could deploy a new subspace relay to replace one the alien ship destroyed.

Yet more aliens close to Earth who we've never seen before, even in the background on stations or official gatherings. Not that these particular aliens could have existed before CGI . I guess its OK if they limit the number of never before seen aliens, but it will get pretty hard to swallow if there are constantly new AOTWs.

Re: I loved the aliens! (Spoilers)
Fliteman -- 17 Jan 2002, 15:51 EST

Agree with all you said, except the aliens' MOVEMENT...

Archer heading home, and even calling the Vulcans (but not being able to) were very, very nice touches. Even Kirk wouldn't've done that.

And you're absolutely right - they used his own message to call for their surrender, VERY well done.

Enjoyed the episode...
Roxanne -- 18 Jan 2002, 00:42 EST

Spoilers

It definately was the best since the series started. I do like Reed, but don't you think they carried the "Stiff Upper Lip" cliche just a little too far?

Anyway, the aliens reminded me of the ghost that stole Christmas and tried to play Santa. I can't remember the name of the movie, but these aliens moved the same way and had the same lanky shape about them.

Roxanne

Nice warmth, good old fashioned aliens, but...
david g -- 18 Jan 2002, 10:40 EST

on a personal level i remain disappointed, once again, that a character the rumor mill has said was going to be Trek's first openly gay one--Reed--has once again been revealed as anything but.

sigh.

Trek's never going to recognize its gay fans.

david g

When was Reed gonna be gay? He's just British! ....NIM
Eric -- 18 Jan 2002, 13:00 EST

Running for cover! Nooooooo Jules! No Tim!!!! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooooooo!

They have medicine for that sort of thing in the 22nd century?
Jules -- 18 Jan 2002, 13:22 EST

Sign me up for a time travel trip now! (Hey, what can I say? I had a severe allergic reaction to something I ate last night, and I have been communing with the porcelain gods rather a lot today. This is the first time I've had a long enough spell between sickness bouts to risk logging on, or indeed sitting up.)

I seem to be allergic to fish rather than pineapple, but I'm not a big pineapple fan. I think if I were Reed I'd just skip the medication and avoid the pineapple.

Mind you, there could be good reasons behind wanting to eradicate any allergies. If you're off exploring the universe there's a lot of potential out there for encountering new allergans, and it's not exactly going to go down well with your alien hosts if halfway through that diplomatic meal you clap your hand to your mouth and run away to make strange sounds in a corner. Getting rid of any and all potential allergic reactions to known substances is probably a good move. If you don't have a constitution with a tendency towards allergy in the first place, you're less likely to pick up new ones.

Jules

Anything but?
Sherry -- 18 Jan 2002, 13:56 EST

Maybe I'm just being unusually dense , but I didn't notice any indication of his sexual preferences or attractions. Of course, it could have been in the part of the episode I missed.

On the other hand, I saw some possibilities in Reed and Trip cooperating...

Sherry

I was lurking on another board,
Ruth -- 18 Jan 2002, 15:02 EST

either Psi Phi or mbtv, and someone else brought up a similar point. They had actually expected Reed to loathe pineapple, but to be taking the medicine just in case they got out in space somewhere and there was nothing to eat except for something that had a similar chemical makeup to Carmen Miranda's favorite hat accessory.

I'm sorry you're not feeling well, Jules. I don't have any food allergies, but I've had food poisoning before and your last 24 hours sound similar to that time. I was absolutely miserable. I hope you're back up to full speed soon.

Ruth

Well, I am probably jumping to conclusions (stung by disappointment)...
david g -- 18 Jan 2002, 15:41 EST

Sherry, do you remember when the "best friend" of Reed was asked about Reed's favorite food, the response was something non-specific about food but specific about sexual preference: "We went to this reataurant because he had a thing for the waitress...Maureen was her name!"

i am being a bit silly about this, but id heard from so many people that Reed was going to be gay, and the eps seemed to be building up ambiguity, that i was disappointed to hear what sounded to me like reassuring confirmation that he's staright.

anyway, he could always be bi.

dg

Re: When was Reed gonna be gay? He's just British! ....NIM
david g -- 18 Jan 2002, 16:03 EST

http://www.trektoday.com/news/170102_03.shtml

Okay, I missed that
Ruth -- 18 Jan 2002, 16:07 EST

I wasn't sure if the woman was his sister or a former girlfriend and I missed the reference to "Maureen." I still thought the fact that he was clearly such a private person left open his sexual orientation -- he's not someone who willingly shares his private life and desires with too many people. Even people that supposedly should have really *known* Reed, didn't.

OTOH, I will be a bit disappointed if it turns out they are being coy and that Reed is private because he fears that his family and colleauges would be shocked, Shocked!, SHOCKED! if he came out. I would hope that if it happens it will be portrayed as just something matter of fact.

Archer: Reed, I'd like you to have dinner in my quarters. Feel free to bring a date.

Reed: That reminds me captain. I've been wanting to ask you about Trip. Do you think he'd go out with me? T'Pol told me what he looked like in that decontamination chamber, and now I can't get him off of my mind. And that accent -- it is so --- primitive! Grrrll!

Archer: It certainly wouldn't hurt to ask! Let me know if he says yes to tonight, and I'll have cook whip up a key lime pie. And maybe a little champagne (wink wink!)

Ruth

Delicious, Ruth! LOL! NIM
david g -- 18 Jan 2002, 17:11 EST

Thanks for putting a smile on me face.

dg

Feel better, Jules.
david g -- 18 Jan 2002, 17:59 EST

bee and i once ade lamb roast for a goodbye dinner--and it subsequently felt like my own.

d

Ok, so Bakula supports it if it happens but...
Eric -- 18 Jan 2002, 21:57 EST

...is that confirmation that REED was going to be gay? They have a 80+ crew on that ship you know!

I mean, Porthos could be the gay member of the crew!

Honestly i never saw Reed as being gay.

Hmmm....Hoshi and Cutler! Mmmmmmmm....

Eric

Youre right, Eric, but what i meant was...
david g -- 18 Jan 2002, 22:21 EST

that Id heard Reed was going to be--that' all--the article in support of the general principle.

dg

I don't think there's been anything more than rumour so far.
Jules -- 19 Jan 2002, 02:52 EST

Certainly I'd agree with you that if any of the major Enterprise crewmembers were to turn out to be gay, Reed seems the most likely from what little we know of him so far. (Although I did like Ginny's suggestion that Trip might be bi, and what do we really know about Travis?) On the other hand, I always thought that Reed was more than a little fascinated by the butterfly girls in the pilot, so he certainly has an appreciative eye for women and likes them. That doesn't necessarily mean he wants to go to bed with them though.

As for the waitress at the restaurant, that could be explained away by any number of things. It could just be that she was one of those people that Reed found it comfortable to chat to - which from what you've been saying about this episode isn't too common a phenomenon for him - and that his friend drew more extensive conclusions from this than were there to be drawn. The friend may have been trying to reassure himself that Reed was heterosexual. Or maybe Reed just wasn't terribly clear about his own sexual preferences at that point, and was still going along with the norm until he figured out it wasn't for him? (He still could be, for that matter.)

So, I wouldn't necessarily take that little snippet of information about him as proof positive one way or the other. Time and Reed's first romance episode will tell, I guess. But while it would be interesting to have a major gay Trek character, you have to bear in mind that (a) TPTB have a tendency to play safe with the franchise, just because it's such a big, unwieldy thing now, and (b) it's supposedly an enlightened future in which such things aren't a big deal anyway, so where would the story mileage be in it?

Jules

He could also be bi, although I realize that wasn't the rumor.
Nina -- 19 Jan 2002, 07:43 EST

It would be interesting, if the character IS gay (OK, finally something I want to discuss! so chiming in, as Kathryn would say!), to learn what coming out is like 150 years from now. I like the idea that Reed is still figuring himself out.

Do I think they'll write him that way, though? Nah. Just fun to speculate.

ON MY BRAND NEW COMPUTER!!! I have emerged from the stone age at last!

There should not be "story mileage"
david g -- 19 Jan 2002, 08:16 EST

I agree with you there, Jules, that Reed's gayness if revealed shouldnt be the stuff of an ep itself...

But, what Id love for once is simple acknowledgement that someone's not hetero on Trek...it would be nice. in some ways, the more casual, the better.

the thing is, i love allegory and ambiguity---all of which i was pleasantly revelling in re: Reed before this ep, which seemed to me to confirm Reed's hetero proclivities...btw, i found it interesting that Reed DIDNT seem interested in those sexy butterfly girls...maybe i was just reading with a bias there?

dg

Re: Well, I am probably jumping to conclusions (stung by disappointment)...
Sherry -- 19 Jan 2002, 11:56 EST

Ah! I didn't see that; it must have been in the section that I missed. I hope to see the entire episode this evening on the second run.

Sherry

Possibly, david
Jules -- 19 Jan 2002, 13:19 EST

I think we all take our own biases and wishes and measure what we read and watch against them. In my particular case I don't believe I had any particular bias to my reading of Reed's reaction in that scene - I'd quite happily see him revealed as being interested in men, women, or indeed both, just so long as they keep on featuring the character in episodes - but really all that I saw was that he was fascinated by them.

It could have been that they were female, scantily clad, and in a suggestive context, but it could equally well have been him marvelling at a bizarre alien species; who knows? What they were doing with their tongues was pretty, um, unusual.

Jules

Re: I don't think there's been anything more than rumour so far.
Ruth -- 19 Jan 2002, 16:16 EST

Jules: "you have to bear in mind that (a) TPTB have a tendency to play safe with the franchise, just because it's such a big, unwieldy thing now, and (b) it's supposedly an enlightened future in which such things aren't a big deal anyway, so where would the story mileage be in it?"

Perhaps if I hadn't watched VOY I wouldn't worry so much about this, but I don't trust TPTB to handle this issue with much grace. I always felt that they were so terrified of getting any criticism over the first female captain that they rarely took chances with the character of Janeway. And if they couldn't deal with possible repercussions over Janeway actually doing something "non-captain like", I can just bet that if they decided to introduce a gay character that they'd wring their hands and have so many cooks involved that they'd spoil the stew.

I'm afraid that if Reed or another character is revealed as gay that they'll do it in a heavy, anvil laden episode, and then forget about it and go back to showing Reed playing (alone) with his phaser cannons.

Because I agree with you and david. If I was a PTB and was going to introduce a gay or bisexual main character, I'd subtly portray this as an every day matter. Like showing Reed (or whoever) touching hands with an extra or gazing longingly into someone's eyes just before duty calls or even show him with a date at some kind of dinner party. In other words, show that it is no big deal. THEN, if they wanted to do a romance episode with the gay character, it wouldn't be any different than the romances we've seen over the years for the other Trek characters.

You know, the new boyfriend would die badly OR be called back to a station halfway across the galaxy OR turn out to be from an alternate universe OR be conflicted over his half-Earth/half-Vulcan/half Tribble background (apart from being 50 percent overweight because of his tripartite heritage, because he's a tribble he's constantly hungry; because he's an earthling he sates his hunger with Big Macs; and because he's a Vulcan eating all that meat means he's constantly nauseous and overcome with shame -- not a good bet for a longterm relationship) or he can't help hoping that Brian Kinney will someday love him.... oops, wrong show!