More SG:A appearances, schedule TBA

THE SHORT VERSION: Paramount owns Star Trek and everything to do with it. I make no money off this site; it's just for fun. For more details, read the long version. Live long and prosper.

Archive of previous updates on the site, January 1-March 28, 2003.

January 1, 2003: The first time I've typed that! :) Here's to a happy, safe 2003 and lots of Trip-centered plots NOT written by B&B.

January 5, 2003: Some link cleanup; ConnorTrinneer.com is back online also. Site History from July through December of 2002 has now been moved to its own page, called "Old History," accessible from the History page. Just in case you can't possibly go without being able to access my rambling opinion of "Vanishing Point."

January 8, 2003: We love you John Shiban! We love you John Shiban! And Roxann Dawson kicks ass!

Okay, "Dawn" was a pretty close takeoff of Enemy Mine with some "Darmok" thrown in, but those are damn fine source materials, and John Shiban rocks, did I mention? so it's totally fine with me. A little draggy near the end, but it was a long string of continuity references, so it's not like I can complain.

Poor Trip. He just hates the desert. But he should have known better than to take Shuttlepod One. Really good plotting between Zho'Kaan -- look, I thought it was "Zorcon" and I'm going to call him "Jerry Shigan" anyway -- and Trip. I liked that Jerry kept fighting with him until Trip practically beat him unconscious. I liked that they didn't actually end up friends when they could speak to each other. I liked that they couldn't tolerate each other's food or even drinks. It wasn't predictable, not in the details. Trinneer was splendid as always. And shirtless Trip even! Why didn't he put his top back on? Was he afraid of getting a Farmer's Broil? I was wondering if Trip deliberately forgot the UT because the last time he had one she wouldn't shut up, and he figured he'd prefer to miss the next talkative alien. Although Mal is going to kick his crispy ass for not having any kind of hand weapon on the shuttle. Plenty of Beaten to Crap Trip shots; this is going to be another loooooooooooooong recap but at least I'll be able to leave the sound on while I'm getting screenshots! :)

Archer was good! So the new spine is a little starchy; it'll stretch some as he uses it. I'll take stiff and commanding over relaxed and wimpy. Nice commentary by T'Pol -- the Arkonians didn't "accept the Vulcans' guidance" but Archer made decent headway with them. Not quite admitting that Vulcans are not universally revered for their wisdom in how to conduct the galaxy, but at least owning up to this particular problem. The rest of the cast got a few lines, at least, and everyone looked appropriately concerned. I would like to know why T'Pol was sitting with her legs so very far apart just before Archer talks to the Arkonians for the first time. It looks like she's straddling a support post or a table leg or a barstool.

Full recap maybe Thursday, maybe Friday.

Oh, and just a word of warning: Next week's repeat is "A Night in Sickbay," so you may want to unplug your VCR or TiVo just to make sure it doesn't accidentally get recorded. :)

January 10, 2003: "Dawn" recap is up. Thirty-five photos, so if you have a slow 'net connection, be warned. Sorry. :)

I just want to compliment Dawson again. She has a wonderful eye for unusual camera angles, or making us feel like we're literally peeking in on someone, or lighting a scene to make it seem very real and not staged. Trip creeps around the nose of the shuttlepod, flashlight in hand. The only lights are the "moonlight" on the nose of the pod, and Trip's flashlight beam on the scenery in the background. That's it. Just the way it would be for real if we were standing behind him. It's a small, subtle thing, but it really adds to the veracity of the moment. And the whole bit with Trip dribbling dust onto the sensor beam is beautiful.

Okay, I'm beginning to think it's deliberate: Trinneer spreads his legs really more often than the script would appear to call for. Twice now he's been sprawled on his stomach (once in "Dawn," once in "Precious Cargo") and trying to get up, and both times he's got his knees as far apart as they'll go (which highlights his butt to the camera). He does a fall after getting stunned and lands completely spread-eagled, crotch to the camera. He falls after pulling too hard on a cable and splays his legs in all directions, crotch to the camera. He gets punched and falls with his legs apart. He gets comfy on the rock for his final ramble and he spreads his legs out, crotch to the camera. Leftover from clown college? Dawson has a crush on him?

Interesting that Trip and Jerry they could never really trust each other until they were too tired to fight. They tricked and double-crossed each vulnerable moment as long as they had energy. And in the denouement, the best Jerry could manage was "I'm grateful I didn't destroy your vessel." But in their extremity, when they're waiting for Enterprise to get their signal, Trip is as concerned and compassionate as with any of his crewmates. He's a good guy.

Random thoughts: I love how Trinneer goes from slightly wise-ass ("You kill me, Ah can't fix anything") to almost abject fear ("Ah try anything, Ah'm a dead man -- Ah get the message") in mere seconds. The expression on his face is really powerful....Our Man Tucker, ever the gracious Italian host, even to his tied-up hostage. "You want some food?"...Note how very carefully Jerry enunciates"sssshhhhiiii....PP" so there's no question of getting by censors....Not only do we get ration bars, but Chef is making chicken Marsala. Food streak unbroken!

January 13, 2003: Amazon shipped my Away Team Trip and Deluxe "Broken Bow" Malcolm! I finally had a reason to take Archer out of his package (I got him as a birthday gift, but he didn't have anyone to play with). So I set everybody up in the credenza and liberated Harry Kim and 8472, Mutated Tom Paris and the squiglets, and 12" Tom Paris from their boxes. Yes, I am a slavering geek, I took photos.

The ENT figures are an odd combination: They have astonishing details, but maybe these are an early run, because certain pieces don't quite fit each other. Ma and Archer have rubber jumpsuits which stretch and bend, showing strange details of the figures underneath. Moogie made Malcolm do a backbend and gasped, "Jeez, the guy is hung!" Trip has rubber sleeves up to the first articulation joint on his bicep. The, um, crotch straps are also rubber. Helmet and chest plate come off, but that's all -- can't get under the EV suit. :( The Tactical set is pretty cool, although again not all the pieces quite fit. Detailed stickers which are occasionally a little too big or peeling off. Muffled and overpushed sound chip. (And Archer sounds like a wuss.) Cap'n has four, count 'em, four different hands, which I suppose he needs for his three different accessories (PADD, communicator, and phaser). Trip had seven different tiedowns attaching him to the plastic shell, which was molded to every wrinkle in his suit -- what, they were afraid he was going to run away? Mal and Archer had six tiedowns each plus the overmolded plastic shells. Both of them came out leg first, which was very Young Frankenstein to watch. BOINNGGGGG one leg pops out then BOINNNNGGGGG the other. All three heads were seriously squooshed into the shells.

January 14, 2003: I should mention again how grateful I am for TiVo, or at least a recording device which allowed me to bypass 40 minutes of crap and 19 minutes of commercials to see the less than 60 seconds of Enterprise bloopers which squeaked past the boring hostess. There were three 10-second clips, one of Ah'len blowing a line -- for no reason which I could see, unless she was drowning in Trinneer's eyes -- one of Bakula blowing a line, and one of Bakula breaking off a breadstick weirdly, making Blalock laugh. Looks like I have to hit another con and pick up the next Trek blooper tape for actual mistakes. Whenever the next ep airs, I'll get a cap of the Trip scene.

Found a great site: Enterprise NX-01 RPG Role Play and Chat. Crisp clean layout and gorgeous photos. Go check out the wallpaper under "Multimedia." While we're on the subject of links, House of Tucker subsite Archer*Trip is now chockablock with content. Browse around, and visit the discussion board while you're at it.

January 18, 2003: Hey, I got an award! e:earth liked my site. :)

January 19, 2003: Finally!! Over on Archer4Trip's House of Tucker page, there's this really cool little Javascript which rotates the Trip photo. Feeling my own page lacked a certain... je ne sais quoi, I thought I might try it also. A4T really tried to help, but for whatever reason his script wasn't working on my page. Moogie stepped in, waved his magic wand, and poof! We found a script which works. Kisses and orchids to both of you. Of course, now that my banner image rotates, you folks are going to have to tell me whether you like it!

Added a new link: Ex Astris Scientia. Extremely detailed site with articles, photos, reviews, databases, and a newsletter. Well-written and interesting.

January 24, 2003: Fixed a typo on the front page (thanks, M) and a few in Old History. Added episode names.

January 26, 2003: No real standout ads from the game this year, were there? Hardly anything to talk about the next morning, let alone rave. And the score was like a Temple football game. Back in the day, the Owls would lose 53-3 at times. But the Dixie Chicks did a nice job with the national anthem.

When's the next new episode? February? Are we going to thaw out by then? It's going to get up to a blazing eighteen degrees Farenheit today, they tell us. (Which is "ten degrees below my eyeballs just froze" in Celsius.)

January 30, 2003: Rearranged Season 2 episode names so they're in the order they're supposed to air.

February 1, 2003: Lest we forget that space travel is neither easy nor safe.

High Flight, John G. Magee (1941)

Oh I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth
and danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds -- and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of -- wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long delirious burning blue
I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew --
And, while with silent, lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand, and touched the face of God.

February 5, 2003: A nice, simple tribute to Columbia. Appropriate and timely.

First thoughts on "Stigma:" A certain amount of whiplash between the A and B plots, although it prevented the serious material from getting too ponderous and kept the fluff from floating away. Once again, Angry Archer proves himself pretty well, and Pleasant Archer has a spine of Jell-O. (Speaking of whiplash, poor Scott Bakula must have a standing appointment with his chiropractor ....) The writing wavered; sometimes it was interesting and subtle and other times very ham-handed. I liked that Dr. Yuris (the "minority" Vulcan -- and they couldn't have found some more euphonious way of phrasing that?) did reveal T'Pol's rape despite her objections, mainly because we didn't expect it. In fact, this episode was ::gasp:: original! Yes, yes, there was "the AIDS allegory" the way that TNG's "The Outcast" was "the gay allegory," but really this didn't feel that way.

Honestly, I was too busy wondering howinhell Vulcan society came from "only a few people are born with the ability to mind-meld and we think it's icky" to "every T'om, D'ick, and H'arry can meld every night of the week and twice on Sundays." Remember that most Vulcans we've seen on Trek have been able to meld (Spock, Tuvok, the Maquis Vulcan who tried to extract information from the Cardassian on that DS9 ep). I can accept that in 200 years it's no longer objectionable behavior, but we seem to have hit the genetic jackpot with that ability, cast-wise.

My opinion of Phlox (and John Billingsley) has gone way up this season. Nice slice of Denobulan society and cultural norms. Mrs. Phlox is not played by Mrs. Billingsley, although he'd been hoping. She would have been more attractive if she'd been less, um, oh man, that smile gives me the willies. Actually she was very nice-looking besides the ridges, and came off as intelligent and complex. Her relationship with Phlox was entirely believable; they had great chemistry. We got a good look at Phlox's morals too -- beyond "Take my wife, please." Phlox's smooth confidence while being grilled by the Vulcans was really lovely to watch. No backpedaling, no giving of ground, just "Yes, that's exactly what I said, so what?"

Why does Jolene Blalock seem to tell us less in her quasi-emotional moments than Spock did with the simplest deadpan lift of an eyebrow? Oh wait, that's right, Leonard Nimoy knows how to act. Sorry, how gauche of me not to have known that. And the "suddenly ill" makeup palette didn't do anything for me either.

And speaking of acting... damn, Connor Trinneer is so funny. Fully half his hilarious performance was his expressions. Queasy, nervous, edgy, squirmy, uncomfortable, bewildered, oh please Hoshi don't leave me alone with her, oh please Phlox don't kill me, oh man don't smile like that I'll lose my lunch! A sheer delight. Trip is "a gentleman until it hurts," and then some. I think I'm going to give this one its own page; even though Trip didn't have the main storyline, he had so many awesome grimaces and eyerolls and eyebrow waggles that I can't resist. Screencaps and summary probably Friday.

February 7, 2003: More on "Stigma." It's two days of rambling, sorry. Summary is also up.

Besides the originality, we got good continuity. The followup to "Fusion" was obvious -- and, frankly, brilliant; it's one of the most natural flows of story I've seen in a while -- but we also got Hoshi continuing to learn Denobulan, the gym, Phlox's care of his animals, and (of course) the unbroken Food Streak. The Trip/Malcolm interaction, short as it was, was also very nice. Note that Trip opens with "She's at it again!" So he's already told Mal what's going on, at least once. This is a subtle but excellent way to reinforce the existing friendship.

The Phloxes: I liked the gossip about Spouse-in-Law #47 not being forgiven, but I could have done without the repeated reminders that each person has three spouses. Actually, I would have liked more gossip. Big families are full of stories and teasing and "Did you hear what so-and-so did?" Give us a feel for how these incredibly extended families work. Is it normal for three to five adults to share a home? Two to four? How often does someone move from the house of one spouse to another? The highly amused "Humans!" at the end was perfect. Yes, it was a dig at our "relatively unsophisticated" race. But on a serious level, it was a good counterpoint to Archer's argument to the three Vulcan doctors, where he trumpeted our sophistication and our acceptance of diversity over the Vulcans' bigotry and closed-mindedness.

The episode title was obviously meant for the A plot, but it does apply to the B plot also. Why was Trip refusing to get romantically or physically involved with another man's wife? Because in our society it's a taboo (mostly), and an adulterer would be shunned, or at least disciplined. There would be a "stigma" attached to someone who broke up a marriage, certainly in the American South. Trip does not want to be seen as a homewrecker. In the beginning of the first lab scene, when they're strictly professional, Trip is relaxed and low-key (also perhaps because he's totally stymied by the Denobulan directions and needs her help, so he's playing Honey instead of Vinegar). It's only when Feezal decides she wants some sugar that he gets uncomfortable and edgy. He's upset that anyone might think he could commit such an unacceptable act (back to those parallels again), so he does everything he can to get out of potentially compromising situations. Eventually he goes directly to Phlox, to make sure Phlox knows he isn't capable of taking such liberties. His reputation and personal honor are at stake, really no less than T'Pol's or Yuris's. And I thought it was a nice touch that Trip's accent got thicker as he defended himself and his morals to Phlox. He was unconsciously hearkening back to his roots, his childhood, to the place where he learned those morals, and so was regressing a bit from his more formal "adult" speech. Compare that to when he's angry, and trying to get a point across as clearly as possible and not come off as a pissed-off hick: the accent nearly vanishes.

Random thoughts: I love the gym. Beyond the obvious, it's nice to see the crew working out; it's so ordinary. This is one part of ENT which is fulfilling its promise. From TNG onward people can work out in the holodeck, but on this ship they have to fit into those very closely tailored uniforms the old-fashioned way....Trip asking "Why isn't X happening?" was a wonderful, organic scene. It's exactly how I learn when I'm going through a task the first or second time. The interaction was really smooth. "This is a bitch!" "...Excuse me?" ::deer in headlights:: "Oh, not you. The microscope. The Fish Stick I shagged a few weeks ago."....Trip says "That's one of the reasons Cap'n Archer picked me for this mission, because Ah am really good at following instructions." Not orders, however, nor protocols. Maybe Archer should issue all his orders as Instruction Manuals, and then Trip would get into less trouble....I wonder if Trinneer feels self-conscious during those lingering butt shots, knowing that the camera and the audience are all focusing on his, um, finer assets?...I note that Trip addresses the ensigns by their names, but they call him "Commander" or "sir." We heard Mal call him "Trip" at least once in Sickbay (although I'm not sure that counts). I wonder if they're ever "off-duty" enough to call him Trip? Or would that be bad manners?...I especially liked camera work in the first planet scene; the tight circling around Phlox and the three Vulcans really gave us a sense of the intellectual agoraphobia the doctor was facing....Anthony Montgomery is adorable, and he has a nice voice. They should give him more to do, or replace him with an Ensign of the Week....More mind-meld questions: When two Vulcans mate in the throes of pon farr, they mind-meld. At the very least, they bond telepathically. Does the increase in hormones prevent Pa'nar from occurring? Or does the mating bond happen in a different part of the brain?...The mind melds "cause a disruption of neuroelectric impulses in the mid-brain." Maybe when melding became more acceptable, a different technique was developed, which didn't cause the disruption?...Mrs. Phlox was physically very pretty, despite all my epithets. It's just that she came on so very STRONG, all we got to see was a non-malicious Intendent who wanted to devour Trip like an ice cream cone. (Not that I object to the idea, mind you...) If she were to come back to the show and not try to determine Trip's religion by Braille, I'm sure I'd enjoy her character much more. She was stellar in her field, very competent, and aside from the flirting a good teacher. The actress did a great job, and she played off Billingsley very naturally. Bring her back when she's not in heat....Moogie wants to know why we never see humans getting outrageously insulted over some slight dealt us by an alien. Imagine if the Jolly Green Giant visited Pisa with Clifford, who then watered the Leaning Tower. Wouldn't we get livid and demand reparations and an apology? (and a really big bottle of Nature's Miracle?) Why is it that only weirdoes like the Kreetassans or uptight folks like the Vulcans get to be mortally offended?....I love the heavy ornate Vulcan robes. They're so dignified and elegant....A language quibble: each language has its own "music," or inflections. (Listen to Mal in the gym when he says "Tell'im wot? That his wife is trying to seduce you?" for a good example.) Usually when we learn a second language, unless we're really good mimics, we tend to use the inflections of our native tongue. For Feezal to say "I'm impressed!" in Denobulan, using an English intonation -- i.e., you'd know pretty much what she'd said without the subtitles -- is somewhat inaccurate. That particular phrase might not have too many variations of inflection, but it just stuck out to my ears....Okay, I'll admit it. For the first time I really sat through most of the credits (I did turn the sound off, though) and just watched. Poignant, in light of Saturday's loss, but more meaningful -- a sense of reaching, of getting Out There and building, growing, not letting adversity conquer us. We can. We will.

February 12, 2003: "My underwear's flame-retardant... That doesn't mean Ah'm gonna light myself on fire to prove it!" :D (Okay, Xander and Andrew's paean to Scott Bakula on Buffy just got bumped to Second Funniest Line of the Week.)

Nice! Two originals in a row! Trip was smooth and confident in command, thus proving the dinner scene from "The Seventh" was not SOP for Acting Captain Tucker. I'm going to say no damage this week -- after "Dawn," a little acida over his engines doesn't count. Archer was a little stiff but pretty good for the most part. I love Jeffrey Combs, and setting him opposite Suzie Plakson was a stroke of genius. Who else could look abashed when towering a foot over her commanding officer? They should have given her more to do, but it was cool to see her again.

Soval... someone stuff a sock in his mouth. Or better yet, let's find out WHY the Vulcans are being such friggin' jerks in this series, and cure it. It's painful to hear that Vulcans routinely lie, cheat, deceive, and oppress, and have no moral code. Whether the Andorians were exaggerating or not, Vulcans on ENT are routinely portrayed as bad guys, and it's very sad.

February 16, 2003: Delta Blues is back online! I know it's a Voyager site, but Unca Jim has the absolute best Trek reviews anywhere, and we've missed him.

February 19, 2003: Oh, man, that ROCKED! Sussman and Strong are amazing! For the first time since I don't know when, there was real tension -- I had zero idea where the story was going, I was totally hooked, and I couldn't wait to find out what was going to happen next. Beautiful continuity throughout. Zephram Cochrane missing (which would have real meaning for Archer, since the guy worked with his father), the Tholians (even if their engines were the wrong color), Daniels, the futuristic database with all the cool graphics, Vulcan-Terran hybrids, Archer and Mal working munitions (and there was a little "Would you care to assist me in performing surgery on a torpedo?" I got misty-eyed.). Everyone got screen time, even Trav. The UT simulation was very cool.

I absolutely howled when Trip protested, "How can a ship be bigger on the inside than on the outside?" Well duh, you're on Star Trek! They're ALL built that way! Remember the Delta Flyer? My entire family could have cooked, served, eaten, and cleaned up after Sunday dinner plus played cards on that lower level.

Great to see Trip and Mal working together, and so smoothly. The dialogue was very indicative of their personalities: Mal wants to be sure it all ends well, and the journey isn't all that important; he wants to be promised a happy ending in exchange for his suffering. Trip has a deep appreciation of his roots and can cope with the changes; the surprises are part of the fun. I positively loved their repeating scene -- partly because it was entirely unexpected and fascinating to watch, and partly their interaction. "I think we're spending far too much time together," Mal snickers, like he's admitting to a guilty pleasure.

Minor complaints: Very weird camera work. Malcolm should have been first in the ship, first down the hatch, etc. securing the unknown vessel, and after Phlox had cleared each step of the way for biohazards. The captain should not be diving into a mysterious pod before it's been declared safe. (Unless Archer really wants Trip to have his job....) Phlox said the corpse had "Tarellian" DNA. Wyatt Miller did some amazing job on that plague if that's the case.

Minor Trip damage; screencaps tomorrow or Friday as usual.

February 21, 2003: Screencaps for "Future Tense" are up.

It was so nice to see the Chief Engineer doing engineering stuff. Annoying to see him barging in where Security is chary of treading and poking his fingers into every frelling crevice he sees without scanning it first, but in character, at least. And dragging Mal along with him -- actually, getting Mal to follow him with two sentences and one backwards glance -- was also lovely. Good followup to the similar scene in "Dead Stop" (another Sussman and Strong outing).

Okay, I was getting flashbacks to "The 37s," and Voyager had organic circuitry in the gelpacks, so this wasn't totally original, but I'll let it slide. The rest of the ep was so damn good I can hardly complain.

Why are there handles on Mal's and T'Pol's stations? Are they literally to hang onto as the ship jolts? Maybe the equipment is designed to be really portable, and they fold up into little metal briefcases which can be carted around the ship and reassembled.

"I'm not sure if this end's the bow or the stern," Mal comments of the pod. "Then don't walk in front of it!" Moogie screams....

Archer says the pod should be in Launch Bay 2. Says it twice, in fact. So why is it sitting on a door marked "4" next to a door marked "3"? That's not a rhetorical question. Does Launch Bay 1 have Door 1 and Door 2?

Was that an exocomp on the equipment tray in the Launch Bay? Certainly looked like it.

Dominic Keating is a master of tiny expressions. In the shooting scene, Trip was down, and the Suliban were running around the room shooting at things and mucking with the machinery. Mal calls to Trip -- looks at the Suliban, dammit, I have to do something -- at Trip, dammit, he's down! -- at the Suliban, duty calls. But the divided loyalties were crystal clear, expressed in just a few extra glances. Earlier, when Trip is about to clamber down the ladder into the Magical Mystery Pod, Mal objects, "You're not going down there!" and his whole face flashes wild-eyed alarm -- for half a second. Subtle but nicely done.

Compliments on the lighting again. ENT's shooting crew really understands about how things look when they're only lit with flashlights. And I should tip my hat to the music folks as well. 99.44% of the time I literally do not notice background music at all -- if there's no lyrics (as in Buffy or Lord of the Rings), I couldn't even tell you if a show has music. The last two episodes it's been woven into the action so well I actually pick up on it, and it works with the moment.

I know there was supposed to be all this alleged tension between Archer and T'Pol in the Breeding conversation, but frankly I didn't feel it, or I felt it was terribly forced. Look, these two just don't feel that way about each other; can we admit it and move on?

Did Trip, Archer, and especially Mal actually age those repeated seconds? In "Cause and Effect," the crew of the Bozeman couldn't have, but time was continuing to move forward outside Launch Bay 2. Since all three men seemed to remember the loops, they're not being completely reset at the beginning each go-through. So do they age or don't they?

Anyone else think the image of the Tholian wedge sliding into the space between Enterprise's spread nacelles was... vaguely suggestive?

Dinner with Cap'n -- food streak unbroken! At this point I think I'm going to go back over Season 1 and find out just how long this streak is.

As for the corpse, my money is on Daniels' love child by Berlinghoff Rasmussen. :D

February 23, 2003: Added a reciprocal link to the Connor Trinneer Fan Site and did some tidying. I do make the effort to keep my links up to date (with the exception of Jim Wright's Delta Blues links, which I'll do when he's done ISP-hopping), so if you ever find something which doesn't work, please email me and let me know.

It must be suppertime; I'm surrounded by cats. I don't object to having #2 dozing on my stack of parts containers and #1 dozing on my monitor and #3 lounging and purring on my power strip, but they are NOT allowed to fight on my lap. House rule. Mamma does not start fights, Mamma does not get in the middle of fights, Mamma breaks up fights. You need to fight, take it elsewhere. And quit walkin' on my damn keyboard.

February 26, 2003: Very brief thoughts on "Canamar:" not a ripoff of "The Chute," although not as original as the rest of sweeps. Interesting that the episode is named for the penal colony they never get to.

I guess I'll have to add "annoyed" to my list of abuses which our boy suffers. Clem sure talked his ear off. The eyeroll before Trip's apology was worth the price of admission.

Those leisure suits! Leather blazers are what starship captains wear to negotiate first contact? (Note: one of my correspondents from the Trippin' For Trinneer Yahoo group pointed out that they were coming back from the pseudo-water-polo match, not directly from the official meeting. I had been so busy rolling my eyes over yet another mention of stupid water polo that I missed the connection. Thanks.) Archer looked like a bad cop-show extra. We did have a discussion about whether Archer actually was a good pilot or just bluffing. We couldn't think of anything which precludes him from being skilled, but I've never heard him mention it before.

Food streak intact, though! :) Screencaps likely Friday, maybe Saturday.

February 28, 2003: Okay, okay, I surrender! I apologize for slandering Archer's dumb jacket and piloting skills. Someone else wrote to me to point out that during "Rogue Planet" (well no wonder, I blacked that out right after "A Night in Sickbay") Archer boasted "they used to say I could land a shuttlepod with my eyes closed." Hey, Jonny boy, that's Commander Pinocchio's job. Bad enough you tried to tried to out-gack him and Seven in the Where The Hell Did That Pairing Come From Contest, but Chuckles is the undisputed shuttle-crashing king. Eyes open when you land, son! :)

Screencaps and recap for "Canamar" are up. Written by John Shiban... no wonder I was laughing so hard.

I knew the second I saw a drifting shuttlepod it was going to be Pod One. The damn thing's indestructible. Next thing you know they're going to stencil a red shirt on it.

Moogie noted that they recycled whole chunks of the "Catwalk" set for the prison ship interior, but that doesn't bother me. Means they're saving money they can spend on writers and directors.

I was wrong about the actor playing the bad guy; I was sure he was the same guy who played Radek in "Flesh and Blood," but turns out he's not.

I loved the planet shots! How beautiful it was! Tip of the hat to the FX folks this week for taking a moment to make the throwaway visuals so appealing.

So what did the Enolians find on the 'pod to make them think the boys were smuggling? Bootleg DVDs? Convention videos? Romulan ale? Canadian prescription drugs? An illegal immigrant in the dashboard? And for that matter, what was Clem in for? I bet the mayor had him arrested for disturbing the peace or something.

This is the Trek series which gave us "the poop question" and "Right in my EV suit, sir?" and Porthos watering at least two sets of alien trees, so I'll ask: how did the prisoners use the facilities? As Martia reminds us, not all of us keep our, uh, organs in the same places.

Jolene Blalock was definitely in the groove this week. I tend to bitch about her lack of proper Vulcan qualities, so let's give her a big thumbs-up this outing: she asks Mal about the getaway vessel, and he says it's nothing Enterprise can't handle. She ever-so-delicately twitches one eyebrow up. That's the kind of subtle, unemotional, speaking-whole-paragraphs-with-one-look kind of mannerism we expect from our pointy-eared friends. I also liked that she demanded that the bureaucrat join them to go collect Archer and Trip -- unexpected, and very sensible. Also suddenly made the Enolians look much weaker than they were (like I said, not "The Chute").

Scott Bakula did pretty well also; no weenie alert this week. Archer showed a good mix of spine, moxie, and compassion. But -- even for a pilot as skilled and amazing as the Cap'n -- how was he able to decipher the Enolian writing to fly the transport ship?

I noticed that T'Pol sat weirdly in the Big Chair, as Archer does. I think Trip did redesign it, so that he's the only one comfortable in it.

Apparently Trip has been one hell of an influence on Mal. A year and a half ago he was a total spit-and-polish by-the-book navy-type officer; now he's calling the helmsman by his first name. So much for English formality. :)

Yes, there was an echo of Columbia in the ships' descent, but this was filmed well before February, so there's no way TPTB could have known. And we don't see the ship breaking apart. Sometimes life can't help imitating art.

March 2, 2003: I'm using Repeat Month to work on a fun new tally sheet, so check back later on this week.

March 5, 2003: It's rather amusing: my site has garnered a reputation among friends and family who watch the show. Two different people reported that when Trip got phasered during "Canamar," they both said "Well, there's another shot for evay's site."

I said it enough times to decide I was actually going to work on it: The ENT Food Chain! (I originally called it "Food Streak" but Moogie suggested "Food Chain" which was much funnier.) With "Shockwave II" being the only actual stretch, so far every single episode has featured people eating, drinking, and/or talking about eating or drinking. I had to do most of the references from Keckler's recaps, since I don't have a lot of Season One recorded, so if you find any mentions or meals which I missed, please feel free to pass them along.

March 6, 2003: Second helpings already! :) wombat61 suggested an addition to the Food Chain for "Marauders": Archer uses the "teach a man to fish" proverb. Added.

March 9, 2003: The e:earth webring has closed, reports the ringmaster. :(

I'll have a new article/essay/rant later on this week. I don't intend for Repeats Month to be No New Content Month around here.

March 12, 2003: Now the office is getting into the act! One of the guys in my department who watches ENT told me, "Yeah, I finally got around to seeing 'Canamar,' and I was thinking, 'There's another shot for TripHammered!' " That's brand recognition, baby.

I finally updated my Archer essay from last year -- I was actually getting requests! And with everything I'm doing this month, I've collected enough non-Trip-related material to put it all together in its own section, imaginatively called Extras. You'll find the Food Chain, last year's Archer essay, and the new essay. You may need to update some bookmarks (if anyone's bothered to bookmark anything on my site).

I caught the "TVLand awards" where Trek (the franchise) got the Pop Culture award, and Bill Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Nichelle Nichols, and Jimmy Doohan came up to accept. Nimoy and Nichols looked elegantly older. Doohan looks very very old, poor SOB -- he could barely totter up to the podium. Shatner's gotten round and was all flushed. But you know, when he started reading his prepared speech about what Trek meant, about the peaceful and more hopeful world it portrayed, his voice was as clear and powerful as always. And for just that moment, it really was Captain Kirk up there. My heart lifted for a few seconds. Incredible.

March 19, 2003: Happy birthday to Connor Trinneer, the actor who put such life into Trip. Many happy returns! qoSlIj DatIvjaj!

March 21, 2003: T10K! Ten thousand hits! Thank you, my constant visitors and repeat offenders and bored passers-by, to folks who wandered here from someone's blog, to people just nipping that photo of Connor in the awful shirt to post elsewhere, to the Yahoo groups who use TripHammered as a reference (!), to family and friends who drop by to find out what we're up to. I am humbled and honored by your attention, and I hope to keep earning it.

March 26, 2003: The new Extra is finally done! Since I've been half-joking about wanting Joss Whedon to come write for ENT when Buffy finishes this spring, I thought it would be amusing to consider what it might be like if Joss brought his unique style to Star Trek. The result is this lengthy but affectionate parody/crossover, "Welcome to the BowMouth."

No photos, no annotations, no internal links, just text. I don't usually ask for feedback but I'd really love to know what you think of this one. It's long enough to read instead of watching the "Precious Cargo" repeat, and you won't have to sit through Chickie-boo's dreadful performance. If any of my editors get back to me with belated but really serious problems, I'll just fix it and note the update here.

March 28, 2003: rainwoman finally found the Romulan Warbird photo on my site, nearly six months after I put it up! That cloak must be working really well. ;)

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