The Vulcan Trilogy on Season 4

[sdayan]

I finally got Season 4 on DVD which I never got to see and so far I am impressed. The Vulcan 3 episode arc (The Forge, Awakening, KirShara) was just great Star Trek.

First off, these episodes are not for the "unitiated" in Star Trek. So many mentions are made of past episodes of Enterprise alone that if someone tuned in in the 4th season and got this they probably wouldn't know what the hell is going on, this may be similar to the way DS9 handled some episodes (I remember catching some great episodes on syndication and wondering what was going on).

What I liked about this episodes (acn't really separate them):

1. Soval: We have seen him as a "bad guy" the entire series, trying to hold back humans. We learn here that he was following the official line. We also hear a very plausible explanation of why he thinks that way (it took the Vulcans 1500 years to overcome their emotions and disunity, Earth wants to do it in much less). Also, the scene between him and Trip

"During my 30 years on Earth I got to really like humans" (not an excact quote I know but the important part was Trip's response: "You did a great job of hiding it" and Soval's "Thank you". Another confirmation of him simply following official lines.

2. All the continuity references and the way the tie everything up. While I think that it is not ideal to have Surak's Katra present, I like how they handled the whole thing and even did it practically the same way that they did in Star Trek II and III (even throwing in a Mount Seleya reference).

T'Pau's character was also handled very well, and I think they do set a better base for her character here than they could have done by having T'Pol be her. This makes her more credible as the offciator of Spock's wedding and the only person to refuse a seat in the Federation Council.

3. I really like Shran, maybe because Jeffrey Combs does such an incredible job, but I think he was also very good in this. Especially when he takes time in the middle of the battle to remind Trip that Archer now owes him 2. BTW I think that Trip actually helped him out there and no mention is made of that.

4. The twist at the end, where it is shoen that Evil Vulcan Guy was actually working in cohorts with the Romulans, while maybe pulled out of thin air, is at least a good explanation as to his erratic behavior (for a Vulcan). It also correctly depicts the Vulcans as the devious people they are. Enterprise has their hands tied by Balance of Terror where Romulans are seen for the first time (and aparently even Spock is shocked at that). But it's aparent that Romulans want this Reunification to happen.

There is a lot more to talk about in this arc, really. I hope to get some discussion about going here.

 

[suebsg9]

I finally got Season 4 on DVD which I never got to see and so far I am impressed. The Vulcan 3 episode arc (The Forge, Awakening, KirShara) was just great Star Trek.

First off, these episodes are not for the "unitiated" in Star Trek. So many mentions are made of past episodes of Enterprise alone that if someone tuned in in the 4th season and got this they probably wouldn't know what the hell is going on, this may be similar to the way DS9 handled some episodes (I remember catching some great episodes on syndication and wondering what was going on).

What I liked about this episodes (acn't really separate them):

1. Soval: We have seen him as a "bad guy" the entire series, trying to hold back humans. We learn here that he was following the official line. We also hear a very plausible explanation of why he thinks that way (it took the Vulcans 1500 years to overcome their emotions and disunity, Earth wants to do it in much less). Also, the scene between him and Trip

"During my 30 years on Earth I got to really like humans" (not an excact quote I know but the important part was Trip's response: "You did a great job of hiding it" and Soval's "Thank you". Another confirmation of him simply following official lines.

2. All the continuity references and the way the tie everything up. While I think that it is not ideal to have Surak's Katra present, I like how they handled the whole thing and even did it practically the same way that they did in Star Trek II and III (even throwing in a Mount Seleya reference).

T'Pau's character was also handled very well, and I think they do set a better base for her character here than they could have done by having T'Pol be her. This makes her more credible as the offciator of Spock's wedding and the only person to refuse a seat in the Federation Council.

3. I really like Shran, maybe because Jeffrey Combs does such an incredible job, but I think he was also very good in this. Especially when he takes time in the middle of the battle to remind Trip that Archer now owes him 2. BTW I think that Trip actually helped him out there and no mention is made of that.

4. The twist at the end, where it is shoen that Evil Vulcan Guy was actually working in cohorts with the Romulans, while maybe pulled out of thin air, is at least a good explanation as to his erratic behavior (for a Vulcan). It also correctly depicts the Vulcans as the devious people they are. Enterprise has their hands tied by Balance of Terror where Romulans are seen for the first time (and aparently even Spock is shocked at that). But it's aparent that Romulans want this Reunification to happen.

There is a lot more to talk about in this arc, really. I hope to get some discussion about going here.

Am I allowed to say I enjoyed the stuff on the ship more then I did the stuff going on the ground; was sad to see Tpols mom die but I got to say watching Trip and Soval work together and even Trip to not listen to Starfleets orders and go warn Shran's group that there is a possible war going to start and the fact he wanted to put Enterprise in the middle of the ships so that the Vulcans wouldn't get a chance to take down any of the ships was great. I disliked Soval at the beginning of the series but after the arc its like wow he is a great character. And was sad to see Forrest killed off! But I liked Shran in this also Jeffrey certainly has fun with the characters he creates and yep liked that when he says that two archer owes me to funny!

 

[SFRabid]

I really liked the less than perfect Vulcans that needed to find their way again. The comment about Humans achieving as much in 100 years following their war as the Vulcans did in 1000 years. That helps explain how humans are so promonant in the later Federation.

 

[Basill]

I really liked the less than perfect Vulcans that needed to find their way again. The comment about Humans achieving as much in 100 years following their war as the Vulcans did in 1000 years. That helps explain how humans are so promonant in the later Federation.

I really enjoyed the trilology, mainly because it was finally touching on the quirky Vulcan themes. Why do the Vulcans seem so out of character? This is why! I do think the story wrapped up a little too quickly and a little too safely, but it was nice to finally get to that point.

The only thing I truly wish had been thought out a little more was the portrayal of T'Pau and Surak. They were so different from how we had visited them in The Original Series that it was a little jarring to accept their interpretations here. The Savage Curtain's Surak was of course a manifestation of Spock's personal ideas of the man, so it's easy to grant his portrayal a little leeway. T'Pau, on the other hand, we met in the flesh over a century later as an elderly lady, and Celia Lovsky's demeanor and Austria-Hungarian accent just sold the performance for me in Amok Time. Some might say that attempting to recreate T'Pau in Lovsky's image might be cheesy or even disrespectful, but the fact that they seemed to completely ignore the original just seemed a little lacking.

I've always liked Soval. It was as if I knew somewhere down under all those robes there was a fella pulling strings in the humans' favor. I always thought he was one of the good guys even though he couldn't readily reveal it. He really got a chance to shine in this one.

Shran of course was, as always, awesome.

 

[msbae]

I really liked the less than perfect Vulcans that needed to find their way again. The comment about Humans achieving as much in 100 years following their war as the Vulcans did in 1000 years. That helps explain how humans are so promonant in the later Federation.

That and...

1.) Being one of the 4 founding worlds of the Federation...
2.) Earth being the Federation capital...
3.) Humans being the driving force behind the Starfleet's exploration missions...

 

[startrekwatcher]

Loved it. "The Forge" is in my top three of ENT episodes. The trilogy really felt like a movie.

I loved so many things--the mysticism, the political intrigue, the world building, the way the writers demonstrated that despite knowing Vulcans for over 40 years there was still a lot left to learn, loved the name dropping(sehlats, katras, seleya, IDIC, the Forge, the inner eyelid), the alienness and on location shots with the filter in creating planet Vulcan, the way they tied this arc into the larger Federation arc by bringing in the Romulans and Andorians, loved the presentation of the visions Archer had in "Awakening", the Archer/T'Pol character interaction, the battlescenes, T'Pau etc etc.

 

[angie]

Vulcan was awesome in the trilogy!! Very alien.I liked T'Pau and T'Mom.I enjoyed Archer and T'Pol's interaction with both as well.

 

[KayArr]

One of the few bright spots of season 4--

 

[Michael]

One of not only Enterprise's but Star Trek's finest multi-parter. I love these episodes. I wish we had more like that.

 

[Lady Conqueror]

1. Soval: We have seen him as a "bad guy" the entire series, trying to hold back humans

Really? In the first season, maybe, but from my p.o.v. he was starting to come around as early as Cease Fire. I think even his attempt to get Archer commited in The Expanse was a well intentioned though misguided effort to keep Enterprise & it's crew out of danger. After all it was a very dangerous region of space and they were basically going in there on only the word of someone purportedly from the future (Vulcans don't believe in time-travel) and from past actions rather shady motives.

As to the Vulcan trilogy itself - they were great episodes. My only dislikes were T'Pol being somewhat sidelined and excluded in the final episode (she doesn't even get to witness the Kir'shara being opened) and Admiral Forrest getting killed (I know Shran & Soval tend to get more kudo's around here but he was my fave supporting character).

 

[commodore64]

I loved the Vulcan trilogy -- very alien, in keeping with every single time we've seen Vulcan (unlike Home).

The only thing I truly wish had been thought out a little more was the portrayal of T'Pau and Surak. They were so different from how we had visited them in The Original Series that it was a little jarring to accept their interpretations here. The Savage Curtain's Surak was of course a manifestation of Spock's personal ideas of the man, so it's easy to grant his portrayal a little leeway. T'Pau, on the other hand, we met in the flesh over a century later as an elderly lady, and Celia Lovsky's demeanor and Austria-Hungarian accent just sold the performance for me in Amok Time. Some might say that attempting to recreate T'Pau in Lovsky's image might be cheesy or even disrespectful, but the fact that they seemed to completely ignore the original just seemed a little lacking.

I really agree. Angie, on this board, suggested Claudia Black should've been T'Pau. Physically, she looks more like her. I think she also could've acted a la Lovsky.

 

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

My favorite moment was the great reference to the Romulans that some fans didn't even catch. Syrran said it in the cave... "the ones who fled under the raptor's wings."

 

[startrekwatcher]

My favorite moment was the great reference to the Romulans that some fans didn't even catch. Syrran said it in the cave... "the ones who fled under the raptor's wings."

I thought the scene was quite creepy and the description almost poetic.

 

[angie]

My favorite moment was the great reference to the Romulans that some fans didn't even catch. Syrran said it in the cave... "the ones who fled under the raptor's wings."

I thought the scene was quite creepy and the description almost poetic.

Indeed! The eps were an example of the genre and drama at it's best

 

[SFRabid]

My favorite moment was the great reference to the Romulans that some fans didn't even catch. Syrran said it in the cave... "the ones who fled under the raptor's wings."

That also gives a reference point, the split happened during the great war which was 1000 year earlier. That can also explain why their exodus was forgotten by history.

 

[Flying Spaghetti Monster]

My favorite moment was the great reference to the Romulans that some fans didn't even catch. Syrran said it in the cave... "the ones who fled under the raptor's wings."

That also gives a reference point, the split happened during the great war which was 1000 year earlier. That can also explain why their exodus was forgotten by history.

Reeves-Stevens have a real grasp of Trek lore. They know the history. The questions of the Syrinites reflect real Vulcan ideals, a la Spock in Trek 4. The Raptor's wing comment just seemed so natural, unforced yet true to what we all know.

 

[Basill]

I really agree. Angie, on this board, suggested Claudia Black should've been T'Pau. Physically, she looks more like her. I think she also could've acted a la Lovsky.

Oh that would have been TOO awesome! (But I'm not... bitter or anything )

 

[Kalen Archer]

I agree that the Vulcan arc was excellent. The Forge is one of my favourite episodes of the series.

 

[Sci]

My favorite part of the Vulcan trilogy was that it reintroduced political commentary to Trek. While TOS had it in spades, it had been noticably absent from Star Trek when "The Forge" aired. So when we later see that Administrator V'Las is planning to invade the Andorian Empire on the basis of unconfirmed intelligence that the Andorians are building weapons of mass destruction? LOVED IT!

 

[angie]

Good point but I will take it a step farther.Ent tried albeit heavy handed , in earlier eps but this trilogy did it in an entertaining way also tackling religious intolerance.