Episode Report Card Keckler: A+ | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Twilight in the Garden of Good and Better
By Keckler | Season 3 | Episode 8 | Aired on 11.04.2003
Situation Room. Phlox reports they lost thirteen crewmembers and twenty-two more are injured. As Trip glares over his shoulder, Reed reports that they've taken nine Snake Eyes as prisoners, but they need to put seven of them somewhere else, as they seem only to be equipped with a brig built for two. "Blow 'em out the airlock," Trip says with calm ferocity. Hoshi stares at him. Shouldn't a larger brig have been one of the ship's upgrades last season before they took off on their mission? I mean, they didn't exactly think the Xindi would be warm and fuzzy, right? See, this is exactly why I think Admiral Forrest is EV-IL! After telling Reed to put the overflow into crew quarters with a heavy guard, Cpt. T'Pol asks about the repairs. In staccato tones, Trip reports that they'll have hull plating and weapons soon, but the starboard nacelle is FUBAR and will take six months to fix. "The best I can give you is warp one-point-seven," he grits. Cpt. T'Pol dismisses everyone distractedly. Trip stays. "How can we keep going with one warp engine?" he demands. Cpt. T'Pol tells him they have no other option. "What in the world were you thinking when you rammed that ship?" Trip hammers at her. Instead of telling Trip that she was thinking that it's November sweeps and they need ratings, Cpt. T'Pol tells him it was the only logical choice. Plus, it won her major cool points. Trip tells her that she's a screw-up for a captain. See, I don't understand his attitude. They didn't have weapons, the ship was crawling with Snake Eyes, their shields were failing, and the other Xindi ship was facing them down -- what else could she have done? I'm totally behind bold actions like that. They may not get very far very fast, but at least they didn't lose the entire crew. Cpt. T'Pol tells Trip to take up his issues with Admiral Forrest. If he's not off at Evil Camp.
Back in the grey-haired future, Quantum asks how they ever found the Xindi weapon without warp engines. P'Tail says carefully, "We located the facility where the Xindi constructed the probe but it had already been deployed." "Earth," Quantum states. "Destroyed," P'Tail responds. Quantum struggles with this concept, much as Arthur Dent did. Once he comprehends that all the McDonald'ses are gone, he's really going to freak. But at least P'Tail has been holding his towel for him. As Quantum staggers around, P'Tail continues, "They didn't stop at your homeworld. They attacked every human outpost they could find -- Mars, Alpha Centauri, Vega Colony -- all were destroyed." Quantum reels and finally asks, "How many of us are left?" "Less than six thousand," P'Tail tells him. Quantum bends over and moans. God, she's got to watch him go through this agony every day. Quantum throws himself upon the circular Hobbit door and runs outside. He leans against a wall as the camera pulls up and shows us a small shantytown settlement in the Hollywood hills.