Episode Report Card Keckler: A | 88 USERS: C+ YOU GRADE IT Maximum Over(warp)drive
By Keckler | Season 2 | Episode 4 | Aired on 2002.10.09
Seriously, this was a good episode. Direction, plot, movement, surprise endings -- BAM! It was all there. but this show is still not perfect; they still have a few kinks to work out. Like Scott's brow. Please understand, I loved him in Quantum Leap; I thought it was a great show with two great actors. I even still try to catch the reruns, so what exactly is he trying to pull in Enterprise? He's supposed to be this laid-back, loosen the collar, drink a beer, and watch water polo kind of guy -- why can't he show that to us? I just don't feel it. He acts like his forefathers all stood hundreds of feet tall in California.
Another thing about this episode that bothered me was the overdose of Continuity Balm they slathered on us. It was like they wanted to cram in as many references to past episodes as they could, just so they never had to do it ever again. Or perhaps they were trying to make the continuity SO grating that they could say, "See? You got what you asked for -- now isn't it annoying?"
Quantum whittles a log down and talks about the repairs the ship needs after last week's brouhaha with The Giant Hamster Balls That Go Boom. CONTINUITY! As he VOs, the Exposition Pod darts around the ship to examine the damage. Inside the pod, Quantum and Trip share some We've Got A New Lease On Life time. "It's incredible we're still in one piece," Quantum comments. "If that mine had hit another meter to the left..." Trip breathes. They commiserate over the extent of the dents, hull breaches, and the fact that they can't go very fast, which means it would take them ten years to reach the nearest Maaco. More bad news: the cable's out, so they have no email or long-distance service. The best they can swing is local phone calls. Or a technobabble equivalent for the twenty-second century. Quantum sighs a big one and says, "We've answered enough calls for help over the past year. It's time someone returned the favor." "P.S.: Whose distress calls did they answer where they didn't actually do more harm than good?" Mathra wonders from the kitchen. Quantum furrows The Brow Of Finally Admitting I'm Not So Independent As I Thought And Maybe Just Maybe Could Benefit From Getting Off My Furrowing High Horse And Ask An Alien For Help. Trip looks overly concerned for his captain's well-being: "Are y'serryous?" Instead of answering, Quantum sighs again and comms Hoshi, asking her to send out a general distress call about their situation. He instructs her not to go into too much detail. Hoshi catches on and signs off. Quantum barely meets Trip's solicitous eye and heaves his shoulders. Oh, my god, it's JUST a distress call -- it's not like someone died! Because that comes later.