Season 3
Episode 53 The Xindi
The season three premiere! The biggest misstep to ever happen on the show is the change in their theme song. It’s the same song but with an upbeat karaoke treatment. It’s sped up and has this annoying keyboard and drumbeat to it. It was one of the worst changes the show ever made
We meet the Xindi council of aliens who are aware the Earth ship Enterprise has entered their system and are debating if they need to be stopped. Basically, we meet the villains of the season.
Meanwhile, Enterprise is trying to track down those very Xindi who attacked earth killing millions and plan to destroy the entire planet. They cut a deal with a prison colony to speak with one of the Xindi prisoners then of course get double-crossed. We get to see the Military Assault Command Operations (MACOs) in action for the first time.
MACOs are basically the space equivalent of marines. No other Star Trek show has ever shown a pure military based unit. Starfleet which is a type of space navy is still a mission of peaceful exploration. But since the United Federation of Planets doesn’t exists in this show, the idea of Earth having a military unit makes sense and makes some great action in later episodes.
The episode attempts to set the tone for the entire season. The Enterprise is alone in an uncharted and hostile area of space. Their goal is to stop the Xindi at any cost and also the early stages of Archer’s obsession with completing his mission. He doesn’t break any ethical rules in this episode but as the season goes on we’ll see him go to a dark place.
The episode itself is a little by-the-numbers but when crafting a season long story arc you have to position the pieces carefully and slowly to have a satisfying payoff by the end.
Written by
Joseph Ammendolea
Owner/President
“I Like To Play With Toys” Productions®
ILikeToPlayWithToysProductions@Yahoo.com
