OEEG: In A Mirror Darkly 2

[Sonnenburg]

This is the second part of the mirror universe story, where Archer goes completely insane. So again, the mirror universe is just like the real one.

Review

[Ted C]

Rated an 8?

I guess that means that even though it's crap, it's fun crap.

And, of course, it's on the Enterprise scale, where even a 10 indicates pretty cheesey programming.

[Bounty]

I guess that means that even though it's crap, it's fun crap.

Or it's, you know, good cheese.

You spelled MACO with a K in a few places and hallucination has two l's. Other than that, nice review

[Patrick Degan]

Wasn't it nice for Capt. Duchess to finally be able to fully embrace his inner lunatic?

[PREDATOR490]

Nice timing, I just finished watching all of Enterprise from s1 to S4 for the first time. After 'Regeneration' this was supposed to be the next highlight of the series from what I heard. The tragic thing about this episode from what I can tell is the apparant effort to really try and crank out something good. I'm guessing thats where the 8 comes from more than the actual quality of the plot.

I found this two parter more jarring when I was doing my marathon of Ent. The episode before was 'Bound' which was pretty dull and the intro to this episode kinda threw me for how detached it was. Just reading the name of the episodes instantly gives away what it will be about to any regular Sci Fi fan but usually alternate reality are introduced via the characters of the 'original'
In this case, the original has nothing to do with it at all beyond the Defiant and it really dosent GO anywhere to affect the 'main reality.' I kept waiting for the real Enterprise to show up somehow, even thought the Archer hallucinations might be some sort of wierd mind fuck but instead it just ends on a point that I'm sure the writers thought was appropriate but personnally pissed me right off.
The Terran Empire is on the verge of being beaten by rebels and the apparant premise of the episode is that their only hope rests with the Defiant. Yet, Miss Super Slut kills the captain, pronounces herself Empress and thats the end of this episode, wtf ?
On the one hand I admire the attempt at trying to create a sense of ever changing intrigue with people working with, screwing and killing each other but it just leaves much to be desired when the episode is summarised as: Rebels, Backstabing, fucking and Empress Sato K thxbye.
It would have been nice to actually see this stretch out a bit to show Hoshi strong arm her way into becoming an officially recognised Empress with the Defiant rather than the pathetic attempt as leaving it as if her just saying. 'I am Empress Sato, respect me bitch' is going to do it. Even jumping ahead a bit to show her reforming the Empire so this kind of backstabbing shit gets clamped down on and the destruction of the rebels to set the stage for Kirk's established events.

[Thanas]

I fully agree with the above post. This episode had a good premise but ultimately very sloppy execution.

[Junghalli]

It's like watching a woman do a slow striptease while explaining the ramifications of gap insurance.

Somewhere, I bet there are people who'd be real turned on by that.

How this is going to work out is a mystery to me. If anyone who commands the Defiant can just make themselves emperor/empress, and as we've already seen anyone will betray anyone else for any reason at all, then it seems to me that nobody is going to really be able to hold onto the position for any length of time at all.

Maybe that's the reason the Mirror Universe didn't seem to be more advanced than the regular Trekverse in TOS, even though they should have gotten a big tech boost from the Defiant? People kept using it for their own personal power plays, and at some point it just got blown up in the struggles somehow. It does seem somewhat appropriate that the Mirror Terran Empire pissed away such a huge advantage in their short-sighted squabbling.

[RedImperator]

I guess that means that even though it's crap, it's fun crap.

Or it's, you know, good cheese.

I thoroughly enjoyed this episode--shooty guns, backstabbing, slut-Hoshi, Bakula's scenery-munching, cheesy CGI Gorn and Tholian, goatees, the lot of it. If I took Enterprise seriously as either science fiction or Star Trek, I probably would have been a lot more bothered by the plot stupidity, but since I don't, I was able to just sit back and enjoy the fanservice and the lunacy and the ham. I think the episode was massively helped along by the job the set and costume designers did. The Jefferies designs and the TOS uniforms looked fantastic; just a joy to look at. Watching Defiant effortlessly slaughter all the Bermanverse shit that could be thrown at it was great, cackle-out-loud fun. And seeing Hoshi and Mayweather, the two most ignored, abused, and wasted characters of the series triumph at the end was worth it, too, even if once you think about it there's no way "Empress Sato" could survive more than a few months.

[RogueIce]

I always manage to miss part one, but I've seen part two once or twice. And with the ending, it really felt like it was one of those backdoor pilots to a spin-off series about the mirror universe or something.

I'm not saying there would have been one, that Paramount had any such plans, or this was any more than just a one-off they did for the heck of it/fanservice/obligatory MU episode per series* with no greater meaning. Just saying that's kinda what it felt like to me.

*Did Voyager ever have one, or would it not have counted since they were lost from the Federation anyway?

[NetKnight]

*Did Voyager ever have one, or would it not have counted since they were lost from the Federation anyway?

No, although "Living Witness" did have the feel of one. TNG didn't have any, either.

Excellent review, as always.

[Steve]

Though they're not canon I thought Shatner's idea for why the Terran Empire fell was an interesting one. Namely, Mirror Kirk himself betrays the Empire after being ousted from power by Spock and helps the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance form to go after the Empire.

Another tack was recently taken by an issue of IDW's "Star Trek: Mirror Image" mini-series. Though the main plot concerned Mirror Kirk assassinating Mirror Pike to be captain of the Enterprise, the third issue was an interlude showing Lt. Jean-Luc Picard during the waning days of the Empire, where Spock's reforms have led to a disproportionate amount of Vulcan influence and the Vulcans are being panty-waists, going to the other extreme and thus allowing a vengeful galaxy led by the Cardies and Klingons to destroy the Empire by overrunning it piece by piece. (The comic involves him taking command of the ISS Starbreaker by mutinying against the pussy Vulcan CO during a confrontation with the Klingon-Cardie forces and employing the Picard Maneuver to escape - naturally Jack Crusher is killed during the attack as well, though due to the Vulcan's limp-wristed idiocy.)

Frankly it is stupid to assume that somehow Mirror Spock embracing the idea of diplomacy and not constant treachery would lead to this, but unfortunately DS9's writers had already taken that tack when they re-introduced the Mirror Universe (why they didn't just come up with some scenario where the Cardies and Klingons allied and conquered the Federation in the immediate pre-TNG era I dunno, they could've done the exact same things with the characters, still had a collaborationist Intendant Kira and such).

[Uraniun235]

Watching Defiant effortlessly slaughter all the Bermanverse shit that could be thrown at it was great, cackle-out-loud fun.

God yes.

(Defiant cuts loose at about 3:00.)

[Ford Prefect]

slut-Hoshi

Oh god, Hoshi as Slut Queen of the Universe is seriously hilarious. The picture of her fighting T'Pol in Chuck's review was worth many minutes of giggling.

[Patrick Degan]

The sight of Mirror-Duchess rocking back and forth in the captain's chair like a little five year old until the power comes back up is equally hilarious.

[Bounty]

The sight of Mirror-Duchess rocking back and forth in the captain's chair like a little five year old until the power comes back up is equally hilarious.

I was half-expecting him to start crying

[TimothyC]

And with the ending, it really felt like it was one of those backdoor pilots to a spin-off series about the mirror universe or something.

The rumors that I have heard, were that Coto et all. wanted to do an MU episode every season.

[DaveJB]

It wouldn't really have been anything new if they did. DS9 had a Mirror Universe episode every season except the first, I think.

[Patrick Degan]

For these two episodes only, Jolene Blaylock actually looked good. Without the bra-padding and with her natural hair instead of the stupid pixie-wig, she's a lot more like a real beauty than the walking blow-up doll the producers had her tricked-up as for most of the series.

[Patrick Degan]

Hoshi as Slut Queen of the Universe is seriously hilarious.

"All hail Empress Crack-Ho!"

[Bounty]

Putting The Ho Back Into Hoshi

[Big Orange]

This was a fun, inventive two parter that has a relatively lightweight but compelling plot, I'd say it is comparable to TNG's "Time Arrow" with Mark Twain, Data losing his head, and a younger Guinan, DS9's "Little Green Men" where Quark and friends meet the staff of Area 51, and VOY's "Message in a Bottle" with the EMH teaming up with a EMH Andy Dick to fight the Romulans.