Broken Bow (Enterprise)

Infobox Star Trek episode
name =Broken Bow
series =Enterprise
ep_num =1
prod_num =101 & 102
date =September 26, 2001
writer =Rick Berman
Brannon Braga
director =James Conway
producer =Dawn Valazquez
guest =John Fleck
Melinda Clarke
Tommy Lister, Jr.
stardate =non applicable
year =2151
next =Fight or Flight

"Broken Bow" is the pilot episode of the television series "" (then called "Enterprise"). It originally aired as a double-length episode, but has been split into two segments for repeats. The episode caused some controversy among "Star Trek" fans at the time, especially as it featured the Klingons, far before some fans expected them to appear.

A novelization of the episode, written by Diane Carey, was published in 2001.

Plot

Teaser

Earth, North America 2121. Jonathan Archer is completing a model of a warp-capable spacecraft under the supervision of his father, Henry Archer, principal designer of the "Enterprise" NX-01 and collaborator with Zefram Cochrane on the Warp 5 engine. Jon asks Henry when his ship will be ready to fly. "It's not even built yet. You know that.", his father replies. Jon asks if it will be bigger than Ambassador Soval's ship, then goes on to say that humans would be flying at Warp 5 already if it weren't for the Vulcans holding humanity back.

Broken Bow, Oklahoma, 2151. The wreckage of a Klingon spacecraft lies smoking in a cornfield. Klaang runs through the corn, pursued by two Suliban agents. The smoke plume and the sound of phaser fire attracts the attention of farmer Moore, who goes to get his plasma rifle. The Klingon runs to a grain silo for cover. The Suliban follow in to the silo, one shapeshifting to get through the gap between the door and floor to unlock it for the other. Meanwhile, the Klingon escapes through a door at the top of the silo and destroys the structure with his disrupter. Moore discovers Klaang and covers him with his rifle. Klaang walks forward, speaking Klingon. He ignores Moore's orders to drop the disrupter, causing the farmer to fire.

Opening credits

The opening credits showed various images of explorers or exploring missions. During the audio commentaries for this episode, Brannon Braga called the image of the Mars Pathfinder rover "Sojourner"'s approaching Yogi Rock "prophetic", even though the episode aired four years after that particular Mars mission.

Act One

A shuttlepod approaches the starship "Enterprise", in space dock above Earth. Commander Charles "Trip" Tucker III and Captain Archer admire the craft as they approach under the saucer section. "Warp 4.5 next Thursday", says Trip. "Neptune and back in six minutes.", replies Archer. The shuttle receives a message from Star Fleet Headquarters to say that Admiral Forrest requires Captain Archer at Starfleet Medical straight away.

Admirals Forrest and Williams arrive at Starfleet Sickbay with the Vulcan delegation of Ambassador Soval and T'Pol. Forrest explains the situation to Archer upon his arrival. The Klingon is a courier, carrying important information back to Kronos. Soval believes that it would be best if the launch of the "Enterprise" was pushed back until the Vulcans have dealt with the diplomatic incident. Archer shows his prejudice towards the Vulcans in his rejection of their idea to return Klaang's corpse to the Klingon Empire. He enters Sickbay to speak to Phlox, who says that Klaang doesn't have to die. Archer says that he can have the "Enterprise" ready to go in three days. Admiral Forrest agrees. Archer begins to recruit his crew, starting with Doctor Phlox.

Act Two

Back on "Enterprise", Malcolm Reed and Travis Mayweather are supervising the beaming up of supplies with the transporter. Both express reservations about using the transporter themselves. Reed complains that he isn't receiving the correct parts, leaving him with no time to get the weapons online before the ship leaves orbit. Reed and Mayweather walk to Engineering to see Trip. "Keep your shirt on, Lieutenant. Your equipment will be here in the morning", quips Reed, imitating Trip who goes on to say just that when asked.

Archer goes to see Hoshi Sato at University in Brazil. Hoshi is teaching languages in the University gardens. Hoshi says that she can't leave for three weeks, owing to exams. Archer plays some Klingon phrases to Hoshi, tempting her by saying that the language consists of 80 poly-guttural dialects constructed on an adaptive syntax. "You'd be the first human to talk to these people. Do you really want someone else to do that?", says Archer.

Back on the "Enterprise", Trip and Archer discuss the appointment of T'Pol as First Officer in the Captain's Ready Room. Starfleet needs the Vulcan star charts to reach Kronos, so in return the "Enterprise" receives T'Pol. Trip calls her a Vulcan spy. "Think of her more as a chaperone", replies Archer. The mission is expected to last eight days; "Then she's gone", Archer concludes. T'Pol enters and immediately notices Porthos' smell. Trip introduces himself and T'Pol brushes him off. Archer confronts her about espionage and T'Pol replies that she will be as pleased to leave the ship as Archer will be to let her go, once the mission is over.

Later, Admiral Forrest gives the inaugural address for the launch of the "Enterprise", attended by humans and Vulcans. Zefram Cochrane is also referenced, from the dedication of the Warp 5 Complex in 2119:

:"On this site, a powerful engine will be built. An engine that will someday help us to travel a hundred times faster than we can today. Imagine it. Thousands of inhabited planets at our fingertips. And we'll be able to explore those strange, new worlds. And seek out new life and new civilizations. This engine will let us go boldly where no man has gone before."

On board the "Enterprise", Archer remembers building the model of the warp-capable starship with his father, the engine unit floating around the room until it was put in place in the model. "Take her out, Mr Mayweather. Straight and steady", Archer orders, and "Enterprise" clears space dock and goes to warp.

On a Suliban vessel, Future Guy appears in a coruscating pillar of light in the Temporal Communication Chamber. Silik enters, his presence shifting back and forth in time by several seconds as part of the temporal effect of the chamber. Future Guy asks after Klaang, then orders Silik to "recover the evidence" before ending the interview.

Act Three

Archer visits Sickbay to help Phlox unpack his menagerie. Phlox comments that humans must embrace new ideas when they attempt to embrace new worlds, one of the benefits of the Interspecies Medical Exchange. Archer says that Klaang needs to be fit to walk in 80 hours, at which time the vessel is due to arrive at Kronos. "I'll do the best I can. Optimism, Captain!", beams Phlox.

Elsewhere, Trip finds Mayweather upside-down in the Sweet Spot, about halfway between the artificial gravity generator and the bow plate. Trip joins him on the ceiling. Mayweather says that his years as traveling as a Boomer aboard a freighter has taken him to Trillius Prime, Draylax and both Teneebian Moons. The women on Draylax have three breasts, according to Mayweather.

In the Captain's Mess, T'Pol tells Archer that she hasn't been to the Grand Canyon or the Big Sur Aquarium, as all Vulcan recreational needs are provided at the compound in Sausalito. Beginning dinner, T'Pol tells Trip that Vulcans don't touch food with their hands. T'Pol continues by saying that humans are impulsive carnivores. Trip counters by saying that humanity has wiped out war, disease and hunger in less than two generations. T'Pol wonders if humans will revert to their baser instincts in times of crisis but suggests that with training and discipline, anything is possible.

Later, on the Bridge, Mayweather reports to Reed that the "Enterprise" is traveling at warp 4.3. Hoshi feels small tremors. Archer orders warp 4.4 and larger tremors are felt by all. Reed assures Hoshi that it is the Main Deflector sequencing, all perfectly normal. T'Pol asks Hoshi if she would like to go and lie down. Hoshi counters in Vulcan by telling T'Pol to go to Hell. Phlox communicates that Klaang is regaining consciousness. Archer and Hoshi go down to Sickbay.

Klaang asks where he is, who the "Enterprise" crew are and where his ship is. Hoshi attempts to answer in Klingon as the translator can't align to Klaang's dialect. Phlox reports that Klaang's prefrontal cortex is hyperstimulated, so he probably has no idea what he is saying. At that moment, the ship drops out of warp and main power goes offline. Reed sees something off the starboard bow, just before the sensors go down. Three Suliban agents creep along the corridors of the "Enterprise", using the floor and walls. In Sickbay, Hoshi sees a Suliban operative for a second in the torchlight, before his camouflage technology adapts to the environment. Archer spots the agent on the ceiling; Klaang recognizes the species upon sight. One agent attacks Klaang's guard and is shot by Archer. The other drops from the ceiling on to Klaang. A few seconds later, power is restored to the ship and the lights reveal Klaang's bed to be empty.

Act Four

Archer asks why the ship's sensors didn't detect the Suliban vessel. Trip says that the sensor readings look more like a glitch than a proper trace. Archer orders that the weapons be properly set up, that Klaang's speech be translated and that the Suliban ship is found. T'Pol declares that with Klaang gone, the mission is over and that the "Enterprise" should head back to San Francisco. Archer takes T'Pol in to the Ready Room and vents his feelings regarding Vulcan cynicism and repression of humanity. He comments that his father should have been present to see the launch of the "Enterprise" and that Vulcan resistance held back progress on the warp 5 engine.

In Sickbay, Phlox carries out an autopsy on the Suliban corpse. Phlox reports that the agent was the recipient of some very sophisticated genetic engineering. To demonstrate, Phlox uses light to activate the corpse's sub-cutaneous pigment sacs, bio-mimetic garment and compound retinas. In Engineering, T'Pol insults Trip by saying that Vulcan children play with toys that are more sophisticated than "Enterprise"'s sensor array. Trip reacts cynically. Archer enters, and T'Pol reports that the Suliban vessel has a tricyclic plasma drive. They need to know the decay rate of the plasma in order to find their warp trail. Hoshi arrives with a translation of Klaang's speech. Archer asks T'Pol if she can help. T'Pol reveals that Klaang's last stop before Earth was Rigel 10 and that she wasn't authorized to reveal the details of the Vulcan investigation. Archer threatens T'Pol with confinement the next time he learns she is withholding information. Archer orders a course change to Rigel 10.

Aboard the Suliban vessel, Silik interrogates Klaang in Klingon. Klaang resists, saying that he went to Rigel to meet with a Suliban female called Sarin. Silik heads for Rigel 10, ordering that Klaang is to be kept alive for the time being.

Act Five

On board the "Enterprise", T'Pol briefs the crew about interspecies contact before they head to the surface in a shuttlepod. On the surface, the crew take time to investigate some of the practices of the new species that they encounter. T'Pol discovers that Central Security have no record of Klaang but that Klingons sometimes go to an enclave on Level 19 for live food. As T'Pol and Trip leave to meet Archer on that level, they are observed by a Suliban agent.

On Level 19, Archer and Hoshi search for the enclave. Two Klingons walk away in the distance, ignoring Hoshi's salutation. Archer tries to communicate with T'Pol but gets nothing but static. Suddenly, both are jumped by Suliban agents. They are brought to a holding area to find T'Pol, and Trip already captured. Archer is lead off to meet Sarin, who appears as a human female.

Sarin asks about the people who kidnapped Klaang and why Archer was taking him back to Kronos. Sarin interrupts Archer with a kiss, before stepping back and transforming into a Suliban. The kiss allowed Sarin to measure Archer's trustworthiness. She goes on to tell Archer that she gave Klaang a message regarding proof of Suliban involvement in recent attacks on Klingon factions, to be delivered to the High Council. The Suliban are following orders in a Temporal Cold War, a revelation that confuses Archer. At that point, the conversation is interrupted by Suliban phaser fire. Sarin frees the landing party and they make their way back to the shuttlepod in Docking Port 3. Sarin is hit and tells Archer to find Klaang with her dying words. Archer signals Reed, who says that he and Mayweather are back on the shuttlepod. A fire-fight ensues with the Suliban on the Docking Port. Archer is hit but all make it back alive. The Suliban await instructions. On the shuttlepod, T'Pol states that she is taking command of the "Enterprise" while the Captain is incapacitated.

Act Six

Back in 2121, Henry and Jon Archer fly the model spacecraft on the beach. Jon crashes the ship in to the sand. Henry tells Jon to learn to trust the wind. Suddenly, Jon looks around to see T'Pol watching him from a distance. On board, Phlox tells T'Pol and Trip to decontaminate before coming aboard as they were exposed to a protocystian spore. In the ship's decontamination chamber, Trip refuses to believe that T'Pol has the authority to take command of the ship. Trip sees this as another opportunity for the Vulcans to end the mission. T'Pol reminds him that the mission is over anyway without Klaang and Archer.

Act Seven

Archer recovers from sedation six hours later. Trip and T'Pol arrive to tell Archer that the "Enterprise" is tracking the Suliban vessel that left Rigel after they returned to the ship.

:"Enterprise starlog, Captain Jonathan Archer, April 16th, 2151. We've been tracking the Suliban ship for ten hours thanks to our Science Officer, who came up with a way to tweak the sensors. I have no reason to believe that Klaang is still alive but if what the Suliban woman told me is true, it's crucial that we try to find him. I still haven't decided whether to ask Subcommander T'Pol about this Temporal Cold War. My instincts tell me not to trust her."

On the Bridge, T'Pol reports that the Suliban vessel dropped out of warp near a class 7 gas giant, heading through its outer radiation belt, hiding their warp trail. With T'Pol's help, Reed uses the scanners to detect the warp trails of 14 Suliban vessels, all present within the previous six hours. Archer orders the weapons online and a course laid in to the Sulibans' location.

Act Eight

Aboard Silik's ship, Future Guy asks if Sarin gave Archer anything. Silik doesn't know. Silik reports that Archer has followed them, but that he will destroy the "Enterprise" before they locate the Helix. Future Guy stresses that Sarin's message cannot reach Kronos or his plans will be disrupted.

In the upper cloud decks of the gas giant, the "Enterprise"'s scanners are limited to 12 kilometres. Beneath the cyclohexane layer the scanners come back up to full power, detecting two vessels on a bearing of 119 mark 7. Another object is detected at bearing 342 mark 12, a mass of Suliban vessels with over 3000 bio-signs. A non-Suliban bio-sign is detected. Reed suggests using the transporter to remove Klaang. Archer tries using the grappler instead and successfully grabs an attacking Suliban ship, the pilot ejecting.

A short while later, Mayweather guides Archer and Trip through the controls of the Suliban ship, while the rest of the Suliban launch proximity detectors to locate the "Enterprise" in the upper layers of the atmosphere. Reed issues Archer with new phase pistols and a maglock disrupter to break apart the Suliban ship collective. Trip navigates to the Suliban collective and docks the ship. They begin to search for Klaang's bio-signs. They find the Klingon with only one Suliban encounter. On the way back to the stolen Suliban ship the three run in to a fire-fight. Trip and Klaang escape while Archer plants the maglock disrupter. The vessels break apart, trapping Archer on board Silik's vessel.

Act Nine

Trip and Klaang make their way back to the "Enterprise". Hoshi picks out their hail amid the static, allowing T'Pol to locate their ship. She thanks Hoshi in Vulcan.

On Silik's vessel, Archer follows his tricorder until the readings go haywire. Archer approaches the Temporal Communications Chamber and enters, his body shifting out of phase. Back on the "Enterprise", Trip and T'Pol argue about returning to rescue Archer. T'Pol says that another rescue attempt would jeopardize the mission. Trip reminds her that Archer went back for her when they were attacked by the Suliban on Rigel X.

Silik enters the chamber, his bio-mimetic armor concealing him from Archer. He believes that Klaang knows nothing and that Sarin didn't reveal anything to Archer. He opens the door for Archer to leave as he isn't considered a threat. Archer taunts Silik about the Temporal Cold War, causing Silik to knock the phase pistol from Archer's hand. The phasing of the room causes an advance image of the phaser beam to display before Silik pulls the trigger, allowing Archer to leap out of the way. The energy reflects off of the walls of the chamber, knocking Silik over and causing him to drop the weapon. Archer distracts Silik, using the phaser fire as cover to reach the door. Silik chases and they fight in the antechamber. As Archer escapes along the corridor, Silik fires. As he does so, Trip operates the transporter and beams Archer aboard the "Enterprise".

Later, the "Enterprise" arrives on Kronos. The High Council are in session. Klaang enters with the senior officers. The leader of the High Council takes some of Klaang's blood and locates Sarin's message amid the DNA. The Leader tells Archer to leave now or die, in Klingon.

Act Ten

Aboard the "Enterprise" Trip and T'Pol meet Archer in the Ready Room. Archer tells them about Admiral Forrest relating information about the Suliban to the Vulcan High Command. Archer tells them about new orders from Starfleet. Admiral Forrest has ordered the "Enterprise" to keep going; a ship will arrive to return T'Pol to Earth. Trip leaves to begin repairs. Archer tells T'Pol that he needs to leave his grudges and preconceptions behind, so he asks T'Pol to stay on as Science Officer. T'Pol agrees to contact her superiors to request permission.

Archer announces the new orders to the crew and orders that a course be set to a new inhabited planet. Mayweather reports an ion storm on that course and Archer tells him that they can't be afraid of the wind, echoing Henry Archer's words. On Earth in 2121, the young Jonathan Archer has mastered flying the model ship with his father as the sun sets over the ocean.

References

*Berman, R. (Writer), & Braga, B. (Writer), & Conway, J. L. (Director). (2001). Broken Bow [Television series episode] . In Berman, R. (Producer), & Braga, B. (Producer), Star Trek: Enterprise. Hollywood: Paramount Pictures.
*Paramount Pictures. (n.d.). Broken bow. In "Series & movies". Retrieved January 4, 2004 from http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/series/ENT/episode/121932.html

External links