The Enterprise crew rescues a revered boy and his handlers, while captain Pike reconnects with a woman from his past as Strange New Worlds continues to try to “Lift Us Where Suffering Cannot Reach.” Written by Robin Wasserman & Bill Wolkoff, directed by Andi Armaganian.
Mark Turetsky: Oh, hey there Will! I wasn’t expecting you for another hour. Umm… make yourself at home, just don’t look in the basement, okay? Promise me you won’t go down there!
Will Nevin: Well, Mark, I didn’t intend on going down there, but now that you mention it, I’m awfully curious. You don’t have some kind of machine setup that requires a child sacrifice to keep your HVAC going, do you? Because that would be both horrifying and really, really weird.
Mark: Oh GOD, Will! What the hell? It’s just really messy down there. And we’ve got a guy coming tomorrow to check for mold.
Why would you even think that!?
Omelas Redux
Mark: So, first off, this turns out to be a really heavy episode, though it doesn’t start out seeming like much of one. The revelation of the secret of Majalis and its connection to First Servant, even though I had guessed what was going on earlier, has really stuck with me over the last few days.
Will: It’s not hard to see that something is up, what with the various attempts to abscond with the First Servant and the secrecy behind those attempts. I thought that perhaps it was some sort of ritual sacrifice a la “The Lottery.” But, nope. This episode went deeper, darker and harder — it’s literally the biomechanical essence of a child that keeps this planet from cascading into the hard scrabble life of its colony offshoot.
The story is paced perfectly, with never too much exposition or foreshadowing. And Anson Mount — who I am seriously ready to declare the best actor in franchise history — plays it spot on. His range in this episode, from confused man crushing hard to righteous fury upon learning the awful truth of this seeming paradise, was simply stunning. Never goofy or over acted. Always believable. What an absolutely crushing episode.
Mark: I’m glad you brought up “The Lottery.” This episode doesn’t pull from it, but it rather liberally pulls from the Ursula K. LeGuin story “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas.” The LeGuin story is short, I recommend reading it, and it’s structured more like a thought experiment. And it’s an absolutely crushing story. It doesn’t involve a planetary supercomputer, it just involves the suffering of one child in a basement in a utopian society. As the story describes it, “The terms are strict and absolute; there may not even be a kind word spoken to the child.”
The thing that really sells the episode to me is the moment right before First Servant is fed into the machine. He’s all childish bravado and naiveté about his role, but in that one moment before, where he gets this childlike expression of “I don’t want to be here, I don’t want this,” and it doesn’t matter to the adults around him. You mention how well Mount handles the scene, but Ian Ho, the actor who plays First Servant, delivers an absolutely crushing performance in that one moment.
Will: For the folks who aren’t deep into their Next Generation, “Half a Life” — the episode featuring guest star David Ogden Stiers — offers a remarkably good companion piece. In that episode, the Enterprise visits a planet where all residents upon hitting the age of 60 engage in ritual suicide. Stiers’ character, though, is a scientist whose work may save the planet, and he’s faced with a choice: Does he abide by the traditions of his planet, or does he face exile and shame while he continues his work? I won’t spoil it for those who haven’t seen it, but it’s a complex and engaging story, and Stiers — along with Majel Barrett — puts everything into it.
That was a story about a culture that the Enterprise didn’t understand and a ritual that some of the characters involved found (rightly) cruel. But we don’t have that here. The First Servant, as you pointed out, is a child, without the reason and wisdom necessary to consent. We see him as bright and engaging, capable of so much. And yet he’s destined to be sacrificed all the same. We don’t really have to wonder why his appointed father did what he did. It’s what any of us would have done.
Mark: And I can’t help but continue to compare it to the LeGuin: does it really matter if First Servant is the greatest kid on Earth (or in space)? The child in the LeGuin story is “feeble-minded” though the story leaves it open that the child has become so through malnutrition, psychological trauma and neglect. First Servant’s general precociousness makes for an engaging episode, it makes us feel the sting more, but it doesn’t make the deal worse, it just adds extra pathos to the horror of it.
And there’s this prevailing sense of deflection throughout the episode. I felt like Deanna Troi, wanting to shout “they’re hiding something!” during each scene, because clearly they were. But everything about this story changes once you know the secret: the Majalans are isolationist not because their society is so perfect they don’t want it to become tainted by outsiders, which is how it first appears, it’s because they’re deeply ashamed. They know what they’re doing is monstrous, and they’re worried that they’ll be judged for what they’re doing.
Will: And the defense of “well, it’s always been done this way” is no defense at all, especially when the colony is making a go of it without child murder. You know, this episode was written and produced months ago, but it’s not hard to see the parallels to American society and its refusal to deal with gun violence in a meaningful way. We’re not picking a chosen child to sacrifice, no — but we’re not doing anything to stop school massacres, either.
The best Trek, like any good science fiction, always has something to say about the 20th/21st century. We certainly have that here.
Mark: And all that without the benefit of living in a utopia ourselves. Look at the Majalans’ choice: they don’t have to keep their society going the way it is. They’ve had overtures from the Federation, there are members of their society who’ve abandoned them and attempt to dismantle the machine.
And the choice isn’t “well, if we stop this, we all die.” They have space travel. They can join the Federation, a seeming utopia in itself. The choice is “live in a near-magical Utopia founded on torturing a child indefinitely” or “stop the child torture and join a slightly less cool utopia, but also own up to the child torture thing,” and they just plain won’t. Even Alora says if they take First Servant out of the chamber, “severing the connection would only kill him.” But, surely that would be a mercy in the face of torturing him for until he withers and dies like the previous First Servant, right?
Will: That’s a reasonable thought that might occur to Pike, of course. The scene after the torture chamber, where he wakes up and thinks about making one more push to save the child, is another good one; Mount plays physical and emotional defeat so well. And in addition to “Half a Life,” the more direct comparison is naturally to Pike’s coming sacrifice — he knows what he should do, he’s agonized over the cadets (now children themselves!) and he seems committed to making that choice a decade out. But the First Servant has none of that agency despite his precociousness. A different writing team might be tempted to have Pike stand down, feeling some cosmic connection to the First Servant. But he’s horrified. Sickened, even.
I feel like each week I could rave about Mount and the writing supporting him, but there were so many good choices made in this episode.
Mark: And even with the choice to not return to Majalis, it’s giving Pike another out: he can save those kids, suffer his accident and then be whole again, and spend the rest of his days with the woman he’s always wondered “what if” about. But of course, he can’t. He won’t make that choice. It also foreshadows his ultimate fate at the end of the TOS two-parter “The Menagerie,” which I’m very curious to go back and re-watch, having Anson Mount’s characterization of Pike in mind.
Will: Just think, Mark: The decision some 60 years ago to recycle what they could from a failed pilot gave us this incredible series. Well, that and the insatiable need for content in the age of streaming platforms. But I’m not complaining — five or six more seasons of this show will make me a very, very happy fella.
The Kid Stays in the Sickbay
Mark: Getting back to your point of the good choices in this episode, it feels like our b-plots (Dr. M’Benga trying to convince Elder Gamal to help cure his daughter and Uhura’s tutelage under La’an) tied in quite neatly with the A plot, to the point where it didn’t feel like we were ever cutting away, just advancing the plot from a different angle.
Will: M’Benga will perhaps have his own choice to make: If his partnership with the elder doesn’t work — if the technology to save his daughter only exists on Majalis — could he sacrifice his principles in order for her to live? We know that the good doctor’s tenure on the Enterprise is not a relatively long one, and this would be a particularly bittersweet and ethically difficult offramp.
Mark: Just a quick correction: he appears in two episodes of TOS as McCoy’s subordinate, “A Private Little War” and “That Which Survives.” But maybe this storyline leads into why he isn’t the CMO in Kirk’s time.
Will: The franchise is quietly retconning the Eugenics Wars — anything is possible. Yet I’m impressed with that pull. I have only the vaguest memories of a doctor other than one Leonard H. on board the Enterprise, but you’re absolutely correct. -5 points to me!
Mark: I just know our readers would be all over us if I didn’t mention that. M’Benga’s interactions are also the main place where we see Elder Gamal. It’s interesting, the turn he takes throughout the episode. At first he comes off as dismissive and condescending, but as the hour of First Servant’s “ascension” comes closer, Gamal becomes a heroic figure, attempting to rescue First Servant and leaving Majalis to burn. While the episode focuses on Pike’s journey, it’s Gamal who experiences real character growth. By the end, he’s willing to join Prospect VII, the colony of exiles from Majalis and even to help set M’Benga on the right path to helping to cure his daughter.
Now, here’s my one quibble, and it’s not much of one, more of a hope for the future: I’m hoping that as the series progresses, Pike-centric stories won’t focus so exclusively on his future vision, M’Benga stories won’t focus on his daughter, and La’an stories won’t focus so much on her past with the Gorn. I realize that it’s still early days, and the characters are still being established to a greater or lesser degree. It’s just something I’m wary of.
Will: Ahh, the days when the only thing we knew about Will Riker was that in no way was he going to let his captain beam down to a planet. I agree with your quibble/observation, but I give these writers much more slack than I’d give to their compatriots on Picard (even though I know there’s so much crossover). We’ll get there. Have faith (of the heart).
Mark: I’d also like to point out the scene First Servant has with Rukiya, which takes on a completely different meaning by the end of the episode. When you first watch it, it seems like he’s a prototypical child king who gets a respite to just play and be with another child, but by the end, it becomes his only opportunity to be just a child, seeking company and companionship. The only other child we see First Servant even near is the corpse of his predecessor.
And there’s an interesting parallel between Rukiya and First Servant, right? They’re both integrated into a machine, but for Rukiya, it’s by a father desperate to find a cure, trying unconventional and possibly unethical means to extend her life. There’s that moment when we realize that Rukiya doesn’t really know what’s going on, and he dodges when she asks how long she’s been in the transport buffer. We know from “Ghosts of Illyria” that it’s been over a year. How much longer will she stay in that limbo?
Will: And at what point will Pike find out about the situation? What will he do or say? It’s clear he, like Una, won’t act punitively, but I imagine he might have a different perspective on death. You said we need more about M’Benga’s character, and you’re right, but this is a story worth watching as the series continues.
Training Day, But Grumpier (and in Space)
Mark: Finally, we have Uhura and La’an’s story, which pretty much serves as the investigative side of the a-plot. At first it seems like it’s going to be purely about the clash between the two personalities, and I was pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t that. Yes, there’s a bit of that at first, but it’s more about showing how damn good Uhura is at her job, and how well La’an can make use of an expert linguist if the situation calls for it.
Will: Admittedly, we had some rough spots — La’an was alternately ruthless and incredibly corny with her conveniently numbered lessons. Still, this was a perfectly serviceable sideroad and continues Uhura’s larger story. Here’s a question for you: Do you think she goes back to the Academy next season? I thought that her going back would make room for the other Kirk, but in the leak we’ve seen of him, he’s already graduated.
Mark: I certainly hope not, since this series has done more to flesh out Uhura than three seasons and six movies ever did. And Celia Rose Gooding does a fantastic job of it, too. I’m wondering if her rotating between different departments will be a continuing theme all season (and beyond?), since it’s presented some great storytelling opportunities with the character.
Will: Let’s see…she’s had away team duty, engineering, security? Am I missing anything?
Mark: Nothing yet! But it’s a lot more than she got to do most of the time on The Original Series, which was staying at the communications station most of the time.
Will: You gotta figure that there’s a tour in the sciences on the horizon. Maybe on the helm? Plenty of chances to keep moving her around.
Mark: Don’t forget Sickbay!
Will: I’m a doctor, Mark — I could never forget Sickbay.
Stray New Words
- Next Generation season 4 featured some incredible episodes, including “Half a Life,” “Brothers,” “The Wounded” and “The Drumhead.” If you’re contemplating a series watch, don’t be like Will and start at the beginning. The first season suuuuucks.
- Sam Kirk sighting!
- Ian Ho, who plays First Servant, also played Xan in the final season of The Expanse, [spoiler alert for The Expanse book series] a character who would face continual mistreatment and neglect for the betterment of a society, had the series continued.
- There really is no stopping Pike’s haircut, which remains unmussed by even vigorous sexing.
- I choose to believe Christoper Pike is a tender, careful lover. — WN
- MT: This is the first time I noticed the navigator’s name: Mitchell. I’m wondering if the role was ever planned to be Gary Mitchell, Kirk’s close friend turned demigod in the second Trek pilot, “Where No Man Has Gone Before.”
- Next week: Space pirates!
Mark Turetsky
Will Nevin loves bourbon and AP style and gets paid to teach one of those things. He is on Twitter far too often.
