[ST:Ent][Tech] Overview of 1.16:"Shuttlepod One" SERIES: "Enterprise" EPISODE: "Shuttlepod One" PROD#: ENT016 EP#: 1.16 RATING: PG AIRDATE: wed-13-feb-2002-20:00 EPDATE: c.9-nov-2151 OFFICIAL: startrek.com/library/ent_episodes/episodes_ent_detail_122771.asp FROM: Phillip Thorne, thorne@underbase.org POST-TO: rec.arts.startrek.tech, rec.arts.sf.tv REVIEW#: 10.0 FORMAT#: 3.2 This technical overview format is intended to be easy-to-scan, unambiguous, and precise, and a foundation for (in later revisions, a summary of) further freeform discussion. The NOTES are listed in seen-on-screen order, and ANALYSIS summarizes topics. It distinguishes between what is said/claimed by characters, from what is actually shown. Whenever possible, it uses spellings from the closed captioning (which may not be entirely consistent, or match those on the official website). Corrections to typos, phrasing, etc. are welcome, but please, only if you include a specific citation -- the idea is to avoid *half-remembered* lines and *unrealized inferences*. Abbreviations used: (m/f/?) name belongs to male/female/unclear, (os) on viewer screen, (?) quote is uncertain, (sp?) spelling is unclear, (vo) voiceover. This overview is (c)2002 Phillip Thorne, thorne@underbase.org. If you wish to reuse large hunks of text, or use this as a major source, please notify me and include a citation. PLOT SPOILERS BELOW! I. TERMS TRICKY [None] TECHNOLOGY Asteroid field, planetesimal, shuttlepod sensor array, micro-circuit; lifeboat, Echo Three, micro-singularity; flashlight, valve sealant; plasma cannons, impulse drive, micro-detonators, crewman second class, armory officer. CULTURE _Ulysses_, _Superman_, SF novels, lost-at-sea movies; Tesnia, Tesnians. CHARACTERS [No extras] MENTIONS Lt.Hess(f); Aunt Sherry, Ruby the waitress, Deborah, Rochelle, Catelin. III. NOTES TEASER 001a. FX ext: pod among asteroids. 001b. Pod: Tucker, Reed. After 3 days, the two are returning early to Ent, in an "asteroid field" (which contains 2 "primaries" and 17 "planetesimals"), because of damage: something disabled communications and the "sensor array" (Tucker examines a "micro-circuit"). While they wait, Reed pulls out a copy of [Joyce's] _Ulysses_. Tucker snorts at the choice, and Reed haughtily explains that British schools have a "core curriculum"; Americans probably spend all their time reading comic books and "those ridiculous science fiction novels". Tucker retorts that _Superman_ had layer upon layer of subtext. Refer to "Dr.Cochrane" and Montana. 001c. FX Win. Metal debris strewn across nearby asteroid. 001d. Pod. 001e. FX ext. 001f. Pod. 001g. FX ext. 001h. Pod. 001i. FX Win. "NX-01" visible across one fragment. 001j. Pod. ACT I 002. FX ext: Ent at warp. 003. Ready room: Archer, Sato. Sato enters, reports on the continuing situation of their 34 TESNIAN passengers. We learn their ship inexplicably collided with Ent during docking, destroying it, damaging Ent, and strewing debris across an asteroid. Fortunately their "escape pods" worked. The Tesnians are rattled; most had been aboard for years. Phlox can fit only 12 in the decon chamber at a time; they need at least 6 hours of boron gas per day; fortunately Ent has enough for the ferry ride home to "Tesnia". 004a. FX ext: inspection boat. A conical inspection boat exits a hatch (2 halves, pocket) on the port underside of the saucer, just outboard of the root of the port pontoon. It heads aft. 004b. Boat: Archer, T'pol. Archer asks who's in charge of Engineering while Tucker's away; it's LT.HESS(f). Will need a new starboard door for "launch bay 2". 004c. FX ext: inspect damage. Launch bay 2 is apparently the forward of the pair. Its interior is lit by a red strobe. 004d. FX Int: view from inside bay. 004e. Boat. T'pol comments that "Astrometrics" detected what could be "micro-singularities" in the asteroid field; unusual charged particles were detected as the Tesnian ship docked. Archer scoffs that they're "a Vulcan myth"; Vulcans would explain "the common cold" with them. 005a. FX ext: Pod 1. 005b. They consider the situation. Ent's "lifeboats" can do only "300 kph", Reed notes. They can't find the "black boxes" without sensors. No radio, no distress beacon. The portable beacon's good for no more than 10-20-million-km, Reed estimates. They have only 10-days of air. They can't reach "Echo Three", and any signal would take weeks-months to get there (Reed). Navigation's down, but Tucker notes Reed's navy tradition and memory, and orders he set course for it anyway. "Do you have a sextant?"(?) Reed asks. "Sorry. I left it with my slide rule."(?) answers Tucker sardonically. 005c. FX ext: Pod passes over asteroid and debris. 005d. Pod. ACT II 006. FX ext: Pod in open space. Reed(vo) records "Personal Log, Lt.Malcolm Reed, November ninth, 2151..." 006b. Pod. Reed's log explains their mission: to test the "targeting scanners" on the shuttle, they had to be at least 20-thousand-km from Ent (which was conducting a "mapping project" in the asteroid field). During third trial, suffered a brief but sizable jolt. "Flashlight." Tucker gets annoyed at his pessimism. They could get lucky, run into "Vulcans, Klingons, Suliban, Xyrillians, Andorians." Not at "impulse", notes Reed glumly; they won't reach another planet "not for at least six or seven years". Rations include "veal marsala, Chilean sea bass, moo goo gai pan, meatloaf with gravy and mashed potatos". There's also a bottle of "Kentucky bourbon" that (Tucker notes) Archer had been planning as a gift [apparently he forgetfully left in on the shuttle]. There's a ration-heating oven on the rear bulkhead, starboard side; it takes only ~5-sec. 007a. FX ext: pod. 007b. Pod. Reed records a message to his parents; he finds it odd that they didn't know he was aboard Ent, even if they *were* moving back to Malaysia at the time, even if his messages to them weren't received, because he knows "Aunt Sherry" got hers... "Suffocate". Blankets. 008. Sickbay (dream): Phlox, Archer, Reed, Tucker, T'Pol. Reed apparently has a crush on T'pol, doesn't really like the name "Malcolm", but is fond of "Stinky". "Mal-kom" is Vulcan for serenity [maybe; says dream-T'pol]. 009. Pod. Reed awakes. Tucker got the receiver working; static; "white noise". Impact -- losing atmosphere; down 8% within 10-sec, 22% within 30-sec. They can't find the hole, so Tucker opens a panel in the ceiling and releases a mist ("nitrogen for the cooling tanks"). They find two holes, and plug with their fingers. They can't reach the "valve sealant" in "storage bin 3", so Reed asks for the leftover meatloaf, and uses the mashed potato. Tucker realizes that whatever made the two holes also punctured "one of the O-2 cylinders", and they now have less than 2-day air. ACT III 010. Pod. (40-h remaining.) Brush sealant onto the hole. Reed notes that the pod's skin is designed to deflect meteors that would make a hole five times as big. Tucker brings up the "bar in Mill Valley" where "all the Starfleet trainees" went. Reed knows it: "the 602 Club". Tucker recalls a girl he met named Ruby. "Ruby the waitress?"(?) asks Reed. "You knew her?"(?) "Many times."(?) Tucker notes that if he turns down the temp to -5ºC, the saved power can increase air recycler efficiency. Reed hangs a shaving mirror and uses an electric shaver, wanting to leave a well-groomed corpse. Tucker: "if I remember my honors biology course," hair and nails continue to grow after death. 011a. FX ext: Ent at warp. 011b. Ready room: Archer, T'Pol. She's analyzed the scans of the Tesnian ship. Three of the particles also hit Ent, and the dispersal pattern suggests they dissipated on impact. She suggests "quantum sensor readings" of the 3 impact points. Archer notes that the shuttle doesn't have Ent's shielding, so orders the pod be contacted and a new rendezvous point be arranged. 012. Pod. (33-h remaining.) Bundled in jackets and caps. (Navy blue, with "NX-01" in white-bordered red letters.) Reed records a message to a woman named Deborah, then a Rochelle (and apparently previously to a Catelin). Fix receiver. Tucker's annoyed by the "fifth or sixth"(?) repetition. Reed explains that most everyone he cared for died on Ent; he never got very close to his girlfriends, or his family. Tucker pulls a candle-like device from a subdeck compartment, ignites it with a small torch. Reed notes that it'll use oxygen. "The bourbon's for warmth; the candle's for the mood,"(?) Tucker growls. 013a. FX ext pod. 013b. Pod. (~24-h remaining.) Bundled in blankets, drunk. Reed notes to Tucker that T'pol's pretty: "You ever noticed her bum?" Suddenly a transmission comes in ("this is like a lost-at-sea movie", Reed notes) -- it's "Hoshi!" She specifies a rendezvous in 2-day. ACT IV 014a. FX ext pod. 014b. Pod. (~11-h remaining.) Reed guesses Ent will be doing warp-2 or -3. What would make them go to "high warp", Tucker wonders; yes, at 2-day at warp-3 (apparently 0.25-Ly), they should be visible on T'pol's "viewer"; the "plasma cannons" have a range of under 10-km. Reed suggests they jettison and detonate the "impulse drive". Tucker objects that it would leave them "dead in space", but agrees; thinks he has some "micro-detonators". 014c. FX ext pod. Engines shut off, separate (with puff), tumble. Orange explosion, planar wave. 014d. Pod. Tucker once saw a cartoon, with two snails riding a turtle. 014e. FX ext pod: "POD 1" signage visible on starboard nose. 015. Pod. (~10-h remaining.) Bundled in blankets, drunk. Tucker tries to climb into the dorsal "airlock" to double Reed's air, but Reed won't have it, and pulls out a phase-pistol. Tucker threatens to "bust your ass down to crewman second class." "Armory officer." 016. Sickbay: Reed, Archer, T'pol, Phlox, Tucker. Reed awakens. Treatment for hypothermia; Phlox notes it took nearly 3-h to restore their body temp. Were recovered with only 2-3-h of remaining air. Reed explains their motivation when saw wreckage. T'pol does not kiss him. V. CONNECTIONS [Fill this in later] VI. ANALYSIS [Fill this in later] VII. NITS 1. Why are Shuttlepod One's wings deployed? 2. Would they suffocate or asphyxiate? Would they merely have bad air at full pressure? 3. Why is there no specific patch kit, only the valve sealant? 4. Tucker must be joking about his "honors biology course"; that hair and nails grow post-mortem is a myth. The nails *appear* to grow because the skin recedes slightly. 5. Apparently "dead in space" means "incapable of delta-vee", not "stationary". But this is Trek, so... 6. Where did the shuttle suddenly get the dorsal airlock? 7. Blankets, windbreakers and caps aboard, but no gloves? VIII. Next WEEK Repeats.