I have a special place in my heart for the Mirror Universe. I have always been interested in the concept of a parallel world where people are the opposites of what they are here. And I am very grateful to Star Trek for delivering some dark, intriguing episodes exploring this alternate reality. Star Trek: Enterprise’s portrayal of this mirror universe celebrates its twentieth anniversary on April 29th. So, let’s trek back to explore the twisted, alternate fate of the Enterprise NX-01 crew in the two-parter, ‘In A Mirror, Darkly’.
History Twisted
The introduction to ‘In A Mirror, Darkly’ sets the tone almost immediately. We’re greeted with the Vulcans arriving on Earth at the end of Star Trek: The Next Generation movie ‘First Contact’. Events unfold as expected, until Zefram Cochrane (James Cromwell) switches his iconic handshake with a gun. He kills the Vulcan before him in cold blood, while the gang of humans around him invades the starship.
Following this twisted version of events is the trusted title sequence. Gone are the lyrics that have divided Star Trek fans for decades. In their place is an energetic, militaristic beat accompanied by scenes from brutal battles of Earth’s past. It’s clear to us now that this will not be the Starfleet or Federation we know. This will be a brutal, unforgiving, totalitarian empire where compassion is a weakness, and it’s everyone for themselves.
Survival of the Fittest
‘In A Mirror, Darkly’ resumes after the title credits with a very different Enterprise NX-01. Captain Maximilian Forrest (Vaughn Armstrong) is in command with a frustrated and ambitious Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) as his number one. They are observing an early version of what we know from Star Trek: Discovery’s Mirror Universe as an agonizer. The prisoner is locked inside this cylindrical pod and subjected to various levels of pain. It’s a tool designed to break those inside, and it’s used without remorse by the Empire to torture the weak.
Although the agonizer is one way to demonstrate this mirror universe’s twisted reality, we see other methods of Terran “strength”. In this world, you must be strong to survive, and being tactically minded is a bonus. We see Archer challenging Forrest’s position at every opportunity, almost to the point of insubordination. While others like Travis Mayweather (Anthony Montgomery) gain position through apparent loyalty and respect to the “right” person.
And then you have Hoshi Sato (Linda Park) taking a different approach yet again. It appears throughout the two episodes she’s sleeping with whoever is in charge, to keep herself safe. One moment, she’s all over Archer, the next Forrest, then back to Archer again. This to-and-fro sets her up for a very nice twist at the end of the second episode, demonstrating just how manipulative Mirror Sato is!
A Step Too Far
Unfortunately, ‘In A Mirror, Darkly’ is let down by the overacting of several characters. Archer’s aggression, frustration, and paranoia are emphasised so much, the performance almost comes across as goofy and leaves the audience cringing. T’Pol is another character who feels overplayed, taking her Vulcan stoicism and throwing it out the airlock. In its place is desperation and fear, which at first I accepted as how Vulcans were at this time in the Mirror Universe. Then I saw Soval (Gary Graham) in the second episode displaying the usual emotional control Vulcans portray. From that point, I resigned myself to the truth.
Even the agonizer scenes (of which there are several) aren’t delivered convincingly. Compare the torture of Trip Tucker (Connor Trinneer) or Archer with that of Gabriel Lorca (Jason Isaacs) from Star Trek: Discovery. Yes, Discovery has better CGI, which adds to the scenes. But Jason Isaacs’ performance was so convincing that it left me feeling wrecked, like I’d gone through the experience with him. With Trineer’s and Bakula’s, it just felt flat. And that’s with four seasons of character development vs Isaac’s half a season!
Conclusion
Star Trek: Enterprise makes a good attempt at bringing the Mirror Universe to life through ‘In A Mirror, Darkly’. It sets the scene with a brilliant, gripping introduction doctored from a successful Star Trek blockbuster. And it successfully portrays the volatile way of life within the Terran Empire.
Unfortunately, the overacted and unconvincing delivery of several characters and scenes hampers what could have been a truly brilliant Star Trek episode. That being said, this is a two-parter I still highly recommend. This is an interesting episode depicting the lives of our Enterprise crew on the other side of the looking glass.
More From Trek Central
- 🚨Zombie Klingons in New Strange New Worlds Season 3 Trailer
- 🔥Will Wheaton talks Star Trek Prodigy & New Podcast Adventure
- 🖖Review: Star Trek Adventures 2E Technical Manual
Join the Star Trek conversation via our social media platforms:
- Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/TrekCentral
- Instagram – https://instagram.com/TrekCentral
- Twitter – https://twitter.com/TheTrekCentral
- YouTube – https://youtube.com/TheTrekCentral
- Mastodon – https://mastodon.social/@TrekCentral@universeodon.com
- Discord – https://discord.gg/fF2heMbfW8
