Enterprise revisits a trope in the form of light and photons in the episode that originally aired on April 3, 2002. This is Oasis.
The Episode:
Captain’s Log Date undetermined.
Enterprise visits a crashed ‘ghost ship’ for spare parts only to discover that it is fully manned and fully repairable. When the stories of the various crew members don’t add up, they soon discover that the crew is in fact dead and the only remaining crewmember created holograms so that his daughter and he wouldn’t be alone. In the end the living crewmembers allow Enterprise to fix their ship and they head off to find a new life.
Is this a ‘Good’ Episode:
Remember that episode from Deep Space Nine where Jadzia and Odo find a colony who has members disappearing only to discover that some old man recreated his entire village so he wouldn’t be alone? Yeah, same story, different location.
That being said, the way Enterprise does it is very fun and interesting as it plays off of the ‘ghost ship’ tales that have been part of naval tradition for centuries. Empty ships filled with angry spirits or even hordes or rats are well known throughout history even inspiring horror movies and video games. So, getting a chance to see a similar story on Star Trek is pretty great, however, using holograms…eh…maybe they should have actually been ghosts this time.
All in all, not a bad episode, but if you have been watching Star Trek as long as I have, it’s really sad when the stories begin to repeat themselves. If you are new to Trek, or scifi in general, this is well worth the watch, otherwise, just move on.
Gleanings and Cool Bits:
- We learn that Mayweather is known for his Ghost Stories
- You might recognize the late Rene Auberjonois in the role of Ezral. It’s great to see him continue with Trek after DS9 but….odd how he ended up in a very similar story again.
- With all of the holograms Enterprise has encountered in such a short time…I have to wonder what too them so long to create holodeck technology in the first place.
- It’s also worth noting that they must have been on a budget for this one as the ‘aliens’ have some pretty basic ‘temple’ makeup making them look like humans who have a bad case of shingles.
Thanks for reading the Retro TV Review, I look forward to discussing the rest of the series with you, one episode at a time every Monday, Wednesday and Friday! Next Review: Detained
more reviews I have a weekly series called Key Movies Of My Life that comes out every Thursday and for more retro TV goodness check out the rest of the Retro TV Reviews here.
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Late To The Game 6/7/2021
Special Thanks to Memory Alpha as they are one of the best sources for details on Star Trek information available. Although I have a pretty deep knowledge on the subject, they have proven invaluable as a regular resource.
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