User Reviews

Finally back on Earth and at the correct time the crew of the Enterprise receive an official heroes welcome, however once the pleasantries are over things don't go so well, when Dr Phlox accompanies Malcolm and Travis to a bar he finds himself being abused for being an alien, Captain Archer finds himself in front of an enquiry over an indecent which took place some time before and when T'Pol returns to Vulcan with Trip she learns that her mother has lost her job due to T'Pol's involvement in exposing a Vulcan spying system hidden in a Vulcan sanctuary... she learns that the only way to help her mother is to marry a fiancé who she has no interest in.

This was an interesting episode which served almost entirely to introduce us to the new situation the crew find themselves in rather than to give the viewer a single story. By the end of the episode none of the issues was resolved, this may sound unsatisfactory but I found it to be a good character driven episode which left me keen to learn how the various plot strands will work out.

The Enterprise returns to Earth and Captain Archer and his crew are welcomed as heroes. In his speech, Archer recalls the twenty-seven crew- members that died along their mission. While the Enterprise is in maintenance, Captain Archer is invited for a debriefing for the Starfleet high command and the crew is released on vacation. T'Pol invites Tucker to visit Vulcan and stay in her home; however she finds that her mother T'Les was forced to an early retirement since the Vulcans blame T'Pol for the incident in the Vulcan sanctuary of P'Jem. Further, the only chance her mother has to return to her active life is through the wedding of T'Pol with her former fiancé Koss, whose father is very influent. Meanwhile Dr. Phlox goes to Earth with Lieutenant Reed and Ensign Maywheather and while drinking in a bar, he finds the prejudice of earthlings with aliens after the Xindi attack. In the debriefing, Archer feels offended by the Vulcan Ambassador Soval and while the report is on hold, he climbs the mountains with his old friend Captain Erika Hernandez to calm down.

"Home" is a very emotional episode of "Enterprise" where the best part is the series of revelations disclosed to Tucker and T'Pol in Vulcan and the climax is certainly the wedding of T'Pol. The analogy of the September, 11th with the Xindi attack and the consequent prejudice with aliens is very clear and is the strongest part of this episode. The effect of the assignment to the Expansion to Captain Archer is less engaging than it should be, but is not bad at all. In the end, it sounds ironic the salute of Captain Archer in the beginning telling that it is good to be home since most of the crew-members are feeling outcast indeed. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "Lar" ("Home")

This is another relatively "businesslike" episode of "Enterprise" following hard on the heels of the very dynamic if slightly questionable kickoff and follow-through from Season 3 with "Storm Front". In a sense, then, "Home" provides the genuine start of the 4th (and regrettably final) season. And here the makers again show how much good work they can do with relatively straightforward, if very worthwhile storylines. Earth has been holding its breath for a long while, and naturally treats the returning "Enterprise" crew as heroes, but the latter don't fully know how to react to a time of peace and opportunity that cannot erase their memories of fight, struggle, destruction and the odd morally-dubious decision. And there are also more dark clouds, as Xindi-promoted xenophobia reappears on Earth and issues thought resolved long ago have to be re-addressed afresh. Vulcan-Earth matters also gain further exploration, and make progress - on both planets, since T'Pol takes Trip with her as she also goes "home". In these contexts, there is a great deal of thoughtful and well thought-out content here, the only pity of it being lack of time to explore the issues quite as well as might have been the case, as well as an emotionally dramatic (and far too abrupt) episode ending that leads into an apparently entirely-unconnected 4th episode, and thus leaves true closure far away! Odd, in a way, and a little bit of sublime-to-ridiculous presentation work that builds much and then leaves feelings dissipated.

But the "core" of the episode as such offers plenty.

In the tradition of TNG's "Family" this episode is one about characters. Following the end to the Xindi arc that dominated season three and the previous two episodes that put an end to the temporal cold war arc, our crew returns home for a warm happy reception, but after everything that has happened in the last year it is a little bittersweet for the heroes Enterprise.

Archer's storyline is what is really enjoyable about "Home", and we get to see a different captain than the ones that came before (after?). Here we get to see what the last year and Archer's entire time as captain has done to him. He is suffering from a state of disillusionment. He went forward to explore strange new worlds with a wild eyed optimism and excitement and now after discovering all the villainous species out there the spirit of adventure he once possessed has now been replaced with a hardened military man who sees enemies everywhere he turns. The other main storyline is satisfactory and concerns the budding romance between Trip and T'Pol. This one also has a storyline I wish would have been an entire episode unto itself and that concerns the growing xenophobia of the people on Earth following the attack by the Xindi. Fortunately, that story arc comes to fruition a little later on in the season. "Home" is not an amazing episode by any means. There are not any amazing battles or rich moral drama. It is all about the characters and this one does what it sets out to do and offers us a unique glimpse into our crew.

In "Home", the Enterprise finally arrives back to Earth (during their own time period) and the crew attempt to reacclimate themselves. Archer grows frustrated during a debriefing when the Vulcan ambassador questions his methods involving destroying the Vulcan ship Seleya in the Expanse. He goes mountain climbing with an old flame. T'Pol takes Trip to Vulcan with her. When T'Pol's ex-fiancée promises to reinstate T'Les (T'Pol's mother) to her old position if T'Pol marries him, T'Pol must decide between Trip and family. Reed and Travis take Dr. Phlox out to a bar but a new wave of Xindi-caused xenophobia creates issues for Phlox on Earth. We end the episode with T'Pol on the altar.

This was a nice change of pace from all the war and fighting we got in Season 3. Besides the bar brawl and a nightmare that Archer has, this episode is entirely focused on character development and interactions. Trip & T'Pol's relationship is at a crossroads and the "will they/won't they" dynamic appears to be something that will continue onward into Season 4. The xenophobia on Earth is an interesting subplot that could lead to further development in Season 4. Even though the Xindi have been defeated, many still dislike Star Fleet's mission of exploring the universe and stirring up trouble.

Archer seems like a more cynical, changed man since when he first began his mission. When he gets back to exploring will his demeanor change or will he turn into a gruff, pessimistic Captain?

Enterprise returns to Earth.

Nobody can argue that the Enterprise crew needed the break from exploration and warfare this episode delivers. However, the plot follows a number of different stories based on good ideas, but they feel a bit mediocre in their delivery.

The triumphant Enterprise arrives home to an obviously green-screened reception ceremony before several characters go off in a variety of directions.

Archer's story contains some good moments of him battling with demons that have stuck with him since the expanse, but ultimately we have seen the dilemma of this sub-plot before in Jean-Luc Picard where it was done better.

The Phlox, Reed and Mayweather story is a bit better, but the writers could have done a bit more with the Xenephobia themes or presented something that condemned the attitude in a stronger way. I'm hoping there is more to come in Series 4 that is a bit more comprehensive in its message on the subject.

Trip and T'Pol continue the 'will they - won't they' plot and for me it just gets worse, now being centred round Vulcan characters clearly driven by emotions. It's almost a soap opera with people in Vulcan costumes. It ends the episode on a cliff hanger which piqued my interest again, so I hope the next episode delivers.

Perhaps it would have been better to focus on less and improve the quality of each story. However, I think the performances of most of the cast were strong and deserve credit.

It's good to see Archer acknowledging guilt over how he behaved in The Expanse, as well as acknowledging that he has "lost something." To say the least. But of course the babe kisses him, taking advantage of his vulnerability, making it all about herself. Btw, apparently in their past, they were dumb enough to stop seeing each other because he was her superior officer. That's a bit of canon I can live without.