Stardate: 2912.4
Original Air Date: May 12, 2022
Writers: Henry Alonso Myers & Sarah Tarkoff
Director: Maja Vrvilo
“Sometimes things go so badly, you just have to laugh.”
“Children of the Comet” opens with a “cadet’s log” from Uhura (it appears that SNW will offer logs from various key crewmen in each episode). The Enterprise is surveying the Persephone system where the crew is studying the behavior of an ancient comet entitled “C/2260-Quentin.” Uhura is handling rotation as well as landing party readiness protocols, her duties are fairly slow at the moment, but she is excited to have been invited to the captain’s cabin for dinner. Lt. Ortegas plays a practical joke on her, hazing Uhura by suggesting that she should wear her formal garb to dinner.
Lately, Pike has been requesting the presence of more “regular people.” Uhura is then hazed again by Spock and the new chief engineer –an Enar named Hemmer (Bruce Horak). They all playfully enjoy conversation and a nice meal of ribs as Pike recounts an amusing story of a Nausicaan, Spock doesn’t understand human jokes (“sometimes things go so badly, you just have to laugh”), and during the discussion Uhura claims she can speak 37 different languages (there are 22 native languages in Kenya). While milling about, Uhura hums a song she learned in her Kenyan village as a child. When asked about her career, Uhura is unsure if she wishes to remain in Starfleet even though she beat out several thousand candidates for the job.
Later, there is a “problem” with the comet. It is set to strike the nearby planet of Persephone III and, according to computer simulations, will likely kill all inhabitants. Persephone III is a Class-M planet, home to a pre-warp species known as the Deleb (the Deleb appear to be a desert nomadic race of aliens). It is highly unlikely they are aware of the danger awaiting them with the approaching comet. When the Enterprise attempts to shoot the comet, a mysterious forcefield blocks any fire, but scans do not reveal signs of life on the comet –though there is an enormous subterranean structure inside the comet. It suggests alien intelligence. A landing party then departs consisting of La’an, Spock, Sam Kirk (of “Xenoanthropology”), and Uhura (on her first landing party rotation). However, the surface of the comet is bombarded by “ridiculously high levels of cosmic rays” so Nurse Chapel inoculates the landing party with a serum that will buy them approximately two hours of safety on the surface. The landing party dons unique space suits since gravity on the comet is a fraction of “earth normal.”
Once they beam over (thanks to Lt. Kyle), the landing party finds a gigantic egg inside the center of a subterranean chamber on the comet. It bears indecipherable sequential markings on its outside. When Lt. Kirk touches the egg, a huge surge of energy strikes him and nearly kills him. He is saved thanks to Spock’s quick work, just as a new shield is erected around the comet, cutting off the landing party from the Enterprise. While Uhura races to solve the mysterious linguistic marks, a massive alien ship appears and attacks the Enterprise. Pike hails them onscreen, and thanks to the universal translator, they reveal themselves to be a religious group known as the “Shepherds” and that the comet, known as “M’hanit,” is an instrument, an ancient arbiter of life, one of the few remaining in the galaxy. It can will death or life into existence, and its path is pre-ordained. The “Shepherds” have been charged with protection of these arbiters (the language of “arbiters” reminded me of the Halo universe here). The “Shepherds” are highly advanced, using unknown technology, and they believe the sacred temple on the comet’s surface has been violated –any further action to rescue the landing party by the Enterprise will be considered an act of war.
“You have your sacred duty, we have ours. The Federation doesn’t interfere in the development of species, but we also don’t just let them die.”
Back on the comet, dim lights in the cave begin reacting to Uhura as she hums the song from her village in Kenya –the music mysteriously awakens the chamber. The comet then begins echoing the song and it is picked up by the Enterprise (the computer identifies it as “Vamuvamba,” a traditional Kenyan song). Different pitches elicit distinct responses within the chamber. Uhura and Spock realize that the markings on the egg actually represent a code, or composition of musical harmony which, once sung, opens the egg and illuminates the whole cave. By singing, Uhura persuades the comet to lower its shield which allows the Enterprise landing crew to beam back aboard the ship.
Using “evasive pattern Ortegas-Gamma-One,” the Enterprise heads in close to the comet while the “Shepherds” are on their tail. Then, Pike orders all systems to shut down except life support systems and he “surrenders” to the “Shepherds” while Spock departs in the shuttlecraft which will emit heat and cause a sublimation of the comet’s trajectory, forcing it to change direction. In doing so, the comet releases a large chunk of water vapor onto Persephone III which permanently alters the planet’s atmosphere, allowing for a climate more conducive to life –on the surface, we see joyful scenes of nomadic tribes celebrating rainfall, hailing a promising future.
The musical message of the comet was actually revealing its own foreknowledge of future events –perhaps it never intended to crash into Persephone III after all. Its song showed the exact size and shape of the ice chunk which was released from the comet –a precise replica of the actual comet itself. The apparent intelligence of this strange comet befuddles the crew.
As the mission ends, Pike wonders: who made the comet? Are there others like it? And was this a mere coincidence, or was the comet actually aware of future events? The “Shepherds” celebrate the “mercy” given to Persephone III by “M’hanit.” Perhaps in the future, the Enterprise will not be quite so quick to dismiss a group of faithful pious aliens like the “Shepherds.” The episode ends as Pike ponders his own foreknowledge of the future –can his tragic fate be changed, as well?
My Thoughts on “Children of the Comet”
This episode offers a wonderful first-person introduction to Uhura, one which utilizes her character’s extensive knowledge of languages as well as her renowned musical talent (which is also memorably portrayed in several episodes of the original series). Celia Rose Gooding gives a terrific interpretation of the character here. I found myself especially drawn to the twist at the end –a mysterious comet communicating via musical resonances which an unknown alien race considers sacred. This comet is worth returning to again in Star Trek; after all, what other courses might it alter in the future?
I find myself inspired by the “Shepherds” –they are shown to be far more impressive beings than we are initially led to believe. At first it seems that the “Shepherds” are just another gang of radical religious zealots protecting a comet which will unwittingly destroy their planet, but by the end Pike gains newfound respect for their veneration of the comet M’hanit. The effect of this twist is tempering on the audience –it shows that the galaxy truly has room for many different interpretations and celebrations of life. Also, the idea that music serves as a universal language is brilliant –like Kepler’s musical notation of the planets (in his 17th century book “The Harmony of the Worlds”), musical harmony is shown to be one of the great mystical consistencies among the stars.
Lastly, Pike’s closing questions still lingers for me and hopefully it will be revisited again in a future episode of Trek: Who made this comet? Are there more out there? Was it merely a coincidence that the comet granted new life on Persephone III? Or was it actually a divine “miracle”? At any rate, “Children of the Comet” is a top-notch episode of Trek in my view.
Star Trek Trivia:
- Uhura’s father liked to say that she was “unburdened by conversational boundaries.”
- In this episode, we meet an Enar named Hemmer, the new chief engineer aboard the Enterprise, whom Uhura suggests might have a sensory impairment. The Enar are a sub-species of Andorian (as originally explained in Enterprise). They are blind but have telepathic abilities.
- Pike shares an amusing memory in which he has his phaser out and spots a Nausicaan with no pants on and Pike trips over his pants.
- Pike says he has visited Lake Simbi Nyaima several times, it just a few miles away from where Uhura grew up in Kenya.
- Uhura claims she can speak 37 different languages and her parents were killed in a shuttle accident. Her grandmother served in Starfleet when she was young.
- The universal translator calls the aliens “Shepherds.”
- Pike shares the names of the kids he saves in his vision of his future on Boreth: Dusty Swender, T’quiel Dawn, Muliq Al Alcazar, Yuuto Hoshide, Andrea Lopez among others.
- Trilithium is mentioned again in this episode as a reason not to destroy the Enterprise because it might cause significant damage to the comet.
We may know Pike’s future thanks to The Menagerie. But if there were a twist somewhere down the line to make his future more flexible, that might be a good idea. I would certainly still like to see Pike back together with Vina in the process. Thank you for your review and trivia.
Agreed!