Countdown (Star Trek: Enterprise)

For the comic book, see Star Trek: Countdown.

"Countdown"
Star Trek: Enterprise episode
Episode no.	Season 3 Episode 23
Directed by	Robert Duncan McNeill
Written by	André Bormanis Chris Black
Featured music	Dennis McCarthy
Production code	323
Original air date	May 19, 2004 (2004-05-19)
Guest actors
Scott MacDonald - Commander Dolim Rick Worthy - Jannar Tucker Smallwood - Xindi-Primate Councilor Josette DiCarlo - Sphere-Builder Woman Bruce Thomas - Xindi-Reptilian Soldier Andrew Borba - Xindi-Reptilian Lieutenant Mary Mara - Sphere-Builder Presage Ruth Williamson - Sphere-Builder Primary Steven Culp - Major Hayes Paul Dean - Reptilian Technician

"Countdown" is the seventy-seventh episode of Star Trek: Enterprise, the twenty-third episode of the third season.

Previously on Star Trek: Enterprise, Enterprise enters the Delphic Expanse after Earth is attacked by a prototype weapon sent by the Xindi. They are a group of five surviving races who each evolved on the same planet. Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) and the crew investigate the presence of a superweapon with which the Xindi intend to destroy Earth. During the mission they discover that the Xindi are creating the weapon as they believe that humans will wipe out their species in the future. Towards the end of the series, Archer convinces four of the five Xindi species to support his cause, leading to a civil war for control of the weapon.

Plot

Needing a third species' codes in order to arm the weapon, Ensign Sato is injected with neural-parasites while a prisoner of the Reptilians. With time running out and the Xindi superweapon about to be armed, Captain Archer tries to persuade the Aquatics to help destroy it. Sato's kidnapping, and Archer's promises to shut down the 70-plus known spheres, finally convinces the Aquatics into believing that the Sphere Builders, and not the Humans, may indeed represent their true enemy.

A battle between Archer's Xindi-fleet and the Reptilian-Insectoid fleet soon breaks out around the superweapon. With the support of Lieutenant Reed, a small squad of MACOs, led by Major Hayes, beams on board to extract Sato. With the space battle ongoing, the transporter system is damaged so that only two personnel can beam out at one time. Hayes sends one of his men and Sato out first, and then the rest of the team. Hayes, now alone, is forced to retreat and just as he is beaming out, a Reptilian soldier fires through his chest. Back on board Enterprise, he collapses on the transporter platform, and soon dies of heart-failure in Sickbay.

With the "threads of time" turning against them, the Guardians decide to intervene by creating spatial distortions around the weapon. A number of Aquatic ships are destroyed, which buys the Reptilians enough time to finally activate the codes. Dolim then enters another vortex and heads for Earth, escorted by allied ships. Inside, having witnessed the interference of the Guardians, the Insectoid leader begins to doubt the motives of the Reptilians. Since the Reptilians already have the Insectoid's launch code, they dissolve their alliance by destroying the Insectoid's ship. Left behind, and with time running out, Archer decides to pursue Dolim using Degra's faster spaceship.

Reception and home media release

"Countdown" won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Special Visual Effects, after being nominated alongside the previous episode, "The Council".

The only home media release of "Countdown" has been as part of the season three DVD box set, released in the United States on September 27, 2005. The Blu ray release of Enterprise was announced in early 2013.

External links

• "Countdown" at IMDb
• "Countdown" at TV.com
• "Countdown" at Memory Alpha (a Star Trek wiki)
• "Countdown" at StarTrek.com