In A Mirror Darkly Part II

Archer’s gambit to salvage a ship from a hundred years in the future works as he watches the destruction of the Enterprise from the bridge of the U.S.S. Defiant. Liberating the Defiant from the clutches of the Tholians is no easy matter, however, and even once the ship is free from their asteroid salvage yard, Archer discovers an unwelcome passenger aboard. With the most advanced ship in the fleet, Archer experiences delusions of grandeur and power, but after hearing the service record of the Captain Archer who lived in the alternate universe from which the Defiant came, he begins to experience other delusions as well. The Empire’s top brass proves incapable of removing Archer or his mighty new ship, and an uprising among the enslaved Vulcans proves no more effective. But Hoshi, lusting for a power beyond what she can achieve as the “captain’s woman,” may just succeed where Archer’s other opponents have failed…

teleplay by Michael Sussman
story by Manny Coto
directed by Marvin V. Rush
music by Dennis McCarthy & Kevin Kiner

Guest Cast: Gary Graham (Soval), Gregory Itzin (Admiral Black), Derek Magyar (Kelby), John Mahon (Admiral Gardner), Pat Healy (Alien), Majel Barrett (Computer voice)

Notes: This episode marked the first appearance of the Gorn since the original Star Trek episode Arena; there were some notable physical differences, with some subtle touches lost in the rubber suit-to-CGI transition, but those can probably be chalked up to evolutionary differences between “our” Star Trek universe and the Mirror universe. The Defiant’s service records of the 22nd century Enterprise crew note that Archer was considered that century’s pioneering explorer and has even had planets named after him (possibly including Archer IV from Yesterday’s Enterprise), and also credits Hoshi Sato, in her late 30s, with the development of the Linguacode translation matrix first mentioned in Star Trek: The Motion Picture. Guest star Gregory Itzin appeared with Scott Bakula once before in a 1993 episode of Quantum Leap; he has also appeared in Max Headroom, twice (as different characters) on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and in the Critical Care episode of Star Trek: Voyager. He also appeared alongside classic Trek alumnus George “Sulu” Takei in the TV movie DC 9/11: Time Of Crisis, in which Itzin portrayed Attorney General John Ashcroft to Takei’s Norman Mineta.