Cogenitor

"Cogenitor"
Star Trek: Enterprise episode
Episode no.	Season 2 Episode 22
Directed by	LeVar Burton
Written by	Rick Berman Brannon Braga
Featured music	Dennis McCarthy
Production code	222
Original air date	April 30, 2003 (2003-04-30)
Guest appearances
Andreas Katsulas - Vissian Captain Drennik F.J. Rio - Vissian Chief Engineer Becky Wahlstrom - Vissian Cogenitor Laura Interval - Veylo, Vissian Tactical Officer Larissa Laskin - Calla, Vissian Engineer's Wife Stacie Renna - Traistana

"Cogenitor" is the 48th episode of the television series Star Trek: Enterprise, the 22nd episode of the second season.

Plot

While exploring a "hypergiant", Enterprise makes first contact with an advanced and very friendly alien race known as the Vissians. The two starships' crews are happy to intermingle. Commander Tucker becomes intrigued when he meets a Vissian couple in the mess hall accompanied by a third member of their race, and learns that the being, which has no name, is a "cogenitor" - a third gender in Vissian biology. Cogenitors are needed to complete reproduction: they do not genetically contribute to offspring, but supply an enzyme required for fertilization. Since cogenitors only constitute 3% of the population, Vissians must apply to have a cogenitor assigned to them when they intend to conceive a child. Cogenitors are considered mentally deficient, and they are not citizens on equal terms with men and women.

Meanwhile, elsewhere on the ship, Lieutenant Reed finds himself the romantic focus of a female Vissian crewmember - their tactical officer. Captain Archer bonds with the alien captain while on a three-day reconnaissance of the star in a small probe. Tucker, however, becomes increasingly intent on the rights of the cogenitor and learns, with the help of Doctor Phlox, that they are actually equally intelligent. On the alien vessel, without the couple's knowledge, Tucker secretly encourages the cogenitor to learn to read, while building a friendship with them. Despite having a near-total lack of education available, they are an insatiable learner. Soon learning the importance of names, they then ask to be called Charles (Commander Tucker's own first name).

'Charles' soon realizes that future life in Vissian society would be unfulfilling; they then leave and request political asylum. Archer now returns to find himself in the middle of a first contact diplomatic crisis, with the Vissians confused and defensive at Tucker's interference in their traditions. Tucker appeals to Archer's sense of justice, but he sides with the Vissians. With the cogenitor returned, the Vissians hope good relations with the humans can continue. Later communications, however, reveal that the now despondent Charles has committed suicide, thereby delaying the birth of the Vissian's child, and straining the relations between the two species. Archer then summons Tucker and severely reprimands him for his lack of professionalism and judgment.

Production

Casting

The guest cast in "Cogenitor" included the return of Andreas Katsulas in the role of the Vissian captain. Katsulas had previously appeared in several episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation, but is perhaps most famous (in the science fiction universe) for his role as Ambassador G'Kar on Babylon 5. Of course, Mr. Katsulas had a much broader appeal as the "one-armed man" in Harrison Ford's 1993 "The Fugitive" remake . Shortly after filming "Cogenitor", Katsulas was diagnosed with incurable lung cancer.

Continuity

When Tucker chooses a movie to show to the cogenitor, two of the options that appear on the screen are "Dixon Hill and the Black Orchid" and "The Bride of Chaotica", which refer to holodeck adventures of characters from other Star Trek series - respectively, Jean-Luc Picard's Dixon Hill and Tom Paris's Captain Proton.

Reception

Michelle Erica Green, while writing for Trek Nation, described "Cogenitor" as the best episode of Enterprise up to that time (implying that it surpassed even "Dear Doctor") and noted similarities to The Handmaid's Tale and the Xenogenesis trilogy (Lilith's Brood). Jamahl Epsicokhan, on his website Jammer's Reviews, said that it was "the best and most probing episode of the season". Opposing voices are outraged because, when 'silence leads to violence' and the denial only deepens within the leadership, then the audience is expected to rise up. Where is the outrage about the predictable outcome of complicity with oppression?

See also

• Supernova
• Hypergiant
• nucleosynthesis
• G-type star
• The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951 film referenced in this episode)

External links

• "Cogenitor" at IMDb
• Template:TV.com episode
• "Cogenitor" at Memory Alpha