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Earth is about to be destroyed by the Xindi superweapon and Archer is BUGGIN’ OUT! A crashed Xindi ship has delivered a “Hatchery” of Insectoid eggs into the care of the Enterprise crew. The problem is that only Archer seems to care about the fate of the bug babies. And… is that a problem? Or does the ship have bigger fish to fry?
The Wikipedia plot summary for “Hatchery”:
The Enterprise investigates a lifeless Insectoid vessel crashed on a barren planet, hoping to find helpful information on its computer database. Archer leads an away team to explore the wreckage and discovers an Insectoid hatchery with several dozen surviving eggs, but a failing bio-support system. He is sprayed in the face by one of the eggs. Doctor Phlox concludes it was a defense mechanism and treats him with an analgesic. Dead Insectoids and one of their shuttles are then taken aboard for analysis, and computer logs reveal the survivors cut off their own life support in order to save the ship’s hatchery.
Despite objections, Archer keeps Enterprise at the planet and orders Commander Tucker to repair the hatchery’s bio-support. Incompatibilities with Starfleet portable power generators cause an overload, prematurely hatching one of the eggs, but Phlox cannot save it. Increasingly obsessive, Archer soon orders the transfer of one-third of Enterprise‘s antimatter supply to the Xindi ship so that full power can be restored. With the success of the mission in mind, Sub-Commander T’Pol refuses to carry out his order, so he relieves her of duty and confines her to quarters. Soon after, Lieutenant Reed, in control of the bridge, destroys an escaping Xindi ship. Archer relieves him as well, saying that the alien crew could have helped to save the eggs.
Archer promotes Major Hayes, non-Starfleet leader of the MACOs (Military Assault Command Operations), to First Officer. Hayes questions nothing about Archer’s behavior, and has his MACOs man a number of critical positions on the ship. Archer orders Ensign Sato to prepare an Insectoid-language distress signal. With time running out, Tucker and Phlox conclude that a mutiny is in order, and they free T’Pol and Reed to assist. After a tense standoff and shootout with the MACOs, the Enterprise crew capture the bridge. Meanwhile, Tucker beams down to the hatchery and stuns Archer. Back on Enterprise, a thorough medical scan by Phlox reveals that the egg had sprayed Archer with a “nurturing hormone”, making him focus on preserving them. In the end, Archer is fully treated, Hayes confirms that he did not have a medical reason for thoughtlessly following questionable orders, and the ship resumes at full warp-speed towards Azati Prime.
In this episode of the podcast, Wes and Clay discuss “Hatchery” and additional reasons to avoid close contact with alien eggs. Plus! The guys chat about disrespecting dead alien babies, taking off your helmet, and no one noticing you’ve gone crazy.