Enterprise detects a nebula that seems to consist of dark matter. Humans have never seen such a large amount of it, so Archer decides to check it out, using metreon particles since he remembers hearing that Vulcans used them with dark matter before. However, Admiral Forrest contacts Archer, telling him that his old friend A.G. Robinson has died while mountain climbing.
As Archer and Trip prepare the shuttlepod, they talk about how unfortunate Robinson's death was. Trip wants to accompany Archer, but Archer would rather do the mission alone. T'Pol, however, insists on coming with him due to a rule staying that captains aren't allowed to fly solo. On the shuttlepod, she asks him about Robinson, and despite initially not wanting to discuss it, he decides to explain the story of how they were both in the NX Project together, and both wanted to pilot the first Warp 2 ship.
We then get a flashback, where Archer (then a commander) tells Forrest (then a commodore) that he's achieved 92% efficiency in a warp reactor simulation. He wants to pilot the first Warp 2 ship, called the NX-Alpha, but Forrest tells him that Robinson has been chosen for it, disappointing Archer, who nevertheless agrees to be supportive. He, Robinson, and several others have a drink at a bar called the 602 Club, where Robinson tells Archer that the reason he didn't get the assignment is because he's too by-the-book and his only skill is his piloting ability.
Back in the present, T'Pol is confused, because she heard that Archer and Robinson were friends, yet the events Archer is describing makes them seem more like rivals. Archer reveals that at the time, they were indeed more like rivals than friends, but that they enjoyed the competition. T'Pol notes that Robinson was correct that it takes more than piloting skills to be captain, but also tells Archer that he did develop the necessary skills. Archer is surprised that T'Pol is complimenting him, but then continues with the story.
Two weeks after Archer left off, Robinson breaks the Warp 2 barrier, but starts having trouble. When ordered to drop to impulse, he ignores the order and instead speeds up, reaching Warp 2.2, at which point the warp field collapses. The ship slows down and then explodes. In the present, Archer and T'Pol are now entering the nebula, and she asks him what happened next. He tells her that Robinson survived the explosion, but that everyone was unhappy because he nearly derailed the Project.
In the past, the Vulcans believe that humans are progressing in warp technology too quickly, and that the best thing to do is to postpone the Program and completely reinvent warp technology. Archer and Trip (then a lieutenant, but still an engineer) are angry at this notion and assert that the design works fine; the ship just exploded because there was too much antimatter in it. Robinson agrees with Archer and Trip, claiming that risk is sometimes necessary, but Forrest puts an end to the discussion.
At the 602 Club, Archer and Trip become acquainted and they agree that the reason the ship exploded was because the intermix ratio was imbalanced, not because the engine was bad. Forrest, however, announces that Starfleet Command has decided to create a new engine, which would take a very long time, possibly decades. After he leaves, Robinson arrives and Archer and Trip ask him what he told the higher-ups. He responds that he told them the truth; that the engine destabilised and the subspace field collapsed, but that just makes Archer angrier, since he feels that Robinson should have acknowledged the possibility of pilot error. He adds that Robinson should have stopped the ship, but Robinson refuses to take the blame, claiming that Archer would rather scapegoat others than admit his father's ship is badly designed, leading to a fistfight between the two men.
In the present, there is a power surge in the shuttlepod, which Archer thinks is caused by the dark matter, but T'Pol disagrees. She's also doubtful about continuing the mission, but Archer says that Robinson taught him that risks are part of the job. He tells her that their fight was actually what led to them becoming friends, and that Robinson may have almost derailed the program, but was also partially responsible for reinstating it.
Back in the past, Archer tells Robinson in the locker room that the ship would be able to work if they could get the intermix right. They make up and Archer wants to improve the findings, but Robinson thinks that's not good enough, and thinks they should prove it by flying the NX-Beta. Archer points out that they'll never get permission, but Robinson wants to do it without permission. Archer, despite fearing being expelled from Starfleet or even imprisoned, accepts.
In the present, Archer and T'Pol are now deep in the nebula and have used up all but one of their charges, which they're using to attempt to excite the dark matter. T'Pol notes that there isn't any record of Starfleet pilots stealing the NX-Beta, which causes Archer to wonder if she doesn't believe him. She says that she actually does believe that the theft could have happened without being recorded, but finds it hard to believe that he needed convincing. He responds that he was a lot more straight-laced back then, and when she wants to know what happened, agrees to tell as long as she doesn't put it in the Vulcan database.
In the past, Archer and Robinson decide to launch at night, with Trip helping out on the ground. He creates false data to make it appear that the NX-Beta is still in its hangar. It launches, and New Berlin (a city on the moon) detects it. Forrest demands that Archer and Robinson come back, but they ignore him. Then, two Vulcans walk up to Forrest, blowing any chances he had of them not finding out. The NX-Beta begins to have similar engine problems to the NX-Alpha, but Robinson steadies it and the ship reaches Warp 2.5.
Forrest congratulates them, but also calls them to his office, where he tells them off and suspends them from duty. He adds that they may have just made it worse by making it seem as though Starfleet can't control its pilots. Archer says that even if he were kicked out of Starfleet, it's a small price to pay, and asks why they are "waiting" to explore the galaxy if the ship works.
In the present, Archer tells T'Pol that the suspension lasted for three months, but that they avoided court martial. The NX Project continued, and after just over a year of testing, the Vulcans determined that the design worked. Eight months after that, the NX-Delta broke the Warp 3 barrier, and five years later, Enterprise was built.
Archer and T'Pol fire their last two charges, and it works. Archer is taken aback by the beauty of the nebula and tells T'Pol that this is the kind of thing he and Robinson worked for. She suspects that Robinson wanted to command Enterprise as much as Archer did, and Archer tells her that they were the two finalists. We get one last flashback, where Robinson congratulates Archer on getting the assignment and telling Archer he'll see him "out there".
Archer and T'Pol return to Enterprise, but he is sad that Robinson never made it into deep space. She reminds Archer that they both have the right to name the nebula, since they discovered it. He suggests the "Archer-T'Pol nebula", but she prefers the "Robinson Nebula".
Tropes in this episode include:
- Always Someone Better: Archer notes that during the NX test program, all the pilots vied for this in order to get the first flight. Ultimately, Robinson was picked to go first. Robinson explains to Archer that it was because he was so obsessed with being the best pilot that he missed how that was only part of what the brass was looking for.Robinson: Starfleet doesn't just want a great pilot. They want a great captain.
- And Mission Control Rejoiced: Or, at least, Trip rejoices when Archer and Robinson set a new speed record in the NX-Beta. Forrest gives them a brief word of congratulations before hauling them in for a furious butt-chewing.
- Bar Brawl: Archer and Robinson fight in the bar when the latter insults Henry Archer's engine.
- Bittersweet Ending: Archer and T'Pol succeed in exciting the dark matter, but Archer is still in mourning for Robinson.
- Call-Back: Gardner and Duvall are mentioned as having been members of the NX test program. Both had previously been mentioned, with Duvall being a friend of Archer and Trip's who was promoted, and Gardner having been Soval's preferred choice for captain of Enterprise.
- Call-Forward:
- Trip is openly attracted to Ruby. This is the same character referred to in "Shuttlepod One" that he had dated.
- Robinson musing that the captain of the first warp-5 ship won't have the Vulcans to turn to, unless he takes one with him.
- And of course, this exchange:Archer: Don't worry, you'll get out there some day. If I had my own ship, I'd sign you up in a second.
Trip: I'm going to hold you to that!
- Commanding Coolness: Archer was a commander during the NX testing program, but he was still a warp test pilot, the 22nd Century equivalent of Chuck Yeager and Neil Armstrong.
- Continuity Nod: Ruby, who Trip and Malcolm mentioned dating in "Shuttlepod One", features onscreen in this episode.
- Department of Redundancy Department: While getting ready to launch the NX-Beta, Archer says there's no response from the "auxiliary APUs." "APU" stands for "auxiliary power unit." Possibly justified given Starfleet's propensity for having secondary (and sometimes tertiary) backups. Archer may actually have been referring to one of the system's built-in redundancies.
- Downer Beginning: The episode begins with Archer hearing that his old friend is dead.
- Drowning My Sorrows:
- Archer drinks quite a bit after not being chosen for the first NX test flight.
- Archer and Trip drink a lot of beer after Forrest tells them that the NX program is being put on hold.
- Due to the Dead: T'Pol suggests naming the dark matter nebula after Robinson.'
- Famous for Being First: When Archer is passed up for the first Warp 2 flight and only kept on as a backup, he comments that nobody remembers what Buzz Aldrin said when he first stepped on the moon because Neil Armstrong did it first.note
- Fire-Forged Friends: Archer and Robinson go from beating the crap out of each other to teaming up on the NX-Beta. Lampshaded by T'Pol, of course.T'Pol: You obviously admired this man.
Archer: Quite a bit.
T'Pol: And yet he cracked your molar.
Archer: Humans can have funny ways of forming friendships.
T'Pol: To say the least. - Fisticuff-Provoking Comment: After some back-and-forth arguing, the brawl really kicks off when Robinson accuses Archer's father of designing a lousy engine.
- Foregone Conclusion:
- Robinson is nearly killed in the first test flight's failure and the episode cuts to a commercial break before revealing he's still alive, but we already know he won't be dying for another couple years or so.
- In addition, the fact that Archer's telling the story guarantees that he and Robinson don't die on the NX-Beta.
- Future Society, Present Values: Robinson is killed while climbing Mount McKinley, which was officially restored to its Indigenous Alaskan name Denali in 2015.
- Ironic Echo: "I'm just waiting for Forrest to realize what a horrible mistake he made." Archer says this upon congratulating Robinson for being picked to break Warp 2. Robinson uses it back when Archer is picked to command Enterprise.
- It's Personal: Archer put enormous effort into being the first pilot—partly for the honor of being first, partly because his father designed the engine.
- Local Hangout: The 602 Club, which is frequented by Starfleet officers and pilots. Even Forrest says it's been a while since he's been there, but luckily it hasn't changed much. It was reportedly named after a real bar near the University of Wisconsin–Madison; Rick Berman went to that university and frequented the place.
- Meaningful Echo: When Robinson is chosen for the warp 2 flight, Archer tells him that he's "waiting for Forrest to realize what a horrible mistake he made." Near the end, when Archer is chosen to command Enterprise, guess what Robinson says to him.
- Meaningful Name:Archer: What's your name, Lieutenant?
Trip: Charles Tucker, sir, but everybody calls me Trip.
Archer: Trip?
Trip: My dad's Charles Tucker, and so is his dad; that makes me the third, so... triple... Trip. - Mission Control:
- Archer is this during Robinson's test flight. He's not particularly pleased about it.
- Trip then serves as this for Archer and Robinson's joyride.
- Mythology Gag
- In the flashbacks, Trip says that he's on the engineering team for "Captain Jeffries." This unseen character was named for Matt Jeffries, who designed the original Enterprise for TOS. Being that Captain Jeffries is later revealed to have been the designer of the NX-class, this can explain the in-universe name of the Jeffries tubes, also named for Matt Jeffries.
- In the flashbacks, Forrest sports the Commodore rank from The Original Series.
- No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: Forrest chewing out Archer and Robinson for their actions. In a lot of similar situations, protagonists are congratulated for performing such an important action; here, Forrest reminds them that they took Starfleet property without permission.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Forrest (normally so affable and reasonable) chewing out Archer and Robinson. For the first real time in the series, he's really mad. It didn't help that they ignored his offer to give up during the flight and that he got an earful from the Vulcans over this.
- Our Dark Matter Is Mysterious: Vulcan scientists are said to have excited dark matter in experiments, causing it to give off light, by bombarding it with metreon particles. The Enterprise crew do the same to illuminate a dark matter nebula encountered in the episode.
- Overshadowed by Awesome: What Archer worries about in the flashbacks. He knows he'll get his chance eventually, but it won't be the same as going first.
- Permission to Speak Freely: Name-dropped by Trip right after Commodore Forrest tells him and Archer that they've suspended the NX program.
- Posthumous Character: Archer is told of Robinson's death during The Teaser. He is then the focus of the story that Archer tells T'Pol.
- Rule of Three: The third attempt to excite the dark matter is the one that works.
- Second Place Is for Losers:
- How Archer feels about not being selected for the first warp 2 flight.
- Subverted when Archer is chosen to command Enterprise. Robinson decides that he'd rather have the NX-02 and learn from whatever mistakes Archer makes.
- Skewed Priorities: Trip saves the two beers on the table when Archer and Robinson start fighting.
- Stepford Smiler: When Forrest tells Archer that Robinson was chosen for the first NX test flight, he does his best to hide his disappointment.
- That's an Order!: Forrest orders Robinson to abort the warp flight when the warp field becomes unstable. Robinson disregards the order and gets NX-Alpha destroyed, and he's almost killed.
- Title Drop: Archer begins the flashbacks by recalling how they all wanted to make that first flight.
- Undignified Death:Archer: All the close calls he had flying warp trials, and [Robinson] gets himself killed climbing Mount McKinley.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Forrest chews out Archer and Robinson for stealing the NX-Beta, even though they set a new speed record.
