Something Borrowed, Something Green (episode)

Real world article

(written from a production point of view)

Tendi is summoned back to Orion for a wedding.

Summary[]

Teaser[]

In the lower decks of an Orion ship, three Orions are sorting loot while discussing their ambitions, when an alert pulls them from duty.

On the bridge, Captain Cosmia is in pursuit of a mysterious ship. Hailing the vessel, Cosmia orders the ship to power down and prepare to be boarded. While they are in the middle of delivering dilithium, Cosmia sees no problem in having some fun with pillaging this ship. The mysterious vessel slows and turns to face the Orion ship. Upon realizing the vessel is powering weapons, Cosmia orders for shields to be raised, but to her alarm, their ship systems are losing power. As they scramble to reroute power, the mysterious vessel fires a single beam at the Orion ship, completely destroying it.

Act One[]

On the USS Cerritos, Lieutenant jg D'Vana Tendi has finished cataloging the diseases blocked by the transporter's biofilter alongside Lieutenants Beckett Mariner and T'Lyn, when Captain Carol Freeman enters the room, and tells her she's been given immediate leave to visit her family on Orion, as her sister is getting married. While Tendi is uncomfortable, and tries to decline the leave, Freeman tells her that Starfleet is trying to show the Orion Syndicate some good will, following the recent disappearance of an Orion ship. Following this revelation, Tendi accepts the leave. As Freeman leaves, Mariner notices Tendi's discomfort, and asks if she's okay. Tendi replies that it has been a long time since she's visited her family and is nervous about taking part in the ceremony. Eager for a chance to document Orion culture for the Vulcan High Council, T'Lyn asks to accompany Tendi to Orion, though Tendi is uncomfortable with the idea. Mariner however backs T'Lyn's idea up, saying that witnessing Orion culture would lead to a better understanding of Tendi. Tendi is not thrilled with the idea. Mariner also says that she needs a break from Brad Boimler and Sam Rutherford, as the two have become a bit overbearing since becoming roommates. Unable to talk them out of it, Tendi reluctantly allows Mariner and T'Lyn to accompany her to Orion.

In their quarters, Rutherford enters to see Boimler applying a new bedspread of Andorian linen. The two bond over how breathable the linen is, and Rutherford asks if Boimler is being kept up at night when Rutherford shifts while he dreams, though Boimler finds it relaxing. The two are happy they've become roommates, and after they cheer, they both move to water their bonsai plant. As they were both going to water the plant, and both believe to be more capable of the task over the other, they start arguing over who will water the bonsai.

Mariner, Tendi, and T'Lyn arrive at Orion aboard the shuttlecraft, Yosemite II, and Mariner is taken aback by the fact that Tendi's family lives in a castle. Tendi tries to downplay it, before they are confronted by armed guards. While Mariner initially moves to defend Tendi and T'Lyn, the guards kneel before Tendi, before offering to take her bags. Mariner, Tendi, and T'Lyn are then carried by the guards onto a large platform, that is carried by other male Orions. They're carried to where Tendi's parents are, and after greeting D'Vana, they're introduced as the warrior queen Shona Tendi, and B'Rt Tendi. B'Rt then tells D'Vana that her sister, D'Erika Tendi has been kidnapped. As Orion brides are often kidnapped as a rite of passage, D'Vana is not surprised, saying that they will likely hear from a rival family soon. Shona, however, is unconvinced, as such a kidnapping would normally happen much earlier in the process. She tells D'Vana that as the "prime daughter," it is up to her to get D'Erika back. D'Vana is annoyed that she was only brought get to her her sister back, as opposed to participating in the wedding, but relents and she to find D'Erika. Shona thanks her, before she and B'Rt are carried off to have an oil bath.

Back on the Cerritos, Boimler and Rutherford are still arguing over who will water the bonsai, when Boimler gets a notification that they have reserved time in the holodeck. They agree to go enjoy some time there to hopefully smooth things over.

On the holodeck, they enter a simulated riverboat, both dressed as Mark Twain, to their mutual annoyance. Speaking in exaggerated southern accents, the two begin to argue over who was agreed upon to dress as Twain originally.

On Orion, Tendi is leading Mariner and T'Lyn to a bar and nightclub called Slit Throat to get some information. Tendi orders the bouncer to let them in, and he refuses before recognizing Tendi as the Mistress of the Winter Constellations. He begs for mercy and allows them in without issue. Inside, Tendi is looked upon with awe by the other patrons, though she is visibly uncomfortable with her reputation. Mariner is visibly excited at the sight of the loud music and vibrant patrons dancing seductively chiding Tendi for not bringing her sooner. The bartender pours them some free shots and then points out something to the side as being 'from the Madame', which is when a knife is thrown at Tendi. Tendi manages to dodge the knife and the blade strikes Mariner in the shoulder, who takes the blade out and shakes the injury off, depositing the knife into a glass jar offered by the bartender with other used knives. The club's apparent owner, Madame G, steps forward and Tendi asks for information on D'Erika. Madame G tells her that she's heard rumors, but that Tendi must earn them, challenging her to a drinking game. While Tendi doesn't want to participate, she relents, and an alien bug is brought forth to the table and released. As the bug approaches Madame G and Tendi, they take turns drinking a shot, which activates a forcefield around their hand, protecting them from being bitten by the insect. As they play, Madame G informs Tendi that she heard that an Orion named Nya'al, D'Erika's ex, was still in love with D'Erika. Knowing that bridal kidnappings are usually just for show, Tendi believes that if Nya'al did kidnap her, it could be more serious than she thought. As they leave, Madame G invites Tendi out for brunch which Tendi agrees to, but then quietly tells her friends that there is no way she's contacting her.

Act Two[]

After arguing for some time on the holodeck, both Boimler and Rutherford, still speaking in exaggerated southern accents, arrive to a compromise where they both allow each other to be dressed as Mark Twain, both finding it strange that while dressed as him, they're easily able to find common ground. They also agree that Boimler will water their bonsai plant on odd-numbered stardates, while Rutherford will water on even-numbered dates. As they come to this conclusion, Commander Jack Ransom summons them both to the bridge, and they leave the holodeck.

Back on Orion, Mariner, Tendi, and T'Lyn enter a pheromone dungeon filled with Orion dancers. T'Lyn notes that the males in particular are experiencing a chemical manipulation likely through pheromones, much to Tendi's discomfort. Tendi then spots Nya'al dancing in a cage, and upon seeing her, he tries to run away, only to be caught by Tendi. He tells her he doesn't know anything, as he spends his time indulging in pheromones. An Orion named Ingreeta asks Tendi why she's attacking Nya'al, and invites her to have a drink and to get "lascivious." Tendi declines, and Ingreeta reminisces about her past, how Tendi used to control males easily, even without having pheromones. T'Lyn asks if pheromonal Orions are naturally manipulative, which offends Ingreeta. She throws a knife at T'Lyn, which she dodges, only for the knife to hit Mariner in the shoulder once again to her disbelief. She orders her guards to attack them, but Tendi sprays a compound mist at the three attackers, and the mist frees them from the control of the pheromones. When Tendi threatens to disperse the entire compound in the dungeon, Ingreeta tells Nya'al to cooperate with Tendi. Nya'al admits that since D'Erika got engaged, his life became a mess, but all he did was get addicted to pheromones, and occasionally follow D'Erika from a distance, saying he last saw her at the ship graveyard. Tendi thanks him and advises that he should go home. After Tendi leaves, Ingreeta belittles him and has him lick her foot.

Back on the Cerritos, Boimler and Rutherford arrive on the bridge to see Freeman in a heated argument with a Chalnoth named Coqqor over the presence of the Cerritos scanning a oscillating nebula. Coqqor refuses Freeman's claim, saying that their scanning will interfere with his ship's data gathering. Freeman offers to share the data they compile, but Coqqor says that they don't trust Starfleet data. Freeman warns that if they can't arrive at an agreement, the nebula will phase out of their reality, and no one will be able to scan it, and Coqqor is unmoved. Desperate for a way to find common ground, Boimler says he and Rutherford have an idea.

Bringing Freeman and Coqqorto the holodeck, dressed as Mark Twain, Boimler and Rutherford encourage Freeman to talk to Coqqor in a southern accent about a compromise. While a bewildered Freeman attempts the idea, no progress is made, and the idea ends in failure as Coqqor grows frustrated and begins to rampage. Freeman angrily asks Boimler and Rutherford why they thought this idea would work, and they admit that they didn't know, and that since it helped them find common ground over their bonsai, they thought it could work here. When he hears this, Coqqor asks what bonsai is.

Meanwhile, on Orion, Tendi leads Mariner and T'Lyn to a wrecked ship of Federation design in the ship graveyard. Tendi reminisces that she and D'Erika would often sneak away from home as children and come to the graveyard, and this particular wreck was one of their favorites. Inside, she finds an old drawing she and D'Erika made on a bulkhead, with Tendi herself wearing a Starfleet uniform, noting that she would often imagine a life, any life, outside piracy. She then confesses her true upbringing as an assassin, saying how she hates that Mariner and T'Lyn had to see her real self, but they note that they'd already realized something of that nature as Tendi's combat abilities aren't something that a person just casually learns. They deny that being an assassin is who she is, saying that her real self is how happy she gets on the Cerritos, and no matter what her upbringing is, they know who she is inside. Tendi embraces them at this, thanking them, before telling them that this ship was where she told D'Erika that she was going to join Starfleet. At that moment, D'Erika appears, accusing D'Vana of abandoning their family.

Act Three[]

Realizing that D'Erika kidnapped herself, D'Vana asks if this was a façade just to get her to come to the wedding, and D'Erika draws the sword from her back and leaps down to her. As Mariner and T'Lyn stand aside, T'Lyn notes how Orions seem to resolve disputes through violence. D'Vana asks D'Erika if they can talk about their issues instead, and D'Erika refuses, throwing a knife at D'Vana. D'Vana ducks, and the knife ricochets off the bulkhead hitting Mariner in the shoulder once again, to her frustration. Angered at the attack, D'Vana grabs a piece of sharp metal for a makeshift sword, demanding respect as the prime, and the two sisters begin to fight.

Back on the Cerritos, Boimler and Rutherford show Coqqor their bonsai plant, and he is enamored with its beauty. As Boimler and Rutherford discuss how they care for it, Coqqor suddenly eats the bonsai plant, and drinks the bottle they used to water it. Sated, Coqqor allows Freeman to proceed with scanning the nebula, and they all leave the room, as Boimler and Rutherford look at what little remains of their bonsai plant in sadness.

D'Vana and D'Erika continue fighting on Orion, and D'Vana asks why D'Erika staged her own kidnapping. D'Erika replies that it was the only way D'Vana would return home, expressing doubt that even if she invited D'Vana, she wouldn't have come, as she'd not visited them since joining Starfleet. D'Erika goes on to say that D'Vana abandoned her for science, despite being trained from birth to be the prime assassin of the Tendi family. D'Vana replies that she didn't ask for that, and D'Erika says she didn't ask for it either, knocking D'Vana to the ground. D'Erika tells D'Vana that her joining of Starfleet forced her responsibilities on D'Erika without asking her, devoting her life to become the new family prime. D'Vana relents, saying she should have talked to her before leaving instead of assuming she would have wanted the position, and apologizes. D'Erika angrily rams her blade into the wall next to D'Vana's head and says she did want to take her place, but felt she couldn't live up to the reputation set up by D'Vana, feeling like a pale comparison. D'Vana refutes this, saying that the reason she left to join Starfleet was because she was convinced D'Erika would be far better as the prime of the family, saying that she more than proved it by beating her in the duel. Reconciling, D'Vana said that she always loved science, and that it was her path, and that D'Erika's path was meant for the crime throne. D'Erika is then worried that they will be late for her wedding, but D'Vana starts to reroute power and hotwire the Federation ship.

They manage to power up the old spacecraft and fly to the wedding. As they fly, D'Vana asks T'Lyn if she wouldn't mind leaving out some of the violence in her report on Orions to the High Council. At the request, T'Lyn suddenly claims that she's unexpectedly lost the PADD and discards it through one of the holes in the ship's hull, saying that to submit the report without D'Vana's consent would be unethical. As they approach the Tendi's estate, the ship's plasma manifold ruptures, and the ship is forced into a crash landing outside the wedding recital. They arrive late to the wedding, but Shona is just happy to see them safe, and they begin the ceremony.

Later on the Cerritos, Mariner, Tendi, and T'Lyn show photos of the wedding to Boimler and Rutherford (where Mariner was stabbed yet again for a fourth time), who are annoyed that they couldn't go to the wedding. Boimler and Rutherford go on to reveal that after the fiasco with Coqqor, Freeman forbade them from ever playing as Mark Twain on the holodeck ever again. They admit that it wasn't as universal a problem solver as they initially thought, but that they have a new solution, as they were arguing earlier about whether to hang an oil painting or watercolor painting of the USS Enterprise-D in their quarters.

Later on the holodeck, both Boimler and Rutherford are dressed up as Mozart, playing pianos, and compromising to hang an acrylic painting of the Enterprise-D instead.

Memorable quotes[]

"Nobody knows anything about your culture. I have put my foot in my mouth enough when it comes to Orion stuff. We want to learn about the real you."
"But the real me is just gonna be doing a bunch of boring traditions!"
"Sounds awesome!"

- Mariner and Tendi

"Maybe it'll be good for you guys to see what my homeworld is actually like."
"Hell yeah! Triple threat girls trip!"
"I hope we will be allowed to view their aquifers."
"Ooh, okay, T'Lyn getting rowdy!"

- Tendi, Mariner, and T'Lyn

"Alright, we're getting lugged by the big boys! Tendi, I'm sorry, are you loaded?"
"Oh no, we're barely the fifth-largest family in the Syndicate."
"Orions downplay their wealth while simultaneously making a spectacle of it."
"Ha ha, I mean, you don't have to put that in your report, do you?"
"Look, I am from a post-scarcity world, and this is still impressive. Look at that big-ass gate!"
"Oh n- I mean it's not that big."

- Mariner, Tendi, and T'Lyn

"Are we gonna talk about how everyone's in awe of Tendi?"
"She does command an unexpected gravitas for someone so excitable."

- Mariner and T'Lyn

"The males appear to be under some sort of chemical manipulation, perhaps controlled by pheromones."
"Don't log that!"
"Yeah, Tendi's made it clear that Starfleet made those pheromones up. I mean, they had to explain why a captain would get taken out by some Orion showgirls."

- T'Lyn, Tendi, and Mariner

"Nya'al's got some speed for being a big ol' hunk of ham steak."
"He is aesthetically pleasing."

- Mariner and T'Lyn

"Guys, I have to come clean about something. I wasn't just a regular Orion teenager. I was trained to be a Syndicate assassin-"
"Tendi, yeah. We know girl. You can't just say you're joking around when you kick-flip a knife out of the air."
"Your upbringing was quite obvious."
"I just hate that you guys had to see the real me."
"Tends, the real you is the one who geeks out about science on the Cerritos."
"But I'm a prime, you know? A... a trained assassin. It's the most piratey someone can be."
"Incorrect. You are who you choose to be. A Starfleet lieutenant, and a loyal friend."
"Don't worry, we know you're a big nerd and not some hot assassin."
"That is the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me!"

- Tendi, Mariner, and T'Lyn

"Mom! Dad! Found her!"
"Sorry, sorry, had to steal a ship."
"Oh, my special girls... accomplices!"

- Tendi, D'Erika, and Shona

Background information[]

Title[]

The title of this episode is a reference to the old English wedding rhyme "Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue", a superstition which encouraged a bride to incorporate these items into the ceremony in order to ensure a happy marriage.

Continuity[]

Two classes of 22nd century Orion vessels that first appeared in Star Trek: Enterprise, namely the Orion Interceptor and Orion barge, appear to still be in use during the 24th century.
The mysterious small silver ship that appeared in "Twovix" and "I Have No Bones Yet I Must Flee" returns to destroy an Orion ship.
This is the first appearance of the planet Orion, though a holodeck simulation of the Adashake Center on the planet was shown in LD: "Second Contact".
Mariner references Jonathan Archer's encounter with Harrad-Sar's barge in ENT: "Bound".
A Raven-type starship was found in the ship graveyard on Orion.
This is the first Star Trek series since Star Trek: The Next Generation to include a Chalnoth character. The last one appeared in the Season 3 episode "Allegiance", which aired in 1990.
The inscription on the Orion sedan chairs reads, in transliterated English, "This is a very fancy chair". This is in much the same vein as the alien inscription on the Krulmuth-B portal in SNW: "Those Old Scientists", which Mariner and Nyota Uhura translated as "This is a time portal".

Links and references[]

Starring[]

Guest cast[]

Characters with unidentified voice actors

Background characters[]

Orion bridge officer 2

USS Cerritos

Orion

Star Trek: Lower Decks
Season 4

Next episode:
"Empathological Fallacies"