“Home” is episode three of season four of Star Trek: Enterprise.
Enterprise finally returned home to the right time in the previous episode, “Storm Front, Part II”. A shuttlepod descends to where a crowd is waiting and Captain Archer and the senior staff assemble on a podium, where Archer gives a speech.
The captain enters the 602 Club and heads to order a drink. A woman approaches and tells him the bar is for regular customers; galactic heroes sit at a table. He congratulates the woman, Erika Hernandez, on her promotion to captain. She asks what it was like in the Expanse. She’s coming to the briefing and Archer doesn’t want to spoil any surprises. He asks about any good movies. Hernandez tells him he hasn’t missed much; Earth has been holding its breath, wondering if the Xindi will return to finish the job.
T’Pol is packing in her quarters when Trip arrives. He wanted to supervise the refit; the captain suggested – ordered – he take a break. Trip isn’t sure where to go. Lizzie is gone and his home town doesn’t exist anymore. Enterprise is his home now. T’Pol invites him to come to Vulcan with her. To stay at her mother’s. Trip asks what T’Pol’s mother knows about him, them. T’Pol hasn’t mentioned him. T’Pol says that Trip has complained that he doesn’t get to see many alien cultures and he’s never been to Vulcan. He agrees to go.
Hernandez is showing Archer around Columbia in spacedock. He mentions that he once got into an argument with Captain Jefferies, one of the designers of the NX class, telling Jefferies that he didn’t want to be in command of a warship. Jefferies was right. They needed those weapons. And more.
Archer is being debriefed by Starfleet and the Vulcans, in particular what happened to the Vulcan ship Seleya in “Impulse”. Ambassador Soval appears to be suggesting that the Vulcans were not beyond help and that Archer could have done something other than kill them all. And that Archer might be lying. Archer ends up having a go, suggesting that if Soval had been more helpful, instead of sabotaging the mission, the Vulcans might be alive. They got more help from the Andorians than the High Command. Admiral Forrest calls the meeting to an end and, afterwards, tells Archer he was out of line. The debriefing is on hold indefinitely. Take some time off. That’s an order.
Phlox is taking a lot of stuff down to the planet and asks Reed for some help. Reed warns him that the planet has become xenophobic after the Xindi attack. Phlox lived on Earth for many years before coming aboard and is sure it will be okay. Reed warns him that people are looking for someone to blame.
Archer has gone rock-climbing. Hernandez joins him.
Trip and T’Pol arrive at her home. Her mother, T’Les, is there; T’Pol wasn’t expecting her to be in. The two talk in Vulcan; this is the first time that T’Pol has brought a colleague home. T’Les directs Trip to the guest room. Afterwards, T’Pol asks her mother why she isn’t at the science academy. She’s retired. She wrote a letter. T’Pol also has a letter. From Koss, her former fiancée.
Archer and Hernandez are climbing; he doesn’t seem happy about the number of schools named after him. The captain suggests looking for a MACO for her tactical officer. And getting an entire squad of them. They spend a lot of time boldly going into battle.
Trip is woken early by T’Pol; guests prepare the morning meal. The meal is a bit awkward; T’Pol mentions her joining Starfleet, not re-joining the High Command. T’Les is having a problem with her stasis unit; Trip offers to take a look. T’Les asks if it’s true that humans put their own lives ahead of their families. It seems T’Les believes T’Pol has learned that. T’Pol is clearly struggling with her emotions.
Reed, Travis and Phlox are in a bar; Reed is wearing his Enterprise jacket to get girls and drinks. Another customer starts having a go at Phlox and it degenerates into a barfight, which Reed and Travis are winning handily when Phlox inflates his head.
There are problems on Vulcan, because T’Pol has made enemies. Though Koss still wants to marry her. The situation towards aliens on Earth has deteriorated. Captain Archer appears to be struggling with guilt and PTSD and is wondering if the Vulcans are right not to explore. In many ways, this feels similar to the TNG episode, “Family”.