Episode 45

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Published on:

12th Feb 2026

Second Contact: Men Are From Vulcan, Women Are From Betazed!

This week, we’re on a second contact mission, revisiting Star Trek: Enterprise Season 2, Episode 22 “Cogenitor,” now that Maria and Bill have watched it and can tell us all their opinions on Trip’s relationship with the cogenitor, Malcolm’s sensual cheese-eating, and the shocking decision Archer makes at the end of the episode. Plus, returning guest Dax joins us this week to discuss the episode’s handling of nonbinary gender identities.

We also watched and discuss the parallels between Cogenitor and the Next Generation episode “The Outcast” and the Alien Nation episode “Three to Tango.”

A word of warning: If you haven’t listened to the episode before this one, “Men Are From Vulcan, Women Are From Betazed!,” go listen to that first because this is a follow up to last week.

Content Warning: The Enterprise episode we discuss contains themes related to self-harm and suicide.

Follow Dax on BlueSky: @mxdax, @vucanscience, @randomtrekquotes

Support and Suicide Prevention Hotlines (US-Based) – Most allow calling and texting. Some also have a chat option via their website.

  1. National Suicide Prevention Hotline : Call or text 988 (Note that the LGBTQ+ specific section of the hotline has been removed)
  2. Blackline: 1-800-604-5842 (for BIPOC & LGBTQ+)
  3. Trans Lifeline: 1-877-565-8860 (US) or 1-877-330-6366 (Canada) (for trans people)
  4. Wildflower Alliance Peer Support Line: 1-888-407-4515
  5. LGBT National Help Center: 1-888-843-4564

For a good resource to learn more about nonbinary identities, we recommend the Taboo Science Podcast’s episode Nonbinary 101: Beyond the Binary

Maria recommends and refers to this The M0vie Blog review of the episode Cogenitor

Rikermendations:

  1. Dax: K-Pop Demon Hunters

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About the Podcast

EnterpriseSplaining
EnterpriseSplaining - The podcast where we try to explain Star Trek: Enterprise to each other! We are bewildered by this show. We have questions - so many questions! Join Jamie, Bill, and Maria as they attempt to make sense of this 22-year-old show that represents one of the strangest chapters of Star Trek history.

Haven’t watched or don’t want to watch the show? No problem! At EnterpriseSplaining, we’ll do that work for you! Every week, one of us will watch an episode and explain it to the others - or try to. No Star Trek knowledge is necessary, although it might help? Who knows. This show is weird. Listen along as we try to uncover exactly what this show was trying to accomplish and what it ended up doing. Will this podcast be useful? Probably not! Will it change the world? UNLIKELY! Will they solve all of humanity’s problems through this exercise? ALMOST DEFINITELY NO. But we’ll have fun doing it and that’s really the point.

Follow us on BlueSky: @enterprisesplain [https://bsky.app/profile/enterprisesplain.bsky.social]
Follow us on Instagram: @enterprisesplaining [https://www.instagram.com/enterprisesplaining/]
Like us on Facebook: [https://www.facebook.com/EnterpriseSplaining]
Send us an email: enterprisesplaining@gmail.com
Sound assistance by K.O. Myers at Particulate Media [https://particulatemedia.com]