Breaking the Ice ( episode ) With a Vulcan ship on their tail , the " Enterprise " decides to investigate a comet . Summary . Teaser . The is at warp . In the busy mess hall , has brought in drawings from his nephew ' s fourth - grade class and is showing Doctor Phlox , who is amused . He gets T ' Pol ' s attention and shows her as well , though she is not as amused , though finds one of the drawings " surprisingly accurate . " Soon , everyone notices the ship has dropped to impulse . Captain Archer announces for everyone to get to a window . The " Enterprise " has discovered a large comet , and calls senior staff to the bridge . Act One . Archer decides he would like to follow the comet for awhile . T ' Pol dismisses it as simply rock and ice , but Archer notes it is the biggest comet ever observed by Human s – or Vulcan s . Later , T ' Pol is doing some reading . She gets some green tea from the mess hall , where Tucker is enjoying some pecan pie . After the usual banter , she bids him good night when he notices something may have piqued her interest . The next day , she notes that the comet is rich in eisillium , a rare mineral that Vulcan chemist s haven ' t been able to study in detail . She notes the deposits are too deep for the transporter , so Travis Mayweather suggests a landing . T ' Pol knows a good spot . Archer tells Malcolm Reed and Mayweather to get started when Hoshi Sato gets a hail . The Vulcan ship " Ti ' Mur " mysteriously appears out of the blue , asking that they be allowed to observe while the " Enterprise " investigates the comet . Archer is not happy about the Vulcans looking over his shoulders , and expresses this to T ' Pol in private . In the interest of cooperation , he agrees . Reed and Mayweather , excited to land on a comet , easily do so and begin scanning . Meanwhile , Tucker discovers that T ' Pol has received secret encrypted transmissions from the nearby Vulcan ship and is suspicious . Captain Archer is especially disappointed that T ' Pol has apparently been in touch with the Vulcans behind his back , since they had an agreement . He has Sato decrypt the data . Act Two . On the bridge , a recording to some Earth school children who go to a school in Kenmare , County Kerry , Ireland , is dispatched , containing comments about ongoing events on " Enterprise " and answers to the many questions the popular crew previously received . Tucker is extremely uncertain about answering a question about ship sanitation as he is worried that he will be assumed to be a sanitation engineer . Phlox and Sato , however , are excited to talk about germ s and the universal translator , respectively . On the comet , Reed and Mayweather set up their equipment . Mayweather has some fun making a snowman , too . Archer calls down to get a status and remind them they are being watched , asking who the sculptor is . They drop it and place the charges . is found to contain the rare substance eisillium under the surface . Meanwhile , Sato hands Tucker the decrypted Vulcan message , but didn ' t read it , preferring to stay out of the message ' s contents . She tells Tucker he can use the UT to read the Vulcan language . It turns out that the transmission was not correspondence concerning the " Enterprise " but a personal letter for T ' Pol regarding her arranged marriage . Archer , embarrassed at having intruded on T ' Pol ' s privacy , does not ask Tucker to reveal its contents . Tucker feels guilty , however , and , as the one who actually read the letter , decides to tell T ' Pol what he did . Tucker apologizes to T ' Pol for having read her message from the Vulcan ship by mistake , telling her that an encoded letter just looked suspicious . T ' Pol is upset and asks Tucker to keep the contents of the letter to himself . T ' Pol is called by Archer to discuss inviting the Vulcan captain , Vanik , to dinner aboard " Enterprise " to " break the ice " so to say , hoping to establish some level of trust between their species . She leaves to consult Phlox on a condition she is experiencing causing her to lose sleep . He asks her to talk to him , but she prefers not to . He simply gives her an analgesic and she leaves . On the comet , the snowman has a few more nice touches and Reed informs Archer they ' re ready . Sato informs the Vulcans and Archer orders to proceed . They set off a large explosion . Act Three . While Reed and Mayweather explore the new crater , Archer hosts captain Vanik . He starts by commenting on his ship , its capabilities , an encounter Archer had with a Vulcan Tok , and Vulcan environmental suit s . Vanik hardly responds , and is disrespectful , does not share Archer ' s enthusiasm and viewpoints , and otherwise is very dismissive and patronizing . Archer lets them go , but finally mentions that Vulcans sure do get around for a species not interested in exploration . It appears to Archer that all he can really prove to the Vulcan is whatever stereotypes he already has of Human s . Upset at Vanik ' s attitude , Archer concludes the meal by accusing the Vulcan of spying on the " Enterprise " and then asks him to leave . He does so , saying something to T ' Pol as he leaves . She doesn ' t explain it right away . Archer turns his attention to the comet and notes to them that an explosion triggered on the surface of the comet by the away team has altered the comet ' s rotational axis , resulting in the facing the star in two hours , causing temperatures to shoot up a couple of hundred degrees . The away team promises to be out of there as soon as possible . Later , T ' Pol invites Tucker to her quarters to discuss her planned marriage . Doctor Phlox had advised her earlier that it might be helpful if she discussed her problems with someone instead of keeping it inside . In the interest of sharing her predicament with as few people as possible , T ' Pol decides to talk to Tucker , since he already knows about the contents of the letter . Apparently , the impending marriage is causing some concern for her , since she would have to leave " Enterprise " immediately and remain away for at least one Vulcan year . She wants advice from Tucker , who does not share her views on Vulcan culture and tradition , stating that arranged marriages have been discarded at the same time as slavery was abolished – a comparison T ' Pol does not appreciate . Whatever advice Tucker gives T ' Pol is met with resistance , as she believes that he simply does not understand her culture and commitment to tradition . At the end of the conversation , Tucker is frustrated at T ' Pol ' s insistence on devotion to heritage above all while T ' Pol feels that it was a mistake altogether to consult Tucker ' s help . Meanwhile , the away team runs into complications . Mayweather hurts his leg , forcing Reed to help him walk . With only the core sample in hand , they slowly head to the shuttle . However , they realize the star is almost in view , raising the temperature and making the ground unsteady . They need to hurry . Act Four . Reed and Mayweather make it to the shuttle , but are stuck on the comet due to a malfunction , and fall several meters . The Vulcan ship offers to help , but Archer takes the helm to try to get in position for Tucker to shoot the grappler , but it ' s unsuccessful . Archer wants to continue trying , but T ' Pol encourages him to take Vanik ' s help . Archer is reluctant , but T ' Pol tells him that Vanik expects Archer to refuse his offer as he sees Humans as arrogant and prideful , and that accepting his offer would be the perfect opportunity for Archer to prove the Vulcans wrong . Archer swallows his pride and lets the Vulcans help pull the shuttle out with their tractor beam – a technology Starfleet does not possess . When the away team returns , attempts by Archer at friendliness are blocked by Vanik , who has no interest in receiving the data " Enterprise " collected on the comet . T ' Pol chooses to reconsider her marriage and obligations to her culture – and some pecan pie in the privacy of her quarters – , showing that her discussion with Tucker wasn ' t as fruitless as it first appeared . Memorable quotes . " " For those of you who aren ' t near a window , you might want to find one . There ' s something pretty amazing off starboard . " " " " Once he realizes we ' re not going to blow up the galaxy maybe he ' ll leave us alone . " " " " Wow ! That ' s one big snowball ! " " " " Perhaps they ' re simply curious . " " " " Curious ? That doesn ' t sound very Vulcan to me . " " " " You ' re easily impressed . " " " " It might not be good for the body . . . But it sure is good for the soul . " " " " A POOP question , SIR ? ! " " " " I always wanted to chase a comet . " " " " I ' ve only seen snow " twice " in my life . " " " " I hope I never see snow again ! " " " " You are Human . You are free to choose . " " " " If Vanik ' s the kind of guy who likes to watch . . . let him . " " " " I feel like I got caught with my hand in the cookie jar ! " " " " I have more letters in my quarters . Would you like to read those as well ? " " " " What was that all about ? " " " " It ' s personal . " " Links and references . References . analgesic ; Archer ' s Comet ; bio - matter resequencer ; ; caffeine ; ; chemist ; childhood ; comet ; County Kerry ; dark - matter nebula ; Denobula Triaxa system ; Denobulan s ; dictionary ; drawing ; drill bit ; drilling rig ; drink dispenser ; Earth ; eisillium ; EV suit ; " " ; feces ; Gaby ; germ s ; grappler ; green tea ; ; hydroponics ; iced tea ; insulation ; Ireland ; Kenmare ; Kimball ; Kimball ' s spouse ; kitchen counter ; Koss ; logic ; magnesite ; ; ; ; ; milk ; Milky Way Galaxy ; ; PADD ; peanut butter sandwich ; pecan pie ; planetary nebula ; plasma torch ; " pok tar " ; " Polycocyx astris " ; poop ; protein resequencer ; sanitation engineer ; sculptor ; snow ; snowman ; ; " Ti ' Mur " ; toilet ; Tok ; tractor beam ; Trip Tucker ' s nephew ; turkey ; universal translator ; Vanik ; Vulcan s ; Vulcan database ; Vulcan language ; Vulcan Space Program ; ; water ; ; Worley Elementary School ; " Yarahla " ; Zariphean tea Unreferenced materials . antacid ; antiinflammatory gel ; blood pressure ; boomer ; boxing ; bruise ; cheek ; Comet Special ; ditanium ; Eddie ; English ; honeymoon ; Japan ; lie ; ; Merrium System ; neck collar ; oxygen mask ; sandwich ; " Sha ' mura " ; shelf - life ; " Ten ' chara " ; ; Vegas ; ventilating unit ; volcano ; Vulcan salute ; Vulcan Science Academy