Children of the Comet (episode)

While on a survey mission, the USS Enterprise discovers a comet is going to strike an inhabited planet. They try to re-route the comet, only to find that an ancient alien relic buried on the comet's icy surface is somehow stopping them. As the away team try to unlock the relic's secrets, Pike and Number One deal with a group of zealots who want to prevent the USS Enterprise from interfering.
== Summary ==
=== Teaser ===
:"Cadet's log. Stardate 2912.4. The Enterprise is surveying the Persephone system, where the crew is studying the behavior of an ancient comet, C/2260-Quentin. I, however, am doing rotation in landing party readiness protocols, which doesn't really involve comets, ancient or otherwise, so duties are pretty slow at the moment. Except, of course, for a recent invitation to dinner at the captain's cabin, for which I have been encouraged by Lieutenant Ortegas to dust off my dress uniform."
The people of a desert village are going about their normal routine. Some have their eyes drawn upwards, where a comet crosses the sky.
The comet, C/2260-Quentin, is making its way through the Persephone system, and the has been sent to survey it. Onboard, Uhura has been summoned to dine with Captain Pike in his cabin, and Ortegas told her to wear her dress uniform. As she steps off the turbolift, she encounters Ortegas, who is not in uniform at all, and Uhura realizes she is being hazed. Ortegas admits it, saying people got bored on a "small" ship. As Uhura turns to change, Ortegas warns she does not want to be late to the captain's table. The helm officer jokes that Uhura has her first square of "Enterprise bingo", reminding her that even she had been a cadet once and subject to all the "traditions" that came with it. Uhura asks about what awaits her, and Ortegas explains that Captain Pike prefers to have regular members of the crew, not just the command staff, so that he can keep informed about the goings-on aboard ship; he might ask her questions. Uhura is less than enthused, thinking on how her father mentioned she was "unburdened by conversational boundaries". "So this'll be fun for you, then," Ortegas notes, as they reach Pike's quarters.
Pike himself, also dressed informally and wearing an apron, greets them, chuckling at seeing Uhura in her dress uniform, and invites them in; Una is among the first to greet them, while Pike attends to the ribs he was cooking. His cabin appears to resemble equal parts kitchen and dining room, with some preparing food while others wait. Uhura goes around the room until she comes across an Aenar cutting up vegetables, and offers to help him. His reply is a curt "no". Spock, standing nearby, says she has offended Commander Hemmer, the new chief engineer. Uhura apologizes, saying that she was drawn to help people with "sensory impairments". Hemmer notes that Humans in his condition might consider themselves "impaired"; Spock explains that his other senses compensate for his blindness, to which Hemmer amends that his other senses were superior. Uhura recalls reading that the Aenar have precognitive abilities. Hemmer had known she would ask about that, not because of precognition, but because everyone always did. He suddenly raises a hand and catches a carrot Spock tosses to him in mid-air, commenting on how he "telegraphed [his] throw telepathically", which was Spock's intention to illustrate Hemmer's enhanced senses. Uhura thinks this is another example of hazing, before saying to Hemmer in Andorian that he needed to get out more. "Seriously," she adds in Vulcan for Spock's benefit, before going back to Federation Standard and saying she needed a drink, as she goes to get one. "I like her," Hemmer comments, and Spock concurs.
At the captain's table, Pike regales his guests with an amusing story from when he was an ensign, tripping over the fallen pants of a Nausicaan he was pursuing, and how his commanding lieutenant thought that perhaps security was not the best fit for him. Spock admits he has never understood the Human inclination to laugh at other people's misfortune, calling it "impolite". Nurse Chapel replies that this is what made it funny; Pike adds that sometimes, things go so wrong that it makes one laugh. Uhura rises from the table to pour herself a drink, humming a tune to herself. When Pike asks about it, she explains it was a "bad habit", a folk song from her native Kenya. Pike recalls the "achingly beautiful" sight of Lake Simbi Nyaima, which he had visited several times; Uhura grew up not too far from there. Given how few cadets are taken in aboard the Enterprise, Pike thinks Uhura would have to have been quite impressive to make the cut, noting that she spoke twelve languages. She corrects him by saying she spoke thirty-seven, since Kenya alone had twenty-two languages; she felt the best way to be understood by people was to speak their language, so she learned them all, and found it easy to do so. Pike knows she's on the landing party rotation, and might find it difficult jumping from specialty to specialty, with a glance at Una ("it was one time," she says), but is sure Uhura has chosen one she likes. His voice catches as he asks her where she sees herself in ten years, again thinking of where he knows he will be. Uhura admits she isn't sure she considers herself "all that Starfleet", which surprises Pike, who notes how she worked her way there, beating out several thousand other applicants to get a posting on the Enterprise. Uhura replies that she wanted to study alien languages, and had originally intended to go to the University of Nairobi, as both her parents had taught there; a week before she was due to start, her parents were killed in a shuttle accident, along with her older brother. She couldn't go to the campus, feeling her family's absence, and felt she never fit in anywhere anymore. She had gone to live with her grandmother, who had been in Starfleet and talked often about it, and so ran away to the Academy. Pike is impressed by her honesty, and hopes she can find a place where she does fit, wherever that might be.
Walking in the corridors with Spock, Uhura wonders if she "blew it". Spock assures her that Pike values honesty, as does he. However, he adds that many, himself included, saw Starfleet as a lifelong dream, and if Uhura didn't feel she wanted to walk on that path, she should step aside for someone who did.
In his cabin, Una knows Pike had asked the same "where will you be" question to many cadets, but it felt different that time, wondering if it had to do with what he had told her about his experience on Boreth. Pike concedes that knowing one's future took the fun out of imagining it. Una asks if he had considered his fate wasn't written, but Pike recites a series of names, and Una realizes he knows the names of the cadets he will save in the accident that will cripple him, several years in the future. Pike has been repeating their names to himself over and over, as a reminder to "stay the course". Una refuses to believe there is no other way, just as the comm chimes, summoning Pike to the bridge – Spock has found a "problem" with the comet.
Spock shows a simulation indicating that the comet will impact the surface of the nearby planet, Persephone III, in two days, leaving no survivors. The planet is class M and inhabited by a pre-warp civilization called the Deleb. As the Deleb are not technologically advanced enough to move it themselves, Spock proposes using four ion engines to divert the comet's path and account for its rotation. La'an suggests using photon torpedoes as launch vehicles, which would take about an hour to retrofit, which Hemmer in turn calls a "rosy assessment" as he would be the one doing the work. Pike orders them to get it done, as they had a planet to save before breakfast. "I love this job," he adds sotto voce to Una. But as the torpedoes are deployed, they impact against a force field, leaving Pike wondering how a comet would put one up.
=== Act One ===
In the conference room, Una reports that they've tried hailing and scanning the comet, but find no life signs. However, there is an enormous, mostly subterranean structure, which indicates alien intelligence. Pike has asked Lieutenant Kirk, the ship's xenoanthropologist, to join them, and asks the crew for their opinions: it looks like a comet, has shields like a starship, and has a structure like a planet. La'an theorizes it could be a derelict spacecraft. Spock thinks the structure is the best place to investigate, noting that the shields only reacted to threats, meaning they could beam to the surface. Pike asks Kirk if he knew of any civilizations that sprang from comets, and Kirk admits this was the first he's heard of. Pike notes he likes the mustache, and Kirk suggests he try one himself. The captain then orders La'an, Spock, Kirk, and Uhura to suit up, noting that this would be Uhura's first landing party. "You wanted to speak alien languages," he tells her. "Go where the aliens are."
As they put on their environmental suits, Chapel explains to the landing party that the comet is bombarded by "ridiculous" amounts of cosmic rays, and that the hypo she would inject them with gave them two hours. Uhura finds the injection painful, and thinks Chapel could have warned her; the nurse replies cheerfully that if she had, Uhura would have known it would hurt. Kirk winces a little as he receives his, while La'an does not seem affected at all, remaining all business as she tells the crew to "weapon up". Chapel then comes to Spock, asking if he was ready; Spock replies that he was ready for any kind of pain she could inflict, leading Chapel to joke that he was toying with her. La'an then tosses Spock a phaser. Suited up, the landing party heads to the transporter room. La'an reminds them that gravity will be a fraction of Earth's normal. They all power on their suits, and Spock gives the order to Chief Kyle to energize.
Materalizing on the surface, Spock and La'an make their way forward, but Uhura hangs back, taking in her new surroundings. Kirk asks if she was "good", and she replies she was, taking in the idea of standing on the surface of a comet. The landing party makes its way inside the above-ground part of the structure, entering a chamber with what appears to be a large egg in its center. Spock's scans show the chamber has a breathable atmosphere. La'an moves to secure the perimeter while Spock continues his scans to make sure the room is secure. Kirk and Uhura approach the egg in the middle, seeing the markings; he asks whether they were merely decoration or some kind of language. Uhura is overwhelmed, and Kirk understands that she is a cadet and on her first away mission, but reminds her she was there for a reason. She approaches the egg, seeing that the patterns on it repeated in a sequence. Kirk decides to approach it, and the egg begins to glow. However, Spock detects a dangerous energy buildup within it, and warns Kirk to step away from it. But it is too late: as he raises his hand to touch it, the energy discharges, knocking him across the room. La'an and Spock remove his helmet and scan his life signs, finding his heart has stopped. La'an tries to contact the ship for an emergency beam-out, but the signal is spotty; likewise, Kyle is having difficulty getting a transporter lock. Spock uses the defibrillator function on his tricorder to try and restart Kirk's heart. Kyle manages to get a lock and tries to energize, but the comet's shields raise, blocking the signal. Spock is able to stabilize Kirk's condition, but their comms were being blocked. The landing party was now cut off from the ship.
=== Act Two ===
La'an's tricorder shows Kirk has sustained severe trauma from electrical shock, and has put him under sedation, leading Uhura to suggest not touching anything else. Spock knows that Kirk will not survive without proper medical attention, and La'an's scans also show the force field is back up, leading Uhura to ask what kind of comet wanted to keep them there. Spock considers that a "salient question", one that Uhura may be the only one to answer. Uhura reminds him that it is her first away mission, but Spock replies that she is the only linguistics expert there, and her knowledge might be able to decode the markings on the egg.
In the Deleb village on the surface of the planet, one of the villagers approaches her young daughter, who worriedly points up at the comet as it glows brighter in the sky. She takes the child inside the nearby hut, her own expression that of concern as she steals a glance at the comet as well.
Aboard the Enterprise, Pike is also looking worried, but also determined. He polls the bridge for ideas to save not only their own people, but the Deleb on the surface, who will die without their help. Ortegas suggests phaser harmonics, setting their weapons to a higher frequency to counteract the shield. Una concurs, thinking the right frequency would shatter the shield. Pike approves the idea, and orders Ortegas to bring the ship around.
Inside the comet, Uhura is examining the markings, as Spock asks how she is doing. Uhura admits she was pretending not to be way over her head, before seeing Spock's expression and asking if that was too honest. Spock replies that Vulcans were often "too honest", which Uhura thinks his "girlfriend", Chapel, would appreciate. Spock replies that Chapel is not his girlfriend. Uhura knows this, but points out that Chapel had been flirting with him. She is trying to add humor to diffuse tensions, thinking on what Pike had said at the dinner about things going so wrong, one had to laugh. Spock prefers "rigorous logic" to ease tensions, and Uhura concedes that would work too. As Spock moves away from her, Uhura turns to find La'an glaring at her, before returning to work.
Una reports that the phasers were locked and ready, and Pike tells her to give the command. Before she can, the ship is shaken by a weapons impact, as a large vessel positions itself between the Enterprise and the comet. Pike orders hailing frequencies, identifying himself and his ship, and asking why they had been fired upon. The other identifies his people as the "s", causing Pike to glance at Ensign at communications with some disbelief. Christina says that was how the universal translator had rendered it. The Shepherd captain explains that he is escorting M'hanit, which he calls "far more than a comet", but one of the ancient arbiters of life. He then threatens to destroy the Enterprise if they attempt to tamper with it again.
=== Act Three ===
Pike turns to Una and orders her to scan the ship, finding out what kind of weapons they were dealing with, before turning back to the Shepherd captain to explain that their intentions were not hostile. M'hanit was about to impact an inhabited planet, and they were trying to divert its trajectory. The Shepherd captain calls it "absurd", comparable to changing the height of a wave or the position of the stars; M'hanits course was preordained. Pike protests that the impact will likely destroy M'hanit and also kill millions of people on the surface. The Shepherd suddenly asks if he was a reasonable man, and Pike replies he would like to think so. The Shepherd then asks him to entertain the proposition that M'hanit was not a comet, but an instrument, an arbiter. It would move if it willed it, and bring life if it so chose; if it chose to die, and take the planet along with it, then it would as well. The Shepherd reiterates that M'hanits course was preordained. Pike is incensed by this, saying that destroying an inhabited planet was not preordained. The Shepherd counters that Pike had said he was a reasonable man, so how could he know? His people have been charged with protecting their "arbiters" for as long as they could remember. It was not their prerogative to interfere, nor was it Pike's.
Seeing Una has news for him, Pike pauses the communication, before expressing his opinion of the "Shepherds" to be more like zealots. Una reports the Shepherd vessel was faster and more advanced than the Enterprise, with Ortegas assessing their weapons capability by simply saying they "wouldn't want to piss them off". Pike asks how they could divert the comet without doing that. Una insists they buy time for the landing party to get the force field down, with Pike expressing the hope the Shepherds don't know they're down there. He orders Christina to resume communications, saying that while the Shepherd had their sacred duty, the Federation had theirs, and while he did not intend to disrespect M'hanit, they couldn't just let a planet die. The Shepherd captain retorts that while Pike was talking about respect and non-interference, they have indeed detected the landing party in the "temple" on the surface, calling their presence "blasphemy". "M'hanit will be their tomb," the Shepherd captain goes on, adding that any further attempt to rescue them would be an act of war, before closing the channel. Pike orders the crew to get through to the landing party, even if they had to break the laws of physics to do so.
Inside the temple, Uhura continues her scans of the egg, while La'an and Spock check on Kirk's condition, which appears to be stable. La'an then coldly asks about Uhura's progress, whether she would get them out or get them killed. Uhura replies it was a "toss-up". As she works, Uhura begins humming to herself again, something Spock notices as a sign of distress, telling her the situation was less dire than it had been. Plus, Kirk had found one thing to avoid, which increased her odds of success. Uhura asks if that was his version of a pep talk, and he concedes it was, and had been working on them, before asking her opinion. She notes he shouldn't "take [his] foot off the gas" on that one. Spock reminds her she was achieving her stated objective of learning new alien languages. Uhura says only that, like Spock had implied, she wasn't supposed to be there at all, someone "actually Starfleet". Spock asks, given that it was her first away mission, if it was also the first time her life had been in danger, and she confirms it was. Spock notes that confrontations with one's mortality gave them an outside perspective. She did not intend to be there, but she was there, and she was the only person for the job. "Will you rise to see it through?" he queries. Uhura says that pep talk was better, before returning to work, humming to herself. Spock notices a resonance within the chamber; it was reacting to the humming. She hums some more, noticing the effect as well, and realizing the chamber was responsive to music.
Back on the Enterprise, Una has been unable to reach the landing party, but is detecting a signal coming from the comet itself. Putting it on speaker, it is a melodic tune, almost like wind chimes, and a tune Pike recognizes. He asks the computer to identify the song – "Vamuvamba", a traditional song from Kenya on Earth. Pike knows this is not a coincidence.
Inside the temple, the chamber harmonizes with Uhura's vocalizations, and Spock sees that the lights and sounds respond differently to different pitch. Kirk had thought the markings to be some kind of code, and Uhura theorizes that the code was harmonic. Harmonics were the ratio between frequencies, each musical note corresponding to a certain frequency. La'an wonders why an alien race would write music the same way they did. Spock replies that musical notes are easily derived from math, and the Vulcans theorized their fundamental nature makes them pleasing to the ear. Uhura asks one of them to match her pitch, as she begins humming a single note. La'an stays out of it, saying she would probably break the thing, and so Spock joins her, their vocalizations matching the harmonics until, finally, the egg opens, and the room is radiating with light. La'an thinks this is a step closer to solving the "genius or get us all killed" conundrum, to which Uhura says it was the "right time for genius". A series of eerie melodies echoes through the room, which Spock speculates is the comet's method of communication. La'an wonders how that could be used to convince it to lower the force field. To answer, Uhura vocalizes to the same melody, and the room begins to shake.
It seems to have the desired effect; aboard the Enterprise, Una detects the shield dropping. Pike orders the transporter room to beam them out. Chapel rushes to the transporter room as the landing party returns, and helps La'an take Kirk to sickbay. Knowing how the Shepherds will likely react, Pike orders red alert. Christina reports the Shepherds were hailing, and Pike orders the channel open. The Shepherd captain accuses him of attempting to interfere, and is not interested in Pike's assertion to help find some common ground. "You were warned," is all the captain says before closing the channel. Ortegas sarcastically thinks that went well, just as the ship is shaken by weapons impacts. The Shepherd vessel has launched torpedoes at them, and Pike orders the crew to brace for impact.
=== Act Four ===
The Enterprise flies evasively to avoid the Shepherds' weapons fire. La'an asks if they should return fire, but Pike refuses, continuing to order evasive maneuvers. La'an suggests warping out and regrouping, as facing off alone would be suicide. Una is forced to agree, given the Shepherds' advanced technology. Spock explains his theory that the comet was trying to communicate with them through the music they recorded, but Uhura warns the analysis of the sounds could take days. Spock points out that the comet would impact Persephone III in less than an hour. Pike orders phasers locked onto the Shepherds' weapons and propulsion systems, and has Ortegas bring them about into firing position. A single phaser blast scores a direct hit, forcing the Shepherds to pull back and regroup, giving the Enterprise a minute to regroup as well. Pike saw how they were able to lower the comet's shields, so asks about moving the comet itself. Ortegas is sure the "crazy space monks" will destroy them if they try to move it, which sets Spock to thinking: What if the comet moved itself?
The Enterprise accelerates to full impulse, and the Shepherds are gaining on them. Pike asks Ortegas if she remembered how she bragged about how she'd be the best pilot to graduate the Academy (saying only "word gets around" at her surprised look). When Ortegas asks what his point was, Pike tells her it was time to prove it, by getting them in front of that comet. Ortegas initiates an evasive pattern of her own devising, taking the ship into the comet's tail while the Shepherds pursue them. Though they score several hits, the Shepherds stop firing when they realize the comet is in their firing arc. The Shepherds are trying to hail them, but Pike tells them not to reply yet. The only impacts the Enterprise takes now are from the cometary debris before reaching the front of the comet. Ortegas brings the ship about and to a full stop, and Pike orders all systems except life support disabled, before responding to the Shepherds. Pike offers his surrender, as his ship appears to have suffered from total systems failure. When the Shepherd captain asks what would happen if he didn't accept, Pike replies that the Enterprise will collide with the comet, igniting the trilithium resin in the warp core and utterly destroying it, which will also occur if the Shepherds destroy the ship themselves. He asks for the Shepherds' help, promising not to touch M'hanit again. The Shepherd captain does not reply, instead closing the channel. Una warns that Pike is taking a big gamble, of which Pike is aware. A moment later, the bluff seems to pay off; the Shepherds activate a tractor beam.
"Mr. Spock, you're up," Pike says. Spock is aboard the shuttlecraft , which has clung to the underside of one of the larger chunks of debris, and now approaches the comet's nucleus. The shuttle's shields begin radiating heat, which causes the comet to begin to fracture. Spock maintains position, activating the heat shields, though is forced to avoid a large piece of the comet in very close proximity. Aboard the Enterprise, Una consults her console, showing that the sublimation was working; the comet's course was being diverted, and Pike notes for the record that they did not actually touch it, keeping his word to the Shepherds. Uhura wonders what has become of Spock, before a hint of static comes over the comms… followed by the sound of Spock laughing. Pike wonders if everything was alright, and Spock confirms it was, again quoting Pike's belief that "sometimes things go so badly that you just have to laugh", earning a chuckle from the bridge crew. Both Spock and Una observe a large quantity of water vapor entering Persephone III's atmosphere, which would change the atmospheric composition to decrease the planet's aridity and promote plant growth… and with it, perhaps, societal development. The Shepherds hail again, the captain remarking on "the glory and the mercy that is M'hanit", and Pike agrees that they had witnessed a miracle. Perhaps in the future, the Shepherd captain adds, the Federation would not be so quick to judge the faith of others, and now, they need not part as enemies. The crew is relieved as the channel closes. On the surface, the Deleb are amazed to see water coming from the sky, and laugh with joy at the idea, as the comet continues to cross the sky.
:"Captain's log, supplemental. I am left to wonder… who made the comet? How many more like it are out there? Was it coincidence that fostered the chance for more life on Persephone III? Or something more?"
In the conference room, Uhura explains that they had already figured out how to convert musical notes to numbers, but she figured out how to turn the numbers into numerical coordinates. Pike asks if the coordinates painted a picture, and Uhura confirms it, but not just any kind of picture. It showed a star chart of its movements through the Persephone system, including a course that took it past Persephone III, meaning it did not intend to impact the planet. If Spock had not done his work with the shuttle, however, it would have impacted the planet, and Uhura admits this is where it got "weirder": The comet's message indicated a chunk of ice that would have broken off from it as it passed by, which was completely identical in size and shape to the chunk that broke off when Spock flew his mission, which meant the comet knew about it before Spock corrected its course. The comet's trajectory, and its apparent mission to seed Persephone III with life, was apparently predicated on the idea that Spock would have to fly the shuttle to move it, meaning it had foreknowledge of the future. "It knew its fate, you might say," she sums up. This strikes something of a chord with Pike, who smiles at the thought and thanks her for the report.
Spock walks with Uhura in the corridor, recalling what he had said about many dreaming of being in Starfleet and representing its values of selflessness, courage, and sacrifice. Uhura begins to say that she knew it shouldn't have been her down there, but Spock cuts her off, as he hadn't finished. He admits that the odds of their survival had been quite low, and that no pep talk could have increased them. He understands she did not come to Starfleet the way many of them did, and indeed wasn't sure she wanted to stay. However, after her actions on the comet, he expresses his certainty that, should she choose to stay, Starfleet would be fortunate to have her. Uhura lets that thought sink in as Spock continues through the ship.
In his cabin, Pike observes the comet continuing on its course, marveling at how a little piece of ice and dust roaming through space could bring life. Una bets that none of them could have predicted how, and Pike agrees; Una goes on to say that receiving a message from the future didn't mean they understood it. Pike recognizes they were not talking about the comet anymore. Una urges him not to throw his life away. Pike thinks he accepted his fate, but Una is not convinced, asking if he might be wrong, if he could save the cadets and that would be it. How did he know he couldn't make a different choice, one that would save him? What if his fate is what he made it?
Alone afterwards, Pike asks the computer to bring up the files on certain Federation citizens – Dusty Swender, T'quiel Dawn, Muliq Al Alcazar, Yuuto Hoshide, and Andrea Lopez – who are children in the present, but will be Starfleet cadets in the future.
== Memorable quotes ==
"Uh, I've read that, among many things, the Aenar have a form of precognitive ability."
"I knew you were going to ask that."
"Because you sensed my question before I asked it?"
"Because everyone always asks that."
:- Uhura, meeting Hemmer
"I've never understood the Human inclination to laugh at others' misfortune. It feels… impolite."
"That's why it's funny."
"Because it breaks a social expectation?"
"Sometimes, Mr. Spock, things go so badly, you just have to laugh."
:- Spock, Chapel, and Pike
"I hear you speak twelve languages."
"Uh, thirty-seven."
"OK, wow."
:- Pike and Uhura
"We could use photon torpedoes as launch vehicles. Take about an hour for the retrofit."
"A rosy assessment, considering I'll be the one doing the retrofitting."
:- Noonien-Singh and Hemmer
== Log entries ==
* Cadet's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)
* Captain's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701), 2259
== Background information ==
=== Title ===
* : Title publicly revealed. 
=== Cast and characters === 
* Despite being part of the main cast, Babs Olusanmokun (Joseph M'Benga) does not appear in this episode.
* Alex Kapp becomes the latest actress to portray the USS Enterprise computer voice. Previous portrayals include Majel Barrett Roddenberry in and , Doug Hale in , Teresa E. Victor in and , Julianne Grossman in , and Jenette Goldstein in .
=== Continuity === 
* The Persephone system will later be visited by the 105 years later, as the ship picks up Admiral Mark Jameson and his wife Anne from planet Persephone V in .
* Tricorders have a built-in defibrillator function, which can provide a shock through the hand-held scanner as needed – a handy tool for dangerous away missions.
* It is revealed in this episode that Pike learned the names of the cadets he is destined to save. Some of these cadets include: Dusty Swender, T'quiel Dawn, Muliq Al Alcazar, Yuuto Hoshide, and Andrea Lopez.
* Muliq Al Alcazar lives on Tendara Colony, future birthplace of Annika Hansen.
* This episode establishes that Uhura was born and raised in Kenya.
* Enterprise bingo is mentioned, albeit only by name, for the first time. It will be shown in detail in (although it does not include the hazing Uhura has to endure, as Ortegas claims).
* La'an postulates that M'hanit may be a derelict spacecraft. Nine years later, the Enterprise would encounter a generational spaceship with the appearance of an asteroid during the events of .
* Uhura becomes aware of Chapel's apparent attraction to Spock, which would be referenced again (sometimes as a plot point) in later episodes and several times in . (The fact it's Uhura who mentions it to Spock may also be an in-joke reference to Spock and Uhura being romantically involved in the alternate reality.)
* Pike orders the execution of "escape pattern April omega three", likely named after Robert April, while Ortegas initiates "evasive pattern Ortegas gamma one", named after herself, when Pike gives her free reign.
== Links and references == 
=== Starring === 
* Anson Mount as Captain Christopher Pike
* Ethan Peck as Science Officer Spock
* Jess Bush as Nurse Christine Chapel
* Christina Chong as La'an Noonien-Singh
* Celia Rose Gooding as Cadet Nyota Uhura
* Melissa Navia as Lt. Erica Ortegas
* Bruce Horak as Hemmer
;And
* Rebecca Romijn as Una Chin-Riley
=== Guest starring ===
* Dan Jeannotte as George Samuel Kirk
=== Co-starring ===
* Dana Beddoe as Alien Daughter (Deleb)
* Amber V. Cull as Alien Mother (Deleb)
* Jennifer Hui as Ensign 
* Alex Kapp as USS Enterprise Computer
* André Dae Kim as Chief Kyle
* Thom Marriott as Shepherd Captain
=== Uncredited co-stars ===
* Kaz Morgan as Enterprise navigator
* Shannon Widdis as Enterprise officer
=== Stunt double ===
* Geoff Meech as stunt double for Dan Jeannotte
=== References ===
act of war; Aenar; aphelion; April Omega 03; Arbiters of Life; away mission; bad habit; Boreth; C/2260-Quentin (aka M'hanit); comet; computer; computer simulation; cosmic rays; Deleb; dress uniform; force field; ; gas pedal; hazing; humming; ion engine; Kenya; Lake Simbi Nyaima; launch vehicle; linguistics; linguistics expert; music; mustache; Nausicaan; Number One; Ortegas Gamma 01; pants; pep talk; perihelion; period; Persephone I; Persephone II; Persephone III; Persephone IV; Persephone V; Persephone VI; Persephone VII; Persephone VIII; Persephone system; photon torpedo; practical joke; precognitive ability; pre-warp species; retrofit; rotation; Shepherd (species); Shepherd ship; solar year; sublimation; subterranean; trilithium resin; Uhura family shuttle; Uhura's brother; Uhura's father; Uhura's mother; University of Nairobi; "Vamuvamba"; Vulcan; xenoanthropology; Yahtzee; zealot
==== Citizen database ====
2247; 2248; ; Aomori; backpack; Cerberus Colony; ; ; Japan; ; Misawa; New York; North America; North Continent; Ondau sector; Stamets-type shuttle (unnamed); Starbase 2; ; Syracuse; Tendara Colony; United Federation of Planets Citizen Database
==== Persephone III data references ====
argon; boron; bromine; carbon dioxide; carbon-based lifeform; Celsius; coordinates; hour; mass; mean surface temperature; methane; nitrogen; oxygen; revolution period; rotation period; solar day; tungsten; water vapor
==== Stellar cartography references ====
81 Cancri; Ajilon; Aldebaran; Algol; Alpha Majoris; Archanis; Archanis sector; Ardana; Argus Array; Benecia; Beta Leonis Minoris; Beta Niobe; Beta Tauri; Beta Zeta; Betazed; ; Boreth; Brestant; Cait; Camus; Capella; Chin'toka; Cygnet; Davlos; Dayos; Deep Space Station K-7; Delphi Ardu; Delta Outpost; Delta Outpost 3; Delta Outpost 4; Delta Outpost 5; Delta Outpost 6; Delta Outpost 7; Delta Outpost 8; Delta Outpost 9; Delta Outpost 10; Delta Outpost 11; ; Doctari Alpha; Donatu; Dorala; Elas; Eminiar; Epsilon Ceti B; Epsilon Hydrae; Epsilon Outpost; Epsilon Outpost 1; Epsilon Outpost 2; 'etnap Nebula; ; FGC-321; Forcas; Galen; Gamma Hromi; Gamma Tauri; Gamma Trianguli; Ganalda; Gariman sector; Grazer; Halka; Harlak; Iridin; Janus; Japori; Kantare; Kazar; Kiley; Klingon Empire; Korinar; Korvat; Kressari system; Lya Station Alpha; Maluria; Manzar; Megara; Merak; Minos Korva; Nivalla; No'Mat; O'Ryan's Planet; orange; Organia; Pahvo; Persephone; Planet Q; Platonius system; Porathia; Preenos; Priors World; Quam; Qo'noS; Ramatis; Regulus; Risa; Sarpedion; Scalos; Septra; Setlik; Sherman's Planet; Sorna Prime; Starbase 2; Starbase 11; Starbase 18; Starbase 19; Starbase 21; Starbase 24; Starbase 31; Starbase 46; Starbase 88; Starbase 200; Starbase 211; Starbase G-6; ; Tagra; Talar; Talarian Republic; Talos; Tellun; Thalos; Tholia; Tholian Assembly; Tika; Tonnata; Toroth; Tribble Prime; Troyius; Turkana; Unefra; Wurna Minor; Xahea; ; ; Y'tem; Yridia; Zibal
=== External links ===
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Category:SNW episodes
de:Kinder des Kometen
es:Children of the Comet
pl:Children of the Comet