Star Trek: Enterprise (TV Series)

Dear Doctor (2002)

John Billingsley: Dr. Phlox

Photos 

Quotes 

• Dr. Phlox : Are you married, Crewman?

  Crewman Elizabeth Cutler : Course not! I would've told you.

  Dr. Phlox : I'm married.

  Crewman Elizabeth Cutler : You are?

  Dr. Phlox : Three times.

  Crewman Elizabeth Cutler : So, you have... two ex-wives?

  Dr. Phlox : I have three current wives, and they each have two husbands, not counting myself.

  Crewman Elizabeth Cutler : Is that considered normal for Denobulans?

  Dr. Phlox : Quite.

• Dr. Phlox : [voice-over]  I've noticed how the Captain seems to anthropomorphize his pet. He even talks to the creature, although I'm fairly certain it has no idea what he's saying. Then again, I've been known to speak to my Pyrithian bat on occasion.

• [the crew is watching a romantic movie] 

  Crewman Elizabeth Cutler : We can go if you're bored.

  Dr. Phlox : No, no, I'd like to stay and see what happens.

  Crewman Elizabeth Cutler : You won't be disappointed. The ending's classic.

  Dr. Phlox : [chortles]  Not the film. I'm sensing a rising emotional undercurrent in the room. I'm curious to see if it culminates in some kind of group response.

• Dr. Phlox : [voice-over]  It's remarkable, Doctor, even fictional characters seem to elicit Human compassion. My shipmates have calmly faced any number of dangers, and yet a simple movie can bring tears to their eyes.

• [Sato is exercising her Denobulan language skills, commenting about Phlox's developing relationship with Cutler] 

  Dr. Phlox : [in Denobulan]  Do you have any advice?

  Ensign Hoshi Sato : [in Denobulan]  I think you make a very cute... washboard.

  Dr. Phlox : I beg your pardon?

  Ensign Hoshi Sato : [laughing]  Couple! A cute couple!

• Dr. Phlox : Evolution is more than a theory. It is a fundamental scientific principle.

• Dr. Phlox : [voice-over]  I never thought I'd meet a species that forges such intimate bonds with lesser creatures. It's surprising, the things you Humans choose to invest your emotions in.

  [on Archer's relationship to his dog] 

• Captain Jonathan Archer : A cure, Doctor? Have you found a cure?

  Dr. Phlox : [after some hesitation]  Even if I could find one, I'm not sure it would be ethical.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : Ethical?

  Dr. Phlox : We'd be interfering with an evolutionary process that has been going on for thousands of years.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : Every time you treat an illness, you're interfering. That's what doctors do.

  Dr. Phlox : You're forgetting about the Menk.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : What about the Menk?

  Dr. Phlox : I've been studying their genome as well, and I have seen evidence of increasing intelligence - motor skills, linguistic abilities. Unlike the Valakians, they appear to be in the process of an evolutionary awakening. It may take millennia; but the Menk have the potential to become the dominant species on this planet.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : And that won't happen as long as the Valakians are around?

  Dr. Phlox : If the Menk are to flourish, they need an opportunity to survive on their own.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : Well, what are you suggesting? We choose... one species over the other?

  Dr. Phlox : All I'm saying is that we let nature make the choice.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : The hell with nature. You're a doctor. You have a moral obligation to help people who are suffering.

  Dr. Phlox : [firmly]  I'm also a scientist; and I'm obligated to consider the larger issues. 35,000 years ago, your species co-existed with other humanoids, isn't that correct?

  Captain Jonathan Archer : [sighs]  Go ahead.

  Dr. Phlox : What if an alien race had interfered and given the Neanderthals an evolutionary advantage? Fortunately for you, they didn't.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : I appreciate your perspective on all of this. But we're talking about something that might happen. *Might* happen thousands of years from now. They've asked for our help. I am not prepared to walk away, based on a theory.

  Dr. Phlox : Evolution is more than a theory. It is a fundamental scientific principle. Forgive me for saying so - but I believe your compassion for these people is affecting your judgment.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : My compassion guides my judgment.

  Dr. Phlox : Captain...

  Captain Jonathan Archer : Can you find a cure?

  [Phlox hesitates] 

  Captain Jonathan Archer : Doctor?

  Dr. Phlox : [after a long pause]  I already have.

• Crewman Elizabeth Cutler : They don't have movies where you come from, do they?

  Dr. Phlox : Well, we had something similar a few hundred years ago, but they lost their appeal when people discovered their real lives were more interesting.

• Dr. Phlox : [voice-over]  Since we were on the subject of mating, I think Crewman Cutler may be romantically interested in me. I can't be certain, however; the pheromones of Human females aren't as potent as Denobulans'.

• [Dr. Phlox is scanning a Menk, on which the latter asks something in his language] 

  Ensign Hoshi Sato : He wants to know what you're doing.

  Dr. Phlox : Have you learned enough Menk to explain a molecular bio-scan?

  [Sato replies to the Menk in Menk] 

  Crewman Elizabeth Cutler : What'd you say?

  Ensign Hoshi Sato : Told him the Doctor was looking inside of him.

• Dr. Phlox : [voice-over]  Despite the Menks' insistence that they're treated well, my Human crewmates seem to see things differently... They think the Menk are being exploited by the Valakians. So their first instinct is to rise to their defense, despite the fact that the Menk don't appear to need or want a defender.

• [from Phlox's reply to Dr. Lucas, his Human colleague] 

  Dr. Phlox : You'll be pleased to hear that the crew finally seems to be growing accustomed to an alien doctor on board. I must admit, I wasn't planning to stay this long, but the opportunity to observe your species on their first deep space venture has proven irresistible.

• Dr. Phlox : Denobulans require very little rest, unless you count our annual hibernation cycle.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : Am I gonna be without my doctor this winter?

  Dr. Phlox : Only for six days.

  Captain Jonathan Archer : Maybe I'll join you.

• Dr. Phlox : [voice-over]  I had meant to transmit this letter by now, but the Valakian epidemic has been taking up most of my time. Working with the physicians here has been quite fulfilling. I suppose it's the reason we joined the Interspecies Medical Exchange. But I worry about falsely raising their hopes. Despite Captain Archer's confidence in me, I'm afraid the scale of the disaster may outweigh our best intentions.

• Dr. Phlox : [voice-over]  Two days ago, when we first discovered the alien shuttle, I had no idea that I'd be facing a dilemma of this magnitude. For the first time, I find myself in conflict with my Captain. But he is my Captain, and he's placed a great deal of trust in me. I believe I owe him the same.

• Dr. Phlox : [voice-over]  I'd like to think, Doctor Lucas, that if I'd had a chance to talk to you face to face, you would have never let me even consider withholding my findings from the Captain. But I'm ashamed to say, I almost did just that.

• Dr. Phlox : [about the heart]  Physiologically, it is nothing more than a very efficient pump. What could possibly make you people think it is the source of all emotion?

  Crewman Elizabeth Cutler : Now, you may know about our cardiopulmonary system, but you have a lot to learn about the human heart.

• Dr. Phlox : [voice-over]  If I hadn't trusted him to make the right choice, I'd have been no better than the Vulcan diplomats who held your species back, because they felt you couldn't make proper decisions on your own. I came very close to misjudging Jonathan Archer. But this incident has helped me gain a new respect for him. Happiness and health to you, Doctor. Your, erm... dedicated colleague Phlox.