At first, one wonders if this was going to be another version of 'Twilight'. The beginning scenes where reminiscent of earth being destroyed. This time Archer could remember. However, it was anything but a rehash. Archer's deception and manipulation of Degra (head designer of the Xindi weapon) was well done. Archer showed some real skill at interrogating someone with hoaxes and made-up stories. That's not something that's typically taught at Starfleet academy, but Archer's determination at stopping another attack on earth as shown how far the character will go to stop the Xindi.

Degra was an interesting character as well. Although he seems to have bought into the Xindi propaganda of the threat from earth, he did show some regret and remorse for the 7 million killed from the first prototype. After all, those could have been his children killed as well. It was quite clear from Degra that there was an uneasy alliance with the various Xindi species. He also explained a bit more why there was a Xindi council. For awhile it was unclear whether he hated the humans more than the reptilians or insectoid Xindi. Archer's final deception of a mock attack on the superweapon weapon showed just where Degra stood when push came to shove.

Overall, this was a good advancement in the Xindi story arc. Everything was relevant and tied in well.