Return to Space (Part 9)

Space Quest V: The Next Mutation is exactly what it claims to be in that it does feel and play like a mutation of the pervious games in the series.  Only one of The Two Guys from Andromeda was involved in the project and the storyline was written by yet another individual.  Despite (or perhaps because of) all these deviations from the established formula, Space Quest V has a more memorable and diverse cast of characters than any other entry in the entire franchise.

As the game begins, we find Roger Wilco in a captain's chair of all places giving orders during some kind of emergency situation.  As it quickly turns out, the whole thing is just an elaborate computer simulation.  Our hero is, in fact, just a cadet at the StarCon Space Academy.  Late to a final multiple-choice exam, Roger is ordered to clean the academy floor crest in the station's hub area as punishment after the test is concluded.  While operating a floor cleaner he has a chance encounter with Captain Quirk (chairman of the academy) and none-other-than Beatrice (Wilco's future wife-to-be as reveled at the end of Space Quest IV).  The two are on their way to a meeting so there is only a brief exchange.  Even so, Captain Quirk manages to embarrass himself by slipping on a wet spot.  Thanks to the magic of scene transitions (and eventually Roger doing a bit of snooping) players get to see what the meeting is all about.  Beatrice is a representative of the local government and has come to complain about illegal dumping of toxic waste on planets under her jurisdiction.  The officers of StarCon in attendance don't seem particularly concerned, but Captain Quirk offers to take her around the sector in his flagship - SCS Goliath.

Meanwhile, our hero's test results have been compiled and, due to a short circuit in the grading machine, he has received the highest marks in the history of the academy.  Because of this he has earned an immediate captain's commission.  As fate would have it though Roger's new command is garbage scow.  Being as small spaceship, the crew only consists of three individuals: Cliffy (the blue-collared mechanic), Droole (the pilot) and Flo (the coms specialist).  Cliffy is human, but Flo has green skin, although in all other ways gives the impression of being a middle-aged woman.  Droole has bright red skin and, while also humanoid in appearance, lacks any facial features other than a pair of eyes.  How he breaths, talks or eats is never explained.  However, later in the game it's possible to see him drinking from a glass by placing it on top of his head.  So, maybe he has a mouth somewhere on his parietal cranium...?

Generally speaking, the crew aren't very friendly toward Roger despite his best efforts to make a pleasant atmosphere.  Even so there is work to be done.  The team's first assignment is trash retrieval in orbit around three different worlds.  Here's where a new mechanic comes into play.  Gone are the useless taste and smell icons, and in their stead is a secondary speak icon differentiated from the regular one by an exclamation point in the text bubble.  This is the command function and it can be used to issue orders to the crew.  No sooner had Roger given the order to engage the FTL drive to their first destination than another ship is revealed to be in stealthy pursuit.  This is a callback to Space Quest III and the circumstances are nearly identical in almost every way.  The one notable exception being this time the stalking droid is decidedly feminine looking whereas the original had a masculine appearance.  Fans might have been disappointed to see this plot device being recycled, but in my case I actually played the fifth game before the third, so this seamed like a totally original idea to me at the time.  I should also take a moment to mention what the garbage scow is called...its designation is SCS Eureka, a starship that is the spitting image of the bottom part of an upright vacuum cleaner.  Even the ship's name is parodying a widely sold brand of such machines.  Just to make the joke completely obvious, the Eureka is even equipped with an RRS (or Refuse Recovery System) which it uses to pick up bags of orbital garbage with the word "Husky" printed on them...yet another parody...this time of "Hefty" brand trash bags.  

After successfully completing their first pick up, Cliffy notices some strange sounds coming from the refuse compartment.  Roger decides to check it out and is immediately pounced on by a molluscoid creature that vaguely resembles a facehugger from the film "Alien."  Contrary to what one might expect, Wilco is rather enamored by the little guy.  He decides to name him "Spike" and adopts him as the ship's mascot.  Unfortunately, Spike isn't house trained and has a bad habit of secreting highly corrosive acid.  Luckily, our hero is able to safely place him inside a glass tube filled with an antacid solution.  Crisis averted, the crew of the Eureka set course for their next pick up.  This one goes more smoothly than the last, but is still disrupted by an unknown transmission intercepted by Flo.  Roger and his crew don't really connect the dots in terms of the content, but thoughtful players will quickly realize that the message pertains to the illegal dumping that has been going on.  

Pushing on to their final objective, the Eureka arrives only to find out that there is no trash beacon.  On top of that the ship is suddenly struck by an energy weapon attack then promptly hailed by the female droid that players had seen earlier.  She, like her failed predecessor has come to collect Roger Wilco for unpaid debts.  Having no interest in his ship or crew, she instructs Roger to beam down to the planet for retrieval.  Caught dead-to-rights, Wilco has no real choice but to obey.  

What follows is a lot like that classic Star Trek episode in which Kirk (not Quirk) fights a Gorn at Vasquez Rocks.  The location (this time) is a bit more exotic, with caves behind waterfalls and a greater abundance of plant life.  Our hero, in typical fashion, is unarmed and (to make matters worse) is up against an opponent who is not only stronger and tougher than him, but also capable of flying (via a jetpack) and turning invisible (via person cloaking device)...oh and she can shoot lethal (although not terribly accurate) energy projectiles too.  In order to win this lopsided duel players must use Roger as bait in order to lure the droid into a cave.  Wilco can then pry loose a big bolder and send it rolling down the tunnel from an opening on the other side.  The effect is like a bowling ball hitting a pin.  Even so this only succeeds in knocking out the droid's ability to turn invisible.  The finisher is to have our hero hide in a hollowed out log that acts like a bridge between two rocky outcroppings.  After waiting a bit Wilco's pursuer will land at this junction point hoping to spot him, thus giving Roger the chance to stealthy stuff a piece of wild fruit into the air intake of the droid's jetpack.  In a bit of foreshadowing, the multiple-choice quiz back at the beginning of the game has stuffing a banana in the exhaust pipe as a possible answer to one of its questions.  I can't remember if it was the correct answer or not, but I do remember passing the test on my first try (without cheating).  I guess I was good StarCon cadet material back then...

As one might expect, the jetpack malfunctions spectacularly and the accompanying explosion reduces the droid to several non-functional pieces.  Cliffy then beams down to help Wilco salvage what's left.  The two them also manage to steal a large cloaking device from the droid's spaceship parked nearby before it self-destructs.