Ministry of Defense Envoy Katherine Woods is sending a message from space to her young son.  She knows the war is scary, but she tells him, “It’s our job to talk with the Dregs and try to stop the bad feelings between us.”  Well, maybe not calling them the Dregs would be a start.  She is confident, having previously negotiated treaties with the Scumbags and the Poopyheads.

The Dregs are late to the titular summit.  Colonel Thurman takes this as a sign that 1) they are not coming, 2) this might be a set-up for a terrorist strike, and 3) he really over-ordered on the shrimp.  They finally see a Dreg ship approaching.  It soon goes out of control and the Dregs immediately suspect sabotage by the humans.  They arm their weapons, so we blow them out of the sky (Team Humans!  F*** yeah!).  Sadly, they were apparently right over top of the base at the time so the debris rains down on the base killing our Ambassador.  Earth and Dreg Central both launch their fleets.  In 3 hours, there will be a war.

Thurman takes charge, but Woods reminds him that she is in charge until there is a declaration of war.  He says she is in over her head and “the only order she has ever given is for desert at a diplomatic function.”

Somehow Dregosian Ambassador Prosser and his sidekick survived the crash of their ship and force their way into the facility.  The frightening Prosser has yellow-green snake-like eyes set in hellish red sockets.  But mostly he is terrifying because he is played by Michael Ironside.  He tells Woods that after 5 generations of oppression, the Dregs are fighting back.  Engineered by humans to serve their needs, they work under a sun so bright that they need yellow eyes to reflect its rays, and a third lung to tolerate the thin atmosphere.  Prosser says they are through working in the mines!  Wait, then why is the bright sun a problem if they work in mines?

The actors — especially Michael Ironside and John Spencer — do a great job, although the casting did most of the work.  There is nothing particularly wrong with the episode.  It just feels like a missed opportunity.  The first act reminded me of the classic Trial by Fire — an untested leader suddenly thrust into a global conflict.  It never achieved that level, though.  The fourth act should have been awesome.  The stakes are so high, and the sacrifices made are so final that it could have been a series highlight.  Sadly, the direction is unimaginative and the score is utterly lacking in support for the drama on screen.

Still, the performances and script make a decent episode.