Star Trek: Enterprise

[SJNeal]

^ ^ ^

S3-4 sound pretty interesting. Glad I have something to look forward to!

[nx01a]

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S3-4 sound pretty interesting. Glad I have something to look forward to!

I'd love to hear what you think of them. There's some fantastic storytelling in there but it was all too little too late to save the show. Season 3 is the level of darkness I can handle in Star Trek, not Discovery... but that's a discussion for another thread.

[Darth Phoenix]

I did not care for it much.
Like most of the shows I liked the Dr.
Archer is my least fave Captain
I HATED the intro music
I LOVED learning about the Andorians, Vulcans. Cardasians (who would have thought when we met them humans would be baddie)
so there was good and bad

[ChrisIII]

While good, a few of the season 4 episodes almost seemed like 'apologies' for getting things a bit wrong in season one-The Klingon look, the attitude of the Vulcans etc.

[nx01a]

I LOVED learning about the Andorians, Vulcans. Cardasians (who would have thought when we met them humans would be baddie)
so there was good and bad

We only heard in passing about the Cardassians in one episode, 'Observer Effect', and saw a brain dead one in 'Dead Stop'.

While good, a few of the season 4 episodes almost seemed like 'apologies' for getting things a bit wrong in season one-The Klingon look, the attitude of the Vulcans etc.

That's exactly what they were. Knowing the show was most likely not going to be renewed plus having the awesome Manny Coto as showrunner led to Enterprise finally connecting with the Trek legacy, a ridiculous disconnect Berman and Braga went so far as to remove Star Trek from the show's title to achieve.

[ROM Spaceknight]

First of all, I wanted to say that I consider myself a moderate Trek fan. I've seen most of TOS, the first several seasons of ST:TNG, and most of the theatrical films, but I've never seen an episode of "Voyager" or "Deep Space nine".

That being said, I saw all four seasons of Enterprise on DVD several years back and was truly blown away by the show - I felt that it was extremely well-done and interesting. The characters were likeable, the acting was solid, the scripts were exceptional, and the effects were excellent, even by today's standards. Enterprise is unquestionably my favorite Trek series - out of the ones I've seen.

My favorite Trek film was First Contact, so I really liked how this show tied into that film. I actually prefer Enterprise to TNG and TOS & thus it's my favorite ST series, though I know I'm not in the majority here. It's possible that since I'm not a hardcore Trek fan I was more open to enjoying the show, since it was so different from the previous series.

One of the many things I liked about the show was the setting - it was set before the "Prime Directive", which stated that you couldn't interfere in a planet's doings, so the crew could have interaction with a planet's inhabitants. I also liked the show's homage to TOS, since it featured some of the older (original) aliens like the blue-skinned Andorians, as well as the Romulans.

I also thought it interesting that the characters were just getting to know and understand the technology that was considered standard in the later series, i.e. the transporter, phaser, etc.

The time-travel subplot (with aliens from far in the future) was very well-handled, as well as the storyline where they went back in time to WWII Earth.

There were also many, many stand-alone episodes that were great, including the pilot ("Broken Bow"), the time-travel one where they went back to 1950's America, the episode where Archer met a ghost-like woman on an isolated planet, etc.

I'm also probably one of the few that liked the intro song and images - it was cool how they showed the first airplane and space flights, etc., all leading up to the flight of the "Enterprise".

I would have to say that the only episode I not only didn't like but hated was the final one - I thought it was ridiculous that the events in the show were being viewed through the holodeck by TNG's characters (especially since I was never a real fan of TNG). In fact, I would have to say that the Enterprise finale was a pile of steaming crap. It would have been acceptable if not for the TNG characters - sure, it could have been a better story but wasn't terrible. It would've been much better & easier to just have it run as a regular episode.

[Zero Hunter]

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S3-4 sound pretty interesting. Glad I have something to look forward to!

One of the things they did in season 4 that worked so well was multi-part episodes. Almost the whole season was made up of 2 or 3 part stories instead of the one and done that Star Trek was know for. You got 3 episodes on Vulcan. You got a Klingon 2 parter. A 3 part Andorian story. A two part mirror universe story. A 3 part augments story. There were just a handful of one episode self contained stories in season 4. The weakest episodes of the whole season were the 2 part season premiere and the series finale.

[nx01a]

The only episode of Enterprise I didn't like was the finale. I never really cared for TNG, so didn't like seeing those characters in Enterprise.

spoilers:

I watched it a second time to be sure I hated it.... now it's one of the few episodes of any Trek series I refuse to rewatch. I absolutely love TNG but Riker and Troi had no place in the ENT finale... much less trying to make us believe the obviously older actors were supposed to be the same people in a cut scene from a TNG episode shot a decade earlier. I would have loved Riker and Troi appearing in a final scene set in the 'present' honouring Enterprise Day or some such, talking about the good that crew did for the Federation 200+ years later.

end of spoilers

[nx01a]

One of the things they did in season 4 that worked so well was multi-part episodes. Almost the whole season was made up of 2 or 3 part stories instead of the one and done that Star Trek was know for. You got 3 episodes on Vulcan. You got a Klingon 2 parter. A 3 part Andorian story. A two part mirror universe story. A 3 part augments story. There were just a handful of one episode self contained stories in season 4. The weakest episodes of the whole season were the 2 part season premiere and the series finale.

The weakest episodes for me were Bound, Daedalus, and These Are The Voyages. The opening 2 parter had flaws but it finally resolved the Temporal Cold War in a satisfactory fashion, proving why Enterprise was so vital to the conflict. And the next episode dealing with life on Earth was something that should have happened in season 1 but it worked very well to help the crew deal with the traumas they endured.
But let's be honest...
spoilers:

When you saw Nazi Alien Dude at the end of season 3, didn't you go, "Again with the Nazi Aliens, Star Trek?!" I did. :P

end of spoilers

[alton]

My handle may be taken from a Voyager ship but I really enjoyed Enterprise, too.

Season 1: Enjoyable. Humans getting their first taste of deep space all on their own, working out human/Vulcan issues. Needed more time on Earth [maybe just one episode] to see exactly what 22nd C humanity was like.
Best Episode - Fallen Hero
Worst Episode - Acquisition/Rogue Planet/Oasis

Season 2: Spotty. Some absolutely horrid episodes plus many so-so ones, absolutely no sense of the exploration leading toward the Federation [not a Bolian or Betazoid in sight], and a continuation of late Trek shows shamelessly recycling old Trek plots.
Best Episode - Future Tense
Worst Episode - Vanishing Point/Precious Cargo/Dawn/Horizon

Season 3: Great. A real mission and direction finally, great serialized storytelling, well fleshed out antagonists, spectacular space battles, real personal development for some crew members while Mayweather gets nothing, but all too late thanks to season 2 killing off viewership and interest.
Best Episode - Azati Prime
Worst Episode - Rajiin/North Star

Season 4: Great. Finally some world/Federation building, mining the incredibly rich history of Trek to create some great serialized episodes, still nothing for Mayweather, and a horrible finale that insulted the cast and creators of the show as well as fans.
Best Episode - In a Mirror, Darkly parts 1 & 2
Worst Episode - Bound/Daedalus/These Are The Voyages...

I'm still angry at Berman and Braga for effectively killing Trek with bad creative decisions in the first two seasons esp. when there were so many other positive creative people trying to get them to do better. Pity we never got to see the refit NX class or the Romulan War or find out that T'Pol is actually half-Romulan.

I too never got to see any of the Treks in their entirety but am currently watching Enterprise, DS9, and Voyager in that order on Netflix to catch up. Thanks for this thread because it helps fill me in without spoiling too much . All told these shows at their best were still a quantum leap,if you'll forgive the Scott Bakula pun,from this type of show in the past. What happened with Braga in particular? Drugs, divorce, general stupidity?

[ROM Spaceknight]

Season 1: Enjoyable. Humans getting their first taste of deep space all on their own, working out human/Vulcan issues. Needed more time on Earth [maybe just one episode] to see exactly what 22nd C humanity was like.
Best Episode - Fallen Hero
Worst Episode - Acquisition/Rogue Planet/Oasis

Season 2: Spotty. Some absolutely horrid episodes plus many so-so ones, absolutely no sense of the exploration leading toward the Federation [not a Bolian or Betazoid in sight], and a continuation of late Trek shows shamelessly recycling old Trek plots.
Best Episode - Future Tense
Worst Episode - Vanishing Point/Precious Cargo/Dawn/Horizon

Season 3: Great. A real mission and direction finally, great serialized storytelling, well fleshed out antagonists, spectacular space battles, real personal development for some crew members while Mayweather gets nothing, but all too late thanks to season 2 killing off viewership and interest.
Best Episode - Azati Prime
Worst Episode - Rajiin/North Star

Season 4: Great. Finally some world/Federation building, mining the incredibly rich history of Trek to create some great serialized episodes, still nothing for Mayweather, and a horrible finale that insulted the cast and creators of the show as well as fans.
Best Episode - In a Mirror, Darkly parts 1 & 2
Worst Episode - Bound/Daedalus/These Are The Voyages...(

I guess we can agree to disagree - for the most part. The only episode of Enterprise I didn't like was the finale - which I agree with you was awful. However, I felt that the rest of the series contained strong episodes, overall.

I am also disappointed that the series never lasted beyond four seasons, given that the show had a lot of potential storylines that could have been explored. That being said, I'm glad we got at least 4 seasons of the series - since I do find it excellent & extremely underrated.

[Powerboy]

The weakest episodes for me were Bound, Daedalus, and These Are The Voyages. The opening 2 parter had flaws but it finally resolved the Temporal Cold War in a satisfactory fashion, proving why Enterprise was so vital to the conflict. And the next episode dealing with life on Earth was something that should have happened in season 1 but it worked very well to help the crew deal with the traumas they endured.
But let's be honest...
spoilers:

When you saw Nazi Alien Dude at the end of season 3, didn't you go, "Again with the Nazi Aliens, Star Trek?!" I did. :P

end of spoilers

If I had the means, I would do a cut that literally cut out all the NG parts and just had the episode itself. I don't mind Jonathan Frakes playing Chef because then we could have speculated that he was an ancestor of Riker's.

Not sure where this T'Pol being half Romulan thing is coming from. Never heard of it. But Berman really never knew Star Trek history. He was okay to a degree on the 24th century shows but, in interviews, he would make horrible mistakes regarding TOS history and I don't mean minor things but major continuity issues.

[Choos]

I just binge watched this series on Netflix never having seen an episode before and quite enjoyed it even the boring pointless stuff. Great to see Star Trek without those ridiculous holodecks um until the last episode.

Great to see how this stuff has fed into the new Star Trek Discovery series (even if that has crazy stupid looking Klingons.)

[nx01a]

I guess we can agree to disagree - for the most part. The only episode of Enterprise I didn't like was the finale - which I agree with you was awful. However, I felt that the rest of the series contained strong episodes, overall.

I am also disappointed that the series never lasted beyond four seasons, given that the show had a lot of potential storylines that could have been explored. That being said, I'm glad we got at least 4 seasons of the series - since I do find it excellent & very underrated.

I enjoyed most of Enterprise. Please don't think I'm knocking the show... but some episodes were just IMHO bad. Same goes for any Trek show. I'll never rewatch VOY's Threshold or TOS' The Way To Eden. I agree that the show is unfortunately underrated and mischaracterized as being horrible when it honestly isn't.

If I had the means, I would do a cut that literally cut out all the NG parts and just had the episode itself. I don't mind Jonathan Frakes playing Chef because then we could have speculated that he was an ancestor of Riker's.
Not sure where this T'Pol being half Romulan thing is coming from. Never heard of it. But Berman really never knew Star Trek history. He was okay to a degree on the 24th century shows but, in interviews, he would make horrible mistakes regarding TOS history and I don't mean minor things but major continuity issues.

A Jonathan Frakes cameo as Chef would have been awesome and exactly the kind of nod to TNG that fans would have loved.
The best thing Berman did in the final years was bringing in Manny Coto, a man who truly loved and knew Trek, to be ENT's showrunner.
After the cancellation, the writers talked about the possibility of revealing that T'Pol's father was a Romulan agent on Vulcan had season 5 happened.
"In a potential season five episode, writer/producer Mike Sussman hoped to have T'Pol finally meet her father, planning to reveal to the audience that T'Pol's father was instead a Romulan agent who had posed as a Vulcan officer prior to faking his own death. The suggestion that T'Pol was half-Romulan would have shed light on her affinity for Humans as well as her interest in experimenting with emotions." - taken from the excellent Memory Alpha wiki.

[ROM Spaceknight]

I agree that the show is unfortunately underrated and mischaracterized as being horrible when it honestly isn't.

A Jonathan Frakes cameo as Chef would have been awesome and exactly the kind of nod to TNG that fans would have loved.

After the cancellation, the writers talked about the possibility of revealing that T'Pol's father was a Romulan agent on Vulcan had season 5 happened.
"In a potential season five episode, writer/producer Mike Sussman hoped to have T'Pol finally meet her father, planning to reveal to the audience that T'Pol's father was instead a Romulan agent who had posed as a Vulcan officer prior to faking his own death. The suggestion that T'Pol was half-Romulan would have shed light on her affinity for Humans as well as her interest in experimenting with emotions." - taken from the excellent Memory Alpha wiki.

Yes, over the years I've heard people - especially Trek fans - say that Enteprise is terrible. I completely disagree with this, and attest that it's the best Star Trek show out there. Yes, I've never seen a full episode of Voyager, Deep Space Nine, or the new series. But, what separates Enterprise from both TOS & TNG-on series is that it's set at the beginning of Earth's capability for Space Travel, and so everything is new to the characters (aliens, etc.). As such, the series has a "freshness" that IMHO is missing from the other series.

I also wouldn't have minded JF having a cameo in the show playing another character, either. I just hated seeing his as "Number One" in the Enterprise finale.

Too bad that Enterprise didn't last for a fifth season. I guess bad ratings had a lot to do with this. I don't think people gave this a chance. That being said, at the time the show was on I wasn't watching it either - but I had a good excuse, since my TV didn't have a lot of channels (I've never had cable), so wasn't able to see the show even if I wanted to. I did catch the entire series much later on DVD.