Star Trek Enterprise: Building an Epic

Back when the premise for Enterprise was first announced, I sang the praises of Berman and Braga. I said that they had breathed much needed new life into the franchise and Star Trek would be all the better for it. After the first two seasons, however, my faith began to wane. Could Enterprise truly realize its potential?

I've never been too hard on the series to date, because I feel that all of the spinoff series have taken two years to find their way. Clearly Enterprise has been no different, and Berman and Braga have been grasping at ways to improve ratings, including getting T'Pol and Hoshi out of their clothes whenever possible. While we cannot complain about this, what the series really needs is a more compelling storyline. The Xindi threat is an attempt to do just that.

Season two ended with a devastating and unprovoked attack on Earth by an unknown species, which thankfully was not the Borg. The setup was great, and Enterprise has now set down the warpath. Deep Space Nine thrived with a conflict-filled epic tale. Can Enterprise do the same? It's hard to tell this early on.

In the case of Deep Space Nine, the battle was complex and steeped in well-established Star Trek history. This made for political intrigue, betrayal, and intense battles. The fact that Deep Space Nine also had a very religious undercurrent made things all the more interesting. Enterprise's Earth/Xindi conflict, on the other hand, is a completely contrived attempt to instill excitement into a series that has been mostly about sitting around and talking.

Despite what may appear to be a jibe at Enterprise, the new season has indeed made things more interesting and the series is maturing nicely. The real questions are: Can they keep it going? and, Can they build on it after the Earth/Xindi conflict is over?

When this is all over and they come out of the Expanse, there needs to be something that comes out of it all that the writers can use to continue building the series. A simple return to the stories we were given prior to the season-two finale just won't do. Having seen how TNG, DS9, and Voyager evolved, I am hopeful that Enterprise will come out of this conflict all the better.

So what is on the report card for Enterprise's season three thus far? I'd put a B on it. The stories are more interesting, there is a reason to watch the next week to find out where the conflict is heading, and T'Pol looks great in her new look. I do wish that they would get all of the characters a bit more involved. Enterprise has always felt like the Archer, T'Pol, and Trip Show, and this season is no different. The writers need to take more notice that Hoshi and Travis are on the ship -- the two most neglected characters (yes, I know that Hoshi did get her Beauty and the Beast episode this season) -- and create more of an ensemble feel. TNG and DS9 were both especially good ensemble efforts; with DS9 being one of the best I have seen on any TV show period. Get everyone involved!

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