What is your honest opinion of Enterprise?

[BillJ]

I think for being emotionless and based in logic the Vulcans came across with a lot of anger.

All you have to do is look towards the episode Strange New World to figure why the Vulcans' are grumpy.

Starfleet captain wants to beam down to a newly discovered world without doing any type of evaluation, despite your advice, would cause me to have fits of pure anger...

"Oh my god! Are you fucking retarded? We could step off the shuttlepod and drop dead from some alien bacteria! Please don't tell me you're the most intelligent Captain Starfleet has!"

 

[futureboy]

Might want to go back and (re)watch Star Trek: The Original Series.

Aw, man. Do I have to?
Still, you make really good points. There is a classic line in DS9 (from 'In the Cards') where Nog says "It's not my fault your species decided to abandon currency-based economics in favor of some philosophy of self-enhancement."
DS9 proved that sometimes the theory works better than the practice. But it's still something to aspire to for us on earth, so long as we never come across a species like the ferengi.
That being said, I still think ST was at it's best when embracing a more global vision (like the mutli-faceted cast of TOS) than the american one (ie: the predominantly white cast of Enterprise). Far be it for me to argue with a frickin Commodore, though.
In other news, I'm learning to quote (yay) and have 47 posts til I get my avatar.

 

[Noname Given]

than the american one (ie: the predominantly white cast of Enterprise).

(One, please reallize I've been a fan of Star Trek since 1969 and TOS is #1 with ENT #2..)
Huh? TOS is a multi-racial cast while ENT is 'mostly white?

TOS:
----
Cpt. Kirk: White (American)
Dr. Leonard McCoy (American)
Mr. Scott: White (Scottish)
Lt. Uhura: African
Lt. Sulu: Asian (Japanese)
Ensign Chekov: White (Russian)
Mr. Spock: Alien (Vulcan)
ENT:
----
Cpt. Archer: White (American)
Dr. Phlox: Alien (Denobulan)
Cmdr. Charles Tucker (Trip): White (American)
Ensign Hoshi Sato: Aisian (Japanese)
Ensign Travis Mayweather: African desent (Space Boomer)
Lt. Malcom Reed: White (British)
Sub Commander T'Pol: Alien (Vulcan)

^^^
Sorry, but overall, the cast's characters are rather similar as far as multi-national and mukti-racial goes.

 

[BillJ]

Sorry, but overall, the cast's characters are rather similar as far as multi-national and mukti-racial goes.

Which is a common ratio across all the series.

 

[futureboy]

I didn't want to get myself into trouble this quickly, but it seems I have. So lets see if I can talk my way out of this.
Since TOS, producers have worked hard to give us a well-balanced cast, no argument. But what needs to be considered is what is done with the cast.
This is where my TOS blindspot may bite me in the ass, but it seems (from the movies at least) that those cats are fleshed out more, given more to do, or at least stand out more as actual characters rather than just cardboard cut-outs.
Do Hoshi and Mayweather actually do anything on ENT, really? Are their respective characters integral to the crew or could it have been anyone in their place? Their potential was completely wasted as producers overlooked them.
It seems to me that TOS without Sulu, or Chekhov, or Uhura is a stark and naked place indeed, while ENT only appeared to care about their so-called Big Three (of boring).
Also, while I don't deny that T'Pal and Spock were clearly alien characters, they're still white - and this is an argument I will pursue no farther as it brings me dangerously close to praising Voyager and that I will never do.

 

[BillJ]

I didn't want to get myself into trouble this quickly, but it seems I have. So lets see if I can talk my way out of this.

Despite what some will tell you... this is a discussion board. A place to come and discuss Star Trek.

It seems to me that TOS without Sulu, or Chekhov, or Uhura is a stark and naked place indeed, while ENT only appeared to care about their so-called Big Three (of boring).

There are many episodes of TOS where Uhura, Sulu and Chekov don't even appear. Hell, Chekov wasn't even added until the second season.

Enterprise was actually trying to emulate TOS by having a "big three", though they weren't nearly as successful.

 

[futureboy]

Chekov was totally there; didn't you hear about how he kept Kahn waiting for the bathroom during Space Seed? The Warlord swore he would never forget his face.
44 posts til I get an avatar and also, I appear to be an Ensign now. Looks like this board promotes faster than Voyager.

 

[F. King Daniel]

About the colour of the cast, it was the background people in Voyager and Enterprise that annoyed me with their overwhelming generic American white/blackness. Admittedly, they were limited by the local pool of background extras, but still...

Say what you will about STXI, but that movie presented a united Earth like Star Trek's never seen before. Just take a look at the nameless background people throughout - that's the Star Trek message being subliminally beamed at viewers for two hours.

 

[Captain Robert April]

Kinda tough to see all those mutliethnic background folks through the lens flares...

 

[JRoss]

I thought Enterprise had its flaws, although I didn't count continuity breaks as flaws, as it's a time travel show, thus negating continuity. Rather, I had an issue with Qonos being right next to Earth. Seems like Earth would have fallen in a war.

At the same time, Enterprise did a lot of things right. Seasons 3 and 4 were great, and the first two seasons had their highlights as well.

 

[Vincent Law]

I view Enterprise in the same way that I view Voyager - it had great potential that was wasted in favor of a mediocre attempt to replicate the TNG feel. I tend to like Enterprise just a bit more thanks to characters that are a bit more interesting than Voyager's blandness.

 

[Hathaway Brown]

I've been watching the entire series again, and I've forgotten just how good a show it was.

It never came across as stuck up as some of the episodes from the other series. There was a lot more of a can-do attitude from the characters, perhaps it was the pioneering spirit of the first warp 5 vessel.

Even though the other series introduced new species, they probably knew of Earth, Humans and the Federation. With Enterprise it was all "new"' plus the great in joke of "Earth? never heard of it".

It's a shame that it didn't get a fifth sere is but maybe it was for the best, it never jumped the shark, unlike a certain other show who's CMO became an opera star on some far flung planet.

 

[Captain Robert April]

It could be argued that the entire series was an example of the Star Trek franchise jumping the shark.

Then again, it could be argued that Star Trek had already reached that point with Voyager...

 

[F. King Daniel]

It could be argued that the entire series was an example of the Star Trek franchise jumping the shark.

Then again, it could be argued that Star Trek had already reached that point with Voyager...

If "Spock's Brain" didn't do it, if Troi floating didn't do it, if Beverly having sex with a ghost didn't do it, if Paris going at infinity speed, turning into a lizard and having babies with Janeway didn't do it, if the novel where the TNG crew meet the X-men didn't do it, if Nero merging with V'Ger in the comics didn't do it, then I don't think Trek can definitively "jump the shark".

 

[Angel4576]

What was wrong with Enterprise?

For a series set around the time of the Romulan war and the birth of the Federation, not to cornerstone the series around these key events from Treklore, instead contriving a temporal cold war maguffin, was fairly brainless.

Personally, I thought that the third season was pretty strong, but aside from that, a couple of decent episodes a season didn't make for a particularly great series. Still, probably better than Voyager though.

 

[Hathaway Brown]

^I agree, the Temporal Cold War was perhaps a step too far, but it still holds its own if you get past that.

At least they did start to show the Federations beginnings with the Coalition of Planets, and no doubt they could have had at least a full series, if not two, dedicated to the Romulan-Earth war.

If they could have pulled that off I'm sure the Cold War could have been easily dismissed as early season "finding their feet" stuff. If I remember right, DS9 didn't really hit its stride until the Dominion War kicked off.

 

[Angel4576]

^I agree, the Temporal Cold War was perhaps a step too far, but it still holds its own if you get past that.

At least they did start to show the Federations beginnings with the Coalition of Planets, and no doubt they could have had at least a full series, if not two, dedicated to the Romulan-Earth war.

If they could have pulled that off I'm sure the Cold War could have been easily dismissed as early season "finding their feet" stuff. If I remember right, DS9 didn't really hit its stride until the Dominion War kicked off.

DS9 started laying the groundwork for the Dominion early on in the second season. Likewise, TNG alluded to the Borg in the first season. Both of those shows then had a steady buildup towards the big stories. ENT by comparison had a Romulan episode early in the second season and then almost apologetically ignored it for the next couple of years. The birth of the Federation stuff they only really started getting into when the writing was on the wall that it was probably going to be cancelled.

Instead, they placed the TCW arc front and centre. Big mistake. They'd have been better ramping up the Romulan war/BotF stories earlier on.

There were some fantastic stories throughout the four years, but it was largely a wasted opportunity to fill in some of the gaps around major Trek events.

 

[Hathaway Brown]

Can't argue with that. If they had continued with the constant threat and intrigue of the Romulans then it probably would have held them in good stead for the war.

Not a lot we can do about it now though.

 

[JiNX-01]

The suits at Paramount didn't want Enterprise to do the Romulan War because they wanted to save it for a film (which will probably never be made).

 

[Hathaway Brown]

Oooh that was a smart move!

Then again when they were planning Enterprise, Nemesis was probably going to be the lead in to a Romulan war flick. Then they released said film and put paid to that idea.

Damn you Shinzon!!!