How big are the changes that are coming?

[HotRod]

I won't even support ENT Season 3, which I call Bush Trek.

I've never really understood the claim that Enterprise Season 3 is "Bush Trek."

Yes, the Xindi attack on Earth is an obvious allegory for 9/11. That's not really in dispute. But people who stop there are ignoring where the story actually goes.

The entire point of the season is that Archer and the crew begin with understandable anger and a desire for justice, only to gradually discover that the Xindi themselves are victims of manipulation. They weren't acting out of simple hatred or blind aggression; they had been deceived into believing humanity was an existential threat. Once the truth comes out, many of the Xindi become our allies, and together they stop the real villains behind the conflict.

If the Xindi are meant to parallel Muslims after 9/11, then the message isn't "go get them." It's almost the exact opposite. The season argues against painting an entire people as the enemy and instead encourages understanding who is actually responsible for creating fear and conflict.

The arc repeatedly challenges Archer's assumptions. He wrestles with revenge, makes questionable decisions under pressure, and ultimately succeeds not through overwhelming military force but through diplomacy, empathy, and uncovering the truth. That's a far more nuanced message than simply "America good, enemy bad."


If anything, Season 3 is a cautionary tale about fear, misinformation, and the dangers of demonizing an entire civilization because of the actions of a few. That doesn't strike me as a particularly right-wing message. It strikes me as a very Star Trek message.

 

[Lord Garth]

I've never really understood the claim that Enterprise Season 3 is "Bush Trek."

Yes, the Xindi attack on Earth is an obvious allegory for 9/11. That's not really in dispute. But people who stop there are ignoring where the story actually goes.

The entire point of the season is that Archer and the crew begin with understandable anger and a desire for justice, only to gradually discover that the Xindi themselves are victims of manipulation. They weren't acting out of simple hatred or blind aggression; they had been deceived into believing humanity was an existential threat. Once the truth comes out, many of the Xindi become our allies, and together they stop the real villains behind the conflict.

If the Xindi are meant to parallel Muslims after 9/11, then the message isn't "go get them." It's almost the exact opposite. The season argues against painting an entire people as the enemy and instead encourages understanding who is actually responsible for creating fear and conflict.

The arc repeatedly challenges Archer's assumptions. He wrestles with revenge, makes questionable decisions under pressure, and ultimately succeeds not through overwhelming military force but through diplomacy, empathy, and uncovering the truth. That's a far more nuanced message than simply "America good, enemy bad."


If anything, Season 3 is a cautionary tale about fear, misinformation, and the dangers of demonizing an entire civilization because of the actions of a few. That doesn't strike me as a particularly right-wing message. It strikes me as a very Star Trek message.

I think you're far more familiar with Enterprise than I am. You're a fan of it and I didn't absorb much in a binge during the Quarantine. That and The Old Mixer is probably looking at us right now. And you obviously put a lot of thought into that response. So, I'll let you have this.

I mentioned ENT Season 3 only as an example of how my reaction in the past sets a precedent for what my reaction would be in the future with Star Trek, the very moment I'd think, "This is Pro-Trump!"

 

[HIjol]

wonder what the big changes will be in the star trek universe

Maybe you should start a thread and ask.

Wait...what?...isn't this a...???
...oh, I see what you did there...!!!

And, my own opinion is that - aside from the diversity and inclusion factors - the next iteration of Star Trek is more likely to be a feature film, rather than some kind of series...

 

[HIjol]

I'll be the first to be against MAGA Trek if it goes that way. I won't even support ENT Season 3, which I call Bush Trek.

But... I actually think it won't come to that. Political Alert: I expect the Republicans to get wiped out in the Midterms and then to lose in 2028. They're doing a spectacular job of messing things up right now. So, I think the Trump Regime will either be out of the way or almost out of the way by the time Star Trek gets going again. It'll be the beginning of the GOP wanting to distance themselves from that "person" if only for the sake of their political survival if nothing else.

So, I don't expect we'll actually get MAGA Trek.

From Your Lips to Kahless's and Landru's ears!...

 

[El Maestro]

I've never really understood the claim that Enterprise Season 3 is "Bush Trek."

Yes, the Xindi attack on Earth is an obvious allegory for 9/11. That's not really in dispute. But people who stop there are ignoring where the story actually goes.

The entire point of the season is that Archer and the crew begin with understandable anger and a desire for justice, only to gradually discover that the Xindi themselves are victims of manipulation. They weren't acting out of simple hatred or blind aggression; they had been deceived into believing humanity was an existential threat. Once the truth comes out, many of the Xindi become our allies, and together they stop the real villains behind the conflict.

If the Xindi are meant to parallel Muslims after 9/11, then the message isn't "go get them." It's almost the exact opposite. The season argues against painting an entire people as the enemy and instead encourages understanding who is actually responsible for creating fear and conflict.

The arc repeatedly challenges Archer's assumptions. He wrestles with revenge, makes questionable decisions under pressure, and ultimately succeeds not through overwhelming military force but through diplomacy, empathy, and uncovering the truth. That's a far more nuanced message than simply "America good, enemy bad."


If anything, Season 3 is a cautionary tale about fear, misinformation, and the dangers of demonizing an entire civilization because of the actions of a few. That doesn't strike me as a particularly right-wing message. It strikes me as a very Star Trek message.

It absolutely was Bush Trek. In a HUGE way. After 9/11 the zeitgeist was very strange. I won't go into tremendous detail on it but essentially the media and wider culture were in an "everything is different now, including norms of violence" and there was a rush to reflect American's fear and desire for revenge. The Bush administration and its media allies fanned the flames of this in a big way. Popular culture responded to this. There were lots of "very special episodes" of things and while the show 24 was planned and produced before 9/11 it made some tweaks after its first season to take this vibe into overdrive and became closely associated with the post-9/11 pre-Iraq II era of pent up...well....bloodthirstiness. There were people in the media asking if torture was ok if it stopped aa terror attack, politicians crowing about it, and 24 depicted that very thing.

ENT S3 and Dark Archer were absolutely a reflection of this vibe, 100%. I remember reading interviews and think pieces about it. Trek did its version of torture apologia. It wasn't as overt as 24 but characters were questioning things that NEVER would have been questioned in any prior series. Even DS9 at its darkest wouldn't have, I don't think.

The problem is that the writing on ENT was weak. There are a lot of rose colored glasses for it now but at the time it was not widely well-regarded. The metaphor and allegory was ham-fisted and unsubtle, and the vibe it was trying to reflect was very anti-Trek. All of this combined for a dark, gloomy, but ultimately flaccid third season. Other shows would handle similar issues better (BSG is one).

You are right that 1:1 match up isn't there but the post 9/11 vibe is all over ENT before S4 and I think the show was weaker for it. It was a really strange time and I'm not sure it could've worked any other way though.

 

[fireproof78]

Which is hilarious because "The Siege" did post 9/11 way better and it was from the 90s.

 

[HotRod]

It absolutely was Bush Trek. In a HUGE way. After 9/11 the zeitgeist was very strange. I won't go into tremendous detail on it but essentially the media and wider culture were in an "everything is different now, including norms of violence" and there was a rush to reflect American's fear and desire for revenge. The Bush administration and its media allies fanned the flames of this in a big way. Popular culture responded to this. There were lots of "very special episodes" of things and while the show 24 was planned and produced before 9/11 it made some tweaks after its first season to take this vibe into overdrive and became closely associated with the post-9/11 pre-Iraq II era of pent up...well....bloodthirstiness. There were people in the media asking if torture was ok if it stopped aa terror attack, politicians crowing about it, and 24 depicted that very thing.

ENT S3 and Dark Archer were absolutely a reflection of this vibe, 100%. I remember reading interviews and think pieces about it. Trek did its version of torture apologia. It wasn't as overt as 24 but characters were questioning things that NEVER would have been questioned in any prior series. Even DS9 at its darkest wouldn't have, I don't think.

The problem is that the writing on ENT was weak. There are a lot of rose colored glasses for it now but at the time it was not widely well-regarded. The metaphor and allegory was ham-fisted and unsubtle, and the vibe it was trying to reflect was very anti-Trek. All of this combined for a dark, gloomy, but ultimately flaccid third season. Other shows would handle similar issues better (BSG is one).

You are right that 1:1 match up isn't there but the post 9/11 vibe is all over ENT before S4 and I think the show was weaker for it. It was a really strange time and I'm not sure it could've worked any other way though.

I started a thread on this in the appropriate forum.