It's brainstormin' Time! Cool stuff the show coulda, shoulda done

[The Badger]

...No Starfleet yet. There are two predecessors instead, the purely exploration-oriented United Earth Space Probe Agency and the totally defense-oriented United Earthcorps Command.

...A less Star Trek-looking ship...Keep the submarine interior idea.

...Have the ship be a joint venture between UESPA and Earthcorps (a heavily-armed exploration vessel). Have the crew composed of UESPA mission specialists and Earthcorps officers & enlisted who don't always see eye-to-eye on aspects of their mission.

...No alien crewmembers aboard the ship...

...Ditch photonic torpedoes and phase cannons & pistols...

...With the exception of T'Pol as the aforementioned Number One and Phlox as a Human, the rest of the characters remain mostly the same. Mayweather is a stronger presence on the show as a lieutenant with "Kirk-like tendencies." Sato's role is also beefed up as someone with experience dealing with different alien cultures. Reed is a major from Earthcorps.

Ringship.

A lot more trouble with the technology.

A more NASA style approach to the whole crew and ship.

...

No visual communication with many races.
No Klingons.
No Ferengi.
No Borg.
More language barrier problems.
More alien aliens and worlds.
More wonders, bizarre stuff and excitement. STRANGE NEW WORLDS, for crying out loud!
No transporters.
No phasers.
No photon torpedoes.
Nuclear weapons.
No Scott Bakula.
No T'Pol and especially no Vulcans are backstabbing racist motherfucking assholes plot.
No Temporal Cold War shit.
...

That's pretty much what I've been trying for in my fanfic. The Declaration class Enterprise, a modified ringship design, is a warship built by the United Earth Military Authority, modified for deep space exploration. The entirely human crew is a mix of UESPA, UEMA, and civilian specialists. The ship is armed with plasma cannon and nuclear tipped torpedoes. No shields, no transporters.

Captain Archer actually has some experience with exploration and diplomacy, and isn't just some whiny biatch who got the job 'cos his daddy built the engines. The XO, Maria Hernandez, is career military and doesn't approve of the more laid back approach shown by the UESPA people. Trip Tucker didn't learn to fix warp drives by working as a mechanic on fishing boat engines, and despite his home spun ways has been educated at Cambridge in sub space field dynamics. And the chief scientist is a hot babe in a ridiculously tight catsuit. Well, I didn't want to mess around with the formula too much.

 

[TiberiusMaximus]

Captain Archer actually has some experience with exploration and diplomacy

That would be great.

I also think Archer should have been a fundamentally different kind of character. He was almost like a proto-Kirk, but I think it would have been more interesting if he was more like Picard.

 

[BillJ]

Captain Archer actually has some experience with exploration and diplomacy

That would be great.

I also think Archer should have been a fundamentally different kind of character. He was almost like a proto-Kirk, but I think it would have been more interesting if he was more like Picard.

Actually, he should have been a pragmatic military man. Questioning everything that went on around him and prepping for the worst-case scenario when going into unknown situations.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

I'd go for a total revamp. I'd keep Billingsley and Trinneer, and the most basic concept of the series - the first Starfleet vessel, going boldly - and rework/recast everything/everyone else.

The feel of the series would not be so 24th C-ish. It would feel more dangerous and cowboyish even than the 23rd C did.

22nd C Earth would have more similarities to our own society. The profit motive would still be a big factor, there would not be any assumptions about abundant resources.

Nobody would have the resources to send out an expensive starship just for the heck of it. There would be a very good motive - assessing Earth's very dangerous neighborhood, making alliances that could save Earth's ass, and setting up trade routes to gain vital resources that Earth lacks.

Basically, more of a sense of urgency, that these people have a vital job to do, and that failure would be catastrophic. No space tourism.

A Vulcan advisor on board would still be a good idea, but I wouldn't turn her into a joke by shoving her in a catsuit. And the Vulcans wouldn't be dicks for no reason. They should understand that exploring space to get resources and assess threats is not an option. It's vital for Earth's survival.

And since a mysterious threat is always fun, I'd have the first few seasons deal with the "Romulans" as a faceless danger. Not especially important at first, considering that space is full of dangerous, powerful alien societies (Klingons, Andorians, etc), but slowly ramping up into a serious threat that breaks out into a shootin' war around, oh, S4. Coupla years of warfare, then the allies Earth gained during the fighting found the Federation, the end.

The Romulans could easily be worked into the series even if never seen by the characters, or never seen by characters who live to tell the tale, or realize they're related to Vulcans (if they didn't see the ears, how would they know?). Or, they might realize what a political hot potato that is, and agree to keep it from public knowledge. Lots of ways to finesse this problem.

Lastly: no temporal cold war. Such inanities would be unnecessary, since the premise of the series would provide more than enough dramatic fodder.

 

[TiberiusMaximus]

Captain Archer actually has some experience with exploration and diplomacy

That would be great.

I also think Archer should have been a fundamentally different kind of character. He was almost like a proto-Kirk, but I think it would have been more interesting if he was more like Picard.

Actually, he should have been a pragmatic military man. Questioning everything that went on around him and prepping for the worst-case scenario when going into unknown situations.

You say "actually" like there's a right or wrong side here. There isn't. I disagree that Archer should have been more militaristic.

 

[JudgeDredd]

First of all, here's the Enterprise, the first of the Enterprise Class, registry NX-01.

*Someone other than Bakula as Archer.

*Weapons: EMPs from Broken Bow, no phase pistols. No torpedoes of any kind, just missiles.

*No transporter until final season, and it's still terrifying new tech.

*No Suliban or TCW.

*No Klingons until much later in the series.

*First real threat: the Andorians.

*Pilot is entitled "The Andorian Incident."

*First half of the episode deals with Archer readying the ship, putting together his crew, and the reaction of the people of Earth as the Enterprise prepares to launch on a truly historic voyage.

*Second hour of the episode is pretty much "The Andorian Incident."

*Running mythos of the show is building of the Federation.

*At some point, a time-jump occurs, a first for Trek. Some characters are gone, ship has changed, events have occurred to bring the date closer to the Romulan War and the founding of the Federation.

*Final two seasons deal with first contact with Romulans (unseen, of course) and the Romulan War.

*Final ten-episode arc deals with the end of the war, founding of the Federation, reassignment of some of the crew. Archer is promoted to Admiral, Tucker becomes captain, most of the crew moves on.

*Final episode flashes-forward to show some of what Sussman put into the Mirror Defiant's logs: we see a very old Archer and not-quite-as-old T'Pol present at the launch of the first Federation Starship Enterprise. She launches and we cut to see the NX-01 flying off into the sunset.

 

[horatio83]

You say "actually" like there's a right or wrong side here. There isn't. I disagree that Archer should have been more militaristic.

Obviously this would make no sense as Earth Starfleet is not the military.

The point of Archer being nothing but a pilot was that there aren't any textbooks or courses for Starfleet captains yet.
While his friend and competitor from First Flight had a point which is basically yours, that captains need to be more than pilots, they need to be polymaths like Picard, I doubt that it would have worked too well. This hypothetical Archer would have been far more theoretical, he would have already thought about stuff which Archer only came up with after having made certain experiences. I think it was dramatically more satisfying to see Archer blundering and being influenced by events in space. For example the Coalition of Planets is a direct result of the Xindi Crisis. Without the latter Archer would have never seen the necessity of the former.

 

[TiberiusMaximus]

^Fair enough, but I was also referring to his personality. He could be an experienced diplomat in human terms while not being completely prepared for everything he would face.

First of all, here's the Enterprise, the first of the Enterprise Class, registry NX-01.

That would be awesome.

 

[horatio83]

Kinda hard to develop skills in interspecies diplomacy with the pre-reformation Vulcans as only practice.

 

[BillJ]

That would be great.

I also think Archer should have been a fundamentally different kind of character. He was almost like a proto-Kirk, but I think it would have been more interesting if he was more like Picard.

Actually, he should have been a pragmatic military man. Questioning everything that went on around him and prepping for the worst-case scenario when going into unknown situations.

You say "actually" like there's a right or wrong side here. There isn't. I disagree that Archer should have been more militaristic.

There is a wrong side: the one they actually took with Archer. I just think that you send someone out that actually has the ability to size up potential threats before you send out the explorers and colonists.

Yes, Starfleet is the military. You don't send out NOAA boats with state-of-the-art weapons. Fishermen don't carry nukes.

Starfleet's rank structure and weapons capabilities make it a military body. When you represent the primary defense force of a political body, you are the military.

I always hated Modern Trek's take on the military. It's not a bad thing to be the military. Kirk admits to being a soldier. I'm sure Sisko considered himself a soldier and I'm certain that Archer considered himself a soldier after the Xindi affair.

DAVID: I've tried to tell you before. Scientists have always been pawns of the military.
CAROL: Starfleet has kept the peace for a hundred years. I cannot and will not subscribe to your interpretation of this event.

 

[TiberiusMaximus]

Yes, Starfleet is the military.

Yes, but it's not a typical military organization.

I always hated Modern Trek's take on the military.

That doesn't change the facts about Starfleet. Insisting that Starfleet be operated the same way as any other military body, or insisting that Starfleet officers should behave more militantly rather seems like it's missing the whole point of Trek.

And just because you don't like the way something is written doesn't mean it was the "wrong" way to write it.

 

[BillJ]

That doesn't change the facts about Starfleet. Insisting that Starfleet be operated the same way as any other military body, or insisting that Starfleet officers should behave more militantly rather seems like it's missing the whole point of Trek.

Where did I insist that it be operated the same way as any other military body?

By-the-bye: what constitutes a typical military? I bet if we go episode by episode, we can find elements of the typical military in Starfleet.

 

[TiberiusMaximus]

I'm sorry, I must have misinterpreted you.

As for my comment about a "typical military", all I mean is that Trek takes place in the future of a different universe and Starfleet doesn't have to follow the same structure or the same rules that we're familiar with. In the future, things work differently. So one can't criticize Starfleet for being different than other military organizations. And yeah, there are elements of typical militaries in Starfleet, but it's still a different kind of organization, if only because it's fictional and the same rules need not apply.

 

[BillJ]

I only see two things that differentiate Starfleet from a modern military: the ability to resign on a moments notice and that you can't be forced up the chain of command.

But in various episodes we've even seen those two tossed to the side.

 

[The Badger]

Actually, he should have been a pragmatic military man. Questioning everything that went on around him and prepping for the worst-case scenario when going into unknown situations.

I see where you are coming from with this, but I'm uncomfortable with this myself. Someone who is always looking for trouble and worst case scenarios will usually find them.

First of all, here's the Enterprise, the first of the Enterprise Class, registry NX-01.

Now that's nice. I wish I'd seen that before I'd started my fanfic, I might have gone for this design.

*Someone other than Bakula as Archer.

If he'd been given consistent writing and direction Bakula might have made a decent job of it. IMHO

*Weapons: EMPs from Broken Bow, no phase pistols. No torpedoes of any kind, just missiles.

How would missiles differentiate from torpedoes? Or is it just a change of name?

*No transporter until final season, and it's still terrifying new tech.

*No Suliban or TCW.

*No Klingons until much later in the series.

I'd say no transporter or Klingons at all, unless you had a really good story for them. And I'm with you on the Suliban and TCW. In fact, no time travel at all. It's been far too overused.

Kinda hard to develop skills in interspecies diplomacy with the pre-reformation Vulcans as only practice.

Ah, but it is only televised ENT that has humans limited to contact with the Vulcans (and at least one other species, the Denobulans. They are contributing to the Inter Species Medical Exchange Programme at the time of Broken Bow). As we are rewriting Enterprise to our own tastes, we could add a few more diplomatic contacts, as needed.

 

[BillJ]

Actually, he should have been a pragmatic military man. Questioning everything that went on around him and prepping for the worst-case scenario when going into unknown situations.

I see where you are coming from with this, but I'm uncomfortable with this myself. Someone who is always looking for trouble and worst case scenarios will usually find them.

They way I see it, this series much like Deep Space Nine is akin to How the West Was Won.

I simply would've had a character who prepared for contingencies based on his experiences than a man who bumbled through the cosmos on a deep space joyride.

Strange New World is the perfect example of why Archer was the wrong man for the job. He ignored perfectly sound advice from his first officer, advice that should've also came from the ships chief medical officer, just because he wanted to rush planetside. You could've done the same episode, with the same results without making Archer look like a rube who is spending his first day in the big city.

You can be out of your league in a given situation without looking stupid...

 

[sonak]

Archer is frequently made to look incompetent yes, and he ignores reasonable advice from the Vulcans because of his prejudice.

 

[The Badger]

I simply would've had a character who prepared for contingencies based on his experiences than a man who bumbled through the cosmos on a deep space joyride.

Strange New World is the perfect example of why Archer was the wrong man for the job. He ignored perfectly sound advice from his first officer, advice that should've also came from the ships chief medical officer, just because he wanted to rush planetside. You could've done the same episode, with the same results without making Archer look like a rube who is spending his first day in the big city.

You can be out of your league in a given situation without looking stupid...

Ah yes, that I agree with. Someone prepared and reasonable, rather than rushing in blindly. It was the 'military' part I objected to. Not that there's anything wrong with the military per se, and the captain of a heavily armed vessel should certainly know his business, but if the mission is one of peaceful exploration, the captain should be an explorer first and foremost.

 

[BillJ]

I simply would've had a character who prepared for contingencies based on his experiences than a man who bumbled through the cosmos on a deep space joyride.

Strange New World is the perfect example of why Archer was the wrong man for the job. He ignored perfectly sound advice from his first officer, advice that should've also came from the ships chief medical officer, just because he wanted to rush planetside. You could've done the same episode, with the same results without making Archer look like a rube who is spending his first day in the big city.

You can be out of your league in a given situation without looking stupid...

Ah yes, that I agree with. Someone prepared and reasonable, rather than rushing in blindly. It was the 'military' part I objected to. Not that there's anything wrong with the military per se, and the captain of a heavily armed vessel should certainly know his business, but if the mission is one of peaceful exploration, the captain should be an explorer first and foremost.

Ideally, the show should've had three components: the Vulcans trying to oversee and limit humanities growth, the military who come with a perspective of protecting Earth first and the explorers who take think science trumps all other concerns.

Each of the three factions needed to have believable reasons for their actions. Enterprise was simply a hodge-podge of characters whose actions were dictated by plot from week to week.

The Vulcan character should've been an observer representing their governments interest. With the captain/first officer each representing the military/explorer aspect, which one is which really doesn't matter.

 

[The Badger]

Well I disliked the whole 'Vulcans trying to restrict Earth's growth' concept entirely, and would drop it if it were my choice. If we are to assume Earth is near the edge of Vulcan space, then human exploration allows the Vulcans to learn more about the galaxy, without taking the risk and expense themselves. And I also don't think there should be any regular Vulcan character on board. It's Earth's first major deep space mission, not the UFP's. The crew should reflect that.

Also, every version of Trek has had an icy calm purveyor of logic to comment on the human condition (Jadzia Dax started off that way, though she later metamorphosed into party-girl mode). Do we need another rehash?

I agree though the captain and first officer should have differing approaches to the mission, one an explorer and diplomat, the other a warrior. That is a potential cause of interpersonal conflict, which makes for drama. My personal preference would be the explorer for the captain, but I can see how the other way round could work.