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ARTICLE
DVD Review: Star Trek Enterprise - The Complete Second Season
by Jim Pappas Published: July 24, 2005
Scott Bakula as Capt. Jonathan Archer
Jolene Blalock as T’Pol
Connor Trinneer as Cmdr. Charles “Trip” Tucker III
Dominic Keating as Lt. Malcom Reed
John Billingsly as Dr. Phlox
Anthony Montgomery as Ens. Travis Mayweather
Linda Park as Ens. Hoshi Sato
Some years ago at the annual Loscon convention held every Thanksgiving weekend at the Burbank Hilton hotel (until last year when it was moved to the LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) Marriott), a panel discussion was held that was led by Bjo Trimble and two other Paramount studio representatives whose names escape me. This panel was about the future of “Star Trek” and those of us in attendance were asked our opinions about in what direction we felt “Trek” should be headed after the conclusion of the “Star Trek: Voyager” series. Well, I made the suggestion that the show should go back to its roots, feature a ship named “Enterprise” and take place in the period of history prior to the original series of Captain Kirk and crew. Thus, no one was as surprised as I when “Enterprise” was born in the fall of 2001. I had no idea, however, that what the producers of the show, Rick Berman and Brannon Braga, would do was attempt to take the legacy in a different and, as it turned out, ill-advised direction.
Paramount has now released the entire 2nd season of “Enterprise” in a 7 disc package that features the obligatory outtakes, and other special features that take up most of the 7th disc. Deleted scenes are attached to various episodes on other discs. Some of the more interesting extras include interviews with ST:TNG’s LeVar Burton, who directed “First Flight,” 1st assistant director David Trotti, who discusses how they recreated the Klingon penal colony of Rura Penthe first seen in “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country,” and a profile of Jolene Blalock (T’Pol). I also must admit that I like the futuristic box the set comes in, and I especially like the menu screens that are reminiscent of display panels on board the Enterprise.
Season 2 is comprised of a number of well written and exciting episodes that lead up to the season finale “Expanse,” including one of my favorites from the series “Carbon Creek” (the 2nd show of the season) which is about T’Pol’s great-grandmother and her adventures on 20th century Earth. The second season also introduces us to the Tholians, and the Tellarites, both species we are familiar with from earlier incarnations of “Star Trek.” This 2nd season of “Enterprise” was more like the original series than any of the other seasons, as it made exploration and discovery, as well as character study, the focus, staying away, mostly, from the Temporal Cold War and Xindi conflict that dominates the 3rd season.
I don’t know at what point the producers mistakenly decided to take “Enterprise” into the long story arc involving the Xindi attack upon Earth that leads the ship into the area of space called “The Expanse” that is discussed in the final episode of season 2, but it wasn’t until season 4 that the series reclaimed the name “Star Trek” and became the show most fans had anticipated when the series was announced. I really believe that what Paramount tried to do with “Enterprise” was find a new audience for the franchise, one that wasn’t necessarily enamored with the previous series and films, and did so by changing the basic concepts that had made Trek the great idea that it is. This was, in hindsight, a big mistake and succeeded only in driving away many of the fans whose dedication had made “Star Trek” a financially and artistically successful venture. I believe what Rick Berman and Brannon Braga lost sight of was the fact that those who are Trek fans, are Trek fans, and that it really isn’t possible to attract anyone new to the idea. You are either already someone who watches and loves “Star Trek,” or you aren’t. Maybe 20 years from now, after the series has lain dormant for that long, it will be possible to find new viewers who are seeking something different from the Trek universe, but for the time being that just won’t happen.
Oddly enough, as I sat down and began watching these episodes, shows that I had not watched since their initial airings, I found that I liked them more than I did the first time through. Now that the series has been cancelled, and for the first time in many years we do not have a current Star Trek series in production and on the air, I find that I miss “Enterprise” despite its initial flaws. Paramount is planning a feature film that will focus on the Romulan War with the Federation, a film that will not include any of the various TV series cast members, and maybe that will serve to revive the franchise. We will have to see what happens, of course, but for now “Star Trek” is memory, one that will hopefully live on until the day a new series is born, and with it a new generation of fans who will embrace the idea as those of us who call ourselves “Trekkers” or “Trekkies” have.
I was asked by a radio reporter, quite a few years ago at the opening of the “Star Trek Adventure” tour at Universal Studios why we fans loved the show so much. My answer to her was the same as I would give now, I love “Star Trek” because it is the future of mankind that I would like to see: The human race involved peacefully with other alien species, working together to make life better for everyone. As I watch our own planet struggle with the problems we are all facing today, I can’t help but think that the real salvation for us all lies “out there” and that if we will all just “boldly go where no one has gone before,” the pettiness that divides us will slowly melt away. “Star Trek” has opened a door and all we have to do is walk through it.
Some years ago at the annual Loscon convention held every Thanksgiving weekend at the Burbank Hilton hotel (until last year when it was moved to the LAX (Los Angeles International Airport) Marriott), a panel discussion was held that was led by Bjo Trimble and two other Paramount studio representatives whose names escape me. This panel was about the future of “Star Trek” and those of us in attendance were asked our opinions about in what direction we felt “Trek” should be headed after the conclusion of the “Star Trek: Voyager” series. Well, I made the suggestion that the show should go back to its roots, feature a ship named “Enterprise” and take place in the period of history prior to the original series of Captain Kirk and crew. Thus, no one was as surprised as I when “Enterprise” was born in the fall of 2001. I had no idea, however, that what the producers of the show, Rick Berman and Brannon Braga, would do was attempt to take the legacy in a different and, as it turned out, ill-advised direction.
