To bumbly go....... (Star Trek - Enterprise)

Member Name: michaird

Product:	Star Trek - Enterprise
Date:	02/03/02 (80 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Entertaining, No expirence required

Disadvantages: Bad theme music

I have a theory that the chessyness of any given Star Trek series in proportionate to the number of incarnations to follow it. For example, when I first watched Star Trek the Next Generation I really liked it, but after I started watching Deep Space Nine it began to make me cringe. When I air this theory people look at me like I?m a mentalist and carry on as if I hadn?t spoken.

Now I?m not a great Star Trek fan, but I do like it. It?s an enjoyable programme that doesn?t seem to take itself too seriously (even though many fans do).

Applying my theory, Enterprise is hardly cheesy at all, and despite the awful theme music (which, thanks to a video, I fast forward through) I?m thoroughly enjoying the series.

The series follows on from the Next Generation film ?First Contact? In which the crew of the enterprise go back in time to ensure the first warp flight is made attracting the attention of some passing Vulcan?s, Hence first contact.

100 hundred years later, the first interstellar ship is ready to allow humans to truly explore the galaxy. The chosen captain of the ship is Jonathan Archer (Scot Bakula of Quantum Leap Fame). Archer is resentful of the Vulcan?s, he feels that they have been holding humans back in their quest for space and holds them responsible for the fact his father never got to she his life?s work, Enterprise, set sail into the great expanses of space.

Given this resentment Archer is non too happy when he ends up having to take po faced Vulcan T?pol on his maiden voyage. T?pol is obviously the eye candy of the show, at first she appears cold, miserable and pretty unpleasant although in later episodes she grows on you and appears to be softening up a little.

Other characters include:
Trip Tucker. Long time friend of captain Archer and there's the obligatory ?Archer saved my life? in there somewhere. Come across as a nice bloke, seems to spend a lot of time confused.
The Alien Dr Phlox
treats the journey as one great big social science experiment.
Lt Reed the security officer, not very interesting to be honest, I don?t remember anything about him.
Hoshi, the translator a teacher a heart she doesn?t really want to be on board but with a natural talent for languages she is needed at back up for the less than adequate universal translator.
There?s also a boomer (someone born in space) again, the name escapes me, the character has yet to be involved enough to be interesting.

My other half thinks there should be more battles ?They just seem to go round solving things? he says. I must admit, there?s not a lot of action. This ship has very little weaponry (what little they have they couldn?t aim properly), no shield and no cloaking system. My Nan in a shopping buggy could beat them, so battle scenes are thin on the ground. I don?t think it detracts too much though.

The series really is about discovery, non-trekkies can follow easily as there no need to know what a dilithium crystal is. For the most part the crew seem to be happy to bumble along through space lumbering into whatever they find without the restriction of the self righteous ?prime directive? and in the end it all ends up great as things almost always do in these things.

Summary: