Enterprise on Channel 4 in the UK

[on:]

I just wanted to know what everyone thinks of 'Enterprise' being stuck in the dismal T4 section of Channel 4 on a Sunday afternoon.

Personally I think it sucks in a big way, particularly losing the end titles to that pair of morons who 'present' T4. (If only I had Sky!)

As for tonight's episode, "Regeneration", I think it was the one that 'Jumped the Shark' (if I've used that term in the correct context). I think it has moved the show on to the next level, I just hope they keep it up.

[Reply #1 on:]

Jumping the Shark is a bad thing, that's the point when it started to go downhill.

I sorta watch Enterprise and i agree that the timeslot is pretty awkward and my parents don't exactly like the show (Even if there's not much else on). Problem is it often overlaps into dinner.

[Reply #2 on:]

I suppose you could use "Jump The Shark" in that way, since it's technical definition is "when the show is no longer about what it was originally intended to be about".

Usually it's used in a derogatory context, though.

As for T4, I swear, I hate those idiots. SG-1 is stuck in there as well along with Enterprise, and I just wish somebody would throttle them to stop making stupid comments before and after the shows.

There is a thread around for Enterprise commenting, but I will say this about "Regeneration" - it wasn't all that bad. It was a nice way to use the First Contact plot line but unfortunately it smacks of unoriginality (in the same way pretty much all of Voyager's Seasons 5 onwards did). The Enterprise Ferengi episode is another example of this.

[Reply #3 on:]

Why does the woman have to present T4, her voice is just so annoying!

[Reply #4 on:]

I'm never punctual enough to catch the beginning of either Enterprise or Stargate (which would be my preference) and after the episode I'll switch to something else, who watches the credits anyway?
Well, for the awesome SG-1 theme tune maybe...

[Reply #5 on:]

I'd agree it was a great episode, I guess I messed up using the term 'Jumped the Shark' as I actually think the show is getting better. I hope they have some more episodes with the sort of edge this one had.

As for Voyager, I don't know that I ever really got into that.

[Reply #6 on:]

 

Originally posted by CyberKnight:
There is a thread around for Enterprise commenting, but I will say this about "Regeneration" - it wasn't all that bad. It was a nice way to use the First Contact plot line but unfortunately it smacks of unoriginality (in the same way pretty much all of Voyager's Seasons 5 onwards did). The Enterprise Ferengi episode is another example of this.

::refrains from ranting about DS9, V'Ger and general Star Trek again::

See, I can be classy when I want to. 

Though I agree that the use of the Ferengi and the Borg is pretty darn lazy. The writers have an entire universe to explore (not to mention a Federation to form, heck they even have a well-established war (the Romulan-Earth) to build up to and evolve if they crave space-battles) and they bring back two of the oldest races in the post-TOS franchise. One that used to be cool, and one that was never anything but akward.

Granted I've never seen Enterprise (maybe I'll get around to it sometime), but those two plot-lines doesn't exactly up my enthusiasm.

Okay, so it became a mini-rant. Sue me. 

[Reply #7 on:]

I can't stand those idiots on T4 either. All the do is take the mick out of enterprise and stargate EVERY WEEK. We don't all want to watch the same old episodes of Friends again and AGAIN!

[Reply #8 on:]

 

Originally posted by superfryguy:
I just wanted to know what everyone thinks of 'Enterprise' being stuck in the dismal T4 section of Channel 4 on a Sunday afternoon.

Frankly I don't give a toss.  I've already seen every episode on Sky.  Even if I hadn't, there are far bigger problems with Enterprise than a poor time slot.  You think "Regeneration" is bad, your head will spin when you see some S3 episodes.

[Reply #9 on:]

 

Originally posted by superfryguy:
'Enterprise' ... s...uck...s ... a...s...S

FIXED.

[Reply #10 on:]

I hate those morons, they, or some other morons, used to talk over the credits of Futurama when it was in that time slot as well 

I tape SG 1 and Enterprise and fast forward through those morons.

[Reply #11 on:]

One of the many, many problems with Enterprise is that the's show's strayed wildly away from it's original premise, that of a prequel to the original series.

Now look at the new Star Wars movies.  They may have been uneven in their quality, but at least you can see the universe of the original trilogy being built.

Enterprise never got it right.  In the first season they acquired all the Kirk-era tachnology far too quickly.  The transporter* was there from the beginning along with "phase pistols"**, while forcefields and photon torpedoes wre developed really quickly, and even holodeck technology turned up on an alien ship.

The writers have also used dramatic cheats to allow the inclusion of races who really shouldn't be there.  The Ferengi and the Borg - both encountered for the first time in TNG - turn up, but it's okay because he never hear the names of their races. 

And then there's the new aliens we've seen on Enterprise who don't turn up in any future Trek series.  Denobulans, Suliban, Xindi, the list goes on and on.

IMO, Enterprise should have been about the four races that originally formed the Federation (Humans, Vulcans, Andorians, Tellarites), and how the Federation came to be formed.  The first season looked as if it might be heading in that direction, with humans and Vulcans mistrustful of each other, and the Vulcans at war with the Andorians.  But in the third series they've lost the plot completely, abandoning the prequel premise in favour of an abysmal 9/11 analogy.

Still, there is some good news.  IF (and it's a big IF) UPN renew Enterprise for another year, there's strong rumours that many of it's top personnel (including Braga and even Rick Berman) will be given the boot, and fresh blood brought in.  Really this should've been done five years ago after Insurrection, sadly it's probably going to come too late to save the show.

*I've noticed that the transporter is increasingly being used as a plot deivce to extricate crew members from dangerous situations.

**So the Enterprise crew have rudimentary phasers, while 100 years later, Captain Pike's crew carried lasers.  Yeah.  That makes sense.

[Reply #12 on:]

Don't forget replicators in that episode where the ship's being repaired!  (Which actually showed a nice little bit of continuity from the previous episode).

Ah, but they claim Enterprise is set in a different timeline to the one we know and love - the timeline created when the Enterprise-E went back in time with the Borg in "First Contact" (which, if you think about it, means Picard and co never returned to their "original" timeline).

Then you've got all the "temporal cold war" stuff that's supposed to be screwing up the timeline.

(Discontinuity? In B&B Star Trek? Never!    )

To be honest, I think what TPTB actually want is a show set in the 25th century. Only problem is they've used up all major premises for that which would allow space travel (New Enterprise, Space Station, Lost In Space), so they just added in that it's a prequel to flesh it out.

The trouble is, Enterprise can actually be very good. An episode like "Dear Doctor" is a fantastic Prime Directive episode, IMHO (despite the fact the Prime Directive hasn't even been invented yet).

They just have an obsession with "sex episodes" and explosions.

In a way, it would probably be best if Enterprise was taken off UPN and instead run in first-run syndication. It certainly didn't hurt TNG or DS9.

But what I really think the franchise needs is a good long rest. Since TNG first aired back in the eighties we've almost had 20 straight years of Star Trek shows and movies. They've been through at least five crews (Kirk, Picard, Sisko, Janeway, Archer) and created several great villian species, most of which have been subsequently ruined.

After all, the long break for the Bond movies helped.

 

Originally posted by Nixorbo:
 FIXED.

You do realise the entire word "sucks" was already in that quote, without any editing?   

[Reply #13 on:]

 

Originally posted by CyberKnight:
Don't forget replicators in that episode where the ship's being repaired!    (Which actually showed a nice little bit of continuity from the previous episode).

Good point.  But what was that food slot on Kirk's Enterprise - a replicator or just a delivery point?

 

Ah, but they claim Enterprise is set in a different timeline to the one we know and love - the timeline created when the Enterprise-E went back in time with the Borg in "First Contact" (which, if you think about it, means Picard and co never returned to their "original" timeline).

Then you've got all the "temporal cold war" stuff that's supposed to be screwing up the timeline.

They're talking bollocks.  In Voyager's "Relativity", Seven cites ST:FC as an example of how the Borg's attempt to interfere with history resulted in history playing out the way it was meant to.

 

To be honest, I think what TPTB actually want is a show set in the 25th century. Only problem is they've used up all major premises for that which would allow space travel (New Enterprise, Space Station, Lost In Space), so they just added in that it's a prequel to flesh it out.

Actually the "new Enterprise" theme might've worked.  Although the show superficially sounds like TNG, by setting it in the 25th century, you'd be able to create new aliens and new political alliances without trampling over established continuity.

 

The trouble is, Enterprise can actually be very good. An episode like "Dear Doctor" is a fantastic Prime Directive episode, IMHO (despite the fact the Prime Directive hasn't even been invented yet).

They just have an obsession with "sex episodes" and explosions.

Again, good point.  With very few exceptions the thoughtfulness has been taken out of Star Trek, and what's left feels like a shoddily done action flick.

 

In a way, it would probably be best if Enterprise was taken off UPN and instead run in first-run syndication. It certainly didn't hurt TNG or DS9.

You're too late.  Enterprise is already tainted by failure.  Star Trek should go back to syndication, but with an all new show.

 

But what I really think the franchise needs is a good long rest. Since TNG first aired back in the eighties we've almost had 20 straight years of Star Trek shows and movies. They've been through at least five crews (Kirk, Picard, Sisko, Janeway, Archer) and created several great villian species, most of which have been subsequently ruined.

I'll agree with that too.  In 17 years there's been 5 films and 600 episodes, compared to 695 in 27 years for Doctor Who.  It's virtually impossible to maintain that level of output whilst keeping the quality high, as we're starting to find out with The Simpsons.

[Reply #14 on:]

Looking through a page on another MB discissing Enterprise's impending cancellation, I came across this nugget:

 

"It's fiction. It's not supposed to make sense." --a Trekweb poster defending Brannon Braga's scripts

How can anyone BE that dumb?

So did anyone see the episode where Archer and T'Pol travel back to the 21st century?  It was crap!  The plot was so wafer thin it defies belief:

*Daniels tells Archer there are Xindi in 21st century Detriot
*Enterprise travels back in time
*Archer and T'Pol drive around for a bit, then find the guy who's halping the Xindi
*The Guy leads them to the Xindi
*Shootout and chase scene.
*Xindi all die, virus isn't released.  Hurray!

In addition, where did all the people go?  Other than the final scene, Archer and T'Pol are the only regulars who appear.  And the guest cast is wafer thin - Daniels, the guy, the hooker and a couple of Xindi.

Even worse is the synopsis for next week's episode - religious fundamentalist suicide bombers take over Enterprise.  Oh for crying out loud!

[Reply #15 on:]

Enterprise : for lack of a better discription; is fucking crap.
Its set earlier than ST:TOS yet looks and has far superior technology then the original.

I stopped watching after the pilot.

Edit - Oh, and if your gonna stick a sexy female vulcan in the mix then atleast give her a decent haircut!

[Reply #16 on:]

I've seen a few episodes but it's completely lifeless. For a while I thought they might be onot an original premise- setting the series before all the others might be a good oppurtunity for a 'retro' feel. Then I saw the designs for the ship and just gave up. From the outset, all the 'limitations' of the time period have been ignored. All the fuss about lack of transporter technology, or even better, the universal translator (how often does the Enterprise come across a new species who happen to speak perfect English?!?) and yet it has practially zero impact on the plot. And now, digging out the Borg and the Ferengi just show how much they are clinging to Star Trek's previous success. Either Star Trek needs a long break to develop new ideas, or it should be dropped altogether.

But at least Captain Archer is a decent captain. Voyager really nosedived as soon as Janeway became an arrogant cow.

[Reply #17 on:]

 

Originally posted by Lurrr:
the universal translator (how often does the Enterprise come across a new species who happen to speak perfect English?!?)

When Enterprise started, they made a big thing of explaining how Hoshi was the linguist, and how it was her vital job to learn all these alien languages.

I predicted then that as soon as the producers realised it'd be inconvenient to have a new language every week, all the aliens would start speaking English and Hoshi would become a background character.  The same thing happened to a lesser extent to Daniel Jackson on Stargate.

 

But at least Captain Archer is a decent captain. Voyager really nosedived as soon as Janeway became an arrogant cow.

They're both shite, if you ask me.

[Reply #18 on:]

I'll take (bald, goateed) Sisko over either of them any day of the week.

[Reply #19 on:]

At least picard was man enough to admit he was bald....  right, what are we talking about again?

[Reply #20 on:]

Someone, at sometime, came up with the euphemistic term "Franchise Fatigue". I think that it could be applied to "Enterprise", and probably, to a great deal, to most of ST:TNG's successors.

I think the sad truth is that most people aren't 'fatigued' by the whole Trek franchise, they're just bored of it!

I think that is a great shame, as it can have a negative effect on the previous incarnations of the show.

To use an analogy, by the time X-Files came to its long overdue end, I was utterly bored to death of it. However, I have recently been watching the first series again, and have decided it was a pretty great show... at least at the time.

It just occurs to me that the Star Trek franchise could end up falling into this trap.

[Reply #21 on:]

 

They're both shite, if you ask me.

At least Archer hasn't got a coffee addiction, or completely screwed the timeline to save a few measly crew members (and have a catfight with the Borg Queen).

 

It just occurs to me that the Star Trek franchise could end up falling into this trap.

It's already fallen into that trap. I recently picked up the third season TNG DVDs and was just blown away at how great it was! Since it's been years since I've watched TNg properly I just couldn't recall seeing such a top quality series! It made me realise that it's better to quit while you're ahead rather than drag it out- and Star Trek has been dragging it for nearly a decade now.

[Reply #22 on:]

Star Trek: The Next Generation is, IMO, one of TV's most underrated shows.  It managed to reinvent Star Trek whilst still keeping faithful to the original.  And it kick-started American TV sci-fi, which had been floundering since Galactica 1980 was axed.  It continually got huge ratings for a non-network show, it's final season earned it a "Best Drama" Emmy nomination (a near impossibility for a sci-fi show), and when the final episode aired in the US it made the national news in the UK.

How is it remembered today?  Sci-fi fans talk disparigingly of it because Voyager and Enterprise have turned the Star Trek franchise into a joke.  Sci-fi critics ignore it's importance to the sci-fi genre, continually telling us instead how great B5 and Buffy are, and how it was The X-Files that revitalised TV sci-fi in the early 90s.  And cult TV "experts" deride the show as never living up to the standard of the "timeless" original.  It makes me sick.   

[Reply #23 on:]

i enjoy watching enterprise on a sunday afternoon. the episode that progress the sulaban story are the only one that i pay close attention to, as that storyline really has me hooked. i'd prefer to watch only the episode that progress that story back to back if i ever got the chance. maybe if it gets a full dvd release i can edit my own massive enterprise movie, maybe 10-15 episodes long.

[Reply #24 on:]

I've just watched the episode where

Show spoiler

Shran and the Andorians help Enterprise steal the prototype off the Xindi.  Is it my imagination or was that Andorian chick hot?