I just don't think Enterprise had any way to win. No matter what they tried to do, they couldn't make any single group happy, and the ratings just kept going down and down into oblivion.
The people that watched Star Trek: The Original Series missed the likable characters and the goofy surrealism...the pure exploration. The entire first season was a treatise of how humans were being held back by the Vulcans, when the entire point of TOS was the triumph of humanity in the inhumanity of space.
The people that watched Star Trek: The Next Generation were missing the far flung technology of the Galaxy class starship. The writers clearly didn't have any ideas to bridge 21st century Earth and the world of the Original Series, so by the time the series was over, they'd all but accepted photon torpedoes, human-safe transporters, the universal translator, warp drive...all the same things were there, just a little slower and 'more primitive'. If they say so.
The people that watched Deep Space Nine weren't seeing the depth of drama they were probably hoping for.
Last of all, of course, the people that were going to be picky about how the series was presented weren't going to be happy no matter what the series was.
I lost interest about halfway through the first season, because it felt to me they'd tried to make The Original Series, only with a warp 5 engine and the same aliens we've all come to know and love. I just didn't get it.
I guess perhaps I was strange, because I sort of liked the Xindi saga. The funny thing was, it was both a victory and defeat for the writers. On the good side, they finally gave the crew of Enterprise 'something to do'. Something high stakes that gave characters the desperation and determination to shape them. ...and, on the bad side, it gave the crew of Enterprise something to do. They had to resort to this because two seasons of show more or less showed that Enterprise had nowhere to go - and little to do. You can interpret it either way.
Enterprise tried to be everything for every fan of Star Trek. That's why it just didn't succeed...because it was too generalized to appeal to anyone. Nit-pickers, drama fans, technology buffs, action fans, science-fiction fans. I suspect most people who watched the series felt like that one thing that they wanted to see was missing.
I suppose I disagree with the idea that a 'reboot' will help. It will help some fans warm to Star Trek, but it will completely alienate the ones who want the world of Star Trek to be a beautiful straight line of time whose stories are told once. I could think of plenty of ways the series could branch off, but someone will dislike it horribly:
Starfleet Academy Rock 'n Roll High School: the story of a single cadet through his learning years. Plus: the chance to finally see what the heck a cadet actually learns there. Minus: Saved by the bell meets double secret probation.
Star Trek: The Romulan Wars: The series to follow Enterprise in the timeline, all about the Romulan War of the 22nd century. Plus: Lots of action and a war saga for the fans of that. Minus: The fans who want humanity, heavy science, and a focus on a single ship aren't going to get it. The battleship Bismarck wasn't interesting because it triumphantly blew up ships day after day; it's remembered because of the chase after it and its destruction by the British.
Star Trek: Excalibur: The story of the original series' Enterprise's sister ship, Excalibur, complete with adventures and interplanetary hopping. Plus: The fans of the original series get what they want, except they'll complain about the updated sound effects, uniforms, and the fact that it was filmed in HDTV. Minus: The series finale involves the ship being blown up by the M-5 computer on the USS Enterprise. Oops.
...bah. I just don't see a way for the Star Trek franchise to dig up a series that will satisfy everyone, and I suppose that's my point. I can think of great series they could make, and a few horrible ones...but I just don't see how they can make a series that'll ever get a 30 share in the Neilsens. They're just going to have to pick the fans they want to satisfy, and build a series around it.
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rosecarmine
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-12 04:11 am (UTC)The people that watched Star Trek: The Original Series missed the likable characters and the goofy surrealism...the pure exploration. The entire first season was a treatise of how humans were being held back by the Vulcans, when the entire point of TOS was the triumph of humanity in the inhumanity of space.
The people that watched Star Trek: The Next Generation were missing the far flung technology of the Galaxy class starship. The writers clearly didn't have any ideas to bridge 21st century Earth and the world of the Original Series, so by the time the series was over, they'd all but accepted photon torpedoes, human-safe transporters, the universal translator, warp drive...all the same things were there, just a little slower and 'more primitive'. If they say so.
The people that watched Deep Space Nine weren't seeing the depth of drama they were probably hoping for.
Last of all, of course, the people that were going to be picky about how the series was presented weren't going to be happy no matter what the series was.
I lost interest about halfway through the first season, because it felt to me they'd tried to make The Original Series, only with a warp 5 engine and the same aliens we've all come to know and love. I just didn't get it.
I guess perhaps I was strange, because I sort of liked the Xindi saga. The funny thing was, it was both a victory and defeat for the writers. On the good side, they finally gave the crew of Enterprise 'something to do'. Something high stakes that gave characters the desperation and determination to shape them. ...and, on the bad side, it gave the crew of Enterprise something to do. They had to resort to this because two seasons of show more or less showed that Enterprise had nowhere to go - and little to do. You can interpret it either way.
Enterprise tried to be everything for every fan of Star Trek. That's why it just didn't succeed...because it was too generalized to appeal to anyone. Nit-pickers, drama fans, technology buffs, action fans, science-fiction fans. I suspect most people who watched the series felt like that one thing that they wanted to see was missing.
I suppose I disagree with the idea that a 'reboot' will help. It will help some fans warm to Star Trek, but it will completely alienate the ones who want the world of Star Trek to be a beautiful straight line of time whose stories are told once. I could think of plenty of ways the series could branch off, but someone will dislike it horribly:
Starfleet Academy Rock 'n Roll High School: the story of a single cadet through his learning years. Plus: the chance to finally see what the heck a cadet actually learns there. Minus: Saved by the bell meets double secret probation.
Star Trek: The Romulan Wars: The series to follow Enterprise in the timeline, all about the Romulan War of the 22nd century. Plus: Lots of action and a war saga for the fans of that. Minus: The fans who want humanity, heavy science, and a focus on a single ship aren't going to get it. The battleship Bismarck wasn't interesting because it triumphantly blew up ships day after day; it's remembered because of the chase after it and its destruction by the British.
Star Trek: Excalibur: The story of the original series' Enterprise's sister ship, Excalibur, complete with adventures and interplanetary hopping. Plus: The fans of the original series get what they want, except they'll complain about the updated sound effects, uniforms, and the fact that it was filmed in HDTV. Minus: The series finale involves the ship being blown up by the M-5 computer on the USS Enterprise. Oops.
...bah. I just don't see a way for the Star Trek franchise to dig up a series that will satisfy everyone, and I suppose that's my point. I can think of great series they could make, and a few horrible ones...but I just don't see how they can make a series that'll ever get a 30 share in the Neilsens. They're just going to have to pick the fans they want to satisfy, and build a series around it.