star trek enterprise series finale

Star Trek: Enterprise Ending Explained: Those Were The Voyages...

"Star Trek: Enterprise" — originally just called "Enterprise," – was once considered by many Trekkies to be the black sheep of the pre-Abrams era. While it still had many of the same creative people working behind the scenes (the show was created by longtime Trek honchos Rick Berman and Brannon Braga) it deliberately struck a different tone, exploring the early, raucous days of Starfleet: before the formation of the United Federation of Planets, before the writing of The Prime Directive, way back when there was only one Earth ship trekking through the cosmos. The goal was to create a Trek show that was less anodyne than its predecessors, recapturing some of the frontier spirit occasionally seen in the original 1966 TV series. 

Other changes included an wholly updated aesthetic; the Enterprise looked a lot more like a submarine than a cruise ship, and the crew wore uniforms that looked a little bit like NASA jumpsuits. There were only two alien species aboard this time: Vulcan first officer T'Pol (Jolene Blalock) and the genial Dr. Phlox (John Billingsley), playing the previously unseen species of Denobulan. Additionally, the traditional orchestral opening of the previous five Trek TV shows was replaced by a truly, truly awful Rod Stewart ballad called "Faith of the Heart" a.k.a. "Where My Heart Will Take Me," sung by Russell "The Voice" Watson , written by Diane Warren, and originally included on the soundtrack to "Patch Adams."

"Enterprise" debuted in 2001 and was met with mixed reactions. Some critics, if recall is to be trusted, positively praised its production value and novelty, while others missed the reliable Trek iconography.

It's Been a Long Road...

When it debuted in September of 2001, "Enterprise" struggled almost immediately. Fans weren't taking to the show in the same way they took to "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" or "Star Trek: Voyager" as it was set in a new time frame which required a new push for audiences to refamiliarize themselves. What's more, it was the only Trek show on the air at the time, with "Voyager" having ended its run in May of the same year. Previous Trek shows had been doubling up, and it was the first time since 1993 there weren't at least two "Star Trek" shows on the air at the same time. "Enterprise" had a lot to prove. 

Some of the early story arcs didn't play well to mythos-minded fans, and the Temporal Cold War story, featuring an evil species called the Suliban , is rarely brought up in conversation I have with other Trekkies. A little more attention is given to the Xindi  who, in a story arc beginning in season 3, destroyed Florida in what was very clearly a 9/11 metaphor. Yes, check again the month and year of "Enterprise's" debut. 

"Star Trek: Enterprise" season 4 introduced more multiple-episode arcs, and "Star Trek," along with most TV shows at the time, began to evolve into longer-form stories and season-long arcs rather than stand-alone mini moral dilemmas that had been Trek's stock in trade for decades. But the change was too little, too late, and "Enterprise" was canceled after an inauspicious four seasons. For comparison, "Star Trek: The Next Generation," "Deep Space Nine," and "Voyager" all ran for seven years each. 

A pity, really, as some have said (anecdotally) that the show was just finding its feet.

Getting from There to Here

The final episode of "Enterprise" was ... Well, it was an interesting choice. A big part of the appeal of "Enterprise" was its placement as a prequel to the original "Star Trek" series, meaning there was a mild thrill in seeing how certain things would come to be. This was, of course, after the same thing was being done with "Star Wars" starting with "The Phantom Menace" in 1999, but before "Batman Begins" pretty much popularized the "reimagined origin story" as a dominant storytelling trope throughout pop media. All of this is to say that "Enterprise" was meant to tie into what good Trekkies knew was coming in the future. 

As such, the final episode of "Enterprise," titled "These Are the Voyages..." (originally aired on May 15th, 2005), had to rush to finally connect series back to the Treks were knew and loved. Enter Jonathan Frakes, Will Riker from "Star Trek: The Next Generation," a series that was set about 200 years after the events of "Enterprise." Rather than merely recite the official denouements of Capt. Jonathan Archer , T'Pol , Trip Tucker , Malcolm Reed , Hoshi Sato , Dr. Phlox , and the memorable, memorable character of Ensign Mayweather , we were given a broader view of "Enterprise" history as seen by William Riker, who was recreating life on the original "Enterprise" via a holodeck some 200 years after the fact.  

In "These Are the Voyages...," Riker imagined himself as the hardworking galley chef on the original Enterprise, a character that was often talked about but never seen. As Riker envisioned it, the ship's chef served as a personal confidant to the crew, allowing him to have elaborate one-on-one discussion with each character. He also wanted to talk to the crew of the Enterprise shortly before the original ship was to be decommissioned, meaning the episode was also a flash-forward. 

In short: "Enterprise" ended with a 200-year-old recreation of the future events of "Enterprise," as interpreted through the eyes of William T. Riker. The final episode of Trek was Mary Sue fanfic written by a Trek character. This is a nerd turducken of the highest order. 

This approach, of course, allowed for a great deal of convenient historical fudging on the part of "Enterprise's" writers. If there was any sort of plot or character inconsistency, a viewer could chalk it up to Riker changing history to fit his own holodeck fantasy. More broadly, it was a comment on how we, as a species, tend to romanticize history, altering our past into heroic narratives and easy-to-consume stories rather than a complex timeline of daily events. 

It's Been a Long Time

A bit of editorializing, if I may...

Reaction to "These Are the Voyages..." was largely negative. The inclusion of Riker, not to mention the eventual addition of NextGen's Counselor Troi (Marina Sirtis) robbed the "Enterprise" characters of their moment. While one can easily understand that the show's creators wanted to bring the timeline of "Enterprise" to a meaningful conclusion, skipping ahead in time and treating the show's events like a textbook column for other, different characters makes them feel distant and rarified, rather than exciting and immediate. Mild spoiler : The impersonal and abrupt death of one of the main cast members certainly didn't help either. 

If one recalls the ending of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," it was made clear that the adventures of the Enterprise-D would continue — only without us, the audience, being able to see them all. A series needn't definitively conclude if we leave comforted that everything will work out fine for the characters. Perhaps a similar approach would have made for a better final episode of "Enterprise." Please, leave us with comforting send-off that would leave audiences assured that the cast would make it safely into Trek history, even if we don't get to see it.

That second approach would also open up the Trek "expanded universe." That is: Plenty of studio-mandated novels, source books, and speculative fiction writers could fill in any gaps that were left in the narrative. Indeed, given the historical element of "Enterprise," leaving gaps in history would be perfectly appropriate. Sadly, we were left with a final episode of Trek that left a bad taste in our mouths.

Maybe that's why so many audiences embraced the 2009 "Star Trek" feature film. It was an entirely new beverage, but at least it washed away the old one.

Now, where do we rant about the Paramount+ era?

Remembering ‘Star Trek: Enterprise’s Much-Maligned Finale, 15 Years Later

Between Star Trek: Discovery ,  Picard and the newest forthcoming Star Trek series , all on streamer CBS All Access, it’s a wondrous time to be a Trekker. Fifteen years ago, however, it seemed the sci-fi franchise was ending on a sour note, leaving the airwaves for the first time in 18 years with the series finale of Star Trek: Enterprise , which turned out to be an episode many fans and critics flat-out hated .

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“These Are the Voyages…,” the series’ 98th episode, written by Enterprise co-creators Rick Berman and Brannon Braga, aired on May 13, 2005. It opens with Capt. Archer ( Scott Bakula ) piloting the Enterprise (the NX-01) home to Earth in 2161 for the ship’s decommissioning, while gearing up to give a speech at the signing of the Federation Charter. But when the voice of Star Trek: The Next Generation ’s Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes) freezes the story, viewers realize that the Enterprise ’s final journey is just a holodeck simulation.

In fact, it is the year 2370, and Commander Riker—troubled by the events of the TNG episode “The Pegasus”—is revisiting the events of the year 2161 at the urging of TNG ’s Lieutenant Commander Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis).

Riker watches as Archer, en route to Earth, gets roped into a rescue mission that ultimately claims the life of Commander Trip Tucker (Connor Trinneer). Through these holodeck visions, Riker finds inspiration for how to proceed in the Next Generation timeline.

Indeed, the holodeck contrivance and the nostalgic appearances of Riker and Troi turned off fans and critics alike. “That framing story, which is a self-serving epitaph on the part of TNG producers Berman and Braga, doesn’t do the Enterprise cast justice,” Sci Fi Weekly ‘ s Patrick Lee said at the time. “It reduces them to the status of lab rats, and Riker’s supercilious observation is condescending … It’s not surprising that the epilogue for the weakest Trek series ended up so anticlimactic.”

“For the first time ever in Trek history, a series ends with holographic versions of the real characters fans spent years following,” Phil Pirrello wrote for a Hollywood Reporter retrospective last month. “It’s shocking how much wrong they managed to pack into one normal-sized episode of television.”

Fan reactions at the time ranged from neutral to negative. “That’s how Trek comes to an end after a run of 18 consecutive years—with a somewhat ponderous whimper that still manages to show its self-affection,” fan reviewer Jamahl Epsicokhan wrote after the episode aired. “Maybe too much misdirected affection for TNG . And not enough for the characters we’ve been watching for the past four seasons.”

Commenters on Epsicokhan’s post, however, weren’t so charitable—and expressed vitriol toward Braga and Berman. “It was just a total mess,” one wrote. “Why bring back two TNG characters? Why kill off Trip? Why set it years after the previous episode? The blame lies in the people who wrote the episode, responsible for [ Enterprise ’s] failure in the first place.”

Wrote another, “What exactly did the cast of Enterprise do to deserve this finale?”

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Perhaps some of the cast members were wondering the same thing. Jolene Blalock, who played Vulcan Commander on the show, called the finale “appalling” in an interview with the Toronto Star . Anthony Montgomery, a.k.a. Ensign Travis Mayweather, told TV Zone Special , “I feel there could have been a more effective way to wrap things up for our show as well as the franchise as a whole. It just seemed to take a little bit away from what the Enterprise cast and crew worked so diligently to achieve over the past four years, do you know what I mean?”

For his part, Frakes admitted in 2008 that “everybody probably” feels the episode was a disservice to Enterprise . “The theory was it was a valentine to the fans,” he added in an IF Magazine interview, “but the reality is it was a bit of a stretch to have us shut down their show.” (Less than a year later, he said the episode “stinks.” )

What Patrick Stewart, Kelly Clarkson & More TV Stars Are Doing While Staying Home

Braga defended the episode at the time , but at a 2017 panel at the Star Trek Las Vegas convention, he gave fans a mea culpa . “I thought it was the coolest thing ever when we were writing it, the idea of doing a ‘lost episode’ of The Next Generation , but they’re going to the holodeck to look back at Enterprise ,” he said at the time, per TrekMovie.com . “Rick and I thought was a great sendoff to Star Trek , and it didn’t work out so well … It was a kind of a slap in the face to the Enterprise actors. I heard it from everybody. It was the only time Scott Bakula was ever mean to me. I regret it.”

Even a transcription site prefaces its “These Are the Voyages…” transcript with a warning: “Transcriber’s note … Worst Trek Episode Ever!”

Luckily, writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman and producer J.J. Abrams reinvigorated the franchise with the 2009 film Star Trek , which honored the original story while finding a new “final frontier” in an alternate timeline—and kicked off a $1 billion big-screen trilogy. And in 2017, the franchise returned to the small screen with Discovery , the first of many CBS All Access Star Trek series on the air or in the works.

Now that “These Are the Voyages…” isn’t the last story Trekkers will get from the franchise, perhaps they’ll come to view the episode as Sirtis did in 2005: “a good episode” but not “a good last episode.”

What did you think about the Enterprise series ender? Let us know in the comments below.

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These Are the Voyages... (episode)

• View history
• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 2 Log entries
• 3 Memorable quotes
• 4.1 Cast and crew
• 4.2 Dialogue
• 4.4.1 "The Pegasus"
• 4.5 Production
• 4.6 Reception
• 4.8 Apocrypha
• 4.9 DVD releases
• 5.1 Starring
• 5.2 Guest stars
• 5.3 Special guest appearance by
• 5.4 Co-stars
• 5.5 Uncredited co-stars
• 5.6 Puppeteers
• 5.7 Stunt doubles
• 5.8 Photo double
• 5.9 Stand-ins
• 5.10 Timeline
• 5.11 References
• 5.12 External links

Summary [ ]

Riker at the engineering station of the NX-class Enterprise

In 2161 , the bridge officers of the NX-class spacecraft Enterprise have a casual discussion on the bridge of their ship, Captain Archer exiting from his ready room midway through the conversation. The officers mention both an upcoming ceremony – the signing of a charter between the members of an interstellar alliance , for which Archer is busy writing a speech – and the similarly imminent decommissioning of Enterprise , which Archer intends to postpone until after the charter has been signed.

Following a vocal command that signals all senior officers to report to the bridge, a bearded William T. Riker – having been quietly sitting at Enterprise 's engineering station , dressed as a 22nd century Starfleet ensign of the command division – states a directive for a computer to "freeze program"; the environment of Enterprise 's bridge and the other officers therein are actually holograms , and Riker's instruction was to the computer of the real ship he is aboard. After Riker saves and ends the simulation, the resultant change in his surroundings and uniform reveal he is, in fact, serving as a commander and is in the holodeck of the USS Enterprise -D , which he promptly exits.

Act One [ ]

On board the Enterprise -D, Riker is seated with Counselor Deanna Troi in the Ten Forward lounge. He is reluctant to speak about his personal dilemma, as it is highly classified. When Troi asks about the holoprogram she recommended, Riker admits he is unsure how the simulation will help him but the counselor sarcastically replies that that is why he runs a starship and why she is a counselor, to which Riker smiles.

While later walking through a corridor , they continue to discuss the holoprogram, Troi advises Riker to skip ahead to when an Andorian contacts Enterprise and suggesting that he assume the sociable role of the vessel's chef , the only crewmember who came close to being a counselor on the ship back then. Riker agrees to remember Troi's advice. Arranging to have supper together, the pair depart, Riker stepping into a holodeck while Troi proceeds to a turbolift .

For the first time in three years, Shran contacts Captain Archer

On the simulated Enterprise bridge, Archer is shocked when Shran signals the ship, as the Andorian was believed to have died three years earlier . He says certain people, including Archer, had to think he was dead and appeals for Archer to repay a favor. As Riker watches from the engineering station, Archer wordily refuses to aid Shran, due to the closeness of the ceremony date, until the Andorian reveals that former associates of his have abducted his daughter. After Archer agrees to rendezvous with Shran, Riker freezes the program, advances it by an hour and switches it to objective mode . Passing through a door, he heads into the captain's ready room. There, Shran complains to the captain about his predicament, implying that the reason he faked his own death was due to the disreputableness of his former allies, who mistakenly believe he has stolen something of theirs and who have taken his daughter to Rigel X , a trading outpost with which Archer is familiar. Shran appeals for help with his daughter's recovery.

In the captain's quarters, Riker witnesses Commander T'Pol object to the possibility of aiding Shran. Archer retorts to her objections, reminding T'Pol that Shran helped him gain access to the Xindi weapon and that she has never trusted Andorians. Ultimately, T'Pol relents. Archer asks her to visit the galley as the ship's chef is about to prepare the crew's final meal. After T'Pol exits, Archer assures Porthos that the chef has promised at least six varieties of cheese .

As the chef of the NX-class Enterprise , Riker talks with T'Pol

" Thanks. "

Posing as Enterprise 's chef, Riker has a lengthy conversation with T'Pol in the galley, who is unenthusiastic about both selecting a dish – although Riker has already begun to make plomeek broth for her – and the ship's detour. Riker defends Archer's decision to help Shran, assuring T'Pol that the vessel likely won't miss the ceremony. In response to Riker inquiring if she misses "Trip" Tucker , T'Pol is at first unforthcoming, saying that their intimate relationship has been over for six years, but eventually remarks that – as a Vulcan – she does not miss people. She and Riker discuss Tucker's loyal relationship with Archer. T'Pol admits that, during her service aboard Enterprise , she has come to embrace the Human crew's illogical favoritism for instincts over automatic compliance with orders, an insight for which Riker is grateful; freezing the program, he kisses T'Pol on the cheek and thanks her.

Act Two [ ]

In the Enterprise -D's observation lounge , Riker is reviewing the crew complement of the USS Pegasus when Troi enters. She soon senses that he is upset about an incident wherein most the vessel's crew died, but he is standoffish until they change the subject, he telling her of his progress on the holodeck. Troi is unfamiliar with the NX-class Enterprise , so Riker invites her to the simulation.

Riker and Troi tour Enterprise 's bridge

The couple survey Archer's ready room and the bridge, with both areas empty, the duo commenting on the differences between the vessel and their own ship. As they pace through a corridor, Riker – much to Troi's approval – adds crew members to the simulation.

In engineering , Lieutenant Reed worries, to Tucker, about the mission on Rigel X. Although Tucker is still conducting maintenance tasks, Reed questions the necessity of doing so since NX-01 is about to be mothballed, but Tucker says he wants to, noting that he practically built the engine. He and Reed nostalgically remark on the end of their assignment. Watching them exit, Troi tells Riker she is saddened by Tucker's unawareness that he wouldn't return from the mission.

The search effort is then plotted in the ship's situation room . Shran indicates where his daughter, Talla , is reportedly being held and talks with T'Pol, who has created a fabrication of the Tenebian amethyst Shran is accused of stealing. Troi freezes the program, opines that Archer is "cute" and leaves for an appointment with Reginald Barclay . Riker forwards the simulation to when Enterprise reaches Rigel X and has the simulation stay in objective mode. As Archer is about to lead an away mission there, Tucker tries to convince him to stay aboard, worrying for his safety. Archer insists otherwise, however, noting that Rigel X both was the first and will be the last place visited by Enterprise .

On a shuttlepod en route to the planet's surface, Riker listens – dressed as a MACO – as T'Pol recounts to Trip that the chef spoke about them. She hesitantly broaches the topic of their former relationship, admitting that she hasn't considered it in a long time. She also worries that they may never see each other again but Trip is adamant that they won't lose contact. With the shuttlepod encountering slight turbulence, T'Pol says that, no matter what, she will miss him. Once Archer – in another shuttlepod – reports that Shran has made contact with his daughter's abductors, the shuttlepods begin their final descent to the planet.

The alien leader

Shran and T'Pol later meet with the kidnappers and speak to the group's alien leader, who is highly suspicious of the newcomers. Disdainful of Shran, the alien leader oversees that Talla is brought out, Shran finding that she is unharmed and merely hungry. He presents the amethyst and the leader surrenders Talla, who is excited to be reunited with Shran but – on his instruction – accompanies T'Pol away. The away team , having been hiding on catwalks high above, use the fabricated amethyst to dazzle the aliens with brilliant flashes, allowing Shran to flee. A battle ensues, despite Reed warning the aliens to stand still. The leader causes the catwalk below Tucker to give way but, while Reed stuns the alien, Tucker is pulled to safety by Archer, the pair exchanging friendly sentiments pertaining to Tucker's recovery.

Act Three [ ]

The team arrives in Enterprise 's launch bay , Archer having agreed to escort Shran and Talla away from the alien pirates. Shran mentions that the aliens' ship can barely maintain warp factor two and Talla thanks the captain, referring to him as " pink skin ." Alone together, Trip and Archer humorously allude to Tucker's near-fall, both officers thankful that the captain went on the mission.

In Troi's quarters, Riker finally tells the counselor about the Pegasus

As the Enterprise -D enters an asteroid field , Data contacts Troi's quarters, eager to continue a discussion. He misinterprets her use of the phrase "rain check" but she explains they will talk later. Troi is visited by Riker, who is worried that the ship will soon find the Pegasus but that he is still undecided about his dilemma. Confidentially, he confesses that the Pegasus was equipped with a prototype cloaking device (outlawed by the Treaty of Algeron ), that the ship's disaster was due to a test of the cloak and that Pressman, the craft's former captain, intends to continue the experiment. Riker criticizes the project but, sworn to secrecy, he is insecure about alerting Captain Picard to it. Troi is confident Riker will make the right choice but he is less sure of himself.

Again acting as Enterprise 's chef, Riker consecutively consults Reed, Ensigns Sato and Mayweather , as well as Dr. Phlox , asking them about Tucker while they help knead dough. At one point, Riker accidentally refers to Archer as "Picard" but then corrects himself.

Archer and Tucker are in the captain's mess. They consider the planetary alliance, including its uneasy beginnings, and the upcoming ceremony. With an historically significant bottle of whiskey , given to Archer's father Henry by Zefram Cochrane , the holograms toast to "the next generation." After the vessel shudders, Archer – watched by Riker – learns from T'Pol on the bridge that a small, unidentified craft is attacking Enterprise .

Hearing an intruder alert , Archer and Trip rush to confront the invaders: they are the same aliens who captured Talla but have now come for both her and Shran. Archer and Tucker are puzzled, due to Shran having said the aliens' ship was extremely slow. The captain claims that Shran has already left but the alien leader isn't fooled by the attempt at deception. Following an order from the leader for Archer to be killed, Tucker steps forward, insisting that he can take the alien horde to Shran but asks that the captain – who struggles to stop Tucker interfering – is quietened, so one of the aliens knocks Archer unconscious with a rifle butt.

" You can all go straight to hell! "

Tucker arranges with the impatient and anxious alien leader that he will bring Shran to them. The engineer then leads the aliens into a small room that he identifies as a comm station . Bluntly announcing that they can go straight to Hell , he connects two plasma relays , sparking an explosion that downs the intruders. Archer regains consciousness and works his way through the debris in search of Tucker while Riker watches.

He continues to observe in sickbay , as a badly injured Tucker converses with Archer, apologizing for having had him knocked out cold and expressing enthusiasm for the fact that Enterprise will make it to the ceremony on time. Thanks to a hurrying Phlox, Tucker, giving Archer a reassuring smile, is moved into the imaging chamber . Phlox looks grimly at the captain.

Act Four [ ]

A somber T'Pol is packing away personal effects from Tucker's quarters when Archer arrives, although she politely refuses help from him. Archer lets her know that Tucker's parents will be coming to the ceremony and hands T'Pol a figurine of Frankenstein's monster to pack. T'Pol expresses an eagerness to meet Tucker's parents, who Archer describes as eccentric. The holographic duplicate of Archer nears a mirror in which Riker is reflected but the hologram does not see him. T'Pol and Archer agree that T'Pol's mother was also eccentric. Archer tries to explain to T'Pol the often contradictory nature of emotions . He also recounts how, when he took command of Enterprise a decade earlier, he had the mindset of an explorer, whereas now – faced with Tucker's death – he has to make a speech about how worthwhile the voyage has been. T'Pol interjects that Tucker would be most eager to agree it has been worthwhile.

Riker later visits an event that chronologically took place while the ship was heading to pick up Shran, about an hour before T'Pol's visit to the galley; Trip now arrives there to talk with Riker, who has resumed the role of chef. The pair make small talk about the crew's final meal. Tucker details the extremely trusting relationship he has with Archer. Leaving to do some packing, Tucker wonders what the chef will do, following the ship's return to Earth. Riker is unsure but Tucker is confident that the chef will make the right choice.

Mayweather, Sato, and Reed attend the ceremony

A large crowd is gathered in an auditorium wherein Reed, Sato, and Mayweather have been assigned seats that Reed complains about. The trio discuss the career plans of Mayweather and Archer, after which Reed says he – like Mayweather – is planning to stay with Archer.

About to give his speech, Archer says a fond farewell to T'Pol

In a waiting area backstage, Archer prepares to present his speech, while both T'Pol and Phlox try to bolster his confidence. Phlox notes that there are visiting dignitaries from eighteen different worlds and is certain it won't be long before the alliance expands. He then gives the captain a wide grin before heading to meet with his three wives, who are in the audience. T'Pol, on the other hand, prefers to remain backstage, influencing Archer to remark that she has never liked crowds. Just before he heads out to greet the masses, T'Pol comments that he looks very heroic and Archer turns back to embrace her in a hug.

As he strides to the central platform, the spectators applaud and Riker walks up to Troi, watching from a balcony above the crowd. They agree that, although Archer is understandably nervous, he will be fine. Troi considers the historical importance of the event, mentioning that the alliance would lead to the Federation , and Riker finally decides that he is ready to speak with Captain Picard, so the pair subsequently leave the holodeck.

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D)

USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Enterprise (NX-01)

Captains Picard, Kirk and Archer can be heard taking turns paraphrasing Zefram Cochrane as all three Enterprise s each captain first commanded continue their journeys.

Log entries [ ]

Memorable quotes [ ].

" Here's to the next generation . "

" You have to help me... it's my little girl. "

" All good things... "

" Our brig is bigger than this! "

" No fish tank. " " How could Archer survive without a fish tank? "

" Thanks, pink skin. "

" Signing documents are easy. Training a new engineer... that can be a real pain in the ass. "

" This is a special bottle of whiskey. Zefram Cochrane gave it to my father the day they broke ground at the Warp Five Complex. " " And here we are... toasting to warp seven. "

" It's sad. Commander Tucker had no idea he wouldn't make it back. "

" Thanks, boss! " " Any time. "

" It's the biggest day of our lives. " " I hate to contradict you, captain. You're the man they're waiting to see. "

" Data to Counselor Troi. " " Yes, Data? " " I was wondering if now may be the appropriate time to discuss the long-term effects of space travel on my positronic net. " " Can I give you a rain check? " " You may... check me for rain if you wish counselor, but I assure you I have no water in my... " " Data, I'll get back to you. "

" You can all go straight to Hell! "

" Did Trip ever take a swing at Picard? " " At who? " " Archer... Captain Archer? "

" Just beyond the next planet, just beyond the next star... "

" I'm sure you'll make the right choice. "

" I think I'm ready to talk to Captain Picard. I should've done it a long time ago. " " So I guess we're through here. " " I guess we are. Computer, end program. "

" Space, the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise . Its continuing mission... "

Background information [ ]

Scott Bakula (right), the actor who played Jonathan Archer, hugs Connor Trinneer, the actor who played Charles "Trip" Tucker, on the last day of filming the episode

• This is the final episode of Star Trek: Enterprise . It is the first series finale since " The Counter-Clock Incident " that is not a feature-length episode.
• This episode marked the end of a constant Star Trek series production run that started with the beginning of Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987.
• The 22nd century events of this episode actually take place on the holodeck of the USS Enterprise -D in 2370 , during the episode TNG : " The Pegasus ".
• This is the only series finale in the Star Trek franchise where the actual ensemble crew of the series do not appear, but rather, their holographic copies. The only other Star Trek episode that technically does not feature any main character was VOY : " Living Witness ".
• Rick Berman described this episode as a " valentine to the fans ".
• This episode takes its name from the opening narrations in episodes of Star Trek: The Original Series , Star Trek: The Animated Series and TNG.
• This episode marks the first appearance of a Starfleet holodeck since VOY : " Renaissance Man ".
• This episode was reported to have been written as a possible finale for the show's third season , had the series not been renewed. According to Enterprise producer Michael Sussman , however, while the idea for this episode was conceived during that year, the episode was not written until season 4. [1]
• According to Rick Berman, this episode would have been the fourth season finale even if the series had been picked up for a fifth season. He did state, however, that if the series had been renewed, Tucker would still have been killed off because the episode flashed forward in time and so when the show came back for the new season, Tucker would still have been alive. [2] (X) In later interviews, Berman said that if the show had been renewed, several story elements, including Tucker's death, would likely have been changed. [3]
• This is the first appearance of the USS Enterprise -D since its destruction in Star Trek Generations .
• As mentioned by Archer, Rigel X was also the first place Enterprise visited in "Broken Bow".
• The only exterior shot of the NX-01 Enterprise in this episode appears in the closing montage. This is consistent with the narrative method established in TNG, that the viewers can't see the "exterior" shots when a starship is recreated on the holodeck.
• An early draft of the script ended with Riker and Troi exiting the holodeck , followed by a shot of the Enterprise -D moving off into the asteroid field. Writer/Producer Michael Sussman suggested the final montage sequence as a way of honoring all three Starship Enterprise -based series: Star Trek , The Next Generation , and Enterprise . The montage also allowed the prequel series to end on a more appropriate image – Archer's ship soaring majestically toward a nebula . ( Information provided by Mike Sussman )
• Several costumes and props from this episode were sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay, including Dave Rossi 's suit [4] and the Tenebian amethyst . [5]
• This episode establishes the NX-01 still exists in the 24th century within a Starfleet museum.
• This episode contains the first use of remastered footage from TNG, specifically from the episode " Ménage à Troi ", for use during the scene in Ten Forward. Also, unlike the remastered collection of TNG which was released in the 4:3 aspect ratio, this footage was shown in 16:9. [6]

Cast and crew [ ]

• Scott Bakula ( Jonathan Archer ), Jolene Blalock ( T'Pol ), and Connor Trinneer ( Charles Tucker III ) are the only actors to appear in every episode of the series.
• Porthos is the only character, besides the regulars, to appear in both this episode and the pilot " Broken Bow ".
• This episode features five actors who previously appeared in a Star Trek finale: Majel Barrett appeared in TOS : " Turnabout Intruder " and TNG : " All Good Things... ", Jonathan Frakes , Marina Sirtis and Brent Spiner also all appeared in TNG : " All Good Things... " and Jeffrey Combs appeared in DS9 : " What You Leave Behind ". Additionally, William Shatner (" Turnabout Intruder ", " The Counter-Clock Incident ") and Patrick Stewart (" All Good Things... ") appear through archive voice-overs at the end of the episode.
• In addition to this episode, Jonathan Frakes has appeared in all of the live-action Star Trek spin-offs with the exception of Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds . In Star Trek: The Next Generation , Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Voyager 's " Death Wish ", he featured as Commander William T. Riker. In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 's " Defiant ", he reprised his role from TNG's " Second Chances " as Thomas Riker .
• With their performances in this episode, Jonathan Frakes (Commander William T. Riker) and Marina Sirtis (Counselor Deanna Troi) joined an exclusive club of actors who had played the same character in three different live-action Star Trek series. The only other actors to do so are Armin Shimerman ( Quark ), John de Lancie ( Q ), Michael Ansara ( Kang ), Mark Allen Shepherd ( Morn ), and Richard Poe ( Gul Evek ); including archive footage from " Trials and Tribble-ations " DeForest Kelley ( McCoy ), James Doohan ( Scott ) & Leonard Nimoy ( Spock ) also qualify. They would later be joined by Patrick Stewart ( Jean-Luc Picard ), and Brent Spiner (who provides his voice as Lt. Commander Data , but does not actually appear in this episode), if you include archive footage (as used in " Trials and Tribble-ations ") and voice-overs, this episode would also add William Shatner ( Kirk ).
• In addition to the appearances of Frakes and Sirtis and Spiner's voice cameo, background actor David Keith Anderson appears in Ten Forward. Anderson was a frequent (uncredited) background actor in Star Trek: The Next Generation , including "The Pegasus"; his character was named in other episodes as Ensign Armstrong . Anderson also served as a stand-in for Anthony Montgomery .
• Allan Kroeker previously directed the final episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager .
• Much of the Pegasus crew manifest viewed by Riker comprises the names and photos of the show's production personnel, such as Ronald B. Moore and Dawn Velazquez .
• The attendants at the ceremony seated around Sato, Reed, and Mayweather consist of behind-the-scenes personnel dressed in Starfleet or civilian garb. This mirrors the final episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , in which various cast and crew members made cameos as customers at Vic's lounge during the celebration of the Federation's victory in the Dominion War .
• This episode marks the final contribution to the Star Trek franchise from Rick Berman . ( Brannon Braga later wrote the story for the comic book series Star Trek: The Next Generation - Hive .)
• This is the only Star Trek series finale to carry the same writing credits as the pilot episode for that series, albeit Gene Roddenberry and Rick Berman had "story by" credits on the final episodes of Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: Voyager respectively, having written or co-written the first episodes of those shows.

Dialogue [ ]

• The series pilot, " Broken Bow ", begins with the line "... where no man has gone before", spoken by a young Jonathan Archer. This episode, the series finale, ends with the line "... where no man has gone before", also spoken by Archer.
• While discussing the decommission of the NX-01 Enterprise with Tucker , Reed announces " All Good Things... " This was a reference to the title of the finale of TNG .
• While drinking to the warp 7 engine with Tucker, Captain Archer toasts " Here's to the next generation ", another reference to the episode's involvement with the TNG series.
• After the captain saves Tucker's life, the engineer thanks Archer by referring to him as "boss". " Broken Bow " is the only other episode in the series in which that word is used. In "Broken Bow", a crewman named Fletcher offered Tucker a seat in the mess hall , but the engineer continued through the room, stating, " Dinner with the boss tonight ".
• The ceremony witnessed at the end of the episode may not be the signing of the Federation Charter , as is commonly believed, but rather the signing of the charter ratifying the Coalition of Planets , which soon led to the formation of the United Federation of Planets . This is evidenced by Troi's remark to Riker that " this alliance will give birth to the Federation. " Alternatively, Troi's remark may simply be referring to the contemporary, 24th century Federation, which is a far larger, more developed galactic union than the one being born & depicted here. From this point of view, Troi is fascinated by the fact that such a relatively small alliance grows into the Federation she knows.
• The second NX-class starship, Columbia NX-02 , had columns installed on the bridge that Enterprise did not have at the time. In this episode, similar columns can be seen on Enterprise 's bridge.
• Some of the computer monitors on the bridge are showing graphics that resemble more closely some of the computer panels of the Star Trek: The Original Series 's USS Enterprise .
• A box-like computer console can be seen on the left side of the captain's chair , a possible precursor to the duotronic computer consoles found on 23rd century Federation starships .
• The holodeck, Ten Forward lounge, senior officer quarters, and a stretch of Enterprise -D corridor were recreated for this episode from scratch. The observation lounge set is mostly the original set restored to its form as seen in seasons 5-7, after having served, in a revamped form, as the Enterprise -E observation lounge in Star Trek: First Contact and Star Trek Nemesis . The establishing shot of Ten Forward after the teaser was taken from the episode " Ménage à Troi ", as Reittan Grax can briefly be seen talking to Picard. The back of Riker playing 3D chess with Nibor , from "Ménage à Troi", can also be seen.

Continuity [ ]

• Whereas the majority of ENT Season 4 was either set in 2154 or 2155, the 22nd century events of this episode took a relatively major leap in time, to 2161. This was noted at the start of the episode's final draft script, which stated, " Although we don't know it yet, it's six years later. We should notice subtle differences in our characters, their uniforms and our sets. " Hence, the script did not reveal outright that these events were actually set on the holodeck of the Enterprise -D.
• In this episode it is revealed that Shran had a daughter with Jhamel , an Aenar female whom the Andorian met in " The Aenar ".
• In " First Flight ", members of Starfleet stationed on Earth, including Archer and Tucker, wear a Starfleet symbol on their left shoulder. In this episode, the crew of Enterprise wear the same symbol on their right shoulder, with the starship's symbol on their left.
• Epaulets are introduced in this episode, similar to those shown in " In a Mirror, Darkly ".
• Also in "First Flight", a flashback scene to 2143 shows Archer meeting Tucker for the first time. In this episode, Mayweather tells Riker that the captain and engineer have known each other for approximately twenty years, which seems to correlate with their initial encounter eighteen years prior to this episode.
• Near the end of the episode, T'Pol tries to straighten Archer's collar before the ceremony. In Star Trek: Insurrection , a similar scene shows Dr. Beverly Crusher attempting to help Captain Picard with his collar before a meeting with an Evora delegation. T'Pol also similarly tries to adjust Archer's attire in " Fallen Hero ".
• Previous Enterprise episodes referenced in this episode are " Broken Bow ", " First Flight ", " The Xindi ", " Harbinger ", " The Forgotten ", " Zero Hour ", and " The Aenar ". In a more subtle reference, Trip's figure of Frankenstein's monster which T'Pol examines is an allusion to the second season episode " Horizon ", in which Tucker persuades T'Pol to watch various Frankenstein movies with him.
• The holodeck in this episode creates a holographic 22nd century Starfleet uniform over Riker's 24th century uniform. In previous appearances, the Enterprise -D's holodeck is never shown to have this capacity (the USS Enterprise -E does), and crew are frequently seen dressed in character while on their way to and from the holodeck. When they are interrupted, they sometimes resume their duties while in costume as seen in TNG : " The Big Goodbye ", " Elementary, Dear Data ", and Star Trek Generations .
• Riker posing as the Chef seems to echo several TNG episodes (such as " Time Squared ") where Riker mentions his interest in cooking.
• Even though they have been serving in Starfleet for at least ten years by 2161, both Hoshi and Mayweather are still Ensigns . However, as seen in her dossier in " In a Mirror Darkly, Part II ", Hoshi will rise to the rank of Lieutenant Commander during the next few years.
• In 2401 the Enterprise is shown to have been refitted, with it having an underslung secondary hull. This change was envisioned for a fifth season of Star Trek: Enterprise.
• The refit raises some questions about the historical accuracy of the holoprogram Riker uses during this episode. The events depicted supposedly take place right before the Enterprise is slated for decommissioning, however the holoprogram show the Enterprise as it appeared before its refit.

"The Pegasus" [ ]

• As noted in the section above, this episode is set during the Next Generation episode " The Pegasus ". However, the actors who appear in both episodes – Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis – have obviously aged in real life since the TNG episode was made over a decade before this episode. As a result, the characters they portray also seem significantly older. Also, Sirtis' character, Deanna Troi, wears a completely different hair style and a uniform that is more blue in the earlier episode and more green here. Frakes and Sirtis are both noticeably heavier than they were in "The Pegasus" and Sirtis speaks here with a stronger English accent than she ever did in Next Generation .
• During Season 7 of Star Trek: The Next Generation , Troi's hairstyle was achieved with a combination of Marina Sirtis' own copper highlighted hair, and a long wavy hair piece. Sirtis has commented that when she went into make-up for "These Are The Voyages", she asked about Troi's hair style. The make-up team realized that Sirtis' real hair no longer matched the Season 7 hair piece and that the original, expensive hair piece used was missing. Resultantly, a full wig was hastily found and styled, one which Sirtis hated. This is why Troi's hairstyle in this episode does not match that as the seen in "The Pegasus". Sirtis has stated that, subsequently, she discovered that she herself had kept her Troi hair pieces and only found them several years later. [7] Interestingly, the wig Sirtis wore in this episode is styled with bangs. However, during season 7 of Next Generation , Troi never wore her hair with bangs while she wore her duty uniform.
• The Next Generation episode uses models for footage of the Enterprise -D, but the ship is completely digital in this episode. Also, as a result of the budget cut in Enterprise 's last season, the TNG episode was shot on film, but this episode was filmed with high-definition digital video, noticeably affecting the episode's look.
• The digital Enterprise model has all three of its impulse engines illuminated at all times. Previous models normally had only the impulse engine on the stardrive section illuminated, with saucer engines used only when the saucer was separated.
• Both episodes have one log entry each, both apparently recorded on stardate 47457.1. However, Riker's log entry in this episode is heard when the Enterprise -D is traveling freely through space . Picard notates his log entry when the starship is trapped inside an asteroid . Riker uses his log to note that Admiral Pressman has arrived on board the ship. Pressman ( Terry O'Quinn ) appears in the TNG episode, but does not here.
• One of the first scenes in this episode is set in the Ten Forward lounge aboard the Enterprise -D. In the TNG episode, Riker speaks to Admiral Pressman in Ten Forward. The admiral tells him that Starfleet Intelligence is hoping to continue experimenting with a prototype cloaking device aboard the starship Pegasus if the Enterprise -D manages to find the ship. In this episode, Riker tells Troi of Pressman's news in her quarters.
• In this episode, in the observation lounge aboard the Enterprise -D, Troi asks Riker how he feels about the recent discovery that the Pegasus was not destroyed, as had previously been thought. Riker is told that the Pegasus was not destroyed in the earlier episode, moments after Pressman beams aboard the Enterprise -D.
• In this episode, Riker and Troi visit the holographic re-creation of the Captain's ready room aboard the NX-class Enterprise . There, Riker remarks that the room is smaller than the Enterprise -D's brig. Riker ends up in that room at the end of the earlier episode, although Picard releases him at the very end.
• In "The Pegasus", Riker tells Pressman that, " A lot of things can change in twelve years, admiral. " Here, Troi tells Riker that, " A lot of things change in two hundred years. "
• In this episode, the Enterprise -D enters an asteroid field that the ship explores in the TNG episode.
• In her quarters, Troi receives a communication from Data. Although only his voice is heard, Data frequently appears in the TNG episode.
• In this episode, Riker discusses the Pegasus with Troi and asks what she knows about the Treaty of Algeron . She replies that the treaty was signed in 2311 and that it redefined the Romulan Neutral Zone . Riker adds that the treaty "outlawed the use of cloaking technology on Starfleet vessels". When Picard finds out about the Pegasus in the TNG episode, he explains that " in the Treaty of Algeron, the Federation specifically agreed not to develop cloaking technology. " The captain later charges Pressman with violation of that treaty before ordering the admiral's arrest.
• Pressman mentions that the Federation gave up cloaking technology sixty years prior, which seems to imply that the Treaty of Algeron was signed in 2310 possibly after the Tomed Incident mentioned by Data in "The Neutral Zone" late 2364 that happened fifty-three years, four months, and seven days prior but didn't come into effect until 2311. This is like real world treaties though signed and ratified take time to be implemented by the signing parties.
• Riker's decision at the end of the episode is different from that seen in the episode "The Pegasus". In "These Are the Voyages...", Riker leaves the holodeck, full of resolve, to speak with Captain Picard about Pressman and the illegal cloaking device. In the original version of "The Pegasus", however, Riker only admits to what he and Pressman did after he is backed into a corner when the Enterprise is trapped inside an asteroid . It is possible, however, that the Pegasus was located before Riker could speak with Picard.
• The Star Trek Encyclopedia  (4th ed., vol. 1, p. 39) suggests the 22nd century events of this episode took place in January .

Production [ ]

• Shooting on this episode began late on 25 February 2005 , after a good part of the day had been spent wrapping up the filming of the previous episode, " Terra Prime ".
• Principal photography lasted eight days, rather than the usual seven, concluding on 5 March 2005 – which also happened to be Jolene Blalock's thirtieth birthday. Blalock and Scott Bakula were the last of the principal cast to be released; the scene in which their characters embrace and Captain Archer climbs the steps to enter the auditorium to deliver his speech was the last scene to be filmed.
• Although principal photography ended on 5 March, Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis had to return on 9 March to complete several green screen shots.

Reception [ ]

• Speaking at the 2007 Star Trek convention in Las Vegas, co-writer Brannon Braga admitted he had "regrets" about this episode. He explained that he and Rick Berman were attempting to " send a valentine to all the Star Trek shows," and that "Enterprise just happened to be the show on at the time. " He believed the episode "had some great stuff in it" and that "it was a cool concept," but overall, however, he found it to be "languid" and "not a complete success." [8]
• In response to fan criticisms, series producer Manny Coto stated that he personally considered this episode to be a coda rather than the true finale of the series. Both he and fellow series producer Mike Sussman consider the two-part story "Demons" and "Terra Prime" that precede this installment to be the actual finale of the Enterprise storyline. [9] [10]
• In 2008, Brannon Braga, recalling the episode and its reaction stated, " I don't think it's ever going to be a beloved episode. " [11] Similarly, Rick Berman stated in 2011 that the episode was a failure and claimed that he never would have produced it if he had known what the reaction to it would be. [12]
• At a 2009 Star Trek convention, Jonathan Frakes simply said this episode "stinks." [13]
• In contrast, Dominic Keating has stated, " I loved it. I've said this at the conventions many times, but I had no issue with it. " Keating remarked that he greatly enjoyed his scenes with Frakes and Sirtis. He admitted, " I thought that device they used in order to include them was a bit clunky... But once you've gotten past that, it was fine. And fair dues to Brannon and Rick, they were winding up 17 years of their take on the series. It wasn't just our four years. They'd done a lot more stuff prior to us. So I thought it was fair enough. " [14]
• John Billingsley took a more neutral position. In a 2006 interview, he commented " I wasn't wild about the last episode, but as is often the case I think probably more is made of these things than should be. It, arguably, should have been more about our stories than The Next Generation 's cast, and I think people who were a little put out perhaps had a point. " He added, " It seemed to me from things that I've read or heard that people's reactions were a little over the top. I also think they were on some level trying to find a way to say goodbye, or at least goodbye for now, to the entire franchise, and to that extent I could understand what the thought process was in wanting to bring in some of the Next Gen characters. " [15]
• In an interview with [http:// The Toronto Star ] in 2005, Jolene Blalock states that she doesn't " know where to begin with that one... the final episode is... appalling. " [16]
• Appearing on the TrekTrak show at DragonCon where LeVar Burton and Marina Sirtis were interviewed, the latter stated " Personally I thought it was a good episode; I just didn't think it was a good last episode. " [17]
• In 2013 , eight years after the airing of this episode, Brannon Braga apologized to the entire cast of Enterprise for it and said he thought Rick Berman and he made a "narcissistic move" in trying to make the episode a "valentine" to Star Trek . He also called it "a crappy episode." ( ENT Season 2 Blu-ray " In Conversation: The First Crew " special feature)
• One year later, Braga dined even further on ashes, when he stated at the 2014 VegasCon, " The final episode of Enterprise was an idiotic move on my part. I thought it would be cool to do a valentine to all of Star Trek . To me there was something really post-modern about the idea of saying this was an episode of Next Generation you have never seen – where they go on the holodeck with their heroes aboard Enterprise . It sounded good in my head – what ended up airing was really bad and not successful completely. It should have been Enterprise 's finale – it was a misstep, " having added, " The Enterprise actors? They hated it. It was the only time Scott Bakula got pissed off at me. " [18]
• At the 2016 Star Trek convention in Las Vegas, "These Are the Voyages..." was chosen by the fans as the worst episode from all of Star Trek . [19]
• This episode received Star Trek 101 's "Spock's Brain" Award for Worst Episode of Enterprise .
• This is the third of only three occurrences of one series' credit style appearing over the sets of another, specifically the white ENT style over reconstructed sets of TNG. The first is in TNG : " Birthright, Part I " and the second in ENT : " In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II ". The USS Enterprise appears during the credit sequence of DS9 : " Trials and Tribble-ations ", without a credit overlay.

Apocrypha [ ]

• An Enterprise novel, Last Full Measure (written by Andy Mangels and Michael A. Martin ) reveals that Trip Tucker did not actually die in this episode. The authors used the fact that the only appearances of the Enterprise characters in this episode were in historical hologram form to claim that the program Riker views is a fabrication. The true events of what really took place and what happened to Tucker are revealed in another Enterprise novel, The Good That Men Do (also written by Andy Mangels and Michael A. Martin). The book has an aged Nog revealing to Jake Sisko, that because of the collapse of Section 31 in the early 25th century , information about the true events of the founding of the Coalition has only now been revealed and it shows that what has been generally known is actually a cover-up of the true events. Several events of "These Are the Voyages..." are depicted as happening only months after "Terra Prime." The two old friends also note a laundry list of inconsistencies in the original holo program, many of which were pointed out by Enterprise fans immediately after viewing. Among the more obvious ones are the ship's lack of transfers or promotions during the intervening years; no deaths, transfers, or ship modifications during the Romulan war, which is never mentioned; the criminals/pirates with a warp 2 capable ship that somehow catches up with the warp 5 Enterprise ; and the complete lack of MACOs or security officers challenging the pirates as they stalk the corridors of the ship with impunity.
• The story and the eventual declaration of war against the Romulans is carried on in the novel, Kobayashi Maru .

DVD releases [ ]

• As part of the ENT Season 4 DVD .
• As part of the Star Trek: Fan Collective - Captain's Log collection.

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• Scott Bakula as Jonathan Archer
• John Billingsley as Phlox
• Jolene Blalock as T'Pol
• Dominic Keating as Malcolm Reed
• Anthony Montgomery as Travis Mayweather
• Linda Park as Hoshi Sato
• Connor Trinneer as Charles "Trip" Tucker III

Guest stars [ ]

• Jeffrey Combs as Thy'lek Shran
• Jonathan Schmock as Alien

Special guest appearance by [ ]

• Marina Sirtis as Deanna Troi
• Jonathan Frakes as William T. Riker

Co-stars [ ]

• Solomon Burke, Jr. as Ensign
• Jef Ayres as Med Tech
• Jasmine Anthony as Talla
• Majel Barrett as Computer Voice
• E. Michael Fincke as Engineer

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• David Keith Anderson as Armstrong
• Geneviere Anderson as operations ensign
• Melanie Balmos as Enterprise -D operations officer
• Steve Blalock as alien criminal #1
• André Bormanis as civilian ceremony attendee
• Breezy as Porthos
• Amy Kate Connolly as civilian ceremony attendee
• Mark Correy as Alex
• Manny Coto as ceremony vice admiral
• Daphney Dameraux as operations ensign
• Doug Drexler as I. Marquez
• Evan English as Tanner
• Ian Eyre as alien criminal #3
• Henry Farnam as command crewman
• Juan Fernandez as civilian ceremony attendee
• Peter Godoy
• Glen Hambly as operations ensign
• Dieter Hornemann as civilian ceremony attendee
• Amina Islam
• April Jacobson as A. Jacobson
• Roy Joaquin as sciences crewman
• John Jurgens
• Macarena Lovemore as ceremony crewman
• Terry Matalas as Enterprise -D command crewman
• Andrew MacBeth as E. Hamboyan
• Lili Malkin as civilian ceremony attendee
• Eric Matsumoto as Eric Motz (photograph only)
• Doug Mirabello as Phil Wallace (photograph only)
• Yumi Mizui as ceremony crewman
• Ronald B. Moore as Ronald Moore (photograph only)
• Larry Nemecek as civilian ceremony attendee
• Michael O'Halloran as ceremony ensign
• Melissa O'Keeffe as ceremony crewman
• Ivonne Perez as Ten Forward civilian (archive footage)
• Ethan Phillips as Farek (archive footage)
• Amanda Pooley as civilian ceremony attendee
• J.R. Quinonez as civilian ceremony attendee
• Garfield Reeves-Stevens as Brad Yacobian
• Judith Reeves-Stevens as civilian ceremony attendee
• Bob Rivers as Enterprise -D command lieutenant
• Cesar Rodriguez as sciences lieutenant
• Donna Rooney as civilian ceremony attendee
• Dave Rossi as civilian ceremony attendee
• Richard Sarstedt as civilian ceremony attendee
• David Shannon as civilian ceremony attendee
• William Shatner as James T. Kirk (archive voiceover)
• David Silverstein as civilian ceremony attendee
• Lincoln Simonds as alien criminal #2
• Andy Simonson as Andy Simonson (photograph only)
• Peter Slutsker as Nibor (archive footage)
• Pablo Soriano as civilian ceremony attendee
• Brent Spiner as Data (voice and archive footage)
• Monika Spruch
• Patrick Stewart as Jean-Luc Picard (archive voiceover and archive footage)
• John Tagamolila as Starfleet operations officer
• Ator Tamras as A. Tamras
• David G. Trotti as civilian ceremony attendee
• Dawn Velazquez as Dawn Velazquez (photograph only)
• Terry Virts as T. Virts
• John Wan as operations crewman
• Karen Washington as civilian ceremony attendee
• Rudolph Willrich as Reittan Grax (archived footage)
• Cricket Yee as sciences crewman
• Edward Zoellner as R. Wilcox
• Operations creman
• Operations officer
• Zakdorn official (archive footage)

Puppeteers [ ]

• Paul Elliot – Puppeteer : Andorian antennae (Shran)
• Don Coleman – Puppeteer: Andorian antennae (Talla)

Stunt doubles [ ]

• Shawn Crowder as stunt double for Connor Trinneer
• Vince Deadrick, Jr. as stunt double for Scott Bakula
• Shawn Lane as stunt double for Jonathan Schmock

Photo double [ ]

• Robert Tolbert as photo double for Jonathan Frakes

Stand-ins [ ]

• David Keith Anderson – stand-in for Anthony Montgomery and Lincoln Simonds
• Jennifer Anderson – stand-in for Jolene Blalock
• Jef Ayres – stand-in for Connor Trinneer and Jonathan Schmock
• Michael Bailous – stand-in for Solomon Burke, Jr.
• Kacie Borrowman – stand-in for Jasmine Anthony
• Evan English – stand-in for Dominic Keating and John Billingsley
• Tarik Ergin – stand-in for Jonathan Frakes and Ian Eyre
• Scott Hill – stand-in for Jeffrey Combs and Jef Ayres
• John Jurgens – stand-in for Jonathan Frakes and Ian Eyre
• Andrew MacBeth – stand-in for Steve Blalock
• J.R. Quinonez – stand-in for Jonathan Schmock, John Billingsley, and Connor Trinneer
• Richard Sarstedt – stand-in for Scott Bakula
• Robert Tolbert – stand-in for Jonathan Frakes
• Melissa Vinicor – stand-in for Marina Sirtis
• Cricket Yee – stand-in for Linda Park

Timeline [ ]

• Talla is kidnapped as Shran sleeps in the next room. Shran contacts the Enterprise to assist in the rescue of his daughter. The mission is a success, but the kidnappers manage to board Enterprise . Trip Tucker sacrifices his own life to save his captain.
• Archer gives an historic speech at the conference commemorating the ratification of the charter for an interspecies alliance. This alliance would give birth to the United Federation of Planets later in the year.

References [ ]

" absence makes the heart grow fonder "; addiction ; alliance ; Andoria ; Andorian ; Andorian cabbage soup ; Archer, Henry ; armadillo ; Barclay, Reginald ; Berman & Braga ; Brazil ; brig ; bridge ; career ; carrot ; catfish ; cheese ; chef ; Cochrane, Zefram ; crew complement ; cutting board ; dog ; deuterium filter ; Douglas ; drug addiction ; Edosian suckerfish ( Edosian ); emotion ; engineering ; English language ; Enterprise , USS ; Enterprise -D, USS ; fan club ; Federation Charter ; Ferengi ; flattery ; Fleck, Jerry ; Frankenstein's monster ; generation ; gesture ; grammar school ; henchman ; hick ; holodeck ; hyperbaric sequencer ; intimate relationship ; intruder alert ; Jhamel ; Kirk, James T. ; launch bay ; liberator ; linguistic database ; Livingston ; lungs ; meatloaf ; Mobile ; museum ; museum ship ; ninth grade ; objective mode ; observation lounge ; outlawed ; peeling ; Pegasus , USS ; photograph ; plasma ; plomeek broth ; poetic justice ; Porthos ; Pressman, Erik ; promotion ; pulse-pistol ; Rigel X ; senior staff ; sense of humor ; Shallash ; shelf ; shorthand ; Shran's colleagues ; Shuttlepod 1 ; spectral micrometer ; Starfleet Investigative Services ; stationary orbit ; Stillwell ; syntho-surfactant ; T'Les ; tea ; Tellarite ; Ten Forward ; Tenebian amethyst ; " time heals all wounds "; time index ; toast ; Treaty of Algeron ; troposphere ; United Federation of Planets ; vegetable peeler ; VIP ; Vulcan ; Vulcan Council ; warp engine ; Warp Five Complex ; whiskey ; Xindi weapon

External links [ ]

• "These Are the Voyages..." at StarTrek.com
• " These Are the Voyages... " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• These Are the Voyages... at Wikipedia
• " These Are the Voyages... " at the Internet Movie Database
• 3 Marlys Burdette

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How ‘enterprise’ finale almost put ‘star trek’ on ice.

The finale for 'Star Trek: Enterprise' — which aired 15 years ago this month — was the worst-received sendoff in the franchise's history.

By Phil Pirrello

Phil Pirrello

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“It was a kind of a slap in the face to the Enterprise actors. I regret it.”

Brannon Braga didn’t sugar coat his feelings about Star Trek : Enterprise ‘s infamous 2005 series finale, “These Are the Voyages …”, in this 2017 interview  addressing the problematic episode he developed and co-wrote with executive producer Rick Berman. While Braga and Berman thought framing the Enterprise finale as a “lost episode” of Star Trek: The Next Generation was a great idea while writing it, Braga soon realized after watching it that “great” was far from an apt description. Fans often credit the episode for putting all the nails in Star Trek ‘s coffin as a viable television franchise, given that it would be a long 12 years before The Final Frontier would be explored again on the small screen, thanks to Star Trek: Discovery . While Enterprise ‘s declining ratings throughout its four-season run (coupled with the series finale’s negative reaction) didn’t help the franchise, the show’s network, UPN, already signed the DNR on both the series and any others’ future before the finale aired. 

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Simon kinberg in talks to produce 'star trek' movie franchise for paramount, william shatner willing to return to 'star trek' as de-aged captain kirk.

As “These Are the Voyages …” celebrates its 15th anniversary this month, it’s time to look back at what went wrong with the story and, surprisingly, what could have gone much, much worse. 

Enterprise ‘s isn’t the worst series finale ever made, but it’s definitely its cousin. Structured as a Commander Riker (Jonathan Frakes) TNG episode that happens to have the entire cast of Enterprise in it, “Voyages” centers on Riker’s struggles surrounding the events of TNG ‘s season seven episode “The Pegasus,” forcing the Enterprise-D’s first officer to use the holodeck to help him solve his problems by revisiting the final mission of Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) and the crew of the first Enterprise, the NX-01. That means that all the 22nd century scenes featuring Archer and his crew are all holodeck simulations. Yup. For the first-time ever in Trek history, a series ends with holographic versions of the real characters fans spent years following. It’s shocking how much wrong they managed to pack into one normal-sized episode of television — the first Trek finale since The Animated Series not to be feature-length.  

Braga and Berman, from TNG to Voyager to Enterprise , logged 18 years and hundreds of hours boldly going where no one has gone before. They get how to service and protect Trek . At the same time, even with all their experience, not all ideas are good ones. Given the pressure-cooker atmosphere of making a TV series — let alone one as scrutinized as this underperforming Star Trek prequel — it’s hard to get 30,000 feet on a story like this and up against the shadow of one of the best TV series finales ever, TNG ’s “All Good Things …”, co-written by Braga. 

Setting aside the fact that Riker never once mentioned an affinity for Archer, his ship and crew or this time period throughout his entire TNG tenure, making a 24th century character the focus of a series finale that takes place in the 22rd century denies agency to the Enterprise ensemble that deserves the spotlight — not have it stolen by characters who already had their fair share of it. (Marina Sirtis’ Counsellor Troi cameo is more distracting fan service.) Even Bakula was incensed with the story, with Braga recalling that this episode was the first time Enterprise ‘s lead actor ever got confrontational with the writer-producer. 

Bringing back popular characters from a more popular Star Trek show to play roles in the finale of a less-popular one feels as much now as an obvious ratings stunt as it did then — and only more problematic. (This wasn’t the first time Paramount Television would turn to Next Gen to help/hurt its crown jewel.) The short-term goal of fleeting ratings ultimately soured the legacy of the series in the long-term. What was originally conceived as a “love letter” to fans — and to the other Enterprise-centric Trek shows — “Voyages” felt, as Braga said, like a slap in the face to this one. While Enterprise ‘s main characters lacked the iconic pop-culture resonance of Kirk and Spock or the TNG crew, they deserved more than being curtailed by characters who already had their shot at series finale glory. Revisiting Riker and Troi at a time before “All Good Things …”, but after the actors playing them had already made TV history with their final signoff, also retroactively dings Next Gen ‘s satisfying finale. (The show doesn’t even let its crew have the last scene together; it ends with Troi and Riker exiting the holodeck and deactivating the Enterprise program.) 

Even though Enterprise ‘s main characters come off as guest stars in their own series finale — which, ironically, centers on guest stars — they do manage to have a few scenes that let them shine; good scenes and character beats that deserve a greater showcase. The insanely likable Engineer Charles “Trip” Tucker (Connor Trinneer) is the show’s beating heart, so it’s a gut punch when he dies after a sacrificial play aboard Enterprise to save his shipmates. That precedes the dramatic scene between Vulcan officer T’Pol (Jolene Blalock) and Archer, moments before giving a speech at a ceremony that will spark the birth of the Federation. And the final montage of CG Enterprises — including Kirk’s and Picard’s — with their respective captains sharing duties speaking Trek ‘s famous pre-titles “Space, the final frontier …” is impressive. But it could have been so much more; a perfect passing-of-the-torch scene buttoning a finale that serves its heroes instead of giving them lip service. 

The finale is filled with good intentions executed less so: That ending montage could have been an all-timer sequence following what should have been one last adventure for the first Enterprise crew ever. Instead, we’re left with a dwindling series of returns, a shoulder shrug of a finale for a crew that deserves better than getting sidelined in their series’ finale moments. Silver linings? In the 15 years since Enterprise went off the air, streaming has given audiences a chance to revisit the show and see it less as a failure and more as the noble experiment it intended to be — letting the series as a whole age far better than its final hour.

May 26, 6:19 p.m. A previous version misstated which century in which the Enterprise finale takes place in. THR regrets the error.

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These Are the Voyages...

• Episode aired May 13, 2005

In 2370, Commander William T. Riker is trying to clear his mind and relives the last mission of the first Enterprise on the holodeck. In 2370, Commander William T. Riker is trying to clear his mind and relives the last mission of the first Enterprise on the holodeck. In 2370, Commander William T. Riker is trying to clear his mind and relives the last mission of the first Enterprise on the holodeck.

• Allan Kroeker
• Gene Roddenberry
• Rick Berman
• Brannon Braga
• Scott Bakula
• John Billingsley
• Jolene Blalock
• 85 User reviews
• 4 Critic reviews

• Capt. Jonathan Archer

• Cmdr. T'Pol

• Lt. Malcolm Reed

• Ensign Travis Mayweather

• Ensign Hoshi Sato

• Cmdr. Charles 'Trip' Tucker III

• Cmdr. Shran

• Counselor Deanna Troi

• Cmdr. William T. Riker

• Ensign Billy

• (as Jasmine Anthony)

• Enterprise-D Computer

• (as E. Michael Fincke)

• Operations Division Ensign
• (uncredited)
• Alien Criminal
• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

• Trivia First and only episode where crew names (first initial and last name, except for T'Pol) appear in their uniforms.
• Goofs At the beginning, Riker can be seen twice in Ten Forward, since Jonathan Frakes in 2005 was digitally inserted into a shot from Ménage à Troi (1990) .

[last lines of the series]

Captain Jean-Luc Picard : [voice-over] Space - the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise. Its continuing mission...

Captain James T. Kirk : [voice-over] ... to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations...

Captain Jonathan Archer : [voice-over] ... to boldly go where no man has gone before.

• Connections Featured in The Captains (2011)
• Soundtracks Where My Heart Will Take Me Written by Diane Warren Performed by Russell Watson Episode: {all episodes}

User reviews 85

• Jun 12, 2021
• May 13, 2005 (United States)
• United States
• Official Site
• Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA (Studio)
• Paramount Network Television
• Paramount Television
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

Technical specs

• Runtime 43 minutes
• Dolby Digital

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Star Trek’s Jonathan Frakes Has a Major Regret About the Enterprise Finale

Even Star Trek legend Jonathan Frakes admits the Enterprise finale was a mistake.

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Ever since Jonathan Frakes played the first officer of the USS Enterprise-D Will Riker, Frakes has gone on to appear in almost every Star Trek series since, albeit as transporter accident-spawned clone Thomas Riker in Deep Space Nine . Usually, fans love to see the adventurous Riker swing into a guest appearance on another series. But that wasn’t the case when Riker and Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) showed up in the series finale of Star Trek: Enterprise .

“It was sold as, ‘Oh, come on and do the episode, it will be a Valentine to the fans,’” Frakes told Variety when recalling his appearance in that show’s series finale. As the last episode in a continuous run of Star Trek series that began with Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987, the Enterprise finale “These Are the Voyages…” sought to connect the end to the beginning. And so the episode follows not Scott Bakula’s Captain Archer and his crew, but Riker, who visits the NX-01 in a holodeck program.

Enterprise has always been the least popular of the four ’90s Trek series, stumbling for its first few seasons, as did every entry in that franchise era. But by season four, Enterprise had really found its footing. The Xindi Incident storyline connected the show to the audience’s post-9/11 malaise and gave the series a tighter, more exciting storyline. Yet, where all other series of the era ran for seven seasons, Enterprise was cut off at four, kneecapping it just as it started to get good. Focusing the finale on Riker instead of Archer and the rest of his crew, and unceremoniously killing off fan favorite Trip Tucker (Connor Trinneer), “These Are the Voyages…” showed no respect to those who stuck with the series.

“[I]t wasn’t a Valentine to the fans,” Frakes now admits. “The fans didn’t want to see us.” Even though he feels that “These Are the Voyages…” was “a good episode” and that he “had a blast doing it in many ways,” Frakes acknowledges that fans felt betrayed by the bait and switch. “The more I think about it, the more I hear from fans about it in particular, it may not have been the best choice we’ve made on Star Trek .”

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Fortunately, fans have quickly forgiven Frakes and continue to thrill at his return. When he and Sirtis lent their voices to a multi-episode arc on Lower Decks , fans were thrilled to see Riker as the adventure-loving Captain of his own ship, the USS Titan. Even better was his reunion with Jean-Luc Picard in the excellent third season of Picard .

But what of the NX-01 characters? Thus far, no one in that cast has reprised their roles for a modern Trek series, although Trinneer and Malcolm Reed actor Dominic Keating do host the Enterprise rewatch podcast The Shuttlepod Show . But the NX-01 and her crew have not been forgotten by characters in the world, whether it be Scotty admitting that he almost killed Archer’s dog Porthos in the 2009 Star Trek movie or, more recently, the crew of the NCC-1701 geeking out about their predecessors in the Strange New Worlds standout “ Those Old Scientists .”

Enterprise may have had a long road getting to a place of respect, but between Frakes’s admission and the name drops in “Those Old Scientists,” it seems that its time is finally here.

Joe George | @jageorgeii

Joe George’s writing has appeared at Slate, Polygon, Tor.com, and elsewhere!

Star Trek: Enterprise's John Billingsley Shares Honest Thoughts On The Show Getting A Proper Finale And Reveals How He Could've Returned As Dr. Phlox

Could Enterprise get a proper ending?

Star Trek: Enterprise has gotten a second look from many fans, due to the fact that they can now rewatch all Trek shows using a Paramount+ subscription . While some might've changed their thoughts on certain storylines or characters though, many are still of the opinion that the finale was a slap in the face to devoted fans. There's a chance to rectify that in this golden age of new shows. However, John Billingsley just shared some honest thoughts on the matter that are less-than-optimistic. All the while, he also revealed that he nearly returned as Dr. Phlox.

I had a chance to speak to John Billingsley, who will be one of many Star Trek stars taking part in the Trek*talks 2 telethon on Saturday, January 14. In addition to talking to Billingsley about his upcoming panel on "Trektivism" and the telethon raising money for the Hollywood Food Coalition, we talked about how this modern era of Trek could give Enterprise the proper sendoff it was never given years ago. After I asked the star about the odds of the show given a true ending (or nod via a currently running series project), he listed a few obstacles that stand in the way:

I don’t see that ever happening. Granted, now that all the shows are streaming, an audience that didn’t find us at the time has subsequently found us. But, I’m afraid, just given the vicissitudes of age and the nature of the fact that there are already a multitude of Star Trek iterations and others in the works that, there is no room in the ecosystem for us to come back now.

The 62-year-old actor made a valid point, as there is a lot of Star Trek content on the horizon . Even with Picard ending after Season 3, there's a Starfleet Academy series in development that could take its place and a Section 31 series is still on the table as well. And those are only the productions we know about. So if a star of Enterprise isn't being cryptic about an upcoming live-action return, there's little reason to hope for a continuation or proper series finale of sorts.

While those ideas might be out of the question, Star Trek fans know that certain characters can always spring up on other shows, especially since the alien beings have long lifespans. John Billingsley's Dr. Phlox is a Denobulan, and they can live to be as old as 280. That means the good doctor is presumably alive during the timelines of many of the more recent Trek shows. However, Billingsley's theoretical return would come down to a few necessary factors on his end:

I don’t know that I would really ever necessarily want to be a series regular again, maybe in a streaming show where it wasn’t 22 to 26 episodes just because the rubber head is onerous. I’m not entirely sure I want to go through the prosthetic process again… I could be on one of the animated shows. Then you just have to have Dr. Phlox’s voice. That I’d be happy to do.

John Billingsley isn't willing to go through the prosthetic process again, a fact that might disqualify him from any live-action reprisal of Dr. Phlox. Fans may remember that Billingsley publicly stated that he rejected an offer to appear in the critically acclaimed Strange New Worlds (via Bleeding Cool ) , though he mentioned at the time it was due to being asked to audition. 

But the Star Trek faithful might be surprised to learn that the star had been approached once more to appear in the franchise but again, turned it down. Billingsley talked about how he feels the franchise treats Enterprise and its legacy and revealed the other surprising series he turned down and why: 

I think that a lot of fans of the franchise have kind of rediscovered Enterprise. I’m not entirely sure that the powers that be who are creating Star Trek have, I won’t say a love of Enterprise, but perhaps even a strong memory of Enterprise… [I was asked to appear] two episodes on one of the animated shows I think it was Prodigy, which I turned down because an animated show, if you’re not a series regular, frankly, it doesn’t pay very much. So I don’t think I’m on anybody’s radar screen.

I'm intrigued by the idea of him reprising his role as Dr. Phlox on Star Trek: Prodigy . Dal's Augment origins do have ties to an Enterprise storyline , so one could see how that connection could be made. I'm definitely a little disappointed to hear that the fan-favorite star wasn't on board to reprise his role but understand his reasons for passing. I also hope that one day, he and his co-stars get the closure they deserve.

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Star Trek fans can expect more stories like this and other informative information during the Trek*talks 2 telethon. There, John Billingsley will participate alongside other notable franchise actors like Scott Bakula , Anson Mount , and Jonathan Frakes , just to name a few. Anyone interested in learning more about the telethon or how they can give can consult the Trek Geeks website for more information. 

Those who aren't familiar with Star Trek: Enterprise should also check out the entire series over on Paramount+. Aside from the disappointing finale, it's certainly worth checking out, as it provides an intriguing look at the early years of Starfleet. 

Mick Joest is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend with his hand in an eclectic mix of television goodness. Star Trek is his main jam, but he also regularly reports on happenings in the world of Star Trek, WWE, Doctor Who, 90 Day Fiancé, Quantum Leap, and Big Brother. He graduated from the University of Southern Indiana with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Radio and Television. He's great at hosting panels and appearing on podcasts if given the chance as well.

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Published Jan 4, 2019

StarTrek.com Vault: The Enterprise Finale

We dug deep into our Vault and found a very rare DVD rough-cut screener

startrek.com

Star Trek: Enterprise concluded its four-year run on May 13, 2005, with the controversial series capper, " These Are the Voyages.. ." We dug deep into our Vault and found a very rare DVD rough-cut screener that the UPN publicity department Fed Ex-ed to select journalists a few days in advance of the Star Trek swan song.

It's no secret that most Trek fans were disappointed in "These Are the Voyages." The series was not renewed by UPN for a fifth season, compelling the writers and production team to close out Enterprise on exceedingly short notice.

While the idea was to craft "a love letter" to fans following 18 consecutive years of Trek , the finale essentially turned Enterprise into a footnote within a Star Trek: The Next Generation storyline.

The storyline featured Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis. It also was only a single hour, unlike other Trek finales.

What were YOUR thoughts about "These Are the Voyages"?

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Jonathan Frakes Talks ‘Star Trek: Enterprise’ Regrets And Optimism For ‘Legacy’ Spinoff

| July 31, 2023 | By: TrekMovie.com Staff 253 comments so far

Since starring as William Riker in Star Trek: The Next Generation , Jonathan Frakes has worked his way into more iterations of the franchise as an actor and as a director than anyone else. He is optimistic about continuing this trend into the future; however, there is one Trek appearance from two decades ago he regrets.

Enterprise finale was no “valentine”

When Star Trek: Enterprise was canceled in its fourth season in 2005, it brought to an end the continuous stream of Star Trek television production that had begun in 1987 with TNG. To celebrate the end of an era that included 25 seasons of Trek spread over 4 series, executive producers Rick Berman and Brannon Braga transformed the Enterprise finale “These Are The Voyages” into what they called a “valentine” for the fans. Jonathan Frakes and Marina Sirtis reprised their roles of Riker and Troi using a framing device that took place in the Enterprise-D holodeck. Turning the finale into a TNG crossover was not popular with fans of Enterprise , who felt the show’s characters were not getting the proper focus. It turns out that Jonathan Frakes agrees, as he told Variety :

We didn’t quite fit. It was sold as, ‘Oh, come on and do the episode, it will be a Valentine to the fans’ — it wasn’t a Valentine to the fans. The fans didn’t want to see us. Scott Bakula was such a mensch about it, but all these other ‘Trek’ shows went seven seasons. Nobody wanted to be on a ‘Star Trek’ show that didn’t get to go to seven. And the inherent insult in having characters from another series that had done well come in to essentially close the books on his episode — it just felt so wrong to me. I mean, it was a good episode. We had a blast doing it in many ways. The more I think about it, the more I hear from fans about it in particular, it may not have been the best choice we’ve made on ‘Star Trek.’ Again, they’re not all home runs. It’s just unfortunate that that was the last episode of that show.

Marina Sirtis as Troi and Jonathan Frakes as Riker in the Star Trek: Enterprise series finale

Frakes talks Discovery series finale and hopes for “Legacy”

Frakes’ latest connection to the franchise was directing the very well-received Strange New Worlds / Lower Decks crossover episode “Those Old Scientists.” In an extended profile interview in Variety (conducted before the SAG-AFTRA strike), the Trek vet talks about that episode and a number of his other directorial highlights throughout the franchise.

His next connection to the franchise will be for another series finale, this time for Star Trek: Discovery . Paramount+ decided to make the upcoming fifth season the final one after filming was complete on the season as well as a two-part season finale. Frakes talked to Variety about filming the first part:

I directed the first half of the finale of Season 5, which turned out to be the real finale. So that was a very emotional end as well. When we did it, we didn’t know it was the end. And then [‘Discovery’ executive producer and director] Olatunde Osunsanmi had to go back up and do two or three days of new stuff to actually make the finale the finale.

Of course, Jonathan Frakes played a huge role in the recent third and final season of Star Trek: Picard , appearing in every episode and directing two of them. He has made no secret of his ambition to be involved in the “Star Trek: Legacy” potential spin-off envisioned by executive producer Terry Matalas. Frakes tells Variety:

I think they can’t deny not only the fan reaction, but the fact that the numbers put the show at the Top 10 on the streaming charts. And that season of ‘Star Trek: Picard’ was arguably the among the best seasons of any ‘Star Trek’ — I think we all agree on that. I mean, ‘Star Trek’ fans are loyal. It’s not millions and millions of people, and it’s not the youngest fandom in the world. But I am an eternal optimist, and I believe in a perfect world, they will find the assets and the energy and hire Terry to put together this ‘Legacy’ show and that will, in fact, come to fruition.

Marina Sirtis as Deanna Troi and Jonathan Frakes as Will Riker in “The Last Generation”

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“ And that season of ‘Star Trek: Picard’ was arguably the among the best seasons of any ‘Star Trek’ — I think we all agree on that.” – love ya Frakes, but no…we do not all agree on that. Picard 1 was eh…ok, Picard 2 was bad. Picard 3 was eh…ok.

Speak for yourself.

Yup. Speak for yourself.

Actually, Frakes was the one saying, “we all agree on that,” not nkc. nkc clearly said, “we do not all agree.” So nkc clearly said he was not speaking for everyone — Frakes was the one suggesting that he was.

Your disagreement should be with Frakes, not nkc.

I don’t always agree w/ UppderDecks-NormalNecks but yeah…I clearly was speaking for myself. And – go back and look at the Picard S3 episode review threads here, I’m not the only one. I’m not saying I hate it. But 100% love and thinking it’s the best of ANY Star Trek…he’s just doing what creatives do. There’s a 20 year waiting period before you can criticize a project – especially if you want to keep getting paid in that franchise

Same here, Frakes was speaking for everyone, not you

Well if you people are going to start speaking for yourselves, then I might start speaking for myself, and no one wants that.

S3 was amazing. Perfect? No, but still amazing.

S3 felt wonderful because of the full (almost) TNG reunion and for all the other nostalgia. But I have to admit IMHO the story itself sucked.

But I have to admit IMHO the story itself sucked.

Like, the founder off set was following the borg why exactly? And I will admit the idea of humans being assimilated in such a way does cme from Voyager but the way they went about it was just uugghhhh

I agree SO much!

Oh please. Take away all the nostalgia, all the easter eggs, all the cameos, all the fan service and there was barely anything left.

Agreed. Unfortunately, for many, that was enough though.

It was enough for a taste. Not to support and entire series long run. Even nostalgia gets old.

Hey, I was grouchy about S3 before it aired, and when I embraced the fan service suck episodes 1-5 were very enjoyable. Episode 6 entered the Pandering Zone, from there it was all mailed in. So it was kinda sorta enough, Mr. Frakes gatekeeping aside.

I tend to agree. And as someone who does not feel a lot of nostalgia for TNG I feel like my perspective on it is more balanced. The front half wasn’t too bad. The trope of Picard’s long lost son was a tired one but beyond that the story was acceptable. Once Amanda Plummer was dealt with it felt like there was nothing left. The story fell apart completely. At that point nothing worked. Including the “what’s behind the door” mystery. Mainly because I never cared about Picard Jr to begin with.

All that said it was overall certainly better than most of the Trek we’ve been getting lately. But I found Insurrection better than Picard S3.

Season 3 of Picard is my absolute favorite of NuTrek by miles. I’ve seen it 3 times now. Absolutely love it!

I still gotta give it to SNW my friend :)

I like SNW too, certainly better than Picard season 1 and 2 and ALL of Discovery. 😉

But prequels will never be as good for me as a sequel show when done right.

love ya Frakes, but no…we do not all agree on that. Picard 1 was eh…ok, Picard 2 was bad. Picard 3 was eh…ok.

Well said — you nailed it with this statement, dude. S3 was great acting and good for TNG re-union fan service elements, but S1 was actually better Star Trek — problem solving and real science fiction, unlike the Star Warsy S3 action adventure.

“S1 was actually better Star Trek”

lol you high? Or just trolling?

It was science fiction and had thoughtful problem solving — that’s what TNG always did. S3 was space-opera, action adventure — more like Star Wars with space zombies — it was very un-TNG like.

It is what is is — and I’m not saying that this means that S3 wasn’t much more popular than S1, because it obviously was. But S1 was much more like TNG that we all know and love than S3 was. You are kidding yourself if you disagree.

Don’t shoot the messenger.

Saying it was better Trek isn’t saying it was classic – I’d agree with the observation and extend the benefit of the doubt to season two as well. Season 3 was beautifully made (IMO), and the actors were all on their Trek A game, but the story was a clusterf**k even by action movie standards. It was a success, as it drove viewers to a failing Streamer platform.

I don’t see how S3 was anything remotely like Star Wars. It *clearly* wears its TOS movie influence on its sleeves. But you do you.

A lot of people have commented on this, including the podcasters on this site. For example here it’s summarized very nicely from the r/Picard moderator on Reddit:

Season 3 seems to have been influenced by Star Wars elements.

Data’s trench run and gut feeling mirror Luke’s experience during his own trench run. Deanna’s ability to sense their location is reminiscent of Leia’s feeling at the end of The Empire Strikes Back when she locates Luke. Jack, like Vader, desires to rule the galaxy and is swayed by the Queen (who represents the Emperor). The Queen embodies the Emperor in several ways, including the Star Wars sequels’ portrayal of the Emperor resurrecting himself and consuming the life force of others to heal (similarly, the Queen sustains herself by consuming her own kind). Picard leaving Riker and Worf to save Jack parallels Luke leaving his friends and sister to redeem Vader. Riker and Worf’s actions are akin to disabling the shields for the second Death Star run. The final sequence, where the central beacon of the Borg cube is destroyed and the cube explodes, is a clear homage to the Death Star’s destruction. And there are many more comments like this. This is far from just me noticing this.

Interesting though how you did not contest my comment about space zombies being a part of the season (well, not really, since they obviously are…lol)

Frakes, it was ok. Of all of nu-trek, possibly argue it was in the top 2 (SNW still by far gets the vote). In all of trek, not even a top 5.

I loved Season 3 as well. But it doesn’t mean there couldn’t be room for improvement either. I’m hoping that’s what will happen with the Legacy show if it comes to fruition.

lol is that you Kurtzman? Or Akiva? Picard S3 was pretty much universally praised and even brought back the hardened nu-Trek haters. Most fans are sick of lethargic prequels that go way off the canon rails. Time for the grown ups to take charge again and keep moving the franchise forward into the 25th century. #StarTrekLegacy

Again, really?

I feel kind of sad and embarrassed for you that you need to make fun of people who just don’t share your opinion on this.

The irony of wanting to “ keep moving the franchise forward” … whilst also praising Picard S3 which was nothing apart from fan service, cameos and nostalgia to a time when Trek was good.

There was very little forward-looking about season three. It was very much a coda — sometimes a good one that mostly honored its source material, but hardly proof-of-concept for a 25th century show.

I agree with the idea you’re advocating — all of the prequels have been underwhelming. But I don’t see how a 25th century show will benefit from Jack Crusher, the La Forge brood, and so on. A “Star Trek kids” concept is going to suffer from the same flaws as the prequels; namely, being too closely bound to the original.

The most promising parts of S3 as an audition for LEGACY were the new Starfleet characters: Shaw, T’Veen, and Ohk. But they killed off most of those.

There was very little forward-looking about season three. It was very much a coda — sometimes a good one that mostly honored its source material, but hardly proof-of-concept for a 25th century show.

Yeah, it was OK as one-off, sentimental fan service giving closure to TNG, but by no means does it provide a model for a follow-on series.

The irony of wanting to “keep moving the franchise forward” … whilst also praising Picard S3 which was nothing apart from fan service, cameos and nostalgia to a time when Trek was good.

I’d go a step further and label that as hypocrisy.

Why the hell would Kurtzman be against Picard’s success. He is a producer on it. Changing the name of the Titan was lame in my opinion.

Agreed! For me, SNW Season 1 was the best season of modern Star Trek.

100% agreed!

Yeah. It was good. But it was was mostly nostalgia. If those were original characters. It would still be a good season but nowhere newar the best of Star Trek.

“Picard 1 was eh…ok, Picard 2 was bad. Picard 3 was eh…ok.” Was it? Oh, ok. Thank you for the correction of Frakes.

I agree with seasons 1 and 2 being ok at best. Season 3 was far better and a fitting end. The character Rafi was ridiculous. Calling Picard “JL”?? Really? She was a throw away character for sure.

There is a lot to take in here:

These are the voyages was a great episode Star Trek Picard S3 was amongst some of the best Trek ever

My favourite is, the 2 or 3 more days of writing to make the S5 Discovery finale the real finale (says it all about the quality of writing on that show) ———————–

Personally I can not imagine anything worse for Star Trek at this moment in time than a “legacy” show created by Terry Matalas, but if the ratings are there then it will happen no doubt.

I am mildly excited for a 4th Kelvin movie, but Trek on TV is dead and the movies are only worth watching because they are at least better written than the shows, there is less time in 2 hours to get it so wrong, but the Kelvin movies are not where they should be either.

I really miss Star Trek, we have not had it since 2005, almost 20 years now

as much as I think Discovery is mediocre at best, I don’t think that they had to do a bit of retrofitting to make the season finale a series finale is indicative of anything beyond them not knowing it was going to be the series-ender. I’d rather they get the opportunity to do something than do a ‘Turnabout Intruder’.

Absolutely agree! I am not huge fan of Discovery either but they deserve better than that. Hopefully the new material will give it a proper send off. They did launch a new era of trek and some of the characters and plot lines were pretty decent. For me though it just never came together as a whole. Here’s hoping season 5 lives up to its most devoted fan’s expectations!

Personally I can not imagine anything worse for Star Trek at this moment in time than a “legacy” show created by Terry Matalas, but if the ratings are there then it will happen no doubt.

Agreed. And I don’t thing the ratings will translate over to a non-TNG cast reunion show — that’s a huge assumption that the studio execs are not likely to buy into, nor should they.

I think it was a fun, if imperfect, one-off season, and we all just need to move on now, including Matalas.

I think the studio is more likely to do a DS9 and Voyager nostalgia show now if they are going to base their decisions for new productions on the Picard S3 ratings.

That’s the beauty of the Legacy show, you can add more DS9 and VOY characters on the show too.

The Legacy show is not a TNG sequel it’s a TNG era show. That’s why Seven is Captain of the Enterprise and not Geordie or Worf.

But the ratings, hype and fan love is too big too ignore. Paramount+ needs real hits if it’s going to survive. This is an absolute no-brainer!

Terry Trek is what excites a lot of the base right now and for good reason! 😎

It’s the direction that Star Trek should have gone, forward not boldly going backwards again after the lackluster Enterprise. Instead we get 3 rebooted Kirk movies and 2 more prequal series. For those that mention it in nearly every post about Matalas season 3 movie style send off as being pure nostalgia. What exactly is SNW then, now we have Kirk popping up every other week ffs. Disney like puke inducing musical coming up and cartoon comedy crossovers, ‘look how diverse our episodes are’, erm no thanks when half of season 2 is instantly forgettable. Yes there is a crowd that like this lighter more comedic Star Trek. I want a real Trek TNG/DS9/Voyager sequel series that explores a more interesting timeline for me in which the Legacy series will go. TG1701 like you that’s the Star Trek that excites me. I loved Twelve Monkeys which is a lot better than much of the Star Trek we have be watching and unlike a lot of Sci fi series had a great finale. There is no reason Matalas could not make a very good Star Trek series that would at least be different than SNW.

I’ll speak strictly for myself and say I have never been much of a prequel guy and why Enterprise, he Kelvin movies and Discovery never truly excited me when they were all announced. Of course I was curious about all of them and with the Kelvin movies and Discovery, I was just ready for more Star Trek by then so that alone kept me invested.

But I will be very honest, the announcement of Picard was really the first time since Voyager ended I was generally excited for more Trek. It wasn’t just about bringing back an iconic character and actor back to the fold, it was just nice, FINALLY, we are moving forward again in a franchise that is ABOUT moving forward. If they made more Kelvin movies, I would’ve watched them. And same for DIS every season as well, but it was the Picard show where I really became invested as long time fan again because while it was going back to nostalgia bait, all possibilities were possible again. We don’t know where any of it is going anymore. If they brought back any legacy characters, it would be a continuation of their story and not just filling in to things we kind of knew about as most prequels do. “Hey, I bet you didn’t know THIS about Khan, did you??” Oh Kahless, just fucking kill me now.

Now I generally like SNW, it’s fun and it’s nice to be back on the original Enterprise, especially for us old TOS fans. But am I begging for more of it, no, I’m not. I love Pike and Spock but we already know where those stories will ultimately end. Hell, we know where the Enterprise story will end lol. That’s why it’s very hard for me to get excited for prequels, but I do enjoy SNW a lot. But if that was the show that premiered in 2017 and NOT Discovery, people would’ve been much happier IMO instead of a lot of eye rolling they when they were told yet ANOTHER prequel was coming. But who knows, they may have hated the idea more than they hated Discovery lol. At least Discovery didn’t feel like a rehash.

And yes I love 12 Monkeys as well. I was a fan of it the first day it aired ad I’ve even gotten a few posters here to check it out and they all seemed to have loved it. Matalas proves how creative and solid his story telling skills are and why I would love a new Star Trek show by him; one where he has all the creative power from the start.

OMG second time today I responded to the wrong person. 🙄

Typing on a new phone can be a pain.

LOL no worries!

Most Trek fans agree, time to end prequels.

Well I don’t think you need to end them, but there has to be a balance at least. Someone somewhere got it in their head that fans really wanted more prequels and from what I see that’s never really been the case. People were iffy on Enterprise from the start, but I understood why they decided to go that way at the time. Star Trek had been running continuously for 15 years and 21 of those seasons in the 24th century (although UPN itself wanted another sequel show actually and where the problems started). So the idea was interesting even if the execution of it was flawed.

With the Kelvin movies, they were attempting to restart the entire franchise to gain new fans and with the original iconic characters. Again, didn’t like it personally and I been a fan since the late 70s, but I certainly understood it although It ended with mixed results similar to Enterprise but hey they gave it a shot…and a lot of money lol.

But Discovery I feel was an absolute mistake to keep going backwards. By this point fans wanted to go forward again and give us a setting where anything and everything was possible again. People really wanted to see a post-Nemesis universe, be that 10, 20 or 50 years after the fat. They obviously realized it was a mistake when they sent the show to the 32nd century but probably a bit too late by then because many had just soured on the show overall.

Now people had easily accepted SNW but that was for two reasons. A. They just really liked Pike and the idea of being back on the original Enterprise but also B. Because by then there were already 3 post-Nemesis shows on the air and a fourth one on the way. I guarantee you if it was ONLY SNW and that’s it, the complaints of not going forward would still be there even if people liked the show.

But I will be very honest, the announcement of Picard was really the first time since Voyager ended I was generally excited for more Trek.

Well, I agree with this. But the problem (to extend my Bond analogy) is that Picard was a bit more like NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN. We’re no longer seeing Picard in his prime; I actually liked the way that the series embraced that fact.

Yeah I can’t disagree with this either. I didn’t have a big problem with him being older. No he wasn’t the same Picard, but some ways that was a positive. Early TNG Picard was not someone you wanted to have a beer with. I do love the fact the character has opened up so much in 30 years.

In fact one of the biggest applause the finale got at the IMAX screening was when Picard first offered to play poker in 10 Forward. People LOVED that lol. Its kind of weird, he comes off older….but yet cooler lol.

For real bro! 👍

For many people, Star Trek should always be going forward, not backwards.

And I’m a 90s kid and when I first got into Star Trek I really only cared about TNG/DS9/VOY. That’s my era of Star Trek, what I really only watched regularly for decades and wants more of it.

But I think it’s a generation thing too. If you are someone watching Trek in the 60s, 70s or 80s many of them want more prequels and love stuff like Enterprise/JJ verse/Discovery etc. But for most fans who started in the 90s to now want Trek to keep going forward because it’s what most of us knew

I’m not saying everybody of course I’m just speaking in general. I’ve seen people my age or younger want more TOS or ENT. I also seen people who grew up with TOS to keep going forward as well and hate the prequel stuff. But most younger fans want more TNG era stuff and because a lot of those actors are still around.

But I’m not anti prequel either. I really like Enterprise a lot today. But originally just couldn’t care about when the Federation was formed, how did Starfleet first meet the Andorians and all of that. Complete snooze fest for me bro. All this happened centuries ago so why do I care??? I stopped watching that show after 12 episodes. But as I got older and more got more into Star Trek in general I did start to enjoy it more and today watch it quite a bit, especially seasons 3 and 4. Love both of those.

Also why I like SNW today too. I still don’t care to know how Spock and T’PRING will break up or how boring NuKirk and Spock first met; it’s all a big shrug to me. Those guys been dead for awhile now too. But it’s a least a good show again that actually feels like Star Trek. I don’t actually care about any of the canon stuff but and when will Sulu first show up; but they are at least exploring again and telling fun sci Fi stories. That’s what I care most about on any show.

But hopefully we’ll get more of that on the Legacy show and follow characters again who we haven’t seen die already. 😉

There is some of that. But I still would like to go forward. I’d just like to go forward from TUC. :)

I would be down for a prequel to the TNG era too. That’s about 70-80 years before TNG starts so lots to cover. I really would love to see the Federation first contact with Carsassians and that went so wrong?

“[I don’t care about how] NuKirk and Spock first met; it’s all a big shrug to me”

Exactly. It’s like “they were military officers assigned to the same ship.” They don’t need to be Drinking Buddies That Go Way Back.

Yeah I never once watched TOS or the movies thinking ‘I wonder how these two met?’ as if it was some huge mystery or story point. Since they are both Starfleet officers I imagine they met on the ship they are working on together. If they met sooner than that, fine, I think all you need is a line and that would be it because IDGAF since it has zero bearing in the show itself.

How Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader is a real question and you can make a story out of it (even if still ultimately a bad one). The Spock/Kirk thing is just more minutae and utterly unnecessary to show, but this is how prequels work.

That goes into the same category as “How did Han Solo get his name?”

Both SNW and PIC are nostalgia. The HUGE difference is that PIcard is a serialized show with one season long plot. If you get that wrong everything for the season and maybe even the series is doomed. SNW is Episodic. They can be whatever they want from week to week.

Indeed. Too often they decide to be crap.

Yes there is a crowd that like this lighter more comedic Star Trek.

It’s very much like SUPERMAN III and Roger Moore-era James Bond. Some people adore it, and indeed their voices tend to be loud, if only due to survivorship bias. But they won’t sustain a franchise that otherwise seems cartoonish and creatively bankrupt.

I actually e-mailed Tim Lynch, TNG reviewer extraordinaire, just before DISCO premiered to ask whether he was planning to review the new series. His response suggested to me that he wasn’t even planning to watch. I didn’t always agree with his take on TNG, but while I obviously don’t speak for him, I share enough of it to suspect that if he has tuned in, he seems little worthwhile.

I will take it continuing VOY but man at this rate I want a DS9 follow up to just be about following up on DS9 so it can’t be neglected. Sorry to be a donkey but after the way Vadic was thrown away I would rather DS9 follow be its own thing or just continue in LD because so far LD has been proving they can. I’m waiting to see if they bring the Breen back though before I fully judge there but also LD being its own thing is good too.

Oh agreed man! With our conversation from last week you know how much of a DS9 I became. I started out watching Trek with Voyager but DS9 ultimately won me over that show but still love them both and down for either one to continue.

But I don’t think we will get a sequel of any show. We are kind of getting a Voyager sequel with Prodigy but that’s now been cancelled. But most of us want those characters in live action anyway even if you liked Prodigy. My own girlfriend loves Voyager but can’t really get into Prodigy because it feels too much like a kids show to her (but love it a hundred times over Lower Decks).

I’m down with anything that gets us more 24thor 25th century Trek though. And would love more DS9 stuff on Lower Decks next season too.

I don’t think we will either. Especially what I particularly want which is actually follow up on the Dominion proper (mostly the Jem’Hadar and Vorta).

In case anyone gets upset about me saying this, it won’t happen and I know that, I’m just being gay. Go ramble about how fans just want legacy characters to someone who cares. Since LD has Jeffrey Combs, I want to see Weyoun in the LD style. It will never happen but I think it’d be cute.

I think that would be awesome too

The problem is a DS9 follow up would be so hard to do. Rene Auberjonois and and Aron Eisenberg have sadly left us. Avery Brooks and Alexander Siddig have both commented numerous times that Trek is behind them and they aren’t interested in returning. Dax was killed off. The best we could do is a DS9 follow up show is with Captain Kira and a brand new cast of supporting related to the original ala the hypothetical Legacy show.

I do agree and I never wanted all of the old characters back in the first place. What I wanted was something more like Prodigy but what I really really want is just a new crew exploring the gamma quadrant more. With an update on how the Dominion is doing that you can find a way to do without Odo. If we get any of the people from DS9 back, Kira at the station is good and also some of the Vorta. Like uh Molly Hagan if she’s still around and acting. Eris being seen again would be nice. And of course I’d never say no to seeing Weyoun again but I know that’s very unlikely.

Sure, I would be down for all of that, I’m just saying it might be a hard sell to the studio. Picard itself was never really a true success even with Sir Patrick Stewart till they brought the entire TNG cast back in S3

Eris being seen again would be nice

I do wish we had seen Eris more than once.

A large check would change Siddig’s mind pretty quick I think. Remember all the BS about Spinner feeling that way…and that he ends up playing a force-fitted character every year on Picard as Kurtzman keeps cutting him checks…lol

I think you start a new follow-on show with Kira, Jake and Siddig, and you find a way to bring back Jadzia as well…that’s enough to work with.

Give Ezri another chance though. It’s not her fault they brought her in so late and threw her at relationship after relationship.

I agree it’s not Nicole Deboer’s fault. She was just given a crappy role and acted with it. I get what they were trying to do with turning a Dax into a Counselor but her first best destinies were always as a warrior or a technical scientist / Engineer

I don’t think it was her career either. I can see Dax being a counselor working and besides isn’t it a part of trill’s entire thing to do something different with every new host? I think it was just when she was introduced and why she was so giving her a second chance might go a long way to helping fans adjust to her.

Sure. Might be true about Siddig. Not Brooks tho, his health from what I hear can’t take it.

Exactly. P+ only has 2 franchises that can pull in top 10 streaming ratings. The Yellowstone franchise and Trek. Those alone are not enough.

Exactly man. P+ is a better service than the embarrassing CBSAllAcess, but I still just watch because of Star Trek. I bet you most people here mostly because of Star Trek. They might watch other things on it but most pay for it due to Star Trek. I don’t know anyone who has it now.

And it’s not a bad service but competition is just too high these days. Someone said it may not make a profit for another four years. They need as much Trekkie money they can get. A Legacy show will easily bring in the money. If it’s really good even more.

Yes. I have P+ just for Star Trek and other tv show reruns. P+ is nowhere near Apple TV+ or Netflix or even MAX without Trek behind it.

I’m no fan of P+ but to be fair according to USA Today (take that for what it’s worth) P+ is listed as the 5th most subscribed to service. Apple is #7.

I’m not surprised Apple is that low. The biggest problem with that service is they don’t have a real library. There are no IPS or brands like all the other sites. They put out a lot of original content, a lot of it good, but it’s still not something you have to keep all year either. There are a lot of shows I really gotten to like on it, the latest Silo which I never even heard of until a month ago and watched it. But there is probably 1-2 shows running at a time that people want o see and at $7, it’s easy to just cancel that and wait for a few to end and binge. I’ve already decided to do that for Foundation and I liked season one. But sorry, I can’t afford to keep all these services to just watch ONE show. I do it with Star Trek but very rarely the others.

There’s not much point to a DS9 coda. DS9’s story has been told, and two of the three most important characters can’t be reprised. Brooks no longer is acting and shows no appetite for a return; Auberjonois is sadly no longer with us.

I agree that a VOY coda might work as another one-off miniseries.

I just wouldn’t be very surprised if the suits at P+ decide it is a good idea to mine existing properties for some easy subscriptions because they got good results with Picard S3. Not that I would complain if they did do that.

The assumption is a Legacy show would have the Enterprise G with Seven in command. She is a fan favorite character and alone could probably pull in ratings.

Maybe. But it’s not equivalent to Stewart, Spinner and the full TNG cast reunion. I don’t think that all transfers just because you have her, and I like her too…but it’s not like she’s Shatner, Nimoy or Stewart…and VOY is not as popular or as well known by the general public as TNG and TOS are by a long shot.

True, but conversely Jeri Ryan has had a long career post VOY, She has a huge fan following even if she is not James T Kirk or Jean Luc Picard or even Data.

A few years ago — it may have been back when VOY was still on the air — I saw an episode of “Family Feud” in which the survey-says question was “name a Star Trek character.”

The answers were all TOS and TNG, except for one; that one exception was Seven of Nine. I think she’s weaved her way into the cultural zeitgeist.

Wasn’t Voyager one of the popular shows streaming on Netflix at one point? I thought I had read that somewhere.

Voyager is very popular today. And yes it was one of the most restreamed shows on Netflix and 7 of the top 10 replayed Trek shows were Voyager episodes. BUT I think part of it had to do with those shows having the Borg around. And people are shocked why the Borg showed up in three straight seasons of Picard. Fans claimed to be tired of them but looking at the viewer scores of all their episodes, they have no problem bringing in people to watch them again and again.

And I think we also have to remember the majority of Trek fans are casual fans. They are the ones who will watch a show because a legacy character or Q or the Borg is in an episode and will watch that over and over again. And yeah with Q back, that’s even another reason the Legacy show would be popular and probably why season 2 was still a hit even though most thought it sucked.

I had hear that too. I’m a bit skeptical of that though given that that supposed level of popularity wasn’t able to prop up Prodigy.

tbh it’s because of how people look at animation. As you’ve seen here with quite a few people, people will refuse to watch animated stuff. So it’s not the fault of Voyager at all, it’s just that people think animation is lesser than live action. Which I guess is fair. They’re actually both equal in my opinion but that’s just that, my opinion.

Of course people will say it’s the fault of kids but honestly if we really want to point fingers and blame people for it. They need to pointed at Paramount for how badly they mismanaged things.

It has nothing to do with Voyager. In fact reading about the show the past year, most people who are watching it are only doing it because Janeway was on it and why I suspect she’s even there, to get more adults invested.

It’s like suggesting TAS failed after two seasons because there was too much Kirk and Spock on the show.

And I don’t think it’s just animation because LDS is still going strong but I think like TAS branding it a ‘kid’s show’ is what kept most people away. Sure I agree being animated already had a big strike against it, but calling it a kid’s show is ultimately what doomed it more than anything IMO.

And I also agree, Paramount has to be blamed too. First off, they show half of season one but then waited nearly a year to show the second half. A LOT of people complained about it because I’m guessing a lot of kids just moved on by then. Then I guess the weird scheduling issue they had with Nickelodeon just didn’t help. Originally it was just suppose to air on Nickelodeon since they ordered it. And then we heard it was going to be on P+ too, but after it aired on Nick. And then that was changed and P+ got it first because my guess is they thought it would be better to target the Star Trek fans first and have more Trek content on content starved P+ for them to watch.

It may not have had much of a difference but maybe it should’ve aired exclusively on Nick first and not break up the schedule so much in its first season. Maybe none of that would’ve mattered but since it was made for kids , then make them the priority first and us oldies would catch it later.

Most of the viewers are there because Captain Janeway from Voyager is in it, therefore It has a lot to do with Voyager. You can’t say one of these is true without having the other be true.

And therefore I think I’m right on this — I think it’s simply that the amount of voyager fans set isn’t nearly as large as the next generation set of fans because the next generation fans are certainly propping up lower decks to ratings success, regardless of how they feel about animation,

Agreed as well. In fact I had no big interest to watch it until I heard Janeway would be on it because I don’t like animated shows in general and they made this one sound too kiddy. But being a huge Voyager fan I was into the idea after that.

It could still not be for me but I told myself I will watch the first season no matter what. If I can watch Discovery, this can’t be too bad right? 😉

This ended up being way better than I thought. I still had some issues with it in the beginning but by episode 10 of the season I knew this was the show for me, Janeway or not.

But I think there were too many others like me for dismissing the show before it even started. Or they just felt it wasn’t interesting enough.

I still want it to find a new home of course but now it’s a better chance Janeway will pop up on love action on the future now so glass half full I guess.

And you can’t blame the kids. Star Trek is really an older thing and it still more a niche for a lot of people out there. They been trying to get more normies to like it but it’s not something people can really love unless they give it a real chance. I made this point for myself I never gave it until college but most of my old friends or family ever got into it to this day.

Yeah that’s true, there is a better chance we will get a live action Janeway sooner than later now which is what most fans want anyway. And Matalas wanted her to show up in Picard as well, but yeah, money. ;)

And you can’t blame the kids either, it’s just not a show that relates to them as others even though I thought the show did an amazing job to attract them. But I’m not a kid nor have any, so I don’t pretend to really know. But if it does get a new home, who knows, it may still be a good chance to attract more of them.

It definitely was and it kind of sucks now leaving that service where more people were exposed to it to be on a much smaller site like Paramount+. At least the shows are still on Netflix worldwide.

Agreed. I mean if it’s a Seven show in the 25th century on the Enterprise with the possiblity of TNG/DS9/VOY characters showing up versus an Academy show with a bunch of teenage newbies in the 32nd century and some DIS characters, it’s not even a contest lol. People would flock to watching a Seven show. Maybe not as much as Picard, but pretty up there IMO.

Again, the petition for it is twice the number of the Pike show and we saw how much people wanted that. You can’t talk both sides out of your mouth pretending a Pike show can be a hit but somehow the Legacy show would be a dud when there seems to be waaaay more people pushing for it and many fans were already suggesting a Seven spin off show as far back as Picard season one. First there was the Fenris Rangers idea in season 1. In season 2, it became the Captain Seven Stargazer show. Now it’s FINALLY a real possibility with her being Captain of the Enterprise. It’s a no-brainer of epic proportions.

That’s why it’s more of a when than an if because people have wanted a Seven show literally every season now and Matalas was smart enough to hone in on that. Even Akiva Goldsman said he wants it made and it should be, but he likes money like every Hollywood producer.

You said it all man!

And I was pushing for a Seven show the minute she showed up in the first trailer. 😂

A Seven show over a Silly Tilly Academy show with a bunch of CW teenagers in the 32nd century finding true love for the first time or a very special episode where the 17 year old Andorian understands what teamwork means is certainly a hard choice.

Yeah fans can’t wait to watch that dribble in a century most people don’t even care about starring one of the most annoying characters in Star Trek next to Neelix…and Neelix. Maybe she won’t star in it but these hacks made her a first officer and then a ‘teacher’ at the Academy although she’s literally 900 years out of date with everything. Expect to see her Academy President when it starts though because hacks have to keep being hacks.

Legacy show with one of the most popular and iconic character in Star Trek exploring again on the ENTERPRISE with other legacy characters dropping in from time to time…I don’t know man if that can work? Just sounds so risky?

But an Academy show no one was begging for based on one of most hated shows in Trek in a century that has no bearing with any other Trek show or legacy characters with a bunch of teenagers sitting in classrooms..where do I sign up to watch????

Trekkies are counting down the days for that dreck. 🙄

TNG proved 35 years ago that you can make new characters popular and you will still get devoted fans if you have a good show. It happened again with DS9, then again with Voyager. Didn’t go as well with Enterprise lol, but even that show is more popular with younger fans today. But Star Trek has proven you don’t need a ship full of iconic legacy characters, 1 or 2 is really all you need and you have an audience. In the 90s you didn’t need ANY iconic characters to make the show a hit but today is a different story I imagine.

The point of the Legacy show will attract old fans who want to see Seven and whoever else pops up (because we all know there will probably be Worf, Riker or Janeway with a recurring role of some kind and build even more buzz) but then bring in new characters as we saw with the bridge crew that will eventually get some new fans on their own. But let’s not kid ourselves, none of these shows are going to bring in a large subset of new fans at this point. It’s not the old TNG days or the 90s when you can bump into a show on a network and try it out for a season. Especially a service doing as badly as P+. But it will definitely bring in more fans who wants a live action post-Nemesis show again and this time focus more on exploration or strange anomalies, ie, the 90s or what SNW has been doing every week. ;)

And for the record, I am for the Academy show, but the argument seems to be that show will bring in a ‘younger’ set of fans and I just don’t really buy that. Prodigy sadly proved that’s really easier said than done. Star Trek is not great at being market growers, that’s exactly why every show on now is geared to old fans and not new ones. Prodigy was the first show they said was specifically made to draw in new fans and it was cancelled after one season. I don’t think teenagers will suddenly start watching Star Trek because there are 18 old Klingons and Cardassians around making out.

The Seven show will get an audience instantly , the same audience PIC, SNW and DIS got in the beginning anyway, if not more. There is not a single reason not to put this show on other than Paramount just might be too poor to make it lol. And btw, Matalas confirmed in the Shuttle Podcast interview why the Khan show didn’t happen. That’s the show he was originally hired make. But once they started to budget the Picard show, they realized it was going to be very expensive and there was not enough money to make a Khan show, so it was cut. And probably why Lower Decks got the green light instead because it was just cheaper to make. ;)

So if they just can’t afford the Legacy show, I can see that as a possibility obviously why it wouldn’t get made. But in the long term it will probably bring in more money and views than the Academy show even if that’s cheaper.

Wow that’s interesting about the Khan show. I completely forgot that was a thing at one point. 😂

Like why would you make a show about a guy stuck on a barren planet for 10 years? The show is called Star Trek, I want to see people on starships exploring, not another Adolf and his Augment cronies hanging out on a boring planet for 5 seasons but I digress. I just don’t get Kurtzman obsession with Khan. The character died, move on.

As far as new people watching Star Trek because they know the characters I can tell you for a fact new fans don’t care or remotely know the difference about ANY of it because I was one of them. I didn’t start watching Trek until my first year in college. The only character name I knew growing up was Kirk. I didn’t even know who Spock was. I recognize the character but I never learned his name until college. I knew Picard and Sisko but that was only because I came across an article about Emissary before DS9 started. I actually knew who Data was. That was really the only Star Trek character I actually knew something about at the time and that he was an android. How, I couldn’t tell you.

And I have to stress I got through 18 years of my life knowing completely zilch about any of it and I’m American. I used to live in Asia where people may have heard the show Star Trek but absolutely nothing beyond that. And I’m even talking about after the Kelvin movies came out. I knew people in Japan and China and it was a completely foreign concept to them like anime is a completely foreign concept to most people over 30 or 40 today. Sure they may tell you they heard of anime but it stops there. The idea any of these characters are household names outside of mostly western countries is laughable. Star Trek has never been a thing worldwide. Maybe more now thanks to the internet and more of it recent years but most people in many places of the world still couldn’t tell you the difference between Kirk and Sisko.

For a lot of people out there who don’t watch the show or science fiction in general, all of it is still a blank unless you know someone who watches it. I’m guessing anyone who watches any of the new shows today but never watched Trek before is either because someone they know watches some of it or they have Paramount+ and they try it out of curiosity.

For the overwhelming majority of new fans it’s all a complete blur to them as it was to me. I only watched it because a friend and someone I was dating at the time were hardcore fans and how I started watching Voyager.

To be clear about the Khan show, it was actually just a mini-series. Nic Meyer was going to write it and then Matalas would actually make it. It was only going to be 3 episodes IIRC. But that proves that Trek isn’t given some huge unlimited budget when they had to cancel a 3 hour miniseries to make way for Picard (and definitely the right decision ratings wise at least). They are suppose to be doing a podcast with it now, but we’ve heard zilch about it since, so who knows. I wouldn’t have mind seeing the miniseries but yeah that money can go to stories NOT regurgitating the past over and over again with dead characters.

And your point about people not knowing Star Trek if they never really been exposed to it is definitely true. I think 30 or 40 years ago, people could at least make a distinction between TOS and TNG because that’s all that was at the time and TNG was really everywhere after third season. They still may not know anything about the shows, but they certainly knew they existed.

Now, it’s very different because it’s been on so long and there are so many shows now, for most complete newbies they can’t tell you the remote difference from any of them today, again, UNLESS they been exposed to it on a real level. But if they haven’t, it’s all Klingon to them at this point. I will say TOS is certainly considered the most iconic, but that doesn’t mean everyone even knows what TOS is either, certainly in most parts of the world where Trek has never been popular.

I’ve gone through this thing myself, but it’s with Dr. Who. That show has been on as long as Trek has. It has the same loyal and nerdy following. It hasn’t made any real spin offs like Trek but because there is always a different Doctor, it sounds like the show gets constant reboots. It has more episodes than Star Trek does. They are basically equal at this point.

And I can tell you two things about the show. The main character is an alien named Dr. Who and he travels in a phone booth. That’s my entire breath of knowledge lol. I can’t tell you a single other character on that show. I couldn’t pick out one actor from it eitehr outside of one of them because they were part of the MCU. That’s how I found out they were part of Dr. Who. ;) I couldn’t tell you how many shows there are, if they had any movies, nothing. And I like sci fi lol, Dr. Who just never appealed to me personally. But if you don’t like or watch sci fi at all, then yeah you’re much more in the dark with these franchises.

And you say you never watched Trek until you were 18. I never even heard of Dr. Who until I was 17 lol.

And that’s considered just as much of an iconic show if not more so than Star Trek in a lot of places (certainly the U.K. ;)). But ‘iconic’ is very relative depending on who you ask and where you live. ;)

Actually now that you mention it I do remember that Khan was only supposed to be a mini series and I remember Meyer showing up on Star Trek day to talk about the podcast thing. No one seemed like they were that interested in it though so not a big shock it didn’t happen.

And people are sick to death of more prequels. I don’t care about the podcast story either but may listen if others like it I guess. For me Kahn died long ago so it’s all a big shrug.

And I’m pretty clueless on Dr. Who as well! 😂 I actually seen a few episodes when the new show started up in 2005 but it just wasn’t my thing personally although my uncle actually became a big fan of it and watched it regularly. Not sure if he’s been watching it lately. That show has been getting a lot of backlash like Star Trek lately too and I remember him complaining about the last few seasons.

I think Star Trek and Dr. Who has the same problem with new people and they stay away from it because it sounds too sci fi and nerdy. But also like you said there is way too much of it today and most people have no idea where to start and trying to understand all the characters and backstory to the whole thing probably feels too overwhelming so they never try.

When I talk to people online who wants to at least try it I always tell them to start with TNG since it doesn’t feel or look as outdated as TOS and of course it’s still very popular. I would probably tell others SNW is a good place to start now too since it feels a lot like TNG and TOS but updated…and there isn’t 178 episodes. 😂

But that is the one positive about the franchise, once you give it a real chance and you like one show it usually does get you interested in the entire franchise. Even when I started with Voyager I just thought I would watch that show only and when it was over, that would be it for me. I had no interest to even watch the other shows or movies.

Twenty five years later I’m still watching! 😉😎

End of the day, Star Trek is still more of a middle tier franchise, that’s just the reality. I know some fans don’t want to hear that but it’s the truth. The show has been around for 57 years now, but if you go up to a teenager today and ask them if they watch it, most will probably never seen it or could tell you much about it. But if you ask them about Star Wars, MCU, Transformers or Harry Potter, I’m guessing over half of them will have seen all of these and can tell you plenty. Even older adults will probably be able to tell you way more about those other franchises than anything about Star Trek if they don’t personally watch any of them because A. it’s just a lot more exposure of those in popular culture and B. they probably just have kids who are into those brands a lot more too. Of course Star Trek is very mainstream, but it’s never been super popular with the masses either. I will say the time it hit biggest in popularity was obviously the early 90s which I feel is when Star Trek was at its peak. I still think that was when it was super popular because it was everywhere at that time. It had a lot to do with TNG’s rising popularity but the franchise as a whole was at it’s peak. TOS was officially ending but more people were watching that in reruns than ever probably since it first entered syndication. People who started with TNG were now watching TOS too, including several of my friends. You couldn’t get away from Star Trek then, merchandise was everywhere, there used to be entire Star Trek merchandise sections in toy or department stores. It was constantly on the news. TV guides biggest sellers was when a Star Trek actor appeared on he cover. I LOVED those lol. Every time a new show like DS9 and VOY came around brought tons of headlines in the mainstream news. When Kirk and Picard were on the cover of Time Magazine before Generations came out, you know you arrived lol. It was a fun time to be a fan back then. But since then it has regressed a lot. I will say when the first Kelvin movie came out, that was the second time it landed big on the popular culture radar. But I still don’t think it made the franchise itself more popular though, not like the 90s. Yes more people were exposed to Star Trek because like TNG back then, a lot of people saw that movie who had never seen Star Trek before and average people were talking about it again. But it never really took off beyond just more people watching those movies specifically. I don’t think it got many more into watching TNG or TOS or their movies. But to be fair, it’s a reboot, it wasn’t designed to be part of the old shows. But the movies never became anything more than a fun summer movie and not turn them into bigger fans. That was obvious because even when STID and Beyond came out, there was practically no merchandise for it. The movies didn’t raise all tides the way the shows did in the 90s. And we saw by the time Beyond came, it feel back to mostly the geek circles mostly caring. As far as the new shows (getting back to the topic lol), again I think they have attracted SOME new people but I’m guessing there are tons of people out there that doesn’t even know these Trek shows even exist now. If you’re not in the bubble or own P+, they don’t exist in the real world at all, not like the classic shows did. Again NO merchandise to speak of in any stores. I’ve never seen someone wearing a DIS cap or T-shirt on the street, ever. I have not seen any of these shows in the news except when Patrick Stewart announced he was coming back for Picard. You do get stuff like Comic Con at least, but again that’s for the nerds and all of them know about Star Trek regardless. But for the masses and regular people, there is just no real buzz. Sure for US there are plenty of buzz (ready for the musical soon ;)), especially since Picard season 3 aired this year. But if you’re not already in the bubble or been a fan at least since the 90s, it’s very easy to ignore these shows altogether. because unless you have a friend or coworker saying they should give DIS or LDS a chance, I doubt most know anything about them. But to end this on a more positive and uplifting note, I agree …  Read more »

And you might be right that the Legacy show would simply be too costly to do. They probably cancelled Discovery because it was just getting too expensive for them and not enough people watching.

We been hearing how all these services are trying to cut down the spending (Disney spent over $200 million on six episodes of Secret Invasion and it looked like a FOX show and it was awful) so I can see that as being the sole reason. But even if it cost more than the Academy show that would still be more worth it in the end because that has a built in audience and would be just as big as Picard in its first season. You bring in a few more legacy characters you probably have one of the biggest Trek shows around.

But Paramount is probably pinching pennies these days, especially when they’re biggest movies this summer like Transformers and Mission Impossible are under performing.

What it needs is another JJ verse movie! I’m almost positive that could maybe break $300 million today. 😂😂😂

Of course they can’t afford to make any of those either.

Trek has always been first and best on TV and this generation is no different. Trek on TV is not dead. Both Picard and SNW hit the top 10 streaming lists. Conversely Kelvin movies cost MCU level of money to make but don’t even get a 3rd of the returns. In the movies is where Trek is dead at the moment, not TV

Picard S3 is going to age terribly. Once people get over all the nostalgia and fan service, they’ll realise there’s very little left except for a paper thin plot and an utterly ridiculous and over the top finale.

I love Enterprise more than most. But they did have some bad episodes like all the shows. And for sure, THESE AREN THE VOYAGES was one of the worst ones. If not the absolute worst of the series.

STRANGE NEW WORLDS!!!!!!!

In other words, not dead at all. :-)

Frakes’ love for STAR TREK is wonderful. I hope he continues to get opportunities to work on both sides of the camera in this universe. I worry about Paramount’s financial health affecting any future projects though. And with the union strikes going with no end in sight, that will do further damage to streaming subscriptions/revenue.

I agree with Frakes that “These Are The Voyages” was a good episode, but a bad choice for the series finale. It would have been fine if Enterprise was going to get a 5th season.

At that point, Enterprise was already so bad that that ep seemed like a positive breather from all the crap eps of that series. I’m fine with it, and the series absolutely needed to end at that point…stick a fork it it.

Good or bad, love it or hate it, the ratings speak for themselves. That show literally replaced with a Britney Spears reality show which itself got cancelled in 2 seconds flat. UPN as a whole was always doomed and the only show to really survive was Next Top Model

Yeah, because even within each and every season, the # fans watching dropped every week. You can’t blame network dynamics on that. The fans stopped watching, and stopped making the attempt to watch it, because it just wasn’t very good Star Trek.

You see fans dropped the show continually ever year, and within every year, fans dropped the series week-to-week. And at the time, I remember many fan friends of mine, over time, giving up on Enterprise and just not wanting to watch it anymore.

It was a failure. No excuses.

Now perhaps today, in retrospect, and with sentimentality thrown in, people like it more, so it’s less of a failure now…OK, I can buy into that some. But it definitely was a total failure back in the day — that’s a fact — it deserved to be cancelled, period.

I agree it in of itself was a failure. but while viewership dropped year after year, the seasons of the show itself got better. If we got a season 5 we would have had the Romulan war. Also, the network itself was a HUGE issue. Before the CW was formed UPN was not in nearly as many markets as the previous Trek shows in syndication would be able to hit. Heck Voyager only survived because #1 thats all UPN had at the time and #2 Jeri Ryan.

I need to give it another watch. I actually liked S2 the best, but it’s been 12 years since I watched it last, so perhaps now I might appreciate the Manny Coto seasons more? And I have the BR set that I got on-sale a few years back.

I have to admit, I liked the idea of the Temporal Cold War, just not always how they went about it. Also, it’s been decades, someone can finally tell us who future guy is!

Did you realize that the only reason the Temporal Cold War concept was included was because UPN demanded some sort of future element on the show? Braga & Berman had no intent and didn’t want to do it. When the demand was placed Braga used an idea for another show he had and tweaked it to fit the Enterprise show. But neither were really happy with the concept. Probably why there weren’t a lot of episodes that dealt with it.

If they waited a few years as Berman suggested and probably put Enterprise on when people were missing Star Trek again, the show would’ve been fine. Maybe not amazing in terms of ratings but better. Fatigue was a thing at the time. I know, because I stopped watching and I watched every show when they came on for 14 years. By that point, it was like ‘more???’. But yes Enterprise had problems obviously and a reason why others stopped watching. But no more than most shows did, both old and DEFINITELY the newer ones.

CW never was profitable either. It is why the Arrowverse has been put out of its misery. And Superman and Lois will probably be cancelled after one more season, which is much reduced in budget.

TATV was an absolute disgrace especially when compared to how great Demons/Terra Prime was.

I agree though it would’ve been fine if it was a fun one off episode but they still killed Trip which was a huge mistake. 🙄

That’s probably one of Trek s finales for me.

Yeah, Trip’s death seemed rather pointless and unnecessary.

Yeah totally unnecessary. Braga said he would bring him back in another season or movie. But too little too late.

Yeah, that was literally Brannon Braga just doing it because he said he felt like it. Not sorry he is gone from the franchise after that. He killed Kirk and Trip both in the worst ways possible.

It was a bad decision. What did Trip sacrifice himself for? So Archer can get to a speech in time?

Trip’s death seemed rather pointless and unnecessary.

I should point out that it was a holo-novel. Every bit of historical fiction, even the sainted OPPENHEIMER, takes some liberties with the truth. (No, Oppy didn’t meet Niels Bohr by saving him from eating a poisoned apple.)

Sure, but I don’t think Oppenheimer killed off any historical figures who actually lived for decades after the events of the film.

Luckily Trip technically only died in a holodeck recreation. It would be so easy to bring him back and not defy canon.

Yeah I can buy that for sure and Riker was just being an idiot with the holodeck. Silly Riker.

They couldn’t have killed Trip if they had a 5th season. And certainly wouldn’t have.

That’s true. Braga confirmed it himself a few times. They knew the show was over and wanted to go out with a more somber tone. I still think it was dumb, especially knowing Star Trek and shows has a way of coming back.

The problem with Frake’s comments it that it is based on a false assumption — that the high ratings from the TNG cast reunion season of Picard will directly translate to a Legacy series that does not bring back that cast in a fan service extravaganza like S3 of Picard was.

There is no reason to assume that a Jack+Seven-based series gets very high ratings simply because the full TNG cast reunion, one-off spectacle we just all viewed got those ratings.

Apples and oranges.

And without the fan service and sentimentality to fall back on, the limitations of Matalas’s storytelling, including his penchant for action-adventure space opera, I don’t think will work for a multi-year series…or will end up getting the same fan hate that DSC got.

My mistake man, responded to the wrong post! 🙂

No worries, I accidentally did that with Tiger2 last week myself.

LOL believe me I remember

Yeah, he roasted me good on that one — and I deserved it. LOL

The Pegasus is one of my favorite episodes of TNG, and it always sits weird with me that they tried to shoehorn the Enterprise finale into that. It doesn’t really fit the story, and certainly the actors ages don’t fit either.

I think if you were going to These Are The Voyages right, it would have to been 1) not the series finale of Enterprise but just a one-off episode in the middle of the season and 2) have the framing story be Troi and Riker on the Titan instead of during TNG.

It is interesting that when watching The Center Chair documentary series, Manny Coto states that Braga and Berman wrote the episode and produced the episode to show he was not involved. He obviously didn’t agree with it.

I’ve actually thought that the framing might have been better placed during “Chain of Command II,” when Jellico relieved Riker of duty, and the latter had to decide whether to pilot the shuttlecraft that was mining the Cardassian ships.

Great news for me…there are 10 episodes left of Discovery! 😉

Bad news for me…there are still 10 episodes left of Discovery. 🤮

I tease people…I tease. I’m not holding my breath this season isn’t going to be less horrible than tha last four seasons but I’m crossing my fingers. I’m just ready to move on from this show personally.

Had it not been for the pandemic delays, it’s likely the fifth season would have streamed last year, and we’d be moving on the sixth. This cast deserved a true final season; Paramount should have been decent enough to at least give them three extra episodes, so that they could have a “final adventure” that had nothing to do with the already written/filmed/produced fifth season.

I actually don’t disagree too much but end of the day it comes down to views and money. I mean at least Discovery got 5 seasons and reshot the finale to feel like an ending. Look what they did to Prodigy. That’s a total disgrace and they are selling off a show with it’s second season already done.

Any show they could’ve better treated was that one. But it all comes down to money and not loyalty end of the day. If that was the case we would probably be on the fifth JJ verse movie now too. But one movie bombed and they spent 7 years trolling the fans over it instead.

They pretend to love Trek and it’s fans but they only care when enough of us do. When that stop being the case and enough stop watching they wash their hands and just move on.

What they did to Prodigy was ridiculous They have so many more shows that aren’t famous franchises they could have cancelled. Like can we just cancel reality TV for once?

That’s what really hurts, because Prodigy is a tiny show at the end of the day, they weren’t paying for it like Discovery and they are both part of the same franchise that Paramount+ keep pointing out as being the ONLY place to watch it all. Not anymore assholes.

It’s just a major blow. Again, I accept its cancellation. Not happy about it, but if its not hitting even their minimum viewership and it probably wasn’t, then it should be cancelled. But selling it off is another thing entirely; although I have heard people say that could be a positive if whoever ends up buying it gives it more seasons. If that’s the case I won’t complain as much but I have low expectations of that happening.

Oh and I finally went and looked at the Hageman brothers resume and these guys are heavy hitters in the animation world. I had no idea they made that many animated movies on top of shows and most have been very strong both critically and box office. In fact, they turned two of their other shows into movies.

So I can see why they wanted them to do this project, not only did they have a strong track record, they gone on to make their projects into bigger franchises. And now they were making a show that was already part of a big franchise. They probably had a bigger plan in mine to make this show a success and then turn it into a movie series because they don’t have to spend $200 million for their animated movies. ;)

So I think as sad as it is, the show must have been basically DOA by the time it started because they had no problems getting at least two seasons or more for their other shows.

Yep. I’ve been a long time LEGO Ninjago watcher. LEGO Ninjago movie didn’t do too well at the box office but it was a very decent movie. They were a major part of why it even got more seasons to begin with, it was only supposed to have two but people loved it and demanded more and got more.

Yeah I saw the original LEGO movie, I had no idea they were involved in any of those. And wouldn’t it be cool Star Trek got a LEGO movie or TV special?? Star Wars has some really fun LEGO specials on Disney+. Sadly I don’t think our franchise is big enough to get stuff like that

Star Trek actually could get one. The LEGO’s newest show, dreamzzz, actually had a few Trek and Trek parody references in the first season. There was a helmet that makes the chirping noise of combadges for example. It’s just if they’ll go to LEGO and work with them to make it.

It’s just that Paramount needs to go to LEGO and say hey we want to do a LEGO Trek special can we work together on it.

Unless I’m mistaken, the Trek license has been with a direct competitor of LEGO (called BlueBrixx) for quite some time. So probably no LEGO movie unless they change that.

I know. I have my issues with where the Trek license is but that’s a conversation for another time. This conversation was me saying that that is what Paramount would have to do if they wanted one.

I’m not holding out hopes for the season but maybe the re vamped finale

No one seems very excited about next season even after hearing after it’s been cancelled. I’ll watch it and hope for some Picard season 3 turnaround (and I liked Discovery season 4 more than I liked Picard season 2, so that should tell you how much I was in the dumps about Picard). But I’m still not very encouraged. It looks and feel like same ole…bad.

Yeah and I am one of those that has practically no hope. But in the back of my mind I keep hoping the finale will like go back in time or something and erase the monstrosity that is what they think of the 30th century.

But didn’t they go forward in time to erase all the monstrosity they did in the 23rd century? 😂🙄

I think the finale maybe they will jump to the 40th century so they can screw that century up and turn everyone into cryers there too!

I’ll meet you halfway on this. If they can have an ep where the whole lower decks series is shown to just a dream a live action character is having, then I will accept an episode which erases the whole 30th century thing.

Picard season three was the best season of Trek ever!

I still wouldn’t go that far personally. For me Prodigy first season was the best actually. But yeah in terms of it’s nostalgia moments, real drama and stakes and a return to stronger dialogue and writing again, I think Picard S3 is a big contender even with its flaws. It felt like it had both gravitas and real adults were back in charge again, something missing from all the other shows IMO and that obviously includes Prodigy. ;)

I’m liking SNW season 2, but it’s a huge step down in the dialogue and story department save for 2 or 3 episodes so far this season. With Picard, I loved 8 out of the 10 episodes, about the same I loved for season one of SNW.

That season could not hold any season of DS9’s jock strap, let alone any season of TOS.

You think S1 of Picard is the more truer Trek XD

Yes, and I will repeat why Picard S1 is truer to TNG than S3:

It was science fiction and had thoughtful problem solving — that’s what TNG always did. S3 was space-opera, action adventure — more like Star Wars with space zombies — it was very un-TNG like.

It is what is is — and I’m not saying that this means that S3 wasn’t much more popular than S1, because it obviously was. But S1 was much more like TNG that we all know and love than S3 was. You are kidding yourself if you disagree.

See this above — this is my explanation for why I think this.

Now you go ahead and come back and give me a really clever once sentence putdown, because those little asinine, juvenile quips are all you got.

Wow I seem to be agreeing with you a lot on this particular article. Nothing has ever been done that can beat City on the Edge of Forever or Best of Both Worlds.

Yeah, well said. You and I agree on a lot of stuff. It just so happens that I can admittedly be somewhat dickish on stuff I disagree on with people, so disagreeing with me is probably more memorable for you. LOL

LOL all good!

DS9 FTW. My formative teenage years were spent watching TNG. TNG was my first sci fi TV love, and ever shall be. And still, DS9 is a better show. It just is. No Trek has matched its highs or its consistency. Even the “shaky” first couple season were better than, say, 30% of TNG, 67% of Voyager, and 88% of SNW.

That said, I’m still young enough that half of TOS is virtually unwatchable. Sure, there’s the occasional Balance of Terror, but otherwise… damn .

DS9 FTW. My formative teenage years were spent watching TNG. TNG was my first sci fi TV love, and ever shall be. And still, DS9 is a better show. It just is

I will say it’s the best NuTrek season so far. 😎

The reason S3 was good for me at least was because it was pure nostalgia for TNG. It’s hard to say it was better than TNG when it is based on bringing back TNG

I can listen to Frakes talk Star Trek all day long!

And I think most people will agree, it’s better for Frakes to direct the finale of a cancelled show than to star in one via holodeck. Obviously he agrees too. ;)

I do feel a little bad for Discovery that it sounds like they wanted to really advertise and promote the last season and I read the original kick off to that was suppose to be at comic con. But with the Hollywood strikes going on full force right now they may not be able to do much of that now.

And I fully agree with Frakes on the Legacy show .And if people are interested Terry Matalas was on the Shuttle Pod podcast this past weekend for a nearly 2 hour interview and it was great. It’s on YouTube. He added a few extra bits about working on season 3 and of course is very interested in doing the Legacy show. And looking at all the comments from that interview, that seems what most fans want as well.

Honestly, I think it’s really just a matter of when and not if at this point. People want to be back in that era again. The fanfare over it has made that very clear. They want to see those characters and I don’t mean just the TNG characters obviously. SNW is great and people seem to generally like the animated shows too (yeah, Prodigy, I know) but in terms of the fanbase, it really feels like it wants more post-Nemesis live action shows and not the 32nd century, something a bit closer to home and more relevant to the universe. ;) Picard season 3 is really want most fans wanted season 1 and 2 to be. And now that they got a real taste of it, most seem to want more.

We really don’t know where the future of Trek is at the moment with all the insanity over the strikes and Paramount not being in the strongest place these days. Basically SNW and LDS are really the only continuing shows on right now and who knows long they will go? Yes there is the Academy show but until that really gets up and running, who knows? But my guess is the Legacy would be the next show after that if the Academy does still come around. We’ll get more 25th century adventures one way or the other!

Especially if Legacy can find a way to have some episodic stories with serialized character development. That may be the ticket to bringing back a lot of fans. As much as I love serialized storytelling it didn’t work so great for seasons 1&2 of Picard. Also most fans don’t seem to prefer it and it’s still ultimately a business.

Yeah I hope as well. I thought season 3 mostly handled their story fairly well and stuck to landing, but there were still episodes that just felt like they were spinning their wheels and had some plot holes. I think SNW works better just being more episodic. The Legacy show doesn’t have to be that either but I think they can add standalone stories here and there. At least not where every episode is tied to everything else. Enterprise did it the best in season 4 IMO.

The way I see Paramount seems to want to have only one live action show and one animated Trek show on at the moment, disregarding the standalone movies. So if any new live action show comes out in the near future I feel like they’d wait for SNW to end one way or another. They want to consolidate their resources and not concentrate on too many things at one time when it comes to Trek. So I don’t actually see the Academy and Legacy shows existing at the same time. What they can do is change the Academy show to have elements of the Legacy show or incorporate elements from both shows to create a single show.

Yeah this could be true, but it’s kind of sad it went from being committed to having 5 shows on a year to now just keep two shows on, one live action and one animated. I know this is just your opinion and you know how much I like and respect you but I really hope you’re wrong. ;)

But I probably will concede if a Legacy show happens, it will probably be after SNW ends or if the Academy show is dropped.

I do agree it would be less moaning at least if they moved the Academy show to the 25th century and so we can have Worf be the most intimidating Academy teacher ever, but I suspect they want ‘the Burn’ angle for the show. I think that’s a big reason why it even exists. You move it to the 23rd or 24th century, then its just another school drama or Harry Potter in space some of the bigger haters like calling it lol.

Agreed and I hope I am wrong too but my observations about the whole streaming situation and the strikes in Hollywood makes me think that many streaming services will or need to cull or minimize their products or streamline them in the long run.

I feel you’re right as well. I’m just personally hoping if that’s the case then just ditch the teen Academy show no one is begging to watch and replace it with the Legacy show since that’s clearly what a lot of fans want.

I think it’s time for a Star Trek that not only takes place post nemesis, but also gets back to it’s science fiction roots. A show for the audience who craves hard hitting science fiction and exploring new worlds. We have enough Star Trek for the young audience. We’ll soon have a second teen series, SFA. SNW and SFA should be enough for that audience. I’m sure they will both be fantastic at pulling in kids who love rom-coms, musicals, and that sort of thing.

Given they do multiple Trek show for multiple fan submarkets now, I like your idea of a new series that takes the approach of a harder sf treatment of Stark Trek. I’d be all for that.

Agreed, leave the cringy crap with the prequels and give the fans proper Trek post-Picard.

Agreed as well. That’s why I loved Picard season 3 it felt like adults and drama again in a real science fiction environment and pushing the universe forward.

I like the lighter and fun shows like SNW and LDS and why I love the crossover so much. But I want more grown up Trek again like we got with Picard.

Although I didn’t like the episode at all the last SNW episode with M’Benga PTSD felt like a real adult show for a change. But that show is probably better to stay lighter and have Pike cracking dad jokes, cooking in his apron and doing musicals. I don’t know if it works as a dark or ultra serious show IMO. The Gorn stuff is fine though.

Yes, last week’s episode actually did seem geared towards adults, which was refreshing. And as to Pike being reduced to mainly comic and/or background relief this season so far (I did like his show of rage in “Lotus Eaters”, also refreshing), I’m pretty disappointed.

It was refreshing I just don’t know if it will just be the exception and not the rule. With Picard it has felt like the adult show, but just a pretty bad one. But season 3 I liked how the characters all had real authority but they can still crack jokes too. So it wasn’t just people angry or depressed either, you saw all their personalities shine! And it was never turned into melodrama like Discovery is every season. 🙄

I don’t mind SNW being a lighter show but it would be nice to have Pike be a little more stern and not just everyone’s cool uncle all the time. It’s a big reason why I didn’t like the last episode because they made him look too naive and weak. He just kind of shruggs at what his officers are going through and how someone ended up dead over it. And then he just kind of shrugged at that too.

This should’ve been the episode we saw some real passion in this guy and s real fire in his belly like we see with Picard, Kirk, Sisko, Archer or Janeway whenever they were confronted with stuff like this.

Yes, totally agree with you. Harden up the content, get actual sci-fi writers involved, and make it all post-NEM going forward. And no on-screen weeping please, unless its well-deserved.

I like the way you think man! 🙂👍

Strange New Worlds has been greenlit for a third season, and Lower Decks a fifth season. The Starfleet Academy series and the Section 31 film have also been confirmed. There is no reason we can’t have a Picard- sequel set in the early 25th century.

I think Matalas did a wonderful job with the third season of Picard , but if a sequel series does move forward, I would prefer it not be called Legacy . I don’t hate the name “ Star Trek: Legacy,” but that does not suggest moving forward. Give me the Enterprise-G, give me Captain Seven, Commander Raffi, Jack Crusher, and Sidney La Forge. But give me stories with the other new characters who survived the finale, give me new stories that involve new characters. Give it a FRESH name.

To me, Star Trek: Legacy sounds like it should a series of 90-minute one-off stories featuring legacy characters from every past iteration of Trek.

I don’t agree, “Star Trek: Legacy” is a name 100% about the future – what kind of legacy has been left by the 21 years of TNG-era, 4 years of ENT-era, and maybe even 3 years of PIC.

And as for “a series of 90-minute one-off stories featuring legacy character from every past iteration of Trek” sounds about like a perfect Trek formula to me!

That is simple not true…from the dictionary:

leg·a·cy noun The long-lasting impact of particular events, actions, etc. that took place in the past

What are you even taking about? The key element of that definition is “long-lasting impact”. How is that not something concerned with ‘what will happen next’?

You’re the one who said it’s 100 freaking percent about the future, not me. When you say that then you’re also saying it’s 0% about the past — that is how percentages work.

Mean what you say, say what you mean. And then please don’t blame me because I just read exactly what you wrote — and you clearly said 100% about the future, which means 0% about the past.

You’re the one who said it’s 100 freaking percent about the future, not me. When you say that you’re saying it’s 0% about the past

..sorry for the repeated post.

What is O’Brien up to? Well we could have a fun little O’Brien/Bashir adventure and maybe involve Garak. 90 minutes, check, one and done. Maybe there could be an “engineering problem” Starfleet has to solve and we get together all the legacy engineers that are still alive/around. Or we could see one last adventure with Takei or even Shatner. We could go back and see Beverly and Jack Crusher before the events of PIC S3. Perhaps a pre-PIC adventure featuring Raffi and Rios. Short Treks was the perfect vehicle for one-off storytelling that could have been expanded into a longer format. That was a sorely missed opportunity, and hopefully the S31 film is the first step in correcting that. These are the things I think about when I think Legacy .

I loved PIC S3, and I want the continuing adventures of Captain Seven (fingers crossed though it would return to a mostly episodic format like SNW), but if that show happens give it something new, give me stories about the Titan crew that did actually survive the PIC finale. Give me new characters, show me the geopolitical landscape of 2504. Give me new scientific adventures.

One thing about Bashir and s31 that has always stuck with me is to see if there was a reason behind the reason for recruiting/exploiting him, like The Village wanting #6 to ultimately become their man in THE PRISONER. A great way to open up an s31 movie would be to have a bedraggled O’Brien hauled into some s31 haunt and see that Bashir is ‘running’ it.

Totally agree bro! 👍

And you’re right we got many of the centuries covered now: SNW/23rd century; LDS/24th century: SFA/32nd century. So we need a show to continue in the 25th century. That’s ‘present day’ Trek for me.

And would be fine with a name change too.

These are the Voyages was a bad episode PEROID . The only thing good was the last 3 minutes . The only thing to remove the bitterness of it ,is the realization that it was not the true History of the Enterprise NX-01 last voyage . Riker on the D was using a Holo Novel based on the historyof the ship , to work out his issues . Like the episode, The Royal ,it takes bits of history and changes the narrative to reach a dramatic conclusion .

Jake and Rose didn’t ride the Titanic and Trip did not die on the Enterprise . As a matter of fact , He is living off the grid with T’pol on Vulcan One day we will see what really happened . Thats my story an I’m sticking to it . Till then lets hope they decide to bring back Enterprise as a limited series The Romulan War ,year 1

Regarding the desires for a show with 7 and the others… I’m reminded of the great Spock line from Amok Time.

“ After a time, you may find that having is not so pleasing a thing after all as wanting. It is not logical, but it is often true.”

Yeah but you can say that with everything though. That’s how so many of us felt after the first two seasons of Picard. For me Seven was one of the best things about those seasons. It’s still not saying much (and she was stuck with Hot Mess Raffi in season 2 which made it worse) but still fun to watch.

But I love Seven. I’m pretty convinced I only became a Star Trek fan thanks to her.

Well, her appearance on Voyager was a boost. And I found that her arc improved the show. Don’t feel the same about her on Picard, however. Any of the seasons.

Not exactly surprised bro! 😂

And people used to call me a Kurtzman hater.

You don’t like anything, so for you it is always true.

Incorrect. There is quite a bit of Trek I like. TOS. A number of TNG episodes. DS9. VOY was well done overall and I liked Enterprise from the start. 6 of the 10 TOS & TNG films were good. As was 2 of the 3 KU films.

So please… Next time you post something think it over before showing yourself to be amazingly ignorant.

Your constant negativity about Trek is public record. You are also often very rude when people point that out to you.

Once again you posted something ignorant without thinking it through. You are wrong. I just proved to you all the Trek I like.

2nd: You are obviously confusing me with some of the other regulars who can be stunningly rude. I’ve never once called anyone out for disagreeing with me.

Please think before you respond to me again.

How about: your constant negativity about nuTrek is public record. The rude part is definitely being proven.

That dude loves to dish it out, but then fawns this fake-ass moral high ground BS when you push back on him. The funny thing is, he has some really good posts and I agree with him frequently. It’s unfortunate that he feels the need to whine so much when he’s called out on his arrogant insults schtick.

I don’t “dish anything out” except opinions. You yourself are the self admitted jerk here. You are describing yourself. Certainly not me. And you know it. The only people who have claimed I have been “rude” were people who were just annoyed that I dared to offer up a different opinion. Hell, you’ve done it yourself.

Patton on Montgomery sums up my response to you:

Hell, I know I’m a prima donna — I admit it! What I can’t stand about Monty is he won’t admit it.

I guess I feel weird jumping in here since this sounds like a ‘family’ dispute lol.

But I don’t have any issues with what you say here at all man. In fact the first message I remember reading from you was putting down Lower Decks constantly and I love that show personally. But I still ended up agreeing with some of your points about it. They are just TV shows, it’s OK to like or hate something and to express it. If you’re insecure how strangers talk about fictional shows, that says more about you than them. Put your big boy pants on, it’s not that serious just because someone hates VOY or SNW (and I like them both).

And the hypocrisy here is unbelievable. I wish I can tell you how I really feel about some people here because they can’t handle negative opinions when it’s something they like but have no problem telling the rest of us why something they hate is worthless over and over and over again.

From what I can tell about you is you don’t do that. You’re definitely not overbearing and you don’t try to tell others what to say or how to say it either. You don’t try to control the boards or insult anyone when they something bad about a show you like. That’s toxic behavior I don’t tolerate. 🙄

But you just say why you hate about something. And you don’t get triggered over things either like I don’t and then writing it in every thread even when that’s not the topic.

I respect all of that. Sure it would be cool if you like shows like LDS and SNW more, but totally agree on your views on Discovery and a lot on Picard. We’re NEVER going to agree on Nemesis though lol. That’s just one of the most utterly bad stories in Trek history for me and to this day my most hated thing in all of Star Trek. But I digress and it’s cool you like it if course! So I’m not getting on your case about your opinion and some people who are criticizing you should actually learn from you how to give an opinion without chastising others over theirs.

It’s unbelievable some have the nerve to call you out with their ridiculous behavior.

Not sure who you are talking to with this response. I love SNW, Lower Decks, Prodigy, and Picard. Nor am I rude.

I wasn’t calling you rude. I was agreeing with you. And getting more technical so he couldn’t bury his head in the sand anymore.

Ah, I misread it. Thanks for the clarification.

The “bury his head in the sand” certainly seems aimed at Salt Vampire….

Where is it proven?

It doesn’t exist.

Calling people ignorant is sure being rude but okay I’m out.

No. It’s not. If that is your bar for “rudeness” heaven help you when you encounter actual rude people.

Calling people ignorant is sure being rude but okay I’m out.

For everyone except ML31. For him, FREE PASS, because he knows he’s a nice guy!

Seems you subscribe to the adage that if you repeat a lie often enough it becomes the truth.

How sad for you.

Got any evidence of that?

Of course you don’t. Never let the facts get in the way of what you wish were true.

I am a façade free zone — what you see is what you get — no spin BS and no pretending otherwise.

Just let the guy say what he has to say. Who cares if it’s to say he doesn’t like something. Personally I feel more motivated to express an opinion on something I don’t like. To each his own. The whiners are the ones complaining about people expressing negative opinions. Get over it.

But you and I admit we can be dicks…that dude believes his own press releases about what a great guy he is…lol

So what? Or maybe that’s just the way you see it. Honestly compared to other posters I’ve never seen ML be directly rude, despite what some here say. I find him quite tolerant to criticism in fact (more than me).

I rather live and let live than jump on the schoolyard bandwagon and pile on the guy… At some point you just realize that people have their own personality and accept it. Hey that’s why we’re buddies now! But there’s a line that can’t be crossed and things I will never accept… Some have crossed it and they can burn in hell of course…

Me and ML31 disagree ALL the time, but I’ve never found him rude or insulting; he’s just passionate and firm about his opinion. I think that’s fine and why I enjoy talking to him even if I want to put my head through a wall at times lol. He’s never called me a single name, accused me of being hateful and we fight ALL the time. Because we respect each others differences of opinion and leave it there like adults. It’s certainly gotten heated a few times here or there but we always move on…again like adults.

But if others are that bothered by it, then I’ll say it for the thousandth time, this is why we need an ignore button. It would make stuff like this go away where it doesn’t always get so personal. And as you know I been at the target of this a few times myself.

And shocking, everyone is negative here when its something they hate, everyone. I’ve read the same hundred posts from certain people why they think Lower Decks or Discovery or Picard or Kelvin movies or Enterprise or SNW or whatever someone thinks is a supposed plight on humanity sucks; and they never shut up about it either. Read this thread lol. So I don’t get the problem at all? We all do it, some just do it better than others. ;)

But if others are that bothered by it, then I’ll say it for the thousandth time, this is why we need an ignore button.

An ignore button is an excellent idea.

Yeah I’ve only been calling for one for 10 years now. Maybe if I mention it again, that will finally do the trick lol.

I LOVE THE IGNORE BUTTON IDEA !!!!!

Also agree! ,👍

It’s a big reason I don’t type more here.

I’ve advocated for an “ignore button” in the past. I’ve also since abandoned the suggestion. Not because I no longer would like to see it. But because it doesn’t look like it will happen. Therefore my “ignore” button is to see the handle of the person I wish to ignore and then skip the post. Interestingly all but 1 I have done that to has been banned. And I don’t even endorse banning anyone. As horrid as those posters were I’d rather they still be here. Not a fan of the banishments.

At any rate, yes, everyone repeats their opinions quite often. I’m just as guilty of that as anyone else. And I’ve never ripped on anyone for doing it. In fact, I find it odd when people do. But if that’s what makes them happy they can knock themselves out. I still have the option to stop reading if I don’t feel like reading it again.

Yeah that’s certainly true lol. And I only mention it when flair ups like this happen. One of the reasons I like this board BECAUSE there is not a lot of moderation and people are free to say anything they want here. But same time there should be a little more moderation when people start personally attacking others. We’ve seen time and time again how that gets out of control like I feel is happening with you right now.

Like I said, we definitely have our arguments, but I actually enjoy talking to you the most even though we don’t agree on many things, especially with Kurtzman Trek lol. We actually agree on pretty much the classic shows with the exception of TNG, which I know you don’t hate, but at the bottom for you with the older stuff. And that’s obviously OK. It’s really the new shows we see differently on…because I mostly like them lol. But you’re mostly positive on the older shows and movies…minus TVH lol.

But it’s also why I like talking to you, I feel while you are a bit too negative at times, you always spend time pointing out why and give your points; that’s all anyone can ask for. I have never seen you attack anyone for disagreeing with you. And I have made my points clear why I’m not a huge fan of Picard and Discovery many MANY times lol. And as I said, everyone here commenting to you goes on and on and on and on and on about stuff they don’t like either, so I don’t get why they are drawing you out? It’s a bit ridiculous frankly.

I agree with you that Salt Vampire doesn’t have much of an argument about complaining about ML31’s negativity — yeah, too bad he doesn’t like that; sure, so what?

However, I don’t see what the big deal is on why Salt Vampire can’t call out Ml31 for being rude — he’s been rude to many here, as you and I have. And I have no issue when someone calls me out for being rude — you know what I do, I admit it. Why would I try to pretend I’m being 100% nice all the time? Who is that fooling?

And so what I find irritatingly humorous about the dude is that he acts so “I’m above the fray” and thinks he’s such a nice guy here. That’s BS, lol — my opinion. As Dirty Harry once said:

A man’s got to know his limitations.

Like I said, if that’s the way you see it, meaning you think he’s rude, then so be it. I have never to my recollection seen him being rude. Sorry. And I’m rude to those jerks who go with insults. That’s not being rude, it’s an eye for an eye. Frankly rude is not how I would describe you either…

On opinions, my man Harry said:

An opinion is like an a$$hole; everybody’s got one.

I will indeed admit it if I’ve crossed a line. I guess the only thing the line I see is a reasonable one. Many think merely the act of disagreeing is rude.

Also admitting when you’ve been a jerk doesn’t make it OK, either.

BTW, one of your comments to this dude recently was:

You are clearly an older individual, with a very passive-aggressive attitude towards the younger generation.

So that’s OK, but Salt Vampire can’t push back?

So you’re scrounging the bottom of the barrel just to call me out? This is certainly not a recent comment. I do remember having discussions with him years ago, but I have since moderated my reactions, as I have with you. With your last post though I may revise that. Not cool.

And Salt was complaining about ML posting a negative opinion. Maybe I said that to ML for different reasons? Besides from what I can tell we’re probably very close in age…

You better hope they don’t implement an ignore button, you won’t get replies from anyone. People will be too busy trying to pull out the knives out of their backs.

My point was that you got into it with him before as well, that’s all, so why deny Salt Vampire his strong response?

But yeah, as I mentioned, it was not the negative thing that bothered me either, but I think he was fine to call him out for being rude without you and others making a federal case about it.

Salt called him out because he was negative, and that’s my point. I’ll be plenty negative when posting on DSC and you on LDS. That’s fine. Who makes the rule that you have to post only on positive stuff? I’m not following that rule.

Everyone here is negative at times, so I don’t really get it? I haven’t been very negative on this thread for example, but others I been plenty. So what? We’re here to express our feelings about a TV show, good and bad. I have never once, ever, told someone they shouldn’t talk bad over something I like just like I would never listen to anyone who tries to tell me the same. We had a guy like that here recently and he’s gone for a reason.

Message boards are here to openly express your opinion, if you can’t let others do that, then that’s more your problem than theirs. And I really like Salt Vampire as well. We get along great but you just have to let people say what’s on their mind or just keep scrolling.

Exactly. Different people have different things to say in their own way. We’re here to talk about stuff in an adult respectful and tolerant way, and Tiger2 that’s always the way you write your posts so kudos to you.

Well that other guy didn’t get the boot because he was fighting with everyone but also for being a d.i.c.k about it!

If you want to tell me why Discovery isn’t a soulless show with bad stories, whiney characters and ridiculous subplots, sure I’ll listen and maybe agree I’m being too harsh. But don’t call me names or threaten to ‘report’ me because you can’t handle that opinion either.

And it isn’t your job to ‘police’ the boards either. So if you want to feel offended over everything when no one is even talking to you, then you shouldn’t be here.

3 dots, is that Morse code? I’m old but not that old…

I’d still like a 4th Kelvin film with Chris Pine. I thoroughly enjoyed him in Dungeons and Dragons. But we can’t always get what we want. I mean i also want Man of Steel 2 with Henry Cavill, and a Luke Skywalker tv series on Disney plus. Not gonna happen.

I dearly love Star trek, if i didn’t i wouldn’t have collected all 9 feature films on Laserdisc, and bought season 2 of TOS on Laserdisc. All from Japan. Bought all the 4K discs. I gave the TOS HD DVD i have to a friend. I absolutely loved Picard season 3 and i can’t wait for the Blu-Ray.

I was never insulted by that Enterprise episode – but it didn’t work particularly well.

The Pegasus framing was clunky (why that episode?) — and it clearly looked like time had passed for our TNG crew (Pegasus was filmed in 1993 and Voyages was filmed in 2005).

The idea was kind of cute, but not for a series finale.

Have just been returning to S3 via the score – which is mostly a cool and inspired take on familiar sounds and themes. It has a grandeur that I somehow missed while diving into the visuals. Indeed, S3 was a cool experience and it would be great to see more. It gets even better at the second watch. Other than S2 which now really seems awful (to me). S1 – better than I remembered it, some fine ideas and acting in it.

They could (not saying they will, not in a million years) bring back Enterprise as an animated show and we can get those last three seasons. Maybe Manny left notes for season five. Bring back Trip, along the fake death-secret spy plot line of the novels. Oh, it would be glorious if it happened and was done passably well. Quasi-related subject: any Legacy show needs DS9 cameos, that was a sad omission in Picard, and no, Worf does not count. What would be neat (and this is finally the connecting thought) is to have Jolene Blalock guest on Legacy as T’Pol’s daughter (from Trip? alive or from cells?). It would be a way to kinda bring back an Enterprise character without time travel, holodeck simulations, or chilling in a transport buffer for 200 years. Please, discuss vigorously.

Turnabout Intruder is still the worst series finale in Star Trek history, not These are the Voyages. Women can’t be Starship Captains. Women act with hysteria. That is misogyny writ large.The only thing i’m fond of is Shatner’s overacting as Lester. His Mutiny Speech.

I think the reason why Picard Season 3 was so favorably received was that it was so reminiscent of past-Trek, something a large segment of the audience has been missing for many years. To have a Trek where people actually act like Starfleet officers, talk to each other instead of simply emoting, crying, or screaming all the time, and have stories where the problems are solved by teams of people who respect each other and work together is a stark contrast to Discovery or any of the recent movies. Yes, the “fan-service” and having an actual reunion of the characters certainly helped (particularly after how badly other franchises had squandered those opportunities in recent years) but that was all secondary to the fact that the way the characters related to each other was finally familiar to these fans. The script, dialog, and story was no better or worse than other recent Trek, what really made it work was ultimately its heart.

Why Star Trek: Enterprise's Series Finale Is So Hated by Fans

One of the most reviled series finales in the entire Star Trek franchise is the end of Enterprise. Here's why it has divided fans for years.

Fifteen years ago this month, Star Trek: Enterprise ended its four-season run on UPN, concluding the adventures of Captain Jonathan Archer onboard the U.S.S. Enterprise NX-01. The prequel series to the entire Star Trek franchise had divided fans ever since its premiere in 2001 as it explored the early days of humanity's first forays into deep space, powered by the warp drive starships just prior to the official founding of the United Federation of Planets. However, there is one aspect of the series that the franchise's fanbase all appears to agree on: The 2005 finale is widely regarded as the worst series ending of any of the franchise's numerous television series.

Enterprise's head-scratching finale, titled "These Are the Voyages...," isn't told from the perspective of the show's main cast but instead from that of Star Trek: The Next Generation character Will Riker during the events of the previous series' seventh and final season. Facing a moral crisis within the Federation, Riker and Deanna Troi go to the holodeck on Enterprise NC-1701-D to seek guidance from history. The two revisit the events surrounding the decommissioning of Enterprise NX-01 and the signing of the Federation charter more than two centuries earlier (and approximately six years after the events Star Trek: Enterprise 's penultimate episode, "Terra Firma").

RELATED: Spock & Pike Star in Star Trek: Discovery Spinoff, Strange New Worlds

As Riker and Troi observe different points across Enterprise NX-01's final mission, Archer is faced with the high-pressure task of delivering a keynote speech as the Federation charter is about to be ratified as his command of Enterprise coming to an end. However, during a mission into deep space to rescue the kidnapped daughter of an Andorian dignitary, chief engineer Trip Tucker sacrifices himself to save Archer's life. Watching a grief-stricken Archer find the strength to return home and deliver his speech, Riker finds his own resolve to lay his Starfleet on the line.

Even before the episode first aired in May 2005, cast members expressed their misgivings about the finale being repurposed into what felt like an interlude episode of The Next Generation . Star Jolene Blalock went so as far as to refer to the decision as " appalling ." Contemporary professional critics were similarly puzzled by the creative choice to frame the episode within the context of The Next Generation . While guest star Jonathan Frakes was initially eager to reprise his role as Riker, he later criticized the decision to include him in the finale. Recalling that, outside of working again alongside longtime costar Marina Sirtis as Troi, the production had been an awkward affair, years later Frakes deemed the whole situation " an unpleasant experience " and a disservice to the cast and fans.

RELATED: Star Trek: How Marvel Created a Forgotten Generation

Fans were also vocally displeased by the death of Trip in the episode, with many feeling that the character's death felt forced and a cheap shock to engage the audience than a deserved, emotional payoff in effective service to the story. Actor Connor Trinneer would note months later the cast felt " hurt " by the nature of the series conclusion but enjoyed working with Frakes and Sirtis. Trinneer elaborated that while he felt his character had gotten out of worse predicaments over the course of the series and the choice to kill him off felt arbitrary, it did succeed in getting audiences talking about the episode overall.

While the finale's initial broadcast was watched by 3.8 million viewers, the series' largest audience since the previous season, the backlash was so considerable that producers held a press conference to address complaints and to defend their decisions. The producers noted that the finale was intended to be a swan song for the franchise as a whole, as the final planned episode of Star Trek on television since the debut of Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987. As the end of an 18-year run on UPN, the producers had planned the finale to reflect the end of an era, not just of Enterprise 's four seasons. In response, actor Anthony Montgomery claimed there would've have been a more effective way to close out the series and the franchise while properly honoring both.

More than a decade since Star Trek: Enterprise 's last bow, the television rights to the series reverted to CBS, leading to the launch of a new wave of Star Trek television programming, with Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard leading the charge. While Discovery was initially set decades after the events of Enterprise , its connections to the earlier prequel series and its controversial finale have been downplayed as it forges its own path. And, as the franchise continues to grow with new programming for the next generation of fans, perhaps it's for the best that the Enterprise finale is best left forgotten as boldly goes forward.

KEEP READING: Star Trek Fans Are Confused About How Gay Klingons Court Each Other

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Voyager's end: Every Star Trek series finale, ranked

Credit: Paramount/CBS

For over 50 years, Star Trek has served as one of pop culture’s biggest load-bearing columns. Hundreds of hours of television and 13 feature films later, Trek is more popular now than ever — as proven by Star Trek: Discovery , Lower Decks , Star Trek: Picard , and more Trek shows on the air or in the works than ever before. Of course, each of these journeys has to end, and some are better than others.

As Star Trek ’s future boldly goes forward, fans can’t help but get nostalgic for its past by revisiting previous shows via streaming — especially Star Trek: Voyager . The adventures of the instantly iconic Captain Janeway and her crew, stranded in a faraway corner of the galaxy, have become increasingly popular thanks to new fans discovering Voyager on Netflix and spending time with one of the ‘90s best and most inclusive series. As Voyager ’s series finale — the somewhat divisive “Endgame” — turns 20 this year, SYFY WIRE figured it was a good time to beam on down for our definitive ranking of every Star Trek series finale ever. 

Credit: CBS/Paramount

06 . Star Trek: The Original Series - “Turnabout Intruder” (1969)

“Turnabout Intruder” was never intended to be the series finale of the classic Star Trek series. This infamous Season 3 episode, which features a cheesy body swap premise with an even cheesier execution, became the last hour of the  Original Series  to ever air due to declining ratings and budget concerns. NBC decided to put the Enterprise in mothballs and go out on an installment that featured Captain Kirk (William Shatner) trading bodies with a former love and current mad scientist, Dr. Janice Lester (Sandra Smith). Why? So Dr. Lester could satisfy her lifelong (but, as scripted, unearned) dream of commanding a starship. 

Fans consider “Intruder” to be one of the worst Star Trek episodes or the worst one ever, with the slog of a story working overtime to make a strong case for either. Based on a story by Trek creator Gene Roddenberry, “Intruder” struggles to find anything interesting for Kirk to do and makes the baffling choice to have its guest star character, Lester, drive most of the story. Audiences are more likely to believe that alien body swap tech exists before they would ever believe that Kirk’s best friends and shipmates would never notice that their captain has traded places with a mentally unwell baddie. Eventually, Spock discovers who his captain really is, but not before getting caught trying to help him (er, her) and getting court-martialled. The back half of the episode is a talky affair that strains one’s suspension of disbelief to the point of completely letting go of any interest to see how the matter resolves itself. 

After watching this "Intruder," it’s amazing that Star Tre k ever got a second chance to become what it is today. 

05 . Star Trek Enterprise: “These Are the Voyages…” (2005)

“It was a kind of a slap in the face to the Enterprise actors. I regret it.”

Co-writer and former Star Trek: Enterprise  showrunner Brannon Braga didn’t sugar coat his feelings about Enterprise ’s infamous 2005 series finale, “These Are the Voyages…”, in this 2017 interview addressing the problematic episode he developed and co-wrote with executive producer Rick Berman. While Braga and Berman thought framing the Enterprise finale as a “lost episode” of Star Trek: The Next Generation was a great idea while writing it, Braga soon realized after watching it that “great” was far from an apt description. 

“Voyages” centers on Commander Riker, played once again by Jonathan Frakes, and the events surrounding TNG ’s Season 7 episode “The Pegasus." Here, the Enterprise-D’s first officer uses the holodeck to help him solve his problems by revisiting the final mission of Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) and the crew of the first Enterprise, the NX-01. That means that all the 22nd Century scenes featuring Archer and his crew are all holodeck simulations. Yup. For the first-time ever in Trek history, a series ends with holographic versions of the real characters that fans spent years following. It’s shocking how much wrong they managed to pack into one normal-sized episode of television — the first Trek finale since The Animated Series not to be feature-length.  

Setting aside the fact that Riker never once mentioned an affinity for Archer, his ship, or his crew throughout his entire TNG tenure, making a 24th century character the focus of a series finale that takes place in the 23rd century denies agency to the Enterprise ensemble that deserves the spotlight — not have it stolen by characters who already had their fair share of it. (Having Marina Sirtis cameo as Counselor Troi adds even more distracting fan service.) Even Bakula was incensed with the story, with Braga recalling that this episode was the first time Enterprise ’s lead actor ever got confrontational with the writer-producer. After watching the final product, we can see why. 

04 . Star Trek: The Animated Series - “The Counter-Clock Incident” (1974)

“The Counter-Clock Incident” allows Star Trek to combine two tropes it loves — morality plays and stories that deal with the effects of aging backwards. In doing so, fans are treated to an episode that works far better than it has any right to, largely due to its timeless themes and the earnest way the episode dramatizes them. 

The sixth episode of The Animated Series ’ second season, and final episode of the series, finds the Enterprise and her crew pulled into a “negative universe” where time moves backwards and causes Kirk and his officers to grow younger. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation would tackle similar “de-aging” sci-fi in the high-concept episode “Rascals.”) But what’s unique about this episode is that, as Kirk reverts back to being a child, the first Captain of the Enterprise ever — Robert April — gets a second chance to relieve his prime years. April goes from being a senior citizen on the eve of retirement to his good ol’ days as a dashing senior officer, wrapping up his tenure in Starfleet with one hell of a final mission.

While the low-budget limitations of Filmation’s 2D animation haven’t (ironically) aged well, they don’t distract from “Counter-Clock” tackling ageism in a respectful way that reminds viewers of all ages to respect their elders and the value their experience and knowledge can bring. 

03 . Star Trek: Voyager - “Endgame, Parts 1 & 2” (2001)

Star Trek: Voyager ’s “Endgame” has plenty of feature-level action to satisfy fans, but at the cost of giving them and the show’s crew the homecoming they deserve. 

Lost for seven seasons in the Delta Quadrant, Janeway and her dogged crew aboard Voyager struggled across unexplored space to find their way back to Earth. One would think they would be given more than two scenes depicting their dream coming true, of seeing their home planet again, but that’s all “Endgame” gives them. The episode’s abrupt final moments conclude the series on one of the franchise’s most underwhelming and anticlimactic notes. 

“Endgame” opens with Voyager ’s crew already back on Earth, having lost their Borg attache, Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), in the process. This loss haunts Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), who, now an Admiral, pines for a second chance to make good on her promise to bring every member of her crew back home. With the help of time travel, Janeway finally gets an opportunity to re-do her voyage home — which leads to one final confrontation with the Borg Queen ( Star Trek: First Contact ’s Alice Krieg). In the process, Janeway seemingly wipes out the Borg (or, at least, defeats them — how they survived this fate is left unclear when they reappear in Star Trek Picard ). That’s a seismic event in the Trek Universe, and the finale has barely time to pay it lip service because the two-parter has to rush to the last scene: Where Voyager is joined by a few starships and ushered back to Earth before the credits roll.

Seven seasons spent with this crew, rooting for them to get home, and the show can’t be bothered to spend any significant time exploring how reaching Earth feels for those who doubted they would ever see it again. It’s a baffling, rushed choice that leaves fans wishing the series went with its original finale plans: Dedicate a mini-arc of episodes in the final season to show  Voyager ’s return to Earth and how the crew re-enters their lives. The dramatic potential there alone is more satisfying than most of “Endgame.”

02 . Star Trek: Deep Space Nine - “What You Leave Behind” (2000)

After devoting its last two seasons to a largely serialized arc concerning the Federation’s war with the evil Dominion, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine wrapped up its seven-year run with a near-Biblical finale full of action, heart, and loss. 

Captain Sisko (Avery Brooks) began the show as a brooding commander who couldn’t wait to leave his new post — a former Cardassian space station in orbit of the Bajoran homeworld. But by the end of “What You Leave Behind,” he literally gives his life to save both DS9 and the Bajoran people that view him as an emissary for their gods, the Prophets. Sisko’s sacrifice calls back to the show’s first episode, and his dealings with the Prophets — a race of non-linear beings worshiped by the Bajorans. His corporeal life is just the beginning, as Sisko’s death seemingly features him transcending into a higher plane of existence, one that, at first, he wanted nothing to do with. 

Sisko’s story coming full circle is just one of the many satisfying and poetic beats found in “What You Leave Behind.” The episode finds a wildly entertaining, if at times uneven, balance between epic space action and dramatic scenes wrapping up seven years of some of the best serialized storytelling the genre has ever done. (The less said about the so-so blue screen effects depicting Sisko’s weird, ethereal battle with his nemesis, the evil Gul Dukat, the better.) 

But the show is more interested in its character moments, however, giving its exceptional ensemble cast some truly moving moments to shine in the finale’s back half. And while the final scene in the holosuite, at the crew’s favorite Rat Pack-inspired night club, feels a little too long and self-indulgent, it’s the perfect ending for this crew and their journey. At the start of their mission, they couldn’t have been any more discordant. They shouldn’t have been in the same room, let alone on the same team. But, as “What You Leave Behind” movingly proves, that’s the definition of family. And that’s exactly what this crew became to each other and for their fans. 

01 . Star Trek: The Next Generation - “All Good Things…” (1994)

“All Good Things…” is the best Star Trek series finale ever. It’s the one that all Trek finales are measured against. 27 years after it originally aired, none have come remotely close to matching it. 

Written by Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore, “All Good Things” proved to be a better cinematic-worthy adventure than The Next Generation crew’s first movie, Star Trek: Generations . The briskly plotted, feature-length episode, and its compelling storyline involving paradoxes and second chances, features Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) moving back and forth through time. He slips in and out of three key time periods: The past, just before the launch of Enterprise-D’s first mission; the present, and the future. Here, Picard is a very retired — and very old — man who runs his family vineyard. He also struggles with a debilitating neurological syndrome that makes it hard for his former shipmates to believe him when he says he’s playing Sliders across multiple timelines. Picard’s mission requires that all three versions of his crew work together, under the manipulative watch of the omnipotent Q, to stop an anomaly from unraveling existence as we know it. 

The tension and stakes couldn’t be higher, as TNG gives the cast and their characters a perfect final episode that brings them together as a family in ways the series left surprisingly unexplored for most of its run. Watching a futuristic Enterprise, blasting newly-mounted phaser cannons, fly vertically for the first time in Trek history proves to be as entertaining as the smaller, quieter beats between characters are. Especially the scenes where Picard has to convince his untested crew in the past to follow him and their counterparts on a mission that will cost them their lives. 

But the episode’s beating heart lies in its final moments, where Picard finally joins his crew for their regular poker game. The first time Picard ever sits down with his crew at their poker resonates with his officers as deeply as it does with fans, which is a testament to the finale’s commitment to giving Next Generation the action-packed, emotionally earned send-off it deserves. 

• Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
• Star Trek: The Next Generation
• Star Trek: The Original Series
• Star Trek: Voyager

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Sir Patrick Stewart as Captain Picard in "All Good Things..."

Writer Brannon Braga

Star trek: the next generation 's series finale at 30 (exclusive), "all good things..." co-writer brannon braga on how he and former writing partner ronald d. moore made tv history..

Thirty years ago today, Star Trek writers Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore found themselves shouldering the unique responsibility of simultaneously writing The Next Generation cast's first Trek movie while also scripting their last episode of television.

For others, the dual writing duties would likely feel (at best) overwhelming. But that wasn't the case for Braga.

"We didn't flinch," Braga tells the Television Academy in an exclusive interview celebrating the 30th anniversary of TNG 's series finale, "All Good Things...," which aired in syndication on May 23, 1994. "I can't speak for Ron, but I don't recall us ever saying, 'Should we be doing this?' We were deeply immersed in these characters. And I think there was something cool about doing a two-hour finale and the movie at the same time, because they were very different stories."

But both "All Good Things..." and what would go on to be the seventh Star Trek feature film, Generations , were similar in that they dealt with one of Trek 's most popular plot and themeatic devices: time. Ironically, time was also foremost on the then–writing team's minds as they juggled both scripts — with the series finale allotted roughly three weeks to be written. Moore and Braga were in the middle of rewriting a draft of Generations when they were tapped by the late TNG showrunner (and Braga's mentor) Michael Piller to script "All Good Things...." The riveting two-part episode features Captain Picard (Sir Patrick Stewart) moving back and forth across three different time periods — with the help of his omnipotent nemesis, Q (John de Lancie) — on a mission to save the galaxy from an anti-time anomaly. As Picard struggles to restore temporal order to the universe, he must interact with three different versions of his beloved Enterprise-D crew — past, present and future — in ways that remind the considerate and accomplished starship captain to better appreciate how vital the here and now is, even in the time travel–heavy world of Star Trek .

Whereas Generations would garner mixed reviews from both audiences and critics upon its release in November 1994, "All Good Things..." quickly became a fan-favorite and is regarded as one of the most creatively successful series finales in TV history.

"It proved ultimately to be what the movie should have been," Braga explains. "The movie had a lot of cooks in the kitchen. There were many studio mandates. It was conceived to be a 'passing of the baton.' On 'All Good Things...,' [Paramount] largely left us alone. We were left to do what we do, and I think you can feel the benefit of that in the final product."

In honor of the 30th anniversary of "All Good Things...," Braga takes us behind the scenes of the writing process, shares which pivotal scene he and Moore watched being filmed and why a fourth timeline featuring the Borg was ultimately cut from the story.

Television Academy: Traditionally, the showrunner usually writes the series finale, but not in TNG 's case. Do you recall when you and Ron were assigned the finale, and maybe what Michael's thinking was at the time with that assignment?

Brannon Braga: I don't know the exact timeline. But I do know that we received the movie assignment sometime in the seventh season of Next Gen . Because I remember we were pretty much in the throes of our 26-episode season and how excited we were. And that's a much longer development process, a movie. It's slower and bigger and more complicated. And, in the meantime, you're racing along with the TV show. I also remember not being too worried about [writing both the movie and the finale] because the TV schedule was such that the movie was a marathon, and the TV show was a sprint. And you just had to get the TV episodes written. So in some ways, I don't think we lost a step.

As for why we were chosen, I think [ TNG executive producer] Jeri Taylor was probably already working on Star Trek: Voyager . And Michael, I believe he was also developing Voyager , but he still had a hand in Deep Space Nine .

Do you recall when during TNG 's run it was discussed that the show's seventh season would be its last, at the height of its ratings popularity?

Those conversations were happening really early. And the reason I remember that is because Michael Piller asked me to go [write on] Deep Space Nine at the end of season six of Next Gen . Piller wanted me to come over, and he really thought I would fit well with the concept. And I really liked Deep Space Nine . I love its concept, and I was really enchanted with the idea of working on that kind of Star Trek . But because he gave me the option, I declined. And the reason I gave him was, "I want to see Next Gen through to the end." And that's because I knew, at that point, that season seven was going to be the last season. But I didn't know about "All Good Things..." at that point. I didn't know that I would be working on the final episode. I just knew that I had to see Next Gen through, emotionally.

You and Ron seem to have taken the news rather well, of writing the last episode of Next Gen while in the middle of writing that cast's first movie.

I remember feeling excited. We didn't flinch. I can't speak for Ron, but I don't recall us ever saying, 'Should we be doing this?' We were deeply immersed in these characters. Ron had been writing the show for five seasons. I'd been writing it for four. That's nine seasons, collectively. And we were just in the middle of it. And I think there was something cool about doing a two-hour finale and the movie at the same time, because they were very different stories. For the finale, we were going to tell a movie-sized story with significant developments in the characters.

It's funny that "All Good Things..." was the easiest of the two. We wrote that much more quickly, I think we had three weeks on that script. It felt easier, because the movie had [input from] William Shatner, Patrick Stewart, the studio and [ TNG producer] Rick Berman. The movie had a lot of cooks in the kitchen. A lot of mandates. It was conceived as a "passing of the baton." It had to have [Captain] Kirk, it had to have the Klingons. And Leonard Nimoy, at one point, crossed paths [with directing Generations ].

What was the notes process like on the finale, or did the studio pretty much leave you alone?

[Paramount] largely left us alone. The studio wasn't giving us notes. We were left to do what we do, and I think one can feel the benefit of that in the final product. Rick gave us notes, I'm sure, but not many. And it was his suggestion for Picard's last line, in the poker scene, the "sky's the limit" line.

Speaking of that last scene, where Picard joins the crew's traditional poker game for the first time, I know that was the last scene shot for the show. Were you able to go to set for that?

That was the one time Ron and I went to the set. We didn't go to the set often, because there was usually no time when you're doing 26 episodes. You're either writing or in the writers' room. But we went down for certain scenes. We went down to meet Stephen Hawking, who was in another poker scene [the season six episode "Descent, Part I"]. But for the finale's poker scene, we just wanted to be there, because we knew it was the final scene. It was the last scene to be shot. It was a strange mixture of emotions, because there were tears. Some people were very moved, because this was the end of seven years. The show was enormously popular at the time. It was taken off air at the height of its popularity, which was a smart move in some ways.

But despite the bittersweetness of it all, they're reconfiguring the sets for the movie. The movie starts shooting in a week. There was a compartmentalization going on. The show was the show, and the movies were the movies. They were just different. But it was a very emotional moment. And I think that almost always comes across on-screen. I think you sense the authenticity of what the actors are going through in that scene. To me, that scene boils down to the subtlety of Patrick's performance. And I would credit Marina Sirtis [who plays the Enterprise's empathic counselor Deanna Troi] with her delivery of the "You were always welcome" line to Patrick. It was very moving. Marina's a great actress, very instinctive.

The anomaly Picard and the Enterprise crew must stop concerns anti-time, which is a very clever concept and plot twist. How did you and Ron come up with that?

I distinctly remember sitting in Ron's office and coming up with the phrase "anti-time." That came out when we were writing; I think I was typing and Ron was pacing, which was usually the case. We hadn't really figured out all the particulars or what we sometimes called "technobabble," but in this case, I think it was conceptual. The conceit was coming up with the antimatter equivalent of time. And it was just one of those things where you suddenly had something to hang your hat on, like, "If it's like antimatter with time, I think I know how we can explain what's happening and why it's dangerous, because you don't want time and anti-time to collide, much like you don't want matter and antimatter to come together, either.

In an early version of the story, instead of using Dr. Beverly Crusher's (Gates McFadden) medical ship, the Pasteur, the crew in the future timeline were going to take the mothballed Enterprise from a museum—  

Yes, and that was cut from an early draft. We really wanted to do it, too, but we ended up on Beverly's medical ship instead. But that's not what it was supposed to be. It was supposed to be stealing the Enterprise out of a museum, which I think Terry [Matalas, Braga's former writer's assistant] ended up doing a version of on [the final season of] Picard . By the way, if you think about it for a second, it's much better, because you've got the three Enterprises working together. That's perfection. With all due respect to Beverly's medical ship, it would have been more emotionally satisfying if it were the Enterprise.

There was a fourth timeline involving the Borg that stemmed from the events of TNG 's third season finale, "The Best of Both Worlds, Part I." Do you recall any scene specifics?

I may be misremembering, but it may have had to do with an assimilated Earth.

I believe it was a timeline where the Borg had won. But I know we added it because we thought we needed additional stakes, that the time anomaly might be too abstract. And we were eager to bring the Borg back, because we hadn't really dipped our toe into the Borg, full throttle, like we did with "Best of Both Worlds." I don't remember specific scenes, unfortunately. But I do remember it didn't last long. It wasn't working. Michael didn't want it. It became pretty clear, pretty quickly, that three was the right number. But that was something Ron and I carried into the development and script for Star Trek: First Contact [the 1996 sequel to Generations ].

I am surprised you didn't ask me about the "people getting younger" subplot that Michael Piller wanted to do.

Whoa, I didn't even know that was a thing, and I've watched this episode a ton. Can I ask you about that now?

I'm going to tell you about it. So there was a subplot that took place in the present-day storyline, where we were going to have all these ships that came and gathered around the anomaly, because it turns out that the anomaly had some anti-aging effect. It was de-aging people, and ships were gathering from all over to soak in the rays of the anomaly.

So that explains, in part, where a pregnant nurse on the Enterprise becomes "un-pregnant" and loses her baby. And why Geordi LaForge's [the blind engineer played by LeVar Burton] eyes start acting up.

Right. Those are little remnants of the storyline that got cut. And I think the reason it got cut out was it didn't have to do anything with anything. Ron and I were resistant to it, because we didn't think it really serviced the main plot of the episode, the emotional story for the characters. And, of course, Michael Piller would end up taking those ideas and using them in [the 1998 feature film] Star Trek: Insurrection .

How was it when you first watched the final episode? Do you remember where you were?

I had seen early cuts of the episode, but the first time I saw it was at the premiere on the lot that Paramount did. And Michael, he wasn't generous with his compliments. So when he did compliment you, it really meant something. And I remember every one, because he was a real mentor to me. And I owe so much to him. And he complimented us at the after party. He was happy. And it was his legacy, too.

All seven seasons of  Star Trek: The Next Generation are now streaming on Paramount+.

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Picard's Enterprise Tried To Save Chief O'Brien After Star Trek: TNG's Finale

• Picard and the USS Enterprise-D tried to save Chief O'Brien after TNG's finale in a bold mission against the Cardassians.
• DS9 provided updates on Enterprise crew post-TNG finale, impacting Dominion War effort and Worf's new home.
• USS Enterprise-D underwent upgrades between TNG finale and Star Trek Generations, leading to a crash on Veridian III.

Just a short time after the events of the Star Trek: The Next Generation season finale, Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and the USS Enterprise-D embarked on a mission to save Chief Miles O'Brien (Colm Meaney). The TNG finale aired on 23rd May 1994, wrapping up the TV adventures for the crew of the USS Enterprise-D until Patrick Stewart returned for Star Trek: Picard in 2020. In November, the TNG crew would relaunch the Star Trek movies as William Shatner literally handed the franchise over to Patrick Stewart in Star Trek Generations .

However, fans didn't have to wait until November to find out what happened next to the Star Trek: The Next Generation characters , as an Easter egg in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine updated viewers on the whereabouts of the USS Enterprise-D. DS9 would occasionally provide updates on the movie exploits of the Enterprise crew, with the events of Star Trek: First Contact heavily impacting the Dominion War effort, and Lt. Commander Worf (Michael Dorn) finding a new home on DS9 after the destruction of the Enterprise-D. DS9 's first such Enterprise update occurred just two weeks after the TNG finale in 1994.

Picard Playing Poker In TNG's Finale - What It Really Means

TNGs finale All Good Things saw Captain Picard finally join his senior staff for a hand of poker, a gesture that meant more than it might seem.

Star Trek: DS9 Revealed USS Enterprise-D Tried To Save O'Brien After TNG's Finale

In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 2, episode 25, "Tribunal", Chief O'Brien is arrested by the Cardassians and put on trial for supplying weapons to the Maquis. Outraged at the Cardassians arresting a Federation citizen without prior extradition negotiations, Starfleet decided to put pressure on the Cardassian Union. Picard's Enterprise was part of a small group of starships sent to the Federation-Cardassian border to demonstrate force and pressure the government into releasing O'Brien from prison . As O'Brien was Chief Petty Officer aboard the Enterprise, Picard and the crew had a personal stake in their assignment.

Due to Miles O'Brien being a background character in early episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation , he had various ranks, including Ensign and Lieutenant. He was finally confirmed to be a Chief Petty Officer in TNG season 4, episode 2, "Family".

Unfortunately, the presence of the USS Enterprise-D, USS Prokofiev, and the USS Valdemar wasn't enough to dissuade the Cardassian Union from their plan to execute Chief O'Brien and discredit the Federation . It was therefore up to the combined efforts of a mysterious Maquis informer and the crew of Deep Space Nine to expose the Cardassians' elaborate deception. Unmasking O'Brien's former colleague Raymond Boone (John Beck) as a Cardassian impersonator, Commander Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) brought "Boone" to the tribunal, which swiftly brought the sham trial to a close.

What Happened To USS Enterprise-D Between TNG And Star Trek Generations?

The gap between the broadcast of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 2, episode 25, "Tribunal" and the theatrical release of Star Trek Generations is reflected in the time that passes in-universe. When audiences next see the crew of the USS Enterprise-D, they're celebrating Worf's promotion to Lieutenant Commander in an elaborate holodeck hazing ritual. Beyond their attempts to pressure the Cardassian government to release Chief O'Brien, not much is known about what the Enterprise-D crew were up to between "All Good Things" and Star Trek Generations .

The Star Trek Generations version of the starship Enterprise has had several upgrades since the events of "All Good Things", suggesting a refit took place some time after the O'Brien situation. A refit would allow time for some much-needed downtime for the crew after the Star Trek: The Next Generation finale. Among the upgrades seen in Generations are additional science stations on the bridge, a chair for Worf at the tactical station, and new lighting was also fitted. It's just a shame that the upgrades to the Enterprise were so short-lived, as the ship crashed on Veridian III a few short months later.

Star Trek Generations is currently streaming on Max.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek: The Next Generation is the third installment in the sci-fi franchise and follows the adventures of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew members of the USS Enterprise. Set around one hundred years after the original series, Picard and his crew travel through the galaxy in largely self-contained episodes exploring the crew dynamics and their own political discourse. The series also had several overarching plots that would develop over the course of the isolated episodes, with four films released in tandem with the series to further some of these story elements.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, also known as DS9, is the fourth series in the long-running Sci-Fi franchise, Star Trek. DS9 was created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller, and stars Avery Brooks, Ren Auberjonois, Terry Farrell, and Cirroc Lofton. This particular series follows a group of individuals in a space station near a planet called Bajor.

‘Star Trek: Starfleet Academy’ Series Casts Holly Hunter in Main Role (EXCLUSIVE)

The “ Star Trek: Starfleet Academy ” series at Paramount+ has cast Holly Hunter in a lead role, Variety has learned.

Hunter’s character will serve as the captain and chancellor of the Academy, presiding over both the faculty and a new class of Starfleet cadets as they learn to navigate the galaxy in the 32nd century.

“It feels like we’ve spent our entire lives watching Holly Hunter be a stone-cold genius,” said co-showrunners Alex Kurtzman and Noga Landau. “To have her extraordinary authenticity, fearlessness, sense of humor, and across the board brilliance leading the charge on ‘Starfleet Academy’ is a gift to all of us, and to the enduring legacy of ‘Star Trek.'”

Popular on Variety

With its focus on higher education — from the throes of budding romance to the pressures of academic achievement to the angst of painful self-discovery — “Starfleet Academy” is part of a wider strategy to expand what a “Star Trek” show can look like.

“These are kids who’ve never had a red alert before,” Landau told Variety in a March 27 cover story about the future of “Star Trek.” “They never had to operate a transporter or be in a phaser fight.”

Hunter is part of an elite society of actors to boldly go into “Star Trek” after winning an Academy Award, including Whoopi Goldberg, Louise Fletcher and F. Murray Abraham. Hunter earned an Oscar for best actress for her performance in 1993’s “The Piano,” along with nominations for 1987’s “Broadcast News,” 1993’s “The Firm” and 2003’s “Thirteen.” Her career has spanned five decades, from her breakout role in the Coen brothers film “Raising Arizona” in 1987 to her iconic role as the voice of Elastigirl in 2004’s “Incredibles” and 2018’s “Incredibles 2.”

Hunter is repped by CAA, Entertainment 360, and Ziffren Brittenham.

Kurtzman and Landau serve as co-showrunners and executive produce “Starfleet Academy.” Gaia Violo, Aaron Baiers, Olatunde Osunsanmi, Jenny Lumet, Rod Roddenberry, Trevor Roth, Frank Siracusa, and John Weber also executive produce. The series premiere episode was written by Violo. CBS Studios produces in association with Secret Hideout and Roddenberry Entertainment. The series is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.

“Starfleet Academy” is the latest addition to the “Star Trek” TV universe at Paramount. Next year, “Section 31” will explore Starfleet’s cloak-and-dagger black ops division in the first “Star Trek” streaming movie, starring recent Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh (reprising her role from “Discovery”). Elsewhere, “Lower Decks,” the first “Star Trek” animated comedy, will conclude its run after five seasons in the fall, while “Discovery” — the flagship show of the revamped “Star Trek” TV projects — will end its run after five seasons on May 30. The popular series “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” has been renewed for a fourth season ahead of the third season premiere.

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Star Trek: The Next Generation’s Finale Remains Perfect

Deal us in.

Three decades ago, one sci-fi series rose above the rest to approach the impossible label of perfection. When Star Trek: The Next Generation aired its triumphant finale on May 23, 1994, it was almost an entirely different series than when it began in 1987. Back then, Next Gen was an awkward remake of The Original Series . When Next Gen ended, it was Star Trek, transforming a 1960s curio into a format destined to survive and evolve for another quarter century.

To say there is no modern Star Trek without The Next Generation is obvious, but what gets missed in countless reassessments is that most adoration for Next Gen can be qualified non-linearly. Just as Captain Picard discovers that a time paradox is the key to saving the galaxy, the success of the TNG finale “All Good Things...” didn’t just come from the fact that it ended a hit show on a high note; instead, it revised Next Generation history to make the beginning of the show feel as good as the ending.

“All Good Things...” was presented as a two-hour finale, just like TNG’s pilot, “Encounter at Farpoint.” Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) finds himself jumping between the present, a past before when we meet him in “Farpoint,” and a future where he’s a doddering old man with memory problems. Borrowing from Kurt Vonnegut’s classic novel Slaughterhouse-Five , Picard is unstuck in time. It’s soon revealed that the meddling space god Q ( John de Lancie ), intent on teaching Picard a lesson before it's too late, is behind these time shifts. The entire history of everything is on the line as Q reveals a spatial anomaly centered around Picard that threatens to wipe out humanity.

In the past, Picard is tasked with convincing characters who barely know him that he’s their beloved leader, while in the future, the close-knit TNG family has splintered. To save the day, Picard has to heal old wounds and get a fractured Enterprise crew back together for one last ride. In the end, Picard must order three versions of the Enterprise — past, present, and future — to their utter destruction. But it’s okay, no one really lost their lives. The anomaly is erased, and Q dryly tells Picard, “If it puts your mind at ease, you've saved humanity... once again.”

Q has one last test for Picard.

Part of what makes “All Good Things...” so on-brand for TNG is that there’s no real villain, and once the quest is over its stakes seem ridiculously low. You’re never actually worried the episode will end with humanity getting wiped out by a time anomaly, meaning the true stakes of the episode are emotional. The journey was about understanding the Starfleet family that’s formed over the last seven years.

If this sounds overly sentimental, you’re not wrong, but what made “All Good Things...” a successful finale is that it celebrated what Next Generation had become: a warm, allegorical, pseudo-family show about people more than sci-fi concepts. That Picard, Geordi, and Data share an epiphany about a time paradox, and that realization saves the day, feels like a denouement that could have occurred in any episode. But in the final analysis, the show was about this generation of heroes, and how they came together as a family, not a crew.

“That to me is one of the best series finales ever,” Marvel’s Kevin Feige said in 2018. “Picard went and played poker with the crew, something he should have done a long time ago, right?” It’s certainly a memorable moment for fans. The stiff, distant Picard had grown closer and more vulnerable over the years, but he’d never joined his crew’s card game, a tradition first introduced way back in one of TNG’s best episodes, Season 2’s “The Measure of a Man.” But now, as Picard sits down and looks at his crew, he realizes it's okay for him to be happy. There are no hard decisions to make, and he doesn’t need to slip into his signature stoicism to seem strong. He can just be there with the people he loves.

The final shot of the crew in “All Good Things...”

This moment was echoed in the 2023 series finale of Picard , and for good reason. Since the end of The Next Generation , the series' reputation is greater than the sum of its parts. While the first two seasons have standout moments, the show didn’t find its feet until 1990. Even its final season wasn’t its best, even if the finale is excellent.

As the most venerable and flexible sci-fi franchise of them all, Star Trek has proven that characters and tones can change radically while still feeling like part of a cohesive whole. But as an ensemble show about people, The Next Generation became something special in its finale. The Enterprise doesn’t warp into its next adventure; it just gently cruises through space. Fans didn’t want the show to end, but not because they craved more adventures. We just wanted to keep hanging out with these people, because the true triumph of The Next Generation is that it felt like home.

• Science Fiction

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Strange new worlds season 2 finale title hints at a huge tos retcon.

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 Wraps Filming & Anson Mount Hangs Up His Boots [UPDATED]

Christina chong & star trek: strange new worlds cast collaborate on new song ‘space girlz’, jonathan frakes teases his star trek: strange new worlds season 3 episode.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has revealed the episode titles for season 2, including the finale, "Hegemony" which hints at a potential but huge Star Trek: The Original Series retcon. Meriam-Webster defines hegemony as "the social, cultural, ideological, or economic influence exerted by a dominant group", which could easily refer to Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) and the crew of the USS Enterprise freeing an oppressed civilization. However, it's more likely that the finale title refers to the Gorn Hegemony, the territory of the vicious reptilian species first encountered by Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) in the classic TOS episode "Arena".

The Gorn have emerged as the big threat in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , playing an integral role in the tragic backstory of Lieutenant La'an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong) and killing off beloved Enterprise engineer Hemmer (Bruce Horak). As Kirk was the first Starfleet officer to make official First Contact with the Gorn, the SNW writers have had to be creative with how they approach the Enterprise's encounters with the brutal reptiles. So far, they've only faced off against Gorn starships and untamed hatchlings, but the title of the finale heavily implies that the Enterprise will be entering their territory in Strange New Worlds season 2. If they do, then it could massively retcon Kirk's First Contact with the Gorn in "Arena".

RELATED: Strange New Worlds Episode Titles Hint At What Happens In Season 2

Strange New Worlds Season 2 Episode Titles Hint A Huge Gorn Retcon

In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 1, La'an asserted that nobody had survived an encounter long enough to make official First Contact. This is a smart fix to let SNW have its Gorn cake and eat it because there's a big difference between an encounter with an alien species and a diplomatic meeting between two representatives. For example, the Vulcans and Ferengi had both visited Earth before official First Contact was established with their respective species. This crucial detail has allowed Strange New Worlds to do exciting Gorn-centric episodes like the thrilling "Memento Mori" or the chilling horror story "All Those Who Wander" without retconning the date of the official First Contact between Kirk and the Gorn Captain in "Arena".

However, as Strange New Worlds continues its Gorn story it will become increasingly difficult to rely purely on those key differences to square Pike's experiences with canon. If Starfleet potentially sends Pike and the USS Enterprise to the Gorn Hegemony in the SNW season 2 finale, it could be a massive retcon because it may bring forward their official First Contact. Surely some form of diplomatic relations or interspecies hostilities would be established by Starfleet encroaching into Gorn space. It remains to be seen exactly what sends Pike into the Gorn Hegemony, or if the Gorn seek to expand their influence into Federation space. However, it may only be a matter of time before someone in Strange New Worlds beats Kirk to First Contact with the Gorn.

Will Captain Pike Make First Contact With The Gorn In Strange New Worlds?

As Captain of the Federation flagship, it would fall to Christopher Pike to establish a dialog with the Gorn Hegemony. Pike's Enterprise has survived two encounters with the Gorn, which is something that few Starfleet ships can claim in Star Trek 's 23rd century. Pike is therefore the most prepared officer to establish talks with the Gorn, perhaps to get them to stop attacking Federation outposts and capturing the crews of starships like the SS Puget Sound. Puget Sound survivor La'an Noonien-Singh could be too blinded by her hatred of the Gorn to be of diplomatic assistance, but her tactical knowledge of the species has been incredibly valuable in Strange New Worlds so far.

It's possible that "Hegemony" will up the stakes of "Memento Mori", by having the Enterprise locked in combat with Gorn ships inside their own territory. Historically, the Gorn don't communicate with their enemies on view screens, and simply hunt down their prey. This simple trick would allow Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2's Gorn storyline to avoid sacrificing canon. However, there's only so long that SNW can keep deploying Gorn ships without also featuring the adult Gorn in all their grisly glory.

How Pike's Enterprise Could Visit The Gorn Hegemony Without Ruining Canon

Ultimately, the only person who fundamentally cannot visit the Gorn Hegemony in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is Lieutenant James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley). In "Arena", Kirk has clearly never encountered a Gorn before, so it would make no sense for him to join the Enterprise's mission to the Hegemony. This gives the SNW writers some leeway to send Pike into Gorn territory at some point in the show's future. However, it doesn't quite explain why Commander Spock (Leonard Nimoy) and Lieutenant Nyota Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) don't mention their previous Gorn experiences in "Arena". The simplest explanation is that they can't, because the Enterprise can only watch Kirk's fight and are unable to communicate with him to give him advice.

Another explanation is that they can't because any mission into the Gorn Hegemony, and their previous encounters, will become classified information. It could be that Pike and the Enterprise are sent on a covert mission to establish a cessation of hostilities between the Federation and the Gorn. When the Gorn later attack a Federation outpost in "Arena", it would mark the breaking of that agreement. Perhaps by informing Kirk of this covert mission, Spock and Uhura would have risked the all-out war that Pike and his crew could avoid in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2. Instead, they kept quiet, and allowed Kirk to face a Gorn one-on-one, leading to the matter being resolved swiftly, and marking the official First Contact.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 premieres Thursday, June 15, on Paramount+.

• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022)
• Star Trek: The Original Series (1966)