This chapter in the Star Trek legacy never got a good response from some. It baffles me as it has so many throwbacks to the Original Series, Next Generation, Voyager and Deep Space Nine. I think, in a similar way to Discovery, Picard and Strange New Worlds in that it was slotted in before other shows that had cemented their status in the Trek Universe.
Jonathan Archer, portrayed by Scott Bakula is a brilliant lead Captain. He has a dash of Kirk (you will know it when you see it), a smattering of Picard, a number of nods to Sisko and even some traits of Janeway.
T’Pol, portrayed by Jolene Blalock, is great as his 1st Officer and a huge nod to the original series of Star Trek and the female Spock. Whether or not Jolene Blalock studied Leonard Nimoy as Spock is up for debate, but I am definitely on the YES side of it. Even down to the relationship she has with another Senior Officer. You see T’Pol facing similar battles that Spock did, but in many circumstances they are worse as she is female and on Vulcan, females are below the males. You also see a lot of traits of Voyager’s 7 of 9 who, as a former Borg drone, also had push back for not being human.
Doctor Phlox, portrayed by John Billingsley, is the ship’s Doctor and a Denobulan who initially signs up for 6 months as a distraction from his 3 wives, but ends up staying the course and becoming a trusted crew member. You also see him suffer xenophobia in some excellent episodes centering around Terra Prime which is a shout out to periods of Earth’s history. I won’t spoil it, so watch it unfold.
Commander Trip Tucker, portrayed by Connor Trinneer, is the Chief Engineer and is a modern day Scottie from the Original Series. Hailing from the South of the USA, he exudes the same trademarks Scottie did of his homeland Scotland. He, also like Scottie, is a long time friend of the Captain (Kirk for Scottie, Archer for Trip). Very outspoken and very loyal. Many superb story lines involve him.
Lt Malcolm Reed, portrayed by Dominic Keating, is the Tactical Officer and the son of a former Navy Man which shows in his attitude to duty and the rules. Loyal to his ship and struggles in later episodes when his past comes back to haunt him. Always wanting to be the shield to his shipmates, he often puts himself int he firing line.
Ensign Hoshi Sato, portrayed by Linda Park, is the Communications Officer and a huge nod to Uhura due to both being of ethnic origin and standing out from the predominantly white cast. This allows Linda Park to shine in only her second acting job, and her first big casting with the previous one a small film part. She was 23 when she joined the cast and was also the “baby” of the senior officers. She was involved in some powerful story lines in a similar way to Uhura and I think her ethnicity helped her to stand out more than pretty much all the other white females cast. For once, mirroring the hiring process of Nichelle Nichols for the Original Series, Linda Park has benefited big time. She is as stand out a character as T’Pol.
Ensign Travis Mayweather, portayed by Anthony Montgomery, is the Helmsman for Enterprise and the go to pilot for the ship and the shuttle pods. Coming from a freighter family, his character fits in well and is another character that stands out and shines brighter because he does not blend in to the mainly white cast. In a similar way to Linda Park as Hoshi Sato, the casting of a black main character helps the actor Anthony Montgomery be noticed more. Whether or not he or Linda Park got the job because of their ethnicity is only known to the show runners, but their hiring is a huge boost to the show as both are excellent in their roles. Their appearance, not white, is not really involved in the show and thus they don’t face racism or xenophobia. We can also compare this to Tim Russ (Voyager), Roxann Dawson (Voyager), Garrett Wang (Voyager), Sulu (TOS), LeVar Burton (TNG), Michael Dorn (TNG), Avery Brooks (DS9), Cirroc Lofton (DS9), Alexander Siddig (DS9), Soneque Martin-Green (Discovery), Shazad Latif (Discovery), Wilson Cruz (Discovery), Mary Wiseman (Discovery), David Ajala (Discovery), Blu del Barrio (Discovery), Michelle Hurd (Picard), Whoopi Goldberg (TNG), Celia Rose Gooding (Strange New Worlds), Babs Olusanmokun (Strange New Worlds) and many other bit part actors and actresses on the shows. A few of them as characters had their ethnicity or gender woven into some story lines, but not the focus of their entire run. All great talent and characters you saw because they were great, not because they were a diversity hire (if they were or not is irrelevant, it is the term people use and I am using to prove that they are talented people).
The show is spread over four seasons spanning 10 years, with the last 6 years passing in the final episode which was sadly done when they found out the show was not being renewed. The third season is my favourite and centers on the Xindi throughout. It is on the level of the Borg and Best of Both Worlds. You even have an introduction of the Borg in the early episodes, so keep an eye out and that is not a spoiler.
Enterprise is the proverbial red headed step child to some. To me it was and is a wonderful addition to the Star Trek family.
I thoroughly recommend it.