Very few fans liked the finale of Star Trek: Enterprise
This will come as no shock to anyone who has ever seen Star Trek: Enterprise, but the finale, “These Are The Voyages,” leaves a lot to be desired. A lot. In fact, it’s one of those episodes that it’s easier to pretend doesn’t exist, and Mike Sussman, who was one of the writers on the series had a suggestion that makes the finale a little more palatable, if not watchable.
When Enterprise was set to end in 2005, it was the first time in eighteen years that there would be no Star Trek series on the air. Not even a movie would grace the screens until 2009. Even before Star Trek: The Next Generation debuted, we had movies with the actors from The Original Series, the first of which hit the big screen in 1979. So it had been a long, long time since fans had no new Star Trek to look forward to which is why Mike Sussman’s idea, that he shared when he was interviewed by Trek Today, makes sense…sort of.
Fans that loathed the Star Trek: Enterprise finale might like this idea
Sussman told fans to think of “Demons” and “Terra Prime” as the Enterprise finale while “These Are The Voyages” was the finale for the “franchise as a whole.” He thought that would make things easier to tolerate.
The two episodes prior to the finale were exceptional, and with a little bit of tweaking, “Terra Prime” would have made the perfect ending to the series. We certainly wouldn’t have wanted the series to end on a sad note, but when you think about it, “These Are The Voyages” was kind of a sad note anyway.
It was Sussman who suggested the final montage sequence at the end of the episode where all three Enterprises soared across the screen, and while that was a nice touch, overall, it’s a bit difficult to see “These Are The Voyages” as the finale for the entire franchise. Had characters from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: The Original Series been brought in, referenced, or even appeared in photographs, it might have been able to serve as a franchise wrap-up. As it stands, it was more of a swan song for Commander Riker and Counselor Troi.
Had the episode been a true farewell to the franchise, even if only for a little while, it wouldn’t have been about something that had taken place aboard the Enterprise during The Next Generation. It would have involved all of the incarnations of Star Trek up to that point in some manner. But I do take Sussman’s suggestion to heart when it comes to the series finale as the last episode I watch in Enterprise’s fourth season is “Terra Prime.”