NEWS

[Sonic74205]

(Read the last paragraph! I've put it in bold so you can definately read it correctly)
'Star Trek: Enterprise' Cancelled By UPN Network


LOS ANGELES (AP) -- After four years, the mission is
over for "Star Trek: Enterprise."

The prequel to the original ``Star Trek'' science
fiction series will air its final episode in the
United States on May 13, UPN and Paramount Network
Television announced Wednesday.

The series will get a send-off that "salutes its
contributions to the network and satisfies its loyal
viewers," said UPN Entertainment President Dawn
Ostroff. She didn't disclose details.

"Star Trek: Enterprise" debuted in September 2001.
Scott Bakula stars as Capt. Jonathan Archer, along
with John Billingsley, Jolene Blalock, Dominic
Keating, Anthony Montgomery, Linda Park and Connor
Trinneer.

The franchise included "Star Trek", "Star Trek: The
Next Generation", "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine", "Star
Trek: Voyager" and "Star Trek: Enterprise."

"Star Trek" movies also have been released.

While bidding goodbye to "Star Trek: Enterprise," the
studio hinted at more "Star Trek" to come.

"We all look forward to a new chapter of this enduring
franchise in the future," said Paramount Network
Television President David Stapf.

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'Enterprise' Heads Through The Looking Glass


The following story contains MINOR SPOILERS on an
upcoming episode of "Star Trek: Enterprise."

Bridging the gap between “Enterprise” and the original
“Star Trek” is no easy task. But before the fourth and
final season of “Star Trek: Enterprise” is through,
fans will have gone through the looking glass, and
returned one more time to the mirror universe – a
parallel galaxy where humanity is a conquering empire.

Written by Mike Sussman, “In A Mirror, Darkly” will go
straight to the source and in the teaser deal with how
the two universes differed after first contact with
the Vulcans, which was shown in the eighth feature
film, “Star Trek: First Contact” in 1996. According to
the script for the episode, an alternate version of
the opening title sequence also will be seen.

Where the traditional credits show mankind’s various
explorations from the dawn of time, the ‘dark edition’
will replace Russell Watson’s “Faith of the Heart”
music with a militaristic drums of war march, finally
highlighting the symbol of the Terran Empire. And
further fulfilling the promise to tie the gap between
“Enterprise” and the original series, the episodes
also will also feature the re-created set of the USS
Defiant from the original episode “The Tholian Web”
(not the one seen in "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.")

Since the completion of the original series, limited
forms of the original sets have been re-constructed
for other use, including the bridge of the Enterprise
for the "Star Trek: The Next Generation” episode
“Relics,” which saw Scotty (James Doohan) return to
the franchise. In most cases, including DS9’s hugely
popular “Trials and Tribble-ations,” only portions of
the set were re-created.

On top of sets, the two-part arc will feature various
salutes to the original mirror universe, including
common use of the Terran Empire insignia, revealing
female uniforms and a dagger on every hip.

As for the mirror versions of the Enterprise crew,
Capt. Archer (Scott Bakula) will be seen capturing the
Defiant, with Malcom Reed (Dominic Keating) developing
the infamous "agony booth” which has been seen in use
on previous major mirror universe outings (first seen
in “Mirror, Mirror"). Dr. Phlox (John Billingsly) will
dissect live animals for study.

But there is more to the episode than simply returning
to the original glory of “Star Trek." The arc will
finally show a living Tholian, created via computer
generation, a race which has only been glimpsed a
handful of times in the last four Trek shows.

The two-episode story will begin April 15 with “In A
Mirror, Darkly,” concluding on April 22 on UPN.

"Star Trek: Enterprise" airs Fridays at 8 p.m. ET on
UPN. The series finale will air May 13.

[Sonic74205]

I ALMOST CRYED WHEN I READ ABOUT THE FINALE IN THIS REPORT!

Bakula, Berman Respond To Cancellation News


Executive producer and "Star Trek: Enterprise"
co-creator Rick Berman said he knew this day was
coming.

"I've always believe that you can take too many trips
to the well," Berman recently told Zap2it following
news that UPN had cancelled the latest Star Trek
series after four seasons. "I'm not saying that
Paramount has taken too many trips to the well, but
they've probably taken enough for the time being. It's
all a part of what some people like to think of as
franchise fatigue."

Berman has been a part of Star Trek even before
creator Gene Roddenberry's death in 1991, starting out
with "Star Trek: The Next Generation" in the late
1980s, and continuing on, serving as co-creator of
"Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," "Star Trek: Voyager" and
"Star Trek: Enterprise." He's also produced four Star
Trek feature films, beginning with "Star Trek
Generations" in 1994, up to the most recent, "Star
Trek: Nemesis" in 2002.

The cancellation of "Enterprise" was not all about
franchise fatique, however. Berman said UPN itself is
undergoing some radical changes that "Enterprise"
simply didn't fit in with.

"One thing UPN will not be for the moment is
22nd-century outer space," Berman said.

Work already has begun on the series finale, which
will air in mid-May. Although Berman just received the
cancellation notice on Tuesday evening, he said that
Manny Coto, Brannon Braga and himself were treating
the finale as if it would end the series anyway,
expecting the inevitable.

"Believe it or not, the finale is almost written," he
said. "It was conceived based on the assumption that
it would be the series finale. It's not like, all of a
sudden, we have to scramble. It's a very special,
unique episode, different than anything we've done
before. It will be a fitting farewell to the franchise
for however long it will be before it comes back,
because God knows, they haven't seen the end of Star
Trek."

Scott Bakula, who plays Capt. Jonathan Archer in the
series, was interviewed by Zap2it on the "Enterprise"
set just hours before the cancellation was announced
to the executive producers Tuesday night. But even
before the announcement, Bakula said he wasn't
confident the show had a future.

"We're in a great state of limbo," Bakula said at the
time. "It's February, and we don't know. We're just
making good shows."

TrekToday reported that the decision to cancel the
series came directly from studio head Les Moonves. He
apparently waited up until the last minute to make a
decision.

"Star Trek: Enterprise" airs Fridays at 8 p.m. ET on
UPN.

[Elladan]

Bwagh. Stupid UPN.

Why not air ENT on ABC or so???

[memyselfandI]

Our biggest and best bet......Sci-Fi.

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Straczynski Backs Down From Trek Campaign

Just hours after he tried to rile up Star Trek fans to
help get his series idea launched (story), "Babylon 5"
creator J. Michael Straczynski is now pulling back,
asking fans not to waste their time.

Straczynski was trying to get some support for a Star
Trek series idea he had pitched to Paramount last year
with Bryce Zabel. But while he was serious about
getting fan support behind his idea, a lot has changed
over the past day for the writer.

"In the 24 hours between the time I composed the prior
note, and sent it, and it made its way through the
moderation software, two things happened," Straczynski
said on his newsgroups about his note that called Trek
fans to action. "I heard from a trusted source that
Paramount is giving the Trek TV world a rest for maybe
one to two years, depending on circumstances, no
matter who would come along to run it. So it's not
right to have folks putting in time doing something
that ultimately would be pointless, I don't think
that's a proper use of anybody's time."

Straczynski's other reason also was good news to fan's
of the writer and producer's work.

"An offer came in to run a new TV series for the fall
of (2006), and since there's no way anything Trek can
happen in the interim, I've said yes."

Straczynski didn't give any more details on the
series, except that he is now in negotiations to work
out the details of his involvement.

Just a day before, Straczynski cited fan interest --
as well as a poll at Sci-Fi Wire -- that showed a
tremendous interest in the idea of Straczynski and
Zabel taking over the Star Trek franchise in a
five-year arc. No other details were ever released on
the pitch that the pair made last year.

But Straczynski said that he won't give up on someday
taking on a Star Trek series of his own.

"We can convene a year or two down the road to see
where this take us," he said. "But in the interim, my
apologies for waking everybody up in the middle of the
night."

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Berman: Paramount Not Shopping Enterprise To Other
Networks

Rick Berman, executive producer of UPN's now-cancelled
"Star Trek: Enterprise," recently said that Paramount
is not shopping the series to another network to keep
it on the air past its May 13 series finale.

The studio considered that option last year when the
fate of "Enterprise" hung in the balance, Berman told
Sci-Fi Wire in an interview hours after the official
announcement was made by UPN. Instead, UPN ultimately
renewed the struggling series for a fourth and now
final season.

"One of the greatest things that Paramount has offered
us over the last 18 years has been the kinds of
budgets that have allowed us to produce the show at
the quality that it's been done," Berman said. "The
budget that all of our 'Star Trek' series have
demanded are the kinds of budgets that would be
prohibitive on cable. So as of now the powers-that-be
seem to feel it's time to give the franchise a rest,
and I think it's most likely a good idea."

The show costs as much as $1.6 million per episode to
produce, for which UPN paid about half, according to
information from Paramount. To win renewal last year,
Paramount cut its fee to UPN, which resulted in some
cost-cutting, such as shooting the series on
high-definition digital video instead of film.

Fans continue to rally around the show in hopes some
solution can still be found. For more information
about these efforts, go to www.saveenterprise.com.

[StarFury]

Too bad looks like the fire in enterprise's belley has been reduced to ashes

[Lt.Hood]

What a shame

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Non-Production Report: Episode 99 "The Rest is Silence"


Production number 99 is not happening this week, and a lot of people aren't working on it. That sound on the Paramount lot is not the sound of new sets being built, it's a different sound. This episode is sure to not generate a lot of excitement, so we won't be bringing you any of the details.
The story, which has no formal title, is believed to not revolve around the Enterprise crew fighting off attacking Pakleds, space manatees or Romulans. Sadly, it was not scripted by some of the greatest names in science fiction. Acclaimed writer Phillip K. Dick is contributing nothing, Isaac Asimov passed, and Ray Bradbury, Arthur C. Clarke, Robert Heinlein, Alan Moore, Warren Ellis, none of them, not a single word. There is a long and distinguished list of directors who won't be at the helm for this one and each and every one of them won't be shouting "cut" when it's all over.

As seven days of principal photography are not now in progress, the makeup trailer sits idly and isn't being used to create numerous Star Trek aliens. Wardrobe, such a wonderful department, is not creating fabulous and exotic costumes for the illustrious guest cast which does not include every living Star Trek actor, from Shatner and Nimoy to Stewart and Mulgrew and all those in between.

The visual effects wizards, still busy with other stuff, aren't waiting to complete post-production on this episode, so that we won't be seeing any spectacular space battles, nor any strange, computer-generated creatures, nor any asteroids that look like floating pork chops. All told, none of these ideas will be pursued, utilizing the painstaking skills of the visual specialists who are 100% not involved with Production Number 99.

One of the final touches that won't be added to the episode that isn't being produced is the music. Some of the greatest composing talents known to mankind will, by virtue of their silence, not participate. Mozart has passed, as have Beethoven, Bach and Bono. Don't keep an ear out for the score, and especially don't listen for it during the teaser which won't open the show.

So, with all of that talent nowhere near in place, Production Number 99 is not proceeding at an astounding pace, right on schedule and on budget, which is perfect since there is no schedule or budget. And ultimately, as fans we'll share in this creative process when Production Number 99 finally doesn't hit the airwaves, so we can finally not see it.

Our popular and non-informative Non-Production Report for episode 100 will not return next week either.

"The Rest is Silence."

[StarFury]

Aawww, thats a shame. I wish they would have made at least 100 episodes. Oh well

[KathrynDavismyalterego]

Interesting

[The_Sisko]

Thats sad. Bye bye enterprise

[Sonic74205]

Time To Pass The Star Trek Flame

At Claremont McKenna College recently, "Star Trek:
Enterprise" Executive Producer Brannon Braga spoke
about the UPN series' cancellation and to my mind,
openly displayed the depths of his arrogance and
disregard for the franchise he and Rick Berman have
all but destroyed.

With a comment such as, "It is a good thing, It needs
a rest," you can only wonder if, in fact, it should be
the dynamic duo who should be canned, allowing proven
talent such as Manny Coto to take the reins.

To argue the point, look at the facts. Whole seasons
of Star Trek across the franchise have benefited from
the lack of hands on management from Braga and Berman,
its been openly admitted by some of Trek's past
luminaries that there was an intentional effort to
keep them out of day-to-day running for much of "Star
Trek: Deep Space Nine."

Season 4 of "Enterprise" has been mostly the result of
Manny Coto's direction, and it's a vast improvement,
bringing to the ailing UPN series a sense of inclusion
to the franchise that Brannon and Braga seem to have
been afraid of.

My personal belief is that neither of the "Killer B's"
have any interest in Star Trek, after being directly
responsible for the mostly drab "Star Trek: Voyager,"
their next project was specifically distanced from the
franchise, first omitting the Star Trek name from the
title, then setting it pre-Federation with the
majority of stalwart Trek technologies either missing
or deeply under-developed. Other variations from the
norm included a vocal theme song which few liked (then
"jazzing" it up at a later date, making it even more
ill-suited,) only having one NX starship and
deliberately subverting established canon including
flirtatious -- though occasionally clever -- brushes
with races not even referenced by the start of "Star
Trek: The Next Generation."

Ronald D. Moore along with Ira Steven Behr were
responsible for some of the very finest Star Trek.
Moore has gone on to massive success with "Battlestar
Galactica." He's proven there is still a market for
science-fiction on today's television while Behr is on
record as having difficulty with the franchise
leadership.

There is a list of quite incredible talent that has
passed through the Trek franchise and have been
alienated by Brannon and Braga, their egos apparently
too big to notice. Once gone, these talents have moved
on to some deeply interesting television, some of
which is now in direct competition with the Trek
franchise.

To be fair, you can ask, could it be the actors?
Hardly, Trek has always had a magnificent ensemble
cast, even big Hollywood actors have cameoed in Trek
films, at least during the classic run. Look at
"Boston Legal" on ABC for instance. Rene Auberjonois
and William Shatner make that a delight to watch,
William Shatner, personality aside, is hilarious in
his part of Denny Crane.

Patrick Stewart has carved a magnificent career in
film, and arguably, is more familiar to many now as
the face of Professor Xavier in the X-Men films.

Braga claims the market is saturated with Trek, that
with 18 years on television with 750 episodes, people
have had enough. I ask this question. "Mr Braga, is it
not the actual fact, that you are tired of Trek, that
you personally have had enough?"

And though I know it'll go unanswered by the only
people it's aimed at, I can't help wondering if
secretly they realize they have been greedy, held on
to something too long that they cared not enough
about, and perhaps, rather than holding on to the rope
as they sink, taking the franchise off the air in
their last display of supreme arrogance, they should
do the right thing and leave Trek to allow someone
with a vision and a passion for the material to take
over.Leigh Christian Ashton is the lead programmer for
SyFy Portal, contributing from Wales. He can be
reached at lashton@syfyportal.com.

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Jendresen: Star Trek Needs Epic Adventure

Next year, it will be 40 years since Gene
Roddenberry's vision of "Star Trek" first came to life
on the small screen.

Through those years, there's been plenty of ups and
downs for the millions of fans who have followed the
adventures of Capt. James T. Kirk, Capt. Jean-Luc
Picard, Capt. Benjamin Sisko, Capt. Kathryn Janeway,
and even Capt. Jonathan Archer -- whose time aboard
"Star Trek: Enterprise" ends early this May on UPN.

With Star Trek not pulling in the viewers and the
revenue as it once did, is Paramount still willing to
keep the Roddenberry torch burning?

Erik Jendresen thinks so. Name doesn't ring a bell?
Soon it will, as he has been commissioned by Paramount
to write the 11th Star Trek film. And for the first
time in history, a new slate of characters, as well as
a new cast, will be introduced on the big screen. But
that's just the beginning of the new Star Trek.

"I can certainly say that the story concept, the basic
idea of this thing, is pretty damn big," Jendresen
recently told SyFy Portal's Michael Hinman. "It's a
noble enterprise, pun intended."

Jendresen -- probably best known for his Emmy-award
winning work as a producer and lead writer for HBO's
"Band of Brothers" -- said he wasn't too interested in
stepping into science-fiction. And when Paramount
officials first came to him about doing Star Trek, his
answer was an immediate no.

"I was not a diehard Star Trek fan," he said. "When
they first approached me, I wasn't really interested.
But they said, 'What if we could approach this as a
blank slate, and here's a notion.' When I heard the
notion, I realized that the people I was talking to
were serious, and genuinely dedicated. I started to
really think about it, and, ultimately to develop a
story. And it's a pretty good one."

Reports of the next movie have it taking place after
the events of "Star Trek: Enterprise" and before the
adventures of James Kirk in the original "Star Trek"
series. Jendresen confirmed that the movie would take
place more than a century before Kirk, but
acknowledged that it would not be an "Enterprise"
spinoff.

Although he had only some passing knowledge of Star
Trek in the past, Jendresen said he really started to
look into the heart of Roddenberry's vision to find
the lost path of telling good science-fiction.

"I read an interesting piece online about the
relevance of Star Trek," Jendresen said. "It posed the
idea that maybe it's not relevant anymore. It was an
impressive argument, but a fine story is always
relevant, and I think solid storytelling that's rooted
in the absolute spirit of the original series is what
it was all about to begin with."

The original series you say?

"In the original series, there were big ideas, and
they were delivered each week with a lot of verve,"
Jendresen said. "The crew in particular, lead by a
commanding officer who had a certain sense of timeless
style, boldness and vision. He had a pioneering
spirit, the spirit of all great explorers, that was
captured by the original series."

After the original series went off the air in the
1960s, Jendresen said a lot of that was lost, with a
few exceptions. And now that four decades have passed,
he said it's time to find it again.

"'Star Trek,' the original series, borrowed in an
often elegant way from classic mythology and great
ancient storytelling," he said. "There's something
kind of epic - almost mythic about the prequel
(movie)."

Bringing in Jendresen was an attempt to go outside of
the current realm of Star Trek, and focus more on an
actual story, Jendresen said. It's similar to what
happened in the early 1980s when Nicholas Meyer came
on board to create "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan."
There was a realness about it, and moviewatchers had
to stop and think.

But that's something that doesn't have to be relegated
to the past.

"There's an old tradition in space films, if you think
about it, where war and conflict are very sterile,"
Jendresen said. "Death doesn't hurt, it's not really
ugly. You can get killed by a phaser and just …
disintegrate.

"We're going [roughly 80] years before Kirk. It's an
earlier time, and I think it would be really
refreshing to feel something in the course of telling
this tale, instead of being wowed by special effects,
or presenting another crew in jeopardy where, in the
end, the captain does something brilliant, and all’s
right with the world.”

And that means not everything will end with a chuckle,
laugh and some smiles when this film is over.

"By the end of this story, everyone isn't fine,"
Jendresen said. "I can safely say as a storyteller
with certain standards…my intention is literally as a
writer, as a storyteller, as a filmmaker, to go boldly
where no one has gone before."

With the cancellation of "Enterprise," and reports of
what actress Jolene Blalock (Cmdr. T'Pol) described as
an "appalling" finale, Jendresen said he's well aware
that there's a lot of anger out there. But he said he
definitely is working on something that fans can look
forward to.

"There is a lot of misinformation out there, negative
speculation and ill-will,” Jendresen said. "Everybody
just needs to just take a Romulan chill pill and have
some faith. Everything that has gone down over the
last few years has not been lost on the gentlemen
involved in this effort. I think it would be wonderful
to bring a whole new generation into this world."

In the meantime, while "Star Trek XI" moves forward in
the pre-production stage, Jendresen is staying busy
with other projects. He recently wrote "Journey to
thte Center of the Earth" for Twentieth Century Fox,
and has worked on other screenplays for Paramount,
Dreamworks, and even National Geographic Feature
Films.

Reports have "Star Trek XI" being released sometime in
2007. No director and no cast has been brought in, but
it is clear that characters from other Star Trek
properties will not be included.

NOTE: Erik Jendresen contacted SyFy Portal after the
story published to say that he misspoke when giving
the 160-year figure in the above story. He said that
was not an accurate

[StarFury]

WOW! I can't wait for this film to come out. I my uncles got a Band of Brothers boxset... looks like i'll have to start watching them to figure out this guys style

[luit14]

that does sound good I cant wait

[Lord Borg]

The romulan war era is what I hear the movie will be during

[Sonic74205]

[zero]

[Otter]

having taken onboard much if not all known data on this pending film I'm intreged at seeing the outcome

[Lord Borg]

[lionhead]

wait, i don't really get what this thread is about. Can someone explain is a shorter version whats up?

[Sonic74205]

[Cathexis]

WELL HALLELUJAH! NO PREVIOUS TREK CHARACTERS! FRESH START, NEW ACTORS!!!!!!!!!!!! YAAY!

One problem: it's still set in the "Trek Past".....and........what kind of plot do they think it'll have? Will it be a spinoff of the next series perhaps? Hmm...intriguing...