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Thoughts on Anomaly (no spoilers) | Report this post to moderator
By: egervari (Odo's file, contact) @ 14:21:17 on Sep 17, 2003

Well, for a show that had anomalies and was actually titled "Anomaly", I'm glad to state that it didn't focus on them as the main issues of the story (like many others did in Enterprise and other ST series).

I'm still very impressed with the series so far and this episode was just as good (if not better) than the premiere. It's production qualities are much better, the sets are better, the direction is better.. hell, even the acting and specifically Archer are better. It's obvious that B&B took some lessons from 24 and other well-produced shows.

So was the show good? Yes. Was it Star Trek? I dunno. While the action sequences are definately the best I've ever seen for Star Trek, Enterprise has turned into an action space show now. Is that really all that bad? I say "no" and here is why:

Enterprise longed to have it's own unique voice. Enterprise series 1 & 2 mostly felt like a continuation from Voyager set back in time. While trying to make the shows action-packed and somewhat intelligent, it failed in so many ways (mainly due to medicore writing, lack of focus and long-term planning). Heck, even Voyager, a show that obviously tried to be a more action-packed series, failed in that respect. I think Enterprise has finally started to deliver on this (and that's kind of sad because it took 9 years to make a decent action show, but now we have it at least). However, Enterprise is still missing some of the intellectual themes that DS9 or TNG had. If they can strengthen those, I'm sure Enterprise will be the best among the Star Treks (and I really do mean that).

Another thing I'd like to talk about is that serialization is finally present and I hope it continues. Anomaly features many continuations of story and character arcs that you'd come to expect from the premiere. While the show doesn't start out that way, those looking for these characteristics won't be disappointed. I still think the character arcs could be more prevalent (since they were kind of weak in this episode), but it's only the second episode so I'll give the series time for those to take shape. The new stuff about Trip in this episode didn't provide all that much more and could have been removed, but at least this time B&B have acknowledged this kind of thing, which is a positive start.

One of things that is very prevalent in this epeisode is that Scott Bakula must have took some acting classes. In Anomaly, he's actually not a "whiney pussy" like you'd expect, and when he tries to be act tough or pissed off, it doesn't come across as fake. For the first time ever, I was actually rooting for Archer. While he might seem all too similar to the popular Keifer Sutherland right now, any significant and positive development to his performances is a good start in my opinion. I anticipate more.

Another good thing is that Hoshi and Travis get some scenes in this episode and actually play a role on the mission (Hoshi more than Travis though). Still, Travis says and does a lot more than: "We have a half an hour to do it" :)

What would I give this episode? Probably 7/8 out of 10. It can still be a lot better and the show isn't breaking any new ground with respect to character development or intelligent themes, but it's still entertaining television none-the-less and that'll satisfy me for the time-being.

I didn't really want to talk about various plots in the show because I know I would spoil it. The show does have it's constant surprises and questions that it tries to answer, and the ending is left open too (like many DS9, X-Files, etc. episodes are). So, maybe I'll comment more on the specifics of the story later when everyone has had a chance to watch it.

Regards
Ken

Quote

RE: Thoughts on Anomaly (no spoilers)

re: warmongering

Gee, STAR TREK fans used to be smart... what happened?

RE: Gee, STAR TREK fans used to be smart... what happened?

RE: |

RE: Gee, STAR TREK fans used to be smart... what happened?

It worked well...

RE: It worked well...

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Thoughts on Anomaly (no spoilers) | Report this post to moderator
By: egervari (Odo's file, contact) @ 14:21:17 on Sep 17, 2003

Nov 20 | 5-Page Preview of Final Issue of Nero Comic Book Mini Series

Nov 20 | J.J. Abrams Says the Success of the DVD May Bring More People to Star Trek XII

Nov 20 | Karl Urban Says is an Honor and Privilege to be Part of Star Trek, Talks Trek XII

Nov 20 | Simon Pegg Says that Spock Prime Validates the Original Timeline

Nov 19 | John Billingsley Criticizes J.J. Abrams Star Trek Movie, Calls the Script Mundane

Thoughts on Anomaly (no spoilers) | Report this post to moderator By: egervari (Odo's file, contact) @ 14:21:17 on Sep 17, 2003

Thoughts on Anomaly (no spoilers) | Report this post to moderator
By: egervari (Odo's file, contact) @ 14:21:17 on Sep 17, 2003