The 15 Greatest Episodes Of Star Trek: Enterprise, Ranked

The primary “Star Trek” tv sequence of the twenty first century was the prequel “Star Trek: Enterprise,” operating for 4 seasons from 2001 to 2005. Set roughly a century earlier than the occasions of “Star Trek: The Authentic Sequence,” the present covers humanity’s early days exploring the galaxy. The sequence’ central starship, the Enterprise NX-01, is among the many first able to touring warp 5, with this enhanced velocity giving it entry to an expansive variety of worlds. Commanded by Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula), the Enterprise leads the creation of what would grow to be the United Federation of Planets.

All through its four-season run, “Enterprise” offered a singular strategy to the “Star Trek” franchise, exhibiting the origins of a lot of its acquainted tropes and ideas. “Enterprise” additionally featured tales spanning a number of episodes, mixing longer-form storytelling with the franchise’s traditional episodic format. Whereas “Enterprise” might have seen a blended reception throughout its run, together with a poorly regarded finale, there are many wonderful episodes all through the sequence. Listed below are the most effective episodes of “Star Trek: Enterprise,” ranked from worst to finest.

The 2-part sequence premiere, “Damaged Bow,” introduces Archer and his crew as they’re tasked with returning a wounded Klingon again to his homeworld. Becoming a member of the Enterprise NX-01 is T’Pol (Jolene Blalock), a Vulcan liaison observing and helping with the mission. Because the Enterprise contends with continued tensions with the Vulcan authorities, they uncover the Klingon is said to a temporal conspiracy. The newly assembled crew should be taught to work collectively in an effort to efficiently return the Klingon and outmaneuver the time-traveling conspirators.

“Damaged Bow” affords audiences a have a look at Starfleet and human-Vulcan relations as that they had by no means been seen earlier than, with the Vulcans extremely distrustful of their new allies. The primary solid gels collectively shortly, with Bakula and Blalock among the many standouts from the ensemble. “Enterprise” additionally properly introduces the Temporal Chilly Battle plot threads, promising the present will not simply be a prequel however a bigger thriller. Although among the uneven parts prevalent all through “Enterprise” are current, the premiere affords an intriguing route ahead with a likable solid.

Although “Star Trek: The Subsequent Technology” launched the Borg within the twenty fourth century, “Enterprise” discovered a strategy to embrace the techno-organic enemies two centuries earlier. The second season episode “Regeneration” reveals time-traveling Borg from “Star Trek: First Contact” crashed within the Arctic Circle. After being unearthed and thawed, they assimilate the scientists that discovered them and attempt to contact the Borg Collective within the Delta Quadrant. With assimilated personnel on board, Archer should discover a strategy to disrupt the Borg’s efforts and save his ship.

Each encounter with the Borg locations “Star Trek” characters within the combat of their lives, and “Regeneration” isn’t any totally different. Archer and his chief engineer Journey Tucker (Connor Trinneer) need to make more and more troublesome selections to remain alive and cease the Borg. Whereas shoehorning the Borg into “Enterprise” might have appeared compelled in lesser palms, the episode not solely makes their inclusion natural however units up their debut in “TNG.” That includes among the most intense motion of the second season, “Regeneration” is a sequence spotlight, so long as one does not suppose too onerous concerning the continuity implications.

The third season of “Enterprise” revolved round Starfleet’s devastating warfare towards an alien race generally known as the Xindi. The battle offered an overarching storyline for the season, which got here to a head in its ultimate three episodes. The season’s penultimate episode, “Countdown,” has Archer win the help of splinter Xindi factions in time to stop a deliberate assault on Earth. As Archer leads a counterattack along with his new allies, a strike staff launches a mission to rescue Enterprise communications officer Hoshi Sato (Linda Park).

“Countdown” is a very action-driven episode in a season that already relied on sci-fi spectacle, nevertheless it successfully raises the depth. Malcolm Reed (Dominic Keating), particularly, will get to shine, along with his sometimes contentious dynamic with Main Hayes (Robert Culp) taking over a brand new route as they’re compelled to work collectively. “Countdown” is mostly a narrative bridge between its previous episode, “The Council,” and the season finale, shifting its key gamers into place for the ultimate battle. With that in thoughts, this episode strikes briskly ahead, exhibiting “Enterprise” at its leanest and meanest.

The ultimate season of “Enterprise” builds to the creation of the precursor to the United Federation of Planets, although this coalition shouldn’t be met with out violent inside opposition. A xenophobic paramilitary group, Terra Prime, infiltrates Starfleet and points an ultimatum for all non-humans to vacate Earth. The group is led by John Frederick Paxton (Peter Weller), who takes over the Martian planetary protection techniques, placing Starfleet on the defensive. Whereas T’Pol and Journey attempt to cease Terra Prime, they be taught the onerous means that Paxton is to not be underestimated.

Between “Enterprise” and his separate function in 2013’s “Star Trek Into Darkness,” Weller proves he makes a very efficient “Star Trek” villain. Paxton is the antithesis of Archer and his unity-oriented mission of interspecies coexistence and cooperation. The story appears like a payoff to the broader “Enterprise” saga, whereas containing clear hyperlinks to the “TOS” period. Although not fairly as tightly constructed because the episode’s direct follow-up, “Demons” is elevated by Weller’s presence and its homegrown adversaries.

The whole trajectory of “Enterprise” modified with its second season finale, “The Expanse,” introducing the Xindi. After the Xindi perform a cataclysmic shock assault on Earth, the Enterprise known as again as Starfleet regroups. Alongside the way in which, Archer is briefly kidnaped and knowledgeable of the Temporal Chilly Battle, together with the Xindi’s efforts to vary historical past. After briefing Starfleet Command, Archer is tasked with confronting the Xindi, dealing with sudden Klingon hostilities alongside the way in which.

Simply as “Star Trek: Deep House 9” obtained its artistic second wind with the long-form Dominion Battle storyline, so too did “Enterprise” with the Xindi. “The Expanse” gave “Enterprise” a transparent route shifting into its third season, one which helped tighten the present’s narrative focus. The episode additionally calls into query T’Pol’s true loyalties, a lingering query because the sequence premiere, that speaks to Starfleet’s uneasy dynamic with Vulcan. “Enterprise” is a type of uncommon “Star Trek” reveals that’s elevated by motion over existentialism and “The Expanse” demonstrates that fantastically.

The fourth season of “Enterprise” featured a three-part storyline that noticed humanity, the Vulcans, the Andorians, and the Tellarites come collectively to type the precursor to the Federation. These efforts are disrupted by the Romulans, who see the multilateral alliance as a risk to their very own pursuits. This arc involves a head in “The Aenar,” as Archer works with former Andorian adversary Commander Shran (Jeffrey Combs) to realize the help of the Aenar. An offshoot of the Andorians, the Aenar have already been focused by the Romulans in a last-ditch effort to derail the burgeoning partnership.

“The Aenar” brings the centerpiece story of the fourth season to a satisfying shut, together with the Romulans’ general function in “Enterprise.” On a extra intimate degree, the episode additionally provides to the sophisticated romance between T’Pol and Journey that serves because the sequence’ largest love story. Whereas the connection would finally fizzle out anticlimactically, the juicy interpersonal drama between them heats up right here. It is that emotional complexity that elevates “The Aenar” above the opposite installments in its makeshift trilogy.

Some of the thought-provoking episodes in “Enterprise” is the third season episode “Similitude,” involving cloning and the controversy over the appropriate to life. When Journey is injured in an engineering accident, Archer agrees to create a quickly maturing clone of him to function a life-saving donor. Because the Journey clone, nicknamed Sim, grows older, he inherits Journey’s feelings, together with his affection for T’Pol. Sim contemplates his personal existence and whether or not he deserves to dwell or if his obligation and function to save lots of Journey needs to be fulfilled.

Amidst all of the interstellar stakes all through the third season, “Similitude” presents a extra self-contained intimate humanist story. Trinneer will get a implausible showcase taking part in Sim, a facsimile of Journey who can be his personal subtly distinct character on the identical time. Past Trinneer, a lot of the solid will get the prospect to shine as they ponder the moral questions surrounding Sim, particularly John Billingsley as Physician Phlox. For as action-oriented as “Enterprise” was general, episodes like “Similitude” underscore that the present might nonetheless ask these deeper, open-ended questions.

Some of the compelling character arcs in “Enterprise” is not even from one of many titular ship’s crew, however slightly its biggest frenemy, Commander Shran. Shran makes his debut within the first season episode, “The Andorian Incident,” as a determined antagonist. The Andorians accuse the Vulcans of spying on them from a distant outpost, with the Enterprise turning into concerned and Archer captured and tortured by Shran personally. After Archer discovers the Andorians’ suspicions are well-founded, he diplomatically acquiesces to a few of their calls for whereas his crew shuts down any escalation, incomes Shran’s reluctant respect.

Combs already had a prolific background with “Star Trek,” by “Deep House 9,” however he is fully unrecognizable as Shran in the most effective of how. Combs’ efficiency as Shran would make the Andorian a recurring character all through “Enterprise,” with the vicious commander finally turning into a precious ally to Archer. In comparison with its idealistic predecessors, “Enterprise” is filled with ethical shades of grey and the continuing rigidity between humanity, the Vulcans, and Andorians spotlight that right here. “The Andorian Incident” offered “Enterprise” with its biggest foil outdoors of the primary crew and that chemistry was evident from the beginning.

The endgame to the Xindi Battle begins with the third season episode “The Council,” because the Enterprise strikes to talk to the five-species council making up the Xindi. As Archer petitions the council to keep away from escalating the warfare by deploying a superweapon towards Earth, there may be inside strife among the many Xindi. Although the superweapon’s designer Degra (Randy Oglesby) has sided with Archer to stop the weapon’s use, this transfer is not with out opposition within the council. In the meantime, T’Pol leads an expedition to be taught extra concerning the Sphere Builders, the civilization who pit the Xindi towards humanity and a key faction within the Temporal Chilly Battle.

“The Council” is the calm earlier than the climactic storm closing out the Xindi Battle as Archer makes one final effort at peace forward of additional hostilities. There are betrayals and plot twists, each on an epic and intimate scale, because the council stands divided on how they need to proceed. The episode additionally begins to reply the long-standing questions concerning the Xindi and the Temporal Chilly Battle, the latter of which had been lingering because the sequence premiere. With “The Council,” “Enterprise” started resolving its lengthy recreation because it maneuvered its characters in direction of the season finale.

The again half of the third season of “Enterprise” was largely pushed by Archer making an attempt to stop the Xindi from deploying their secret superweapon. “Azati Prime” has Starfleet be taught the superweapon’s location, with Archer main a presumed suicide mission to destroy it in any respect prices. That is interrupted by Temporal Agent Daniels (Matt Winston), who takes Archer with him into the longer term, revealing the Xindi battle is an extension of the Temporal Chilly Battle. In Archer’s absence, T’Pol takes command of the Enterprise, which finds itself caught in a Xindi ambush.

“Azati Prime” is an enormously pivotal “Enterprise” episode, not just for the Xindi storyline but additionally the larger questions current because the sequence premiere. The total implications of the Temporal Chilly Battle are lastly laid out and tie seamlessly into the unfolding story. By way of all the large reveals, Blalock offers certainly one of her finest performances as T’Pol, dealing with her personal disaster of management. A well-rounded stability between motion and plot and character growth, “Azati Prime” is “Enterprise” firing on all cylinders.

For as a lot because it was outlined by epic battles spanning time and house, “Enterprise” could possibly be fairly charming when it took the time to decelerate and breathe. This distinction elevates the second season episode “Carbon Creek,” one of many extra distinctive tales within the sequence. T’Pol recounts to Archer and Journey how certainly one of her ancestors visited Earth incognito within the Nineteen Fifties. Blalock additionally performs her ancestor, T’Mir, who secretly lived in Carbon Creek, Pennsylvania after her Vulcan ship crashed there in 1957 whereas observing the Sputnik launch.

The majority of “Carbon Creek” falls on Blalock’s succesful shoulders, given her twin function and the episode’s flashback premise. The episode depends largely on fish-out-of-water humor for the Vulcans as they attempt to acclimate and conceal themselves in small city ’50s society. “Carbon Creek” is a nice facet story that does not advance the bigger plot or character arcs and nor does it attempt to. As a substitute, “Carbon Creek” simply makes for a very good “Star Trek” story, whatever the bigger sequence, coasting on its easygoing enchantment.

Ever since its introduction in “The Authentic Sequence,” the morally inverted Mirror Universe has been a serious recurring component within the franchise. The fourth season of “Enterprise” gives its personal twist on this tried-and-true trope with the two-part episode “In a Mirror, Darkly.” As a substitute of prime universe characters being displaced within the Mirror Universe, the episode depicts the inverted counterparts because the protagonists. Mirror Archer seizes command of his universe’s Enterprise earlier than discovering the USS Defiant thrown into his actuality from the “TOS” episode “The Tholian Net.”

With every part from the Mirror Universe model of “First Contact” to its alternate opening title sequence, “In a Mirror, Darkly” is simply loads of enjoyable. Bakula and Park visibly relish taking part in evil variations of their traditional characters, whereas the Mirror Universe itself feels extra unpredictable and harmful than previous depictions. The shock tie-in to the “TOS” period makes the episode’s premise really feel recent past the everyday trappings of its morally reversed dimension. A enjoyable detour earlier than “Enterprise” begins to arrange its finale, “In a Mirror, Darkly” is a self-contained blast.

The long-running Xindi storyline reaches its twist-filled climax with the season 3 finale, “Zero Hour.” Studying that the Xindi are transporting a superweapon for a renewed assault on Earth, Archer personally intercepts the incoming enemy operation. Starfleet receives essential help from Commander Shran, who owes Archer a debt of honor from a previous journey. At this pivotal second within the battle, Archer reunites with Temporal Agent Daniels, who affords the captain a glimpse of his celebrated future.

There’s a lot occurring in “Zero Hour,” the third season finale and conclusion of the Xindi storyline that guided a lot of the season. Along with resolving the explosive warfare, the episode additionally feeds immediately into the Temporal Chilly Battle narrative that kicked off the sequence. Lastly, “Zero Hour” gives the viewers with its personal alternate historical past story, this time as a cliffhanger to entice viewers again for the following season. Although overstuffed, most of those plot factors join, wrapping up the overarching story satisfyingly whereas presenting the viewers with one heck of a motive to return for the fourth season.

Although “Enterprise” concluded with the extensively maligned two-parter “These Are the Voyages…,” many followers argue the present’s true finale is the previous episode, “Terra Prime.” Selecting up immediately from the occasions of “Demons,” the sequence’ penultimate episode continues Archer’s showdown with the Terra Prime terrorist group. With T’Pol and Journey now hostages of Paxton, Archer leads a small strike pressure on Mars to free them and cease Terra Prime. After rising victoriously, Archer offers an impassioned speech to Starfleet on the significance of interstellar unity and cooperation.

If “Enterprise” had ended with “Terra Prime,” it might’ve improved the present’s subsequent popularity immeasurably. The episode affords every part from conspiratorial intrigue to pulse-pounding motion, with Bakula delivering his arguably finest efficiency as Archer. The closing monologue alone delivers on the long-standing themes of the sequence, of humanity studying to belief and work with different spacefaring species. A fantastically crafted episode that will get to the core of “Enterprise,” “Terra Prime” is all killer, no killer.

Some of the time-bending episodes of “Star Trek” ever is the third season episode “Twilight.” After an accident leaves Archer bodily unable to keep up his command of the Enterprise, he’s changed by T’Pol. Nonetheless, this modification in management sparks a sequence of occasions that leads to humanity dropping their warfare towards the Xindi, with the species barely surviving the defeat. Decided to vary historical past, Phlox leads an effort to journey again in time and treatment Archer of his situation earlier than this tragedy can take full impact.

“Star Trek” has definitely performed with comparable narrative tropes and themes earlier than “Twilight,” however all of them convalesce so nicely on this episode. The obsessive depth that Billingsley brings to Phlox, particularly, is the driving pressure behind the story guiding viewers by this divergent timeline. Past the episode, “Twilight” underscores the stakes of the Xindi Battle and the way pivotal Archer’s function within the ongoing battle really is. Because it stands, “Twilight” simply is not among the finest “Enterprise” episodes, however among the finest time-travel/alternate timeline “Star Trek” tales ever.