10 Greatest New Beginnings In Star Trek

2. Faith Of The Fourth

Star Trek: Enterprise was designed to be a new beginning for the Trek universe. As Voyager closed the stories set in the 24th century, Enterprise arrived to tell some new stories from the 22nd. While the show has aged well, it wasn't met with initial acclaim.

Broken Bow premiered in October 2001 while the world was still reeling from attacks on the World Trade Centre. Star Trek's happy optimism for the future was out of time. This hung over the first three seasons of the show, culminating in the Xindi Arc - Star Trek's obvious attempt to tackle the war on terror.

With that finally resolved by the end of the fourth season opener, Storm Front, Enterprise embarked on what became its final year. The fourth season of the show was a triumph in storytelling, eschewing weekly episodes for short, usually two-episode arcs. It was here that the show excelled, concentrating on stories that required more time to tell, but didn't fall victim to long-form fatigue. 

Though the show's run was truncated, it clearly set the scene for the Earth-Romulan War teased in Balance Of Terror and then later in A Quality Of Mercy. Star Trek: Picard offered a canonical update to the NX-01 as the ship, new secondary hull in place, was in situ at the Fleet Museum. 

While Star Trek: Enterprise's stories may exist almost solely on the printed page now, the show's final season opened up the door to a new form of storytelling, to old stories made fresh, to extended stays in the Mirror Universe, and to a future that may be imagined as opposed to depicted.