Enterprise

I seem to be about the only one among the bloggers I read regularly who actually liked STAR TREK: ENTERPRISE. Maybe I just have no taste, but I watched it from the beginning and enjoyed it more often than not. I liked the theme song (which I saw referred to in a newspaper article today as "the most wretched theme song in TV history" -- come on, whoever wrote that must have a really short memory). I liked the captain's dog, even though some of the fans insisted it ought to be killed off (I used to have a beagle -- they're frustrating but lovable animals). The first two seasons were pretty uneven, the war against the Xindi was okay, if a little too long, and other than a few misfires, this season was pretty good. They should have had Manny Coto as the showrunner all along; he obviously connects with Star Trek history and continuity better than some of the others involved. Of the two episodes tonight, I thought the conclusion of the two-parter from last week was the best. The actual finale was okay but I think it could have been better. Personally, I'd rank ENTERPRISE as about equal with DEEP SPACE NINE. At its best, DS9 was better, but it ran too long and I didn't care for the last few seasons. Both were better than the abysmal VOYAGER, the only Star Trek series I stopped watching before it was over. I still like the original series and Next Generation the best. I'll miss ENTERPRISE. Most people seem to think that the franchise is just taking a rest and that it'll be back with a new show in a year or two. I'm not convinced. I know it's been a big money-maker for a long time; I'm just not sure what else they can do with it. (I know! They can do a series about Ensign James T. Kirk, and he can be played by, say, Tom Welling . . .)

I was back to work today and got 16 pages done, which I thought was an okay day. I've started reading PACIFIC VORTEX by Clive Cussler. I've never read anything by Cussler before, and since this is the first Dirk Pitt book, I thought it would be a good place to start. (First in terms of when Cussler wrote it, that is, as he explains in a short introduction. It was published after some of the other Dirk Pitt novels came out and were successful.)