'Star Trek' is marooned
By Gary Levin, USA TODAY

The venerable Star Trek franchise is entering an unfamiliar galaxy: cancellation.

Enterprise, the fifth installment in the TV space saga, will end its run May 13 after 98 episodes and four seasons on UPN, the network announced Wednesday.

With no immediate plans for a replacement series, next season will mark the first in 18 years with no new Trek episodes.

Cause of death: As usual, it's low ratings. Enterprise has been on a steady slide, from 5.9 million in its first season to 2.9 million in its fourth. The show narrowly escaped the ax last spring when UPN revamped its lineup, dropping other action shows in favor of female-friendly dramas. But Enterprise had to steeply cut its price tag and move to low-profile Fridays.

"A lot of it has to do with what someone has referred to as 'franchise fatigue'" longtime executive producer Rick Berman says. "The fact that we've done 624 hours of Star Trek over the last 18 years, you can take one too many trips to the well. There's a point at which you can reach a sense of overkill."

Says Steve Krutzler, editor of TrekWeb.com: "There are segments of fans who really like the most recent show; there are those who dislike it. Overall, I'd say the general public has probably just lost interest in Star Trek for now."

But that doesn't mean the mother ship has made its last voyage. Producer Paramount Television views the change as a rest, not a retirement. Trek generates big revenue from merchandise and overseas sales.

"It's probably good to lay fallow for a while to rejuvenate," Berman says, though he expects that will mean a minimum three-year hiatus, with cable or syndication the most likely future home.

Other outlets have lured Trekkies away: Sci-Fi Channel's Battlestar Galactica scored more viewers than Enterprise on recent Fridays. "When Next Generation went on the air (in 1987), there was no science-fiction on television," Berman says. "Now there are dozens of shows."

Enterprise will live on in reruns, along with the original Star Trek (1966-69), Next Generation (1987-94), Deep Space 9 (1993-99) and Voyager (1995-2001). Though the death knell had been sounding, UPN waited until Enterprise was sold into syndication last week to pull the plug; reruns will air this fall on local stations.

Berman wouldn't spill much about the final episode, which is expected to complete filming in early March. "It's going to have some surprising twists and turns. It's somewhat of a valentine."

Contributing: Bill Keveney

"A lot of it has to do with what someone has referred to as 'franchise fatigue'" longtime executive producer Rick Berman says. "The fact that we've done 624 hours of Star Trek over the last 18 years, you can take one too many trips to the well. There's a point at which you can reach a sense of overkill."

It's been incredibly painful watching its decline over the years, and I'm relieved that we can finally put away the crash cart and let it go in peace. .

• QuAcKeR •

maybe we'll at least get Star Trek XI or something while we wait for the next series...

God, I hope not. Nemesis was embarrassing. If they're just going to make mind-numbingly dull and pointless action flicks, leave the Trek folks out of it.

das