Scott Bakula Star Trek: Enterprise Callbacks Were My Favorite Part Of Strange New Worlds’ Crossover

My favorite parts of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' crossover were the callbacks to Scott Bakula's Star Trek: Enterprise. Directed by Jonathan Frakes, and written by Kathryn Lyn and Bill Wolkoff, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2, episode 7, "Those Old Scientists" brought Star Trek: Lower Decks' Ensign Bradward Boimler (Jack Quaid) and Ensign Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome) to the USS Enterprise commanded by Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount). Strange New Worlds' crossover was a tribute to Star Trek fans, and, surprisingly, a loving ode to Star Trek: Enterprise.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' crossover saw Ensign Brad Boimler travel through a time portal, where he's stranded aboard Captain Pike's 23rd-century Starship Enterprise. Soon, Ensign Beckett Mariner also bumbles through the time portal, and Captain Pike and his Enterprise crew's dilemma becomes how to send the Starfleet time travelers back to the 24th century. The unexpected answer comes from Star Trek: Enterprise and the 22nd-century pioneering voyages of Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) and the NX-01 Enterprise become the key to Mariner and Boimler going home. Best of all, it turns out Captain Pike and his crew love Star Trek: Enterprise as much as I do.

I Loved Every Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Crossover Callback To Scott Bakula’s Enterprise

Captain Pike looks up to Captain Archer

I loved how the means to send Ensigns Beckett Mariner and Brad Boimler back to Star Trek: Lower Decks' 24th century were ingeniously dependent on Star Trek: Enterprise - and Boimler's fanboyish knowledge of Captain Archer's NX-01 starship. The time portal on the planet Krulmuth runs on horonium, a rare alloy the NX-01 Enterprise's hull was built out of. Boimler and Mariner realized that Captain Pike's Enterprise contains horonium from its namesake, the NX-01. Thus, Enterprise's legacy from Archer's ship to Pike's saved the day.

I was also heartened by how much love and hero worship was shown by the characters of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds to Star Trek: Enterprise's crew. Captain Pike was inspired by Captain Archer, one of his heroes. Similarly, the USS Enterprise's helmsman, Lt. Erica Ortegas (Melissa Navia) looks up to the NX-01's pilot, Ensign Travis Mayweather (Anthony Montgomery), and, of course, Ensign Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) models herself after the original Enterprise Communications Officer, Ensign Hoshi Sato (Linda Park). The connective tissue between Archer and Pike's Enterprises has never been clearer.

Maybe the best gag in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' crossover is Lt. La'an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong) deadpanning, "I love grapplers." La'an refers to the NX-01's device that predated Starfleet's invention of tractor beams. Strange New Worlds delivered the most sincere acknowledgment of Star Trek: Enterprise from modern Star Trek yet. It meant a lot to fans like me who championed Enterprise during its original network run on UPN, and watched Scott Bakula's prequel unfairly maligned as "the show that killed the franchise."

Star Trek Acknowledges The Importance Of Scott Bakula's Enterprise

It's been a long road getting from there to here

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' crossover is the latest and best example of Star Trek reassessing the true importance of Scott Bakula's Star Trek: Enterprise to the greater franchise. As a 22nd-century prequel disconnected from Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: The Next Generation's eras, it was easy to dismiss Enterprise, especially since it was the only Rick Berman-produced Star Trek series to run 4 seasons instead of 7. But Enterprise got an expected shout-out in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek (2009), which referenced "Admiral Archer's prized beagle," establishing that Star Trek: Enterprise is the foundation of both Star Trek's Prime and Kelvin Timelines.

Star Trek Beyond went even further in acknowledging Star Trek: Enterprise, with the villain Krall (Idris Elba) revealed as a former Enterprise-era Captain and making the movie's climactic hero ship the NX Class USS Franklin. Star Trek: Lower Decks' jokes referencing Enterprise were always welcome, and the Star Trek: very Short Treks episode "Holograms All The Way Down" saw Connor Trinneer reprise Commander Trip Tucker for the first time since Enterprise was canceled. All of this led the way for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds to fully give Captain Archer and his Enterprise crew their just due.

What’s Preventing A Scott Bakula & Star Trek: Enterprise Comeback?

Odds are against an Enterprise reunion

Star Trek: Enterprise's main cast is alive and well, so what's keeping them from coming back for a reunion? A few factors are holding back the return of Star Trek: Enterprise. One issue is that, despite Enterprise being reassessed by audiences in the 19 years since the prequel was canceled, Paramount+ may not believe the fan interest is fully there to revive Enterprise. Another problem is the way Star Trek: Enterprise ended, and how would it make sense to reunite the entire crew 20 years later? Yet these are creative problems that can be tackled if the will to bring back Star Trek: Enterprise is there.

Although many of Enterprise's actors like Connor Trinneer, Dominic Keating, John Billingsley, and Anthony Montgomery remain active on the Star Trek convention circuit, Scott Bakula and Jolene Blalock have moved on from Star Trek. However, while Blalock is seemingly retired from acting, Bakula's recent appearance on The D-Con Chamber podcast and attending Star Trek's Peabody Awards celebration indicates Scott hasn't left Star Trek behind. While some sort of live-action or animated Star Trek: Enterprise reunion would be fantastic, I'm glad homages like Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' crossover show that Star Trek still has faith of the heart.