As we reported earlier this week, Star Trek: Enterprise stars Connor Trinneer and Dominic Keating will participate in a Creation Entertainment Virtual Fan Experience tomorrow, Saturday, May 16th. This past Wednesday marked the 15-year anniversary of the airing of “These Are The Voyages…”, the finale of Enterprise, and TrekMovie.com sat down with the actors behind Trip and Malcolm to get their thoughts on the series’ conclusion and the show’s legacy. 

Trinneer described the cast’s frustration with the show’s abbreviated run, saying that his feelings about the finale were “not just bittersweet…they were just bitter”. He did, however, feel satisfied as an actor with the conclusion of Trip’s character. Keating described the sense of foreboding the cast shared in the final days of production, saying, “By the time we shot that last episode, I was trying to get on an [Aaron] Spelling show.” And he sympathized with the difficult task that executive producers Brannon Braga and Rick Berman faced in ending the show and honoring their time on the franchise.

Like Data and Geordi or Miles and Julian or Harry and Tom before them, Trip and Malcolm were the latest in a long line of male friendships in Trek during Enterprise’s run. When asked if their connection was planned by the writers of the show, Keating said “They could tell that we were friends off-set… and they saw we had a good acting chemistry. It all clicked.” He also praised the season one episode “Shuttlepod One” as an early standout, and Trinneer called out the scene in “These Are The Voyages…” when the two men say their goodbyes.

The 9/11 attacks, which took place just two weeks before Enterprise’s premiere, had an indelible effect on the direction of the series. When asked how the show was changed by current events, Trinneer said “It made our show what it turned out to be. . . You can’t really watch the show without thinking about 9/11.” He added that he found it therapeutic to work through his emotional reaction to the attacks through the lens of his character. Keating pointed out that Xindi arc of season three was inspired not only by the attacks, but also by the success of the FOX series 24 and that show’s focus on a single, overarching storyline.

Enterprise may have had an abbreviated life as a Trek series, but it continues to entertain and challenge viewers 15 years after it ended. The series was nominated for 17 Emmy awards in its four seasons and it won a 2002 ASCAP award for “Top TV Series”, as well as garnering multiple Saturn and Hugo award nominations.

If you want to catch Trinneer and Keating’s Virtual Fan Experience, tickets are still available for tomorrow’s panel. Visit stageit.com/creationent for more details.