One of the biggest changes to Star Trek: Enterprise's legacy, if season 5 had happened, is that Enterprise's controversial series finale, "These Are The Voyages..." would not have taken place, or happened later on and perhaps very differently. Enterprise's ending centered on Commander Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) and Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) from Star Trek: The Next Generation, reducing Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) and his crew to mere holograms in Riker's story.
Star Trek: Enterprise's finale is reviled to this day, but if Star Trek: Enterprise season 5 had taken place, Enterprise season 4's ending would likely have set up the next season, and not killed off the popular Commander Trip Tucker (Connor Trinneer) for shock value. From interviews given by the late Manny Coto, Enterprise writer Mike Sussman, and others on the show's creative team, there were three major story threads Star Trek: Enterprise season 5 would have delivered on, and it's a real shame that they didn't see the light of day.
Star Trek: Enterprise Season 5 Would Have Laid The Foundation For The Romulan War
We Know Little About Starfleet's Conflict With The Romulan Star Empire
The Romulan War, beginning or being waged in Star Trek: Enterprise season 5, would have delivered a Star Trek canon event that has yet to be seen. In Star Trek: The Original Series' "Balance of Terror," Spock (Leonard Nimoy) gave a brief rundown of the 22nd century conflict between Earth and the Romulans, which was fought with "primitive atomic weapons." Enterprise would likely have retconned this, and possibly also how no human had supposedly ever seen a Romulan before "Balance of Terror."
Todd Stashwick, who went on to become the popular Captain Liam Shaw in Star Trek: Picard season 3, played Talok, a Romulan operative posing as a Vulcan, in Star Trek: Enterprise season 4.
Star Trek: Enterprise Season 5 Would Have Returned To The Mirror Universe
Could William Shatner's Enterprise Appearance Have Happened In Season 5?
Star Trek: Enterprise season 4 showrunner Manny Coto was a fan of the Mirror Universe, which resulted in Enterprise season 4's two-parter, "In a Mirror, Darkly." Enterprise's romp in the evil alternate timeline answered the question of what happened to the Constitution Class USS Defiant, which vanished in Star Trek: The Original Series' "The Tholian Web." The Mirror Universe's Captain Archer hijacked the Defiant and tried to make a bid for ultimate power in the Terran Empire. However, Archer was betrayed by his mistress, who declared herself Empress Hoshi Sato (Linda Park).
Enterprise season 5 would have delivered the follow-up to Hoshi's rise as Terran Empress.
Perhaps William Shatner's rejected Star Trek: Enterprise season 4 appearance playing Tiberius Kirk could have even happened in season 5, given that a renewal would have shown UPN had faith (of the heart) in its Star Trek prequel. In The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek by Peter Holmstrom, Coto believed UPN didn't want Enterprise to be saved by a William Shatner ratings boost. A scenario where Enterprise season 5 existed might have welcomed William Shatner to the Star Trek prequel, instead.
Shran Would Have Joined Captain Archer's Crew In Star Trek: Enterprise Season 5
Jeffrey Combs Would Have Been Recurring Or A Series Regular
Another exciting development planned for Star Trek: Enterprise season 5 was that Commander Thy'lek Shran (Jeffrey Combs) would have joined the NX-01 Enterprise's crew, either as a recurring character or as a series regular. Star Trek: Enterprise's cast held at seven main characters for all four seasons, relatively one of the smallest in a Star Trek series. The addition of Shran not only would have raised that number but also placed a proven fan-favorite Jeffrey Combs Star Trek character on Captain Archer's bridge.
Captain Archer and Shran began on opposing sides, but as Star Trek: Enterprise continued, the Andorian Commander developed a respect for the "pink skin" human Captain of the Enterprise. Shran also would have injected a new alien presence to create conflict since, by Enterprise season 4, T'Pol had established her loyalty to Starfleet over Vulcan, and Archer's crew no longer saw her in a prejudicial way. Shran might have inherited T'Pol's role of noting the strange and reckless behavior of the humans aboard Enterprise.
Commander Shran in Star Trek: Enterprise season 5 could have marked the first time Jeffrey Combs became a series regular on a Star Trek show after distinguishing himself in numerous guest spots like Weyoun and Liquidator Brunt on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Star Trek: Enterprise season 5 never happening is a loss for the fans who were on board with Captain Archer's voyages on UPN and the next generation that came to love Star Trek: Enterprise in the two decades since its cancellation.
Source: The Center Seat: 55 Years of Star Trek by Peter Holmstrom
