Executive producers Brannon Braga and Rick Berman spoke of their plans and hopes for the Star Trek franchise in the latest round of publicity surrounding Star Trek Enterprise's season premiere.

Speaking to John Coffren of The Baltimore Sun, Braga said that he always thought Star Trek worked best creating stand-alone episodes, but that he and Berman were "playing around with structure" in the Xindi arc.

"Am I scared that this will work? Yes, but it's different, challenging and ultimately more creative," he added.

Calling many reviews of the television series "blistering and unfair," the executive producer noted that the aging franchise was having difficulty wooing back older viewers who made The Next Generation so successful.

"We're making very dramatic, and hopefully, effective changes to the show because they are creatively stimulating and because we're trying, of course we're trying, to generate viewer interest. A lot of people are like, 'Are you doing this because of the ratings?' Well yeah! What television show in the history of television doesn't try to get better ratings?" he said.

"Send in the marines" is Braga's strategy, wrote Coffren, examining the role of the MACO officers in the season premiere.

Berman, meanwhile, spoke to fans in the Star Trek Communicator, mouthpiece of the official Star Trek fan club.

In an article summarized at TrekWeb, he reiterated Braga's excitement about the action provided by the MACOs and promised, "...we are going to introduce the first of what will be more than one mysterious artificial moon...huge man-made spheres that are cloaked and emanating some very unusual types of radiation. They are going to play a part in our arc and our hunt for the Xindi weapon."

Berman did not commit to a time period for the Xindi storyline, saying, "We don't have the whole season arc worked out...I think there is a good possibility that it will last the entire season."

Also, like Braga, Berman did not attribute the show's declining ratings to a single cause but said, "This is not a question of something 'not working'...all we can do is try to give the show a new direction and do the best job that we can."

The Braga interview may be found in The Baltimore Sun, while the Berman interview may be found in the Star Trek Communicator with excerpts at TrekWeb.

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