Tim Lynch, one of the most respected voices in the Star Trek fan community, last week announced his reviewing days are over.

"When I started reviewing Enterprise two years ago, I said that I wasn't sure how long I'd be able to keep it up or to keep it timely," Lynch wrote in a post at the rec.arts.startrek.reviews newsgroup. "Most of this season has seen problems with the 'timely' part, and as of this review I think I have to bring my regular reviewing to a close again, this time very likely for good."

Lynch's decision — unlike his departure from reviewing Voyager in 1996 — was motivated by a lack of time rather than despair with Enterprise's creative direction. "Simply put, there's just not enough time any more," he said. "Teaching is not a career which admits a great deal of free time anyway, and I've spent far too much of this year with my subconscious wondering when I'd find time to catch up on reviews, making any given review more a chore than a labor of love."

He added, "Would that change if I were routinely getting shows that reminded me of past glories, like DS9's second season or TNG's third? Probably, but that's not the case here."

Although he has reviewed the show for the last two seasons, Lynch's reviewing days started long before Enterprise was created. In fact his first review, of the second-season Next Generation episode "The Outrageous Okona", was published approximately 15 years ago. He continued to critique every successive episode of TNG, and went on to review Deep Space Nine and Voyager.

At the end of Voyager's second season, Lynch decided to give up reviewing the series. "It's a show that no one's taking the time to really examine while creating it," he wrote at the time, "and as a result, it's not enjoyable to review week after week." He continued to offer his opinions on Deep Space Nine until the show came to a close in 1999.

Lynch's final Trek episode review — an analysis of Nemesis may appear over the summer — was for "The Expanse". "'The Expanse' had a fair number of good bits, but slammed together with no room to breathe or grow," he wrote. "As a setup for next season, I remain skeptical. I hope this new direction works well for the show — I really do."

Once again, but now for the last time, he closed his review with the patented Lynch wrap-up:

Writing: Some good moments, but very, *very* cluttered.
Directing: Not a lot stood out either way.
Acting: Praise for Trinneer, most of the time. None of the guest stars had enough to do.
OVERALL: 7, I think. A watchable hour, but not marvelous.

Thanks to readers one and all -- it's been fun. That's all for me.

Read Tim Lynch's full farewell message and review here.

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