Author's Note

I watched Enterprise when it first debuted, and the only thing that kept bringing me back was Shran. Oh, he's wonderful. I don't know why I like the hard-nosed, militaristic ones so much... but he's got a sense of humor and that's even better. A military man with a real sense of honor and morale and an occasional sarcastic turn of phrase. Who could ask for more? Plus, I liked the fact that Jeffery Combs finally got the girl, even though (sadly) he did not get to keep said girl.

This series was conceived just after the first airing of the fourth-season episode "The Aenar," and takes into account my first full view of Commander Shran as a grieving military man. I approved highly of the so-called Babel or Andorian Arc, and of his relationship with Lieutenant Talas, and was royally pissed off when the writers axed her. However, "The Aenar" showed me how much versatility Combs was willing to display with this character; there are so many uses of subtlety of voice and expression that it deepens the characterization wonderfully. According to Memory Alpha, if Enterprise had gone on to a fifth season, Shran would have become a regular member of the ship's crew, which is a cruel hook to dangle in front of a seasoned ficcer like me. And then Startrek.com had to post a Production Report with a mention of Shran having a daughter in the series finale--also much too tantalizing to pass up. And I just really like Shran, and wasn't willing to let him slip into the Limbo of Beloved Guest Characters without a fight. And so, Destiny.

I would like to point out up front that I've read the Pocket Books detailing Andorian biology, particularly the one about Andorians having four sexes, and I have to say, I don't buy it. The line from the TNG episode that whole idea was based around never explicitly stated anything like that, and personally, anything Next Generation said about Andorians became anethema in my brain after they modeled their Blueskins on the little alien from The Flintstones. Neither Startrek.com nor Memory Alpha say anything about Andorians having four genders, and in my opinion, having four genders just confuses the matter. Keep it simple, people! Therefore most--if not all--of the information about Andorian language and culture, as well as Aenar culture, comes from my biased brain. I'm also ignoring Archer's bio from the Defiant computer in "In a Mirror Darkly, Part Two," for the simple fact that the writer admitted that the bio hadn't be approved by the higher-ups, and therefore isn't canon.

Lastly, and possibly most importantly, I'm completely ignoring the series finale, "These Are the Voyages..." because, let's face it, folks: it was crap. Trip was killed off so that Riker could make an important decision (one he'd already made three series ago). I have a mountain more of issues with this episode, but unless you'd like to write me and ask about them specifically, I won't burden you will them here. Suffice to say, after "Terra Prime," Trip does not die, among other things that don't happen, including but not limited to:

** Shran and Jhamel didn't marry. She was a bit too young for him--the actress was 26, and Combs is in his early 50s--and everything I saw in "The Aenar" demonstrated fatherly affection and concern, but nothing more. Granted, the Andorians appear to make momentous decisions fairly quickly, but for them to have been married less than a year after Talas' death... just doesn't ring with much conviction for my tastes.
** Shran didn't leave the Imperial Guard, make some bad business decisions, and fake his own death. I haven't seen a worse plot device since the Granada production of The Sussex Vampire.
** Trip and T'Pol do not break up. They've gone through too much together to just let it all end, at least not without a really messy break-up show.

Okay, I think that's enough ranting and blathering on my part.