Enterprise’s Evil Vulcans Secretly Followed Star Trek: TNG’s Klingon Retcon

Evil Vulcans became the enemy inStar Trek: Enterprise, just as corrupt Klingons were often the enemies in Star Trek: The Next Generation. The Vulcans and Klingons both made their debut on Star Trek: The Original Series, which established many elements about their species. However, with the episodic nature of 1960s television, TOS did not spend much time developing complex cultural histories for the alien species it introduced. TOS would reveal hints about the Vulcans when it pertained to a specific storyline involving Spock (Leonard Nimoy), and the Klingons served as general enemies for Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) to oppose.

Initially, Gene Roddenberry wanted Star Trek: The Next Generation to steer away from aliens like Vulcans and Klingons to differentiate itself from Star Trek: The Original Series. For example, Roddenberry did not want Lt. Worf (Michael Dorn) to be a main character, but the Klingon nevertheless proved popular with fans. Most of Worf's stories throughout TNGdealt with his complex relationship with the Klingon Empire. TNG revealed more about Klingon politics and their way of life than TOS ever had, exposing the many corrupt politicians in the Klingon High Council. Star Trek: Enterprise followed suit with 22nd-century Vulcans.

Enterprise’s Vulcans Followed Star Trek: TNG’s Corrupt Klingons

Enterprise Featured Corrupt Vulcan Politicians Just Like TNG's Corrupt Klingons

A prequel to Star Trek: Original Series,Star Trek: Enterprise depicted the events leading up to the founding of the United Federation of Planets in the 22nd century. A hundred years after the Vulcans' First Contact with humanity, many Vulcans felt that Earth was not ready to explore the galaxy. Although Vulcans and United Earth remained cooperative, some Vulcans sought to sabotage the relationship between the two planets for their own ends. Several of the Vulcans at the highest levels of power in Enterprise turned out to be corrupt, just as many Klingons did in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Although the Klingon Empire and the Federation were allies by the time of Star Trek: The Next Generation, corrupt Klingon politicians sought to sabotage this partnership in the interests of the Romulan Star Empire.

In Star Trek: Enterprise season 4, Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) helped uncover a Romulan plot to conquer Vulcan and reunite the Romulan and Vulcan people by force. This corruption went all the way to the head of the Vulcan High Council, Administrator V'Las (Robert Foxworth), who was working with an undercover Romulan operative named Major Talok (Todd Stashwick). In service of the Romulans' goals, V'Las bombed the United Earth Embassy on Vulcan, blaming the Syrrannites, and ordered an attack on Andoria. In the end, Archer, T'Pol (Jolene Blalock), and T'Pau (Kara Zediker) helped thwart the Romulans' plans to destabilize the Alpha Quadrant.

T’Pol Dealt With Evil Vulcans Like Worf’s History With Evil Klingons

T'Pol & Worf's Stories Have Several Parallels

Despite being raised by humans, Worf held on to his Klingon heritage and ultimately came to embody Klingon honor better than many of his people. He was dismayed to learn about the corruption in the Klingon High Council and spent years trying to root it out. Similarly, Sub-commander T'Pol regularly butted heads with Vulcans who did not have Starfleet's best interest in mind. When the Enterprise launched a missiion to search for the Xindi after they attacked Earth, T'Pol was ordered to return to Vulcan. T'Pol chose to defy her superiors and remain on the Enterprise, just as Worf accepted a discommendation to remain on the USS Enterprise-D.

T'Pol ultimately helped uncover the Romulan conspiracy that had infected the Vulcan High Command and helped usher in a new era for the Vulcan people, as they embraced the true teachings of Surak. While Worf and T'Pol's situations were not exact parallels, they were both the only members of their species on ships full of (mostly) humans. They both had to come to terms with the fact that their people were not as above reproach as they once believed. On Star Trek: Enterprise and Star Trek: The Next Generation, T'Pol and Worf shaped their people's futures and strengthened their alliance with the Federation.