vessels such as the Wright Flyer, the Space Shuttle, and the First Flight. Events and elements of the series, including the MACOs and the Xindi war, are also referenced in the 2016 film Star Trek Beyond. The long-lost vessel featured in the film, the USS Franklin (NX-326), is similar in design and said to be a precursor to the NX-01. The Earth-Romulan War, which occurred after the events of the series in the official timeline but was seeded during the series, is also mentioned in Beyond. Reception Critical reception The first season was generally well received. The pilot episode of Enterprise, "Broken Bow", was well received by critics, with Ed Bark for the Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service saying that it all came together in an "impressive fashion", while Brandon Easton said in The Boston Herald that the cast was "impeccable" and the writing was "strong" despite the "limitations of a questionable premise". In a differing opinion, Charlie McCollum for Knight Ridder said that the premise was "great", although at the time had yet to see the episode. Dan Snierson, while writing for Entertainment Weekly, praised the series, saying "It's hot, it's sexy, it's kinda funny" and called it the savior of UPN. Following the pilot, the critical reaction became mixed. David Segal said in The Washington Post that the series "has a bargain basement feel that lands this side of camp." During the course of the second season, mainstream media publications began publishing that the show was "broken". Tom Russo proclaimed in Entertainment Weekly that "It's dead Jim – almost", attributing the lack of appeal of Star Trek: Nemesis and the dwindling ratings received by Enterprise as demonstrating that the franchise was tired. The frequency of stand-alone episodes broadcast during the second season resulted in a negative fan reaction. The reception for the third and fourth seasons improved overall, but with some negative reviews being received. One such criticism was from Gareth Wigmore in TV Zone who said that "Enterprise isn't so much reacting to current events as it is lazily picking items from the news to produce stories." Coto felt that the critics "dumped on the show", and despite his feelings that the final season marked an improvement, he was disappointed that the critics did not change their minds. Critics received the news of the cancellation with mixed opinions, with Ted Cox in The Daily Herald saying that it