10 Reasons Why You Need To Watch Acquisition

Once upon a time, the crew of the TNG Enterprise made first contact with a bunch of butt-headed, belligerent aliens called the Ferengi. They were originally meant to be menacing (TNG's Klingons maybe?) but ended up being a little ridiculous (in a good way) which lead to some truly amazing Ferengi Romps in DS9. I LOVE these episodes. They were consistently some of my favorite DS9s. We got one Ferengi romp in Voyager but I've still been missing these butt-heads ever since. Lucky for me (and crappy for everyone who likes to obsess about canon and continuity) Enterprise has its very own Ferengi romp: Acquisition. Here's why you need to watch it:

1- This money shot:

2-Freaking Ethan Phillips. Yep. Just when I started really missing Neelix, he shows up here as the jerk Ferengi commander.

3-Freaking Jeffrey Combs. We just saw him as Shran and already he's back. They can't resist. I can't either. I love him.

4-Freaking Clint Howard. While Combs and Phillips both have long histories of popping up in Star Trek, neither of them can match Opie's little brother who showed up in TOS during one of my favorites, The Corbomite Maneuver.

5-This conversation with Porthos:

6- This episode is kind of the (chronological) origin of the whole "Ferengis are way into 'Vulcan Love Slaves'" trope from DS9.

7-A hilarious conversation about Trip's "wife" ensues between Trip and Archer.

8- Scott Bakula gets to flex his comedy muscles through this whole episode which is pretty damn rare.

9- Trip gets to flex his actual muscles and spends much of Acquisition in this little number:

10- This episode is a bit of a microcosm of the way Ferengi were perceived/developed throughout Trek. They show up out of the blue and they're super menacing but the longer they stick around, the more we (and the crew) realize what a bunch of delightful nimrods they all are.

Brannon Braga (and a lot of fans) hate this episode. They hate that the Ferengis were brought into Trek before their official first contact. They feel like it's a mistake, that it's too far outside of canon. But I love this one. I love that it plays with continuity a little. The crew never learn what this mysterious, butt-headed species is called and they're never seen again. I take it for what it is--a romp. A Ferengi romp in the most unlikely and unexpected of places.