New 'Star Trek' series midway through 22nd century

They're boldly going where no man has gone before, again - but this time the adventures may be more familiar the rest of us.
   In the new Star Trek series "Enterprise" (7 p.m. Wednesday on UPN), we're midway through the 22nd century - 100 years before even William Shatner's Capt. Kirk roamed the universe. This time, Capt. Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula, "Quantum Leap") is at the helm.
   We're experiencing more prequel-mania here (alongside the "Star Wars" prequels and the Superman prequel "Smallville" on The WB). But because "Enterprise" is only 150 years away from where we are today, the creators are hoping that the storylines will be more familiar and accessible to viewers.
   "There's a reality to the series, and I'm hoping that people will be able to relate to this adventure, not just from the pure sci-fi elements, but plus we've learned that so many of our dreams from the last century became realities," Bakula said in a recent phone interview.
   Bakula, known best for his compassionate character in the TV series "Quantum Leap," will be switching gears in this role. Archer is exactly how Vulcans typify humans: rash and reckless, similar to another Starfleet captain we're familiar with.
   "That was one of their selling points to me," said Bakula. "(Archer) was going to be more in the Kirk vein, more emotional, more romantic - it would be a sexier show. He has this boyish enthusiasm for just exploring and peeking around the next corner and the next planet and the next galaxy, and he cant wait."
   And the series delivers. In the first episode, there are a few steamy encounters, one with Archer and an alien and another between two crew members. It looks as if the producers learned from the last Star Trek series, "Voyager," when the show was completely rejuvenated with the addition of the sexy Seven of Nine (Jerry Ryan) in the beginning of the fourth season.
   Aside from the Archer-Kirk comparison, though, "Enterprise" has a distinctively different feel. Everything from the theme music to the characters' mentalities seem different than the previous Star Trek series, and it's a welcome alternative.
   Other highlights this week are:
   SUNDAY
   6 p.m. on PBS: AFRICA "Nature" travels across the often-misunderstood continent, exploring cultures and traditions through the eyes of Africans themselves. Parts 1 and 2 of the eight-part series air tonight.
   6 p.m. on ABC: A BUG'S LIFE It's ants vs. grasshoppers in the Oscar-nominated cartoon film. Listen, my child, and you shall hear the voices of Kevin Spacey, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Phyllis Diller, David Hyde Pierce, Richard Kind and Madeline Kahn.
   7 p.m. on CBS: THE EDUCATION OF MAX BICKFORD Richard Dreyfuss plays a college professor who feels out of place after teaching for 25 years. At home, he's a widower with a young son and a rambunctious college-age daughter.
   8 p.m. on ABC: THE PRACTICE Kelli Williams, Dylan McDermott and the rest of the law firm are back for the fifth-season premiere. In tonight's two-hour episode, they must defend a prominent state senator accused of murder.
   8 p.m. on CBS: THE LAST BRICKMAKER Sidney Poitier plays an elderly artisan who reaches out to mentor a 13-year-old in this made-for-TV movie. Cody Newton plays the boy, who's in trouble at school and must cope with his bickering parents.
   MONDAY
   6 p.m. on PBS: EVOLUTION Charles Darwin's theories have been debated, vilified, refined and misquoted since he published "The Origin of Species" 142 years ago. This new eight-hour look from PBS runs through Thursday.
   TUESDAY
   7:30 p.m. on Fox: UNDECLARED The new Fox comedy follows college freshman Steve Karp (Jay Baruchel), enjoying his first days of freedom away from home. Tonight, he's attracted to a classmate with a controlling boyfriend back home.
   8 p.m. on ABC: BOB PATTERSON George Costanza lives, as Jason Alexander basically reprises his "Seinfeld" role in his own series. This time, he's America's No. 3 self-help guru and the frazzled author of the best-selling "I Still Know More Than You."
   WEDNESDAY
   7:30 p.m. on ABC: ACCORDING TO JIM Jim Belushi's new sitcom finds him married to Courtney Thorne-Smith ("Ally McBeal") and short on time and energy. Belushi has three previous short-lived series behind him.
   THURSDAY
   7 p.m. on the WB: CHARMED Phoebe (Alyssa Milano) and Piper (Holly Marie Combs) hope that three will again be a charm when they find they have a half-sister: Paige, played by Rose McGowan. But there's a 48-hour window when Paige can be turned evil - forever. A two-hour episode.
   7 p.m. on Fox: GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS Back-to-back episodes feature everything from the daring (an in-line skater trying a double back-flip while skating off a 32-foot tower) to the mundane (the longest mustache in the world). Hosted by Mark Thompson.
   7 p.m. on Bravo: PERSUASION The 1995 version of Jane Austen's last novel benefits from a well-crafted adaptation and fine performances, especially by leads Amanda Root and Ciaran Hinds, who bring some edge to the characters. Period settings don't mean the issues are dated.
   FRIDAY
   7 p.m. on Bravo: THE ICE STORM Ang Lee's take on the 1970s is sober, despite the costumes. Kevin Kline and Joan Allen portray an upscale Connecticut couple dealing with a freak Thanksgiving storm and a splintering marriage. Based on the novel by Rick Moody.
   8 p.m. on ABC: THIEVES The new action comedy stars John Stamos and Melissa George as a pair of felons who avoid the slammer by turning their talents to the government's benefit. Count on flirting and squabbling - and a search for lost government property ranging from art treasures to nuclear launch codes.
   SATURDAY
   7 p.m. on ABC: RANSOM A grade-schooler is kidnapped, and his tycoon father (Mel Gibson) is ready to pay up - until the ransom drop is botched. What follows is a game of cat and mouse as the money becomes a bounty instead.
   7 p.m. on NBC: TWISTER Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton aren't careful about what they pray for in this '96 flick about a tornado-chasing couple. The plot's conflicts and turns may be predictable, but the special effects capture the awesome power of the winds dead-on.
   7 p.m. on TBS: FATHER OF THE BRIDE Steve Martin is unwilling to give up his little girl in this 1991 film. In the equally amiable 1995 sequel, shown at 10, he has to face middle age when his daughter announces she's pregnant.
  
  

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