Suliban
Encyclopedia
The Suliban (ˈsuːlɨbɑːn) are a starfaring race in the fictional Star Trek
universe, seen throughout the series Star Trek: Enterprise
. A Suliban sect
known as the Cabal served as the show's primary antagonists in the first and second seasons.
Humanoid in appearance, Suliban are hairless and have pale yellow skin covered with small bumps, making Suliban resemble an osage-orange.
Some time in the 1800s, the Suliban homeworld was destroyed and its survivors spread throughout space, many settling on Tandaran colonies. By the 2150s, the Cabal was prominent, while 'ordinary' Suliban were nomads. The Cabal received orders - and, occasionally, advanced technology and genetic engineering
- from a mysterious humanoid figure who communicated to them from centuries in the future. This "Future Guy" had an agenda which he never revealed to anyone, not even Silik. Ordinary Suliban attempt to distance themselves from the Cabal whenever possible, as the Cabal's actions caused all Suliban to be feared and persecuted (and the Cabal was fond of conscripting normal Suliban into its ranks without consent); only a small fraction of the Suliban population were actually members of the Cabal (ENT "Detained", "Broken Bow"). In the pilot episode mentioned (Broken Bow), Doctor Phlox notes after dissecting a dead Suliban, that the alien was "the recipient of some very sophisticated genetic engineering" such as modifications to the "alveoli clusters", "subcutaneous pigment sacs", "biomimetic garments", and, his favorite, "compound retinas".
In the episode "Detained", Jonathan Archer
and Travis Mayweather
are held in a detention camp on a Tandaran planet, where Suliban without genetic enhancements are being held for "their own safety" under the command of Tandaran Colonel Grat. With the help of a Suliban he meets, Archer manages to help the detainees escape from the camp in their own confiscated ships.
In the two-part episode "Shockwave", the Cabal is revealed to have been behind a gambit to alter the future timeline by framing Enterprise for a planetary disaster. In the episode "Future Tense", the Enterprise successfully foiled attempts by the Cabal and the Tholian
s to salvage a ship believed to have come from the future. The Sulibans' last appearance on Star Trek: Enterprise was in "Storm Front (Part II)" when Silik came to Archer's aid in order to foil their mutual adversary Vosk from irrevocably altering the timeline.
In a 2001 interview (prior to the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center
) in the Star Trek Communicator fanzine, executive producer Rick Berman
revealed that the Suliban were named after the Taliban.
Star Trek
Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. The core of Star Trek is its six television series: The Original Series, The Animated Series, The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise...
universe, seen throughout the series Star Trek: Enterprise
Star Trek: Enterprise
Star Trek: Enterprise is a science fiction television series. It follows the adventures of humanity's first warp 5 starship, the Enterprise, ten years before the United Federation of Planets shown in previous Star Trek series was formed.Enterprise premiered on September 26, 2001...
. A Suliban sect
Sect
A sect is a group with distinctive religious, political or philosophical beliefs. Although in past it was mostly used to refer to religious groups, it has since expanded and in modern culture can refer to any organization that breaks away from a larger one to follow a different set of rules and...
known as the Cabal served as the show's primary antagonists in the first and second seasons.
Humanoid in appearance, Suliban are hairless and have pale yellow skin covered with small bumps, making Suliban resemble an osage-orange.
History
The Suliban were prevented from existing millions of years ago by Vosk, instigator of the Temporal Cold War. The damage to the timeline was undone by Silik, a Cabal leader, and Daniels ("Storm Front (Part II)").Some time in the 1800s, the Suliban homeworld was destroyed and its survivors spread throughout space, many settling on Tandaran colonies. By the 2150s, the Cabal was prominent, while 'ordinary' Suliban were nomads. The Cabal received orders - and, occasionally, advanced technology and genetic engineering
Genetic engineering
Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification, is the direct human manipulation of an organism's genome using modern DNA technology. It involves the introduction of foreign DNA or synthetic genes into the organism of interest...
- from a mysterious humanoid figure who communicated to them from centuries in the future. This "Future Guy" had an agenda which he never revealed to anyone, not even Silik. Ordinary Suliban attempt to distance themselves from the Cabal whenever possible, as the Cabal's actions caused all Suliban to be feared and persecuted (and the Cabal was fond of conscripting normal Suliban into its ranks without consent); only a small fraction of the Suliban population were actually members of the Cabal (ENT "Detained", "Broken Bow"). In the pilot episode mentioned (Broken Bow), Doctor Phlox notes after dissecting a dead Suliban, that the alien was "the recipient of some very sophisticated genetic engineering" such as modifications to the "alveoli clusters", "subcutaneous pigment sacs", "biomimetic garments", and, his favorite, "compound retinas".
In the episode "Detained", Jonathan Archer
Jonathan Archer
Jonathan Archer is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise. He is the protagonist of the television series Star Trek: Enterprise, where he is played by Scott Bakula...
and Travis Mayweather
Travis Mayweather
Travis Mayweather is a fictional character, played by Anthony Montgomery, in the television series Star Trek: Enterprise, serving as a navigator and helm officer aboard the starship Enterprise. He holds the rank of Ensign, and is in the command division...
are held in a detention camp on a Tandaran planet, where Suliban without genetic enhancements are being held for "their own safety" under the command of Tandaran Colonel Grat. With the help of a Suliban he meets, Archer manages to help the detainees escape from the camp in their own confiscated ships.
In the two-part episode "Shockwave", the Cabal is revealed to have been behind a gambit to alter the future timeline by framing Enterprise for a planetary disaster. In the episode "Future Tense", the Enterprise successfully foiled attempts by the Cabal and the Tholian
Tholian
Tholians are a fictional starfaring and extremely territorial race in the Star Trek fictional universe. The Tholian home nation is the Tholian Assembly, which inhabits an area of space in the Alpha Quadrant, near the Cardassian Union and the Badlands....
s to salvage a ship believed to have come from the future. The Sulibans' last appearance on Star Trek: Enterprise was in "Storm Front (Part II)" when Silik came to Archer's aid in order to foil their mutual adversary Vosk from irrevocably altering the timeline.
In a 2001 interview (prior to the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center
World Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
) in the Star Trek Communicator fanzine, executive producer Rick Berman
Rick Berman
Richard Keith “Rick” Berman is an American television producer. He is most famous for his work as the executive producer of several of the Star Trek series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek: Voyager; and, several of the Star Trek theatrical productions, and...
revealed that the Suliban were named after the Taliban.