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Star Trek Discovery

DigModiFicaTion

DᴉმWoqᴉԷᴉcɑꓕᴉou
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So did anyone see that Jonathan Frakes is directing the ST: Discovery episode that airs tomorrow night? I haven't yet watched this show, but with Mr. Frakes involved I just might bite the bullet.
Oh and thank you to everyone who is using spoiler tags. I was worried about coming in here, but you all are fine and thoughtful people :)
 

bionicbob

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Discovery returned last night.  It was a big episode for reveals, though most, if not all, were all ready suspected/predicted in fan theories or leaked on the old web.   Though the one death caught me by surprise!

One thing this show does well, if fans are patient, it does eventually explain things in later episodes that a watcher might think is a plot hole at the time.... for example the thoroughness of Lt. Tyler's previous medical exam.

There was nice tie-in to Prime Universe TOS and Enterprise canon.

so...ummmmm..... is there absolutely no security guards in the brig??????????? lol

Captain Killy.   cute.

Directed by Number One Frakes, though I can not tell if he brought anything fresh to the table.

Lorca's motivations continue to be suspect.  Will the fan theory regarding his character prove to be true too?

Though, if Lorca is from the Mirror Universe and he sent the Discovery there intentionally (which I believe), they established in this episode that Mirror Lorca might actually be a Good Guy since he is a rebel against the Terran Empire.   So the plot could go a couple of ways.... Mirror Lorca will return to the Prime Universe, or they might find the Prime Lorca trapped here and bring him back.   Or something completely different and hopefully original... ha ha

For me, an entertaining return.   Though what drives the show and what it is ultimately about, continues to eludes me.   Is it because on some level I keep expecting a traditional Trek show, which this clearly is not and does not want to be, or is the show still finding its space legs and needs a stronger driver at the wheel?
 

gazza

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Well i predicted a mirror universe and i was right. Overall i thought the episode played out well except for a few nitpicks of mine.

1.they are stranded in a mirror universe and need to conserve power and next thing they use is a holographic mirror with 3d rendering, it might not use much power but the entire crew must have had to use personal mirrors to change into mirror personas adding to power usage.

2. Other than the security guards bob mentioned where are the nurses when the incident happened in sickbay.

3.it was amazing  discovery could tell by a simple scan their configuration was different but the shenzo couldnt even though the computers should have auto alerted them when they were within scanning distance especially since the captain said he was scanning the area for rebels.

Quite easily one of my favourite episodes to date
 

Q2

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This weeks episode had a surprise reveal I didn't see coming and I really liked it. What did others think of the episode?

I'm really loving this darker version of Trek. I know a lot of Trekkies/Trekkers were disappointed how the show deviated from the episodic nature of the previous incarnations, but I really like it. I prefer continuing storyline's over singular episodes.

With only a few episodes left, I'm curious where the season finale will take us.
 

TM2YC

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I'll try to steer away from anything too specific and spoiler-ish...

Up until now I was never sure if the creators of Discovery either...

A: Had no f**kin' clue how to write Star Trek characters (In particular the Captain).

...or...

B: They had some genius long-term plan that would explain all the WTF stuff in a clever way.

What a sense of relief after today's episode, to find it was 'B' :D . I'd suspected a twist of this sort once all the network stuff came into play but it seemed like wishful thinking and a crazy fan-theory to try and explain away the badly written (I thought) characters. It took balls from the creators to play this one out for so long and risk alienating ST fans. Discovery still has some minor stylistic and tonal nitpicks but I don't much care about them anymore (now my big issue has gone away). Minor problems can be ironed out in Season 2. Can't wait for the last 3 episodes and then I can watch the whole season again from the start! :)

On the subject of those minor tonal problems:

Having a mirror-universe where all the characters are the same and in the same place, except they all have evil mustaches and gold-sashes is a very silly concept but when you've got an often light-hearted and fun show like TOS, it's fine. When you've got a deadly serious and humourless show like Discovery it feels real awkward.
 

bionicbob

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Episode 13:  What's Past is Prologue

And with that incredible episode, DISCOVERY officially became STAR TREK for me!

After enjoying but not truly embracing (and constantly questioning) the 12 previous episodes, this one completely won me over.

This one had it all the classic Trek elements of adventure, character and philosophy that I expect and want from Star Trek.  Saru's speech was inspiring and gave me the feels.  Michael's comment to Lorca about how Starfleet would have helped him get home if he had simply asked, was perfect.

A 10 out of 10 episode for me.   :D
 

gazza

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One thing i liked about the last episode was they way they went full circle in particular the fight in the emperesses chamber was visually similar to the fight  on the klingon ship in the pilot episode ,from the pillars and burning fires and burnham fighting alongside her original captain. i had a feeling from the first moment i saw the emperess what burnham was going to do in the final moment of the fight(she even gave the hint in the conversation that she wouldnt do the same actions)overall a decent watch.
 

TM2YC

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Overall a terrific episode that built towards the crew flying into the *spoiler* which was a real...

giphy.gif


...moment but the final revelation had me rolling my eyes and disappointed again. The...

...Klingon war has been such a non-event in the show (lots of talk, not much actual war), that I'd genuinely forgotten that the war was even a thing by the time they got back. I was looking forward to some proper Star Trek-ing now that Lorca is gone and then to learn that nope... even more war!

There are two episodes left, so I'm still holding out hope that they can somehow utilise the spore-drive to jump again back in time and prevent the war. Then S2 can do more boldly going and seeking out of new life and civilisations.
 

Rogue-theX

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So they were
in a mirror universe the whole time, and that's why the technology and ships, klingons and all that looked wrong
?
 

bionicbob

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Rogue-theX said:
So they were
in a mirror universe the whole time, and that's why the technology and ships, klingons and all that looked wrong
?

Nope.  :p
 

Rogue-theX

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bionicbob said:
Rogue-theX said:
So they were
in a mirror universe the whole time, and that's why the technology and ships, klingons and all that looked wrong
?

Nope.  :p

lg_fa78d0ea4656-img_2237_zpsb248806d.png



Thanks for not spoiling anything.  :)
 

bionicbob

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Rogue-theX said:
Thanks for not spoiling anything.  :)

In the recent tie-in novelization Desperate Hours by David Mack, it is explained Starfleet is still in an experimental phase with different Starships being built by and influenced by different designers and different Starship classes have different crew uniforms.

It's a lame attempt to force the visual changes into the Prime Universe.

No explanation for the Klingons though....

Thus far, there has been no On-Screen explanation.   Though maybe the recent Time Travel plot development will play a part in why things are different.

Or it may just boils down to this.... we have more money to we can make the show look however we want and to hell with 50 years of continuity and the fan base that has supported this franchise through the dark times.  :dodgy:

While I have been enjoying the show on an entertainment level and actually LOVED the last episode, I am not sure how this show is suppose to inspire a new generation of fans?  I have been watching Star Trek since I was five or six years old.   Would I allow anyone younger than a teen to watch this show alone... I dunno.  It is definitely not family friendly.  Even Deep Space Nine, at its darkest and most violent, you could watch safely as a young person.  But this "Game of Thrones" approach is the complete wrong direction for this franchise imo.
 

bionicbob

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One episode to go....

Thus far, while very entertaining, I must admit I did not find any of the BIG TWISTS (Vox, Lorca, Mirror Universe, the Emperor) to be very surprising, as they all seemed clearly telegraphed throughout the season... though I can not decide if this is good story writing or not?

My speculation for the final episode... with Mirror Georgiou in the Captain's chair, I suspect the producers are going to go with a Full Circle story arc.  Michael will again have to mutiny against Georgiou, but this time instead of violating Federation Law to save her Captain and crew, she will lead the crew against Georgiou to uphold the ideals of the Federation and stop the Federation from committing genocide.
 

TM2YC

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The opening 7-8-ish minutes of Saru walking the ship talking to the crew was the best bit of the show so far IMO. No running around shouting at each other, just character stuff between an officer and his crew members and him weighing up their information. I like Saru, I hope it's not just a field commission.
 

bionicbob

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Episode 15 "Will You Take My Hand"

....and that's a wrap!

After two absolutely fantastic, near perfect episodes, the season finale for me felt very rushed, cluttered and anti-climatic.

The ending, which tried so extremely hard to be inspiring, felt very forced.   

And the overall tone of the episode was a complete mess for me.

What I liked... a non-violent solution to the Klingon problem.  That was refreshing.... so long as you don't think about it too much.

I still don't understand how in less than 10 years this Klingon society is suppose to line up with TOS or even TNG in 80 years.  In fact, my biggest gripe remains what the writers did with the Klingons (or did not do).... I hate every choice the producers made for the Klingons; from the new look to the radical (or is it radiicalized) change in their established culture solely for story purposes.   And all the changes amounted to nothing as their was no weight to their storyline.  The Klingon War... a war which pushes the Federation to considering GENOCIDE is NEVER SEEN!  Its all talk, no show.  Therefore, I, as a viewer feel none of the desperation of the Federation.  Like many of the moments throughout this first season, the drama feels unearned.

Other Klingon frustrations.... after a season of the producers saying the Klingons want PURITY to protect their culture, they show a multii-cultural society on their home planet!!!!  Wouldn't they be the first to go?  
And don't get me started on the whole Ash Taylor/Voq subplot.... a pointless, wasted storyline.  It could have been a powerful exploration about PTSD or rape or even gone the Manchurian Candidate route.  But it was none of these things.  Ash was nothing more than a plot device to Michael's supposed character growth.

Which leads into my next frustration... character development.  Some worked much better than others.  Saru easily had the best character arc for me.  Michael's was the classic Hero's Journey, and while enjoyable, like many of the plot lines it felt too telegraphed.  Stammets became a likeable character.   Tilley is wonderful, though I found her comedic moments in the finale undermined the supposed building tension for the last act.    As for the rest of the bridge crew, other than being gloriously cool looking furniture, the only arc they had was go from frowny face to smiley face.   I still can't remember any of their names.  And it leads me to another unearned moment.... when Taylor is exposed and comes to the cafeteria, the bridge crew all apparently feel his pain and all come to sit at his table to support him.  On the surface, a wonderful feel good pure Star Trek moment.   But when did Ash bond with this crew?  Did we as an audience ever see them share a moment of friendship or comradeship before this?  He killed a member of their crew, but they have empathy and foregiveness for Taylor.  Where was that Federation empathy when Michael first boarded?   Where were the Federation principles and ideals when they were experimenting (ie torturing) the Tardigrade to make the Spore Drive work?  I suppose an argument could be made its an allegory of how the masses will blindly follow the lead of those in power often without questioning and that it takes someone of true courage to speak up and seek another path.

While all the season long plot points are tied up, it all feels too neat, too tidy and too rushed.   With a couple of lines of dialogue, the Spore Drive is gone.  Really?

As for that "cliffhanger"... on one level, it is a "wow" cool smile moment.  On another, one has to wonder if it is a desperate attempt by producers to appease the long time fan base and use it explain Discovery's place in canon continuity?  Will the Enterprise have TOS era bridge and what uniforms will they be wearing????   There are currently THREE TOS fully built set bridges in the USA that Paramount could rent (thus not having to build their own, heck one they CBS have a licencing agreement with) and they could recycle the uniforms from Kelvin movies.   Heck, this could be the perfect excuse to get rid of the current uniforms and introduce the classic style ones... with the war over and Starfleet rebuilding, they introduce a new uniform for a new era?   I wonder who will play Pike?  It would be cool if they brought back Bruce Greenwood.

As with most television first seasons, this was a bumpy one as the writers/producers work out the kinks.   Overall, very entertaining, but it's accelerated cinematic story style made for ham fisted story points, unearned emotional moments and undeveloped world building.

I would give season one of DISCOVERY a B-minus.  Though that rating might go down after I do a full binge rewatch lol.

Compared to other first season Star Trek spin-offs:

TNG -- C
DS9 -- A-minus
VOY -- C-plus
ENT -- B 
:D
 

The Scribbling Man

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I stopped watching this an episode or 2 before the season break. Not intentionally - I just didn't get round to continuing and, although I found it watchable, wasn't particularly impressed.  Some good elements, but mostly quite dull. 

However, recently binged and caught up to the penultimate episode and have really enjoyed where its gone in the second half. I wouldn't say its top-quality, and it's got its flaws, but it's solidly entertaining. There's some good characters and the twists raised my eyebrows. Looking forward to the final episode tonight (I haven't read any previous posts in case of spoilers).

Edit: Final episode watched. A little underwhelming, but at least the war is over. Looking forward to seeing where they take the next season.
 

TM2YC

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bionicbob said:

Yep, that was the word I was thinking of while watching the finale but I'm still looking forward to S2.

Now the war has been hastily swept under the carpet, and the crew have remembered what being in the federation is all about, they can actually do some exploration. Wish they'd promoted Saru to Captain.
 

reave

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So for someone who lost interest after the first 4 episodes (frankly, The Orville felt more like Trek and I only had time for one) would it be worth finishing the season?
 

bionicbob

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reave said:
So for someone who lost interest after the first 4 episodes (frankly, The Orville felt more like Trek and I only had time for one) would it be worth finishing the season?

If you are a Trek fan, I would say yes.  The second half is significantly stronger.   But it is an imperfect, frustrating first season.
 
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