Review: Star Trek Discovery

Typical California hippie shit.

I am sure the Romulans would totally respect that view.

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Do writers really have to go that deep into the canon? I honestly doubt it… most people aren’t hard core fans.

For a series like Star Trek? Absolutely they have to, and do.

I’d agree that ultimately they don’t… just as the writers of Doctor Who (2005) have often strayed from canon, and yet the series is still on the air, still being viewed by millions.

I would say however - Star Trek Discovery is not on view to the “general public”, so its audience is perhaps more niche than with WHO… (Well, depends on the region I guess…)

Just watching ep1 of S2… and beyond the mushrooms, there’s so much else being shoe-horned into Star Trek legacy… making Michael Spock’s adopted brother (which we’ve of course known for some time) is huge, and now tossing in Pike… with a universe to explore in their own right, bringing in these familiarities just feels… needy. I know Voyager stole Barclay, but most of its 7 year mission was literally out in the unknown… and it did bloody well for itself. I don’t see the need to weigh a Trek story down in the familiar when it could just be its own thing.

(And I know - I was the one just saying how tingly it was seeing 1701 at the end of S1… :slight_smile: )

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Friday has become Orville Day. I almost don’t care about Discovery really. I just love the Orville so freaking much. The last episode in particular. It was clearly a ridiculous premise, and a ripoff of at least one TNG episode where Data had a girlfriend to some degree. But that didn’t matter. It just made me so freaking happy to watch it. I don’t know how to do spoiler code here so I won’t mention them but there were at least three beautiful moments in this episode which just made me smile from ear to ear. The entire cast is awesome I love them all to death. And as for that final scene… simply joyous. Completely ridiculous of course, but sometimes you simply have to suspend disbelief and just enjoy it for what it is, because it makes you happy.

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Almost every episode is a rip-off of Star Trek in some way, much like Family Guy mirrors much of The Simpsons. Still love The Orville though.

Although I think this episode was one of the weaker ones (or perhaps, the weakest) this season.

So I’m just gonna discuss things if you haven’t watched it don’t read this post! The lack of any Sci fi subplot might make it seem a bit weak I guess. But some of the ideas were pretty clever and unexpected (getting to see the actor behind Isaac, and even Yaphit was actually an interesting and clever idea). Bortus growing a mo was almost so silly it wasn’t worth mentioning but I still enjoyed it. The symphony in the Shuttle Bay actually looked amazing, something they should have done on TNG but probably never could because the size of their shuttle bay was so crappy! Isaac in his undies was probably the bit I hated most. But that final scene where he made it rain on the Bridge… it was just ludicrous but quite beautiful and very well done at the same time.

Maybe I’m getting sentimental in my old age but I just loved it.

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Halfway through Discovery S2E3 and I’m struggling not to turn it off. Holy fuck is it boring.

LOL it’s almost like people forget about 2/3 of DS9 was a political drama. Can’t expect every episode to be an action film. I agree 3 was slow, but it had some good content. I especially liked the [spoiler]reference to the Klingon’s letting their hair grow when they’re not at war, which is something I wondered last season when there was so many complaints about them being bald[/spoiler]

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Turn it off then. Easy

No. Easy.

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I’ve only just started watching the Orville, but it’s really good. They really nailed the feel and look of the older Star Trek (TNG, VOY) episodes, plus I really like Seth MacFarlane’s sense of humour as well.

It certainly rates up there, even if it is totally cliched :+1:

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Thanks for the heads up re The Orville.

Seth is very hit n miss for me, but ep1 at least ticked a lot of boxes.

Yeah, it gets better (IMHO) as the first season progresses.

I didn’t find S2E03 boring, in fact it was a nice change of pace from the ‘shooting and running’ IMHO.

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Yep - I enjoyed it, too. :slight_smile: It felt like a bit of a traditional Star Trek storyline. (Well - traditional for me is TNG…)

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No previous Star Trek experience :astonished:. I didn’t know there was such a person
:blush:

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This week’s episode was an improvement, not great, but definitely ok.

Minor non-plot spoiler: +1 for Prince and David Bowie.

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Catching up on Discovery because I’m three episodes behind and…

I stand by my previous assertion: I like it but it isn’t Star Trek. It has a clear difference in feel from ENT or TOS, which it is supposed to be connected with, and it’s very different even from TNG, DS9, VOY, etc.

I think what bothers me is that I would have really liked this entire series if they just called the aliens something else, called the federation something else, ditched the Starfleet Delta (which belongs to Enterprise 1701 and Enterprise 1701 alone until after the five year missions), etc, etc. Just like I liked the new BSG, I’ve really enjoyed The Expanse, etc. I don’t see why this isn’t its own series except to capitalise on the Star Trek brand.

The fact we’re soon getting PICARD and maybe some other series suggests to me that Discovery has done juuuuuuust enough to get enough fans and enough new presence to justify giving us more Trek content, but not enough for Discovery to live on its own for four or five years, as TNG did for DS9 or DS9 did for Voyager. That we’re getting PICARD and possibly others this early suggests Discovery just isn’t cutting it.

Like a lot of fans all I really wanted was one of three possible shows, and Discovery wasn’t any of them:

  1. Sulu series or series set post-TOS movies or pre-TNG. I’d love to see a Miranda class series or an Ambassador class series. We know that when Picard was a JO, the burgundy movie uniforms were still used.

  2. Post-Voyager, Post-Nemesis (dear lord that was one shitty movie I wish had never been made) series.

  3. Starfleet Academy series. Honestly, I stand by this assertion too, the pocket books The Best and The Brightest is one of the best Star Trek novels ever produced, almost all of the characters were created for the novel so there are no actual actors or actresses, they’re all cadets, the book covers multiple years, and it provides more than enough content for episode arcs. This book is 21 years old now, and every time a new Trek is discussed, I get confused why this isn’t it. Good Lord, CBS, make this show NOW.