Star Trek Discovery season 2 megathread

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

It was more that Cary Elwes's team was the cutting edge, more than anything else in particular. They had the nice shiny black SUVs, and their version of Dorothy was all shiny as well. Bill Paxton had a shiny new Dodge, but he became more of a posterboy doing weather reports. Hunt's team otherwise was a rag-tag Kansas bluegrass gypsy group, thus a good basis to contrast Elwes's team.

When he dismisses Paxton's warning, it's more about Elwes not letting his edge get stolen by him. Not so much about Paxton's accuracy on the situation, just precisely how dangerous it was. He dismissed the warnings assuming that, despite any dangers that were being warned about, it was worth taking the risk. Obviously the risk probably would have been assumed really low in that case considering his life was on the line. I guess there's a bit of irony considering Paxton is a weather reporter reporting the condition to Elwes in his car, while at the bookend start of the story Elwes was dressing down Bill for his weather reporting.

The bottle at the tornado was just kind of an in joke, or their own personal marquee of Paxton's antics. Like, I might say Star Trek Generations is my favorite Trek movie because Shatner had one last huraa, swinging fists at McDowell, but the consensus on the movie is that it had many other objective flaws despite that one glorious scene. Nonetheless, that moment shines for me.

[technobabbler]

STD Season 2 Premiere available for free as a "please sign up for all access" ploy by CBS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rvMqRrtmkY

My gripes: (sorry if it gets repetitive) and ymmv of course

STD can't even get its own canon right. one glaring example... Saru's species is sentient livestock (nevermind how ineptly "Short Trek" botched Saru's origin story)---and Michael Burnham now asks Saru about having a sibling (who was probably filleted years ago)----after serving together for how many months/years? WTF. Maybe Michael Burnham is autistic.

Spock's character arc---in TOS season 1: Spock was acting basically 100% Vulcan (logic is the be all, end all)---over the 3 seasons + movies, Spock then ends his arc in Trek VI by saying, <Logic is the beginning, not the end of wisdom> cuz his logic was tempered by his experience with those rascally emotional humans. But I guess Pike's Spock already knows this 30 years prior? F.U. whoever put that fan-service-wank reference in the script.

Try to weave an interesting narrative: In the pod sequence (clearly telegraphing that uber-douchebag would die), why not have Connolly be right?-----but killed off later in some form of personal sacrifice for the team?

The tone: I'm only slightly annoyed if the aesthetics are changed (fine), the tone is annoyingly schizophrenic. An audience can't take the "drama" seriously if the protagonists are wisecracking in a life or death situation.

Mary Sue-Wesley Crusher: The audience doesn't want to cheer on the protagonist/Michael Burnham when it's clear from the writing that the protagonist doesn't need our support.

rant over. sorry to beat a dead horse.

[MissKittyFantastico]

So, 'New Eden' - that felt like some damn fine Star Trek. Keep that up and, for me, Disco officially crosses the line from 'good enough' to 'okay kid, you're worthy'.

Saru's species is sentient livestock

It's been a while since season one, but didn't he just allude to them being a 'prey species'? In the same way humans are, whatever, hunter-gatherers, Klingons are probably a natural predator species. I thought it was only in the Mirror Universe that Kelpiens at present were 'livestock' - my read on how Saru framed his species was that they evolved from I dunno, antelopes or something, the species that got chased around by big bad hungry carnivores, and they still have those evolved instincts. Give or take whatever the deal is with the big hovery obelisk on the beach, prime verse Kelpiens are clearly a society, not a food herd. (In any case, even accounting for them being 'culled' by the obelisk, that clearly doesn't happen to all of them - Saru Sr. was still around - so there's no reason he'd assume his sister had definitely been taken/killed/whatever.)

Spock's character arc---in TOS season 1: Spock was acting basically 100% Vulcan (logic is the be all, end all)

True, but ten years earlier in 'The Cage' he's grinning at singing flowers. I'm on the fence with how they're handling Spock (and Sarek) compared to how they behave 'later' in TOS, but it's clearly a volatile situation, I feel like there's plenty of room for Spock, as Disco has shown him so far, to become TOS Spock, through his outlook being changed by whatever happens this season, even though he's not that person right this moment.

[Makeshift Python]

So far I've enjoyed more out of these two episodes than the entirety of the first season. This is more of what I want out of Trek.

[technobabbler]

according to wikipedia, one of the episodes in season 2 is called "An Obol for Charon"

So any thoughts/hopes/wishes as to whether this is alluding to those half and half people from TOS season 3 or just something that the writers thought up? oblivious to that episode.

edit: i must've slept through during the greek mythology day at school...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charon%27s_obol

[technobabbler]

So, 'New Eden' - that felt like some damn fine Star Trek. Keep that up and, for me, Disco officially crosses the line from 'good enough' to 'okay kid, you're worthy'.

Spock's character arc---in TOS season 1: Spock was acting basically 100% Vulcan (logic is the be all, end all)

True, but ten years earlier in 'The Cage' he's grinning at singing flowers. I'm on the fence with how they're handling Spock (and Sarek) compared to how they behave 'later' in TOS, .... become TOS Spock, through his outlook being changed by whatever happens this season, even though he's not that person right this moment.

I have no problem with the simple "in-universe" explanation is that the Kolinar (spelling?) is a massive multi-year/multi-level process.

and that Young Spock is brash/emotional, but that a trauma happens that makes Spock want to purge his emotions. So Spock does Level 1 Kolinar pre-TOS and turns into Logic Spock.

But (IMO) as the writers don't have any in-depth awareness of the canon/characters/story arcs, I doubt that anyone will put the effort to insert those 3 minutes of dialogue into STD.

[Enterprising]

Mary Sue-Wesley Crusher: The audience doesn't want to cheer on the protagonist/Michael Burnham when it's clear from the writing that the protagonist doesn't need our support.

rant over. sorry to beat a dead horse.

Don't forget the final insult they made as well. Michael "know it all" Bunrham is a full Commander, and the brilliant Spock a lowly Lieutenant.

[Darth Wedgius]

For the interested, CBS made the first episode of season 2 available on YouYube. EDIT: I think this might just be available to viewers in the U.S. Or with a VPN.

I think that suggests they think the changes made for season 2 will make it more appealing to some audience.

[Worffan101]

Episode 2 is...meh.

It reminds me of a slightly less preachy TNG season 1 episode in that it's a garbage script but at least is trying to be Trek in its own incompetent way.

Directing was shockingly bad, usually Frakes is better than this.

NOT happy with the overt religious stuff. I don't mind religion in Trek, but this is clearly set up to be "the religion is right and the Red Angel is unexplainable and a god" kinda thing. That has worked ONCE in Trek, and that's when Q showed up and said "I am an energy being of unimaginable power and I am putting you on trial for being barbarian hypocrites", which was the closest thing Trek has to an actual deity explicitly stating that he isn't a deity and doesn't want to be worshiped, he's just impossibly powerful.

Burnham continues to be wood. Pike continues to be a standout. Surprised by the lack of mixed-race actors, seemed jarring given how long they've been out on this planet.

[BridgeConsoleMasher]

For the interested, CBS made the first episode of season 2 available on YouYube.

I think that suggests they think the changes made for season 2 will make it more appealing to some audience.

Hmm. Just from hearing it from you my first thought is it's basically to just attract more streamers to subscribe. Maybe not so much about Trek fan concerns?