PLEASANTLY SURPRISED BY THE NEW STAR TREK: DISCOVERY SERIES

[JamesC]

Just watched the latest episode and really enjoyed it.
I don't know what others were expecting but I reckon this series has been pretty consistently good. We have a staple of interesting, engaging characters, an interesting premise, lots of potential jeopardy, a bit of mystery and some very pretty production design. I'm happy with that.

I'm loving it so far. Just didn't feel this matched the previous ones. I really felt the plot being shoved ahead too quickly at the expense of the characters. You know what I mean?

Lorca and the admiral in particular could have used a little more meat on the bones. Instead we got one scene where Lorca's competency is questioned and then they jump into bed together. Felt way too forced. Likewise with the Vulcan extremists. I would have liked a little more time with that. The Klingon trap too. The big problem for me is we haven't spent a whole lot of time with the admiral so far and I don't really care about her or that she's now in danger. It also means that Lorca's reluctance to rescue her didn't carry the weight it should have.

Had the same problem with GoT this season. Loving the story being told, just wish the pacing was a bit more patient. I get it. Fifteen eps isn't a lot to flesh everything out properly and honestly, one dud out of six is good innings. No biggie.

Fair enough. I actually think the Admiral and the slightly mysterious past she shares with Lorca are being handled well. I mention back on page 4 of thi thread how much I enjoy the scenes between the two of them and their scenes in this episode were no exception.
I can see how the bedroom scene could have seemed a little rushed but I just assumed it was fairly normal for them in their relationship.

[Tiplodocus]

Also,that wasn't much of a bomb,considering Sarek was standing next to him,and he gets off with a concussion.

You saw him put up a shield at the last minute, yes?

I didn't. I thought he had dropped out of warp and braced himself while other fella went flying to other end of ship.

A shield makes much more sense.

[The Legendary Shark]

Okay, so that episode was much better.

I really want to like Discovery and I hope this is the first step on that road.

[TordelBack]

Easily the best episode so far for me.

The Sarek (always one of my favourite ST characters) and Michael stuff really worked for me, which it really hadn"t before, the crew played well as an ensemble, I liked Amanda, I liked the utter bastardy of Lorca.

There were a few awkward bits, Michael's torrent of exposition at the start and her rambling drivel with Tyler at the end, but the rest was groovy.

Now I want to see Spock and Sybok make an appearance too!

[Smith]

Well,I actually liked this episode.

[blackmocco]

Yeah, that was a fun one.

[von Boom]

That was actually a pretty good episode. Not too dark and Rainn Wilson played Mudd very well this time I thought.

And can anyone explain to me why they are running around the hub of Discovery? They have a holodeck of sorts and treadmills must be pretty sweet by now.

[blackmocco]

That was actually a pretty good episode. Not too dark and Rainn Wilson played Mudd very well this time I thought.

And can anyone explain to me why they are running around the hub of Discovery? They have a holodeck of sorts and treadmills must be pretty sweet by now.

Apparently not technically a holodeck, according to the writers. Just a holographic targeting program. I guess the running thing just looks cool...? I dunno. I got nothing.

[TordelBack]

I run, but I find treadmills a uniquely empty experience.  Nothing like actually travelling and feeling the ground under your feet, and I'd imagine being stuck in a tin can all day would make that sensation all the more important.

[Magnetica]

Yes I enjoyed that episode. As soon as I saw the ship explode I knew time would reset. Well actually I knew before that when Mudd said "see you earlier. This sort of device feels really familiar these days. Indeed hasn't Star Trek itself done something similar before?

As well as a lot of action there was a lot of character development. I feel like we are really getting to know these characters and they are becoming more likeable and indeed seem to be getting on with each other far better than before. Remember comments in the first few weeks complaining that they we're likeable and didn't care about each other? Well things now seem to be progressing well on that front.

Mudd seems to be a very different character to the one we saw on TOS. In that I remember him being a lovable rogue. Here he is a hardened criminal.

I also now really get the look of this show. It will be a shame when the mid season break kicks in.

———
Re treadmills- in my experience they are a poor replacement for actually running. Same thing for exercise bikes.

[Tiplodocus]

That worked for me.

Is the similar TNG episode called "Cause and Effect"?.

This was that but with a villain and a clever reason for a romantic sub plot. If you are going to write "And love saved the day" then that's the way to do it.

[blackmocco]

That worked for me.

Is the similar TNG episode called "Cause and Effect"?.

This was that but with a villain and a clever reason for a romantic sub plot. If you are going to write "And love saved the day" then that's the way to do it.

Yep. With Kelsey Grammar as a captain!

[Professor Bear]

Torn on this one: is the comedy mileage in mocking what an old whore of a plot this is by now - it's the plot of the episode that made me stop watching Dark Matter - or in pretending they ripped off anime movie Uresei Yatsura 2 and there hasn't been a time loop episode in almost every single sci-fi and fantasy show since Brannon Braga stole the idea from a telemovie called 12:01pm?
Although I did think it was pretty funny that the McGuffin was just straight-up called a Time Crystal, and also laughed at "you've never been in love" - they did not go subtle on the character stuff this time out, though after last week, I don't suppose it should be a surprise.

One thing that did seem off was that the crew were pretty passive about a dude running around waving a gun.  Aren't they at war or something?  Don't they train for just this kind of thing?

[von Boom]

Torn on this one: is the comedy mileage in mocking what an old whore of a plot this is by now - it's the plot of the episode that made me stop watching Dark Matter - or in pretending they ripped off anime movie Uresei Yatsura 2 and there hasn't been a time loop episode in almost every single sci-fi and fantasy show since Brannon Braga stole the idea from a telemovie called 12:01pm?
Although I did think it was pretty funny that the McGuffin was just straight-up called a Time Crystal, and also laughed at "you've never been in love" - they did not go subtle on the character stuff this time out, though after last week, I don't suppose it should be a surprise.

One thing that did seem off was that the crew were pretty passive about a dude running around waving a gun.  Aren't they at war or something?  Don't they train for just this kind of thing?

It does seem odd that they were pretty flat footed about the whole thing. Don't ships usually have marines hanging about to stop this sort of thing.

[Professor Bear]

Unless they've changed - or just outright ignored - it, the MACOs were dissolved at the formation of the Federation.  I was thinking more that previous episodes have spelled out that this is a ship at war that's also the Federation's frontline secret weapon, so I would have expected a few more have-a-go Joes to be knocking about other than that one bloke who almost tried something.

Another thing that confused me was how Mudd didn't do anything about the only other guy who could move from one loop to the next, which I presume if he didn't twig was a thing when the guy shot him, he would have noticed him turning up all the time in places he shouldn't have been if the loop was playing out as it should.

I guess it's also worth asking how this version of Mudd lines up with the one we know from TOS.  You know, what with the murders and stuff.