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Cake day: June 15th, 2023

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  • Thankfully TOS never did any fantasy stuff like galactic barriers, Trelane, massive green hands in space, or Abraham Lincoln. That wouldn’t have been true to Gene’s vision.

    I’m not a fan of Disco either, but tardigrades and time bugs are really low on my list of complaints. Star Trek did lots of even whackier stuff over the last 60 years (or did everyone forget the “Fun with DNA” episodes of the 90s?). In fact, that time bug episode was probably the best 32nd century Disco episode. Which is a low bar, but anyway.




  • While the third season had its flaws they certainly hit all the right emotional notes. I must have watched those final 5 minutes dozens of times when it first aired because I just couldn’t believe what happened. Not necessarily what happened on screen but what happened to me. I felt like that kid again that watched TOS reruns and TNG, I felt like there’s a brighter future ahead because my heroes did once again instill hope. When the lights came on on the bridge – in stark contrast to the dimly lit 8½ episodes before it – suddenly it felt like anything would be possible. Not just in this TV show. But really anything.

    Maybe I’m a bit theatrical but in those five minutes I forgot all my worries (which is quite a feat because I’m one of those broody persons) and felt like I was coming home. I’ve never felt anything like that when consuming any sort of media.

    Thanks to everyone involved. I’ll cherish those five minutes forever.



  • “This is irregular. A complaint outside the response period.” - those aliens are Germans. 😄

    Great episode. Just the right amount of whackiness to not make it too ludicrous. And it wasn’t just comedy, at its core this episode had a human heart - no pun intended - with Spock connecting to his mother’s burden.

    One thing that I realized, once again, is that I don’t really know what Una’s job on the Enterprise really is. She’s barely doing anything. You’d expect her to accompany the away team at the end of the episode (or did they steal the shuttle, now that they know how to steal the Enterprise). For an XO she’s barely noticeable. This isn’t a complaint about this episode, it’s a thread that runs throughout the series.

    To end on a positive note: can those costume designers finally get an award please? The outfits on this show are always so stunning.

    Edit: I just realized that the episode was written by Kathryn Lyn who also wrote one of Lower Decks’ funniest episodes, “wej Duj”. She seems to become Star Trek’s go-to gal for comedy.




  • I remember an interview with Garrett Wang who talked about a conversation with Rick Berman where he asked him whether Kim would ever be promoted to Lieutenant. Berman pretty much shot him down, saying that someone has to be an ensign.

    And I think that’s pretty much all the thought that went into it: have characters with a variety of ranks. Possibly to help the audience distinguish them better (“Join me in my ready room, [Rank]”). Although admittedly that didn’t work in the second half of TNG when pretty much everyone (except Worf) was addressed as “Commander” because by season 3(?) everyone was at least a Lieutenant Commander.

    With Sisko I think they wanted to distinguish him from the other two Captains Kirk and Picard, and since he commanded “only” a space station that was an in-universe excuse to make Sisko a commander.


  • I mean, we had Ben Sisko and Kassidy Yates who both were captains. But I agree with you that Pike and Batel really seem to be equals, and I really like that relationship dynamic.

    As I said, from the pilot episode I got the impression that they are friends with benefits who like to hook up when they happen to be in the same sector – no strings attached. (underlined by the fact that Pike had a fling with that lady from the child-killing planet) I think that could be an interesting relationship dynamic to explore because unlike Kirk who had a chick on every planet (with rather unequal dynamics), Pike and Batel both have found someone equal with all the limitations that the jobs brings with it.

    I just hope the writing for Batel was an exception in this week’s episode because it didn’t make her look good – being overly emotional and storming off after Pike just stated some facts. I don’t think that’s the type of female character they should be aiming for nowadays.






  • I’m a bit undecided about this episode.

    Stuff that I liked:

    • a strange new(-ish) world
    • everyone got something to do, unlike last week
    • once again some funny Spock moments
    • the visuals on this show are stunning once again. The planet looked nice, the external VFX in the debris field of two celestial bodies that orbited Rigel VII several centuries ago looked nice, the Enterprise interiors look so nice.

    Stuff that I didn’t like:

    • I’m not a fan of forced relationship dramas. Plus, from the pilot episode I got the feeling that Pike and Batel (does she even have a first name yet?) are only friends with benefits, but now Batel storms off after Pike says he wants to take it easy? Weird.
    • how can a society or any sort of structure be maintained if you can’t remember anything? The whole premise felt a bit off.
    • the writing for Ortegas was weak. Her personal log at the beginning of the episode sounded like it was written by ChatGPT. And the stuff towards the end of the episode wasn’t great either. The actor did the best she could with what she was given but the writing really didn’t do her any favors.


  • To weigh in on this too: I have a friend who only likes The Original Series; he grew up with it in the 70s. He doesn’t like the “new” Star Trek – new for him means any Star Trek produced after 1969. I’ve tried to get him into TNG and DS9 (DS9 being my favourite Trek) but it didn’t really work. I think it’s too “stiff” and formalistic for him. (which indeed it is, compared to TOS)

    Last year I invited him to watch the first two episodes of Strange New Worlds and he was instantly hooked. He said “show me more”. Since then we watch SNW together. We both agree that it feels like TOS: it’s episodic, it has a lot of heart, it has something to say and occassionally it doesn’t shy away from using a sledgehemmer to bring the message across, and most importantly it doesn’t take itself too seriously all the time. It’s fun, it’s entertaining, and occasionally it’s thought-provoking. A wonderful mix, like TOS. Just with a bigger budget. Oh, and some incredible actors. Whoever casted the main cast is a genius; all of them are super talented.



  • [Copying my post from the original thread and adding something to the bottom]

    Christina Chong absolutely killed it, especially in that final scene. Imagine finding someone you can connect to for the first time in your life, and immediately lose them. It even makes someone who is usually very unemotional crack.

    Also, Pelia is such a delightful character. Great addition to the show.

    Other than that I’m not really sold on the episode. It’s over an hour long and it did feel (too) slow and meandering at times. And I feel as if it just existed to shove in Kirk once again (and once again in an alternate timeline scenario to stick to the Trek canon) and explain the postponement of the Eugenics Wars by some Temporal Cold War shenenigans.

    Final nitpick: how can Spock exist in the alternate timeline if humans and Vulcans are enemies?

    Others wrote about how it was interesting that La’an had to choose to keep baby tyrant Khan alive for the greater good (of the future paradise Earth). And I agree that it’s an interesting conundrum – but that was given so little space in the episode that it fell entirely flat for me. La’an found out early on that Kirk didn’t know Noonien-Singh but that plot point was dropped for 30 minutes and only brought up again in the final minutes. In that aspect it reminded my of “The Elysian Kingdom” last season where nothing happens for 45 minutes and the interesting stuff comes out of the left field at the very end of the episode.

    Maybe I’m being too harsh (I’ll rewatch the episode in a couple of days together with a friend) but for now I’d say this was one of the weaker episodes of the series.