"I sense it coming now."
May 17, 2017 3:19 PM Subscribe
I'm afraid to watch.
posted by FallowKing at 3:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by FallowKing at 3:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
Starfleet actually is a massive tailoring subsidy and everything else is just to justify it.
posted by The Whelk at 3:25 PM on May 17, 2017 [46 favorites]
posted by The Whelk at 3:25 PM on May 17, 2017 [46 favorites]
First impression: women! Look at all the women! Look at all the non-white women in positions of authority!
posted by The Whelk at 3:26 PM on May 17, 2017 [58 favorites]
posted by The Whelk at 3:26 PM on May 17, 2017 [58 favorites]
Starfleet actually is a massive tailoring subsidy and everything else is just to justify it.
I demand Garak-centered fanfic about this.
posted by Space Coyote at 3:28 PM on May 17, 2017 [56 favorites]
I demand Garak-centered fanfic about this.
posted by Space Coyote at 3:28 PM on May 17, 2017 [56 favorites]
Here's a version that displays in Canada.
posted by figurant at 3:28 PM on May 17, 2017 [8 favorites]
posted by figurant at 3:28 PM on May 17, 2017 [8 favorites]
Why is the Canadian version badly deinterlaced? Why is that a thing any more? What is going on????
posted by aubilenon at 3:30 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by aubilenon at 3:30 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
That's better than I'd expected.
posted by leotrotsky at 3:31 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by leotrotsky at 3:31 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
Also thrilled about women and diversity, but much less thrilled about the time period and animating conflict. Why does everyone who works on the ST franchise hate the future?
posted by xyzzy at 3:33 PM on May 17, 2017 [13 favorites]
posted by xyzzy at 3:33 PM on May 17, 2017 [13 favorites]
I've seen better fanfilms.
posted by entropicamericana at 3:34 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by entropicamericana at 3:34 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
What the hell were those Klingons though? Oh god *shudder*.
posted by Homo neanderthalensis at 3:34 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by Homo neanderthalensis at 3:34 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
Previously
Gotta say there may be a chance this isn't the epic shit-sandwich we thought it would be in April (see Previously). Still not paying for an entire channel from CBS just for this though.
posted by NervousVarun at 3:36 PM on May 17, 2017
Gotta say there may be a chance this isn't the epic shit-sandwich we thought it would be in April (see Previously). Still not paying for an entire channel from CBS just for this though.
posted by NervousVarun at 3:36 PM on May 17, 2017
Seems like the casting is great. I hope that the silly conflict with the klingons - we know how it will end already! - won't waste too much momentum, that they don't forget about the discovery part of the series.
posted by Foci for Analysis at 3:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by Foci for Analysis at 3:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
As a Chinese guy who grew up watching all the Stars Trek, I have the biggest grin on my face right now. A Chinese Malaysian woman serving as a Starfleet Captain? It means so much.
Sure, I knew she was going to be in the show, but I didn't think she was going to be this important. And even better, there's precisely zero seconds of her doing martial arts or swinging a sword - instead, she says "Starfleet doesn't fire first"!
posted by adrianhon at 3:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [60 favorites]
Sure, I knew she was going to be in the show, but I didn't think she was going to be this important. And even better, there's precisely zero seconds of her doing martial arts or swinging a sword - instead, she says "Starfleet doesn't fire first"!
posted by adrianhon at 3:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [60 favorites]
I've seen better fanfilms.
I've seen better snark.
posted by Pendragon at 3:43 PM on May 17, 2017 [37 favorites]
I've seen better snark.
posted by Pendragon at 3:43 PM on May 17, 2017 [37 favorites]
This looks way less disastrous than I expected.
Death guy is gonna get tedious fast though, isn't he?
posted by Artw at 3:45 PM on May 17, 2017 [15 favorites]
Death guy is gonna get tedious fast though, isn't he?
posted by Artw at 3:45 PM on May 17, 2017 [15 favorites]
"Starfleet doesn't fire first" was the thing in this that made me hope the most. Core values! Whooo!
posted by brainwane at 3:52 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by brainwane at 3:52 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
Wait, what? HOLD THE FUCKING PHONE THAT IS MICHELLE YEOH. Okay so am I the only one who somehow missed that Michelle Yeoh was in this?
posted by Sing Or Swim at 3:55 PM on May 17, 2017 [12 favorites]
posted by Sing Or Swim at 3:55 PM on May 17, 2017 [12 favorites]
As a Chinese guy who grew up watching all the Stars Trek, I have the biggest grin on my face right now. A Chinese Malaysian woman serving as a Starfleet Captain? It means so much.
As an Indian-Canadian. This. So much this.
posted by Fizz at 3:57 PM on May 17, 2017 [6 favorites]
As an Indian-Canadian. This. So much this.
posted by Fizz at 3:57 PM on May 17, 2017 [6 favorites]
I think everybody could use some good clean escapism right about now, so I'm not listening to any negative nellies
la la la I can't hear you
posted by Mary Ellen Carter at 3:58 PM on May 17, 2017 [13 favorites]
la la la I can't hear you
posted by Mary Ellen Carter at 3:58 PM on May 17, 2017 [13 favorites]
Death guy is gonna get tedious fast though, isn't he?
Nah, he's not psychic, just existentialist.
posted by The Gaffer at 4:01 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Nah, he's not psychic, just existentialist.
posted by The Gaffer at 4:01 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
This really looks like Mass Effect to me.
posted by selfnoise at 4:05 PM on May 17, 2017 [7 favorites]
posted by selfnoise at 4:05 PM on May 17, 2017 [7 favorites]
There's just no telling a good piece of entertainment from the trailer these days, but dang...Michelle Yeoh commanding a starship just gave me chills.
posted by Eikonaut at 4:07 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by Eikonaut at 4:07 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
This really looks like Mass Effect to me.
Pray that it's more 1 & 2 and less Andromeda.
posted by Fizz at 4:08 PM on May 17, 2017
Pray that it's more 1 & 2 and less Andromeda.
posted by Fizz at 4:08 PM on May 17, 2017
Michelle Yeoh!
Please please please no wing chun. Photon torpedos and phasers only.
still side-eyeing nu-Sulu with his stupid switchblade katana; Takei's Sulu deliberately asked to be allowed to use a rapier/foil instead of a katana
posted by porpoise at 4:09 PM on May 17, 2017 [14 favorites]
Please please please no wing chun. Photon torpedos and phasers only.
still side-eyeing nu-Sulu with his stupid switchblade katana; Takei's Sulu deliberately asked to be allowed to use a rapier/foil instead of a katana
posted by porpoise at 4:09 PM on May 17, 2017 [14 favorites]
This looks way less disastrous than I expected.
I want to believe.
posted by nubs at 4:09 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
I want to believe.
posted by nubs at 4:09 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Wow. The cast looks fantastic. In a cursory glance, the future more or less looks like it includes the range of visibly distinct people I see walking around on Earth today. Huzzah. (Or, it's about fucking time.)
posted by eotvos at 4:10 PM on May 17, 2017 [10 favorites]
My people were biologically determined for one purpose alone: to sense the coming of death.Shame about the writers, though. I guess you can't win them all.
posted by eotvos at 4:10 PM on May 17, 2017 [10 favorites]
A Chinese Malaysian woman serving as a Starfleet Captain?
Misread this and was filled with wild hope that Lee Lin Chin was in this. Honestly, Starfleet doesn't deserve Lee Lin Chin.
posted by orrnyereg at 4:11 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
Misread this and was filled with wild hope that Lee Lin Chin was in this. Honestly, Starfleet doesn't deserve Lee Lin Chin.
posted by orrnyereg at 4:11 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
Mass Trek or Star Effect.
posted by Fizz at 4:12 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Fizz at 4:12 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
Plus fencing works as an actual sport a bit more than... katana dueling? Wouldn't that just be kendo? I guess he *could* beat the crap out of everybody with a wooden sword...
posted by Artw at 4:13 PM on May 17, 2017
posted by Artw at 4:13 PM on May 17, 2017
This looks way less disastrous than I expected.
Death guy is gonna get tedious fast though, isn't he?
Capt.: "It's gonna be OK, Ensign! You're gonna make it!"
Maj. Death: *clears throat* "Uh."
posted by leotrotsky at 4:14 PM on May 17, 2017 [30 favorites]
Death guy is gonna get tedious fast though, isn't he?
Capt.: "It's gonna be OK, Ensign! You're gonna make it!"
Maj. Death: *clears throat* "Uh."
posted by leotrotsky at 4:14 PM on May 17, 2017 [30 favorites]
NuTrek Klingons just really don't do it for me.
posted by Artw at 4:14 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Artw at 4:14 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Maybe Death Guy will get broadened out a little over time and not just bum everybody out, like they did with Deanna Troi.
posted by Artw at 4:16 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Artw at 4:16 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
And then there's Fox's new comedy The Orville
posted by Fizz at 4:19 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Fizz at 4:19 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
To prevent excessive drinking and fraternizing in Ten-forward from interfering with Starfleet's missions, every crew now includes at least one member of the Buzzkillians, an alien race genetically engineered to be absolutely no fun at parties.
posted by Sing Or Swim at 4:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [17 favorites]
posted by Sing Or Swim at 4:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [17 favorites]
I'm entirely with brainwane*. We could use more popular culture about people with principals, more stories about how we can be better. That's kind of ST's job and one reason why I lie awake at night, furious with JJ Abrahms.
*and Mary Ellen Carter. wooooooooo
posted by The Gaffer at 4:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [8 favorites]
*and Mary Ellen Carter. wooooooooo
posted by The Gaffer at 4:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [8 favorites]
I don't think they *ever* figured out to do with Troi.
posted by Chrysostom at 4:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Chrysostom at 4:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
What in the everloving fuck did they use to justify the redesign of the Klingons
Why would you do that to us
Why would you that to Michael Dorn
Why
also is that baby Tuvok in the trailer
posted by Hermione Granger at 4:30 PM on May 17, 2017 [9 favorites]
Why would you do that to us
Why would you that to Michael Dorn
Why
also is that baby Tuvok in the trailer
posted by Hermione Granger at 4:30 PM on May 17, 2017 [9 favorites]
At first glance the uniforms in this trailer align with what was used on the Enterprise series
posted by Hermione Granger at 4:32 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by Hermione Granger at 4:32 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
I don't think they *ever* figured out to do with Troi.
crash Enterprises?
posted by entropicamericana at 4:33 PM on May 17, 2017
crash Enterprises?
posted by entropicamericana at 4:33 PM on May 17, 2017
As a Trek fan since 1972, and a member of the actual dang fan club, I have to say that I am okay with this.
So far.
Looks good, sounds good, great casting, sweeping music, all trailer checkboxes checked.
But that whole Orville thing from Seth McFarlane? NOPE. NOPE NOPE NOPE.
posted by Major Matt Mason Dixon at 4:34 PM on May 17, 2017 [8 favorites]
So far.
Looks good, sounds good, great casting, sweeping music, all trailer checkboxes checked.
But that whole Orville thing from Seth McFarlane? NOPE. NOPE NOPE NOPE.
posted by Major Matt Mason Dixon at 4:34 PM on May 17, 2017 [8 favorites]
What in the everloving fuck did they use to justify the redesign of the Klingons
Man, that Levodian flu really gets around.
posted by leotrotsky at 4:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Man, that Levodian flu really gets around.
posted by leotrotsky at 4:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Starfleet actually is a massive tailoring subsidy and everything else is just to justify it... I demand Garak-centered fanfic about this.
Garak: Well, let me guess. You're either lost, or desperately searching for a good tailor.
Picard: I'm looking for someone with expert knowledge of certain cryptographic protocols. Perhaps someone with a background in Cardassian intelligence, someone who loves his homeland but has no desire to see the Empire expand.
Garak: No, no, no, Captain, in that uniform? I assure you that a tailor is what you need most. I do believe that Starfleet's primary weapon in its wars of conquest is its disorientingly bad fashion sense.
Picard: The United Federation of Planets does not engage in wars of conquest. Our most sacred principle is respect for consent, of individuals and of civilizations.
Garak: Consent? No one would consensually wear green on green with green accents. I admit it is a clever strategy for social control. Forcing beings from a thousand worlds out of their fascinatingly distinctive traditional clothing and into military uniform is a ploy used by every empire, but making the uniform deliberately ugly is a stroke of genius. Beings who would submit to wear that would submit to anything, however repulsive.
Picard: Starfleet is not a military organization.
Garak: And I am not an intelligence officer. May I suggest we begin by reversing the color scheme?
Picard, softly: Would you like me to take it off?
[they kiss]
posted by justsomebodythatyouusedtoknow at 4:46 PM on May 17, 2017 [48 favorites]
Garak: Well, let me guess. You're either lost, or desperately searching for a good tailor.
Picard: I'm looking for someone with expert knowledge of certain cryptographic protocols. Perhaps someone with a background in Cardassian intelligence, someone who loves his homeland but has no desire to see the Empire expand.
Garak: No, no, no, Captain, in that uniform? I assure you that a tailor is what you need most. I do believe that Starfleet's primary weapon in its wars of conquest is its disorientingly bad fashion sense.
Picard: The United Federation of Planets does not engage in wars of conquest. Our most sacred principle is respect for consent, of individuals and of civilizations.
Garak: Consent? No one would consensually wear green on green with green accents. I admit it is a clever strategy for social control. Forcing beings from a thousand worlds out of their fascinatingly distinctive traditional clothing and into military uniform is a ploy used by every empire, but making the uniform deliberately ugly is a stroke of genius. Beings who would submit to wear that would submit to anything, however repulsive.
Picard: Starfleet is not a military organization.
Garak: And I am not an intelligence officer. May I suggest we begin by reversing the color scheme?
Picard, softly: Would you like me to take it off?
[they kiss]
posted by justsomebodythatyouusedtoknow at 4:46 PM on May 17, 2017 [48 favorites]
We Australians aren't permitted the hallowed "first look" despite Star Trek being about inclusiveness so I'm going to pirate this show just so I can get the fleeting satisfaction of a) not seeding the files and b) seeing the progress bar inch across and feeling the fresh incoming air as my hard drive empties out when I delete season after season that I haven't even watched.
posted by turbid dahlia at 4:48 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by turbid dahlia at 4:48 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Okay, other people have mentioned this but wow, that really does look like the aesthetic at least was inspired by Mass Effect
posted by a power-tie-wearing she-capitalist at 5:04 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by a power-tie-wearing she-capitalist at 5:04 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
I'm OK with this. My rage-O-meter is normally set to pick up on the tiniest of potential flaws, but not today. I actually believe they might be able to take this in a direction that doesn't suck. I could be proven wrong, but not today.
posted by shapes that haunt the dusk at 5:38 PM on May 17, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by shapes that haunt the dusk at 5:38 PM on May 17, 2017 [4 favorites]
Death Guy turns out to have a flamboyant and flirty mother in season 2, who also only senses death.
posted by Artw at 5:54 PM on May 17, 2017 [14 favorites]
posted by Artw at 5:54 PM on May 17, 2017 [14 favorites]
Starfleet sure changes their uniform style frequently.
No more often than, say, the U.S. Army over its history; it's pretty uneven in terms of its frequency.
WRT the Klingons: I really don't have a huge problem with the redesign making them look more alien; sometimes I wish that they'd have more money so that they could go with some really radical redesigns for the aliens. And they seem to be hanging on to the things about the Klingons that are more important than Gene Simmons' old costumes and hairstyles, if the death cry scene is any indication.
Overall, I'm very cautiously optimistic.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:03 PM on May 17, 2017 [6 favorites]
No more often than, say, the U.S. Army over its history; it's pretty uneven in terms of its frequency.
WRT the Klingons: I really don't have a huge problem with the redesign making them look more alien; sometimes I wish that they'd have more money so that they could go with some really radical redesigns for the aliens. And they seem to be hanging on to the things about the Klingons that are more important than Gene Simmons' old costumes and hairstyles, if the death cry scene is any indication.
Overall, I'm very cautiously optimistic.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:03 PM on May 17, 2017 [6 favorites]
Doesn't look half bad. Still not paying for CBS's stupid service to watch it.
posted by octothorpe at 6:07 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by octothorpe at 6:07 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Doesn't look half bad. Still not paying for CBS's stupid service to watch it.
no it looks all bad! [statler & waldorf laugh]
(okay i'll stop)
posted by entropicamericana at 6:10 PM on May 17, 2017 [9 favorites]
no it looks all bad! [statler & waldorf laugh]
(okay i'll stop)
posted by entropicamericana at 6:10 PM on May 17, 2017 [9 favorites]
The uniforms looked like a fairly natural progression from the uniforms on the Enterprise series. Even the desert uniforms.
Also, I will take all the Trek I can get. I wouldn't really care if they made the Klingons look like Ewoks.
posted by blakewest at 6:14 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
Also, I will take all the Trek I can get. I wouldn't really care if they made the Klingons look like Ewoks.
posted by blakewest at 6:14 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
Also, WRT the comparisons to Mass Effect, particularly Andromeda: The graphics that don't have to do with character design and/or animation in MEA are fine, much better than the previous games and comparable to what I saw in this trailer. Of course, that just makes the characters look worse by comparison.
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:17 PM on May 17, 2017
posted by Halloween Jack at 6:17 PM on May 17, 2017
Starfleet sure changes their uniform style frequently.
Starfleet actually is a massive tailoring subsidy and everything else is just to justify it.Anybody who's spent time with the U.S. Navy will understand that Starfleet is quite conservative in their uniform variations over time. The Navy has more *dress* uniforms than I have total uniforms (including combat and fitness). Hell, they have more dress uniforms than I have *civilian suits.*
And in the Army (my branch), we've gone through 3 combat, 3 fitness, and 3 dress uniforms since I entered service. And the first two combat ones have had at least 3 variations each over the years. Keep in mind, I've been in slightly less than 20 years, so if that much change can happen in the branch *without* a uniform for every possible occasion, you can see how Starfleet might not be so odd.
posted by mystyk at 6:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [19 favorites]
"Death Guy, what is the current range to death?"
"... middling, captain. I should say on the closer side."
"Ensign, take us in."
posted by fatbird at 6:25 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
"... middling, captain. I should say on the closer side."
"Ensign, take us in."
posted by fatbird at 6:25 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
I guess by the time of replicators, rolling out new uniforms fleet-wide would be pretty simple.
posted by pykrete jungle at 6:46 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
posted by pykrete jungle at 6:46 PM on May 17, 2017 [5 favorites]
Death guy: "AYOOOGAH AYOOOGAH AYOOOGAH!"
Captain: "FULL REVERSE ENSIGN!"
posted by fatbird at 7:05 PM on May 17, 2017 [10 favorites]
Captain: "FULL REVERSE ENSIGN!"
posted by fatbird at 7:05 PM on May 17, 2017 [10 favorites]
I just lost track of all the ways in which this happening ten years before TOS totally doesn't work with anything established in Enterprise, are they just de-canonizing that whole show for this for some reason? I mean weapons, tech, aliens, uniforms, pretty much nothing whatsoever seems compatible.
posted by trackofalljades at 7:17 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by trackofalljades at 7:17 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Wait, did they redesign the Klingons, AGAIN?
And um actually, in the era portrayed the arrowhead insignia was not for general Starfleet but specific to the USS Enterprise, whereas other ships and installations had their own assignment patches.
posted by ckape at 7:21 PM on May 17, 2017 [4 favorites]
And um actually, in the era portrayed the arrowhead insignia was not for general Starfleet but specific to the USS Enterprise, whereas other ships and installations had their own assignment patches.
posted by ckape at 7:21 PM on May 17, 2017 [4 favorites]
Trek's never really been much into consistent continuity.
posted by octothorpe at 7:25 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by octothorpe at 7:25 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
People complain about Starfleet changing everything all the time but stuff like uniforms and ship designs were surprisingly stable from the late 2270s through the 2350s
posted by ckape at 7:25 PM on May 17, 2017 [6 favorites]
posted by ckape at 7:25 PM on May 17, 2017 [6 favorites]
The Orville looks better than this to me, and I love Star Trek. Star Trek needs to be competence porn mixed with a huge dose of optimism. I don't get the sense of that from this trailer. The jokes in the Orville are deliberately dumb, but at least it has a sense of fun.
posted by willnot at 7:28 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by willnot at 7:28 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
In just 10 short years the mini skirt will make a big comeback.
posted by cazoo at 7:28 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by cazoo at 7:28 PM on May 17, 2017 [3 favorites]
KICKASS WOMEN OF COLOR, WOOO
I'm not too concerned about the actiony elements of the trailer--it's very possible they highlighted those segments specifically for the trailer (debates about the nature of synthetic vs organic life and self-determination don't make for good trailer fodder). Remaining optimistic that the action isn't the driver of the plot because DAMMIT PEOPLE YOU'RE NOT RUINING THIS FOR ME
Those Klingons, though... who went and fucked an armadillo? Kang, was it you?
posted by duffell at 7:29 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
I'm not too concerned about the actiony elements of the trailer--it's very possible they highlighted those segments specifically for the trailer (debates about the nature of synthetic vs organic life and self-determination don't make for good trailer fodder). Remaining optimistic that the action isn't the driver of the plot because DAMMIT PEOPLE YOU'RE NOT RUINING THIS FOR ME
Those Klingons, though... who went and fucked an armadillo? Kang, was it you?
posted by duffell at 7:29 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
Well, I'm definitely interested in seeing more.
posted by SansPoint at 7:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by SansPoint at 7:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
Of course, since this is on CBS they're going to figure out some way to wedge a fucking Big Bang Theory cameo into this, aren't they?
posted by Strange Interlude at 8:18 PM on May 17, 2017
posted by Strange Interlude at 8:18 PM on May 17, 2017
The Orville looks better than this to me
They were even better when The Orville was called Galaxy Quest.
posted by Halloween Jack at 8:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [6 favorites]
They were even better when The Orville was called Galaxy Quest.
posted by Halloween Jack at 8:41 PM on May 17, 2017 [6 favorites]
I like the two female leads although was one of them a human-vulcan mix like Spock just with more emoting?
Less than convinced about how central conflict with the Klingons seems to be within the trailer. Maybe it's just for the draw people in factor but a hot war of the Federation vs the Klingons is incredibly boring at this point.
I'm hoping they avoid some of the Vulcans are dicks trying to keep humanity down that got such a heavy play in Enterprise.
posted by vuron at 8:43 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
Less than convinced about how central conflict with the Klingons seems to be within the trailer. Maybe it's just for the draw people in factor but a hot war of the Federation vs the Klingons is incredibly boring at this point.
I'm hoping they avoid some of the Vulcans are dicks trying to keep humanity down that got such a heavy play in Enterprise.
posted by vuron at 8:43 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
Looks like Doctor Who with better actors.
posted by blue_beetle at 8:58 PM on May 17, 2017
posted by blue_beetle at 8:58 PM on May 17, 2017
like they did with Deanna Troi.
Oh did they have another TNG series after TNG? I don't think I watched that. She was pretty tedious in the movies and that episode in Voyager she appears in...
Aside from the lens flares (why is this a thing) and the NuTrek Klingons, I am cautiously optimistic. Looks like they spent a bundle on it.
posted by Ashwagandha at 9:18 PM on May 17, 2017
Oh did they have another TNG series after TNG? I don't think I watched that. She was pretty tedious in the movies and that episode in Voyager she appears in...
Aside from the lens flares (why is this a thing) and the NuTrek Klingons, I am cautiously optimistic. Looks like they spent a bundle on it.
posted by Ashwagandha at 9:18 PM on May 17, 2017
Odd how futuristic it looks given how early it's supposed to take place. This is supposed to be before Kirk's Enterprise, right?
posted by tunewell at 9:48 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by tunewell at 9:48 PM on May 17, 2017 [2 favorites]
Ok what was up with the sarcophagus thing in one of the scenes with the NuKlingons? Did Stargate SG-1 have a baby with one of the NuTrek movies?
posted by weretable and the undead chairs at 9:58 PM on May 17, 2017
posted by weretable and the undead chairs at 9:58 PM on May 17, 2017
So does Luke Skywalker die in this one or what?
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 10:45 PM on May 17, 2017
posted by Ghostride The Whip at 10:45 PM on May 17, 2017
Death guy is gonna get tedious fast though, isn't he?
Well, presumably he dies in the pilot. Or else his whole species is kind of pointless.
posted by Naberius at 10:49 PM on May 17, 2017
Well, presumably he dies in the pilot. Or else his whole species is kind of pointless.
posted by Naberius at 10:49 PM on May 17, 2017
Death Guy turns out to have a flamboyant and flirty mother in season 2, who also only senses death.
Does she develop a condition that causes everyone in her immediate vicinity to start sensing death as well?
posted by Fish, fish, are you doing your duty? at 10:56 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
Does she develop a condition that causes everyone in her immediate vicinity to start sensing death as well?
posted by Fish, fish, are you doing your duty? at 10:56 PM on May 17, 2017 [1 favorite]
Wait, did they redesign the Klingons, AGAIN?
As long as they still have their bowcasters, and can rip the arms off droids, I'm fine with them.
posted by happyroach at 11:52 PM on May 17, 2017 [4 favorites]
As long as they still have their bowcasters, and can rip the arms off droids, I'm fine with them.
posted by happyroach at 11:52 PM on May 17, 2017 [4 favorites]
I hope the music in the show is better than what we hear in the trailer. 'Cause yikes!
posted by Atom Eyes at 12:05 AM on May 18, 2017
posted by Atom Eyes at 12:05 AM on May 18, 2017
Looks a lot like they've, well, charted a path halfway between the series and the movies for the new show. While I'm sure they are also borrowing a bit from other popular culture works as well in the look of the show, the feeling of a lot of it reminds me of how Star Trek: The Motion Picture revamped the look of TOS to make it feel more relevant to the changing times. I'm fine with that. I mean making a fetish object out of budgetary limitations in the previous series would hardly either be a bonus for the new show attracting fans in our CGI age or anything more than a desire to embalm the original in its time as a nostalgia laden tchotchke once held dear so as to almost purposefully deny access to any that didn't share that moment. Even as a practical matter, given the mind numbing variations of ears, noses, and forehead ridges the shows have had to try and come up with over the decades to differentiate the races makes these larger scale changes seem refreshing to my eyes.
If they are, as has been suggested, also moving towards season long arcs, that too makes looking for a halfway point between the old episodic series and the successful movies a reasonable choice and potentially allows for better budgeting and therefore a more cinematic look while giving opportunity for more character development than a film allows.
The suggestion seem to be that Burnham is another half vulcan half human character, but, unlike Spock, favors her human side. I'm hoping this doesn't lead to a B'Elanna Torres type inner struggle where the racial politics were at best sloppy and at worst pretty ugly. I get the feeling thought that it isn't quite that, but may instead lead to making the Vulcans even more distant and less personable than before as perhaps something of a match to the Klingons seeming less human as well. I wonder if this is something of a return to the more allegorical nature of TOS in regards to the place of humanity between the two poles Vulcans and Klingons represent as opposed to the later effort to humanize them to often disappointing effect given the underlying socio-political baggage that came along for the ride.
I'm going to take an optimistic outlook on this series fixing some of those problems given the cast choices and all that's been written about the various series over time as well as having had some people involved in the production that cared about these kinds of details, but I'm also ready to be disappointed since big, vague, and, ultimately, empty is pretty much the norm when it comes to popular culture works when a lot of money is at stake. Still, the trailer doesn't actually diminish hope for something better, so that's a plus at least.
posted by gusottertrout at 12:49 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
If they are, as has been suggested, also moving towards season long arcs, that too makes looking for a halfway point between the old episodic series and the successful movies a reasonable choice and potentially allows for better budgeting and therefore a more cinematic look while giving opportunity for more character development than a film allows.
The suggestion seem to be that Burnham is another half vulcan half human character, but, unlike Spock, favors her human side. I'm hoping this doesn't lead to a B'Elanna Torres type inner struggle where the racial politics were at best sloppy and at worst pretty ugly. I get the feeling thought that it isn't quite that, but may instead lead to making the Vulcans even more distant and less personable than before as perhaps something of a match to the Klingons seeming less human as well. I wonder if this is something of a return to the more allegorical nature of TOS in regards to the place of humanity between the two poles Vulcans and Klingons represent as opposed to the later effort to humanize them to often disappointing effect given the underlying socio-political baggage that came along for the ride.
I'm going to take an optimistic outlook on this series fixing some of those problems given the cast choices and all that's been written about the various series over time as well as having had some people involved in the production that cared about these kinds of details, but I'm also ready to be disappointed since big, vague, and, ultimately, empty is pretty much the norm when it comes to popular culture works when a lot of money is at stake. Still, the trailer doesn't actually diminish hope for something better, so that's a plus at least.
posted by gusottertrout at 12:49 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Ah, according to Wikipedia, it seems Burnham is a human raised by Vulcans, which might allow for a more interesting dynamic in exploring the racial aspects, and perhaps one less fraught with difficulty too.
posted by gusottertrout at 2:24 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by gusottertrout at 2:24 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
I had rather obviously guessed that Burnham would be a full Vulcan based on yesterday's desert photo and some forum comment pointing out that it resembles a Vulcan landscape. But it nagged at me given the likely challenges of writing a series around a non-human lead character… Instead, an adopted human seems a lot more interesting. Very angsty.
posted by polymodus at 2:46 AM on May 18, 2017
posted by polymodus at 2:46 AM on May 18, 2017
Here's a version that works in the UK.
posted by EndsOfInvention at 2:54 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by EndsOfInvention at 2:54 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
I don't think they *ever* figured out to do with Troi.
I thought the main purpose of Troi was to be a woman with a bust and hips wearing skin-tight clothes, only with emotions, as opposed to the later Seven-Of-Nine, who didn't have any.
posted by hippybear at 3:11 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
I thought the main purpose of Troi was to be a woman with a bust and hips wearing skin-tight clothes, only with emotions, as opposed to the later Seven-Of-Nine, who didn't have any.
posted by hippybear at 3:11 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
Odd how futuristic it looks given how early it's supposed to take place. This is supposed to be before Kirk's Enterprise, right?
It's always disappointing how beige and contemporugh the starship interiors are, as if they consult cruise ship designers every time they want to lay out a new ship. These things never look like the actual future, a tidy minimalist future, the ramshackle future, or even an earnest past-future (a return to the stark simplicity of the original Enterprise could have been fun), and given that the most futuristic technology that exists right now is an unadorned slice of black glass held in the hand, it's a bit sad that future design is stuck in the groove of making everything look like a mid-priced boom box from the late nineties (see also: every TARDIS interior since the revival).
posted by sonascope at 5:31 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
It's always disappointing how beige and contemporugh the starship interiors are, as if they consult cruise ship designers every time they want to lay out a new ship. These things never look like the actual future, a tidy minimalist future, the ramshackle future, or even an earnest past-future (a return to the stark simplicity of the original Enterprise could have been fun), and given that the most futuristic technology that exists right now is an unadorned slice of black glass held in the hand, it's a bit sad that future design is stuck in the groove of making everything look like a mid-priced boom box from the late nineties (see also: every TARDIS interior since the revival).
posted by sonascope at 5:31 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
We could use more popular culture about people with principals
Picard and Janeway certainly fit that mold, though Sisko wasn't that hidebound. Kirk certainly didn't.
Can you imagine a worse principal than Kirk? He'd be wrestling half the student body in the halls topless and seducing the other half. Or maybe both at the same time.
posted by bonehead at 6:22 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
Picard and Janeway certainly fit that mold, though Sisko wasn't that hidebound. Kirk certainly didn't.
Can you imagine a worse principal than Kirk? He'd be wrestling half the student body in the halls topless and seducing the other half. Or maybe both at the same time.
posted by bonehead at 6:22 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
Okay, I'm excited.
posted by dinty_moore at 6:40 AM on May 18, 2017
posted by dinty_moore at 6:40 AM on May 18, 2017
I had thought Jason Isaacs was the Captain of the Discovery, and he after some research I found out he is. Michelle Yeoh is the captain of a different ship on the series (main character's previous posting?), so while it is good to not necessarily see a white male in charge, it is a little misleading for the series.
Putting the rest of the series on a the CBS streaming channel is an invitation for rampant piracy (see NuWho prior to US broadcast).
posted by Badgermann at 6:51 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Putting the rest of the series on a the CBS streaming channel is an invitation for rampant piracy (see NuWho prior to US broadcast).
posted by Badgermann at 6:51 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Can you imagine a worse principal than Kirk?
Previously, on perceptions of Kirk.
posted by Chrysostom at 6:57 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
Previously, on perceptions of Kirk.
posted by Chrysostom at 6:57 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
I guess by the time of replicators, rolling out new uniforms fleet-wide would be pretty simple.
posted by pykrete jungle
One of my favorite Star Trek nerdery moments was listening to the Vidiots podcast episode about ST: Generations and hearing Clay Keller point out that, if you pay attention, one of the unspoken subplots of Generations is the Enterprise D crew slowly switching from TNG-era to DS9-era uniforms throughout the movie's running time.
posted by the phlegmatic king at 7:13 AM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
posted by pykrete jungle
One of my favorite Star Trek nerdery moments was listening to the Vidiots podcast episode about ST: Generations and hearing Clay Keller point out that, if you pay attention, one of the unspoken subplots of Generations is the Enterprise D crew slowly switching from TNG-era to DS9-era uniforms throughout the movie's running time.
posted by the phlegmatic king at 7:13 AM on May 18, 2017 [6 favorites]
I have been a Star Trek fan since I was a kid and I am also a woman named Mikell [pronounced Michael] so I'm pretty darn excited. :D :D :D
posted by olinerd at 7:29 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by olinerd at 7:29 AM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
[paging yasaman, I really want to hear what you think of this]
Oh another thing that occurs to me as I think about my "whooo" reaction:
The Trek of my heart is Star Trek: The Next Generation. I started watching it when I was like 10.* At the time, the scifi I read was basically Douglas Adams, Isaac Asimov, and random other stuff, a lot of Golden Age pulp, very little New Wave or similar. At some point in high school I came across the 1989 World Treasury of Science Fiction that David Hartwell edited and it was my first taste of, like, John Varley, and I was like WHOA.
Since then I have read a lot more science fiction, and I've come across J. Michael Straczynski mentioning, "It's been pointed out that TV-SF is generally 20-30 years behind print SF." This made A LOT OF STUFF make more sense to me, like, how I found Inception a well-made spectacle but people who don't read as much brainbending scifi found it more astounding cerebrally.
Basically, I am more genre-savvy now and I am more *medium-savvy* so I can be better at knowing what to expect from visual sf/f and what needs are simply a bad fit for that medium which I should get fulfilled, like, at Strange Horizons. Which is less about "what Trek ought to be for its effect on our culture" and "is this objectively good enough" and more about "will I get what I want out of it", which is perhaps a narrow and limited view, but is at the very least easier to arrive at.
* I was so sad when that particular continuity got dismissed by the new remake movies, and the "Grapevine Fires" vid by skywaterblue (sadly down at the moment, I think) was what helped me grieve for it and move on a bit -- if you need celebration of the old canon, "Long Live" by cosmic_llin is also really good.
posted by brainwane at 8:02 AM on May 18, 2017 [11 favorites]
Oh another thing that occurs to me as I think about my "whooo" reaction:
The Trek of my heart is Star Trek: The Next Generation. I started watching it when I was like 10.* At the time, the scifi I read was basically Douglas Adams, Isaac Asimov, and random other stuff, a lot of Golden Age pulp, very little New Wave or similar. At some point in high school I came across the 1989 World Treasury of Science Fiction that David Hartwell edited and it was my first taste of, like, John Varley, and I was like WHOA.
Since then I have read a lot more science fiction, and I've come across J. Michael Straczynski mentioning, "It's been pointed out that TV-SF is generally 20-30 years behind print SF." This made A LOT OF STUFF make more sense to me, like, how I found Inception a well-made spectacle but people who don't read as much brainbending scifi found it more astounding cerebrally.
Basically, I am more genre-savvy now and I am more *medium-savvy* so I can be better at knowing what to expect from visual sf/f and what needs are simply a bad fit for that medium which I should get fulfilled, like, at Strange Horizons. Which is less about "what Trek ought to be for its effect on our culture" and "is this objectively good enough" and more about "will I get what I want out of it", which is perhaps a narrow and limited view, but is at the very least easier to arrive at.
* I was so sad when that particular continuity got dismissed by the new remake movies, and the "Grapevine Fires" vid by skywaterblue (sadly down at the moment, I think) was what helped me grieve for it and move on a bit -- if you need celebration of the old canon, "Long Live" by cosmic_llin is also really good.
posted by brainwane at 8:02 AM on May 18, 2017 [11 favorites]
I just lost track of all the ways in which this happening ten years before TOS totally doesn't work with anything established in Enterprise, are they just de-canonizing that whole show for this for some reason?
This seems like a feature not a bug
posted by Automocar at 8:48 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
This seems like a feature not a bug
posted by Automocar at 8:48 AM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
Put me down as cautiously optimistic.
Also put me down as believing that slavish devotion to canonicity is a great way to never tell an interesting story ever again.
posted by tobascodagama at 8:54 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Also put me down as believing that slavish devotion to canonicity is a great way to never tell an interesting story ever again.
posted by tobascodagama at 8:54 AM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
If the choice is between slavish devotion to canon, and more time travelling space alien Nazis, I'm turning off my TV.
posted by fragmede at 9:52 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by fragmede at 9:52 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
SO.
MUCH.
LENS FLARE.
Also, why can't they just stick with the same uniforms? It was another thing that turned me off of Enterprise. Voyager at least had very visible color differences and played up the red shirts thing by making the higherups wear red.
But dammit I'm going to end up watching for a black female captain.
posted by numaner at 10:20 AM on May 18, 2017
MUCH.
LENS FLARE.
Also, why can't they just stick with the same uniforms? It was another thing that turned me off of Enterprise. Voyager at least had very visible color differences and played up the red shirts thing by making the higherups wear red.
But dammit I'm going to end up watching for a black female captain.
posted by numaner at 10:20 AM on May 18, 2017
Death guy is gonna get tedious fast though, isn't he?
It's not just that the ability to sense "death" can only be magic because death is a concept rather than a scientific thing you can point to.
It's that I can't for the life of me figure out how that magic power could be a good hook for an ongoing story engine. Maybe one story? But a whole series of Somebody's Gonna Die Who Could it Be This Week with side helpings of Maybe Death Isn't Inevitable After All?
posted by straight at 11:52 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
It's not just that the ability to sense "death" can only be magic because death is a concept rather than a scientific thing you can point to.
It's that I can't for the life of me figure out how that magic power could be a good hook for an ongoing story engine. Maybe one story? But a whole series of Somebody's Gonna Die Who Could it Be This Week with side helpings of Maybe Death Isn't Inevitable After All?
posted by straight at 11:52 AM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
You forgot Sometimes Sacrifice is Necessary for the Greater Good, where Death Guy buys the farm saving the life of someone more important who seemed just about to die. We can then reflect on the tragic-heroic irony of it all.
posted by gusottertrout at 12:13 PM on May 18, 2017
posted by gusottertrout at 12:13 PM on May 18, 2017
The thing is this, humans can sense death approaching too. That sense is called "fear". (Or "mid life crisis".) It's sort of like saying "my species is biologically programmed to reproduce."
I'm a little disappointed this isn't set post-Voyager. I've had enough prequels and reboots. Roddenberry and associates built a pretty big universe to play in, we don't have to keep revisiting the beginning.
And I will subscribe to the CBS streaming service to see this, no question in my mind.
posted by Cranialtorque at 12:27 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
I'm a little disappointed this isn't set post-Voyager. I've had enough prequels and reboots. Roddenberry and associates built a pretty big universe to play in, we don't have to keep revisiting the beginning.
And I will subscribe to the CBS streaming service to see this, no question in my mind.
posted by Cranialtorque at 12:27 PM on May 18, 2017 [3 favorites]
There's a TOS Episode where Kirk sees his own grave. The stone reads "James P. Kirk", and we all know his middle initial is "T." The first Ferengi to appear snarled and has laser whips. The first Trill (Trills?) to appear didn't have any spots.
There's never been a slavish devotion to canon.
posted by Cranialtorque at 12:30 PM on May 18, 2017 [7 favorites]
There's never been a slavish devotion to canon.
posted by Cranialtorque at 12:30 PM on May 18, 2017 [7 favorites]
I'm of the popular opinion that Mass Effect 1 is the best Trek in many, many years, and I'm.. not really seeing the ME comparison here. Still looks good, though! I'm okay with the new Klingons, but I wish alien species had varying skintones.
posted by curious nu at 12:30 PM on May 18, 2017
posted by curious nu at 12:30 PM on May 18, 2017
Every time there's a new Star Trek series, movie, or game, I hope against hope that it will be good. I'm let down most of the time, but I'm still hoping this will be good. I should hang a poster that says "I WANT TO BELIEVE," with a blurry picture of a high-quality Star Trek franchise.
posted by shapes that haunt the dusk at 12:33 PM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by shapes that haunt the dusk at 12:33 PM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
I want this to be good, but I'm unwilling to get my hopes up. I can get myself as far as "I will reserve judgment."
posted by mordax at 1:00 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by mordax at 1:00 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
There's never been a slavish devotion to canon.
I mean, tell it to the fandom.
posted by tobascodagama at 1:17 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
I mean, tell it to the fandom.
posted by tobascodagama at 1:17 PM on May 18, 2017 [1 favorite]
There's never been a slavish devotion to canon.
I mean, tell it to the fandom.
Fandom's *three* weapons are fear, surprise, and ruthless efficiency...and an almost fanatical devotion to canon.... Our *four*...no.
posted by happyroach at 4:17 PM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
I mean, tell it to the fandom.
Fandom's *three* weapons are fear, surprise, and ruthless efficiency...and an almost fanatical devotion to canon.... Our *four*...no.
posted by happyroach at 4:17 PM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
I see from the beginning of the trailer that it's about one of our bloodiest fights: Oxford Comma vs Wrong.
posted by The corpse in the library at 4:22 PM on May 18, 2017 [7 favorites]
posted by The corpse in the library at 4:22 PM on May 18, 2017 [7 favorites]
Yeah, I'm with Mordax. I want this to be good. The cast looks promising. But then I've always thought the casting for Abramstrek was really pretty good, and wow is that ever not the problem. Also the NuKlingons kind of make me want to splutter with nerdrage. I'm doing my best to suppress it and everything, but ffs.
posted by brennen at 6:08 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by brennen at 6:08 PM on May 18, 2017 [2 favorites]
Could someone remake "The Chinese Restaurant" episode only with Garak, Troi, and Death Guy?
posted by Napoleonic Terrier at 7:07 PM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by Napoleonic Terrier at 7:07 PM on May 18, 2017 [4 favorites]
Everyone wants a representative from Death-Guy planet on their strategic war-planning committee, but Death-Guyians never get invited to office happy hour. Nor to birthday parties, bar mitzvahs, or retirement celebrations. (There hasn't been a Death-Guyian Star Fleet Academy graduation speaker since the San Francisco suicide riots of 2216.) It's really hard to advance as a Death-Guyian in Star Fleet; there are so few opportunities for informal networking. Presumably that's why we see so few of them in series set in the future. They've learned that spending time with other humanoids just makes everyone uncomfortable. The spend most of their time alone in their rooms, listening to goth music and painting macabre pastels on notebook paper.
But, nothing quite compares to the social stigma of being a mixed-species Betazoid/Death-Guy. Nobody wants to share a turbolift with them. And when someone has no choice and they wind up on the same transporter pad, the BetaDeathians have to spend the whole time humming Frère Jacques to avoid reading the paranoid, terror-filled fears of their colleagues. At times, they get a bit of vindictive payback by looking at their leaders sadly and saying, "Out of curiosity, is your will up to date, commander?" But the thrill doesn't last, 'cause they always get assigned to the most dangerous missions the next time around.
posted by eotvos at 8:06 PM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
But, nothing quite compares to the social stigma of being a mixed-species Betazoid/Death-Guy. Nobody wants to share a turbolift with them. And when someone has no choice and they wind up on the same transporter pad, the BetaDeathians have to spend the whole time humming Frère Jacques to avoid reading the paranoid, terror-filled fears of their colleagues. At times, they get a bit of vindictive payback by looking at their leaders sadly and saying, "Out of curiosity, is your will up to date, commander?" But the thrill doesn't last, 'cause they always get assigned to the most dangerous missions the next time around.
posted by eotvos at 8:06 PM on May 18, 2017 [5 favorites]
I suppose it's too much to hope that Death Guy's name is Samarra.
posted by gusottertrout at 2:24 AM on May 19, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by gusottertrout at 2:24 AM on May 19, 2017 [3 favorites]
Death-Guy: "My species has been biologically determined to sense the coming of death."
*the crew exchange pensive glances*
DG: "Hahaha, just pulling your leg, I mean what would that even MEAN?"
*the crew sigh in relief*
DG: "Yeah, the reason I said that is I saw like a billion photon torpedoes headed our way on the--"
*explosion*
posted by tobascodagama at 5:28 AM on May 19, 2017 [5 favorites]
*the crew exchange pensive glances*
DG: "Hahaha, just pulling your leg, I mean what would that even MEAN?"
*the crew sigh in relief*
DG: "Yeah, the reason I said that is I saw like a billion photon torpedoes headed our way on the--"
*explosion*
posted by tobascodagama at 5:28 AM on May 19, 2017 [5 favorites]
It just hit me how much Death Guy is basically a one-off plot-driving character from a mediocre early-season Babylon 5 episode.
posted by brennen at 9:08 AM on May 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by brennen at 9:08 AM on May 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
It just hit me how much Death Guy is basically a one-off plot-driving character from a mediocre early-season Babylon 5 episode.
You underplay the importance of the Soul Hunter episode; he's a character from a species who sense the approach of death who has taken that to the extreme behaviour of causing death in order to capture the "souls" of those he thinks important. The episode plays an important part of establishing the existence of something like a "soul" in the B5 universe, which is important for the series, as well as putting into play the existence of a mysterious relationship between the human commander and the Minbari ambassador.
/returns to the shadows
posted by nubs at 11:19 AM on May 19, 2017 [5 favorites]
You underplay the importance of the Soul Hunter episode; he's a character from a species who sense the approach of death who has taken that to the extreme behaviour of causing death in order to capture the "souls" of those he thinks important. The episode plays an important part of establishing the existence of something like a "soul" in the B5 universe, which is important for the series, as well as putting into play the existence of a mysterious relationship between the human commander and the Minbari ambassador.
/returns to the shadows
posted by nubs at 11:19 AM on May 19, 2017 [5 favorites]
Gags aside, Trek really isn't a stranger to dabbling in weird, quasi-mystical stuff, and if Death-Guy's death sense is used for something interesting, then I'm 100% on board with him.
posted by tobascodagama at 12:53 PM on May 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by tobascodagama at 12:53 PM on May 19, 2017 [1 favorite]
Star Trek USS Collins: I can feel it comin' in the air tonight
posted by blue_beetle at 1:37 PM on May 19, 2017
posted by blue_beetle at 1:37 PM on May 19, 2017
Ok, so I just read this bit:
My feelings are complicated.
posted by brennen at 3:42 PM on May 19, 2017
Though the new show canonically takes place in the same fictional universe as the original series, The Next Generation, and most of the other pre-JJ Abrams Trek shows and movies, the show's look has a lot more in common with Abrams' Trek than with any of the older entries....the stuff about the look aside, really? Why did I think this was going to be NuTrek continuity? And if it's not, and they're doing the sane thing and pretending that shit never happened, why the Klingons?
My feelings are complicated.
posted by brennen at 3:42 PM on May 19, 2017
On Star Trek: Discovery and Michelle Yeoh's accent
posted by Artw at 6:52 AM on May 21, 2017 [4 favorites]
posted by Artw at 6:52 AM on May 21, 2017 [4 favorites]
People seem bothered by the Klingons' faces. If this show is set pre-TOS, post-Enterprise, then I think different-looking Klingons makes sense. In Enterprise they explained the gene therapy slash virus combo that was making Klingons look smooth. (Explaining the TOS-era Klingons, who basically just looked like an army of beatniks.) So these Klingons are halfway between genetic normal ridged Klingons and TOS era smooth ones.
Personally, I wish they'd stop messing around in the early era of Trek, and tell some more post-Voyager era stories. Continuity is a lot less tricky if you do that, and the retro-future nostalgia aspect sort of bugs me. Star Trek is about the future, and should not be tied down to a previous vision of the future. (In my humble opinion.)
posted by Cranialtorque at 7:15 AM on May 22, 2017 [5 favorites]
Personally, I wish they'd stop messing around in the early era of Trek, and tell some more post-Voyager era stories. Continuity is a lot less tricky if you do that, and the retro-future nostalgia aspect sort of bugs me. Star Trek is about the future, and should not be tied down to a previous vision of the future. (In my humble opinion.)
posted by Cranialtorque at 7:15 AM on May 22, 2017 [5 favorites]
I think you could do some REALLY interesting post-Voyager stories about the power vacuum left after the collapse of the Borg Collective. Maybe throw in some new tech: the Federation cracks Transwarp technology, and travel to remote corners of the galaxy becomes possible.
posted by duffell at 7:26 AM on May 22, 2017 [2 favorites]
posted by duffell at 7:26 AM on May 22, 2017 [2 favorites]
Post-Voyager would be a welcome change to me.
posted by Ber at 7:44 AM on May 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Ber at 7:44 AM on May 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
Post-Voyager, huh? Well, the Enterprise-J is canon.
posted by SansPoint at 8:10 AM on May 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by SansPoint at 8:10 AM on May 22, 2017 [1 favorite]
Am I the only one dead certain that this will be terrible based entirely on the fact that it's on a legacy broadcast network and not cable?
posted by uberchet at 1:46 PM on May 22, 2017
posted by uberchet at 1:46 PM on May 22, 2017
But it's not on a legacy broadcast network! It's on a legacy broadcast network's nigh-unknown streaming service.
posted by ckape at 1:50 PM on May 22, 2017 [3 favorites]
posted by ckape at 1:50 PM on May 22, 2017 [3 favorites]
So, some speculation based on this trailer and what we've previously heard:
Here, we see Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) serving as First Officer aboard the Shenzou, serving under Capt. Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh), and apparently on the verge of being promoted to captain and getting her own command.
But we know from previous releases that Burnham isn't a captain on the series, and serves on the Discovery under Capt. Lorca (Jason Isaacs, not seen in this trailer).
Consider that in the light of this dialogue:
So all that we see here may be just prologue, in the first episode or first few episodes, before Burnham gets to the Discovery. If that's the case, well, there's good news and bad news. Good: the long-term course of the series may be more discovery-y and less action-y than what we see here. And Lt. Death may not be a major character over the series arc. Bad: Capt. Georgiou may not be a major character over the series arc.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 6:32 AM on May 31, 2017 [2 favorites]
Here, we see Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) serving as First Officer aboard the Shenzou, serving under Capt. Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh), and apparently on the verge of being promoted to captain and getting her own command.
But we know from previous releases that Burnham isn't a captain on the series, and serves on the Discovery under Capt. Lorca (Jason Isaacs, not seen in this trailer).
Consider that in the light of this dialogue:
Georgiou: Starfleet doesn't fire first.I suspect that in this encounter Burnham fires anyway (perhaps dramatically leaping to do it from the weapons console herself, shoving away whatever junior officer is sitting there) against her captain's orders. As a result she's court-martialed, maybe busted down a rank or two, and assigned to the Discovery.
Burnham: We have to!
So all that we see here may be just prologue, in the first episode or first few episodes, before Burnham gets to the Discovery. If that's the case, well, there's good news and bad news. Good: the long-term course of the series may be more discovery-y and less action-y than what we see here. And Lt. Death may not be a major character over the series arc. Bad: Capt. Georgiou may not be a major character over the series arc.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 6:32 AM on May 31, 2017 [2 favorites]
I believe she is recurring, though that could be as flashback/ghost/whatnot.
posted by Artw at 6:46 AM on May 31, 2017 [1 favorite]
posted by Artw at 6:46 AM on May 31, 2017 [1 favorite]
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posted by Chrysostom at 3:24 PM on May 17, 2017 [4 favorites]