Star Trek: Discovery

[jal76]

Beautiful Nanjin! This is automatically my most anticipated 1/6 scale figure based upon this picture!

 

[abake]

Sorry to keep hijacking this thread to talk about TNG, but it's the only semi-living Trek thread...

Anyway, I finished the series last night, and there's a sudden emptiness in my life...

Man, what a great series! I will really miss it after bingeing away for the last few months.
My favorite seasons are four and five, the writing was top level in those two seasons IMHO. Not that the others didn't have amazing episodes, but 4 and 5 were consistently good to great. And of course, Ro Laren joined the crew in the fifth season... effing brilliant character!

A couple of quick random thoughts.

Picard is an amazing character. So much depth to him. Actually, all of them, but of course, he stands out with all his shortcomings and deep principles. His upholding of the Prime Directive could be as cruel and heartless as his devotion to his crew and friends was unwavering and heartfelt. Oh, and Nanjin should have insisted on a special sculpt for "pulling down the jacket" hands for Picard and Riker.
Speaking of Riker, he was immensely enjoyable to watch. Was a bit disappointed to learn that he and Troi ended up married in the movies... Worf was so much more interesting as a choice. It was funny though how almost every important suggestion or reco of Worf's in his tactical post was rebuked or ignored! The man never got it right!
Q is one of the best antagonists I've seen in any series. So much fun to watch him get on Picard's nerves.
One thing I found odd was how Picard and Starfleet never expressed any doubts about completely wiping out the Borg. I mean, they were talking about genocide... And granted, the Borg left little alternative, but for such a thoughtful show to not touch upon any misgivings about wiping out an entire species did seem odd.
Another thing that is slightly curious is how there never is any second thought about the dangers of AI. I suppose it wasn't really a preoccupation back then, but there should at least be misgivings about how easy it was to get into Data's programming, but they never really explored that. One of the last episodes deals with the Enterprise almost becoming sentient, but there never is a feeling of the danger around such a vessel (basically a weapon of mass destruction) not taking orders any more... Still, it was an enjoyable episode.
That brings me to another thought: the series always speaks of "life" and "lifeforms", but not of consciousness or sentience. Again, probably a product of the times.
Another random thought: I was slightly disappointed when Crusher came back in season three, as her replacement was brilliant, but Crusher did grow on me later on. And, is it me, or did was Troi like a fine wine that got better with age? At first I thought she was annoying and not especially good looking, but towards seasons 6 and 7 I thought she was a hottie!
Speaking of hotties, I was surprised at the amount of camel toe and nipple that were shown in the first couple of seasons... I doubt that would be acceptable nowadays. Crusher and Troi's aerobics and Tasha's sister come to mind...
Also, it was very refreshing to see how the show portrayed relationships, it was always very mature and open-minded.

Anyway, I just wanted to share some thoughts after finishing the series.
It will be fun to see the movies now. I don't think I ever watched any of the TNG movies in its entirety.

 

[nanjin]

Sorry to keep hijacking this thread to talk about TNG, but it's the only semi-living Trek thread...

Anyway, I finished the series last night, and there's a sudden emptiness in my life... [emoji38]

Man, what a great series! I will really miss it after bingeing away for the last few months.
My favorite seasons are four and five, the writing was top level in those two seasons IMHO. Not that the others didn't have amazing episodes, but 4 and 5 were consistently good to great. And of course, Ro Laren joined the crew in the fifth season... effing brilliant character!

A couple of quick random thoughts.

Picard is an amazing character. So much depth to him. Actually, all of them, but of course, he stands out with all his shortcomings and deep principles. His upholding of the Prime Directive could be as cruel and heartless as his devotion to his crew and friends was unwavering and heartfelt. Oh, and Nanjin should have insisted on a special sculpt for "pulling down the jacket" hands for Picard and Riker.
Speaking of Riker, he was immensely enjoyable to watch. Was a bit disappointed to learn that he and Troi ended up married in the movies... Worf was so much more interesting as a choice. It was funny though how almost every important suggestion or reco of Worf's in his tactical post was rebuked or ignored! The man never got it right! [emoji38]
Q is one of the best antagonists I've seen in any series. So much fun to watch him get on Picard's nerves.
One thing I found odd was how Picard and Starfleet never expressed any doubts about completely wiping out the Borg. I mean, they were talking about genocide... And granted, the Borg left little alternative, but for such a thoughtful show to not touch upon any misgivings about wiping out an entire species did seem odd.
Another thing that is slightly curious is how there never is any second thought about the dangers of AI. I suppose it wasn't really a preoccupation back then, but there should at least be misgivings about how easy it was to get into Data's programming, but they never really explored that. One of the last episodes deals with the Enterprise almost becoming sentient, but there never is a feeling of the danger around such a vessel (basically a weapon of mass destruction) not taking orders any more... Still, it was an enjoyable episode.
That brings me to another thought: the series always speaks of "life" and "lifeforms", but not of consciousness or sentience. Again, probably a product of the times.
Another random thought: I was slightly disappointed when Crusher came back in season three, as her replacement was brilliant, but Crusher did grow on me later on. And, is it me, or did was Troi like a fine wine that got better with age? At first I thought she was annoying and not especially good looking, but towards seasons 6 and 7 I thought she was a hottie!
Speaking of hotties, I was surprised at the amount of camel toe and nipple that were shown in the first couple of seasons... I doubt that would be acceptable nowadays. Crusher and Troi's aerobics and Tasha's sister come to mind...
Also, it was very refreshing to see how the show portrayed relationships, it was always very mature and open-minded.

Anyway, I just wanted to share some thoughts after finishing the series.
It will be fun to see the movies now. I don't think I ever watched any of the TNG movies in its entirety.

Yes, a lot of nipples showing in S1 n S2.

I did consider the jacket pulling hands.

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[gin007]

I'll take a John Delancey headsculpt...

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[gin007]

I just saw the 2018 pix of SDCC Georgiou again. I was a Georgiou fan from Day 1 of Disco, and I'm superpumped for the potential Georgiou series. I'm also buying most of the QMx ST releases, so I'm the A+ demographic for this fig. Having said that, I hope some serious thought goes into revising this fig before its released. The molded hair is killing the fig (and why a transition from molded to rooted?) Changing the molded hair could do wonders. It is also too thin in the face and a flat paint job or the photos didn't do it justice, but either way, I'd love to see a fig of that char, but it's just not there yet.

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[Username]

For your tonight's DISCO amusement.

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Breathtaking.
Absolutely beautiful.

 

[gin007]

oO

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[nanjin]

Since I wont be working for QMx very soon, I failed in bringing this to the market.

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[Prime Clone]

Sorry to hear nanjin, your work has been superlative.

Does that mean no TWOK figures either?

 

[nanjin]

Sorry to hear nanjin, your work has been superlative.

Does that mean no TWOK figures either?

I dont know. I had zero info from HQ since April. They might be able to do Spock and Kirk, but in my opinion, Khan needs professionals. I dont think anyone else can do Khan except me because I think only 4 people had the same info as me, and Khan's hair needs to order from Japan.



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[nanjin]

Not perfect but getting there [emoji1]

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[Username]

Not perfect but getting there [emoji1]

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Beautiful. Can't wait to see more.

 

[jedibear]

Star Trek Discovery OVER in 2024

At last. GOOD RIDDANCE. Worst Trek ever. Maybe they will all finally stop crying.

 

[MyenShi]

Star Trek Discovery OVER in 2024

At last. GOOD RIDDANCE. Worst Trek ever. Maybe they will all finally stop crying.

"Leading up to the final season, Paramount+ will honor the show’s groundbreaking storytelling over its past four seasons with yearlong celebrations and appearances at key events in markets around the world."

I don't typically see groundbreaking as a synonym for vapid and nonsensical but you do you, Deadline.

 

[jedibear]

Maybe they can join KK at her rumored Viking Funeral in April at SW Celebration. Misery loves company. Plenty of crying to be sure and we know the folks on Discovery love a good cry.

 

[Kebron]

Without Discovery we wouldn’t have Strange New Worlds, Picard Season 3, and Exo6 Trek figures. Love it or hate it the show revitalized Trek.

Hoping we see more Terry Matalas led shows to take Discovery’s place.

 

[MyenShi]

Without Discovery we wouldn’t have Strange New Worlds, Picard Season 3, and Exo6 Trek figures. Love it or hate it the show revitalized Trek.

Hoping we see more Terry Matalas led shows to take Discovery’s place.

I get what you’re saying, and you’re not the only one to say that. But it also didn’t have to be Discovery (or the Discovery that we got) that led the Trek revival. And I’m not saying that just to hate on the show. I did give it a shot multiple times and really tried to like it.

If the suits had chosen more capable people who better understood what Star Trek is at its core to helm the revival, then we could’ve had a lead series that was less divisive and appealed evenly to fans, critics, and newcomers alike.

We only got to SNW and PIC S3 because Kurtzman and co. finally got the message after enormous critical and fan feedback. But we went through a ton of wasted potential, time, and resources to get to that point.

Imagine if we didn’t have to go through that and the revival had been led by shows more like Strange New Worlds and Picard Season 3 six years ago. Arguably the franchise, the characters, and the setting would be in a better place.

But it is what it is. At least we’re here now, and hopefully there’s a bright future for Star Trek moving forward.

 

[davejames]

Well personally I absolutely loved the first two seasons of DSC and all the ways they tried to shake up and reinvent the Trek formula with an edgier tone and characters (unlike the ultra-safe SNW which seems determined to be as cute and likable as possible).

But the jump to the future in S3 ended up being not nearly as interesting as I hoped, and I've found myself slowly losing interest with each new season as the writing started to get more and more sappy and sentimental. So definitely feels like the right time to end things.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

My favorite seasons are four and five, the writing was top level in those two seasons IMHO. Not that the others didn't have amazing episodes, but 4 and 5 were consistently good to great. And of course, Ro Laren joined the crew in the fifth season... effing brilliant character!

Michelle Forbes turned down a regular cast member slot. I can't remember if it was for TNG or for DS9. And, at the time, the thought of that seemed completely insane. Because that could be 7-9 seasons of regular money plus whatever movies possibly would come out. Plus merchandising, appearances, royalties, etc, etc. Basically almost guaranteed life changing money.

She didn't want to be typecast. And she's still in stuff today. Whereas most of the TNG cast has been heavily typecast. What's interesting is Colm Meaney might have had the most diverse career out of anyone who was in a major ST series.

Michael Dorn did an interview, and he was asked if it bothered him to have all that makeup done for like 10 seasons straight. ( He jumped from TNG to DS9) Plus all the movies. He said he was thankful to be in a position to be typecast. That he came up with lots of actors who were basically starving.

I've seen Tina Fey, Bill Burr and Amy Schumer all say the same thing. That they knew lots of brilliant comics across time who never broke through, and there's no rhyme or reason why some people made it, and some didn't.

Two episodes always stood out to me. The one where there were the worms that took over Starfleet High Command, and they tried to make Riker eat a bowl of worms. It was creepy and awesome. Apparently Roddenberry was still alive and said no more episodes like that. Which was too bad, because it was totally awesome. Then when Ashley Judd was on the show for an episode. And she was Wesley Crusher's love interest. She was great. Fun and crazy hot. Let's be honest, you need an insane level body type to make those TNG uniforms look seductive. I wish they kept Judd somehow and made her a regular.

Ron Moore did some podcasts, and he talked about how DS9 was a much different show because Roddenberry basically was too busy or too old to bother dealing with it. And they were left alone. IMHO, DS9 showed the potential that Star Trek could have without the core Roddenberry themes that were clearly enforced in other series.

The entire Denise Crosby/Tasha Yar thing made little to no sense. She's on the show. She is claimed to want off the show. Then it's claimed she wanted back on the show. Then she plays the daughter ( adult version ) of the multiverse Yar who was forced to be Romulan groupie.

And I still hate Wil Wheaton. I used to really love Stand By Me. But just seeing Wheaton's smug face, even as a kid, just turns me off.

No one is going to make TV and movies like that anymore. We won't see another Braveheart. We won't see another ST TNG. We even won't see another Stand By Me.

What we do get is some mouthbreather like Simu Liu painting the walls of social media with endless virtue signaling while taking selfies. I don't hate him as much as Wheaton, but it's starting to get a bit close.

I appreciate the simplicity of TNG. They just wanted to tell a good story. Back then, it was just that simple.

 

[MeatHookGekko]

Star Trek Discovery OVER in 2024

At last. GOOD RIDDANCE. Worst Trek ever. Maybe they will all finally stop crying.

Maybe Burnham can celebrate by going into another Rick Grimes style monologue then just start weeping again.

I just felt the "Burn" situation was totally wasted. I would have loved to see a dystopian version of Star Trek. Where Star Fleet has been massacred. And what's left is being hunted down and slaughtered off. Like a ST version of Cormac McCarthy's The Road.

Lots of violence, gritty, a heavy tone and lots of graphic ***.

I've always felt the show mishandled Mary Wiseman/Tilly. We've seen over and over the standard trope of the non human struggling to understand being human ( Data, Seven Of Nine, The Hologram Doctor, Worf, Quark, etc, etc) But Tilly was fascinating because she was on the spectrum and she wasn't the best of the best of the best. She represented more of the "Lower Decks" kind of situation. Well at least at the beginning. To me, that's fascinating right there. Not a non human struggling to understand what it means to be human, but an actual human who is so different, that they are almost "alien" because they suffer from their autism/social failures/difficulty with understanding other people.

I could root for Tilly. I could empathize with Tilly. At least the early seasons. I can't root for Burnham.

Battlestar Galactica had some of the same problem. Starbuck went from flawed to a total *********. Sackhoff is an atrocious actress and now she's hamming it up in Mandalorian too.

It's OK to have a character that's a bad person, but they can't be boring. I don't think some of these shows get that distinction. They give us unlikeable characters, and then make them boring. Then cast actors or actresses who can't pull of the nuance to make a poorly written character interesting.

If you can't give audiences good writing, then at least use that budget and show lots of stuff blowing up.

Doug Jones seems to be giving it his all. I can't knock him. Maybe I just love Abe Sapien too much and am not objective. But the rest of the cast just bores me to tears.