Gothneo

The slow easy approach is what I was eluding to by "grass roots" collecting... I was hoping thats what ew'd get out of McFarlane... a few great bits released over time. 

 

And yes... Hasbro hit it out of the park... really starting with the OTC and VOTC figures circa 2006... they really took the 3 3/4 figures to the next level. I was entranced by that VOTC Darth Vader! what a fantastic figure! Hasbro continued to find ways to improve the sculpt and POA on their offerings. They've done the same with Marvel Legends... and thats how you sell people the same thing over and over. DST and Playmates don't seem to be trying to do this.

I actually like what Im hearing story wise...  and this actually sounds like it might make a great movie... maybe even a great trilogy. In that spirit Id say maybe they have 5-6 hrs of good story telling... this should really be about 6 episodes... my concern is that to fill 10 episodes they will do what a lot of net shows do and draw it out with poor writing. This has been the bane of both seasons of DISCO... though admittedly the plot seemed to wander a bit through both seasons... hopefully they nailed it all down and write it in advance so it doesnt suffer.

I actually think the ensemble formula is holding Star Trek back... Movies work best when you have minimal protagonist and antagonist... and basically the movies became a Kirk/Spock/McCoy trio vs an antagonist, and the latest movies worked so hard to re-introduce the full ensemble that I just don't think they could do most fo them any justice.  TV has the ability to take the time to develop the ensemble, but they just haven't done a good job with that development on DISCO. 

 

Thus, giving us a singular star in the vast universe might actually get back to simple direct and good story telling... but the proof will be in the product. 

Gorgeous! 

Well... BBT is not really theirs... in this case CBS is just the distributor and I believe the Warner Bros TV/Chuck Lorre Productions, much in the same way Star Trek never originally aired on CBS... it was owned by Desilu... distributed by NBC, and at some point CBS acquired Desilu. CBS also owns many other shows that they never originally aired... like Cheers and Frasier, and these are all available... HBO is the distributor and the producer of their shows... but they have plenty of of content they are only the distributor of... its the same model used by every service... Netflix, and Hulu included.

Man! I really think The Orville has come into its own. The season finale may have felt like a cross between Star Trek and Firefly... but I found it completely enjoyable. Heck it even channeled Star Wars.

 

MacFarlane has managed to really develop the characters and their relationships... they've seem to have put in some effort to get basic science (e.g. black hole event horizon). The show may have started out a bit rocky and season 1 left me on the fence about the show, but season 2 hit it out of the ballpark imo.

 

The Orville has taken top spot as my fav sci-fi show....  I can't wait for more... and if Disney wants to get me to pay for it... I probably will. 

I thought exactly the same.  We got another episode of The Orville... I find that show not only more entertaining but more coherent. Your idea Whirlygig maybe the only way to salvage much of anything.

Anson Mount could carry his own show. 

So... if your expecting a stand-alone plot.... your probably right... I guess my brain... knowing what it knows... filled in some (lots) of blanks. It did feel like an episode for fans steeped in canon rather than for new fans. 

Well.. I dont watch it when it aires I stream it in the next few days ... so if those ratings dont represent that then they arent getting the full picture

I'll pile on... even though they seem to be whipping through lots.. you just don't care! The last few episodes I've been playing old arcade games while its on in the background... the show isn't grabbing my primary attention!

Well now! I think the NRA should be reborn as Nerd Rage Anonymous!!! I could join that NRA!!!

 

I'm just trying to understand the "controversy."

 

 

No controversy to understand... that I know of... and I'm certainly not suggesting any such thing... my argument is quite simply predicated on.. as Whirlygig is fond of reminding me... the overall poor quality of the writing we've been getting ever since the 2009 reboot... all the way until now. 

Are there some glimmers of good writing? Yes. But overall... I can't say the latest body of work is great SciFi... let alone great Star Trek.  Does it stop me from watching and enjoying it? No. Not at all.

 

Will I watch the new Sec 31 show and the rest of DISCO? Well... sure.. until my sub expires this year I guess so... I paid for it. 

As for STID being Sec 31 centered... thats not my sole interpretation... a Secret weapons facility... getting Evil Genetically altered superhumans to work for you by locking up their brethren... secret super ships... they may not have said it was section 31... but it sure operated the same way.. so it was an obvious nod to "fans" in the know, if you don't agree... thats fine. 

 

I'm not trying to change anyones opinion... or really rag on DISCO... I was just presenting my perspective on 1) Why and how section 31 was introduced (in DS9), 2) why the very idea of it in Trek seems like a bad idea to me... let alone mainstreaming it.

 

I mean... can we at least aspire to try and write more episodes like "City on the edge of Forever"... or "Inner Light"... and if we can't reach for that how about taking the tact that Manny Cotto took and really put some effort into demystifying and cleaning up the canon in a delightful manner? 

 

Hey look, the Disco cast has realized the same thing and expressed it through song:

https://twitter.com/...807053822144512

 

 

And Rent is overrated too! There I said it. people can hate on me for it but its true :-)

Imagine if Jason Isaacs came back? Prime Lorca and Pike on the same show.

 

Yeah... this is what I think is odd about Discovery... technically its Martin-Green's show. She's supposed to be the Star... but it doesn't feel like she is to me... she feels like a troubled No. 1.... because thats how they wrote it. So as a viewer... I gravitate towards Mount and Issac because their characters are written as more decisive leaders... and its not that I think Martin-Green couldn't pull off the lead... but I think they wrote her character into a corner a bit... I'd contrast the style to BSG where Starbuck isn't the Capt, and is deeply flawed, but they establish all that from the offset and allow her to grow out of it... whereas Burnham is billed as a shining star and the next best thing... but fails and falls hard immediately in S1... and now we are just supposed to accept that she's been redeemed?

 

Still, I'm liking the overall direction its going. 

It certainly has a The search for Spock  vibe. Sure youve got some valid points...  just about all of which I might say apply to S1 as well... but I still think its a vast improvement from S1.  And since were looking at a seasonal story arch... Im waiting to see if they sort some of the issues out.

We do know there was continuing chaos in the production show runner s replaced and new writers brought in etc. so it shouldnt be a big surprise I the writing still isnt as clean and tight as it should be.

But a few of the biggest issues with season 1 may have been solved.

1) a solid character in Pike that I can relate to and might want to be

2) a lighter atmosphere that would make me want to actually be on that ship.