The TV Series discussion thread

I find it much easier to enjoy Discovery if I pretend it isn't a Trek show. That way, all the silly people and choices that they make seem more in line with non-Trek shows. On the other hand, I'm totally willing to watch a show completely based on Klingons, and from their perspective. Some of Discovery seems to clearly reference the novel Final Reflection, I've not read the book in twenty years but I'm dead certain the Klingon beliefs of the Black Fleet come right from that novel.

They are to be commended for naming their tardigrade monster "Ripper", but I'm still not feeling it. I don't think the writing and performances are remotely in same league as BSG or the better Star Treks.

It is hard to make such a comparison now, but I would be surprised if Discovery ever even entered into a realm of being compared to the likes of such masterpieces as Deep Space Nine or Galactica. Right now I'd say it's struggling to compete against Enterprise or Voyager, and that's just plot comparisons, the Discovery characters are downright awful.

There is hope though, in the final few minutes of the most recent episode, when Michael opens the gift left to her. Now, let's see if that advice actually resonates and sticks with her, because her former captain gave her almost the exact same mentoring during the pilot and was promptly ignored.

Once again, should this show fail, I'm all on board to watch a Klingon show. It could be like Hannibal, except less tame and way more aggressive.

Originally Posted by booboo
Haven't watched the Orville yet, although a friend suggested I give it a whirl. That and The Tick, which I missed. I enjoy a bit of light-hearted tomfoolery

If you do watch it do what I do, I don't approach it as a comedy, because it is not, I approach it as a space exploration show that happens to have comedic parts. I would say the show is Star Trek 75/Comedy 25 (Maybe more like 80/20)

Originally Posted by JDR13
I just finished watching the first two episodes, and I'm not impressed.

Besides the Klingons looking ridiculous (imo), they also seem a lot dumber than I remember. I always thought of them as extremely aggressive yet cunning at the same time. These ones seem to be missing the cunning.

The Michael Burnham character doesn't resonate much with me. I liked Sonequa Martin-Green in TWD, but she's simply ok in this role. Way too emotional for someone supposedly raised by Vulcans.

…

There was also one part in the 2nd episode that I found particularly nonsensical…

Spoiler

When Burnham and the captain transported to the Klingon vessel to attempt to capture T'Kuvma. We're supposed to believe that the captain and the first officer, both who are female, would attempt that by themselves with no additional backup whatsoever? Eh…sure.

I could not agree with you more. The stuff you put in spoiler was the exact same thought I was having when it happened.
And the main character irritates me, though I can't explain why. She just seems all over the place and contrived.

Anyway, only watched the first 2 so far, hopefully it improves.

Originally Posted by Carnifex
It is hard to make such a comparison now, but I would be surprised if Discovery ever even entered into a realm of being compared to the likes of such masterpieces as Deep Space Nine or Galactica. Right now I'd say it's struggling to compete against Enterprise or Voyager, and that's just plot comparisons, the Discovery characters are downright awful.

I wouldn't exactly call BSG a masterpiece. I thought the first two seasons were excellent, but the 3rd & 4th seasons were nowhere near as good. If they had been able to maintain the writing and overall quality over the course of the entire series, it would have been among my all-time favorites.

I really need to get around to watching all of DS9 one of these days. I watched the first couple of seasons way back then but lost interest because I did't think it compared to TNG. I hear the later seasons is where it's at.

I've actually been trying to get back into BSG. Originally, I stopped watching somewhere in late season 2 - or possibly 3. Coincidentally, my interest in it has been waning once again at pretty much the same point. There's just so much drama centered around the same handful of characters over and over again. Just how many times do father-son issues need to be brought up anyway?

Plus the attempt at a metaphysical analysis of cylons bores me when its done in such a haphazard, hamfisted, and episodic manner.

But, I'm determined to keep watching! Just to say I did if nothing else?

Originally Posted by Drithius
There's just so much drama centered around the same handful of characters over and over again.

I find that to be true for most if not all (modern?) drama series. I remember having had the exact same feeling at some point in Breaking Bad. I'd usually call it drama for drama's sake.

Originally Posted by Arhu
I find that to be true for most if not all (modern?) drama series. I remember having had the exact same feeling at some point in Breaking Bad. I'd usually call it drama for drama's sake.

In our household, we say when the show get to the . . . What hijinks are they up to now phase. . . we tune out. We also tuned out of Breaking Bad early. And House of Cards (American Version), was just too much drama. I shoulda never watched the British version first.

Originally Posted by Ripper
Not so much the generalisations, but more the number of plots that revolve around "Make the Klingons/Cardassians/Bajorans/Dominion/Breen/Borg/Romulans/Kazon/Tholians/JemHadar/Vidians/Species 8472/Gorn/ etc great again!"

ST has been an ideological pamphlet since beginning. It was about showing how to deal with the red menace.

Like utopias in the past, it does not conceive achieving certain situations without tremendous means.
The ST utopia put an end to poverty through non believable means like teleportation and synthetization. Without those means, it would not have been possible.

The chant of human kind able to overcome the physical world and the only path for it to deal with the so called human nature.

Originally Posted by Carnifex
I find it much easier to enjoy Discovery if I pretend it isn't a Trek show. That way, all the silly people and choices that they make seem more in line with non-Trek shows.

ST is such a soup it can connect to mostly anything. STD so far has done nothing new that could not be found in previous iterations.
Apart from telling that ST shows were not ST ( a common consequence of living in a double standard governed world), this one is as much ST as others were in the past.

Originally Posted by ChienAboyeur
ST has been an ideological pamphlet since beginning. It was about showing how to deal with the red menace.

No.
ST was a pamphlet, but it was about presenting humans better than they actually are.
Although I'm ST fan, gimme Jodorowsky's humanity depiction where everyone's rotten over ST any day.

Note that ST has a mirror universe. To me episodes happen there are the best ones as those feel more real than the "official" ST setting.

Season 3 of Mr. Robot starts tonight.

Two more weeks…


Stanger Things.jpg

Krill, another The Orville episode I watch, another The Orville episode I love. Interestingly, the critics/audience review scores in Rotten Tomatoes couldn't be more diametrically opposed:


Consider me square in the 91% side.

Originally Posted by JDR13
Two more weeks…
Attachment 3068

yep counting the days

Anyway watched Missions, some french tv series about traveling to Mars, was pretty good, story developed good, not your hollywood bullshit; its also short, 10 episodes of around 20 minutes each.

Currently watching 3%, a brazilian show with a very interesting premise, almost finished it.

Rainn Wilson was excellent as Harry Mudd in the latest episode of Discovery. It was an interesting casting decision for sure, but I thought he pulled it off with flying colors. I wouldn't have even recognized him had I not read about it beforehand.

I'm still not sold on Discovery as being a good ST series, but that episode wasn't bad.

That Tyler dude that they brought back to Discovery is likely a Klingon in disguise. He won't be on the ship for long though I'm sure, as the people in charge will certainly want to debrief him thoroughly, after which he'll probably be reassigned to somewhere where he can be easily watched. Wait, that's far too logical for this show, he'll probably just stay on Discovery and no one will ask why or anything till stuff starts dying or blowing up.

Strangely, though I still don't think The Orville works that well, either as comedy or drama, for some mysterious reason I'm starting to find it strangely likeable. I can kind of understand the disparity between the critics and the fans.

As for Stranger Things, I'm looking forward to it, but slightly concerned that they'll balls it up. I actually thought the effort to leave it open for a second series was the weakest thing about it. In a way, I wish they'd drawn a line under it and called it a win.

Originally Posted by Ripper
As for Stranger Things, I'm looking forward to it, but slightly concerned that they'll balls it up.

I have the same concern after seeing the latest trailer. There was so much action, I half expected Arnold Schwarzenegger to show up at some point.