Spoilers Star Trek: Discovery 5x07 - "Erigah"

The movie or the show?

 

Another rather boring episode... Had high hopes after episodes 1 and 2. Discovery really knows how to suck the life out of an interesting premise... Such a shame.

 

It wasn't the size of a planet, more like "Earth Space Dock", but turned horizontal and flying right at you at Warp Speed.

We saw how "Earth Space Dock" was able to hold off many Borg-ified StarFleet Starships in ST:PIC.S3 finale, for nearly an hour.

Now imagine if one of those were flying at you.

Now update that with Tech for the 32nd Century Breen.

 

If you take the scripted excuse at face value. But the reason it exists is for the needs of the plot.

I've said before I'm a Doylist, not a Watsonian. I don't really care about in-universe explanations of things, I think about writerly intent.

 

If that's the case, everything is for the need of the plot. Why does Khan recognize Chekov? Plot. Why is Decker related to the commodore from Doomsday machine? Plot.

You can dissect something down to nothingness with the Doylist perspective. Hell, I don't really watch Indiana Jones anymore because I did a deep dive from a Doylist side of that and found it lacking.

 

I'm very much a person more interested in character than plot, as I think I've said before. I'm fine with plot contrivances within reason, but if they're not balanced out by deep characters making choices consistent with their established traits, it doesn't add up to a compelling story.

I think Moll and La'k act pretty much in alignment with their characterization here (though I wish we had more time with them). However, I think the protagonists really catch the idiot ball multiple times across the A-plot to excuse things rolling forward.

 

I continue to be amazed at how simple stab wounds are so lethal to 32nd century medical science.

 

As a goo-based lifeform, I guess a stab anywhere into a Breen can be fatal, with all their goo getting out.

 

A tense heartfelt episode with a good pace. There's a real satisfaction in the problem-solving both diplomatically and technologically, the episode again channeling TNG with a Picard worthy quote about teaching negotiation.

I think some of information discovered in the clue-finding isn't hard to find out on their own but is being solved because they have unique people in on the problem, including Book, Stamets, Adira and even Zora who provides a key link for further investigation.

I'm also enjoying the tragic story of L'ak and Moll, though I expected him to die there seems to be a chance of a reset button style revival? It's the final possibility that provides the incentive for Moll to give up the info on the Progenitor's tech.

After having seen this version of the Breen and this huge dreadnought (why are adversary ships always so much more powerful???)I really don't want them having any new weapons.

The Breen are impressive but mostly single-minded in a mustache twirling way so far. L'ak made them more interesting so I hope there is more to them in the resolution.

DS9 and Voyager rears it's head again. We're going to the Badlands. I thought: that looks like an upgraded Badlands effect, and sure enough, yes it was. Cool.

A 9 out of 10.

 

It's an alien species they have no knowledge of.

 

Putting aside how impossibly bad writing that is given the Federation would have recovered Breen bodies and captured Breen prisoners during the Dominion War.

It's been long proven that the basic Federation Medical tech that can cure simple things like stab wounds works irrespective of how well known a species biology is. (TNG, DS9, and VOY all showed us this.)

It's only when you get into stuff that has weird effects or cellular disruption abilities that a species biology actually starts to matter.

 

Yeah, sorry, if people are expecting Star Trek to make perfect sense, especially when it comes with past knowledge. No, I would not expect them to know things about things, no matter how logical.

Same with Klingons, yet physiology is still being learned about in TUC, in TNG, and such. Trek is not this consistent monolithic database and uses technology as appropriate to the plot, not the other way around.

 

Ugh.. shaky cam most of the episode..

Writing is still mediocre.. but with some good stuff ocasionally. Especially Reno.

 

Basic Klingon anatomy changed in those 142 years, or did you forget the augment virus?

 

Yes.

Some of these Federation ships are approaching a mile long. This dreadnought is bigger than a regular Borg cube.

Also some of the scale of these Starfleet ships in VFX is off but that's not unusual in Star Trek.

 

They might want to consider "Stab Proof" textiles to make their suits out of, that is a thing with current 21st century materials.
It should be much better in the 32nd century.

 

Possibly but there's never really indication they recovered any Breen and even if they tried the Breen would probably not allow it. So there's no break with any established "Canon" here.