Discovery tackles current political divide

Well, some of it is because that show lets a little of the hot air out of the currently overinflated Trek balloon.

 

This is supposed to pretty openly explore the political divide in the USA, which means I'll be comparing it to House of Cards and The Handmaid's Tale, instead of thirty and fifty year old episodes of Star Trek. Or The Orville.

 

It's fine to criticize The Orville, but you have a tendency to turn everything up to eleven once you find a new hobby horse to rail on about, and I've already seen you using it as your new chosen weapon to bludgeon other posters over the head with if they don't meet your standards for fan purity, implying that if they like it that means they don't like to think or they're not discerning enough and so forth. It then crosses the line from being impersonal commentary about a TV show to being a derogatory personal remark about another poster. Stop that. It's especially obvious that you're reaching when the poster didn't even mention The Orville and you bring it up out of the blue, something you've already done a couple of times today.

While I don't agree with the poster that current politics and social commentary would be better off being left out of modern TV shows, and especially ones like Star Trek where such commentary was built into the premise since the beginning, you could have made that point without the condescending dig at his expense.

ETA: What Emilia the Ninja Mod said, too.

 

I saw a piece the other day - interestingly enough, I believe it was part of a review of The Orville - where the author made the point that a Trek type "future/other era" show is intrinsically among the most political types of shows. The reasoning is that the producers are creating an entire world and to some extent explaining how it works, and that reflects the way they think this world works or ought to work - and that is unavoidably political.

 

There's other aspect to the Human condition, the Human adventure, than just politics.

 

Just a humorous response to the wise Ass remarks made in the other direction. Mine are more accurate though.

 

Depends on how subtle the framing of political reference is. If it's so blatantly making parallels to current political figures then that will spoil some of the escapism. There's a reason there is a divide and taking sides can alienate.

 

If they are open and even handed about it, then fine. But, I am hoping we've moved past the "Let that be your last Battlefield" "Omega Glory" "Undiscovered Country" and on and on level of subtlety

 

Even handed? That would be a first.

 

Wny would I want them to be even-handed? The show reflects the writers experiences in life, which are seldom even-handed.

 

We really do not need the sort of 'even handedness' that Trump uses. Some things (like the nazis!) are just bad and it is fine to say it.

 

Their experiences and/or beliefs. Beliefs that may or may not be based on their experiences.

Nothing wrong in people saying their piece. Freedom of speech either is or is not and there's a lot that's been out out in the last couple of years alone that I don't think people have even glanced at. Anyway, freedom of choice is what we have, freedom from choice is what some want and they believe they will like it - until it affects them. But refocusing: We know Nazis are bad, look at what they did in the 1930s and 1940s. We know terrorists are bad, look at what they've done for several decades now. We know that people videoed on the streets screaming there will be blood on the streets are act not too different than terrorists or Nazis, for which even some of the MSM admits Antifa are on a similar level to the Nazis as well...? Though who needed to read those when plenty of unedited videos on youtube spell out how ironic Antifa is?

 

I hope the show tackles the issues of today but I also hope it has something worth saying and doesn't just repeat stuff, that as a liberal I am going to agree with 90% of the time, anyway. Also one issue is that if you do a true allegory then that means someone has to find some way to try and validate Trump and his mindset or your just going to have cliche assholes as your bad guys which sounds kind of lame.

Also it would be nice if we saw a vast array of issues explored. Their is tons of stuff going on this world from the war on imigrants to gay rights to class warfare to climate change to gun control etc. Trek has done issues in the past but they also spread them out and done more than a single issue a season. The issue of isolation and being at war with people who is different does seem to have been done quite abit already from "Supergirl" to "American Horror Story" this season. Which brings up the issue of what do you do when a issue goes from feeling like it's edgy and daring to feeling like it's a cliche?

I think that is going to be a huge huddle and frankly I have my doubts it will be able to top shows like "American Horror Story" and "House of Cards." So what exactly will "Discovery" do to make it feel like it is saying something new on the issues? That is one of the questions I am most curious to find out and see if they can do it.

Jason

 

It would be a way of presenting both sides as having a point, and then for the writers to explore their experiences or preferences. Even handed doesn't mean "both sides are right." Even handed is presenting both sides as having a point, even if there is disagreement.

 

Yeah, I'm hoping for regular-sized hands.

 

Sometimes one side doesn't have a point.

 

Well everyone has a reason for doing and thinking the things they do. They got to have some kind of objective they want even if it's nothing more than making themselves feel better about themselves by creating a feeling of power through fear. Besides were talking fiction so you got to give them some kind of depth or reason beyond "pure evil" or they aren't going to make for very good characters.

Jason

 

Attitudes like this is why I want to keep politics out of my TV now. There is no discussion between right/left anymore. If you aren't on the left you are labeled a Nazi and discussion is shut down. I don't need another TV show telling me I am horrible and evil because I have viewpoints that don't match those in Hollywood. I can get that by tuning into CNN or reading the Washington Post. I would like an hour or so of TV with some nice fantasy escapism.

If you are going to throw some allegory at me then at least make it thought provoking and different. Not just more bashing those on the right.

Already if the Klingons are bad guys and Klingons = America then I don't see much hope this show will appeal to me. I actually hope I am wrong but Hollywood is prone to let me down.

 

I don't think the idea is so much that the Klingons are outright "bad guys." It's more that they are a sovereign political power trying to resist what they perceive as the threat of Federation expansionism. Apparently it's one of the Starfleet protagonists who does the wrong thing and sets off a war of some kind. Since the same Klingons will be regular characters, we can expect lots of exploration of their side of the whole issue.

Kor