I went into DISCO very much anticipating a new Star Trek series and thinking it was so ridiculous that so many fans were shooting it down before we had a chance to see anything. I understood that things were going to look different from what came before no matter the time period; even science-fiction TV production has to make concessions to that thing called "real life". When most of the writing staff has never worked on Star Trek before, I knew they were going to have a take on it that would be unique. What it gets down to is, I was willing to give DISCO a chance to prove itself.
I bailed after six episodes.
If I thought DISCO was just a bad show, I would at least have the pleasure of ripping it to shreds. For me, DISCO is a frustrating show. So many components of the show were so weak, and yet there were moments that would tease that a better version of the show could be done than what we were seeing onscreen.
With the exception of Lorca (and perhaps what was going on with Stamets), none of the characters were interesting, particularly Burnham. She is our nominal heroine, but is not a compelling character. The show really wants us to invest in Burnham emotionally, but everything about her exists solely to advance the plot, such that she's more of a plot device than a character. I also feel like she should be more obviously troubled by her upbringing; what consequence does an emotionally traumatized child suffer under the rigors of Vulcan discipline? So much of that seemed brushed aside expect when it was plot-convenient. To give credit where it's due, Jason Isaacs makes Lorca a thoroughly captivating character, and Anthony Rapp started to make me care about Stamets when I disliked him at first. Also, Mary Chieffo is able to overcome being hamstrung by heavy makeup and can emote well through it.
The plots were nothing to write home about, though. The Klingon War was boring and going nowhere. It never seemed particularly consequential, because they rarely really showed us the consequences. It was a war two galactic powers were fighting, but was largely offscreen. With Burnham being so dull a character, I wasn't really investing in her story arc, either. I sometimes found myself wishing they would kill her off and put an interesting character in her place. I didn't stick around long enough to see the Mirror Universe stuff; personally, I've always thought the MU was overrated at best. When I saw pictures of the Mirror uniforms online, I laughed and thought, "oh, come on". Ash turning out to be Voq was so obvious, I knew it when I quit watching, and it still took a few episodes for the "shocking" reveal.
...
So, as much as it may seem to contradict my earlier statement, I don't particularly like ripping this show because I want it to be good. In light of what I've written, from one Trekkie to others, I have to ask:
Should I give Star Trek: Discovery another chance?
Tell me if I should or shouldn't and why or why not.
I bailed after six episodes.
If I thought DISCO was just a bad show, I would at least have the pleasure of ripping it to shreds. For me, DISCO is a frustrating show. So many components of the show were so weak, and yet there were moments that would tease that a better version of the show could be done than what we were seeing onscreen.
With the exception of Lorca (and perhaps what was going on with Stamets), none of the characters were interesting, particularly Burnham. She is our nominal heroine, but is not a compelling character. The show really wants us to invest in Burnham emotionally, but everything about her exists solely to advance the plot, such that she's more of a plot device than a character. I also feel like she should be more obviously troubled by her upbringing; what consequence does an emotionally traumatized child suffer under the rigors of Vulcan discipline? So much of that seemed brushed aside expect when it was plot-convenient. To give credit where it's due, Jason Isaacs makes Lorca a thoroughly captivating character, and Anthony Rapp started to make me care about Stamets when I disliked him at first. Also, Mary Chieffo is able to overcome being hamstrung by heavy makeup and can emote well through it.
The plots were nothing to write home about, though. The Klingon War was boring and going nowhere. It never seemed particularly consequential, because they rarely really showed us the consequences. It was a war two galactic powers were fighting, but was largely offscreen. With Burnham being so dull a character, I wasn't really investing in her story arc, either. I sometimes found myself wishing they would kill her off and put an interesting character in her place. I didn't stick around long enough to see the Mirror Universe stuff; personally, I've always thought the MU was overrated at best. When I saw pictures of the Mirror uniforms online, I laughed and thought, "oh, come on". Ash turning out to be Voq was so obvious, I knew it when I quit watching, and it still took a few episodes for the "shocking" reveal.
...
So, as much as it may seem to contradict my earlier statement, I don't particularly like ripping this show because I want it to be good. In light of what I've written, from one Trekkie to others, I have to ask:
Should I give Star Trek: Discovery another chance?
Tell me if I should or shouldn't and why or why not.
