A new news article has been published at TrekToday: Now that the Star Trek: Discovery finale has aired, fans are waiting for news about the second season and hints of what... Continue reading...
This is a really effin disturbing article. While I'd expect Harberts and Berg to be evasive because they don't want to give anything away, it makes it legit sound like they don't know where the season is going, despite filming purportedly starting in April. Especially troubling is this. I don't think he's wrong about what Discovery has been, but the idea that a "story about detours" is a good thing is just mind-boggling. It's how we ended up with a first season which seemed like a series of prologues to a story that never happened - an endless shaggy dog story. At some point Discovery needs to actually start *telling* us something.
From "The Menagerie": MCCOY: What's his problem, Commodore? MENDEZ: Inspection tour of a cadet vessel. Old Class J starship. One of the baffle plates ruptured. MCCOY: The delta rays? MENDEZ: He went in bringing out all those kids that were still alive. Just wanted you gentlemen to be prepared. I wonder -- will a Class J starship figure into Season 2?
Not sure what the problem is. A detour can tell us as much as a straight line. Some of the best Trek stories have been built around detours.
Maybe it'll be this X-J class, captained by a familiar face: http://www.exclusively-jaguar.co.uk/sponsors/xj-restorations/sir-patrick-stewarts-xj-s/
Just adding another post: I want EVERYONE to read this excerpt from the interview, particularly those who are convinced this is a reboot, or an alternate timeline, or who thing just because the JJ production crew said the Enterprise was 750m long it *must* be: “We don’t want to spoil anything. But it’s certainly time to get the audience understanding that we fully intend to respect the original series and respect where Discovery falls in that. " So, yeah. Prime timeline, yo.
Agreed. How many times has has there been 'in route to' or 'while fill in the blank ' at the beginning of an episode? When looked at it that way, a large percentage of episodes has been built from detours. Knowing how to do it properly is another thing though.
I don't read what eschaton quoted as necessarily meaning the whole season will be about detours. It may just be an answer to whether Discovery will be picking up their new captain immediately. Perhaps Discovery and Enterprise have to carry out a joint mission in the first episode or two which kicks off whatever season-long arc may be planned for season two. Then the new captain comes aboard in episode three or four as the story is picking up. I'm just hoping for story-telling that's a little tighter and more focused than we got in season one.
The problem is this is at least suggestive to me of the shit "mystery box" writing that has become way too common in the post-Lost TV world. The idea that having a clear narrative direction isn't needed, because you can endlessly complicate your story with new twists and developments. Then, all to often, the conclusion is limp and flaccid - just like the end of Season 1 of Discovery. IMHO for Season 2, either the writers should have a much clearer plan, or abandon plot serialization entirely for stories of the week with ongoing character development. Otherwise I expect many of the first season's missteps will repeat themselves.
I would like to see the captain's position as being something like the Spinal Tap drummer job. It's a quick death sentence for always different but bizarre reasons, and Saru keeps having to stand in as captain.
I don't mind detours. That's the way things really are. You think they're heading in one direction, doing one thing and suddenly something happens that disrupts that. That should be the case in fiction and it is at times. That makes it easier to believe the world we're being shown is alive. Other things are taking place and they can and will impact the characters we're following. It's why I'm glad the Discovery ended up in the Mirror universe and when they came back time had passed. The world/universe kept moving forward and changing. I don't like it when characters are the center of a universe. It should be changed independent of them and as much as their actions impact things so too should they be impacted and at random times. It's part of why the Phavo story doesn't bother me to much. That was just dropped and dropped because of other things that took place that ended up being more important.
once again, you're absolutely correct. discovery played game of thrones-lite with the whole "who will take the captain's chair?" thru-line of season 1. i had hoped season 2 would finally give us our captain, find a groove, and start being what it's going to be.
To find a silver lining I'm hpapy well have captain Saru for a bit as I'd rather him be the captain, I'm happy they are going to explore pike and happy they are still planning "something" with Culber. Though I wish they'd have addressed the green spore thingamabob.
I wouldn't worry too much (at least not yet) about the "story about detours" thing. That's just the sort of meaningless sentence an interviewee throws in so he can seem to be answering the question without actually giving any information away. Meanwhile... Context is everything, though. Harberts says that's important by way of answering "questions about Burnham in regards to the notion of Sarek and Spock’s family," and follows up by saying "To do that, we have to show the Enterprise and at least have these ships cross paths"... which they've literally already done, no matter what happens next. The way your quoted sentence is framed is also revealing... as if it's the fault of the audience for thinking the show doesn't jibe with TOS, rather than anything the show has done contributing to that perception. I certainly hope how they treat Pike and the Enterprise lives up to what they're saying about respect... they can make all the sincere-sounding statements they like, but ultimately it's what's on screen that matters.
Too bad Ed Begley Jr, Russ Kunkel, and Ric Parnell are all in their later 60s. That's probably a bit too old to be a captain of a medium-sized ship like the Discovery.