Spoilers Bonus scene from Season One Finale

[Tim Thomason]

It would make more sense for Lorca to ascend to the Captaincy of Discovery if he had actually had help from a super-secret cabal or whatever who could twist arms and maneuver him into that position. As it stands, there were too many plotholes in Lorca's backstory without assistance in this universe.

I assume that Landry was Lorca's 31 contact. I will also assume, until shown otherwise, that the Black Badge represents Starfleet Special Forces or something (and 31 just routinely recruits/infiltrates them), and Burnham knows this, but didn't bother explaining it to her convict companions.

 

[Tuskin38]

"It's a retcon."

Which still has 100 years to be explained

I didn’t have a problem with it after I realized that.

 

[fireproof78]

This entire thread basicly proofs to me that fandoms suck..... I'll just stick to watching the show, and not discussing it. Seems more fun really.

This is Star Trek. Not fun!

 

[Lord Garth]

What's going to get real annoying (actually, it already has) are the over-reactions whenever there's something from somewhere else. (DS9 itself was an outgrowth of things for TNG. VOY's entire backstory was set up in TNG and DS9.) Or the over-reactions when it looks like Season 2 expand on Season 1.

Is there anyone who didn't like DSC who thought the show would suddenly do a 180 and become more like what they would prefer? The only difference between S1 and S2 will be that, without all the behind-the-scenes drama, the second season will become a better-oiled version of what it was.

This is the Series. This is what it is. I like the series and I understand if other people don't but exclaiming "Oh my God! Discovery is being Discovery!!!!" makes no sense.

All I have time for Today. I'll be videotaping some musicians today (it's gonna kick ass and take names), hanging out afterwards, and won't have time to argue any of this until tomorrow. I wanted to get it off my chest now. If someone else wants to pick up the slack for me, go ahead. You have my proxy.

 

[Tuskin38]

What's going to get real annoying (actually, it already has) are the over-reactions whenever there's something from somewhere else. (DS9 itself was an outgrowth of things for TNG. VOY's entire backstory was set up in TNG and DS9.) Or the over-reactions when it looks like Season 2 expand on Season 1.

Is there anyone who didn't like DSC who thought the show would suddenly do a 180 and become more like what they would prefer? The only difference between S1 and S2 will be that, without all the behind-the-scenes drama, the second season will become a better-oiled version of what it was.

This is the Series. This is what it is. I like the series and I understand if other people don't but exclaiming "Oh my God! Discovery is being Discovery!!!!" makes no sense.

All I have time for Today. I'll be videotaping some musicians today (it's gonna kick ass and take names), hanging out afterwards, and won't have time to argue any of this until tomorrow. I wanted to get it off my chest now. If someone else wants to pick up the slack for me, go ahead. You have my proxy.

According to the WonderCon panel Season 2 will be more 'trekky'. It won't be dark because there is no war. Exploration, new worlds and all that.

But it will still be character driven.

 

[fireproof78]

According to the WonderCon panel Season 2 will be more 'trekky'. It won't be dark because there is no war. Exploration, new worlds and all that.

But it will still be character driven.

How dare they!

 

[Mage]

This is Star Trek. Not fun!

The thing is though, as much as I see how you make that comment as a joke (as one should) to many people here actually think like that. And that's just plain silly.

 

[fireproof78]

The thing is though, as much as I see how you make that comment as a joke (as one should) to many people here actually think like that. And that's just plain silly.

The best jokes are based in reality

 

[Locutus of Bored]

I have nothing against using Section 31, but to have a supposedly secret organisation wear their own badges so you can identify them everywhere seems stupid at best.

If you leave aside the instances where Admiral Marcus or Luther Sloan wore their conventional Starfleet uniforms (and even those incorporated black and grey in the times we saw them), Section 31 maintains a fairly consistent color scheme of solid or accented black or dark grey outfits —though sometimes with a lighter color in the chest and midsection, like on their USS Vengeance uniforms— across three centuries. They also do a lot of trenchcoats and faux leather tunics, and even the black sleeves, chest panels, and raised collars of the Vengeance uniforms kind of give them a trenchcoat look, albeit cut off at the waist.

While not specifically a spy practice, there is some precedent for undercover and plain-clothes police officers to wear a particular "Color of the Day" in order to prevent friendly fire incidents or accidentally arresting an undercover cop during a bust if they're not prepared for that to happen. Of course, wearing similar colors for three hundred years kind of cancels out the effectiveness of such programs, but if one suspends their disbelief a bit maybe that's part of the rationale for the black/grey uniform colors and the black badges, besides looking intimidating.

Starfleet personnel of insufficient rank probably just assume the black badges are some special forces or Starfleet Intelligence unit they don't have need-to-know clearance for and thus avoid asking too many questions lest they get reprimanded.

(click to enlarge)

 

[Discofan]

I wonder why they left that scene out of the episode?

 

[Rahul]

Wow. A bonus scene released a month and a half after the season ends finally tackles the Black Badges. I'm kind of surprised at all the negative reactions going on in this thread. Given all the fanwank that's already gone on in the first season, did anyone seriously not expect Section 31 to ever show up?

"It's a retcon."

I think that's the problem:
NOBODY liked the fanwank in Season 1. Not even the people actually liking Discovery so far.
But, alas, it seems the creators have decided to double down on it, and go full fanwank on season 2.

Holding my breath for season 3, when they finally realize they need to retool the entire show, and actually getting better by doing their own stuff. It's kind of a tradition with modern Trek shows at this point...

 

[fireproof78]

NOBODY liked the fanwank in Season 1. Not even the people actually liking Discovery so far.

Here to break your curve.

 

[lawman]

They are wrong of course. ... They are the types of assholes that ran the secret U.S. torutre program, and still run the drone assasination program on countries they deem as "barbaric". ... But there are SO. MANY. PEOPLE. agreeing with this kind of logic - just look at how many Americans still try to defend the torture of muslims as a viable way to fight extremism - even in our "civilised", well educated western world. This topic is SO current, this "protecting the innocent by doing shady-stuff"-thinking needs to be thoroughly evaulated, debated and debunked. I just don't trust the current writing team to be capable to think such a plotline through to the end...

You're right on both counts. Yes, of course Section 31's ethos is wrong and self-defeating. But the problem with using it in the show is that unless the writing is incredibly sophisticated, a lot of people in the audience will wind up agreeing with it nevertheless. And I don't trust this show to deliver writing on that level. The story's theme will wind up at odds with itself.

 

[Dijeirusan]

I wonder why they left that scene out of the episode?

Because it'd only fit at the every end, and they probably wanted the final scene to be the Enterprise shot, and not have a time jump to when this scene takes place, which is likely a few months after Georgiou escapes.

I don't think it was ever shot to be part of the episode, and was always a bonus scene. I wouldn't be surprised if there are more of the coming between now and Season 2.

 

[Dijeirusan]

Viacom? They don’t exist anymore. They haven’t since 2006

Um... Are you bring serious or joking?

 

[fireproof78]

You're right on both counts. Yes, of course Section 31's ethos is wrong and self-defeating. But the problem with using it in the show is that unless the writing is incredibly sophisticated, a lot of people in the audience will wind up agreeing with it nevertheless. And I don't trust this show to deliver writing on that level. The story's theme will wind up at odds with itself.

That honestly sounds like less trust in the audience than the writers.

 

[BillJ]

Fanwank it until it is raw. Seems to be all these writers know how to do.

 

[Dijeirusan]

I love synonyms.

The difference is this doesn't seem like it was deleted from the episode. Chronologically it seems to be set after the final scene of the finale and presumably also after what will be the beginning of Season 2 too, if that picks up immediately after the cliffhanger.

I imagine before they struck down the Season 1 Klingon homeworld set, they wanted to film Georgiou being recruited by Section 31, so they filmed this. It's being presented to us as a bonus scene, but it'll probably appear in the Season 2 premiere, when it's set.

This isn't that rare in TV shows or franchise movies. Smallville used to film scenes for season premieres alongside the previous season's finale, when they'd have the same set pieces and cast.

 

[EnderAKH]

This is Star Trek. Not fun!

Star Trek. Serious shit.

 

[Dijeirusan]

Fanwank it until it is raw. Seems to be all these writers know how to do.

What's fanwank about it? We saw Section 31 in the first episode of the show. It's hardly a new revelation.