Magic to Make the Sanest...confirmed "bottle episode"

[eschaton]

So I was looking at IO9's coverage of the Berg/Harberts firing, and I saw this article from earlier in the week. Apparently Harberts confirmed in it that the primary reason Magic to Make the Sanest Man Go Mad happened was they were overbudget and needed to have a cheap episode. In retrospect, it makes sense. It only used standing sets, had relatively little CGI (aside from the gormagander) and no guest stars other than Rainn Wilson.

 

[Lord Garth]

I thought it was clear as Mudd.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Now if only they'd explain why Starfleet let Mudd go, I'd be happy.

 

[F. King Daniel]

Now if only they'd explain why Starfleet let Mudd go, I'd be happy.

Because it's the same universe as TOS (*wink wink wink wink*), so no matter what a character does, it'll all be reset to TOS-compatibility by the end. Continuity > all other concerns. Except for anything in any way visual or thematic.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Maybe Starfleet reasoned that being married to Stella was worse punishment for Mudd than anything they could dole out...

 

[Jinn]

Maybe Starfleet reasoned that being married to Stella was worse punishment for Mudd than anything they could dole out...

Or they captured the ship he left on five minutes after the episode ended, a long trial ensued, due to the time travel stuff nothing could be proven and he was let go?

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

For her part, Stella "in the flesh" wasn't the shrill harpy she was in TOS. She actually did seem to care for Harry.

Although that's easily explainable - the Stella from TOS was an android built by Mudd. Of course he'd build it using his own prejudices and biases.

 

[KennyB]

You lost me at i09...………….

 

[Kytee]

I like bottle episodes, it's interesting to see what the writers can come up with when faced with budget constraints. I think Rainn Wilson really nailed the part, I hope we see more of him in the future. This specific episode had some great character moments and I liked how it kept repeating , but changing enough in each iteration that the story moved forward.

 

[Kane_Steel]

I love bottle episodes if done in a creative way, but I HATED this one because of how lazy it was.

Time Crystals? ....Is this CW Supergirl? Or Power Rangers? So lazy.

It didn't even build up mystery or suspense the same way the TNG time loop episode did.

It felt very much like an S2 Enterprise episode in quality. A lazy rehashed concept. Even the Mudd 'fanservice' was really awkward, and out of character.

 

[Michael]

I like bottle episodes, it's interesting to see what the writers can come up with when faced with budget constraints. I think Rainn Wilson really nailed the part, I hope we see more of him in the future. This specific episode had some great character moments and I liked how it kept repeating , but changing enough in each iteration that the story moved forward.

Agreed. In retrospect ”Magic ...“ surely was one of the better episodes of season one. I liked the self-contained quality of it, and the humor.

 

[Hythlodeus]

some of the best Trek episodes were bottle episodes

 

[Mudd]

Oh, some of the best Trek episodes in history are bottle shows.

I mean, come on - the "bottle" they're in is a fucking space ship. That's pretty interesting right there.

 

[gblews]

Wow, a bottle episode in DSC's first season, nominated for a Peabody Award. I don't think that's ever happened to any of the other spins. In fact, I doubt it's happened to any other space opera show.

 

[Tosk]

Maybe not (TNG's first season ep "The Big Goodbye" won a Peabody, but it'd be hard to try and call that a bottle show), but in my opinion there are other first season bottle shows more deserving of recognition than "Magic".

 

[Awesome Possum]

There's nothing wrong with bottle episodes. Especially ones that focus on character building and use very familiar tropes in unique ways.

 

[CaptainMurdock]

Best episode of Season 1 in my book. Rainn Wilson did Mudd justice. I would have loved to seen more Mudd/Lorca banter in season 2. They had great chemistry with one another.

 

[F. King Daniel]

I love bottle episodes if done in a creative way, but I HATED this one because of how lazy it was.

Time Crystals? ....Is this CW Supergirl? Or Power Rangers? So lazy.

And what are dilithium crystals if not warp crystals?

Would the story have been improved if they'd named them after a random plucking from this chart?

 

[MacLeod]

some of the best Trek episodes were bottle episodes

And some of the worst, "Shades of Grey". But in this case is was a fairly decent episode

 

[Agony_Boothb]

I love bottle episodes if done in a creative way, but I HATED this one because of how lazy it was.

Time Crystals? ....Is this CW Supergirl? Or Power Rangers? So lazy.

It didn't even build up mystery or suspense the same way the TNG time loop episode did.

It felt very much like an S2 Enterprise episode in quality. A lazy rehashed concept. Even the Mudd 'fanservice' was really awkward, and out of character.

I think the Time Crystals were supposed to be based off this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_crystal

Regardless, how is it any more lazy than any of the half-baked technobabble devices in other series?