Spoilers Star Trek: Discovery 2x01 - "Brother"

[Burning Hearts of Qo'nos]

Wouldn't Burnham wearing Vulcan styles be cultural appropriation?

As with most things, I'd say cultural appropriation is something that is dependent on context. If she is wearing the Vulcan styles as a celebration of Vulcan culture, using the style in an appropriate manner to the intention of the culture, then no. Will some Vulcans roll their eyes at her? Probably. Should she give a shit? No. If she is wearing a slutty Vulcan priestess outfit (which unknowingly copies its design from a funerary robe because no research was put into it) for a frat party, then yes....as well as tacky. Unless its like...cosplay for Vulcan Love Slave at a con...then at that point I don't know anymore. No?

 

[Gonzo]

Watched the episode earlier, marked improvement on last season, the dialogue is better and less forced, they toned down the sanctimonious crap a lot which is also good, no canon violations that I could see and they seem to have realised that portraying Burnham as the second coming just made her character unbelievable and unrelatable.

The show overall feels like it knows what it is trying to be now whereas last season it was a bit all over the place trying to appeal to everyone on the planet at once, though that wasn't surprising with all the changes that went on in the background during development.

I think the scriptwriters actually did their homework and watched some of the original episodes this time.

Pikes character helps a lot, just like Lorca did last season before the you know what messed it all up, I like the Burnham character its just that she isn't enough to anchor the show on her own like Captains of previous series.

Not quite sure what to say about those Space Suits though.

All they need now is actually recognisable Klingons/Ships and we will be getting somewhere.

I can totally see a Pike/Enterprise show coming from this.

P.S Happy to see Pikes science officer get splatted, he was a pratt, I do like the Engineer they picked up though and Stamets at the end.

 

[SolarisOne]

Wouldn't Burnham wearing Vulcan styles be cultural appropriation?

Quite the opposite, I'd say. There was very likely peer pressure for her to conform. Despite preaching IDIC, Vulcans are some of the most hidebound entities in the Trek universe.

 

[WarpFactorZ]

And that's over a five-year period. Kohlinahr was tough on the guy.

2.5 years, actually...

 

[cooleddie74]

It's an award for Cat fighting.

GIDDYUP.

 

[Amaris]

Good, solid start. The tone has shifted, and that's a great thing as far as I'm concerned. Now we seem to be kicking things into gear and really hitting more of the Star Trek notes. The Enterprise, the mysterious signal, the rescue of the survivors from the Hiawatha, dark matter, spatial anomalies, it all fell right into place. For me, Tilly is so firmly established as my favorite character, that if they ever get rid of her I may become angry enough to think about considering maybe possibly never watching Star Trek again for a while. Seriously, guys, don't ever let Tilly leave.

We got some sweet, understated moments from Stamets, and a few places where I had to just "d'aww" with how much love there was between he and Culber. When Tilly told him not to leave, I was tearing up, too. Those Tilly puppy eyes are lethal.

Seeing Michael and Sarek interact, catching moments of her with Amanda when she was a child, meeting Spock for the first time, all nicely done. The moment where she sees the red angel all I could think was interdimensional being, and it might mean something truly bad for our universe. We'll see.

The humor was nicely handled. Tilly is great as always (especially her little comment about math), Saru's moment where a bridge officer sees his threat ganglia and Saru's reply is a sarcastic "are you really surprised?!" which was priceless. He has become a favored character with me, also. We also finally get a real, full on engaging moment between the entire bridge crew! Names, teamwork where everyone is talking to one another, it was awesome, and I'm starting to think it was Lorca's personality that colors the entirety of the first season in that regard. We'll have to see that, too.

Oh, and Anson Mount nails it as Pike. Nails it. Nails it so damned hard it's never coming down. This episode gets a solid "8," and I hope it only goes up from here.

 

[Gonzo]

Oh I didn't give it a score, a well deserved 8/10 from me.

Not perfect but a considerable improvement from last season in pretty much all areas, the ship has been steadied.

 

[DaveyNY]

Some costuming thoughts:

The updated Tholian Web-style spacesuits were AMAZING. The show nailed those and Spock's quarters. Made me more hopeful they can modernize the Enterprise bridge in an appealing and respectful way.

They really gave poor Anson no breathing room at all in that Enterprise tunic, did they? The spacesuits weren't much more forgiving. No seconds in the commissary for this cast.

I still thought the Enterprise tunics had too many lines and conspicuous seams. Didn't really add anything, IMO. Especially the detailing on the back. I actually found myself distracted by it at one point. I get that they're bridging the Discovery and Enterprise uniforms, but I don't think the transition has to be quite that literal.

If it were up to me, I'd get rid of the weird black scarf collar on the Enterprise uniforms, too. It just looked strange on Pike at points, like it was gaping open. A black undershirt is simpler and better.

Perhaps it would have been better if They had made the asymmetrical collar the same as the overall tunic color.
It's not as noticeable with the Discovery uniforms, even though the collars are pretty much exactly the same.

 

[SolarisOne]

This episode was like a fusion of the best parts of old-school Trek with the new. I was impressed and shocked.

 

[cooleddie74]

Spock's quarters have the grating/mesh dividers that we see aboard the TOS Enterprise so at least that decor choice was left untouched in the visual upgrade.

 

[johnjm22]

I didn't like it all.

People (even those who don't like it) keep saying Pike was good. I'm not sure why. There wasn't much there. Burnham and Tilly continue to be annoying. Tilly is a cringe fest. She's the new Neelix but worse.

The show still isn't cohesive and is mishmash off different tones and ideas. It's A.D.D. Trek. Too many cooks in the kitchen behind the scenes including the corporate suits I suspect.

Everything is so on the nose. The "humor" is cutesy and lame while not fitting the tone of the rest of the show.

I liked a couple of the short Trek's so I was somewhat hopeful for this. The nice thing about the shorts is that they're were focused.

 

[KirkusOveractus]

Spock's quarters have the grating/mesh dividers that we see aboard the TOS Enterprise so at least that decor choice was left untouched in the visual upgrade.

I also noticed the shaking bell frame from "Amok Time" (Burnham even glides her hand over the bells), the Vulcan lyre and the 3D chess set.

 

[DaveyNY]

I didn't like it all.

People (even those who don't like it) keep saying Pike was good. I'm not sure why. There wasn't much there. Burnham and Tilly continue to be annoying. Tilly is a cringe fest. She's the new Neelix but worse.

The show still isn't cohesive and is mishmash off different tones and ideas. It's A.D.D. Trek. Too many cooks in the kitchen behind the scenes including the corporate suits I suspect.

Everything is so on the nose. The "humor" is cutesy and lame while not fitting the tone of the rest of the show.

I liked a couple of the short Trek's so I was somewhat hopeful for this. The nice thing about the shorts is that they're were focused.

SOooo...
Can we assume that you don't care for TOS either.
Cause "Brother" is pretty much right in the vein of Classic Trek episodes.

 

[Burning Hearts of Qo'nos]

For those Tilly fans out there, is anyone currently reading the new DSC book? Extra padding on her character history is making for even more delightful Tilly scenes. That power of math moment was extra fun after following her as a nerd in high school! And literally anything that has to do with Tilly and her having friends that she cares about (this is literally all of her scenes in the episode) and that her friends care about her leave me so gushy and feel good. HUGE SMILE every time Tilly was on screen.

 

[cooleddie74]

Pike wasn't "much" in TOS, either. In the Kelvin Timeline he appeared twice and as a supporting character. He's never been "much" by character development standards.

I liked what the episode gave us about him. We can't expect to fall in love with him the first time out. Heck, Picard was largely unlikable in "Encounter at Farpoint(TNG)" and he was a series lead.

 

[DaveyNY]

For those Tilly fans out there, is anyone currently reading the new DSC book? Extra padding on her character history is making for even more delightful Tilly scenes. That power of math moment was extra fun after following her as a nerd in high school! And literally anything that has to do with Tilly and her having friends that she cares about (this is literally all of her scenes in the episode) and that her friends care about her leave me so gushy and feel good. HUGE SMILE every time Tilly was on screen.

Tilly may be the first Trek Character that just about everyone can relate to in some way or another, without having to quantify oneself as a super genius or a complete nerd.

 

[BillJ]

I liked what the episode gave us about him. We can't expect to fall in love with him the first time out. Heck, Picard was largely unlikable in "Encounter at Farpoint(TNG)" and he was a series lead.

So what did you think of the episode? Is someone that isn't a fan of season one going to find something interesting there or is it a waste of time?

 

[DigificWriter]

Poll: Who does everybody think is going to end up being the Discovery's "Chief Engineer" character: Nhan or Jet Reno?

 

[cooleddie74]

I also noticed the shaking bell frame from "Amok Time" (Burnham even glides her hand over the bells), the Vulcan lyre and the 3D chess set.

Which means the bell frame had significance for him before he went into the koon-ut-kalifee ceremony in "Amok Time(TOS)" and meant more than just pon farr and a mating ceremony. It could be an ancient heirloom from his family's estate.

 

[Campe]

Pike wasn't "much" in TOS, either. In the Kelvin Timeline he appeared twice and as a supporting character. He's never been "much" by character development standards.

I liked what the episode gave us about him. We can't expect to fall in love with him the first time out. Heck, Picard was largely unlikable in "Encounter at Farpoint(TNG)" and he was a series lead.

TOS, Kelvin or Disco. Hunter, Kenney, Greenwood or Mount, I've always liked Chris Pike.