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Spoilers General Disco Chat Thread

So next episode is titled "Through the Valley of Shadows".

I tried searching for it to see where that phrase comes from. All I am getting is a bible reference about "walking through the valley of the shadow of death". Is this something that happens before giving the Obol to the Charon dude?
 
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So next episode is titled "Through the Valley of Shadows".

I tried searching for it to see where that phrase comes from. All I am getting is a bible reference about "walking through the valley of the shadow of death". Is this something that happens before meeting the Obol dude?


It's related to that bible quote, and its been used a lot in other fictions.

The actual verse from the English Standard Version

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
 
Tig lights up every episode that she is in.

I don't know. her Jett Reno has got all of McCoy's snark but demonstrates about zero of his empathy and charm. You'd really have to get her combined with Stamets in a transporter accident to take what she's offered so far and make it an actual less than a human shaped snark generator. And that is on Tig. IMO.
 
I don't know. her Jett Reno has got all of McCoy's snark but demonstrates about zero of his empathy and charm. You'd really have to get her combined with Stamets in a transporter accident to take what she's offered so far and make it an actual less than a human shaped snark generator. And that is on Tig. IMO.
Agree. during the few times that the writers gave Stamets some snarkiness, he has shown to be much more McCoy-like (snark with warmth, as you put it).

However, the writers give us that Stamets far too infrequently. When Stamets is shown to have any personailty at all, the writers usually give us sad brooding Stamets. That's fine on occasion, but I'd rather the sharp-witted-yet-kind Stamets that we have only seen a few glimpses of.

I think they could do that by (among other things) making Stamets Tilly's mentor. Have Stamets be the one to tell Tilly she's talking too much or is being scatter-brained, because he can do so with loving honesty.

If they want Tig Notaro to become the McCoy character, they need to give her empathy first.
 
It's related to that bible quote, and its been used a lot in other fictions.

The actual verse from the English Standard Version

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
I prefer this version
Yea though I walk through the Valley of the shadow of Death, I shall fear no evil...because I am the meanest motherfucker in the Valley.'
 
I prefer this version
Yea though I walk through the Valley of the shadow of Death, I shall fear no evil...because I am the meanest motherfucker in the Valley.'
OH, I know that one.
It's from the abridged version of the SLJ Bible.
:techman:
 
There's also the Coolio version
As I walk through the valley of the shadow of death
I take a look at my life and realize there's not much left
'Coz I've been blastin' and laughin' so long, that
Even my mama thinks that my mind is gone
 
Agree. during the few times that the writers gave Stamets some snarkiness, he has shown to be much more McCoy-like (snark with warmth, as you put it).

However, the writers give us that Stamets far too infrequently. When Stamets is shown to have any personailty at all, the writers usually give us sad brooding Stamets. That's fine on occasion, but I'd rather the sharp-witted-yet-kind Stamets that we have only seen a few glimpses of.

I think they could do that by (among other things) making Stamets Tilly's mentor. Have Stamets be the one to tell Tilly she's talking too much or is being scatter-brained, because he can do so with loving honesty.

If they want Tig Notaro to become the McCoy character, they need to give her empathy first.
Sorry to disagree, but excuse him for having human reactions to a completely wrecked personal life. I think he's doing his best to keep it together and not crumble, something that is clearly difficult and eats up a lot of energy. Besides, he still gets the occasional snark out, e.g. when he shooed Spock and Michael out of the lab. When confronted with serious setbacks, he defaults to trying to wall himself in. That's how I see it.

Paul is one of my favourites. YMMV, but he is (they all are) a three-dimensional character.
 
I like Stamets a lot, too. I think he's written well as a science whiz without making him goofy and awkward. I like Tilly a lot as well, but there's too much of that with her lately.

And I guess this is unpopular, but I thought Anthony Rapp did really well in the scenes where Culber told Stamets to move on. He really conveyed how crushed and devastated Stamets was after he thought he got his miracle, Culber back.
 
Sorry to disagree, but excuse him for having human reactions to a completely wrecked personal life. I think he's doing his best to keep it together and not crumble, something that is clearly difficult and eats up a lot of energy. Besides, he still gets the occasional snark out, e.g. when he shooed Spock and Michael out of the lab. When confronted with serious setbacks, he defaults to trying to wall himself in. That's how I see it.

Paul is one of my favourites. YMMV, but he is (they all are) a three-dimensional character.
I don't mind some of the sad, lost Stamets, but it seems we get far too little of the Stamets with the biting wit. We saw a couple of glimpes of it here and there, but I don't think enough.
 
I don't mind some of the sad, lost Stamets, but it seems we get far too little of the Stamets with the biting wit. We saw a couple of glimpes of it here and there, but I don't think enough.
I honestly don't see it that way. He's a tad sad, but mostly, he's keeping it together. Cut the poor guy some slack. ;)
 
I honestly don't see it that way. He's a tad sad, but mostly, he's keeping it together. Cut the poor guy some slack. ;)
Maybe you're right that we are not being given too much sad Stamets. However, we are not being given enough of the slightly-snarky-but-still-warmly-respectful Stamets either.

Too often the writers have him as just some guy who goes along with the story without really adding any character interest.

It gave me hope that when in Brother we got some of that "sharp wit and warmth" Stamets with his exchange with Tilly:

Tilly: Sir, I just have to tell you that, um, I understand that this place may be haunted for you, but maybe it's good haunted, maybe living with ghosts and energies that are bigger than we are is why you love science.
Stamets: Tilly. You are incandescent. You're going to become a magnificent captain because you do everything out of love. But I need you to repeat after me.
Tilly: Okay.
Stamets: "I will say -"
Tilly: I will say -
Stamets: "- fewer things."
Tilly: - fewer thin....ah, Okay.​

I was hoping that would be the start of more of that, but then for most of the season other that we had either sad Stamets (which, maybe you're right, not "too much" of) or we had nothing Stamets. "Nothing Stamets" is what I call it when the writers just have him there in the plot, but not allowing him to display any characterization at all. It wasn't until Project Daedelus that we again saw a glimpse of that Stamets whom I think could be a very good McCoy-like character -- i.e., a little irascible, but still charming and warm, as in this scene from Project Daedelus:

Stamets: Which one of you is missing from my spore drive? You're fine. You're fine.
[then speaking to Spock and Burnham across the room] Could one of you say something, please? I don't like to listen to myself talk when I have an audience.
Spock: We're thinking, commander.
Stamets: Think louder.

Then after a while listening to Spock and Burnham bicker a bit...

Stamets: Could you find that inspiration somewhere else? Turns out, your loud thinking is distracting.
As you pointed out the character moments with Stamets dealing with losing Culber -- first the physical loss, and now the emotional loss -- are indeed good moments, but that can't be the only character moments we get going forward. We need the dry-biting-wit Stamets as well.

McCoy was always my favorite. Stamets is also my favorite when he is not the "Nothing Stamets" but is instead displaying some sort of character traits, whether he is (as you pointed out) fighting with the loss of Culber, or he is being honestly blunt with someone, or (because he's usually the smartest one in the room) being slightly annoyed that others can't keep up with his train of thought, although never annoyed in a demeaning way.
 
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