Spoilers Star Trek: Discovery 3x05 - "Die Trying"

[Search4]

You can't park anything in there. Have you seen what shape that bay is in? Apparently, one of the people left behind in the 23rd century was the guy or gal in charge of logistics.

Also, there are no fewer than three workbees flying around in there at all times. Including during black alerts! They have been trying in vain to flush out those idiots by keeping the bay doors open. One of these days, they'll have to accept the inevitable and just send in a firing squad.

Timo Saloniemi

A good laugh.

 

[Tuskin38]

Where was it stated that starfleet was expecting Discovery when Saru was taking the ship through the distortion field. He actually says "they are expecting us" I don't recall this.

It happened in-between episodes obviously.

Not everything needs to happen on screen.

 

[ThreeEdgedSword]

- Where was it stated that starfleet was expecting Discovery when Saru was taking the ship through the distortion field. He actually says "they are expecting us" I don't recall this.

I assumed they had contacted SF in advance to announce their arrival.I mean, who in their right minds would approach a military base as an unknown entity without announcing themselves?
ETA: Good point about the seed ship, though. Those samples would be safer on a planet.

 

[fireproof78]

It happened in-between episodes obviously.

Not everything needs to happen on screen.

Apparently it does.

"Coming up next on CBS All Access...the 6 hour documentary series continues of The Federation History and Discovery's reception of 930 years of history."

 

[Deks]

For me there were just too many missing pieces in the episode or things that just don't make sense

- Where was it stated that starfleet was expecting Discovery when Saru was taking the ship through the distortion field. He actually says "they are expecting us" I don't recall this.

At first, this didn't make sense to me either because nothing was stated in an earlier episode that Disco got in touch with the HQ ahead of their arrival.
However, one way of reconciling this anomaly is to think Saru contacted HQ (off-screen) once they jumped into communications range

- Who was that old man that was interviewing Phillipa - he wasn't even introduced or anything. It just jumps right into the scene of them talking like we are supposed to know what's going on.

- Why would AI holograms be susceptible to eyelash blinking - so weird and makes no sense and the technobabble associated with Philippas explanation seems really far fetched

David Croneberg (I think that's his name) wasn't entirely just 'tacked on'... the holograms already established a clear interrogation protocols for Terrans, so its likely that he was really there to interrogate Phillipa.

As for Georgiou's blinking shutting down the holograms... that didn't make sense to me either. Any such vulnerability would have been written out of the hologram programming centuries ago.
However, its possible these holograms had that 'flaw' introduced intentionally to get things 'going' with Georgiou and give her a sense of 'accomplishment' (sort of like appeasing her and put her in a more conversationalist mood).

- The whole CME thing with the seed ship captain was totally unnecessary, it added nothing to the story

CME killing the family was a bit rubbish storytelling. Even a 24th century ship wouldn't be affected by it (especially one with metaphasic shields).
I guess they needed some kind of 'drama' happening so the security officer would be 'impressed' with Discovery's crew.

- how can Nhan automatically take control of the seed ship - no transfer of commands or anything

She's Barzan, and dr. Attis decided to remain on the seed ship too. I think he will transfer needed commands and all to Nhan before he dies - but the entire thing was left too vague.

- Discovery leaves immediately when Burnham beans to the ship - no goodbyes, nothing? Saru never questions why Nhan is staying behind - it was just too fast

Yup... way too fast... literally a few seconds after Burnham beams back, Disco just jumps back to HQ.
As for Saru not questioning it... I guess they needed someone to fill the role for the Federation on the seed ship, and Nhan didn't really abandon her duties... she just changed her post to fulfill a different/needed role for the Federation - but I will say this is a bit fast.

I think they skip too much of the pieces that join the story together making it kind of confusing, and/or just implausible.

Overall I like the story so far and the look and feel of everything. But they really need to stop trying to either fit too much into an episode or remove stuff that detracts from the overall plot. It's just too much.

The writers need to think things through a bit more carefully to make the story work with the setting. This has been a problem with Trek for a long time now.
They rush through things and end up dumbing down technology or other aspects for the sake of drama.

Oh and one more thing I missed in my post was this

- why on earth would they leave a seed ship carrying the most important cargo for the federation just floating around in a spaceship susceptible to damage from ion storms and other hazards. I mean why not just keep it within the distortion field. or on a planet like Earth which has powerful defenses.

Keeping it close to HQ would indeed be smarter... or having various 'duplicates' of the seeds spread throughout different Federation worlds (like having multiple copies of same data stored in different locations).

 

[SJGardner]

Apparently it does.

"Coming up next on CBS All Access...the 6 hour documentary series continues of The Federation History and Discovery's reception of 930 years of history."

Next week on Star Trek: Discovery, Paul Stamets and Jett Reno are sternly reprimanded by Admiral Vance after they were caught cheating on their history exam. Meanwhile, Sylvia Tilly is more anxious than ever as she is racing to complete her writing assignment on the socio-economic characteristics of the Talaxian-Hirogen Confederation, the major power of the Delta Quadrant, before the deadline. In an attempt to take the edge off, she turns to the stash of Orion volcanic dust hidden in her desk drawer, with hilarious consequences.

 

[Yistaan]

I'm surprised by the 32nd century Starfleet doesn't have a team of Betazoids on hand to just mentally read everything they want to know instead of a clunky debriefing.

 

[Char Kais]

I'm getting the sense that Disco S3 pacing is somewhat similar to Picard S1.

The pacing of STPS01 was horrible.
The pacing of STDS03 is also bad, but for different reasons. They seem to combine episodic and serial storytelling and combining the worst aspects of those two approaches.

 

[Deks]

I'm surprised by the 32nd century Starfleet doesn't have a team of Betazoids on hand to just mentally read everything they want to know instead of a clunky debriefing.

Invasion of privacy for one thing.
Furthermore, disciplined minds can fool telepaths.
Also, its not like the 32nd century holograms are incapable of distinguishing whether someone is lying (far more advanced sensors that would probably be able to detect even slightest biological shifts to the subatomic level probably).

 

[jackoverfull]

By the way: why wasn’t Nahn cooperating? Saru literally ordered everyone to comply a few minutes earlier!

 

[ThreeEdgedSword]

I'm surprised by the 32nd century Starfleet doesn't have a team of Betazoids on hand to just mentally read everything they want to know instead of a clunky debriefing.

Assuming Betazed is among those 38 worlds...

 

[Yistaan]

Assuming Betazed is among those 38 worlds...

Admiral Vance appears (so far) to be human and we've been told Earth is very much not a member of the 38 Federation worlds anymore.

 

[137th Gebirg]

So, she's like Kirk? Spock? Worf? Starfleet seems to have no changed much in that regard.

Fair point.

 

[Char Kais]

Three things stood out to me in this episode, and they were pacing, thoughtful writing, and balanced emotion.

Balanced emotion: I was so happy to see just a bit of very understandable crying this episode. Though I'm not adverse to the new more emotion-friendly Trekverse, particularly in the acknowledgment of PTSD, crying has been far overused the past two seasons as a signal for "Oh wow this is soooo important, guys." Michael's emotional connections with Saru and others in this episode were deep, thoughtful and conveyed mostly through her (non-crying) eyes and expressions. Great acting. Much better balance of emotion and and ease up on the crying crutch.

"Balanced emotion"?

Even io9, which is a pro NuTrek site, in their review did criticize the unearned emotionality:
https://io9.gizmodo.com/star-trek-discovery-comes-home-for-better-and-worse-1845615351

• "Nhan cries! Michael cries! Lotta crying! But, up until this episode, Nhan has been such a non-entity aboard the ship that this moment is absolutely not earned in the slightest"
• "hamfisted moment of unearned emotion"
• "overwhelmingly dramatic emotional overtures"
• "cheap emotional tricks that clumsily try to ride on an unearned climax"

Nhan came aboard at the beginning of season 2.
Michael Burnham and Nhan know each other for a few weeks (S2). Michael Burnham was separated from her for a year and they are together again for a few days (less than a week). They are longer separated, from Michael Burnham's perspective, than they know each other.

This is part of the pacing problem of STDS03.

 

[Yistaan]

Next week on Star Trek: Discovery, Paul Stamets and Jett Reno are sternly reprimanded by Admiral Vance after they were caught cheating on their history exam.

We should have the Discovery crew watching 'The Menagerie' (as in-universe Starfleet recordings or something) and sobbing their hearts out when they find out what happened to Pike.

 

[fireproof78]

"Unearned emotionality?" Apparently I must be a sucker for it then...

Can we have the Discovery crew watching 'The Menagerie' (as in-universe Starfleet logs or something) and sobbing their hearts out?

Yeah, that will win people over...

 

[Lord Garth]

Something about this sounds familiar...

 

[donners22]

Bit of a mixed bag for me. Loved the interrogation scenes, especially Cronenberg, but there was saccharine overload at times and Burnham is in full Poochie mode.

Seriously, someone is disassociated from reality through trauma. A member of his own species can't get through to him. A doctor who has been counselling the Disco crew won't even try. Only Burnham can get through with her perpetually misty eyes and some utterly unremarkable dialogue. Just like only Burnham could accompany Adira, even though it made no sense whatsoever. Yes, she's the lead character, but it's not doing anyone any favours to be constantly shoving her into every situation to save the day.

 

[AlanC9]

I'm surprised by the 32nd century Starfleet doesn't have a team of Betazoids on hand to just mentally read everything they want to know instead of a clunky debriefing.

Don't remind them. They might just retroactively exterminate the species or some such.

 

[arch101]

Could we potentially see two separate federations that split after the burn, competing for which one is actually the “real” federation, or at least successor state? Discovery will mend the rift between the two, so they can rejoin and become one again!

I've wondered this myself. Many people in Western Europe still thought they were living in the Roman Empire and called themselves "Romans" for over a century after the Western Empire's collapse in 476. However, There were also the greek-speaking "Romans" of the surviving Eastern Empire (which we call the Byzantine Empire today) who ALSO thought they were the Roman Empire for almost another 1,000 years. V'edraysh could be another part of the former Federation that still thinks it's ALSO the Federation along with Vance's guys. Can't wait to see how this unravels.