Spoilers Star Trek: Strange New Worlds 1x07 - "The Serene Squall"

[Gryffindorian]

Before there was even a mention of the character, I suspected Xaverius was Sybok, Spock's charismatic half-brother in The Final Frontier. Besides, how many rogue or troublesome Vulcans are there that we know of?

Captain Angel/Counselor could have very well been played by Sandra Bullock, with her annoying perkiness. Somehow I find those types of villains unappealing. The mustache twirlers are more interesting.

 

[AlanC9]

How far were they from Starfleet HQ and how far were they from T'Pring's facility? If we don't know this, it's hard to make accurate calls about how long it would have taken.

The facility would have to be very close to Enterprise's current position relative to the subspace relay network. It's hard to imagine a rational reason to build a penal colony in a place that's effectively outside of communications range of any possible assistance

Erm, was there some de-canonisation that I didn't hear about?

It's sort of a running gag in the thread. Even Roddenberry talked about it.

 

[AlanC9]

Exactly. I noticed as a kid when watching Star Trek that there were way more white people around in the future than would make sense when pulling from the population of Earth. This kind of worry about overrepresentation usually seems to be oriented towards marginalized groups and rarely the other way.

I suppose we could headcanon that WW3, bad as it was in the Americas and Europe, was far far worse in Asia and the subcontinent, with virtually the entire population being destroyed. I'd rather not go there, though.

 

[Ometiklan]

Back up to an 8 for me this week. Though I haven't gotten a chance to rewatch last week's as I had wanted to.

My only complaints were:
- The enterprise could have shot both suspect asteroids at the same time. Duh!
- Felt the villain was a little over the top after the reveal, but it did fit in with the tone of the rest of the episode.

Great stuff overall.
Still hoping we will get some more backstory/development for Ortegas. And I could do with way more Number One in all the episodes.

...With that said we need a Ortega episode or more screen time for her. She's my favorite character so far.

Hear, hear!

My bullshit theory is that the "God" of Sha'karee is a Cytherian prisoner who was imprisoned for trying to take over the Cytherian "government". Before he was captured he retasked several of the Cytherian reverse exploration probes to send out telepathic signals that would convince a suitable telepath in range that their societies version of a deity was calling them to the center of the galaxy to find whatever their version of the Garden of Eden or paradise was.

Sybok heard this signal and began his crusade because of it.

Once he had captured the Enterprise, using his Cytherian enhanced mind he enhanced the Enterprise warp drive until it could achieve warp whatever speed and cross the distance to the Great Barrier in days, just like Barclay enhanced the Enterprise-D warp drive to reach the center of the galaxy in TNG The Nth Degree. The Bird of Prey cloaked and snuck inside their warp bubble so they could travel along.

The method of travel would blow up the warp drive if continued in use after the round trip to the center of the galaxy and back (to avoid it being used to return and attack the Cytherians) and since Sybok was dead none of the Enterprise crew knew how to reproduce it. And Barclay forgot how to do it as soon as he was "released" by the Cytherian mind probe anyway.

- Both the Cytherians and "God" present as giant disembodied glowing heads.
- Both the Cytherians and God use a person they've contacted and manipulated to bring a ship to them; the Cytherians to explore and meet other cultures without leaving home, and God to hijack a starship as a means of escape and/or conquest.
- Both involve enhancing ships to achieve vastly higher warp speeds.
- Both reside at the center of the galaxy.

This is perfect! But unfortunately little chance Trek will make this so. I had similar thoughts about Species 10-C in DIC season 4 being the origins of the rather ridiculous "barrier at the edge of the galaxy" but that didn't end up happening.

...I wish the crew acted more like a military vessel instead of high school pals. The other thing that annoys me terribly is that they seem to always focus on the secondary characters which I don't care as much about as Pike, Number One and Spock...

First, I think your wishes may be getting in the way of enjoying what is actually presented in the show. Trek has rarely been portrayed as overly militaristic (or even realistic) and using that bar as a basis for comparison will always lead to heartache. [I for one always want more competence from both villains and heroes - except in cases played for fun. It wouldn't be hard at all to add a little dialog about how robust ship computer security barriers are or how the enemy-of-the-week managed to overcome them with some previously unknown technology or some spyware secretly injected, but Trek never goes in that direction.

As for focusing on the minor characters, I want more of it, also on the other main characters. While Spock is great in this, I think there has been a little too much focus on him. I could use more of everyone else.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Gave this one a 8. Probably really a 7, but Ortegas' quips always knock my rating up a notch.

 

[IMC Headquarters]

Previously, on IMC's love life...



T'PRING: It's not you, Spock. It's me.






SPOCK: Can we keep in touch? Go out for coffee some time? Can I call you? Don't leave me. Please.










CHAPEL: She dumped you, huh? Her loss. Anyway, wasn't it like being in a relationship with a robot? You had a narrow escape, my friend.

 

[TRON JA307020]

Are you also upset about the traditionally low number of Chinese and Indian extras among the humans from a united Earth?

They are under represented. Yes. Also the middle east is pretty much non existent in terms of representation.

 

[WarpFactorZ]

Before there was even a mention of the character, I suspected Xaverius was Sybok, Spock's charismatic half-brother in The Final Frontier. Besides, how many rogue or troublesome Vulcans are there that we know of?

As soon as they revealed that T'Pring worked at a rehabilitation facility for errant Vulcans in Spock Amok, it was pretty obvious they'd be bringing back Sybok.

 

[Noname Given]

Vulcans don't lie!!! :O

TOS S1 - "The Menagerie" (Spock lied...)

TOS S2 - "Journey To Babel" (Sarek lied - both to Kirk when asked about his whereabouts when the Tellerite Ambassador was murdered -- he was NOT 'in meditation' as he said, he was passed out on the Observation Deck; and he had also been lying to his Wife Amanda abiout the seriousness of his condition.)

TOS S3 - "The Enterprise Incident" (Spock lies tpo the Romulan Commander many times...)

So yeah, the belief perpetuated by that old Vulcan saying that says: "Vulcans cannot lie", is itself a lie.

 

[IMC Headquarters]

Vulcans don't lie...to other Vulcans. Everyone else is fair game!

 

[Yistaan]

I suppose we could headcanon that WW3, bad as it was in the Americas and Europe, was far far worse in Asia and the subcontinent, with virtually the entire population being destroyed. I'd rather not go there, though.

As an Asian American myself once I realized in my twenties and thirties how hard it was for Asian men to get dates (even with Asian women as those born here often date whites and those born overseas stick to those from their country), I won't deny that a part of me wished I had become white, and this was not that long ago! Considering how easy cosmetic altering seems to be in Trek's future, our imaginations could go down that dark path where a lot of minorities willingly altered their appearance to fit in or have it easier getting a date...

CHAPEL: She dumped you, huh? Her loss. Anyway, wasn't it like being in a relationship with a robot? You had a narrow escape, my friend.

I'm now pretending Chapel said exactly this to Spock after Amok Time (over plomeek soup of course)

They are under represented. Yes. Also the middle east is pretty much non existent in terms of representation.

We do have Ash Tyler and Julian Bashir, who were prominent characters.

 

[Captain Jollydark]

I'm leaning towards the idea that Sybok wasn't aware of his honey's plans. And I really liked that T'pring was worried about Sybok's (her patient's) safety. She's a good person now. Christine Chapel is a vital, strong woman now. They both undergo some serious changes over the next ten years. Spock is the thing they have in common.

 

[Tuskin38]

T’Pring knew that Kirk had resourceful people around him. For example, helping him to counter the gravity disadvantage? Or am I remembering that bit incorrectly? It’s been many years… I’m sure the planet Vulcan has stronger gravity than Earth which is why Vulcan’s are so much stronger than humans?

Vulcan having higher gravity than Earth is not canon. It has never been mentioned or displayed on screen.

I think it's mentioned in a BTS book or something that maybe it does, but it has never been used on screen.

 

[Sci]

It kind of beggars belief to imagine that Vulcan would maintain a criminal rehabilitation facility far away from a Starfleet starbase at the edge of Federation space. That would be like the State of California maintaining a prison out in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

You mean, like England did with the Botany Bay penal colony in Australia? Granted, it was a dumping ground rather than a rehab facility, but it sets a precedent for getting the undesirables as far away from your homeland as possible.

I don't think that analogy works because the United Kingdom was a major colonial power, whereas Vulcan is a constituent part of a larger Federation rather than an overtly colonial power in its own right. Furthermore, ENT established explicitly that Vulcans weren't big on settler-colonialism and didn't establish that many off-world colonies of their own. When they were doing the imperialism thing in the 22nd Century, they preferred to use client governments to exert their will like the ones on Coridan and United Earth.

Stonn strikes me as the kind of bloke who likes being on a short leash.

On what basis? We know literally nothing about Stonn's personality or his relationship with T'Pring, other than that they were dating by 2267.

I thought something was off about her from the start, but couldn't put my finger on it. After the reveal, it was clear she successfully manipulated us, the audience, as easily as she manipulated the Enterprise senior staff. Angel is a great villain, deftly portrayed. I hope we get to see more of her down the line.

100% agreed.

I'm going to argue that she doesn't want him dead. That's why she picks Kirk as her champion. She weighs the odds and (rightly) figures Kirk is the most likely to die in that scenario.

T'Pring doesn't have to actively want Spock to die in order to prefer him dying over being married to him. And I think being willing to get Kirk killed is not morally any better, nor is it any less of an indicator of how badly her relationship with Spock must have deteriorated.

I was whiskeyed up when I watched this and I haven't rewatched yet, so I may not remember the scene clearly, but...

did T'Pring actually suggest to Spock that they take their relationship polyamorous?

Well I totally missed that part if she did! A thousand fanfics on ao3 were just born!

The Vulcans were is space for Centuries before the founding of the Federation and Starfleet. I imagine they have facilities and colonies in all corners of Federation space.

ENT explicitly established that they didn't do the space-settler-colonialism thing en masse. And by the 2350s, Federation space should have expanded far beyond even the furthest 22nd Century Vulcan colony.

 

[Sakonna]

Well, a broken heart is not a tragedy. And Bush/Chapel will never be like Barrett/Chapel.

I find the comments that people can't reconcile the two Chapel's very interesting. They're extremely different, but to me they make perfect sense as the same individual (she even reminds me of someone I really know, who was SNW-Chapel when young and TOS-Chapel years down the road).

The contrast just means that by the time we reach TOS, Chapel has been ground down by life to the extent she's lost her spirit. That's the tragedy I read here -- what the hell happens to her that causes this transformation?

And I am here for that story. Jess Bush is my favorite member of this cast. I can't believe anyone topped Anson Mount.

The Vulcans were is space for Centuries before the founding of the Federation and Starfleet. I imagine they have facilities and colonies in all corners of Federation space.

And there is a certain logic in housing the illogical criminals as far away from the rest of the population as possible.

 

[Tuskin38]

We do have Ash Tyler and Julian Bashir, who were prominent characters.

Alexander Siddig is of Sudanese decent.

 

[Yistaan]

Kirk: Now wait a minute, ma'am. Who said anything about a fight to the death?
McCoy: These men are friends. To force them to fight until one of them is killed
T'Pau: I can forgive such a display only once. Challenge was given and lawfully accepted. It has begun. Let no one interfere.

I keep wondering what would've happened if Spock had actually killed Kirk. T'Pau seems to think that due to her status and historic relationship with President Archer and the Vulcans' role in founding the Federation, she and Vulcan would've been fine. Personally I think the resulting uproar on the death of the captain of Starfleet's flagship on Vulcan soil would've had Vulcan expelled from the Federation. We already know Starfleet is full of evil admirals and closeted speciests like Styles (Balance of Terror) who are just waiting for some excuse to turn on the Vulcans. And the Tellarites as shown by Ambassador Gav weren't exactly happy with Sarek and the Vulcans either in TOS. They'd definitely play Kirk's death for all it's worth on the Federation Council.

 

[Jedi Marso]

No way would Vulcan have been expelled over that.

They would have buffed that shit out diplomatically and pressed on. Entire starships and their captains were dying like flies during that era. Starfleet would have closed the book on Kirk, with regret, and moved on. Maybe Ben Finney would have gotten his turn after all...

 

[Yistaan]

No way would Vulcan have been expelled over that.

They would have buffed that shit out diplomatically and pressed on. Entire starships and their captains were dying like flies during that era. Starfleet would have closed the book on Kirk, with regret, and moved on. Maybe Ben Finney would have gotten his turn after all...

It might have. Keep in mind that literally less than a year ago as of Amok Time the Federation just found out that the Romulans were a sister species of Vulcans. I don't think anyone on the Federation Council bought that T'Pau and all of Vulcan had no idea all this time. Also, her friendship with President Archer would be re-evaluated in light of the fact she probably knew all along who the Romulans were but apparently left Earth to fight on its own against them until the Battle of Cheron.

Vulcan might be allowed to stay if T'Pau were overthrown and a more Fed-friendly govt put into place (remember T'Pau was the only person to turn down a seat on the Federation Council), not unlike how Earth helped T'Pau herself overthrow V'Las a century ago.

 

[Noname Given]

Kirk: Now wait a minute, ma'am. Who said anything about a fight to the death?
McCoy: These men are friends. To force them to fight until one of them is killed
T'Pau: I can forgive such a display only once. Challenge was given and lawfully accepted. It has begun. Let no one interfere.

I keep wondering what would've happened if Spock had actually killed Kirk. T'Pau seems to think that due to her status and historic relationship with President Archer and the Vulcans' role in founding the Federation, she and Vulcan would've been fine. Personally I think the resulting uproar on the death of the captain of Starfleet's flagship on Vulcan soil would've had Vulcan expelled from the Federation. We already know Starfleet is full of evil admirals and closeted speciests like Styles (Balance of Terror) who are just waiting for some excuse to turn on the Vulcans. And the Tellarites as shown by Ambassador Gav weren't exactly happy with Sarek and the Vulcans either in TOS. They'd definitely play Kirk's death for all it's worth on the Federation Council.

Nothing would have happened to Vulcan. Kirk CHOSE to participate in a known and long standing Vulcan ritual even AFTER being warned "Do not interfere/Keep Thy place..." and told their laws and customs aren't binding and he was free to decline. Starfllet at tjhat point would have said - Hey it was Kirk being Kirk...Guess that finally caught up with him...