Spoilers Star Trek: Strange New Worlds 1x10 - "A Quality of Mercy"

[Charles Phipps]

The more I think about Kirk's role in the episode the more I realize that Kirk didn't need to be Kirk. Yes, we're supposed to see that Pike wasn't the right guy for the job and Kirk was, but did we really need Kirk to actually be there to show us that? Swapping Kirk for another equally young, brash and creative captain would have worked just as well, albeit without the fan service. It slightly reminds me of the choice to make Cumberbatch be Khan in Into Darkness. It wasn't necessary. He could (and should IMO) have remained as John Harrison and the story would have been the better for it. (In my head cannon he *is* John Harrison while also being one of Khan's 72 followers. He was reanimated instead of Khan but being a huge Khan fanboy he decided to assume his identity to seem more badass.)

Eh, it's a nice homage that Pike and Kirk have differences which always needed to be done.

Its just the description fails.

"He hates rules."

"I disregard the Prime Directive at will."

"He hates to lose."

"Who doesn't?"

 

[Mudd]

I think Paul Wesley needs to hit the gym and gain some muscle, have a more prominent chest to fill out that uniform.

He feels too scrawny compared to William Shatner in his prime.

LOL. Shatner was not a particularly impressive specimen in the 1960s.

Their challenge here is not finding someone to live up to Shatner. It's finding someone you'd want to see replace Mount, who's now made Pike the best starship captain in Trek, ever.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

LOL. Shatner was not a particularly impressive specimen in the 1960s.

But compared to how thin Paul Wesley looks compared to 1960's Prime Bill Shatner, there is a difference.
I hope somebody could find some reference pictures.

Heck Anson Mount looks buffer than Paul Wesley by a good margin despite being significantly older.

 

[Mudd]

But compared to how thin Paul Wesley looks compared to 1960's Prime Bill Shatner, there is a difference.

Yeah, Wesley's taller and trimmer.

 

[Agony_Boothb]

But compared to how thin Paul Wesley looks compared to 1960's Prime Bill Shatner, there is a difference.
I hope somebody could find some reference pictures.

Heck Anson Mount looks buffer than Paul Wesley by a good margin despite being significantly older.

'Prime' Bill Shatner was terribly unfit and had to wear a girdle at times. If you look at shirtless pictures of Paul Wesley, the dude is completey shredded. Chris Pine was also much leaner than Shatner ever was.

 

[Agony_Boothb]

And then, for eight decades, the movie era attire was just tirelessly “in.”

Starfleet was a big but poor family between 2370 and 2350ish. Everyone had to rely on hand me downs

 

[Rainard Fox]

I think Paul Wesley needs to hit the gym and gain some muscle, have a more prominent chest to fill out that uniform.

He feels too scrawny compared to William Shatner in his prime.

Captain Pike's mission: feed a skinny Kirk until he grows up into a beefy Kirk

 

[Nyotarules]

Captain Pike's mission: feed a skinny Kirk until he grows up into a beefy Kirk

As funny as this might, this 'body shaming' of actors is silly. Pressuring people/actors to change their physical body to suit some superficial body image should not be a requirement for a fictional character.

 

[Mudd]

Unless they're playing Captain America.

 

[Nyotarules]

Unless they're playing Captain America.

change that as well, a Captain America who is still small and skinny but ten times as strong, makes looks deceiving

 

[Rainard Fox]

As funny as this might, this 'body shaming' of actors is silly. Pressuring people/actors to change their physical body to suit some superficial body image should not be a requirement for a fictional character.

Why? It's actors job, to use all the possible opportunities to perform a role.
It's casting directors job, to choose the most suitable actors for the certain characters.

But I didn't talk about actors at all, I meant characters only.

 

[Mudd]

Christian Bale has ruined the profession.

 

[Nyotarules]

Why? It's actors job, to use all the possible opportunities to perform a role.
It's casting directors job, to choose the most suitable actors for the certain characters.

But I didn't talk about actors at all, I meant characters only.

Its not essential to the character of Kirk whether his physique is beefy or not. Just like it is not essential to the character of Uhura whether she has short hair or not (and that caused a stir with some fans)

 

[Trekker4747]

'Prime' Bill Shatner was terribly unfit and had to wear a girdle at times. If you look at shirtless pictures of Paul Wesley, the dude is completey shredded. Chris Pine was also much leaner than Shatner ever was.

If he (Wesley) isn't going to look the role then he needs to act the role. He did neither.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

Captain Pike's mission: feed a skinny Kirk until he grows up into a beefy Kirk

 

[Nerys Myk]

Not a fan of Ortegas here. I don’t think putting her in the Styles role suited her. They should have just given us Styles and had Ortegas play the Sulu role.

I'm sure he was there, but what was Sulu's role in BOT? Lot great performances in BOT, so I guess Sulu got "lost".

I love how this episode was basically designed to shut up the "why doesn't pike just do x to avoid his fate, this such lame writing" people.

If only...if only.

 

[Sakonna]

Off topic, but is there any in-universe reason why Starfleet changes uniforms so damn frequently?

This is why we need the workplace sitcom "Star Trek: Uniform Design Division" that I've been agitating for for years.

Ideally set in the TMP era so we know what the hell was going on there.

I'm not a fan of the casting either, I always saw him as the CW Dollar Store Robert Pattinson

Ha! That is dead-on.

I've seen Wesley be good precisely once -- in "Tell Me A Story" season 2, in which he played an emotionally empty, dead-eyed sociopath. The entire point of that character was that he looked pretty, but there was nothing inside.

It was exactly the same performance he gave as Kirk. Not one change at all.

I really hope they don't smother season 2 with this awful Kirk interpretation. Streaming Trek has been perfect with the casting so far, what an unfortunate spot to have their first huge failure.

It slightly reminds me of the choice to make Cumberbatch be Khan in Into Darkness. It wasn't necessary. He could (and should IMO) have remained as John Harrison and the story would have been the better for it. (In my head cannon he *is* John Harrison while also being one of Khan's 72 followers. He was reanimated instead of Khan but being a huge Khan fanboy he decided to assume his identity to seem more badass.)

That is great. Entering my headcanon as well.

 

[Donald G]

They didn’t want a war so to speak. They just wanted to try out their new weapon(something this episode sort of forgot) and test Starfleet”s response to it.

Commander: No need to tell you what happens when we reach home with proof of the Earthmen's weakness, and we will have proof. The Earth commander will follow. He must. When he attacks, we will destroy him. Our gift to the Homeland: another war.

Centurion: If we are strong, is this not the signal for war?

Commander: Must it always be so? How many comrades have we lost in this way?

Centurion: Our portion, Commander, is obedience.

Commander: Obedience. Duty. Death and more death. Soon even enough for the Praetor's taste.

The Commander, personally, may not have wanted war, but apparently knew it would follow. The Praetor apparently did, and probably did Decius, a zealous brown-noser of the Praetor with prominently placed political friends, and the old experienced Centurion, culturally conditioned, also expected war to follow, and apparently thought it right and proper to do so.

I would posit that, even in the original, there were agendas at play among the Romulans beyond merely testing a new weapon.

 

[Greylock Crescent]

The more I think about Kirk's role in the episode the more I realize that Kirk didn't need to be Kirk. Yes, we're supposed to see that Pike wasn't the right guy for the job and Kirk was, but did we really need Kirk to actually be there to show us that? Swapping Kirk for another equally young, brash and creative captain would have worked just as well, albeit without the fan service. It slightly reminds me of the choice to make Cumberbatch be Khan in Into Darkness. It wasn't necessary. He could (and should IMO) have remained as John Harrison and the story would have been the better for it. (In my head cannon he *is* John Harrison while also being one of Khan's 72 followers. He was reanimated instead of Khan but being a huge Khan fanboy he decided to assume his identity to seem more badass.)

I think the performance of Kirk is what makes his inclusion in the episode seem so superfluous. The performance was that of any Generic Young Captain™ when, in fact, the episode really wanted us to see the contrasts between Pike and Kirk. (And for us to squeee! at seeing Kirk and Spock share the screen, however briefly.)

This was one of the very few problems (for me) with the episode. Including Kirk as a contrast to Pike - in the very same circumstances where Kirk succeeds - is quite a fascinating and laudable decision by the writers. But the performance from Wesley - acting as a character that was anything BUT Kirk - "torpedoes" any real benefit we might have received from that contrast as result.

 

[Rainard Fox]

Its not essential to the character of Kirk whether his physique is beefy or not. Just like it is not essential to the character of Uhura whether she has short hair or not (and that caused a stir with some fans)

I can agree that Prime Kirk image is based on Shatner himself. But this Kirk was created of average height, beefy, smiley, extrovert man, as well as Pike was created tall, handsome, anxious, introvert man, and Uhura was created short, beautifully hairstyled, gentle, musical woman. What is essential for every character? Who decides?