Sonequa Martin-Green Responds To ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Critics; Says No Endgame Planned Yet

[Sci]

Real simple: if a series is promoted as a prequel, it's the "past". If it's not, it's the "present". And live-action trumps animation in my view.

But by that logic, DIS would be the "present" since it's not a prequel anymore. And SNW is both a sequel to DIS S2 and a prequel to TOS S1. And I don't think live-action "trumps" animation -- they're just as legitimate of storytelling mediums, and PRO and LD are both covering timeframes no one else has covered in settings no one else is covering.

I just think it's silly to hold onto the idea that there's any one "present" in Trek today, just like Star Trek V: The Final Frontier's 2286 was no more the "present" than TNG S3's 2366 was in 1989. This isn't the Berman era; there is no one "present." Star Trek is not a single continuing narrative; it's a collection of narratives with a common setting.

Edited to add:

DIS is also still generally considered to be the "flagship" ST series. So if how the shows are promoted determines when the "present" is, it would make more sense for 3190 to be the "present." But, again, I don't think promos should determine this -- Star Trek is not a single continuing narrative.

 

[Lord Garth]

But by that logic, DIS would be the "present" since it's not a prequel anymore. And SNW is both a sequel to DIS S2 and a prequel to TOS S1. And I don't think live-action "trumps" animation -- they're just as legitimate of storytelling mediums, and PRO and LD are both covering timeframes no one else has covered in settings no one else is covering.

I just think it's silly to hold onto the idea that there's any one "present" in Trek today, just like Star Trek V: The Final Frontier's 2286 was no more the "present" than TNG S3's 2366 was in 1989. This isn't the Berman era; there is no one "present." Star Trek is not a single continuing narrative; it's a collection of narratives with a common setting.

You responded before I added to the rest of my post.

Someone ought to shoot me in the fucking head. I respect that you have an opinion that isn't mine but please don't force your POV onto me. Thanks. I'll view things however I please as long as it's not harming people.

 

[shapeshifter]

If Discovery was cancelled, I would just think ‘meh’ and shrug.

I would be pissed. DISC is important for the future of reduced memberberry Trek.

I love memeberberry Trek!

...but I also love all new adventures and, so far as I can tell, DISC is now best positioned for doing Trek that doesn't always have one foot in past Trek.

Whatever one thinks about S3 or 4 of DISC story materials, at least it was new territory for Trek with less memberberry reliance. I want to continue blazing into these new territories.

 

[TimeIsAPredator]

You responded before I added to the rest of my post.

Someone ought to shoot me in the fucking head. I respect that you have an opinion that isn't mine but please don't force your POV onto me. Thanks. I'll view things however I please as long as it's not harming people.

I'm with you the Berman era in my head is the present. This is not a dig or insult to any other shows it's just a bias I have due to the Trek I grew up with following a linear timeline. The first break was ENT and since then it was all clearly prequels until Disco done it's thing.

 

[TimeIsAPredator]

I would be pissed. DISC is important for the future of reduced memberberry Trek.

I love memeberberry Trek!

...but I also love all new adventures and, so far as I can tell, DISC is now best positioned for doing Trek that doesn't always have one foot in past Trek.

Whatever one thinks about S3 or 4 of DISC story materials, at least it was new territory for Trek with less memberberry reliance. I want to continue blazing into these new territories.

Disco is forever dropping memberberries. The lead being Spock's sister is one of the biggest memberberries in Trek. Also in the later seasons everything seems to be named after a Bermantrek character.

Mirror Universe, s31, Guardian of Forever, Harry Mudd. Not exactly exploring strange new worlds.

 

[Lord Garth]

I'm with you the Berman era in my head is the present. This is not a dig or insult to any other shows it's just a bias I have due to the Trek I grew up with following a linear timeline. The first break was ENT and since then it was all clearly prequels until Disco done it's thing.

Plus as a Sci-Fi Fan, I like thinking of Discovery as The Future. The ship even has a "concept car" design to go with it.

With six series taking place from 2364 to 2401 and counting, the 24th/25th Century is the most common time period for Star Trek as a setting. How much people want to see of the 32nd Century is tied to how much they like Discovery, and not everyone wants "more prequels!!!" in the 23rd Century. That makes the 25th Century the safest time period to go with. So those are also why I think of it as Star Trek's default Present.

 

[shapeshifter]

Disco is forever dropping memberberries.

I would be pissed. DISC is important for the future of reduced memberberry Trek.

 

[Lord Garth]

I hate the writers of South Park for coming up with that word...

 

[Orphalesion]

Discovery is the only Star Trek series that I have not been able to fully ‘connect’ with. It’s not a bad series and the cast are great, it’s just kind of…. I don’t know?!

I'm kinda the same. I will admit outright that I really disliked season 1, but aside from that in the series as a whole there's a lot of elements and characters that I like (and unlike with Picard there's nothing I'd strongly object to etiher).
but I just can't be bothered to watch the show...it doesn't "grip" me, like a show I really love would do (like Lower Decks does, for example).
For myself I can imagine that I might be a bit burnt out on serialized television, maybe it's because it has been so ubiquitous in recent times, maybe it's because work has been a bit more time consuming lately and when I'm finished I want something more light hearted and less serious.
But right now I just prefer something more episodic held together by character arcs and stuff like that. Like, while I found the far-future and fallen Federation setting in season 3 very interesting...I just didn't care about some quest of finding out the cause of the Burn, it just didn't interest me.

 

[TimeIsAPredator]

Fair enough. I do find the naming thing in Disco and PIC a bit much though.

 

[TimeIsAPredator]

I hate the writers of South Park for coming up with that word...

You have to admit that once again they had hit the nail on the head though.

(You don't actually have to admit. It's just a phrase)

 

[Jedman67]

I don't get it but I also don't watch South Park.
I could see DSC ending after Season 5 or 6 - those are good runs, and if it's long enough to establish a spinoff show - perhaps something akin to Deep Space Nine in the 32nd Century? As long as the story is good, and the characters are good, I'm game. I dropped off Disco in S2 but now I finally finished S3, I'm excited to watch S4.
I think there's a benefit to light serialization mixed with light episodic; have an overarching story arc closer to late DS9 than DSC but filled with mostly stand alone stories. No big reset button like VOY and not quite as stand alone as SNW.

 

[Lord Garth]

I don't get it but I also don't watch South Park.

I haven't watched an episode in I want to say 20 years, if not more. I was never a fan of it, but my brother was for a while, and so were his friends. So I ended up learning more about the show than I ever wanted to.

But I do read a lot of the website TV Tropes, and that's how I found out where "memberberries" came from. I don't know. I'm at a point where my life is exactly half ahead of me and half behind me. As long as there's a balance between looking back and looking forward, I can relate.

 

[Visitor1982]

For me, the Berman-era is my Trek-era. That is the present and the century I'm most interested in.

 

[Orphalesion]

For me, the Berman-era is my Trek-era. That is the present and the century I'm most interested in.

And I think that's completely legitimate. Sure all of the shows are Trek, but they are still very different products, just like Apples and Bananas are both fruit, but have a very different taste.
So it's natural that there's people who like some of it and not the rest.

 

[Danja]

Disco is forever dropping memberberries. The lead being Spock's sister is one of the biggest memberberries in Trek. Also in the later seasons everything seems to be named after a Bermantrek character.

Archer/Janeway-class ships. The Voyager-J.

 

[TimeIsAPredator]

Archer/Janeway-class ships. The Voyager-J.

Given that Discovery is in its own future we could see ships named after Disco ships and crew

 

[Fateor]

But by that logic, DIS would be the "present" since it's not a prequel anymore. And SNW is both a sequel to DIS S2 and a prequel to TOS S1. And I don't think live-action "trumps" animation -- they're just as legitimate of storytelling mediums, and PRO and LD are both covering timeframes no one else has covered in settings no one else is covering.

I just think it's silly to hold onto the idea that there's any one "present" in Trek today, just like Star Trek V: The Final Frontier's 2286 was no more the "present" than TNG S3's 2366 was in 1989. This isn't the Berman era; there is no one "present." Star Trek is not a single continuing narrative; it's a collection of narratives with a common setting.

Edited to add:

DIS is also still generally considered to be the "flagship" ST series. So if how the shows are promoted determines when the "present" is, it would make more sense for 3190 to be the "present." But, again, I don't think promos should determine this -- Star Trek is not a single continuing narrative.

The problem with that, is that Discovery's future is an alternate universe timeline that was created when Discovery traveled through time.

 

[Sci]

The problem with that, is that Discovery's future is an alternate universe timeline that was created when Discovery traveled through time.

Nope. It's the Prime Timeline's 32nd Century.

 

[Annorax849]

I’ve been thinking they would go for 6 seasons, but maybe they really will keep the 7-season tradition.