Spoilers Strange New Worlds General Discussion Thread

[DaveyNY]

I get the feeling that when we do again see T'Pring and Stonn that the story will focus so much on Sybok that they won't do much else with Stonn's character other than remind viewers that this is the Stonn who'll eventually be wed to T'Pring after the events seen in "Amok Time." A few bits of development here or there but not much I'd imagine.

I've often wondered if Stonn actually stayed with T'Pring after he saw the way she 'played' Spock.

 

[cooleddie74]

STONN: "Yo."

T'PRING: "To what are you referring, husband?"

STONN: "YO." [*Gestures frustratedly with hands*]

 

[Captain Jollydark]

I'm not sure why they cast whoever they did for Stonn in SNW. From my point of view, they should've cast some massively overmuscled hunk that one look from the audience shows there's no way Spock can compete, someone like Joe Manganiello or if he's out of Trek's paygrade, Tyler Hoechlin or Jensen Ackles. Someone who with one glance you can see Spock has no chance against.

I think it'd fit the story better and it's not really inconsistent with TOS (worst case scenario just say Stonn slacked off on the bodybuilding in the decade between SNW and TOS)

You are assuming most women prefer over-muscled hunk to a Spock type. Which ain't necessarily so (personally, I'm partial to comedians). And besides, this Spock is pretty nicely muscled himself. He does not hurt the eyes in that department.

 

[Grendelsbayne]

Oh definitely. But I thought it would make more sense to make Stonn someone Spock wasn't to clarify T'Pring's preferences. It wouldn't be the first time they've changed things, after all M'Benga was just a regular dude in TOS and now he's played by a black belt in jiu-jitsu.

But this is all just random what ifs on my part, as you noted Stonn is already cast and they likely won't change that. At this point it may be better to focus on his "Vulcanness" that Spock lacks.

I think that completely misses the point of Amok Time.

There is no reason to assume T'Pring didn't want Spock because he wasn't her type - it's clear the issue is Spock's lifestyle leaving her completely alone all the time, and the SNW episodes we've seen make it adundantly clear that their relationship does have actual sparks in it, regardless. She clearly likes him a lot.

And there is no reason whatsoever why Stonn should be someone that Spock can't possibly defeat physically. T'Pring didn't choose Stonn because he could beat Spock in a fight. She just liked him and he chose to be there for her, which is something Spock chose not to do. And given that Spock is her type, it makes way more sense for Stonn to be physically similar to Spock than for him to be completely different in every way.

 

[TimeIsAPredator]

I don't think Vulcans care about that.

Not all humans do either.

 

[TimeIsAPredator]

You are assuming most women prefer over-muscled hunk to a Spock type. Which ain't necessarily so (personally, I'm partial to comedians). And besides, this Spock is pretty nicely muscled himself. He does not hurt the eyes in that department.

Hench

 

[Captain Jollydark]

Oh Sybok, my ideas probably are out of the mainstream here as well. I know Shatner envisioned him as a religious evangelical preacher and with that sort of thing arguably more relevant now than it was in the 80s, I really wanted SNW Sybok to be the Trek version of the alt-right religious fanatics in our world today (and I've mentioned this in other posts as well). But considering his SNW debut established he's dating a non-binary character, something the real world religious fanatics would never do, that idea I had for him goes out the window as well...

Religious fanatic still works. Just not human religions. Also, it's possible at this point that Sybok is an actual criminal like his honey. And instead of regular prison, his dad forces "special prison" on him.

I've been thinking about how Ankeshtan K'til works. The inmates seem to have been offered a choice. I'm assuming if they say no, they get regular jail. But if they change their minds while there or can't be rehabilitated or say, are discovered to be playing the system (ala One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest) then they also go to regular jail. Some general lock-up elsewhere. Maybe with all kinds of icky humans and other not-Vulcans.

Is Sybok playing the system? Is he there against his will unlike the other inmates? Did his daddy put him there for political reasons? Is he there to try to convert others? Is that why he appears to be kept in isolation? Did somebody already ask these questions somewhere else on the forum?

 

[Yistaan]

I think that completely misses the point of Amok Time.

There is no reason to assume T'Pring didn't want Spock because he wasn't her type - it's clear the issue is Spock's lifestyle leaving her completely alone all the time, and the SNW episodes we've seen make it adundantly clear that their relationship does have actual sparks in it, regardless. She clearly likes him a lot.

And there is no reason whatsoever why Stonn should be someone that Spock can't possibly defeat physically. T'Pring didn't choose Stonn because he could beat Spock in a fight. She just liked him and he chose to be there for her, which is something Spock chose not to do. And given that Spock is her type, it makes way more sense for Stonn to be physically similar to Spock than for him to be completely different in every way.

Physique isn't necessarily a guarantee of winning in combat. If you put say, Tyler Hoechlin who needs to be in shape for Superman but at the end of the day is ultimately a civilian actor, against a hardened Navy SEAL or even a martial artist (where physical combat is a sport for them), Tyler would probably still lose. Spock and Kirk are veteran military officers. Stonn could have a killer physique but at the end of the day as a civilian his chances of losing a fight to the death to them would still be high.

 

[Nerys Myk]

 

[137th Gebirg]

Muscles aren't the end-all-be-all. If you don't know how to use them, they just get in the way. Nothing can be a substitute for good technique.

 

[Yistaan]

They say a picture is worth a thousand words so I'll let pictures convey what I think SNW should've gone for in regards to Stonn vs Spock.

Stonn:

Spock:

 

[fireproof78]

Muscles aren't the end-all-be-all. If you don't know how to use them, they just get in the way. Nothing can be a substitute for good technique.

It also ignores the reason why T'Pring made her choice and the tension is evident from the first episode of SNW.

 

[Tuskin38]

Two weeks to go!

 

[Captain Jollydark]

They say a picture is worth a thousand words so I'll let pictures convey what I think SNW should've gone for in regards to Stonn vs Spock.

Stonn:

Spock:

That guy's jawline does not look human, so, okay, I guess? But just as you are perhaps imposing you're own preconceived notions about T'Pring's character (possibly based on personal experience), so am I. That guy with the jawline? Never in a million years.

 

[The Wormhole]

Regarding why they cast the actor they did as Stonn, it likely has more to do with the fact that in his S1 appearance, Stonn wasn't that large a role, indeed if it weren't for name recognition most of us would likely forget there was some dude T'Pring spoke to in that scene. In the event Stonn does play a larger role in a future episode, they can always recast.

 

[Grendelsbayne]

They say a picture is worth a thousand words so I'll let pictures convey what I think SNW should've gone for in regards to Stonn vs Spock.

Stonn:

Spock:

Why, though?

That you wanted them to do something like this is clear. What isn't clear is how this makes any sense whatsoever as an interpretation of these characters (and the relationship between Spock and T'Pring).

Like, you really seriously think of something like that second picture when you see Spock? And you really seriously think Stonn has anything to do with that first picture?

 

[cooleddie74]

Ethan Peck has some abs. For all we know this Stonn has the Vulcan equivalent of a beer gut under those formal clothes.

 

[Yistaan]

Why, though?

That you wanted them to do something like this is clear. What isn't clear is how this makes any sense whatsoever as an interpretation of these characters (and the relationship between Spock and T'Pring).

Like, you really seriously think of something like that second picture when you see Spock? And you really seriously think Stonn has anything to do with that first picture?

Because I guess I find it reflective of experiences I've had in real life and it makes sense that T'Pring would dump Spock for a Stonn who looks like what I posted.

 

[Mudd]

They say a picture is worth a thousand words so I'll let pictures convey what I think SNW should've gone for in regards to Stonn vs Spock.

Stonn:

Ick.

 

[Captain Jollydark]

Because I guess I find it reflective of experiences I've had in real life and it makes sense that T'Pring would dump Spock for a Stonn who looks like what I posted.

I'm sorry that's been in your life experience, but as a (mostly) straight cis woman I find that guy you posted repulsive. I know LOTS of women who feel the same. I find body-builders repulsive too. I mean, aesthetically unpleasant in the extreme.