Spoilers Star Trek: Strange New Worlds 4x02 - "The Griffin Incident"
Man Trap was filmed like a typical ST episode though. This season they're filming things like a horror film, like an old B&W production etc. Not that there is anything wrong with that. But I think you understand Grizzlor's point.
They did an erotic ghost story about Beverly Crusher on TNG.
And then tacked a bogus technobabble "explanation" onto it.
If a viewer needs reassurance that any one of the myriad preposterous events portrayed in Trek over the last six decades has a "rational" explanation, they probably can construct one as good or more satisfactory to them than TV writers can come up with, without subjecting the rest of us to that security-blanket narratizing every single time.
And then tacked a bogus technobabble "explanation" onto it.
If a viewer needs reassurance that any one of the myriad preposterous events portrayed in Trek over the last six decades has a "rational" explanation, they probably can construct one as good or more satisfactory to them than TV writers can come up with, without subjecting the rest of us to that security-blanket narratizing every single time.
"Ghosts in Star Trek? I'm out."
Then how did you ever get in?
Then how did you ever get in?
Random bits of code.
Episodes are often filmed based on the needs of the script and the whims of the director. "The Man Trap" was filmed in the style used for horror at that time.
If they ever come out and say "ghosts are real" in Star Trek without the technobabble then I will whine about it here every day until the producers realise their mistake and apologise to me directly.
I mean what is the dividing line between ghosts and a situation like TNG “Schisms”. . The supernatural is supernatural right until it’s supernatural no longer because investigation was invested in and enough data was gathered. (and it turns out to be something wildly freaky but that is expressible in the ontology of the time, place, & context).
Man Trap was one of the first to be filmed, so it kind of set the tone. And it was filmed like the other shows of the era, including horror ones. So, it's not that outlandish for Star Trek to have horror.
I believe I saw an interview with the episode's director where she specifically said there is an explanation within universe - they just didn't state it within the narrative.
Very true about the horror part not being outlandish, but Man Trap was the 1st to air, but not the 1st filmed.
One of the first to be filmed was the phrasing, as in early on in TOS production. Not "the first."
The sixth filmed, the first aired.
Have you watched Sub Rosa?
Against my better judgment.
In my defense, I didn't really know about the ghost sex when I first watched it....I don't remember what I knew when it was about to air for the first time...probably not as much as I know tomorrow's SNW episode at this moment.
Kahless, I miss TNG and the 90s.
Kahless, I miss TNG and the 90s.
It's both.
"The Griffin Incident"
EVENT HORIZON was very clearly the inspiration for this. (Which is a really good scifi horror film.) And appropriate that the horror episode for the season is written by a former writer for SUPERNATURAL: Robbie Thompson.
I like how the opening shot is empty space and the signal: a lone voice in the darkness. Already giving us a creepy feeling and lets us know we are getting some horror here.
That device they found in engineering in the beginning could be the source of whatever is happening on board, but given that even the ship looks better in the beginning than in the end, we can't even trust that the device seen was even really there.
I like how the doors were creaking each time they were used... gives off the impression of a haunted, old house.
I like how the episode was really focused on the inner demons of each character: Spock and his internal warring between his Vulcan and human halves, Kirk with fatherhood, and La'An with her changes now.
For Kirk, it's clear that the writers are trying to paint him in a better light (regarding fatherhood, anyway) than TWOK may have. Despite him following Carol's wishes, I still don't like the idea that he essentially took the easy way out and got to have the life he wanted rather than put his primary responsibility of being a father first. At least here, they are trying to make it appear that Kirk tried to make it work, which would garner some sympathy from some viewers.
For Spock, I like how this seems to end up being the turning point in him fully embracing his Vulcan, logical side. Seeing how it was such an anchor for him here (as well as numerous times in TOS where it was essential for everyone's survival, like in "SPECTRE OF THE GUN"), this is clearly a step toward the progression to the Spock we know in TOS.
For La'An, literally fighting whatever demons she is having now. It seems to me that this is almost foreshadowing what her ultimate fate in SNW will be: something dangerous within that will end up killing her, either because she is killed or she sacrifices herself to prevent herself from going too far.
In a strange way, the Griffin was actually doing each of them a favor: she was forcing them all to accept the nature of who they are instead of fighting it. In life, we sometimes fight within ourselves to be something we ultimately are not... and usually that's not to our benefit. I think that is the message of this episode: acceptance of who you truly are, good or bad.
A lot of psychological horror tricks were used for this one (like the random background zombie while Kirk and La'An were talking), and I think they worked well overall because it kept most of them pretty simple, which to me is the most effective way to make horror stick with you. (Like the rising body bag containing "T'Pring"... homage to TNG's "Night Terrors".)
I love how this made transporters scary again. First, finding out Harper killed 287 of the crew by beaming them into space while still alive. That is a horrific thought in itself... going about your day like normal, then suddenly you find yourself in the middle of empty space, and you're dead. Second, La'An beaming Orfakegas into herself. This was clearly a nod to TMP, which was a VERY well done horror scene itself. (Mainly because most of the horror is built on your imagination filling in the blanks from the dialogue. Simple trick, but extremely effective.)
I have to also give Anson Mount credit... he does a creepy smile a little too well and easily. And I love that entire scene. Finger foods will have a nice new meaning in the franchise now. (Not the first time I have seen this kind of horror trick, though: FREDDY'S NIGHTMARES had an episode where a butcher was making a deli sandwich for a customer and he chopped off his own fingers and served it in that sandwich. I do love those kind of horror tricks, so they are always a welcome sight.)
Also, Division 12: sounds like the X-Files of Starfleet. I can see a series based solely on that premise, trying to solve the truly weird stuff Starfleet encounters.
I love that there is no explanation at the end... there should be SOME mystery left in the universe. Pike was absolutely correct when he said the universe is full of wonder and terror. (Q said a similar thing to Picard in "Q Who".) I also like how Pike said some things don't need to be put in an official report. "We got through" is sometimes good enough.
I do have to ding this episode for a few things. First, when La'An was in engineering by herself, it was VERY poor judgment (and uncharacteristic of her) to just assume Spock was walking in and not actually look behind her. I was actually surprised by this, given her methodical nature. Second, and most importantly, the episode broke the established rules of a fake world/hallucination that the Berman era set. Up until "Sam" being spaced, the rule of never seeing any exterior shots from the outside perspective during the fake world scenario were being followed. But the episode broke its own rules and showed Sam in space with his body mangled. (This was clearly done as an homage to EVENT HORIZON, because one of the characters had a similar thing happen to him.) This was a fatal mistake, as it took me completely out of the narrative. I get that it was done for shock value and to add another level of horror, but it was totally unnecessary. This is an unfortunate tendency of the Kurtzman era: overcompensation. Doing more and thinking it gets more when it really diminishes what they are trying to do. Third, I was also very surprised that neither Pike nor anyone else in the transporter room called for medical help immediately when they see a bleeding Kirk on the floor. This is not characteristic of Pike or Una, especially.
Horror episodes already start off highly rated for me, as I love that genre. And I would probably have given this one a 9.5, especially for it not having an explanation at the end and how it did focus on the character work... but those other character errors and taking me out of the narrative really hurt it for me, so I will end up giving this an 8.5. (Rounded up to a 9 here.)
EVENT HORIZON was very clearly the inspiration for this. (Which is a really good scifi horror film.) And appropriate that the horror episode for the season is written by a former writer for SUPERNATURAL: Robbie Thompson.
I like how the opening shot is empty space and the signal: a lone voice in the darkness. Already giving us a creepy feeling and lets us know we are getting some horror here.
That device they found in engineering in the beginning could be the source of whatever is happening on board, but given that even the ship looks better in the beginning than in the end, we can't even trust that the device seen was even really there.
I like how the doors were creaking each time they were used... gives off the impression of a haunted, old house.
I like how the episode was really focused on the inner demons of each character: Spock and his internal warring between his Vulcan and human halves, Kirk with fatherhood, and La'An with her changes now.
For Kirk, it's clear that the writers are trying to paint him in a better light (regarding fatherhood, anyway) than TWOK may have. Despite him following Carol's wishes, I still don't like the idea that he essentially took the easy way out and got to have the life he wanted rather than put his primary responsibility of being a father first. At least here, they are trying to make it appear that Kirk tried to make it work, which would garner some sympathy from some viewers.
For Spock, I like how this seems to end up being the turning point in him fully embracing his Vulcan, logical side. Seeing how it was such an anchor for him here (as well as numerous times in TOS where it was essential for everyone's survival, like in "SPECTRE OF THE GUN"), this is clearly a step toward the progression to the Spock we know in TOS.
For La'An, literally fighting whatever demons she is having now. It seems to me that this is almost foreshadowing what her ultimate fate in SNW will be: something dangerous within that will end up killing her, either because she is killed or she sacrifices herself to prevent herself from going too far.
In a strange way, the Griffin was actually doing each of them a favor: she was forcing them all to accept the nature of who they are instead of fighting it. In life, we sometimes fight within ourselves to be something we ultimately are not... and usually that's not to our benefit. I think that is the message of this episode: acceptance of who you truly are, good or bad.
A lot of psychological horror tricks were used for this one (like the random background zombie while Kirk and La'An were talking), and I think they worked well overall because it kept most of them pretty simple, which to me is the most effective way to make horror stick with you. (Like the rising body bag containing "T'Pring"... homage to TNG's "Night Terrors".)
I love how this made transporters scary again. First, finding out Harper killed 287 of the crew by beaming them into space while still alive. That is a horrific thought in itself... going about your day like normal, then suddenly you find yourself in the middle of empty space, and you're dead. Second, La'An beaming Orfakegas into herself. This was clearly a nod to TMP, which was a VERY well done horror scene itself. (Mainly because most of the horror is built on your imagination filling in the blanks from the dialogue. Simple trick, but extremely effective.)
I have to also give Anson Mount credit... he does a creepy smile a little too well and easily. And I love that entire scene. Finger foods will have a nice new meaning in the franchise now. (Not the first time I have seen this kind of horror trick, though: FREDDY'S NIGHTMARES had an episode where a butcher was making a deli sandwich for a customer and he chopped off his own fingers and served it in that sandwich. I do love those kind of horror tricks, so they are always a welcome sight.)
Also, Division 12: sounds like the X-Files of Starfleet. I can see a series based solely on that premise, trying to solve the truly weird stuff Starfleet encounters.
I love that there is no explanation at the end... there should be SOME mystery left in the universe. Pike was absolutely correct when he said the universe is full of wonder and terror. (Q said a similar thing to Picard in "Q Who".) I also like how Pike said some things don't need to be put in an official report. "We got through" is sometimes good enough.
I do have to ding this episode for a few things. First, when La'An was in engineering by herself, it was VERY poor judgment (and uncharacteristic of her) to just assume Spock was walking in and not actually look behind her. I was actually surprised by this, given her methodical nature. Second, and most importantly, the episode broke the established rules of a fake world/hallucination that the Berman era set. Up until "Sam" being spaced, the rule of never seeing any exterior shots from the outside perspective during the fake world scenario were being followed. But the episode broke its own rules and showed Sam in space with his body mangled. (This was clearly done as an homage to EVENT HORIZON, because one of the characters had a similar thing happen to him.) This was a fatal mistake, as it took me completely out of the narrative. I get that it was done for shock value and to add another level of horror, but it was totally unnecessary. This is an unfortunate tendency of the Kurtzman era: overcompensation. Doing more and thinking it gets more when it really diminishes what they are trying to do. Third, I was also very surprised that neither Pike nor anyone else in the transporter room called for medical help immediately when they see a bleeding Kirk on the floor. This is not characteristic of Pike or Una, especially.
Horror episodes already start off highly rated for me, as I love that genre. And I would probably have given this one a 9.5, especially for it not having an explanation at the end and how it did focus on the character work... but those other character errors and taking me out of the narrative really hurt it for me, so I will end up giving this an 8.5. (Rounded up to a 9 here.)
Similar threads
- Poll
- Poll
- Poll
- Poll
