Enterprise Novels
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Mmh. I felt the author had an excellent handle on Trip and Malcolm, at least. The characters seemed to me to be in character. So maybe it was the 'old episode of Doctor Who' feel you thought was weird? Since it's quite old-fashioned science fiction, it kind of fits with ENT being a prequel to TOS.
Well, after seeing Terra Prime, that is pretty much how I wanted the characters to be portrayed. Too, the characters didn't really jump out at me...or the story very engrossing.
Well, the book takes place in season two, so they can't be the people they were at the end of season four. Some things, especially everybody being so quick to see the Vulcans as pacifists, are only plausible if one doesn't take into account later seasons. Certainly, no one would have assumed that after the Vulcan arc in season four, when Enterprise nearly got fired on by the Vulcans.
^^
That is true....
Since I have a bit more hold on the ENT series, I'll read it again to see if my pov changes....
Really, the Vulcans-as-pacifists concept doesn't match up with what ENT established about Vulcan political culture in Season One, either. Between their control of the United Earth government, their spying on the Andorians in violation of treaty in "The Andorian Incident," and their use of the Coridanite government as puppet proxies in their cold war with the Andorians, ENT Season One rather firmly established that mid-22nd Century Vulcan was an imperialist power, albeit more of a form of so-called "soft" imperialism (the use of puppet governments and unofficial controls) rather than direct military conquest and expansion.
But they weren't pacifists in ENT Season One.
^ That was because of V'Las, who we all know was a Romulan spy. Without his interference, the Vulcans wouldn't have been like that.
I'm inclined to think that it's not quite that simple. "Home" and "Awakening" talk about how the harsh repressions against groups like the Syrannites didn't start until after the P'Jem spy station was uncovered and the First Minister was dismissed, leading to the rise of V'Las as dictator of Vulcan. Yet we know that Vulcan was already propping up puppet governments and engaging in proxy wars with the Andorians long before V'Las's rise to power.
So, frankly, I'm inclined to think that V'Las was taking advantage of pre-existing imperialist tendencies to try to push Vulcan into "hard imperialism" -- engaging in a war of conquest against the Andorians, for instance -- and then using Vulcan control of local space to unofficially put local space into the hands of the Romulans.
^Yes, and the point of the Vulcan Civil War arc was that Vulcans up to that point had been misconstruing Surak's true teachings. Which seemed to be a way of explaining why the Vulcan culture in the first three seasons was so blatantly not pacifistic. It wasn't just one man. Of course no society-wide movement can be the work of one man; V'Las would only have been able to do what he did if the culture was already primed to respond positively, otherwise he would've been unable to gain influence in the first place.
Vulcan in the ENT years was pretty much like America as a cultural-imperialist power, or the British Empire before that -- well-intentioned, believing it was promoting justice and civilization, but heavy-handed and insensitive toward the perspectives of the other powers that it tried to "help" and thus often doing more harm than good, and willing to compromise its principles in the name of keeping its main political rival in check. That's what was cool about it. TOS was kind of an irony-free celebration of America's self-image as a force of benevolent imperialism, spreading its power and values in the name of what it thought was right, but ENT was more of a postcolonial critique of that kind of attitude from the perspective of the less powerful.
Vulcan in the ENT years was pretty much like America as a cultural-imperialist power, or the British Empire before that -- well-intentioned, believing it was promoting justice and civilization, but heavy-handed and insensitive toward the perspectives of the other powers that it tried to "help" and thus often doing more harm than good, and willing to compromise its principles in the name of keeping its main political rival in check. That's what was cool about it. TOS was kind of an irony-free celebration of America's self-image as a force of benevolent imperialism, spreading its power and values in the name of what it thought was right, but ENT was more of a postcolonial critique of that kind of attitude from the perspective of the less powerful.
To a point... But I think one of the problems with ENT is that that particular narrative emerged rather haphazardly. I think the the driving impetus of the ENT producers early on was more, "Vulcans can be such irritating jerks. Let's have that be the POV of our characters!," with the idea of Vulcan as a soft imperial power being gradually developed after the fact to justify Archer and Co.'s hostility.
Because of that, I don't think that ENT's postcolonialism comes across as being particularly well-executed -- especially when ENT later comes close to endorsing some aspects of liberal imperialism in Season Three.
Yes, I know. That's what I found odd about the book. I mentioned it in my mini review in the 'What are you reading' thread.
Though Surak was portrayed as a pacifist in TOS, Vulcans in general weren't. Spock wasn't opposed to violence and war, either, so long as that could be justified logically and ethically. Vulcans serve in Starfleet, which also acts as a military if necessary, so that notion came out of nowhere in the book. But it would have been even more implausible after the things that happened in season four.
I dunno... maybe it's my history studies causing me to read things into it, but I got that sense about the human-Vulcan relationship pretty much from the beginning. Right there in "Broken Bow," we were told that the Vulcans had been suppressing humanity's growth into space "for our own good." Not so different from the British Civil Service insisting its purpose in India was to raise the Indians up to the level of equals while at the same time they forbade Indians from actually joining the Civil Service because they "weren't ready yet."
Spock often was presented as the advocate for peaceful options, though, particularly in "Arena" and "The Devil in the Dark" (which, for all their admirable qualities, are largely the same story twice). And TOS portrayed Vulcan as a society that had ended war by disowning emotion. So while that might not be quite the same thing as pacifism per se, it's not as though the idea came out of nowhere.
Quick thoughts on Surak's Soul:
I haven't read it, but I skimmed though the book again.
As a novel, it is...well...dull.
I know Count Zero mentioned an old episode feel, but I feel that the writer--in this case J.M. Dillard--could have broken away from the restraints of the show and given us a slam-bang story....that moves.
This story does get us from point A to B to C, etc....but it comes off as a routine story.
As aforementioned, now that I've seen a couple of episodes and got a handle of the characters, I would like to see them 'jump off the page'....
I've just read Revenge of the Sith; and if book based on a movie--where the book is phenomenal (sp?) and the movie wasn't--I'm sure it can be done with Trek.
I'm still waiting to see what is done with the other ENT books...
I understand that the Daedalus bi-logy is Trip-centric, and I don't particularly like Trip....so I'm going to have a difficult time. Unless Dave Stern surprises me....
*crossing fingers*
I haven't read it, but I skimmed though the book again.
As a novel, it is...well...dull.
I know Count Zero mentioned an old episode feel, but I feel that the writer--in this case J.M. Dillard--could have broken away from the restraints of the show and given us a slam-bang story....that moves.
This story does get us from point A to B to C, etc....but it comes off as a routine story.
As aforementioned, now that I've seen a couple of episodes and got a handle of the characters, I would like to see them 'jump off the page'....
I've just read Revenge of the Sith; and if book based on a movie--where the book is phenomenal (sp?) and the movie wasn't--I'm sure it can be done with Trek.
I'm still waiting to see what is done with the other ENT books...
I understand that the Daedalus bi-logy is Trip-centric, and I don't particularly like Trip....so I'm going to have a difficult time. Unless Dave Stern surprises me....
*crossing fingers*
I don't think the ENT novels will prove to be extraordinary. They seem to be pretty standard fare, so far. Oh well, I'll continue reading them.
I think you might like the Daedalus books, Joel. It's been a while since I read them and I might have been too harsh on them. I don't think they were that Trip-centric.
I think you might like the Daedalus books, Joel. It's been a while since I read them and I might have been too harsh on them. I don't think they were that Trip-centric.
IIRC, Surak's Soul had to have some last minute rewrites because the TV series did an episode that had some similar ideas and events to the book. That probably didn't do the book any favours.
By the way, what's with the random italics?
Sorry, I don't mean to come across as though we're bashing you're post... but a two part book series is duology, not a bi-ology
Tks, Count Zero...
Tks, Steve...
And random Italics?
I don't know what you're talking about....
Tks, JD....
Well, I started this thread back on October 30, 2009 and got the three ENT relaunch books in early November. I just finished The Good That Men Do. Yes, I'm an extraordinarily slow reader.
I got to say - LOVED IT! It certainly cleaned up that abomination of a finale!
There are two things I want to nitpick about however. And that is all this boils down to.... nitpicking.
First,
Second,
Anyway, like I said, overall it was an absolutely excellent book. Now it's on to Kobayashi Maru. Hopefully I'll have it finished before January.
I got to say - LOVED IT! It certainly cleaned up that abomination of a finale!
There are two things I want to nitpick about however. And that is all this boils down to.... nitpicking.
First,
It's revealed that Section 31 has knowledge of the Mirror Universe. How is this possible? 
If it's explained in the remaining two relaunch novels, don't tell me, as I don't want to be spoiled.
If it's explained in the remaining two relaunch novels, don't tell me, as I don't want to be spoiled.Second,
On page 385, it's stated that Australia was the last nation to join the United Earth government.
This is one of my BIGGEST pet peeves about Trek.
Why is so difficult for people to realize that Beverly Crusher was simply using a hypothetical argument when she said Australia was the last to join? She picked a country at random. It would be like me asking if the United States shouldn't exist because Ohio was the last state to join. OF COURSE OHIO WASN'T THE LAST TO JOIN! But under this thinking, it must have been because I said it was.
Sorry, I know this is truly a minor nitpick that has absolutely nothing to do with The Good That Men Do, but it really erkked me and I needed to vent.
This is one of my BIGGEST pet peeves about Trek.
Why is so difficult for people to realize that Beverly Crusher was simply using a hypothetical argument when she said Australia was the last to join? She picked a country at random. It would be like me asking if the United States shouldn't exist because Ohio was the last state to join. OF COURSE OHIO WASN'T THE LAST TO JOIN! But under this thinking, it must have been because I said it was.
Sorry, I know this is truly a minor nitpick that has absolutely nothing to do with The Good That Men Do, but it really erkked me and I needed to vent.
Anyway, like I said, overall it was an absolutely excellent book. Now it's on to Kobayashi Maru. Hopefully I'll have it finished before January.
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