Spoilers S01: Main Story

[thewanderingjack]

We are "told":

Long ago aliens created sentient synthetic life.

There was a conflict between those aliens and their creations that became all out war.

The synthetics "left" the galaxy. They also left a message for future synthetics: "call us and we'll help you fight the organics."

Apparently, the only ones to find that message were the Romulans (most likely the region where the message was left is within the empire).

All Romulans who received the message interpreted it the same way: as a warning from the aliens who created those synthetics that all synthetic life poses a threat to organic life.

We see:

"Almost instantly" is at least several minutes.

You can contact an incredibly advanced genocidal species, and as long as you hang up in the first minute or so, they'll just turn back and pretend it never happened.

"Tentacle monster" is universal and never goes out of style.

I assume:

The organic/synthetic war was one of extermination ("genocide"). From the visions and the general tone of the message.

The synthetics won. Because they survived to create and leave the message, where they say they "are waiting."

And that's as far as I can get, because... weird.

To win, they would've had to exterminate all organic life in the galaxy.

So, why leave? The point of exterminating the threat to synthetic life in the galaxy is to exist... IN the galaxy.

Sure you expand to new galaxies, but not abadon the first.

This is true even if they accessed some other dimension/universe/reality.

Especially since, based on the message, they expected organic life to arise, evolve, and develop enough to again create new synthetic life (to receive the message), as the ancient synths considered all organic life a threat.

And so I hit that wall... the entire premise makes no sense... without even taking the social development of those ancient synths... i.e.: by the time we come around, those synths should've evolved and advanced... become "enlightened" even. Moved beyond prejudicially destroying the very source of new synthetic life based on ancient grudges.

Just me?

 

[FederationHistorian]

You can contact an incredibly advanced genocidal species, and as long as you hang up in the first minute or so, they'll just turn back and pretend it never happened.

Its why some think the Star Trek universe ended with the finale of Picard. Since they wouldn’t they just go through anyways one they received the signal? And presumably end all organic life in the galaxy?

So, why leave? The point of exterminating the threat to synthetic life in the galaxy is to exist... IN the galaxy.

It likely they either

a) Lost and left the galaxy

or

b) Found organic life in the extradimensions, and that's what caused them to leave

And so I hit that wall... the entire premise makes no sense... without even taking the social development of those ancient synths... i.e.: by the time we come around, those synths should've evolved and advanced... become "enlightened" even. Moved beyond prejudicially destroying the very source of new synthetic life based on ancient grudges.

Maybe Soji’s new role is probably related to this. But how’s anyone supposed to know since it received no development at all in S2. And its not likely to get any development in S3 either, based upon what's been seen so far.

 

[gvn2fly]

As a poster alluded to above, they received the signal and were coming through a portal - why did they leave just because the signal stopped? Was the signal what actually opened the portal and without the signal the portal closed?

This wasn't exactly stated but my theory was that the original synths didn't just leave the galaxy but they evolved to exist in another plane of existence or another dimension (i.e. why they were coming through some portal). Of course then why would they care enough to come back just to destroy all life again? This whole plot point just feels like some executive or writer mandated a galactic wide threat. Remember, the season of Trek right before this (Discovery season 2) also involved the threat of a synthetic life wiping out all organic life in the galaxy.

 

[Tuskin38]

Was the signal what actually opened the portal and without the signal the portal closed?

That's what I figured.

 

[thewanderingjack]

a) Lost and left the galaxy

Doesn't make sense. The power/time/resources to move stars just to mark a message... and, wouldn't the organic victors notice the giant weird "impossible" system that never existed before? It's incredible enough that apparently no one in known history never noticed before.

But ok, went to another galaxy... where they just decided to let the organic threat keep being a threat? But left a message for future synths that they'd come and help them exterminate organics?

Any way I try to look at it, makes no sense.

b) Found organic life in the extradimensions, and that's what caused them to leave

So they've been in another dimension (or dimensions) exterminating organic life... knowing it was just re-evolving (after being exterminated) or re-developing (if they didn't finish the job) in our galaxy... um... huh?!

The "portal" doesn't have to be "dimensional"... it could be "space," or "time"... we literally cannot know.

But again, we get into the philosophic: if these ancient synths have in any way evolved or whatever you'd call it (which.. um... we're talking how long? Apparently before literally anyone's recorded history)... then the whole extermination plan makes even less sense...

Soji's role is nothing. I don't think anything is ever stated or alluded to then or ever after, about her or any of that stuff, or the deep and extensive Romulan infiltration/plot... so basically that whole synth situation just never happened.

I think these are all just Picard's senile delusions as he's sitting in a padded cell somewhere drooling on himself, the victim of all acombination of all the crazy shot he went through, mentally and physically.

 

[thewanderingjack]

As a poster alluded to above, they received the signal and were coming through a portal - why did they leave just because the signal stopped? Was the signal what actually opened the portal and without the signal the portal closed?

This wasn't exactly stated but my theory was that the original synths didn't just leave the galaxy but they evolved to exist in another plane of existence or another dimension (i.e. why they were coming through some portal). Of course then why would they care enough to come back just to destroy all life again? This whole plot point just feels like some executive or writer mandated a galactic wide threat. Remember, the season of Trek right before this (Discovery season 2) also involved the threat of a synthetic life wiping out all organic life in the galaxy.

I feel like if the acient synths expected less advanced synths to build a machine to signal them/open a portal... they, being that much more advanced, could do it from their end, once contacted.

The whole background story is thin and full of holes.

The fact that the AI/synth threat was already out there should have made this story easier, instead they invented a whole seperate but similar situation.

Fact is, while I'm sure there's plot holes in Discovery's S02 time travel shenanigans, nothing stood out as being so non-sensical and leaving so much unaddressed as this mess.

And it's not like it could'nt have been cleaned up: the ancient synths show up, evolved and enlightened, past the hate, get that they're part of a cycle blah blah, confirming there doesn't have to be a conflict and giving us yet another "yay, Data must have a soul" and all other kinds of good stuff.

They offer the new synths passage to wherever the ancients are or somewhere else, but some (Soji) choose to stay to speak on the Romulan plot and for synth rights.

Just feels like bad, terrible choices, for no apparent reason.

Sadly season 2 didn't change my mind .