Spoilers Section 31 General Discussion Thread

[The Wormhole]

Because I don’t recall Section 31 even being a thing until season 2.

There was the alternate ending of the S1 finale where Leland was originally introduced and he recruited Georgiou, which was posted online in March 2018, but, yeah, that's the only real pre-season 2 material involving Section 31.

I guess, there were the guards with the black badges seen early in S1, but we didn't know they were Section 31 until it was later retconned that black badges meant Section 31. Indeed, they seemed to have been forgotten when Section 31 was introduced on the show, given in S2 Tyler mentions having been aware of Section 31 but never having met anyone from the organization. An odd statement from a guy who served on a ship which had a couple of Section 31 agents assigned to it. And even odder statement if said ship was supposed to have been commissioned by them.

 

[Noname Given]

Yes, by all means please let us know the relevant quotes. Because I don’t recall Section 31 even being a thing until season 2.

I'm not that big a fan of Star Trek Discovery so I don't feel like a rewatching the first season just to tell you guys something you could watch on your own.

However from the first episode it was known that the engineering spaces were guarded and controlled by persons with black comm badges. We later find out that everyone with a black combat is a member of Section 31.

And when they talk about the two vessels with the Spore Drive, the Crossfield in the Discovery, either Stanets or Lorca mentioned that the ships were not directly commissioned or constructed by Starfleet proper.

Personally I don't care if you believe me or not.

Considering Dukhat likes to constantly claim with no im show dialogue evidence whatsoever that the entire kurtzman run of Star Trek is the different timeline, pardon me if I don't feel the need to rewatch the show I don't really care for.

 

[fireproof78]

However from the first episode it was known that the engineering spaces were guarded and controlled by persons with black comm badges. We later find out that everyone with a black combat is a member of Section 31.

And when they talk about the two vessels with the Spore Drive, the Crossfield in the Discovery, either Stanets or Lorca mentioned that the ships were not directly commissioned or constructed by Starfleet proper.

Not a bad memory for a show you don't care for.

 

[Dukhat]

I'm not that big a fan of Star Trek Discovery so I don't feel like a rewatching the first season just to tell you guys something you could watch on your own.

However from the first episode it was known that the engineering spaces were guarded and controlled by persons with black comm badges. We later find out that everyone with a black combat is a member of Section 31.

And when they talk about the two vessels with the Spore Drive, the Crossfield in the Discovery, either Stanets or Lorca mentioned that the ships were not directly commissioned or constructed by Starfleet proper.

Personally I don't care if you believe me or not.

Considering Dukhat likes to constantly claim with no im show dialogue evidence whatsoever that the entire kurtzman run of Star Trek is the different timeline, pardon me if I don't feel the need to rewatch the show I don't really care for.

@The Wormhole summed up everything better than I could. And my personal feeling about DSC/SNW taking place in a different continuity has nothing to do with this discussion, so I’m not sure why you even brought that up other than to be obtuse.

 

[Tosk]

I'm not that big a fan of Star Trek Discovery so I don't feel like a rewatching the first season just to tell you guys something you could watch on your own.

You made the claim, it's on you to defend it. "Go watch the episodes yourself" helps nothing.

However from the first episode it was known that the engineering spaces were guarded and controlled by persons with black comm badges.

That was episode 3. The Discovery wasn't in eps 1 and 2.

And when they talk about the two vessels with the Spore Drive, the Crossfield in the Discovery, either Stanets or Lorca mentioned that the ships were not directly commissioned or constructed by Starfleet proper.

The USS Glenn is first mentioned in Context is For Kings. The transcript contains no use of the words commissioned or constructed. So more specific info is needed for us to track down this bit.

Personally I don't care if you believe me or not.

It's not about believing you, it's about asking for the information you claim exists.

pardon me if I don't feel the need to rewatch the show I don't really care for.

No one asked you to watch anything. That was all you.

 

[The Wormhole]

However from the first episode it was known that the engineering spaces were guarded and controlled by persons with black comm badges

No. We see people with black badges standing guard in a corridor, but it's never stated what they were doing or why they were on the ship. They don't appear to be there for anything related to the spore drive, given later in the same episode they're nowhere to be found when Michael sneaks into the spore chamber, and there's no evidence of anything else particularly important or sensitive. They literally just stand there and look ominous and are promptly forgotten about. Even later when the black badges are established to be Section 31, these particular guards are completely forgotten.

nd when they talk about the two vessels with the Spore Drive, the Crossfield in the Discovery, either Stanets or Lorca mentioned that the ships were not directly commissioned or constructed by Starfleet proper.

There are no such references in the first season.

 

[eschaton]

Early installment weirdness.

Move on.

 

[Tosk]

Early installment weirdness.

Move on.

To what exactly are you referring?

 

[Dukhat]

I think he meant that like every Trek show, things start out a certain way and then change later once things are more established. Like, say, how in season 1 of DS9, Rom acts VERY Ferengi-like, but then later mellows out extremely into the lovable character we are more used to.

 

[Tosk]

That's what I assume too, but I'm not sure how that's relevant to the discussion because we're not decrying the details or focusing on stuff that got overwritten later, we're just digging into a very specific claim. Did the show ever say that Section 31 commissioned or constructed the USS Discovery?

 

[Dukhat]

Did the show ever say that Section 31 commissioned or constructed the USS Discovery?

Nope.

 

[The Wormhole]

in season 1 of DS9, Rom acts VERY Ferengi-like, but then later mellows out extremely into the lovable character we are more used to.

What gets me in rewatches is in the first season, Rom is supposed to be an incompetent engineer. Odo proves Quark is lying because he claimed Rom fixed something, which can't be because Rom "couldn't fix a straw if it were bent." Later in the series, Rom is a brilliant engineer with skills which prove instrumental during the Dominion War.

 

[XCV330]

No. We see people with black badges standing guard in a corridor, but it's never stated what they were doing or why they were on the ship. They don't appear to be there for anything related to the spore drive, given later in the same episode they're nowhere to be found when Michael sneaks into the spore chamber, and there's no evidence of anything else particularly important or sensitive. They literally just stand there and look ominous and are promptly forgotten about. Even later when the black badges are established to be Section 31, these particular guards are completely forgotten.

There are no such references in the first season.

It was mentioned in that episode that ship could handle a record number of individual science operations. The Sec31 people might have been there for one of the other ones besides Disco's primary job. Maybe they left once DASH started working. A few episodes later Lorca reminds Stamets that Discovery is no longer a science ship, when he threatenes to leave with his research, and that it is now a warship. That, and it avoiding front line duty for the first six months of the war, seems to imply it was reassigned at some point. (In the same way that Enterprise was NOT reassigned and kept on with science and exploration duties for the duration)

 

[The Old Mixer]

I think he meant that like every Trek show, things start out a certain way and then change later once things are more established. Like, say, how in season 1 of DS9, Rom acts VERY Ferengi-like, but then later mellows out extremely into the lovable character we are more used to.

The go-to example of EIW in Trek would be SPOCK CONSTANTLY SHOUTING!!!

 

[Tosk]

Nope.

I'd rather hear it from Noname, but I'll take it.

What gets me in rewatches is in the first season, Rom is supposed to be an incompetent engineer. Odo proves Quark is lying because he claimed Rom fixed something, which can't be because Rom "couldn't fix a straw if it were bent." Later in the series, Rom is a brilliant engineer with skills which prove instrumental during the Dominion War.

"I've always been smart, brother. I've just lacked self-confidence." - Rom, Little Green Men.

 

[Tomalak]

Yeah, Rom carefully cultivated the illusion that he was an idiot, and even fooled Odo, proving how smart he was. Initially he dreams of supplanting Quark and owning the bar, but later realises he can fulfil his life in other ways by forging his own path.

It's called character development!

 

[fireproof78]

Except for the whole marriage contract with Nog's mom.

Yeah, totally smart... *insert Ferengi emoticon here,*

 

[Tomalak]

The recurring theme is that he's a rubbish Ferengi, and doesn't have the lobes for business, but he's not an idiot.

 

[Tuskin38]

I believe Nog even says as much, his father was a terrible ferengi but a great engineer, or something like that.

 

[fireproof78]

I feel like reading shouldn't be a specific alien trait.