Before I dive into The Mirror Universe, because I feel like that's something I'd rather watch at night, I'm going into two other
Short Treks. Why? I have Season 1 and Season 2 on DVD. I've been watching them in another room nowhere near a computer (and here). Curled up somewhere else. Watching them and being able to post here isn't a good combination. Slows things down.
But I never bought
Short Treks on DVD. I couldn't justify the cost versus the amount of material. So I'm watching it here in front of my computer, before I get ready for The Mirror Universe.
"Runaway"
Po stows away while Tilly's mom tries to discourage her from pursuing the Command Training Program. Tilly's mom is like my father. If I'd listened to him, I wouldn't be pursuing the career I am right now. He fought what I wanted to do at every turn because it wasn't what he would've done. At some point you have realize that your parents' want for you to go the "safe" route is in direct odds with succeeding in a life that's meaningful for you. I'll leave it at that.
I forgot how fast (and invisible) Po can move. She just made those food processors act crazy. I liked the growls between Tilly and Po. And the silly way Tilly explained the mess in there when over officers showed up.
The Xaheans have dilithium mines and they were born with their planet. Not to spoil anything, but I wonder if either of those will figure into Season 3 at all? Anyway...
Po is about to become Queen of Xahea. I like her hesitation about becoming Queen and running away to avoid it and the way Tilly helps her to want to go back to be the Queen. If you run from greater responsibility than all you're doing is proving to people who doubt you that you can't do it. And that's why Tilly wanted to encourage her. Someone like Tilly's mother would be like, "No, you're right, you shouldn't be Queen."
I can only imagine Tilly's mother's reaction when she found out her daughter went into The Future.
Skipping over "Calypso" for now and heading into...
"The Brightest Star"
I'm going to do something different hear and just cut-and-paste what I said two years ago, because I don't know what else to add to it.
Cutting and pasting from
December 7th, 2018:
Discovery doesn't do these too often, so I have to point it out whenever they do and it especially stands out here. The exterior location shots are breathtaking. Those first few shots of the outdoors are an instant hook.
The paraphrasing of "If man could fly, he'd have wings." Ha.
I can see the argument for having a younger actor play Saru... but underneath all that make-up, I don't think that's necessary. Just stretch the "skin" of the prosthetics a little,
slightly alter Doug Jones' voice, and it would've worked. As it is, I can suspend disbelief. Or strike that. Saru's father sounds like he has an older type of voice. So Saru is an adult son. Maybe "the good son". I notice Saru's mother isn't around. So, my mother died when I was 18, and I could've moved out around that time, and my father probably would've told me to live on campus when I was in college, but he didn't want to have the house all to himself. So maybe Saru actually is an
adult adult at this point. But anyway, just some personal insight.
I love the quiet moments outside, butterfly, Saru across from his sister. Then back inside where Saru sees the message "HELLO" from the device he has.
Saru sounds kind of like a typical science-fiction fan. Or the idea of one. "How can this life be enough for them?" I can't be the only here who's ever thought, "Just imagine what it would be like to get away this world and this existence!"
Jupiter Ascending -- I don't know how many people here have seen this -- starts out much the same way.
It's amazing the technological transition Saru will have to make. He lives in a hut and writes with a quill. Living in
our society would've been an adjustment for him. Never mind Star Trek's. Once again, the exteriors -- especially the extreme wide-shots -- as Saru waits for Georgiou, are feature-film quality. It feels about the right length. In a larger episode, I imagine we'd have seen the debate about whether or not Starfleet should even contact Saru. Never mind pre-warp. Saru was of a pre-industrial society. Then the episode ends on a note that hope is stronger than fear.
----- End of cut-and-paste. -----
Back to 2020. One thing I noticed that I didn't type about before were the creepy atmospherics at the beginning of the episode, especially with the lighting and all the orange, when Saru -- in his narration -- says that Kelpians welcome death and march willingly toward The Harvest. It feels like Halloween.
That's the only other thing I had to add. Everything else I typed from two years ago still stands and I couldn't have put things any better than I did there. Saved me some typing this time around.
EDIT: I'll also add that both of these
Short Treks involved young characters stepping up to become more than what they were and some of what they had to deal with while getting there.
