Spoilers Star Trek: Discovery 2x04 - "An Obol for Charon"
- Thread starter Commander Richard
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While Pike didn't say so in New Eden, the crux of the Prime Directive is Starfleet shouldn't interfere in the natural development of alien species - particularly pre-warp species.
If the current situation of the Kelpiens is not natural - if it's actually engineered - a strong argument could be made the Prime Directive is not in force.
But what happened to those humans wasn’t natural as well. They were taken from their planet by some alien force.
A check to Memory Alpha proves you correct about the Preservers. It's been awhile since I've seen The Paradise Syndrome, but I'm in the middle of a TOS rewatch.
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6.
Interesting story, but the storytelling was a mess.
Interesting story, but the storytelling was a mess.
A check to Memory Alpha proves you correct about the Preservers. It's been awhile since I've seen This Side of Paradise, but I'm in the middle of a TOS rewatch.
I only knew that because I just watched that one.
Thing is, I've never been much of a TOS fan, but this season of Discovery has left me wanting more of a certain kind of story, and TOS has been the ticket. Something about "New Eden" and this episode in particular give me TOS vibes--maybe it's the brighter color palette, the TOS-like space encounters, or the more naturalistic air that both Pike and Reno bring to the proceedings. There's something about these that feel every so slightly more Golden Age of Science Fiction. Discovery might actually get me to finally watch TOS in order...and like it.Further thoughts on this episode: I did some reading up on real-life Stamets' mushroom work recently, and wondered if Psilocybin might have something to do with Culber's return due to its ability to stimulate neurogenesis and effectively reorganize the brain. I feel slightly vindicated that they introduced Psilocybin alongside discussions of incubation and new life. Now if only they'll bring back "the clearing in the forest" as a reference to how mycelium helps cleared woodlands regrow, that'd be just swell.
A point of detail: it has never been confirmed that the Preservers are a single species, and if you think about it, no one species is realistically devoted to only one goal: real-life humans have plenty of different ideological factions when it comes to human rights in foreign lands.
Great observation. I hadn't thought of that, but it's interesting. It could be a faction or even a small group of individuals...although my mind goes to the idea of an ancient, multi-species alliance--an ancient Federation, if you will--that seeded this generation of life. Fascinating.
It will certainly be nice to see Star Trek finally achieve adulthood and fully move away from its long favored but rather silly Planet of Hats trope.
I see it as Saru — a Kelpian — found this information independently. So why can’t Saru, as a Kelpian, not Starfleet, go talk to his own people and tell them what he discovered.
By the way, I can’t believe no other Kelpian ever went through (all the way through) what Saru did.
Very Farscapian in that manner, I thought.
Ron Moore has said that he intended, but intentionally did not specify, that the ancient aliens we saw in The Next Generation's The Chase were the Preservers.
I''m sure they did, but he lived in a small village in a non-technological very conservative religious environment. Not a lot of room for those denying collective beliefs in that sort of place.
I'd give this one a 10. Though maybe a 9...this was a wonderful episode, chock full of stuff.
Excellent premise of the main story - that gigantic sphere entity had one guessing about what was going on, until you realize that it wanted to share what it learned before it passed on. That's for starters.
Saru's character development was intriguing and almost heart wrenching when you are almost convinced he's going to pass away, but he doesn't. He now lives without fear presiding over his life, which is something that he's going to have to get used to. Not to mention the Saru / Burnham chemistry and Burnham realizing that it is possible to reconcile with Spock.
Not to mention the Stamets and Reno chemistry that we see here. I like how Reno is the "grease monkey" and jokes about the spores. Stamets believes that the spores are ecologically friendlier. Oftentimes you'd think men would more likely be "grease monkeys." Not to mention we may now very well have our reason why Starfleet ultimately ditched the spore drive in the form of that May entity that has now whisked Tilly away.
Excellent premise of the main story - that gigantic sphere entity had one guessing about what was going on, until you realize that it wanted to share what it learned before it passed on. That's for starters.
Saru's character development was intriguing and almost heart wrenching when you are almost convinced he's going to pass away, but he doesn't. He now lives without fear presiding over his life, which is something that he's going to have to get used to. Not to mention the Saru / Burnham chemistry and Burnham realizing that it is possible to reconcile with Spock.
Not to mention the Stamets and Reno chemistry that we see here. I like how Reno is the "grease monkey" and jokes about the spores. Stamets believes that the spores are ecologically friendlier. Oftentimes you'd think men would more likely be "grease monkeys." Not to mention we may now very well have our reason why Starfleet ultimately ditched the spore drive in the form of that May entity that has now whisked Tilly away.
That was a pretty good Star Trek episode. Very encouraging.
Folk in the Starfleet quote Peter Pan and John Masefield. They read Sherlock Holmes and Charlotte Brontë. They listen to Rachmaninoff and jazz. They play holonovels based upon Flash Gordon, James Bond, and Philip Marlowe knockoffs. The only thing different here is that the producers shelled out money for something under copyright instead of going the knockoff route.
That actually seems like the kind of thing that would happen to a species like his once they've become a full adult, as at that point one would be skilled and experienced enough not to run and hide when danger threatens. Should be interesting where his story goes.
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