Spoilers Star Trek: Discovery 2x07 - "Light and Shadows"

Unlike with other episodes, next week we'll be able to explain away any visual differences with them just being illusions. Talos IV comes ready-made for just such an occasion.

 

Hilarity ensues.

 

Their veins are moving, I watched it a couple times to make sure it wasn't a light trick, but I'm pretty sure they are

 

Eh, technically yes, but the Klingos have the advantage of a much more distinct set of traits – dark skin, snaggle teeth, some kind of armor, and forehead ridges. They don't much resemble other aliens in Star Trek or even in wider science fiction. So there's a lot of flexibility there where they remain identifiable.

The Talosians on the other hand are about as bog standard 1950s/60s alien as you can get. They're defined by robes, a frail build, a smooth bulbous head, and that's about it. That describes the Vians in TOS as well as the aliens from "To Serve Man" on the Twilight Zone, not to mention the various homages and retinterpriations of same in stuff like Men in Black. There's a lot less room for variance there without making them look like different characters from a different IP.

If I'd seen the screen cap in question divorced of context, I'm not sure I would have realized they were even from Star Trek.

 

It’s just Discovery being Discovery with their need to change everything. Just ignore it.

 

Again, after watching that episode - why the fuck hasn't Amanda left Sarek already? They have such a freaking dysfunctional marriage - even considering he suppresses all his emotions.

 

Probably good in bed I assume.

 

I didn't think Amanda came off that great, either. I was empathetic to her during the confrontation with Sarek but thought she seemed a bit nasty herself.

 

I wouldn't be surprised if she leaves him for a while and Sarek has to try to win her back. I don't know if they'd have time to show that on the series, but if they were main characters, that's a storyline I'd think we'd see.

 

Don't Vulcan men have incredibly low libidos outside of pon far?

She seemed a little nasty/petty in her last outing as well with the way she left things with Michael. I think she's being written that way on purpose. Which is fine, because people are flawed, after all.

 

So Leland played some part in the death of Michael's parents. Maybe they were in Section 31?

 

Jane Wyatt just made her so nice and empathetic. I always assumed she was what kept Spock as functional as he was. With parents like his, no wonder DiscoSpock went nuts.

 

I don't know what it was about this one, but I found it to be more pure fun than any other DSC episode besides maybe "Brother" and "What's Past Is Prologue."

Spock and family drama
Tyler and Pike come to a head
TNG-level technobabble and a temporal anomalies
Attack of the Matrix Squid
Georgeau being so eyerollingly bad it's awesome
Michelle Yeoh kicking
Stamets saves the day
Airiam getting infected
Talos FUCKING IV
The Stupid Turbolift Shot Again

Give me a break...this was like a fun overload. Not perfect, even a little choppy in parts, but a hell of a good ride. I need to think about the rating. It's like a 8.49 right now....so do I round down or up???

Processing........

 

Someone needs to transcribe everything spock was saying.

 

I think it's fantastic that they are portrayed as real people, and not as cardboard cut outs of virtue and politeness.

It gives the entire thing a relatable and realistic tone.

 

Honestly, I don't think that at the time that TOS was done it would have been possible to write a complicated and flawed female character.

 

So, Section 31 was behind the Klingon attack on the Vulcan outpost?

 

Maybe they were testing out something which attracted the Klingons?

 

Here's the thing I don't get. I've been wondering this for decades: what does Amanda see in Vulcan society? Why did she marry Sarek?

 

She certainly had a right to be catty to Sarek here, and some of that dialogue was quite good. But I didn't buy how she blew up about Burnham's undisclosed indiscretion last time and felt she was portrayed inconsistently this week.