Spoilers Star Trek: Strange New Worlds 3x08 - "Four-And-A-Half Vulcans"

[Tuskin38]

Vulcans are turned into horrible stereotypes rather than the stoic, wise and highly intelligent species that they are.

Because they were shaped by Spock's experiences according to Una's log.

There's two real full Vulcans in this very episode that don't act like assholes.

 

[gweeps]

This is my favourite episode of the season so far. Funny stuff.

 

[NCC-73515]

Glad the preview last year prepared us for this. Eraserhead Pike was a stupid idea, why would his hair change at all? Crawling on the floor and Pelia's high 5 were beyond awkward.
The "down low" part reminded me of that nice scene in T2 where John teaches the Terminator such tricks.
How does just showing them their katras make then human again? Or did it convince them to do the reversion procedure?
Why would "it's" be so difficult to say when they can say "it seems", same for "I've" when they can say "hive" and "five", etc.
Good things were Doug's genuine curiosity about humans (though the names were another eye-roller) and the appearance of belugas, and the dance/fight combo was creative and well performed.
But I'm more and more expecting the realization of an ENT April's fools joke where they said the next episode will feature Archer and Porthos swapping heads

Thank god they put this in:

And this should've been explored more:

If their katras weren't altered, only their bodies, wouldn't the personalities be unchanged?

Also there’s a whale visible in the science lab, at least the version in La’An’s mind.

They mentioned in an interview that this is cetatean ops a few weeks ago and that we will see some whales, but that they're belugas is a nice surprise. Why didn't they have uniforms though?

CONTI-NEW-ITY ALERT:

Chapel's plomeek soup making doesn't get better.

Ah that's why the next one gets thrown on the wall, Spock thought "not again!"

I'm still picking myself up from falling out of my chair because I was laughing so hard.

I laughed till I pissed me knickers.

Which scenes? I wanna rewatch what people found the funniest moments.

I'm not sure I can say the episode is a failure, because it was just trying to be light disposable comedy.

It felt like this episode was trying too hard to be funny and forgot it was an episode of Star Trek. Looking at it, it didn't really have much to say and what it did say wasn't enough.

And it's nothing to do with the episode being "fun" (the shield so many use to try to claim that people who don't like an episode are somehow deficient.) I liked all of the wACkY eps of seasons one and two, so don't @ me.
It's because the attempt at fun was so awful.

Yeah I stopped watching when 'Doug' the vulcan showed up and proceeded to rattle off about his sister named susan and cousin pete or whatever. I'm all for comedy episodes but the humour fell flat Honestly, the show is turning into a sitcom at this point. SNW has really lost me this season.

Exactly, same here. I could tell when something was supposed to be funny, but it just wasn't funny for me. Light and disposable worked though

 

[Mudd]

I can't stand the Spock shipping in this show.

I love all of it.

 

[Romulan_spy]

Because they were shaped by Spock's experiences according to Una's log.

Again, that makes no sense. Changing genes to make a person a Vulcan does not make them to be the type of Vulcan that Spock experienced. His experience with Vulcans does not transmit through his genes.

 

[Romulan_spy]

Vulcans have been "jerks" since TOS. And they've been treating Spock as inferior since TOS, too. It's an ongoing element of Spock's character. The episode does make the point that these "Vulcans" are not representative of all Vulcans.

Sure Some Vulcans were "jerks" but this episode made them worse imo.

 

[TheAdmiralty]

Really, really bad, the worst of SNW so far. Agree with a lot of the comparisons (the bad DS9 Ferengi comedy episodes, a bad fanfic). The "mechanics" are just dumb and it's not funny at all. Agree ending on Kirk and Scotty was kind of random but their interactions were the only thing in the episode that even sort of worked so I kind of get it.

I know they've been inconsistent with it over the years and it drifted more towards nature rather than nurture over time, but to me Vulcans are way more compelling if their logic is entirely a social construct. They were warlike like Romulans until Surak brought peace with his philosophy of total logic. Creates a more fascinating internal conflict for Vulcan characters.

 

[NCC-73515]

Pull the finger. Now, flatulence.
Just awful, and that it's Spock saying that is even worse...

 

[fireproof78]

Amanda calls it a better way so us unevolved 21st century humans miss what the logic gives Vulcans.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Sure Some Vulcans were "jerks" but this episode made them worse imo.

The actual Vulcans we see in the episode aren't jerks though.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Again, that makes no sense. Changing genes to make a person a Vulcan does not make them to be the type of Vulcan that Spock experienced. His experience with Vulcans does not transmit through his genes.

The serum isn't just changing their DNA. I think that's established here and in "Charades." Fully human Spock is different than Human-Vulcan Spock.

 

[Tuskin38]

Changing genes to make a person a Vulcan does not make them to be the type of Vulcan that Spock experienced.

Changing the genes did not do that. It was the magic non-corporeal alien serum from Season 2 Charades.

 

[Kamen Rider Blade]

The serum isn't just changing their DNA. I think that's established here and in "Charades." Fully human Spock is different than Human-Vulcan Spock.

Has there ever been an ep with 100% Vulcan Spock?

 

[cooleddie74]

Only in a dream sequence of SNW, where a fully Vulcan Spock fought a 100% human Spock in a koon-ut-kalifee ceremony.

 

[PatB1974]

I looked forward to a new episode all week, but I was very disappointed in this one. So many things seemed off to me, like the serum changing Pike's hairstyle. I wish the writing would get better.

 

[Artoo Atari]

A fun episode that for some reason didn't rub me the wrong way the way Wedding Bell Blues did.

That kind of sums it up for me. I think i'm going to sleep on it for now and and consider my comments tomorrow.

But first, did anyone else catch the Primanti Brothers reference? I'm not sure if anyone else mentioned this, but Ortegas had a line about sandwiches from the planet Purmantee III had the "fries on the inside." Primanti Brothers is a Pittsburgh establishment known for its sandwiches that are loaded with meat, cheese, tomato, coleslaw, and French fries. Someone on the show must have connections to the 'Burgh.

 

[fireproof78]

Only in a dream sequence of SNW, where a fully Vulcan Spock fought a 100% human Spock in a koon-ut-kalifee ceremony.

Worse Mortal Kombat level ever.

 

[Bad Thoughts]

This episode should have been the Vulcan version of Facets: Spock confronting, and accepting different versions of his personality and La'an coming to grips with being the product of a complicated heritage.

Instead, we got mediocre SNL.

 

[TRON JA307020]

Pull the finger. Now, flatulence.
Just awful, and that it's Spock saying that is even worse...

I agree. It was dumb. Also the smile at the end made no sense. Sigh.

 

[firehawk12]

Kirk was there to try to hook up with La'an. He as much says it.


I noted the Pike/Conehead voice. La'an doesn't have a Romulan side. Her story here came from her greater ambition for power, an augment programmed quality.

I don't mind why he's there, it's just that as an audience member watching a piece of fiction, it's just weird to see. To me it feels like if Wesley Crusher showed up on TNG every other week after he supposedly left to join the Academy.

Maybe if there were more episodes, it's fine for him to be around so often. Like the Grand Nagus showing up on DS9 every once in a while even though I assume Ferriginar is far away from Bajor.