None of that, really. Just as younger people always see themselves as having invented something that's not as interesting as they think, anyway.
The intro CGI is a little dodgy in places with how the ship moves and 1 or two of the backgrounds but I didn't see anything in the show that was sub-standard (maybe the shuttle in the snow). It's the pilot of the 1st season so it will only improve. Vulcan looked lovely I thought and the Enterprise especially the bridge is gorgeous.
Sometimes it felt like watching a video game, but the older I get the less I care about the scenery. If it's good storytelling then that's enough.
I assumed the "dodgy" shots in the intro were homages to the TOS title sequence... As for "somewhat weightless ships" - isn't that more realistic than the days of lumbering models affected by gravity?
More like, why not use the next generation of Wind Turbine designs. Counter-Rotating Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbines are IMO the next evolutionary step for the traditional HAWT (Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine). Spoiler: Single CR HAWT (Counter-Rotating Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine) Spoiler: A CR HAWT farm. Who wouldn't want up to an extra 40% power generation while not having to pay 100% more for the additional land permits, foundation, and tower.
After having seen the actual episode, I think I changed my mind somewhat: I think the vfx work much better in the context of the show. The costumes, sets & props are all colorful & shiny, and I guess the vfx team went for that style, too, instead of realism. And it kinda' works. It's very similar to ST09 in style. I think the classic TOS movies have a more "realistic" look (and more "realistic" vfx) than 2009. ST09 goes more for the Marvel/Comicbook look. And it works, because TOS itself was pretty funky & colorful. So while I stand by it - in isolation, the vfx look somewhat overly "fake" - it works very well with the style of the show. The shiny shuttlecraft for example - doesn't look "realistic". But it looks like retro-space movies where the models were made out of aluminium. And that works very well with the retro-futuristic style of this show.
Similar btw for the windmills: They don't make sense in-universe, at all. Only as some kind of "museum" or "historical artifacts". But at the same time, it fits stylistically with Pike's 20th century hideout in the wilderness. So while since 23rd century tech constructions (like ST09 did in the background) would have been "better" - this one works perfectly fine. Also it's going to be a cute little anachronism once you watch that show twenty years from now - which always gets a little giggle out of me - like the few 80s anachronisms in TNG
Wind turbines aren't going anywhere any more than fireplaces, and fusion won't take over everything even if it works out.
mass is a factor even in zero-g. already existing plants will be around for a while, but if you have plentiful of virtually free energy what’s the point of building now ones?
Fission power was going to be "virtually free energy" in the early 1950s. We'll see what we'll see. And frankly, after a world war I can easily imagine a culture where living "off the grid" is considered quite a virtue in itself. And fire. We use fire for so many things that we burn shit down by accident (OMG, we've never learned to control fire, let alone nuclear. Not that I'm anti-nuke). I'll bet that with their manufacturing technologies, they can drop a windmill or a solar farm just about anywhere with minimal supporting infrastructure as compared to any kind of nuclear power generation.
Well, it still is compared to many alternatives. But we're talking about star trek anyway, where such energy source exists. Maybe. But an implant like that is hardly off the grid, due to the manteinance required. Maybe.
Maybe they're actually part of some elaborate weather control system instead? Or some scientific research facility. As energy producers they make NO sense at all - why build a windpark with all it's problems if you can just lay a power line to the next tiny fusion reactor. But in our real life we actually need way more windmills. That's why I'm not mad at all at them appearing in my science fiction & becoming a visual for a better future.
Indeed. Where I live there are people who use solar, and windpower, as well as wood heat. I see no issue with Pike's wind generator. Some people prefer the look of certain tech, regardless of what is newest or most available.
Dude owns a rotary phone. You know, my last apartment had electric everything. I could not wait to get into a place with a gas stove that cooks with fire.