Where is your confidence level now with ST:Dis?

[Rahul]

I just looked through all of the episodes of Season 3 of TNG, and barely half of them dealt with any kind of strange new life or civilization. The rest all dealt with trips to Federation colonies or outposts of some sort, Klingons, Romulans, Q, Ferengi, or crew members' personal issues. Q, and the Ferengi did start off as new life, but by Season 3 that really wouldn't apply to them any more.

Let's look at the first 10 episodes of season 3, shall we:

Evolution - begins with the Enterprise observing a red giant, plot set in motion by a science experiment
The Ensigns of Command - a diplomacy mission
The Survivors - answering a distress call, research for the strange phenomena
Who Watches the Watchers - literally about doing research on indigenous people
The Bonding - plot set in motion by an exploration mission on a planet
Booby Trap - Enterprise doing research of old asteroid relics
The enemy - Enterprise answers a distress call
The price - the auction of a wormhole - that is important because it leads to new exploration in the Delta Quadrant (but is mostly a diplomacy mission - I give you that)
The Vengeance Factor - a diplomacy mission
The Defector - a diplomacy mission

Out of the first 10 episodes of Season 3, there are two episoded starting with the Enterprise answering a distress call and four diplomacy missions. The other four episodes (five, if you count the wormhole) have plots that are either directly set in motion or set during the Enterprise doing scientific exploration and discovery.

Yeah, there are rarely plots about people wandering around and drawing maps. Where is the plot in that? But as it stands - doing scientific research, exploration and discovery - is the main motivation for our heroes in about half the episodes. Not even counting those where they research the situation after a distress call. As I see it, "discovery and exploration" has a big part in that season. As it has and always had in all of Star Trek...

 

[Nerys Myk]

The original series was very much about exploration and discovery, as was the first couple of years of TNG. Then it all evolved to ferrying ambassadors back and forth and such. Eventually, the characters would even comment on it themselves.

Not really, Exploration/discovery is usually an excuse to get to the actual plot. Just as medical shows are rarely about the actual procedures or treatments but about the doctors, nurses and patients.

 

[Mudd]

Not really, Exploration/discovery is usually an excuse to get to the actual plot. Just as medical shows are rarely about the actual procedures or treatments but about the doctors, nurses and patients.

Exactly so. "The Bonding," for example, has nothing particularly to do with encountering a new species; the alien is just a motivating factor in a story about Worf helping a kid deal with trauma.

You can contrast that with a show like "The Corbomite Maneuver," which is in fact about the confrontation between humans and a new species, with the personal story of LT. Bailey being one facet of that.

 

[Rahul]

Not really, Exploration/discovery is usually an excuse to get to the actual plot. Just as medical shows are rarely about the actual procedures or treatments but about the doctors, nurses and patients.

Oh, hell, of course! Star Trek is not the Discovery Channel, or a livestream into a laboratory. Exploration/Discovery is the motivation that leads our heroes to the actual conflicts, which drive the plots. But still: Its (one of) the main motivations for our heroes. That makes the whole series about explorers and scientists, and their adventures. Making exploration and discovery one of the fundamental pillars of Star Trek.

In the same way as "Emergency Room" is about medical doctors - even though the conflicts and plots in this show aren't exactly the diseases, but human stories.

 

[Albinator]

After seeing the behind-the-scenes trailer, my confidence is high. There is always cautious optimism when you talk about a new series/new movie with little history, but with Fuller as creator, Meyer as a writer, a solid cast, and what looks like a solid budget, I see no reason to be concerned yet.

Any concern I previously had was due to Fuller's departure making me worry it wouldn't happen, or that his replacement would completely start over, constant delays in production, and the slow pace of casting.

But now that it seems Fuller's concept is intact, his scripts are being used, the cast has filled out delightfully, and production has begun, those concerns have evaporated.

 

[saddestmoon]

Ya know what? I'm really excited about seeing new starships!

 

[Nerys Myk]

Oh, hell, of course! Star Trek is not the Discovery Channel, or a livestream into a laboratory. Exploration/Discovery is the motivation that leads our heroes to the actual conflicts, which drive the plots. But still: Its (one of) the main motivations for our heroes. That makes the whole series about explorers and scientists, and their adventures. Making exploration and discovery one of the fundamental pillars of Star Trek.

In the same way as "Emergency Room" is about medical doctors - even though the conflicts and plots in this show aren't exactly the diseases, but human stories.

It's one of several motivations that can set a plot in motion. That's the beauty of the ship setting, plots can be set in motion by many things. People on the ship. People coming to the ship. A science problem. A diplomatic problem. A military problem.

 

[Rahul]

It's one of several motivations that can set a plot in motion. That's the beauty of the ship setting, plots can be set in motion by many things. People on the ship. People coming to the ship. A science problem. A diplomatic problem. A military problem.

Well yes, indeed. The difference is, exploration and discovery is the main motivation for the Star Trek heroes. It's the one that is literally spelled out during the opening credits of the original series. And TNG. And the pilot of ENT.

Of course they often have these different type of missions: diplomatic missions. Answering a distress call. Search for a missing ship. But overall, their main mission is exploration, of strange new worlds, "to seek out new lifeforms, and new civilisations".

That's what makes Star Trek special. That is it's unique selling point. Diplomacy, war and battles are big parts of Babylon5, BSG, Firefly and Star Wars as well. The centerpriece of Star Trek - "to boldly go where no one has gone before" - is exploration and discovery though. And I hope the new series will aknowledge that as well. But I'm confident it will - the title gives it away.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Well yes, indeed. The difference is, exploration and discovery is the main motivation for the Star Trek heroes. It's the one that is literally spelled out during the opening credits of the original series and TNG!

Of course they often have these different type of missions: diplomatic missions. Answering a distress call. Search for a missing ship. But overall, their main mission is exploration, of strange new worlds, "to seek out new lifeforms, and new civilisations".

That's what makes Star Trek special. That is it's unique selling point. Diplomacy, war and battles are big parts of Babylon5, BSG, Firefly and Star Wars as well. The centerpriece of Star Trek - "to boldly go where no one has gone before" - is exploration and discovery though. And I hope the new series will aknowledge that as well. But I'm confident it will - the title gives it away.

The open monologue is nice, but it doesn't come close to describing the motivations of the characters, the ship's mission or the theme of the show. For every exploration of a strange new world,there were visits to familiar old worlds. For every new lifeform encountered, there were encounters with well known lifeforms. For every new civilization met, there were meetings with old allies. And while they sometimes went where no man has gone before, far too often the ship was well with in explored space.

The exploration and discovery on the show was more philosophical than physical, About self exploration and discovery not finding new planets. The monologue is just a nice piece of prose with music.

 

[Amaris]

I'm not an ENT fan whatsoever but I do recall an episode when Archer was taken onto the Enterprise-H during the Temporal Cold Wars battle. That would be a great series leading up to that. And who wouldn't want to see this baby fly in battle.

Its also something that John Billingsley (Phlox) commented on that I agree with:

via Memory Alpha: "Actor John Billingsley recalled, "I definitely felt as if there was a dictate on high from the network level, or from the studio level, to end the temporal time war, wrap it up immediately. I tended to concur on the broader point that the temporal time war never really got off the ground, the storytelling was too attenuated, and that it needed to die. At the same time I think the network forced them to tie it all up so abruptly that the way in which they had to do it was not as deft as it needed to be."

Oh mercy, no. Oh, I have nothing against your thoughts and opinions, @mike2363, but I despise that ship design. It looks like someone took the ENT-D through a taffy roller.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Oh mercy, no. Oh, I have nothing against your thoughts and opinions, @mike2363, but I despise that ship design. It looks like someone took the ENT-D through a taffy roller.

Good for cutting pizza.

 

[Kemaiku]

I just bought myself the Enterprise J Eaglemoss model a couple of weeks ago. It...translates even more weirdly into an actual toy. Still like it though.

 

[dahj]

The open monologue is nice, but it doesn't come close to describing the motivations of the characters, the ship's mission or the theme of the show.

Maybe this time it'll be something like:

"My name is Lieutenant Commander Rainsford, to most of the world I'm an ordinary first officer on the Starfleet ship Discovery, but secretly I work with my adoptive sister for Section 31 to protect the Federation from alien life and anyone else that means to cause it harm. I am... Number One."

 

[Amaris]

I just bought myself the Enterprise J Eaglemoss model a couple of weeks ago. It...translates even more weirdly into an actual toy. Still like it though.

We all have our loves. I love the Ambassador class design, myself.

 

[Captain of the USS Averof]

"My name is Lieutenant Commander Rainsford, to most of the world I'm an ordinary first officer on the Starfleet ship Discovery, but secretly I work with my adoptive sister for Section 31 to protect the Federation from alien life and anyone else that means to cause it harm. I am... Number One."

"I am not a number; I AM A FREE (WO)MAN!!!"

 

[RJDiogenes]

"My name is Lieutenant Commander Rainsford, to most of the world I'm an ordinary first officer on the Starfleet ship Discovery, but secretly I work with my adoptive sister for Section 31 to protect the Federation from alien life and anyone else that means to cause it harm. I am... Number One."

"I am Number One. You are Number Six."

 

[RJDiogenes]

Heh. Thinking along the same lines there.

 

[SPCTRE]

It's over 9000.

 

[Kemaiku]

We all have our loves. I love the Ambassador class design, myself.

Ah, but which one? *runs*

 

[Rahul]

The open monologue is nice, but it doesn't come close to describing the motivations of the characters, the ship's mission or the theme of the show. For every exploration of a strange new world,there were visits to familiar old worlds. For every new lifeform encountered, there were encounters with well known lifeforms. For every new civilization met, there were meetings with old allies. And while they sometimes went where no man has gone before, far too often the ship was well with in explored space.

The exploration and discovery on the show was more philosophical than physical, About self exploration and discovery not finding new planets. The monologue is just a nice piece of prose with music.

Erm, no.

This is a case where the show has a completely accurate opening monologue, describing the main theme of the show, that tells you literally everything you need to know about the show, and what the show is about:

"These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. On it's five year mission, to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilisations, to boldly go where no one has gone before."

That's what the show is about. That's the motivation for the travels of our main ship. That's what our heroes signed up to. That's literally the motivation that sets most episodes in motion. Of course not every episode is set in unknown space - every voyage needs some breaks. And even in known space there is much science, discovery and exploration possible: in the real world there is still a lot of Earth exploration going on, you know?

But seriously, that's what Star Trek is about. Period.
What else would it be about in your mind?