Your reaction to DSC before vs. after

[Gonzo]

Hmm let me see.

Before Disco, Admirals were useless.

After Disco, Admirals are still utterly useless.

It was pretty much what I expected after all the fuss over the direction it went and the usual heavy handed network interference.

Just imagine what it would have been like if Stars had done it, the same people who brought Black Sails and American Gods to the small screen, not possible I know due to CBS owning it all but still.

As usual CBS played it too safe, this isn't the 60's any more CBS we can take it.

Well as long as all of the ships are exactly the same size as before and nothing changes whatsoever, otherwise its the end of the world as we know it.

They could have done so much more in certain areas especially Qo'nos, the season started really well but ended up smelling slightly of cheese as soon as the mirror universe entered the picture, it was great up to that point, well except for the pilot but that can be forgiven.

Michelle Yeohs Emperor was so hammy and so was Lorca in the end, I don't blame them though the scripts and plotline was the problem.

Well the first season is over and hopefully so is all the setup that was needed, just have to wait and see what the plotline and scripts are like in S2.

 

[Discofan]

"Star Trek Beyond" made it clear that "Admiral" is just a generic term for someone with a desk job...

 

[Ovation]

Before: Great, there’s new Trek on TV.

After: Great, there’s new Trek on TV.

 

[cbl1]

Before: A little concerned with being pre-TOS. I think we already had Enterprise try to do that. Would rather have seen a post-Nemesis Start Trek that could provide some fan service with cameo drop ins and extend their stories slightly.... but go off in another direction that was serialized and darker (I guess they did that some with DS9).

After: Very happy with what we got. I would like to see more push toward TOS type styling (such as in the Kelvin movies). The final Starfleet scene did seem to have some people wearing the more familiar shirts (blurred but there). I am very excited for season 2. It was terrific for a 1st season of Trek (always trying to get their feet planted). Still missing my Sunday Trek fix.

 

[cooleddie74]

"Star Trek Beyond" made it clear that "Admiral" is just a generic term for someone with a desk job...

Although on the bright side no Admiral in Beyond was a psychopath with a war boner who wanted to start a conflict with another species, launch a big conspiracy and coverup or massacre an entire world of pre-industrial humanoids.

As per my reactions to DSC before and after I watched Season 1: I was cautiously skeptical going in, experienced both exultation and exasperation during the middle of the first year and ended the season feeling it was okay. Not great, not bad. Just...there for the most part. It has breathtaking aspects that impress me and others that make me wonder if the writers and producers just throw a dart at a board to see what the next cool thing will be for our heroes to find themselves doing.

 

[INACTIVERedDwarf]

Before: cautiously exited.

After: disappointed, hoping for a better show in Season Two, but not expecting it.

When I heard about the enthusiasm of Bryan Fuller and saw the interesting retro ship design, I was exited. His interviews about loving TOS, saying that episodes like "The Man Trap" showed the breadth of Trek's capabilities, being a "Twilight Zone"-style horror and ending on a sad note. I remembered when JMS proposed a reboot that would bring in sci-fi authors, and have an episodic story linked by an underlying arc about a lost interstellar civilization, and hoped the concept would be at least as good as that.

But the show itself felt more related to tacky superhero shows than something like Westworld. The plot, character's motives and emotional reactions were often soap-like.

 

[Qonundrum]

Before: Cautiously optimistic
During: Disappointment, stopped watching or caring
Various clips afterward: Still a mess, but hopeful

The design aesthetic is also and unfortunately the least important consideration/problem of the show right now.

 

[ITDUDE]

Before: Great, there’s new Trek on TV.
After: Great, there’s new Trek on TV, The Orville

FIFY

 

[Ovation]

FIFY

I know it’s intended in good fun, but...no. Really no. While I find The Orville mildly amusing, I MUCH prefer DSC (it’s not remotely close).

 

[plynch]

...
I remembered when JMS proposed a reboot that would bring in sci-fi authors, and have an episodic story linked by an underlying arc about a lost interstellar civilization, and hoped the concept would be at least as good as that.

"yes, please"
Kinda bums me out to hear what could have been.

 

[DS9-31]

Before: I should have never gotten my hopes up for this show. It looked JJish bad from the trailer, but the good reviews from the premiere got me excited.

After: Bewildered with how bad it was, especially because the actors were really good and episodes like "Lethe" showed promise. The whole thing felt like a poorly written comic book.

 

[Campe]

Before: I was cautiously optimistic. This was Star Trek after years of going off the air.

After: Despite its flaws (of which it does have many), I think its a decent first season of a TV show.

 

[NeoStar9]

Before the series aired I was nervous. Like others I really had no idea what I was getting. I knew about the changes in show runner like everyone else. Had no clue how that would impact the show. Would being on CBS AA be a bad idea for the show's success. I knew I really enjoyed the trailers they released. I like the cast I was being shown and how the show looked. What I certainly didn't have going in was some idea that "Star Trek had to be this way or that way". I've never felt that way about Star Trek. I've always dreamed of different genres being used to tell Trek stories. I still want a story about a group of soldiers fighting on a planet ala Band of Brothers. Or a detective story set in the Federation on any random planet. I don't need to see everything from the Starfleet POV and nor does everything need to be about exploring. I just want to see more of the universe and sometimes that could result in just a battle of the bands style story set on a planet with a group of human and aliens going about the competition.

Now that the first season is done I'm extremely happy with what we got. First I certainly did not see Burnham being imprisoned. Trek has generally been very iffy about consequences in general over the years so it was surprising for them to actually push this and to keep it up until the end where she more then earned her way back and then some. I can't wait until she's in the captain's chair. The one issue I had with it early on was that she was blamed for the war when it didn't seem like it. I figured she was just the scapegoat that people wanted to blame and the show via the admiral talking to Lorca even suggest this is pretty much the case. They needed a pound of flesh for the mob and she ended up being it and in her darkest moments she just accepted it. Twist and turns from the start of the war, to the mirror universe, and to the Klingon homeworld were all enjoyable. I really enjoy that the ending for the war was in a way that wasn't expected but at the same time very Star Trek.

I thought the acting was great across the board. The overall film making was great. I was surprised by the direction a number of times to the point where early on I stopped trying to get out ahead of the show and the writers. I think that might be some people's problems. Trying to always figure out where the show is going or setting up expectations for where the show should go based on one's on personal desires. Instead of just going along for the ride and seeing where it takes you. The later is how I tend to enjoy shows, movies, and novels. I let the author/director take me for a ride and then I make up my mind if I liked it by the end. I don't try to guess where we're going and get upset it didn't happen. I saw that happening a number of times with some people as I looked at reactions and I always wondered why people kept doing that to themselves. Just enjoy the show instead of trying to see if it matches up with what you created in your head.

I haven't been happier with a Trek show this quickly and this strongly at this point before. I will admit it is in part because of how diverse and non-token (this is key for me) the cast is. I always felt there was a level of that in Trek. While it didn't stop me from enjoying the shows it was still there and noticeable. I'm talking about characters that aren't just background wallpaper/window dressing but are front and center. That there are three black characters (they're not the only one on the ship with speaking roles) front and center on this bridge is not lost on me as a black man and many people of color. Even if two of them are side characters and not the focus I appreciate that they are there and I'm hard pressed to remember when I saw that in Trek. It's usually just the one guy or one woman. There is always the saying that you can't have two many black characters and if you're going to introduce a new one another has to be on their way out. Walking Dead as a show is where I noticed this for the first time to the point people could predict it. It was funny and sad at the same time. This is in part why I'm hoping Wilson Cruz really is coming back and he won't just be the only Latino representation on the show going forward. I think there does need to be more Asian representation as well outside of Michelle Yeoh. I hope they use the Enterprise crew as an opporunity to make some nice casting choices since that crew is largely going to be a blank slate going forward outside of Pike and Spock and maybe Number One.

 

[Brainsucker]

Before : I was excited for a new Star Trek TV Show.

After : Satisfied and waiting for the 2nd season, excitedly.

 

[Discofan]

I think DSC is potentially the best ST show ever. Of course, it all depends on what the next seasons will be but so far so good.

 

[Gonzo]

I think DSC is potentially the best ST show ever. Of course, it all depends on what the next seasons will be but so far so good.

Discovery has had a better start than TNG, Voyager or Enterprise, I would even go so far as to say better than DS9.

Even with the issues with the pilot episodes and the mirror universe stuff.

 

[cooleddie74]

Eh, Enterprise had a stronger launch overall but I do agree about TNG and possibly even DS9. The first season of DS9 took me a long time to want to rewatch any episodes from and it's still my least-favorite of the entire series. VOY had a magnificent launch but quickly settled into a mediocre pattern that would affect it off and on for its entire run, though it did get markedly better with the arrival of Seven.

 

[Gonzo]

Eh, Enterprise had a stronger launch overall but I do agree about TNG and possibly even DS9. The first season of DS9 took me a long time to want to rewatch any episodes from and it's still my least-favorite of the entire series. VOY had a magnificent launch but quickly settled into a mediocre pattern that would affect it off and on for its entire run, though it did get markedly better with the arrival of Seven.

Fair enough.

I found the start of Enterprise to be rather boring but chalked that up to setting the scene and introducing characters, it could have been better though, they played it too safe.

Voyagers premise was a great idea but the first season or two were a bit boring to me, it only started warming up after 8472, the Borg (Seven) and the Hirogen was introduced, the Kazon were just cheap Klingon knockoffs and showed a complete lack of imagination.

Kes character was a yawnfest and I didn't consider the Seska storyline believable at all.

 

[cooleddie74]

The Kazon were just a misfire from the start. Klingons of the Delta Quadrant but with the motivations of Mad Max road gangs, and a species that can't seem to find the most abundant substance in the universe even with a fleet of advanced vessels and weapons technology.

 

[Gonzo]

The Kazon were just a misfire from the start. Klingons of the Delta Quadrant but with the motivations of Mad Max road gangs, and a species that can't seem to find the most abundant substance in the universe even with a fleet of advanced vessels and weapons technology.

Must admit I found the whole Xindi storyline in Enterprise to be utter poppycock, the temporal stuff was good though.

Would like to add that the cast were great and the effects were solid too, not their fault at all.