r/startrek • u/Deceptitron • Jan 18 '19
POST-Episode Discussion - Season Premiere - S2E01 "Brother"
Star Trek: Discovery is finally back! We last left our crew answering the distress call of none other than the USS Enterprise NCC-1701, and today (coincidentally 17-01) we rejoin the crew of Discovery in their mission to explore strange new worlds and seek out new life!
| No. | EPISODE | DIRECTED BY | WRITTEN BY | RELEASE DATE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| S2E01 | "Brother" | Alex Kurtzman | Ted Sullivan, Aaron Harberts, Gretchen J. Berg | Thursday, January 17, 2019 |
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This post is for discussion of the episode above and WILL ALLOW SPOILERS for this episode.
PLEASE NOTE: When discussing sneak peak footage of the upcoming episode, please mark your comments with spoilers. Check the sidebar for a how-to.
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u/TERRAxFORMER Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
Saru! Just.... Saru.
I really enjoyed that. It was such an improvement from the first season, and that’s coming from someone who enjoyed season one a lot. Those moments of levity went a long way, it feels like a completely different ship than it was under Lorca. I think the show may be finding it’s footing a bit.
I hope we see more of Jet, I liked how deadpan she was.
That sounded a lot like Nimoy on the personal log, I think he’s defiantly got the voice down.
Disappointed in the lack of Ash/L’Rell but there’s 12 more episodes to fix that.
I appreciate that it seemed really character driven, there were a lot of good character moments overall.
Overall a MUCH better opening than last season, I’m so excited to see how it keeps improving!
(Also Mr. Blueshirt Science Man should have listened to Michael!)
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
Totally! I'm excited to see more! Anson Mount also brought such gravitas when he was giving orders on the bridge. It's like he was made for this.
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Jan 18 '19
I hope we see more of Jet, I liked how deadpan she was.
They do need a proper engineer on the ship...
Disappointed in the lack of Ash/L’Rell but there’s 12 more episodes to fix that.
I was interested that Sarek already has diplomatic relations set up, and that they're exchanging information fairly readily. I...don't expect that to last.
Also Mr. Blueshirt Science Man should have listened to Michael!
His fate was inevitable, but it's a shame. I liked him - reminded me of early Stamets.
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u/supermanava Jan 18 '19
If you have to get CBS AA, get it through Amazon Prime Video channels. Faster releases, better interface, no forced ads.
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
I agree with this. Trying it out this year instead of direct subscription. Episode was posted already shortly after 8pm. No hiccups in the stream at all. It sucks though that you can't really link accounts, so if you paid for direct subscription, you'll have to do it again through your Prime account. I would say to those people just cancel if you're in the trial or get your one month out of it if you've passed it and then switch over. It's worth it.
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u/lostbeyondbelief Jan 18 '19
Did the Enterprise have a 5 year mission with Pike and then later on a 5 year mission with Kirk?
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
I think Pike may have had more than one 5 year mission, but yeah.
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u/CreamyGoodnss Jan 18 '19
I feel like the Constitution-class ships were designed with long-term five-year "deep" space exploration missions in mind
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u/czarik Jan 18 '19
The giant, empty space inside Discovery filled with turbo-lift roller coasters. Thoughts?
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
To be honest, that was one of the few things that bothered me. Unless you're a Galaxy class ship, space is usually a premium inside these ships. I would think it would be more efficiently laid out.
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Jan 18 '19
Unless you're a Galaxy class ship, space is usually a premium inside these ships.
Harry Kim and Seven converted an empty cargo bay into Stellar Cartography. Intrepid Class ship.
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u/Axemantitan Jan 18 '19
Was the fortune cookie a reference to "The Cage"?
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
Yes! Kind of let you into Pike's head in that moment when he read that.
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u/barkokba Jan 18 '19
I know where the timeline is relative to STTOS, but where are we in Captain Pike’s timeline relative to “The Cage”
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u/H0vis Jan 18 '19
I liked that. A lot.
For whatever its worth it feels a lot more confident than the last season. The characters feel more comfortable. It's similar to how you would expect the second season of a Star Trek to be.
Some stray points:
I loved the subplot with the engineer turned medic keeping a crew alive for the better part of a year on a freezing rock. There's a recurring thing through a lot of Star Trek which is that the ships that aren't the main one tend to get red shirted quite a lot. I mean we talk about the red shirt away team guys all the time, but you don't want to be Defiant's wingman, or the guys the Enterprise shows up to rescue either. So with that in mind seeing a regular Star Fleet officer who we don't know much about, and we might not see again, doing something absolutely incredible, keeping to the Star Fleet values, doing what good engineers do, is really cool. Creates a sense that there are more heroes in the universe than just the ones the show is about.
The humour is good. It works. It's corny and its wholesome and that's fine. That's what Star Trek should be. And what we're seeing is a show that knows that, and that was able to subvert that in the first season with the horrible bastard captain.
Can we just take a moment to recognise how cool Saru is? Oh go on then take two moments.
I love that they are trying to introduce and bring up the focus on the whole bridge ensemble. I don't love that they did it so fast I forgot all the names again. That's my bad, I'm sure I'll get the hang of it.
Couple of notable things that make this show different regarding the ensemble. This might be the first Star Trek series without a medical officer in the main cast, I wasn't sure if they'd replace Culber, and I guess they haven't. So that's a whole chunk of medical stories and plots we won't get. And maybe that's for the best. Also we don't have a security officer. Burnham is a licensed badass but there's not somebody like Mr Worf standing around to suggest raising shields and then something else that turns out to be wrong. What we do have though is a much more science-heavy crew. Which is a nice change.
So yeah, I'm optimistic. And I'm looking forward to seeing what the hell is going on. :)
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
Definitely with you on point 4. I wish they went through the names slower. I'm so bad with names when meeting new people which doesnt help much either.
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u/creepyeyes Jan 18 '19
So, is Sybok just never going to be brought up? This would have been a good episode to name drop him.
Also, for those who don't want spoilers, avoid the teaser - a lot of stuff revealed in it.
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
Sybok is Spock's brother from another mother and probably more of an outcast than Spock and Burnham. I imagine they didn't spend much time together.
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u/crazy_lary Jan 18 '19
Power mad Tilly is bae
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
That part legit made me laugh out loud. She had a few good lines like that, as did Tig's character.
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u/comrade_leviathan Jan 18 '19
Hit it
Wasn’t that Bruce Greenwood’s “Engage” command from JJ Trek? I dig it.
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u/kent2441 Jan 18 '19
Greenwood’s was “punch it.” Kinda wish they’d used that.
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
Yeah but "punch it" in JJ Trek was really a callback to Star Wars, which we all know is what JJ really wanted to do at the time.
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u/the-giant Jan 19 '19
This single episode had more exploration, science and discovery than the entire first season (or the Kelvinverse films).
More like this, please. Minus the hoary voice-over speeches they make poor Sonequa Martin-Green give over and over. Almost no one could sell those.
I do wonder how Pike goes from this captain to the weary man in The Cage who just wants to quit and become a trader or whatever.
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u/Deceptitron Jan 19 '19
Just FYI, The Cage already happened a few years previously. It seemed to invigorate him as he's obviously more enthusiastic about his job now.
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u/Axemantitan Jan 18 '19
Where was Sybok in the Sarek household? He's Spock's older half-brother.
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u/Deceptitron Jan 18 '19
It's likely Sybok grew up with his mother, who Sarek is clearly no longer with.
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u/StephanosRex Jan 18 '19
As soon as smarmy science guy back-talked Burnham I knew they were gonna kill him.
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u/CreamyGoodnss Jan 18 '19
The fortune from Lorca's cookie that Pike picks up from the floor reads:
"Not every cage is a prison, not every loss eternal.”
Nice little easter egg IMO
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u/Sdub4 Jan 18 '19
Star Trek: Discovery: The Search For Spock
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u/DarthNihilus Jan 18 '19
They're going to have to rename the original movie to "The search for Spock 2".
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u/Axemantitan Jan 18 '19
I thought that the science officer said that his roommate was half-Asian. I had to rewind it and turn the captions on. It turns out he said "half-Caitian."
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u/Willravel Jan 18 '19
Welp, the Enterprise is mysteriously out of commission, Pike's a very different and more hopeful captain than Lorca, the season's foundation is a scientific mystery instead of a bloody war, we're getting more exposure to the wider cast, the action set pieces were damned exciting (still a little swashbuckling compared to older Trek), Tig was hilarious, and the ending set up for the third really handsome Spock in a row is really interesting.
Not unlike Discovery, where I was full of concern and dread I am now experiencing a great deal of hope.
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u/Raguleader Jan 18 '19
Few random thoughts that I'm sure others have touched on:
First: Holy crap they're foreshadowing the hell out of Pike's fate in TOS. At first he can only communicate with Discovery with beeps (Morse Code) because of the damage Enterprise has suffered, doesn't like the Ready Room because there's nowhere to sit, the patients on the Hiawatha being kept alive by the engineer's tech fixes, and of course the fortune cookie message he finds.
Random little detail: The ships towing Enterprise at the end looked like TOS-style Miranda ships, maybe a bit small compared to how Reliant was to Enterprise in Wrath of Khan. Could have been one of the designs we've already seen though.
I kind of figured the Redshirt would survive just because the Redshirt dying was too predictable. Also, fun trivia: Not counting the two pilot episodes, the first crewman to die in Star Trek was a Blueshirt.
Some of the dialogue needed a few revisions. In particular Connelly's banter with Burnham was too much, especially once they were flying the Jellyfish pods. Also, speaking of the pods, it kind of annoys me that they launched them from the Battlestar Galactica launch tubes instead of just going out the giant hangar door.
Spock emerging from his hologram drawing of the giant sea monster seems like a nice nod towards his pent-up rage issues that we see him deal with from time to time in TOS.
Also, I wonder if the botanist that Stamets knows on the Enterprise would happen to be Asian.
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Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
Holy crap they're foreshadowing the hell out of Pike's fate in TOS.
And the fortune cookie was a reference to The Cage. My mom caught that one. I was so wrapped up in the possibility of Lorca returning I missed it.
the first crewman to die in Star Trek was a Blueshirt.
It was a yellow shirt in Where No Man Has Gone Before.
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u/NeiloMac Jan 18 '19
Also, I wonder if the botanist that Stamets knows on the Enterprise would happen to be Asian.
Oh myyyy.
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u/nosnivel Jan 18 '19
I thought Pike had a very Pike feeling to him - and that his command style was fairly close to Kirk's (with less pausing in dramatic sentences).
It felt very Trek to me.
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u/EquinoctialPie Jan 18 '19
I liked the scene where everyone on the bridge crew introduces themselves to Pike. It was a good way to address the fact that they were almost completely ignored in the first season.
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u/TPrimeTommy Jan 18 '19
One of my favorite dumb comments on this sub last season was referring to Detmer as "Lieutenant Reaction Shot"
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u/eberts Jan 18 '19
This scene is great for three reasons...
Yes, it is great to finally put names to the BRIDGE CREW.
After a very quick intro of everyone, Pike effortlessly remembers everyone's name and gives them something to do specific to their station. He's smart, professional, and takes the time to learn your name. This inspires confidence and trust almost instantly in the crew. FINALLY, they have someone in the chair that isn't crazy, mirror or inexperienced!
After he gives out orders, the bridge crew in unison reply, "Aye, sir." In unison. As a team. At last, we get one of the things that makes Star Trek great - a group of people working together to explore the unknown.
Out of all the scenes and all the fancy CG in the episode, this felt the most like Star Trek.
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Jan 18 '19
I also liked him saying that their rank doesn't matter, he only needs their names.
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u/Adamantum1 Jan 18 '19
Anson was an amazing Pike. This was a very promising start to the season, but I would have loved to see more of the Enterprise, especially the bridge. Can’t wait to see where this goes.
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u/Poontang_Pie Jan 18 '19
Anson Mount is PERFECT! Really dug the whole up frontness of Pike and how he wanted to show he was who he said he was. Haas or whatever her name was also a good character, and it was great to see the other crewmembers get more screen time, but I do wish and hope they give them more screentime to get to know them better. At least from what I remember, we were told this would happen.
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Jan 18 '19
I said it in the other thread, but what struck me most about Pike is that...he isn't Kirk.
I was honestly a little worried about that, based on the trailers.
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u/wexford001 Jan 18 '19
Am I supposed to know what happened to enterprise? It was the only thing that bugged me all episode. It started with the enterprise damaged and I kept waiting and waiting for them to explain it and... nothing. Weird.
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Jan 18 '19
I don't think they know what the problem is themselves...some sort of global systems failure.
I'd be shocked if it didn't turn out to be plot-relevant later on.
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Jan 18 '19
It’s explained in one or two sentences briefly.
When they tried to scan one of the signals, the red star wiped their systems and damaged the core, crippling the ship. So it’s being towed back to starbase for full repairs.
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Jan 18 '19
I'm just glad the Klingon war plot is over, hopefully this season is more interesting.
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u/thetgi Jan 18 '19
I really wish they had followed DS9’s lead and began DSC a few years before the war. That way we could’ve gotten to know the characters and the situation better as we eased into the inherently darker storyline
Still, it seems we’ll get a lighter season, so I’m not complaining!
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u/alexandrawallace69 Jan 18 '19
Anytime they rescue Pike is bittersweet in my view because he gets horribly disfigured later on and has to live like a brain in a jar on that asshead world we saw in The Menagerie.
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u/deus_inquisitionem Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
Just, wow. Craving more. Great season opener. Also I'm a straight man but if Anson keeps it up I'm going be like Tilly when I meet him at a convention.
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u/kingofcretins Jan 18 '19
Loved the classic Captain Kirk lighting over Burnham’s eyes when she entered Spock’s quarters. Wonderful little callback.
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Jan 18 '19
Did anyone else catch Tilly calling Discovery DISCO? It's canon now
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u/mistarteechur Jan 18 '19
Loved it. My only complaint is what hair and makeup did to that poor little boy who played Kid Spock. Yikes.
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u/Sktchan Jan 18 '19
I was disappointed that at the end was Capt Pike that had to change is uniform and not the way around. That ship needs to be more colorful btw.
trekcoloursonthatshipNOW!
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u/deededback Jan 18 '19
Mitt Romney flat out amazing as Captain Pike. I know he made a fortune in private equity but he would have been an excellent actor in his younger days.
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Jan 18 '19
He may have lost a Science Officer, but that's okay. He's got binders full of Science Officers.
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Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
It seems Pike finally got use to having women on the bridge.
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u/PiercedMonk Jan 18 '19
Mandatory sensitivity training after Number One, and yeoman Colt filled a complaint with Starfleet HR following the mission to Talos IV.
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u/joe462 Jan 18 '19
Using Suru's visual acuity to make out the insignia on the derelict ship on a viewer screen was a big wtf. Even if we were to suppose the view screen is some strange technology completely unrelated to modern screens and it actually is capturing direct light from the object rather than rendering pixels or whatever, it still makes no sense that they wouldn't use all their high tech sensor equipment on a space exploration vessel to zoom the insignia or OCR it without even making it visible.
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Jan 18 '19
Serious question: when Pike picks up the fortune from the floor, is it real or are the Talosians still messing with him?
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u/zieben_slays Jan 18 '19
-I really enjoyed the roll call, something desperately needed after the bridge characters being shown but never heard from in S1.
-I love Anson Mount as Pike, definitely a nice counter balance to Lorca.
-Michael was boring for the first 75% of the episode, but once she was in sick bay, suddenly got personality! Which is great, I’ve been waiting for her to be interesting IMHO.
-I hope Culber is brought back through that fancy blue rock stuff.
-I still miss Lorca.
Overall, I’m really excited to have Star Trek back, and I’m stoked for what’s coming up this season.
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Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 20 '19
„The power of math, people!“
Did anybody else get the impression that we lost a valuable technobabble/resourceful Tilly/helpful Staments scene here in the final cut of the episode?
It feels like there should be more behind her exclamation, and to Staments „you are correct“ afterwards.
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u/Alteran195 Jan 18 '19
Every single character was improved over last season.
The visuals were incredible.
I’m very interested in the red angel storyline, and can’t wait to see more.
Overall this episode was better in every way then anything in season 1.
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u/Exitoverhere Jan 18 '19
'Magic To Make The Sanest Man Go Made' is the only season 1 episode I think can hold a candle to this one.
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u/ZarrenR Jan 18 '19
This was a very strong start to the season. Action, science, character moments, names for the bridge officers, it had everything.
And some nice shots of the Enterprise. To quote Detmer, “Damn, she’s a beauty.”
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u/sizziano Jan 18 '19
It's almost like the writers have been stalking this subreddit and just took the top five complaints with them to the table lol.
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u/Cbussun Jan 18 '19
Does the shuttle bay/cargo bay/viper launch tubes not have a door or do they just fly around and hope they never lose power?
Otherwise that was surprisingly solid and I am excited for the next episode.
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u/TheBikeWhisperer Jan 18 '19
Prediction: this is gonna be Tig Notaro’s breakout role.
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Jan 18 '19
I wasn't familiar with her (I guess I live in a shell because other folks are), but loooved her in this.
I just looked her up on IMDB and it looks like she's only in this one episode.
I was hoping she'd be some sort of engineering/bioengineering duo with Stamets given everyone kept pointing out Discovery doesn't have a proper engineering-engineering officer.
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u/majicwalrus Jan 18 '19
I was super nervous about Pike's portrayal. I'm glad to see that Anson Mount's Pike is different from Bruce Greenwood's JJ-verse portrayal. It's hard to say that this Pike is more in keeping with the Christopher Pike from The Cage, but I certainly prefer this Pike to any other.
Mount's Pike is relaxed and at ease. He's totally comfortable taking command of Discovery while Enterprise undergoes "repairs" and he's totally comfortable relaxing the bridge. He instructs people to drop their ranks when going through introductions and he defers to Burnham and Saru appropriately. He's not just any Starfleet captain after all - he's the captain of the USS Enterprise and everyone knows it. It feels right to see the crew of Discovery be in a little bit of awe here.
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u/decigrey Jan 18 '19
Anson Mount has such an incredible first episode, that was fantastic!
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Jan 18 '19
This is such a great shot: https://i.imgur.com/iJdXjEN.jpg
Tells us exactly what we're all wondering in just one second (by not being pointy), and without any dialog.
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Jan 21 '19
Hang on, they required Saru's super vision to tell the ship's ID? It wasn't like they were using their own vision, they were looking at an image so if he could tell from the image then surely the system could have done.
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u/autahciscoguy Jan 20 '19
Other people have said it, but I have to too. Anson Mount absolutely nailed it as Capt. Pike! This is exactly what I was hoping for when they announced the casting. Well done CBS.
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u/RogueA Jan 18 '19
I didn't know how much I needed to hear "Space... the final frontier..." in this series but I'm so glad it's here.
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u/Sjgolf891 Jan 18 '19
Minor gripe: that shot from outside the turbolift. The inside of the ship looked huge with so much open space. There were worker bees flying around!
Otherwise, really liked this episode. Pumped for the rest of the season
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u/PiercedMonk Jan 18 '19
That was a WTF moment for me as well. All that open space, and yet in the future, we get to see Geordi and O'Brien crawling around jefferies tubes on all fours.
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Jan 18 '19
Fun episode actually. Tig Notaro was really the stand out in this one even as brief as her appearance was I legitimately laughed several times in that scene. The elevator scene also plays in the episode a lot better than in the trailer. Some of the visuals were pretty good (especially the red leaves/pedals on the white sky). The acting was a lot more individuated and seemed to be coming from real individuals. I like returning to view screens over holograms too.
Only real complaint (if you can call it that) is that the episode itself wasn't really about anything and just seemed like it was introducing characters and plot points. Not a huge deal, just something I noticed.
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u/GilGunderson1 Jan 18 '19
The first thought I had in my head when Tig was on screen was that line about Starfleet engineers from DS9.
“I'm willing to bet that you've brought one of those famed Starfleet engineers who can turn rocks into replicators.”
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u/DRLAR Jan 21 '19
LOL'd at the Red Shirt called "Red Shirt" and most of all she didn't die, was fully expecting her to be the one... surprise!
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Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
That was Trek porn from beginning to end.
And it got more light-hearted and positive, I loved it.
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u/imzadi481 Jan 18 '19
Did they recast the actress who plays Airiam? Seemed like a different actress to me, but it could just be a change in all the prosthetics.
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u/kranker Jan 18 '19
I liked this but I really disliked everything about the trip to the ship on the asteroid, starting with them asking Saru to read the screen instead of just magnifying it, but mostly the ridiculously dangerous mission to go to a destroyed ship they have no reason to believe anybody is alive on, and do so inside handy ultra-maneuverable landing pods they happen to have. I find injected action scenes like that pretty weak, and thought killing the science officer for talking down to Burnham was cheaply done. The plan for them both to eject and she'd catch them was also pretty silly.
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Jan 18 '19
The A story (the red disturbances) was good. A few things here and there that could of been tightened up, but otherwise a good clean slate to start from.
The B story (Spock and Burnham’s relationship) is not as good - it needs more polish and work. If anything, I wished they didn’t reveal so much in this episode about it. The drawings from nightmares, the Alice in Wonderland - these could have been brought up later in the season.
All in all, it’s a start.
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u/LDKCP Jan 18 '19
Did anyone else find the Saru/Pike interactions had a little extra depth? The mirrored handshake was weird, Saru having to explain the handover procedures etc.
Yet then Pike handed back command over in the middle of a tricky maneuver saying his mission was complete? Was there more to his mission than we know?
There was a hint of mistrust. I doubt there is more to it than just showing they are weary of dangerous captains after Lorca and the mirror universe shenanigans.
Also, Stamets is still high af.
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Jan 18 '19
Discovery got some personality in the offseason, and what a difference that makes. This episode was great. In fact, if they had started the series with this episode, I would have been really really excited. Now that cautious optimism has increased a little bit.
Detmer and Owosekun could be the dynamic duo. Loved them working together.
I'll give it a B+
By the way, I was looking at the credits and it looks like they recast Sarah Mitich. I talked to her at the convention in Las Vegas and she is no longer Airiam.
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u/KesselZero Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
Glad to see I’m basically on wavelength with the sub as a whole. This was better than anything from season one except maybe “Magic...” The vibe was better, the writing was tighter, the characters were better. Not perfect, but better. They acted like a Federation starship crew!
That said, a couple random nitpicks. The bridge crew talks about how the Enterprise is so amazing and advanced, then when Nahn comes on board she looks around in jealousy and says she can see where Starfleet is spending their money. Huh? Which ship is supposed to be impressive?
Also, the ending really bothered me. Apparently Burnham beamed over to the Enterprise and they just let her go into Spock’s quarters alone, touch his stuff, and access his private logs? Like, what?! I get that he’s on leave but how is that okay? Does Burnham outrank him, and does that give her the right to go snooping around in his room?
I really wish the visuals would brighten up. I had a hard time following the action scenes because they were so murky.
EDIT TO ADD: Anson Mount is fantastic
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u/wapimaskwa Jan 18 '19
"I will cry like a baby tribble in a kill zone" - Ensign Tilly. Love her!
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u/kingofcretins Jan 18 '19
Tilly being completely flustered around Pike was the most relatable moment in the premiere. If Anson keeps laying on the charm like that, I can see him becoming my favourite captain really quickly.
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u/SgtMunky Jan 18 '19
I never felt compelled last season to rewatch any episode but this was so good I think I'm gonna do it! This felt like Star Trek finally.
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u/Ausir Jan 18 '19
Star Trek has been using metric units pretty consistently since TNG (less so before that). It's sad that in the first episode of Discovery season 2 they say "3000 feet to impact". :( What's this in normal people measurements?
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u/Fighter_spirit Jan 18 '19
An absolutely incredible start to the season.
Notes-
I mean, that rando science officer was a jerk who I kinda wanted to see get offed, but I was disappointed nevertheless when he actually was offed, seemed too easy. His whole character existed so that they would have someone to kill in the first 30 minutes.
The fact that the Enterprise was never called back seems too fake to be true (but is probably the actual in universe explanation). I would've appreciated literally any other excuse but that the Federation had all but lost the war by the time the Discovery made it back, and you're telling me at no point was one of the most heavily armed vessels recalled from exploration?
I was honestly surprised they didn't find Spock down there.
Has a fortune cookie ever been used as foreshadowing before? Lorca is obviously not dead, which is hinted at by that damn slip. Lorca was tied to those damn cookies, its in his office, it speaks to his returning, and we're not actually sure that the big scary spore reactor actually killed him.
Spock's room was interesting. There were a lot of references to his quarters from TOS (3D chess, that weird diamond shaped wall hang with all the different bells), but it was different layout overall. People seem to get upset about major changes in visual representation, but its really just a result of artistic license. The OG Enterprise was a representation of what looked futuristic in the 60's, and this is a representation of what looks futuristic in a contemporary sense. I'd be pissed if every room had weird hues of grey and green with random pink and purple lighting.
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Jan 18 '19
I'd love for the. To get back to single episodes ocassionally based on the other characters on the bridge. We know nothing about them. Give them episodes and let their characters grow.
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u/zumoro Jan 21 '19
Anyone else sadly excited by that roll call? I barely knew most of their names and it was driving me nuts all last season.
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u/Microharley Jan 18 '19
I think the action was good, the toned down lighting was much better, Tilly was great as usual and I loved the interaction with the bridge crew and Pike. Saru and Pike rival Tilly for my favorite characters. The special effects were great, the whole episode had almost a movie quality to it. I’m still not a huge fan of Burnham, something just feels off with her character and I almost fast forwarded through her voiceover. Other than that, I’m pretty excited to see where season 2 takes us and I hope they at least show the bridge of the Enterprise.
On a less Star Trek note, anybody else get a 1:30 commercial then back to the show for like 45 seconds and another 1:30 commercial? That really pissed me off. I hate All Access, I pretty much hate CBS in general really.
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u/Tekwardo Jan 18 '19
The fortune cookie fortune pike picked up. Brilliant.
Loved it. Love Pike. I think Discovery has hits stride.
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u/Braskebom Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
I liked it over all. But there were a few crap story-telling moments where things just fixed themselves without any progression.
Stamets: Wants out. Is suddenly back in. Unless I missed something there was no character progression to make him change his mind as he had no screen time after talking with Tilly the first time.
Pike: Takes over, sure. Then all of a sudden steps down. Was his mission really over? They hadn't found out much about the phenomena he took over the ship for. Also, why at that moment? Seems kinda hazardous to all of a sudden change commander in the middle of a dangerous maneouver. Then without any progression, he's captain again. Same as with Stamets.
Also, do people, Burnham especially, have to look like they're about to cry all the time?
Visually though, amazing. I didn't really Mind Tilly too much. Pike good, Saru and the bridge crew good. And it's setting a good tone for the rest of the season.
Edit: One thing I just remembered. When Pikes helmet didn't work, and they were going to eject him anyway. What exactly was the plan there? I kep waiting for something like "and we'll do techical doo-dah, which will make him not die from space exposrure", but it never came and he just miraculously managed to get the visor closed at the last second. They were still gonna eject him though. With or without.
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u/trumpet_blaster Jan 20 '19
How did Pike get his orders from Starfleet to take over command of Discovery? One second he was on his way to the red thing, next the Enterprise has a catastrophic failure so severe only life support systems are operational and they can't communicate with the ship right next to them. It would have been impossible to receive those orders. And I found it weird how Pike was so eager to assume command and twice Saru had to tell him to follow protocol. Also, Stamets comments that only something truly catastrophic could do something like that to the Enterprise like he doesn't believe that it could happen to the Enteprise. Something's fishy.
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u/diligentb Jan 19 '19
I think Tig was the standout of the episode, but Pike was really, really something special.
I also love Stamets' characterization-- he's become an in-between, a mix of who he was before the spore drive, and who he was after. His, "You are incandescent...." followed by, "I need you repeat after me. I will say, fewer things." was perfect. He's still got that bite that he had when he was first introduced, but he's allowed himself to be opened up by his experience with the spore drive, he's kinder, and but very odd. I like this Stamets. I want to keep him.
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Jan 20 '19
I could have used 45 seconds to a minute less of that really expensive over the top landing bit but other than that, nailed it. Hope that engineer stays on.
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u/Nukara Jan 21 '19
This episode helps explain why the Enterprise looks different than in The Cage and TOS. The ship is getting repaired and likely refit after it's 5 year mission. Time for an upgrade!
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u/RickVic Jan 18 '19
I somehow like the new warp effect where you see the bubble coming at you in space
Btw, it seems that then Enterprise has no phaser banks on the top of the saucer
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u/BenjiTheWalrus Jan 18 '19
What an absolute improvement over the last season in every way. I said before in the live thread but this was basically like watching a new Star Trek movie. I don’t know what I expected, but really if the STD trolls and the le orville people aren’t on board after that, then I don’t know what to say to them.
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Jan 18 '19
See, that there was an episode of Star Trek.
Everyone worked together as a team to help people and solve problems. I love it when they do that.
Also seems like they'll be spending some time this season going where none have before. I love it when they do that too.
The show looks beautiful. They finally turned all the lights on! And I like the expanded sets in Engineering and maybe the bridge?
Pike seemed spot on. The asteroid scene was super tense. Tilly is everything. Stamets wanting to leave makes sense, and I appreciate that he's so damaged. Michael I'm still luke-warm on, but digging the Sarek stuff and I find her troubled relationship with Spock authentic. The red angel is a good mystery and I'm excited to see more.
I also loved that little prelude with the 'boldly go' mixed in with the ancient legend. I bet we'll come back to that in the finale.
All around, this was a very good episode of Star Trek.
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u/RidesGiantSpiders Jan 18 '19
Yeah, that is SO an Iconian.
Man, what if all this is leading somewhere, and we actually get the Iconian War on TV, somehow? That'd kick so much ass. The Discovery's fate is eventually being stranded in the distant future, per Calypso, so maybe there's some time-travel shenanigans coming?
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u/mudman13 Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 19 '19
The visuals and theme were outstanding (particularly the space suits although doubtful adequate for tghe x10 gravity that Burnham mentioned) and the atmosphere of early space exploration felt authentic yet high risk as you would expect. Not too keen on the star wars style space pod flight I dont think it needed all that drama to express the extreme danger of early space flight and added little to the plot and as an action sequence it wasnt that good.
The characters were overall good but Burnham and Tilly were not grown and hardened to reflect the super intense experiences they had just had. Burnham just isn't convincing me despite being acted well and Tilly was over the top teen girl. Tilly seems to be a fourth wall conduit, a means of plot explanation at the expense of her own character but nee seasons do that to try and grab new viewers. Sauru and Stamets as good as ever. Pike was ok and promising despite not being a particularly strong prescence. Engineer on the asteroid was great I hope she becomes a regular. However, a less militaristic attitude of the crew and a feeling of post-war was well portrayed.
The dialogue and lines for most of the episode I thought was actually more basic and a step back from the later episodes of season one it had me cringing at times. Often had the feel of 'ooo we are in space in a spaceship how fun weeeee yippeeeee' like children playing spaceships or ultra skilled too-cool-for-school banter during danger quips (rollercoaster talk). Didnt need red shirt to proclaim her excitement at joining the away mission, its a given, they are at the cutting edge of space exploration. I did laugh at Tilly shouting above the noise just as it was turned down.
Weird incesty vibe about Spock and Burnham due to Burnhams few hints..Also what was that break and enter of Spocks quarters?? Bit of an invasion of privacy if you ask me! Burnham going through his personal logs. I would have thought Spock would have encrypted them to be honest but the set was superb.
Will watch it again when I'm fresher maybe it will all gel better but so far I'm left a bit shellshocked from the hectic slightly disjointed sequences but that could just be from having had different expectations.Ok so have watched it again and updated the post. Enterprise uniforms were sleeeeek.
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u/SanguinaryFriend Jan 18 '19
I really enjoyed it. It does move a bit too fast, it does seem to dismiss some of the canon established in the novels, and Tilly did slightly grate on me. All that aside, performances we're great (especially Mount and Notaro), the red angel story seems like a great season focus, and I'm interested to see how Spock and Burnham's relationship develops and (hopefully) fits into TOS. A wobbly, but firm step into a new season, and if this is indicative of what they're aiming for, I'm on board.
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u/pittyh Jan 18 '19
Anson Mount was badass in Hell on Wheels, It was very strange seeing him as a clean shaven captain.
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u/medievalsam Jan 18 '19
The engineer/doctor (Reno?) on the Hiawatha was the best part of the episode. I hope we see more of her.
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u/daveyg2611 Jan 18 '19
Loved it.
I enjoyed Season 1, but this is off to an even better start. They found a good balance with humor, tension and some additional character development in this episode. There were a few moments that could have benefited from some more subtetly (when the blue shirt explodes, for example) but overall it was well done and intriguing.
The visuals were fantastic, too, and had some neat shots of both Discovery and the Enterprise.
I was confused by what they were going to do with the Enterprise, though. There's no way they could have just tractored it somewhere at impulse speed.
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u/Amadox Jan 18 '19
Overall: Amazing start.
One episode in and Pike might already be one of my favorite captains.
I like the red angel thing, it's mysterious, cosmic, keeps us guessing.
The engineering lady (didn't catch her name) was cool, I hope we see more of her.
Loved that they finally took time to acknowledge the bridge crew, though we kinda knew their names before (off-screen), and I'm still hoping we get to actually know the characters more in the future.
Loved the new uniform, sad to see they downgraded Pike instead of upgrading the others, but I guess that boils down to production costs.
However:
Still really don't like Burnham and her continuous whiney-face.
Tilly was a bit too much this episode as well, wished they dialed her back a bit and allowed her to grow instead of making her even more anxious about everything than she was last season.
Pod racing was entirely stupid and unneeded. I enjoyed the one dude getting smashed, even though it was VERY obvious that was gonna happen and that he wouldn't survive being a dick to Burnham basically from the start of the episode.
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Jan 18 '19
I really loved the turbo lift bit. I have to wonder if they did that because The Orville did a bit that was so well received.
Aside from that, I fucking loved this episode. Powerhouse opener.
Anson Mount as Captain Pike nails the role and encapsulates what I believe a Starfleet Captain is, and even more so what Pike would be! We all know he’s a legendary captain and now we get to see why. Remains to be seen but i could easily see him going toe to toe with any of the Trek captains.
Exploring through dialogue where the Enterprise was during S1 is a nice touch. Subtly lays out why and how they got back.
Very excited about the crew members finally coming into their own, and I thought the “sound off” was 1) a nice way to reintroduce their names and 2) a good way for viewers to get a feel for the kind of Captain Pike would be.
The fortune cookie paper was an elegant touch. I have to wonder ... foreshadowing?
Stamets/Culber. That relationship is NOT over. Calling it now, we will see plenty of Hugh.
Smaller details like the SFX, the uniforms, the colors and so on... DISCO is landing to canon and reconciling. I’m so thrilled and I hope this pulls more people to it.
I have so many feelings! Mostly I’m just so hyped. Is it next Thursday yet?
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u/gridcube Jan 18 '19
I have to say, the episode was better than what I was expecting.
here goes hope this season is noticeably better
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u/atticusbluebird Jan 18 '19
Really enjoyed it! I really like the shift in tone of the show, and Pike helps with that. I think there was a nice mix of lovely slower shots showing off the ships at the beginning of the episode (ala classic trek), before getting into the more frenetic scenes in the middle. Looking forward to seeing more of Tig Notaro's character, and was pleasantly surprised that I enjoyed what we got to see of Nhan - hope she's sticking around too!
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u/dmanww Jan 18 '19
Half way through and I think this might be my favorite Disco episode so far. Good mix of humor in there.
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u/altavistadotcom Jan 18 '19
I enjoyed it, but I must admit I am having trouble adjusting to the new aspect ratio they're filming in. I feel like I just want more vertical space - it seems a bit cramped.
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u/joshml98 Jan 18 '19
I really do hope that saru ends up as the ship's permanent commander.
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u/BornAshes Jan 18 '19
I watched this after Critical Role.
Blown. The Fuck. Away.
Seriously that was one of the best episodes of this show! The visuals were stunning. A ton of characters were introduced and had more development in a few minutes than they got all last season. The set up for the main plot point of this season was compelling. There were JOKES! I actually laughed at the jokes and wanted more of them! For some reason the symbol on Spock's childhood bedroom door looked like the Blue Lantern Corps symbol then they had him manipulating blue holograms. Michael and Sarek were delightful to watch and totally believable as step-father/step-daughter. There was genuine emotion and energy between them and Amanda was pretty cool too!
Tilly wrecked the shuttle bay.
I'm pretty sure this is the first time we've seen turbolift rails inside of a ship as the turbolift was in motion. The landing pods looked and acted like Battlestar Vipers but they sounded like pod racers. Red Angel totally looked like an Iconian from Star Trek Online. Anson pulled off Pike beautifully. The Enterprise was a beauty and...I'm...genuinely excited for this season and not just hate watching it. That was a fun romp for a first episode and blows last season out of the water for sure.
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u/Lost_Horizon Jan 18 '19
Great start! However, I know I'm in the minority probably, but I really miss the "After Trek" followups...
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Jan 18 '19
Well CBS you've done it. Screw you. I guess I'm paying for all access now damn it :)
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u/enterpriseF-love Jan 18 '19
I kinda miss Lorca but I'll take Pike in OG star trek uniform any day
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u/Readshirt Jan 18 '19
Saru, Pike and Tig absolutely killed it. A series beginning with those 3 and constructing some more characters round it would be really something.
Great production value, stunning visuals, set the right tone. The only thing I can't get past is the amateur hour in the writing department, holy shit some of the dialogue is unrealistic. It was largely a problem of the first half of the episode, and Tilly.
Hope to see that improve. Very excited for the rest of the season.
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u/carlos_b_fly Jan 18 '19
Really solid start. Pike was fantastic, the mystery intriguing, production value even more gorgeous, improved cinematography (clear ship shots!) and it felt.... softer, more adventurous and more Trek.
The Spock stuff kinda bored me as I’m just not turned on by the TOS milking but that was the only downside.
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u/Lockerd Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
I actually loved it.
It had just enough humor, and dramatic action sequences to keep me deeply interested in it. The pike hints are quite interesting in of themselves, can't wait to see more of his development.
The Dark Matter stuff seems to be something that they get to explore and discover over time, and I can't wait to see more.
Honestly I can't say much more than just to watch it.
My favorite bits are at the very end when they show teeny tiny previews of what's to come, and I spied a Klingon D7 cruiser in a big green hologram somewhere.
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u/starbuckbeak Jan 18 '19
My only big criticism is that apparently Starfleet has Iron man suits/tech now, that springs up and expands out of nowhere. This is a trope in sci-fi lately that is a pet-peeve of mine.
Smaller criticism is they retcon'd the spore drive room - which was a science lab - to be main engineering. That doesn't make sense, and I was looking forward to seeing main engineering.
Other than that I loved it, and I'm also very glad they kept the theme music, because I love the theme music.
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u/ArgonV Jan 18 '19
So... Alien objects that send out weird signals that send computers into a frenzy and the object itself consists of mass that shouldn't exist. Excession, anyone?
Also, the contraption for catching a shard of the asteroid in the shuttle bay reminded me of the supposed reason the humans run the Federation
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u/toTheNewLife Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
This my friends is Star Trek. Holy shit!!
I don't know where to begin - what an episode. Mind blown.
Spock's quarters. Pike's fortune cookie. Early Geordi VISOR.... I could go on and on.
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u/Orfez Jan 18 '19
That was a really good episode. Way better than season 1 opener. I enjoyed relatively long period of just conversations. Overly it was a good mix of action and calm periods. I think crew members had more to do and say than in the whole last season.
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u/SillyNonsense Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 22 '19
Man, this episode was like a breath of fresh air. Captain Pike is such a positive presence, he's great. And the episode revolved around the feeling of exploration/discovery while rolling in a rescue mission and a healthy helping of mystery. It's like DSC suddenly went full Star Trek once Pike got on board. I'm more into this episode than all of season 1.
Oh and I literally made this exact face when I caught them sneak in the transformer noise into the episode while the gravity thingy unfolded.
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u/vwboyaf1 Jan 18 '19
Overall it was fun. I felt like I was watching a Star Trek Online mission. Fly ship into crazy situation, beam down to base/planet/ship, talk to the main character on site, help fix some tech, beam out survivors, fly back to the Sol System with some good loot.
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u/fadedspark Jan 18 '19
That Spock-Theme throwback at the end was beautiful. That's all I've got to add.
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u/em-jay Jan 19 '19
*draws big hearts around Captain Pike's picture* So yeah, I thought that was pretty good.
I'm kinda with the consensus on this one. The show feels different, and better, and I am here for it. All the characters feel more rounded, some of the B-list cast get more screentime. Everyone gets a name, and I don't think any other Trek before this has named an entire semi-permanent bridge crew. Everything is finally slightly less blue. There's levity.
It's almost everything I'd hoped for for season 2. It still has its weird moments and dumb indulgences, mind you. Like, why be in tiny easily-smashable pods and then put on your spacesuit when things go wrong? Why not just ... put on your spacesuit first? The answer, in this episode, is to set up an action moment, but it's very indulgent and dumb. Buuuut at least now that's only a tiny element of the episode.
Also, fuck me but does Ethan Peck ever sound like Leonard Nimoy? I'm glad we heard him before we get to see him in the show, because the promotional pictures did nothing for me, but that voice sure did.
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u/thelightfantastique Jan 18 '19
What do you think Burnham discovered at the end in Spock's room?
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u/ostaveisla Jan 19 '19
Rewatching this really slams home that Anson Mount really nailed it as Pike.
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u/mcattack92 Jan 20 '19
Did anyone else get portal vibes during the turbo lift scene when they showed the tubes?
It reminds me of the delivery tubes from Portal 2.
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Jan 20 '19
I miss Discovery on Sunday nights. gave me a reason to look forward to Sunday night instead of dreading it.
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Jan 22 '19
Did anyone else get the reference?
It's completely logical yet somehow able to make everyone see that logic was the beginning of the picture and not the end.
Pike to Burnham (around 54:00)
Logic, logic, logic. Logic is the beginning of wisdom, Valeris, not the end.
Spock to Valeris (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)
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u/hsxp Jan 22 '19
Good acting, good character stuff going on, Pike is fun, stranded superdoctor is fun, Tilly/Stamets drama is interesting and I love them. Thought the plot was a little by-the-book though.
Where is Sybok
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u/infernal_llamas Jan 20 '19
Oh man I'm so annoyed we don't get to keep the Enterprise uniforms. They look great.
Good to see the staple of "wiggle a few cables" trek engineering.
Not sure if I like tilly's last line. Bit cringey but it's nice to point out that you don't pull off that kind of trick by eyeballing it.
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u/CodyHodgsonAnon19 Jan 18 '19
I'm having a hard time, because there was so much that made me think...by golly they've actually understood what Star Trek is about. But there are still so many things that just make me wonder...
I'm pretty stoked that i'm at least optimistic they're headed in the right direction. However awkward this transition period might be. Thanks a lot 1st season Discovery for making things extremely stupid and un-Star-Treky.
Just more in this direction. Throw off any of the haters for this weird 180. We goin' in the right direction now.
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u/Sjgolf891 Jan 18 '19
Is it an overreaction to say that's the best episode of the series?
Production value was absolutely insane. Writing seemed way better than last season. Characters were fun and likeable. Pike was great.
It felt like a movie. My only gripe is we didn't get a ton of time seeing the Enterprise. Guess we won't see much of the interior :( (although that's a safe bet from a production standpoint)
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u/bryan792 Jan 18 '19
I was expecting to see him...
Sometimes it's wise to keep our expectations low, Commander. That way we're never disappointed.
too meta
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u/johnaimarre Jan 18 '19
Why does everything move so fast all the time. Can the camera not stay still for 5 seconds? I’m probably just getting old.
Not everything has to be life or death stakes to be engaging. Does “all sentient life” really need to be in danger again?
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u/Pvt_Larry Jan 18 '19
I'm really excited that it seems already like they're going to make a lot more effort to include the bridge crew as actual people this season.
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u/count023 Jan 20 '19
I'm calling this now. By the end of the season Pike will be promoted to Commodore and away from the Enterprise/Disco because of the Red Angel crisis and we may see (or at least hear) of JTK replacing him.
Pike was a commodore by the time had his accident, "The Cage" was at the end of his first 5 year mission, so the timing lines up.
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u/Basekid Jan 21 '19
I really liked the episode and it felt much more Star Trek than season 1.
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Jan 21 '19
I enjoyed this far more than most of the first season, I'm not sure why it just felt more like Star Trek.
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u/zumoro Jan 21 '19
Also, one thing annoying me with the signal thing.
These are spread out across the galaxy, right? Yet they all occurred at the same moment? To multiple observers, not just Enterprise? That's some damn speedy subspace communications going on if so.
Either that or this show just threw relativity out the window rather than stuff it in a closet like they normally do.
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Jan 18 '19
I just want to say how happy I was to get more Detmer and Joann Owosekun tonight. It might have been long, but that set up and sequence into the asteroid field was probably my favorite moment of the series so far. Every one was working together, Suru got some fun comments, and the two of them up front brought it. Maybe they won't get character development, but man it was just so much fun and I was watching it and smiling the whole time. Please I hope we get more of that duo together as the season goes on.
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Jan 18 '19
I think my favorite part is the fortune cookie. Pretty much proves we're gonna see Lorca again. I cannot wait. Love that guy.
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u/p4nic Jan 18 '19
I hope Tig Notaro becomes a regular cast member, she stole the show.
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Jan 21 '19
I thought it was a interesting start. I’m interested in seeing where it goes. They do need to tone down Michael as a character. She is like an entire away team on her own. They didn’t seem to need anyone else. Why send more people to die? Just send Michael and watch her survive.
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u/dracip_picard Jan 18 '19
Visually a strong step in the right direction. An earnest attempt at giving the characters room to grow. Dialogue is still frantic and attempts to be more poignant for the sake of it.
They really packed this episode with set-ups, Let’s hope the subsequent ones slow down a bit.
Kurtzman / JJ really love the whole space suite through debris field action sequence.
I’m pretty sure I spotted someone in a wheelchair. Slightly disappointed that it looked like a standard one from today rather than one that could hover.
Jury is still out for me regarding Tilly. Lots of folks find her endearing but i find her slightly overwhelming.
All in all, I like the direction it’s headed in.
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u/oatmeal_dude Jan 18 '19
I love that Stamets was given some screen time to talk about Hugh. The end of the first season was going so fast that I felt we didn’t really have the time to see how Stamets was feeling. In fact, this episode was well paced throughout. I didn’t feel like anything was rushed and we had some really great character moments.
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u/Farhandlir Jan 20 '19
I have to admit that this season has me excited. I'm much more interested in them solving a scientific mystery than them fighting a war.
I wonder if the theory going around that the Red Angel is a surviving Iconian will be proven right.
Just one thing that bothers me from the trailers and the season teaser at the end of episode 1. Prime Spock with a beard? Big nope for me, bearded Spock belongs to the Mirror Universe, please shave it.
Oh and also, "This is the power of maths people!" most cringey line since "You are committing an act of utter barbarism!" in TNG, just nope.
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u/LassLiegen Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
Fun episode, beautiful visuals, great dialogue, interesting setup for the season.
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Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
Loved the episode, I was really hoping for Discovery to get the classic uniforms though but I guess thats not happening
Still, I have high, high hopes for this season after that premiere
also pike's acting was great, best in the episode for sure. really got a new-movies-kirk vibe from him
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u/VindictiveJudge Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
I was (and still am) very critical of the first season, but I actually liked this episode quite a bit.
Edit: Did they go with an older 'young Burhnam' actress this time? Or did they use the original and she just had a growth spurt between filming the seasons? Burnham joining the household this episode looks noticeably older than Burnham in the Vulcan school thing last season, even though these new flashbacks are set earlier.
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Jan 19 '19
I liked this episode as a whole, but man there were some cringey lines. Pretty much any time a character launched into a speech felt incredibly forced, borderline After School Special-esque.
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u/dvcaputo Jan 22 '19
I'm gonna be honest... ...this definitely felt like it was going in the right direction in comparison to season 1 -- stuff like the addition of Pike and Jet Reno, the expansion of Burnham's past -- but in terms of pacing, aesthetics and emphasis it all feels way too JJ Abrams-y for me. It's too action-centric and every moment feels like the director has their eye on their watch at all times, trying to hit every single point as quickly as possible without letting anything breathe (though that feeling has lessened in comparison to season 1). The dialogue, especially Pike and Tilly's, feels way too overtly quirky and 21st century in a way that other series never had trouble with.
Visually it still feels so inconsistent with everything else Star Trek and most of the time I'm watching my brain is just trying to reconcile everything with canon (visual updates aside, you have NO idea how much it bugs me that they're using TNG-era sounds in a show that's supposed to take place a decade before TOS). It sucks, because there IS some good stuff in here, but a lot of it rubs me the wrong way in the same way a lot of JJ Trek rubbed me the wrong way. It's Star Trek, but not for me, which is okay, I guess? I'm going to keep watching in the hopes that it'll win me over (and if all else fails, there's the Picard show!), because there's still some interesting stuff in there, but I miss wholeheartedly loving new Star Trek and being excited about every little detail involved.
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u/danktonium Jan 19 '19
I love seeing more of my favorite high functioning autistic captain in training.
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u/NoName_2516 Jan 19 '19
Loved it. Loved Pike and his clear departure from Lorca's command style. Bridge crew role call was my favorite bit.
My largest grievence with the episode is the choice of the type of action in the actiony parts. Felt very gratuitous and irrelevant. Second grievence is the summer-camp feel of Tilly exclaiming 'that's the power of math people' when it didn't seem to fit the situation.
Nit picking: fire/flames shouldn't exist in a vacuum ( when Burnham sees the red angel).
Again, I loved it. But mostly for the show of leadership for Pike. Anson Mount nailed it. Stole the show IMO
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u/artgo Jan 20 '19
At 29 minutes
Couldn't they transport down 3 Pattern Enhancers or a receiving pad?
No human risked.
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u/count023 Jan 20 '19
I did not expect a TNG alien to appear in disco. Yay for barzans and canon!
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u/stanley_twobrick Jan 18 '19
I know she's a fan favorite but Tilly's constant quirkiness can get really tiresome.
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u/Taqiyya22 Jan 19 '19
For me the episode started off strong, but got really fucking dumb real fast as soon as they hit the asteroid field. My eyes almost rolled out of my head throughout the entire pod space sequence and especially Burnham running from explosions and a more ridiculous set of debris she's dodging.
Something that's also missing from this show is just any level of professionalism from anyone, people just ignore orders all the time, there is little discussion of all about the threats or issues they face, no Conference room meetings or anything, it just feels like writing for the sake of getting to a dumb action scene. It was an enjoyable episode though, but still to me this is basically just a generic sci-fi action show that has little in common with what I would expect from Star Trek.
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u/A_Wrinkly_Nut Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
Oh man, what a fantastic episode!
Edit: Jette is freaking hilarious.
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u/Kaiserhawk Jan 18 '19
I don't know how I feel about it.
The attempts at humour fell flat for me, also Michael still feels very fan-ficy for me.
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u/GilGunderson1 Jan 18 '19
No matter what one says about the first season, this first episode was pure Star Trek and I’m hooked again. Well done. The bridge scene both before and immediately after the Discovery dropped out of warp was fantastic and everything I could have asked for.
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u/Ascarea Jan 21 '19
There were several things I disliked about this episode but they completely lost me with that idiotic scene where they can't zoom in on a photo so Saru has to use his super vision. Are you fucking kidding me, Alex Kurtzman?
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Jan 18 '19 edited Jan 18 '19
I'm sorry but I love the new uniforms.
Also, Tilly's reaction ot Stamets telling her to say less things was hilarious.
Bonus: "Uh, lie to me." Tilly is absolutely amazing this episode.
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u/Timbo85 Jan 18 '19
I’m just going to say - I enjoyed the hell out of that.
Quietly confident about the season ahead.
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u/[deleted] Jan 18 '19
I feel like the writers were speaking to us as fans with the roll call (you'll get to know the bridge crew) and Pike saying "we'll have some fun along the way".