Star Trek: Strange New Worlds - Season 2 -SPOILERS

[Gary]

The future kids recognized everything they saw, which means that Lower Decks is the future of SNW not TNG-- which means that technology in this timeline advanced quickly but stagnated.

You need to catch up on Lower Decks as Captain Riker makes an appearance. That should tell you when it occurs in the timeline of events.

You'd think Orion wine coolers would be even more illegal than Romulan Ale. "Are my eyes usually this big?"

I can't remember Dr. M'Benga's response to the Orion stuff, but it make me laugh heartily as well.

It was a lucky break that the voice actors resemble the characters so closely. I definitely prefer live-action Mariner.

No luck at all. The animation staff pretty much ensured the characters are similar to their corresponding voice actors.

[RJDiogenes]

You need to catch up on Lower Decks as Captain Riker makes an appearance. That should tell you when it occurs in the timeline of events.

I mean which timeline as in which parallel universe. SNW is in a different timeline from TOS and TNG, and anything connected to them. The LD kids didn't notice anything awry, so they're from that alternate universe too.

I can't remember Dr. M'Benga's response to the Orion stuff, but it make me laugh heartily as well.

Oh, yeah. "What the hell is in this stuff?!" It was like a scene from Futurama.

No luck at all. The animation staff pretty much ensured the characters are similar to their corresponding voice actors.

So they cast the voice actors and then designed the characters? That's interesting.

[RJDiogenes]

Looks like we have another new episode in the morning.

[Gary]

Apparently, it's going to be a musical. Uggghhhh.

[RJDiogenes]

^^ That one's coming up next week, I guess. I'm trying to keep an open mind-- the Buffy musical episode was great. I'm actually dreading the season finale more, because it's most likely going to be a Gorn War cliffhanger.

Well, this was an interesting, but unfortunate, episode. The actor playing M'Benga finds himself in the same position as Spock, Number One, and Uhura, in delivering an excellent performance that is diluted by the overall mediocrity of the writing. The ending does deliver a surprising twist, but one which only serves to compromise the character. I think we are supposed to be left with some doubt as to whether M'Benga murdered the Klingon in cold blood or in self defense, however the Klingon was not motivated to kill M'Benga and it was clearly established that M'Benga could hold his own against the Klingon, at least to some degree-- so it was clearly murder.

The idea of a Klingon peacenik is intriguing, but I don't see the Empire sitting back and letting it happen. I would have expected the Enterprise to be hounded by Klingon battleships the whole way, demanding his return. The Klingons probably consider M'Benga a hero now.

Like last episode, this episode was light on plot-- it was basically just a framework to hang the characters' backstories on-- so there's really not much to say.

Other thoughts:

It was implied that the transporter officer was one of the Klingon War vets, but she looked about fifteen.

Seeing a Starfleet MASH unit was kind of interesting. I wonder if they call it a MSSH.

The Henry Blake of the MSSH unit was amusing.

M'Benga pointed out that using Protocol 12 is harmful and then seemed to be having heart issues in several scenes. I wonder if he will be our Shocking Death of a Major Character this year-- or maybe his alien-empowered daughter will show up and reduce his age by about twenty years to make him match the character in TOS.

I thought for sure that the Deltan spice would come up later in the episode. I wonder if it can also be used as an aphrodisiac.

The dinner party with several known PTSD patients was an extremely bad idea.

Ortegas was pretty insubordinate. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I don't think there was a Klingon War in the original timeline and, if there was, I don't think Chapel's background allowed for her to be a part of it.

Again, no Pelia. At this point, I'm guessing that she's too expensive so they only signed her for half the episodes.

[Gary]

^^ That one's coming up next week, I guess. I'm trying to keep an open mind-- the Buffy musical episode was great. I'm actually dreading the season finale more, because it's most likely going to be a Gorn War cliffhanger.

Well, this was an interesting, but unfortunate, episode. The actor playing M'Benga finds himself in the same position as Spock, Number One, and Uhura, in delivering an excellent performance that is diluted by the overall mediocrity of the writing. The ending does deliver a surprising twist, but one which only serves to compromise the character. I think we are supposed to be left with some doubt as to whether M'Benga murdered the Klingon in cold blood or in self defense, however the Klingon was not motivated to kill M'Benga and it was clearly established that M'Benga could hold his own against the Klingon, at least to some degree-- so it was clearly murder.

The idea of a Klingon peacenik is intriguing, but I don't see the Empire sitting back and letting it happen. I would have expected the Enterprise to be hounded by Klingon battleships the whole way, demanding his return. The Klingons probably consider M'Benga a hero now.

The Klingons are a warrior race by nature; however, they somehow developed the ability to get into space along with various types of energy weapons. So, it stands to reason there are segments of Klingon society focused on science and possibly other disciplines. I think of Klingons much like the Spartans in which all able-bodied men are expected to fight in the event of a war.

M'Benga pointed out that using Protocol 12 is harmful and then seemed to be having heart issues in several scenes. I wonder if he will be our Shocking Death of a Major Character this year-- or maybe his alien-empowered daughter will show up and reduce his age by about twenty years to make him match the character in TOS.

He might get an artificial heart down the road. After all, they have internal organ regenerators by that time.

The dinner party with several known PTSD patients was an extremely bad idea.

Ortegas was pretty insubordinate. I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop.

I didn't catch if Pike knew those folks had PTSD since he had asked they attend the dinner rather than ordering them to do so. He was focused on ensuring Klingon/Starfleet relations stay stabilized and did explain how their attendance would help maintain that stability. And yes, Ortegas should have been reprimanded by Number One (in private). The XO of a ship typically sees to discipline.

Overall, not a bad episode. I got a kick out of the medical instruments they were using for surgery. A far cry different than those used by McCoy in The Voyage Home

[RJDiogenes]

The Klingons are a warrior race by nature; however, they somehow developed the ability to get into space along with various types of energy weapons. So, it stands to reason there are segments of Klingon society focused on science and possibly other disciplines. I think of Klingons much like the Spartans in which all able-bodied men are expected to fight in the event of a war.

They touched on that in Enterprise-- I think it was the same story that addressed the forehead issue. They have a Scientist Class that is not well respected by the Warrior Class.

He might get an artificial heart down the road. After all, they have internal organ regenerators by that time.

Yeah, but the thing is that the M'Benga in SNW is way older than the M'Benga in TOS. My guess is that the M'Benga in TOS is this M'Benga's son, but there also could be some sci-fi explanation.

And yes, Ortegas should have been reprimanded by Number One (in private). The XO of a ship typically sees to discipline.

They should have included that scene.

I got a kick out of the medical instruments they were using for surgery. A far cry different than those used by McCoy in The Voyage Home

The technology in TOS still seems the most futuristic to me of all the series, just because it's so simple and almost magical.

[RJDiogenes]

New episode in the morning!

[RJDiogenes]

While it's quite unusual
For Trek to be so musical
I found myself quite entertained....
Maybe the reason is
How blase the season is
And how much that I have complained.
But I have to admit it
This time they hit it
With high points for theatricality
It was amusing and rousing
While musing and espousing
On a message of solidarity...
Yes, a message of solidarityyyyy....

Ahem. Okay. More thoughts:

I assume everyone used their own voices. Some were very good, some were okay, and Captain Pike was a good sport.

This really had a TOS feel, like a cross between "The Naked Time" and "Shore Leave." This is what made the first season so good and what has been mostly missing from season two.

Number One's hairstyle was also a nice nod to TOS.

"I doubt we will turn into bunnies."

Pike was very quick to approve blowing up the anomaly, after being induced to dramatically sing in front of the bridge crew.

Chapel was very sexy dancing in her white jumpsuit. Millennial Trek is usually afraid of the sexy.

She also seems to have no problem dropping Spock like a hot potato after being so hot to trot over him. Once a player, always a player.

Speaking of which, Kirk has been awfully flirty with La'an for someone with a pregnant girlfriend.

Which would make David about twenty years old in Wrath of Khan. Was he really that young?

Good choice to make La'an's conversation with Kirk non musical.

Bad choice to reveal that Klingon Opera is really just Disco.

Somebody remind me why Pelia is even on the ship. They should have saved the money and developed Mitchell some more.

I loved how M'Benga gave us a little bit of a song and dance right at the end.

And to think, somewhere out there in the Myriadverse, there's a universe where this goes on all the time. I don't think I could take it.

[Gary]

I watched Those Old Scientists again the other night just because it's so funny. Loved it the second time through just as much as the first.

Insofar as the musical -- interesting premise, and boy is Pike quick making decisions to destroy stuff with photon torpedoes. That's not the kind of demeanor one should expect from people who claim to be explorers. The Klingon song and dance made me giggle.

My one complaint: Why the hell is James T. Kirk constantly visiting this ship. The galaxy cannot possibly be that small, and I am certain there are plenty of commands where he could shadow an officer for leadership training. That's my #1 complaint for the series.

[RJDiogenes]

Insofar as the musical -- interesting premise, and boy is Pike quick making decisions to destroy stuff with photon torpedoes. That's not the kind of demeanor one should expect from people who claim to be explorers.

I think that was intended to be a joke based on his embarrassment from the bridge scene. Given the premise, I'm not inclined to take it too seriously.

My one complaint: Why the hell is James T. Kirk constantly visiting this ship. The galaxy cannot possibly be that small, and I am certain there are plenty of commands where he could shadow an officer for leadership training. That's my #1 complaint for the series.

I really hope this doesn't continue into season three.

[RJDiogenes]

Almost forgot again-- season finale is tomorrow!

[RJDiogenes]

And there we have the end of season two, and it was pretty much what I expected-- a mediocre end to a mostly mediocre season.

We have a Big Bad. We have a pending war with a hostile species. This time it's those guys from Alien or something-- no, wait, it's the upgraded Gorn. I just sort of sat there and stared at the screen for an hour. This is really not why I watch Star Trek.

Various thoughts:

The Midwestern town setting at the beginning was a nice nod to TOS.

Chapel being on the Cayuga is quite a coincidence.

"Break glass in case of Gorn."

What exactly happened to the Cayuga? Was there a Gorn attack ship that dropped the interference tower and then left? Why was it destroyed so quickly when Enterprise is able to take on a bunch of their ships?

Chapel being the sole survivor in the saucer section is quite a coincidence. Or maybe there were a bunch more and Uhura's plan killed them all.

It's amazing that the 25-year-old engineer has the exact same name as another Starfleet engineer who's about 40.

I guess those grenades will be vital in the conclusion.

I'm glad they didn't take the obvious route and kill off Patel. I'm sad they took the obvious route and infected her with Gorn eggs. But now that she's on the Enterprise, M'Benga can just put her in the transporter buffer.

There were three plot seeds dropped that will undoubtedly figure into the conclusion: 1) The attack was apparently triggered by a stellar flare, 2) the young were cooperating rather than competing, and 3) The Gornboss was trying to access the Cayuga's computer. This all will also probably relate to Pike's desire to come to an understanding with them.

Chapel and Spock finding each other on the Cayuga's bridge was quite a coincidence.

Spock fought a Gorn before Kirk in this timeline.

Kirk's Gorn must have been about 95 years old with a bad back, based on what we've seen of Gorn since then.

But Kirk was not in this episode, for which we should be thankful.

Unless Discovery has cliffhangers, this is probably the first time we've seen "To be continued..." since season three of Enterprise.

[Gary]

And there we have the end of season two, and it was pretty much what I expected-- a mediocre end to a mostly mediocre season.

We have a Big Bad. We have a pending war with a hostile species. This time it's those guys from Alien or something-- no, wait, it's the upgraded Gorn. I just sort of sat there and stared at the screen for an hour. This is really not why I watch Star Trek.

Various thoughts:

The Midwestern town setting at the beginning was a nice nod to TOS.

The future is sooooo cool that we want to mimic a small town from the 1950s.

Chapel being on the Cayuga is quite a coincidence.

"Break glass in case of Gorn."

Meh...

What exactly happened to the Cayuga? Was there a Gorn attack ship that dropped the interference tower and then left? Why was it destroyed so quickly when Enterprise is able to take on a bunch of their ships?

I inferred that the Gorn had attacked the Cayuga before taking over the planet for hunting.

Chapel being the sole survivor in the saucer section is quite a coincidence. Or maybe there were a bunch more and Uhura's plan killed them all.

Yeah, I wasn't too keen on the lack of mounting covert rescue efforts to find survivors on the Cayuga. I thought the representation of the badly damaged ship was really cool since we could see the various layers, compartments, and passageways. The fact that the computer system was partially operation speaks as to the redundancy of the systems.

It's amazing that the 25-year-old engineer has the exact same name as another Starfleet engineer who's about 40.

Yet ANOTHER person in the Trek universe we didn't need to see.

I guess those grenades will be vital in the conclusion.

Quelle surprise.

I'm glad they didn't take the obvious route and kill off Patel. I'm sad they took the obvious route and infected her with Gorn eggs. But now that she's on the Enterprise, M'Benga can just put her in the transporter buffer.

I want to see more of M'Benga in action a'la Bevery Crusher or Julian Bashir. The man's a doctor!! Can we at least see him in action rather than as a side-conversation filler?

There were three plot seeds dropped that will undoubtedly figure into the conclusion: 1) The attack was apparently triggered by a stellar flare, 2) the young were cooperating rather than competing, and 3) The Gornboss was trying to access the Cayuga's computer. This all will also probably relate to Pike's desire to come to an understanding with them.

Yeah, I still don't understand how a reptilian species can develop space travel. That's just off-the-wall-nuts.

Chapel and Spock finding each other on the Cayuga's bridge was quite a coincidence.

Lazy writing.

Spock fought a Gorn before Kirk in this timeline.

Action Spock!

Kirk's Gorn must have been about 95 years old with a bad back, based on what we've seen of Gorn since then.

The 60s were a different time.

But Kirk was not in this episode, for which we should be thankful.

But we're still stuck with his broterh.

Unless Discovery has cliffhangers, this is probably the first time we've seen "To be continued..." since season three of Enterprise.

Discovery is ending this next season, and nothing of value will be lost.

[Gary]

57 Years Later, Star Trek Is Just One Step Away From a TOS Reboot