 | It's not good. No. Really. It's not. |
So I just got through the second season of Star Trek: Discovery. Sigh. Well, how to begin? I'm not thrilled about it, but I'm something of a Babylon 5 snob, if that provides any sort of context.
And no, "context is NOT king".
The writing gets on my nerves with its inconsistencies, recycled logic, poor structure and rehashed concepts. It's best ideas were introduced in the first season and left twitching on the floor like the bloody leg caught caught in the door.
Apparently it was necessary to drag Star Trek weeping and wailing into Game of Thrones territory as evidence of relevance. It worked in the sense that the show is getting a third season. I don't think that's a function of good writing, not that ST:D ... STD ... will someone please stop it?
No, because the production quality knocks every other prior series out of the ballpark. Oh, don't get me started. That science is this series' religion is a message too stark to ignore. Society has apparently advanced beyond it - not even the aliens need it anymore. Not that Deep Space 9 had a very ... er, balanced approach to religion. It was narratively as much a mess as the station was mechanically during its first season. You know, when it was interesting to watch?
Look, I don't have a problem with the actors, the direction, but the meandering morality really grates on my nerves. What's okay and what's not? Who cares so long as everyone smiles at the end! That's a pretty thin line to tread, and the comic book writing doesn't exactly make it effective.
I lost count of the times I was either a) bored, b) rolling my eyes, c) calling the next plot twist. It's not a plot twist when the story tells you one thing and something else happens because the writers have set you up.
What I'm saying is it's not magic if you can see the trick. Switching directors and writers all the time results in stories that appear consistent if you skim the surface, but don't actually hold water if you start picking it apart. I may do that, yet.
I'm a grizzled old fart when it comes to Speculative Fiction, and have a low threshold for the limited amount of creativity on display in this series. So, why all the fuss, then? I could just watch another series. I won't, and you don't have to read my griping - yes, I fully admit that's what I'm doing here - but sometimes family demands keeping pace in certain things.
Star Trek: Discovery gets it all wrong because it is in a word, tryharding. What a waste of money.
Wait. Wait wait wait. I'm not ending this on a sour note, not a chance. If you're going to watch it - as many have - do so for Pike, Suru and at a stretch, Ash. Once you're in you'll be caught up in the fascination of what comes next, but the whole thing was so flat with me I was amazed, frankly, that all the raw emotion just didn't do anything.
Well, almost nothing. The new Spock has his moments, and it's not hard to see why people love that. He's excellent, and deserves better writing. You heard me. More consistent, resonant and honest writing, because this wasn't it.
There's less technobabble this time around, but there's also a lot less emotional resonance, which is unfortunate for a very talented cast that is trying so very hard to express what the writers and directors want you to see and feel.
And that's all I've got to say.
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CptRetroBlue - May 15, 2019 (04:19 PM) I heard not so good reviews and talk about this series as well. Hard to believe CBS would show it on a streaming service to have viewers pay for a disappointing entry on the franchise. |
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hastypixels - May 18, 2019 (10:24 PM) Netflix does it all the time. Everyone has a different opinion about what's disappointing, for different reasons, naturally. |
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