#klingon ep liveblog

[worflesbian]

this woman tugging the children out of the way/putting herself in front of them as the klingons walk past.. they're just going somewhere do u think they're gonna attack your kids unprovoked? it's such an interesting detail establishing how klingons are perceived by federation civilians but also worf's served on this ship almost a whole season do you shield your kids from him too? did you used to?

[thegeminisage]

ohhhh it's tng update time. i have a lot to catch up on. wednesday we did "ensign ro" and "silicon avatar" and last night we did "disaster" and "the game."

a brief interruption to amend an error on my previous tng liveblog concerning the episode "redemption." i did NOT mention the part where data got his own command and the first officer was racist to him about it. my brain was so numbed by klingon happenings - and again, they're fine episodes, it was MYYY fault for watching both of those episodes at once AND the second one with a bad connection (we had to reconnect like 1000000 times), but due to this i did straight up forget about data's role here. my thoughts are: this could and should have been the a plot of an entire episode, not the b plot of worf's episode. this late in the game, you kind of run the risk of data's big episodes becoming too same-y - that usually what happens is that someone is misguided or prejudiced in their beliefs about him and are in the end proven wrong - but i think the first command is different enough to be distinct. data building genuine trust with his actions and not his words would have been really fun!! especially if he models his captaining like he does his art - by picking bits and pieces of his real-life examples, like riker & picard. it's a shame they wasted this on a b-plot :(

ANYWAY.

ensign ro: i have to admit i wasnt sure about my girl ro at first. i absolutely support her cause and her beliefs but there was one part where. and i dont remember specifics because this was on wednesday. they like asked her to do something and she didn't and i support her but GIRL if you fuck around and dont do your job they will send you back to space jail. so i was worried that she was stupid in like the literal sense

fortunately she fucking RULES. i liked the part where bev and deanna were like can we sit down :D and she was like no <3 and they had to leave. but i also liked guinan getting through to her and becoming her friend too. i think ro should kiss some women about it (more on this later)

i was kind of bummed riker wasnt the one to let her put her earring back on since he was the dick who made her take it off, but at least she did get to put it back on. i was soooo mad when he made her remove it

LOVE to find out more about the cardassians. i'm excited for that freaky guy and the dr he wants to fuck in ds9, this feels like a real prelude moment

also, love the barber in this episode. in a world where they no longer have to even cook food, haircutting is miraculously still done by hand

silicon avatar: i had a lot of mixed feelings about/issues with this one initially but the ending ultimately took it into watchable territory on account of it popping the fuck off

biggest issue is that they basically retconned the hell out of the first episode this crystal monster was in (the iconic datalore aka "ARE YOU PREPARED FOR THE KIND OF DEATH YOU'VE EARNED LITTLE MAN")

in that ep lore was DEFINITELY able to communicate with it without all the drama and he also communicated enough with it to be like "hey, if you don't eat me, i can show you where lots of edible people are" which solves the question of it's intelligent and whether or not it understands it's eating people. the fact that were uwu woobifying this giant people eating death machine is hilarious but also it stretches my suspension of disbelief way too far. like, get outta here.

second biggest issue was the emotional whiplash from this old lady. first she's racist to data and then she wants to butter him up for therapy reasons and finally she's delusional enough to believe her dead son is in there. i actually did like her arc and the idea that she did something monstrous, but it felt like we had too many things crammed in there...again, i love data and i love when data gets big episodes and moments but i wish we could pump the brakes a little with EVERYONE who meets him being anti android or whatever. even the episode where he gets a gf was a welcome change despite it not being very good because it wasn't just more people having doubts because data is an android. and if I'M tired of it, imagine how HE feels. geez. there was no point in having her start from a place of hostility when it didn't go anywhere and actually i probably would have been more tricked into believing she was normal if she HADN'T come at data like that

THAT SAID, the core story of "i will murder this sentient life form because it killed my son even knowing he would hate me for it" is actually metal as fuck. i really liked it. and i think it was sneaky and clever to have her basically ask to use data as a tape recorder before she fully fell off the deep end because who wouldn't want to hear a recording of a deceased loved one? but it's when she asks again, and basically asks data to roleplay him, that you realize her grief is making her bonkers - or that being around data is bringing too much stuff up.

anyway issues aside the end really fucked. she was like data absolve me of the murder i just committed in my dead son's name and he was like sorry queen i can't! and then they just rolled credits. bonkers.

also, can we pour one out for riker? he got uh. i mean he had all of that going on with beverly like just a handful of episodes ago and i was SOOO hoping he was gonna get laid but instead he got. trauma :(

disaster: i LOVED this one. i loved that it paired characters we don't normally see together - like geordi and beverly for instance - and i loved that quite literally everyone got to get up to batshit insane shenanigans at the same time. picard has to learn to interact with the world's most adorable children. deanna is captain of the starship and she should kiss ro about it. geordi and beverly are gonna open the cargo bay to space some radioactive barrels and while they're holding onto a metal ladder with their BARE HANDS. riker is carrying DATA'S DETACHED HEAD around the crawlspaces and meanwhile in ten forward worf is delivering a fucking baby

side bar which uh exit do we think klingon babies come out of. like if they've got two of everything does the baby just pick one or do they have two whole wombs too...do you think klingons are like "oh most of us come out of the right side but watch out for that guy he's fucked in the head i think he came out of his mom's left vagina" i think that'd be hilarious

anyway worf did a great job.

also pleased with the kids this ep...normally star trek kids aren't uh. great. like they're annoying or weird or just not great actors because, you know, kids. but all 3 of those kids had distinct personalities and they were all extremely charming. absolutely masterful casting. they were so fucking cute

idk why but when deanna became enterprise captain she immediately looked 10x hotter and gayer. her disagreements with ro were FRAUGHT with sexual tension. THEY SHOULD KISS.

that said my one true pairing for tng is always gonna be riker e worf e deanna. hands down best moment for these three so far was when riker was like you just cant stay away from the big chair can you ;) and she was like oh im not cut out to be a captain but maybe i could be first officer since i HEAR there aren't many qualifications and worf gives riker this incredulous double-take like "are you gonna let her get away with that" and he's grinning like oh yeah he's Gonna. there truly is such a horrific lack of sexual/romantic energy in this show but whenever deanna and riker start flirting we finally get fed

the game: MY BABY BOY WESLEY IS BACK..........he got tall i MISSED HIM

i loved the opening of this episode. riker seems to have a 50/50 chance these days on whether or not any given encounter with a woman is gonna be an ethical slut moment or a close encounters moment and i am now referring to this phenomenon as riker roulette. is he getting ethically seduced and/or ethically seducing others? or is it....................you know. anyway rip to him for metaphorically bringing an std back to the enterprise from risa

what was this whole thing with deanna eating chocolate also. is all of season 5 gonna be like this? to be clear i'm not complaining. we have a fucking dearth of, sorry, flirty fun and fresh shippy moments for anyone in tng, generally speaking. it's about time they picked up.

my one gripe with this episode is that it is REALLY AWKWARD to have them set this up as "this VR headset is giving people orgasms" and then twice have wesley's mom try and force one on him. like they didn't say orgasms but the subtitles kept going "pleasured gasp" so idk what i was supposed to think those headsets were doing. like i get this was probably unintentional on their part but i still hated it

also it sucks that wesley got to have a little tea break with picard but didn't have time to hang out with his mom...she was barely in his departure episode, too. the writers clearly prioritize his relationship with picard BECAUSE WESLEY IS THEIR AFFAIR BABY! i will die on this hill. those guys fucked and had a baby and got embarrassed abuot it and now wesley doesn't know he's going to inherit male pattern baldness

okay. that concludes this tng update. normally this is the part where i say, "next, we are doing..." and then i list the episodes. i want to take an extra moment to bring added attention to it this time because this time we are doing two VERY. SPECIAL. EPISODES.

NEXT: UNIFICATION PART I AND PART II

NEXT: SPOCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[weepylucifer]

oh NOOOOO the klingons have LORCA!!! i sure Hope they don’t KILL HIM or something!!!

[gayspock]

ok some star trek liveblogs

- its literally.. it feels like so long since i las t watched trek somehow idk how. i mean its been a while since i could watch it continuously and ive had a rlly long couipleof weeks tbh. but yah now i can probs finish ds9 at some poinnt this week if i rlly want to :3

- and also as like a fun little note. it took me SO SO long to get through tng didnt it christ? like its almost been a whole year since i first watched it, and i thought to myself "man idk if i should wait until my birthday again to do a st movie marathon" but i literally think it could so easily line up ... O_Owhich stupididk how its been tht long already my god.

- anyways i into the final stretch of s7

- and like okie dokie. worf. sigh. soft gentle sighs

- bc heres the thing its so weirddd bc i LOVE worf to the core but its SO funny bc like. i hated a lot of his tng eps- sorrryyy. though frankly thats not even ENTIRELT accurate, as usually not bc of him. i didnt hate worf eps, but a lot of the klingon eps bc the politics really did not do it for me at all.

- and more to the point. i DO feel like hes a little out of place, still, in ds9, even if he has offered some good stuff to the show

- but rn with ezri. sigh.

- bc frankly the thing is. whilst theres some moments that make me cringe and they're too stilted... i actually do like worf for his flaws sometimes. i dotn know. not as in im like ohh yeahh go mister sogynistic.... but in terms of a character i do find it. hm. refreshing is absolutely the wrong word, but i do feel there's more depth when you can allow characters to, like, actually be a little bit of a resistance at times. like genuine resistance

- and idk . but sighhhh sigh sigh. the thing with ezri is i like understand absolutely and i would ALSO feel that way with him not wanting to talk to her rn. like is it stupid ass the way he treated her? yah..... and not right BUT i'd be, like, "fine" with it in the sense of like. it would align with his character and i recognise his own shit is getting in the way and people dont handle/react to things perfectly and like- he did lose his wife, and stuff, and its not like... she owes him her time either like.

- bc like. if HE is not comfortable being friends with (or even talking to) his late wifes successor i dont think thats, like, a weird "hes runniong away; he isnt communicating" situation moment bc like. frankly its kind of obvious... why someone might not want to do that at all. its a unique situation. and GRANTED, yes they do have to work togetrher but like... i think its fiar if he just wants to keep it sort of civil and i dont know . sometimes you can just settle for things being awkward with each other, like? you cant make every situation perfect all of the time- and itsliterally fine, just grit ur teeth... granted i guess thats a very Me way of thinking abt it but like- but-

- BUT GOD SOMETIMES . theres some shit hes doing NOW in particular tht is making me claw my hair out just bc it seems.... AGAIN i want him to react badly if it fits him, but nonetheless ahrgh. WHY DID HE FUCK EZRI. SORRY I

- NOW WHY DID THEY ENGAGE IN INTERCOURSE LIKE THAT HM.

- BECAUSE THAT MAKES NO SENSE TO ME ON ANY LEVEL WHATSOEVER IS THE THING <3

- also the thing with ezri is im sobbing bc ezri soooo could easily be my most favourite of teh entire show but im just so sad she was brought in so fuckn late!!!!! like, im not actually wholly against introducing maincast so far along in THIS circumstance. like after 6 seasons? im ok with that. on the contrary i like it here, even if i dont usually like that kind of thing, bc it makes sense tht they have to change things to keep the show flowing (as u kno how s7 of trek can get a little... burnt out.. at least i felt that way with tng too). so im cool with her being new but its moreso bc we only have one season left.... and thts not enough time. does that make sense.

- bc like maybe if she was brought into s6, and then there were 8 seasons of ds9 i feel like tht could work? but only ONE season for development, esp so late when things are coming to a head...

- rn i feel like they have to rush a lot of her, and focus on her a bit too much and its not as organic as it could be which is such a shame bc its GENUINELY A REALLY INTERESTING FACET of trill culture, and i do find her compelling as hell but YEAH. i think them having to, like, so quickly demonstrate her as a person makes a lot of the execution... lose subtley? which is just like. gentle sigh. its not godawful but its, like, very.... season 1 and 2.

- anyways back to theshwo im really obsessed with damar right now. the absolute definition of some fucking bloke. and i meant what i said abt him and weyoun really feeling like a couple in the midst of a years long divor-

- SORRY.

- "if you think i dont know what youre up to, youre a bigger fool than dukat... 😠" "d..dukat?" "he used to entertain lady friends as well 😒" SO AS I LITERALLY WAS JUST SAYING. JEEZ.

- also god i really do not care for ezri and julian. i doubt anyone does but like i think it goes back to what i said above like

- frankly. i do not think even WITH development it could work (it just feels weird, especially with how they wrote julian and jadzia,) but its even more awkward and stilted with how we've seen... barely nothing of them together. like girlies what...

- i will say though. damar epic big dick moments help. im actually really digging him despite it all. help.

- and fucking- THE FACT WHEN EZRI AND WORF CAME BACK . THEY ALL CROWDED EZRI LIKE <333 WE MISSED YOY. AND W9DGJIDIFODJIOG. WORFWAS JUST 🧍‍♂️ LIKE HELPPP WHY ISTHT MAKING ME PISS AND SHIT AND

- also also also also. sighhhh omg. i get its like the final stretch now and we did get a lot of other character stuff earlier this season but i do hope they give the other girlies sth to do a bit more . im not worried abt it bc i figure we've just been focussing on other stuff rn but yah

- thats right sisko. malewife. you wear the apron.

- can i say i love kasidy's voice. like idk if its her accent or sth? but its just got that softness round the edges, my goodness me...

- i will say im squinting at the whole... her leading him down the wrong path. like what does it even mean, bestie. i know im not supposed to know yet. but goodness gracious me. i have a sense of foreboding- and NOT the one im meant to... like as in i feel like theyre going down a bad route narratively

- kai winns . whats his name. her assistant? fucking HATING dukat is fucking hysterical. he just smells it on him.

- WHAT A TIRESOME LITTLE MAN

- I AM BUT A MOON MADE WA- OHHHHH IM GOING TO BARF. DUKAT YOU ARE GROWING SO INSUFFERABLE. SOMEHOW MORE AND MORE SO.

- the fact she REALLY IS SICK AND TWISTED ON THAT NASTY DUKAT DICK. DEMENTED, TORMENTED, NOT EVEN SACRAMENTED

- the ezri and julian mess. even if i dislike it i do like worf just taking the piss out of him. get his ass. hes a child. sure. be a little mean its quite funny

- also damar and weyouns nasty little wretched dynamic.extremely fuckinh funny behaviour on all fronts. oh the girls HATE each other dont they ust. can you imagine being the fucking breen.

- no offence benjamin but shes so right fucking GETR HIS ASS, KASIDY.

-quark why are you taunting odo about his relationship with kira now hm.

- anywaysmy comments are getting inane i'll dump this big one at this point i think and continue whenever i have more to chatter about

[kinetic-elaboration]

December 2: 1x26 Errand of Mercy

Errand of Mercy is truly a trip. I’m swiftly losing my ability to be coherent because I need to go to sleep but here are some attempts:

First of all this is, of course, a straight-up, pure, unfiltered Kirk/Spock episode with a tiny bit of unrequited Kor/Kirk on the side. Like, we’re not even going to pretend to find stuff for the rest of the crew today. I see you, Gene Coon.

This is the first Klingon ep. I just... the actual Klingon-centric episodes ARE good, but the Klingons in general are pretty boring and I legit don’t understand why they became the standard Star Trek villain. (DC Fontana apparently thought that it was because their make up was simpler v. the Romulans, acc. to Amazon trivia and....I’ll buy that.)

Is the “cultural scale” called the Richter cultural scale? I seem to recall another scale with the exact same name....

I get why there would be such a scale but they are dead wrong about where the Organians fall on it.

Anyway not to harp on this yet again but @ fanom this isn’t the military right?? Lol

Oh, no, it’s Code One! No idea what that means but the music tells me it’s a big deal and it’s bad!

“Curious how often you humans manage to obtain that which you do not want.” He’s talking about war but I can think of some other things that fall into this category.

I think it’s pretty funny that Kirk records his Captain’s logs in public.

CAPTAIN SULU.

“There’s a war happening, so Mr. Spock and I will just leave the ship... together.”

“You’ll get out of here, Sulu, and leave Spock and I... alone.”

“You’ll fall back to rendezvous with the rest of the Fleet in the Laurentian system.”

Why do these people show no interest in us beaming down into their village? Hmmm, I wonder. If the Organians really were what K and S think they are, beaming down in that way would be uh a bad idea.

Spock seems much less awkward at gesturing than Kirk does.

Finally, by the end of the season, they’ve figured out the context for the Enterprise: Starfleet, the Federation, etc.

I wish the Organians were our alien overlords and taylor.

So the Klingons are a military dictatorship.

Kirk finds them so frustrating. I feel like this ep falls into the genre “Kirk is frustrated by hippies.” All this generic peace talk and faultlessly chill attitudes are just not him.

“I’m a soldier, not a diplomat.” That’s why Spock likes him so much.

The Organians are trying to follow the Prime Directive but Kirk is making it SO HARD.

“Space vehicles.”

I know the Klingons are actually supposed to be in yellow face but you know what it looks like black face to me and I RE-ALLY wish they had not done that.

They look good in those Organian outfits. Love that they kept their command and science colors lol. I feel like this is the sort of outfit AOS Kirk wishes he had in that boring ass closet of his.

Mr. Spock does not look like an Organian.

I MUST know more about these “not uncommon” Vulcan merchants. “Dealing in kevas and trillium.”

KOR IS SO INTO KIRK. This flirting is the least subtle. “You’ll be taught to use your tongue.” “Where is your smile?” “You’re a ram among sheep.” “I need your obedience.” “You seem to be in command.” Is all of this supposed to sound sexual or...?

Right up there with “a stallion must first be broken.”

Whereas Kirk is so not into this. That expression says, “Don’t even think about talking about Spock’s tongue.”

The mind sifter is actually a crazy advanced sci fi machine and STID wanted us to think Klingons don’t have warp usdfsf go fuck yourself.

Kirk is so turned on by Spock’s mental strength.

Every spare moment of this ep is given over to K/S flirting. They legit act like an old married couple. “I thought you were going to fight that guy.” “I just might.” Or whatever.

I love that Kirk’s method of fighting is to literally launch his WHOLE BODY at enemies.

Whereas Spock’s there just running awkwardly in the background. He is Not coordinated friends.

Kirk’s speeches ARE admirable. He is lacking context here but in general if they WERE an oppressed people, this should be inspiring.

“For some reason, he feels as though he must destroy you.”

This Kor and Kirk scene... Kirk literally canNOT stop himself from flirting. His default smile is Charming. “Nothing...inconsequential [was destroyed] I hope...” Flirty smile, wink.

GO CLIMB A TREE I MEAN WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT.

We are the same species...tigers...hunters

Is this not the same cell they always use?

I feel an “and there was only one cell” fic coming on...

The Organians are actually kind of hilarious. They’ll basically let these rando aliens do whatever they want, as long as they do no violence. That’s it, that’s the one rule.”Your captors planned to do violence to you, and to that I said...naw.”

THIS is real Pacifism @ Commander Spock.

Kirk ready to go out in a blaze of fire for a bunch of annoying hippies like “I’m going to white savior you now, ungrateful Organians.”(I say this with love; I love him.)

Can you believe Kirk and Spock are about to die in an unwinnable fight of 2 against Lots of Klingons, and they’re using their last moments to FLIRT AGAIN?

Gene Coon loves writing dialogue in which Spock calculates statistics and Kirk is turned on.

Also can you BELIEVE he just pulls Spock along by the arm? Any excuse to touch him.

Okay the Organians are officially tired of your bullshit.

Too hot! Hot damn!

“We find interference in others’ affairs most disgusting.” Prime Directive! Like I said!

This is basically the plot of A Taste of Armageddon except in that ep Kirk was the Organians.

“People have the right to handle their own affairs.” Is he wrong though??

The Organians are like “okay, we all had our fun here, now get out. Seriously.”

Can you imagine how fucking weird it would be to just randomly see this alien dude materialize in the White House, or, like, Starfleet San Francisco HQ, or wherever the “home world” of the Federation is supposed to be? Just a little throwaway line in there.

By the end Kor is just straight up hilarious. He’s giving off real Ian McKellan in Vicious vibes when he says “I can handle them.”

“I guess that takes care of the war.” Yep! Very efficient!

The “it” in “It would have been glorious” is DEFINITELY not the war lol.

Good game, good game.

“I was furious with the Organians for stopping a war I didn’t want.” I’m sorry but could not THAT have been the plot of STID?

“Spock, your math was wrong the whole time.” And now Spock and Kirk can BOTH sulk lol.

Those were all of my liveblog thoughts and it’s late but.... I had so many additional thoughts on this episode... Like a lot more.

First, I love when humanoids turn out to not be humanoids, that’s one of the best things.

Second, I think this is a very gutsy episode to air at the time, and that it would still be a gutsy episode to air now. I feel like it’s one of the peanut gallery’s favorite criticisms of ST nowadays to say it’s “colonialist” but this ep makes it pretty clear it’s not--that’s the opposite of the lesson of this story.

To attempt to explain better: I completely and unironically love Kirk but I do recognize that like all 3 dimensional characters he has flaws. In this ep, I thought that while his speeches and general point of view and strategic plan were definitely right for situations a population is oppressed--that people do have the power to fight back against dictatorships, even when the odds are bad, and that it is worth it to have the courage to fight back against such oppression--he was ultimately shown to be wrong in this instance because he wasn’t actually coming into that situation. He didn’t understand as much as he thought he did. He thought he was going to be the savior here: taking control for peoples who didn't know better, saving them from oppression, and then gifting them with technology and advancement as he understood it. The Federation wouldn't have enslaved them, but the Federation did want to use them. But the Organians really truly didn't need help--the native people understood their own needs better than the outside people. That's the lesson I took from the episode. Your intentions can be good but if you're coming into a foreign situation looking to control it, without understanding the actual people involved, you’re not being a true friend or ally, and you're likely to do no more harm than good. Opposition to tyranny has to come from the source, the oppressed peoples themselves.

When he refers to “weak, innocent people” standing in the way of superpowers in the beginning--he’s not attempting to derogatory, but that is a pretty demeaning characterization.

I also thought it interesting that the Organians can take any form they want and put their society at any stage of "advancement" they want and they chose a basic agrarian aesthetic. Cottagecore rights.

Kirk really had a confirmation bias when it came to the Organians. He had an image of them--innocent, weak, oppressed--and he only took information that fit with that characterization, rather than listening to them and what they were saying.

My mom and I also discussed whether this was IC or OOC of Kirk. I’m of two minds, myself. I think Kirk at his best is much more open-minded than this. His core morality is good faith, peace, friendliness, and care for all life forms, and there are plenty of examples of this (Charlie X, Mud’s Women, and The Corbomite Maneuver all immediately come to mind.) But he does have a blind spot that I think comes up often enough to be canonically part of his character: if something is threatening or killing his crew, or his people more broadly (the Federation), then ALL he cares about is neutralizing the threat. Rare alien? Possible scientific discovery? Might not have the full details of the situation? Doesn’t matter. I’m thinking The Man Trap, The Devil in the Dark, Arena. He wants to protect aliens, but not if the alien is killing his crew. He wants to make overtures of friendship, but not if the new being has already been aggressive.

I mean like I said... a part of me is like "no he is better than this!" but another part is like... well he does have that 'soldier' side of him, he is intensely loyal to his people. The “evil” Kirk of The Enemy Within. I think he just sometimes gets these blinders in certain situations when he's just sure he's right, which is very human.

Also although he's between McCoy and Spock on the continuum of "an objective right thing exists for all people and in all situations and we should always follow that morality" and "morality itself is relative, we should be respectful of alien ways of living even when we don’t understand them" I think in general Kirk and the show is more like McCoy. There IS a right morality here. (I’m thinking of The Apple or even A Taste of Armageddon.)

I also maintain that to say in 1967 "the very personality trait of being warlike is a common denominator between enemies at war" is a dramatic statement.

My mother suggested that Kirk was “strangely appealing” in his desire to save the Organians, with or without their help, and I do agree... I think that’s the complexity of the episode. The overall thrust of the plot is that Kirk was wrong--he’s left embarrassed at the end. I stand by what I said above. And they certainly go out of their way to show that the Klingons and Federation have something in common--namely, as I said, their very capacity to wage war, and interest in waging war.

BUT, as much as I get the point that they have certain similarities with the Federation--and I think this concept of 'these war-worthy disagreements seem trivial to an advanced and neutral species' is interesting, and even more so in comparison with A Taste of Armageddon which, as I said, is this same scenario from the Organians' POV essentially--at the same time it's a bit irritating to hear the democratic Federation compared to the oppressive dictatorship of the Klingons. Like yeah, okay, none of them are light beings and they both wanted to destroy each other--point taken. But would the Federation park itself on a random planet and kill 200 people the first day? I think not. So in this sense Kirk IS right. The Klingons are an adversary worth fighting, just not over the Organians.

I don’t know what I would think of his position if the Organians were being harmed but were also just...actually sheep. Like I guess I would say "well they have to have a reason.” And in fact they did--their bodies cannot be harmed, so they really don't care if the Klingons pretend to harm them. But I just can't comprehend people being like really honestly okay with that level of oppression, as opposed to too scared or too beaten down or too brainwashed to fight it, which is different.

...And from there we went into a discussion of curative v transformative fandom and yet more on what’s wrong with AOS sdfasfjsaldf it’s past 1 am I can’t be stopped BUT I SHOULD BE STOPPED.

[ssaalexblake]

the mood is ‘it took me 5 tries to watch this goddamn episode of disco the other day bc i’m sick as a sick dog and kept passing out.. Until i finally had the sense to start off from where i left off before i fell asleep rather than start over. That is Pathetic But... Thoughts...

i had 2 nap twice writing this bc mobile is evil, i am also liveblog addicted and did this now despite my Original Viewing Experience;

Sonequa can run. Like, a great many people can run but when she’s sprinting down the halls to go to engineering she is like, proper sprint running form and i assume that was on purpose and i enjoy it. She’s serious. 

‘officer. orphan. widower. shipmate’ just... ordinarily i’d think it odd about including officer in this list but to michael after the whole s1 business of no rank, it’d mean something. And we know it does because of how much we Know orphan and widower are important. it also throws relief that she is part of discovery’s crew, shipmates Matter. anyway, still sick as a dog (wrote god 3 times by accident) and not v articulate. 

i mentioned the other week how i liked that michael and tilly’s quarters had warm light tones this season to signify it’s a home. This is why it being totally blue again when tilly is gone is doubly brilliant. It’s not Michael’s home if she’s not there. 

wish i could have seen goergiou’s face when the shuttle went careening off and she probs was sent flying. we missed her furiously fast hair and uniform fixing which absolutely happened. 

side note: the best thing about this ep in which something amazing happened is actually michael’s expressions in the bg whenever georgiou is talking. 

followed closely by pike’s faces @ the weird shit going on

give me a flashback ep of cadet georgiou drinking everybody under the table pls like don’t tease me give me pike out of it on the floor (bonus cornwell too pls) while she just sips a tumbler of something smirking (seeing the captain in the emperor in her better moments is fun but seeing the emperor in the then cadet would be funner (enough so for me to use a not word to describe it)).

THE ONLY OTHER ANSWER IS!!

*michael and georgiou breathe in *

CLASSIFIED MISSION

*michael and georgiou breathe out*

(Reminder, watch michael’s faces)

srsly i like that starfleet were all’ this is CAPTAIN GEORGIOU’ but haven’t bothered to convince her to actually properly pretend to even be her she’s just flying around laughing at people confused as to why she’s so... That nowadays. 

she’s like a cat.... Not a cute one, one that will scratch out ur eyes but u love it anyway because she looks like a cat u had one time who was lovely and once in a blue moon is nice to u but usually steals ur apples and scratches ur chairs. And galactic domination. 

look ok i said after the klingon greek soap opera thing that L’Rell picking up ‘Mother’ after talking to the mother of the fatherland was no coincidence and uh... after her title giving there i am Further convinced she just misses the pretentiousness and was spreading it about a bit in response. 

emperor: I;M THE EMPEROR

the crew: *shoves fingers in ears, does not hear*

still convinced at least detmer knows the score

also: still hot for the emperor so... there’s that

*hisses*

I gasped and had a coughing fit

3 times

stamets is unzipped to the maz and his forearms are showingso like... he’s bad rn

sylvia ‘gonna let my anger fester out of spite’ tilly

I... am iffy on Pike’s reasons for disliking Ash. Not gonna argue, ever, that people mistrusting him or even openly disliking him is unrealistic or even in certain cases unjustified but what he said is a bit??? fucked up? whether u buy it or not, that’s what is true and what happened (u know, evidently starfleet’s record lists it as so if this is what pike knows of it) and I react to ppl saying shit that amounts to ‘if i don’t believe it exists you don’t get to exist’ ... hashtag bi problems... 

‘the war changed her’

no shit

also i liked ash’s bun BUT loose is a whole other hot thing

also ash ur not helping urself lol way 2 sound shady

stamets: pls captain let me use ur ship as a doorstop, expose it to hungry shrooms oh and don’t touch anything b/c u will become the human equivalent of a twizzle stick

‘that’s for letting me do this captain but imma sass u too!!!’ 

oh stamets

handholding!!!!

... hugh

fuck me up 

i’d love 2 hear pike’s personal records bc i bet he’s just constantly confused and going what the fuuuuuc

ash’s hair... second bullet for ash’s hair and no regrets

this explanation was a bit Too weird to be buyable which i take as ‘we did not plan this’ but hell we got him back whatever

it also had me worried trek was saying when u die u go to shroom world and are painfully decomposed while concsious for a while So 

georgiou: i run this joint Dude don;t screw with me

i’m gonna take this as tilly did get her science gf because i can

also stamets should have hugged tilly in this ep!! 

she gave up a lot for hugh 

georgiou: smiles honestly and happily when nobody will ever see

the bit of the old score playing in the bg of hugh back is everything

i love cornwell

manlier than thou bullshit

she’s on the stairs 

SHE LIKES TO BE TALL

ths is exactly like a teacher of 8 year olds getting 2 kids in a pissing match to play nice

unless u prefer georgiou

no thank u

NOPE

are michael and stamet’s unifoms non shiny now b/c of the spores???

i need to know ur intentions towards spock

me: it’s not like she wants 2 marry him michael

keyla was touching owo’s shoulder so That Ship Is Sailing if u like it or not

its disgayvery not discovery

(still high on cold meds)

also interesting to note that stamets is Obviously full to the brim with Negative Emotions to Ask but holds nothing against anybody who isn’t??? ...ash... ash not ask

on disco they all hang out on the bridge for funsies

Pike is all ‘’m not a regular captain i’m a  cool captain!!!’ 

ok bye i gotta legit pass out i am Never bullet pointing on mobile ever again

[aceofwands]

Ria hateblogs Discovery: Episode 9 (I can’t even be bothered looking up the title), liveblogged to @kendradaynes

we cut back to Discovery in orbit of Pahvo waiting for the Klingons to arrive. apparently the Vulcan Admiral has ordered all Federation ships to go back behind Federation lines, and is ordering them to retreat????

how ... does that make sense? like yes, they blew you up last time. but what has Starfleet been doing the past 6 months? twiddling it's thumbs?? is Discovery's dumb spore drive their only innovation?? they haven't come up with any other new weapons or tactics or anything?

Lorca is arguing to save the Pahvans - like why is Starfleet not pro saving these aliens lives? they're trying to save the Discovery instead. shouldn't they send every ship they've got?

apparently, he's just explained (I keep pausing it again lol) they're NOW trying to regroup to crack the secret of the invisibility screens. this is just so bad. and as usual, defies all belief! they haven't been working on this the entire time??? they need all these warships to retreat to help out with this????? 

like what. it doesn't even make sense

"You want me to run from a fight, and leave a peaceful species to face annihilation" - Lorca, for once arguing for the right thing, solely because the plot needs him to, but also because vengeance lol

he's going along with the order ... at Warp 5 ... because he has no intention of reaching their destination (starbase 46) because if you're planning on defying a direct order, best not to advertise the fact ... ummmmmmmm what? huh? what exactly are they gonna do about it if you do??? this show is so dumb Shin I swear to god

they now have 3 hours to figure out how to get through the invisibility screen apparently. even though we all know Klingons can't fire while oh that's right it's not cloaking technology -eye roll-

he's now talking to Stamets about faking a reason they can't jump (and i'll probably stop pausing it to explain every little plot nuance cause then I'll be here all night and like, I have better things to get back to after this lol)

LOL Stamets is now being ordered to get a full physical at medical. and run every test possible. for their fake alibi. except he's freaking out because LOL he's been having really obvious issues that no one has reported cause Tilly is dumb and I guess everyone else has been brushing it off??? 

idk I can't even come up with reasonable excuses any more. it just makes zero fucking sense and I am so glad it's going to be done for the next 2 months

also my friend shared a rumour that they're going to be stranded Voyager style so we'll see

I haaaaate the warp effect, stupid JJ abrams BS

Michael just called it a cloak. WHICH THE KLINGONS DO NOT HAVE FFS. they're science-ing it up ......................................................... their solution ... is to beam aboard the Klingon ship ... and put sensors on board........... I can't even Shin. that is the dumbest fucking plan I've EVER HEARD

Tyler is now explaining how they'll use the Discovery as bait ....... they're talking about how the Klingon ship has to lower its cloak to fight them, and that's the window they'll use ... but then like ..... if they're fighting them .... they won't be cloaked .... .... so what's the issue? why are they even doing this?

HUH now Michael's saying it'll take days for them to collect this sensor data. and Lorca is all "we don't have days, but we do have a spore drive"

fuck off with this dumb show already omfg

cut to Doc Culber being all 'lol you wanted evidence there was an issue HOLY SHIT IS THERE AN ISSUE' apparently it's reshaping his brain. Lorca isn't phased. because Stamets is claiming he isn't experiencing side effects. why is everyone on this crew so stupid???

now Lorca wants him to make 133 jumps to get the sensor scans super quick. Lorca is making a sorrowful speech. Stamets is like 'the system isn't prepared for this' now Lorca's telling him that won't stop him cause he's an explorer, didn't stay in a lab, blah blah blah.

Lorca has been accumulating data on the jumps the whole time. oooooooooh and they've been seeing pockets of parallel alternative universes. Lorca does not seem surprised by this ... Mirror Lorca theory is seeming more legit

"We have to win this war, but then" "then the journey continues" yeah like this dumb show cares about exploring diddly

Tyler is requesting Michael accompany him to the Klingon vessel ... that did NOT go well last time ... but she's the only one who knows where some thing is on the ship. Michael's now telling Lorca off for not wanting her to go. blah blah blah impassioned speech. she's the most qualified to do this, blah blah, or else she has no purpose here blah blah

uuuuugh it's so tedious Shin. I wish you were watching at the same time solely so I didn't have to explain all the dumb shit because there is just ... so much 

LOL so Doc just came to say he's gonna make sure they take precautions with Stamets and Tilly is all 'oh I'm so glad he finally told you about the side effects'. Doc: "SIDE EFFECTS?". Doc is PISSED. understandably. Stamets looks so betrayed - yeah like it's Tilly's fault you're an idiot. he looks so sad going in

ugh Lorca is giving a speech "when I took command of this vessel, you were a crew of polite scientists, now I look at you, you are fierce warriors all. No other Federation vessel is capable of pulling this off, just us."

the Klingons arrived, Disco jumped back. uuuuuugh Klingon scenes. "the humans are fools" well you're not wrong Kol

what exactly are these dumb Pahvans doing now these two enemies are here anyway? exactly nothing because their purpose is served

apparently they have pattern simulators that will mask Tyler and Michael's human lifesigns. because THAT'S a thing that exists ffs!

the battles are seriously like video games. they look SO fake, and the pew pew phasers are the worst!

but we're already with Tyler and Michael on board the ship, their bloody sensor things TALK TO THEM! they're on a STEALTH MISSION! it literally said out loud "uplink to Discovery established" WHY WOULDN'T YOU PUT IT IN MUTE?guarantee someone's gonna hear it when they put another one

Michael is now detecting a human lifesign. and is insisting they have to go after it. why wouldn't you plant the sensors first ............ he just told her she had 60 seconds to crack the door and then when she didn't do it first go, immediately said 'let me try' like ummmm worst dialogue ever. he's pulled off the panel with a knife and cut the cords lol. 

and what a surprise, it's the admiral they all forgot about! L'Rell is in here too. Tyler has his phaser pointed at her, and she's getting up. flashback to her torturing him. Tyler's freaking out, Michael stunned L'Rell

he's the only character I care about atm, some actual decent acting

LOL the Admiral just explained that she's treated patients like him with PTSD and he's in shock NO SHIT

Michael is leaving Tyler and the Admiral to go and plant the sensor on the bridge or whatever

cut back to the battle .... this is one of the worst space battles I've ever seen! they only showed the briefest bit - it doesn't even feel like the ship is at battle!

that is the quietest, most chill Klingon bridge in battle I've ever seen

the Discovery is jumping around shooting it ... why do they even need sensors to find the cloak frequency from on board the ship???????

THIS PLAN MAKES NO SENSE

IF THEY HAVE A SENSOR ON BOARD THE SHIP THEN THEY HAVE THE LOCATION OF THE SHIP

THEY CAN JUST SHOOT AT THEM????????????????????????????????

*OUTRAGED NOISES*

Disco is jumping around getting its wild scans. but no surprise Stamets is being massively effected. if only he'd told anyone other than Tilly about the side effects he was experiencing!

the Admiral is counselling Tyler .... explaining that he's experiencing past trauma ... usually I'd be all about Star Trek tackling trauma, and it's not entirely terrible, but ugh

the music is all tragic strings while Stamets is starting to go crazy. Doc is begging them to stop. but Lorca is ordering them to continue ....... how is this EVEN MORE ethically dubious than the Equinox?!

the Klingons have picked up sabotage on board. Michael is now shooting them - I think they were gonna warp away? idk

OMFG SHIN so Michael just said she wanted to talk to Kol (she was literally hiding right on the bridge, but because it's a giant stupid cathedral it wasn't hard to hide) and - get this - is explaining that she didn't speak Klingon, she's using a universal translator "an example of human ingenuity"

KLINGONS HAVE FUCKING TRANSLATORS

THEY KNOW WHAT THEY ARE

HAVE YOU FORGOTTEN FUCKING ENTERPRISE? they have an entire fucking Klingon court scene where Archer speaks into a translator if my memory serves. just like Kirk in Undiscovered Country

they're not even pretending they're in the prime universe any more 

ffs I just unpaused it and Kol goes "all I see is another attempt to rob us of our Klingon identity"

what

Michael: "it's proof of our desire to communicate"

IT'S A TRANSLATOR! IT'S A NECESSARY PART OF ANY SPACEFARING RACE! WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK!!! 

he's now speaking English btw so doesn’t that make his whole argument moot?

Kol has Georgiou's badge. blah blah she's telling him off for having no honour, explains she was here when T'Kuvma fell and Kol stole his ship, I don't even fucking care any more it's just so bad

back to Tyler and the Admiral (who can't move her legs btw) she's trying to shoot them, and telling off Tyler for not getting up to help???? 

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh looooooord a flashback to him kissing Michael from last ep broke him out of his shock! FUCK OFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF

back to Michael facing off against Kol. she's now demanding he fight her

.................

where is the Discovery during this??????

are they still jumping around?

WHY DOES NO ONE CARE

THEY ARE LITERALLY STANDING AROUND WATCHING THEM FIGHT NOW

THE CREW IS JUST STANDING THERE

WATCHING

YOU'RE IN THE MIDDLE OF A BATTLE

I CAN'T EVEN SHINy

eah, she got knocked down, gets back up ... and we cut back to Disco jumping and a montage of them jumping, about to do the last one

which you wouldn't know was happening based on the KLINGON BRIDGE

5 mins to analyse data. LOL Lorca just asked 'why aren't they firing?' when they were sitting around after the last jump

BECAUSE THEY'RE WATCHING A FIGHT ON THEIR BRIDGE

BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT KLINGONS DO IN THIS RIDICULOUS ALTERNATE UNIVERSE

OH LORD the camera is swirling around during the fight. 

stop

moving

ugh making me sick so I'm gonna look at the chat window

looks like she stabbed him

LOL they're beaming them out of there. L'Rell just jumped onto Tyler when they transported them off. Michael stole the badge from Kol, did a dramatic jump off the balcony that's on this stupid bridge, and was beamed off

Saru just told Lorca that they also beamed on the Admiral, and his face is like OH SHIT BUT I LEFT HER FOR DEAD

this has been .... the most un-tense. un-dramatic battle

they just blew up the Klingon ship

why they couldn't have beamed something over there and done this IDK

there's lotsa dramatic stares between Michael and Lorca, Tyler, Saru, as the ship explodes .... slow mo of the dramatic looks .... and epic choir music .... and it was the most un-dramatic thing I've ever seen

they had to do all these dramatic effects and music to make it seem exciting

apparently the Vulcan Admiral is totally cool with Lorca disobeying a direct order?

they want Disco to return to Starbase to award Lorca the Legion of Honour

.................

I'm not even surprised at this point

Michael has come to visit Tyler in his quarters. they're having an emotional talk about how he puts on a facade that he's fine

WAIT WHAT

Michael: "but when you saw that Klingon .... who is she to you?"

WHAT, HE LITERALLY WENT INTO SHOCK. WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK SHE IS MICHAEL

Tyler: "I think you already know" NO SHIT

omg they're talking about this and it's so awkward

this is the ONLY genuine part of the whole fucking show

how have they actually managed to write something REAL? within the rest of this garbage?

I still think he's Voq and his memories were just erased

oh lord they ruined it now: "you deserve to live in peace", him: "I've found peace, right here," and then they kiss

like god way to ruin it

now we're back to Stamets who is looking out of it. Lorca is saying they wanted to give him a medal, but he told them to give it to Stamets, GOOD! finally he's being decent! 

huh Lorca then just said there are more Klingons on the way, hell bent on revenge, and he wishes they could stay and fight ... are they actually gonna send any other ships to deal with that???? 

LOL

Stamets is saying they'll do one more jump to get the crew back to safety

HERE WE GO

GUARANTEE THEY'RE ABOUT TO GO VOYAGER ON US

Stamets is saying one more jump and he's done with it "because I need Starfleet's best doctors to examine my condition and figure out what's been happening to me" and Lorca is all ' ..... okay I guess' 

he looks SO reluctant

ugh, flashbacks of Tyler and L'Rell

do we really need to see this

WERE THOSE KLINGON BOOBS

ffs I miss PG Star Trek

he woke up from his nightmare and has gone to see L'Rell in the brig

"what did you do to me?" "do not worry, I will never let them hurt you"??? huh

"soon"

yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeah guarantee he's Voq

awww Stamets and Doc finally got to kiss

it's so predictable

even if I hadn't heard they were gonna get stranded

watching this makes it so obvious

oooooooooooh

LORCA ENTERED THE COORDINATES "let's go home"

yeah he's from the Mirror U

Stamets just screamed when it activated. they jumped. they are totes going to the Mirror U

Stamets collapsed, his eyes are going funny

yep, they're unable to confirm their position

LOL

predictions for the next half: they're in the mirror universe, Tyler will be revealed to be Voq 

Boy am I glad that’s over until January!

[sepdet]

Star Trek Discovery

Ep1 liveblog (edited)

TL;DR: It feels like Star Trek.

I didn't watch any previews, behind-the-scenes or promotional material whatsoever, because I hate spoilers. 

Putting liveblog/reactions behind a cut.

ETA: I didn’t post this Sunday bc I was on iPad and current Tumblr app has no way to make break. Watched ep 2 on Tuesday night, which has somewhat tempered my excitement and unqualified endorsement of this show. 

Opening scenario feels like a good thing for Federation vessel to do: discreetly save a large population and slip away, without making a big deal about it.

So nice to hear Number One used for a woman again who does sound a little like original Number One: cool and logical. Are her ears round or not? *squints*

FX are beautiful without being intrusive, characters and story in foreground. This may work. I love FX but I hate it when show relies on FX to entertain and keep audience off-balance, adrenaline pumped— using spectacle to substitute for good story and character.

Clever captain is clever. Already in love.

Vintage communicator made me HAPPY.

Lovely understated credits with an interesting vintage-map look and just a few old Trek grace notes in the music (and phaser and communicator)-- can't do nostalgia too much but it loves its roots.

The year is 2256. The construction of the Babylon 5 station is running behind schedule and over budget...No, wait, wrong universe.

THE BRIDGE NOISES ARE REAL BRIDGE NOISES. There's the chirrup chirp chirp sound!

Okay, this is SO SO COOL. Everything looks like a new 21st century show, as it should, and they're not afraid to change things up. But they let old Trekkies feel like we're on comfortable ground in the simplest and most subtle way possible: the original bridge noises, which for those of us who grew up as original or children of original Trekkies (raised on reruns) is as familiar as a mother's heartbeat. It sounds like home.

So, Michael is a bit reckless. Love her enthusiasm.

Just the TINIEST bit of classic Trek knowledge comes in handy here: we knew Klingons had gotten the Romulan cloaking device at some point, so as soon as there's something mucking with sensors, we wait with bated breath for uncloaking. But opening scene -- with some dramatic Klingon speechifying, fanservice to those who know the language -- tells newbies to expect Klingons, whatever the heck they are.

...

Okay, with all due respect to Klingons and Michael's ethical quandary — her intrusion led to conflict and a Klingon's death, whoops — the Klingon declaming is dragging a bit. (And I will have to get used to their new look, but it's no longer a shock the way it was in The first Trek movie when they mutated so much)

Flashback time! So that's why she sounds like a Vulcan. Great way to play with Spock/Data archetype: this time it's a human who was raised Vulcan instead of a half-human Vulcan. I'm delighted to see Sarek, although with one quibble: Sarek was an ambassador; AMANDA was the teacher! They better not forget Amanda.

(Dammit tumblr just killed my liveblog. Try to recap notes.)

Nice crisis moment: Michael rushing up to the bridge dangerously injured. Slightly gratuitous nudity, but much better than before (and at least it's to show her wounds, not TEH SEXY). Michael again being an effective and brave first officer.

Yeoh's so controlled and understated, I'm having a little trouble reading her character's personality, but she's an absolutely convincing captain with rock-solid gravitas, and it's a slightly unusual archetype for female characters, so, great.

DECLOAKING TIME! Klingons have taken an upgrade in ugly, even in their ship design. i'm sure they'd say the same about FEDS.

THE SHIPS ARE NOT IN THE SAME PLANE! RePeat, THE SHIPS ARE ACTUALLY NOT ORIENTED THE SAME WAY! IT TOOK 50 YEARS, BUT SPACE IS NOW THREE DIMENSIONAL!!!!!

...yeah, I'm zeroing in on the really important stuff. XP

I am forcing myself not to dwell on questionable science, but I feel like radiation doesn't work that way. Oh well.

Klingons dealing with racism within. Hm. A bit simplistic in the way classic Trek was, which is kind of interesting since the ethical dilemmas the Feds are facing isn't.

I love that Sarek is Michael's mentor, although I'm a little torn. Original Sarek: Refused to speak to his son for a decade after he joined Starfleet and was disappointed and angry at Spock leaving Vulcan. If he was that bent out of shape about Spock indulging his human side, then why would Sarek take in a human ward during the very years he wasn't speaking to Spock? But Sarek was always oddly inconsistent, marrying a human and then expecting her and his son to be assimilated to Vulcan. Still wonder how Amanda figures into all this; it's bizarre her husband's taken such an interest in this girl but Amanda Grayson, teacher and evidently a remarkable human to have captured Sarek's heart, is mysteriously absent.

Also, being able to summon the great Ambassador Sarek up to have a time out and talk to the pitching coach is a bit far-fetched? Oh well. Dramatic device, shortcut to get to meat of drama.

Oh, boy, holographic comms sure beat little viewscreens. And the usual scenario of being told by an Admiral back at Starfleet HQ to do nothing. This always goes well.

"There is a difference between race and culture." Oooo. Interesting postulate. Not sure if I agree or not. But then, here we are with 3 people of different races and at least one with a very different culture discussing it, so, QED? I like a Trek that poses questions worthy of debating.

Also the Federation isn't necessarily in the RIGHT here, but they're trying to figure out the right thing to do. That seems like an excellent way to update Trek: applying classic Trek optimism, ideals and ethics to situations that aren't as cut-and-dried. TOS tried to picture a better world but it and TNG tended towards a somewhat simplified utopia. This is subtly avoiding that unfortunate imperialist subtext that portrayed Kirk, Picard, and friends as coming from a morally superior stance and advanced civilization, giving themselves a kind of self-anointed authority akin to what Americans do when they go to "help" other countries.

Whereas this is messy and complicated like the real world and they are operating from a position of not having all the answers. Which is more like us.

And whoa, torch of Kahless. Klingon fans again must be overjoyed. i can be happy for them while missing jolly old Kor (I just adored him) and imposing Kang.

Random thought: both Who and Star Trek have good, three-dimensional, leading black women characters this year, almost for the first time, and in both cases they have what are usually men's names. Hrm. Why?

...WOW.

Michael's insubordination, argument with captain in the ready room, and that surprise vulcan nerve pinch were awesome and I have NO IDEA which of them is right here (except I lean towards Sarek) or what will happen now.

...

....all shit hits fan in a glorious way, and I like that the crew aren't stupid, Saru realizes Michael's mutinying.

And wow what a way to make the captain suddenly badass while staying cool and collected. Phaser out. Old phaser out. Turned on the Spock character (sort of; in some ways Phillipa is more Spockish, Michael more Kirk-heroic and rulebreaking.)

Shoulda realized it'd end with a cliffhanger. EXCELLENT cliffhanger.

Can i avoid online spoilers if I wait until I'm feeling better to watch? Fandom Auntie is tired and only got 4 hours of sleep last night.

[ETA: Here’s my commentary for part 2.]

[spacejew]

Disco Ep 8 - Liveblog?

Gonna keep a lil list of things I noted/loved as I watch, ‘cause...

* The episode just started and I’m already excited ‘cause this captain just identified his ship as the Gagarin, and as an immigrant of an ex-soviet family and space enthusiast that just makes me really happy that Yuri Gagarin has a whole ship named after him c: 

*  Love that we have an Asian on the bridge in the form of Mr. Reese at tactical

* This whole bridge crew is love, they’re doing their best and they’re so great 

*THE GAGARIN IS DESTROYED NOOO I’M WAY LESS HAPPY

*Airium takes the con? I’m just loving how much attention and props the bridge crew is getting, GOD we need more of them 

* Stamets called Tilly “Captain”??? Is this evidence of his time-displacement, maybe? Like he thought that Lorca was there, or that Tilly is a captain in the future? Or maybe this is a Mirror Stamets clue! In which case Tilly is already captain in the Terran Empire in which case, LIT

* AWAY MISSION!!!!!! YES!!!!!!!!!! LET’S GOOO!!!!!!!!

* I love this transmitter planet that’s so cool (but I feel bad for all the VFX interns who probably had to make all the plants blue in post-production lmaooo)

* Saru communicating with the aliens is so cuuuute

* Ah yes, finally, we’re back to the Klingons! Alright, time to see if Voq shows up... sounds like Kat is definitely still alive so I’m glad about that

* If these alien wisps harm Saru I will be SO pissed, they’re too pretty to be bad :( But I watch Star Trek and I know better lol

* YEAAAAA “GENERAL ORDER ONE” FOLKSSS we got some early Prime Directive goodness. This is the good shitttt

* KAT SCREAMING BACK AT L’RELL oh my god.. oh shit? Is L’rell gonna help her? Is she like, doing the “enemy of my enemy” thing with her against Kor?? PLEASE?? 

* “the needs of the many..” “are worth dying for.. but so are the needs of the few” “or the one?” *smooch* DAMN THAT’S FUCKING CUTE UGH STOP IT I DON’T WANNA LIKE THIS Ash you smooth motherfucker 

* Paul you cutieee ugh and Tilly is so sweet she’s tryinggg

* “I wish to defect” YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO tbh I believe her. At the very least she is gonna use it to help Voq probably and I love that!!! KAT HELP HER DEFECT PLEASSSEE sdgcdggdtr 

* “what other option do you have?” SHE’S GOT YOU THERE, KAT lmao

* “they desperately want to meet others and be known” oohh... it sounds like these aliens are gonna like, try to achieve that at any cost.. like there’s NO WAY this goes as well as it seems so far lmao but I’m hopeful

* OH MAN THEY’RE ENTERING HIS MIND I HOPE WHAT THEY SEE DOESN’T CAUSE ANY PROBLEMMMSSS like I hope their peaceful existence isn’t contaminated by these visions of war

* NO DON’T GIVE HIM THE COMMUNICATORS HE’S LIKE POSESSED

* Ooooohh FUCK here we GO, STRANDED ON THE DAMN PLANET this is literally fucking TOS lmao I’m loving this

* Saru has gone full brainwash oh dear

* Oh shit Tyler is taking commandddd yikes can you say relationship tension?? I bet Michael doesn’t 100% appreciate this also uh this is WILD already (also Im confused on why this transmitter is so important I think I missed something whoops) 

* YO if L’Rell succeeds in blowing up this ship and escaping with Kat... yes that would be amazing

* “you were not what I was expecting” “neither are you” um is it bad to ship L’Rell and Kat just based on this exchange lmao (im joke) GOD what a beautiful moment I hope they BOTH MAKE IT OUT ALIVE FUCK 

* Ok pleaaase fucking tell me Kat isn’t dead, just electrocuted into shock. Okay thank god she’s breathing

* Y’all this escape is way more tense to me than the away mission oh god

* Did Michael really storm away cause she was mad at Tyler or is it part of their plan to trick Saru 

* “everyone wants to defeat the Klingons.. I want to hurt them”. DAMN Tyler.. this guy’s been through some shit. I hate that this conflict is really tearing him up inside. Some good advice from ALL KNOWING SARU 

* Tyler don’t TOUCH THE ALIEN ROCK IT’LL GET YOU TOO NOOOOOOO FUCK 

* Woah Saru is stronk as FUCK god 

* YEEEEEEEAAAA BOI he DISTRACTED you now Michael is gonna do her THING

* I love all these cute little beep boops the technology makes

* Saru and his HOOVES lmao damn there he fucking goes. he looks CGI as FUCK lmao I love it honestly they were like, we gotta make him go FAST. FASTER than any actor or stuntman can achieve. He must.. go WOOSH. 

* Oh shit? Dead Klingons? Oh wow have I been saying “Kor” this whople time when I meant “Kol”? whoops 

* L’RELL YOU GOTTA GET KAT OFF THIS SHIP THERE’S NO TIME FOR REVENGE. LET BLOWING UP THE SHIP BE YOUR REVENGE

* y’all this episode is good as fuck

* SARU STOP SMASHING THINGS YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO BE THE GENTLE ONE

* “You won’t stop taking!” damn that’s the real Saru coming through that’s so sad

* DID TYLER JUST TELEPORT THROUGH THE.. alien.. spores... god dammit this really is a running theme here huh lmao

* seriously though how did they teleport him that’s crazy

* I wonder if the aliens are helping Michael/Tyler because they’re like acting out of a need to proactively end the threat VS Saru’s cowardly protective stance

* YAAAAA MISSION SUCCESS SONNNNN

* damn, poor Saru..

* Ah yes, The Medbay of Emotional Breakthroughs

* Oh worm? What’s goin on here with L’Rell and Kol. WHOSE SIDE IS SHE ON WHAT IS HER PLANNNN is she just like constantly trying to help anyone who will advance her in some way? 

* OH SHE GOT CAUGHT LMAO he really let her think she was good lmao

* OH NO THEY’RE GONNA INTERCEPT THE DISCOVERY SON, SHIT I hope the planet doesn’t get hurt?? that would be SO unfair 

* Is the PLANET fighting back??? Oh.. is the planet trying to get them to settle this once and for all???? dang that’s .. nice? but uh VERY MISGUIDED LMAO

* SHIT HERE THEY COMEEE this is all so fucked. Kat better get rescued when that ship arrives... NOBODY BETTER FUCKING DIE sjdkgnjdsklgh god 

* This preview... is CRAZY

*AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH

so that was a good ass episode.... dangg a nice setup for this midseason finale.. lotsa nice little bits in this one. Good shittt ugh I can’t believe we’re gonna hit the break so soon already this is so STRESSFUL

[bandedshadows]

Voyager review.

This is long overdue (I was caught up with life stuff and had to stop liveblogging), but I actually finished watching Star Trek: Voyager last week. 

Judging by the length of this post, HOLY SHIT, do I have a lot of feelings.

TL;DR: I’ll give it a 7/10. 

My verdict: 

Voyager had a number of truly extraordinary moments sprinkled among clusters of average to very low points. 

I still loved Janeway a lot, even though there’s notable issues with her characterization. (Kate Mulgrew’s gr9)

Seven’s introduction gave the show a much-needed kick up the next level, but they ended up overdoing it imo.

Some characters are more developed than others, but I found the crew to be generally likeable. 

Continuity? What’s that?

prime directive... prima directa... primal dialga... perma dry roof... pearl digestive... prophylactic dental... partial deposit... parking at disneyland...

I still enjoyed Voyager very much, but oh boy, did this show have many, many flaws. I also took it upon myself to read up on Voyager’s behind-the-scenes issues for context, and jfc, the production is even messier than the text. Put two and two together and it’s obvious why the show took the course it did. 

I’ll go into detail behind the cut. It’s very long. Spoilers ahead :).

[CUT]

I’ll start with the negative points:

The ‘Endgame’ episode was... abrupt. It was still emotionally impactful, but it wasn’t the most graceful way to tie things up. Correct me if I’m wrong, but the show was given fair warning that the 7th season was going to be their last? If that’s the case, I expected more pre-finale plot development before this out-of-pocket Deus Ex Machina plot of future!Janeway pointing out a shortcut to the Alpha Quadrant. Or at least all the Borg encounter episodes could’ve added up to building Voyager’s path home. Endgame’s resolution is acceptable, but it really should’ve been spread out for the last half season. 

The serial, episodic format of Voyager ultimately led to all the aspects in which it fell short. Particularly in continuity and character development. There were bad episodes, average, above average, and then there were GREAT ones. 

But, it’s always Schrodinger’s cat on whether the next episode is going to be watchable or not, as well as which Janeway is going to show up.  

At times, Janeway would be stringent when it comes to the prime directive. Other times she unquestionably abandons Starfleet protocol to be a good samaritan. One day she backs out of complicated situations in order to prevent any losses of life. Another day she’s adamant in achieving her goals even if means accruing some casualties on the way. She gave Harry shit for sleeping with a girl from an alien race without getting medically checked, but then makes out with Devore!Spencer Tracy-lite Bashyk next episode. 

Over the course of the show, Voyager had many episodes that were forgettable. I found myself having to skip a lot of the holodeck fillers (Fair Haven is the worrrrrrssttt), some of the bottle episodes where the crew get first contact with alien races that would predictably betray them, and at times near the end, my fatigue of Seven and the Doctor can get me to tune out of their more unimpressive episodes. 

But then there’s also episodes where they delve deep into character development, but they never acknowledge the character’s growth in any subsequent episodes. The better episodes of Voyager often feel like missed opportunities for more in-depth exploration. B’Elanna undergoing depression was a great plot point that they could have explored more. The episode they did on her about her self-hate for her Klingon half was great but how she came to terms with her Klingon identity felt incomplete. Her character always fascinated me, but I seriously needed more.  #JusticeForB’ElannaTorres

The episode “Mortal Coil”, for example, explores Neelix coping with the loss of his belief system after experiencing death. HIs usual positive outlook was compromised because he realized there’s no heaven and he’s questioning the point of living. Neelix is far from my favourite, but I kind of relate to what he went through. Before the next episode started, it looked like he’s headed to a darker path. Perhaps this change will interfere with his approach to being the morale officer, or he’d don a more assertive aura in future eps. Then he’d be a more interesting character. But NOPE, next episode he’s back to his old sunny self. Missed. Opportunity.

I’m going to echo what I said in this post I made awhile back. I do love Seven’s character, I truly do, but the balanced family dynamic of the crew was special. She didn’t have trouble integrating into the cast, but she pretty much hijacked the show from then on. She’s a great, well-developed character but I found myself longing for the others to get as much depth as she did. 

I just read up on the Jeri Ryan/Brannon Braga stuff,  the beef between Mulgrew and Ryan, the writers willfully shortchanging the actors they don’t like (Beltran, Wang getting less focus episodes), the intense working conditions, and just... the general toxicity of the environment (not to mention Rick Berman’s an ass). I see how the behind the scenes conflicts could’ve influenced the show and now that’s just... really irresponsible.

Now, for the positives!

The writing of her character is flawed, but I thought Captain, *ahem* ADMIRAL Kathryn Janeway was a splendid captain. We wouldn’t know which Janeway showed up each episode, but I love all the versions lmao. Before I binged Voyager, I was already defensive of her from a symbolic standpoint, being the only female captain to lead a show and all. But it turns out that defensiveness was justified. Janeway is both strong, yet fragile. Authoritative, but warm. Adventurous and scientific, but can also get reclusive. She was overly curious, stubborn, and indecisive, but ultimately handled her woes with grace. She proudly demonstrates her iron will, but her empathy for others always prevailed. Her character arc took many paths and turns (intentional or not) but I enjoyed how the character was conducted as the leader of the ship. I felt a different affection she particularly shows to her crew that I don’t think other Trek captains ever did. 

If anything, I have to credit Kate Mulgrew for masking the inconsistent writing quite well. Janeway came off as layered and multi-faceted instead of mischaracterized. 

As for the rest of the cast: they each have their own quirks and they all helped prompt the dynamic of the team. A number of them fell flat towards the end, like Kim & Chakotay, (but I guess it was for the best because of the racist elements of the Chakotay character and Kim’s infantilization. I really wish the writers got more creative with them though.) But either way, all the chracters contributed to the crew in their own way. Each one of them did have a standout episode. They all took a while to find their footing at the beginning, but they all eventually grow into it. 

Now, when Voyager has a great episode, it’s REALLY, REALLY GREAT. 

By far my favourite episode in the entire show is the “Year of Hell”. There’s been plenty of episodes where the crew undertook mishaps but always came out unscathed. But in the “Year of Hell”, this conflict took the crew to dark, new places that really challenged their limits. They were plunged in a darker place of total despondence and desperation, where they got in each other’s nerves, they sacrificed things they love, and the situation tested their hope and will for survival. The desperate situation made for compelling interaction between the characters in how their dynamic changed after their morals were compromised. I also enjoy the laid back nature of Voyager, but I do wonder what it would’ve been like if the whole show had been like this?

Other favourites were: 

Living Witness-- a poignant examination of the nuances behind historical remembrance. An issue that is still relevant today. At first I was going to be annoyed if the point of the story is to clear Voyager’s good name, but later on, The Doctor says that the obsolete Voyager’s reputation is irrelevant to the creating peace between the two factions. *cough*Japan downplaying wartime aggression to clear their name*cough*

Timeless-- just a well-done episode. Yes, once again, they dabble into alternate timelines, but this episode brings such emotional weight and splendidly tackles the issue of survivor’s guilt. Kim’s finest moment. Also, Geordi my king!

Deadlock-- Another space-time episode, but the duplicates really posed a formidable challenge to the crew. It was also a testament to their nobility and sacrifice.

Scorpion-- the game-changer for the show. Also, Seven’s first appearance!

Equinox-- again, this episode featured the crew encountering a real moral dilemma. One of the few episodes that treated the prime directive with a non-simplistic, nuanced approach.

Resolutions, The Chute - ‘cause I’m shipper trash.

Anyway, this was tiring to write. I’m thinking of taking a break from sci-fi shows for a while, then maybe I’ll rewatch TNG or BSG again. Voyager was the only Trek I haven’t watched chronologically and it was nice to witness ‘new’ Star Trek again. This is really long, but I spent over 120 hours watching this, sooooo...

[sleepymarmot]

DS9 season 3 liveblog & notes

[Season index: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 PS]

The Search 1

Um... so what about that treaty about no cloaking on Federation starships, that was such a big deal in The Pegasus?

What's going on with Jadzia's hair...

"We're going to take our only warship into the territory of people who think of us as intruders to convince them we represent no threat" Logic???? What kind of plan is this?

Loaned? Ah, ok.

"When did I start thinking of this Cardassian monstrosity as home?"

If this is "one of the finest collections of ancient African art you'll ever see", what is it doing in their luggage instead of a museum? This is almost as bad as Picard and that priceless artifact in The Chase...

"Maybe it is. Maybe I'm your friend, and maybe I want you to see that you are still needed here no matter what some idiot Starfleet admiral might think." ;_;

Why dim the lights when you cloak? Just to give a visual shorthand to the viewers?

Wow Odo... I don't understand why everyone is so hard on Quark in this episode -- Sisko bullies him, Bashir insults him for no reason, now Odo is yelling at him with more aggression than he's ever shown in two seasons...

Seriously?! Cloaked ships leave a trace, and nobody in all decades of conflict ever noticed that?! I mean, even if somehow only the Romulans know, that means they can detect cloaked Klingon ships, which would mean they could as well have been uncloaked -- that'd be a massive retcon that doesn't work with anything we've seen before.

I still don't understand how replicators can produce foul tasting food... They make exact copies on a molecular level...

Poor Bashir -- it's as if Sisko picked his best friends to leave behind on purpose...

another literal redshirt dead

Class M planet with no star? What? 

Why do these changelings all look like Odo -- imperfect imitations of humanoids? I thought Odo's appearance was the result of trying to fit in Bajoran society + lack of skill to make face more detailed. These changelings live by themselves so they can pick any shape they like, and I'd expect them to have more control over details, so just repeating Odo's design looks like a lazy shorthand to indicate they're the same species -- as if their liquid state weren't enough. They even have the same hairstyle -- which he copied from a Bajoran! If the writers are trying to say "they're just copying Odo" then they should all be played by the same actor.

The Search 2

Oh come on, Kira, there's absolutely nothing wrong with having a lot of questions in this situation!!!

Me: well this story is pretty bad so far, I don't have any expectations for it anymore Screen: Andrew Robinson as Garak Me: interest instantly restored

(I'm certain every person liveblogging this show made or reblogged a post in this vein...)

Alright, Sisko's plotline is definitely some kind of hallucination

Or is it? I thought it was all too good to be true, but maybe the Dominion is just tricking them

Wait, that subcommander is alive and on DS9?

Okay, I didn't like that "Starfleet security officer" and now he's more suspicious. Maybe he's a part of the Dominion. Maybe the changelings are a part of the Dominion. Maybe all these people acting strangely are changelings in disguise. Maybe everything is a conspiracy. I dunno, this entire episode feels incredibly fake. 

"It seems our leaders have simply gone insane" Garak stop reinforcing my impression that you and Sisko are somehow the only real people in this story... Well Dax and Bashir also seem to be alright, but they're a bit too passive.

Oh, Garak didn't look behind himself and got shot, guess he's not real either

FUCKING FINALLY

This is so unsurprising that I can't tell if the writing is to obvious or if I've seen this spoiler before and half-forgot. Probably both.

And they just let them all go. Sure. I wonder how they managed to gain so much power, if they're prone to dumb decisions like this..

What a shitty story. Jfc. The only amusing part was that according to the main characters, the Starfleet admirals are stupid and untrustworthy (what a surprise...), and Garak is smart enough to not only take action when needed, but seem to almost realize the world around him is wrong (but he still somehow fails a spot check in a firefight...). Bashir clearly wants him to join the team and run around having adventures (not a surprise either...). It's funny that the character who comes closest to becoming self-aware is actually one of the simulated ones.

The fakeness of the plot is obvious enough to make me unable to take it seriously, but not clear or fun enough to just relax and enjoy the ride. I don't hate simulations on principle, but I need them to be good simulations. The Federation is too stupid -- it might have worked with some new admiral, since they're often assholes, but we know Nechayev and she was obviously OOC. The editing is pretty telling: there are weird timeskips (worst offender: Sisko gets into a fight and then without a change of pace others come to break him out from the brig), plus I don't think there were establishing outside shots of DS9. And anyway, the very first scene with Sisko where he's in a shuttle even though at the end of the previous episode he was about to be captured, and then Dax and O'Brien show up and we've never seen them escape is a dead giveaway that everything about this group of characters from here on is somehow wrong. And that's 8 minutes into the episode. I thought "Well, maybe it's an editing experiment, and it'll be a how-we-got-here flashback episode" but nope. What a waste of time.

Lmao I just read this in a comment to a review of this episode: "When I first saw the The Search, Pt II I found it unusual that Bashir is in a shuttlecraft with someone and for the first time manages not to annoy his travelling companion. And then the ending reveals why – it was all a dream!" That's right! I actually thought that too! :D

I can say one good thing about this episode: Odo's love of order has always had dark undertones, and I like that it's explored and discussed here as a racial trait which made his brethren into a galactic evil force.

But otherwise I'm not very impressed with his storyline? In the first part his anger and compulsive homing instinct look offputting instead of sympathetic. At one point he makes an expression that is probably supposed to be soft and makes the viewers go "aww", but ends up just looking forced and creepy. And the tender moment with Kira at the end just didn't work for me.

The House of Quark

OUCH

I was pretty scared for Quark, since he's not a big fan of violence, nice to see he's taking this so well

A new pretty outfit for Quark! A beautiful Klingon woman!

Another beautiful Klingon with a great grey mane. Yes, my commentary is very deep today.

I just continue to be amazed by Quark's luck with the ladies. Cultural exchange with a Vulcan in the previous season, now with a Klingon.

Aw, O'Brien actually wants Bashir's opinion now. And Bashir gives good relationship advice to a married man -- compare to their conversation in Armageddon Game!

Doesn't this solve their problem? If Kozak died dishonorably, that means D'Ghor gets nothing. Which is what should have happened in the first place. So now that D'Ghor challenged Quark, Quark's inability to fight will be shown to everybody (as if it weren't obvious enough...), so D'Ghor's lie will be exposed. And then he'd not only have no right of ineritance, but presumably also become a criminal for lying to the coucil.

Quark is awesome

What a good episode. Quark acts cool and noble! Klingon vs Ferengi value clash & working together! A-story and B-story work together well because despite no direct connection, they're both uplifting and thematically linked!

Equilibrium

Oh, of course when Jadzia gets screentime, it's for her to act OOC

Aw, a J&J friendship scene

Time for the annual comment on how much Bashir grew up! I've already talked about his scene in the previous episode, and now there's this lovely, purely platonic scene with Jadzia

How can these Federation weirdos sleep without blankets?

This was okay. But can we have a Jadzia episode not about her almost dying? So far this season is disappointing -- only one good episode out of four.

Second Skin

O k a y. You got me, I really didn't expect this

This is the kind of episode I watch this show for

How do you disguise someone as a member of species for years? I can understand cosmetic surgery like in Face of the Enemy, but to change their entire body so it would show as target species during any medical examination... This concerns the episode Tribunal, too. How are agents so deep undercover supposed to work? She spent all these years helping the Resistance. How does that benefit Cardassia? 10 years ago they wouldn't have known the Federation would become involved and their sleeper agent would work with them

Niiiiice

"Just something I overheard while I was hemming someone's trousers" lmao his excuses are getting more and more ridiculous

Cardassian!Kira *is* more attractive than the real Kira

the real Garak demonstrates how much his reflexes are quicker than his simulation's :D

Honestly, by this point I'm just curious for how many seasons can the writers stretch the mystery surrounding Garak. :D They're having too much fun giving out pieces of the puzzle one by one.

The Abandoned

This beautiful woman with a really impressive chest is Jake's gf? Wow!

Why are they just taking away the wreckage instead of buying it from Quark?

Sisko holding the baby and Jadzia and Julian watching him with smiles on their faces :'))

oh my god Odo used his old bucked as a cache-pot for Kira's plant... :O

wait, weren't the Jem'Hadar much more reptilian?

"It's amazing how some people would judge you based on nothing more than your job" haha

If this boy has so much aggression, why is it only expressed as need for physical combat, and not angry verbal outbursts etc? Another genetically engineered quality -- he needs to be a brutal soldier that doesn't talk back?

I find it curious that this episode answers the question "Is it okay for a 20 year old to date a 16 year old?" with such a definite yes. That's pretty questionable territory, and it's unclear why exactly Sisko changed his mind: his opinion about the girl's job or Jake's interests doesn't negate the age difference.

I like that the show takes Odo's backstory as a lab specimen so seriously. I used to expect exploration of this theme with Data, since he must have spent a lot of time in some Federation research centers before entering the Academy.

Civil Defense

Garak AND Dukat? I like this episode already.

Why are they not asking Garak for help? I know they'd prefer other options, but is kind of an emergency! I know they'll have to, eventually, since he's in the opening titles.

"I never knew how much this man's voice annoyed me" :D I'd actually be curious to hear the announcement in full, personally!

This is such a good excuse for a Disaster-like episode?? Perfect synergy between the setting and the needs of the plot

haha of course Odo and Quark are trapped together

"The only place in the galaxy that still recognizes my access code is a Bajoran space station" So what about that code in Second Skin?

bwahaha it just gets worse and worse

I think this is a good episode to show new viewers who want a taste of the show before starting to watch it properly from the beginning: it gives a good idea of the setting and involves all major characters to some degree, but so far it has very few continuity references

"What? That you'd spend your final hours in jail?"

"Tell me, Doctor, what is it exactly about this situation that's making you smile?" "You, Garak." oh my god...

holy shit this station is something else...

Dukat shows up in person! It's strange they didn't even discuss the possibility of calling him earlier. Of course, he immediately turned this into a hostage situation, so...

Oh my god he's making himself tea in the middle of this... amazing

"If you had been on the station when I designed this programme, I would have made an exception in your case."

HAHAHAHAHA

When Odo and Quark walk out, why are so many people just chilling on the Promenade?! They were about to die seconds ago!

What a beautiful episode :D Probably not as suited for beginners as I initially thought, thanks to Garak&Dukat. But I really appreciate the dark comedy side of it

Meridian

I think I've seen this episode in TNG... maybe multiple times... Jadzia is even worse suited for this role than Deanna. 

welp this was really bad on literally every possible level. i could complain for a long time but i'd rather save my breath

the only good thing about this episode: it's so irrelevant you can easily skip it.

Defiant

I think she needs sleep, not a night out in the bar

THAT VOICE 

I think I'm spoiled about this one...

Second Chances did such a good job not villainizing Tom and then this episode comes and ruins it

ah yes tell all your military secrets to the Cardassians, including cloaked ship detection...

why the random kiss

aaand Riker spends possibly the rest of his life in a Cardassian camp? great. just great. why did someone hate him so much they deemed this necessary? they managed to make me so salty about this I didn't even care about the Cardassian stuff, that's an achievement. Will gets to continue his career and marry his imzadi while Tom, who already spent 8 years marooned alone and didn't even get a promotion afterwards, now rots in prison forever. "You always had the better hand," indeed.

it's hilarious how quickly Dukat can make Sisko sympathise with him just by mentioning fatherhood. worked even better than the last time. if he got half a brain he's doing it on purpose.

I hope Riker at least got to spend some time with Ro while they were both in the Maquis. now that's something I'd like to see

Fascination

"I'm a poor substitute for your wife" "I could have told you that 60 games ago"

do we really need the Odo/Kira/Bareil love triangle?

"I usually make it a point to drop by Quark's three or four times a day at random intervals, just to let him know that I'm thinking about him"

"Jadzia, of course. I've never understood how the two of you could be such good friends. [...] It's just that she gets to spend so much more time with you than I do." "Jadzia and I have been doing this for the past two years."  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

oh O'Briens, pls don't fight over nothing :(

so where is Bashir during all this? because I'm pretty sure he and Garak are not immune to this romance confusion nonsense, and that sounds like a much more intriguing story than what I'm watching

ah, he's with Kira, well at least this one's mutual and not sexual harassment

I understand Odo, but why is Sisko unaffected too?

A question that concerns not only to this episode: why is Kira always the object of everyone's attraction? She's dating Bareil (which I completely forgot about; when she mentioned having a boyfriend in the previous episode I was very confused), Odo has a crush on her, in this episode Jake and Bashir do too, an episode before Riker kisses her, an episode before some creep wants a blow-up doll of her, an episode before Dukat leers at her...

Well... I guess this was less gross than The Naked Now.

Past Tense

I like how Dax adjusts to this time period instantly. was she already born by then?

"Some of these people are mentally ill." *braces myself for some horrible comment* "...They need proper medical treatment." oh thank god

Jadzia looks absolutely gorgeous

surely it's not a coincidence that the only white character among the time-travellers ends up with a millionaire, while the others are locked up in the sanctuary

Sisko and Bashir's discussions are very heavy handed, it's like watching some old moralizing play

I like how Jadzia retrieved her combadge by telling the truth

there was nothing particularly wrong with this story, and it was well-made, but for some reason it didn’t really impress me

Life Support

so. Winn was behind the sabotage, right?

this is like "Ethics" in reverse

haha they want Terok Nor back

"She talks a lot for a female" Nog you used to be better than that...

"Listen to me. I don't care about your negotiations, and I don't care about your treaty. All I care about is my patient, and at the moment he needs more medical care and less politics. Now, you can either leave here willingly or I'll call security and have you thrown out."

now it's more like "The Host". (I can't stop comparing everything to TNG haha)

don't try to make this into a "grey morality" situation. Nog is objectively in the wrong here, the human culture is objectively better than the Ferengi culture in this respect. TNG intentionally wrote Ferengi values to be abhorrent, and DS9 didn't change them but somehow tries to justify them and it just. doesn't. work. Just admit you wrote yourself into a corner, and either retcon the Ferengi to be more tolerable, or set aside your "all cultures are valid" agenda for a minute and admit some things are just bad. this glorification of moral relativism is DS9's version of TNG's worst misapplications of the Prime Directive

wow, are they actually going to kill him off?

"Positronic implants"?! Um. UM. They have working positronic brain now? Since when? Last time I heard, nobody managed to make stable ones since Dr. Soong... Or are implants easier to make than a full brain? Anyway, the possibility of a mixed organic-positronic brain has never even been discussed before, this is kind of a big deal. Dammit, just putting some human skin on Data was something only the Borg managed to do! This sounds 1000 times more complex!

"Major" ah, so that's how they break up, he’s incapable of romance now

ahh, his voice, head movemens and facial expressions are just like Data's

uggh the Jake-Nog storyline went as I expected

wow I didn't expect the treaty to actually get signed!

"I won't remove the last shred of humanity Bareil has left" rude... and that's from the man who befriended Data... I'm disappointed

oh btw if he just casually talks about the possibility of fully replacing Bareil's brain, that means it is possible to create stable positronic brains at will now! this is enormous! Data doesn’t have to be the only one of his kind anymore! Lal can be rebuilt! oh wait, let me guess, this will never be addressed again ever.

Welp. You know, right before I started this episode, I was mentally complaining about Bareil, like "kill him off already". Whoops! I feel bad now. This episode didn't go as I expected, and was more important than I expected too, which is good.

Jake and Nog's storyline and the positronic stuff -- less good. Honestly, the more I think about these two points, the angrier I become and the less I like this episode.

I thought that A and B plots were annoyingly unrelated, but actually... I think they share the theme of "peace above all", on a very different scale. Because the Bajoran-Cardassian treaty doesn't sound very fair to me either. "There's even the possibility that the Cardassians will issue a formal apology"?! Is that really enough? "Even the possibility"? Meanwhile, people like Dukat not only walk free but remain at their high posts. Cardassia|Nog was the offending side, Bajor|Jake did nothing wrong, and yet rather than declare that and demand justice and apologies, the latter can only hope to achive mutual tolerance -- even that is hard enough. Well, let's just hope the show isn't going to try and justify the occupation, like it did with Nog's misogyny...

btw, since we're talking about international politics and status quo: what about the Dominion threat? everyone was really scared for a couple of episodes, and then things went back to normal. we went to the Gamma Quadrant once for no reason (nothing about the plot required that!). the Defiant, a unique warship sent here for defend DS9 and the wormhole against Dominion attacks, is regularly used as a shuttle/runabout for random trips. way to disperse all sense of danger, change and excitement.

I certainly like Bashir in this episode more than I liked Crusher in Ethics (or in The Host, lol). He can get pretty intense when it comes to saving his patient's life. Not "fly to Cardassia to face a former head of secret service" intense, but still.

It's nice to see Winn humanized a bit. The writers have spent a lot of time making Dukat likeable, she deserves the same treatment. I'm so used to mistrusting her, I spent the entire episode being confused whether she actually wants the treaty to succeed or is plotting to make it fail for some reason, whether she wants Bareil alive or dead. But I guess I was supposed to take everything she was saying at face value for once? 

I don't know what the hell is this season doing with these Ferengi B-plots that, I guess, are supposed to be humorous (???) but are wildly offensive instead. Are we supposed to just calmly accept Quark and Nog's extreme misogyny? It was played for drama pretty well in Rules of Acquisition; this is a noticeable step back.

Heart of Stone

I love Sisko and Bashir's casual conversation about a male ensign's pregnancy! Sure, he's an alien, but it's still progress for this show.

Odo and Kira's storyline is so cliched... I don't even make an effort to listen to their technobabble

As viewers we all know Kira will be saved somehow at the last minute, but in her and Odo's place I'd already start discussing a mercy kill. Phaser blast from a friend >>> asphyxiation

"I'm in love with you too" ???????????????????? YOUR BOYFRIEND LITERALLY DIED IN THE PREVIOUS EPISODE

Sisko, he's just a kid. I know you're testing him, but there's no need to go that far.

Okay, I'm going to sound like a broken record, but: what about misogyny? The previous episode made a point of showing that Nog upholds Ferengi values regarding women. And that's completely incompatible with Starfleet. Isn't anyone going to mention that?

heh... there was a thought at the back of my mind that a changeling might be involved

aww, good, stand up to Quark, you two! :)

Well, most of this episode is very boring, contrived and derivative, but it does give Odo some character development (even if it includes the dreaded romance, ugh) and has a good excuse for this plot device at the end.

Destiny

"I also had Chief O'Brien reprogram the replicators to provide Cardassian food" Um, why wouldn't it already be on the menu? I assumed the replicators weren't replaced by Federation ones, and in season 2 Keiko gave a Cardassian dish to  Rugal. I went back to check, and she literally said "I found some Cardassian recipes in the memory bank of our food replicator"!

It makes sense that the Bajorans don't want the Cardassians in their Temple

let me guess, there'll be an unexpected third Cardassian and suddenly the prophecy will sound much more believable

"Now those are about the two friendliest vipers I've ever met" Hey, maybe don't make jokes like this immediately after someone walks out of the door...

Told you so

Damn, the third "viper" seems to actually deserve that name! Will she be the "bad" one, or, in subversion, the only trustworthy one?

"Men just don't seem to have a head for this sort of thing. That's why women dominate the sciences." ah yes hello reverse sexism trope

Cardassians flirt by bickering? Never heard that before... I thought this was more like Klingons.

Okay, they played it straight with Dejar

That's lovely! But "vipers will return to their nest in the sky" doesn't make sense -- how did the comet fragments return to their nest?

The Prophets don't "want" anything! They just can tell you the future because they don't exist in linear time!

Well, this was a lovely episode, if not the most engaging. But the subplot with O'Brien and the scientist was completely unnecessary.

Prophet Motive

Was! This! Necessary?! I don't need to see sex on screen! And yes that includes oo-mox!

Aw Bashir

I can't believe we're getting a story where Bashir is the one who suffers because his friends won't shut up. Karma is real...

nice job breaking it, Quark

The story is pretty shallow by itself, but makes me ask some interesting questions. Would it be ok to nonconsensually transform a bad person into a good one? Especially a person in a position of power? I know I'd be tempted to do this to some politicians... But even if we assume the ends justify the means, who would define good or bad? Sadly, this episode doesn't take these issues seriously.

After 2.5 season of Bajoran religion, it's actually nice to meet the "Prophets" in person again in all their creepy, clueless glory.

Visionary

Time to torture poor Miles with more unreality!

why are both sides being so dumb? just say "Odo was separated from the rest of his people as a baby, grew up with no knowledge of them, and only met them 1.5 times"?

"I'm always diplomatic" *cut* "THAT WAS THE MOST RIDICULOUS THING I'VE EVER HEARD AND I RESENT THE IMPLICATION!"

my first thought: the transporter genuis who beamed in the device was O'Brien

this one doesn't make sense... the sleeping Miles should know about the disaster and the radiation device too...

As usual with time travel episodes, it's very fun to watch, but the mechanics break down at the end and spoil the impression. I like that, as in Civil Defense, every time you solve a problem it gets worse.

It's only season 3, and "O'Brien suffers" as a type of episode is already getting old.

Distant Voices

There's a Cardassian writer named Shoggoth? :D

"Still the man of mystery?" "Oh, you wouldn't have me any other way"

Melting Odo is a genuinely disturbing sight...

"There's hope for you yet, Doctor"

Very predictable story, but it has some character development and lovely scenes with Garak.

Through the Looking Glass

when Mirror!Garak looks in indignation at Sisko kissing Kira: honestly same

Mirror universe Terok Nor is less riot-proof than our universe's was...

Episode: boring and pointless as I feared

Mirror Kira: somehow even worse than the last time, at least watching her hit on herself was mildly entertaining

Mirror Garak: still a giant waste of Andrew Robinson -- seriously, he appears rarely enough, and for the third time in this season he's not playing his real character

Sleeping with alternate versions of friends/subordinates: incredibly gross

Well at least Bashir and Dax looked really hot with these haircuts lol

Improbable Cause / The Die is Cast

Ahh, so many of my favourite things. Odo investigates! Garak confronts his past and justifies his reputation for once! International conflict! Dominion is dangerous again!

The cliffhanger where Garak joins Tain is the most thrilling thing that happened on the show recently! But I'd be severely disappointed if he didn't do that. 

The torture scene is very impressive, but there are some things I don't understand about it:

What, "They're still my people and I want to go home" is the big secret that's worth all that torture? Seriously? Anyone could have told you that. How is this information new or relevant?!

Nevertheless, "he never broke" is a lie, right? Odo did break and confess, even if I think his revelation was completely useless. Don't the intelligence agencies of the two biggest police states in the galaxy have security cameras in their interrogation chambers?!

I could understand if Odo forgave Garak eventually, but not so soon and easily! He tortures you horribly, then you never even mention it and invite him to hang out only several hours after! Sorry, what?!

It's becoming a trend to start Garak-centric episodes with something bad happening to him. :D Oh shit, Garak's hand got bitten! Oh shit, Garak has a migraine! Oh shit, Garak's shop blew up!

Explorers

Come on, O'Brien, is this really more ridiculous than building ships in bottles? :D You of all people should understand!

"For a moment there I thought that you had been put in charge of the Cardassian Ministry for the Refutation of Bajoran Fairy Tales"

Miles, just say the word! :D 

Fireworks in space! :D I don't know what I love more -- the beautiful and uplifting moment itself, or Cardassians going "Shit :))) We gotta be really nice today :))))) Congratulations :)))))))"

After the epic intense two-parter -- 45 minutes of pure fluff :D It has so many things that are specific to DS9: Sisko and Jake's family bond, Bajoran culture and Cardassians being jerks about it, Sisko and Dukat's passive-aggressive skyping, Bashir and O'Brien's slowly developing friendship -- all leading to the celebration of the “boldly go where no one has gone before” spirit, and everything, for once, ends well.

Family Business

"If I were Curzon, I'd have stolen her from you by now" *facepalm* let's just pretend this stupid heteronormative line doesn't exist

this house looks like a Hobbit hole

Quark and Rom's mom is awesome. get rekt you misogynists!

omg Miles & Julian, how old are you? :D

Rom is so nice in this episode

I like Kasidy

Ishka is 10 times more awesome than it seemed

Rom really rocks in this episode

aaaand the ship sails :D

I wish Ishka could make a public statement, and Quark would 

Good episode: interesting family dynamics, amazing Ferengi feminist, cute new ship

Quark and women is a fascinating topic. He's a traditionalist when it comes to Ferengi women, but in daily life among other species usually manages to come off no worse than any 20th century misogynist, and finds strong and outspoken women attractive rather than repulsive. Apparently it boils can be traced back to mommy issues: Quark isn't just a "good Ferengi", he's being reactionary towards Ishka, but at the same time she clearly is a positive influence on him, even if he won’t admit it. Too bad in this episode he refused to take even one step forward as he did in "Rules of Acquisition"...

Shakaar

Shit, things are really going downhill on Bajor... separation of church and state, what's that?

"We spent so many years fighting the Cardassians. We spent so much time hoping and praying for a Bajor that was free. Now that we won, how can people just hand their freedom over to someone like Winn?" "It has been my observation that one of the prices of giving people freedom of choice is that sometimes they make the wrong choice."

Why can't those reclamators be replicated?

"I wasn't aware that our relationship needed solidifying" 

Great episode! (If I set aside the question of replication... Seriously, what's the law here? The Bajorans on DS9 can use the replimat, but Bajor can't ask the Federation to replicate some farm equipment? I don't think it would be physically impossible, surely it's not made of something like dilithium or latinum.) Winn hasn't reminded me of our sad reality so much since her first appearance. The B-plot was completely irrelevant, but I always enjoy seeing this sort of thing.

Facets

Quark... are you trying to convince the station commander's 16 year old son to write porn for you? seriously?

Ah yes, people closest to Jadzia, aka all of the main characters... and a dabo girl who appeared once for 45 seconds

don't do this... especially in front of all of ur friends...

Dax has a multi-Doctor episode! :D

CurzOdo and Quark's reaction to him are beautiful :D But how can he drink?

Poor Jadzia :(

Go Rom! Quark is too much of an asshole this season...

This is messed up... 

Typical man: he's attracted to a woman, so he takes out his frustration and her and nearly ruins her life

How do Trill memories work? Why is this ritual needed when all memories are already in Dax's head? Are some of them in a .zip and need to be decompressed to be appreciated fully? How did Jadzia not know of Curzon's crush? Is it possible to hide some of your memories from the next host(s) on purpose? You know what, nevermind. Rene Auberjonois (whose name I had to copy-paste, I must admit...) clearly had fun with this episode, and so did I.

The Adversary

yes finally! :)

When they introduced the word "changeling" I was like "that's dumb, that's not what the word means" but now I understand. tbh I love them as enemy -- this story is so beautifully paranoid

why are they all assuming there's only one changeling on board

Well, they certainly know how to end the season on a dramatic line...

This season, my honeymoon phase of "oh my god, serialized Trek" finally ended, and I started thinking about whether or not I like these serialized stories. So I felt compelled to write longer notes after each episode, and don’t have any general remarks this time.

[worflesbian]

also really interesting to me the way that everyone is always like 'b'elanna you should embrace your heritage more' 'b'elanna why don't you like being klingon' 'come on these three fun facts we learned about your culture make it seem so cool' until she says hey i have to induce a coma so i can enter my people's afterlife and save my mother. and then they say woah there we meant you should learn some drinking songs or wear fur more often not this crazy shit. like yeah putting yourself at risk of death may seem a little extreme but klingon culture is always extreme! fundamentally klingon culture as it stands in the 24th century is incompatible with a lot of federation values and morality, which makes it very interesting but also very difficult for starfleet officers to accept anything but a heavily diluted version of it and i don't think that some of the voyager crew realised until this episode that encouraging b'elanna to accept her heritage might mean her doing things they can neither accept nor rationalise.

it's one thing to tell her she's wrong and that they wouldn't reject her for being klingon and another thing to confront a cultural obsession with death.

[worflesbian]

the conversation that follows this is classic insanemaking data insights on the subject of personhood but i was so struck by the preamble here. data's been casually asking some pretty hard hitting questions about faith and religion all episode which could very easily be considered insensitive ("has your spiritual crisis gotten worse after the return of your people's saviour was revealed as a fraud? asking out of personal curiosity :D") but rather than brush him off worf answers honestly every time, even at one point telling him he doesnt feel he can give him a useful answer, showing how much he cares about data's desire to learn more about faith. i love their friendship so much because i feel like with anyone else worf might be just a bit more defensive to cover this massive uncertainty, but he trusts that data only ever means exactly what he says and would never judge him for his answer. imo theyve got real autistic solidarity and it means. So Much to me!

[worflesbian]

fucking love this scene we get one (1) establishing shot of Qo'noS and then cut straight to am extended barfight. that's what it's all about

[worflesbian]

i think the actress playing miral does a fucking fantastic job but also. as the designated 'annoying about klingon racial politics' person i have to point out that she has really pale blue eyes. this isn't weird on it's own but it casts the simulations b'elanna runs in s7e11 lineage in a dubious light: in that episode, tom and b'elanna's child is predicted to have brown eyes and brown hair, until b'elanna removes all klingon DNA from the simulation which results in blonde hair and blue eyes. i never took biology but from the fact that we see b'elanna's klingon mother has blue eyes and her human father has brown eyes i think something is amiss!

voyager uses b'elanna's klingon heritage to tell multiple stories about race and racism through an allegorical lens, with lineage being a prime example. it's a story about how internalised racism can be passed from mother to daughter through the enforcement of eurocentric standards of beauty, without ever acknowledging that that's what it is. in their eagerness to tell this story about race while absenting race from the equation, the writers latch onto b'elanna's fictional, metaphorical racial identity in a way that actively erases her actual tangible one - for the purposes of the story, eurocentric beauty standards are replaced with 'human-centric', the 'undesirable' racialised traits b'elanna worries her daughter will inherit are all attributed to her klingon side. the idea that b'elanna's human side is latina and therefore her human traits are also racialised doesn't enter into it. the idea that her klingon mother has blue eyes doesn't enter into it. the point i'm trying to articulate is that klingons are schroedinger's racialised people of colour -- they can be played by white actors with blue eyes in one episode and be implicitly understood as a genetic source of racialised features in another.

i think the writers like this ambiguity because it absolves them of any responsibility when writing klingons as one-dimensional stereotypes, while also allowing them to talk around racism through vague allusions when it suits them. the problems with this are rarely more evident than when b'elanna's real latina identity is erased in order to focus on the more comfortingly distant metaphor of her klingon identity, because talking about fake alien racism is less uncomfortable than confronting real human racism.

[worflesbian]

okay one last thing before i go to bed -- a large part of worf's plotlines with klingon politics involve him questioning injustice and doing the controversial thing because he believes it is right, and typically this is interpreted (or at least by typically by me) as his outsider perspective and reverence for klingon ideals combining to produce someone who's so committed to the empire as a homesick child might imagine it that he's willing to fight the entirety of the corrupted imitation its become. he questions verdicts that are unjust, rejects traditions that are detrimental, opposes the majority, suffers the consequences and occasionally manages to bring about positive change. his ideas of honour and of what is right dont come from the dominant culture or from personal pride but from deeply held convictions of how the world should be -- which is like, a major autistic trait.

obviously overall the writing suggests that it's worf's upbringing outside of the empire that gives him the insight to question things, which is definitely the case, but then you also have scenes where he doesnt understand how enemies who tried to kill eachother on the battlefield at noon can be drinking and laughing together by midnight. to everyone else, its natural, but to him it doesnt seem right, like there's some Unspoken Social Rules that he's not getting. a similar thing happens when alexander joins martok's crew and what worf takes for bullying and wants to put a stop to actually leads to the other klingons accepting and befriending alexander, once again showing that he doesnt understand the contradicting intricacies of klingon social behaviour. and again part of this is due to him being raised among humans, but its not as if hes great at human social behaviour either. which combined with the everything else about him starts to add up a certain way.

anyway its like 2am but in conclusion if you leave worf out of your pantheon of star trek autism characters i will get you