@bevansdesign I keep seeing comments regarding The Orville being more trekkie than Discovery (myself being a source of said comments), which pleases me, since it makes me realise that people out there still can tell the difference from what makes Star Trek Star Trek and what doesn't. Discovery isn't the Star Trek we used to know. It may even not be Star Trek at all (after the 5 episodes I've seen so far I would never rate it above TNG or Voyager), but there are some trekkie nuances in the show. I, for one, am quite happy that we were fortunate enough to have a show named The Orville that came out of the blue and feels very Star Trek at heart. For a show that was meant to be a satire (I think), it's doing a fine job at actually being as good as the objective of the satire. It's naive and optimistic, just like Star Trek has always been (mostly, at least).
Discovery is something different. Not bad by its own, actually quite a good sci-fi show, but I also have trouble recognising Star Trek in there. It may not be what Gene had envisioned all those years ago, but it's a nice modern take on an old formula that is winning me over.
I'm not sure why this reply kind of transformed into some sort of review, but I honestly just meant to say that I understand what you meant and I agree with you, though I'm enjoying Discovery very much (as a sci-fi show, I'm still trying to figure things out as a Star Trek show).
@bevansdesign Orville sucks and the only thing treckie about it is the nock off costumes. I will, however, agree to disagree on it being Star Trek. Well known characters from prior shows, diversity overcoming their own fears and join in for the greater good. Ok, that's every action show pretty much but, Star Trek was always acknowledging the plusses & minus of themselves and overcoming going through hell.
Yeah, I get ya on the languages so you must hate Lord of the Rings & Game of Thrones too?
@bevansdesign The irony of this comment is that every single thing you have said could be applied to every single star trek series post TOS.
@bevansdesign Agree 100%. I like Discovery, but it's not genuine star trek, it's too dark and has far too many tears.
Spot on!
I've just started Discovery 2 weeks ago and a review was building up inside of me. Then I read yours and I realized you wrote it for me! The only thing how I can make sense out of this, is sell this off as an alternative universe :grin:
I grew up with the original series and saw every show since. This is indeed so not Star Trek, but as you I do like it, remove Star Trek out of the title, rename the Klingons and you have a good and new interesting sci-fi series.
@bevansdesign I agree, i like this show and just pretend it's not Star Trek and it's fine.
@bevansdesign completely disagree. I'm about as hardcore trekkie was you can get and I think this is amazing. THe first series was rocky but it's got better and better. The key to trek was always the relationships of the crew and the ship itself and this has built a great crew with brilliant relationships. It's got the best of many treks combined and is a great way to bring more in to the franchise.
@defestated I completely agree with this. It took a while for it to really find its tone and pace (though, it wasn't in any way bad), and the most recent seasons have felt more star trek than ever. Expecting the same naivite that was found in the earlier series, would not only be very non star trek (which has always been at the forefront in its representation and interpretation of contemporary issues and topics), but also mean that it wouldn't stand a chance at competing and cutting through the noise in the current entertainment climate, where globalisation and increased access to information has made people overall, expect more sophistication from their tv shows. Still, I think it balances these conditions well with with I feel is at the core of any star trek experience. Adversity, and yes sometimes dark moments, are overcome and ultimately bring the entire star trek universe closer together.
@bevansdesign Looks like Season 3 writers were reading the comments here. :)
wrong. it is star trek. just further into the future. the Orville is funny but it's no star trek.
Review by BevansVIP 8BlockedParent2017-10-10T19:11:35Z— updated 2017-10-18T14:34:30Z
I do like the show, but it's not Star Trek. If this was just a new sci-fi show that existed in its own universe, it would be incredible. However, the fact that they've tried to pass this off as Star Trek when it's clearly not sullies the experience.
If it wasn't already apparent, Paramount and CBS have no idea what made Star Trek great, and don't care either. The simple explanation is that the world of Star Trek is supposed to be optimistic; this is pessimistic. And I do enjoy pessimistic sci-fi, but there's so much of it, and to see one of the few optimistic sci-fi worlds turned into something pessimistic is a shame.
Fortunately, we now have The Orville, which is doing Star Trek better than anything has since Voyager ended in 2001.
The show is supposed to take place between Enterprise and TOS, but the technology is very different. For example, there are holograms everywhere. Why try to do a prequel again? Why not set this after Voyager? That would make a lot more sense, and they'd be able to add whatever technology they like, and not be constrained by existing continuity. Fortunately, it's not too late for the showrunners to say "hey, we made a mistake, this actually takes place X years after Voyager".
Last, they fucked up the Klingons. For almost 25 years, they had the look of the Klingons figured out perfectly. They're iconic. But this show (and the reboot movies) messed them up and made them look like generic sci-fi bad guys. What happened to their hair and beards? Also, the costumes are ridiculous, and their ship interiors look like they're made of coral. I do like the idea of having an albino Klingon though.
And I applaud their desire to use the Klingon language on the show, but it's pretty annoying having every Klingon scene subtitled. The previous shows used a common sci-fi conceit: the actors speak a language that the audience understands, but it's accepted that they're really speaking a different language. The viewer effectively has a universal translator so they can understand what's being said.
Also, it looks nothing like Star Trek. Once again, The Orville got that right, and this didn't.
All of that said, I do like the show. The characters are interesting (especially Doug Jones), I've enjoyed each episode, and I think the storyline is pretty interesting. But goddamn it, why did they have to try to make this Star Trek when it's not?