#i wanted this show to be good for sonequa

[lorcaswhisky]

What's Past is Prologue

I had never watched any Star Trek before 2017. It wasn't something that seemed like it was for me, it wasn't something that had ever really appealed, even. I wish I could say that I decided to watch Discovery because I wanted to broaden my horizons, or even just out of a sense of general curiosity, to try something a little different - the honest truth is that I'd heard Jason Isaacs had been cast as a captain, and Gersha Phillips (thank you, Gersha) had costumed him in tight blue lycra.

I thought I knew precisely 2 (two) things about Star Trek at this point: the captains were always uncomplicated good guys, and the shows were a fairly sedate, gentle romp. In my naivety, I thought it would be a nice, relaxing way to spend 45 minutes a week, admiring his bottom enjoying a performance by an actor whose talent I greatly admire.

Ahem.

I couldn't have been more wrong. First of all, relaxing and sedate and gentle and uncomplicated it was not. Secondly - it turned out I'd fallen hard for the characters and the whole, huge Trek universe well before Lorca and his tight trousers ever showed up in episode three, and it was a love that lasted long after his unceremonious dumping into the mycelial core.

I realised I was in trouble when I switched my computer background to a Discovery-era tricorder blueprint, but looking back, my descent was a gradual and steady one. I wandered down the lore rabbithole - what was that reference? Who's that pointy eared bastard? Wait wait wait there are different universes??? - and before I knew it, I was completely and utterly hooked. I'd fallen in love with Sonequa Martin-Green's performance, with the slow unfurling of this complicated, brilliant character, and the stories of her warmth and leadership on set. I'd fallen in love with the absurd plotlines, with the gorgeous costumes (thank you, Gersha), with the stunning visuals and design. I'd fallen in love with Star Trek, of all things. I wasn't supposed to fall in love with Star Trek!

I'm still feeling a lot of sadness about the announcement that it's ending, and anger about the way it's been handled - but instead of dwelling too much on that, I suppose I just wanted to share some of the ripples Discovery started for me. It unlocked something in my writing brain after a decade of block, long after I'd given up hope of ever writing again. The openness of the cast helped me to finally feel comfortable in my own queer identity. And most importantly, I've made some incredible, wonderful friends because of it. I know I'm not the only one. The show might be ending, but those ripples will keep going long after the theme tune plays for the final time.

Discovery is a heartfelt, frustrating, glorious tangle of a show, and I'm going to miss it so very much.

[speculativism]

STAR TREK DISCOVERY

Here's my honest and balanced reaction now that I've seen all of the episodes:

Initially I liked Discovery from episode one. I was a bit upset that some other people didn't like it and I noticed how the directors and writers began bending over backwards to please everybody all at the same time.

The effort to please those people who hadn't liked the first few episodes led to some slightly cringe-inducing scenes in later episodes where everyone seemed to be trying too hard to establish the benevolent principles of Starfleet and the upbeat, optimistic feel of the show. These oh-so-positive elements were just about bearable and I still found the remainder of story enjoyable.

I wished for more of the new Klingons and some deeper backstory on the history of different Klingon types. I imagined that there could be potentially a lot of story development in revealing how the augment virus had affected the Klingon genome and led to increased popularity of cranial reconstruction surgery and a lot of anti-human rage and the rise and fall of various Klingon political factions. I really wanted to see on screen the L'Rell type of Klingon alongside of the TOS and TNG types debating different strategies around the "Remain Klingon!" issue and the continuation of the temporal cold war. I also wanted guest appearances by Star Trek: Enterprise characters.

So I was a little bit disappointed with the overall direction that the show took but I still mostly enjoyed the episodes.

I felt a bit uneasy about the "spore drive" but, when all is said and done, it isn't really any more far-fetched than the warp drive.

Moving the show a thousand years further into the future was a good idea and opened up a lot more freedom of storytelling.

Sonequa Martin-Green was the perfect actor for the lead role and her performance in every episode was stunning. All of the other actors were also well cast and the character developments of each of them was interesting. My overall feeling as I watched each episode was sort of like "This is good but......." because I was enjoying the show but that feeling of regret was still somewhere in the back of my mind wanting the rest of the Klingon story.

It's a pity that there's going to be a long wait for the next Star Trek show to appear. I really feel that they should be keeping up the momentum to take the franchise further. It should be like the energy of the Star Wars franchise over at Disney Plus which seems to have a new show every time I blink.

[gulducock]

Nowhere in this post do I badmouth any old trek you are assuming shit of me that i did not say anywhere. I understand what you're trying to say here but you can NOT equate these things, TNG having 1 episode where they introduce a nonbinary species of alien is NOT the same as Adira, a human character, explicitly identifying as nonbinary and requesting the use of they/them pronouns in the show. The Trill as a species have transgender subtext but that is not the same as Gray being explicitly transgender in the show. Jadzia Dax is the first gay character in Star Trek history, rejoined was a monumental episode for the franchise and paved the way for alot of gay representation in television, yes, but you CAN NOT say that 1 episode of DS9, where the characters don't even get together in the end, and Jadzia's interest in women is ignored for the rest of the entire show, is even close to the same as Hugh and Stamets relationship in Discovery, or even Adira and Gray. Michael Burnham is not the first black captain nor is she the first female captain but she is the first black female captain and that is more important than anything old trek ever did because Discovery put these things in their show with clear thought and purpose, and the amount of hatred the show received for these decisions can not be ignored. Ian Alexander and Blue del Barrio were TEENAGERS when they appeared on this show and the amount of harassment they received being openly LGBT actors appearing in this show as well as every other actor such as Sonequa Martin-Green or Wilson Cruz for just being people of color is not ignorable, Discovery wanted to make REAL, GENUINE representation in a time where things like that were not normalized and they did not hold back in their representation. It is not 1 alien or 1 episode or 1 character, it is half of the entire main cast. We have gay characters in Picard because of Discovery, we have gay characters in Lower Decks because of Discovery, we have more diverse casts and more representation than we could ask for and you CAN NOT try to make this about old trek. People are so biased and obsessed with old shit like TNG and DS9 they can't even let 1 fucking conversation take place without trying to bring up how old trek was good too, I know it is, I really don't like nutrek, I prefer the old shows, and Discovery is really not a show I actually like personally, but you can not in good conscience look objectively without bias and say Discovery is not phenomenally important because the old shows also did these things before. Discovery tried, it really tried full-heartedly to tell something important, and maybe it wasn't good as a story, but it has had more impact than alot of Star Trek has. Basically what I'm saying is you're ignorant as hell for reading my post that way and also this should be common knowledge

sincerely so sad that discovery is ending so soon. It took a long time for them to get their footing in regards to what they wanted disco to be, i do still dislike the first and 2nd seasons however after that they really did find something that was fun and unique with a wonderful cast, maybe not as close to as good as star trek has ever been but it really was something that had worth. im not confident theyll be able to properly send-off every single complex character theyve introduced in only 1 season but heres to hoping

[silverlovesmadi]

Star Trek: Discovery

"Despite Yourself" review/rant/analysis

It just annoys the hell out of me the show would write such a disturbing, sadistic and traumatic storyline for two already very traumatised characters of color.

Ash because of losing his entire crew because of the war, being a pow for 7 months, being subjected to some fucked up frankenstein like medical experiment and being forced to deal with Voq’s memories because of it. Not to mention all these creepy, disgusting, triggering convo’s he had to have with L'Rell because he didn’t know and understand wtf was going with him.

Michael because of her parents being murdered by Klingons when she was a little girl, her almost dying in the process, almost dying again because of some Vulcan extremist, being raised by Sarek to surpress her emotions at all times and aim for ubercompetence, losing her captain and some of her crew in the war and being used as a scapegoat for a war the Klingons started, realizing Sarek was a fraud of a father and was never gonna validate her nor admit he was the one who was wrong, waisting 7 years of her life in the process, having to go undercover in the mirror universe as some facist captain persona and being forced to kill one of her former crew members out of self defense, knowing that even if the war is won and she survives, she goes back to jail for life etc.).

There’s angst, there’s nuance, there’s compelling drama, there’s conflict, there’s adventurous and realistic sci-fi. And then there’s OVERdoing it with the shock value because the mainstream loves it on Game of Thrones (a show I personally couldn’t care less about) and thinking that’s the way to make the show as popular as GOT.

I should’ve known, because they’ve been overdoing it since the beginning not just by killing off Georgiou and Landry, but also the explicitly violent ways in which they killed them off for shock value. And the oneliners the bridge crew always get, who are obviously only there to fullfill some “diversity” quota to satisfy viewers, have started to get annoying as fuck too. We get it, you’re never gonna give them proper storylines, because you don’t really want too.

I really love Michael and Ash together, because they have such amazing and natural chemistry, which in large part is thanks to Sonequa and Shazad. There’s a always a very strong sense of trust, protectiveness and loyalty between the two. You can tell they really wanna be with each other and wanna look out for one another. Something they aren’t always able to do, since they are expected to go out and put they’re lives on the line everyday. It’s because they have and care so much about each other they’re some what able to face and deal with fighting in this war, and for now this mirror universe too, despite their mutual trauma’s. They help each other get through it as best as they both can.

But I just wish the show didn’t have to make Michael and Ash each others love interests, if the price they had to pay for their relationship was having to go down this depressing ass road. Why couldn’t they just let them stay friends?

I’m not in the mood for Michael having to face the fact that there’s a fucking Klingon inside Ash somewhere while she had a whole (and her very first too!!) intimate serious relationship with him. It’s gonna traumatise her even more. But we all know she’ll just suck it up again and keep going, because that’s what she’s so good at right? Sucking it up, being strong and sacrificing herself for the war.

And what type of fuckery is it that Michael, who is known as the killer of T'Kuvma, who Voq and T'Rell were so loyal too, had to be the woman Ash had to fall in love with while Voq was inside his body all this time. Like what? Are Voq and L'Rell gonna try and kill Michael out of revenge? Traumatising her even more?

Since Michael still doesn’t know about this whole fucking mess of a medical experiment L'Rell and Voq subjected Ash to, is she gonna see the man she had her first ever serious relationship with, shared everything with, something she already struggled with so much to open herself up to in the beginning, who promised to protect her at her at all costs, try and snap her neck like Voq did with Hugh? Something we really did not need to see since surviving that injury is not gonna make us unsee it. If it is even true that Hugh survives.

Is Ash gonna try and fight Voq internally somehow, to prevent him from getting to Michael? Probably having to sacrifice himself to kill Voq for good to safe Michael and the Discovery crew, killing off character of colour number #3?

I’m just looking at the writers like, when is enough ENOUGH?? How the fuck is Michael gonna trust anything or anyone ever? 10 steps forward, 50 steps back.

This storyline is so oversaturated with angst, trauma and suffering upon angst, trauma and suffering, just so the writers could introduce “the Klingon as human” storyline, but completely without nuance and the consideration of the implications for doing this with a cast full of poc.

There is already an abundance of media where in characters of colour, especially black female characters are subjected to traumatic and tragic storylines. So the Discovery writers aren’t doing anything “innovative” here. It’s lazy, predictable and quite frankly racist, sexist and homophobic, idc what anybody says and idc what anybody is gonna throw at me for keeping it real. Come at me. Art and media is here to be criticised. Especially if you’re “trying” to represent us.

I’m really curious as to whom the writers think they’re tonedeaf way of writing is aimed at. Who do they want as an audience? Because it seems to me they have no clue themselves.

I’m done seeing Michael suffer, I’m done. I'm done with the whole: "Ash was raped by L'Rell, only for the writers to go: oh sike! It was consensual after all, because they're Voq's memories, so Ash is perfectly fine!!!🙃🙃🙃".

It seems like the writers are less about the storyline/creating groundbreaking sci-fi and more about the trauma said storyline creates and causes, because according to them the drama comes frome the trauma, and everything for “interesting” television, right? It doesn’t feel like watching an adventurous, exciting, fresh, modern take on an iconic sci-fi show anymore, but another episode of Black Mirror that just won’t fucking end.

And you know what the hypocrisy of it all is? A majority of tv critics where so overly critical of the show’s use of the f-word (something that never bothered me because i know it wasn’t a big deal), which happened in literally one scene of 1 episode, accusing it of trying too hard to be “dark and edgy”, and that it completely ruined the show and the heart of Star Trek, but the same critics are completely eating up and loving this “Ash and Voq share the same body” storyline since Ash was introduced. Because apparently this storyline is not dark and sadistic at all, it’s just “really cool sci-fi!!!”

I wonder why that is. And who even remembers the f-word scene now?

[cleoselene]

Me reading a Disco spoiler: WHY DO THEY FEEL THIS NEED.  IF YOU WANT TO PLAY WITH ALIENS FROM THE 90S TREKS, WHY DID YOU MAKE A PREQUEL?  WHY CAN’T YOU HAVE ANY RESPECT FOR THE SHOWS THAT MADE AN ENTIRE GENERATION LOVE IT?

[tinderbox210]

I tried to gather my thoughts a bit.

I think the finale was good. A fitting ending for the show's premise and journey in a lot of ways. We got a big space battle and the discussion of philosophical questions.

There are some things that I wish would have been explored more in detail or differently and the episode (excluding the epilogue) still felt more like a season finale than a final farewell, but that was to be expected since it wasn't originally planned to be the end. Blame Paramount! 😡

I did like how they closed the book on the Progenitors' tech and the revelation why it's not needed anymore and shouldn't be used. It would be too much of a risk to keep such powerful tech, even in the hands of Starfleet. The road to hell is paved with good intentions after all.

I think it was great and exciting how the episode jumped between Michael's journey inside the portal and all the chaotic fighting happening outside, though I wished it wouldn't have taken so much time. I loved Rayner leading the Discovery, he got some really nice badass moments to shine, but I'm disappointed Michael barely got to interact with the crew, her family, during the last mission.

There were several moments where I feared some of the characters wouldn't make it but I'm glad the show chose against killing of any important characters last minute for shock value or just because it's the end. What I really liked of this finale is that the whole DISCO family made it to the end and to Saru's wedding!!! I really wished they would have shown the whole wedding! Such a missed opportunity but I loved seeing everyone celebrating together one last time.

The episode left me even more convinced that Tahal would have been the big antagonist next season because beside giving Saru something to do and show his badass diplomacy skills her entrance didn't lead anywhere and felt more like an introduction for the future. I'm also not sure yet what to think of the Kovich reveal and Zora's ending.

On the shipping side, we didn't get much direct interaction between Michael and Rayner in the finale but still some amazing little moments that send my shipper heart soaring - his smile at Michael and Saru hugging, the whole convo at the wedding with Tilly praising their dynamic (welcome to the shippers club, Tilly!) and Michael touching his hand, and we even got a hug 😍

I will really miss this duo that snuck up on me so unexpectedly. I really didn't expect to ship them when the season started, but here I am, still a hopeless shipper even with canon going in a different direction. I'm really sad we got this wonderful pairing so late and won't get to see more of them, unless they both show up on Starfleet Academy (I can see Rayner becoming a mentor with Tilly, but no idea if Sonequa wants to return).

I kind of expected Michael and Book to end up together again, so I was sort of prepared for that ending, even though a part of me wished they would have left that ending more open. I know this season was about them finding their way back to each other, but for me it always felt more like them finding closure in accepting that they're on different paths, so them ending up with a kid felt a bit off for me. While I love Michael and I'm glad she ended up happy and not had to sacrifice herself to protect the Progenitors' tech like I initially feared, I have to say that I got more emotional during the last 5 minutes showing Michael's farwell to the Discovery and the crew than during all of the Michael/Book scenes. I'm sorry, I just didn't feel it, so I'm not ashamed to say that I'm going to live in happy AU land from now on.

Overall, the finale just made me sad again to see the show go while it still has so much potential and so many stories to tell and I hope we'll get to see some kind of continuation of the Discovery's adventures, as books/comics or movies. 🖖

DISCO is really on the way to have an amazing final season. I loved every episode so far.

[lightgamble]

STAR TREK: DISCOVERY  | 1.03

I suppose that is a function of the environment you are eating them in, instead of a food synthesizer issue.

[candyrowe]

Wow. I've been on this awful site on and off for ten years and nothing changes.

We accusing folks of not being Black because of ships again?

Y'all doing this shit with folks with long ass blogs too. Have y'all forgotten how to mute tags? Has Tumblr stopped allowing blocks? It is very easy to not see things you don't want to see. Use it! Y'all ain't making the fandom fun for anybody. I want to go into tags and not have to see fighting and dogpiling within the fandom. A fandom full of Black women with varied and nuanced opinions, but y'all will allow something like a ship or a character to get in the way of meaningful discussion.

Making someone's fandom experience worse doesn't enrich yours. Unless someone is doing something that causes ACTIVE HARM, block it and move on.

And please. Don't think this is an invitation to message me, reblog this to discuss why you were right, or whine. Whine to ya mama cause I ain't her. We're all old enough to treat each other with respect. And that is especially true in fandoms Black women are part of. We are pushed out and silenced so much. I understand the knee jerk reactions. I do. But we don't have to act like other fandoms. I came out of Wakanda Forever wanting to celebrate a movie that celebrated us. I'm not a part of the Star Wars fandom even though I'm a fan. I'm barely part of the Star Trek fandom even though I love it so much. Even with Sonequa and Tawny leading shows, I don't feel like the fandom is welcoming to me as a Black woman.

This space is where I feel seen. This space is where I feel loved. I love knowing that there are other Black women who are just as nerdy as me here that love the same things I do. Don't ruin this experience because you feel like you have to be self-righteous for others. Don't talk about being good to others. Be good. Because those Black women that you are trying to hurt are the same ones who would defend you if the other side of the fandom came knocking.

[discotreque]

Disco 4.01: Kobayashi Maru

AND WE’RE BACK, BABEY.

I got stuff to do today, so let’s just dive right in. Spoilers, obvs!

“Butterfly in the sky, I can go twice as—HOLY SHIT WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT”

I loved... most of that cold open? It did a great job of (re-)introducing our characters, their relationships to each other, and their jobs on the ship; the dialogue was cute, the action was kinetic, the A-to-B-to-C stuff was efficient and tidy; and it was a Violence Problem with a Science Solution, which is always good Star Trek. (It was also painfully unsubtle and almost annoyingly smug—but I guess it wouldn’t feel like Disco if the writing on this show weren’t constantly sabotaging itself, sigh.)

I cannot even tell you how much I love Wife Guy™ Book. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: if you want a perfect fictional man, get a lesbian to write him. I don’t know why it works, but it does.

“Thank you, Lt. Christopher, a guy who has definitely always been on the bridge.” I joke, but welcome to the crew, dude!

If I were ever within like 50 feet of Sonequa Martin-Green and she said “Let’s fly” my knees would instantly buckle. 🥺️

Did the Ba’ul always sound like they’re voiced by Frank Oz? They’re not—it’s David Sobolov, who’s done loads of VA, including for other Star Trek stuff; the S2 Ba’ul were voiced by Mark Pellington, who’s mostly actually a director—but Sobolov’s definitely doing a little bit of Oz there and it’s great.

I’d have to go back and check to be sure, but I think they’ve redesigned the Kelpian prosthetics a little? The eye-holes seem bigger, so we can see more of the actors through the mask; I also think they might be constructing them differently, using more and smaller pieces, to better “transmit” facial expressions through the loaf—Saru especially seemed even more animated than usual. (Then again, maybe I just missed my tall boi.)

Costume designer Gersha Phillips continues to bless us: the new duty uniforms! The new dress uniforms! The cadet uniforms! The utility variants on the repair base! And the fancy Kelpian outfits too—chef’s kiss.

It’s utterly astounding to me that SMG and David Ajala never had a chemistry test. (Apparently he had visa issues or something coming from the UK to Canada, and there just wasn’t time?) I could watch them make faces at each other all day.

SPEAKING OF MAKING FACES AT EACH OTHER:

Also, Michael looking at the Federation president like “…I guess I didn’t sort out all my mommy issues last season…”

Admiral Vance’s family???? 😭️😭️😭️ (Oh noooooo, it’s not his whole family, is it…)

TILLYYYYYYY 😭️😭️😭️😭️😭️

I really liked the actor who played Book’s brother last season and I didn’t think we’d see him again! Also, that ceremony was really beautiful, and that kid was so little and so cute and such a good actor! [edit: fuckkkkkk]

Holy hell, the pure sapphic energy in “What do you mean, ‘if’?” I blushed.

ADIRA AND TILLY, SCIENCE BOSSES

The stuff between Saru and Su’Kal was very sweet (if, again, as subtle as a sledgehammer), but the whole “you’re the father I never had” bit cracked me up: the actor who plays Su’Kal is like 10 years older than Doug Jones, lmao, you just can’t tell through the loaf.

Absolutely loved the design of the 32nd-century worker bee. 🐝️

“…and then Michael Burnham got killed by a frozen fart” would have been a pretty ignoble way to go out.

SHIT

SHIT SHIT SHIT

THE MOON?????

…all of that was fucking INTENSE, holy FUCK.

Awwww, I knew that poor stressed-out commander was doomed, but it was still sad. (Also, Adira’s “I don’t understand, we made it, we were safe” broke my goddamn heart.)

Hey, are we going to dig into Michael Burnham’s god complex this season? That could be fun (and by “fun” I mean “painful and heartbreaking,” of course.)

Oh. Oh no.

So it’s going to be like that, then. Oooooof.

Guess I’m watching The Ready Room just to make myself feel better now!

[my-mt-heart]

Hi again. I really apologize. I should have cited my sources when quoting statements from my last post. Below is a link to the commentary with Norman Reedus and Sonequa Martin-Greene (and I think Greg Nicotero is there as well).

https://youtu.be/S6L0qfG7N1k

And thank you so much for my scenario! Carol is Daryl's first embodiment of kindness. He knows she is able to communicate a lot with her kisses and affection. And I know it makes him feel different in the best way. I want to further capitalize on this moment to say that I appreciate the ways you underline their character sensitivities in your writing. It is so them. So I had another for you. I am curious as to the first time they hugged that we did not know about. The first time we see it on screen is the unforgettable Terminus Reunion hug. But I do think they have hugged before then. And I think Carol initated it. Can you do a scenario of that between season 2 and 3? Thanks again and sorry for not putting up the source while making claims like that.

No apologies necessary. Thanks for sharing that clip from the DVD commentary. My first thought was, okay why is NR using his Daryl voice? Haha My second thought was, damn, they are all so enamored with MMB. It warms my heart.

Also, thank you for your kind review. To me these scenes are just little “what ifs” I can whip up fairly quickly, but you guys treat them like real bodies of work and I’m truly touched. Baffled, but touched. Anyways, here’s how I imagine their first hug went...

Carol tries to keep her nerve, steadying the knife in her hand while a walker ambles toward her.

Daryl is standing right behind her, his crossbow trained just in case.

Daryl: Not yet...

The walker comes closer.

Daryl: Hold up...

Carol takes a deep breath right before...

Daryl: Now!

She jerks forward, her movements a little clumsy, but she manages to wedge her knife through the walker’s head. It collapses at her feet.

She pants heavily, feeling exhilarated. Daryl lowers his weapon.

Daryl: Good.

Carol: Good? That’s all you have to say? I, I—

She springs into action again, this time throwing her arms around Daryl. He pulls her off.

Daryl: The hell was that for? Ain’t playin’ a game.

Carol: I know. I just, I didn’t think I could do it, but I did. Thank you for showing me.

Daryl nods, feeling a little guilty for his reaction.

Daryl: Wouldn’t have bothered if I thought you couldn’t.

In an effort to make amends, he moves like he’s going to wrap his arm around her, but at the last second, settles for clapping her awkwardly on the shoulder.

Carol smiles. It’s the thought that counts.

[wizardysseus]

i was thinking about once upon a time (abc) in bed this morning so i decided to write this list

subject to change, since awhile ago i was in the middle of season 6 when they took it off netflix and i never quite got around to picking it back up. i’m gonna finish if it kills me i promise

top 5 things about once upon a time

5. anna frozen

when ouat introduced frozen characters, most fans decided the show had jumped the shark. they were not wrong. however, it was this very thing that allowed the show to be fun again! after an excruciatingly bad season 3 (we will get to that), bringing on anna and elsa literally transported directly from their own unaltered story in cheap ass versions of their unaltered movie costumes allowed the show to let loose and do... basically whatever it wanted. this became the hallmark of the show for those who stuck with it: absolutely not making sense at all, but being fun about it. post-season-three ouat becomes a totally different soap opera from season one, but by god you are never bored.*

personally, the flashback episode where anna annoys rumpelstiltskin and gets the better of him and he’s so fucking mad about it is like top 10 episodes**

4. 2x16 “the miller’s daughter”

this episode is just another personal favorite. it exemplifies what this show was really good at when it was good, and also where everything went wrong. i think cora is a great example of a good ouat villain, i think the twist on the rumpelstiltskin story is great, i think the dramatic beats really work.

...and in typical ouat fashion, cora immediately dies and two more villains we don’t care about at all are introduced. (sonequa forgive me you know i’m in love with you but tamara was nothing. it’s not your fault.) yes we get that great scene of snow aggressively doing archery practice while listening to “bad reputation” but was it worth killing off a compelling villain just as you’d dug into her story?

3. the commitment to regina’s redemption

and lana parrilla in general. i mean i’m gay and she’s hot but the worse the show got, the more acting lana gave it. and this is just speculation, but i think lana is more comfortable with drama than with camp? because regina becomes a much more interesting character as someone conflicted and on the path to redemption than as a villain. and by god, they were gonna redeem regina.

if only she had been gay we really could have had it all.

2. rumpelstiltskin

the sweet spot with rumpelstiltskin for me was seasons one and two when he was unabashedly bastard, there was an attempt to make him sympathetic but nobody except belle actually liked him, you weren’t quite sure how much he knew, he was pulling all the strings, and he was just really fucking weird. it will surprise no one who follows this blog to hear that that is my type of wizard.

1. season one

it’s a good season. it’s a good season. there are some bad things about it, but it was extremely watchable. it was doing fairy tales with occasional disney nods in a (mostly) cohesive fashion. the lore and the magic hadn’t sprawled out of control yet. it had the strongest relationship, imo, between emma and henry, and emma and snow. as for iconic episodes, most of the greats are here, plus sebastian stan as the mad hatter and giancarlo esposito as a series regular. the crowning moment for me is the scene at the end of skin deep, when regina confronts gold in the town jail and he reveals that he remembers his real name (after beating the shit out of belle’s dad with his cane obviously). god. that is some good television.

worst 5 things about once upon a time

5. the adoption politics but everyone knows this one.

4. WASTING the talent

you had the love of my life sonequa martin-green and gave her nothing. you somehow scored oded fehr as jafar and gave him nothing. you had giancarlo esposito and regina literally forgot he existed. i will kill you

3. rumpelstiltskin.

it’s no secret that robert carlyle was acting circles around most of the cast; my opinion is that the showrunners felt that if they committed to either his redemption or his villainy, they would never find someone else with the talent to fill his shoes as bastard wizard. so they flip-flopped on him every half-season, which ruins his story longterm, slowly kills the light in robert’s eyes, and gets reallllllly old. it’s also no secret that my favorite rumpelstiltskin is bastard wizard, but they screwed over belle BIG time in the process and for that i will never forgive them.

also like. the rumpelstiltskin fairy tale is antisemitic to begin with and they did not minimize that by comparing him to a lizard and naming his storybrooke counterpart mr gold. they just. did that.

2. THE FUCKING NEVERLAND ARC GOD IN CHRIIIIIIIIIIIST THAT HALF-SEASON IS EXCRUCIATING

1. captain hook

*it’s my opinion that if you are bored, you’re watching a hook-centric episode. every time i dropped the show and forgot about it for months at a time, it was because i had been in the middle of an episode about hook and just could not get through it. how do i describe all the things i don’t like about what killian hook jones did to the show? with subpoints!

1a. the episode where gold gives him back his hand and he never changes.

**this is actually the same episode i mentioned about anna and, like i said, it’s one of my favorites and not at all boring. look, i’m not pretending this list isn’t subjective as hell.

remember when hook blackmailed mr gold into magically reattaching his hand, which gold has been keeping in a jar, because hook has a date with emma and wants it to go well? but also, gold tells him that if he reattaches his hand with dark magic, it will turn him evil? and then hook spends the episode doing evil things, only for mr gold to tell him “i was just messing with you! the hand was not evil, you gave yourself permission to be evil ;)”

yeah, that’s basically hook’s mo.

1b. episode where emma tells him his brother is lying to him and he learns the exact wrong lesson from this and never changes.

so emma goes to the underworld to get hook back after he dies (while being evil and doing villainous things). they find his brother down there, too, and emma senses that he has a dark secret (because he does) and is lying to them (because he is). but hook always idolized his older brother, so he won't believe her. when emma confronts the brother directly, hook interrupts to rant to her about how he knows what this is ~really all about.

actual dialogue:

HOOK: i don't need proof to know what's really going on here. emma, when are you gonna admit that this isn't really about my brother? EMMA: what else would you think it was about? HOOK: us. you think if you can prove that liam is a villain, then i’ll somehow feel like i was less of one.

who... would EVER come to that conclusion. and why is the lesson he learns at the end “perhaps i do deserve saving after all” (another direct quote), and not “NOT EVERYTHING IS ABOUT YOU, BECAUSE EMMA WAS LITERALLY RIGHT ABOUT YOUR BROTHER LYING TO EVERYONE”????

1c. the emma dark one arc, where hook never changes.

this would be the arc that leads up to the above underworld arc, and it is deeply dumb, entertaining, and hard to explain. suffice it to say, during this whole arc, killian (along with emma) has all the powers and ~~~Darkness~~~ of the dark one (formerly rumpelstiltskin). unlike emma, he is not aware of this for most of the season. the moment he finally finds out, he turns on emma and goes through with all the revenge plans he’s apparently been holding onto since season two.

it’s supposed to be sympathetic, because emma made this choice for him to be a dark one, which is clearly awful, when he didn’t want it. so i get that. but on the other hand, it is..... boring. because (a) it's nothing we haven't seen him try to do and fail at before, his motivations really aren't that complex. and more importantly, (b) he was the dark one the whole time! the only thing that changed, that made him act evil, was finding out about it. at that point, it's not the ~~~Darkness~~~ making you do evil things. it’s just you. because you’re a dick.

how is this arc resolved? well, he dies. after the underworld arc (which i very much enjoyed tbf), a sizable part of robin hood’s death episode is devoted to people telling emma to slow down and grieve for killian, since at least two arcs have revolved around her inability to let hook go when he is literally dying or dead. (it’s been said a million times but being his girlfriend really sucked the personality out of emma and i miss her.) and in the end he just... comes back anyway. no explanation given; he says it must be a reward from zeus for killing hades... while he and emma make out literally in front of the coffin of robin hood... who actually died fighting hades. killian died half a season before. while he was evil. and emma reverts to tearful girlfriend.

it’s insulting. it’s grating. and it is a Killian Hook Jones Guarantee that his episodes will involve some measure of this.

like, is it more or less the same shtick that the writers kept giving rumpelstiltskin, too? backsliding and screwing over his love interest who gets less and less say in the matter? yes. definitely. the crucial difference is that i, personally, love rumpelstiltskin, while i find hook boring and not self-aware. but clearly i have had a lot of fun complaining about him! again, this is not an objective list.

conclusions

this show ran for 7 years. it got cancelled not because it deserved to, but because no one liked the soft reboot. it was on until 2018.

[lovecanbesostrange]

#we deserved more scenes with David and Ruby restoring some order#because of course they do in Snow's absence#and also I will never be tired of shepherd and wolf moments#(oh S2 began with the most wonderful set-ups) YES we deserved more scenes! They could've been a power Throuple! Also, I still feel like first half of season 2 was the best.

The beginning of S2 is so amazing. What I love most is how they resolved this whole issue with Emma suddenly having to believe in everything. Including that these are indeed her parents. Who abandoned her (for what they thought of as good reason, but she was ALONE), Send them to the Enchanted Forest, where she can’t run from Mary Margaret, where she has to learn some things the hard way and where she gets to meet Snow fucking White. Fierce protector of what she loves. (And the side-story with Sleeping Warrior is icing on the cake... until they suddenly run off to revive Philip... because...... well... they can??????)

The emotional investment seeing Cora scheme, Regina’s struggle with everything, I even enjoy seeing this evil side of Gold who is all like “magic is power and I want power” and Belle is just “but why? can’t I be enough”. If Hook was just the fun rapscalion and didn’t project “love interest here” from the start without work from the writers... oh S2 was brilliant. Cora’s death! And the aftermath! The way Greg and Tamara are set up (oh, having Sonequa Martin Green on the show...)

But yeah, in the midst of it all in the chaotic new awakening, we had David who lost his wife and daughter through a portal, holding things together. And he could rely on Ruby. Because she was there for the whole story (even if it doesn’t look like it, because the flashbacks leave out a lot and later seasons... well.... she was there in spirit! Always!). And yes, this is a time where I am absolutely down with a throuple, like we say now. The polyamory solution to everything! They can just work on so many levels. (I also like to imagine Grumpy having the laughing fit of his life when he finds out that David isn’t Prince James, but really a poor commoner. “A shepherd? And a wolf? In your bed together??”)

Imagine the writers had taken some time to let the group catch up after Mary Margaret’s and Emma’s return. Okay, I think the bit in the hospital is super funny (”like some kind of Frankenstein” “yep, that’s Whale” and the whole reviving Daniel thing etc lol ). But also a bit more. For the emotions. This feeling what it means that David and Ruby did their best, even though the center of their universe was missing. (Eddie and Adam could materialize in my room and tell me that Red never had a crush on Snow and I would shoot laserbeams out of my eyes and tell them they’re wrong).

The most important reason why Red is totally squeezing in with this One True Love couple to end all True Love couples? She helps raise Emma in a time without the curse (of course, again, wish!verse didn’t have Red, because of stupid decisions, which is why wish!verse is lacking a key ingredient). Why else does everybody agree to let Ruby babysit Henry without a question? Because that would’ve been her role as secondary mom//godmother//wild-forest-aunt. Emma barely got a chance to talk to Ruby after the curse broke. How stupid is that?? Emma never even met the wolf.

Which then led to that weird nightmare moment at the end of S5 that doesn’t make an ounce of sense. “Dreaming” about a beast killing Snow to then find it’s Red...... what even......... no, no, no, no. I want Red running around with Charming more. Terrible jokes about eating sheep and neither actually being fit for royal drama. I need them to argue who’s turn it is to hold Snow back from doing something reckless. (This is Red’s fault, when they met she was suddenly “let’s kill the wolf” and ever since Snow has become more and more of a daredevil with a let’s-do-the-thing-attitude. Consequences? Ha!... well and then comes regret.)

Put it in the subtext............ after Snow gets back her throne, Red holds on to all her bandit!Snow clothes and keeps every trinket from those days safe.

[randomfandomimagine]

The Last of Us Fancast

I’m very excited about the Last Of Us show and after the anouncement of the casting of Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey as Joel and Ellie, I wanted to talk about the people I had personally envisioned as the characters. This by no means implies that I disagree on the casting, I’m very excited to see both Pedro and Bella embody these characters and I think they’ll do great! That said, here are the actors I actually had in mind that could play the characters.

Joel Miller: Nikolaj Coster-Waldau or Hugh Jackman.

Don’t tell me he doesn’t give off Joel vibes! I haven’t seen Game of Thrones, but frmo what I’ve heard he’s an amazing actor capable of showing both Joel’s soft and dark side. Besides, he physically resembles Joel and he’s the right age and build!

I’ve seen people not liking him as Joel, but... I can really see it! He reminded me a lot of Joel in Logan (not to mention that the movie itself was a lot like The Last of Us with the traveling and his father-daughter relationship with Laura) and I think he could do a really good job as Joel!

Bonus Joel: Karl Urban

Ellie Williams: Kaitlyn Dever

I haven’t seen Booksmart (yet) but I saw someone saying that she could be Ellie and I thought she would be great! She physically reminds me of Ellie and it feels like she would do great at portraying both her innocence but wild side from the first game. I just get Ellie vibes from her as well, it’s all about the vibes.

Tommy: Charlie Hunnam

Marlene: Sonequa Martin-Green or Zoe Saldana

There’s a limit of 10 photos per post, so I’ll do the other characters soon! Tell me your thoughts so far, I would love to know!

[flying-elliska]

i watched star trek discovery s3 ! thoughts !

- no matter what i always feel pushed to be overall positive about disco because of all the stupid whiny fanboys dunking on it because it’s too *diverse* and I think this season did pretty well in that regard and that it’s just very refreshing to have a cast that is just a lot more realistic re:what humans would look like in that era

- s3....i actually really enjoyed overall ? by going to the future, they’re not so stuck between all the older shows, being a prequel and bringing old characters back etc etc. they can explore new territory. And like. I don’t think they handled a lot of the plots as well as they could have. It had this HUGE potential that i don’t think they really made good on, because this series’ writing is just...i don’t know, a bit wack sometimes, like it was written by lots of different people pulling in a different direction. i see what it’s trying to do in terms of sociological and philosophical storytelling, but it’s often a bit too simplistic. but i just...i love these characters, i thought the season’s set up was so interesting, and it was just so much fun. and like...star trek has always been full of cheese and shortcuts and stories that focused more on emotions. it’s not hard scifi. it’s just not. i would like disco to come through with more philosophical/geopolitical episodes sometimes, but that doesn’t mean it’s ‘not star trek’

- Booker is definitely my favorite new character of the season. He’s just so cool ? Like a charming rogue idealist with an enormous cat named Grudge who travels around space to save endangered species ? that is just so new. i’m so tired of cynical rogues, they’re so overdone. but Booker breaks the rules because he CARES. yes. the empath thing is very sexy. the episode with his brother was so interesting. Booker’s the idealist but he left his people behind, while the brother is doing awful things to keep his people from starving to death, and so both their perspectives are understandable, and i love that they came to an understanding. also his chemistry with Michael is great, even though i wish they had taken more time to show us their developping relationship. but the episode when they met is one of my faves. that episode where he helps the slave workers rebel was !!!!! i hope they give him more to do next season apart from “Michael’s boyfriend” but yeah. he’s great.

- i just loved seeing the crew bond!!! so much! they’ve gone through so much together ! i definitely ship jola now. they’re just so cool. i hope we get to know the others in the bridge crew more but i love the bits we got, about them adapting to these crazy new circumstances, and about ‘growing through change’ ; even though i thought some elements like Detmer’s PTSD were dealt with a little bit too fast. I loved seeing Hugh trying to get everyone some mental support and therapy. I loved Tilly taking charge more and more ; and people recognize that even though she is emotional she’s also unfailingly compassionate and brave and those are qualities you want in a leader. ahhhh

- the new future is very interesting. i was afraid they would go too grimdark with the Federation gone, but...they’ve kept it relatively nuanced so that was interesting. seeing the Vulcans and Romulans reunited was quite incredible, and i loved the bit with the trial. and Michael deciding to back off so she wouldn’t risk their fragile unity. and her admiring the fact that Spock’s life work came to fruition. emotions !!!!!

- Michael’s development is...a joy to see. I love Sonequa’s portrayal of her so much. and she’s so pretty lmao. the writing for her character is still a bit all over the place, though. i don’t feel they explained her big changes of mind enough, and i don’t always understand what they are trying to do with her character, sometimes it’s a bit too much of ‘whatever the plot requires’. the series has a tendency to both make her the one who always saves the day a bit too much and to put too big of a burden on her in ways that feel iffy. But i’m still super happy to have her be captain, finally, and can’t wait to see how she grows into the role.

- I thought the Terra Firma episodes were so interesting ; it was fascinating to see how much Georgiou has changed through her time in the Prime universe. Mirror universe characters redemption arc is a Star Trek classic, after all. I am sad to see her gone from Disco but i feel like her next series could potentially be sooooo interesting. i mean, i know the evil promiscuous bisexual cliché is a bit bad, but Michelle Yeoh is just having SO MUCH FUN in the role i kind of forget about it. it’s a bit like ‘nggggh evil queer lady sexy’ thing. and the guardian of forever !!!

- Adira and Grey...now, i do think it was great to introduce a trans guy and a non-binary person and to make them a couple, totally awesome. i am not entirely convinced by their story though, i don’t feel they had a lot to do past their introduction. and the fact that Grey started the series being dead already...i mean they’re probably bring him back somehow but they have a bit too much of a tendency to kill their queer characters already, it’s an issue for me. i liked Stamets and Culber kind of adopting them that was cute but they didn’t do much this season either. i have to say tho, two gay dads telling a trans kid they will ‘help him be seen’ was like awwwwwwww

- i found the ending...a little bit underwhelming. it’s the opposite of s2, where i found the season pretty meh until the ending which i found kind of incredible. this one...the Emerald Chain was a cool villain, but I don’t feel like it materialized enough. i did think it was interesting to ‘tempt’ the Federation, to see how their principles held up ; but the fact that most of their problems with dilithium seem to be solved by the end of the season is a bit...hm, is that all ? similarly, the revelation that Su’kal was at the core of it all...i found the bits in the stimulations kind of fascinating, the theme of the importance of connection, etc. that said, i was hoping the solution to the Burn to be a bit more...Geopolitical. I just miss Deep Space Nine in that regard, they knew how to do political storylines in a way that felt so deeply grounded and complex. In Disco, problems get solved a bit too easily, and so it just feels like everything has less impact.

But overall, this is probably the season i’m most likely to rewatch for fun. the first two are so gritty, and they have made some really stupid story choices. this one is a lot more like a fun space adventure, and honestly that’s not a bad thing. even though next season I really hope they will put some effort into the worldbuilding. because sometimes it feels a little bit like modern storytelling has dumbed star trek down (i feel the movies are responsible in part, but it’s also like a general thing accross the board)

[twdmusicboxmystery]

Suspicious Questions in the Cast Trivia Battle

Hey everyone! So, just before Christmas, someone sent me something about a TWD Cast Trivia video. I hadn’t heard anything about it, but quickly located it on YouTube and watched it. So, let me first give you some background for what this was.

Emily had participated it, so I was hoping her appearance could be another “weird” thing we could see as a TD-themed appearance. Strictly speaking, it didn’t entirely work out that way. But that doesn’t mean I was disappointed, either. It was just different than I expected.

Why couldn’t we call her appearance a TD thing? Because both Sonequa Martin-Green (deceased character) and Andrew Lincoln (alive, but not currently on the show) were there. So it’s not like Emily was the only deceased or “just gone” character who participated.

And before anyone rushes off to watch this (I’ll drop the URL at the bottom) let me say that I honestly didn’t love this. The reason they did it (and this is probably why it wasn’t widely publicized) was to support two local Georgia politicians who were trying to get elected to the senate the first week of January. Obviously, I don’t know anything about these guys or their politics. It wasn’t that that bothered me. But rather that every two minutes they did a political plug and it felt more like a political rally disguised as a zoom call (which I suppose it was supposed to be) than a TWD thing. That’s all.

So, Emily’s video appearance at the end was a plug for people to vote for the politicians they were supporting. And the actors proclaimed their love for Georgia and being able to work in Georgia and why this senate race is so important. Yada, yada. Like I said, I don’t judge them for it, but I found myself yawning because I don’t live in GA and obviously don’t have a stake in their local politics.

However. There is a silver lining.

The trivia questions. My jaw dropped open at some of the questions they asked. Most if not all of them had ties to TD in some way. And some of them were so obscure, ONLY a TDer would recognize them.

So, the first questions were just goofy things where they asked everyone to imitate iconic things. The first was to imitate Rick saying Carl’s name. The second was to imitate Shane saying, “Let me tell you something.” And the third was just to imitate Daryl grunting. Lol. All good fun.

Then they got to more trivia-like questions and this is where it got really good.

First question: who dropped the key to Merle’s handcuffs down the drainpipe? Answer of course was T-Dog. Honestly, I didn’t right away read into this as being TD. If anything, I just thought it was interesting that it concerned T-Dog, given all the weirdo stuff that’s happened lately about he and Emily being in the bonus episodes.

But given all the other questions they asked, I’m definitely side-eyeing it. We could see it as the beginning of a sequence where a character (Merle) disappeared and then reappeared several seasons later, alive and well. Of course there’s the key angle (Key Theory). And then the Emily/IronE thing.

Second question: What number did Shane wear on his necklace. (!!!) I can’t believe they actually asked that. Has everyone read @frangipanilove​’s Shane/22 theory. If you haven’t, do so HERE. But the point is, if you were ever skeptical about that theory, this just proved that it’s something they want us to pay attention to.  

Third question: I don’t remember how they asked it, but something about a grain Georgia exports. The answer was sorghum. Not a huge TD symbol, but given that grain can be turned into alcohol, and we saw it heavily in S6 around Denise….

Fourth question: What are Rick’s favorite statues at the airport doing? (This is a reference to the ones he discussed with Clara in 4x01.) The answer: playing leap-frog. (Frog = resurrection symbol.)

Fifth question: In what Atlanta hospital did Beth become a prisoner. Danai got it right.

Sixth question: Where, on his body, did the Termites start eating Bob? Again, not super TD, but of course Bob was a Beth proxy (X) and the fact that they focused on his missing leg is important, I think. (X)

Seventh question: What animal did Enid eat before she got to Alexandria. Answer: A turtle. (Turtle Symbolism.)

See how much TD stuff they included?

They asked what song Negan made Carl sing (You Are My Sunshine). Heaven knows TD had a heyday with that.

And there were a few that were kind of meh. What was the name of the woman at Alexandria who wanted a pasta machine (Ms. Nedermyer). And what did Deanna Monroe do before the apocalypse (congresswoman).

And there were other goofy ones about who would die first in other series (like Seinfield, the Simpsons, etc.)

Others I wrote down:

What trio saved Glenn and Tara in S4? (Abraham, Eugene, Rosita).

Whose house did Morgan stay in in ep 1? (I didn’t write down the answer, but no one knew it.)

Who was Eugene’s fake boss that he talked about? (T. Brooks Elison). I’m not going to go into this one too much here, but we (especially @wdway​) have been finding a RIDICULOUS amount of symbolism around Eugene, especially in past seasons. We didn’t always catch it before, but knowing what we know now, to go back and see the symbolism in those early episodes is jaw-dropping.

What tissue sample did Jenner accidentally destroy? (TS-19).

What fake name did the Gov give Tara and her sister originally. (Brian Heriot – side-eying that one, too. X.)

Then they did one where YNB would say a title and the actors had to say whether it was a real title or not. We can definitely read into some of these titles, but not all. The ones she named that were real were This Sorrowful Life, Dead or Alive Or, First Time Again, Twice as Far, A Certain Doom. The fake titles she gave were Beginnings End, You are Welcome, Gun Shy, Walker in the Well, A memory of Mercy, and The Grimiest Day Indeed. Lol.

In terms of the real ones, This Sorrowful Life was the ep where Merle died. Not only is he a character that disappeared and then returned to Daryl’s life, but Daryl and Beth discussed him in Still. Dead or Alive Or suggests resurrection. First Time Again and Twice as Far suggest a return or redo. And A Certain Doom was the CB issue where Andrea died.

Even the fake ones sort of imply something. Beginnings End sounds like Alpha and Omega. GUN shy. Walker in the Well is obviously supposed to be about the well walker in S2, but it also evokes water. Mercy was a title in S8, but I think a memory of mercy could apply to Beth. You get the idea.

So that’s pretty much all I have to say about it. I didn’t love all the political stuff, but the questions definitely felt purposefully TD to me. Thoughts? (Watch the video below.)

[resplendentgoldenwings]

Thoughts About Star Trek Discovery 3x06, Trust is a Two Way Street

After reading the synopsis and seeing reactions to the episode I must admit to having trepidation going into the episode. I was hoping as is of the case that fandom was overreacting and my concerns would be allayed when I watched.

They were not. 

First it must be acknowledged that the main plot of the episode feels extremely contrived. As a long time viewer of Star Trek similar conflicts have come up in previous shows without creating this type of contention and drama. In TNG Worf repeatedly left to pursue personal missions and other officers in Star Trek shows have done the same. 

Usually they just request leave if it conflicts with their duty and the captain grants it. In Disco though, as is often the case with Disco situation like blow up into unnecessary dramas. So I am first and foremost disappointed that the characters were put into this contrived ass situation in the first place.

That said I think what happened was interesting and the writing choices left me hoping that this is actually going some place good, time will tell I suppose.

That out of the way here are my thoughts on the episode. 

Saru Was Wrong

I want to start with Saru because he’s the captain, he’s the one with the rank and the power and therefore he is the one whose responsible. Saru was wrong Michael was wrong too but Saru’s error in some way is actually more important even though it seems smaller at first blush.

First let’s go back a moment to season 2. When Saru is on his death bed he asks Michael to attend him and cut off his ganglia. She’s hesitant and emotionally overwhelmed in the situation but he reassures her that it’s the right thing to do and even goes so far as to call her his sister.

So what happens when this sister goes to herself proclaimed brother with a problem? He shuts her down without a moment’s hesitation or consideration. Never mind that this man is important to her, never mind that he maybe got into trouble trying to help her with something that would benefit Starfleet and The Federation, nope fuck all that. Nope fuck all that, fuck everything we been through gotta impress this admiral. 

Now look I get it when you’re in the military you follow orders, but when you’re promoted to a leadership position you also have to think about the well being of your crew as well as cultivate the discernment to know what to know what is of value and what should be dismissed. The admiral himself pointed out that Saru should have brought it to him and chastised Saru for behaving like an automaton and blindly following orders. 

All that said two wrongs don’t make a right. 

As annoyed as I was with Saru I was also somewhat annoyed with Michael who also didn’t bother to exercise any other options or even trying to convince Saru otherwise. Honestly my irritation with this choice for her goes all the way back to s1. If you’re in an organization like this you don’t go outside the chain of command you work within it. She cares about Book and was obviously feeling a sense of urgency given that it took the ship three weeks to reach Discovery but she could have taken 30 minutes to try and exercise some other options, first trying to convince Saru, second she could have just gone over his head. 

I’m not going to go too far on this because most people can see where Michael was wrong.

With Friends Like These...

Tilly bothered me tremendously in this episode. I can’t help it, she just did. Someone pointed out in another discussion that Tilly’s thinking as community minded and it get that but it’s still not sitting well with me largely because of the focus on impressing this admiral --a new and unknown individual-- over someone you know and up until this point have trusted. It’s vaguely icky and puts me in mind of both Tilly and Saru’s behavior in season one. 

And one really has to question themselves when a Terran is a better friend than you..

 I’m not gonna go through the whole episode. I enjoyed the stuff with Book, especially when Michael and Book were gazing into each other’s eyes that was wonderful, the kiss, though. Sonequa really didn’t want to kiss that dude, dang. haha...

Facing the Music 

Once everything is settled Michael presents the black box to Saru and the two of them meet with Admiral Vance. The meeting is short and more or less as expected with Admiral Vance letting Michael chastise herself. However what jumps out at me in this scene is the way the admiral chastises Saru, questioning why he didn’t bring the mission to him and challenging Saru to be more than a mindless automaton.

Saru then proceeds to chastise Michael and temporarily relieve her of her command duties. The thing that stands out to me in Saru’s dialogue is that though he reflects that he erred in the situation he does not see that he erred in how he related to Michael instead he seems to question if he erred in asking her to serve as first officer in the first place. He dismisses the suggestion that perhaps he handled the situation poorly in the first place. 

This episode is in truth more telling about Saru as captain than it is about Michael as a person or a Starfleet officer. Michael as always choses the action that she deems to help the most people and harm the least. 

Saru and Michael together could be a great command team but Saru is either unwilling or unable to accept that he and Michael have complimentary strengths and weakness. For example Saru couldn’t figure out how to speak up to the admiral to keep the Disco crew together, it was Michael who challenged the admiral on that and rightfully so.  

This is why I said trust is a two way street. Michael was wrong but why should she trust Saru to have her back when so far hasn’t demonstrated that he does. When she needs something from him impressing the admiral is more important. 

It’s difficult to see where the narrative is going with this. In 3x03 we see a Michael who is questioning where she belongs, in 3x06 we come back to this question. In a reddit discussion someone questioned why Admiral Vance would even suggests that Saru erred in front of Michael since she’s his subordiante. 

It did make me wonder if that was poor writing or something else. One thing that occurs to me is that Vance is actually evaluating both of them as captain. For Starfleet in the 32nd century Discovery is a valuable asset, if a crew of randos from the 23rd century appeared from nowhere I’d certainly be doubting if I trusted them and if I wanted to leave something as valuable as that ship with its 23rd century crew tbh. 

If I found out the captain of that ship was an acting captain, who’d assumed command after serving as first officer under a Terran and then a captain for all of two years idk if I’d be satisfied that this person was actually ready to be captain. I think Michael’s mutiny was struck from the record so if he doesn’t have that info I could easily see him evaluating her for the position just as well especially since she seems more confident, assertive, thoughtful and creative. 

It would be interesting if this ultimately somehow leads to Michael being made captain at the end of this season. I’m not convinced that is where this is going but this rift has to be healed for the show to move forward and I don’t think this contrived plot was created just to pile on Michael again, at least I hope not. That theme is old, tired and should be over with. 

Overall I’d put this as the weakest episode of the season and while I am annoyed with the contrived plot I’ll be reserving judgement until the full storyline unfolds.

@michaelburnhamfanclub