Paramount+ Star Trek: Discovery - Official Thread (2 Viewers)

[Brandon Conway]

Well, welcome to the 21st century TV. Within the next 20 years everyone will simply sign up for the networks they want for $8-10/month each and regular over the air broacast will essentially be a relic.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

Well, welcome to the 21st century TV. Within the next 20 years everyone will simply sign up for the networks they want for $8-10/month each and regular over the air broacast will essentially be a relic.

Could very well be. Or maybe one person will sign up, and everyone else will just pirate that one person's download. I don't see a future for TV shows if they have to be chosen a la carte. Netflix is able to succeed because they offer a variety of new and old movies, new and old shows, and exclusive shows - I don't think a Netflix that only made original shows and didn't offer any other content would be nearly the success that it is today. Same for Amazon Prime. So I'm not sure how a CBS app that will have one or two original shows, plus content widely available elsewhere at better prices, can hope to succeed.

I imagine there's gonna be a lot of trial and error continuing, and some things will work, and some won't.

It's certainly frustrating to see CBS exploiting the Star Trek fandom in this way - since nothing else currently is on the CBS app, it becomes a monthly charge solely to Star Trek fans. I know they're concerned about the possibility of attracting a big enough audience for broadcast (and yet, the CW shows do just fine), but at times it seems they haven't even considered that maybe the audience that does exist doesn't want to be nickeled and dimed on this new show either.

 

[Brandon Conway]

There are going to be other CBS All Access shows alongside Star Trek. I believe one starts in March.

 

[Josh Steinberg]

That's nice to hear that Trek isn't going to be the first show debuting anymore - I think that was originally their plan, similar to how they launched UPN with Voyager - using Trek to start the service. Except, in the case of Voyager and UPN, you didn't need to pay extra to watch it, you just needed to change to a different channel.

Look, I want Trek to succeed, but as a big fan, I feel like I'm stuck paying for a service I don't want or need just to get this one program, and it feels like CBS knows that about people like me and just views me as a profit center. And yeah, I do know that that's how the world actually works. But it feels like such a blatant cash grab and it feels icky, for lack of a better word. And all of this, for what could be as few as ten measily episodes (Fuller was apparently insistent on 10, CBS wanted 13 - I imagine CBS will win that battle now)... it just feels like they're not really doing enough for what they're asking of fans.

 

[DaveF]

My cable bill will go up $15/mo when I re-up my two year contract. Just so I can add BBC. For Orphan Black.

I will pay more money for singular shows. But I have no reason to expect this new star trek will be worth a subscription. Plus, the annoyance of another service, and CBS's system is really bad.

But, we'll see. If it's great. And The Good Fight is great, I'll reconsider. Find some service to cancel and move the payments to CBS.

 

[TravisR]

Could very well be. Or maybe one person will sign up, and everyone else will just pirate that one person's download. I don't see a future for TV shows if they have to be chosen a la carte.

Yeah, even if you just get access to a network rather than a specific show, I don't see how networks will ever generate enough money from that to produce 2 or 3 hours of programming every night. With all the streaming sites that people already 'need', they certainly aren't going to be lining up to spend $100 a year for one channel that will only be able to afford to play their old TV shows and maybe one new very cheaply produced show a night.

 

[Brandon Conway]

Well, what will likely happen is that the various channels withe significant archived programming will benefit the most. So, for example, right no HBO Now benefits not only from the half dozen new shows, but from the back catalog of previous exclusives. So, while you can stream catalog CBS owned shows like the Star Treks, Twilight Zone, I Love Lucy etc. on Netflix and Amazon, I would wager in the future those deals will not be renewed, and the only streaming service that will have them (at least without a surcharge as part of the base service cost) will be CBS All Access.

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

My poor old Dad--a big fan of Star Trek--will be spinning that dial for hours, fruitlessly searching for that new Star Trek show he started watching. Cursing like the time CableVision dropped the Speed Channel on him. And when I tell him you'd actually have to have the Internet to even hope to see it from here on out, he'll say, "What, the Hershey Highway?" and then start a rant about The End Times.

Guess my Dad doesn't fall into their target audience.

 

[Sean Bryan]

So these episodes won't drop all at once, right? There will be new episodes on a weekly basis? But once it concludes all episode will be available to binge watch, correct?

If so, I'll pay a one time (one month) fee to watch the show and then drop it until I pay for another month a year later. I'm not playing along and "subscribing" to this on a regular basis. No thanks.

 

[Brandon Conway]

I believe they've stated that the episodes will be released weekly and not all at once.

Since it'll be on Netflix outside of North America I wouldn't be surprised to see it show up in Netflix in North America eventually, either.

 

[Carabimero]

I'm going to wait and watch the pilot before I decide whether to get CBS All Access. But I am leaning toward not getting it. I can hopefully wait to see the episodes on BD, since I will buy them anyway.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Michelle Yeoh Boards Star Trek: Discovery

The speculation is that she'll be playing the series lead, the Discovery's first officer.

 

[Brandon Conway]

Cool. I like Yeoh.

 

[Osato]

Michelle Yeoh Boards Star Trek: Discovery

The speculation is that she'll be playing the series lead, the Discovery's first officer.

Great news!!!

 

[Nelson Au]

She's a great selection! Speculation is guessing she wouldn't be the lead, but we'll see.

 

[Sam Favate]

She's great, and will be a nice addition to any cast. My guess is she'd be the captain, not the Lt. Commander who is said to be the lead. At age 54, she's just right for the captain.

She's also the best thing about any of the Pierce Brosnan Bond movies, and one of the best Bond girls ever.

 

[Jonathan Perregaux]

Not bad. She snagged James Bond and Star Trek franchises. Just cast her as a Jedi next for a trifecta.

 

[Nelson Au]

Ming Na is 53 and still fighting hard, so maybe Yeoh will be Kirk like and do some fighting.

Seriously I hope the best for this series with some really good intelligent stories and about the human condition.

 

[joshEH]

Fuck yes. All day long.

I now live in a world where Michelle Yeoh is in Star Trek, and Donnie Yen is in Star Wars. I still like this world in spite of everything that happened this year.

 

[NeilO]

By the way, Nicholas Meyer will be a guest at the Farpoint convention near Baltimore February 17-19.

I am still not planning on subscribing to CBS All Access. I might consider it more if they do some deal with Dish Network like Netflix has. I'll wait for Netflix or DVDs if it is any good.