Paramount+ Star Trek: Discovery - Official Thread (1 Viewer)

[Hanson]

After getting hammered with 90% bad press since Brian Fuller stepped down, ST: Discovery started emitting the stench of failure. In fact, it smelled like a turkey -- a giant, bloated, rotting turkey carcass that signaled vultures for miles around. If I were a betting man, I would put money on "stinks", even though the payout wouldn't be that great. Plus, I absolutely hated ST Beyond after enjoying the first two Abrams reboots (that's right, I enjoyed Into Darkness). So the prospect of Discovery stinking up the joint just seemed... inevitable.

So of course, I lov... well, maybe "loved" is a bit too much -- it's more like just a skosh under "loved it". I really, really, really liked it. A lot. Because there was so much I lov... really, really, really like. For starters, even with the funky "new" Klingons, it still felt like Trek. It felt a lot like ST: DS9 -- there's conflict, there's a series arc, and the Federation isn't a faultless entity. So like, being a thematic successor to DS9 is right in my wheelhouse, DS9 being the ne plus ultra of the Star Trek series. I cannot say more about Sonequa Martin-Green. I don't watch The Walking Dead, so this is my first time seeing her, and she absolutely shines in this role. I found her to be magnetic. And Saru is going to be the breakout character on the show -- Doug Jones steals almost every scene he's in.

But the most breathtaking part of Discovery is the production value -- the two part pilot looks like it was made with money. It is the most expensive looking TV show this side of Game of Thrones. The lighting, the camera work, the CGI, the sets, even the costumes -- it's mind boggling how rich and detailed and cinematic everything looks. Look, I happen to like the Orville, but that looks hella chintzy in comparison, like a Nintendo 64 compared to a PlayStation 5. I have no idea if Discovery will be forced to scale back from the pilot, but this is the most expensive looking show on TV right now, and it looks just as expensive as any of the Abrams movies. I know most people don't watch shows just because they look they cost a lot, but... I am crazy impressed.

There were some niggles -- the fight scenes were lame, which makes no sense considering Michelle Yeoh is involved. There were scenes so packed with exposition that I kind of drifted off a bit. And yeah, the Klingon scenes moved like molasses. But it's amazing how much they got right from the jump.

I'll probably watch the whole thing again. I guess that means I loved it after all.

BTW, I giggled inside every time they mentioned the USS Shenzhou because it reminded me of the pegging epsiode of Broad City. "It's a Shinjo". Every. Time.

 

[joshEH]

In short: a dog. Stiff acting, some of the worst writing in Star Trek history, and dutch angles for the sake of dutch angles up the wazoo. Proof Trekkies will buy anything as long as it isn't wasn't made by their mortal enemy J.J. Abrams (although Discovery owes way too much to his house style).

"Some of the worst writing in Star Trek history"?

Dude, rewatch "Shades of Grey," "Threshold," and "The Emperor's New Cloak" first, and then get back to us again with that tired bullshit.

 

[Sam Favate]

Error No. 1: A Klingon who agrees to a cease fire?

Error No. 2: And then who violates that agreement? No sense of honor.

 

[Neil Middlemiss]

Error No. 1: A Klingon who agrees to a cease fire?

Error No. 2: And then who violates that agreement? No sense of honor.

Or, he's more like Duras than the honorable Klingons we saw more of once the Klingon Empire had come together. Duplicitous Klingons acting without honor are not uncommon (as the entire Duras recurring storyline from TNG shows us). But they are the exception, not the rule.

 

[Gary Seven]

I would pay 5.99 a month if it was commercial free but apparently not. I will wait till it is more widely available.

 

[Greg.K]

But the most breathtaking part of Discovery is the production value -- the two part pilot looks like it was made with money. It is the most expensive looking TV show this side of Game of Thrones. The lighting, the camera work, the CGI, the sets, even the costumes -- it's mind boggling how rich and detailed and cinematic everything looks. Look, I happen to like the Orville, but that looks hella chintzy in comparison, like a Nintendo 64 compared to a PlayStation 5. I have no idea if Discovery will be forced to scale back from the pilot, but this is the most expensive looking show on TV right now, and it looks just as expensive as any of the Abrams movies. I know most people don't watch shows just because they look they cost a lot, but... I am crazy impressed.

Production values are outstanding. The CGI is not as good as, but set designs are much better than the Abrams movies, IMO. Though it all really makes it tough to buy this show as a TOS prequel. I wish it was set after TNG, pretty sure the splinter faction of hardline Klingons story would work just as well then.

 

[Tino]

Just finished the second episode and I can say without reservation that this was my favorite premiere of all the post original series premieres.

Although TNG was excellent, I was disappointed after the premiere in 1987. Also disappointing was the Enterprise premiere. I liked DS9 and Voyager but I am shocked that I enjoyed Discovery more than all of them.

For me, everything worked. The visuals, effects,music and especially the terrific story and great acting. Across the board. If they had released this theatrically I bet it would have been a huge hit.

Thrilled to have Star Trek back on TV with a show deserving of that iconic name.

 

[Patrick Sun]

Isn't the budget around $8 million per episode for ST?

 

[Tino]

Here's what critics thought of 'Star Trek: Discovery'

http://mashable.com/2017/09/25/star-trek-discovery-review-roundup/

Overwhelmingly positive by the way.

 

[Tino]

STAR TREK: DISCOVERY: SEASON 1 (2017)

TOMATOMETER
88%
Critic Consensus: Although it takes an episode to achieve liftoff, Star Trek: Discovery delivers a solid franchise installment for the next generation -- boldly led by the charismatic Sonequa Martin-Green.

 

[Dave Upton]

Isn't the budget around $8 million per episode for ST?

Yes, $8 million per episode, though somehow CBS managed to convince Netflix to pay $6 million per episode for the international streaming rights - so I can see them sticking to this high production budget, which is FANTASTIC news.

 

[jcroy]

Yes, $8 million per episode, though somehow CBS managed to convince Netflix to pay $6 million per episode for the international streaming rights - so I can see them sticking to this high production budget, which is FANTASTIC news.

If Netflix is indeed willing to pay $6 million per episode (out of the $8 million total per episode), then I'm guessing Netflix considers Star Trek to be something of a "holy grail" in the flat-rate streaming business.

 

[Johnny Angell]

I would pay 5.99 a month if it was commercial free but apparently not. I will wait till it is more widely available.

I sympathize with you on this, because I think CBS offers the least of all streaming services. I signed up for the commercial free version, but once the season is over for Discovery, we'll cancel and then sign up again for the next season.

Drat that they're not releasing the whole season at once. If I were them, I'd do that too, because there's not enough there. You can't even see every episode of a CBS series from past seasons.

 

[Sam Favate]

Overwhelmingly positive by the way.

Why on earth would CBS embargo reviews until after the show aired?

 

[jcroy]

Why on earth would CBS embargo reviews until after the show aired?

To minimize "nerdrage" from taking over twitter, facebook, message boards, reddit, etc ..... ?

 

[TravisR]

To minimize "nerdrage" from taking over twitter, facebook, message boards, reddit, etc ..... ?

That's probably the answer. Any info about this show was not particularly well received and reviews would have resulted in the same response only worse because reviews would have covered the entire thing rather than one element. No one wants bad pre-release buzz so the embargo was probably the best move.

 

[jcroy]

Right now, CBS is more interested in promoting All Access than they are for discs. They know Star Trek fans are likely to pay a little more for the privilege of watching Star Trek than most other fans are for most other shows. They're looking at their sister network, Showtime, and how something like "Twin Peaks: The Return" didn't do much for broadcast ratings, but had unprecedented streaming numbers for the company -- record numbers of people signed up for the streaming version of Showtime to watch that show. That's what CBS wants to duplicate with Star Trek on All Access. As long as Star Trek Discovery is exclusive to All Access, CBS can use it to promote the service. The show is currently scheduled to run from November to March, I believe, but if they keep it exclusive on All Access for a year or longer, they'll always be able to use it for subscriptions. If the show finishes airing in March, and a DVD came out in April or May, what reason would there be for anyone to sign up for All Access? But if the show finishes in March but remains exclusive to All Access for months or years, they'll be able to use it to drive new subscriptions even when they don't have new content.

Once their data starts showing that people aren't watching it on the service anymore, or that new paid members aren't signing up specifically to see it, that's when they'll have an incentive to put it out on disc. Then, they'll get a whole new sales boost from people who saw it on All Access but want to own the physical item, as well as from people who don't do streaming or who didn't want to take out a new subscription. But CBS cares far more about launching All Access and developing that service than individual disc sales. It's no different than when Voyager was used to launch UPN.

(Some wild silly speculation).

What would be really amusing is if the AACS + bluray consortium attempt to bribe CBS (with a huge infusion of cash) into making Star Trek Discovery into a 4Kbluray exclusive for several years.

If something really silly like this ever happens (however remote), it might be like killing two birds with one stone for CBS. Making it a 4Kbluray exclusive might limit the "cannibalization" of All Acces + Netflix. (ie. The 4Kbluray encryption drm system has not been cracked yet).



IIRC, didn't Toshiba + the hd-dvd constortium pay CBS/Paramount a huge bribe more than a decade ago, to release an hd restored Star Trek TOS on hd-dvd?

Perhaps they might try again?

 

[jcroy]

To induce even more "nerdrage", such a (hypothetical) 4Kbluray exclusive release of Star Trek Discovery could be done as "kickstarter" campaigns for each season.

 

[Dave Upton]

This is also a show with the production budget to look good in 4K, unlike many others. The level of detail in the uniforms and props is staggering. I could actually see more and more until my face was 2" from the armor at the convention.

 

[Johnny Angell]

To minimize "nerdrage" from taking over twitter, facebook, message boards, reddit, etc ..... ?

Wasn't there a bunch of nerdrage over casting the two leads as females? I was reading that somewhere.