Star Trek: Discovery
*****Spoilers Ahead*****
Synopsis:
Episodes 1 – 2:
Crew members of the USS Shen Zhou discover an unidentified object
in space that turns out to be deadly, eventually sparking a chain of decisions
and events that culminate in a full-scale war.
Episode 3:
Six months after the battle at the Binary Stars, former
first officer Michael Burnham, on the way to a prison facility, finds herself taken
on board the USS Discovery, but for what mission? Enter Captain Gabriel Lorca—witty,
stalwart, charismatic, unconventional, yet subtly dark.
3 Reasons To Spend
An Evening On Star Trek: Discovery
1. Excellent Scriptwriting
So says an enigmatic captain to his crew member in the TV
show:
“Your assumption that the Klingons were waiting in ambush at
the Binary Stars was predictive. You chose to do the right thing over and above
what was sanctioned, even at great cost to yourself. And that is the kind of
thinking that wins wars. The kind of thinking I need next to me. Universal law
is for lackeys. Context is for kings.”
With a script like that, how can Star Trek Discovery lose?
2. Complex,
well-developed characters, with (believable) emotional baggage, from diverse
ethnicities and social backgrounds.
a. Captain Phillipa Georgiou of the USS Shen Zhou (played by
Michelle Yeoh)—Chinese national (assumed); witty, bold, adventurous yet measured
in her decisions. Mentor to Michael Burnham.
b. First Officer Michael Burnham—African American; of human descent
but Vulcan upbringing; ambitious, logical, bold, witty, brash and a little
antagonistic towards the Chief Science Officer. A maverick. Parents were killed
in a Klingon attack.
c. Chief Science Officer Saru – Of Kelpien descent; cautious
and analytical.
d. T’ Kuvma – A Klingon of the House Kahless; terrorist by Federation
standards; tries to unite the Klingon tribes for war by appealing to their ethnicity;
represents Federation as a threat; claims that Federation’s objective is to
marginalize, subvert and/ or destroy Klingon culture and identity; bullied and
stigmatized as a child.
3. The use of Symbolism
A captain hands out a fortune cookie to a talented crew
member, representing the untold possibilities of the future.
The book, Alice in Wonderland, on the other hand, is used to suggest that logic does not always explain how the world works. Sometimes, up becomes down and left becomes right. Situations remain dynamic and inexplicable.
All in all, this is a promising, intelligent science-fiction yarn.
