Sunday, October 8, 2017

Star Trek: Discovery - Why not?

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.

Tuesday, October 3, 2017

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times. It was the age of technological advancement, of information and education, of strengthening identity. It was the epoch of multi-polarity, of burgeoning strongmen, and of geopolitical tension. It was the year 2017 A.D. 


http://www.straitstimes.com/opinion/how-strongmen-co-opted-democracy