Star Trek: Discovery Season 5
SPOILERS TOTAL. You've been warned.
501: Red Directive 2024 April 4
(First watched 2024-04-04) My interest was piqued when they mentioned an 800-year-old Romulan vessel. From the point of view of Discovery, that would put it very near the time frame of the earlier Trek shows. And sure enough, it seems the season is expanding on well-known TNG episode The Chase. They even made the star long-dead Romulan in this episode a continuation of a background extra from that episode. And Picard gets yet another mention in Discovery, it's at this point almost funny. But The Chase was an episode with a pretty Big revelation, and it's something novels and games have done more with. I think it's not a bad idea for a shorter season of Discovery.
The villain Moll sure seems to have similar hair and makeup style to Shin Hati from Star Wars: Ahsoka.
Star Trek movies sometimes try to have ground vehicle action scenes and I don't think it's been pulled off in a great way. Mostly feels superfluous? And in this era of big budget TV a show like Discovery can try to do it too. But I think this time it was actually pulled off decently? I think mixing up a motorcycle chase with the more Trek-traditional task of trying to protect a town from an avalanche gave it an extra layer of importance and credibility.
So elsewhere in the universe... spore drive development has been cancelled? I don't understand. They mention another new drive type that is continuing on, but unless spore drive research was a MASSIVE resource suck, why not let it continue? And considering Stamets was basically doing said research on his own on one ship for a few years, why would that be the case? It bit the Federation in the ass the last time they didn't have a spore drive to fall back on, and even in this episode we see how they keep running to Discovery in crises because it's the One Ship able to get to important destinations quick enough. So having a few more spore drives around seems like it would be useful?
I continue to enjoy the Saru/T'Rina relationship, and how strongly it comes across even though they both act so reservedly.
Fred! What a surprise, to see another Soong-type who had apparently been operating since the ~26th century? He had a very classic Data style rather than a look that would better blend in with biological people.
502: Under the Twin Moons 2024 April 4