This week’s episode of Star Trek: Discovery was directed by Star Trek: The Next Generation vet Jonathan Frakes, making it his second for the series with a third time helming coming up later in the season. In a number of new interviews, the TNG vet talks about “New Eden,” being part of Star Trek again, and where it is headed, including the new Picard series.
[WARNING: ARTICLE CONTAINS MINOR SPOILERS]
How Discovery’s exploration of faith fits with Roddenberry’s vision
“New Eden” highlighted Discovery’s second season theme of science versus faith. The Hollywood Reporter asked Jonathan Frakes how this storyline would mesh with Gene Roddenberry’s secular humanistic vision of the future. Frakes noted that the show was not necessarily embracing faith as much as discussing it:
I’m not sure they’re embracing the idea of faith as much as they’re embracing the conversation about science versus faith. It’s like the Scopes trial. The idea we’re all naive to believe there’s not a higher power out there applies to the 24th century as much as it does to the 21st century. We’ve evolved as a culture a lot since Gene Roddenberry was with us. We have to stay current on so many levels, in the filmmaking and storytelling. The moral compass of the country seems to have a bit more of a liberal bend than it did back in the day. Gene comes from the 1960s; he was an old hippie! [Laughs.]
Frakes expanded on this with Deadline, describing how he and showrunner Alex Kurtzman discussed how the theme would fit in with Roddenberry’s vision:
When [Alex Kurtzman] took over the show, essentially, we had a really productive sit-down where he explained the arc of the season, essentially, and we talked about Trek in general and my guys and about Roddenberry. He was interested in all of it, and it was a pleasure really talking to him and listening to him. He’s got a great curiosity but he also has great vision. Gene Roddenberry was an atheist so he didn’t believe in heaven, of course, but you know if he was looking down on all of this I think he would be very, very pleased with the hands that Star Trek is in these days.
Jonathan Frakes with Gene Roddenberry on set for TNG’s “Future Imperfect”
How Discovery is mixing canon with big screen thrills
Frakes also talked to Deadline about what it is like working on Discovery and how they are blurring the line between TV and film:
You’re given the time you need, the money you need, the equipment you need; and the quality of the department heads and the way Alex Kurtzman and the people running the show, all of it encourages you to “shoot to thrill.” And to not be afraid to try things and to do anything you can to make it special. You’re limited only by your imagination. And I think that’s an extension of the way that J.J. Abrams’ movies were. The freedom of camera movement and the exciting and dramatic use of light and color is something that audiences have come to get used to. Now, with Discovery also embracing the Roddenberry canon in a more valid way, it’s got the best of both worlds. I’m proud to be part of it.
Jonathan Frakes on the bridge of the USS Discovery
Tying Tilly’s friend May to moment from season one
One of the intriguing mysteries seen in “New Eden” was the appearance of the character May, who could only be seen by Tilly and revealed to be her old friend who had died. Speaking to THR, Frakes seems to confirm the theory that this ghost friend is related to a moment during the first season where a single spore from the USS Discovery’s last stash of mycelium (before it was replenished) was highlighted as it landed on Tilly’s shoulder.
At the end of season one, an entity actually entered Tilly. It looked like a green spark, like Tinkerbell, that landed on her. I thought there was some aspect of that “magic” that allowed Tilly to have what we perceive as hallucinations about her childhood and this character who she can only see. She has the difficulty of realizing that nobody else sees it, but she doesn’t want to admit it. And she’s already very socially complicated as a person.
Is this little spark from season one Tilly’s new friend May?
Patrick Stewart’s Star Trek series is not a TNG reunion, Picard is done with Starfleet
The subject of the upcoming Jean-Luc Picard series also came up in a couple of the interviews. Speaking to Deadline, Frakes noted how this show wasn’t going to be like Star Trek: The Next Generation:
The feeling is we would love to be part of it. But the feeling is also that it’s Patrick’s show. [Laughs.] Having said that, I can’t imagine a world where there’s no reference to what happened to the rest of the Next Generation cast. Patrick isn’t playing Capt. Jean-Luc Picard this time, he’s done with [that phase of his career in] Starfleet in this show. That’s about the only thing I do know about the show. Patrick and I had a steak dinner a couple of weeks ago and this man, who I’ve known for 31 years now, is so excited about this show he’s like a little kid. It’s fabulous! He’s thrilled and excited to be invited into the writer’s room and he’s a producer on the show and he’s part of the development of the story arc. It’s terrific. I mean he is a guy who is fully engaged.
Speaking to THR, Frakes revealed he was not able to talk about what role he has in the new Picard series, if any, but he did talk in general about the upcoming show:
I’m thrilled. Patrick is absolutely jazzed about this. He’s been in the room with the writers breaking the stories, and he has not had that privilege before in his career. It has motivated him and excited him to no end. I’m really looking forward to it. Picard 20 years later is a fascinating guy. He was a fascinating guy since we’ve met him.
Jonathan Frakes with Patrick Stewart at Calgary Expo 2017 (Calgary Sun)
Regrets not directing Nemesis
Vulture has a nice long interview with Frakes, giving a retrospective on his career as a director starting with Star Trek: The Next Generation on TV and into the TNG films. The man known as “Two takes Frakes” discussed how in the ’90s and into the 2000s he strived to move beyond just working on Star Trek, however that did leave him with a regret after directing two TNG films and but returning for the final one, saying:
I would have loved to have done Nemesis, but it seemed like, “Really? That’s all you’re going to do, is Star Trek movies?” It’s glib to say now. I wish I had done Nemesis.
Frakes has dozens of directing credits outside of Star Trek, but was asked by Vulture what it is like to return to directing both Star Trek: Discovery (and the Trek-inspired The Orville) again. He replied:
It’s come full circle. I started on Star Trek, and now I’m primarily employed making Star Trek shows. It’s been very, very good to me.
Jonathan Frakes as William Riker in Star Trek Nemesis (2002)
Behind the scenes with Frakes
CBS has released another video featuring Jonathan Frakes behind the scenes directing the Star Trek: Discovery second season episode “New Eden.” It features members of the cast talking about Frakes, including Ethan Peck who didn’t appear in “New Eden,” but likely appears in the second episode Frakes directed later in the season.
And in case you missed it, here is the other video featuring Frakes that CBS released earlier this week to promote “New Eden.”
Star Trek: Discovery is available exclusively in the USA on CBS All Access. It airs in Canada on Space and streams on CraveTV. It is available on Netflix everywhere else. The second season debuted on All Access and Space on Thursday, January 17th, 2019, and on Netflix January 18, 2019.
Keep up with all the Star Trek: Discovery news at TrekMovie.
The gravy train.
Picard the Archeologist, maybe? That was always a huge passion of his.
Or Picard the Instructor, or maybe Picard the Desk-Admiral. But if I were to venture a guess, I’d say that’s just CBS’s little “That’s what you’re allowed to say”-paper speaking here – a slightly more cryptic way of saying “It’s not an all-out TNG-revival”.
Now imagine, if I were to promote a Star Trek-film and I would say: “Yes, Kirk is a central character, but it might not be Captain James T. Kirk, he might not be commanding the Enterprise anymore, he’s past that period in his career” and that film turned out to be TMP – there’s really no part of that statement that’s incorrect, but it’s still just a way of saying that the franchise acknowledges the passage of time.
I’d love to see this. “Captain’s Holiday” and “Gambit” are my favourite Picard episodes.
I haven’t thought about that! Exciting idea, I would love to see that integrated in the show.
Dune buggy test driver…
That would be cool
I’d like to see Picard as President of the Federation.
I said that in an earlier thread. It wouldn’t have to include previous TNG cast members, but what a concept. There’s a novel ‘Articles of the Federation’ if I’m not mistaken that highlighted President Nan Baco’s administration and it was a great book. I hope we see Picard as President of the Federation.
I would very much be here for Star Trek: The West Wing, which is essentially what Articles of the Federation is- right down to the tone of the book.
I loved that book too. A show set in the Palais de la Concorde about Picard running the Federation would be awesome. Plus, it would mean that we could see Picard back in France.
If they follow the plot of Countdown – which Kurtzman was part of – that is a real possibility.
During the Hobus Event Picard had taken Sarek’s role as the Vulcan Ambassador and has a central role. It isn’t out of the question that the next step is for him to be President. It ties in well with the Romulan angle too.
The West Wing (Of the UFP Presidential Mansion)
“I’d like to see Picard as President of the Federation.”
Me too. There’s a lot of exciting “big picture” stuff the show could portray — just think of the scale of it all. Basically a futuristic interstellar version of The West Wing, as others here have also suggested. Plus maybe some of the better aspects of the Bourne films if there’s a Section 31/Starfleet Intelligence element to the story too.
Frakes drops some of the biggest hints regarding the Picard Show here and we can see it may not be the tone after all that will make this show “very different from TNG” but the setting. If Picard has left Starfleet for good, that would explain of course why none of his fellow TNG crewmates would be with him anymore (save for the occasional guest visit). It seems CBS may not want two live action ship shows on the air at the same time. I also suspect it could be about a second career of his as archeologist, his second love he regretted to not have taken sometimes…
“Now, with Discovery also embracing the Roddenberry canon in a more valid way, it’s got the best of both worlds.”
That’s it! That’s what I love about DISCO. Visually, they are doing the KT stuff, but it’s canon this time, what happens matters to the Trek universe.
It’s not just so much better than opening up a new timeline. It’s also a lot more tangible that rebooting comic book stuff time and again, like they did with Batman, Superman, Spidey, and soon the X-Men…
I’m much more willing to justify visual canon flaws and occassional one-liners that contradict previous Trek lore than having to adapt to a new timeline every ten years. Retconning and Abrogation, instead of flushing everything that’s come before down the toilet…
I think people have come to understand that DISCO is a visual reboot, although I cannot for the life of me understand why the producers simply didn’t say so in the first place.
Yeah, the producers seem to be coy about it being a visual reboot, never coming right out and saying it. That’s why I think there may still be an explanation that they are saving for a big reveal at some point. Maybe it has to do with the Defiant going back in time to the Mirror Universe? Or a result of the Temporal Cold War? And Section 31 has to use the spore drive to fix the timeline? And maybe that’s when they create the Department of Temporal Investigations? Or, maybe it’s just a visual reboot! Ha!
That makes no sense.
Biggest mistake was not just coming out and being honest. They tried hard to appease everyone, which I would think by now studios have learned is impossible.
What I used to tell fans on another website years ago was that they should imagine ALL Trek shows are like historical re-enactments of real “future events”: the visuals may not always be true to what really happened, even some of the events may be slightly inaccurate.
19 year old spoilers, but Babylon 5 did that during the end credits of the final episode of the series, calling the entire series a “Special Documentary”.
The new Klingons in Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979 were total visual reboots from TOS Klingons, and they provoked just as much uproar as Discovery’s Klingons are doing now. But that was Roddenberry’s choice. He said in interviews that he wanted to improve Trek’s visuals as technology advanced, and he personally saw no problem with that. The Orville is a goofy comedy, so being on ’60’s cardboard sets doesn’t hurt it’s credibility. Discovery has to be cinematic to be taken seriously.
Except back when the Klingons were updated for the features there was no “uproar”. There was a lot of head scratching but I think most understood what was going on there. And the look had yet to become the iconic Klingon look. It’s one thing to change it after 3 or 4 single episode appearances over 3 years. It’s another to do a radical makeover after nearly 40 years of embracing the Klingon look.
And have you seen The Orville lately? There is no comedy to be found anymore. But their sets are reminiscent of TNG’s. Do you consider theirs “cardboard”? Try plywood. Discovery’s are made from that too, btw.
“It’s one thing to change it after 3 or 4 single episode appearances over 3 years. It’s another to do a radical makeover after nearly 40 years of embracing the Klingon look.”
This is just another excuse and a case of moving the goal posts. One episode, four episodes, four seasons, or four decades. A retcon is a retcon.
“This is just another excuse and a case of moving the goal posts. One episode, four episodes, four seasons, or four decades. A retcon is a retcon.”
So much for context. That argument is ridiculous. 3-5 episodes vs 350 episodes and 9 movie appearances. No one is moving goal posts.
Few people got up in arms about how the Trill’s one appearance in TNG was radically changed to look like a totally different species makeup from a totally different TNG episode. There’s a huge difference between one TV appearance and 176+ TV appearances and at least one film appearance in the case of a Trill.
That’s a go to argument for anyone who has been cornered. You know no one is moving any goal posts and you know there is a HUGE difference.
They have said that very thing all along in the first season. It was mentioned often in the TM articles to. They have said that it was a visual reboot from the start. They haven’t been coy about it.
True, Fuller sad that from day one.
And yet they ALSO continued to say that visuals would “synch up” with TOS eventually. It was double speak, and it confused people.
Um… They didn’t say that the visuals would sync up. They said the canon would as well as SOME visuals. I wasn’t confused in the slightest. Maybe you just need to reread things. I know that when people dislike something, they tend not to catch everything that is said.
No, they also talked visuals. Hence the new/old Klingon ship in season 2, and them suddenly now having hair. I’m not criticizing the show here, I don’t care if they visually change everything.
I’m critical of the way they handled it in the press, which is really what caused the problems. They very much did say early on that they would explain the visual changes, and things would synch up visually. They’re so afraid of upsetting people that they speak out of both sides of their mouths.
Nope, that is just your impression. People that are generally negative about the show always try to find fault or incomprehension somewhere in what people say.
Excuse me, CR? I’ve been the most positive on Discovery on this website, to the point of being accused of blind worship. Maybe you need to check yourself a little.
Unfortunately, for some people, canon is not only the history, it is how things look. And when you have people who claim Discovery “violates canon”, what they are generally referring to is the visual aspect.
@HubcapDave — correct. They have otherwise done nothing that violates canon.
The issue with that is for many visual canon IS canon just as the narrative is. I mean if the new Spock showed up green and a mullet people would be up in arms about it lol. No one would be idiotic enough to do that but to many people changing certain iconic looks DOES feel that extreme to them. The Klingons the biggest example. Yes, they have been changed in the past but after 30 years of that change, to radically change them again is sacrilege to some.
Not everyone will see it that way because none of this is etched in stone and why this issue is so divisive because art is subjective in nature. Just because they tell people its suppose to be the same but look different doesn’t mean people will just accept that either.
And I think they realized that early on and why they keep saying it will all eventually fit into canon. Again, if its visually suppose to be the same canon now, then there is no reason to make it ‘fit’ later, right? You can’t have it both ways.
Also to claim they will “make it fit” means their tech would have to seriously devolve over the course of the show. It’s absurd.
Now the show looks to be improving. But I feel that first season and the decisions that were made back then will be a bit of an albatross for this for as it continues. Even if it starts to rival TOS in terms of stories and characters.
Yes and we know its no way thats going to happen, especially as the tech has only gotten MORE advance at the start of season 2, not less. Now they have some kind of Tony Stark replicated EV suit. Its like someone saw Infinity War and got inspired. So no I don’t buy they are going to de-evolve anything. That’s what I originally thought too which would’ve been a big mistake on its own.
I think for them, its going to ‘fit’ by bringing in some of the look of the era more but its clearly not trying to match TOS in any tangible way tech or hardware wise. Its just trying to draw a bridge between the two universes, like the color scheme on the Enterprise when Burnham was at Spock quarters but clearly a different looking ship from the original. So it may satisfy some but my guess is if fans were still bothered that TOS didn’t have a more domineering influence on episode one, I doubt they will be that much more convinced by episode 50.
The best way is just to tell more true to life Trek stories and make the characters more developed and likable until it comes to the point they won’t care how much it fits or not. But the little effort they are doing now is better than nothing at least. Again, if they did just a little bit of this in season one, it would probably be less vitriol today.
Which again (sorry this has become a broken record) means the best choice for them was just to say it’s a rebooted Trek universe. Then ALL of the canon issues vanish except for those who refuse to accept the concept of a reboot to begin with.
Don’t feel bad since I play the same broken record lol. Yes it should’ve just been rebooted from the start. I guess there is some fear fans may not look at it as ‘real’ Trek but my god have we become this delusional? None of it is real so what difference does it make? Of course everything happening in Discovery isn’t erasing people’s TOS blu ray’s either but its just ridiculous to many they have to somehow tell themselves they are both suppose to be the same if you ignore they look or act nothing alike. That was the entire context of white Khan in a nutshell and we see how well that worked out lol. But here we are.
I want to add that the Iron Man-esque EV suit with helmets popping up out of nowhere really bothered me for some goofball reason. I buy it in the Marvel comic book land. But it feels amazingly out of place in a Star Trek setting. I’d rather see them use the Life Support Belts that appeared in TAS.
Somewhat correct, Hubcap. Sure, the uniforms and the tech are CERTAINLY not in line with canon. Nor is the general appearance of, well, everything but the phasers. But there are a number of character and situational canon violations as well.
If the look and feel of the Discovery universe evoked what the era was supposed to look like would it still be a “visual reboot”?
that statement makes no sense and is pretentious. Discovery isn’t more ‘valid’ and canon just because it is retconning tos instead of showing an alternate reality. They are both canon, both are reboots. Perhaps the movies are a more clean one, not to mention honest. But it is all canon therefore all valid. They just aren’t allowed to use that timeline too otherwise they would’ve done that too.
and leave Roddenberry alone.
Right. Visual reboot means different universe. If it looks different (carrot peeler nacelle struts), it is a different universe. And the visual style they have have embraced is the lens flare, ship bigger on the inside nonsense that made the Abrams movies of no interest to watch.
And I am not convinced it is the same as TOS in terms of events or characters or physical laws (Klingon war,Sarek, Kelvin warp). But it is all canon, since the owners of Star Trek are producing it and showing it on TV (or streaming, which I take to be equivalent), just a different universe.
I am still not sure why people have a hard time with that, saying ‘it’s canon, just a visual reboot’. Different universe, Star Trek is full of them, this is just one more. There is no shame in it. >;>}
“Visual reboot means different universe.”
Nope! You clearly don’t understand the term. But nice try!
Keep telling yourself all that.
.. what concerns me and other fans I’ve spoken with about this and where some of us has at least tried to give it a chance, but just can not get into it was frakes talked with kurtzman who asks him to tell him about roddenberry and his vision.. like he’s never even considered before and ironically why fans have said from the beginning, this isn’t gr’s trek. is he now finally listening to the voices of the true fans of trek, thinking he may need to change it and make it gr’s star trek? no, probably not. ironically kurtzman is doing what berman wanted to do, use the name star trek and just write something knowing some people would still buy tickets
Who the hell are true fans? Is trek a cult now?
What he really means are gatekeepers. I’ve been watching Trek since i was a little kid in the 70s and have seen every moment of every iteration (excepting the animated series), and I love Discovery. Am I somehow not a “true fan” because of that?
I’ve seen every show, but I really don’t care much for TOS,TNG,or VOY. I still consider myself a fan though.
I’m a true fan. I like Disco.
Just because you dislike something I do doesn’t mean either of us are less of a fan of Star Trek.
The problem all these writers have is that they do not appreciate that there were two Roddenberry’s – 60s Roddenberry was pretty much a “Wagon Train to the Stars” conservative where, see that phaser – it’s a gun, the Federation is the United States/NATO engaging the Communists (Klingons) even in Vietnam (Piece of the Action). The ship has a chapel because everyone pretty much has similar beliefs and non-beliefs as today which isn’t really the point of the show with a healthy dose of respect and tolerance. Today’s human succeeds tomorrow complete with miners and a disdain for bureaucracy. The results was Wagon Train to the Stars Trek where our tech ain’t so hot, we don’t always win and half the aliens in the universe have a lesson for us. 90s Roddenberry hates capitalism, the Federation is a great collective and the capitalists are the evil Ferengi(who believe it or not were supposed to be the Klingons of TNG). Man has evolved and religion is stupid and non-tolerated. The result is utopia Trek where we are perfect, our tech rocks, we pretty much always will win and we show the aliens how to live. What ends up happening is the writers start with utopia Trek and it quickly becomes boring. So then they try to add some Wagon Train to the Stars Trek, but some internally reject Wagon Train to the Stars, so it ends up being some convoluted Section 31, mirror universe can’t help but make the bridge way too big for no reason Trek that is the jack of all trades but the master of none. That being said, I am enjoying Discovery – it’s as wagon train to the stars as we are going to get given the state of entertainment today. TNG Utopia Trek fans can be happy with it too, just convince yourself they are learning the wrongs of their ways.
You repeat the ‘wagon train to the stars’ like its tattooed on your forehead or something. Discovery is NOT that! You can’t have a super duper magical spore drive that can leap you 60,000 light years in a few seconds with a very advanced and large ship that 24th century ships would envy and think it was going to be like TOS.
And lots of people love TNG for the very reasons you don’t. You don’t have to like it, but for ME that’s Star Trek. And its not utopia. Yes, Earth is ‘paradise’ as Sisko once pointed out but the galaxy was still a very messed up place. Explain Turkana IV in the 24th century then? That was Tasha Yar’s home planet. That place sounded like the city I grew up in, except it was an entire planet lol. People mistake the Federation with the rest the alpha quadrant.
And Picard was very strict about the PD, in other words, he never tried to tell anyone how to live if they weren’t part of the Federation. He would certainly say his peace when he was dealing with idiots, but then they would just warp out and the society they left would just go on as before because he believed the opposite of what you’re saying because its NOT their jobs to play god. I can cite dozens of episodes where he did just that (one being ‘Legacy’ that was set on Turkana IV). I don’t know where people get this idea about Picard, but its completely false. The episode Symbiosis makes that very clear. And I was never bored (OK, Data’s Day has always dragged a bit for me).
They only built two Crossfield type ships. Both experimental for spore drives. That’s why they huge. One is loss and we might not know what will happen to Discover. She might use the spore drive one last time and disappear to another dimension or Universe or galaxy. To me Trek is Trek. If don’t watch and put out two cents this franchise will die. Look what happen to BattleStar Galatica
I’m not arguing against that. My only point is this show isn’t like TOS or the others where its just making its way through space planet by planet, system by system meeting new life or solving problems. It uses a technology that can take it literally anywhere it wants in seconds. I just find it funny it keeps getting repeated ‘Wagon train through the stars’ as if thats what Discovery is doing when its not. The show’s first season had literally nothing to do with exploration or making new discoveries, zip in fact. Second season it still has NOTHING to do with actual exploration, ie, hopping to new worlds, but it is more about discovering at least via the seven bursts.
Discovery has never felt the ship was in danger being ‘on the frontier’, once like the others. There is no real danger when you don’t have to worry about going through dangerous or unknown space but can simply zap around it or teleport them out of a skirmish.
TNG, Enterprise and especially Voyager was about Wagon train to the Stars. Discovery is more like DS9 and its there to solve a specific mission, at least the frst two seasons. It doesn’t mean it won’t explore at all like New Eden showed us, but its not about exploration the same like TOS and the others were.
And I think partly because writers might feel today’s audience would be bored if they did the basic TOS/TNG structure where you just move to a new place every week without having a bigger picture attached.
“best of both worlds”
“fully engaged”
I see what you did there, Frakesy.
And what about Q being in TNG+? Gene’s TNG established a god-like species, so DISCO does the same in its own original way. Micelial network could be something like Q-continuum home dimension…
I can’t remember which episode Frakes directed in the first season, but I do recall thinking that it just felt more like Trek than most of the rest. I don’t think you can fake that sort of feel for what you’re doing; I think this show needs it, and so if Frakes were to direct five or six per season, that’d be fine by me.
Now, let’s get LeVar Burton and Roxann Dawson and Robert Duncan McNeill in here, too!
Frakes only directed one episode last season, the first Mirror Universe episode (and probably my second best episode last season).
And yes I agree, let’s get Burton, Dawson and McNeill in there too. All have become veteran directors in their own right post Star Trek.
I read an article last season that implied they’re limiting the old guard directors from participating. That was why so many were doing The Orville.
I think it was that they wanted a more diverse group of directors (more minorities and women).
So bring on Dawson!
One of my favourite Trek actor-cum-directors was Avery Brooks. He had a great visual flair. I can’t see him coming back though.
Sadly I think Brooks is done with the franchise in general. He seemed to have moved on. He still does conventions and stuff like ‘The Captains’ but he’s never seem interested in being part of the franchise again. And thats totally fine of course. Brooks had a very successful acting and teaching career before Star Trek, and had one after.
Miss Sisko. Very under appreciated for being a top 3 captain and it rotates with him and Picard depending my mood
In Frakes we trust!! :)
I value this guy so much because he doesn’t just love being part of Star Trek but he truly understands it. I’m happy Kurtzman is listening to him and bouncing things off of him. Especially now that they have lost all their veteran Trek writers and producers although Kirsten Beyer seems to really know her stuff. But its nice to have a true Trek vet whose been a part of it for decades both in front of and behind the camera. Maybe that’s why New Eden turned out so well and was such a big hit for fans.
And he better appear as Riker on the Picard show dammit or people WILL riot! >:(
In Frakes We Trust?
I like the guy, I think he’s a decent director, and a great spokesperson for Trek, but at the end of the day he’s a company man who will do whatever the studio wants him to do, and say whatever they want him to say. That’s not a criticism, I don’t blame the guy, he owes his career (and pretty much his life) to Trek. But i think it’s a mistake to put your trust in a yes-man.
With that attitude you can say that about anybody then. All I know is yes man or not he seems to have a firm grasp of what Trek is, very passionate about it and has said when he was unhappy with an episode or a movie as he just did about Nemesis. I don’t know what is the ‘mistake’, either I will like what he does or doesn’t, right? Fortunately I usually like it, like this last episode especially.
He’s got a great sense of humour. He absolutely takes the pee out of his own movie, Insurrection, on the commentary lol.
“you can say that about anybody then.”
No you can’t. That’s a ridiculous assertion. My point is that whatever grasp he might have is undermined by the fact that if they want to him to subvert what Trek is, he’ll do that. If you’ve ever worked in business, you surely know you can’t trust a Yes Man.
I meant anyone who works on the show and happens to always say nice things about it and only high praise you can question if they are just being a yes man or not, that’s what I mean. Everyone on Discovery only says the most glowing things about everything and everyone in every interview done: the writing, the production, stories, their coworkers, the catering, and on and on. It doesn’t stop others from trusting what they say is true about it, even when we know its mostly PR.
In Frakes case, he’s been part of the franchise for decades now and has commented or discussed every aspect of it from TOS through Enterprise and has never had a problem saying how he felt about something, even admitting bringing him and Marina Sirtis to the finale of Enterprise was a mistake. The guy has said good and bad things about the franchise for years when he was no longer employed by them, but he has always maintained how much he loves the franchise and want to see it grow and prosper. So yeah I trust him. Can we not turn every little thing into a 20 post debate and just leave it at that?
Preventing a lengthy debate requires the efforts of both sides. I’m no more creating a long debate than you are, I simply pointed out the wrong-headedness of your post. Shrug.
As I pointed out yours. You called him a Yes man because you seem to think the guy never called out the show. That’s not true. You simply never heard him criticize Trek before.
Sigh. Don’t make that assumption. I’ve heard those criticisms. Those are hindsight criticisms, and not the same. Sorry, he’s a company man. Again, this is not a criticism of him.
I think he’s great for what he is, but what he ISN’T is someone with a vision to place your trust in as a showrunner/exec producer.
Sorry, you’re wrong. Mostly because its clear you never heard him criticize the show or you wouldn’t be backtracking now. And I’ll point it out again, you don’t know when he said them, how many times he said them or if it was the first time he said them. So your argument is pointless.
He’s not under contract with CBS or Paramount but he is a pro who has been in this business for a number of years so when he takes a job and is asked questions he answers like the professional that he is.
His yes man mentality has nothing to do with a contract, and more to do with a) his personality and b) what he owes the franchise.
He doesn’t like to rock any boats, and he’ll always tow the party line, even if he’s not under contract. He’s one of those people that will never be critical because he always wants to be on everyone’s good side.
I’m not criticizing it. It’s worked well for him, and frankly, that’s what a guy in his position should be doing. I just think it’s a bit foolish to say “in frakes we trust.”
Only he’s BEEN critical. You obviously just never read them. If he hated something, he spoke up about it, harshly.
One example is The Naked Now. From Memory Alpha “According to Will Wheaton, Jonathan Frakes sharply criticized this episode, going so far as to call it the worst segment of The Next Generation he ever did, saying he felt “totally ashamed” by it.”
Another first season gem is Code of Honor. This came from an article. “Jonathan Frakes referred to it as “a racist piece of shit,” saying, “the worst and most embarrassing and one that even Gene [Roddenberry] would have been embarrassed by was that horrible racist episode from the first season… ‘Code of Honor,’ oh my God in heaven!” Frakes has reportedly tried to get the episode pulled from syndication, finding it detrimental to the overall reputation of the series.”
You clearly never heard his Insurrection commentary with Marina Sirtis. He criticizes the writing, effects, its hippish themes and he directed the thing.
Frakes obviously loves the franchise but he’s not afraid to say what he thinks either, even to the point of trying to get an episode removed because it was a sore spot for him and the series. So I have no clue where you are getting this?? You’re taking one like I said and making a silly argument out of it. Frakes is part of the franchise and yes who I and many fans trust. Hence why he gets so much fanfare in the first place. But if you don’t that’s fine.
That’s called hindsight. Can we please not turn this into a 20 post debate? Yeesh!
You acted like this was all said a year ago lol. Dude you don’t know when he said them or how he felt at the time, as if it mattered anyway. But now your argument is ‘hindsight’? A yes man is a yes man, it wouldn’t matter when he said them, the point is he said them. And you specifically said he ALWAYS tow the party line and ‘doesn’t like to rock any boats’. Clearly he doesn’t mind rocking a few if he’s unsatisfied about the work so your argument has little basis in reality.
Now you’re being semantic and moving the goal posts. I’m done here.
Afterburn: “He’s a company man, never criticizes the show, just says and does anything to tow the line, never rocks any boats and has done so his entire career.”
Tiger: Shows direct examples that refutes his arguments (and those were just some of them).
Afterburn: “Well those are ‘hindsight’ examples, thats not the same thing.”
Tiger: “It shows the exact opposites of what you literally accused him of which proves your argument wrong. And didn’t you say he never said anything against the company, EVER?”
Afterburn: “You are splitting hairs and moving the goal post. I am done here sir. But I know I’m right and you’re wrong because criticizing in hindsight is against the rules for some reason even though I have no idea when he said them or if it was even the first time he said them. Good day!”
Yes, clearly I’m the one moving the goal post. Gotta love the internet.
Given Tilly only started seeing May after being interacted with by the asteroid in some fashion, I figured it was more related to that.
It’s probably the asteroid in conjunction with the spore she absorbed.
riker likes to cook. a space version of a food truck at a working-class corner of the space station.
Please don’t do the arhceoloy thing. Borring…..I like Picard as THE MAN…..captian of de prize. He’s a great ham iean actor.
Picard could be a Archeologist (huge passion), and stumble on recovering parts of the original Data. Bring LaForge into it and put back together our long lost friend/fleet member.Data having lost fragments of memory, go on a search to find the saved records of the matrix system data always recorded of his self on Picard’s ole crew on the Enterprise in his loving quarters.In the end it would fix the missing fragments of his lossed memory (could turn that into a 3 part episode). Picard with Data would be adventure of it’s own,could also have Data/LaForge build a new design of a high end ship (resemble of a defiant but advanced) for Picard for the adventures.
Picard doesn’t need to be ANYTHING. Not captain, not an admiral, not a teacher, not an acheaologist.
He could just be retired, living a quiet and humble life tending to his vinyards, and that I suspect is where we’ll find him just like at the opening of “All Good Things.”
If I had to guess as to the ultimate story, I think geo-political events will draw him back into public service, whether he’s called upon by Starfleet, the Federation, or his own conscience.
He’s running a tasting room and tending his grapes.
If the Picard show had him as an archaeologist they could do a lot worse than to revisit “The Chase”. That story had an epic scope well suited to a meaningful swan song for the character.
I am in that apparent minority who loved Disco completely from minute one. I thought Michael was a great centerpiece. I thought Stamets was a brilliantly complex character and that the mycelium idea was new and fresh, etc… I didn’t understand the hatred then, and I don’t really get the cautious relief now with all this mumbling about the show “returning” to some “true vision”. Star Trek is something I, like most of you, literally grew up with. In the house. Like it was a family member all by itself.
I think GR’s vision has always been (regardless of writers’ more and less aggressive attempts to get creative with it) essentially woven into the show’s many iterations, and I think Disco is absolutely nailing it. The whole “B-but Roddenberry’s Vision!?” argument gets trotted out every time a new series rolls. Disco will do what they have all done, appeal to the fans at-large, fail to win as many as would be preferred, piss off the self-appointed scenesters and canon paladins, generate it’s own fanbase and ascend as a more-or-less grand constellation in the firmament of one of the most engrossing, enduring, and powerful mythologies in the modern era.
As for Frakes being in the picture; well, man I couldn’t be happier that he is finding a home behind Disco’s cameras and I want more. His stuff is brilliant. I also really hope the Picard show just wrecks house. There is SUCH an opportunity there to hammer out an entirely unique narrative in this universe. I just hope they’re ready for the backlash. I predict it will be fierce. The fanbase erupted when they changed how Klingons looked. I can’t imagine what it’ll be when they de-Starfleet Picard.
You sound like someone who is afraid of losing a bogeyman and needs to reaffirm himself that it isn’t so. What an annyoing reaction to people who are getting excited for Star Trek again.
I agree with you. I don’t want Disco becoming boring like the 90s trek.
But many of us found first season of Discovery pretty boring. I just didn’t care about the Klingons or the war, at ALL! It had no depth or mystery to it. The only thing that really kept people interested were all the theories about the twists. “Is Tyler really Voq? Are they going to the Mirror Universe? Is Lorca from the MU? Will they end up in a different time? and on and on. But no one seemed to care about the actual main story and that was the war itself. It almost felt like an after thought when compared to what people were interested in. Certainly felt like it was written that way. You say 90s Trek was boring and yet DS9 had a 5 season war arc that kept fans riveted the whole way. Discovery couldn’t even make 15 episodes of a major event in canon compelling enough and why they moved on so quickly.
I know people just see things differently but New Eden was way more interesting and fun then 90% of first season for me. I’ve watched it three times in two days. The only episode I’ve seen more than twice from the first season was The Sanest Man. And I only watched five of the episodes twice and I had AA the entire time it was off. I had planned to rewatch the first season before the second season started and I literally couldn’t motivate myself to do it. I just ended up watching the season finale again and that was a mistake.
It just proves fans aren’t a monolith I guess, but this episode has gotten the most praise so far for a reason, it actually felt like Star Trek again.
I found the first season of DISCO to be the best season of Star Trek in the history of Trek. People change and expect more now. I use to think DS9 was the greatest show in the at the time, but now while I still like most of the stories, the show looks like an outdated stage play.
For me, Discovery first season was nearly the worst. The only shows I thought that was worse was TNG and Enterprise. And if I’m being honest Discovery and Enterprise were basically a tie. I just felt Enterprise was a bit more boring than Discovery in parts. Being more episodes probably helped Discovery lead in that respect, if only a little. But I had about the same interest in the TCW as I had in the Klingon war, nearly zero to none although TCW had an interesting premise at least.
NOW, to reverse it (and show I don’t hate DIS which I never did, just let down by it) so far its second season could end up being my favorite out of all the other show’s second seasons, but its obviously way too early to say yet. But that’s just how much I enjoyed the first episodes so far. But in honesty because they basically mimicked what I thought those other shows did best to begin with, just with a more modern edge.
The fact that season 2 IS so different from season 1 probably tells you they knew there was a big contingent of fans who weren’t happy with it and felt they had to make drastic changes to get them on board. I’m sure many liked it but it does prove it wasn’t overwhelmingly loved by the fanbase as others kept suggesting. Its a huge swing in tone and narrative, especially after just 15 episodes.
Its awesome to realize that the essence of Gene Roddenberry continues to shine in the startrek universe through Johnathan Frakes. Thank you from a life long trekker.
When are they going to make Frakes an executive producer on a ST show? The guy clearly has a passion for it.
When they feel he would be good at it.
You mean the people who have far less experience with Star trek than he does right?
At the very least they could make him a consultant on the show like they gave Nic Meyer who clearly didn’t seem to mesh with what they were doing. It seems like Frakes would help bring in a lot of ideas of how to make it feel closer to classic Trek but still make the show feel like its own.
I think it would get more fans on board if he had a direct involvement with it. But I’m just happy to see him direct a few episodes every season. I imagine if DIS gets a third season he’ll be given more to direct.
Yes, because they’re better than he is. He is a by-the-numbers director, that’s all. The blind adoration of Frakes is truly scratching.
Well I will (sort of) agree with you there. Not about his directing, although its fine you don’t like it, but yes he does have a lot of adoration in the fanbase. I’m on Reddit a lot and the biggest times I can remember that sub exploding was the announcement of the Picard show and the announcement of Frakes directing his first Discovery episode.
I think for a lot of fandom, he has become the Mark Hamill of Star Trek where most of the fanbase seems to really like and appreciate him, maybe to an unhealthy level lol. Obviously Frakes isn’t the only one and Nimoy (fellow directors and first officers alike) probably holds that more than anybody. But Frakes has become active in the franchise again just like Hamill has so there is probably just a sense of joy he’s back working on Star Trek.
Clearly CBS understands that because I don’t know a single director on that show who has had videos made to promote the fact they are directing it and there are two made just for him in this article.
He has a strong following and why I’m more than sure he will show up on the Picard show as Riker. They know stuff like this only gets them more buzz with a huge fan favorite.
Didn’t say I didn’t like his direction, I actually said he’s fine. He’s just absolutely nothing special, and I don’t why people crave for him to work on Star Trek.
Your comparison to Hamill is a good one. But nobody is asking for Hamill to be made an executive producer, showrunner, or director. Nimoy is a bad comparison because he was a genuinely gifted filmmaker.
As for use in promotion, I addressed this elsewhere: CBS understands how the fandom loves Frakes, and knows it’s goodwill to the fans to hire him because he’s a competent director who’s presence gets fans excited.
But why is he a fan favorite?
Maybe I should change my terminology: he’s a Fandom Man, not a Company Man. He says what the fans want to hear in a palatable way that makes the company look good without insulting the fans. He’s perfected that art, and that’s why he’s a good spokesperson.
But that’s all he should be, and if anyone thinks he should be more, well… this way to the egress!
“Your comparison to Hamill is a good one. But nobody is asking for Hamill to be made an executive producer, showrunner, or director.”
You clearly don’t read enough message boards lol. They do all the time. I read many posts that said Hamill should’ve directed or written TLJ and could’ve made a great film. A guy who has never directed a beer commercial should direct a $200 million space film. Yes its ridiculous but welcome to fandom.
You’re right, seasoned directors are usually a better fit.
The powers that be gave the directing responsibilities of “The Mummy” to Alex Kurtzman. Look how that turned out.
Okay snark aside, I don’t think that Hamill could have pulled off a job of that magnitude. It’s also the first time I’ve seen anyone make this claim, though I can’t say I’ve followed that fandom so closely since The Force Awakens came out.
When he puts up some money for it. Or becomes so needed that he makes them do it. Like some actors of done later in the run of their shows.
Would you want to be producer of Discovery?
Hi all, I would like to see Q on the show..BK
So he’s saying retired Captain or Admiral Picard will sever contact with those formerly under his command? I find it hard to believe he wouldnt keep in some form contact with at least his former senior staff. Also doubt he’ll be some crazed old hermit living in the hills of France tending a vineyard.
Will be interesting to see what direction they go.
Am I the only one that doesn’t give a damn about Roddenberry? Let face it, the guy was a one hit wonder and he couldn’t even get that right. The fact that the movie franchise and TNG got better without him says a lot.
I am not so jaundiced in my opinion of GR. If it weren’t for him, there would have been no Star Trek. On the other hand, he is not the be-all end-all of Trek. Many cooks were involved in what made Trek what it is over the years.
And, lest we forget, the ultimate expression of Gene’s philosophy was expressed in TMP and the first two seasons of TNG.
@HubcapDave — to be fair, that was late 70s and mid-80s GR. “The Cage” was likely his first true expression. Of course, “Mudd’s Women”, “Return of the Archons”, and “Omega Glory” were also early original concepts for him, which he offered NBC as a choice along with “The Cage”, and “WNMHGB” (not written by GR).
Well to say I don’t care about him would be too harsh, but I agree he probably gets way too much credit for what Star Trek ultimately became. The stuff most people like is stuff he didn’t work on or literally hated himself. I do give him a lot of credit for TNG though. It proved he wasn’t a one hit wonder and that he could expand his universe. Yes, the first two seasons under him were the least well received, but it was mostly the execution, not the premise or the characters. TNG blew up when others took it over but it proved the foundation he laid for it was just as good as it was for TOS. He just needed other people to make it stronger, just like many did for TOS.
I mean people like Gene Coon, D.C. Fontana, Harve Bennet, Rick Berman and Michael Piller are the ones who probably made Trek what most fans love about it today. And of course there are many many others like Ira Steven Behr, Nic Meyer, Ronald D. Moore, etc that can be counted in that. So Roddenberry definitely deserves praise but TOS probably wouldn’t haven’t gotten pass season one and Trek in general pass the 80s if it weren’t for most of these people.
I agree to a point. Star Trek was indeed a mistake for him. And TOS got better after he loosened his grip on the every day goings on of running the show. I don’t think that every producer who comes along to make a Trek feature or show ought to be out there praising the guy or at the very least saying that they are trying to adhere to Gene’s “vision”. They should thank Gene for creating Trek to begin with and they are going to make their own show or feature.
Producers only say nice things about Roddenberry so they can blow smoke up trekkers butts.
I am curious about the upcoming star trek Picard series. I’m sorry I just gave up on Star trek Discovery after the first season. It was just riddled with so much Hollywood how much Political Correctness can we stuff down your throats that the point it was trying to make got lost
Well don’t hold your breath on Picard. It will be PC as well, as Trek has always been (and perhaps moreso if Stewart is involved as an Executive Producer).
Sadly Sam, that’s the nature of the beast for channels like CBS. If the shows were on a more premium HBO-like channel, it wouldn’t be so bad, to me they seem to dial down the PC a bit and center more on a better story. But, we have what we have.
Patrick Stewart has said part of the reason why he’s come back to the character is because of the current political climate in America. He’s an extreme left wing liberal in real life, who for the first time was seeking American citizenship to “fight Trump” (his words). That was nearly 2yrs ago now, not sure if he got it.
So if you’re having trouble with the PC of DSC, then expect an even worse dose with the Picard series. Besides, Trek has always been PC, and Jean Luc was the greatest SJW of them all, long before that term was bandied about.
True
I recently saw a video pop up on youtube called “Triggered SJW Attacks Picard, Instantly Regrets It” (it was the final scene with Admiral Satie) and it made me laugh because Picard is perhaps the original SJW. It’s like people forget what that term stands for!
There’s social justice and there’s SJWs. Picard fought for the former.
Please don’t insult Trek or Picard with that insult. No sane person deserves to be called an SJW.
What is with you people crying about political correctness? It seem like every time a show has a female or non white lead you guys come out of the woodwork and complain about it being too PC.
Seeing Kirk kiss a black woman for the first time must have made your heads explode.
Nah, because to them, women are just objects, and minorities are inferior, so him kissing Uhura was him conquering another subservient female.
Sadly you might be right.
Because these days the women and minorities are not being hired for their skills and experience. They are being hired strictly because of their skin color and gender. THAT is what we have a problem with. Hire a black women because she’s good. Don’t hire her because she’s black and then tell us you did because of some injustice you thought needed corrected. I don’t care about diversity. I care about good actors playing good parts in good shows with good writing.
Teddy thinks he’s an expert. Did you forget your meds today?
Don’t worry, he rightly posted them back to you were they belong. He knew you needed a refill (wink).
Correct, someone on this website understands!
As long as Kurtzman and and CBS is as it is now don’t expect competency of any kind.
Not a fan of Frakes’ direction. This felt like a middling episode of Stargate.
Never been impressed with his direction. It’s fine, but that’s about all it is. He’s there because the producers know Trekkies worship him. His name adds credibility to the fanbase.
@Afterburn So you know why Frakes is hired. I see. Are you there in the room when decisions are made?
The only film he directed i liked was First Contact. Insurrection was an over priced rehash of the TNG tv series. Even Data regressed. It still was not as bad as Nemesis. But if he had directed Nemesis it would still have been from the same bad script.
Nemesis’ script wasn’t great, but what made the film intolerable was that the director cut out most of the character moments. The script had a ton of character moments that were filmed and then cut. I think there might have been even more in the script that didn’t make it to the final shooting script. A better edit of the film would fix a lot of the smaller issues that might have helped cover up some of the bigger issues in the film. It would at least feel like a Star Trek film than some generic “late 90s/early 00” sci-fi action movie.
It’s hard to say what material would have remained in a Frakes final cut, but I can’t help but think that he would have a better handle on the characters than a director who had zero familiarity with the content. Baird even refused to watch any of the Next Generation TV series to prepare for Nemesis.
Funny because Baird’s background is as an editor. He’s actually been pretty good at it. He has been nominated for an Oscar twice for editing.
That said, I was looking forward to a fresh director after the debacle that was Insurrection. I think he handed directing this film well. There was a very touching moment between Data and his less evolved self that gets me every time I see it. And I don’t even like the Data character at all. Nemesis wasn’t perfect. But it was a pretty darn good send off for the TNG crew. Frakes would not have made the film any better I suspect. I still think most of the hatred for it comes from Trek fans who prefer TNG and are unhappy their crew’s final film was not as good as TOS’s.
The film was competently shot, and edited just fine. The execution of the editing is actually pretty good, and probably superior than the majority of all 14 Trek films. Baird’s strong point is editing. I never contested his technical skills.
The problem was he didn’t understand the source material when he took the job (he was actually given the job for doing editing work on another Paramount film if I’m not mistaken) and he didn’t care to understand it. That is my issue with Baird. On paper he checks off the right boxes, but he reportedly did not care about the characters that appeared in 3 earlier films and 178 episodes, the project was doomed.
This film is leaps and bounds better than other “Space” sci-fi films released around the same time, such as Lost in Space, Wing Commander or The Adventures of Pluto Nash. It’s certainly better (in my opinion) than Star Wars Episode II. It’s just happens to be a poor Trek film, and I believe it’s because it didn’t properly “send off” the crew as the script clearly was trying to do.
Well, we disagree. Nick Meyer was unfamiliar with the source material as well. Yet he went on to direct what many felt was the best Trek film still to this day. I felt it was a fine send off for the TNG crew. It was a billion times better than All Good Things. Where, really, nothing happened.
First Contact is a hilarious film. As a ‘good’ Star Trek film it’s one of the worst.
I wish they had explored his time aboard the Stargazer – perhaps Will Riker commanding a refitted – upgraded Stargazer with Picard as a advisor as they explore the unsolved archaeology mysteries assigned to Riker by Starfleet?
I’m sorry I just do not like STD. I’m pretty sure there is nothing they could do with this series to make it work for me anymore. It’s to much pushing a narrative, not enough escapism and no where near enough “hope for humanity”. The writing feels like they work to fit a narrative or plot to fit an action sequence that some producer decided would be visually grabbing. The stories are lacking, all formulitic, and they always find a way to place some sort of virtue signalling in. Story, and fit doesn’t matter. The scripts seemed so forced, and so peicemeal.
They can make it more about other people and less about the characters fro the first season… That seems to be what S2 is about.
Yeah I get that impression.
I do have a hard time imagining him as an Admiral as much as he hated politics, and he had already turned down the position before. Well, that and the fact in Star Trek Commodores, and Admirals are often antagonist. I can imagine him retiring as a Captain and becoming a Diplomat for a time as he was good had finding Peaceful solutions to problems. It has been almost 20yrs. He’s had enough time to retire with 25-30yrs in Star Fleet, put almost 20yrs into the United Federation Diplomatic Corps, and now be off roaming the universe seeking the origins of life or something.
I see the Picard series being a political drama. A Federation of Cards style show.
I would LOVE that. I would love to see Picard as an ambassador or even President of Starfleet and watching him weave through political issues of the Federation from the crisis with the destruction of Romulus,trying to relaign the Federation after the Dominion war or even trying to weed out Section 31. Or why not all three? They can definitely do a more political show which I felt DS9 was mostly with the Cardassians and Bajoran dynamic and Starfleet in the middle.
“the destruction of Romulus”
Tiger2, it could explore some very timely subjects, such as POTUFP Picard having to deal with an ongoing Romulan refugee crisis, possibly including major splits within the Federation government and the general population about how to handle the issue.
Other stuff: You’ll remember my suggestions about Section 31 turning out to be secretly responsible for destroying Romulus as a way to remove the Federation’s main local geopolitical rival, Picard also finding out that DS9’s “Pale Moonlight” incident was a false flag, and all hell breaking loose if any of this becomes public knowledge.
That sort of thing. Lots of interesting story options.
Exactly! This is a great example. It would feel like a very different show and basically become DS9 on a bigger scale. It would be fun to see Picard dealing with this massive fallout that has effected the Federation while forces at play are trying to take advantage of it. A false flag Section 31 set up could even make them the direct villain of the piece he has to take down.
Now I know for some, this may feel its getting away from Star Trek but as said this is pretty much what DS9 started as, they still managed to include exploration and an anomaly crisis here and there. And this show doesn’t have to be just political. They can still do other things with it, but this would be the main story line, at least the first season.
Sounds boring 😴
And the perfect counter point to Discovery. Love that idea.
One of the things that has always been a little frustrating for me with Star Trek is that you have these seemingly ideal organizations like the Federation or Starfleet and yet anyone above the rank of a captain is a walking brain fart. I’d like to see a show explore how these people and groups work together, overcome their differences and for spits and giggles occasionally have Jean-Luc look into the camera and explain how he has it all under control.
Are you saying JL Picard should be 25th century Frank Underwood?
I’m kidding about the Jean-Luc Underwood cutaways, but I think it would be an interesting approach to the series. Let’s finally see some of the higher ups in the Federation and Starfleet at work and not screwing up the galaxy.
I realize that. I just wanted to point out that I got the reference. :)
And it would be cancelled after one season.
Are you kidding. Star Trek has always been SJW right?! Right?! SJWs will lap it up, it’ll be a ratings winner!
Please don’t give CBS ideas, they’ll think you’re serious.
I was 11 and in front of the tv when TOS premiered. Having already begun to read Clarke, Asimov and others TOS ignited in me a deepened love of scifi. I’m binge watching SG-1 right now, but when I am finished I will finally begin watching Discovery.
Please, CBS, give us more mushroom pixies and ghosts for this blooming Harry Potter Trek.
Come on, you do realise Star Trek was always SJW? I mean dear oh dear…
I like Roddenberry’s vision that religion is all but debunked or dismissed in a more rational future, but that there can be unexplained beings in the universe. Reminds me of the “ant” analogy in Babylon 5. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZLZW8Deq8vE
I don’t see Picard making the same mistake as Kirk. He will have a vital role in his retirement from Starfleet. He will still find a way to make a difference and it won’t have to be on the bridge of the Enterprise.
I actually feel really sorry for Frakes and the rest they aren’t being included properly as main cast members in the new series and they’re only connection to Star Trek is directing episodes of Discovery. That sounds like a punishment for 15 plus years worth of acting in the series.