Star Trek: Alpha to Delta Quadrants & Everything In Between

[Scepticalscribe]

Yeah, it is supposed to fit into canon, and I've seen stories with the showrunners claiming they will resolve/explain any differences/goofiness we see vs. known canon.

I can't speak to terrestrial, but that might be a long ways away. It was announced at the convention I was at https://trekmovie.com/2018/08/05/breaking-star-trek-discovery-season-one-blu-ray-and-dvd-announced/. Not clear if that date extends beyond the US.

Per https://variety.com/2016/biz/news/leslie-moonves-star-trek-netflix-nil-1201865908/

Les Moonves is the head of CBS. In the US, to see it, one needs to subscribe to CBS All Acess.

Seriously, you will be able to watch it now w/a Netflix sub outside the US (I'm guessing you're in the UK). If you get thru it in a month, you will almost certainly pay less than to rent or buy the discs, but you won't own it...

One of the actors at the convention (might not'd been part of the ST: D cast) was sorta complaining or puzzled why some people attending the convention (by definition, Trek fans) aren't willing to pay $6/mo (https://www.cbs.com/all-access/subscription/plan/ price for version with ads or $10/mo for "commercial free") to see ST: D, which as they put it was the price of latte (well, an expensive one). I was amazed to actually meet folks at the con (usually Americans) who hadn't seen ST: D. The days I went were Thurs thru Sunday w/ticket prices (https://www.creationent.com/cal/st_lasvegas_admission.html#genSingleDays) ranging from $55 to $75 for a single day. This was a massive convention and I'm sure the largest in the US in terms of # of guests: https://www.creationent.com/cal/st_lasvegas_guests.html w/some pretty die-hard folks who'll dress up: https://trekmovie.com/2018/08/12/me...-las-vegas-costume-contest-more-stlv-cosplay/.

I actually met someone in line for for a gala/concert (https://www.creationent.com/cal/st_lasvegas_events.html#nevadaPops) who had the gold package (https://web.archive.org/web/20180817054836/https://www.creationent.com/cal/st_lasvegas_gold.html which is $989 but they bought almost a year before, so they saved ~$100) who hadn't seen ST: D! :O Until they heard that actor's remarks and me looking up the price for them, they thought it was more $.

BTW, for those who don't know what's going on with the , this forum software is converting ST colon D into ST, so I use ST: D. The folks who don't like the show or don't like having to pay for it call it STD.

Well, I grew up with a different model of TV; we have a state system - publicly funded public service TV - and you pay a licensing fee.

And yes, I pay for a particular cable package, and that's it. My only regret about the cable is that it doesn't include Al Jazeera, which used to be an excellent news service.

The idea of paying for extra packages (which you forget to cancel, or become tedious direct debits), is alien to me, not least, because 1) I like the idea of public service (and publicly funded) broadcasting (and yes, I am not in the US), 2) quite seriously,, I watch hardly any TV and virtually no movies - usually, news, documentaries, and yes, STNG, that's it, and 3) I am abroad, often at short notice, for months on end where I have no access to TV whatsoever.

Plus 4), sorry, paying to "stream" TV - I don't even pay to watch occasional sports events, I'll follow them on a newspaper's feed, or - at a push - head out to a pub - if I have to........no.

But pay for it? No.

What that actor doesn't understand, is that it is not the price, ("it's only the price of a latte") it is the principle; I don't like the rentier model of music, hence, I do not use the Cloud - I still buy CDs. And I like the idea of deferred gratification. Introducing the idea of the rentier model for TV? No, thank you.

I'll wait for reviews, see what people here have to say, then perhaps, perhaps, perhaps, request a brother to get a set for me as a birthday or Christmas gift.

 

[cwerdna]

^^^
I mostly hear you. Our broadcast TV business model is totally different in the US. And, over the decades tons of other non-OTA channels supported by advertising and subscription revenue (collected by cable and satellite) providers have sprung up in addition to premium channels like HBO (Home Box Office), Showtime, etc.

Many of the big guys (e.g. HBO, Netflix, Amazon Studios, etc.) have decided to produce and/or pay for original/exclusive content as a means of differentiating and drawing people to their service, if it's good enough. Creating content can be expensive. They spend billions of USD per year.

I couldn't care less about sports.

I understand about the principle and maybe you don't want to encourage this business model but did your state system and licensing fee pay for ST: D?

FWIW, I've bought VERY few CDs over of the last 5 years. But seriously, if you want to see the ST: D, you can watch it now and pay little for a month to see it and you might get a free 1 month trial. If you're done w/ST: D and the rest of Netflix isn't compelling enough to you to keep it, cancel.

Most folks paid at least $55 USD just to get into a a single day of the multi-day convention and I suspect at least 50% of the attendees weren't local to Vegas. (I traveled over 500 miles each way by bus to be there... long story.)

Actors and all the staff associated with producing content (everyone you see in the credits + more) need to be paid somehow. If not, you're not going to get very much content (no financial incentive and they won't be able to make enough $ to sustain themselves) and what's out there will be pretty low budget and possibly low quality.

I don't think you need to "wait" for reviews. Season 1 is over. There have been plenty of reviews, but most have spoilers. I'm not sure what more in terms of "reviews" you could be waiting for.

Just think of it as a 10 year before TOS show that's very different in focus w/a captain that is rather unorthodox and not quite Federation-like. It has LOTS of plot twists and is more action-oriented w/not much exploring. Harry (Harcout Fenton) Mudd from TOS is in at least 2 eps. One of them was really good. At least 1 ep was directed by Jonathan Frakes (also a good one) and the actors were really excited to work w/hem. Try not to let the differences (esp. in tech and the appearance of the ships and Klingons) or canon wonkiness bother you too much.

If you haven't at least seen the trailer, hope you're able to watch one of these:

Not sure what purpose delayed gratification serves here. It's already delayed since season 1 is done. Final ep of season 1 "aired" Feb 11, 2018. A second season is coming next year.

Over here in the US, they aired ep 1 on broadcast TV on CBS. The rest you had to get via CBS All Access.

 

[Huntn]

I looked at Netflix’s offerings (Stateside) and they have every Star Trek series, other than the original, it’s possible I missed it, and Discovery. If I was to guess, because CBS All Access now exists, they will not release past seasons to Netflix at least in the States. The thing about CBSAA, is that they don’t Have enough offerings for a subscription service, so I’ll probably do what I’m doing with Game of Thones, time my subscription so I can watch the entire season in one month.

Of possible interest, when the first episode aired on regular CBS, it felt a bit strange, and I was not sold on it, but the second time around, the first two episodes pulled me in.

 

[D.T.]

I looked at Netflix’s offerings (Stateside) and they have every Star Trek series, other than the original, it’s possible I missed it, and Discovery.

TOS is definitely there, it's even the outstanding updated versions (remastered, new FX, fresh score) ... they even have the animated series:

 

[Huntn]

TOS is definitely there, it's even the outstanding updated versions (remastered, new FX, fresh score) ... they even have the animated series:

View attachment 776427

I see Dark Matter in your image. Did you watch that? I caught most of it on Netflix, but the writing was on the weak side imo.

 

[stillcrazyman]

As a lifelong fan of Trek, I am hesitant to actually pay for a CBS series via their app (in the US). Given the reviews and lack of adherence to canon, I'd rather wait for it to be available via Netflix or some other service.

Happy to hear Sir Patrick Stewart is reprising his role - however that may manifest.

@Huntn - Dark Matter wasn't all that bad, considering it's low budget. I've recently gotten hooked on Killjoys.

 

[Huntn]

Well, I grew up with a different model of TV; we have a state system - publicly funded public service TV - and you pay a licensing fee.

And yes, I pay for a particular cable package, and that's it. My only regret about the cable is that it doesn't include Al Jazeera, which used to be an excellent news service.

The idea of paying for extra packages (which you forget to cancel, or become tedious direct debits), is alien to me, not least, because 1) I like the idea of public service (and publicly funded) broadcasting (and yes, I am not in the US), 2) quite seriously,, I watch hardly any TV and virtually no movies - usually, news, documentaries, and yes, STNG, that's it, and 3) I am abroad, often at short notice, for months on end where I have no access to TV whatsoever.

Plus 4), sorry, paying to "stream" TV - I don't even pay to watch occasional sports events, I'll follow them on a newspaper's feed, or - at a push - head out to a pub - if I have to........no.

But pay for it? No.

What that actor doesn't understand, is that it is not the price, ("it's only the price of a latte") it is the principle; I don't like the rentier model of music, hence, I do not use the Cloud - I still buy CDs. And I like the idea of deferred gratification. Introducing the idea of the rentier model for TV? No, thank you.

I'll wait for reviews, see what people here have to say, then perhaps, perhaps, perhaps, request a brother to get a set for me as a birthday or Christmas gift.

How much does Netflix cost in the UK? The reason I ask is that I realize you don’t stream TV, but my one month of CBSAA is costing $5.99, about the same cost as renting a movie, which would be streaming. Regarding movie rentals via DVD, most of the movie rental stores like Blockbuster are kaput. The only one left that I am aware of is Red Box, located in some McDonalds, and outside Walgreens Drugstore. Streaming is the present model in the US. I do not like the fact that all these pay networks are popping up in addition to the already substantial costs I pay for cable service. Of all of them, Netflix is the clear choice, it’s library is vast with almost as many exclusive series as the original advertising based networks. I also have Amazon Prime, not so much for it’s original series, but for its shipping rates, as I buy there regularly. Others, I hit piecemeal as needed to catch a particular show I’m hooked on.

It seems to me the movie making business has deteriorated drastically. When we go on, looking for new releases to stream, the selection choices are fairly awful for the most part. Original TV content seems to be far more robust.
[doublepost=1534511402][/doublepost]

As a lifelong fan of Trek, I am hesitant to actually pay for a CBS series via their app (in the US). Given the reviews and lack of adherence to canon, I'd rather wait for it to be available via Netflix or some other service.

Happy to hear Sir Patrick Stewart is reprising his role - however that may manifest.

@Huntn - Dark Matter wasn't all that bad, considering it's low budget. I've recently gotten hooked on Killjoys.

I’ll check that out.

 

[decafjava]

Original TV content seems to be far more robust.

I just have to agree with you there, with a few exceptions TV has been the source of a lot of original and creative content lately.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

How much does Netflix cost in the UK? The reason I ask is that I realize you don’t stream TV, but my one month of CBSAA is costing $5.99, about the same cost as renting a movie, which would be streaming. Regarding movie rentals via DVD, most of the movie rental stores like Blockbuster are kaput. The only one left that I am aware of is Red Box, located in some McDonalds, and outside Walgreens Drugstore. Streaming is the present model in the US. I do not like the fact that all these pay networks are popping up in addition to the already substantial costs I pay for cable service. Of all of them, Netflix is the clear choice, it’s library is vast with almost as many exclusive series as the original advertising based networks. I also have Amazon Prime, not so much for it’s original series, but for its shipping rates, as I buy there regularly. Others, I hit piecemeal as needed to catch a particular show I’m hooked on.

It seems to me the movie making business has deteriorated drastically. When we go on, looking for new releases to stream, the selection choices are fairly awful for the most part. Original TV content seems to be far more robust.
[doublepost=1534511402][/doublepost]
I’ll check that out.

I don't rent DVDs, if I really like something I'll buy them, or request a present of a movie or a set.

In truth, I haven't a clue how much Netflix costs, as I have never looked into it.

 

[D.T.]

@Huntn - Dark Matter wasn't all that bad, considering it's low budget. I've recently gotten hooked on Killjoys.

It keeps coming up in my content list, I guess based on my watching habits ... though I find it funny that in a search for 'Star Trek', it's ahead of the animated series** I watched a couple of Killjoys previews, looks pretty interesting, we've been on SyFy catching up on Channel Zero, and I also watched the first 3 EPs (S1) of The Magicians which I'm kind of liking (not bad, not super high budget, decently acted, kind of a mix of Potter + Narnia with a slightly more adult vibe).

** Speaking of animated Trek, some of it is just awful (the "animation" is a step below the original South Park short ...), but there's a few incredible EPs, The Magicks of Megas-Tu, Yesteryear, More Trouble, More Tribbles, The Slaver Weapon (written by Larry Niven, based on his short story, and introduces the race he created in his Known Space series, the Kzinti)

 

[Huntn]

It keeps coming up in my content list, I guess based on my watching habits ... though I find it funny that in a search for 'Star Trek', it's ahead of the animated series** I watched a couple of Killjoys previews, looks pretty interesting, we've been on SyFy catching up on Channel Zero, and I also watched the first 3 EPs (S1) of The Magicians which I'm kind of liking (not bad, not super high budget, decently acted, kind of a mix of Potter + Narnia with a slightly more adult vibe).

** Speaking of animated Trek, some of it is just awful (the "animation" is a step below the original South Park short ...), but there's a few incredible EPs, The Magicks of Megas-Tu, Yesteryear, More Trouble, More Tribbles, The Slaver Weapon (written by Larry Niven, based on his short story, and introduces the race he created in his Known Space series, the Kzinti)

Season 2 of The Magicians lost me. I liked S1.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

.........

It seems to me the movie making business has deteriorated drastically. When we go on, looking for new releases to stream, the selection choices are fairly awful for the most part. Original TV content seems to be far more robust.

It is because it has belatedly come to realise that you need quality to attract audiences; a steady diet of idiotic reality TV, gameshows, quiz shows, and old comedies and westerns won't hold a audience forever.

Eventually, they have to find a way to distinguish themselves from what has been offered by other channels.

Re TV, I'm now at the stage where one of my brothers will email or text me to watch something that they recommend; I am not someone who ever has the TV on in the background - I'll watch the news (and STNG) and that is about it.

The old model - whereby a channel made a show - and then sought to sell it to other channels no longer seems to be quiet as financially rewarding as persuading an audience to fork out for an individual subscription to an individual channel.

I'll still do deferred gratification; after all, if something is that good (such as much of STNG), it will age well, and will repay repeated viewing.

 

[Huntn]

It is because it has belatedly come to realise that you need quality to attract audiences; a steady diet of idiotic reality TV, gameshows, quiz shows, and old comedies and westerns won't hold a audience forever.

Eventually, they have to find a way to distinguish themselves from what has been offered by other channels.

Re TV, I'm now at the stage where one of my brothers will email or text me to watch something that they recommend; I am not someone who ever has the TV on in the background - I'll watch the news (and STNG) and that is about it.

The old model - whereby a channel made a show - and then sought to sell it to other channels no longer seems to be quiet as financially rewarding as persuading an audience to fork out for an individual subscription to an individual channel.

I'll still do deferred gratification; after all, if something is that good (such as much of STNG), it will age well, and will repay repeated viewing.

So far, Discovery (two episodes) is excellent. Of course, it’s too early to tell. Most noticible is the drastic Klingon makeover.

This article talks about it and reveals the general plot of Discovery without getting into spoiler territory: http://www.joblo.com/movie-news/star-trek-discovery-producer-on-why-the-klingons-have-changed-334
​

I remember some pre-release criticism of Discovery of it not being StarTrek enough. I’ve not seen that yet. It definitely has a different atmosphere than STNG, but I'd argue it’s a more realistic environment, where STNG feels more historical, not said as a critique.

 

[D.T.]

So far, Discovery (two episodes) is excellent. Of course, it’s too early to tell. Most noticible is the drastic Klingon makeover.

​

From a few articles:

As we move into season two, it has been while since we have been with our characters. It has been a while since we have seen our Klingon friends. So, everything keeps evolving. The story has evolved. And I can guarantee you this, you are going to be blown away that they have a completely new look, yet again, going into season two...

... In season two, you are going to see much different designs. You are going to see different houses you haven’t seen before. One of the most important things to us was that at this point in canon, as we head towards the current version of unification, the houses really each grow up on different planets. It is an Empire, it is not just Qo’noS… We have seen six of the great houses in close up in season one. As we move forward into the next season, I promise that we will continue exploring and unpacking and unfolding that infinitely interesting story of what the Klingon culture looks like on a wider level.

In his interview, Hetrick also confirmed that he has designs for over 20 Klingon houses, only six of which have appeared thus far in the show.

 

[Mousse]

I remember some pre-release criticism of Discovery of it not being StarTrek enough.

That was my early feelings about DS9 as well. It wasn't Star Trek enough to be Star Trek. Captain Sisko didn't act like a Star Fleet officer with his villainous tactics like using poisoning the atmosphere of a planet (DS9: For the Uniform) or a laundry list of sin in DS9: In the Pale Moonlight. And Sisko yelling at everybody, his officers, civilians (mostly Quark), his enemies (mainly Dukat). Picard never yelled at his officers, not even when they were on the verge of mutiny (TNG: Allegiance). As Sisko told Q, "I'm not Picard."
The new look Trill. The new Trill looks exactly like the Kriosian (TNG: The Perfect Mate). Okay, Terry Farrell is a good looking woman, so that was easy to forgive.
But in the end DS9 won me over. But it was due to fantastic story lines and believable characters. Thus far, the only good thing I have heard about Discovery is eye popping eye candy and one exceptional actor. I'm not one to be satisfied by sizzle; I want steak. I heard hints they'll flesh out the Klingon history; that's steak. I'll wait and see.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

That was my early feelings about DS9 as well. It wasn't Star Trek enough to be Star Trek. Captain Sisko didn't act like a Star Fleet officer with his villainous tactics like using poisoning the atmosphere of a planet (DS9: For the Uniform) or a laundry list of sin in DS9: In the Pale Moonlight. And Sisko yelling at everybody, his officers, civilians (mostly Quark), his enemies (mainly Dukat). Picard never yelled at his officers, not even when they were on the verge of mutiny (TNG: Allegiance). As Sisko told Q, "I'm not Picard."
The new look Trill. The new Trill looks exactly like the Kriosian (TNG: The Perfect Mate). Okay, Terry Farrell is a good looking woman, so that was easy to forgive.
But in the end DS9 won me over. But it was due to fantastic story lines and believable characters. Thus far, the only good thing I have heard about Discovery is eye popping eye candy and one exceptional actor. I'm not one to be satisfied by sizzle; I want steak. I heard hints they'll flesh out the Klingon history; that's steak. I'll wait and see.

Oh, good grief; eye candy?

Not terribly interested.

Normal looking human beings, please, especially normal looking professional - and clearly competent - women.

Yes, I want steak, too, rare and seared.

Good acting, good stories (that don't conflict too starkly with canon), good scripts.

DS9 initially wasn't like STNG, because there was not much trekking; re Sisko, it was understood that he was traumatised and somewhat embittered and very much not like Jean-Luc Picard, whom he blamed for the death of his wife.

But, the stories became deeper and darker, and some of the acting was excellent.

 

[cwerdna]

In truth, I haven't a clue how much Netflix costs, as I have never looked into it.

Visit https://www.netflix.com/? We can only see the pricing for where we're visiting the site from.

https://metro.co.uk/2018/03/30/much-netflix-cost-uk-basic-standard-premium-7429160/ has prices, that may or may not be accurate.

Blockbuster was mentioned. There's 1 store left, down from about 9,000: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/inside-last-blockbuster-video-store-america-n892246.

Yeah, we have http://www.redbox.com/ (automated rental kiosks) for DVDs, Blu-ray and some games on disc placed inside and outside of various stores (e.g. supermarkets, drug stores, 7-Eleven, etc.) Netflix still has a DVD rental by mail business but is AFAIK is US only and never expanded outside the US.

 

[Roller]

I've been watching TOS episodes on Netflix ever since I noticed that they were available there recently. These days, I'm much more likely to watch TV series than movies on Netflix, even though I originally subscribed for the latter. There's a lot of great original programming there, including Stranger Things and Fauda. I also maintain a subscription to HBO through my TV provider for a variety of shows and movies. I haven't taken much advantage of Amazon Prime, which I use mostly because of savings on delivery charges. As for STD, I may sign up for a one-week free trial on Amazon and watch season 1 to see if I want to continue.

 

[Huntn]

That was my early feelings about DS9 as well. It wasn't Star Trek enough to be Star Trek. Captain Sisko didn't act like a Star Fleet officer with his villainous tactics like using poisoning the atmosphere of a planet (DS9: For the Uniform) or a laundry list of sin in DS9: In the Pale Moonlight. And Sisko yelling at everybody, his officers, civilians (mostly Quark), his enemies (mainly Dukat). Picard never yelled at his officers, not even when they were on the verge of mutiny (TNG: Allegiance). As Sisko told Q, "I'm not Picard."
The new look Trill. The new Trill looks exactly like the Kriosian (TNG: The Perfect Mate). Okay, Terry Farrell is a good looking woman, so that was easy to forgive.
But in the end DS9 won me over. But it was due to fantastic story lines and believable characters. Thus far, the only good thing I have heard about Discovery is eye popping eye candy and one exceptional actor. I'm not one to be satisfied by sizzle; I want steak. I heard hints they'll flesh out the Klingon history; that's steak. I'll wait and see.

Granted, I’m only 4 episodes in, but Discovery has grabbed me as a worthy Star Trek addition. The apparent primary character Michael Burnham, human, raised by Vulcans, has a huge professional conflict in the first two episodes which turns the story in an unexpected way, and I assume colors the entire season. The mission of Discovery is interesting during the start of a conflict with the formerly infrequently seen Klingons. I like the cast including Captain Lorca played by Jason Isaacs and First Officer Saru.

Of note, gore, while not excessive is several notches higher than STNG, which is relatively sanitized, and adds realism for associated violent events in this story.

 

[cwerdna]

Granted, I’m only 4 episodes in, but Discovery has grabbed me as a worthy Star Trek addition. The apparent primary character Michael Burnham, human, raised by Vulcans, has a huge professional conflict in the first two episodes which turns the story in an unexpected way, and I assume colors the entire season. The mission of Discovery is interesting during the start of a conflict with the formerly infrequently seen Klingons. I like the cast including Captain Lorca played by Jason Isaacs and First Officer Saru.

Of note, gore, while not excessive is several notches higher than STNG, which is relatively sanitized, and adds realism for associated violent events in this story.

Great summary, so far. Yeah, Jason Isaacs does a really good job at Captain Lorca.

The are a lot of plot twists throughout all of season 1. There's also some profanity which would've never been allowed on US non-pay TV (TNG was syndicated).

After Trek has some good insights. Kelpians (Saru's race) have hooves and the actor has to wear sort of a high heel shoe w/o the heel. Once you get further thru series, there's a *great* scene involving the Kelpians, Michael Burnham and Michelle Yeoh. Don't want spoil it further.

 

[S.B.G]

For those on Twitter, do you follow any of these accounts?

@RikerGoogling
@PicardTips
@swear_trek
@WorfEmail
@LocutusTips
@AnnoyedOBrien

Found another funny twitter account to follow:

@AnnoyedOBrien

 

[cwerdna]

After Trek has some good insights. Kelpians (Saru's race) have hooves and the actor has to wear sort of a high heel shoe w/o the heel. Once you get further thru series, there's a *great* scene involving the Kelpians, Michael Burnham and Michelle Yeoh. Don't want spoil it further.

I realized that perhaps I overplayed the scene. For those who have watched ST: D thru at least ep 13 (What's Past is Prologue), the scene I'm referring to is:

Spoiler

The Emperor asks Michael Burnham to pick one (of the Kelpians). You know what you're looking for. And then at dinner, she finds out she's eating Kelpian. Have my ganglia.

The writers must've had a lot of fun coming up with that scene.

There's also a major plot twist near the end of season 1, which kinda makes sense once you look back.

 

[wordsworth]

Just spotted Star Trek: Discovery promoted on the UK Amazon site as available from 19 November. It's priced at £21.99 for the DVD. I was pleasantly surprised at the price.

I've now begun watching my recently-acquired Voyager boxed set. Hello, old friends.

Enjoyed the Caretaker double episode and, subsequently, Parallax … those pesky event horizons.

 

[S.B.G]

Happy Star Trek Day!

 

[Mac'nCheese]

Happy Star Trek Day!


View attachment 780296

I thought that was on April 5th, day of first contact.