Logline

Commander Una Chin-Riley faces court-martial along with possible imprisonment and dishonorable dismissal from Starfleet, and her defense is in the hands of a lawyer who’s also a childhood friend with whom she had a terrible falling out.


Written by Dana Horgan

Directed by Valerie Weiss

  • Lockely
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    13
    ·
    2 years ago

    Star Trek has always been contemporary issues wrapped in the veneer of space aliens. It’s not meant to be pure escapism.

    • Jon-H558@kbin.social
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      4
      ·
      1 year ago

      I would say sci-fi probably has as well or story telling as a whole

      Orsen Wells, Asimov etc. A lot of alagory

    • Pyrozo007@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      1
      arrow-down
      5
      ·
      2 years ago

      This was my first Star Trek Series, I’ve now realised it’s a theme. It’s certainly my least favourite aspect of the show.

      The episode about child sweatshops in particular felt very accusational to me, the message seemed to be that by existing I’m causing child suffering akin to child murder, through cobalt mines and clothing sweatshops etc.

      I’m reminded of that bit in The Good Place where the judge says “There’s a chicken burger that, if you eat it, means you hate gay people. And it’s so gooood! It’s not fair!” (Referring to chik-fil-a)

      • Lockely
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        8
        ·
        2 years ago

        It’s more than a theme, it’s the entire cloth the show is cut from. It’s meant to be a vehicle for progressive, egalitarian, humanist ideals. It dares to see the world as a better place without the chains and vices of greed and capitalism and bigotry.

        It’s not popcorn sci-fi. It’s a surprisingly deep show meant to make you confront biases and prejudices you may not have even realized you had.

        • Pyrozo007@lemmy.dbzer0.com
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          1
          arrow-down
          2
          ·
          2 years ago

          Yes I get that, I simply find it doesn’t achieve that goal and that its attempts to do so are without subtlety and overly contemporary, I’m now watching Discovery and in S01E03 or so, Captain Lorca cites Elon Musk as a great innovator.

          The show is already dated and it’s only 5 years old, that’s a major downside.

          I think it’s primarily the shallow depth of the prejudice confrontation that causes the problem, I don’t remember any episodes so far which didn’t feel like primary school level metaphors for racism etc. A more tactful and/or deeper writer would perhaps cause me no issues

          • Lockely
            link
            fedilink
            arrow-up
            7
            ·
            2 years ago

            The Elon comment kinda comes back around, you’ll just need to keep watching and it’ll make sense. Also, that image I used above was from a TOS episode about racism being stupid all the way back in the 60s. It’s not trying to be subtle, and it never was.

            And there’s STILL people who think it’s a show that glorifies and celebrates white, western colonialism and American exceptionalism. It has to be blatant because people miss the point regularly.

            • Steve Sparrow@lemmy.one
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              edit-2
              1 year ago

              It has to be blatant because people miss the point regularly.

              Oh man, I’ve come to wonder that maybe subtext and subtlety could stand to be abandoned again, because the way people will miss or actively ignore the point…

            • Pyrozo007@lemmy.dbzer0.com
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              edit-2
              1 year ago

              It has to be blatant because people miss the point regularly.

              I hadn’t thought about that, it makes me think then about whether the stories could remain as blatant but have more depth. For example the court episode didn’t have any story beyond ‘Society (and Admiral April) is hypocritical and and racist’ by demonstrating it through one person’s story, and at the end of the story nothing has changed. I’m watching Discovery now and it’s going for a similarly blatant racial and cultural purity is evil antagonist so far, but it feels like it’s setting it up to be the antagonists’ folly, which would be more of an interesting story.

              • jmp242@sopuli.xyz
                link
                fedilink
                arrow-up
                4
                ·
                1 year ago

                Society (and Admiral April) is hypocritical and and racist’ by demonstrating it through one person’s story

                That’s just because it’s a prequel, and this issue continues through DS9. So they can’t change it. And that is the big weakness of much of current Trek being prequels.

                • Pyrozo007@lemmy.dbzer0.com
                  link
                  fedilink
                  arrow-up
                  1
                  ·
                  1 year ago

                  I just finished season 1 of Discovery and thought it was essentially flawless, though there was very little social commentary outside of Taran space nazis

                  Though it did deal with sexual assault and PTSD well, and other personal issues.

                  Season 1 of discovery was insane from start to finish, it was like when Game of Thrones was still good

                  • jmp242@sopuli.xyz
                    link
                    fedilink
                    arrow-up
                    3
                    ·
                    1 year ago

                    I’m glad someone liked it. I guess you might be the third person I’ve met who liked any part of Discovery, and the first who thought it was anywhere close to flawless. No to be an ass - have you watched any Star Trek before these?

            • Pyrozo007@lemmy.dbzer0.com
              link
              fedilink
              arrow-up
              1
              ·
              1 year ago

              You don’t have criticisms for things you like? I like the show, this and the writing are really the only weaknesses it has in my view. Everything else in the list I gave about it is absolutely 10/10

      • mightyjoe@startrek.website
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        7
        arrow-down
        2
        ·
        1 year ago

        What you’re saying is that you hate actually having to acknowledge that you consume stuff that causes pain and suffering and would rather just ignore it.

        • Pyrozo007@lemmy.dbzer0.com
          link
          fedilink
          arrow-up
          2
          ·
          1 year ago

          Correct. How do you propose I live in the modern world without a phone that uses cobalt?

          There is a phrase that describes this situation: “There is no ethical consumption under capitalism”

          There is nothing I can do while living in the modern world without benefitting from exploitation or encouraging evil, that’s the point of the The Good Place quote I included.

          I’m already depressed about it, I don’t really want to be berated for it when there’s nothing I can do about it. I already buy all my clothes second hand, fight my phone and laptop for basic privacy rights, vote for the least evil politician I can, I don’t own a car.

      • Steve Sparrow@lemmy.one
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        3
        ·
        1 year ago

        Oof.

        Really not trying to resort to “watch something else…” but the social commentary is pretty foundational to Trek.

        I feel like The Mandalorian might be more your speed, the or maybe the Abrams reboot Trek.