Will Star Trek Discovery Get Cancelled?

[AcuDefTechGuy]

The problem with getting into The Expanse is that first season is incredibly boring all the way until the season finale. Sorry, nothing could be done about. Consider it very long (possibly unnecessary so) characters introduction. I urge you to give it another chance and least finish 1st and 2nd season.

If it weren’t for you telling me to keep on watching The Expanse, I would have never finished the 2nd episode.

 

[VonMagnum]

DS9 started kind of slow, but eventually became more interesting. I can't help but think they stole the soap opera like arc thing from Babylon 5, though as it started around the same time period and made no boneds about the fact it was a planned 5 year arc that ultimately got shortened to 4 years (to ensure the ending of the Shadow War was shown as it was constantly being threatened to be canceled).

I still believe Babylon 5 was the (VASTLY) superior show, though. It's a shame it never got the recognition it deserved. Hopefully one day it will get an HD facelift. Since it used Lightwave 3D for CGI effects, it could just be rerendered for many shots assuming they haven't lost the files.

 

[Joe B]

DS9 started kind of slow, but eventually became more interesting. I can't help but think they stole the soap opera like arc thing from Babylon 5, though as it started around the same time period and made no boneds about the fact it was a planned 5 year arc that ultimately got shortened to 4 years (to ensure the ending of the Shadow War was shown as it was constantly being threatened to be canceled).

I still believe Babylon 5 was the (VASTLY) superior show, though. It's a shame it never got the recognition it deserved. Hopefully one day it will get an HD facelift. Since it used Lightwave 3D for CGI effects, it could just be rerendered for many shots assuming they haven't lost the files.

I'm also a fan of Babylon 5, and I think you may be right about its multi-year story arc having influenced the writing approach to DS9. I won't say it's VASTLY superior, but it was every bit as good.
I believe character development in B5 was superior to the character development in DS9. I also believe B5's story line was superior. Virtually every character went through their own story arc in the first 4 seasons. Andreas Katsulas's portrayal of G'Kar was fantastic, and his character's arc was amazing.
B5 was nominated 25 times for awards and won 17 of those times. I don't think it went unrecognized, it just didn't get the press it needed to reach a wider audience and achieve its due.

 

[VonMagnum]

I've rewatched B5 start to finish at least three times since it aired. DS9 is on Netflix and I've never once felt like watching it again from the start (occasional episodes perhaps). I don't think it even started it's arc related stories until some time in season 2 or 3 after Odo found his people. Yeah, they brought previous elements into the arc (wormhole aliens for example), but it always felt after-the -fact to me, perhaps because B5 was getting some awards DS9 felt a bit threatened.

Voyager also felt awkward at first with the same boring/miserable aliens the entire first season. I didn't really enjoy it until the Borg and 7 of 9 showed up.

Stargate Universe made the same miserable mistake of following the "Lost In Space" idea. Every ounce of oxygen is sucked up trying to find a way home constantly and it's AWFUL as a plot device IMO with characters whining constantly about getting home when it's literally the last thing WE want (as the series is then over).

Stargate Atlantis smartly diffused that by getting them contact with Earth sooner rather than later so they could finally stop whining and get on with exploring.

 

[gene]

I can agree with you now about this, but when it first aired DS9 didn't do it for me, primarily because I couldn't always watch each episode. DS9 was the first Star Trek series to have/use incredibly long, involved story arcs, one which lasted just over an entire season. Character and story development were excellent. And DS9 never took itself too seriously. With episodes like "Little Green Men", "In the Cards", and all of the episodes with James Darren as Nick Fontaine, the series went above and beyond serial science fiction. It became first class entertainment, for any genre. And don't even get me started about the repeated appearances of Jeffry Combs.....brilliant actor......and in more than one series!

I'm a huge fan of Jeffery Combs. It is a slap in the face that STD producers didn't call on all the past amazing talents of Star Trek for the new show. I can't believe how bad most of the acting is on STD and people are content with such mediocrity.

 

[davidscott]

I confess I haven't watched many B5 or Stargate Atlantis even though I own all the episodes on DVD. I need to make some time for some binge viewing. I have watched every episode of SG1 and all of the Star trek episodes except Discover. I kind of liked the darker side of DS9 so maybe B5 will prove entertaining. I do think Voyager was the week link in the Star Trek universe.

 

[VonMagnum]

I confess I haven't watched many B5 or Stargate Atlantis even though I own all the episodes on DVD. I need to make some time for some binge viewing. I have watched every episode of SG1 and all of the Star trek episodes except Discover. I kind of liked the darker side of DS9 so maybe B5 will prove entertaining. I do think Voyager was the week link in the Star Trek universe.

Look at the Orville. They had a scene with a gelatinous cube crew member encompassing the doctor (implying it was going 'everywhere' while she moaned) and now she's making out with Robots that gain body parts in their version of the Holodeck! Voyager just seemed...kind of boring by comparison.

I think Captain Janeway had her hair down maybe two or three times the entire series. She was perhaps a bit too serious. Even Picard lightened up once in awhile. TOS had Kirk galavanting left and right to the point where In Living Colour did a parody where it was said Kirk got all the women, even the ugly ones. The doctor was a blatant xenophobe, but it was meant to be funny (and was). Sadly, things like machismo (even when used just for laughs) isn't allowed anymore in Star Trek... (another victim of "PC")

The Orville is balanced, but still definitely not what I'd call PC by any means. Thanks Seth. Some of the humor falls flat, but it's better than dead panning everything constantly. I think I'll go watch Seths' A Million Ways to Die in the West again...(talk about a 'wrong' Western. "Honey, we can afford to get you a new belt for church!" -LOL)

“Curiously enough, the only thing that went through the mind of the bowl of petunias as it fell was Oh no, not again. Many people have speculated that if we knew exactly why the bowl of petunias had thought that we would know a lot more about the nature of the Universe than we do now.” --Douglas Adams

 

[davidscott]

Look at the Orville. They had a scene with a gelatinous cube crew member encompassing the doctor (implying it was going 'everywhere' while she moaned) and now she's making out with Robots that gain body parts in their version of the Holodeck! Voyager just seemed...kind of boring by comparison.

I think Captain Janeway had her hair down maybe two or three times the entire series. She was perhaps a bit too serious. Even Picard lightened up once in awhile. TOS had Kirk galavanting left and right to the point where In Living Colour did a parody where it was said Kirk got all the women, even the ugly ones. The doctor was a blatant xenophobe, but it was meant to be funny (and was). Sadly, things like machismo (even when used just for laughs) isn't allowed anymore in Star Trek... (another victim of "PC")

The Orville is balanced, but still definitely not what I'd call PC by any means. Thanks Seth. Some of the humor falls flat, but it's better than dead panning everything constantly. I think I'll go watch Seths' A Million Ways to Die in the West again...(talk about a 'wrong' Western. "Honey, we can afford to get you a new belt for church!" -LOL)

“Curiously enough, the only thing that went through the mind of the bowl of petunias as it fell was Oh no, not again. Many people have speculated that if we knew exactly why the bowl of petunias had thought that we would know a lot more about the nature of the Universe than we do now.” --Douglas Adams

Yeah I'm with you on the Orville been watching it every week. And I did like the old tv Hitchhikers Guide better than the movie.

 

[VonMagnum]

Yeah I'm with you on the Orville been watching it every week. And I did like the old tv Hitchhikers Guide better than the movie.

I did like Zooey in the movie (she's so cute; I just watched Yes, Man again to see her some more as cute or not, I can't stand her "New Girl" TV show as it's not funny, IMO) and I liked that Arthur isn't such a loser (he actually ends up with Zooey by the end, which had me wondering where they'd take the next book/film, but then Douglas died so that was that). I liked some things better in the original and that it at least had part of the Restaurant at the End of the Universe in it.

 

[Paul Lane]

Star Trek Discovery looks great but the writing is all over the place..
The lead is always interrupting Captain Pike and the men are shown to be idiots or worse..
The writing seems cooked up by the HR department as every hero is a minority of some kind..
STD most unforgivable sin is that it’s boring..
No wonder CBS said to heck with it lets just make a Captain Picard show instead..
And what about stealing the Tardigrad stuff from some video game that’s plagerism..

 

[Paul Lane]

"City on the Edge of Forever" was my absolute favorite episode. It was written by Harlan Ellison.

And changed almost beyond recognition by Roddenberry which HR never forgave..

 

[davidscott]

And changed almost beyond recognition by Roddenberry which HR never forgave..

Arena by Frederick Brown was also changed to create a star trek episode. I read the original and it was nothing like the trek episode. I did like the show (one of my favorites) and I think Brown was compensated for his story.

 

[RXP]

Season 3 inbound: https://www.engadget.com/2019/02/27/star-trek-discovery-renewed-for-third-season/

 

[Wayde Robson]

If you want old school Star Trek, check out The Orville. Orville tackles Social issues in a very unique and interesting way.

I'm loving Orville!

 

[Ovation]

Yes if you can overlook the constant male bashing and forced hero worship of Michael Burnham, and poor acting, it's entertaining.

Yawn.

Oh no. A woman (of colour, no less) is the lead character--must be a sign that men are now obsolete.

What will the poor "fans" do?

This white, middle-aged male has been watching Trek since 1973. I do not feel "bashed" nor shoved into any "forced hero worship". I’ve seen every episode and movie at least twice, some upwards of 20 times. While I don’t buy/read the novels as much as I used to, I have nearly 200 of them. Same for comics. I defy anyone to tell me I’m not a fan (an especially absurd proposition in any case as being a fan of anything is self-selected and self-defined). DSC is currently my second favourite series (after TOS), considerably ahead of some others (though I do like them all, just not equally).

However, the LAST thing I want the makers of Trek to do is “listen to me” (or any other fan) out of some sense of obligation. Like all makers of entertainment, they should follow their vision and let the audience decide whether they want more. I certainly want more of DSC—with no need to check with me beforehand as to how to make it.

You know what? There are 700+ hours of "traditional Trek". I'll take some untraditional Trek for a while (and thanks to DSC's renewal, I'll get my wish)--variety is the spice of life, after all.

 

[gene]

Yawn.

Oh no. A woman (of colour, no less) is the lead character--must be a sign that men are now obsolete.

What will the poor "fans" do?

This white, middle-aged male has been watching Trek since 1973. I do not feel "bashed" nor shoved into any "forced hero worship". I’ve seen every episode and movie at least twice, some upwards of 20 times. While I don’t buy/read the novels as much as I used to, I have nearly 200 of them. Same for comics. I defy anyone to tell me I’m not a fan (an especially absurd proposition in any case as being a fan of anything is self-selected and self-defined). DSC is currently my second favourite series (after TOS), considerably ahead of some others (though I do like them all, just not equally).

However, the LAST thing I want the makers of Trek to do is “listen to me” (or any other fan) out of some sense of obligation. Like all makers of entertainment, they should follow their vision and let the audience decide whether they want more. I certainly want more of DSC—with no need to check with me beforehand as to how to make it.

You know what? There are 700+ hours of "traditional Trek". I'll take some untraditional Trek for a while (and thanks to DSC's renewal, I'll get my wish)--variety is the spice of life, after all.

I never had a problem with a woman in charge in Voyager, or a black man in charge in DS9. STD is different. It's feminized agenda is forced upon us and if we don't agree with their "mortality" we are wrong. Anyone that reads my stuff on this site knows that I'm socially liberal, fiscally responsible, but the SJW poop that's been plaguing our TV programing lately is ruining our favorite shows in my opinion and diminishing the value of the so called movement.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Yawn.

Oh no. A woman (of colour, no less) is the lead character--must be a sign that men are now obsolete.

What will the poor "fans" do?

This white, middle-aged male has been watching Trek since 1973. I do not feel "bashed" nor shoved into any "forced hero worship". I’ve seen every episode and movie at least twice, some upwards of 20 times. While I don’t buy/read the novels as much as I used to, I have nearly 200 of them. Same for comics. I defy anyone to tell me I’m not a fan (an especially absurd proposition in any case as being a fan of anything is self-selected and self-defined). DSC is currently my second favourite series (after TOS),considerably ahead of some others (though I do like them all, just not equally).

However, the LAST thing I want the makers of Trek to do is “listen to me” (or any other fan) out of some sense of obligation. Like all makers of entertainment, they should follow their vision and let the audience decide whether they want more. I certainly want more of DSC—with no need to check with me beforehand as to how to make it.

You know what? There are 700+ hours of "traditional Trek". I'll take some untraditional Trek for a while (and thanks to DSC's renewal, I'll get my wish)--variety is the spice of life, after all.

I never really liked Star Trek until the new ST movies came out a few years ago. Same with the ST TV series. Never liked them until STD came out last year.

I'm not sure what it is, and I have not given it much thought. I just know I like the new versions of ST for both movies and TV.

TV shows I love: Game of Thrones, Westworld, The Wire, My Brilliant Friend, Vikings, Breaking Bad, Dexter, Walking Dead, Spartacus, Outlander, Counterpart, American Gods, Billions, Homeland, Man in the High Castle, Travelers, Anne, Bosch, Goliath.

My wife hates all the Star Wars movies (old and new) and all the ST movies and shows prior to the new ST movies.

Now she also likes the new STD show.

And I'm reading similar stories online - some old fans hate it, but new fans love it.

So if the intention of STD's creators is to bring in new fans that hated the older ST, I think they probably succeeded.

Will many long time ST fans stop watching the new ST series and movies?

 

[Ovation]

I never had a problem with a woman in charge in Voyager, or a black man in charge in DS9. STD is different. It's feminized agenda is forced upon us and if we don't agree with their "mortality" we are wrong. Anyone that reads my stuff on this site knows that I'm socially liberal, fiscally responsible, but the SJW poop that's been plaguing our TV programing lately is ruining our favorite shows in my opinion and diminishing the value of the so called movement.

What “feminized agenda” and “SJW poop” do you see in DSC?

I teach at several colleges and universities, where I encounter (much to my chagrin) extremists from both ends of the spectrum rather frequently. And the activist feminists that I’ve met and know would laugh (and frequently do) at the timid and vague elements of the alleged “takeover” of entertainment by “the feminized agenda”.

But let’s move beyond politics for a moment. The cold, hard fact is the “traditional fan base” for Trek skews into a demographic that is consistently dwindling. If Trek is to remain viable going forward, it needs to diversify its appeal. You don’t have to like DSC, but it isn’t an illegitimate take on Trek just because self-appointed traditional gatekeepers are unhappy.

The current producers are not out to “ruin” Trek. They simply have a vision for it some find disappointing. That’s fine. But there are plenty others who are long time fans who enjoy the new direction (I’m hardly alone) and others (some in this thread) who had no great interest in the “old stuff” but quite like the new movies and show.

 

[Montucky]

The problem with getting into The Expanse is that first season is incredibly boring all the way until the season finale. Sorry, nothing could be done about. Consider it very long (possibly unnecessary so) characters introduction. I urge you to give it another chance and least finish 1st and 2nd season.

Reminds me of DS9!!! Haven't seen Expanse, but when DS9 came out, I was bored to tears and just couldn't get into it. Gave it a second chance when they were doing re-runs years later. Was still bored. Fast forward 20 years and a co-worker convinced me to give it another shot but really stick with it. Well, after trudging my way through the first couple seasons, he was right! I ended up REALLY enjoying it. A lot! Kicked myself for not sticking with it decades prior as I was really out of the loop with the ongoing ST conversations. Haha.

 

[Montucky]

As to the topic at hand, I actually HAVE been wanting to watch ST - Discovery, but I refuse to deal with yet another fragment in the streaming world. Another account. Another password. Another company that has my CC on file. Another poorly designed UI and app. And commercials to boot? Sorry, CBS. No dice. I'll either wait to catch up with Blu-Ray releases (which would be better anyway),or wait for CBS to admit they were wrong in their approach and finally distribute on existing streaming sources, ie Hulu, Netflix, etc.

Evidently, they have Season 1 on Blu-Ray for $43 or streaming on Amazon for $35. Worth it? Evidently Netflix DVD service (now DVD.com?) doesn't seem to have it available for a disc rental.