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4thofelevenIn which it's talk like a pirate day.
So that was fun. Slight, but fun. I could be snarky and point out that 'space pirate' stories were specifically called out in the original Star Trek writer's guide as the story of stories Star Trek shouldn't be telling – but it's not like this is the first time Trek has gone against that guideline, and at least it was generally entertaining. Pike falling fully into character is a great reminder of why we wanted a Pike spin-off after Discovery season two in the first place, and it's pretty fun to have the captain save the day through their cooking skills. Oh, and there was that wonderful reveal at the end, which I will get back to in a moment.
There are, however, still a few choices that somewhat soured my enjoyment. The first is Captain Angel; I felt their false identity as Dr. Aspen was far more interesting and fleshed out than their real personality. I found their discussions with Spock about identity and resisting categorisation genuinely impactful, and to have it all revealed as a fraud just to gain his sympathy rather undercut it all. And once their true identity is revealed, they become just another pirate cliché straight out of central casting. The actor's clearly having fun in the role, and I'm not opposed to them becoming a recurring character, but a lot of what was interesting in their performance is lost by the reveal.
And, of course, there's the other big issue – that this is a story where the non-binary character played by a trans woman is written to be a deceiver who's entire identity is a lie created to lure everyone into a trap – and, for that matter, trying to manipulate a heterosexual relationship for their own gain. That's not great. And I have read the interviews with the actor, and she makes a good point – that representation shouldn't just mean positive representation, that there needs to be opportunities for trans and genderfluid actors to play all sorts of roles, be they villains or heroes. And, like I said, she's clearly having fun with the role, and far be it for me to stand in the way of someone taking the role of a space pirate captain!
But... at the same time, this is literally Strange New World's only queer character so far, and the series has been almost aggressively heteronormative, especially compared to Discovery. If Captain Angel had shown up there, I'd be all for them – but when your only trans representation is a duplicitous liar, that's pretty bad, no matter what your intentions were. We don't need to go back to the days when Intendant Kira was the only meaningful queer character in a series. Do better, SNW.
The other issue, and I've discussed this before, is T'Pring. I continue to be baffled and confused by the choices being made here, and they seem to be going out of their way to make “Amok Time” make even less sense. Here, it's quite plausible for a Vulcan woman to just break off a betrothal without warning – and, in fact, the logic of the scene is that it's better for her reputation if she breaks the betrothal and leave Spock to die than it would be for her to go against her obligations by negotiating with Angel. If it's that easy to do, and would apparently leave her reputation completely intact... why was that not an option later?
As I've said, I'm totally onboard with fleshing out T'Pring and making her more than a one-dimensional scheming woman – but the more we see of her, the more it makes her actions in Amok Time seem worse, as it seems more and more like she had other options and deliberately chose the one that would put Spock's life in danger. I really don't understand where this is meant to be going.
Anyway, onto the reveal! I never expected we'd see Sybok again, especially after Discovery avoided ever mentioning him, and I really want to see the show do more with him. It seems like Angel intended on keeping the Enterprise after they'd secured his release, so I want to know if this was a dry-run for the plan he pulled off in Star Trek V; whether even this early he was in contact with the Sha'ka'ree entity and recognised that he'd need a starship to reach it. And tying him into the V'tosh from Enterprise is an interesting piece of continuity; it'd certainly be fun to see him as representative of a larger philosophical movement, not just a lone eccentric. Back in Star Trek V, Sybok said that this was Spock's second chance to join him; I gotta say, if SNW decides to tackle the untold story of the first time he made that offer, I'm very excited to see where this goes.
So that was fun. Slight, but fun. I could be snarky and point out that 'space pirate' stories were specifically called out in the original Star Trek writer's guide as the story of stories Star Trek shouldn't be telling – but it's not like this is the first time Trek has gone against that guideline, and at least it was generally entertaining. Pike falling fully into character is a great reminder of why we wanted a Pike spin-off after Discovery season two in the first place, and it's pretty fun to have the captain save the day through their cooking skills. Oh, and there was that wonderful reveal at the end, which I will get back to in a moment.
There are, however, still a few choices that somewhat soured my enjoyment. The first is Captain Angel; I felt their false identity as Dr. Aspen was far more interesting and fleshed out than their real personality. I found their discussions with Spock about identity and resisting categorisation genuinely impactful, and to have it all revealed as a fraud just to gain his sympathy rather undercut it all. And once their true identity is revealed, they become just another pirate cliché straight out of central casting. The actor's clearly having fun in the role, and I'm not opposed to them becoming a recurring character, but a lot of what was interesting in their performance is lost by the reveal.
And, of course, there's the other big issue – that this is a story where the non-binary character played by a trans woman is written to be a deceiver who's entire identity is a lie created to lure everyone into a trap – and, for that matter, trying to manipulate a heterosexual relationship for their own gain. That's not great. And I have read the interviews with the actor, and she makes a good point – that representation shouldn't just mean positive representation, that there needs to be opportunities for trans and genderfluid actors to play all sorts of roles, be they villains or heroes. And, like I said, she's clearly having fun with the role, and far be it for me to stand in the way of someone taking the role of a space pirate captain!
But... at the same time, this is literally Strange New World's only queer character so far, and the series has been almost aggressively heteronormative, especially compared to Discovery. If Captain Angel had shown up there, I'd be all for them – but when your only trans representation is a duplicitous liar, that's pretty bad, no matter what your intentions were. We don't need to go back to the days when Intendant Kira was the only meaningful queer character in a series. Do better, SNW.
The other issue, and I've discussed this before, is T'Pring. I continue to be baffled and confused by the choices being made here, and they seem to be going out of their way to make “Amok Time” make even less sense. Here, it's quite plausible for a Vulcan woman to just break off a betrothal without warning – and, in fact, the logic of the scene is that it's better for her reputation if she breaks the betrothal and leave Spock to die than it would be for her to go against her obligations by negotiating with Angel. If it's that easy to do, and would apparently leave her reputation completely intact... why was that not an option later?
As I've said, I'm totally onboard with fleshing out T'Pring and making her more than a one-dimensional scheming woman – but the more we see of her, the more it makes her actions in Amok Time seem worse, as it seems more and more like she had other options and deliberately chose the one that would put Spock's life in danger. I really don't understand where this is meant to be going.
Anyway, onto the reveal! I never expected we'd see Sybok again, especially after Discovery avoided ever mentioning him, and I really want to see the show do more with him. It seems like Angel intended on keeping the Enterprise after they'd secured his release, so I want to know if this was a dry-run for the plan he pulled off in Star Trek V; whether even this early he was in contact with the Sha'ka'ree entity and recognised that he'd need a starship to reach it. And tying him into the V'tosh from Enterprise is an interesting piece of continuity; it'd certainly be fun to see him as representative of a larger philosophical movement, not just a lone eccentric. Back in Star Trek V, Sybok said that this was Spock's second chance to join him; I gotta say, if SNW decides to tackle the untold story of the first time he made that offer, I'm very excited to see where this goes.