Star Trek: Discovery (TV Series) The Vulcan Hello (2017) User Reviews

Different

[Hillius · 6/10 · 25 September 2017]

Having viewed what I believe are the first two episodes of Discovery what follows are my thoughts so far on the show. While it's much too early to form a firm analysis, this show is different from all the other Trek shows and films I have seen throughout the years.

Without spoiling anything I feel that so far the show is very pretty without a lot of substance. While it retains the name, feel and much of the look of Star Trek there were plenty of times this could have been any sci-fi show out there. So far there is very little backstory, but I am going to assume that more will be filled in later. The show immerses you into the what without any of the why. Since this is closer to TOS than Star Trek Enterprise I acknowledge there would be some improvement in technology in the time between shows, but at the same time Discovery feels more advanced than TOS.

I am completely unfamiliar with the director, but it seemed to me that many shots could have been done much better. I am familiar with the writer Bryan Fuller who seems to have a penchant for giving female characters male names (George in Dead Like Me) for example. Fuller cut his teeth under DS9 and also worked on Star Trek Voyager so let's hope for good things to come.

The good:I like the opening credits. It's refreshing to see something different for a change than just a ship flying around space to music.

Michelle Yeoh, who was excellent in Marco Polo as Lotus, does not fail to deliver here. I do feel that she is much too familiar with her subordinates as captain as seen having discussions with her bridge crew, but perhaps she prefers leading through diplomacy. As a military veteran myself I know that doesn't work.

Sonequa Martin-Green seemed to also do a very fine job. I have never seen her in anything before, but her performance is solid and even managed to give me a laugh or two. Hers is the only character that gets any backstory although it is very brief. I'm sure it will be filled in later throughout the season.

Finally Doug Jones is wonderful as Saru. His character reminds me the most of Alan Tudyk's character Wash in Firefly. I expect he'll bring more laughs in future episodes.

The not so good: First, there's the Klingons. My first impression was that they resembled characters from a vampire movie rather than any Klingon we've seen previously. While I felt the creative team was making steps to make them more noble it seemed to me that the main Klingon lead (Chris Obi) was having difficulty talking around his prosthetic teeth. While I like the Klingon's new outfits, I do hope there will be some future explanation as to why the race is so very different looking than any other Trek incarnation to date.

The space battles in EP.2. They looked very cheap and if you've ever seen anyone playing Star Trek on PS4 you might get my drift. I was expecting TOS level phasers, but instead the lasers more closely resemble Star Trek (2009) I don't know if it was due to budgeting or not, but the viewer doesn't really get to see the damage being inflicted as much as you might expect from other Trek shows. There is one pretty ridiculous scene as well, but I'll leave it to you to figure out which.

Finally James Frain as Sarek. To me the gold standard I measure all Sarek's by is Mark Lenard (RIP) and while I'll admit Frain doesn't get much screen time he just doesn't feel or act like Sarek to me. Perhaps he'll get better later on as I do like the actor very much in a number of other films and shows (The Tudors) Like many others I'm the type to give a show 3-4 episodes before I fully commit or decide to quit and I'll do the same here. I guess since it's been so long without a Star Trek show I was really hoping for something better than what has been offered so far.

Longtime Star Trek Fan

[dncorp · 7/10 · 24 September 2017]

I have been a Fan of Star Trek since the 1960s. I even met Gene Roddenberry during the late 1970s early 1980s after he had presented one of his Star Trek "Bloopers" Presentations.

He was a World War 2 U.S. Army Air Corps Veteran. And was curious about my being a Vietnam Veteran and my going back into the U.S. Military as an Officer.

So from that perspective, as a U.S. Military Special Forces Officer, today we routinely do Cultural Anthropological Studies of the Nations within our Areas of Responsibility, especially of "Potentially Hostile" Nations, "Hostile" Nations, this was the Second Star Fleet encounter with the Klingons, so the question is why did not Star Fleet Know the Cultural Anthropology of the Klingons.

Star Fleet especially being "Explorers" would have been gathering as much Cultural Anthropological Facts from everywhere, especially the Star Fleet Diplomatic Mission to Vulcan, the Vulcan Diplomatic Mission to Star Fleet, other Species Encounters with the Klingons.

As far as the Design of the Ship, why are the new Starship Designs always dark, surely they have enough white paint, beige, light tan or very light grey, neutral light color paint. People that have been on very long U.S.N. Missions or aboard U.S.N. Submarines know why. Many Nations Ships have corridors, passageways, bulkheads, rooms, overheads painted white.

There was a Psychological Study done about the Effects of putting people into prolonged low light conditions, and rooms painted dark colors. Imagine being on a Star Fleet Starship for Years, crew members would be bouncing themselves off the walls. This is why NASA paints the very confined spaces of NASA Spacecraft white, same with the International Space Station.

Please do not turn this into some kind of mindless entertainment, the Original Star Trek was usually for those that could think as well as be entertained as intended by Star Trek Creator Gene Roddenberry (a Social Commentary in almost every Episode).

I see potential here

[fullycyborged · 8/10 · 24 September 2017]

With a budget of 8 Mil per episode, you'd expect this series to look boss and it did deliver on that end. The bridge looked sleek and the visuals were sharp. I often paused just to fully appreciate the ships aesthetics inside and out. It was a beaut.

As for the writing, this I could see angering many hardcore Trekkies. Yes, it was a little on the SJW side of the spectrum. That said, it did have elements of discovery and wonder sprinkled here and there, and that is a staple in the Star Trek franchise I don't see being abandoned anytime soon. So I think the haters should at least recognize that and give this thing a shot.

The face off between the Klingons and Federation was entertaining, it kept you guessing as to what they were planning. Obviously, with the Klingons it almost always means batleths, blood, and plenty of ass kicking. By the end of the episode, it did leave me wanting more, and that's what a properly written show should make the viewer do.

Excellent first show. I see plenty of potential and character development between the Captain and her number 1. I look forward to the next.

A hostile version of space, in every sense

[jrarichards · 7/10 · 13 December 2018]

While watchers of streamed programming have had plenty of time to get accustomed to "Discovery", we remaining adherents of DVD have only recently had our chance; and resort to this format plus a wide-screen TV leaves me in no doubt that this is the way to experience the visual splendour on display here. Let us be clear from the off that no earlier TV incarnations of Trek have come anywhere close to this utter treat for the eyes!

The opening titles are also exquisite, if also surprisingly toned-down and in some way inspid. They toy with paying homage to Treks we know and love, but seem to end this flirtation in indecision - as well they might, given further developments.

Quite a lot of effective design artistry is also on display from the outset, when an unknown artefact of alien culture is found by our Starship towards the edge of Federation space. The sharp-eyed or film-aware may well feel an association building with Peter Jackson's LOTR, and - when the aliens in charge of the ship turn out to be Klingons; well, these are not those Klingons, nor those Klingons, nor even THOSE Klingons, but ... basically ... orcs!! And the association that that word brings is of creatures who show no mercy, expect no mercy and receive no mercy, and that is pretty much what happens in this episode, and in the companion part 2. Hard to imagine these guys ever drinking prune juice with Guinan, hard to imagine Odo, O'Brien and co. a couple of centuries on, laughing and joking and pretending to be like these!

Most of us are 21st century enough to live with the concept that the Vulcan-raised human hero Michael Burnham (an utterly-episode-dominating Sonequa Martin-Green) is more female than male, though we may be inclined to toy with different pronunications of the name "Michael Burnham" to think of some rather prophetic concepts for the series. For indeed, Burnham is a restless individual not rooted anywhere in particular and taking a very specific view of loyalty and the chain of command. But while s(he) is sassy, the attempts at humour the makers inject into the character and those around it do not come off, and indeed the overall impression of life on board ship and of the universe beyond is cold, comfortless and entirely non-cosy. Whoever saw a bridge like this? And especially a pre-James Kirk bridge? Is there any real comfort of any kind to be had on this ship?

Our captain, played by Michelle Yeoh, is in conflict with her Number 1, and seems not quite like any captains we've been used to. And those of us expecting to see Jason Isaacs in the chair are evidently expected to be patient, as there's no sign of him after 2 episodes, though fellow Brit James Frain is there, sadly adopting a non-British accent, and not achieving too much in his Vulcan mentor role either.

Star Trek has been working to accustom us to "strange new worlds" for decades now, but only with "Discovery" do we seem to find something totally ... alien.

Does this bode well for the rest of the series? I intend to find out, but I am far from confident...

I take these two Eps as a Pilot Ep.

[XweAponX · 10/10 · 26 September 2017]

They should have been One Ep anyway, not broken up into two. Because its basically setting up who is to be a Main Character, a girl raised by Sarek, and her unusual outlook on things. So it all happens on a ship that's not discovery, with a bean counting Captain whose religious adherence to the Prime Directive ends up starting a war.

These Klingons are Klingons. When One of them Dies, they all do the Klingon Death Ritual which Worf demonstrated in "Heart of Glory".

And these Klingons may look slightly different, but they are Klingons. Just missing some hair and a bit meaner looking.

The Story is what makes this Trek. It's not just the gadgets or the ships, or the aliens, it's the social commentary.

Imagine, a White Klingon. Who has no Family Name. Imagine an androgynous person who was raised by Sarek to think critically? These are very relevant things, relevant to us. In all of these years, nobody ever considered that Klingons also have Races.

The Klingons here, react as to "The Other", as "Us vs Them", in fear of losing their culture. Because Michael, our main character, happened to accidentally kill their Torchbearer.

That's another concept, "The Light of Kahless", it's as if this is something Holy to the Klingons, and Michael inadvertently contaminated it. It's like one of us, touching a Muslim's Quran. We can't make any progress until we start respecting other people's belief systems, and that includes Atheism as well as our 3 world religions and the many others.

That's what Trek really IS, it's not how their Communicators and Tricorders look, or how their uniforms look, or how their ships look. It's all about a different way of thinking. And that was why Michael failed to convince her Captain to dole out the Vulcan Hello, because The Prime Directive was being treated as an Absolute.

Worst Klingons ever in the history of Star Trek

[alisonperkins-76848 · 7/10 · 27 September 2017]

The intro story line was pretty good if a little quirky in places. Michelle Yeoh was wonderful and the new crew was very tight - really good for a brand new series.

However, the Klingon's speech rendition was absolutely dreadful. It was slow and clumsy and as a viewer, you got to the point of thinking OMG just get on with it. Bring back Worf and his Klingons, they were so much more athletic and more like real warriors. To be fair though the new version Klingon costumes were stellar.

Looking forward to improvements as the new Star Trek series rolls onward. It will be worth the glitches. Given 7 out of 10 purely because of the rubbishy Klingon speech.

-Star Trek is back..in certain parts.

[marian_ciobanu · 10/10 · 8 November 2017]

-This series has ,just like any other series ,good things and bad things.

The bad things : The change of Klingons,the new ones stink !!! They have much interesting characters than Burnham in the background,and i really hope to see them becoming main characters. The main characters are too nasty,for example Tilly is the kind of character more suitable as being 'a red shirt'. Just like Abrams did in his trilogy ,the producers are not using any previous classic race,excepting the Vulcans. -There is not even one sexy main character.We are not monks or priests,you know ,and the sexuality is not a bad thing,is just an important part on our lives as beings. The producers are messing once again with the continuity.I consider this as being a lack of exigency and professionalism,for example Stargate continuum doesn't have this kind of errors at all. The modern futuristic civilizations are completely missing. The humor,even a dark one is totally missing.

The good things : The visual effects are absolutely amazing. The show is full of action ,so you can't get bored at all. The show is described as being dark ,although i think is not darker enough and i am not referring to the lack of happy endings. The visual reboot of the technology from the show looks great,i think this was one of the reasons Star Trek Enterprise was a failure.

-It would be interesting to see Burhnam replaced by that strange 7 of 9 predecessor ,Keyla Detmer ,because that girl has material to be a REAL hero.That would be something very ORIGINAL !!!!

The Vulcan Hello

[bobcobb301 · 6/10 · 25 September 2017]

I have seen mixed reviews that range from this being great to it being truly detestable. I am somewhere in the middle.

It just didn't stand out enough. The slow pacing was done deliberately, but in today's age, after a day of exciting NFL games, it just didn't get the job done.

I gathered more than a monticule of hope that this could end up as a good show, but this was not a groundbreaking pilot. It is still Star Trek and very authentic, but just not as good as I hoped for.

About a Girl

[pontram · 25 September 2017]

This review is related to the first two episodes. Finally, Discovery has arrived in our universe, much anticipated by the starving community of Trek lovers. And also much hated in advance, for what was seen in the trailers, by many die-hard Trekkers - lens flares, rubbery Klingons, darkness... Was it worth all that rumor ?

Yes and no. And no. Because, astonishingly, those two episodes are only a prequel to the remaining episodes of that season, so it was a prequel to a prequel. As we were introduced to that at the end of episode two. Boom, did we just watch a reboot before the real reboot ? OK, that's new. We'll see where it leads to.

A lot of characters we learn to know in the first and second episodes will not be in the third. That was surprising, and I do like being surprised, but not quite in this manner. Carefully establishing characters and then ruthlessly killing them off is something that should remain with TWD and GOT, it may be a 'modern screenplay' thing to never trust the current composition of the ensemble being durable, and it may be funny (for some people), or good for the budget of a show (nobody dares to demand a raise), but (for me) mostly it's sad.

The second 'no' is for the expectations. If they were high, only the main actress and the atmosphere satisfied (but both tremendously). Storytelling did clearly not, as 'Discovery' always tries to be 'modern', but stumbled where it clearly wanted to be interesting. The Klingons were interesting, but, if one of them in 'Enterprise' would have said, 'they talk to much'.

And here's the yes: What the first episode loses in speed with world building and cultural observation (after it's finished one may think where those forty minutes where gone to), the second episode catches up. Action, explosions, destruction. Not quite on a Battlestar Galactica level, but technically OK. A little 'devious' (and approved) bombing, a hostage taking combat mission that refers - at least I think so - to the first Abrahams movie, performed by the seemingly only two combat-capable persons on board the Shenzou - the two leading females. That's where Star Trek begins to peep out.

Acting is very solid, Sonequa M-G from TWD is a great choice, and the Lt. Saru dialogues are often humorous and not one-dimensional. James Frain as Sarek seems to be not completely comfortable with the amount of reluctance he has to perform as a Vulcan.

Summary: In those two episodes there are many great moments, and sometimes we can see every Million running down into environment end CGI. It is a different approach, much like 'Enterprise' was different then. But it's not that great to bend the knee or to fall in love, at least not with the show. The main actress may be a different case. But it's enough for me to be eager for what's coming next.

For now, it has my 8 stars, despite all its flaws.

And no, there aren't so many lens flares ;-)

Great

[us_330 · 9/10 · 9 October 2017]

Long time Trek fan here, and contrary to many here I think this is the best Trek since the original. The characters have more depth, they aren't all syrupy, horribly nice-nice like a Nelix, or annoying know-it-alls like Whoopie Goldberg's character, whatever that was called.

There's actual dramatic tension between characters, which lets face it, has never been a star trek strong point.

The acting is quite good all around, yes the lead is a bit wooden, but she was supposed to have been raised by Vulcans.

There are interesting new creatures, new aliens, and new planets, and that is always part of the Trek fun.

The redesign of the Klingons, does look awful, they should have stayed with TNG version, which was perfect, and there is certainly a chance that this could go all in on wars (as the latest horrible movies have done) , but it hasn't done that yet by any means.

Better than I thought it was going to be.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 6/10 · 10 October 2020]

Ill be honest, I'm not someone you'd class as a huge Star Trek follower, the only show I did watch without fail, was Deep Space None, though I am trying to watch more, this came up as a suggestion, I thought I'd give it a try. My review is an outsider looking in.

Those desert visuals look incredible, I was blown away by just how incredible it looks, question though, was it all style over substance?

In some ways no, in some yes. Overall, I didn't mind it, I find the conflict and setup interesting, I am intrigued to learn more. On the downside, I don't feel I got to know any of the main characters, in this early episode, they could have spent some time introducing them.

Let's see if we get a bit of substance from the cast pretty soon.

Did The Klingons look this this? I don't remember this being an accurate look, I may be wrong. Shows, Dr Who included always think that as time passes, it calls for aliens to change in appearance.

It's not bad, I want to see more, I understand why so many reviews are so passionate, it's a franchise people care for.

Decent, 6/10.

Mix of Next Generation and the New JJ Abrams Movies

[smskhyron · 8/10 · 1 October 2017]

My wife and I really enjoyed the first 2 episodes. It reminds me of the era of Next Generation with them having to make hard decisions to deal with the Borg, plus the action and effects of the new movies.

Good story, good acting, good effects, and one of the better Star Trek series pilots I've ever seen.

Spoilers ahead:

There were a few moments that felt off, like the mind meld across space, or too much Klingon subtitled dialog, or the fact that they only sent the captain and 1st officer on a dangerous raiding party mission, but this does take place 10 years before the original Star Trek series, and Kirk and Spock did that all the time. These things didn't distract us too much, we just went with it and enjoyed the show.

Having the mutiny also seemed a little off for Star Trek, but I thought they did a good job with it and it made the show interesting.

I am disappointed that the rest of these episodes are only on CBS All Access. For those of you that like the show but don't like it enough to pay $6 a month, just wait until they all air, and binge watch them all for $6.

I honestly don't get all these 1/10 reviews. Go watch the first season of Next Generation, now THAT'S 1/10.

More Combat/Less Science

[Hitchcoc · 6/10 · 2 October 2017]

It will be a while before I see the second episode. I'm already overloaded with extra charges for features. Anyway, this first offering has a strong female character who rants and raves and pays no attention to orders. I know she is strong willed and is going to take over soon, but she is downright insubordinate. First, she talks her Captain into letting her go on a reckless flyby. When there, she ignores the realities of her situation and the possibility of no return. When she gets back (through the intense work of the crew) she jumps out of the device that is saving her. She starts making demands. Meanwhile the Klingons are intent on waging war because she killed one of them. I just flat out grew tired of her. When this becomes available on DVD I guess I'll check it out. First episodes and pilots are always stiff and sometimes badly acted. I just found this whole thing boring. Beyond the great special effects, the story seems really tired.

Star Trek Discovery - Or how I stopped worrying and binge watched DS9 instead

[metzelmax · 3/10 · 25 September 2017]

There are 2 ways to judge this series and this episode: As a stand alone Experience or in comparison to the rest of the Star Trek Series.

"Star Trek Discovery: A Vulcan Hello" fails to deliver in both cases.

I wont address the visual discontinuity to the Original series and the strange design decisions on the Klingons here since that horse has been beaten by any Trailer review already.

The episode actually starts out OK-ish with Captain Georgiou and her Number 1 Michel fixing a Water-Well for a pre-Warp Species on a desert Planet. The campy chatter between the 2 women actually gave me hope that this series might be somewhat watchable. But it goes all down Hill from there.

While investigating a damaged relay station Michel finds a Klingon beacon and kills the so called "Torch bearer" in self defense which the Klingon Cult uses to provoke an all out battle between the Federation and the Klingons to spark a war. And if that summary feels rushed then imagine how rushed it felt crammed into a 40 min Episode. Other Star Trek Series would have such an episode at the end of the 3rd Season after dozens of episodes of build up. Here it is just thrown at us with characters fighting each other the audience doesn't know or cares about.

In fact aside from the Captain and Michels I remember not a single Name of the main ships crew. There is no time spent developing ANY character side from Michel. And the reason for that comes clear in the second episode of the Series (Spoiler): Everyone except Michel dies and even she is trialed for mutiny. That is the reason why no one is fleshed out. But the Problem with that is: If the writers of the show didn't care about these characters enough to write something for them to do, then why should the viewer care about anything that happens in these 2 episodes?

Aside from the Plot that doesn't make any sense, and the actions of the characters that are forced and unrealistic, the dialogue is also atrocious. All the personal talks in what I want to call "Trailer-speak". They talk in a intentionally vague and convoluted manner. The kind of sentences you hear in Trailers. Except they do that for 40 min. Best example is this line: "What if they call for the same thing we do?" 10 second pause and close up on the face: "Back up!" That is a prime example of a sentence you'd expect in a Trailer but not in a finished episode people are actually expected to watch.

I give this series as a whole a 3/10. It is below standards of a ST series and feels more like one of the newer Movies crammed into a 40 min format and devoid of likable characters.

Wonderfully amazingly superb

[sophiamaxx · 13 October 2020]

I absolutely love Star Trek Discovery, yes things may have changed, ideas updated, modernised, but it is all so exciting and uplifting especially in this present time so I keep going back to re watch. I am a serious trekkie, have been all my life, this new take is refreshing and awe inspiring, it feels like family right from the start and I am totally addicted and cannot wait for the new season.

The Vulcan Hello

[Prismark10 · 6/10 · 25 September 2017]

Star Trek returns to television after a twelve years absence and it is another prequel series to the original Star Trek. This time set nine years before Captain Kirk went on his five years mission but the Enterprise is still out and about under Captain Pike.

I have learned that it is just better to view Star Trek: Discovery on its own and ignore the fannish continuity of the previous Trek television shows and movies which spoilt my enjoyment of Enterprise. Although I still think Enterprise was a misstep.

The first episode concentrates on two kick ass women. First Officer Michael Burnham who has served seven years on the USS Shenzhou for Captain Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh.) We see how cleverly the Captain escapes from a planet before a storm heads by which has disrupted communications with the ship.

Like the very first episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation the crew of the Shenzhou encounter an unknown object which holds danger as well an encounter with Klingons. Burnham has a grudge against Klingons and she also gets help from Sarek, Spock's father who counsels Burnham about her emotions. However it is puzzling to find out that the Vulcans could be so violent when saying hello for the second time.

The first episode really showed that you were in the Star Trek universe, the space walk reminded of Star Trek: The Motion Picture and the special effects although not visually cinematic, the initial planet set scenes were just updated effects from the various 1990s shows. The Klingon designs were very well crafted although I am puzzled as to why they have no hair.

The dialogue though is just perfunctory and we have not really started with the main players from the USS Discovery, they will come later. This along with the second episode is just the set up for Star Trek: Discovery.

-Y'all need to get along !

[bakulascott · 10/10 · 14 July 2018]

Well, the series looks promising, although the changes made to bring new viewers are the same changes which made the old fans to leave the series for another tv shows like Lost in Space or to go back in time to rewatch shows like Andromeda .Stargate SG-1 ,Space Above And Beyond,Babylon 5,Farscape or even Enterprise.The Klingonsvare looking good for any other show but not for Star Trek ,the new masks are making the actorsvto speak ridiculous and the new expensive Klingons ships and costumes are to different from the rest of the series and thisvl is not a good thing.The new uniformes ,made from one very tight piece are not looking good ,alrhough they were very expensive,justvimagine an officer going to poop, dressed in that uniform,what a nightmare,or an oficer eating too much,or making sport in that very tight uniform without any pocket for that cool gadgets.I hope they will resolve all that problems in the next season.The color of the uniforms should reflect the fact they are space soldiers so it should be purple with black,and Starfleet should have marines and ground forces too,a little more complexity should be very welcome.Instead of being made in the primeline, they should place the series in our timeline,in order to have a fresh start and to not interfere with the rest of the franchise.Yeah, it's our timeline which should be the new primeline.I hope they will bring some new male characters in the future because the male characters from the first season are bad,very bad,i know everybody wants a diverse cast ,but oh boy the caracers fron this series are looking ancient and ridiculous if you compare this show with Andromeda or Stargate SG-1.Everybody young thinks this are cool and modern times,but this is not true so '-This is not your grampa's Trek !' sounds' ridiculous.Man,i really miss those communication Starflet insignias.

Reasonably good start, but not without problems

[snoozejonc · 7/10 · 8 January 2021]

The USS Shenzhou encounters the Klingons.

I enjoyed this first episode for how it sets up a quite intriguing premise, showcases the best visuals in a Trek show and introduces characters, but it does have issues.

The story is pretty compelling, particularly towards the end of the episode as the tension increases, but the dialogue is a bit flat and exposition heavy for my liking. I understand they need to give background information on characters but this for me is never done with any subtly. Some of Captain Georgiou's very American sounding dialogue is not suited to Michelle Yeoh's delivery and felt awkward.

Visually its great and what I would expect from a Trek show made in the television streaming era. I have watched all other Trek shows and classify myself as a fan, but not one who takes it so seriously that I would reasonably expect a modern show to stick to the kind of visuals used in years gone by. If that means inconsistency in the look, so be it. As difficult as it might be for the die hard fans to accept, none of it is real anyway. It has to be said though, the holographic communication technology is a step too far.

On the subject of going over the top with visuals, the look of the Klingons is a bit too far away from the established creature design for my liking, especially given that there are characters in the franchise with mixed human and Klingon heritage. This makes concept of a union between the two species feel less plausible by seeming so physically incompatible. All that being said, this version does look far more alien and like they are actually from another world compared to the original designs.

As for the characters, it's early days but they seem to be quite good, particularly Burnham and Saru. I'm not sure if Burnham really needs the Sarek connection, but it will be interesting to see where they go with this. For me characters are the most important aspect of the show, so if they do not develop in an interesting or memorable way, I will struggle.

I get the feeling that some of the details of the established canon will be smashed to bits with this show, which is a shame because as much as producers say they need to update things for a modern audience, any decent writer should be able to create stories that are clever enough to be fresh without messing with what happened before. That being said, I think this will only be a major issue for the those who take Trek far too seriously. The most important aspect for me will be when the show is over and we look back on the full narrative, does it fit within the franchise and is it consistent with Roddenberry's vision?

A series full of anti-example heroes.

[chul_soon · 10/10 · 20 July 2018]

Tobe honest everybody knows the good points of the series : the breath-taking action and the superb special and visual effects.The bad points are the look of the Klingons (they REALLY blew it this time hahahaha) and the thight almost gay (i really don't want to offense anybody ) Starfleet uniforms .I really hope someday somebody will have the courage to do a normal sequel to Voyager,but until then we that is all we get.I have some ideas for the next seasons :An episode about finding an iconian doorway ,an episode about the Kelvans,an episode about finding an old artificial outpost which can open a vortex between galaxies and alternative universes like our universe ,without the eugenic wars and with the species looking like the ones from TNG,an episode about a very distant future,an episode about Jem'Hadar and the list goes on,the fans are full of great ideas and they don't ask anything for their thoughts .I'm also dissaponted about the lack of interaction with the secondary crew members and about the lack of sexy girls , as a man i consider this is the first series with average looking girls ,the uniforms are too sexual (in a very bad way) but the characters are looking all like a bunch of asexuate or neutered people ( including even the Blingons ,sorry, the Klingons).I don't understand why the producers don't make polls for the fans before the beggining of the production between the fans ,asking them about what they want to see and what they don't want to see.I'm pretty sure the majority would have been against of a series like this one and they are the ones who will pay to watch the series afterall ,so,it's their right to ask a proper series.Until now i'll give 0 stars to the producers because they are totally ignoring the majority of the fans' whishes .Captain's log out.

Second time around

[faithless4734 · 6/10 · 30 October 2021]

So watched this 3 years ago, I liked it. Watching it the second time and I find myself less entranced by this show than I remember. The mutiny that takes place is somewhat forced and frankly the results to the mutineer are off putting to put it in mild terms. Also the reboot of the number 1 as a 1/2 Vulcan (yes I know but it was a weak copy of the old 1st officer there was no real reason to make her raised on Vulcan she may as well be 1/2) is to simplistic and to copycat like. Now on with the action/fighting of the show. They go pretty far with it and spend to little time actually being science seekers and explorers. It takes something away from the show.

Georgiou rocks ,Burnham flops !

[free_tilly · 10/10 · 19 August 2018]

The new Klingons are looking more like the Remans or like some zombie Sullibans,the uniforms are too bright, too thight and they still don't have pockets.The fans would love pockets because they don't have where to put their money and their keys when they are doing cosplay for the Star Trek conventions.

Darker and Script Driven

[tabuno · 7/10 · 11 June 2021]

This a darker version of the original Star Trek series. The photography is more sharp and clean. Maybe the new generation of Trekkers are more cynical but the tone of this first episode is more cynical. There is a unnecessary resemblance to the foreign space craft like in Alien (1986). There is the pretty farfetched script device of a really spruced up starship WITHOUT a shuttle. Overall, this episode is compelling if not spectacular and has the unfortunate pilot feel that should have been a two-hour episode instead of two-parts which it wasn't even billed as such.

As A Casual Trek Fan, I Like This Episode!

[gab-14712 · 8/10 · 28 February 2022]

Coming from someone who is, at best, a casual Star Trek fan, I really found much to enjoy about Star Trek: Discovery. I have seen the J. J Abrams movies and some episodes from the original series, so this is a good way to start. I believe this series takes place a decade before the original series. I found the visuals to be arresting, especially when the crew was on that desert planet. I was taken a little aback at the design of the Klingons...as they do not like what we have seen before. If I did not know any better, I would think they are glorified orcs. Bryan Fuller and Alex Kurtzman wanted to show this race as more "sexier." The performances are very strong. For once, we have two capable female leaders. Sonequa Martin-Green, who was fantastic killing zombies in The Walking Dead, is an inspired choice to play Michael Burnham. An even more inspired casting is Michelle Yeoh as Captain Phillipa Georgiou. Michelle Yeoh is not one I would expect for genre fare, but she is a great choice. Not the entire cast is introduced in this episode as this episode plays out more like a prologue. Some people were turned off, but I felt like it was a good way to understand our protagonist and how she acts. Because she learned from Vulcan foster parents, she uses logic (and tries to not use emotion) to dictate the safety of her captain and crew even if that means endangering her career. Also, I really liked Doug Jones as Saru, a member of an alien species called Kelpians and the science officer of the ship. As he does in most of his movies/television shows, he is disguised under lots of prosthetics and makeup. With fear being his guideline to life, there will be lots to explore with this character.

"The Vulcan Hello" begins with T'Kuvma who rallies Klingons against the Federation by teaching these ancient teachings known as Kahless. Next, we see First Officer Michael Burnham (Green) and Captain Phillipa Georgiou (Yeoh) on a relatively deserted planet helping to open a well to help end an 89-year drought. The crew of the U. S. S Shenzhou then investigate an interstellar relay where they discover an unidentified object. Saru (Jones) advises to leave but Burnham disagrees. They find an armed Klingon and Michael accidentally kills him. She warns Georgiou despite Saru claiming she is confused. The Klingons make their cloaked vessel appear and Georgiou debates whether or not she should attack. T'Kuvma has a plan to unite all the Klingon tribes. Burnham and Georgiou might be at odds to figure out the next steps.

Overall, this is a good start to the series. As someone who holds casual investment in the franchise, I am interested to see what comes next. The writing is a bit suspect here, but I think they can improve from here. Was it necessary to have Burnham associated with Vulcan? With Sarek of all people? For those who do not know, Sarek is Spock's father, and played by James Frain here. I believe the writers felt it was necessary to cling on to what people know. There is a lot of potential here. The acting, music, production design modernizes the series. There is more action, less philosophy which I am sure will not please diehards. After such production troubles, I am pleased we got a decent series to start with.

My Grade: B+

Visually Stunning, but Ultimately Falls Flat

[bhpitt · 7/10 · 3 September 2019]

This is, functionally at least, part 1 of a 2 part premier. Which is ultimately skipable. The show doesn't really start until episode 3.

Mindless Canon-Bashing Action for the ADD generation

[speckled10 · 3/10 · 25 September 2017]

I'm not a hater - I hate haters. I simply have to join the chorus of people on here who dislike the start of this series because though it might be visually stunning it just simply is NOT Star Trek, nor especially good Sci-Fi of any genre.

You do not claim this exists in the Prime Trek universe 10 years before TOS and then go about adding tech that shouldn't exist - Klingons with ridge bumps and no hair and 29th century looking ships, uniforms out of place etc. making a mockery of all the TV series produced before it.

If they had set this in the parallel JJ Trek universe I would be totally fine with the changes and it would make sense since stylistically this owes a lot to those movies (which by the way I love). Either that or set it 100 years after TNG era in the Prime Universe where again all the changes would be plausible.

Even if you did buy in to all that - above and beyond all else the first 2 episodes (which this review is based) just have very little going for them. No chemistry, largely annoying characters, bad Sci-Fi (Gravity anyone) and just basically an excuse for more war more confrontation and more mindless action prevalent in so many movies made for a mass audience of morons dazzled by special effects and violence without substance or an intelligent plot.

The ending of the 2nd episode was at least a little more interesting and based on previews the rest of the series looks more promising once they actually get onto the Discovery and we see more of day to day life (as teased in the 'After Trek' show that aired after this which I enjoyed a *LOT* more than the actual premiere) so I will reserve judgment and a review of the series as a whole until the full run.

But as it stands after 2 episodes I really wish they hadn't ruined the Trek universe with this.