Housepets!

Because there seems to be fans besides myself on this site and because I can't find a general TV discussion thread I made this one. Really I'm just curious if any else has seen the first episode of ST Picard and what y'all think about it.

The show isn't too bad. What impressed me most was the camerawork. There were some well designed shots in this episode, like the dream exchanges between Picard and Data, the vineyard scenes, and the Starfleet archives. I've always thought that Star Trek could use some more visual artistry. Like a lot of TV shows, ST tends to simply point the camera at the action and call it good there, but in Picard a lot of thought's been put into the framing, lighting, and movement. It's refreshing.

Overall the writing is decent. Some stuff is great. The mystery surrounding Data really worked for me. Hopefully his role in Picard will correct his injustice in Nemesis. On the other hand some stuff sucks. The interview scene was ham-fisted. It was an obtuse way of dropping lore exposition. For a show produced by a major network, the dialogue is surprisingly tolerable.

This is probably too much effort put into an OP, but since I don't know anyone IRL who's interested in ST I'll have to share my thoughts here.

I haven't seen Picard...
But I do love Star Trek!
What's your favorite Star Trek Series?

DS9. The Dominion saga is my favorite part of all of ST because it provided lots of great lore and character development. I also like Voyager. Random missions are fun, but Voyager's single goal of returning home made it feel like an epic adventure.

I haven't had the chance to watch either of those, but they sound great! My favorite series is the original. The original series has a certain... charm to it...

...

Also, I haven' had the chance to see any of the other series.

You're missing out! Netflix has TOS and almost everything else.

Oh, I didn't know! Thanks for telling me!
Who's your favorite character?

It's hard to say because I like many for different reasons. Sisko's my favorite captain, McCoy's my favorite doctor (but The Doctor is an extremely close second place), Gul Dukat's my favorite villain, and Quark's my favorite quirky side character. How about you, Foxy?

My favorite character is Doctor McCoy. He's funny!
ave you seen the episode "The Changeling"?

I liked the first episode of Picard and I'm... cautiously optimistic. Very eager to see where the show will go, anyway.
You're spot on about the camera work, it really made it look like something special... unfortunately I think you're spot on about that interview scene too. Though I will say I did like how it unequivocally established that this takes place after the Prime timeline split with the Kelvin one, meaning this is uncharted territory.

FoxyBoi wrote:Have you seen the episode "The Changeling"?

Yeah, I remember that one! It reminds me V'ger. Seems there's a lot of dangerously misguided space probes out there.

Vertigo Fox wrote:I liked the first episode of Picard and I'm... cautiously optimistic. Very eager to see where the show will go, anyway.
You're spot on about the camera work, it really made it look like something special... unfortunately I think you're spot on about that interview scene too. Though I will say I did like how it unequivocally established that this takes place after the Prime timeline split with the Kelvin one, meaning this is uncharted territory.

Cautiously optimistic is a good way of putting it, that's how I feel too.
My main reason for watching this show to see how they'll move the timeline forward. The writers are brave for taking on the legendary characters of Picard and crew, but can they handle that burden? I fear this show will ride on the legacy of its already beloved characters and under-develop new ones. On the other hand, the lore is promising. A new Starfleet, new Romulans, and new Borg?? Maybe beta canon will find its way into the show. Man, the 25th century ships from STO are so cool, I'd be thrilled if they make an appearance (I'm dying to see what future Starfleet ships will look like).

Nathan Kerbonaut wrote:

FoxyBoi wrote:Have you seen the episode "The Changeling"?

Yeah, I remember that one! It reminds me V'ger. Seems there's a lot of dangerously misguided space probes out there.

Vertigo Fox wrote:I liked the first episode of Picard and I'm... cautiously optimistic. Very eager to see where the show will go, anyway.
You're spot on about the camera work, it really made it look like something special... unfortunately I think you're spot on about that interview scene too. Though I will say I did like how it unequivocally established that this takes place after the Prime timeline split with the Kelvin one, meaning this is uncharted territory.

Cautiously optimistic is a good way of putting it, that's how I feel too.
My main reason for watching this show to see how they'll move the timeline forward. The writers are brave for taking on the legendary characters of Picard and crew, but can they handle that burden? I fear this show will ride on the legacy of its already beloved characters and under-develop new ones. On the other hand, the lore is promising. A new Starfleet, new Romulans, and new Borg?? Maybe beta canon will find its way into the show. Man, the 25th century ships from STO are so cool, I'd be thrilled if they make an appearance (I'm dying to see what future Starfleet ships will look like).

I'm just relieved they chose to set it in 2399. The really big problem with Star Trek: Discovery that I've found is the fact they're throwing canon out the window by setting it 10 years before TOS and having technology that would make Geordie LaForge beg to play with it. They could have kept the idea of the ship as an experimental one, a few years after the Dominion War, and encountered a new hostile. I figure the only reason these guys are called 'Klingon' is they couldn't be bothered to create a new language...

Discovery. Good Sci-Fi. Terrible Star Trek.

Give me Deep Space 9 anyday.

Oh, advice for you, Foxyboi. If you ever find yourself watching Star Trek -Enterprise, the first two series are mediocre. The final two series (3&4) are a vast improvement. Except for the final episode which is one of the worst in the entire Star Trek line.

Welsh Halfwit wrote:Oh, advice for you, Foxyboi. If you ever find yourself watching Star Trek -Enterprise, the first two series are mediocre. The final two series (3&4) are a vast improvement. Except for the final episode which is one of the worst in the entire Star Trek line.

Thank you!

Do you play STO?

FoxyBoi wrote:

Welsh Halfwit wrote:Oh, advice for you, Foxyboi. If you ever find yourself watching Star Trek -Enterprise, the first two series are mediocre. The final two series (3&4) are a vast improvement. Except for the final episode which is one of the worst in the entire Star Trek line.

Thank you!

Do you play STO?

Nah. Lack of budget and skill and patience with other players(!)

Are the alternate timeline movies worth watching?

Star Trek 2009 Yes.

Star Trek:- Into Darkness. Mostly. Although the playing with the timeline begins. And Benedict Cumberbatch is good but the reversal of a certain scene in one of the original movies is really... naff.

Star Trek:- Beyond. Is actually boring.

FoxyBoi wrote:Are the alternate timeline movies worth watching?

Into Darkness was the first Trek I ever saw. I was young and easy to entertain back then so I got a kick out of that movie, even if I knew nothing about ST at the time. Haven't seen it or the other JJ movies since, but I've heard they're decent.

Here are some of my thoughts on this week's episode of Picard, "Maps and Legends." I hate to say it but I was bored. The dialogue felt hollow -- the characters spoke dramatically but their words were all fluff. Unnecessary profanity seemed like a desperate attempt to add artificial drama (was that f-bomb a Trek first?). But mostly I was confused about characters. Who was that doctor with bad news? Who was the lady with the gun in the desert? I thought I was up to speed with all the relevant Trek, so did I miss something?

My praise for the show's visuals still stand. Though in my opinion they can turn the shaky cam and lens flares down a notch.

My favorite Star Trek series is probably Voyager, followed by The Original Series. I haven't had a chance to check out Picard yet, but most of the people I know who have seen it seem to agree with Nathan. It's disappointing that they seemed to add the profanity in an attempt to add drama or spice to the show, seems cheap and maybe not a good indicator of future quality IMO. On the other paw, the show is still young, and many shows improve in quality after the first season.

I haven't forgotten about this thread or Picard. I'm sure lots of interesting stuff has happened since my last post but I haven't seen anything past the third episode because my CBS trial ended (and I was charged ). I'm not renewing it for only one show. Hopefully I can find it elsewhere and get caught up. Preferably before it ends

Move to Canada and you can get it on the regular sci-fi channel.
The moving might be a little more expensive than CBS though.

Nathan Kerbonaut wrote:my CBS trial ended (and I was charged ). I'm not renewing it for only one show. Hopefully I can find it elsewhere and get caught up. Preferably before it ends

Two words: alternate accounts.

FoxyBoi wrote:

Nathan Kerbonaut wrote:my CBS trial ended (and I was charged ). I'm not renewing it for only one show. Hopefully I can find it elsewhere and get caught up. Preferably before it ends

Two words: alternate accounts.

Believe me I tried. But CBS's trial requires a working card of payment, and if that card was used previously then you're not eligible for a trial, even with a new account. That's how I got charged -- tried to use the same card twice but didn't read the fine print. And that's the only card I have.

Nathan Kerbonaut wrote:

FoxyBoi wrote:

Nathan Kerbonaut wrote:my CBS trial ended (and I was charged ). I'm not renewing it for only one show. Hopefully I can find it elsewhere and get caught up. Preferably before it ends

Two words: alternate accounts.

Believe me I tried. But CBS's trial requires a working card of payment, and if that card was used previously then you're not eligible for a trial, even with a new account. That's how I got charged -- tried to use the same card twice but didn't read the fine print. And that's the only card I have.

DANG those guys are smart.

Last week I caught up on Picard and today I watched the season finale. A lot's happened, but all in all I enjoyed the show. Episode 4 and onward kept improving with each installment, mostly because the show had more and more to work with. I was pleasantly surprised when the Picard and Soji plot threads converged halfway through the season. I was worried that the entire season would be Picard searching for her (boring). Instead the conflict seriously escalated when the entire cast came together. I'm happy to say I was hooked for the rest of the season. Sure, the show is plagued with amateur writing throughout, but in my opinion the good parts outshine the bad parts.

Which brings me to the finale. Part one had really bad pacing. In the end I eagerly anticipated part two, no thanks to anything before the cliffhanger. Just about every scene had a moment with too much or too little time, which undermined the episode's suspense to the point where I was more confused than engaged. For a specific example, I point at the opening scene where the protagonist ship was pulled into the synth planet's atmosphere by the orchids. So much happens so fast, it's just... ridiculous! Watch it yourself to see how dizzyingly incoherent it is.

I honestly can't remember as much from part one as part two. Not good a good setup for a season finale. Fortunately the episode stabilizes itself midway and builds good momentum to the end. And there were plenty of surprises. The biggest for me was that the final act made feel real emotion. Picard and Data reuniting then saying goodbye had me tearing up. Amazing what competent writing, cinematography, and legendary acting can do even in a so-so series.

"So-so" is my final rating for the first season. There's good stuff, great stuff, bad stuff, and awful stuff. I have many more small positive and negative comments, but I think this is enough. I'm just happy that my wish to see Starfleet ships came true.

I think the ending was really good, and it made me glad I'd stuck through the rest of the season.
If they can write more stuff on the level of that ending for another season I'll definitely keep watching. The writers are clearly capable of writing well, even if they had trouble keeping it up 100% of the time... I hope season 1 has given them the practice they need.

I'm glad I stuck with it too, I'll tune in for season 2 for sure. I think the ending is open enough to warrant another season, and I heard Whoopi Goldberg is coming back to play Guinan (but don't quote me on that). Plenty to look forward to.

I did hear the same. If it's true, that would be awesome.