Sandman

Naming his son with Jan that? Aw, hell, no! [/random outburst mode]

I’d like to think that future translation technology will develop some sophisticated context-recognition subroutines, or something. There is folklore suggesting my own country got its present name because some people originally living here greeted some early European visitors with the equivalent of “Welcome to [our village],” only the translator interpreted it as “Welcome to [Name of Country]!” Or, to put it another way: Confused Extraterrestrial Person: “Wait, dude — you named your planet ‘Dirt’?”

:: runs in circles hyperventilating like JD until he falls down ::

I find I'm riveted. But I'm also really hoping Ben rediscovers his strength of will somewhere. I can forgive a lot in this show, it seems, if I can watch McGregor work. This was a very compelling episode, and the pacing seemed better than in the previous episode. Vader does seem even more cruel than usual. His irrational hatred of Kenobi has clearly cooled a lot by the time of ANH, if the nastiest burn (see what I did there?) he can muster when they meet again is "Your powers are weak, old man." What page number is "You should have killed me when you had the chance!" in the Evil Overlord Handbook? I forget. (It was kind of fun to see Darth Vader get his Magneto on there.)

... who can actually, you know, read minds.

What struck me about that scene was how much a two-way sharing (a true meld, if you will) it was shown to be; I don't remember a mind meld anywhere in the canon being shown as revealing as much about the one initiating the meld (that is, usually Spock) as about the one whose mind contains the information sought. I didn't get the sense the La'an was poking around indiscriminately, but that Michael had a definite presence in Spock's mind. Spock never seemed quite so vulnerable in a mind-meld before -- though perhaps that's a failure of imagination (or logic, ack!) on my part, if I never worked out that implication.

The other (possibly even bigger) WTF in the Star Wars universe. Apparently, the Jedi are so enlightened that they've moved beyond critical thinking, or strategy of any kind. Well, at least they're big on repressing emotion, because that's so healthy.

Nurse Chapel didn't have a fleshed-out character. Her fetish for Mr. Spock was weird and sad. (Maybe they were going for "unrequited and noble"?) Even as a kid watching TOS I was creeped out. But it wasn't a substitute for an actual character. In contrast, I always wanted to know more about Number One. I feel you on Lwaxana Troi -- the worst conception of a telepathic character in all of science fiction! Enraging "Give the boss's wife a showy part to get her off our backs" hogwash. Telepathy is maybe my favourite sci-fi trope of all, and Mrs. Backpfeifengesicht just ruined it. I'm still not over it (heh, clearly).

It was the Skeksis-Klingons that made me decide that Discovery (and this show, consequently) actually is set in alternate timeline, despite what the producers have said. It makes the headaches go away; try it! (It also makes the Continuity Fairy just say “Ah, you know what? F*ck it!” It’s fun that way.) I enjoyed the scene between Chapel and Spock. In particular, Spock’s “Oh, I know. Humans are almost as easy to tease as Vulcans” was rather … lovely. l always thought that the point of the “Always parted from me, and never parted” greeting was that Spock and T’Pring were already telepathically bonded, at least to some degree. But if the Vulcan version of Freaky Friday means that T’Pring continues to say things like “We are not in a town,” I might actually begin to like her a little.

Spock(s) didn’t use it for bodice-ripping. No respect for the old ways!

And, let us not forget, braver than she first thought (even if based solely on the obvious decrepitude of the hyperspace Uber ride).

I begin to suspect that the title "Grand" only occurs ironically in the Star Wars universe. Grand Moff Tarkin, Grand Inquisitor -- not that good at their jobs, really. (Though Peter Cushing could be genuinely terrifying in the role.) If a Grand Poobah appears, we know she or he will be basically useless. This was always the biggest "WTF?" of the prequel trilogy for me.

I find her pretty scary, actually. I think the body language suggests discipline, but her attitude still strikes me as rage with a side of personal betrayal. Her position as "Third Sister" seems ironic; if it's a family dynamic, it's one full of snide backstabbing and undercutting. If anything, the Grand Inquisitor seems less effective than she. He's good at making spooky pronouncements, but not so much at achieving results, it would seem.

My subroutine for sounding less pedantic is buggy; it never quite kicks in at the right time.

My reaction is kind of the obverse of yours, I guess -- for whatever it's worth. I'd rather watch a talented child play even a slightly bratty kid than a cutesy prosthetic. Grogu's babbling got old fast.

Her line reading of "This would be easier with the army" was brilliant -- Episode IV Princess Leia through and through. Carrie Fisher would cackle with glee, I daresay.

Yeah, me, too. The actress is a real find. I can't figure out why Third Sister seems to take the existence of the Jedi as such a personal affront. And she's using a lightsaber -- a Jedi washout? Until I read your comment, this had not even occurred to me -- truly. But it makes perfect sense. I'd like a seat at your table. I was skeptical about this show, or the need for this show. But I'm sold.

I'm guessing waterbeds as far as the eye can see.

Oh, I’m perfectly okay with judging. 😇 I feel fairly certain that Nimoy used the -a plural ending in TOS, as well. I suspect that’s part of why it struck as much as it did. (Of course, in the mid-to late Sixties using the -s plural probably was less established than it is now. What can I say? I’m a throwback.) La’an’s pronunciation of “resources” didn’t register for me at all … maybe because I’m Canadian?

I enjoyed the episode, especially the submarine warfare angle (even if it is a little Mutara II, Electromagnetic Boogaloo), but “phenomenons,” Spock, really? You disappoint me.

I can't believe I actually forgot that the show is filmed in Vancouver!

Szostak was born in Paris; I don't think there's a Canadian connection.

I agree -- I thought in particular the overhead shot of the two of them with their heads together was lovely and moving. It was the only thing I really liked about the storyline. Didn't love the bait-and-switch approach to the way Gary got the news, but I also agree that the hints in earlier episodes about what was really going on with Gary were there, and amounted, so far as this show is ever capable of it, to subtlety. Oh, man, I hope you're wrong here. I mean, it seems likely to occur just this way, given the show's usual hamfistery (see "subtlety, lack thereof," above), but strikes me as overly manipulative and cynical.

Well, I guess I'm not unseeing that now. Hee.

I'm convinced Theo isn't going anywhere; DJ Nash has said, I believe, that his father was in a serious accident and uses a wheelchair. This suggests to me that Theo is, to some degree, anyway, an authorial insertion, and his sensitivity and insistent specialness is meant to be endearing, instead of eyeroll- (or rage-) inducing. I would think that having a memory card would be better for long-term storage of video than smartphone video cloud storage (... or whatever; I'm a bit of a blockhead when it comes to phone technology).