Octopus Overlords

Soooo...just to confirm, it is just one episode at a time with this? They don't make all episodes available at once?

Yes, one Episode each week for the next 10 weeks.

ydejin wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 2:51 am Yes, one Episode each week for the next 10 weeks.

That's so quaint.

Does he seem as elderly as the trailers showed him? I mean ya I know he is in real life but he came across as weak lunged like an old folk. I was watching clips of the old show when he was 45 and clips of the movies and he still had that strong commanding voice. Do the trailers just show him early and he gain his feeling back?

Not to spoiler it too much but from what it seems they want him to be realistically healthy for his age. So at one point he is running up some stairs and gets winded. I expect it will be a bit of a theme.

On the plus side, that doesn't bother me at all. I find it more troubling when they take an older actor and try to shoehorn them into things designed for younger bodies.

Ex: Watching the digitally de-aged Samuel Jackson in Captain Marvel try and be an "Action Guy" hurt my eyes. He moves like an older guy with a young face.

Picard isn't afraid to show him acting like a man his age. He's earned every grunt and groan and they embrace it.

Can you download episodes with their app? I'd sign up for this if I could download and binge on an airplane.

I haven't tried it, but it sounds like you can.

McNutt wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 11:33 am Can you download episodes with their app? I'd sign up for this if I could download and binge on an airplane.

Depending on the length of the flight, you should probably wait until March at the earliest.

Daehawk wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 4:10 am Does he seem as elderly as the trailers showed him? I mean ya I know he is in real life but he came across as weak lunged like an old folk. I was watching clips of the old show when he was 45 and clips of the movies and he still had that strong commanding voice. Do the trailers just show him early and he gain his feeling back?

Well, it's age. He hasn't been in the role for more than 20 years, so it's to be expected. There are certain points where his voice is weaker, but there are points where his voice is just as strong. For the most part, he's still our lovable Captain Picard though. But he's now a weathered man who's been out of action for several decades, and where the events of both Romulus and Nemesis have deeply affected him. I like that they haven't ignored that and instead chose it as a point of character study. Time has moved on. Time does not wait for no man.

I mean I hope they dont keep him feeble. I guess when the space shit hits the fan he'll liven up. Again Ive not seen it and wont because I wont and cant pay. Its cool though.

Well, he already has in a way, but if you watch the episode, it will be revealed. It's all part of the story they've set up.

Rumpy wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 2:17 pm

Daehawk wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 4:10 am Does he seem as elderly as the trailers showed him? I mean ya I know he is in real life but he came across as weak lunged like an old folk. I was watching clips of the old show when he was 45 and clips of the movies and he still had that strong commanding voice. Do the trailers just show him early and he gain his feeling back?

Well, it's age. He hasn't been in the role for more than 20 years, so it's to be expected. There are certain points where his voice is weaker, but there are points where his voice is just as strong. For the most part, he's still our lovable Captain Picard though. But he's now a weathered man who's been out of action for several decades, and where the events of both Romulus and Nemesis have deeply affected him. I like that they haven't ignored that and instead chose it as a point of character study. Time has moved on. Time does not wait for no man.

Age is character. I saw Stewart on stage in The Tempest as Prospero, an aged wizard saying goodbye to his powers as a younger generation came to replace him.

Old characters can't do action movies, but action movies are just a small part of the stories we can tell.

Holman wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 10:13 pm Old characters can't do action movies

Laughs in Liam Neeson

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 10:23 pm

Holman wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 10:13 pm Old characters can't do action movies

Laughs in Liam Neeson

Remember that X-Files reboot a couple of years ago? I LOL'd when Scully and Mulder kicked the asses of a team of ninja assassins.

Holman wrote: ↑Fri Jan 24, 2020 10:13 pm Age is character.

That's a nice way of putting it. And lucky you for seeing him on stage! That must have been something else.

What I like about the series is that for the first time in 20 years, we're actually moving the timeline forward.

What about

hepcat wrote: ↑Sat Jan 25, 2020 8:39 am What about

Spoiler:

The end of season 2 of discovery?

Just saw it, and really enjoyed it. They're doing a great job of telling a new story with ties to the old.

As to his age, Picard was never really an action character to begin with. He was at his best on the bridge, in the ready room, standing in front of a viewscreen, etc.

Rumpy wrote:

hepcat wrote: ↑Sat Jan 25, 2020 8:39 am What about

Spoiler:

The end of season 2 of discovery?

Spoiler:

I dunno. Did it? I haven't seen beyond the first 6 episodes of Season 1 as I deemed it not worth my time. But if it did, that still means they waited the same amount of time before moving the timeline forward. Well, we have to count 2009 in it too as the catalyst to the events seen in Picard, so maybe closer to 10 years.

Having seen all of Star Trek Discovery I had to chuckle a bit at Rumpy's estimate. Don't want to elaborate due to spoilers...

And after watching the conversation between Picard and Dahj when he told her some life altering information I thought Picard would be the guy I'd want to talk to if I needed any reassuring. That was a moving scene.

CBS has put Episode 1 of Star Trek Picard on YouTube for a limited time:

In the middle of watching episode 2 and just have to say I’m happy that the word fuck still has relevance in the future.

And the sign, “THIS FACILITY HAS GONE 5843 DAYS WITHOUT AN ASSIMILATION” was hysterical.

And now having finished the episode I’m pretty impatient for the next one.

A cool shirt but way overpriced.

Most merchandise from any franchise tends to be overpriced, but I've always found Trek merchandise to be the worst when it comes to that.

Are they coming out one per week? I was thinking of waiting until the season is over, taking the 7 day free trial and binging.

I really love that dog of his from what Ive read. He specifically required it for the show. They need to have him in show say "Number One go make a number two"

Jaymann wrote: ↑Fri Jan 31, 2020 7:46 pm Are they coming out one per week? I was thinking of waiting until the season is over, taking the 7 day free trial and binging.

Yes, because in Canada and somewhere in Europe, it's actually being broadcast every week.

Jaymann wrote: ↑Fri Jan 31, 2020 7:46 pm Are they coming out one per week? I was thinking of waiting until the season is over, taking the 7 day free trial and binging.

That's my plan, although I might stick around if I like Discovery or the TZ. I'm still saving $70 compared to cable, so there's room in the budget for more streaming.

Space.com

The first episodes of "Star Trek: Picard" have aired and are now being scrutinized on social media and countless threads across the internet.

But let's not forget about Season 3 of "Star Trek: Discovery" and the new spin-off show, which may or may not officially be called "Section 31" — although that title does seem likely.

Space.com caught up with Alex Kurtzman, the executive producer of "Star Trek: Picard" and a showrunner for "Discovery," at the world premiere of "Star Trek: Picard" in Hollywood on Jan. 13 and tried to crowbar some tidbits of information out of him.
...
"There's no worry of canon at this point. We're not even anywhere close to where canon has been. Everything that happened … in the past has actually planted seeds that have led to outcomes in the future. And getting to see that over the spectrum of this amazing time jump is really what's fun about the season," Kurtzman said.

"The only restraints are making sure that we don't violate some Trek fundamentals. But because we're not having to sync up with canon, we really had a different kind of freedom this year."

Section 13 huh? A spy Trek?

"So what kinda neat gadget have you got for me today Quark?"

"Its a fizzbang! It looks like a normal rootbeer but when they go to drink it it explodes and makes them look like a sexy Orion slave girl. Then all the other guys jump them"

"ummmm thanks Quark...err I mean Q"

I'm beginning to think Kurtzman will soon have his hands full if he's in charge of doing 3 Trek series. And personally, I don't think it's wise to have so many running at the same time. It's a bit like when TNG was running and then they started DS9, and then Voyager came along and franchise fatigue set in. I think there's also a cartoon series being developed.

Rumpy wrote: ↑Tue Feb 04, 2020 10:42 pm I'm beginning to think Kurtzman will soon have his hands full if he's in charge of doing 3 Trek series. And personally, I don't think it's wise to have so many running at the same time. It's a bit like when TNG was running and then they started DS9, and then Voyager came along and franchise fatigue set in. I think there's also a cartoon series being developed.

One big difference is these are 10-15 episode seasons instead of the old 26 episode per year format. I don’t think it’s a problem as long as they don’t play simultaneously. If Picard plays in Winter and Discovery plays in Summer, for example that’s not a problem. If Picard plays on Tuesday and Discovery plays on Thursday of the same week, I agree that will cause burnout.

I guess it depends on how many episodes and how long the new shows are — if Lower Decks cartoon is only 20 minutes for example or if Section 31 is only 8 episodes/year, it’s less likely to lead to burnout.

Isgrimnur wrote: ↑Tue Feb 04, 2020 9:14 pm Space.com

The first episodes of "Star Trek: Picard" have aired and are now being scrutinized on social media and countless threads across the internet.

But let's not forget about Season 3 of "Star Trek: Discovery" and the new spin-off show, which may or may not officially be called "Section 31" — although that title does seem likely.

Space.com caught up with Alex Kurtzman, the executive producer of "Star Trek: Picard" and a showrunner for "Discovery," at the world premiere of "Star Trek: Picard" in Hollywood on Jan. 13 and tried to crowbar some tidbits of information out of him.
...
"There's no worry of canon at this point. We're not even anywhere close to where canon has been. Everything that happened … in the past has actually planted seeds that have led to outcomes in the future. And getting to see that over the spectrum of this amazing time jump is really what's fun about the season," Kurtzman said.

"The only restraints are making sure that we don't violate some Trek fundamentals. But because we're not having to sync up with canon, we really had a different kind of freedom this year."

I just read this somewhere else. Back when DS9 was released to DVD and I finally caught up on a show I failed to watch because it was always being moved or pre-empted by sports, I had really loved the idea of Section 31 gritty Star Trek spin off. Especially as DS9 took the time to look at cultures and militarized goverenance, you know, on the ground, in a serial format. Oddly enough, 20+ years later, the world gritty and seedy enough for me. I no longer want a Star Trek that shows me a darker side of the Federation. I prefer the hope and inspiration side.

No kidding. Usually dark times result in bright shows. People need a break from bleakness and despair. The trend has been the other way around lately, though.

One of the reasons I like Picard is that he's not willing to go quietly into the darkness. Some ideas are worth fighting for.

I'm rewatching Deep Space Nine and Sisko called out the weakness of a complacent Federation as far back as season 2 in the 2 part episode "Marquis"

"On Earth, there is no poverty, no crime, no war. You look out the window of Starfleet Headquarters and you see paradise. Well, it's easy to be a Saint in paradise, but the Maquis do not live in paradise. Out there in the Demilitarized Zone, all the problems haven't been solved yet. Out there, there are no saints — just people. Angry, scared, determined people who are going to do whatever it takes to survive, whether it meets with Federation approval or not!"

ydejin wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2020 2:01 am

Rumpy wrote: ↑Tue Feb 04, 2020 10:42 pm I'm beginning to think Kurtzman will soon have his hands full if he's in charge of doing 3 Trek series. And personally, I don't think it's wise to have so many running at the same time. It's a bit like when TNG was running and then they started DS9, and then Voyager came along and franchise fatigue set in. I think there's also a cartoon series being developed.

One big difference is these are 10-15 episode seasons instead of the old 26 episode per year format. I don’t think it’s a problem as long as they don’t play simultaneously. If Picard plays in Winter and Discovery plays in Summer, for example that’s not a problem. If Picard plays on Tuesday and Discovery plays on Thursday of the same week, I agree that will cause burnout.

I guess it depends on how many episodes and how long the new shows are — if Lower Decks cartoon is only 20 minutes for example or if Section 31 is only 8 episodes/year, it’s less likely to lead to burnout.

I'd forgotten about the episode count. That'd definitely account for something, not only in terms of viewers, but actors as well. It's a wholly different environment these days. Still, Discovery wasn't exactly a roaring success, and in fact created a lot of division within the fanbase. Creating Picard, I can understand as it's another market segment they can lure back. But anything else, I still feel like it's throwing caution to the wind.

Blackhawk wrote: ↑Wed Feb 05, 2020 1:20 pm No kidding. Usually dark times result in bright shows. People need a break from bleakness and despair. The trend has been the other way around lately, though.

Yep, I blame Discovery in terms of Trek's direction. It's a starkly different approach than anything Trek we've gotten before. It was a darker direction in general. Not only in terms of aesthetics, but in what they've allowed on screen. Now, I don't generally mind the use of expletives, but seeing that they were never used in quite that way before, the use of the-Fword felt quite out of place. It made it feel like they were trying too hard in being hip again.

Speaking of Section 31, I think interest in a Section 31 series directly arose from the themes DS9 was exploring. In this era, I agree that things are already dark enough in their productions and I don't really see much need for it. I imagine that if DS9 were made today, it would be much darker than originally.

The nice thing about Picard is that it tries to rise above all that. It acknowledges that there have been problems and he wants to do his part in fixing things. I frankly would be more alarmed if it didn't acknowledge the supernova. There are a lot of things that can be explored within the setting. I have some friends who've thought they should have ignored that, but it's like ignoring the elephant in the room. There are people that forget that JJTrek, in order to create its alternate timeline, chose to destroy Romulus in the prime to give Nero an excuse to go back in time and destroy Vulcan. Those repercussions are rather severe within context of the Trek world and it would be rather difficult to move forward without acknowledging that things have changed.

At the same time, almost every use of Section 31 in DS9 portrayed them as the bad guys, as a shadow-society of criminal renegades who were doing wrong for the 'good of the Federation', whether they liked it or not.