Star Trek: Discovery Will Return On January 7th, 2018 (theverge.com)

CBS announced that Star Trek: Discovery will return for the second half of the split season on Sunday, November 12th. There will be roughly a two month gap between the last episode of the first half of the split season, which aires on Sunday, November 12th, and the first episode of the second half of the split season. The Verge reports: When the network announced the series's September release date, it revealed that the first season would be split into two "chapters." The second chapter begins with the show's 10th episode, "Despite Yourself." Chapter 2 will contain the season's remaining six episodes, and will run through February 11th. According to CBS, the show will apparently find the crew of the USS Discovery in "unfamiliar territory," and they'll have to get creative about ways to return home. In this week's episode, the crew came face-to-face with the Klingon Empire over the planet Pahvo, after the planet's native species summoned them, hoping to resolve their conflict. After that, it'll be a longer wait for the show to return: CBS recently announced that it renewed Star Trek: Discovery for a second season, but that announcement didn't come with further details about a second season release date, or the number of episodes or chapters planned for season 2.

Comments

They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[NicknameUnavailable]

By splitting the season long enough that they hope people won't cancel it since the next half is just around the corner. Too bad the "magick spores traveling faster than warp" concept is so fucking retarded in contrast to the rest of the Star Trek universe.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[Anonymous Coward]

By splitting the season long enough that they hope people won't cancel it since the next half is just around the corner.

Split seasons are why I stopped watching shows as they broadcast. When they started splitting Breaking Bad that was the final straw for me. Now I only watch once an entire season is available, and half the time I don't even care about the show anymore and just forget about it entirely.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[EnsilZah]

It's not just the magic spore drive, everything about the writing is sloppy techno-babble and stupid character decisions.

Look at the groundhog's day episode, some two bit smuggler manages to get his hands on time-travel tech that everyone seems to know about but no one is going to ever use again because it's 'illegal' or something, so we're going to see entire spaceships destroyed in the war when this thing could easily resolve battles in the favor of any side that uses it?
So he murders the crew, what, 50 times, but it's ok, the timeline resets, it's not like there's a possibility of 50 alternate timelines where the survivors just have to go on from that point, no, har har, we'll punish him by making him go back to his girlfriend.

Oh, you've been having trouble maintaining your magical telepathic link to the Vulcan guy? I'll just replicate this device I've been working on in two minutes.

Oh, I got to the rank of a security officer on this special ops starship but I'll just open the cage for this large creature with giant claws and impervious skin and attack it to do what exactly, besides getting killed and clearing a spot for the next guy?

I could probably go on, but the whole thing is not really that memorable and is starting to fade for me.

I was looking forward to seeing what a continuous plotline would look like in the Star Trek universe, or what happens when the reality of war sets in and the Federation can't hold on to its rules and ideals.
I think television writing in general has evolved past the trope of the week thing, but I could probably live with it if it wasn't so fucking sloppy.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[byrtolet]

Oh, you've been having trouble maintaining your magical telepathic link to the Vulcan guy? I'll just replicate this device I've been working on in two minutes.

This is exactly what I hate of most star trek films. They can do everything in two minutes just with pushing randomly on some buttons.

I love sci-fi (books), but star trek is pure drama. And not particularly good one. Drama in sci-fi context is still drama, not sci-fi.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[JaredOfEuropa]

The weekly model makes sense even on a streaming service. You want people looking forward to your show, and have them talk about it: "Did you see last night's x?". Instead of the bingers spoiling it for the slow viewers, weekly episodes will have everyone more or less on the same page, which makes for more interesting talk around the (virtual) water cooler.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[JaredOfEuropa]

The spore drive is tech jumping the shark. It is way too powerful and changes everything... which could make for an interesting story, but writers usually just fix the overpowered nature of their game changer by imposing some lame and contrived limitation.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[AmiMoJo]

It will be like the cure for the Jem'ha'dar addiction, invented in one episode so apparently not that hard to do, but some excuse is given as to why it can't be mass produced and used long term.

Similarly I expect that either the spore network will be destroyed or its toll on the human computer component will lead to it being banned.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[lister king of smeg]

I was looking forward to seeing what a continuous plotline would look like in the Star Trek universe, or what happens when the reality of war sets in and the Federation can't hold on to its rules and ideals.

If you want to see what happens when the federation goes to war then you need to go watch Star Trek: Deep Space 9. Its main plot arc is the Dominion War the preludes starts in season 2 war stars in earnest in season 5 ends at the end of season 7.

If you want to see Star trek with a continuous plot-line go watch Star Trek: Enterprise Seasons 3 The Xindi Afterword you will know why there wern't any movies for seven years, or a Star Trek series on air for 12 years, despite having had multiple series (some concurrently) running for 18 years, and this season killed the franchise. It is bad, really bad.

Re: They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[Lanthanide]

Season 3 of enterprise is relatively good, although there are a few bad filler episodes, including the abysmal "North star".

It was cancelled in season 4.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[Paradise Pete]

Try reversing the phase. You'll enjoy it more.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[jwhyche]

I made it to episode 5. "maybe it will get better." ....

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[drinkypoo]

I was looking forward to seeing what a continuous plotline would look like in the Star Trek universe,

Because you skipped ST:DS9, ST:V, and ST:E? We've seen it three times, and the reaction has been yay, meh, and boo respectively.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[Eddi3]

What are you even talking about? I just rewatched Enterprise. Thier tech is shit. They can only go warp 5, almost every ship they ever run into is faster than them and it gives them problems. They have no phase cannons, only inferior plasma cannons. Nor do they have photon torpedos. They have no shields, only hull plating that really doesn't stand up to anything. Their medicine is inferior.

The only thing I can think of, is they get ahold of a Suliban ship that can cloak, and they use it for a rescue once. They can't figure out how it works well enough to integrate it into their own systems. The same thing happens in TNG anyway, they use a craft they obtained, it can cloak, but they can't use it for their own ship.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[Opportunist]

And if that doesn't help, try it in subspace. Or with a tachyon beam. Or a reverse tachyon beam in subspace.

Or as someone said about the Star Trek murder mysteries: The particle-of-the-week did it. In all of them.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[Anonymous Coward]

They switched only because 23rd/24th century feminists found that flat touch screens were sexist.

It turns out male fingers were rougher and thus worked better on touch screens. Coupled that with stronger upper body strength meant that male Starfleet officers were able to enter commands faster and more accurately, which led to a gender gap in promotions and getting holodeck and replicator privileges.

As for flat screens, they were done away with as they trigger certain women who are sensitive about their body shape not being curvy enough.

23rd century MRAs tried to fight against this, by mansplaining that men got more promotions because they were more willing to wear red shirts and go on away missions. "Redshirt" became a rallying cry of 23rd century alt-right movement.

To combat this, they switched red to be the color for command division, while rigging bridge consoles to easily explode upon the slightest irregularity happening to any part of the whole ship, so as equalize the death gap.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[Anonymous Coward]

I hate to be that guy, but:

I was looking forward to seeing what a continuous plotline would look like in the Star Trek universe

Just get a few seasons into DS9.

or what happens when the reality of war sets in and the Federation can't hold on to its rules and ideals.

Sisko straight up assassinated a Romulan senator. Easily one of the greatest episodes to ever come out of Trek.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[jwhyche]

o bad the "magick spores traveling faster than warp" concept is so fucking retarded in contrast to the rest of the Star Trek universe.

Stars and stones, thank the gods there is someone else who thinks this way. Of all the Star Trek concepts that has the be the most stupid one they have come up with. Sad part, is it didn't have to be that fucking stupid. There are plenty of concepts that would let them do the same thing with out stupid "spore magic." Some of them are even Star Trek canon.

Re:They're Trying To Milk Subscriptions

[jwhyche]

Split seasons

Split seasons is the reason I don't watch many network tv shows any more. I just wait till they come to hulu, netflix, or comcast demand and watch them all at the same time or when I want too. An I've formed the option if they don't come to any of those services then they are not worth my time.

Yes, I have comcast cable because it is the only thing that is available. Of all the flaws of comcast their on demand system doesn't seem to be one of the. Holy shit, I just defended comcast.

I think I remember this

[93 Escort Wagon]

”According to CBS, the show will apparently find the crew of the USS Discovery in "unfamiliar territory," and they'll have to get creative about ways to return home.”

This is the episode where Kes and Neelix join the crew, right?

Re:I think I remember this

[meglon]

On the bright side, the re-imaging of the Kazon can't be any worse than the originals were..... maybe they'll look like the old Klingons....

Re:I think I remember this

[lister king of smeg]

”According to CBS, the show will apparently find the crew of the USS Discovery in "unfamiliar territory," and they'll have to get creative about ways to return home.”

This is the episode where Kes and Neelix join the crew, right?

Oh yes Voyager seasons 1-4 the time we sat there uncomfortably watching Nelix the bumbling broom headed pedo alternate between ptsd flashbacks and obsessing over the attentions of the three year old Okompa (alien from planet jailbait) Kes...
Then we get to season 5 where Kes explodes and we get to watch Janeway continue to endanger her crew during her ongoing child custody battle with the borg queen over their lesbian lovechild^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^H Seven of Nine. Oh and Nelix finds a new child to obsess over in the form of Naomi Wildman half alien born earlier in the series.

Re:I think I remember this

[jellomizer]

However they could had glued the latex in a way that looked like a Klingon. They had that model and it’s rights to use.

Screw ST:D...

[pinzvidz]

... I'm just glad The Orville got renewed for a second season.

Re:Screw ST:D...

[Kokuyo]

Never watched STD (Oh how I love that nobody noticed that unfortunate abbreviation) and never going to as long as The Orville runs.

I was really apprehensive about a ST clone mad eby Seth McFarlane but it really works. He replaced the stuffiness of the Federation with his humor but the rest, that what I always liked about Star Trek, is there.

Re:Screw ST:D...

[hawk]

Oroville has done Star Trek better than *any* of the spinoffs.

It's just that kirk, err, captain whatshisface, isn't the only one that's incompetent; they all are!

Also, it's camp and understands that, and isn't above mocking itself. (and why are there so many families and children on a ship that's in mortal combat every episode?

hawk

Who cares about StarTrek HIV+ how is Orville doing

[Anonymous Coward]

AKA the real Star Trek.

TV Guide

[Calydor]

Slashdot is apparently now the TV guide. While sure, Star Trek is popular with the nerd segment frequenting the site (referencing the News for Nerds tagline, not being rude), so are many other shows.

When does SHIELD start back up? 12 Monkeys? Where's the article about the between-seasons cancellation of Dark Matter, leaving it to end on a massive cliffhanger? What makes Star Trek so special it gets its own article about how long the mid-season break is?!

Chapter 2

[fahrbot-bot]

According to CBS, the show will apparently find the crew of the USS Discovery in "unfamiliar territory," ...

They find themselves on the Orville, learning how to be likable. :-)

Fuck you all this show is good.

[kamapuaa]

This show is more of an authentic Star Trek than the recent movies, is a fun watch, and is approximately 300 times better than the first seasons of either Next Generation or DS9.

God damn I remember people on Slashdot bitching after episode #1&2 that SJW this and Gamergate that - a female crew member named "Michael" was obviously a concession to, I don't know, transexuals or ungendered bathrooms or something.

Re: Fuck you all this show is good.

[MightyMartian]

I could the same thing about Sisko. Would Kirk have fabricated evidence to draw the Romulans into a war with the Dominion? Lorca is just Sisko without even the need to rationalize fundamentally immoral acts.

Re:Slightly OT, but...

[taiwanjohn]

I found out the other day that the character of Lt. Stamets (the "magick spores" wrangler) is based on a real person. And the same guy was also the inspiration for a character in an episode of Hannibal Lecter as well. There's a brief discussion of both characters in this recent Joe Rogan interview. Fascinating stuff... the truth is indeed sometimes stranger than fiction.

Discovery isn't Star Trek

[dicobalt]

It's just not. Klingons don't make sense AT ALL and Lorca is George W Bush in space. Meanwhile the main character (Star Trek doesn't have main characters) Michael is written to be a contradiction. This show needs to be cancelled, it's a terrible concept terribly executed. I want a show about Quark's bar.

Re:Discovery isn't Star Trek

[thegarbz]

It's got all the classic Trek elements. Exploration and discovery, moral questions, new alien species...

No it doesn't. Star Trek was a series about an ideal future where people of all backgrounds overcame their differences to work together. This on the other hand seems more like an idiots guide on how to staff a dysfunctional spaceship. The dynamics of the interactions are very un-Star Trek

Re:Discovery isn't Star Trek

[lister king of smeg]

I want a show about Quark's bar.

So Cheers in space with a bit of Breaking Bad mixed in would watch.
Or an black comedy about Garick he is a likeable DS9 charecter too, call it "Keeping Up with the Cardassians".

Re:Discovery isn't Star Trek

[Austerity Empowers]

Brunt, FCA, ended this show due to a violation of the 666th Rule of Acquisition:

Ain't nobody got time for talk-shows that also has money to pay for shit.

Just long enough

[mwvdlee]

A 2 month break is just long enough for me to forget about my time "invested" in the show.
The show might return in 2 months, but I probably won't.

I'd rather watch The Orville

[mrun4982]

It's much better and doesn't require another subscription. It's Star Trek but with regular people.

Fingers Crossed...

[multi io]

Star Trek: Discovery Will Return On January 7th, 2018

...unless one of the lead actors gets accused of sexual harassment.

B5

[Kunedog]

If you want to see what happens when the federation goes to war then you need to go watch Star Trek: Deep Space 9.

Or just check out the source material.

Yawn

[markdavis]

>"CBS announced that Star Trek: Discovery will return for the second half of the split season on Sunday, November 12th."

On an expensive subscription service that doesn't work on many devices. Yawn. I will continue to watch and enjoy The Orville, like most Trek fans.

Warming up to it

[Dan East]

I'm trying to keep an open mind, and I'm gradually warming up to it. Throwing the entire timeline out the window (it is set before TOS, but is far more advanced technologically - I guess so the Klingons can be the bad guys again) is the worst part, IMO. They should have just placed it in some time after TOS and used some other species besides "Klingon" for the bad guys.

Anyway, to address your point more specifically:

Too bad the "magick spores traveling faster than warp" concept is so fucking retarded in contrast to the rest of the Star Trek universe.

In my opinion, TNG is the best Star Trek series. It epitomizes a lot of what is best about Star Trek. I've watched all the episodes numerous times, but I decided to start fresh since I started watching Discovery. Guess what is introduced in the very first episode of TNG:

1) An omnipotent, omniscient being that can read anyone's thoughts, instantly transport the ship anywhere with total disregard for distance, change and manipulate matter in any way, and even kill an entire species of creatures - wherever in the universe they may be - instantly. In other words, a purely magical being with zero scientific explanation or possibility.
2) A smallish room that multiple people can enter than can visually and physically simulate to those people any place, somehow providing each their own experience and allowing them to be far apart from one another than the size of the room, while allowing them to interact with objects that do not actually exist, in a totally perfect and flawless experience that cannot be recognized separate from reality.
3) A device which can instantly create any food or drink out of thin air.

So we have a magical being, a magical room, and a magical food making box. Discovery jumps the shark compared to this how, exactly? Sure, the whole biological "spore" thing that must somehow be navigated organically is quite annoying - if you're going to do this, just make it some kind of technology and not biological. Still, TNG was far more of a stretch over TOS than Discovery is over the various series that came before.

Meh, maybe i'll pick it up later

[Austerity Empowers]

Mostly when it comes to netflix in NA. I can wait a year, there's so much stuff to watch that I'm not thirsty to pay money to see ads.

Re:Who cares about StarTrek HIV+ how is Orville do

[wisnoskij]

It's moderately better (aka not quite the worst show currently airing), but that is not saying much.

Re:Who cares about StarTrek HIV+ how is Orville do

[antdude]

It got renewed as of a few weeks ago. Happy Arbor Day! :)