The Picard Season 2 Bitch Session

Against the advice and best efforts of those who care for me, I have finished Picard Season 2 in advance of the new incoming insult season in the next few weeks. I had previously been able to slog my way, over the course of several months, up to the beginning of episode 7. So I was already reasonably aware of the season's deficiencies as a story. On the one hand, it started faster than Season 1, in that the first two episodes introduced a fascist alternate universe that was actually reasonably interesting. Then, when they reached 2024, things bogged down and got both boring and infuriating very quickly.

The show is even more incomprehensible than the poster!

Enterprise Season 3 Recap

Introduction

Star Trek's 9/11 analogue comes to an end with a literal bang. How good was it, and does it represent an improvement over an uneven first two seasons?

 

Enterprise gives up, puts "Star Trek" in the title, and adds a bossa nova beat. Will it all work?

 

Enterprise Season 2 Recap

Enterprise Season 2 Recap

Introduction

Enterprise Season 2 rates among the lowest seasons of Trek we have compiled stats on. What's going on, and is there a light at the end of the tunnel?

It does fulfill the quintessential Trek Trope of wasting Suzie Plakson...

Enterprise Season 1 Recap

Enterprise Season 1 Recap
Introduction

The years before the voyages of Kirk's Enterprise are set to be examined in a Star Trek prequel. Is this a good idea? Should they have waited a year between shows? How did they execute their storytelling and casting?

Archer is really vamping, here.

Top Ten WTF Moments in Star Trek: Picard Season 1

It should probably be apparent at this point that I did not like Star Trek: Picard. It manifestly disappointed me along just about every axis of Star Trek fandom that I possess. But in addition to being grotesquely violent and poorly written, it was also frequently just baffling. Here are my top ten (with some honorable mentions, because they just kept coming) WTF Moments from season one.


Honorable Mentions:

 Oh no! Acid Blood! Bet she didn't see that one coming!

Discovery Season 2 Recap

Discovery Season 2 Recap

Introduction

And now, the "new and improved" season of Discovery has come to a close. Did it deliver on its creators' incessant promises to "square things with continuity" and "tell more Star Trek stories?" Um.....

But look! Captain Pike! The Enterprise! Pew Pew!

Discovery Season 1 Recap

Star Trek: Discovery, Season 1
Introduction

The first new Star Trek television series in what seems like forever was... divisive. From its paid online distribution model (Netflix for the rest of the world, a la carte CBS service no one demanded in the US), to its radical shift in tone (nipples! disembowelings! F-words!), this show rubbed a lot of people the wrong way, but at the same time won some fervent fans and a fair amount of internet buzz. So what's the story?

 Hmm, communicator? Vulcan salute? I guess this checks out!

Deep Space Nine Season 7 Recap

Deep Space Nine Season 7 Recap
Introduction

Deep Space Nine has come to a close. Did it go out with a bang? A whimper? Some gurgling sound somewhere in between? How will we get our Garak fix now?

This photo feels odd to me. Quark is up top (and possibly on a footstool), which makes sense given his stature. But then shorties Kira and Ezri are down below, while towering hulk Work is at the very top? Awkward.

Voyager Season 4 Recap

Voyager Season 4 Recap

Introduction

Season 4 saw some major changes in Voyager. Gone was one main cast member in Kes and new to the show was Seven of Nine. Episodes also took on a bit of a darker edge with a heavier emphasis on action. How did the show fare?

So much going on in this picture! Garrett Wang reveling in his "Hollywood's Sexiest Young People" magazine nod, Robert Beltran closing all the windows and shutting all the doors as he checks out for good, Roxann Dawson trying to hide something from the producers, Jeri Ryan trying not to pass out, Kate Mulgrew barely concealing her irritation... and Robert Duncan McNeill - what are you doing with your legs?

Deep Space Nine Season 6 Recap

Deep Space Nine Season 6 Recap

Pew, pew, pew!

Introduction

This seasons marks a few important milestones for the series. First, it introduced truly serialized storytelling to the series, and it explores an ongoing war, a story that TOS and TNG were unable to explore. How successful was the effort? Let's discuss...

Voyager Season 3 Recap

Voyager Season 3 Recap
Introduction

Voyager has shown a steady improvement since Season 2, but it hasn't found its "break out" moment, yet. Season 3 opens with a run of 12 episodes that tick in at a 6 or above on our scale. The back half of the season suffers a bit of a back slide, though, with a rough stretch in episodes 13 through 20. Then it finishes rather strongly with 4 out of 6 above average shows. So what are the trends? What's changed, if anything?

 Which of these characters is standing on the "Eject Warp Core" hatch?

DS9 Season 5 Recap

Deep Space Nine Season 5 Recap
Introduction

Season 5 pulls the ripcord on the Dominion plot, and manages to do so in a way that incorporates the other threads developed over previous season rather than abandon them. If nothing else, that puts the season on pretty strong footing. It's not a perfect season, and there are definitely still some stinkers, but I think it's safe to say that if you are trying to convince a friend, Trekkie or not, to give DS9 another shot, you could do far worse than a sampler box from this season.

The best scene of the season was the final scene of the Kira-Odo relationship. Oh, wait...

Voyager Season 2 Recap

Introduction

After an abbreviated first season, season two of Voyager kicked off with some hold overs from the first year of production (The 37's, Projections, Elogium, Twisted). Then, season two proper Got into full swing with some strong episodes. But could the entire season deliver?

This faux-geometric backdrop does wonders for my hairdo!

DS9 Season 4 Recap

Introduction

One more season of DS9 comes to a close, and by all metrics, this is the best season of DS9 so far. Even when not dealing with the Dominion and Klingon arcs, this season seemed to have real momentum. More than anything, the show really seems to have found its own voice in its stories, rather than falling back on trying to tell a story using TNG's episode model as a guide.

Jake-O... time to visit Garak's shop for some new duds.

Voyager Season One Recap

Introduction

The Trek franchise expands into its second post-Roddenberry series with Voyager. It was in some ways a departure from what has come before, with a female captain and a completely different setting than the previous series. In other ways, it might be seen as a return to form, with less serialization and stories much more focused on new civilizations and strange new worlds.

OK, now give us... "Le Tigre!"

DS9 Season 3 Recap

Introduction

DS9 lurched into Season 3 with one promising story thread on the horizon - the Dominion. Luckily, instead of going the way of TNG and focusing on characters instead (not a criticism of TNG per se, see below), DS9 actually began to deliver on this promise about halfway through the season.

Stuck... in... middle... of... Season... 3...
Waiting... for... good... part... to... begin.........

DS9 Season 2 Recap

Introduction

Season 1 is mercifully a thing of the past. Season 2 bursts into full swing with an action extravaganza three-part episode. Can it sustain its momentum?

No! Don't make me watch Season 1 again! Anything but that!

DS9 Season One Recap

Introduction

With Deep Space Nine, the Star Trek franchise has boldly shifted tone and setting, creating a world quite unlike the previous Roddenberry-helmed television shows. The results in season one of said show are... mixed.

Maybe it's the acoustics in here. Did everyone not hear "Smile!?"

The Next Generation, Season 7: Recap

Introduction

With six seasons already in the book, fans were greeted with some awful news: Season 7 would be the final one for TNG, since this show would be packing up its things to make movies, instead making room for DS9 and the soon to premiere Voyager to dominate the airwaves. Would Season 7 be a swan song or a triumphant conclusion? Maybe a little of both?

Beam us onto the big screen!

TNG Season 6 Recap

Introduction

Season 6 of TNG warps into Treknobabble's record books, showing a slight drop-off in quality ratings. Have Matthew and Kevin become drunk with blogging power, or do they have a solid rationale for such a result? Click through to see, if you dare...

It's time to start asking the question - have the Borg been watered down too much?