Aka the long promised manifesto about what has become my favourite post DS9 Star Trek show, or version of Star Trek, full stop. Some preliminaries and disclaimers about what this isn't: A declaration that Discovery is best, or flawless. No ST movie or show is. Or that I'm 100% behind every plot or character decision. I'm not. People getting creative - which TPTB most certainly did with this show, which is one of the reasons why I fell in love with it - inevitably means that some of their ideas just doesn't work out the way they intended, or they didn't work out for this particular watcher. With every season, I praised and I nitpicked, in different degrees. This is how I do fandom. (When I reach the point where I catch myself only complaining and not enjoying anymore, I say goodbye.) With all these caveats being said, here's why I think Star Trek: Discovery isn't just a fabulous show, but specifically a fabulous Star Trek show:

( 1) Something New )

( 2.) Something Old )

( 3. Something Blue )

And there you have it: My personal Manifesto of love for Star Trek: Discovery!

The other days

And so it ends. When I'm a bit less busy, I'll try to write an overall series write up, and why I think Star Trek: Discovery, flaws and all, is the best (and most innovative) thing that happened to Trekdom since DS9, and became my darling among the space shows (not just Star Trek) in the last decade.

( Meanwhile: let's fly! )

More overall thoughts to come, as mentioned. But for now, these are my finale thoughts.

Episodes which take place mostly in the mind of a character tend to be masterpieces (The Very Long Night of Londo Mollari or bores (whatever the DS9 episode about Julian Bashir's very early midlife crisis when he turned 30 was called). So it was with some unease I read the summary for this one. As it turns out, the the part of the episode taking place in Michael Burnham's mind isn't that long and is fine, but I was more intrigued by the Moll storyline this time around.

( Spoilers salute a well executed Spoiler )

In non-ST related news, I visited Sanssouci in springtime and did a pic spam elsewhere.

In which Discovery continues to prove why it's my favourite of the current Star Trek incarnations.

( Burnham and Tilly: Together Again )

I'm currently travelling, and also, this episode was put up late at least in my part of the world, so I didn't have the chance to watch it until last night.

( Spoilers are really into things coming full circle as a theme )

My current favourite ST show is back! (For the last time, sniff.) The first two episodes have been released on Paramount +, and sorry, Apple +, but you're off for me now for as long as Disco runs its final course, I really have to limit my streaming services.

( Spoilers conclude Disco is the current winner of best and most original use of Romulans in the modern era Trek incarnations )

Dear Creator,

thank you so much for writing this story for me. We clearly share some Trekian interests, and I'm thrilled to find out what you'll come up with.


Generally speaking: most of the prompts below aren't romantic in nature. If you ship one of these character combinations - say Pelia/Guinan - , be my guest, I don't object, but I don't want a story where them having sex takes up two thirds of the text. Re: fluff or dark, I'm fine with wherever the muse takes you, anything from angsty h/c to cheerful silliness is fine as long as the characters I love are at the heart of it. Also, if in cases where I requested a character combination of three named characters your story idea would only fit for two of them, and otherwise it would not work, that's fine with me as well.

DNW:

- bashing of canon pairings or characters in general. By which I don't mean the characters have to like each and everyone else, which would be oc, and honestly, I'm not exactly an admirer of, say, Chakotay's. But that doesn't mean I would want to read everyone dissing him (same with other characters)

- Alpha/Beta/Omega scenarios, watersports, infantilisation. Really not my thing, sorry.

- Rape: Now, this canonically happened to one of the characters I've asked for, and in her case, of course I would expect the story to deal with it. However, with the other characters, where it didn't happen in canon, I'd rather not read about it this year's ST fictional gift.


Likes:

- character exploration

- stoics who get the job done

- wordplay and banter if ic for the characters involved

- some humor amidst the angst if you go for a darker story

- fictional politics, history and literature (i.e. if you want to let the characters discuss the politics in their universe (e.g. the Federation's decision(s) re: Romulan refugees being an obvious case in point), or debate Cardassian literature a la Garak and Bashir, I'm all for it)


The question of AUs: In general, I'm not against exploring characters in, say, a "five things that never happened" scenarios, but I also love it if the story manages to stay within canon continuity.

On to the prompts:


( Strange New Worlds/Discovery, DS9/TNG, TNG/SNW )

( DS9 prompts )

( Discovery prompts )

I continued with my occasional Discovery rewatch, so you're getting some s2 thoughts.

( Let's have a little more fun )

After last week's Lower Deck crossover, this one feels like a crossover with Discovery's first season, and not just they actually use some Disco footage in the previouslies.

( Star Trek: MASH )

felis wanted to know: Which three Star Trek characters should Voltaire meet? And which one would totally ignore him and go talk to Emilie instead?

The last one is the easiest: any of the Star Trek characters who started out as scientists - Janeway, Seven of Nine, Michael Burnham, Tilly, and yes, Spock - would pounce on the chance to talk to the fabulous Émilie du Chatelet before they'd talk to Voltaire. Especially if the meeting happens via actual time trip as opposed to everyone visiting a holographic recreation of Cirey complete wtith Holo!Voltaire and Holo!Émilie. Because then they'd need to enlist a great pyhsicist to fix whatever the MacGuffin is that has the ST characters stranded in the past. If I had to choose just one of them, I'd go with Tilly. Depending on which biographer you believe, she and Émilie could even bond over mother issues, and at any rate Tilly's fannish enthusiasm would be great for Émilie to hear.

As to which three other ST characters should meet and primarily engage with Voltaire:

1.) Garak from ST: DS9 for the quality dialogue and barrage of one liners from both parties which would inevitably ensue. Garak would be amused by Voltaire's occasional failed and rebuffed spying efforts; Voltaire would be appalled by the Cardassian justice system (even worse than the French 18th century one) and start a campaign immediately; Garak would be intrigued by someone who isn't naive at all yet relentless in his zeal once he picked up a cause. And they'd agree on Shakespeare. (See here. ) Then, however, Garak would score a point by mentioning the Federation laws re: genetically modified folk, proving that even in a supposedly free society there's some major discrimination going on. At which point Voltaire decides to use the case of the remaining Jack Pack as precedence and campaign against these laws as well.

2.) Mirrorverse Philippa Georgiou from ST: Discovery. She's a witty dictator both cruel and able to build on that tiny glimmer of humanity within and become more, and therefore absolutely his type. Again, there would be high quality dialogue. Presumably Voltaire in the Mirrorverse either was his worst self or didn't exist, so she wouldn't be that interested to start with and/or assume he had court fool qualifications at best, they'd go from amusing verbal sparring to downright vicious arguments, but then he'd surprise her by talking her out of a suicidal mindframe (perhaps this is Georgiou right after mid s3?) with his patented "reasons why you shouldn't kill yourself: your enemies would rejoice, you suck, and also, I'd miss you" pep up speech.

3.) The Doctor (the one from Voyager, not a guest starring DW). This is for a scenario where it's Holo!Voltaire, because you just know Holo!Voltaire would develop conciousness, creating yet another ethical headache for Janeway. Holo!Voltaire and the Doctor would start an opera production together, starring the Doctor, of course (presumably he'd requested the holodeck to provide him with such a scenario), but then there would be mighty arguments once Voltaire finds out no one watches the operas based on his plays anymore, or, for that matter, his plays, and that his fame mainly rests on his prose. The Doctor would not hold back on his musical and theatrical opinions and insist on producing Verdi or Puccini instead. In this mighty clash of egos, he'd still verbally lose because Voltaire (even a Holo version of same) just has more practice and vocabulary at verbal sparring. Then, however, Voltaire (by now exceeding his original program, because of course he does, and achieving consciousness) finds out about the Doctor's iffy status on Voyager (depending on which season we're in, and how much autonomy Janeway grants him) and the whole problem of if some holoprograms can achieve consciousness, isn't the entire holotechnology providing future slaves, and suggests teaming up for a Freedom For Holobeings campaign. I'm not sure how this episode would end for the holo cause, but I think the Doctor in the spirit of reconciliation would aquaint Voltaire with Leonard Bernstein's version of Candide, and pick that as the to be staged production, thus providing us with a finale where he sings Pangloss and the entire Voyager crew joins in with The Best of All Possible Worlds. (Voltaire sighs that they're missing out on the satire - Bernstein isn't, of course, but the Voyager crew gives him the impression they think he agrees with Pangloss - but takes the tribute as given.)


The other days