[Faithful Reader]

Somehow, New Star Trek (TM) was released and there's been no talk here. It's understandable considering it was dropped on us, but I'ts odd that no one has mentioned it here yet.

Short Treks season 2 is upon us! If the series is the novel, these are more short stories. They are shorter, as you can tell by the name, clocking in at about fifteen minutes. They are smaller scale in scope, but offer fairly self contained stories.

Q & A, the first of six offerings for season two, in online. The main feature is an elevator scene between Number One and Spock on their first meeting. Romijn is excellent is the professional that her role requires. She breaks in the new officer and we see her outside of the tense moments she frequently had in Discovery. Spock is odd to see in the ensign eager role, but Peck pulls it off. He follows instructions perfectly in full Vulcan mode. My favorite moment is when he asks if he is getting under Number One's skin, and you can tell that it's starting to grate on her, but she maintains her composure. Really great work from both a veteran actor playing someone we saw too little off in the Original Series and a fairly new actor in the role that we almost associate with it.

There's also a nice call back to the pilot early on. Anson Mount's Pike makes a glorified cameo in the end. It's very brief but is a nice teaser since we are promised more of him as the season progresses.

Q & A won't make you a fan of the new series. It won't get any new fans. After season two, fans were clamoring for a series with these three. That won't happen, but while this won't be a substitute for that, it's better than nothing. If you didn't like the portrayal in Discovery, you won't be a convert. But if you're a fan, there are plenty of fun moments.

[AllenGould]

Not available outside CBS All Access.

[JeBuS]

I'll watch them when I resub for Picard. During the non-Trek seasons, they don't get my money. But I'll pay for Picard.

[sexecutioner]

Nothing, I mean NOTHING, will make me laugh as hard as that post-credits scene in the Tribbles short.

Incredible.

[Faithful Reader]

Nothing, I mean NOTHING, will make me laugh as hard as that post-credits scene in the Tribbles short.

Incredible.

Not to throw shade to the previous twelve minutes. We've seen Trek do comedy. The Trouble with Tribbles is an early example, In the Cards in more contemporary. The Escape Artist is probably the closest comparison, though H. Jon Benjamin was a little more divorced than Riann Wilson.

Benjamin does a great job creating a character. Not the best verbally, but he makes a solid impression in his time. We've seen odd folks on ships before. Barclay had a long tenure and we saw Mortimer Harren for a much shorter time, but Benjamin has his own spin on it. It's also nice to see his face while he's acting.

That's not to say that Salazar didn't match him. Captain Lucero follows Janeway and Georgiou in the line of strong female captains. She was good in her role and got along well with her crew. We saw her working with the department heads in a briefing scene and she worked with a disruptive member of her crew, though one scene went on a bit too long.
Hopefully the incident isn't too much of a blemish on her record.

This episode was a blast. We rarely get a chance to see crews of small ships as a focal point and I can't help but wonder if this is a bit of a test for Lower Decks. Some great comedic moments to be seen.

[Tim]

Short Treks are great. I enjoyed the two new ones a lot. Q&A was a lot simpler but liked the dynamic between young Spock and Number One. Trouble with Edward was hilarious.... that's all canon now.

The format reminds me of the Star Trek Waypoint comic books published by IDW. It's an anthology series with a few different few page stories, each done by a different writer and artist --- usually with very different tones. By far the best Star Trek comic books I've ever read.

The short story anthology is actually a great way to do Star Trek.

[AllenGould]

The short story anthology is actually a great way to do Star Trek.

Agreed - but then you don't get a Name to send on your press tours. Maybe Netflix will do a Trek x Outer Limits series one day.

[prylardurden]

I have a new favorite character now.

[Faithful Reader]

Ask Not doesn't have anything we haven't seen before. Heck, it doesn't have anything we haven't seen in Trek before. Lower Decks featured a superior officer testing a rooking for acceptance/promotion. In both cases the superior officer uses Underhanded, Dirty Tricks (TM) to provoke the rookie but the rookie stands their ground. Can Anson Mount do better than Patrick Stewart?

No, but he doesn't have to. Both actors put their best into it, though Mount had a broader range of emotions to play through. That most of the body of work was based on this one scene lets him add more into his performance. He plays his role of busted superior well, going former regulation quoting to below the belt, far below the belt, and doing everything he can to talk his way out of his supposed predicament. It's only when he has to that he breaks character.

He plays off a relative newcomer Amrit Kaur though if this episode is anything to show for it, you'll be hearing a lot more about her soon. She goes through a wide range of emotions all while maintaining her professionalism as a cadet. She holds her own against Mount as Cadet Sidhu holds her own against Pike. These two worked great together even though it is the first meeting of these two characters, they have great chemistry.

Someone was probably surprised at Pike's reveal, but I wasn't. Seeing Mount one more time as Pike was great. We knew his ultimate fate, so it wasn't a surprise that he was never in real danger, though there was might have been a blemish on his record. That he was working with a cadet made me think we would see something later in his career.

We got Peck and Romijn at the end of the episode, kind of a counter to Q & A, and it's great to see them again, even at an extended cameo. We won't get a miniseries or something with these three soon, but hopefully TPTB can make ti happen.

[Faithful Reader]

Perhaps the first two episodes ever released simultaneously and certainly the first two animated episodes released in my lifetime, we have two very different pieces.

Baby Yoda is the poster child of The Mandalorian if not Disney + itself, but Ephrin the Tardigrade can give it a run for its money. The more you think about this one, the more problems you’ll have wit it, but this isn’t meant to be overthought, it’s meant to be fun. This is a great throwback to the first Animated Series and a fun look at the Original Series plus a few others thrown in. It’s a great self contained story with two fun characters that have no voice. The two have a fun dynamic between the two of them and it’s a delicate mix of the realism of Star Trek with a bit of madcap cartoon fun in there as well.

If Ephraim and Dot was Tex Avery does Trek, The Girl Who Made the Stars was Pixar does Trek. This was an early look at Michael Burnham and while we saw a lot foe rh mother, we didn’t see much of her father. This is before all the trouble started, but we have a loving father telling his daughter to not be afraid. He tells here a tale that’s been told for centuries and there are some nice updates. The animation is perfect and if I were watching it before a motion picture, I would be satisfied. For all that Dad was telling her a story, we got a good amount of Burnham at the beginning of her scientific studies.

Two great entries with almost new storytelling styles, even for Short Treks. Those seemed like self contained episodes, but these could qualify as short films. They can stand on their own, are very well done and a worth watching. We’ll be tripling the animated Treks in the near future, and if these are any indication, we’re going to have fun.

[Faithful Reader]

Child actors are always a mixed bag. So are throwaway lines. Wouldn't it be great if there was a way to maximize both?

Children of Mars stars two kids/tweens/teens. There is limited time they can be on set so you need strong actors to do the script justice. Sadie Munroe and Ilamaria Ebrahim did a great job, though Ebrahim deserves extra credit for having prosthetics and contacts. In particular, Munroe did great shutting down her dad's message early and Ebrahim was doing a great job with her tongue. These two, plus scores of extras, did a great job of portraying kids. We really don't get to see this point of view in Trek, but they were the focal point. It starts off an an innocent mistake, but escalates to the point where they are full out brawling in the hallway. Early on, we got enough backstory to form a connection, including the very rare split screen.

Sir Partick has what can be generously described as a cameo. This will be an important part of what led him to leave Starfleet and have prominence in Picard, but it helps bring the importance of the attack home.

There's very little dialogue and the tone is perfect for such a short work. This wouldn't work for an episode, or even part of one, but it is great as the final Short Trek.

[JeBuS]

Child actors are always a mixed bag. So are throwaway lines. Wouldn't it be great if there was a way to maximize both?

Children of Mars stars two kids/tweens/teens. There is limited time they can be on set so you need strong actors to do the script justice. Sadie Munroe and Ilamaria Ebrahim did a great job, though Ebrahim deserves extra credit for having prosthetics and contacts. In particular, Munroe did great shutting down her dad's message early and Ebrahim was doing a great job with her tongue. These two, plus scores of extras, did a great job of portraying kids. We really don't get to see this point of view in Trek, but they were the focal point. It starts off an an innocent mistake, but escalates to the point where they are full out brawling in the hallway. Early on, we got enough backstory to form a connection, including the very rare split screen.

Sir Partick has what can be generously described as a cameo. This will be an important part of what led him to leave Starfleet and have prominence in Picard, but it helps bring the importance of the attack home.

There's very little dialogue and the tone is perfect for such a short work. This wouldn't work for an episode, or even part of one, but it is great as the final Short Trek.

Had to go back and pause some frames to see the news feed. Definitely drops some info for Picard.

[Dunnagh]

Any option to see that in europe? I got Netflix and Prime...

[Danny]

Any option to see that in europe? I got Netflix and Prime...

I'm watching them through my friend's PlexTV account. He's UK based too, so where he's getting them from, I don't know...

[WeyounsLastClone]

Any option to see that in europe? I got Netflix and Prime...

Last year I think Netflix added the Short Treks when they added the second Discovery season and they could be found under 'Trailers & More'. I hope they'll be available this way again this year.