I agree with this. It was clear from when the lawyer called the eugenics laws “race laws” that Number One was going to get off somehow, but I really missed seeing in the courtroom somebody make the case that genetic augmentation is meaningfully different from genetic modification – in particular in the case of Illyrians, that they modify themselves to exist harmoniously with their environment and not to breed superhumans. Eugenics is bad, and genetic augmentation is also bad and I think corrosive to society, as is covered in Doctor Bashir, I Presume.

Overall, I thought it was good Star Trek, but missing a robust engagement with the issue at hand which was disappointing. A better episode than last week, though.

Oh also – it was very exciting to see a Tellarite! We barely see any of them, especially compared to the other three founding members.

EDIT: Thinking about it more, I do actually think it’s a bit objectionable to call anti-eugenics laws “race laws”. I get that Starfleet is fictional, but in our actual universe, “race laws” have tended to go hand in hand with eugenics, so it really feels a bit … unfortunate. And based on this episode’s Ready Room, they seem pretty comfortable with the idea that Starfleet and the Federation are in the wrong about genetic augmentation, and I don’t feel like they drew the line in the episode or in the Ready Room episode between augmentation and modification.

The impression I got was that some mods have left and/because the remaining mods have decided to reopen. Honestly the thread was a bit depressing, lots of “it’s their platform, they can do what they like” and “who cares, it doesn’t affect me”. :/

These episodes were both great. I have shipped Mariner/Ransom since s1 and, well, honestly, this new dynamic of theirs probably makes it even less likely than it ever was lol. But they were fun episodes. I do wish Lower Decks had more episodes, since they’re only 20 min/ea.

Hooray, thank you! Fwiw, it is the donations model that is most common in FOSS projects (pay what/if you can) and I think it engenders a better sense of community, and I certainly feel more inclined to pay for something just so support it rather than because of any particular “perks” I might get, which are geeeenerally not really worth the money per se. I also would prefer your time to be spent on the actual server and not on having to integrate the various perks/linking accounts to patreon/etc etc.

This was definitely my favourite episode of the season, and possibly of the series. I thought Kirk was badly cast, but actually after seeing him in this episode, I get it. He is not our Kirk, but he actually does bring something very Kirk-ish to the role that I hadn’t appreciated previously.

Meta: Would it be possible not to use NSFW for spoilers? I don’t really like having all the porn subs showing up in my “All” feed, but I feel like I have to keep NSFW ticked if people are using it for spoilers and not just porn.

Omg yes! That scene was so good. I feel like Gates McFadden and Marina Sirtis would have enjoyed it most of all lol.

Wasn’t there a thread on r/startrek today about them deciding to reopen? I was surprised by how many users were pretty angry about it having been closed, tbh. I felt really good about the decision to close, even before I joined Lemmy.

Fwiw, I am very happy to support the patreon but I don’t feel great about it being attached to server perks. For some people $4/mo is nothing at all and for others it is genuinely significant. I don’t want the Star Trek instance of all instances to be rewarding those who can afford to contribute financially.

Having mainstream news sources reporting on this – especially more financially-oriented ones like Forbes – is actually a pretty good sign. Even though I am enjoying Lemmy more now that I have tried it anyway.