Star Trek Social Club

I enjoyed this episode much more than the previous one. It was quite fun. Sure, holodeck episodes aren't the most original idea in Star Trek, but they're almost always good, and I think this episode was worth the slight fudging of canon.

Also, seeing the "Last Frontier" bits and how well they captured the TOS feel makes me think, "Why do they need to make modern Trek so fancy? Why can't we have cheap-looking sets again?" Also, I think this is one of the better Paul Wesley performances in this show.

I was relieved to find they didn't go to far with the meta this episode. So many of the clips and dialogues of this episode I saw in the initial trailers made me worry this season was going to do a multiverse plot or venture a bit too far beyond the fourth wall.

The only thing is the Spock/La'an romance is driving me nuts. Neither is emotionally ready, and Spock STILL has a fiance. It's painful to watch it knowing that it's almost certainly doomed. I don't necessarily mind them acknowledging that they have feelings to each other, but I would have thought there would be a mutual desire to keep it platonic. In the end though, at least dancing isn't Vulcan neuropressure - as I get further into Enterprise, I kind of wonder how Rick Berman has evaded the trunk of my car for so long.

The "Riker Maneuver" blooper absolutely killed me.

Uhura speech it was very meta and was really emotional, it was a speech straight from a ST fan, nice writing and performing there Edit: bloopers were hilarious, and with Frakes directing the blooper of "Kirk" doing the Riker manouver was so funny

I wasn't expecting another "fun" episode. I enjoyed it. The campy awfulness of the old TV set design and costumes was spot on.

Spock-La'an works well, I want to see more of it. It's difficult to find a lot of plot progress in comedy eps, but pushing their relationship forward a bit is nice. I really hope it goes somewhere meaningful, but this being a prequel, I guess just how far it could go is limited, unless they're willing to diverge off canon.

Hollywood AR walls don't hold anything against a holodeck, but we're getting there. It's cases like this that make me think I wouldn't enjoy one for real though, I'd just spend all my time getting paranoid. And did La'an get permission from everyone to use their patterns?

This earlier holodeck is lacking in any kind of true failsafe and is relying on the simulation program alone to not hurt people. Later on the enterprise, they never really figured that out. Scotty should have wrote his notes on safety much bigger than footnotes.

The writing staff must have been using this episode to vent their frustrations of the TV industry. When they were writing it, I wonder if they knew yet they had a confirmed 5 seasons, or if this was written during a hiatus.

I guess the takeaway message from this episode is "you can always rely on those around you". Except when they're holographic murder simulations, then all bets are off.

The TNG references with the chair gag and wearing jeans BTS really got me.

It's a classic Star Trek storyline but it still checks out. Also love seeing La'an leading the episode

Edit: on further reflection, whilst I enjoyed the episode (all the call backs to TOS vibes were great), I think this shows the weakness of having shorter seasons, in that there's less space (pun intended) for "frivolous" capers like this.

I do love that the staff, be they actors, wardrobe, production, etc don't have an insane routine like the old days but maintain that at least 12-15 episodes per season is a nice compromise

That was a pretty fun bit of silliness - low-calorie, but it looked like the cast had a good time.

The La'an/Spock storyline is unexpected, but damned if Ethan Peck and Christina Chong don't have chemistry.

Damn. 🥵🔥

EDIT: Did someone turn the heater on. Um… it’s a bit steamy here.

Annotations for 3x04 up at: https://startrek.website/post/26871550

I have no hope for this series but Frakes is still directing. What’s a fan to do.