STARFLEET ACADEMY-s1e6: COME, LET’S AWAY (SPOILERS)

 

STARFLEET ACADEMY-s1e6: COME, LET’S AWAY

(SPOILERS)

 

What all the conflict in the reviews have caused is that…we or rather maybe just I, can’t really watch with a freedom of just watching. This episode, like all the others, like all TREK really, has issues but it’s fast paced, action packed, and makes more sense. Sure, why are cadets allowed on the bridge in a crisis? Why are they training on a real destroyed ship when there are holodecks? If Tarima could do that, why didn’t she just do it sooner? And SAM continues to not make sense: if she’s a holoimage person, she should not be able to be shot or at the very least, she can vanish and go onto the ship to safety. Her entire presence is a mistake, despite her still doing more to save the team than say, Jay Den, who seems to toss one of the Furies (who gave them that name? aren’t those female monsters from Greek mythology?) and Kyle who shoots maybe one or two?

 

It’s truly shocking that there are two deaths (SPOILERS below) and Tarima is left in a coma or coma like state so the show is not afraid to go there and get someone killed or hurt badly. That’s surprising.

 

What’s not surprising and could be signaled from the start is that pirate villain from ep1, Nus Braka, who is called on by Starfleet’s Admiral Charles Vance, is really working with the Furies. That could be signposted from far away. It is surprising they were after some Starfleet Lab in space, which is attacked with its main ship gone by HIM and the Furies.

 

First, if the lab is that secret and that predisposed to having a deadly weapon on board, why not have better protection than one ship. Second, that ship that was protecting them, when it rushes to help the cadets, is QUICKLY and EASILLY disabled. So what kind of protection was that? No, no, and no. And third, why not have more than one ship protecting that Lab? Many die.

 

On the plus side, Giamatti’s Nus Braka is a good villain, intimidating and using mind games, physically intimidating as well. Here, he does nothing physical but he still seems to generate power and in entertaining ways.

 

We learn a bit more about Capt Ake and she is NOT perfect, having stayed at her post while her son dies. She is only half Lanthenite (maybe that’s stated before?) and can practically live forever. Kelric is more likable and here, does not act like a jerk. This gambling thing between Ake and the half Jem, half Klingon (that in and of itself a bone of contention between fans and for many fans but not myself) Lura Thok, a heavy set (that being another bone of contention but again, not with me) character, is not a good thing. They’re gambling on their cadets’ success or failure! NO, no, and no.

 

Okay, so apart from all that, this was superior to last week’s POS episode that centered around Sam, Jake and Sisko, the last two from the insipid Deep Sleep Mine.

 

First, Caleb is super hot in the opening segments, having sex with Tarima and basically parading around his 9 percent body fat, abs, perfect skin, biceps and triceps. He and she are amazing to look at and their scenes together and apart are believable and entertaining and their rapport evident and well placed. I also like their story about being shocked by each other’s reactions to her powers. I like strong telepaths with angst and she is one of them.

 

This episode held together better than the last episode and had pace, action, fights, chases, and a strong sense of urgency which the last episode and if I’m honest, episodes 2,3, and 4 also did not have, even though I liked those.

 

This was no character study but involved character development and character choices and that was its strong point along with the new villains who are creepy as can be.

 

They manage to kill the adult watching the cadets (his name seems to be Vomit spelled backwards, sort of ---Tomov) and even more shockingly, B’avi, the Vulcan War College cadet, who saves Caleb and thus, the others. He is shown on screen dead, more than once.

 

Is B’avi spelled backwards, “I Vape?” sort of?

 

In any case, this was entertaining if flawed episode with flawed logic and a flawed premise but as it came after the worst of the first six episodes, it seems like a 9/10 but is really probably more like a 7/10 or a 6/10.

 

As for critics, the professional reviews seem to like the show more, the fans seem to be divided and the regular audience seem to not like it. 

 

I truly can’t decide but as I was entertained, so far by five out of six of the episodes, despite the false premises, the Deep Sleep Mine connection, the weird adults, and the twenty somethings acting like middle schoolers, seem to like it. I think it’s far superior to NEXT GENERATION, VOYAGER, DEEP SLEEP MINE and ENTERPRISE, not to mention the JJ Abrahm first two movies, and possibly even on a par with the third, which was action, a DIE HARD IN SPACE, with jokes and adults acting like twenty somethings or high schoolers (and Chris Pine’s Kirk in the first movie accelerated to captain for no explicable reason and over Mr. Spock, no, no and no).

 

All in all, this was superior to the first one but the entire premise of STARFLEET ACADEMY sort of precludes it from making any kind of sense. Cadets at a school, even a military school, need to be safe (maybe?) and skilled (the heavy set comm badge swallower needs to be dismissed from the bridge because she’s panicking and to be honest, she should be dismissed from Starfleet and sent home; sure, she’s fallible but such behavior in a time of crisis should indicate this job is not for her).

 

Still, I look forward to each new episode, love the cast and most of the characters, and think that this show could be improved and evolve into something even better. I DO see the faults but I don’t use those to promote total hatred against the show. Those that do are somewhat suspect for being racist and homophobic, which is sad because some of them are but some of them and some of the others who are not those things have valid points as to the show’s internal logic, the lack of a connection of worth and continuity to previous TREK tone and lore (which might be a good thing at times) and to the messages given. I have no problem with messages, even false premises if both sides are explored but in this day and age, there seem to be no two sides that can at least hear the other side. And that is what good TREK and good sci fi did: hear out both sides of an issue and present the POV of both sides and why they think that.

 

I don’t think with all the arguing, blame, hatred and downright suspect motives, that’s possible today…at least maybe it will be tomorrow and that is what TREK should be focusing on. It’s not and so it’s getting flack. I think that stuff might be over but who knows as reviewers are hate reviewing every episode—some of them TWICE and getting what they want by using TREK: likes, views and high subscriber numbers.