Strange New Worlds season 2 - SPOILERS

[MarkB]

I can totally see reasons why you'd definitely want to mind-meld for that, but I think Eric's grandma wouldn't want to hear.
I don't know what the writers would be going with, especially since in ENT, it seems mind melds were kinda a taboo and only some people could, or at least would, do it, and since Vulcans certainly had sexual relationships back then, I could see it not being standard procedure.
(Though I prefer to fanon that weird "not all Vuclans can do it" / "It's a taboo to do it" away.)

It takes a lot of disciplined concentration to maintain a meld, could wind up being more of a distraction than an enhancement.

 

[DammitVictor]

(like, you can say that if you're Major Kira, ex-space terrorist, talking to Sisko, not so much this situation), and it veered dangerously near the "HARD MEN MAKING HARD DECISIONS" mega-bollocks that Star Trek has, up to now, unequivocally and fiercely rejected (and must reject, I would say, it's antithetical to all decency).

Thing is... as much as this episode interrogated that trope, I think it rejected and rebuked it as fiercely as anything else Star Trek has ever done.

M'Benga killed three Klingon officers with a knife. They were enemy combatants and war criminals in a declared war zone, his actions saved millions of civilian lives and thousands of his comrades, and he is haunted by them nevertheless.

Starfleet Intelligence somehow got their filthy meathooks on Dak'Rah, and between them they cooked up a story about his "crisis of conscience" and his defection to the Federation. They made him an ambassador in both the formal and informal capacities. If his remorse for his atrocities was genuine, what better way to atone for war crimes than to work to prevent more wars? If he's just a coward and a hypocrite, his work for the Federation is still saving countless Federation and Klingon lives. And even if he's a double agent for the Empire... the work he's doing to maintain his cover is still advancing the cause of peace more than the cause of war.

Starfleet isn't killing millions of people for "the greater good". They're not murdering Klingon civilians or their own civilians in the name of peace. Dak'Rah has probably, in legitimate self defense and/or military necessity, killed a handful of people since his defection... but nowhere near as many and nowhere near as innocent as beforehand. He was a monster, but whether or not he's still a monster, Starfleet has neutralized him and found a noble use for him.

With the same knife, M'Benga and/or Chapel killed a single Klingon ambassador, out of an admirable sense of duty and justice; time will tell whether that knifework will eventually cost the Federation (and the Empire) more lives than M'Benga's original knifework saved. Many, many people in the Federation will sleep easier knowing the Butcher of J'Gal is dead; the families of the Klingons that M'Benga killed will sleep easier knowing-- however falsely-- that their deaths were avenged. No Klingon will mourn Dak'Rah's death.

And Pike has his duty to Starfleet, his duty to the Federation, his duty to truth and justice, and his duty to his crew. He suspects the truth, and knows what he'll have to do if he knows the truth, and has to weigh his duties in deciding how hard he wants to press to find out.

Everyone (except possibly Dak'Rah) is a good person here, and everyone was acting on morally good impulses-- but their actions all had consequences, they all had price tags and toe tags attached, and the episode ends with Captain Pike having to make the same kind of decision knowing it'll have the same kind of consequences.

It's the opposite of HARD MEN, and the fact that we-- the audience-- are discouraged from cheering for any of them drives that point home.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

It takes a lot of disciplined concentration to maintain a meld, could wind up being more of a distraction than an enhancement.

The concentration is required to maintain barriers. As we saw in the TNG episode Sarek, If something interferes with concentration, unwanted psychic contact can occur.

Spock's current emotional state is not conducive to maintaining barriers.

 

[Divine2021]

Thing is... as much as this episode interrogated that trope, I think it rejected and rebuked it as fiercely as anything else Star Trek has ever done.

M'Benga killed three Klingon officers with a knife. They were enemy combatants and war criminals in a declared war zone, his actions saved millions of civilian lives and thousands of his comrades, and he is haunted by them nevertheless.

Starfleet Intelligence somehow got their filthy meathooks on Dak'Rah, and between them they cooked up a story about his "crisis of conscience" and his defection to the Federation. They made him an ambassador in both the formal and informal capacities. If his remorse for his atrocities was genuine, what better way to atone for war crimes than to work to prevent more wars? If he's just a coward and a hypocrite, his work for the Federation is still saving countless Federation and Klingon lives. And even if he's a double agent for the Empire... the work he's doing to maintain his cover is still advancing the cause of peace more than the cause of war.

Starfleet isn't killing millions of people for "the greater good". They're not murdering Klingon civilians or their own civilians in the name of peace. Dak'Rah has probably, in legitimate self defense and/or military necessity, killed a handful of people since his defection... but nowhere near as many and nowhere near as innocent as beforehand. He was a monster, but whether or not he's still a monster, Starfleet has neutralized him and found a noble use for him.

With the same knife, M'Benga and/or Chapel killed a single Klingon ambassador, out of an admirable sense of duty and justice; time will tell whether that knifework will eventually cost the Federation (and the Empire) more lives than M'Benga's original knifework saved. Many, many people in the Federation will sleep easier knowing the Butcher of J'Gal is dead; the families of the Klingons that M'Benga killed will sleep easier knowing-- however falsely-- that their deaths were avenged. No Klingon will mourn Dak'Rah's death.

And Pike has his duty to Starfleet, his duty to the Federation, his duty to truth and justice, and his duty to his crew. He suspects the truth, and knows what he'll have to do if he knows the truth, and has to weigh his duties in deciding how hard he wants to press to find out.

Everyone (except possibly Dak'Rah) is a good person here, and everyone was acting on morally good impulses-- but their actions all had consequences, they all had price tags and toe tags attached, and the episode ends with Captain Pike having to make the same kind of decision knowing it'll have the same kind of consequences.

It's the opposite of HARD MEN, and the fact that we-- the audience-- are discouraged from cheering for any of them drives that point home.

This is a much better read on the episode and it’s subtleties than that “hard men” garbage. It’s like people didn’t see the M’benga obviously has PTSD.

 

[Paul Farquhar]

There is going to be a Clue crossover episode next.

Nurse White, in the Med Bay, with a Dagger.

 

[Umbran]

This is a much better read on the episode and it’s subtleties than that “hard men” garbage. It’s like people didn’t see the M’benga obviously has PTSD.

Yeah. If there is one failing in this episode, it is that there is no motion toward getting any of the three veterans (M'benga, Chapel, and to a lesser extent Ortegas) proper treatment for their trauma. The episode puts a focus on how such problems exist, but doesn't properly speak to addressing it.

I mean, a high-level ambassador is dead. Even if Pike doesn't feel his Chief Medical Officer should spend his life in a brig for it, just walking away without getting M'benga help is a failing. We can accept that this sort of thing can't be fixed, and must instead be managed, that management is a whole lot easier with a frelling therapist.

 

[DammitVictor]

I mean, a high-level ambassador is dead. Even if Pike doesn't feel his Chief Medical Officer should spend his life in a brig for it, just walking away without getting M'benga help is a failing. We can accept that this sort of thing can't be fixed, and must instead be managed, that management is a whole lot easier with a frelling therapist.

They're just being faithful to continuity. Forget this episode being the reason that M'Benga isn't the Chief Medical Officer under Kirk-- this episode is the reason that the ship's therapist is a bridge officer position a hundred years from now.

 

[Umbran]

They're just being faithful to continuity. Forget this episode being the reason that M'Benga isn't the Chief Medical Officer under Kirk-- this episode is the reason that the ship's therapist is a bridge officer position a hundred years from now.

If they do go that route - that follow on to Biobed 2 leads to ship's Counsellors, I'd be good with that.

 

[MarkB]

Okay, that was just fantastic, start to finish. I laughed, I cried, I want the soundtrack.

 

[Rabulias]

Fun episode, and I don't care for musicals. They also had a vocal (almost a cappella) version of the opening credits.