he is the worst regular in all of the treks I have seen (TOS/TNG/DS9/VOY/ENT)

his whole thing is representing White american baby boomer dudes

boring as shit

doesn’t belong in space

Torres can do so much better.

I don’t believe this shit about being such a hot shot pilot.

I think he was sent by the CIA.

  • Nacarbac [any]@hexbear.net
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    21 hours ago

    Garrett Wang (Harry Kim) and Robert Duncan McNeill (Tom Paris) did a podcast called The Delta Flyers where they do a full episode-by-episode rewatch of Voyager and often rant about the many problems of the show (and about the bits they enjoyed, as well). Didn’t get through it all, but it was decent travel listening.

    Both of them are pretty often annoyed about how their characters (and most of the others) were stuck on a writing treadmill to obey that absurd syndication demand of an eternal moment, such that new viewers can drop in without feeling like they’ve missed anything.

    • GalaxyBrain [they/them]@hexbear.net
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      7 hours ago

      Nitpick, but the treadmill was worsened particularly on voyager because it wasn’t syndicated. It was the flagship show for the new UPN network so it had even more suits mucking around. Kept Berman off the ds9 sets, so we should all thank Voyager for making ds9 good.

    • glans [it/its]@hexbear.netOP
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      9 hours ago

      I’ve heard about this show but not listened to it. I will download a few eps and see how it is. I see they are on DS9 now; Terry Farell and Armin Shimmerman are co hosts.

      such that new viewers can drop in without feeling like they’ve missed anything.

      I mean in 2024 it’s easy to be annoyed about that but at the time of production that wasn’t really the wrong thing to do because it was reality of the medium. OTOH I don’t think it excuses a lot of the dumb decisions.

      DS9 has really benefited from streaming. I only came to understand and appreciate it after multiple re watches this way. Was far from a casual viewer originally. But it didn’t make sense. Even if you are willing and able to religiously watch every episode in order, having them separated by a week or months makes it too hard to follow.

      It would also be nice to have episodic TV and I don’t know that it’s always bad. IT just hasn’t been the style lately.

    • Murple_27
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      17 hours ago

      Both of them are pretty often annoyed about how their characters (and most of the others) were stuck on a writing treadmill to obey that absurd syndication demand of an eternal moment, such that new viewers can drop in without feeling like they’ve missed anything.

      If there’s anything about the modern streaming media format that’s a genuine improvement over previous TV network programming, it’s this. Writers are no longer forced to maintain a permanent “status quo” for a show, because anybody who wants to can always go back & rewatch old episodes, or just start at the beginning & catch up with the rest of the audience.

  • peppersky [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
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    24 hours ago

    I watched like a good part of Voyager last year and while it’s not like the show has no decent episodes, it’s absurd just how little happens to the character and how little development goes into them. For them having traveled through the delta quadrant for seven years, most of the characters feel completely unchanged from the pilot on. Nonsense show.

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    21 hours ago

    of course he was sent by the CIA, they had perfect blackmail on him (getting a classmate killed)

    he even changed his name for this mission

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    order-of-lenin

    I’m going through Voyager for the first time and I’ve been thinking all of this.

    Paris isn’t even subtly or subjectively boomer. He’s clearly intentionally written to be a guy in the 1950s. They could have written him with one boomer trait to be cute, but they had to have him be obsessed with classic cars, b&w (and sexist) scifi, man caves, being a playboy, etc. Every episode that centers around Paris ends up being the worst in the series.

    Torres can do so much better.

    I felt this hard. She was one of the best characters of the series, and her falling for Paris sucked. It’s also just not believably written in the show. Just one day they were secretly in love?

    I’ve always hated how Star Trek does relationships between the regulars. The Worf and Troi, Worf and Dax relationships sucked.

    don’t believe this shit about being such a hot shot pilot.

    Has real Top Gun vibes

  • GalaxyBrain [they/them]@hexbear.net
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    1 day ago

    This video sums it up for me.

    Every voyager character that wasn’t Seven of Nine of The Doctor were never given the chance to become full characters and they hated it. The writing for voyager was absolute dogshit for the actors and most of them will tell ya, that dogshit writing made Tom Paris a superbeing. Robert Duncan MacNeil doesn’t deserve NY bla.e here for.the record. From what I can tell he fully agrees with this and did at the time and made it known as far as he could while keeping his job. Actors don’t like playing a boring guy who can do everything either. Forgive all people who made Voyagwe that arent Rick Berman and Bramnan Braga who gets away with too much. Dude was dating Jeri Ryan when he was the show runner.

  • CyborgMarx [any, any]@hexbear.net
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    1 day ago

    Tom Paris engaging in boomer activities on the holodeck was when the character was at his worse

    Tom Paris doing crimes and going rogue (you know the whole point of his character in the pilot episode) was when the character came to life, too bad they only gave Tom’s criminality two episodes over 7 seasons before dropping that aspect of his personality completely

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      Neelix was annoying because his used car salesman with-a-heart-of-gold personality was completely wasted on the Starfleet crew

      The whole point of his character in the first season was to act as a guide thru an unknown region, instead of becoming a boring cook, he should’ve become the Quark of Voyager, an opportunistic trader and part-time ambassador who would secure the goods but habitually set the b-plot into motion cause he got in over his head trying to acquire 6 months worth of fuel (and a sizable cut for himself) by selling one of the holodecks without the captains’ knowledge

    • glans [it/its]@hexbear.netOP
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      1 day ago

      well they BOTH want Kes, the child. So no points awarded either way.

      neelix is corny or whatever but he doesn’t represent the eternal supremacy of White Men over space. which paris does.

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            7 hours ago

            I never took it that way at least. Tom was developing a friendship with Kes which made Neelix jump to conclusions cause he’s Neelix. Although someone did mention an alternate timeline episode where he marries Kes, I don’t remember that episode cause voyager is forgettable af, but from my recollection he didn’t seem to have any romantic or sexual intent and Star Trek tends to make that super obvious.

          • kristina [she/her]@hexbear.net
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            1 day ago

            its kinda wild how they would run things like discovery for many seasons and episodes but when they actually have a good show they do it for 4 seasons 10 episodes each which is like fucking nothing

            • GalaxyBrain [they/them]@hexbear.net
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              1 day ago

              They both had equal amounts of seasons. I agree with the sentiment tho. Disco was dead mid season 2, no pun intended, but lower decks has LEGS. That show could have just kinda kept going. George Takei even said so after appearing.

            • 30_to_50_Feral_PAWGs [she/her]@hexbear.net
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              1 day ago

              Yeah, seriously. At least they haven’t axed Strange New Worlds yet, but it was painful going back and watching Discovery only to find out that SNW was a spinoff of that dumpster fire. Here’s hoping that the new Michelle Yeoh Trek project doesn’t turn out to be absolute ass, but I’m not holding my breath. It seems weird to me that this is the first Trek movie since the Abrams reboot movies.

                • AnarchoAnarchist [none/use name]@hexbear.net
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                  18 hours ago

                  When section 31 was introduced they were meant to be like the CIA (bad)

                  But in our post 9/11 world, they’re meant to be like the CIA (good)

                  I’m going to watch it, because I’m a good little piggy and I appreciate my slop, but I’m not expecting much.

                • 30_to_50_Feral_PAWGs [she/her]@hexbear.net
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                  1 day ago

                  Oh, it was just more trash on the trash heap, but at least she was having fun with it. That, I can get behind. But yeah, those first few seasons leaned way too hard on mirror universe shit.

                • glans [it/its]@hexbear.netOP
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                  1 day ago

                  I did try watching disco, the earlier seasons, 2 or 3 times, but I couldn’t get it and/or what I did get I hated. It was a mess and mostly I don’t remember it but I do recall that character making some stupid as fuck gay jokes about the mirror universe. They seemed intended to make her seem cool and didn’t work. in my mind.

          • GalaxyBrain [they/them]@hexbear.net
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            1 day ago

            Not in my heart and I’ve heard the comics are neat and a recent one did a choose your own adventure structure with a twist. Batman did that once where it was a riddler story and you had to figure out that all the cyoa results end in death but reading all extra panels you’ll notice you never get to on any try in order solves it. If it’s thst cool I’m subscribing cause also getting stsr trek comics in the mail seems fun

    • glans [it/its]@hexbear.netOP
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      1 day ago

      Ah yes another reason i hate tom paris

      just enough character was altered to AVOID having to pay royalties to the writer or whatever of that episode. tom paris is basically an inherent scab.

  • dualmindblade [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    1 day ago

    That reminds me, remember Sarah Silverman’s Oscar worthy performance when they go back to the future past? She acts almost entirely with her lower lip, presumably as some kind of flex

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    1 day ago

    Worf’s son Alexander seemed like a real little shit, ya know? I never thought about Tom Paris like that but I kinda get where you’re coming from