Episode Discussion | Star Trek: Strange New Worlds | 2x09 "Subspace Rhapsody"

LoglineAn accident with an experimental quantum probability field causes everyone on the USS Enterprise to break uncontrollably into song, but the real danger is that the field is expanding and beginning to impact other ships—allies and enemies alike.

Written by Dana Horgan & Bill Wolkoff

Directed by Dermott Downs

triktrek ,

In between the first watch earlier this week and a rewatch tonight, I’ve listening to and humming the songs over and over again. I don’t know why people say the songs aren’t catchy. “Status Report” is sooo catchy, and it even has a little reprise with the “Apologies” at the beginning of the “Private Conversation” which is also very catchy actually.

“How Would That Feel” is beautifully rendered. I’ve started to listen to other Christina Chong’s songs now, and they are pretty good (listen to her “Twin Flames”).

Also, in the last seconds of the episode we had Uhura humming a theme. The closed caption says “Uhura humming ‘Keep us connected’”, which I believe is incorrect. She is humming the opening of Chapel’s “I am Ready” and Spock’s “I am the X”, not Uhura’s “Keep us Connected”.

StillPaisleyCat ,
@StillPaisleyCat@startrek.website avatar

Uhura’s humming seems to intentionally lead into the instrumental medley during the end credits.

StillPaisleyCat ,
@StillPaisleyCat@startrek.website avatar

I’m unexpectedly enjoying Christina Chong’s own music as well.

I posted the official music video for her release of two weeks ago ‘No Blame’ to our Quark’s community (which seems the better fit for following for non-Trek credits).

She has another song being released later today. I’ll post that there as well.

const_void , (edited )
@const_void@lemmy.world avatar

We felt like this was painful and nearly unwatchable. Individual performance aside…please no more!

khaosworks ,
@khaosworks@startrek.website avatar

One day they’ll do a proper adaptation of “How Much For Just the Planet?” and I can die happy.

shenandoah ,
@shenandoah@sh.itjust.works avatar

Yes! That would work incredibly well with the SNW crew! Writers, please do that! I love that book!

Prouvaire ,

Is there somewhere a list of the songs that Ford was parodying in How Much For Just The Planet? Even though I'm a huge musical theatre nerd, I didn't get some of the references in the book and it always bugged me.

(And speaking of John M Ford: Personally I still regret that the Klingon culture that the franchise developed through TNG and subsequent shows differed so much from the one Ford created in The Final Reflection.)

khaosworks ,
@khaosworks@startrek.website avatar

It’s a puzzle that has confounded readers for years. There are some obvious ones like “Rawhide”, but a lot are still unidentified. Here’s a good attempt at it.

CCatMan ,

The story and plot points were good, but SOME of the songs where maybe a minute too long for my taste. Any song with Spock is good, but the autotune… Yikes. Lol

Maybe not on my rewatch list.

Kyle ,

My thought was, how bad would it be without autotune? 😬

I just enjoyed it for what it was at surface level, though. First, the Orville, then lower decks and now this showed that star trek is big enough to be funny and thought-provoking.

CCatMan ,

I would prefer the singing be bad as it would align closer to reality for people that normally do not sing. With that said, it is possible this anomaly caused all the auto as it knows no one can sing and they need to be auto tuned. 🐒

Hogger85b ,

Auto tune fits with frequencies being blasted out and then trying to talk and end up singing

Kyle ,

Maybe the universal translators got confused with the probability field and Auto-Tuned everyone 😆

Hogger85b ,

I think many of the middle songs were pretty samey too.

Someone singing their angst alone in a Cgi set. Liked first and last and chapels was good, but agree others were a bit long which made the overall episdoe seem long.

I really respect them trying and there are some great moments

sarcasticsunrise ,

I abhor autotune like nobody’s business, I also loathe musicals. The combination of these two has kept me from watching this one so far. I might have to get pretty drunk one night I guess

NuPNuA ,

I was pretty sure they were going to nail this as soon as it was announced. Treks always played around with music and characters with musical aptitude so this was inevitable eventually.

I’m not really a musical fan unless it’s something I’m already interested in like this or, say, Pick of Destiny, thought this was great though, simple sci-fi justification, then all in on the concept. Thought the songs and “musical rules” were a good way of packing an episode with dense character work across the whole cast in an era when you only have ten episodes a year to play with.

GrinningLlama ,

What. The. Heck. Just. Happened. I always hated musicals but this was incredible! This show is KILLING it. OMG

HardlightCereal ,

I hated musicals until the structure and theory was explained to me. Maybe you liked this episode because it directly addressed the plot conventions it was hitting and the structure of musicals. Check out the channel Sideways on youtube, he does a great job explaining musical theory in cinema, including musicals and nonmusicals.

Jfillian ,
@Jfillian@twit.social avatar

@ValueSubtracted Delightful episode. I laughed, I cried, I (would have) bought the t-shirt. I have really enjoyed some of the risks they've taken this season, this one and the Mashup with Lower Decks and punctuating with the powerful war episode. I've looked forward to Thursdays.

russjr08 ,
@russjr08@outpost.zeuslink.net avatar

I don’t generally enjoy musicals (or rather, shows that aren’t musicals but then do a random episode as a musical) but SNW definitely did it right! And I’m glad I didn’t skip it since I considered doing so.

eknobl ,
@eknobl@startrek.website avatar

I don’t like musicals… at all. But I really enjoyed this episode, and found it quite fun. The whole cast is so good. I hope this series goes on for many years.

Shut_up_Wesley ,

I am just the opposite. I love musicals and I love Star Trek, but this one was my least favorite of the season. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate them trying something innovative for the Trek series. I enjoyed seeing the actors working outside the box. But overall it didn’t give me the joy that the other episodes have.

krolden ,
@krolden@lemmy.ml avatar

I despise musical episodes and had to stop watching this one after I heard Spock’s autotuned voice.

GummySquirrel ,
@GummySquirrel@startrek.website avatar

10 minutes in, Oh I like it!

GummySquirrel ,
@GummySquirrel@startrek.website avatar

46minutes, kind of over it. Would love to hear a Klingon song

darelik ,

If there was a klingon-side spinoff, this episode would be entitled:

Bat’leth of the Bands

QubaXR ,
@QubaXR@lemmy.world avatar

I think Strange New Worlds is the best Star Trek show made so far. Every season they seem to have 9 amazing episodes and one so cringe I end up fast forwarding through the whole thing. This musical one was the low point of the season and the series, just like that word fantasy ones they did in season 1.

Bleh.

JWBananas ,
@JWBananas@startrek.website avatar

🎵 They got the mustard uncertainty out! 🎵

MadMadBunny ,

Now I really wanna see an episode where they poof into bunnies!!!

BrooklynMan ,
@BrooklynMan@lemmy.ml avatar

someone watched The Magicians and said, “Hold my Romulan ale”

soo… for anyone wondering, the music is great. unlike other shows with musical episodes, the music is all original and written/performed of the episode (although I didn’t see Lt. Cmdr. Auto-tune listed in the credits…). It’s plot appropriate, and not shoehorned-in or overdone. There’s a great tone balance, and it comes off like a great American stage musical. I had serious doubts regarding whether they could pull it off… but they did. It was cute, clever, and fun.

I’m a trekkie of the old guard who abso-fucking-loutley 🔥HATES🔥 DSC for shitting down the throat of canon (and just being terrible), but, but I’ve been giving SNW a fair shot. S1 was okay, but S2 has been more promising— HOWEVER, these last few episodes have been very Star Trek, and in new, innovative ways that are refreshing and, dare I say… fun? But, also, serious when they SHOULD BE.

Season 2 of Strange New Worlds is just great, and I guess someone at Paramount is finally listening to all of the screaming from Trek fans about the fire hose of diarrhea that’s been blasting at us so far, and decided to put out some quality content at long last. THANK GOODNESS, because this? This is awesome!

ValueSubtracted OP Mod ,
@ValueSubtracted@startrek.website avatar

Going on a tangent to complain hyperbolically about a different show is both unwelcoming and off-topic.

BrooklynMan , (edited )
@BrooklynMan@lemmy.ml avatar

so you’ve deleted a comment because you personally disagree, and wrapped that action in an excuse which doesn’t pass muster that’s invisible so it’s past scrutiny.

how convenient for you

but you deleted this comment because you’re mad I criticized DSC, and you know it. and that’s bullshit.

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