Yep, that was established in 1x01, Joachim being the son of Joaquin and his unaugmented wife Talia (who does not appear to have survived to join them).

Annotations for 1x02 are up at: https://startrek.website/post/29088123

The Beholder stuff is left as a dangling mystery in SNW: “Through the Lens of Time” but any idea that it’s going to involve Batel is not.

I keep finding questions coming up in my head. Why would her chimerical DNA make Batel and the Vezda recognize and attack each other? Is it some kind of genetic memory, in which case any race that had encountered the Vezda would have the same reaction, and does that mean a Gorn or an Illyrian would have the same reaction? Or is it only a combo thing?

I was expecting, given what happened in “Through the Lens of Time”, that it was actually the Gorn part of her that reacted. And that could have led into a revelation that the Gorn were created or designated as Vezda killers, a predator species to rid the galaxy of them. Which would then explain why they turned their predator instincts on the rest of the galaxy once the Vezda were apparently gotten rid of for good.

Or, the ancient race that imprisoned the Vezda created this telepathic alphabet that would send a message to the descendants of the people who helped them the first time around - so M’Benga and Uhura would read the messages as Swahili, La’An in Mandarin (which means La’An, despite being related to a Sikh, is ethnically also Chinese), maybe Scotty would read it as Gaelic, who knows? That would certainly make more sense than the random inscriptions somehow being related to M’Benga for whatever reason.

Or Batel would actually travel back in time to be the Beholder and we see her setting up the messages in a sort of bootstrap paradox - the messages were there because they were always meant to be there. A bootstrap paradox is hinted at in Batel’s dialogue but never quite explicated.

I don’t know. The more I think about the flaws in the plot the more I think it could all have been fixed with a little bit of thought and effort.

I thought that the way they came to understanding what was going on was a little rushed and a bit too speculative, not being based on actual evidence and it was just convenient that they happened to be right that Batel was the Beholder. That entire bit of exposition sounded like it was out of Doctor Who rather than Star Trek: rapid fire vaguely plausible assertions that you just gloss over to get along with the plot and treating concepts like evil not as abstract but actual entities. There was none of the tension of putting things together from actual clues.

Are we meant to believe then that there is a degree of time travel or simultaneity going on? Because aside from the glib “effect before cause” thing which is the equivalent of “shut up, just run with it”, how precisely does Batel become the Beholder? How does three sets of DNA in her - Gorn, Human and Illyrian - translate to having all the abilities of all races that have faced evil?

It would have made more sense to have her go back in time after defeating Gamble (which is what I was expecting) or to say that the prison existed in non-linear time or something. As it is, it’s left pretty much up in the air and we are asked to accept it.

Are we also meant to believe that she was the one who left the messages for M’Benga and La’An, and why leave them in Swahili and Chinese respectively? Why not just put them in English? And how did Batel learn those langauges?

There were good bits, and heartfelt bits, but mostly it was kind of meh for me as finales go.

Annotations for 3x10 are up at: https://startrek.website/post/28867268

Thanks! No, this is mine - I do it regularly for most new Star Trek episodes and decided to do it while I was listening to this one.

Annotations for 1x01 up at: https://startrek.website/post/28791347

Annotations for 3x09 up at: https://startrek.website/post/28553786

You may very well be right. I’m putting it in my notes. Thanks!

Annotations for 3x08 up at: https://startrek.website/post/28229022

Annotations for 3x09 up at: https://startrek.website/post/27912143

Annotations for 3x06 up at: https://startrek.website/post/27570531

Annotations for 3x05 up at: https://startrek.website/post/27217291

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

Annotations for 3x03 up at: https://startrek.website/post/26533137

Annotations for SNW 3x01 up at https://startrek.website/post/26221790 and 3x02 at https://startrek.website/post/26221896

This is specifically in reference to Deltans.

As per TMP:

ILIA: My oath of celibacy is on record Captain. May I assume my duties?

I once addressed this question about Turkana IV on r/DaystromInstitute:

So do we have a reasonable explanation for why the Federation didn’t intervene in the years leading up to Turkana IV breaking off? The time frame, coincidentally, points us to why the Federation might have been devoting resources elsewhere and therefore didn’t pay attention until it was too late.

The late 2340s saw the start of the Cardassian Wars. Exactly when the Setlik III massacre took place is a matter of debate. Most date it to 2347 because of a line in TNG: “Realm of Fear” (2369) where O’Brien tells Barclay he’s been a transporter operator for 22 years (he was a Tactical Officer during Setlik), but there’s contradictory evidence from other episodes in DS9. We can discuss that another time.

But if Setlik III did take place in 2347, then by that time the Federation was embroiled in a war with Cardassia which lasted, in various iterations, until the early 2360s (POWs were released in 2362, DS9: “Tribunal”).

It might not be a stretch to think that a colony world like Turkana IV slipped under the Federation’s radar until it was too late. I get the impression that most colonies aren’t directly governed by the Federation. They’re given autonomy up to a point, and if they want to break off, then it’s their right to do so.

So criminal gangs or not, there was a war going on and the Federation let it go. Not necessarily its finest hour, but I can see it happening.

Annotations for Star Trek: Section 31 up at: https://startrek.website/post/18738476