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Comment on ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Showrunners Talk Season 3 Premiere And “Retconning” The Gorn

ValueSubtracted@startrek.website ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

“What I loved about the Gorn was it was an opportunity to retcon something into a real monster. What we do in Star Trek—and you’ll see we’ll even do it with the Gorn—is we start by seeing the other and often we end by engaging our empathy and understanding common ground. And that’s great, and it doesn’t mean that there isn’t real evil in the world. And so what we wanted to do with the Gorn was to give you a monster, and a monster that at least at first, seemed irredeemable.”

I find this statement a little aggravating, because in my opinion they really haven’t retconned the Gorn. In “Arena”, they slaughtered the entire Cestus colony, and the Gorn captain is utterly merciless.

“Arena” is about mercy, but the Gorn didn’t really earn it in the episode, which was really kind of the point.

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Sanctus@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
Also you can’t really retcon a single guy in a suit. There wasn’t much on them to begin with at all unless I am kissing something from the animated series. It wasn’t like changing the Klingons at all.

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- Asetru@feddit.org ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
  
  unless I am kissing something from the animated series
  
  Well, are you?
  
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  - brem@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
    What happens on Risa stays on Risa.
    
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  - ValueSubtracted@startrek.website ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
    It’s really none of our business…but are they?
    
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    USSBurritoTruck@startrek.website ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
    I bet it’s a Phylosian.
    
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  - Sanctus@lemmy.world ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
    Yes
    
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USSBurritoTruck@startrek.website ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
Yes! I was just coming here to say the same thing.

The Gorn aren’t scary because they’re giant Xenomorphs in lizard drag, they’re scary because they’re intelligent, relentless, and remorseless.

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- MalikMuaddibSoong@startrek.website ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
  
  they’re scary because they’re intelligent, relentless, and remorseless
  
  Gorn Queen in 3…2…
  
  I’m kidding, but also, please no.
  
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  - milkisklim@lemm.ee ⁨13⁩ ⁨hours⁩ ago
    Stupid sexy Gorn Queen…
    
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Archangel1313@lemmy.ca ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
“The Arena” is originally the first meeting between the Federation and the Gorn, with Kirk and the Gorn captain fighting one-on-one.

But, in SNW, the Gorn have already been encountered, although little is known about them yet, due to the fact that they leave no survivors and seem to make no effort to communicate.

The recon is to the timeline and initial encounter with the species, as well as adding in a lot of new details that were never part of the original concept.

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- ValueSubtracted@startrek.website ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
  
  The recon is to the timeline and initial encounter with the species
  
  Fair enough - I’ll backtrack slightly and say that if there’s a retcon, that’s where it is, rather than in the Gorn’s behaviour.
  
  But there is a bit of wiggle room in “Arena”, I think. Kirk certainly seems unfamiliar with the Gorn, but they never really say it’s the first contact, and Spock doesn’t really say anything one way or the other (a very Spock-like thing to do in any situation).
  
  They definitely have massaged that canon, but I don’t think they’ve really contradicted it.
  
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  - USSBurritoTruck@startrek.website ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
    
    I think. Kirk certainly seems unfamiliar with the Gorn, but they never really say it’s the first contact
    
    There never say it’s first contact, but Kirk acts like he’s never even heard of the Gorn before.
    
    " I have been somehow whisked off the bridge and placed on the surface of an asteroid, facing the Captain of the alien ship. Weaponless, I face the creature the Metrons called a Gorn. Large, reptilian."
    
    However, that is definitely not the retcon Goldsman was talking about. He specifically says, “t was an opportunity to retcon something into a real monster.”
    
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    Archangel1313@lemmy.ca ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago
    To be fair, the old Gorn rationale for attacking the colony was, “You’re in our territory, and we assumed you had hostile intent”…while the SNW rationale is, “We lay eggs in your body, so our young have something to eat when they hatch”.
    
    That’s a significant difference in character motivation.
    
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