For the first time since 1999, two Star Trek series have released episodes in the same week. And for the first time since 1999, I’ve gone, “No, stop, this is too much Star Trek for my small brain!”
Accordingly, this is going to be a quick round up of feelings and impressions rather than a proper review, and I’m sorry for that, but my head was still full of Discovery feelings when I watched Prodigy, and the smaller show suffered.
- First of all, I was COMPLETELY wrong about the timeline of events — I thought we had a few more episodes to go before Gwyn realised where her father’s loyalties lay.
- It’s very possible that I underestimated how traumatic it would be for the target audience to have the kids recaptured, and then the show go on hiatus, so I’m not sorry to be wrong.
- Zero claims to have been obsessed with the Protostar’s mysterious third engine. This is the first time I’ve felt like the show suffered for its short episodes; that was definitely a case of being told rather than having it shown.
- Janeway asking herself what the real Janeway would do is the first sign that the writers agree with me that she’s an entity in her own right, and I am delighted.
- I spent a lot of this episode going, GWYN, YOU HAVE A BROKEN LEG, WHAT ARE YOU DOING? I choose to believe her species has a much higher pain tolerance than ours. But I also worry.
- Gwyn and Dal talking about the stars on the Klingon shipwreck felt like the beginning of the new relationship they need to build, as equals, not slave and master’s daughter.
- Rok-Tahk needs a puppy, or a kitten, or some sort of tactile and cuddly pet. Murf … is a different type of tactile pet.
- Hands down my favourite moment was Zero’s reaction (“I do not know how to feel like this, but I’m happy to be helping!”) to being used as a torch. Zero is a close runner up to Rok-Tahk as my second favourite character.
In conclusion
A solid adventure that deserves more attention than I could give it. Four and a half murder planets out of five!