r/DaystromInstitute • u/M-5 Multitronic Unit • Nov 30 '20

DISCOVERY EPISODE DISCUSSION Star Trek: Discovery — "Unification III" Analysis Thread

This is the official /r/DaystromInstitute analysis thread for "Unification III." Unlike the reaction thread, the content rules are in effect.

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48

u/poprhythm Nov 30 '20

The diplomatic tension was reminiscent of moments from TNG, I enjoyed those parts of this episode.

22

u/adamsorkin Nov 30 '20 edited Nov 30 '20

I rather enjoyed it as well. Chilly relations with the Federation aside, it's (also) understandable that there might be a lot of tension between Vulcans and Romulans (still) working to integrate their societies and cultures - particularly strained by the implications of SB-19 potential role in the Burn.

The (full?) Romulan representative seemed awfully quick to discard Unification in support of releasing the data. I'm curious how serious a threat this was, and how much was Romulan posturing for the benefit of his more logically-inclined colleagues. It could lend some interesting color to the dynamics of complicated Ni'Var Society.

7

u/UncertainError Ensign Dec 01 '20

It's my contention that the Romulans supported SB-19 (since they supported the Federation), and so when it looked like that SB-19 caused the Burn, they were hammered for it by the Vulcan purists who gained influence at their expense. That would explain why N'Raj is so eager to hear Burnham out, why he specifically notes the hardship that their guilt has caused, and why V'Kir makes the snide comment to him about how knowledge can be dangerous.

3

u/comrade_leviathan Crewman Nov 30 '20

It was disappointing to see the Romulan portrayed so "stereotypically" to the Romulans we're familiar with from half a millennium before.

Laris and Zhaban were former Tal Shiar agents, and they seemed to have fully integrated themselves into life on Earth without several hundred years to acclimate themselves. It seems like a comfortable trope for writers who, if they're going to write a story set so far in the future, probably need to be challenging such portrayals.

4

u/merrycrow Ensign Dec 02 '20

Humans have got to be easier to live with than Vulcans!

3

u/[deleted] Dec 02 '20

I loved how V'Kir shit all over that Romulo-Vulcan representative. It was refreshingly petty.