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selfhoster1312 • today at 7:47 AM • 1 reply • view on HN

Star Trek still does this, as someone mentioned about Strange New Worlds. Discovery has perspectives about authority and insubordination, about collapse of civilization depending on a single resource (dilithium), and what happens when a principled organization (the Federation) abandons its principles and is only worried about protecting the organization itself.

Starfleet Academy has explorations of what humanity is from Klingon/robotic perspective (very much borrowed from Worf and Data). It asks the painful question of what when the "good guys" are actually the "bad guys" and you end up a stray orphan because your parents are imprisoned for trying to feed you? What then, of improving the Institutions and becoming a better citizen?

Lower Decks also has a ton of lighter-toned ethical/moral explorations and young adults learning to become better versions of themselves. I think it's a very welcome tone change, and it's very accessible to people who haven't watched much of Star Trek, despite having tons of references to the universe.

Star Trek was always a very political soap opera: DS9 was about what the US government would call antifa terrorists seizing power on their planet. This hasn't changed, even though the formats evolved. Some i appreciate more than others, but i welcome this exploration.


Replies

ant6n • today at 10:15 AM

DS9 was kinda crazy. It starts with the Bajorans, who represent oppressed and conquered Palestinian/Jews, winning against the oppressive colonizing imperium by using terrorism. It keeps making the point that against an immoral colonizer oppressing your land and people, terrorism is a moral course of action to win an asymmetric war.

Not sure mainstream tv would still follow this logic today.

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