@ to Knixon.

I wrote . if there were 30 episodes in one SEASON..that would mean 6 episode for each year ..far too little ...

To me it seems more credible ,due to the vast distance between planets , that the 79 operations were completed in the intended 5 year-mission rather than only in three years. It just seems more reasaonable.

As I mentioned before, since it would take WEEKS just to get to Proxima Centauri - the very closest star - even at warp 6, it wouldn't be a stretch to argue that even what they showed just in season 1, could "really" have taken them 5 years.

For another example, in the TNG episode "First Contact" (not the movie), they're supposed to be 1000 light years from Earth. According to their own rules, and what they say in Voyager etc, that means it took them a year just to get that planet. Just sitting on the bridge, staring at the screen watching all the nothing go by. For a year. If they made other stops/other missions along the way, that means it took perhaps a few years.

I am sure which backstory canon to use is one of the biggest conundrum headaches the writers have to deal with. The novels were never (to my knowledge) used as a guide for either the TV series or films. Do they go with the pure TOS or incorporate the films? I do not know the inter-corporate agreement CBS has, story wise, with Paramount but I would guess they'd want to stick with TOS canon. Which brings up the question of Spock. Who would play him? It used to be movie stars wouldn't be caught dead slumming in TV. No more. Would Zachary Quinto agree to do it for such a low paycheck? One would think he'd applaud and champion the gay storyline. Spock is so iconic that throwing yet another actor in would be disconcerting.

Now to Pike. There is no choice due to the timelines to throw another actor in. Plot. Why did the Enterprise intercept Discovery? That story line could easily fit into the Klingon war plot. They were in retreat in a system far far away and coming back into the fold. To fans this is like one delicious box of chocolates. Pike and Spock! Fasten your captain's chair.

@ to Skypowers.

Quinto plays Spock in the Kelvin timeline created by Nero.

ST: D is set in the Primetime so the production must hire a totally new actor .

Why? Both Spocks would be physically identical.

Exactly. So Quinto Spock would work in this timeline as well and add tremendous equity to the CBS All Access business model, growing the audience substantially. Thus his and everyone else's salary, ratings, profits. Are you listening CBS?

by Knixon:

Why? Both Spocks would be physically identical.

@.Spock was born three odd years before Nero 's arrival , on Vulcan , a planet many light years away from where the Kelvin incident occurred.

No way could Nero's arrival have changed Spock's upbringing ...He would have embraced the teachings of logic and the ridge Vulcan life style.

Yet in JJ Abrams reboot ST:2009 , NuSpock is emotional and is having an affair with Uhura..and all this was possible according to JJ. because of the alternate time line ... Which is crap.

When I see Quinto I associated him obviously with JJAbrams 'portrait of that emotional Spock smooching and arguing with Uhura.

I would find it DISTRACTING and ANNOYING to see him play Spock now in ST:Discovery...he would have to portrait him like Nimoy did in TOS and how he also should have in the reboots .

Seeing Quinto's face would remind me of JJAbrams crap Spock and crap reboots.

In my opinion it would be better to find a new fresh face .

Well there is that. But they would still be identical in physical appearance. So no real reason for Quinto to NOT play him.

Do you know who looks near identical to Leonard Nimoy? His son Adam. He directed some Trek shows but he's not an actor. The Abrams reboots never bothered me even though they took liberties with Spock's character. If his dad, a full Vulcan, could marry a human, why is not conceivable a half-human, influenced by his human mother, could have a girlfriend. Yes, we all love the TOS pon farr episode.

@SkyPowers said:

Do you know who looks near identical to Leonard Nimoy? His son Adam. He directed some Trek shows but he's not an actor. The Abrams reboots never bothered me even though they took liberties with Spock's character. If his dad, a full Vulcan, could marry a human, why is not conceivable a half-human, influenced by his human mother, could have a girlfriend. Yes, we all love the TOS pon farr episode.

He did have someone who loved him and could be considered as kind of a girlfriend (Leila Kalomi), but he wouldn't let himself show any feelings towards her, except when under the influence of the spores ("This Side of Paradise").

In this show, I wouldn't be surprised if, with Michael Burnham revealed (surprise twist) as his adopted sister, there could be a Spock who is still struggling with which path to choose, the Vulcan Teachings of Surak or his emotional human half.
Is there a compromise, a middle way? Will he "sow his seeds" here, before choosing to become the Spock as we know him in TOS?

It would be another big twist if Uhura also appeared or is mentioned as someone Spock knew from Starfleet Academy. They lost touch and they meet again here. In the Primary Timeline there was never any talk of anything being between both, but who knows (retcon), another secret of Spock's past?

I am thinking now that Paramount controls character rights and they would not want to dilute their billion dollar movie franchise. If iconic characters are used I am guessing it would be sparingly if at all and they would never evolve into regulars. Pike can but my hunch now is that Spock won't be seen. Mentioned yes. A lot can be done with Pike. Or the Enterprise may have been just a sneaky cliffhanger to open Season 2 only.

@ to skypowers.

Happy you like neurotic ,unstable ,unpredictable, NuSpock.

I fell in "love" with Nimoy's Spock since I was a kid. I always found interesting Spock's inner conflict and the banters between my pointed friend and Bones ,who felt it was his mission to open up Spock's eyes and make him understand that giving into a smile , a laugh would not make him less Vulcan but a more complete person.

By the way Spock was very different from his father ....despite his Stoic character Sarek didn't renounce marrying Amanda , the woman he loved.

.. Spock on the contrary never acted on his feelings of love for Leila in "This side of Paradise".

Leonard Nimoy coached Quinto extensively on the character while he was preparing for the role and they became close friends. Few know what a talented stage actor Nimoy was. He knew his character and if the script varied too far affray he would fight and usually win. He was certainly aware what Abrams was doing in the reboot and likely approved. He was a God on the set.

Guys,

This discussion is a hoot! Do you realize these are "fictional" characters set in two 'fictional' shows?.

How about we simply assume that the timelines of TOS vs DSC are CLOSE? The presence of the USS Enterprise on the same screen as The USS Discovery would seem to suggest AT LEAST THAT. Is Kirk on board? Is Spock on board? Is Pike on board? THAT gentlemen is the STUFF fiction. The ONLY limit is the writers' imaginations. Of course whatever choice the writers make SOME of you will be unhappy and SOME will definitely complain. That is your right but may I submit that brand of grumbling is NOT the stuff of good fiction.

Is is NOT about how the TOS crew "looks" or how the 50 year gap is spanned. It is more about following the thematic threads that will surely be established to link the two shows one an for all. You guys sound like you are about to examine the archaeological remains of King Tut and link it with the current leader of Egypt, This is NOT a documentary!!!

@Thespear said:

Guys,

This discussion is a hoot! Do you realize these are "fictional" characters set in two 'fictional' shows?.

How about we simply assume that the timelines of TOS vs DSC are CLOSE? The presence of the USS Enterprise on the same screen as The USS Discovery would seem to suggest AT LEAST THAT. Is Kirk on board? Is Spock on board? Is Pike on board? THAT gentlemen is the STUFF fiction. The ONLY limit is the writers' imaginations. Of course whatever choice the writers make SOME of you will be unhappy and SOME will definitely complain. That is your right but may I submit that brand of grumbling is NOT the stuff of good fiction.

Is is NOT about how the TOS crew "looks" or how the 50 year gap is spanned. It is more about following the thematic threads that will surely be established to link the two shows one an for all. You guys sound like you are about to examine the archaeological remains of King Tut and link it with the current leader of Egypt, This is NOT a documentary!!!

But you are overlooking one crucial irrefutable fact: The writing, story and characterization on STD sucks. If it didn't people would be so hung up on the details.

Same goes for The Last Jedi. You can't explain away bad writing and horrible characterization.