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This is a case of Fun With Commas - Sobeys is owned by a different obscene conglomerate, Empire Company.
Metro, Walmart, Giant Tiger, and Empire are the co-conspirators along with the Weston companies.
21
There's precedent...
I'm personally of the belief that a remaster should be the best possible version of whatever was originally produced, so I suppose that means I'm not in favour of correcting mistakes like those. It's not a hill I'd be willing to die on, but I would prefer it to accurately reflect the work that was done at the time.
I would be astonished if anyone's talking about this by the time the next election rolls around.
I really don't think the inclusion of Kirk should be considered a "gimmick". There was no stunt-casting, nor were the episodes in which he appeared particularly gimmicky (well, okay, "Subspace Rhapsody" was a gimmick episode, but in a way that wasn't structured around Kirk specifically).
Like it or hate it, it's clear to me that the producers are including Kirk because they think it's worth exploring the character at this point in his career. I wouldn't call that a gimmick.
Yeah, I think he's absolutely the same person.
Firstly, "The Cage" portrays him at what I think is pretty unquestionably a low point - it wouldn't be fair to assume he's normally that angst-ridden.
BOYCE: Chris, you set standards for yourself no one could meet. You treat everyone on board like a human being except yourself, and now you're tired and you-
PIKE: You bet I'm tired. You bet. I'm tired of being responsible for two hundred and three lives. I'm tired of deciding which mission is too risky and which isn't, and who's going on the landing party and who doesn't, and who lives and who dies. Boy, I've had it, Phil.
The Pike we meet in "Discovery" is a couple of years removed from the mission on Rigel VII, and has been able to bounce back a bit. All the same, his character is practically defined by his faith in Starfleet's mission, and his willingness to make sacrifices in the pursuit of that mission, while also being acutely aware of the toll that takes..
Even if Paramount+ collapses, "Star Trek" as a franchise will be fine. They'll just revert to the more traditional model of producing shows and selling them to someone else to distribute.
I'm not sure the currently in-production shows would survive that sort of shift, but the franchise would boldly go on.
The fact that it was originally written for a theatrical film probably helps.
That the Prime Directive only applies to pre-warp civilizations.
I'm glad the CBC is revisiting the story now that they have the other side.