Entertainment
Star Trek Has Updated The Worst Writing Trope In The Stupidest Possible Way
By Chris Snellgrove
| Updated
Decades ago, comic writing legend Gail Simone coined the term “women in refrigerators”, (better known as “fridging,”), which describes writers killing female characters in gruesome ways just to motivate male protagonists. Star Trek started doing its own, more inclusive spin on this trope in Star Trek (2009), and the practice is alive and well in shows like Picard and Starfleet Academy. Instead of killing off a single character, though, this venerable sci-fi franchise keeps destroying entire planets in order to give its characters the most basic motivation.
In the 2009 Star Trek reboot, Romulus is endangered by a supernova, so Ambassador Spock embarks on a crazy plan to save the planet using red matter. He fails, and the subsequent red matter reaction sends both him and a Romulan named Nero over half a century into the past. There, Nero becomes enraged by the death of his planet and his family; blaming the older Spock, he decides to go “eye for an eye,” using red matter to destroy the planet Vulcan.
In Space, No One Can Hear You Cry
This leads to some fairly exciting action scenes as the Enterprise crew tries (and fails) to save Vulcan. Arguably, though, the primary reason for having Nero destroy this iconic Star Trek planet is to have Spock lose his mother. Star Trek (2009) was all about making Spock an angry emo kid, and killing off his mother helped contextualize both his rash decisions about young James T. Kirk (he literally ejected him out of the ship!) and his later desire to kill Nero rather than resolve things diplomatically.
Years later, the spinoff Star Trek: Picard returned to the plot beat of Romulus getting destroyed, revealing that Picard left the Enterprise-E to command an armada of ships whose mission was to save as many Romulans as possible before the planet’s destruction. Unfortunately, that armada is wiped out by a rogue group of synthetic lifeforms, and Starfleet subsequently abandons its rescue efforts. This causes Picard to retire, ending a lifetime of service in utter disgust at Starfleet abandoning the very principles upon which it was founded.
Even Picard Gets Riled Up
For The Next Generation fans, it was fun to see Picard flesh out how the destruction of Romulus affected the rest of the galaxy, but the primary reason the writers returned to this plot point was to explain how and why Picard went from celebrated Starfleet celebrity to disgruntled old fart wasting away on his vineyard. Like Kelvinverse Spock before him, Picard now had a tragic back story that explained why he might be more emotional than usual (which is presumably why he later lets his Romulan sidekick just behead anyone who gets in their way).
Most recently, Starfleet Academy introduced the shocking plot point that the Klingon homeworld of Qo’noS had been destroyed by the Burn. That homeworld and all the worlds of the empire were apparently powered by dilithium reactors. After the Burn (a galactic event that rendered all dilithium crystals inert and blew up any ship with an active warp drive), the Empire that once nearly destroyed Starfleet was reduced to about 50 ships and eight family houses.
It’s Getting Hot In Here
While Starfleet Academy may do something cool with this plot development (hey, stranger things have happened), it really seems like the writers destroyed Qo’noS just to give extra motivation to Jay-Den, the show’s Klingon cadet. As a pacifist, wannabe doctor Klingon with a combo of Daddy and abandonment issues, this guy already has a lot going on. However, the show’s writers decided to also make him one of only a relative handful of Klingons trying to keep their millennia-old culture alive despite only a fraction of his people surviving the Burn.
Watching that Starfleet Academy episode, it hit me with all the force of a bat’leth blow: for Star Trek, blowing up entire planets is the new fridging. Back in the ‘90s, writers were content to motivate characters like Green Lantern by simply killing their girlfriends in the most edgelord way possible (and stuffing their bodies in the fridge, no less). Now, these modern-day sci-fi writers feel the need to destroy entire planets and snuff out billions of lives just to explain complex plot points like “why is Spock sad?” and “why is Picard sad?” and ‘why is Jay-Den sad?”
Obviously, there’s nothing wrong with blowing up an entire planet if it really suits the story; Star Wars, for example, had the Empire blow up Alderaan to demonstrate how evil they really were. But since 2009, Star Trek has gone to utterly excessive lengths to motivate its chief characters in the stupidest possible ways. Like, be honest for a minute: would you have found Spock any less compelling if his mommy didn’t die in an extinction event, or Picard any less engaging if his reputation didn’t die along with Romulus?
This Repetitive Plot Is Without Honor
The blunt truth is that this is just lazy writing by Star Trek creative teams who don’t know how to motivate characters without giving them tragic backstories with body counts in the billions. It was already tired when they did it in the first Star Trek reboot film, and it was completely played out when they used it to explain why Picard was now so cranky and boring. Starfleet Academy has returned to this well for a third time, and to nobody’s real shock, the well is completely dry.
Gail Simone was right all those years ago when she called out fridging, and her general thesis was solid: namely, that writers need to find better ways to motivate characters than by killing the ones they care about. Instead, Paramount has continually upped the fridging ante by destroying entire planets because their creators can’t figure out any other way to give characters depth or emotional growth. Now, it’s well past time for the Star Trek writers to boldly go where they arguably haven’t gone in decades: to original stories featuring dynamic, properly-written characters with grounded motivations.
Should that prove impossible, what should the Star Trek writers actually do? They should blow up our own planet, which would be far, far more merciful than making us sit through this predictably awful franchise plot point for the umpteenth time. Plus, the destruction of the entire Earth might finally give us the motivation to do what we should have done long ago: unsubscribe from Paramount+ before we are finally claimed by the void.
Entertainment
NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for April 19, 2026
The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult if you have a sweet tooth.
Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that’s captured the public’s attention. The game is all about finding the “common threads between words.” And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we’ve served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.
If you just want to be told today’s puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today’s Connections solution. But if you’d rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.
What is Connections?
The NYT‘s latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications’ Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.
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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there’s only one correct answer.
If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.
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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.
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Here’s a hint for today’s Connections categories
Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:
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Yellow: Lippy
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Green: Gowns
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Blue: Played in Vegas
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Purple: Sweet treats
Here are today’s Connections categories
Need a little extra help? Today’s connections fall into the following categories:
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Yellow: Cheeky
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Green: Dress measurements
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Blue: Cards in Texas Hold ‘Em
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Purple: Last words of candy brands in the singular
Looking for Wordle today? Here’s the answer to today’s Wordle.
Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today’s puzzle before we reveal the solutions.
Drumroll, please!
The solution to today’s Connections #1043 is…
What is the answer to Connections today
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Cheeky: ARCH, FRESH, SASSY, WISE
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Dress measurements: BUST, HIPS, LENGTH, WAIST
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Cards in Texas Hold ‘Em: FLOP, HOLE, RIVER, TURN
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Last words of candy brands in the singular: CAP, DUD, KID, MINT
Don’t feel down if you didn’t manage to guess it this time. There will be new Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we’ll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.
Are you also playing NYT Strands? Get all the Strands hints you need for today’s puzzle.
If you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you’re after? Here’s the solution to yesterday’s Connections.
Entertainment
NYT Strands hints, answers for April 19, 2026
Today’s NYT Strands hints are easy if you’re constantly changing.
Strands, the New York Times‘ elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There’s always a theme linking every solution, along with the “spangram,” a special, word or phrase that sums up that day’s theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.
By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.
If you’re feeling stuck or just don’t have 10 or more minutes to figure out today’s puzzle, we’ve got all the NYT Strands hints for today’s puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.
NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Small change
The words are related to changes.
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Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained
These words describe fine-tuning.
NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?
Today’s NYT Strands spangram is vertical.
NYT Strands spangram answer today
Today’s spangram is There I Fixed It.
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NYT Strands word list for April 19
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There I Fixed It
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Adjust
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Modify
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Alter
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Improve
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Tweak
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Refine
Looking for other daily online games? Mashable’s Games page has more hints, and if you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now!
Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you’re after? Here’s the solution to yesterday’s Strands.
Entertainment
Wordle today: Answer, hints for April 19, 2026
Today’s Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you can never sit down.
If you just want to be told today’s word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today’s Wordle solution revealed. But if you’d rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.
Where did Wordle come from?
Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once.
Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.
What’s the best Wordle starting word?
The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.
What happened to the Wordle archive?
The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website’s creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.
Is Wordle getting harder?
It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn’t any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle‘s Hard Mode if you’re after more of a challenge, though.
Here’s a subtle hint for today’s Wordle answer:
To rise.
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Does today’s Wordle answer have a double letter?
There are no recurring letters.
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Today’s Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with…
Today’s Wordle starts with the letter T.
The Wordle answer today is…
Get your last guesses in now, because it’s your final chance to solve today’s Wordle before we reveal the solution.
Drumroll please!
The solution to today’s Wordle is…
STAND
Don’t feel down if you didn’t manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we’ll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints. Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today’s Strands.
Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.
If you’re looking for more puzzles, Mashable’s got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.
Not the day you’re after? Here’s the solution to yesterday’s Wordle.
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