star trek discovery amanda

Mia Kirshner

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Mia Kirshner ( born 25 January 1975 ; age 49) is a Canadian actress who played Amanda Grayson in the first and second seasons of Star Trek: Discovery and an episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds .

She is perhaps best known for her regular role on The L Word and as the mercenary/assassin Mandy on 24 (starring Leslie Hope , Penny Johnson , Rudolf Martin , Jude Ciccolella , Alan Dale , Daniel Dae Kim , Glenn Morshower , Roger Cross , Jonathan Del Arco , Gregory Itzin , Tzi Ma , and Patrick Kilpatrick ). She also reprised the latter role in 24: The Game , which also featured Andreas Katsulas .

Her television debut was in 1989 in an episode of War of the Worlds , followed by guest appearances in Danger Bay (with Kaj-Erik Eriksen ) and My Secret Identity (starring Derek McGrath ). She then had her first major role as Sophie Metternich in Dracula: The Series in 1990 and 1991. The early '90s saw her in episodes of TV series like E.N.G. , Road to Avonlea , Are You Afraid of the Dark? , and Sweating Bullets .

Starting in 1993, she appeared in a number of movies and TV movies like Cadillac Girls , Love and Human Remains (1993), Exotica (1994, co-starring Bruce Greenwood , and featuring Victor Garber ), Murder in the First (1995, starring Christian Slater , with Stefan Gierasch ), Johnny's Girl , The Grass Harp (with Roddy McDowall ), The Crow: City of Angels (with Iggy Pop ), and in 2001 had a main role in Not Another Teen Movie (with Ed Lauter , Jeanette Miller , and Michael Ensign ). In 2003, she starred in Party Monster along with Wilson Cruz .

The costume she wore in " Brother " was sold off on the Prop Store Star Trek: Discovery online auction in September 2021 . [1]

Star Trek appearances [ ]

• " Will You Take My Hand? "
• " Brother "
• " Point of Light "
• " Light and Shadows "
• " Through the Valley of Shadows "
• " Such Sweet Sorrow "
• " Such Sweet Sorrow, Part 2 "
• SNW : " Charades "

External links [ ]

• Mia Kirshner at Wikipedia
• Mia Kirshner at the Internet Movie Database
• Mia Kirshner at StarTrek.com
• 2 ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Den of Geek

Star Trek: Discovery — Who is Amanda Grayson?

Who is Amanda Grayson? Everything you definitely don’t know about Spock and Michael Burnham’s mom in Star Trek.

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Warning: This Star Trek: Discovery articles contains spoilers for Season 2, Episode 7: “Light and Shadows.”

In Star Trek: Discovery , we’ve gotten to know the character of Amanda Grayson a whole lot better than we ever did in either  The Original Series or any of the films. Famously introduced in 1967 episode “Journey to Babel,” Amanda (as played by Jane Wyatt) was seemingly just as steady and smart as her husband Sarek and her son Spock.

In Discovery , we’re learning exactly why Amanda is so badass, and also, why she’s a great mom. Mia Kirshner’s version of Amanda is giving new dimension to the character, but to be, fair, the depth of Amanda has been there since the beginning, and, in some cases, lurking in tantalizing apocrypha of Star Trek  lore.

The origin of the character.

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For starters, its relevant to remember that Amanda was created by a woman. The writer of “Journey to Babel,” was D.C. (Dorothy) Fontana, a script editor on the original Star Trek , who is probably responsible for much more of the foundation of Trek canon than most fans might know.

In addition to “Journey to Babel,” Fontana wrote (or co-wrote) the following Original Series episodes: “Charlie X,” “Tomorrow is Yesterday,” “This Side of Paradise,” “Friday’s Child,” “By Any Other Name,” “The Ultimate Computer,” and “The Enterprise Incident” Fontana also used the pseudonym of “Michael Richards” for the scripts “That Which Survives”  and “The Way to Eden.” Further, it was Fontana who did one of the uncredited re-writes on Harlan Ellison’s “The City on the Edge of Forever,” which made it into the episode we know today.

read more: Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 7 Easter Eggs & References

Past that, Fontana was the de facto showrunner of The Animated Series , wrote tons of Star Trek novels, as well as the Deep Space Nine episode “Dax.” Why bring this all up? Well, because, in many ways, Fontana was the the mother of Star Trek , in the same way Amanda is the mother of Spock and Michael. When I talked to Fontana in 2016, she told me that her goal as a writer on Trek was: “To do stories that had strength, emotional content, and stories that would live.” This sentiment certainly applies to everything we know about the character of Amanda Grayson.

Fontana’s contributions to the Amanda Grayson character are most evident in her very first appearances in Trek canon—in “Journey to Babel,” but also in The Animated Series episode “Yesteryear.” In those episodes, we can see that Amanda actively pushes back against Sarek’s stoicism relative to letting Spock act a little more human.

In those two episodes, Amanda does this with a kind of wink and a smile, but Discovery is showing us some of the out-in-the-open conflict behind all of that. In “Light and Shadows,” Amanda clashes with Sarek, and, to an extent, with Michael, out of protectiveness for Spock (Ethan Peck). Some of his is suggestive of Amanda’s guilt about giving Spock mixed message about his heritage, which is also subtly referenced in the 2009 reboot movie.

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In that film, Amanda was played by Winona Ryder, who tells Spock (Zachary Quinto) that she will be proud of him no matter which path he chooses. This is relevant because, in that movie, we see Spock choose his mother over his father when the Vulcan Science Academy openly disses Amanda, referring to her existence as Spock’s “disadvantage.” This scene, as well as literally every other Trek episode with Sarek, subtly suggests that Amanda is not only the victim of interspecies racism, but sexism, too.

Why the hell would Amanda choose to marry a Vulcan? 

The non-canon novel, The Vulcan Academy Murders , written by Jean Lorrah in 1984 might provide an answer to this question—one that is not raised as frequently as the question of why Sarek would marry a human.

In the book, the Enterprise goes back to Vulcan to find that Amanda is being treated for some crazy form of space sickness. Throughout the course of the book, we learn the origin story of how Sarek and Amanda met, which is mostly connected to Amanda being a translator for the Federation.

read more: Star Trek: Discovery Renewed For Season 3

In some ways, Amanda is exactly like Michael Burnham: deeply interested and sympathetic to other non-human species. While Michael is a xenoanthropologist, Amanda is a translator, infinitely curious as to what other cultures have to offer. This novel also offers another interesting tidbit, which, could effectively explain why Amanda can look so young in Discovery  and considerably older in “Journey to Babel,” which is only about a decade in Discovery ’s future.

In Lorrah’s book, the medical treatment that Amanda undergoes for her space sickness has an interesting side effect: it make her look 20 years younger. This prescient detail from Lorrah is seemingly in the book to help explain how a human like Amanda could keep up with a Vulcan lifespan. But, the cool thing now is that it also neatly explains how Amanda can look like Mia Kirshner, Winona Ryder, and Jane Wyatt and have it all be perfectly canonical.

She might be related to Sherlock Holmes & Irene Adler.

Here’s one other thing no one talks about when they talk about the character of Amanda Grayson: she could be related to the Sir Arthur Conan Doyle characters of Sherlock Holmes and Irene Adler. And, when I say “related,” I mean, literally.

In writing about the connections between Sherlock Holmes and science fiction, Nicholas Meyer (the director of Star Trek II and Star Trek  VI ) told me that you could make a literal connection between Amanda’s family history and that of Sherlock Holmes.

In The Undiscovered Country , Spock quotes Holmes, but prefaces the quote as coming from “an ancestor of mine.” So, Amanda is either related to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle  or Sherlock Holmes. But, as Meyer told me, it’s more fun to think of Amanda being a descendant of Sherlock Holmes, and that’s because when I pressed him about this connection for my essay “Baker Streets on Infinite Earths,” Meyer said that, if the Spock/Holmes connection is literal, that means the other maternal human ancestor is “Of course, Irene Adler.”

For Holmes fans, Irene Adler is the pseudo-love interest of Sherlock Holmes from the short story “A Scandal in Bohemia.” In the story, Adler is the only person who stands up to Sherlock Holmes, much like Amanda Grayson seems to be the only person who seems to stand up to Sarek.

read more: Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 and the Reintroduction of Captain Pike

In this season of Star Trek: Discovery , we also see Amanda actively solving the mystery of where Spock his hiding, and doing whatever it takes — including stealing important documents — to make it happen. This means that Nick Meyer’s assertion that Spock’s mom has the blood of Sherlock Holmes and Irene Adler running through her veins is suddenly all the more viable.

As a Star Trek character, Amanda combines the best of what fans love about this fictional universe. She’s rational, tenacious, but also full of love. In fact, D.C. Fontana once said that she choose the name of “Amanda,” because one of the meanings of the word is “worthy of being loved.” For Michael and Spock — and for Trek fans everywhere right now — Amanda Grayson is more worthy of being loved than ever before.

Ryan Britt  is the author of the book  Luke Skywalker Can’t Read and Other Geeky Truths  (Plume/Penguin Random House). You can find more of his work  here .

Ryan Britt is a longtime contributor to Den of Geek! He is also the author of three non-fiction books: the Star Trek pop history book PHASERS…

• Awards , Movies , Reviews , Stars , Streaming
• December 6, 2023

Mia Kirshner: A Journey Through Acting

Mia kirshner: the dawn of her cinematic quest.

Birth in Toronto: The Canadian Roots of Mia Kirshner

The tale of Mia Kirshner, much like the most captivating film stories, begins in the mosaic city of Toronto. Here, nestled in the vibrant atmosphere of Canadian culture, Kirshner’s path was paved with the promise of artistic grandeur. Born into a family steeped in creative juices—her father a journalist and her mother a teacher—it was as if the stage was set from the start for her illustrious journey in film and television.

Early Inspirations: The Beginnings of Kirshner’s Love for Acting

Kirshner’s love for acting didn’t suddenly spring forth; it seeded and germinated over years of enigmatic performances she witnessed on screen as a wide-eyed youth. The varied hues of emotion that portrayed life’s theater dazzled her developing sensibility, etching deep within her an insatiable thirst for acting that mirrored the poignancy she so admired.

Training Grounds: Education and Formative Experiences in the Craft

From the hallowed halls of McGill University, Kirshner didn’t just hone her academic skills; she shaped her thespian aspirations, taking to the craft with a fervor that can only be described as religious. The learnings from these grounds weren’t merely theoretical; they were the building blocks of a career that would soon flourish beyond the confines of classroom walls.

Tracking Mia Kirshner’s Rise Through Evolving Roles

The First Glimpses of Talent: Notable Early Performances

Ah, the early days. Even in her nascent roles, one didn’t need the insight of an oracle to discern the flicker of promise in Kirshner’s performances. From the intense drama of teenage distress to the subtle complexities of nuanced characters, each portrayal brought with it a crescendo of anticipation for what the industry began to recognize as a talent to watch.

Breaking Through: Mia Kirshner’s Pivotal Roles

Arguably, it was her turn as the enigmatic Jenny Schecter in “The L Word” that thrust her squarely into the limelight. But wait, let’s not brush past her role in “Exotica”—a dance of delicate sensuality that had audiences and critics perched on the edge of their seats. It was here that one could truly say, without a shred of hyperbole, ‘A star was born.’

Diverse Characters: Exploring the Range of Kirshner’s Portfolio

Rummaging through Kirshner’s dossier of characters is akin to a stroll through an art gallery; each role a masterpiece of its own. From a conniving vampire to a literary luminary, her ability to slip into myriad personas is nothing short of astonishing. Kirshner wasn’t just playing parts; she was breathing life into a spectrum of human experiences.

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Dissecting the Signature Style that Defies Mia Kirshner

The Complexity of Emotions: Analysis of Kirshner’s Acting Techniques

What’s in Kirshner’s toolbox? A myriad of finely-tuned skills chiseled through years of dedication. But let’s dive deeper. Her style, much like the riveting twists in a Tarantino flick, defies expectations. With a precise balance of emotional depth and subtlety, Kirshner’s performances invite audiences into the souls of the characters she portrays, making the screen a window to layered human experiences.

From Small Screens to Silver Screens: The Versatility of Kirshner’s Performances

Ah, the screen size may change, but Kirshner’s magnetic presence remains unwaveringly consistent. Whether it’s the intimate setting of a TV drama like Zion Ginny And Georgia or the sprawling canvas of a feature film, her versatility is a feat of cinematic chameleonic charm.

Intensity On-Screen: Kirshner’s Commitment to Authentic Character Portrayals

Intensity is a word often tossed around carelessly, but when it comes to Kirshner’s performances, it’s the gospel truth. There’s a raw, almost visceral dedication in the way she commits to a role. From portraying the trials of Spock’s human mother, Amanda Grayson, in the pulsating universe of “Star Trek: Discovery” and “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds,” Kirshner conveys strength and complexity that are nothing short of interstellar.

Mia Kirshner’s Contributions Beyond the Silver Screen

Advocacy Through Artistry: Kirshner’s Off-Camera Activism

When the cameras stop rolling, Kirshner isn’t one to simply fade into the scenery. Far from it. Her activism speaks volumes of her commitment to causes that ripple through society. The off-screen Kirshner is a force all her own, channeling her artistry into advocacy with the fervor of a storm.

Literature and Writing: The Other Creative Facets of Mia Kirshner

But wait, don’t pigeonhole her just yet. Kirshner’s creative essence spills over into literature and writing, where her thoughts and insights take flight in a different medium altogether, demonstrating the breadth of her artistic soul.

Mentorship and Influence: Kirshner’s Role in Shaping New Talent

A mentor, a guiding light, Kirshner’s impact as an industry sage can’t be overstated. Through her own journey, she has ignited dreams and fanned the flames of passion in the hearts of burgeoning talents, shaping the next wave of acting artisans.

The Evolution of Mia Kirshner’s Career in a Changing Industry

Adapting to the Digital Era: Kirshner’s Presence in Streaming and New Media

As the industry ebbs and flows with the tides of technology, Kirshner rides the wave with the grace of a seasoned pro. Her seamless transition into streaming and new media has made one thing abundantly clear: this is an actress who knows how to adapt and thrive in an ever-changing landscape.

Collaboration Highlights: Directors, Actors, and Projects that Shaped Kirshner’s Journey

Just as a film is born out of collaboration, so too is an actor’s journey shaped by those they work with. Kirshner’s career is a mosaic of partnerships, from acclaimed directors à la Héctor Elizondo to scene-stealing co-stars—who could forget her performances alongside the likes of Leelee Sobieski ?

The Challenges and Triumphs: Navigating Hollywood as a Veteran Actress

The lights of Hollywood can be blinding, but they haven’t cast shadows on Kirshner’s path. Navigating the industry’s labyrinthine corridors, she has encountered challenges, yes, but the triumphs echoing her resolve have been even more resounding.

Love and Human Remains [Blu ray]

“Love and Human Remains [Blu-ray]” is a gripping cinematic exploration of the complexity of human relationships and the dark intricacies of desire. Set against the backdrop of a gritty urban landscape, this riveting film weaves together the lives of several interconnected characters as they navigate through their emotional entanglements and search for connection. Directed by Denys Arcand, this thought-provoking drama delves into themes of love, sexuality, and the often-blurry line between friendship and romantic love, all captured in stunning high-definition on Blu-ray.

With its remastered visuals and immersive audio quality, the “Love and Human Remains [Blu-ray]” edition offers a more visceral and intimate experience of the film’s intense performances and atmospheric settings. The ensemble cast delivers compelling performances that bring their multifaceted characters to life, laying bare their vulnerabilities and inner turmoil. Special features included in this release provide a deeper understanding of the film’s production, including director commentary, interviews with the cast, and behind-the-scenes footage that fans and cinema enthusiasts will find both enlightening and engaging.

Enhancing the experience for collectors and cinephiles, this Blu-ray edition presents the film in its original aspect ratio, faithfully preserving the director’s vision. Aesthetically, the packaging reflects the mood of the film with its sleek and modern design, making it a standout addition to any film library. Whether revisiting the film or experiencing it for the first time, audiences will appreciate the enhanced clarity and detail that only Blu-ray can provide, ensuring “Love and Human Remains” can be appreciated in the highest quality for years to come.

Navigating the Narrative: Mia Kirshner’s Personal and Professional Intertwining

Personal Struggles and Triumphs: How Life Experiences Reflect in Kirshner’s Performances

Behind Kirshner’s eyes, there’s a world—a reservoir of personal history that she taps into for each role. Her personal struggles and victories aren’t merely whispered anecdotes; they’re the undercurrents that give her performances a palpable authenticity.

Balancing Privacy and Publicity: Kirshner’s Approach to Fame and Personal Space

In the tango of fame and solitude, Kirshner dances with a deft touch. While her talent places her in the limelight, she grasps the essence of privacy with a reverence, ensuring her public persona never overshadows her intrinsic self.

Continuous Learning: Kirshner’s Lifelong Dedication to the Craft of Acting

The arts are a journey, not a destination. Kirshner’s unwavering commitment to learning and honing her craft is a testament to her understanding that to act is to evolve perpetually, to embrace wisdom from every set, every character, every moment before ‘Cut!’ is called.

Envisioning Mia Kirshner’s Lasting Impact on Cinema and Culture

Kirshner’s Legacy: What the Actress Has Cemented in Film and Television History

Reflecting on Kirshner’s footprint in the cinematic sands, one finds a legacy as indelible as the most poignant screen moments. Her contributions to film and television resonate not merely as a collection of roles but as a canvas of cultural impact that continues to inspire and provoke thought.

Inspiring Future Generations: Kirshner’s Role as a Beacon for Upcoming Artists

To the professionals of tomorrow, Kirshner stands as a beacon of artistic integrity, courage, and perseverance—a paragon for those who follow, that they might cast their own stories with as much heart and tenacity as she has.

The Road Ahead: Anticipating the Future Endeavors of Mia Kirshner

And so, we gaze toward the horizon, eagerly anticipating the unfolding chapters of Kirshner’s voyage. If history is any indicator, we can expect the fire that has driven her career thus far to blaze ever brighter in the landscapes to come.

Sculpting the Closing Act: Reflecting on Mia Kirshner’s Ongoing Story

The Unfolding Chapters: How Kirshner Continues to Influence the Acting World

Mia Kirshner’s tale is far from its final act. With each role, each moment on screen, she writes another line in the script of her career, a script that continues to influence the acting world and echo in the halls of cinematic legend.

Beyond the Camera’s Gaze: The Enduring Essence of Mia Kirshner’s Artistry

And when the last credit rolls, what we’ll remember of Kirshner isn’t just the characters she’s played but the timeless essence of an artist whose work has breached the confines of the camera’s gaze and touched the core of our shared human experience.

One thing is certain—the journey of Mia Kirshner is a narrative rich with the kinds of twists, turns, and heart-stopping moments that make for classic cinema. It’s a story we can’t wait to continue watching unfold, both on screen and off.

Mia Kirshner: Fun Facts and Trivia

Mia Kirshner’s journey through acting is as fascinating as her performances on screen. Let’s dive into some trivia and tidbits about this wonderful actress that’ll make you say, “I didn’t know that!”

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Early Beginnings: A Star is Born

Did you know Mia Kirshner’s career had a kickstart that many aspiring actors only dream of? Right out of the gate, she dazzled audiences with her talent! It’s like she was bitten by the acting bug and we all caught the fever.

Method to the Madness

Mia isn’t one to shy away from tough roles. In fact, she’s known for her deep, intense characters. But nothing compares to the dedication she had when preparing for a role that’s as chilling as the Dahmer Polaroids ,( this starlet goes all in. Her method acting is something to be admired, and honestly, it spooks us just thinking about how she transforms for such dark roles!

More Than Just a Pretty Face

Talk about a jack-of-all-trades! Mia isn’t just a talented actress; she’s got a knack for writing and activism too. She’s more layered than a character in a whodunit novel, and her off-screen endeavors are anything but a snooze fest. Somehow, she balances it all with the grace of a tightrope walker — pretty darn impressive if you ask me.

The Advocate in Disguise

Guess who’s a relentless advocate for social change? You’ve got it — Mia Kirshner. Like a quarterback making a last-minute play, Mia tackles issues close to her heart with fierce dedication, and she doesn’t drop the ball. Whether it’s about ray rice ( or any other cause demanding attention, she’s there, making the calls that count. This celeb uses her voice for good, proving she’s more than just her on-screen personas.

A Quirky Tale of the Unexpected

Behind those intense screen moments is a gal with a quirky sense of humor. Mia has got a treasure trove of behind-the-scenes stories that’ll have you in stitches. It’s like she’s got a stand-up routine ready to go whenever things get too serious on set!

The Secret Singer?

Hold the phone — did you know Mia has a singing voice that could serenade the coldest of hearts? It’s true! She’s like a secret songbird waiting for the right moment to let it all out. Now, if only she’d drop an album, we’d be first in line to buy it – no questions asked.

There you have it — a cheeky sneak peek into the life of the ever-intriguing Mia Kirshner. From her early days in front of the camera to her deep dives into harrowing roles and her off-screen crusades for justice, Mia’s journey is one heck of a ride. And with her talent and heart, it’s easy to see how she’s made a mark in the world of entertainment and beyond. Keep on, keepin’ on, Mia!

Cowboys and Angels [DVD]

Cowboys and Angels [DVD] is a captivating drama that explores the intertwining lives of a group of distinct characters in the modern-day Wild West. This film tells the poignant tale of a down-on-his-luck cowboy and a guardian angel-in-training who cross paths under the most unexpected circumstances. Through their unlikely friendship, they help each other confront past regrets and navigate through the complexities of right and wrong. Loaded with soul-stirring moments and breathtaking landscapes, the DVD offers a story that stays with you long after the credits roll.

This DVD edition of Cowboys and Angels boasts not only the full-length feature in crystal clear quality but also a treasure trove of special features. Commentary from the director provides insight into the creative process behind the scenes, while interviews with the cast unearth the nuances of their powerful performances. Deleted scenes and a behind-the-scenes featurette allow viewers a glimpse into the making of this heartwarming film. Fans and newcomers alike will appreciate the meticulous care that has gone into this DVD, making it a worthy addition to any home collection.

Enhanced with a 5.1 Dolby Digital audio track, the Cowboys and Angels DVD ensures an immersive auditory experience that complements the stellar visuals. Subtitles are available in multiple languages, ensuring it is accessible to a diverse audience. Each scene comes to life with vivid clarity, thanks to the DVD’s top-notch production value. Whether you’re a lover of compelling dramas, understated character studies, or just in search of a beautiful cinematic journey, Cowboys and Angels on DVD delivers an enthralling and emotionally rich tale that’s perfect for movie nights.

What movies has Mia Kirshner been in?

Oh boy, Mia Kirshner has graced the silver screen in quite a few flicks! From her breakout role in “Exotica” to the blood-sucking “The Vampire Diaries,” she’s made a name for herself. Don’t forget her turns in “The Black Dahlia” and “Not Another Teen Movie.” She’s got range and isn’t afraid to show it!

Who played Spock’s mother in the new Star Trek?

In the rebooted “Star Trek” universe, we saw Winona Ryder take on the Vulcan-eared mantle of Spock’s mother, Amanda Grayson. Talk about a casting choice that was out of this world!

Who is Amanda Spock’s mother in discovery?

Now, when we warp over to “Star Trek: Discovery,” Amanda Spock’s mother gets a fresh face, and it’s Mia Kirshner giving us the maternal vibes for our beloved Spock. The more you know!

Who plays Amanda Grayson in Strange New World?

Onward to “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds,” and who’s playing Amanda Grayson, you ask? Enter the stage, Mia Kirshner once again! She’s definitely got Vulcan in her veins at this point.

What movie did Mia play in?

Hold on, if you’re scratching your head wondering about Mia’s movie roles, let’s clear it up. One standout is her role in “The L Word” — oops, that’s a TV series! For big-screen action, think “Exotica” or “Not Another Teen Movie.”

Who is Spock’s mother in Star Trek 2009?

Now, flashback to 2009, the “Star Trek” franchise got a fresh coat of paint and Spock’s mother? She was brought to life by none other than Winona Ryder. Star-studded, huh?

Did Leonard Nimoy have a son?

Did Leonard Nimoy have a son? You betcha! Adam Nimoy followed in his father’s footsteps but behind the camera as a director. Like father, like son…sort of.

What was Spock’s girlfriend name?

Spock’s girlfriend name? Ah, Nyota Uhura! Their star-crossed love affair added some serious sizzle to the deck of the Enterprise.

Who replaced Leonard Nimoy in Star Trek?

With a heavy heart, we had to say goodbye to Leonard Nimoy, but Zachary Quinto stepped into those iconic pointy ears as Spock in the “Star Trek” reboot, boldly going where Nimoy once went.

Did Winona Ryder play Spock’s mom?

And yes, Winona Ryder absolutely nailed it as Spock’s mom in the “Star Trek” 2009 film. From “Heathers” to “Star Trek,” Ryder’s always got us transfixed!

How many wives did Spock’s father have?

Sarek, Spock’s father, was as complex as they come. He had two wives during his lifetime—first, it was Amanda Grayson, and later, he married Perrin.

Who is Spock’s half brother?

Sybok, step right up! This guy is Spock’s half-brother, and let’s just say family gatherings on Vulcan are probably a tad intense.

Did Spock ever marry?

Spock ever marry? Well, not quite. He did have a bit of a thing with T’Pring, but saying “I do” was never in the stars.

Who plays Captain Pike’s girlfriend?

Captain Pike’s girlfriend in the realm of “Star Trek” is a bit of a mystery, but let’s not get our phasers in a bunch—there’s always more to explore in future episodes.

Did Spock and Nurse Chapel have a relationship?

And as for Spock and Nurse Chapel, sure, there were some flirty glances and an undeniable connection, but to say they had a full-blown relationship? That would be a stretch worth of Mr. Fantastic!

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Star Trek: Discovery Casts Spock's Mom, Amanda Grayson

Star Trek: Discovery has cast The L Word actress Mia Kirshner as Amanda Grayson, the biological mother of Spock and adoptive mother of Michael Burnham.

Star Trek: Discovery has cast the role of Spock's biological mother and Michael Burnham's adoptive mother, Amanda Grayson.

RELATED: No, The Shorthand for Star Trek: Discovery Is Not ‘STD.’

While at the blue carpet premiere of Star Trek: Discovery last month, the folks at TrekMovie had the chance to talk to the show's executive producers Aaron Harberts, Gretchen J. Berg, and Heather Kadin regarding how big a role Sarek’s family will play going forward in the series. Although the three couldn't reveal much -- including whether Spock will make an appearance at some point -- Harberts did reveal to the outlet that The L Word actress Mia Kirshner has been cast as Amanda Grayson. The role, of course, was originated by Jane Wyatt in the season two episode of Stark Trek titled "Journey to Babel." The role was later played by actress Winona Ryder in director J.J. Abrams' 2009 reboot.

Along with her work on The L Word , Kirshner has also appeared in Syfy's Defiance as well as the CW's The Vampire Diaries . It's currently unknown in which episode of Discovery Kirshner will make her debut as Amanda.

RELATED: Star Trek: Discovery Fueled Massive Increase in CBS Mobile App Downloads.

Set 10 years before the adventures of Kirk and Spock in Star Trek: The Original Series , Discovery stars Sonequa Martin-Green, Jason Isaacs, Michelle Yeoh, Doug Jones and Anthony Rapp, with Alex Kurtzman, Bryan Fuller, Heather Kadin, Gretchen J. Berg, Aaron Harberts, Akiva Goldsman, Rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth serving as Executive Producers.

The series is currently streaming on CBS All Access in the United States, Crave TV in Canada, and Netflix internationally; it kicked off on September 24, and will run until November 5 before taking a short break until airing its second half in January 2018. The third episode is set to hit the streaming service today.

Star Trek: Who is Amanda Grayson?

Amanda Grayson may not be a Star Trek staple like her son Spock, but her role in the franchise is always shifting in fun and unexpected ways!

When Star Trek first introduced Amanda Grayson as Spock’s Human mother, no one could have predicted that she would make many more appearances over the next few decades. It’s especially ironic since fans of Star Trek: The Original Series initially had no idea of Amanda’s (Jane Wyatt) connection to the First Officer. In season 2, episode 15, “Journey to Babel,” Amanda and Sarek (Mark Lenard) were just two ambassadors from Vulcan visiting the Enterprise en route to a diplomatic conference on the planet Babel.

Then came the hilariously awkward moment in which Spock (Leonard Nimoy) reveals to Captain Kirk (William Shatner) and Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley) that these are his parents. This moment answered questions about Spock’s family, but it posed even more – especially about Amanda. How did she meet Sarek? How did she feel about living on Vulcan? What did she think about her son’s Starfleet career? None of these questions were answered, since the episode quickly dove into plot-related drama. Luckily, there would be plenty more chances to get to know Amanda.

RELATED: Best Parents In Star Trek

Amanda in The Original Series

Amanda’s and Sarek’s entrance into Star Trek marked the first time fans spent any time with family members of their beloved characters. They’d previously met Captain Kirk’s nephew, briefly spent time with his sister-in-law, and saw how distraught he was over his brother Sam’s untimely death.

But Spock’s parents arriving on the ship revealed aspects of the half-Vulcan's childhood that neither fellow crew members nor fans had heard about. Amanda proved to be warm and courteous, with a bit of mischief in how she connected with Kirk over their similar bonds with uptight Vulcans. That is, until her husband’s life was in danger and her son didn’t seem to be prioritizing his health. Then she was desperate and aggressive in ways understandable (yet hard to watch) for anyone who’d ever had a loved one on the verge of death.

Everything eventually worked out, though, and no hard feelings seemed to exist between Spock and his mother when she next appeared in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home . It helped that he was in the process of regaining the knowledge he’d lost after coming back from the dead. Still, Amanda seemed as happy to see him as any mother would be, and it’s easy to imagine them exploring a new relationship in which Spock doesn’t run from his emotions like his life depends on it.

Amanda in Discovery

Amanda (this time played by Winona Ryder) didn’t have much to do in the Star Trek reboot movies. While she was a bit more present in several deleted scenes, fans never got a sense of who she was within the Kelvin timeline. Amanda in Star Trek: Discovery , on the other hand (in which she is portrayed by Mia Kirshner), has taken on a life of her own.

She’s the wife of Sarek (James Frain) with strong opinions that she, like her son Spock (Ethan Peck), is content to hold close to her chest. She’s also the adoptive mother of Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green), who eventually joins the elite class of Starfleet captains . In this series, Amanda is back to struggling under the weight of her own emotions while surrounded by loved ones who are in denial of their own feelings.

Amanda goes to Michael in season 2, episode 3, “Point of Light” for her help in reaching out to Spock. When Michael reveals the part she might have played in him leaving in the first place, Amanda angrily changes her mind and resolves to retrieve him on her own. It’s a not-so-subtle callback to the last time she let her worries for one family member cause her to lash out at another. If only she weren’t yet another character placing responsibilities on Michael’s shoulders that she shouldn’t have had to carry alone or at all. Like Spock, Amanda never really apologized to Michael. She probably just offered her a surface-level peace offering in a classic mother’s method of smoothing things over without admitting fault.

Amanda in Strange New Worlds

Amanda has only made one appearance in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , but she’s already left one heck of an impression. Spock loses his Vulcan half and becomes wholly human in season 2, episode 5, “Charades,” right when he’s in the midst of an important familial moment with his fiancée T’Pring (Gia Sandhu). The V’Shal dinner is a Vulcan custom that gives each set of parents the first chance to evaluate the suitability of the engagement. Amanda is in peak Mom mode as she guides her son through what it’s like to experience a Vulcan tradition with Human limitations. At some point, she handles a blisteringly hot teapot without breaking a sweat while giving Spock tips on how to do the same. It’s one of those rare moments in which Amanda gets to be impressive and remind the audience why Sarek fell in love with her in the first place.

Unfortunately, this doesn’t stop T’Pring’s mother T’Pril (Ellora Patnaik) from throwing digs at Spock for his Human heritage with Amanda standing right beside him. T’Pring, in her exasperation, is closer to her original counterpart than she is to her new characterization in Strange New Worlds . Their frustration prompts Spock to give a heartfelt speech in which he calls his mother “resilient, compassionate, and tolerant” and points out how she’s “been judged by Vulcans” for daring to be loved by one of their own. He goes on to call her ability to withstand such negativity for love “true strength.” It’s a reminder of how deserving Amanda is of love and respect in spite of her personal flaws.

Amanda isn’t the best-known most popular Star Trek character. That title tends to go to fan-favorites like Worf (Michael Dorn), Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell), Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), and literally any of the many Starfleet captains. She’s not even very important to most major storylines revolving around subjects like moral dilemmas, time travel, lighthearted hijinks bringing the crew together , or technology gone terribly wrong. As Spock’s mother, though, she’s one of the more memorable parents. She has to be, or new Star Trek projects wouldn’t be so insistent on bringing her back to the screen.

More than that, though, Amanda is an interesting character outside of being a mother. She braved the desert and its many naysayers to build a family with the man she loves, then quietly built a life herself while her husband and children went on to publicly achieve great things. It’s what keeps Star Trek fans invested in her story. As Spock would say, there’s always something fascinating going on when Amanda comes around.

MORE: Star Trek: How Discovery Changed The Way We See Spock

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The many faces of Amanda Grayson

Credit: Michael Gibson/CBS

For a character that has only appeared in one Star Trek episode and (briefly) in two movies prior to Star Trek: Discovery , Amanda Grayson has had an outsized impact on the Trek universe. She presents herself as a dutiful wife to her husband Sarek and a devoted mother to her son, Spock. But underneath that meek exterior, there is a will of fire and steel, and a determination to do right by her family. Her portrayal on screen has been rocky and flat at times, but thanks to Mia Kirshner and the Star Trek: Discovery writers, she’s finally becoming important in her own right, rather than because of who she’s connected to.

Amanda was first introduced to the screen in The Original Series episode “Journey to Babel,” where she was played by Jane Wyatt. “Journey to Babel” revealed quite a bit about Spock’s history, as it centered on his strained relationship with his father, Sarek. In the episode, Ambassador Sarek boards the Enterprise with his wife, Amanda, but refuses to speak to his son because of their estrangement over Spock’s decision to enter Starfleet instead of the Vulcan Science Academy.

Credit: CBS

This performance set the stage for Amanda, though her subsequent portrayals are much flatter. In “Journey to Babel,” she’s very good at being who she needs to be, depending on the occasion, and displays a sparkling wit and feisty personality that’s often missing later. As a result, Amanda’s role is often relegated to a supportive wife and nurturing mother; while there’s nothing wrong with being either of those things, it’s hardly a full portrayal of a three-dimensional character with her own motivations and ability to make decisions.

We don’t see Amanda again until J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek reboot. While she’s played by the exquisite Winona Ryder, she doesn’t have much to do except to show the audience she loves her son and then dies, setting the course for Spock’s development over the movie. It’s a criminal underuse of such a great actress.

Credit: Paramount

Amanda arrives on the Discovery after stealing Spock’s medical file from Starbase 5. That, in and of itself, sets the stage for this fantastic performance that adds depth to the character that’s been missing across her franchise portrayal. If we know anything about Amanda, we know that she’s a caring mother. But Kirshner showed us just how far Amanda would be willing to go to protect her son. She has an iron will and an almost Vulcan stubbornness, and she’s willing to use it to figure out what happened to Spock.

At the end of the episode, Amanda discovers that Michael wounded her son in order to protect him. And what she does after she finds out is telling: She gives Michael a kiss and then leaves, saying she’ll find Spock herself. Amanda still loves her adopted daughter, but she doesn’t trust her to do what’s best for her brother, given past decisions. The coldness that Amanda displays is deep. It’s a rift that will need to be mended, for sure, but the kiss signals that Amanda still loves her daughter and will fight for her family.

Credit: Jan Thijs/CBS

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Published Jan 6, 2023

Nearly 20 Years Ago, One Enterprise Epic Set the Stage for Discovery

Both Enterprise and Discovery featured a new look at Vulcan culture that shook up the status quo.

StarTrek.com / Rob DeHart

When Sarek and Amanda Grayson grapple with the complicated destinies of their children on Star Trek: Discovery , it’s easy to forget that the political landscape these outer space parents are navigating is a kaleidoscope of various canonical influences from across the entire spectrum of the Star Trek timeline.

From “ Amok Time ” to “ Yesteryear ” to the lush depiction of the planet Vulcan in the Star Trek feature films, nearly every Vulcan-centric episode of Discovery pulls something from other facets of Star Trek . But, arguably, the origin of the Vulcan culture, as we understand it, was best defined in an epic three-part episode of the prequel series Star Trek: Enterprise that probably doesn’t get the props it deserves.

It’s hard to believe that it’s nearly two decades since the first airing of “ The Forge ,” on November 19, 2004, but this Enterprise story would change Star Trek canon forever. Throughout its three-parts — “The Forge,” “ Awakening ,” and “ Kir'Shara " — Star Trek not only redefined the Vulcans as we know them, but also set the stage for a huge Vulcan comeback in Star Trek: Discovery .

StarTrek.com

The secret to doing this was simply making Vulcan culture seem real and, importantly, flawed . The knowledge that the Vulcans are a complicated race of people with as many pitfalls in their history as our own is one of the most important things about not only these characters, but the mythos of Star Trek in general. After all, Star Trek has proven time and again that there’s more to their recurring alien races than viewers initially perceive.

There’s a fairly hilarious scene in the second part of the Enterprise arc, where Commander Tucker and Ambassador Soval have a conversation that could have very well serve as the plot synopsis for the first episode of Star Trek: Discovery . In a tense moment during “Awakening,” Tucker asks, “How many warning shots do Vulcans usually fire?" to which Soval answers, “None.” In microcosm, these two quick lines of dialogue sum-up the relationship between humans and Vulcans throughout all of Star Trek . Sure, the Vulcans are basically pacifists, but you don’t mess with them because of their violent past; they have the ability to be as militaristic as the rest of the quadrant but choose not to. That dichotomy is deeply profound, not only for these specific two series — Enterprise and Discovery — but also for the various metaphors the Vulcans represent in real life.

While some naysayers might complain that Enterprise changed the background the Vulcans too much, the reality is the entire depiction of this culture in the series was brilliant because it added depth that was previously absent. Clearly, we have decades of fan devotion that prove that Vulcans were cool before Enterprise but they were mostly cool when they were part of Starfleet. What Enterprise did was make the whole planet into a realistic political body, and that meant there was a diversity of different political viewpoints. In other words, Enterprise got rid of the concept of a stereotypical Vulcan, and showed, perhaps for the first time, how truly infinite and diverse this culture actually is.

A good example of this is Robert Foxworthy as the war-mongering V’Las . When we meet him, V’las is hell-bent on wiping-out a religious sect of Vulcans called Syrrannites. He’s not doing this because it’s moral but, because in his own twisted logic, he’s trying to frame the Syrrannites for the bombing of the Earth embassy. His people blew up the embassy, and he wants humans off Vulcan, so “logically” he needs a scapegoat. In a sense, V’las is the beginning of the logic extremists we see in Star Trek: Discovery ; the biggest difference being those Vulcans don’t even bother framing people for their bombings. A knee-jerk reaction would be to say that V’las doesn’t act like a real Vulcan. And yet, we know that Spock can smile as seen in “The Cage,” and that his brother, Sybok, can belt out huge belly laughs and commit the crime of ‘grand-theft-starship.’ There’s an entire emotional spectrum for Vulcans, and this Enterprise puts all those feelings into harsh perspective.

At this point, the Vulcans lack the faith to believe in the existence of Katras ; the spirit of a Vulcan’s mind that is such an integral part of Spock’s journey in The Search for Spock , and Michael Burnham’s travails in “The Vulcan Hello,” “Battle at the Binary Stars,” and “Lethe.” In “Awakening,” we find out that Captain Archer is given the Katra of Surak — the spirit of the Vulcan who prevented his people from turning into the Romulans, or as they were known in ancient history, “those who marched beneath the raptor’s wings.”

On the other side of all the corrupt politics is the young Vulcan T’Pau , played in this episode by Kara Zediker, (previously famous as the elder played by Celia Lovsky in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode “Amok Time”). If you were to watch Enterprise before TOS (which is arguably a good way to do it), T’Pau becomes an amazing character who goes on a fairly revelatory journey. In “Awakening,” T’Pau distrusts humans to the point of prejudice, but after a human, Captain Archer, is given the Katra of Surak, T’Pau comes around to the idea that humans probably are the ticket to a saner and more stable version of her planet.

In First Contact , and throughout all of Enterprise , it’s implied that Vulcans swept in and helped save us humans from ourselves. But, by the end of part three of this story, “Kir'Shara,” it’s clearly the other way around. With a human bringing the original Surak texts back to the Vulcan High Command, and a Starfleet ship preventing an all-out war with the Andorians, the slightly irrational and less experienced human race ends up being the missing piece that helps bring logic and sanity back to Vulcan.

If you then fast-forward to Star Trek: Discovery , you find that everything about the Vulcan society Sarek, Amanda, and Michael Burnham are dealing with is still there. In “The Vulcan Hello,” we’re again reminded that Vulcans don’t fire warning shots, and in “Lethe,” a group of extremists uses terrorism as an act of xenophobia. Even though the planet Vulcan is a little more sophisticated and its government less corrupt than it was during Enterprise , the planet Vulcan of Discovery is still dealing with the same old problems. Fictionally, the Vulcans and humans are separate species, but in terms of social commentary, the moody Vulcans of both Enterprise and Discovery present a kind of dark mirror for our own political turmoils on planet Earth. Surak was able to stop all-out war thousands of years before the events of Enterprise , but extremists nearly take over the government in the 2150s. About 100 years later, Sarek is still dealing with highly prejudiced people on the one side, refusing to admit Michael to the Vulcan Expeditionary Group; and on the other side, he’s got logic extremists blowing up shuttle crafts and learning centers.

Watching this three-parter of Enterprise back-to-back with Discovery might make you feel bad for the good Vulcans. After all, in both eras, they are struggling to make sure their logical culture lives long and prospers, but are faced with more problems from within than from without. If you were just to scan the plot synopsis, the message might read as cynical - the more bad Vulcans change, the more they stay bad. But, when you watch these Enterprise episodes, there’s not a shred of cynicism in the stories at all. At this point, the Vulcans may not have gotten to the point of solid stability we see in Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: The Next Generation , but they’re changing and getting better all the time. This fraught Enterprise epic isn’t about illogical Vulcans behaving badly; it’s about the hope that they’ll find a way to get over all this chaos.

So if you love Spock and Michael Burnham on Star Trek: Discovery , it might be a good time to thank Captain Archer, T’Pol and T’Pau on Star Trek: Enterprise . The future might not have been rediscovered without them.

This article was originally published on November 19, 2019.

Ryan Britt's (he/him) essays and journalism have appeared in Tor.com, Inverse, Den of Geek!, SyFy Wire, and elsewhere. He is the author of the 2015 essay collection Luke Skywalker Can't Read. He lives in Portland, Maine, with his wife and daughter.

Star Trek: Discovery Seasons 1-4 are currently streaming exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. Internationally, the series is available on Paramount+ in Australia, Italy, Latin America, the U.K. and South Korea, as well as on Pluto TV in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Switzerland on the Pluto TV Sci-Fi channel. It will also stream exclusively on Paramount+ in Italy, France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria later this year. In Canada, it airs on Bell Media’s CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave. STAR TREK: DISCOVERY is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.

Stay tuned to StarTrek.com for more details! And be sure to follow @StarTrek on Facebook , Twitter , and Instagram .

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Star Trek: Discovery ‘s James Frain on Sarek’s ‘Complex’ Connection With Burnham and That Spock Name-Drop

Dave nemetz, west coast bureau chief.

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Warning: This post contains spoilers for Sunday’s Star Trek: Discovery .

Spock’s father Sarek beamed his way back onto Star Trek: Discovery this week, with Burnham rescuing her adoptive dad after his shuttle was sabotaged by a Vulcan extremist who believes that “humans are inferior.” With the help of a “synthetic mindmeld augment” built by Stamets, Burnham used her psychic connection with Sarek to locate his shuttle and save his life.

TVLine reached out to James Frain ( Orphan Black , Gotham ) — who’s the latest actor to play Sarek in a Trek series, dating back to Mark Lenard in the original 1960s TV series — to discuss this week’s developments in Sarek and Burnham’s complicated relationship, the Amanda Grayson reveal and the challenges of playing a character who doesn’t show any emotion. (“It’s really hard, man!”)

TVLINE | Sarek and Burnham’s relationship is a tricky one: He’s protective of her, but also very standoffish. It’s kind of a push-pull. I think that’s how she experiences him, for sure, and I think that’s probably how he’s experiencing himself. He has a very dynamic range, and he’s very, very bold with the way he’s chosen to live his life. He’s married a human being. That has made him a target. There are people who want to kill him for that. He adopted a human child, and there were people who wanted to kill her. So he’s put a lot of stuff on the line, and at the same time, he’s a Vulcan. He recognizes in this episode how different Vulcan and human cultures are, and how difficult a situation she was in. He never really understood that, I don’t think. And I think it’s kind of beautiful that he acknowledges that now. But there is a huge internal conflict that, in the original series, we saw in Spock, and now here we are, seeing it in Sarek. It’s kind of like Spock is his father’s son, you know?

TVLINE | Yeah, Discovery ‘s Sarek is actually pretty rebellious for a Vulcan. He’s pushing back on a lot of the Vulcan ways. Absolutely. It’s very clear, I think, in the flashback scene, when they tell him, “You’ve gone too far, and we need to rein you in,” and give him a punitive choice to make — which, obviously, is devastating for him. But he can’t not choose Spock. That’s his son. He’s half-Vulcan, and they’re basically saying, “We’d rather have the more Vulcan one of the two.” They don’t want [Michael] in, and they dump it on Sarek to bear the burden of that.

He’s also admonished for making an emotional choice, and he has to kind of toughen up and be very clinical in how he delivers this information to her, because he’s just been told he has to be. The Vulcans, I often think of like the samurai: a very, very coded and strict, but noble and honorable society. You wouldn’t expect a samurai father to suddenly become a hippie just because he wants to make peace. He can’t step completely outside of himself. But he does give her a piece of his soul, and that’s no small thing. So it’s very, very rich and complex: his relationship to Michael, and his relationship to Starfleet.

TVLINE | We also see Sarek’s wife Amanda Grayson for the first time on the show, which is a big Easter egg for fans. Will we see more of their relationship? Because we haven’t seen that a lot in past Treks . No [we haven’t], and it’s one of the starting points, when you’re looking at Sarek as a younger man. We just accepted, in the original series: “Oh, he married a human, and that was the backstory for Spock.” But it’s like, “Wait a minute… he married a human ?? How did that happen?” It’s less extraordinary that he adopted Michael than that he married Amanda, and has this child [with her]. That precedes Michael. So yeah, I think there’s so much there to explore, dramatically, and I’m looking forward to it.

TVLINE | As an actor, how do you approach playing a Vulcan who shows no emotion at all? It almost seems like the opposite of acting. [ Laughs ] I know… it’s really hard, man! I’m constantly kind of checking with the directors as we’re filming: “Is that calibrated right?” It feels like walking a tightrope. If you have no emotion, then there’s nothing there. There’s considerable repression, as you would find in the samurai society, or even in 19th-century England, when people operated in a very structured way. There’s a tension between how they behave and what’s inside… and I think that’s really the key to Sarek, for me.

Got thoughts on this week’s Star Trek: Discovery ? Beam down to the comments.

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11 comments.

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He’s really doing an awesome job as Sarek. I knew he’d be good but he’s even better than I expected!

I don’t know if I agree with the “Spock is his father’s son” bit regarding Sarek’s internal conflict and emotional response over his being forced to choose. I don’t know what the intention was for the character in TOS, how much thought was put into his marriage to Amanda and actual feelings about Spock (or Sybok for that matter), but after tNG I look back at Sarek’s reactions in this time period here as an early indication of the terminal illness he was eventually diagnosed with that caused complete loss of emotional control — and which he dealt with by sharing his katra with Picard so that he could go through with a negotiation unburdened by regrets over failing Spock in his youth. It just doesn’t seem like a coincidence to me that they framed this episode with tidbits that pay a sort of homage to that one.

“Spock’s wife Amanda Grayson” Wasn’t she Spock’s mum?

Yeah this is a giant error in this article. Amanda Grayson is SAREK’s wife and Spock’s mother… NOT Spock’s wife!

There’s a new Star Trek series? What network? (heavy sarcasm)

Yep sure is. It’s on a platform that takes 1.5 hours to watch a 50 minute show because their service sucks.

Maybe your equipment/internet sucks, because I’ve never had an issue watching any show via the CBS app.

Unless you have Netflix outside of the states and works wonderfully.

You are teeming with positivity this morning. As usual.

Another great episode!! It’s good to see Jayne Brook as the Admiral, I’ve had a little crush on her since seeing her in Bye Bye Love.

Again they bring in technology first introduced from The Next Generation. Stop messing with the timeline.

The writers are using technology from other (future timeline) Star Treks as a deus ex machina to get out of situations they shouldn’t have written themselves into in the first place. Lazy writing.

If they wanted the characters from the original Star Trek as a platform for the Discovery Star Trek they could have placed the timeline after the original and before The Next Generation.

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How Star Trek: Discovery’s Sarek connects to the universe at large

If you thought he looked familiar, he did

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Star Trek: Discovery had its two-hour premiere on Sunday , introducing Starfleet’s newest members aboard the U.S.S. Shinzou.

[ Warning: The following contains spoilers for Star Trek: Discovery .]

Like past Star Trek shows, much of Discovery ’s best moments come from its relationships. The relationship between Captain Georgiou and Commander Michael Burnham, for example, was captivating. As the focal point of Discovery , Burnham’s various relationships with individual crew members drives the narrative forward, but there’s another emotional connection explored in the first couple of episodes that may appeal to longtime fans of the Star Trek franchise: Burnham and her surrogate Vulcan father, Sarek.

Sarek is best known for being the biological father of Star Trek’s most famous Vulcan, Spock. In 2227, Sarek married a human woman named Amanda Grayson, and three years later in 2230, the couple had their first son, Spock. Their relationship was always strained, and Spock was routinely picked on by other Vulcan children because of his father’s decision to marry a human and his mixed ancestry. Everything changed for the worse, however, in 2250, when Spock decided to join Starfleet instead of following in Sarek’s footsteps and attending the Vulcan Science Academy.

In Discovery , Sarek took in Burnham when her human parents were killed by Klingons. Burnham resided with him, and during that time attended both the Vulcan Learning Academy and Vulcan Space Academy — just as Spock never did. Once she completed her studies, Sarek took her to the U.S.S. Shinzou and left her under the mentorship of Captain Georgiou.

In Discovery , although Sarek maintains his cold, emotionless Vulcan exterior, he does show some warmth toward Burnham. In one scene following a Klingon attack, he tells Burnham that if someone had to die at the cost of war, he’s glad that it wasn’t her. For a Vulcan, that’s about as loving as it’s going to get.

Outside of Discovery and the original series, which occur about 10 years apart according to former showrunner Bryan Fuller , Sarek also appeared in Star Trek: The Animated Series, Star Trek: The Next Generation and four of the Star Trek films. It’s unclear if Sarek will be a recurring character in Discovery, but it seems likely.

Star Trek: Discovery airs on Sundays at 8:30 p.m. ET via CBS’ streaming service, All Access. The service costs $5.99 a month with ads and $9.99 without. The first two episodes are currently available to stream.

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Recap/Review: ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Reflects On Its Choices In “Mirrors”

| April 25, 2024 | By: Anthony Pascale 119 comments so far

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5, Episode 5 – Debuted Thursday, April 25, 2024 Written by Johanna Lee & Carlos Cisco Directed by Jen McGowan

A solid episode with plenty of lore and character development gets weighed down with a bit too much exposition.

No, I didn’t kiss you in the past last week, what makes you say that?

WARNING: Spoilers below!

“Maybe we’re not so different.”

As the crew regroups following the time bug incident that lost them 6 hours, they try to trace the trail of their main rivals in the search for the Progenitor tech. Book takes this time to reflect on the choices he has made in life and how it isn’t too late for Moll; perhaps he can redeem the daughter of his mentor and namesake Cleveland Booker. Stamets and Tilly figure out the trail didn’t disappear into nowhere: Moll and L’ak went through a wormhole. The aperture isn’t big enough for the Disco, so the captain assigns herself to shuttle duty—over the objections of her new XO, who is still struggling a bit. After a little bonding over old Kellerun poetry, she leaves him with “I know you can lead this crew” and heads off with her ex. Returning to their old banter, including some teasing about what happened during her time tour last episode, Book and Michael head through the wormhole. Things get really choppy as they fly through exotic matter “deaf and blind,” losing comms with the Disco, and dodging debris. Skilled piloting and good ol’ Starfleet engineering saves them, but things aren’t so hot for Moll and L’ak, whose ship is spotted cut in half. Their only hope for survival is another relatively intact ship that looks familiar. A 24 th -century scientist hiding a clue in this pocket dimension on a shipwreck from another universe makes as much sense as anything.  It’s the ISS Enterprise—and that’s no typo. If the “Mirrors” title wasn’t clue enough, the ISS does it: Things are about to get Terran, again.

After docking, Michael and Book make their way through the mess of a ship to the bridge with more playful banter. The warp drive has been bricked and all shuttles and escape pods are gone, very out of character for ruthless Terrans. They track three quantum signatures in sickbay, but start with a trace in the transporter room, which looks more like a makeshift refugee camp. A chronicle reveals the crew mutinied after the Terran High Chancellor (aka Mirror Spock) was killed for making reforms. A certain Kelpien rebel leader (aka Mirror Action Saru) led refugees to the Prime Universe, where they abandoned ship. While Book expositions, Michael puts a piece of her badge (and its important Prime Universe quantum signature) in a locket she finds. Pay attention BTW, or you will be confused later. In sickbay, they find Moll and L’ak, Moll and L’ak, and Moll and L’ak—until they take out the holo-emitters so the four former couriers can face off for real. Book tries the “I knew your father” gambit and is immediately rebuffed by Moll’s serious daddy issues. The baddies figure they have the clue so they have all the leverage, but Michael uses that locket as a bluff, claiming she has the real clue. Still, no deal with the Federation is good enough because they need the Progenitor tech to get rid of an Erigah… a Breen blood bounty. That’s right, L’ak is Breen. Holy refrigeration helmet , Batman.

Mirror McCoy was a bit of an evil pack rat.

“You both still have choices .”

Cut to a series of Burn-era flashbacks when Moll was delivering dilithium to the Breen Imperium. The “bucket heads”  are not amused by the wisecracking courier who gets into a fight with one of them, but she turns the tables, revealing she knows he’s a disgraced member of the royal family—and she even knows his name. It’s L’ak, of course. He is intrigued by her plan to skim more latinum, getting payback for being humiliated for this cargo duty demotion. Soon enough, this unlikely pair is hooking up between cargo containers and he even takes off his helmet to show her his face, as well as his “other face.” It turns out the Breen have two: the one we have been seeing with L’ak and a glowing eyed translucent one.  Later, the star-crossed romance is threatened when Moll is drawn to the lure of even more latinum by delivering to the Emerald Chain. Before they can sort out if he should join her, Uncle A-hole shows up, not happy about his nephew’s little interspecies exchange program. He’s also not cool with L’ak using that old face and not the “evolved” glowy face. L’ak is given one chance at redemption: Kill Moll. He picks door number 2, killing some guards but sparing Primarch Ruhn, who declares the Erigah. L’ak knows this means they will never stop hunting him, but Moll is all-in on being a fugitive, so they escape together. Ah, true love.

Back on Mirror Enterprise, the standoff devolves into another quick firefight as the Breen/Human duo chooses not to take the offered off-ramp before going too far down the bad guy road. Moll and Book end up outside force fields that pop up around sickbay, so she reluctantly agrees to a ceasefire. The current Cleveland Booker tries again to connect, but Moll only has bad memories of a brutal childhood of abandonment after her Cleveland left her on her own at age 14. L’ak is all she has. L’ak feels the same about Moll, telling Michael that he would die before being separated, but seems open to the idea of them sharing a cell in the Federation pen. On the bridge, Book pivots to use his relationship with Michael to connect, but Moll’s need to get back to L’ak means no waiting for computer hacking, so she starts yanking out wires. The resulting short does lower the forcefield, but now the ship is out of control. Their shuttle is flung off with the jolt and there’s only eight minutes until the Big E is squished in the little wormhole. Book takes his final shot, handing over his phaser and telling Moll she is the only family he has left. She finally relents and they head to sickbay, where Michael and L’ak have resumed fighting. The captain gets the upper hand and ends up with the clue L’ak was holding and the Breen is left with a knife in his side, but impressed by the locket bluff. Moll arrives and is super pissed, so the Disco duo makes a quick exit before things escalate into yet another phaser fight. This former courier couple’s double date is over.

Uh, can you go back to the other face now?

“Maybe we can shape our own futures too.”

As Moll tries to patch up her boyfriend, Michael and Book work through the problem on the bridge, deciding that the tractor beam as their only hope. Over on the Disco, they detect an oscillating pattern, 3-4-1-4, which means something to Rayner. He now wants the nerds to figure out how to open the wormhole aperture big enough for a ship, offering kegs of Kellerun booze for the best idea. Adira sparks a team effort and Rayner rallies around the crowdsourced solution involving a hexagon of photon torpedoes. “We are only going to get one shot at this. I trust you will all make it count, red alert.” That’s the stuff. With what may be the last seconds of her life, Michael lets Book know she shared a “happy” moment with his past self during the whole time bug incident. Discovery fires the torpedoes and the crew is surprised to see the ISS Enterprise emerge at the last minute from the permanently collapsing wormhole. Everyone releases their tension as the captain informs her crew they saved her… but why is the Enterprise about to fire? A warp pod is launched! It’s Moll and L’ak. Before you can say “plot armor,” they escape to another episode. The captain returns to the Disco to tell Rayner she’s impressed with how he handled the crew during her time away, and he tells her how impressed he was with her subtle “3-4-1-4” message using the Kellerun “Ballad of Krull.” Alien poetry FTW!

In the background of the episode, Tilly has been noticing that Dr. Culber seems out of sorts. Everyone else leans on him, so she offers to be a friendly ear. As things wrap, Hugh takes her up on her offer over drinks at Red’s, admitting that ever since he was possessed by a Trill a few episodes back, he has been feeling a bit off, and he’s beening having some trouble coming to grips with the quest they are on with questions “so big and impossible to grasp.” He is not sure his matter-of-fact husband will understand what Tilly points out is a sort of spiritual awakening. This thread is left unresolved, unlike Adira’s mini-crisis of confidence: They were losing their science mojo due to guilt over the time bug, but got it back through Rayner’s tough love and being the one to come up with the hexagon of torpedoes solution. Things wrap up with Michael and Book looking over their prize, the latest piece of the map and a mysterious vial of liquid hidden inside, ready to set up the next episode once Stamets unlocks its secret. Burnham is starting to see a pattern with these clues and how the scientists who left them were trying to teach lessons along the way to the successful questers. The clue hidden in the ISS Enterprise came from Dr. Cho, a former Terran junior officer who later became a Starfleet Admiral. This happy ending for her and the others from Saru’s band of Mirror refugees fills them with hope as they can’t wait to find out what they will learn when they put the map together. There are just 2 more map pieces and 5 more episodes to go.

I think I have a thing for being possessed—no judgment.

Love stories

This halfway point episode is a bit of a mixed bag. Strong performances were a highlight, bringing extra life to welcome character development for both heroes and villains. But valiant attempts to expand upon franchise lore got weighed down in overly complicated exposition. And for an episode with a strong (and yes, often repeated) theme about choices, some of the directorial choices just didn’t work, potentially leaving some audience members confused or requiring a second viewing to follow the narrative. On the other hand, the episode carried on the season’s reflection on Discovery’s own lore and the evolution of its characters. David Ajala stands out as the episode MVP as he shows Book’s struggle to navigate the emotional complexities of his own choices and those of Moll while desperately trying to forge a new family connection. While some of the action scenes in this episode felt a bit perfunctory, the show is still getting better (for the most part) in finding moments for those character sidebars to talk about their emotional journeys and relationships. That was especially important in this episode, which took a closer look at how the events of the season are impacting some of the key romantic pairings of Book and Michael, Paul and Hugh, and Moll and L’ak.

Eve Harlow—and especially Elias Toufexis—stepped up to add layers and nuance to Moll and L’ak, with Discovery finally embracing how fleshing out adversaries and their motivations goes a long way towards making your plot hold together. The nicely drawn-out reflection of their love story with the rekindling one between Michael and Book adds another layer to the more obvious meaning behind the episode title “Mirrors.” Moll’s single-minded anger and L’ak’s desire for safety now all make sense, as does their unshakable bond. The episode also did a good job weaving in a handful of substories, including Rayner’s growing connection with the crew, with a nice sprinkling of Kellerun lore-building — adding some color to his character. Callum Keith Rennie continues to be a stand-out addition for the season, although Doug Jones is sorely missed, presumably not appearing in two episodes in a row for some scheduling reasons. Culber’s spiritual journey also gets just enough time, as it and these other substories all feel like they are heading somewhere without distracting or spinning their wheels, something that often weighed down mid-season Discovery episodes in past seasons.

Okay, let’s just agree we both have daddy issues.

Under the mask

The reveal that L’ak is a Breen was a surprise, but also nicely teased through the previous episodes. Fans of Deep Space Nine should relish finally getting some answers about this enigmatic race and finally having a first look under those helmets. “Mirrors” picked up on many elements from DS9, including the Breen language, refrigeration suits, neural truncheons, and the position of Thot , while adding lots to the lore, including some worldbuilding behind this new Breen Imperium and its “faction wars.”

Setting the Breen up as what appears to be the real big bads for the season involved a lot of data dump exposition here, surely keeping the editors of Memory Alpha busy for the next week. The notion that Breen have two forms with their signature suits and helmets allowing them to hold the more “evolved” form and face makes sense. If one were to get nitpicky, the Breen aren’t supposed to bleed, but perhaps that was a function of his suit; fill in your own headcanon. L’ak’s desire to hold the other, less evolved form making him a pariah in Breen society has echoes of allegorical episodes such as TNG’s “The Outcast.” That being said, the nuances are still not entirely clear, and fans who like the lore shouldn’t have to rewatch scenes to pick up the details. It feels like some details were cut, perhaps because this episode was already trying to cram in too much exposition with the Breen, Kelleruns (they boil cakes?), and the Mirror Universe.

Like the previous time travel adventure, this was a mid-season bottle show, this time using the conveniently located Strange New Worlds sets. Bringing back the ISS Enterprise was clever and fun, with the twist of how this time the Mirror Universe came to us. If you follow closely, “Mirrors” did a nice job of filling in some lore gaps and tying together the MU storylines from the first visit in “Mirror, Mirror” to follow-ups in Deep Space Nine , Enterprise , and Discovery . There is now a nice throughline from Emperor Georgiou saving Mirror Saru through to Mirror Spock, killed for the reforms he instituted after being inspired by Kirk. However, the redress of the Enterprise sets was not very inspired, with only a smattering of Terran wall sconces and some repainting, instead of demonstrating the brutality of the Empire with elements like agony booths. But what was even more missed was the promise of any character crossovers. There was a lot of talk about Mirror characters like Spock, Saru, Dr. Cho, and others, but we don’t get to see any, one of the many examples of how this episode broke the golden rule to show not tell. There were plenty of opportunities for a flashback or holo recording. Burnham longingly gazing at her brother’s science station is no substitute for Ethan Peck with a goatee.

We’re back!

Final thoughts

“Mirrors” is a decent episode, but it could have been much better with a few tweaks here and there. While not falling into the pointless plate-spinning trap of past mid-season Disco outings, it still dragged a bit for something so jam-packed with lore and revelations. Still, it provided a nice hour of entertainment, and possibly more with rewatches to catch up on the little details. The episode also continues the season’s welcome trend of weaving in the show’s own past, which makes it work better as a final season, even if they didn’t know that when they crafted it. Season 5 hits the halfway mark, and it’s still the best season yet, and hopefully the second half of the season will nail the landing.

Wait, we’re in this episode too? Anyone remember their lines?

• Like the previous episode, “Mirrors” began with a warning for flashing images.
• The episode is dedicated “to the loving memory of our friend Allan ‘Red’ Marceta ,” the lead set dresser who died in a motorcycle accident in 2022.  Presumably the USS Discovery bar “Red’s” was named in his honor.
• This is the first episode where Book’s personal log starts it off.
• Stardate: 866280.9
• Booker examined wanted notices for Moll from the Federation, Orion/Emerald Chain (who have a new logo), and the Andorian Empire.
• Tilly was able to reveal the wormhole by compensating for the “Lorentzian Coefficient,” referencing the real Lorentz Factor used in special relativity equations.
• A new ensign on the Discovery keeps a Cardassian vole as a pet.
• The ISS Enterprise was built at Tartarus Base, possibly referencing Tartarus Prime , from the TOS novel The Rings of Time .
• Moll refers to Breens as “bucketheads” (just as Reno did to Emerald Chain Regulators last episode). This could be a nod to the use of “ bucketheads ” in Star Wars as a derogatory term for stormtroopers.
• Moll’s mother died on Callor V in a mine for Rubindium , a substance first mentioned in TOS “Patterns of Force.”
• Linus can play the piano.
• Breen Primarchs may be a nod to the genetically engineered Primarchs from Warhammer 40,000 .
• How does Book know that Pike’s catchphrase is “Hit it”?
• This is the third (of five) season 5 episodes in which Oyin Oladejo and Emily Coutts do not appear, but their characters, Detmer and Owosekun, are mentioned when they get the honor of escorting the ISS Enterprise back to Starfleet HQ.
• Even though we didn’t see it warp away, presumably the missing intermix chamber was replaced, otherwise Owo and Detmer’s trip is going to take a very long time.
• Tilly says her long day makes her feel like she has been through a Gormangander’s digestive tract.

Remember when Mudd hid inside a Gormagander? Gross.

More to come

Every Friday, the TrekMovie.com All Access Star Trek Podcast  covers the latest news in the Star Trek Universe and discusses the latest episode. The podcast is available on Apple Podcasts ,  Spotify ,  Pocket Casts ,  Stitcher and is part of the TrekMovie Podcast Network.

The fifth and final season of  Discovery debuted with two episodes on Thursday, April 4 exclusively on Paramount+  in the U.S., the UK, Switzerland, South Korea, Latin America, Germany, France, Italy, Australia, and Austria.  Discovery  will also premiere on April 4 on Paramount+ in Canada and will be broadcast on Bell Media’s CTV Sci-Fi Channel in Canada. The rest of the 10-episode final season will be available to stream weekly on Thursdays. Season 5 debuts on SkyShowtime in select European countries on April 5.

Keep up with news about the  Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com .

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waste of ISS Enterprise

While I enjoyed the episode overall, the ISS Enterprise was a huge letdown and not even worth being an easter egg with what little they did with it. They should have just made it a generic constitution class ship from the mirror universe.

It felt like it was nothing more than a budget saver. Use existing sets from the other show. Which is weird because one of the arguments in favor of mini seasons is it allows more money to be spent.

That’s exactly what it felt like. Along with the missing, yet again, Detmer and Owosekun.

There must have been some deep budget cuts for the season.

Detmer and Owosekun were replaced by other characters so I don’t think they are missing for budget reasons. It’s more likely that the actresses were unavailable.

I get the budget issues considering what’s going on with the studio. But the end result was it showed that there isn’t much difference at all in the 900 years between the SNW Enterprise and the aesthetic of Star Trek Discovery. They both look as if they were set in the exact same era.

And there really shouldn’t be much. Discovery is from the same era, as the Enterprise. While the ship gets a technological upgrade, why would it get an interior design makeover?

Since it was deemed important (Stamets certainly makes since) that the crew stay on the Discovery, I would certainly think that psychologically having its design aesthetics stay similar to what it was would help give the crew a little bit of their past to hold on to, versus having all physical interactions be with a timeline that they aren’t native to.

Now where we should see it is in native places in this time. And we have seen some differences in design from standard Starfleet settings, versus Starfleet settings on this time (I actually wish we got more).

I did wish for a little more of self reflection from Burnham’s point of view as the ISS Enterprise should of course remind her of Spock (the Enterprise tie in), but also Georgiou (the ISS tie in). We get a small brief nod to Spock, but nothing to Georgiou (and while I still question the use of the character, there is no question that Burnham did have a connection with her, even if its primarily transference from her former Captain, not the mirror Universe Empress.

It’s not just the ship. It’s everything. Everything else looks like it matches the ship’s aesthetic. As if 900 year old retro is the current fad in design.

That’s always been my issue with Discovery.

To me that is part of the downfall of going so very far into the future. What aesthetic you make should be radically different. Not just shinier.

This is a VERY common trope in Trek, historically. Using redressed older sets, even ones from distant eras, to save money. It’s just downright foolish to think that a big budget series with fewer episodes to get better production value would simply have no limits at all. Discovery is one of the most expensive-looking sci-fi shows out there for a reason: a lot of money is being spent. On sets, effects, and even the cast. Oded Feherer, Callum Kieth Rennie, Michelle Yeoh, Jason Isaacs, Sonequa, David Cronenberg, Tig Notaro, and plenty of others during its run — its cast is broad and extremely strong, with well-known, talented actors, not to mention some of the best TV directors, set decorators, costumers, etc in the business.

Now, sure I think it’s fair to be let down by a budget-saving measure, particularly because of how much money IS being spent, so I get the logic here, but it’s sorely misplaced. The fact is, Trek has done this for decades, and often not nearly as well. Let it go — just try to enjoy the show and not worry about that kind of thing. But that’s the thing I struggle with, with you on this board: you seem to be looking for reasons NOT to like this show because you find more enjoyment in watching and hating it than anything else. Go watch a show you actually like, it’s been five years and it’s ending now. It’s time to let it go, my good friend.

Agreed. The last two episodes just felt very budgeted and basically bottle episodes. And this just felt like a twofer, a way to use an existing set and add a little fan service but that’s all it was. I thought the Enterprise itself was going to be a viral part of not just the episode but the story overall.

Instead it was just a backdrop. And yeah it’s obvious they cut the budget for this season but all the live action shows have felt this way starting with Picard season 3 and SNW season 2. That all felt pretty bare a lot of the times. I guess this was all during Paramount+ belt tightening and probably not a shock why the show was cancelled.

And maybe the I.S.S. Enterprise should have been the refit or maybe the Phase II Enterprise? That would have been a lot of fun but combine a lack of vision with a reduced budget and this is what you get.

Looking back on “In a Mirror: Darkly”, season 4 of Enterprise was dealing with a reduced budget but managed to recreate sets from TOS, introduced a few new set pieces and did a lot of great effects work.

This was a missed opportunity.

Which was added by stretching that story over two episodes, so that they had the budget to recreate the sets they used. Having half the episode count, doesn’t really help avail yourself to planning out a two parter for a way to save costs.

If Picard could pull off recreating the bridge of the Enterprise D for three days of shooting with barely half the budget of Discovery season 5, they could have done something equally as fun for Discovery on the cheap without actually having to building anything new and using the Enterprise as a crutch. They could have come across Deep Space Station K-7, where the exterior would have been immediately familiar and with interiors served by redressed sets from virtually anything available from Discovery or SNW.

I thought Discovery is basically the PII Enterprise?

The Phase II Enterprise looks like a slickly modified version of the Enterprise from TOS, falling squarely between the Enterprise from TOS and the refit. The “Star Trek: Phase II” fan series did a great job bringing it to screen.

No, Discovery resembles the Enterprise concept for the Planet of the Titans movie.

I don’t get that. I never assumed that the Enterprise (or its mIrror Universe history) was going to feature in significant manner (certainly the producers and promotional department didn’t make a significant deal about it). Perhaps it’s the time difference. But I literally assumed it would be as significant as the Defiant going in and out of phase like TOS “Tholian Web” the time difference. And that was primarily set dressing. That’s not a bad thing. I mean Tholian Web is considered one of the better third season episodes.

And the only reason I assumed it was the Enterprise versus another Connie, is simple to give Burnham a moment to reflect on Spock. Now I do freely admit that I wish this was a slightly larger moment. But I never expected it to be anything but a small moment. Roughly my preconceived notion would be something like Spock’s Mind Meld scene with La’an in SNW where she is able to get a peak into Spock thinking about his sister and the emotion that comes with it. It’s a very brief scene, but I thought SNW did a good job in conveying the emotional aspect, especially from a half Vulcan/ Half Human.

Ok fair enough. This is probably more my hang up and to be fair since they never really promoted the the Enterprise being back then clearly they weren’t trying to make it that big of a deal.

But same time a lot of people do feel there could’ve been more done. The main problem is it just feels like a ridiculous stretch this ship itself is even there. It’s a ship from 900 years ago from a DIFFERENT UNIVERSE that conveniently happens to be the ship that gives them their next clue. I know it’s Star Trek so whatever lol. But when you go through the effort to present it I think it would’ve nice to build a bigger story around it. It could’ve just been any ship.

Exactly! The ship could have been any ship. The fact that with such an enormous universe(s) they would happen to find the next clue on a Mirror Universe ship and the ISS Enterprise no less–it’s such “Small Universe Syndrome”.

When you feel like the Mirror Universe has been nothing but a let down after the initial TOS episode, It’s really not a surprise. There’s really nowhere to go with it, but I did find that the fulfilling of the promise that Prime Kirk spoke to Mirror Spock about from the original TOS episode quite satisfying. The ship’s inhabitants embraced the benevolence of the prime universe, and I thought that was great.

I felt the idea that the MU people just easily adapted was pretty ridiculous. But then, they admitted SNW was an alternate timeline. It’s not a stretch that alternate extends to all the Secret Hideout productions.

I’m not sure I would feel the same about Picard given it depicts the Prime events of ST:2009. The others tho yeah I think of it that way too. Although The Chase does make that harder to swallow about DISCO

I liked the MU in DS9. It was fun to revisit and a great reminder of the Prime Directive. But… after that it got tiresome.

It was pretty benign there, but the problem with it, is finding it plausible. It was a fun idea in the 1960’s, and it had a good message. After that, it an indulgence. The notion that that the same people would even exist in the same fundamental places, and that the same ships would exist with virtually the same crew just seems like too much of a stretch even for modern Star Trek.

That’s my only complaint about this episode. Seeing the tantalus field show up would have been really cool. When Michael talked about how she was sure that Mirror Spock was a savage just like the other Terrans, I was sure that we would see a recording or something of Ethan Peck in a goatee to prove her wrong. Or flashbacks with Ethan Peck and Paul Wesley as their mirror counterparts would have also been cool.

All the stuff with the Breen and Mol and Lak was really cool though.

“ waste of ISS Enterprise” should be the official episode description.

waste of series

They ate Mirror Saru in season one…

Was that Saru or another Kelpian? It’s been a while since I watched Season 1, but I recall Mirror Saru saving Burnham from Tyler just as Voq’s personality re-emerged. I know Mirror Georgiou served Burnham some Kelpian, I just didn’t remember it being Mirror Saru.

Mirror Saru saved Michael from Tyler in The Wolf Inside, which was the episode that preceded the one in which they ate the food made from a Kelpien (Vaulting Ambition).

Looking at Memory Alpha now, it says that the chosen Kelpien ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVQSipQlJR8 ) was played by someone other than Doug Jones, but they look so much alike that I thought for sure she had chosen Mirror Saru.

As per Memory Alpha, we never saw him again after The Wolf Inside until season three, but that was in the alternate timeline Carl sent Georgiu to, so it wasn’t the same Mirror Saru.

Nope, that was another Kelpien.

“They ate Mirror Saru in season one…”

They didn’t.

Wasn’t Mirror Saru established as having survived in Season 3 (can’t remember the episode name).

A s per Memory Alpha, we never saw Mirror Saru again after The Wolf Inside until season three, but that was in the alternate timeline Carl sent Georgiu to, so it wasn’t the same Mirror Saru.

Loved this episode. I liked seeing the I.S.S Enterprise though i would of loved to of seen maybe a video log of Mirror Spock.

As a big fan of DS9 I’m glad we finally get to see what a breen looks like and the 32nd century breen outfits look great.

I enjoyed seeing Book/Burnham trying to get through to Moll/L’ak and i hope they can eventually get through to them. With this season about connections and 2nd chances i can see Book and Burnham talking both of them down before they do something that they can’t come back from.

The shot of the I.S.S Enterprise coming out of the ‘wormhole’ is probably one of my favorite CGI scene in all of Trek.

I’m glad they didn’t. I think the conceit of using the I.S.S. Enterprise was not much more than a budgetary decision to be able to use the sets. Could have made it a different constitution class, but then they don’t get to tell the story of the crew’s transformation into our society. Just don’t think about it too much.. because that universe is just pushing out its own doppelgängers into our universe.. which seems problematic. lol.

As a big fan of DS9 I’m glad we finally get to see what a breen looks like and the 32nd century breen outfits look great.

Any kind of big reveal was bound to be disappointing, I suppose. Still, the idea that they were just another latex alien was a letdown. I had always hoped that the Breen were gaseous or plasma creatures.

Ethan Peck with a goatee would have been EPIC

“This is the way.” 😉

But seriously that was a pretty good episode. I’d like to see a 31st century restored Terran empire that never went through “the burn.”

“ The reveal that L’ak is a Breen was a surprise ”

It really wasn’t, though. That was many viewers’ guess since the beginning of the season, and it’s been a common discussion on many websites. The surprise would have been if he HADN’T been a Breen.

I am on a lot of other sites and I haven’t heard anyone thinking he was Breen. And I don’t believe anyone voiced that in Trekmovie either.

LOL. It’s been a common theory.

Obviously not THAT common. LOL

I’ve seen the theory mentioned in the comments here on TrekMovie.

Yes, quite common from what I’ve been reading. I just commented on this very site a couple weeks back that I liked the idea, when somebody else theorized it (forget who it was)!

I guess it’s just where you go for these discussions but yeah the first YouTube review of episode one I saw theorized Lak was a Breen in the first scene he was in when he took off his helmet. And this was obviously before the species was mentioned on the show.

So yeah some people caught on the first episode the way others theorized Tyler was Voq the first time he showed up. Others needed more convincing.

I never saw it but I certainly don’t read the majority of comments. And almost never watch video reviews. Now Voq, was something I remember seeing in many places. Though in fairness, the amount of conjecture done about any Trek series for its Pilot and early couple episodes has been in my experience far more than what you see for most regular episodes. So that shouldn’t;t surprise me.

It was a surprise to me.

The Breen being so ordinary looking was a bit of a surprise.

Well, one of their forms are. It explains the frozen wasteland/tropical paradise. Their “evovled” form needs cryo suits, their “normal form” doesn’t

Was a surprise to me. Then again, I don’t run around the internet and over analyze the show.

This season started out so well. What happened? It’s falling apart.

I hate to a agree. But its once again a long slow burn (pardon the bun) that I fear is going to lead to another whimper of a conclusion. I feel like the season could have been a movie instead. Where is Chapel?!

Wrong show. Chapel is on SNW. The ending was rewritten and new scenes were shot to make it a series finale. They had already started shooting when they got the word that it was ending after season 5.

presumably on Her show, SNW?

“pardon the bun” …🍔⁉️

What’d that poor bun do for it to be in need of a pardon? 😋

This is what happens in every single season of Discovery. Two lovers who want to destroy the galaxy so they can get to paradise was the plot of season four, and now they are recycling the exact same plot for this season.

Did you watch the show. In no seasons has two lovers wanted to destroy the galaxy….Period. L’ak and Moll want to pay off their bounty. Nothing about what they are doing is about wanting to destroy the galaxy.

Outside of the destruction caused by the aliens referred to as 10-C, did any character want to destroy the galaxy let alone a couple. The only couple we had, was one person wanting peaceful means of communication to prevent destruction, while the other wanted to use force to ensure the destruction doesn’t occur. In no case does that equal people wanting to destroy a galaxy.

I can understand not liking the show, but to have such a misconstrued concept of the plot of the seasons shows a shocking lack of basic understanding of what the plot and motivations of the characters are.

I mean the show has plenty that one can find legitimate issues with. Thats not one of them.

They want to pay their bounty by giving a weapon of potential mass destruction to the Breen, thus destroying the galaxy, as seen in the time jumps last episode. They want to do that so they can escape to the Gamma Quadrant while the Breen take apart the Alpha Quadrant.

Last season the scientist wanted to let the 10-C species bulldoze the Alpha Quadrant so he could get across the galactic barrier to meet his lover in paradise, without caring what happened to trillions of other lives.

It is the same basic plot point. Your analysis is incorrect, Wood.

I think you’re overreacting a little. As always.

This episode was disappointing and fell flat. The return of the ISS Enterprise from the mirror universe was of no interest. I had hoped to possibility see a video log from Kirk, Spock, or another familiar character. Why not explore other Constitution Class Starships like the ISS Lexington, Hood, or Potemkin? Enterprise, Enterprise, Enterprise. (Sigh)

Maybe cause the enterprise is the trek ship pretty much everyone knows even if they are a new trek fan or a casual trek fan or not even a trek fan it is so engrained and intertwined with the name Star Trek that is why they chose to make it the iss enterprise instead of one of the others you mentioned

Because exploring a random ship isn’t the plot of the episode. It’s basically set dressing. Having it be the Enterprise versus a different Connie, gives it a tie to the lead character and part of her family she left behind. That it sorry wise. Another ship wouldn’t have any emotion aspect to the characters. Now production wise its to save a ton of money, as creating a random ship with multiple settings to take use of takes money (if your trying to give it the same level of production that you see for the primary ship). Now of course they could have just created a redress of an existing set to be random alien ship of the week. Those usually aren’t done to the same level of using the existing bridge set of another show. So it serves a small story purpose (ie a setting), it serves a small character purpose *reflection for Burnham, and it serves a production purpose (having high quality set pieces without having to build or do a serious redress and thus saving some money).

Seems rather obvious, to me.

I’m annoyed by what they seem to be doing with Owosekun and Detmer this season. I assume that the actors are absent because Paramount wanted to pay them less, and that’s poor treatment for characters who have been around since practically the beginning of the series.

“ I’m annoyed by what they seem to be doing with Owosekun and Detmer this season. ”

…as opposed to the previous four seasons, when all they did was sit in chairs and look meaningfully at each other?

Which is all Sulu and Chekov do in the average TOS episode. So yes, it’s aggravating for them to be replaced by other actors who are doing the same thing.

I doubt they are paid exorbitantly as recurring guests. It could be similar to what happened in season 4 and Bryce Ronnie Rowe Jr’s absences – he had another gig.

I have a theory that before it was decided that Disco would be cancelled, they were going to replace some of the characters. I think Owosekun and Detmer were going to be replaced, and also that Rayner would become captain and Burnham would go away to do something else. But then that didn’t work out, and so to us it just makes no sense why those two main characters are suddenly missing.

You might be right — I hadn’t considered that revamps due to cancellation might be involved.

Well… It is what it is . This was easily the worst episode of the 5. Tropes galore and really bad plot contrivances.

It feels like the reshoots for when they got the cancelation news are getting dropped in throughout the season. A lot of scenes appear grossly out of place. It feels like they just aren’t even trying anymore to be honest. As flawed as the show has been one thing that never came across among the other problems was a lack of trying.

I am loving the addition of Rayner and the professional Starfleet officer energy he is bringing to the ship. I also liked when he told Burnham the mission was too dangerous for the captain to go on. He is turning out to be a nice counterbalance to the unusual way Discovery has been run as a Starfleet ship after season 2.

I hope he doesn’t get killed off.

Sorry but this was another big fat ‘meh’ for me. This was very very disappointing. Nothing of consequence happened. We learn Mol and Lak backstory basically and it is cool we learn that Lak is a Breen which has been the leading theory since he showed up but it just felt sooo bare overall. Like another Discovery infamous spinning wheel episode where they do the bare minimum to move the plot along but just through a lot of action scenes and inconsequential dialogue to feel like we were getting any real development.

And the biggest elephant in the room (or dimensional wormhole) was the ISS Enterprise. Such a let down. It almost felt like a gimmick or just shoehorned fan service. There was no real reason it needed to be there other than HEY THE ENTERPRISE IS BACK!

Again one of the problems with this show, no real development just there for another connection. Think about what they did with In a Mirror Darkly on Enterprise. They brought in the Defiant as obvious fan service from TOS but the ship had a very vital part to the story. It helped changed the dynamics of the MU. It wasn’t there just for show like this was. And Anthony made a great point the redress felt like a joke. It just felt like an excuse to use the set but little else.

Here it was nothing more than just a backdrop and a really forced one at that. And the whole Saru thing just felt very contrived.

I did like all the Breen stuff though and hopefully they will be the big bad the rest of the season. I still think they should’ve used the Breen as the main villain for SNW instead of the Gorn but I digress.

But yeah this is probably the weakest one for me which is disappointing since last week is my favorite so far. I’m getting a little nervous now. It’s usually the second half of the season this show begins to falls apart but still open minded. Still enjoying it overall but please don’t end up a tedious bore like last season felt once it got to its mid season.

You have one last chance Discovery, make it count!

I never considered the Breen in SNW before, but that’s a cool idea. Yeah, I would’ve liked that much more than the Gorn.

For me it was literally the first Gorn episode I thought the Breen would’ve been a better idea. You get the same type of stories and it doesn’t feel like it’s breaking any canon like the Gorn obviously does. I ranted enough about it but nothing about their appearance on SNW feels remotely canon anymore.

But the Breen could’ve been a great substitute if they wanted a known species not named Klingons and zero canon issues.

Agreed. I always enjoyed the mysterious quality of the Breen. Seems ripe for exploration.

This season is largely working for me. Not as good as last week, but the chase is enjoyable. I have a little trouble buying that Mol and L’ak fell in love so fast. I would have liked to have seen that handled better.. but the slow burn of the plot works because of what they do to sustain individual episodes. Only episode I thought was kind of wasteful was the one on Trill.

That is a big part of the problem, yes. The characters have little chemistry.

The flashbacks took [place over an extended period of time, it wasnt THAT fast

They both felt like outcasts in their family/society, fusing them together like lightning. I had no problem with that as it gave me a Bonnie & Clyde-vibe which is historical.

It’s fine, but the romance piece just isn’t clicking for me.

Tarka was a similar situation last season with the reveal of his motivation not really moving me, but I’m also not the biggest fan of waiting several episodes to fill in a lot of backstory in a flashback. It’s not easy to pull off, and Discovery hasn’t really perfected it.

It’s a wonder I stuck with Lost as long as I did, now that I think about it.

“ it’s still the best season yet ”

Well, it was for the first two episodes, but the three since then have been a downward spiral. Seasons one and two were much better than this week’s episode and last week’s.

I’ve enjoyed it all except for the Trill episode. I think it’s been fun with a faster pace.. which has helped with a lot of issues that haven’t gone away. Raynor has been a very welcome addition to the cast.

Overall, very entertaining!

For complaints: any other constitution ship would be cool – but I also feel like we don’t know what happens next – there could be some Prime Mirror Universe people out there. & the “hit it!” joke felt like Dad was in the writer’s room.

Otherwise, I the pairings felt very TOS. Rayner is a little bit Serious Scotty when performing a captain’s role. And he took pride in rescuing her – which is feels good.

For me, this season has been 5/5.

Personal Log. Stardate: Today.

Week 4 of not-watching Discovery continues without incident. Opinions gleaned from critics on the latest episode seem to confirm that ‘mid-season malaise’ has been reached right on schedule.

Based on the collective opinion of commentators, there have been a grand total of one episode out of five that qualifies as “actually good”.

In conclusion, it appears the decision to not-watch until the penultimate episode has been vindicated. The plot points I am privy to following the one episode I watched are:

– There is a chase (or ‘The Chase 2.0’) for the Holy Grail / the technological marvel Salmone Jens left behind.

– The Cylon is now the First Officer.

– The Trill and the Robot are no longer together.

All in all, I remain confident that the recap at the beginning of the penultimate episode should be sufficient to fill in all the key points required.

Again, my thanks go out to the resolute souls who manage to endure what I could not.

these threads are for people to talk about the episodes they have seen. CLOSED.

Am I wrong or did the DS9 episode Through the Looking Glass make a reference to the Mirror Spock being on Romulus? Also given all the DS9 cross overs with the Mirror Universe you would think Burnham would have known something more about her brother’s counterpart.

Spock was not mentioned in Through the Looking Glass. We know between Crossover and the new dedication plaque of the ISS Enterprise that he reformed the Terran Empire and was killed for it. Burnham has clearly boned up on a lot of info since coming to this century, but easy to assume the future history of the mirror universe wasn’t part of that. Also, that info could have been lost or been classified.

Wow! The Breen. From CGI to burn victim.

Does anybody think the Commander Rainer is gonna become the Commandant of Starfleet Academy?

Everything involving Book is incredibly tedious. They brought back the ISS Enterprise as a way to resurrect the OG Enterprise in continuity. Perhaps it ends up as the Enterprise Q or whatever, if Saru is in command then ok. Burnham insisting on going on the away mission is diametrically opposed to how TNG dealt with this – e.g., when Riker as captain insisted on boarding the Borg cube in Best of Both Worlds, and his senior officers reminded him his place was on the bridge. I guess everyone got much dumber in the 32nd century, but “dumber” is Discovery’s whole concept.

This post missed an important Easter egg towards the end: Morn was at the bar “Red’s” just like he did on Quark’s on DS9.

We don’t call out or find every little egg, but when the bar was introduced last season we noted the Lurian (Morn’s species), who has been there ever since. We don’t usually do repeated easter egg bits for each episode

Yay! Good seeing the Breen again and their evolved design in the 32nd Century is great.

Boo! Pretty much everything else except Rayner who is the best character in the show.

Imagine they used the Star Trek: Tour set in Trekonderoga for the ISS Enterprise? What a cool surprise that would have been. But nope, we got the generic canon-breaking Discoprise. Not surprised.

I swear if they make the new Enterprise in the 3190s a refitted Constitution, I will facepalm. Just a stupid idea, when you have far superior tech and designs in the future time period. Please don’t, Disco-writers. Bad enough they did it with the Ent-G (one of my few criticisms of the great PIC S3).

here are 6 points for a reply to each of your issues with snw and dsc as a whole and this episode in particular

1.there is already a constitution class in the 32nd century it’s design was also used pre burn in the late 31st century so i dought they would refit iss enterprise like they did with the discovery plus they did say the ship was being taken to a federation storage facility

2.as for why they used the snw sets and cg assets well two reasons for one location/budget convenience as snw is shot in toronto at the same studio as dsc is and two they have said from the start they visually updated the 23rd century to fit visually better between ent era and tmp era mainly star trek 5/6

3.and there is nothing canon breaking about any of the new shows as they give explanations that tie back to enteprise and first contact since enterprise tied into that movie for the reasons of in unverse changes to the prime timeline universe and that is time travel to fix the past either on it’s own or part of the temporal cold war

4.and the temporal Cold War which later turned into the temporal wars is the reason the discovery was refited and givin the -A at the end of the registry is to hide the fact the ship and crew time traveled and broke the law agaisnt any form of time travel that was put into place after the temporal wars and a smaller part to protect starfleets butt

5.and if you have to don’t look at seasons 1 and 2 of dsc and snw as prequels to tos but as sequels to ent and then veiw ent as a sequal to first contact as i hear it makes it easier for some tos fans to enjoy these trek shows

6.or use the in universe reasons for the changes mentioned above in point 3 to be able to enjoy watching new trek shows mentioned above in point 5

Would it have been too much if Dr. Cho was instead Marlena Moreau? Just saying. Kind of like Dax in Jinaal… I feel like they are making all of these deep cuts, why not make them count a bit more to the overall lore, instead of just throwing the ISS Enterprise in with no good reason. Making these deep cuts actually count towards the overall lore might make the obvious (potential) budget cuts, set reuses, etc. be a bit more forgiving. Giving loved characters some finality that affect the course of this in our face galactic scale quest… might make it hit harder? Maybe I’m wrong, I’m sure someone here will think so lol

Overall the episode was okay. I do understand using the ISS Enterprise since this is supposed to be the final season of Discovery it was a nostalgia play and kind of wrap up the history of that ship in regards to the series. But overall it just seems kind of mashed together. Have to see how it ties in with the rest of the season.

I would say this episode along with the one before it were definitely the weakest of the season. They started out with a bang on the first few, and while I know that they tend to slow down in the middle of the season before ramping up the action for the final few, this episode dragged. There were also a few things with the Breen and the Enterprise that seemed a bit confusing:

– The Breen have 2 faces…great! Awesome twist to the species and fantastic to finally be able to see them after all the mystery around them in DS9. If the second face is supposed to be the more evolved one though, why do they need the masks and the suits? Can the more evolved face not breathe in a standard atmosphere? When L’ak and his uncle opened up their masks, they seemed fine, so there’s still quite a bit we don’t know about why they use that whole setup, especially when they’re around their own people

– Does the more evolved form extend past the face?

ISS Enterprise

– The stardate on the commemorative plaque is 32336.6. Popping that number into a couple of online stardate calculators puts that around mid-2355, which would be a few years before the prime universe Enterprise-D was commissioned in 2363. They mentioned that Dr. Cho came back to the Enterprise to hide the clue, so the assumption is that she also placed the plaque there at the same time. The timing doesn’t quite add up though because The Chase took place in 2369. Nobody would have known about The Progenitors or their technology before that, so they were at least 14 years off with the plaque

– If this Enterprise has been caught in extradimensional space since at least 2355, that means it’s been there for over 800 years by the time it’s discovered. How does it still have power?

– It’s been discussed by the Disco production team that the Discovery-era Enterprise was designed so that it could eventually be refit into the TOS Enterprise. The ISS Enterprise was contemporary with Kirk’s version and was seen on screen in TOS in that configuration. Why is the version in this episode the Discovery one? I know the real-world explanation is that it was easier to just re-use that model to align with the sets, but we saw a TOS-era Constitution class USS New Jersey at the Fleet Museum in Picard, so they had that model available to use. Just a bit sloppy

– How did Stamets immediately know that the ship exiting the wormhole was the ISS Enterprise and not a different prime Constitution class ship?

Photon Torpedo

– The solution to hold the wormhole open for the Enterprise to escape was to remove the payload from the torpedoes and replace them with antimatter. Photon torpedoes are matter/antimatter weapons, so this is a little confusing. Are they taking out the matter and just loading them with more antimatter?

I don’t know that it’s been there for 855 years.. not sure if it’s kind of like the Nexus or the black hole in Trek 09, where time does things differently. My guess is, that’s how the people on board were able to integrate into society. Their doppelgängers were long deceased.

Here’s the other thing… if the idea of revolution started with Mirror Spock, and the crew of the Enterprise more or less went along with him.. this is a way of explaining how they didn’t spread the idea to teh rest of the Empire.. they were lost in space and didn’t have much, if any, influence off of their own ship.

But they did spread the idea enough to weaken the empire to the point where it could be conquered.

Yeah I was wondering that also. It’s possible since it was extradimensional space that it didn’t put them in exactly the same time that they left. Also odd that they said Dr. Cho went BACK to the Enterprise to hide the clue. That’s a pretty risky trip unless the wormhole was more stable back in the 24th century.

It is strongly implied, if not explicitly stated, that the wormhole’s instability was caused by the Burn. So, it had to be more stable in the 24th century.

they never said that the ship would be refited into the tos version as they said those 60’s sets and ship model design would not look good or belivable as from our future with modern filming cameras they said from the start they visually updated the mid 23rd century to fit better visually between ent era designs and tmp era designs mainly using Star Trek 5/6 as the basis for the tmp era side of the designs

as for the new jersey that was just a pandering memberberry easter egg for the fans that hate the visual updates and even blass has said he objected to using the 60’s design for the ship and pointed out that it should have used the snw model for it and that it was all on terry who was more interested in filling episodes with those easter eggs and memberberries like all the stuff on daystrom station and for having data come back instead of having a brand new soong type android that was exactly as alton soong designed it to be a amalgamation of data lore lal and himself

I feel like I’m seeing the same episode over and over, what a waste this series is became.

Great episode! This season has really been fantastic so far. The writing has been consistent, the acting of the principals is fantastic, and the pacing has been great.

I really loved the scenes with Rayner in command. That worked so well!

Loved getting the backstory about Moll and L’ak – it really did add layers to their characters and their story. And the reveal that L’ak was a Breen! I never saw that coming! Was great to know more about the most underdeveloped and mysterious alien race in Trek history.

Seeing the ISS Entreprise was a treat! I am guessing it was lost quite some time after mirror Spock took over from mirror Kirk. Nice Easter Egg… better than having some unknown ship in there.

Looking forward to the remaining episodes.

Did anyone else see “Morn” (or one of his species) sitting at the bar in Red’s?

Yes, I did catch that. It was a fun detail.

Seriously, an episode doesn’t go by without at least one eye roll over the touchy feely huggy share my feeling vibe that is shoe-horned into worst places. I wonder what this series would be like if Bryan Fuller had stayed on…

It would had been .. a Star Trek show, not this happy sad feeling sharing at all costs every single time somebody speaks.

I have a question because I’m really confused:

So discovery originally was set less than a decade before ToS. (And then they ended up far in the future)

The ISS enterprise is a reference to the ToS episode about the mirror universe. So that means the ISS enterprise is a contemporary with ToS and the USS enterprise, which means Dr Cho (who was expressly stated to be Terran) was about back in Kirk’s day.

However the progenitor technology and science in general was only discovered in TNG under Picard and i think it was expressly stated that the scientists that hid this research were originally asked to research it after the discovery by Picard in the first place.

TNG is set in the 24th century but ToS is set in the 23rd century – theirs about a hundred years between them.

So I’m trying to understand the timeline here because at the moment, from what I understand, it’s a human from the 23rd century somehow became a scientist on a study in the late 24th century and then stole the research and helped hide it with her 4 pals.

No the iss enterprise entered that anomaly in the mid 24th century sometime after 2355 going by the stardate on that plaque and the ship got unstuck in time via the anomaly and the refugees and survivors of mirror Saru’s revolt ended up in the late 31st century prime verse timeline sometime prior to the burn happening and then doctor Cho who was one of those survivors returned later to the ship to hide the clue there before leaving again and never returning and wiping all references to the ship from records so that it would not easily be found

I thought for sure the Real Captain Lorca would be found in the transporters.

What a waste of an episode… filler and feelings…. Rinse and repeat

What an empty, disappointing episode. Discovery feels smaller and smaller every season.

the basic idea of the episode was already good. and it would have been really great to connect the MU and the 32nd century. in the end, however, the solution and especially the writing was weak. there could have been so much more …

what really annoys me is how owo and bryce are said goodbye with a side sentence, “so long …” and so on. the way DISCO treats secondary characters is really sad at times. there should have been much more space for a bridge member like owo … sad. again and again we are given hints of interesting background stories, but then nothing else happens. that’s really lousy. compare that to the way supporting characters in earlier series were built up into really multi-faceted carriers of stories …!!

This episode was the perfect opportunity for the series to bring back Prime Universe Lorca.

Instead of having Mirror Saru be the one that brings the ISS Enterprise from the Mirror Universe to the Prime Universe, it should have been Lorca that does it.

Additionally, they could have revealed that Lorca was STILL onboard the ship, trapped in the transporter buffer like Scotty was in Relics.

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Recap / Star Trek: Discovery S2E03 "Point of Light"

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Amanda Grayson comes to Discovery to seek Burnham's help for Spock, Tilly keeps seeing her dead friend May, and L'Rell and Ash deal with resistance from the Klingon Houses in the effort to unite the Empire.

Tropes in this episode:

• Agent Scully : Amanda had always rationalized young Spock's knowing where Michael had run off to as him logically deducing it, rather than his insistence that a Red Angel had told him where she was.
• Attack Drone : Mirror-Georgiou has a drone which vaporizes the members of House Kor.
• Bait-and-Switch : May doesn't believe that Pike is the captain because she's remembering someone blonder, whom Tilly takes to be Lorca. Turns out that she's describing Stamets.
• How dare Kol-Sha wear face paint to a high council meeting? Why, it must be removed immediately— and Tyler does just that. Which smears his hands with the listening devices in the facepaint, allowing Kol-Sha to eavesdrop— exactly as he planned.
• L'Rell fakes the deaths of Tyler and her son, claiming that Tyler killed the child and tried to kill her, while Kol-Sha died protecting her from Tyler. She states that she's unable to have children any more and now considers all Klingons to be her children, dubbing herself "Mother" of the Empire. All of this is to make the Council believe in Klingon unity, that she's ruthless enough to kill someone that she's close to, and that she will have no heir to replace her in the future. All while avoiding the political complications of accusing the House of Kol of dishonor, by instead making Kol-Sha a martyr for her cause.
• Battle Couple : L'Rell and Tyler get into a brawl where they take down a group of Kol-Sha's guards.
• Blatant Lies : The Emperor insists that she's Captain Georgiou, despite Tyler (and presumably L'Rell) knowing full well that that's nonsense.
• Borrowed Biometric Bypass : When L'Rell won't turn over control of the Empire willingly, Kol-Sha paralyzes her and then uses her thumb to sign the contract.
• Break His Heart to Save Him : Burnham feared that the logic extremists might target Spock if he remained near her, so she said something to him that soured their relationship from then on. We're not told what it is, but it's something so bad that Burnham isn't even willing to speak it to Amanda.
• Brick Joke : After coming aboard Discovery , Amanda tells Burnham that she stole Spock's medical files. Two scenes later, Captain Vela tells Pike that Spock's case has been complicated by the theft of some of his files; the camera focuses on the nervous look on Amanda's face.
• Call-Back : During the discovery of May's true nature and how and when Tilly might have been infected, there's a Flashback to the scene from the previous season that showed a glowing spore settling on her shoulder and vanishing.
• Combat Pragmatist : Rather than fight L'Rell and Tyler at a disadvantage, Kol-Sha uses a paralyzing weapon to disable them.
• L'Rell presents the plans for the iconic Klingon D-7 cruiser, announcing it as the base for a new unified Klingon fleet.
• L'Rell and Tyler's son is left with the monks on Boreth, the same monastery which played a key role in Kahless' return .
• Klingon blood is once again pink.
• Klingons have also started regrowing their head and facial hair. Apparently, it was customary to keep a bare head in time of war.
• Cross-Referenced Titles : The title of the episode is a reference to the story of Kahless' departure from Qo'nos, when he indicated a star in the sky, and instructed the people to look for him "on that point of light". That story and the monastery that the Klingons would later build on the planet Boreth, which orbited the star that Kahless had pointed to, made their first appearance in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode " Rightful Heir ".
• Decapitation Presentation : L'Rell presents the supposed heads of Tyler and her child to the rest of the council to cement her rule. In reality, their heads are very convincing fakes made by Section 31.
• Deconstructed Trope : Most times, having a hallucinatory buddy who talks with you is, at worst, a source of irritation or confusion. This episode shows what a psychological toll such a problem is likely to cause.
• Dude, Where's My Respect? : Tyler is treated like crap by everyone on Qo'noS except L'Rell, and he gets pissed at her for not telling him about their son.
• Faking the Dead : Section 31 provides L'Rell with fake heads of Tyler and their son so she can convince the council that Tyler killed the child and she killed Tyler in turn.
• Foreshadowing : Tyler is shown having trouble washing the paint off his hand which he had smeared from Kol-Sha's face. Kol-Sha later reveals that it consists of nanotech that he was using to listen in on Tyler and L'Rell.
• Green-Eyed Monster : L'Rell expresses jealousy that Tyler trusts Burnham more than her.
• Hoist by His Own Petard : Kol-Sha claims that he is trying to overthrow L'Rell (and eventually kill her) because she's conspiring with the Federation and he sees her movement toward Klingon unity as a threat to his House's power. His coup attempt results in his death, L'Rell really conspiring with Section 31, and using his death to further advance her goal of greater unity.
• Holographic Disguise : Mirror-Georgiou not only had a hood hiding her face, she had a disguise making her look reptilian as well.
• When Pike asks Amanda if Burnham was as bossy as a kid, Amanda states that on Vulcan they call it "persistent". And she was.
• Tyler keeps calling Mirror-Georgiou "Emperor" even when she tells him not to.
• Internal Reveal : Tilly tells Burnham about May.
• Kol-Sha throws shade at Tyler (and indirectly at L'Rell) during the council meeting. Kol-Sha: (to L'Rell) If you want whatever this is as your plaything, it belongs in your bed, not here.
• Tyler doesn't like it when L'Rell refers to their son as "it".
• Kicking Ass in All Her Finery : That's not a bad-looking dress that L'Rell wears while she and Tyler slaughter Kol-Sha's mooks .
• Layman's Terms : One of Spock's doctors states in a recording that he's suffering from "extreme empathy deficits". Amanda says that there's a much simpler term to describe it: psychopathy.
• Love Is a Weakness : Mirror-Georgiou bluntly states this to L'Rell, noting that her rule will always be challenged so long as Tyler is at her side and she has a child to care for. This convinces L'Rell to give both up, letting Mirror-Georgiou help fake their deaths.
• Manly Tears : Tyler visibly tears up when he sees his son for the first time.
• Married at Sea : Jokingly discussed when Tilly is shadowing Pike as part of her command training. Pike: How about we marry some folks, even if they're not that into each other?
• My Eyes Are Leaking : A second-person variant— when Tilly starts to cry, May asks her why her eyes are dripping. Tilly tells this to Burnham, who quickly realizes that May isn't simply the memory of a human girl if she doesn't know what crying is.
• My Greatest Failure : Amanda sees not allowing Spock to express his emotions, or allowing herself to express hers toward him to allow for a Vulcan upbringing, as the cause for the current troubles.
• Mythology Gag : Spock is described as being "emotionally compromised", which was what Kirk weaponized to take command of Enterprise in the Kelvin timeline .
• Never Bring a Knife to a Gun Fight : Kol-Sha demonstrates quite well that energy weapons are a lot more efficient than sharp bits of metal. Then Mirror-Georgiou shows up packing an attack drone and demonstrates it again.
• No Gravity for You : Mirror-Georgiou traps Kol-Sha in an anti-gravity bubble, leaving him helpless as L'Rell goes for the kill.
• Not So Above It All : Mirror-Georgiou starts making goo-goo faces at Tyler's son, but snaps back to a serious expression when he catches her.
• Oh, Crap! : Burnham does a magnificent "oh shit" face when Amanda reveals that she stole Spock's medical file.
• Once More, with Clarity : The scene where Tilly was infected by a spore is shown , only this time with the explanation of what was going on.
• Out-of-Character Alert : Tilly notes that the May that she knew in school was meek and "kinda goofy", while the one that she's seeing aboard Discovery is increasingly demanding and belligerent.
• The Paralyzer : Kol-Sha uses a paralyzing weapon on Tyler and L'Rell that not only physically paralyzes them, but will eventually paralyze their internal organs. Mirror-Georgiou deactivates it before the latter happens.
• Pardon My Klingon : Kol-Sha calls L'Rell something in Klingon that fails to impress her. L'Rell: If that is the gravest insult you can hurl, you are even less than I imagined.
• Poorly Disguised Pilot : The whole Klingon subplot, with its focus on Tyler, Mirror-Georgiou, and the workings of Section 31, is clearly meant to lay the groundwork for the currently in-development series about Section 31.
• Previously on… : L'Rell once again does the honors in Klingonese. "Hov leng: DISqa'vI'rIy lut 'ay' vorgh"
• Puppet King : Kol-Sha accuses L'Rell of being the Federation's puppet.
• Ragtag Bunch of Misfits : Mirror-Georgiou describes Section 31 this way when recruiting Tyler. Tyler: I'm surprised you call yourself a misfit, Emperor . Georgiou: The freaks are more fun.
• L'Rell conceived a child with Voq. Like Voq, he's an albino.
• The Red Angel visited Spock as a child and told him where to find Michael when she'd run away from home.
• Spock isn't actually on Starbase 5, he's wanted for killing three doctors and is on the run.
• Michael reveals that she hurt Spock as a child to keep him away from her for his own protection after she was targeted by extremists. Amanda does not take it well .
• May is actually a fungal lifeform that attached itself to Tilly when the crew was escaping the Mirror Universe. The burst of energy from the dark matter asteroid allowed it to communicate with Tilly.
• Section 31 is making sure that L'Rell maintains control of the Klingon Empire.
• Reasonable Authority Figure : When Tilly gets worried about how they will explain her outburst on the bridge to Captain Pike, Saru remarks that Pike has a sense of humor and will probably understand.
• Revealing Cover-Up : Pike discovers that Spock is wanted for murdering three doctors on Starbase 5, which the commander of the Starbase was reluctant to share with him. The fact that neither Pike (his commanding officer) or Spock's family were told or questioned about the supposed crime, and that no one else in Starfleet was warned to be on the lookout for him, tells Burnham and Amanda that there's a lot more to his disappearance than they originally suspected.
• Right for the Wrong Reasons : Kol-Sha accuses L'Rell of being a Federation puppet and conspiring with them because Tyler warned Burnham that the L'Rell's peace seemed to be in danger of falling apart, when L'Rell truly is totally loyal to the Empire. Neither he nor she know that Section 31 is secretly working to make sure that she stays in power.
• Amanda stole Spock's medical records when Starbase 5 stonewalled her attempts to check on his progress.
• Pike orders Burnham to break into Spock's encrypted medical file when he learns that Spock has been accused of murder and isn't likely to get a fair shake unless they find him first.
• Screw Your Ultimatum! : L'Rell refuses to give up control of the Empire in exchange for her son, knowing that Kol-Sha is just going to kill her, Tyler, and the child as soon as he has what he wants.
• Shoo Out the Clowns : In the prior episode, May's interactions with Tilly were played for laughs. In this episode, Tilly is having a nervous breakdown because of the presence of someone talking to her that only she can see.
• Split-Screen Phone Call : During Tyler's call to Burnham, after they show her speaking to a hologram of him on Discovery and him speaking to a hologram of her on Qo'noS, they use a split screen for parts of the conversation. It features a lot of Orange/Blue Contrast between the dark orange chamber on Qo'noS and Burnham's blue-lit cabin on Discovery .
• Spotting the Thread : Burnham immediately realizes that May can't be a ghost or a hallucination because May doesn't recognize tears: if she really was May's ghost, a teenage human girl would certainly know what crying is, and if she was just a figment of Tilly's mind, Tilly also knows what crying is.
• Stealth Pun : Tilly hallucinates May because of mushrooms.
• Switch to English : After L'Rell and Tyler have finished speechifying in Klingonese while announcing the new D-7 battlecruiser, Kol-Sha starts disrespecting Tyler in English, asking if everyone else should speak like humans instead of Klingons. L'Rell: veS qulvo' taghqa' yIn. Qangra' jIHmo', jIHvo' vIHtaH che'meH bovvam. cha'maH loS tuq'a'vo' ghoSchoH wa' ghu. (Out of the fire of war, life begins anew. As your chancellor, this dynasty springs from me. From the 24 great houses, one offspring rises up.) Tyler: Day Soch wo' yo' tuch may'Duj yIlegh. wa' tuq joqwI' cha'be'. 'a wo'maj tay' Degh bolegh. (Behold the D-7, the future battle cruiser of the Imperial Fleet. It bears the banner of no single house, but the insignia of our united empire.) L'Rell: Duj lInglu'ghach loH Sech qengwI'wI'. qIbvaD tIqmaj 'ang Dujvam. 'ej qangtlhIn majatlhmo' tlhIngan maH taHjaj. (My torchbearer will oversee production of this ship...A ship that shows the Galaxy who we are, and what it means to remain Klingon.) All: tlhIngan maH taHjaj! Kol-Sha: Will you make this Human our new fleet captain, too, chancellor? Perhaps we should speak in his standard tongue, too.
• That Man Is Dead : Tyler tells L'Rell that, even though he can remember fragments of his past life as Voq, the man that he was isn't coming back.
• That's an Order! : When Pike finds out that Spock is being hunted, he doesn't agree with Burnham and Amanda's request to hack into Spock's medical file; he explicitly orders Burnham to do so. The implication is that he does so to provide Burnham with a Just Following Orders defense if her actions are ever found out.
• Tranquil Fury : Amanda barely shows any emotion when Burnham reveals that she hurt Spock as a child, but it's clear that she's absolutely livid.
• Averted. L'Rell talks to Tyler in English in private, but Tyler explicitly states that she's speaking to him in English instead of Klingon.
• Played straight later when L'Rell is talking to the Council: she begins in Klingon with English subtitles, then the subtitles morph into Klingon and the scene carries on in English. L'Rell: puq vIboghmoHpu'. vav ghaH voq'e'. voq vIquvmoHmeH Sech qengwI'wI'vaD Human vIgheSmoH. pongDaj vIja'qa'laHtaHbe'... (I had a child. Voq was the father. I made the human my torchbearer to honor Voq. I can no longer say his name...) ...such was the dishonor he brought.
• Treachery Cover-Up : L'Rell claims that Kol-Sha died heroically protecting her from Tyler after Tyler killed their son, an example of the leader of one House protecting another, in order to further promote Klingon unity.
• Uterine Replicator : L'Rell tells Tyler that their child was gestated ex utero because she couldn't be pregnant while their mission to infiltrate Discovery was ongoing. However, the process left the child small, so it still looks like a newborn rather than months old.
• Villainous Rescue : Mirror-Georgiou suddenly appears to save L'Rell and Tyler from Kol-Sha.
• Wham Line : When Tyler asks Georgiou what kind of people can pull off the deception that they do, she shows him a black badge. He then sums up the significance of that badge and introduces a major new plot element with two words: Tyler: Section 31.
• Tyler and L'Rell walk into the room where their son is kept— and find Ujili dead and the child missing.
• Just as Kol-Sha is about to kill Tyler and L'Rell, a hooded figure suddenly enters, kills Kol-Sha's mooks , and immobilizes Kol-Sha himself so that L'Rell can kill him. The figure pulls back the hood— and it's Emperor Georgiou.
• Where Does He Get All Those Wonderful Toys? : Section 31 is shown to have access to a lot of technology that regular Starfleet personnel don't, as Tyler notes. This includes a cloaking device , which at this time (2257) no other Federation ship has been shown to use.
• Would Hurt a Child : Kol-Sha kidnaps the child of Voq and L'Rell, threatening to kill the child if she doesn't hand over the chancellorship.
• You Have Outlived Your Usefulness : L'Rell figures that if she complies with Kol-Sha's demand for control of the Empire, she and Tyler will no longer be needed. Instead, they fight Kol-Sha's men.
• You Won't Feel a Thing! : Stamets says "This might hurt a bit" right before using a technobabble doodad to suck "May Ahern" out of Tilly's body. Judging by Tilly's reaction, it probably did hurt more than a bit.
• Star Trek: Discovery S2E02 "New Eden"
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• Star Trek: Discovery S2E04 "An Obol for Charon"

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Star Trek: Discovery Just Brought A Legendary Original Series Episode Back Into The Mix

Let's fly ... away from spoilers . Read no further if you haven't watched the latest episode of "Star Trek: Discovery."

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the strangest of them all? In "Star Trek," that title goes to one of the zaniest concepts ever introduced into the canon: The Mirror Universe. The idea of our alternate selves living completely different lives somewhere out there is no longer the sole domain of perhaps the nerdiest franchise in all of sci-fi (although shows like "For All Mankind," "Foundation," and "3 Body Problem" are creating some stiff competition), the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or the best episode of "Community" ever made . Fans might be surprised to find out that many in the scientific community believe the theory is worth discussion these days . But "Trek" put its own unmistakable fingerprints on the multiverse by emphasizing one in particular that stands at odds with the usual Prime Universe -- one that poses a fundamentally moral dilemma between the paragons of Starfleet we know and love, and the absolute worst versions of themselves.

It doesn't come as a huge surprise that "Star Trek: Discovery" would use its final season to travel full circle and return to the Mirror Universe that played such a significant role back in season 1 (even if, ironically, there might be a parallel universe out there where we were able to see  former showrunner Bryan Fuller's more complex and nuanced take on it ). But what's sure to shock and delight longtime fans in episode 5, aptly titled "Mirrors," is a deep-cut reference to arguably one of the most influential hours of "Trek" ever made, and the one that introduced the Mirror Universe in the first place.

Read more: Every Star Trek Show And Movie In Chronological Order

A Different Kind Of Black Mirror

There might not be any sinister goatees or chest-baring V-necks in sight throughout this episode of "Discovery," but the lasting effects of "The Original Series" episode "Mirror, Mirror" are plain to see. Upon entering the wormhole that took scavengers Moll (Eve Harlow) and L'ak (Elias Toufexis) into multidimensional space, Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Book (David Ajala) discover the wrecked remains of their ship ... alongside the still-functioning husk of a familiar-looking Starfleet vessel, emblazoned with the name, "ISS Enterprise." For those who haven't brushed up on their 1967 "Trek" lore (and, quite frankly, shame on you if that's the case), Burnham helpfully points out that this isn't exactly the same starship captained by the fabled James T. Kirk thousands of years ago. It's one that has somehow found its way from the depths of the Mirror Universe (the exact specifics are oddly brushed aside) and remained stranded ever since.

But then "Discovery" goes a step further and hearkens back to "Mirror, Mirror" more thematically. While exploring the derelict ship, Burnham and Book stumble upon information about the previous occupants of the ISS Enterprise and specifically that of a certain Kelpian who rose from a slave to a leader in his own right. That, of course, refers to none other than the Mirror version of Saru (Doug Jones) seen in season 3, whom Emperor Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh) saved from certain death and pointed towards his proper path. Where the ending of "Mirror, Mirror" suggests that Mirror Spock is still "a man of integrity" despite the ruthlessness of the Empire he serves, "Discovery" reconfirms that even the comically rampant evil of the Mirror Universe is no match for the stubborn idealism of "Trek."

New episodes of "Star Trek: Discovery" stream on Paramount+ every Thursday.

Read the original article on SlashFilm

Screen Rant

Star trek: discovery just did a secret strange new worlds crossover.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5 brought Captain Burnham to the Mirror Universe's Starship Enterprise. If the sets look familiar, it's because they are.

Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery Season 5, Episode 5 - "Mirrors"

• Star Trek: Discovery Season 5, Episode 5 was a crossover with Strange New Worlds' Enterprise sets.
• Captain Burnham found the Mirror Universe's ISS Enterprise in interdimensional space.
• The two Star Trek series share sets in Toronto and they have filmed on each other's sets before.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5, "Mirrors," was a secret crossover with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds . Written by Johanna Lee & Carlos Cisco and directed by Jen McGowan, Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5 sent Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Cleveland Booker (David Ajala) into interdimensional space in pursuit of Moll (Eve Harlow), L'ak (Elias Toufexis), and the next clue to the ancient treasure of the Progenitors. Burnham never expected to find the derelict ISS Enterprise from the Mirror Universe within the dangerous wormhole.

Star Trek: The Original Series season 2, episode 4, "Mirror, Mirror", introduced the Mirror Universe and the ISS Enterprise , the alternate reality counterpart of the USS Enterprise. The ISS Enterprise hadn't been seen since, but Star Trek: Discovery revealed refugees attempted to flee the Mirror Universe aboard the Constitution Class ship. The passengers, including Science Officer Dr. Cho, abandoned the Enterprise in interdimensional space and made it to Star Trek 's Prime Universe. Later, Dr. Cho returned to hide her clue to the Progenitors' treasure aboard the ISS Enterprise.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 Returning Cast & New Character Guide

Star trek: discovery season 5 filmed on strange new worlds’ enterprise set, discovery and strange new worlds film on adjacent sets in toronto.

Although no characters from Star Trek: Strange New Worlds appeared in Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 5 - which makes sense since the two series are set over 930 years apart in Star Trek 's timeline - "Mirrors" was filmed on Strange New Worlds ' USS Enterprise sets which doubled for the ISS Enterprise. Star Trek: Discovery and Strange New Worlds shoot in Toronto on adjacent soundstages and both shows have access to each other's sets. In an interview with Screen Rant , David Ajala confirmed that Discovery filmed its scenes in late 2022 after Strange New Worlds season 2 wrapped production.

Sharing sets is a Star Trek tradition going back to the 1990s Star Trek series.

This type of 'crossover' between Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has happened before . Strange New Worlds season 2, episode 2 , "Ad Astra Per Aspera" shot its courtroom scenes for Lt. Commander Una Chin-Riley's (Rebecca Romijn) trial in Discovery 's Federation headquarters set. Sharing sets is a Star Trek tradition going back to the 1990s Star Trek series when Star Trek: The Next Generation , Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine would film on each others' sets as a cost-saving measure.

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country redressed Star Trek: The Next Generation 's 10 Forward set to become the office of the Federation President (Kurtwood Smith).

Can Discovery & Strange New Worlds Have A Real Star Trek Crossover?

It's unlikely, but not completely impossible..

Star Trek: Discovery season 1's finale and season 2 can be credited as the first Star Trek 'crossover' of the Paramount+ era when the USS Enterprise, Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), Lt. Spock (Ethan Peck), and Number One joined the show. The trio proved so popular, fans clamored for them to receive their own spinoff set aboard the Starship Enterprise, which became Star Trek: Strange New Worlds . Star Trek: Discovery then jumped forward to the 32nd century, and it was a one-way trip that left the Enterprise and the 23rd century permanently behind. But can a Discovery and Strange New Worlds crossover still happen?

Yet there are possibilities for a Discovery and Strange New Worlds crossover.

There won't be a crossover with Star Trek: Discovery season 5 outside of Burnham, Book, Moll, and L'ak occupying the ISS Enterprise in "Mirrors" . Discovery season 5 has long since wrapped production and the hunt for the Progenitors' technology doesn't leave room for any time travel to see Strange New Worlds' characters . Yet there are possibilities for a Discovery and Strange New Worlds crossover. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 is in production and the series is renewed for season 4. Perhaps a way could be found to have Captain Burnham see Captain Pike and Spock one more time. Or both show's characters may meet on neutral ground through various sci-fi means on Star Trek: Starfleet Academy . Where there's a will, there's a way to still crossover Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds .

New episodes of Star Trek: Discovery season 5 stream Thursdays on Paramount+

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Star Trek: Discovery

Ten years before Kirk, Spock, and the Enterprise, the USS Discovery discovers new worlds and lifeforms as one Starfleet officer learns to understand all things alien. Ten years before Kirk, Spock, and the Enterprise, the USS Discovery discovers new worlds and lifeforms as one Starfleet officer learns to understand all things alien. Ten years before Kirk, Spock, and the Enterprise, the USS Discovery discovers new worlds and lifeforms as one Starfleet officer learns to understand all things alien.

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• Trivia The Starfleet vessels seen in the first season, including the Discovery, the Shenzou and the redesigned Enterprise, were all designed by production artist John Eaves. Eaves' work with Star Trek spans three decades. Probably his most notable contribution was the design of the Enterprise-E for Star Trek: First Contact (1996) .
• Goofs With Michael being the adoptive sister of Spock, the series has many flashbacks to their childhood and upbringing on Vulcan. Spock's Vulcan half-brother, Sybok, does not appear nor is mention during these scenes. In Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989) , Spock says that he and Sybok grew up together. However, since it's never stated when Sybok joined Sarek's home - only that he did so following his mother's death - or when he was exiled from the family, it's not impossible Sybok moved in after Burnham, and left before she graduated (the two extremes of the flashbacks). Also, since Sybok was never mentioned before Star Trek V, it seems reasonable the family never spoke of him again after his estrangement.
• Alternate versions The serif-font legends and subtitles in the "broadcast" episodes are absent from the DVD versions, where they are replaced with the standard DVD subtitles.
• Connections Featured in MsMojo: Top 10 Female Lead TV Shows You Should Be Watching in 2017 (2017)

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• How many seasons does Star Trek: Discovery have? Powered by Alexa
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• September 24, 2017 (United States)
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Star Trek's Biggest Badass Reveals His Starship's Secret Name

From The Dark Knight to Discovery , David Ajala is a man of action.

David Ajala’s journey in the Final Frontier is coming to a close. Although Ajala only joined the cast of Star Trek: Discovery in 2020, at the start of Season 3 , it certainly feels like his rugged space courier with a heart of gold — Cleveland “Book” Booker — has been on in the series longer than he really has. As Book, Ajala brought some Indiana Jones swagger to Discovery , albeit with a touch of Gene Roddenberry idealism .

The fifth episode of Discovery’s final season puts Book and Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) into a perilous and very familiar setting, one which connects back to The Original Series, Deep Space Nine , Discovery’s second season, and even Strange New Worlds.

Inverse caught up with Ajala — best known for his roles in The Dark Knight and Supergirl — to get his take on where he’s been, how Star Trek has “blessed” his life, and which franchise he wants to jump to next.

Spoilers ahead for Star Trek: Discovery Episode 5, “Mirrors.”

Book and Burnham fly a shuttle in a new daring mission to...the Enterprise !

While in pursuit of the latest clue to unravel the secret of the Progenitor tech , “Mirrors” leads Captain Burnham and Book into a wormhole where they find the ISS Enterprise NCC-1701, the wicked Mirror Universe version of the classic 23rd century Enterprise from The Original Series and Strange New Worlds. (ISS stands for “Imperial Star Ship.” Whereas USS means “United Star Ship.”) This evil Enterprise first appeared in the 1967 TOS episode “Mirror, Mirror.” But, for the sake of current visual continuity, it’s now clearly a redress of the USS Enterprise set from Strange New Worlds.

“We wrapped shooting before [ Strange New Worlds ] started to commence their next season,” Ajala reveals. “So, sadly, the crossover didn’t happen.” But, Ajala notes that being in the physical sets of the Enterprise sickbay and bridge was a refreshing change from some of his other work in Discovery .

“There is a lot of green screen usually, and you have to tap into your childhood imagination. You’re playing cowboys,” Ajala explains. “But, there was something very, very special about shooting that scene that made it a lot easier for me to act. Part of it was what Sonequa [Martin-Green] was doing. How she held the space in such reverence, how she really channeled into the memory of her brother [Spock]. It was really wonderfully special and the fans are just going to love it.”

When Ajala joined Discovery as Book in 2020, he was probably best known to genre fans for his role as a bounty hunter working for the Joker (Heath Ledger) in The Dark Knight . But, he’s equally recognizable as Manchester Black from CW’s Supergirl . Then again, he was also one of the “Smilers” named Peter in the 2010 Doctor Who episode “The Beast Below.” From Star Trek, and the DCEU to the Whoniverse, that’s a lot of sci-fi geek cred for one man. And now, that Discovery is winding down, Ajala doesn’t mind looking back on his pre-Star Trek work with fondness, and even, a hypothetical part of his future.

David Ajala in 2024, a man for all seasons, and dimensions.

“There was once upon a time, a possibility. There was a very strong invitation to go back into one of those worlds,” Ajala says cryptically. Does this mean he was almost in the multiverse shenanigans of The Flash ? Another CW Arrowverse show? Even a later episode of Doctor Who ? Ajala can’t say outright, so we’re just guessing. But it seems like it almost happened and could happen again. “The timing didn’t work out,” he says. “If and when that opportunity does present itself, I would gladly take that invitation again.”

Ajala is also open to the idea of tackling franchises he’s never been a part of before. And because he was born in London, his accent does make some wonder if he could be the phantom menace of future James Bond contenders .

“That is a vicious rumor!” Ajala says with a laugh. “But it’s also a massive compliment. In all honesty, it’s a wonderful thought to even entertain the idea of [playing Bond]. My main thing is to always pursue roles that excite me, that turn me on, and that challenge me. Stranger things have happened.”

It’s not hard to see why some folks might think of David Ajala as James Bond material in the 2020s. When he debuted in Discovery Season 3, as Book, he was a space pirate with a heart of gold, a guy whom we believed was poaching alien animals, but, in reality, he’s an empath, bringing space creatures to better homes. But, Book’s also a badass, who had, for two seasons, his own Star Trek version of the Millennium Falcon. Sadly, Book’s sleek scout ship — complete with its morphing tech — was destroyed in Season 4. So, pour one out for... wait. What was Book’s ship called anyway?

“It was called Electric Chocolate ,” Ajala reveals with a grin. “Not many people know that, but I’ll share it with you.” Hopefully, the Star Trek fan wiki, Memory Alpha is paying attention, since, prior to this Book’s ship is referred to, off-screen, as either “the Nautilus” or “Vessel - C.” And, let’s face it, Electric Chocolate sounds way better.

David Ajala at SXSW 2024, flashing a classic “live long and prosper” in support of Star Trek: Discovery .

Still, with or without his cool ship, Book’s story in Star Trek: Discovery will end this year. But, David Ajala’s journey with Star Trek will likely never be over. Recently, he was a part of the 2024 Star Trek Cruise, where he says he was thrilled to connect with Trek actors from the other series. “I got to hang with Michelle Hurd, Anthony Montgomery, and Todd Stashwick ! It was incredible.”

Ajala also says that he will continue to do Star Trek conventions for as long as he can, but that he will probably only select about “three conventions” a year. His reasoning for doing fewer is simply because he wants to be present for the fans when he is there.

“I'd probably choose three a year, but when I'm there, I'm fully there with very healthy energy,” Ajala says. “I think it's just been deeply humbling and special. We're not superheroes. We’re real people. So, I want to be really, really be there, when I’m there. I want to sign however many autographs I need to sign and give as many hugs as I need to.”

Star Trek: Discovery streams on Paramount+.

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