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Published Aug 23, 2023

The Starfleet Insignia Explained

No Star Trek symbol captures the eye or imagination quite like the delta.

StarTrek.com

"The Starfleet Symbol." "The Arrowhead." "The Delta."

Star Trek uses symbols to convey a lot of things, but none captures the eye or imagination quite like the delta. In the years since The Original Series first aired, fans have tried to determine the meaning behind the various insignia shapes we see in the show. To most, it seems that the iconic delta shape is some sort of ship assignment patch meant to represent the U.S.S. Enterprise .

Some arrive at this conclusion because they see various Starfleet personnel wearing a number of different insignia. However, like any puzzle without a key, it’s impossible to precisely interpret the meaning of these other insignia.

The hidden key to the puzzle was finally uncovered a few years ago. The discovery was a memorandum written by producer Robert H. (Bob) Justman to  costume designer William Ware (Bill) Theiss . The subject? STARSHIP EMBLEMS.

A copy of that memorandum has been digitized from the Gene Roddenberry  Star Trek  Television Series Collection (held in the Library Special Collections division of the Young Research Library at UCLA in Irvine, California) and is shown below:

This memo, written during the production of the episode "The Omega Glory," and referencing Captain Ron Tracey, nullifies the long-held assumption that Starfleet assigned different insignia shapes to starships during TOS. Theiss’ inclusion of an alternate insignia for the  Exeter 's captain and chief medical officer, unfortunately, downplays how genuinely ubiquitous the delta insignia is within the  Star Trek  universe. As a result, fans of the series are left with conflicting visual information regarding the meaning of the insignia worn throughout the original series.

Nearly 50 years after Bob Justman wrote his memo, we now have the opportunity to clarify the use of each and every Starfleet uniform insignia used in   TOS. With a wee bit of Scotty's ingenuity, and a pinch of Vulcan logic, the complete picture of what Gene Roddenberry envisioned for the delta insignia should snap into focus.

There are six Starfleet duty insignia used in The Original Series:

• Starship Duty Insignia (Fleet personnel emblem)
• Spacecraft Duty Insignia (Auxiliary Fleet/ Merchant Marine personnel emblem)
• Outpost Duty Insignia (Outpost and Colony personnel emblem)
• Cadet Duty Insignia (Starfleet Academy student emblem)
• Starbase Duty Insignia (Headquarters,  Space stations, Drydocks, and Ground installation personnel emblem)
• Fleet Command Insignia (Senior field commander personnel emblem)

In the  Star Trek  universe, the delta emblem is a direct descendant of the vector component of the old NASA (and later UESPA) logos in use during Earth’s space programs of the 20th and 21st Centuries. Those symbols were worn by some of the first space explorers and adorned uniforms and ships during humanity’s first steps into the final frontier.

United Earth Space Probe Agency integrated with Starfleet as the leading United Earth space exploration service.

The delta insignia was first drawn in 1964 by costume designer William Ware Theiss with input from series creator Gene Roddenberry. The delta — or “Arrowhead” as Bill Theiss called it — has evolved into a revered symbol and one that's synonymous with  Star Trek  today.

The delta also conveys information about the wearer’s duties aboard ship using a series of division symbols. When paired with a distinctive, elongated “star,” the insignia represents someone assigned to the Command division aboard ship. When it displays the “planet” symbol, it represents the Sciences division, a stylized “e” stands for Engineering (later Operations), and a red “Swiss Cross” is worn by starship personnel assigned to the Nursing Corps.

Captain James T. Kirk wearing the Starship Duty Insignia, Command Division.

Let’s continue our study of  Star Trek ’s insignia with personnel assigned to other starships that are wearing the delta insignia.

Before we knew about this memo, we assumed that each ship had its own unique insignia, but there are problems that theory doesn't account for. For instance, does it bother you, or at least seem odd to see the surly guys in Starbase 11’s Officer's Club (in the episode "Court Martial") giving “their captain” a hard time over the presumed death of their mutual friend Ben Finney? Or, to see deceased crew members aboard the  U.S.S. Defiant  (in the episode "The Tholian Web") wearing the delta insignia?

If different starships had different symbols, why weren't they wearing them? Simple. The memo makes it clear that those Starfleet officers are not assigned to the  Enterprise ; they are simply wearing Starfleet’s standard-issue Starship Duty Insignia.

Non-Enterprise Starfleet personnel in Starbase 11’s Officer’s Club in Court Martial, and Below: Deceased U.S.S. Defiant crew member wearing the Starship Duty Insignia in "The Tholian Web."

By now, you might be saying, “What about U.S.S. Exeter ’s Captain Ron Tracey and his chief surgeon, Dr. Carter?” As these two insignia patches are the error being addressed in the memo, they need no further explanation. They alone are the anomaly (an anomaly Theiss never repeated), which led to the misconception that every ship has its own assignment insignia.

Above: Captain Ron Tracey of the U.S.S. Exeter, and Below: his CMO, Dr. Carter.

As you can see here, Theiss thoughtfully, if erroneously, provided both officers with unique assignment insignia patches, and in keeping with his fastidious reputation, insured both patches included their appropriate division symbols.

Early in TOS, we get our first look at non-delta insignia. In the episode "Charlie X,"  Antares ’ Captain Rampart and his first officer are wearing the Spacecraft Duty Insignia, which indicates that they are assigned to an auxiliary spacecraft serving in Starfleet's Merchant Marine Corps — just as Justman points out in his memo. 

Antares' Captain Rampart, and his XO wearing the Merchant Marine Spacecraft Duty Insignia.

Not long after that, we get a look at another new insignia. The Outpost Duty Insignia is worn by Starfleet personnel assigned to outposts on the very edge of Federation space, the frontier. This emblem is characterized by a gold spikelet against a black background. Warning: Do not put yourself in a situation where this insignia goes on your uniform. Personnel wearing this badge never seem to live happily ever after.

Outpost Crew from "Balance of Terror" & "Arena" pictured wearing the Outpost Duty Insignia.

A few episodes later, the Enterprise takes shore leave and Kirk reminisces about his days at the Academy. Worn by students attending Starfleet Academy, the Cadet Duty Insignia is characterized by a pewter colored, smaller version of the Starbase Duty Insignia.

Second Class Midshipman Finnegan wearing the Cadet Duty Insignia.

First seen in "The Menagerie," the Starbase Duty Insignia is worn by personnel assigned to Federation Starbases, which include Starfleet Headquarters, space stations, drydocks, and other ground installations. The emblem, which is devoid of any departmental symbol, is a stylized representation of an “Evening Starflower” (a flowering plant native to the western hemisphere of Earth).

Above: Admiral James Komack of Starfleet Command - Sector 9, and Below: Admiral Fitzpatrick.

Miss Piper, assistant to Commodore Mendez, and Lt. Areel Shaw Starbase 11 JAG Officer wearing the Starbase Duty Insignia.

So how does Commodore Wesley in "The Ultimate Computer," or Commodore Decker in "The Doomsday Machine," fit into the spectrum of Starfleet insignia?

Well, let’s talk about commodores for a moment. A commodore is a flag officer rank, one position above captain. A starship captain usually commands a single vessel, but a commodore ordinarily commands more than one ship. Usually, commodores command a group of ships (either close to their flagship or distant), or in the case of TOS, they normally command a starbase.

In charge of evaluating the operational performance of the M5 computer while it's in total control of a starship, Commodore Wesley sits in temporary command of the  U.S.S. Lexington  to lead a battle fleet in war games against the  Enterprise . Throughout the episode, Commodore Wesley continues to wear his Starbase Duty Insignia, while the  Lexington  crew would have been wearing the delta.

Commodore Bob Wesley in the transporter room briefing Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock about the M5 computer.

Finally, we come to one of my favorite characters ever — Commodore Matt Decker in "The Doomsday Machine." We saved him for last because we could only properly discuss his insignia and what it means after we talked about Starfleet’s other symbols first.

William Windom as Commodore Matt Decker

Unlike Commodore Bob Wesley, who was only in temporary command of the  Lexington , Matt Decker is a Flag Officer with permanent field command of a starship. In fact, he's the only Flag Officer we see in  Star Trek  with a field command. As a consequence of Commodore Decker's rank and status as Commander of the  U.S.S. Constellation  (his flagship), he wears the Fleet Command Insignia denoting his status as a Flag Officer in the field. If we had seen Commodore Decker's crew (may they rest in peace), we would have seen the delta shape insignia in use on their uniforms. Commodore Decker's own first officer would have held the rank of Captain and worn the Starship Duty Insignia.

It should be noted that "The Doomsday Machine," which was filmed early in Season 2, is not referenced in Bob Justman’s memo. Some speculate that Decker’s absence from the memo is further indication of the inconsistent use of emblems in  Star Trek , but that presupposes that the production staff missed that detail. However, the very existence of the Justman memo, and a whole forest of others just like it, demonstrates that the opposite is true.

The production team of  Star Trek  worked diligently to ensure that every aspect of the future they were busy creating held up under scrutiny. Gene Roddenberry was notoriously rewriting scripts himself to ensure no less than exactly what he wanted ended up on-screen, and that fastidious nature permeated the entire production staff. That Decker’s unique emblem is not mentioned in the production memo indicates that his particular insignia isn't an error at all; but represents something else.

Check out Commodore Decker's insignia. Remember that when Theiss created the insignia for Captain Ron Tracey, he went out of his way to ensure it was emblazoned with a Command Star department symbol. Commodore Decker has no such departmental symbol in his insignia patch, which places it in the same design lineage as the Starbase Duty Insignia, which is also devoid of any departmental symbol.

At this point in  Star Trek , we’ve seen a number of flag officers; but they have all worn the Starflower shape, which indicates assignment to a starbase, while Matt Decker alone in TOS series serves as a flag officer in permanent command of a starship. He is wearing an insignia that conveys his unique status, the Fleet Command Insignia, and if you look closely, you'll see that Matt Decker’s emblem is visually related to the Starbase Duty Insignia. Decker’s insignia is a stylized representation of an individual petal from the same “Evening Starflower” emblem that comprises the starbase symbol. This insignia isn't mentioned in the production memo because it's not an error at all.

Hopefully, by now, you can see how consistent the  Star Trek  costume department really was in their use of insignia, and that Bill Thiess never repeated the error he made during "The Omega Glory" after it was pointed out by the memo.

Returning to the delta, Roddenberry and Justman intended it to be a very special symbol that communicates something important. The insignia worn on Starfleet uniforms is the equivalent of the badges worn by U.S. Service members — to show how they serve, not where they serve. Both men served with distinction in World War II. Roddenberry was an Army Air Corps pilot and Justman was a radio operator in the Navy. In the air and at sea, they understood the value of visual communication. In uniform, they themselves carried those values on their chests, on their collars, and on their sleeves. Twenty years after they wore their own various insignia, they helped to create something new — a symbol to inspire others. In the 1960s, the Starfleet delta had far more in common with the golden pin awarded to a NASA astronaut than a simple mission patch, and it was intended to equal that proud emblem in both use and sentiment.

The NASA Astronaut Pin. There are two versions of this pin, a silver pin awarded to those who complete their training, and a gold pin awarded only to astronauts who have flown in space.

The delta proclaims that the person wearing it has achieved the goal of every cadet entering the Academy, and the dream of many a devoted fan — to serve aboard a starship and set sail in an endless sea of stars.

Starfleet Insignia Badge, Command Division from Star Trek Discovery

They used to say if man could fly, he'd have wings. But he did fly. He discovered he had to.

Captain James T. Kirk

I am grateful to have an experienced and learned group of expert Star Trek fans who helped with the research on this article — Steve Fronczek, Creative Services Manager, ANOVOS; Lieutenant Commander Michael J. Quigley, United States Navy; and Dayton Ward, Star Trek author.

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This article was originally published on October 7, 2018

John Cooley is a lifelong Star Trek fan.

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Starfleet Insignia: Evolution of the Star Trek Delta Shield

U.S.S. ENTERPRISE NCC -170I LEGEND Colors shown near insignias DIVISIONS listed with each insignia or color band identifies the division assignment of the wearer. indicate base colors of uniforms that the insignias have been commonly worn with. THE FIRST PILOT Mission designation: "The Cage" (1965) Commander: Captain Christopher Pike NCC-1701 1965 COMMAND SCIENCES OPERATIONS THE SECOND PILOT Mission designation: "Where No Man Has Gone Before" ( 1966) Commander: Captain James T. Kirk* :A A A NCC:(700 19686 COMMAND SCIENCES OPERATIONS Despite Kirk's tombstone in this episode reading "James R. Kirk". STARFLEET INSIGNIA EVOLUTION OF THE STAR TREK DELTA SHIELD On the original television series, all members of the starship Enterprise were seen wearing arrowhead-shaped patches on their uniforms. In combination with the symbol shown within it and the base color of their outfit, they helped identify that crewperson's department or division on the ship. As originally conceived, each starship in Starfleet had its own uniquely designed insignia patch. But as shown in the V'ger Incident told in The Motion Picture, Starfleet had adopted the insignia of the Enterprise to use universally across all Starfleet uniforms, starships and starship markings. This infographic presents that insignia, also known as the "delta shield", in the various forms it appeared on uniform tops in nearly fifty years of Star Trek, from the unsold pilot through to The Next Generation, various time streams, and alternate universes. THE ORIGINAL SERIES 1966-1969 COMMAND SCIENCES OPERATIONS MEDICAL THE ANIMATED SERIES 1973 -1975 AAA NCC-1701 1971 COMMAND SCIENCES OPERATIONS THE MOTION PICTURE and its sequels 1979 -1991 -O :A A A A A A ADMIRALTY COMMAND SCIENCES MEDICAL ENGINEERING OPERATIONS SECURITY Mission designation: "The Wrath of Khan" 1982 ENLISTED/TRAINEE OFFICER Refit: 1979; A: 1987 ENLISTED TRAINEE COMMAND MEDICAL OPS (HELM, ENGINEERING) OPS (COMMUNICATIONS) OPERATIONS (SECURITY) CADET THE NEXT GENERATION and beyond 1987-2004 MISSION: "Future Imperfect" (TNG) MISSION: "All Good Things..." (TNG) MISSION: "Future's End" (VOY) 1996 Standard Version 1 Standard Version 2 1987 1990 1994 1995 THE ALTERNATE REALITY UNIVERSE 2009-2013 NCSATO STARFLEET U.S.S. KELVIN 2009 DUTY UNIFORM DUTY UNIFORM DUTY UNIFORM DUTY UNIFORM COMMAND SCIENCES OPERATIONS MEDICAL V. ACADEMY COLLAR PIN ACADEMY JUMPSUIT ACADEMY STARFLEET UNDERSHIRT STARFLEET DRESS UNIFORM DRESS UNIFORM DRESS UNIFORM ADMIRALTY COMMAND SCIENCES OPERATIONS Design & Graphics : FRANKPEPITO.com

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What Is the Star Trek Badge Called? 4 Interesting Facts You Didn’t Know

By: Author Brad Burnie

Posted on Published: June 28, 2021  - Last updated: August 26, 2022

Share the Universe!

The Star Trek badge comes all the way from Star Trek- The Original Series . Its design borrows heavily from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the United Earth Space Probe Agency (UESPA) logos that were in use during the 20 th and 21 st Centuries.

These were Earth’s inaugural space agencies. It was worn by the pioneer space explorers of the Star Trek universe. It became a symbol of the Starfleet that has been maintained throughout their space excursions.

Costume designer William (Bill) Theiss simply referred to it as the Arrowhead when he came up with it during the making of The Original Series. In the Star Trek universe, the arrow-shaped pennant is called the Delta, and it is the identifying emblem of The Starfleet. It is worn on the left breast of the uniforms of all Starfleet personnel.

Over the years, we have become accustomed to the badges so much we may not have realized some subtle changes taking place and small but significant differences across badges in the Star Trek universe.

Below are 4 interesting facts about the Delta that makes it both unique and consistent.

1. They are Universal Standard Issue Starfleet Badges

The badges were meant to be similar in all vessels belonging to the Starfleet throughout Star Trek. Producer Robert H. Justman even wrote the now-famous memo to costume designer William Ware Theiss regarding a disparity in the emblems in December 1967, during the Original Series filming. He noted the captain of another starship was wearing an unfamiliar emblem, different from those of the USS Enterprise crew.

The memo was written about the 23 rd episode of the 2 nd season of the Series. The Enterprise finds the deserted USS Exeter orbiting the planet Omega IV. When they finally locate its captain Ron Tracey, we can see his badge, and that of his Chief Medical Officer is different from the USS Enterprise. This unintentional mishap left fans conflicted about the universality of Starfleet crew badges in the Star Trek Universe. This anomaly was never repeated in subsequent episodes.

2. The Delta is Exclusive to Starfleet Crew

In the same memo, Robert acknowledges the error may have alluded to a different emblem being used the previous season on the Antares in the second episode of the first season dubbed ‘Charlie X.’

He explains that since the Antares was a merchant ship, the ship’s personnel are the equivalent of merchant marine or freighter personnel and are therefore not qualified to wear the pride of the Starfleet on their breasts. The badge asserts that the wearer has achieved the level of service aboard a starship and set sail across the stars.

There are other insignia besides the delta that are dedicated to other stations or non-fleet personnel that have been used throughout the Original Series, which should be distinguished from it:

• Spacecraft Duty Insignia: Like the Antares, the subject of the memo, these are worn by merchant marines and auxiliary fleet personnel.
• Outpost Duty Insignia: It is a gold spikelet on a black background for personnel in colonies and outposts on the Federation’s edges.
• Starbase Duty Insignia: This emblem does not have any unique departmental feature. It is a replica of the evening sunflower, a plant that flourished on the earth’s Western Hemisphere. It is worn by personnel stationed at the headquarters, dry docks, space stations, and ground installation.
• Cadet Duty Insignia: This is a gray-colored smaller version of the evening sunflower used in the Starbase duty insignia. Starfleet Academy students wear it.
• Fleet Command Insignia: These had to be unique to emphasize the ranks for senior field commanders while out in the field

3. It Conveys Information About the Wearers Duty On the Ship

The Deltas have symbols representing the division where the wearer is posted.

• An elongated star means someone is assigned to the command division aboard the ship.
• The planet symbol represents the sciences division
• stylized letter ‘e’ stands for engineering, which was later converted to operations
• The red ‘Swiss Cross’ is worn by crew assigned to the nursing corps

4. It Was Modified to Function as a Communicator Badge (Combadge)

From the time of The Next Generation (2364 to 2370), Starfleet officers and enlisted personnel adopted modern communicator badges, which they wore on their left breasts.

These badges retained the shape of their traditional insignia but were more functional. They enabled communication between individuals in the ship when its communication system was not practical. They are also equipped with a universal translator with which they can instantly communicate to different species from all over the galaxy.

Later episodes and movies show the Starfleet personnel embraced the enhanced badges used throughout the Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, and throughout the Voyager. A combadge constituted standard equipment for all starship personnel. Taking it off was akin to taking off the uniform.

They employ the latest technology; their signal could bypass electromagnetic interference. The first combadges were made by Section 31 as early as 2256 and deployed to its members in Starfleet Delta.

We discover they are made out of silicon, the rare Beryllium, gold, and carbon 70 in the 126 th and 127 th episodes of The Next Generation, Time’s Arrow . The crew of the Enterprise has to travel back in time to save Lieutenant Commander Data . Data describes what the badge is made of at a poker game.

Confusion aside, the Delta is probably the most consistent element in the Star Trek universe from the beginning to where we are at the moment. Although some specific details may vary, there is no gainsaying the important role the insignia plays in identifying the crew members, their roles, and the time period from which they came.

Knowing how to distinguish between the Star Trek badges can be considered a Trekkie’s secret map through their universe.

Brad Burnie is the founder of Starships.com. He loves all video game genres. In his spare time, he loves reading, watching movies, and gaming

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Debuting at the Las Vegas convention (and to follow online around September 1) is General Picard’s Confederation of Earth badge — from the dark, alternate timeline seen Star Trek: Picard Season 2 — which includes the inset gold rank hashes and beveled “sharp” edges around the delta’s top point.

Speaking of alternate realities, another pair of Starfleet delta badges have been pulled from across the divide: the bar-backed combadges from “Future Imperfect” (later seen in “Parallels”), with both the inverted-color Admiral’s badge and standard Captain-rank badge available.

For fans of  Star Trek: Prodigy , the special golden delta from the  USS Protostar is now in the FanSets badge collection — available in both magnet and pin-back options, the shiny gold Protostar delta measures in at 2.125″ tall and includes the debossed command star icon as seen in the animated series.

The company has also just unveiled their version of the Bajoran Militia combadge, featured throughout the run of  Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and worn by characters like Kira Nerys, Odo, Rom, and more.

Based directly off of a surviving screen-used DS9 prop, the Bajoran Militia badge is also available in both magnet and pin-back form for collectors to bring home.

For all of FanSets’  Star Trek pins and badges, you can head over to their website to browse the collection — or stop by their booth at Creation Entertainment’s 56-Year Mission  Star Trek convention, running August 25-28 in Las Vegas, where the company has announced they will be debuting their  Strange New Worlds departmental delta badges.

COMING SOON, all 3 will be available in Vegas, on the website starting in September. 9/1 Command 9/15 Operations 10/1 Sciences, on the FanSets release schedule with other goodies!! #StarTrek @StarTrek #StarTrekSNW #DeltasDoneRight Magnet & Pin, ONLY at https://t.co/NpnDpedbyZ pic.twitter.com/wuciVBF43q — FanSets (@FanSets) August 11, 2022

Keep checking back to TrekCore for the latest in  Star Trek product news!

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• View history

The combadge was a small, multi-purpose communications and universal translation device, which usually took the form of an organization's insignia designed to be worn by the user. By the 24th century , combadges and similar devices were in use by multiple species and organizations, including the Bajoran Militia , and Klingon Empire . ( Star Trek: The Next Generation , Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , Star Trek: Voyager , Star Trek: Picard )

• 2.1 Primary
• 2.2 Secondary
• 4.1 See also
• 4.2 Background information
• 4.3 Future combadges
• 4.4 Gallery
• 4.5 External link

History [ ]

Section 31 combadge worn alongside two Starfleet insignia variants (2257)

In the 22nd and 23rd centuries, communicators were small, if not bulky devices which needed to be carried or holstered by people using them. Members of Starfleet usually had access to these while away from their ship or were not able to reach a wall mounted intercom . ( Star Trek: Enterprise , Star Trek: The Original Series , Star Trek: The Motion Picture , Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan , Star Trek III: The Search for Spock , Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , Star Trek V: The Final Frontier ) However, unbeknownst to a lot of the Federation , Section 31 had developed and deployed small communicators in the form of the Starfleet delta to its members as early as 2256 . ( DIS : " Saints of Imperfection ") In 2259 , when a time traveling Ensign Brad Boimler was being tended to, Captain Christopher Pike and Lieutenant Una Chin-Riley expressed a distaste for the combadge, preferring the communicator. ( SNW : " Those Old Scientists ")

2350s to 2360s Starfleet combadge

Large scale roll out of small, wearable badges didn't occur to the later 24th century , where they became standard issue among Starfleet crews as early as the 2340s . ( TNG : " Yesterday's Enterprise ") A combadge was considered standard equipment for all Starfleet personnel and taking off one's combadge constituted taking off one's uniform. ( TNG : " Redemption ", " Journey's End "; DS9 : " Tacking Into the Wind ", " Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges ")

2370s Starfleet combadge

As a symbol of loss of membership in Starfleet , personnel that had resigned or had been relieved of duty were required to turn in their combadges. Additionally, personnel confined to a brig were not permitted to retain their combadges during their confinement. ( TNG : " Redemption ", " Journey's End "; DS9 : " Paradise Lost ", " Inquisition "; VOY : " Thirty Days ")

Wesley Crusher wearing a silver provisional combadge variant alongside the gold 2360s version

During this time, Starfleet produced and deployed several iterations of their badge which took on different designs. This trend continued to the all the way to the 29th century . ( Star Trek: The Next Generation , Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , Star Trek: Voyager , Star Trek: Picard , Star Trek: Lower Decks , Star Trek: Prodigy ) By 2399 , Cristóbal Rios , the captain of a civilian freighter called the SS La Sirena , had access to smaller combadges, called comm pins , in the shape of his ship's personalized mermaid emblem. When necessary, Rios provided them to his passengers. ( PIC : " Absolute Candor ", " The Impossible Box ", " Nepenthe ", " Et in Arcadia Ego, Part 2 ")

Tom Paris with a 2370s combadge alongside the silver 2380s combadge

Different styles of combadges often co-existed in the same era. Similar to Starfleet uniforms , the combadge used by personnel may vary by the ship, the officer's rank or department, or the facility they were stationed on; these were retained even when visiting other Federation locations. ( TNG : " The Child "; LD : " We'll Always Have Tom Paris ", " Kayshon, His Eyes Open "; DIS : " Saints of Imperfection ")

Badge styles and insignias have been known to change rapidly year to year, and older combadges were sometimes retained for continued use or for sentimental purposes. ( DS9 : " The Search, Part I "; PIC : " Remembrance "; Star Trek: The Motion Picture ; Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan )

During the Dominion War and its aftermath, uniform and combadge variety was pared down considerably, but the use of different combadge styles and co-existing variants expanded again in the relative peace that followed in the 2380s . This trend continued until the disaster at Utopia Planitia in 2385 , when Federation resources were once again strained. ( DS9 : " What You Leave Behind "; Star Trek Nemesis ; LD : " No Small Parts "; PRO : " Lost and Found "; PIC : " The End is the Beginning ")

A tricom badge used in the late 32nd century

At some point prior to the 31st century , combadges were replaced with tricom badges . ( Star Trek: Discovery ) However, a handful of 2370s and 2380s style Starfleet combadges managed to survive all the way to the 31st century, where many of them ended up in the hands of the Emerald Chain . ( DIS : " Scavengers ", " The Sanctuary ")

Capabilities [ ]

Primary [ ].

The Starfleet combadge was a crystalline composite of gold , microfilament , silicon , beryllium , and carbon-70 . ( TNG : " The Last Outpost ", " Time's Arrow "; VOY : " Hope and Fear ") They were designed for on-board ship communication with other Starfleet personnel when using the internal communication system was impossible or impractical, for accessing the on-board computer when not in an area that the computer is monitoring, for ship-to-shore communications, and for direct communication to another combadge. Combadges also were configured to act as universal translators , often translating in real time. ( DS9 : " For the Uniform "; VOY : " The Cloud ", " The 37's ", " Investigations ") Bajoran and Starfleet badges were also capable of recording a user's personal logs. ( DS9 : " The Ascent ", SNW : " Those Old Scientists ")

As with other subspace technology , combadges emitted subspace readings which could be scanned by ship sensors and tricorders . ( VOY : " Future's End ")

As early as the 2360s , combadges were used as a means of providing personal identification to shipboard computers. Each time a user accessed a specific console , the computer logged the individual's identification to that access. ( TNG : " The Drumhead "). By the 2370s , personnel had their name and serial number engraved on the back of the badge. ( PIC : " Maps and Legends ")

Combadges were activated by pressing it once and calling out the name or general area of the intended recipient. They could then be deactivated by another single press. Multiple presses on the badge could be used as an attempt to gain the attention of a ship's crew. ( VOY : " Caretaker ")

Due to the size of the combadge, its working range was limited to five hundred kilometers , although a starship could boost the signal to bridge larger distances. ( TNG : " 11001001 ")

A destroyed combadge ( 2371 )

Combadges were often incorporated with numerous security features intended to protect its user and Starfleet systems. They can be set to only be activated by the user it was assigned to, identified by biometric fingerprint data. ( TNG : " The Hunted ")

In emergency situations, a combadge could be modified for use in other applications. It could be converted into a subspace distress beacon , or the tiny power cell could be extracted for other uses. ( DS9 : " Rocks and Shoals ") If the casing of the combadge was ever cracked, an emergency distress signal was emitted, mainly to help searchers locate victims. ( TNG : " A Fistful of Datas "; VOY : " Time and Again ")

Furthermore, a combadge's energy cell can be used to power a makeshift personal force field generator for several seconds. ( TNG : " A Fistful of Datas ") A downside to this is when destroyed by an electrical force, a badge could cause damage to the wearer's clothing. ( TNG : " Thine Own Self ")

Secondary [ ]

La Forge uses a combadge to set transporter coordinates

Although designed primarily as communicators and universal translators , many of these devices served other roles for their users.

Combadges could be used by the transporter as a way to lock on to Starfleet personnel; more generally, the transporter could lock onto any person or object with a combadge attached or nearby, thus making transport faster and more accurate. USS Enterprise -D Chief Engineer Geordi La Forge used his combadge to allow the transporter to beam off an explosive device that the Ansata terrorists planted on the ship during their mission on Rutia IV . ( VOY : " Caretaker ", " Tattoo ", " Investigations ", " The Chute "; TNG : " Justice ", " The High Ground ") When Ferengi briefly took over the Enterprise in 2369 , they were captured by attaching combadges to them and using the badges to beam them into a secured transporter room . ( TNG : " Rascals ")

Gallery [ ]

Appendices [ ]

See also [ ].

• Starfleet insignia

Background information [ ]

The Starfleet insignia pin first used in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan later became a combadge, as Lieutenant Richard Castillo can be seen pressing his and speaking into it in TNG : " Yesterday's Enterprise ". The combadge with the rectangular back was designed for Star Trek Generations and first seen in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine third season premiere episode " The Search, Part I ", before being used continually in the series and Star Trek: Voyager . It also appeared in the four Next Generation movies and in episodes of Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Lower Decks .

When the combadge first appeared in Star Trek: The Next Generation , it appeared to be larger than the prop used in later seasons. It was also referred to as a communicator rather than a combadge by Beverly Crusher in TNG : " The Naked Now " and " Remember Me ".

Future combadges [ ]

There have been two possible future combadges seen in Star Trek .

The future combadge most commonly seen throughout the Star Trek franchise was a delta shield outline backed by two vertical gold quadrangles, depicted in several possible futures as early as 2390 . This combadge has been seen in TNG : " All Good Things... ", DS9 : " The Visitor ", VOY : " Timeless ", and VOY : " Endgame ". This advanced combadge finally appeared in the prime timeline in 2378 during the finale of Star Trek: Voyager , when it was brought back in time by a future version of Kathryn Janeway from the year 2404 . That future combadge was left behind in 2378 alongside other anachronistic future technology that aided in Voyager 's early return to Earth fourteen years early. ( VOY : " Endgame ") Years later, a similar looking combadge with streamlined upgrades and silver coloring appeared in Star Trek: Picard , as Starfleet 's standard issue combadge during the 2390s .

Also seen in Voyager was a 29th century combadge. This is a "winged" arrowhead, similar in style to the insignia found on a 24th century starship hull. It has been seen in the episodes VOY : " Future's End ", " Future's End, Part II ", and " Relativity ", used by Starfleet officers aboard the timeship the USS Relativity .

In TNG : " Future Imperfect ", a different future combadge was shown in a holodeck simulation, but it was later revealed to be a part of a fake portrayal of the future used to deceive William Riker . It was comprised of the delta shield and three rectangular strips behind it signifying rank , doing away with rank pips. In TNG : " Parallels " the same combadge was seen again alongside rank pips in an alternate quantum reality , but not from the future. The backing strips were colored either gold, silver, or black depending on the rank of the wearer; admiralty had a starred gold delta with silver backing strips.

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DS9s Maquis Two Parter Changed Star Trek Forever

• The Maquis changed Star Trek by subverting perceptions of Starfleet, forcing introspection on the human costs of Federation missions.
• Star Trek: Deep Space Nine set the stage for Voyager through the Maquis conflict, challenging the ideals of the Federation.
• The Maquis introduced conflict between Starfleet officers, creating a more morally complex and rich version of Star Trek.

30 years ago, the Maquis made their debut in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , and by subverting perceptions of Starfleet, they changed the course of the Star Trek universe forever. The Maquis were created for use in Star Trek: Voyager , a rogue element that would be stranded in the Delta Quadrant with the USS Voyager's Starfleet crew. To prepare for Voyager 's 1995 premiere, both DS9 and Star Trek: The Next Generation began seeding the Maquis from April 1994 . The TNG episode "Journey's End" established the political situation that spawned the Maquis, while DS9 's eponymous two-parter formally introduced the terrorist organization.

The Maquis were named after the rural French and Belgian Resistance fighters who opposed Nazi occupation during World War 2. Star Trek 's Maquis opposed the Cardassian occupation of former Federation colonies, made possible by the creation of a demilitarized zone at the end of the Federation-Cardassian war. There was a suggestion that the Maquis betrayed Gene Roddenberry's vision of a futuristic utopia, but in actual fact, they forced a degree of introspection when it came to the human costs of the Federation and Starfleet's ongoing mission to preserve peace.

Star Trek: DS9 Foreshadowed Voyagers Fate A Year Earlier

The maquis changes how we see starfleet in star trek, "you look out the window at starfleet headquarters and you see paradise.".

The Maquis were set up in opposition to Starfleet and the Federation, allowing an opportunity to see the organization in a new light . In "Journey's End", Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) is deeply uncomfortable about resettling the colonists from Dorvan V, because he's asking a group of people to leave their homes. Generally, Starfleet resettle colonists in the event of an impending disaster like a supernova or an attack by a Crystalline Entity. What they don't do is relocate people from their homes so that they can hand over the planet to an enemy.

While never confirmed on screen, Dorvan V was intended to be the home of Star Trek: Voyager 's Commander Chakotay (Robert Beltran).

However, this is exactly what begins happening from "Journey's End" onward, to preserve the fragile peace with the Cardassians. Admiral Nechayev (Natalia Nogulich) tells both Captain Picard and Commander Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) that planets like Dorvan V should be handed over to the Cardassians for the " greater good ". The Federation's treaty with the Cardassians raises some serious questions about the human cost of the " greater good " . The Cardassian Occupation of Bajor should have been a warning to the Federation, but instead they brushed aside any concerns to preserve peace.

The demilitarized zone between Federation and Cardassian space caused a great deal of introspection for Starfleet officers in both Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . Picard had legitimate concerns about Federation diplomats removing the agency of the colonists on Dorvan V. An already disillusioned Cadet Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) was outraged by the situation on Dorvan V and inspired the colonists to fight back . In "The Maquis, Part II", Sisko delivers a powerful speech about the disconnect between the needs of the colonists and the plans drawn up by the Federation diplomats:

" On Earth there is no poverty, no crime, no war. You look out the window at Starfleet Headquarters and you see paradise. Well, it's easy to be a saint in paradise. But the Maquis do not live in paradise. Out there, in the Demilitarized Zone, all problems have not been solved yet. There are no saints, just people; angry, scared, determined people who are going to do whatever it takes to survive, whether it meets with Federation approval or not! "

Dont Like Star Treks Maquis? Blame TNGs Wesley Crusher

The maquis turned star trek heroes against each other.

The introspection caused by the Federation's decisions on the DMZ led to many Starfleet officers resigning their commissions in solidarity with the colonists . Many of these former Starfleet officers joined the Maquis to fight Cardassian oppression, starting with Sisko's close friend Lt. Commander Calvin Hudson (Bernie Casey). Hudson was assigned to the colonies along the DMZ as an attaché, but soon became sympathetic to the colonists' struggle. Cal became an early prominent figure in the Maquis Resistance, pitting him against his old friend, Sisko.

Bernie Casey took the role of Cal Hudson because he was a fan of Avery Brooks' work in Spenser: For HIre , A Man Called Hawk , and his stage performance as actor and civil rights campaigner, Paul Robeson.

The most notable Maquis defector was Ro Laren (Michelle Forbes) , who betrayed her mentor, Captain Picard, to join the Resistance in Star Trek: The Next Generation 's penultimate episode, "Preemptive Strike". Picard and Ro wouldn't resolve their differences for another 29 years in Star Trek: Picard season 3, episode 5, "Imposters" . The other notable TNG Maquis defector was Lt. Thomas Riker (Jonathan Frakes) who had returned to active service after eight years of isolation, to discover that Starfleet had abandoned their principles.

In "Preemptive Strike", it's Riker who lets Ro Laren go without a fight, implying that he sympathizes with the Maquis cause, perhaps explaining why his transporter clone decides to join the Resistance in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine .

As well as losing his friend Cal Hudson to the cause, Sisko lost his Starfleet security officer, Lt. Commander Michael Eddington (Kenneth Marshall) to the Maquis. After some initial objections to Eddington's posting on Deep Space Nine, Sisko spent a lot of time with the security officer, failing to detect his Maquis sympathies. In fact, Sisko's girlfriend Kasidy Yates (Penny Johnson Jerald) even sympathized with the Maquis cause . When Eddington revealed his true colors, it created a fierce rivalry between him and Sisko, that led the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine captain to go too far in his determination to bring the defector to justice.

Without The Maquis There Would Be No Star Trek: Voyager

The Maquis were specifically created for Star Trek: Voyager , to provide characters who would have a non-Starfleet viewpoint . Opening up the Star Trek universe to include characters from outside Starfleet was the core remit of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , so it made sense for Voyager to continue in this vein. In-universe, the USS Voyager is lost in the Delta Quadrant purely because it's searching for a Maquis raider that went missing in the Badlands after being captured by the Caretaker. If there had been no Maquis conflict, then the USS Voyager would have been assigned elsewhere.

Star Trek: Voyager

The fifth entry in the Star Trek franchise, Star Trek: Voyager, is a sci-fi series that sees the crew of the USS Voyager on a long journey back to their home after finding themselves stranded at the far ends of the Milky Way Galaxy. Led by Captain Kathryn Janeway, the series follows the crew as they embark through truly uncharted areas of space, with new species, friends, foes, and mysteries to solve as they wrestle with the politics of a crew in a situation they've never faced before.

The concept of Starfleet and Maquis officers thrown together to navigate an uncharted region of space was a great concept for Star Trek: Voyager . Sadly, the Maquis became Starfleet officers straight away , reducing the potential for character conflict. In the reference book Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , Ronald D. Moore implied that there was some behind the scenes conflict over how the Maquis would feature in Voyager . Moore hints that the original intention was for Starfleet and the Maquis to be more separate:

" The initial idea for Voyager was that the Maquis who joined the crew would not put on the Starfleet uniforms. Michael lost that fight. "

DS9s Maquis Two Parter Changed The Shape Of Star Trek

While Star Trek: Voyager may not have lived up to the promise of the Maquis as a concept, the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine two-parter has had a lasting impact on the franchise . In DS9 , the issue of the colonies on the DMZ was a moral issue that many Starfleet officers found it hard to square with their ongoing mission. Over 25 years later, Star Trek: Picard season 1 focused on a retired Admiral Picard leading a ragtag group of non-Starfleet officers on a mission to unmask an immoral Federation conspiracy that impacted countless synthetic and organic lives.

Star Trek: Picard

After starring in Star Trek: The Next Generation for seven seasons and various other Star Trek projects, Patrick Stewart is back as Jean-Luc Picard. Star Trek: Picard focuses on a retired Picard who is living on his family vineyard as he struggles to cope with the death of Data and the destruction of Romulus. But before too long, Picard is pulled back into the action. The series also brings back fan-favorite characters from the Star Trek franchise, such as Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan), Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), Worf (Michael Dorn), and William Riker (Jonathan Frakes).

23 years after Cal Hudson went rogue in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 's Maquis two-parter, Commander Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) did the same in the Star Trek: Discovery pilot, triggering a war and landing herself in prison. Burnham's complex journey of redemption against the morally ambiguous background of the Federation-Klingon War made Star Trek: Discovery a spiritual successor to DS9 . By introducing the Maquis in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , the franchise forced Starfleet to confront the cost of " the greater good ", creating a more morally complex and richly textured version of Star Trek that continues to this day.

All episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: The Next Generation, and Star Trek: Voyager are available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, also known as DS9, is the fourth series in the long-running Sci-Fi franchise, Star Trek. DS9 was created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller, and stars Avery Brooks, Ren Auberjonois, Terry Farrell, and Cirroc Lofton. This particular series follows a group of individuals in a space station near a planet called Bajor.

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Star Trek The Next Generation Chirping Communicator Badge, TNG ComBadge Non Bluetooth Version, Star Trek Memorabilia, Gifts and Collectibles

Purchase options and add-ons, about this item.

• 🎁 STAR TREK COLLECTIBLES & HOLIDAY GIFTS: The best Star Trek gift. Introducing the TNG ComBadge that Chirps! It is much more than a prop scaled replica; it is the coolest Star Trek collectible in the Alpha Quadrant. The perfect high tech trek gift!
• 🚀 The Fametek Chirping ComBadge plays the classic “Chirp” sound effect that activates on demand with a touch.
• 👨The perfect addition to your uniform for your Cosplay Star Trek experience. Secures to your shirt or uniform via a dual pin, flat back clutch for a comfortable experience.
• 📱 Presenting the Star Trek the Next Generation Communicator Badge! The Star Trek TNG ComBadge features an accurate on-screen matte gold with black outline & silver delta plate. High quality ABS materials.
• 💯LICENSED PRODUCTS: All Fametek products are officially licensed, hold incredible quality, and make amazing memorabilia for the men who have everything! Buy today; it is entirely risk-free! Check out all our FAMETEK Licensed products on Amazon

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FAMETEK allows you the experience high-quality sound, functionality, and fabrication as a fan or collector! We excel not only in sound quality but also in high and fabrication. Our dedication to authentic replicas shows up on every piece we design. We only create products we are passionate about! Not only are you benefitting from over 30 years of combined experience in engineering manufacturing and just plain excitement for collecting.

STAR TREK THE NEXT GENERATION CHIRPING COMMUNICATOR BADGE, TNG COMBADGE

The latest Star Trek TNG ComBadge is much more than a prop-scaled replica. Its everyday useful features make it the coolest Star Trek Collectible in the Alpha Quadrant. The perfect high-tech trek gift!

• Cos-Play ComBadge
• Instant "Chirp" response when tapped
• Dual Pin Flat back Clutch for a Strong Clasp
• Officially-licensed Star Trek Product
• On-screen matte gold/silver finish

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Star Trek Non-Bluetooth Version Communicator Badge

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Star Trek Combadge Project Let’s You Chat Like Picard Across the World

Using old 2000s tech, fans have made a real Star Trek Combadge that can be used across the world.

Published: 26 Apr 2024 2:42 PM +00:00 Updated: 26 Apr 2024 2:56 PM +00:00

Have you ever wanted to wear a Starfleet Combadge in real life? Well, a small community of fans are bringing back iconic Star Trek Combadge for use in a world where smartphones already exist by creating new software for old tech.

Gene Rodenberry’s Star Trek has been a beacon for tech creators since the 1960s. Video calling, hologram technology, robotics, AI and even space travel has all been influenced by the sci-fi show to some degree.

As reported by Hackaday , Vocera Communication Badges from the early 2000s designed for use in hospitals have been revived with new software to use across the world. These badges work exactly like Star Trek Combadges do, allowing a user to contact another person with a simple tap on the chest.

Project Combadge, a fan project, aims to create a new online backend for the Vocera hardware to revive all of the e-waste left from the early 2000s. With the hardware currently useless due to the original software being discontinued, these badges can only work with new servers created by fans.

Dubbed the Spin Doctor server, found here on GitHub , fans are attempting to use the badges as communication devices between multiple users. At the time of writing, the server doesn’t work entirely as intended, but when it does you’ll be able to connect your badge to a server with your friends and ask about the status of the Warp Core whenever you want.

Alongside the speech functionality, the Star Trek Combages have additional skills such as generating transcripts of conversations to look back on past conversations. Fans also hope to be able to make it so that you can use the Combadge to control your Smart Home so Smart Bulbs, TVs and other appliances can be turned on and manipulated with a tap of your breast and a quick vocal command.

These fans aren't the only ones looking into getting a real-life Star Trek Combadge ready for everyone to use. In fact, Apple (yes, iPhone Apple) filed a patent for a piece of tech remarkably similar to Star Trek's idea a few years ago.

Of course, there are much easier ways to communicate with people on the internet nowadays, but the realization of a true Star Trek Combadge is too awesome to pass up for any Trekkie.

While it’s not as cool as scientists trying to create a real-life holodeck or even a full-sized recreation of the Starship Enterprise , it’s always nice to see fans breathe new life into old tech.

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• April 26, 2024 | Podcast: All Access Gets To Know The Breen In ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ 505, “Mirrors”
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• April 25, 2024 | Recap/Review: ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Reflects On Its Choices In “Mirrors”

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

| April 25, 2024 | By: Anthony Pascale 110 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.

That’s always been my issue with Discovery.

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.

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).

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.

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.

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.