There was loads — repeat, A LOT — of expectations for Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 9, and it delivered on each large plot twists and intense character growth.
Because the season’s mid-point climax, it wanted to deliver closure to some main arcs whereas constructing a war-chest of potential for the again half of the season.
Personally, though I’ll query the route we appear to be heading, this was an incredible showstopper when it comes to addressing most of the largest points launched thus far.
Let’s begin with the Klingons.
This may’ve been the least rewarding payoff for me, though it was a pleasant bookend for Burnham’s journey down the rabbit-hole, which started on the bridge of the Sarcophagus when T’Kuvma killed Georgiou, and he or she killed him.
Positive, it was nice to observe her tackle Kol in hand-to-hand fight, though it’s implausible that she would’ve been in a position to maintain her personal in addition to she did even with Vulcan Suus Mahna coaching.
Okay, perhaps Kol sucks at hand-to-hand fight, or perhaps he wasn’t attempting tremendous laborious and toying together with her.
In spite of everything, he had a minimum of three alternatives to kill her however selected as an alternative to make some villainy comment and go for an enormous end as an alternative (from which she would invariably escape.)
I perceive the aim of the combat was to flee with Georgiou’s com badge, thus symbolically saving the captain she failed within the premiere.
In spite of everything, Georgiou’s dying marked the tip of First Officer Michael Burnham and the start of Mutineer Michael Burnham.
My situation together with her combating Kol after which the Discovery blowing all of them to bits was how L’Rell had constructed up her hatred of Kol beforehand.
Possibly we’re not purported to establish with L’Rell due to her historical past with Tyler, however it appeared a disgrace to rob her of her revenge. She by no means even received to combat him. The balance-lover in me seems like that is a dangling emotion on this canvas that’ll by no means get resolved now.
What WAS wonderful on this plot thread was Cornwell and Tyler within the dying room. Tyler’s response to seeing L’Rell was what has been lacking for me in a lot of the Tyler introduction.
He had been in hell for MONTHS — 227 days to be actual — and had managed to hold off a completely-recovered-make-him-chief-of-security face to the world as quickly as he joins up with the Discovery? That has all the time felt improper to me.
You placed on a facade like every part that is occurred to you simply washes off. I really envy that about you.
Burnham
Attending to see the consequences of his trauma, listening to him discuss his nightmares, recognizing the harm, and respecting the hassle he put into protecting it up… he all of the sudden grew to become a three-dimensional character.
For the primary time, I believed within the romantic connection between Burnham and him when she reassures and comforts him. And it is not that I wanted to see him weakened. I wanted to see that the therapeutic wasn’t straightforward as a result of that is not plausible, and I felt like he wasn’t truthful with Burnham.
The opposite second between them that labored nicely for me was when Burnham insists they examine the human life signal she detects. Regardless of his right protocol to stay to the mission, when she tells him she must attempt to save everybody, he will get it and offers her the possibility to do it.
I’ve to deliver everybody residence.
Burnham
Staying with relationships, Stamets managed to be railroaded into revealing the secrets and techniques he’d been maintaining from Culber. First, Lorca forces him to get the complete medical check-up, after which Tilly offers away the actual fact he’d been experiencing side-effects.
Though it appears tangential to the spore drive situation, it seems to be the tipping level as Stamets’ determination to surrender his perform as navigator clearly got here from eager to heal the rift between them. Their relationship is one I’ve by no means doubted. I did, nonetheless, concern for it as Stamets grew to become increasingly unhinged.
All the things about Stamets’ monologue about “one closing soar” telegraphed a tragedy within the offing.
Whether or not that one soar can be the soar that liquefied his mind for good or if it turned out to be the soar that destroys the mycelial community, we knew that it was not going to go easily.
Touring the mycelial community is like co-mingling with probably the most abstruse blips of our celestial existence. I’ve seen these stars by way of a lens nobody else has entry to and that must be sufficient for me.
Stamets
Even Lorca’s response (which, in any try of realism, would’ve been “Nah, let’s simply warp residence at a leisurely tempo. Let’s save your mind. I learn that medical report, in spite of everything.”) gave the impression of final phrases to a dying man.
Lorca: You will have served the Federation honorably, Lieutenent.
Stamets: Nicely, I am going to all the time have you ever to thank for the view.
The climax to the Stamets-as-navigator scenario, with him rolling out of the chamber muttering about “so many permutations” and sporting Brandon Stark/Three-Eyed Raven eyes, segued completely into the journey awaiting us.
Though the Mirror Universe idea has been circulating so long as that “different” one, it had affirmation from a number of sources past Stamets’ mirror-self having its personal little jaunt on the finish of Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 5.
It is foreshadowed early when Lorca exhibits Stamets the mapping of the info they’d gathered from his earlier jumps with the spore drive.
Stamets is satisfied to aim the ridiculous 133 jumps Lorca proposes as a result of he realizes that the info they gather may present a solution to entry parallel universes.
Lorca: You confirmed me this invention may take us to locations we by no means dreamed we may attain. That is far past my preconceptions of time and house.
Stamets: Captain, I did not know you cared.
And that closing shot of Lorca standing on the Discovery bridge with completely NO thought the place they’re fires my geek-soul with hope for the longer term. One other eight episodes of Klingon will they/will not they had been going to be a hard-sell (even when we’re left questioning what precisely Voq has been as much as.)
As a substitute, we get a brand new context, a completely unfamiliar terrain for our intrepid heroes. It’s going to check their abilities, their guts, and their teamwork.
We’ll see if all of them reside as much as Lorca’s pep talk.
And never solely that, they’ve introduced L’Rell by way of with them and all of the issues she represents.
Star Trek: Discovery is in no way an ideal present.
It has been stuffed with continuity errors, moral quagmires, and problematic relationships.
It is not TOS Trek, though it pays its respects, and it is not even trying to emulate Subsequent Gen as a lot as The Orville does in its personal means.
It has introduced new approaches to basic dilemmas. We have by no means seen a captain like Lorca earlier than. We have by no means had a collection so targeted on one (broken and flawed) character earlier than. We have by no means had SO MANY questions on Klingons earlier than. Like, severely.
It is entertaining. It is visually spectacular. It makes you assume (generally sufficient to essentially piss you off, however it’s nonetheless making you assume.)
It is also a contemporary present within the sense that it is taking the lengthy arc route.
Each episode thus far, even when the journey is stand-alone, has been constructing elegantly by way of its central allegory — Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.
With Burnham as Alice and Voq because the White Rabbit, she’s been combating a brand new existence and an odd, enigmatic solid of characters ever because the Battle on the Binary Stars.
Thoughts you, and he or she did actually crawl by way of a Jeffries tube and drop out of a gap on Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 3. And he or she was reciting a passage from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland whereas she did it.
When you understand that the guide is greater than a prop to make buddies with Tilly, the character parallels are infinite.
Is Lorca the Mad Hatter? Or is it Mudd? With all of the pink face-paint, Kol is clearly the Queen of Hearts (LOL) however does Ripper’s DNA qualify Stamets because the Caterpillar?
As you are watching Star Trek: Discovery online, you may work on establishing your Wonderland posse. However bear in mind, we’re now not in Wonderland. We’re Via the Trying-Glass now.
Diana Keng is a workers author for TV Fanatic. Observe her on Twitter.