Book must return to his home planet to defend it from the Emerald Chain and its leader, Osyraa. Meanwhile, Georgiou’s condition begins to quickly deteriorate, Adira and Staments search for the cause of The Burn and make a startling discovery, and Tilly adjusts to her new position as first officer.
I have to admit, I went into this episode with low expectations as it had “filler” written all over it and, while it was most certainly a filler episode, it was a lot better than I thought it would be. Chalk that up to Discovery shifting to be a more ensemble piece rather than being continually focused on a few characters. Seeing people like Detmer, Owo, Asian Guy, and Black Guy get bigger parts is always wonderful and unlocks a lot of the strengths that Discovery could have if it takes advantage of its expanded cast.
That being said, I really hope that Detmer’s PTSD arch isn’t over. I just have a feeling that it could be explored and, to end it with a single breakthrough would feel incredibly cheap, especially with how strong of a background story it has been.
I enjoyed the interplay between Saru and Tilly and laughed out loud a few times as Saru struggled to come up with his own version of “make it so.” Last week I complained about Tilly being elevated to first officer and said it was incredibly stupid, and to be honest… it still is, but I will commend both the writers and Mary Wiseman for elevating Tilly to the role and allowing her to take on the first officer position with professionalism and capability. I’ll reserve judgement until things develop more, but I must say, despite the fact that Tilly should not be first officer… she’s a good first officer!
The story with Georgiou is interesting and it’s fun to see some actual development in the character beyond cutting remarks and general badassery. I especially enjoy just how close to the edge she has been pushed which shows up in her physical appearance thanks to the masterful acting of Michelle Yoeh.
I do adore the relationship between Staments and Adira and really enjoyed how the subject of pronouns was broached without things becoming complicated or preachy. I get the strong feeling that Staments and Culber will become parents soon. Something about seeing Paul and Adira enter into that mentor/father relationship just feels right.
As for the mission on the planet, it was nice. Burnham was a logical choice to go, I enjoyed the additional development and humanization for Book and seeing his true feelings about the Federation. I’m personally glad they’re not going with the cliche of making him the rogue and they’re turning him into a believer… it makes him that much more endearing.
I have to admit, I’m a little underwhelmed by Osyraa considering her buildup and subsequent defeat and retreat. I just expected more, I suppose, and I guess we’ll have to wait to see how she’s utilized in the future.
Finally, if that distress call is Discovery in that nebula, I will simultaneously be excited and rolling my eyes that Discovery is the apparent cause of the Burn. Why does Discovery HAVE to be in the middle of everything?
Jason Gaston 