star trek next generation series 4 episode 21

The Drumhead (episode)

• View history
• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 1.6 Act Five
• 2 Log entries
• 3 Memorable quotes
• 4.1 Production history
• 4.2 Story and script
• 4.3 Production
• 4.4 Continuity
• 4.5 Reception
• 4.6 Video and DVD releases
• 5.1 Starring
• 5.2 Also starring
• 5.3 Guest stars
• 5.4 Co-star
• 5.5 Uncredited co-stars
• 5.6 Stand-ins
• 5.7.1 Unused production references
• 5.8 External links

Summary [ ]

On Stardate 44765.2, a dilithium chamber hatch explodes aboard the USS Enterprise -D and sabotage is suspected. The explosion coincides with reports that the Romulans have gained access to information about the Enterprise 's dilithium articulation frame a week later, indicating that there is a spy on board. A quick investigation turns up one suspect – a Klingon exchange officer named J'Dan , but upon being interrogated by Riker and Troi , he strongly denies any involvement. As Worf escorts him to his quarters , J'Dan asks for aid as a fellow Klingon, by asking Worf to escort him to a shuttlecraft to escape, and in return would help to restore Worf's honor through powerful friends he has. Worf angrily rebuffs his request and tells him that he will find out the truth and once the Klingon High Council learns of the incident, J'Dan will be put to a slow death as a traitor.

Act One [ ]

Starfleet Command sends retired Admiral Norah Satie and her assistants – including Sabin Genestra , who is a Betazoid – to expedite the proceedings. Satie gets right to work, and Picard escorts her to engineering , where Geordi La Forge and Data relate their findings on the explosion. Data reports to Picard that it will take 49 hours to gain access to the warp core at the current rate of decreasing radiation levels beyond the isolation door . La Forge offers to play back the sensor log for the admiral. It initially appears to be sabotage, as all logs indicated normal operations 52 milliseconds before the incident and the articulation frame was indeed the culprit. She sees there is something to investigate and wants a full briefing.

Later, as Satie and Picard talk in his ready room , Worf arrives with his finding of J'Dan's hyposyringe in his room, modified to scan and resequence classified information into biological tags for transport on an injected body; J'Dan covers this by the fact that he has Ba'ltmasor Syndrome , which requires weekly injections and thus, would easily hide the transfer of information. With this evidence against him, J'Dan readily admits his crime, confessing that he believes the alliance with the Federation has made the Klingons weak, and that the Romulans are stronger and would be better allies. Despite his confession, he adamantly maintains his innocence in the explosion. However, Satie is still unsatisfied, and Sabin says he believes J'Dan is now telling the truth; they are convinced that J'Dan could not have been working alone.

Act Two [ ]

In the admiral's quarters, Satie and Picard discuss the current situation with J'Dan and his possible sabotage. Satie admits that when Starfleet ordered her to the Enterprise to participate in the investigation, it was expressly stated that she and the captain were to be equals. She was initially reluctant, as her father, Judge Aaron Satie , had always advised her to avoid partnerships. Picard expresses his admiration for Judge Satie's decisions, as those judgments were required reading when he attended the Academy . Satie states she and Picard will be quite a team.

Crewman Simon Tarses is interrogated

In the observation lounge , Genestra and Worf look over the people J'Dan had contact with on the Enterprise , but the Klingon apparently did not make many friends on board, narrowing their search of possible collaborators. Genestra compliments Worf on his thorough investigation. However, Genestra tells him that he and Satie initially suspected he could have possibly been a security risk due to his father Mogh having been declared a traitor for betraying his people to the Romulans . Worf strongly declares that what his father did or did not do is no one's business but his own. Genestra assures Worf that he has the admiral and his complete confidence. Worf assuredly states, " If there is a conspiracy on board, I promise you I will find it. " With that, he begins arranging interviews.

Admiral Satie then begins an inquiry into all personnel and passengers on the Enterprise with whom J'Dan has come into contact with during his stay. When she questions young crewman and medical technician Simon Tarses , Sabin senses great fear and guilt from Tarses, as if some sort of lie is consuming him. He believes they've found J'Dan's co-conspirator.

Act Three [ ]

" I believe, sir, that the conclusion to our investigation must be that the explosion was not intentional. "

Picard refuses to restrict Tarses' movements based solely on Genestra's Betazoid intuition. Before a consensus can be reached, he and Satie are called to engineering by La Forge and Data; the radiation levels preventing them from entering the chamber – caused by the explosion – have now dropped low enough for them to enter safely, and their examination shows no foul play had been involved. The explosion was caused by simple neutron fatigue along an undetectable defect in a hatch cover that was installed during the ship's last refit at Earth Station McKinley , making it an accident that just happened to coincide with the theft of the chamber's plans rather than sabotage.

But Satie and Genestra are unconvinced by this, still believing Tarses was a co-conspirator with J'Dan since they don't think J'Dan could have come aboard the Federation flagship and accomplish what he did without help from within. Another inquiry against Tarses is launched on Stardate 44780, this time open to the public, and he is barraged with numerous accusations to try and establish his guilt, including a lie that the explosion was caused by corrosive chemicals stored in sickbay to which he had access to, and the exposure of the lie Tarses himself tried to kept hidden: that he put false information about his parentage in his Academy admission form, stating that his paternal grandfather was Vulcan when, in fact, he was Romulan. Overwhelmed, Tarses invokes the Seventh Guarantee of the Constitution of the United Federation of Planets to decline to answer further questions to avoid self-incrimination, on the counsel of Commander Riker.

Act Four [ ]

Picard, seeing Worf instruct several security officers in an investigation into Tarses' background, tells him he feels that Satie is engaging in a drumhead trial , a xenophobic witch-hunt. After talking with Tarses and establishing that his lying on his application was his only misdeed, Picard confronts Satie and demands that the hearings be put to rest, threatening to go over her head and complain directly to Starfleet Command if necessary. Satie rebuffs him and reveals she has been in full contact with Starfleet Command since the beginning of the investigation and they fully approve of her methods. In fact, Admiral Thomas Henry of Starfleet Security will be coming aboard to witness the next and all subsequent hearings until the conspiracy is solved. In other words, the interrogations will not be stopped; they will be expanded. As Satie turns to leave the ready room, Picard tells the admiral that what she is doing is unethical and immoral, and he will fight it. Satie tells the captain he should do what he must – and so will she.

Later, Picard is on the bridge , distracted, when Data informs him that the warp engines have been restored and they are ready to begin restart sequences. Going over to sit in his chair , Riker asks Picard if he is all right. Picard tells his first officer that he is fine, just a little preoccupied at the moment. Unfortunately, because of his outspokenness against them, Picard receives a summons delivered by Nellen Tore , Satie's assistant, to appear tomorrow morning at 0900 hours before the committee for questioning.

Act Five [ ]

At his interrogation, Picard makes an opening statement in attempt to appeal to Satie's sense of reason and convince her to end the hearings, but he is met with a thorough and borderline irrelevant nitpicking of his competency and loyalty to Starfleet and the Federation. First, Satie brings up that Picard had violated the Prime Directive a total of nine times since he was given command of the Enterprise , to which Picard had stated he was already aware of, since his reports to Starfleet had documented the circumstances of each violation. Next, Sabin brings up the events of Stardate 44390.1 : when Picard delivered a supposed Vulcan ambassador named T'Pel to the Romulan Neutral Zone , and it turned out that she was actually a Romulan spy who was being delivered back to the enemy. Satie highlights the fact that Picard had willingly let T'Pel go, despite knowing that she had classified information from the Federation.

Worf, who up until this point had sided with Satie, realizes where the hearing is going and attempts to defend his captain, stating that the Enterprise was outnumbered by many Romulan warbirds , and Picard did the only thing he could do. Worf is rebuffed with how he had security do nothing during the spy's stay on the Enterprise and accusations of his father's supposed betrayal to the Romulans, at which Picard calmly restrains Worf. Satie then questions Picard about his past experience as a Borg , along with his role at the massacre at Wolf 359 . Picard finally responds to the accusations laid against him by quoting her father's famous words about the dangers of denying basic rights to one man in the name of protection.

Enraged at this invocation of her father's name, Satie abruptly rises from her chair and interrupts Picard, accusing him of treason and conspiring with the Romulans. She calls men like him a threat to the entire Federation whom it is her job to seek out and destroy and warns him that she has "brought down bigger men than you!" At this point in her tirade, Admiral Henry, with a visible expression of disgust at Satie, gets up and wordlessly leaves the room, bringing an informal end to the interrogation. Embarrassed, Sabin declares a recess until the following day, and the room empties quickly, leaving Satie alone, shaken. By turning her father's words back on her, Picard has goaded her into revealing the depth of her fanaticism and paranoia in front of an audience, severely damaging her credibility, possibly permanently.

" Vigilance, Mr. Worf. That is the price we have to continually pay. "

Later on, in the ship's conference lounge , Picard is informed by Worf that Admiral Henry has officially called an end to the hearings, and that Satie has departed the Enterprise . Though it is unlikely that she will ever be trusted with such authority again, Worf cannot help feeling guilty for having been deluded into aiding her cause without realizing what she was and what she stood for. Picard, however, sees it as a learning experience; such enemies who cloak their misdeeds with the pretense of serving a greater good are often very difficult to spot. Although it is very unlikely Satie will ever be trusted again, people like her are always waiting in the wings for the time to strike and spread fear and mistrust in the name of righteousness and, as Picard tells Worf, continual vigilance against them is "the price that [they] must pay" to maintain their freedom.

Log entries [ ]

• Captain's log, USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-D), 2367

Memorable quotes [ ]

" The blood of all Klingons has become water! Ever since the Federation Alliance , we have turned into a nation of mewling babies! The Romulans are strong; they are worthy allies! They do not turn Klingons into weaklings like you! " (hints at Worf)

" Captain, I predict that officer will be extremely valuable in this investigation. "

" Admiral. I have to tell you; you must not expect me to permit any action against Mr. Tarses solely on the basis of Betazoid intuition. " " Sabin has uncanny instincts. I've learned to trust them. " " I'm not happy about this use of a Betazoid. " " But you have a Betazoid counselor. Surely, you're aware of the advantages. " " There is a difference between a counselor and an investigator. " " Are you saying you never use your counselor during interrogations? " " Yes, I do… but I would not act solely on the basis of her instinct. " " Nor do I. " " But you're asking… you're asking me to restrict Mr. Tarses' movements solely on the basis on Sabin's feeling . " " If Counselor Troi suggested to you that someone on the ship were dangerous, would you not act on that? Observe him? Curb his activity? " " Yes, I admit I probably would, and perhaps I should re-evaluate that behavior.

" Mr. Tarses, didn't you deliberately and pre-meditatively lie when you filled out your personnel application and compounded that lie by repeating it to this committee? " " What?! " " Isn't it true that the paternal grandfather of whom you speak was not a Vulcan, but was in fact a Romulan? That it is Romulan blood you carry and a Romulan heritage that you honor? " (Riker whispers something in Simon's ear) " We're waiting, Mr. Tarses! " " On the advice of my counsel… I refuse to answer that question in… in that the answer might… might serve to incriminate me. "

" But we know there is a traitor here. J'Dan has admitted his guilt. " " That's true, and he will stand for his crime. " " Tarses has all but done the same. " " How? " " He refused to answer the question about his Romulan grandfather. " " That is not a crime, Worf! Nor can we infer his guilt because he didn't respond. " " Sir, if a man were not afraid of the truth, he would answer. " " Oh, no. We cannot allow ourselves to think that. The Seventh Guarantee is one of the most important rights granted by the Federation. We cannot take a fundamental principle of the Constitution and turn it against a citizen! "

" Sir, the Federation does have enemies! We must seek them out! " " Oh, yes. That's how it starts. But the road from legitimate suspicion to rampant paranoia is very much shorter than we think. Something is wrong here, Mr. Worf; I don't like what we have become! "

" Captain, may I tell you how I've spent the last four years? From planet to starbase to planet. I have no home. I live on starships and shuttlecraft. I haven't seen a family member in years. I have no friends. But I have a purpose. My father taught me from the time I was a little girl still clutching a blanket that the United Federation of Planets is the most remarkable institution ever conceived. And it is my cause to make sure that this extraordinary union be preserved . I cannot imagine why you are trying to block this investigation. There have been others in the past who doubted me. They came to regret it. "

" The hearings on Simon Tarses will stop. If necessary, I will go to Starfleet Command. " " I have news for you, Captain. I've been in constant contact with Starfleet Command. The hearings are not going to stop. They're going to be expanded. " " What are you saying? " " I'm going to get to the heart of this conspiracy if it means investigating every last person on this ship. And every hearing, from now on, will be held in the presence of Admiral Thomas Henry of Starfleet Security. I've requested he be brought here at once. " " You never told me about this. " " I report to Starfleet Command directly. I do not need your permission or your approval for my decisions. " " Admiral, what you're doing here is unethical. It's immoral. I'll fight it. " " Do what you must, Captain… and so will I. "

" I'm deeply concerned about what is happening here. It began when we apprehended a spy, a man who admitted his guilt and who will answer for his crime, but the hunt didn't end there. Another man, Mr. Simon Tarses, was brought to trial, and it was a trial, no matter what others choose to call it. A trial based on insinuation and innuendo. Nothing substantive offered against Mr. Tarses, much less proven. Mr. Tarses' grandfather is Romulan… and for that reason, his career now stands in ruins. Have we become so… fearful , have we become so cowardly , that we must extinguish a man because he carries the blood of a current enemy? Admiral, let us not condemn Simon Tarses, or anyone else, because of their bloodlines, or investigate others for their innocent associations. I implore you, do not continue with this proceeding. End it now. "

" You know, there are some words I've known since I was a schoolboy: 'With the first link, the chain is forged. The first speech censored… the first thought forbidden… the first freedom denied – chains us all irrevocably.' Those words were uttered by Judge Aaron Satie , as wisdom… and warning. The first time any man's freedom is trodden on, we're all damaged. I fear that today– " " How dare you! You who consort with Romulans, invoke my father's name to support your traitorous arguments? It is an offense to everything I hold dear! And to hear those words used to subvert the United Federation of Planets! My father was a great man! His name stands for integrity and principle! You DIRTY his name when you speak it! He loved the Federation! But you, Captain, corrupt it! You undermine our very way of life! I will expose you for what you are! I've brought down bigger men than you, Picard!! "

" We think we've come so far. Torture of heretics, burning of witches, it's all ancient history. And then, before you can blink an eye, suddenly, it threatens to start all over again. " " I believed her. I-I helped her! I did not see what she was. " " Mr. Worf, villains who twirl their mustaches are easy to spot. Those who clothe themselves in good deeds are well-camouflaged." " I think, after yesterday, people will not be so ready to trust her. " " Maybe. But she or someone like her will always be with us, waiting for the right climate in which to flourish – spreading fear in the name of righteousness. Vigilance, Mr. Worf. That is the price we have to continually pay. "

Background information [ ]

Production history [ ].

• Final draft script: 7 February 1991 [1]
• Filmed: 19 February 1991 – 27 February 1991
• Premiere airdate: 29 April 1991
• First UK airdate: 9 November 1994

Story and script [ ]

Gene Roddenberry and Jean Simmons

• "The Drumhead" was conceived as a money-saving installment for the series. The studio suggested a clip show . Michael Piller and Rick Berman , however, both despised the idea, as neither wanted a repetition of the " Shades of Gray " approach. Piller commented on clip shows, " We think they're insulting to the audience. They tune in and then you create this false jeopardy and then flashback as their memory goes back to the wonderful time they had before they got trapped in the elevator and all that bullshit. " They persuaded the studio to avoid a clip show while still producing an episode that was under budget – a bottle show . ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , pp. 219-220)
• Jeri Taylor wrote the script based on a story idea Ronald D. Moore had proposed called "It Can't Happen Here." Taylor's aim was to show that witch-hunts, along the lines of US Senator Joseph McCarthy 's Communist hearings and the Salem witch trials , could happen even in the enlightened 24th century if individual liberties and freedoms were breached, even if only slightly, in the name of preserving the Federation. She remarked, " It's a very provocative story and one which is a little darker than some of the others. " ( Captains' Logs: The Unauthorized Complete Trek Voyages , pp. 219-220)

Production [ ]

Director Jonathan Frakes and Patrick Stewart on the set

Simmons visiting the set in 1991

• "The Drumhead" was filmed between Tuesday 19 February 1991 and Wednesday 27 February 1991 on Paramount Stage 8 and 9 .
• The episode finished US$250,000 under budget. ( Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 163))
• According to director Jonathan Frakes , several shots from the episode were "stolen" from courtroom films including Judgment at Nuremberg , the 1961 Stanley Kramer film starring William Shatner , and The Caine Mutiny . ( Departmental Briefing, Year Four: Production , TNG Season 4 DVD special features)
• Jonathan Frakes had previously appeared with Jean Simmons on North and South . He described being able to cast her in this episode as a dream come true. To Frakes' surprise, he learned that Simmons was a "monstrous Trekkie ". ( Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , p. 204)
• This was the final episode to have music composed by Ron Jones . Jones was fired shortly afterward for repeatedly arguing with Rick Berman and Peter Lauritson over what type of music was thought to be appropriate for the series. Berman subsequently asked Dennis McCarthy if he would be willing to act as the sole music composer for the series, but McCarthy turned the offer down, citing that the resulting workload (including his non- Trek projects) would be too much for him, and so Berman brought Jay Chattaway on-board as Jones' replacement. ( Cinefantastique October 1993)
• A scene which was filmed on Friday 22 February 1991 was deleted from the final episode. According to the call sheet, the scene would be 12-14 in sickbay and feature Gates McFadden, Michael Dorn, Spencer Garrett, and regular background performers Michael Braveheart and Bowman .
• The release of this episode on Star Trek: The Next Generation (Blu-ray) features 2 seconds of standard definition footage upconverted to high definition.

Continuity [ ]

• The events of " Conspiracy ", " Sins of The Father ", " The Best of Both Worlds ", " The Best of Both Worlds, Part II ", " Family ", and " Data's Day " are referenced in this episode. It reveals that thirty-nine Federation starships were annihilated, and eleven thousand personnel were lost at the Battle of Wolf 359 .
• As " All Good Things... " later establishes, it was Norah Satie who initially " requested and required " Jean-Luc Picard to take command of the Enterprise when he first received that assignment. This fact is not mentioned in this episode.
• Neither the Excelsior -class starship nor the Oberth -class starship seen in this episode are named in either the episode or the script. The identification of the Oberth -class ship as the USS Cochrane is derived from the Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 163).
• This episode shares a common theme, the danger of sacrificing freedom for security, with the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine two-parter " Homefront "/" Paradise Lost ".
• This is the second appearance of the interrogation room set after " The Defector ". It is a modification of the bridge of the original USS Enterprise as seen in the first three movies .
• A long time extra, Ensign Kellogg , played by Cameron , is finally named in this episode during Worf's briefing with his security officers.
• This is the only time in the run of the series that the inner isolation door in main engineering is seen; normally the outer door is seen after a warp core breach .
• This episode establishes the technology of genetically encoding secret information in order to be carried discreetly inside a carrier's body. A similar technology is seen to be used by the Suliban Cabal to Klaang in ENT : " Broken Bow ".
• Crewman Tarses mentions that his tour of duty aboard the Enterprise started on Stardate 43587, which would place it between the events of " Deja Q " and " A Matter of Perspective ".

Reception [ ]

• In the Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion  (2nd ed., p. 163), Jeri Taylor names this episode's script as the one of which she was proudest.
• This is one of Michael Dorn 's two favorite TNG episodes, the other being " The Offspring ". [2]
• Jonathan Frakes has also named this episode as one of his favorites, in part for the chance to work with Jean Simmons. ( Departmental Briefing, Year Four: Production, TNG Season 4 DVD special features.) He commented, " I've always thought she was arguably the classiest, most significant actor we had on the series. She was wonderful in the scenes with Patrick [Stewart]. And she was still so gorgeous. " ( Star Trek: The Next Generation 365 , p. 204)
• In contrast, author Keith R.A. DeCandido is not fond of the episode. In an online review, he gave the episode a "warp factor" rating of 3 out of 10. He criticized the script for "stacking the deck" against the character of Satie and called the climax of the episode "awful". He stated, " [I]n the end, we get this strong-willed, powerful, respected woman who is bound and determined to save the Federation at all costs – that is, until Picard quotes her father, at which point she turns into a crazed, blubbering mess. And then, all of a sudden, it's over. " Fellow author Christopher L. Bennett disagreed, remarking, " [T]his has always been an episode I've admired. It is a valuable message story, and a nice touch of imperfection in the often too-perfect Federation of TNG. " He added, " It may seem heavy-handed, but that's because that's how it really works. What Senator McCarthy and HUAC did was so heavy-handed and irrationally excessive that nobody would believe it in a story if it hadn't really happened. " [3]
• A mission report for this episode by John Sayers was published in The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine  issue 17 , pp. 17-20.

Video and DVD releases [ ]

• Original UK VHIS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 48, June 1992
• UK re-release (three-episode tapes, Paramount Home Entertainment ): Volume 4.7, 3 September 2001
• As part of the TNG Season 4 DVD collection
• As part of the TNG Season 4 Blu-ray collection
• As part of the Region 1 edition of the Star Trek: The Next Generation - Jean-Luc Picard Collection

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• Patrick Stewart as Capt. Jean-Luc Picard
• Jonathan Frakes as Cmdr. William Riker

Also starring [ ]

• LeVar Burton as Lt. Cmdr. Geordi La Forge
• Michael Dorn as Lieutenant Worf
• Gates McFadden as Dr. Beverly Crusher
• Marina Sirtis as Counselor Deanna Troi
• Brent Spiner as Lt. Commander Data

Guest stars [ ]

• Bruce French as Sabin Genestra
• Spencer Garrett as Simon Tarses
• Henry Woronicz as J'Dan
• Earl Billings as Thomas Henry
• Jean Simmons as Admiral Satie

Co-star [ ]

• Ann Shea as Nellen

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• Arratia as Alfonse Pacelli
• Rachen Assapiomonwait as Nelson
• Joe Baumann as Garvey
• Karin Baxter as operations ensign
• Michael Braveheart as Martinez
• Debbie David as Russell
• Cameron as Kellogg
• Cooper as Reel
• Denise Deuschle as sciences officer
• Jeremy Doyle as operations ensign
• Elliot Durant III as operations ensign
• Michele Gerren as sciences officer
• D. Kai as sciences officer
• Kast as command officer
• Mark Lentry as civilian
• Marin as command officer
• Jeri McBride as sciences officer
• Tim McCormack as Bennett
• Michael Moorehead as sciences ensign
• Randy Pflug as Jones
• Keith Rayve as command ensign
• Richard Sarstedt as command ensign
• Noriko Suzuki as operations ensign
• Guy Vardaman as Darien Wallace
• Natalie Wood as Bailey
• Civilian woman
• Female operations officer
• Female sciences officer
• Female transporter operator

Stand-ins [ ]

• Brett — stand-in for LeVar Burton
• Nora Leonhardt — stand-in for Marina Sirtis
• Tim McCormack — stand-in for Brent Spiner and Bruce French
• Lorine Mendell — stand-in for Gates McFadden and Ann Shea
• Josephine Parra — stand-in for Jean Simmons
• Richard Sarstedt — stand-in for Jonathan Frakes and Earl Billings
• Dennis Tracy — stand-in for Patrick Stewart
• Guy Vardaman — stand-in for Henry Woronicz and Spencer Garrett
• James Washington — stand-in for Michael Dorn

References [ ]

19th century ; 2362 ; 2363 ; 2364 ; accident ; accusation ; admiral ; advice ; alliance ; ally ; ambassador ; amino acid sequence ; " ancient history "; appeal ; argument ; article ; assistant ; associate ; atomic cohesive structure ; baby ; background check ; Ba'ltmasor Syndrome ; Battle of Wolf 359 ; battlefield ; beard ; behavior ; bench ; Betazed ; Betazoid ; blast pattern ; blood ; bloodline ; bloodstream ; body ; bomb ; Borg ; briefing ; burning ; career ; case ; censure ; chain ; chance ; chapter ; chief security officer ( security officer ); choice ; citizen ; classroom ; Cochrane , USS ; coincidence ; collaborator ; committee ; communicator ; computer ; conclusion ; confidence ; confined to quarters ; conspiracy ; Constitution of the United Federation of Planets ; conversation ; corner ; counsel ; counsellor ; crewman ; crime ; criminal ; Cruces system ; damage ; death penalty ; debate ; debris ; deception ; Delb II ; Delbian ; deoxyribose suspension ; destruction ; device ; Devoras ; dilithium articulation frame ; dilithium chamber ; dilithium chamber hatch ; dinner table ; drum ; drumhead trial ; Earth Station McKinley ; elm ; emergency confinement field ; encephalographic polygraph scan ; enemy ; engine room ; enlisted personnel ; evidence ; Excelsior -class ; exobiologist ; experience ; explosion ; fear ; Federation ; feeling ; file ; flagship ; fluid ; " for the record "; fragment ; freedom ; friend ; Galaxy class decks ; glory ; good deed ; grandfather ; guest ; guilt ; hatch ; hatch casing ; hatch cover ; hatch mounting ; head of security ; hearing ; heart ; Henry's transport ; here and now ; heretic ; heritage ; home ; honor ; hour ; Human ; hundred ; hunt ; hypospray ; hyposyringe ; idea ; identification ; immorality ; " inch by inch"; information ; injection ; innuendo ( insinuation ); innocence ; inquiry ( informal inquiry ); institution ; integrity ; interrogation ( questioning ); interrogation room ; interview ; intuition ( instinct ); investigation ; investigator ; isolation door ; isolinear chip ( optical chip ); J'Dan's powerful friends ; job ; judge ; judgment ; Klingon ; Klingon-Federation Alliance ; Klingon High Council ; knowledge ; lemon ; liar ; lie ( lying ); lieutenant ; list ; location ; logic ; loyalty ; malfunction ; Marcus ; Mars Colony ; mass spectrometer ; matter-antimatter reaction assembly ; medical technician ; metal ; microtomographic analysis ; Midsummer Night's Dream, A ; military officer ; millisecond ; mistake ; Mogh ; mustache ; name ; nation ; neutron fatigue ; night ; number one ; Oberth -class ; " off the record "; Officer Exchange Program ; online ; opportunity ; optical chip reader ; order ; " out of my element "; outpost ; parade grounds ; parameter ; paranoia ; parasitic being ; partnership ; paternal ; permission ; person ; personnel application ; petaQ ; plan ; planet ; power ; premeditation ; price ; Prime Directive ; principle ; problem ; propulsion system file ; protein ; punishment ; Qo'noS ; question ; radiation burn ; radiation level ; rank ; reason ; recess ; referee ; " refresh your memory "; relationship ; relative ( family member ); report ; residue ; restart sequence ; retirement ; right ; righteousness ; roach ; road ; Romulan ; Romulan Neutral Zone ; rumor ; sabotage ; saboteur ; Satie, Aaron ; Satie's brothers ; schematic ; schematic drawing ; scientific exchange program ; security breach ; security clearance ; security risk ; sensor log ; Seventh Guarantee ; shuttlecraft ; sleep ; social gathering ; spectator ; spectrometer ; speculation ; spy ; statement ; star ; starbase ; Starfleet ; Starfleet Academy ; Starfleet Command ; Starfleet record ; Starfleet Security ; starship ; stopwatch ; sub-micron fracture ; summary justice ; surveillance ; suspicion ; suspension ; tactic ; Tarkanian ; Tarkanian diplomat ; Tarses' brother ; Tarses' friends ; Tarses' mother ; Tarses' assignments ; Tarses' outposts ; Tarses' Romulan grandfather ; tea ; theory ; thought ; thousand ; top secret ; torture ; T'Pel ; training ; training drill ; training program ; traitor ; trial ; tricorder ; truth ; turbolift ; Uniform Code of Justice ; union ; victim of circumstance ; villain ; visual log ; Vulcan ; warp drive ( warp engine ); warrior ; water ; weakling ; week ; witch ; word ; year

Unused production references [ ]

External links [ ].

• " The Drumhead " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• " The Drumhead " at Wikipedia
• " The Drumhead" " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
• "The Drumhead" script  at Star Trek Minutiae
• " The Drumhead " at the Internet Movie Database
• 1 Daniels (Crewman)
• 3 Calypso (episode)

Star Trek: The Next Generation

The Drumhead

Cast & crew.

Jean Simmons

Adm. Nora Satie

Bruce French

Sabin Genestra

Spencer Garrett

Simon Tarses

Henry Woronicz

Earl Billings

Adm. Thomas Henry

Information

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The Next Generation Episode Guide

Below is a rated list of every episode of The Next Generation, letting you know which episodes we think are worth checking out if you are new to Star Trek. **BUT** if you’d like to do a quicker watch-through, hitting only the essential episodes of the series, we’ve provided a 20 episode list to brush up on TNG in the least amount of time possible.

Season One Encounter at Farpoint Rating: 3 – Watch The Naked Now Rating: 1 – Skip Code of Honor Rating: 1 – Skip The Last Outpost Rating: 2 – Skippable Where No One Has Gone Before Rating: 2 – Skippable Lonely Among Us Rating: 2 – Skippable Justice Rating: 1 – Skip The Battle Rating: 2 – Skippable Hide and Q Rating: 2 – Skippable Haven Rating: 1 – Skip The Big Goodbye Rating: 2 – Skippable Datalore Rating: 2 – Skippable Angel One Rating: 1 – Skip 11001001 Rating: 2 – Skippable Too Short a Season Rating: 2 – Skippable When the Bough Breaks Rating: 2 – Skippable Home Soil Rating: 2 – Skippable Coming of Age Rating: 3 – Watch Heart of Glory Rating: 2 – Skippable The Arsenal of Freedom Rating: 3 – Watch Symbiosis Rating: 3 – Watch Skin of Evil Rating: 2 – Watch for continuity We’ll Always Have Paris Rating: 2 – Skippable Conspiracy Rating: 4 – Watch The Neutral Zone Rating: 3 – Watch

Season Two The Child Rating: 2 – Watch: new characters are introduced Where Silence Has Lease Rating: 2 – Skippable Elementary, Dear Data Rating: 3 – Watch The Outrageous Okona Rating: 1 – Skip Loud as a Whisper Rating: 2 – Skippable The Schizoid Man Rating: 2 – Skippable Unnatural Selection Rating: 2 – Skippable A Matter of Honor Rating: 4 – Watch The Measure of a Man Rating: 3 – Watch The Dauphin Rating: 1 – Skip Contagion Rating: 4 – Watch The Royale Rating: 2 – Skippable Time Squared Rating: 3 – Watch The Icarus Factor Rating: 2 – Skippable Pen Pals Rating: 3 – Watch Q Who Rating: 4 – Watch Samaritan Snare Rating: 2 – Skippable Up the Long Ladder Rating: 2 – Skippable Manhunt Rating: 2 – Skippable The Emissary Rating: 2 – Watch for continuity Peak Performance Rating: 4 – Watch Shades of Gray Rating: 0 – Skip

Season Three Evolution Rating: 2 – Skippable The Ensigns of Command Rating: 3 – Watch The Survivors Rating: 2 – Skippable Who Watches the Watchers Rating: 3 – Watch The Bonding Rating: 4 – Watch Booby Trap Rating: 2 – Skippable The Enemy Rating: 3 – Watch The Price Rating: 1 – Skip The Vengeance Factor Rating: 3 – Watch The Defector Rating: 5 – Watch The Hunted Rating: 3 – Watch The High Ground Rating: 3 – Watch Deja Q Rating: 3 – Watch A Matter of Perspective Rating: 3 – Watch Yesterday’s Enterprise Rating: 5 – Watch The Offspring Rating: 3 – Watch Sins of the Father Rating: 4 – Watch Allegiance Rating: 3 – Watch Captain’s Holiday Rating: 3 – Watch Tin Man Rating: 2 – Skippable Hollow Pursuits Rating: 2 – Watch: new character introduced The Most Toys Rating: 3 – Watch Sarek Rating: 2 – Skippable Menage a Troi Rating: 1 – Skip Transfigurations Rating: 2 – Skippable The Best of Both Worlds Rating: 5 – Watch

Season Four The Best of Both Worlds, Part II Rating: 4 – Watch Family Rating: 3 – Watch Brothers Rating: 3 – Watch Suddenly Human Rating: 2 – Skip Remember Me Rating: 3 – Watch Legacy Rating: 2 – Skippable Reunion Rating: 4 – Watch Future Imperfect Rating: 3 – Watch Final Mission Rating: 2 – Watch for continuity The Loss Rating: 1 – Skip Data’s Day Rating: 3 – Watch The Wounded Rating: 3 – Watch Devil’s Due Rating: 3 – Watch Clues Rating: 3 – Watch First Contact Rating: 3 – Watch Galaxy’s Child Rating: 2 – Skippable Night Terrors Rating: 2 – Skippable Identity Crisis Rating: 2 – Skippable The Nth Degree Rating: 2 – Skippable Qpid Rating: 3 – Watch The Drumhead Rating: 3 – Watch Half A Life Rating: 3 – Watch The Host Rating: 2 – Skippable The Mind’s Eye Rating: 3 – Watch In Theory Rating: 3 – Watch Redemption, Part I Rating: 3 – Watch

Season Five Redemption, Part II Rating: 4 – Watch Darmok : 3 – Watch Ensign Ro : 4 – Watch Silicon Avatar : 2 – Skippable Disaster : 4 – Watch The Game : 3 – Watch Unification I : 4 – Watch Unification II : 3 – Watch A Matter of Time : 3 – Watch New Ground : 2 – Skippable Hero Worship : 3 – Watch Violations : 1 – Skip The Masterpiece Society : 2 – Skippable Conundrum : 4 – Watch Power Play : 3 – Watch Ethics : 3 – Watch The Outcast : 2 – Skippable Cause and Effect : 3 – Watch The First Duty : 3 – Watch Cost of Living : 1 – Skip The Perfect Mate : 1 – Skip Imaginary Friend : 1 – Skip I Borg : 3 – Watch The Next Phase : 3 – Watch The Inner Light : 4 – Watch Time’s Arrow, Part I : 4 – Watch

Season Six Time’s Arrow, Part II : 3 – Watch Realm of Fear : 3 – Watch Man of the People : 1 – Skip Relics : 4 – Watch Schisms : 3 – Watch True Q : 2 – Skippable Rascals : 1 – Skip A Fistful of Datas : 2 – Skippable The Quality of Life : 2 – Skippable Chain of Command, Part I : 4 – Watch Chain of Command, Part II : 5 – Watch Ship in a Bottle : 3 – Watch Aquiel : 2 – Skippable Face of the Enemy : 3 – Watch Tapestry : 4 – Watch Birthright, Part I : 2 – Skippable Birthright, Part II : 2 – Skippable Starship Mine : 3 – Watch Lessons: 3 – Watch The Chase : 3 – Watch Frame of Mind : 2 – Skippable Suspicions : 2 – Skippable Rightful Heir : 2 – Skippable Second Chances : 2 – Skippable (Watch for DS9 context?) Timescape : 4 – Watch Descent, Part I : 2 – Watch for continuity

Season Seven Descent, Part II : 2 – Watch for continuity Liaisons : 2 – Skippable Interface : 2 – Skippable Gambit, Part I : 3 – Watch Gambit, Part II : 3 – Watch Phantasms: 3 – Watch Dark Page : 2 – Skippable Attached : 2 – Watch for continuity Force of Nature : 2 – Skippable Inheritance : 2 – Skippable Parallels : 3 – Watch The Pegasus : 4 – Watch Homeward : 3 – Watch Sub Rosa : 1 – Skip Lower Decks : 4 – Watch Thine Own Self : 4 – Watch Masks : 1 – Skip Eye of the Beholder : 2 – Skippable Genesis : 3 – Watch Journey’s End : 1 – Watch for continuity? Ugh its lame tho Firstborn : 2 – Skippable Bloodlines : 2 – Skippable Emergence : 2 – Skippable Preemptive Strike: 3 – Watch All Good Things… : 5 – Watch

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Star trek: tng’s “there are four lights” meaning & why it’s still quoted 32 years later.

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Captain Picard’s 10 Best Star Trek TNG Episodes, Ranked

10 iconic tv characters that defined the 1980s, doctor kovich’s 5 star trek easter eggs in discovery’s finale.

• Captain Picard's defiance in TNG's "There are four lights" scene showcases his unwavering resolve against torture and manipulation.
• TNG's "Chain of Command" episodes bring out the complexities of leadership through the clashes between Picard and Captain Jellico.
• The emotional depth in Picard's confession post-rescue reveals vulnerability beneath his stoic facade.

Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) delivered several now-iconic quotes on Star Trek: The Next Generation , including "There are four lights!" , but what does this particular quote mean? While this quote makes little sense when taken out of context, it remains one of Jean-Luc Picard's most powerful moments, even 32 years after the TNG episode aired. As Captain of the USS Enterprise-D, Jean-Luc Picard was unflappable, remaining calm and level-headed while coming face to face with the unknown. Aside from the Borg, few enemies could rattle Picard, and he almost never let his fear show, especially in front of his crew.

In Star Trek: The Next Generation season 6, episodes 10 and 11, "Chain of Command," Cardassians kidnap Captain Picard when he is on a covert mission. What follows is one of Star Trek's most brutal and difficult-to-watch sequences, as Cardassian Gul Madred (David Warner) tortures Picard for information about the United Federation of Planets. With incredible performances from Patrick Stewart and David Warner , Madred employs a range of tactics, including torture and gaslighting, to break down Picard, but the Enterprise Captain refuses to yield. To asset his power, Madred blinds Picard with four bright lights, ordering him to say that there are five lights, and then causing Picard pain when he insists: "There are four lights!"

Patrick Stewart and screenwriter Frank Abatemarco both consulted with Amnesty International to ensure the torture scenes were realistic and accurate.

Captain Jean-Luc Picard anchored every episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, but some episodes let him take more of a spotlight.

What Star Trek: TNG’s “There Are Four Lights” Means & Why It’s So Important For Picard

"tell me how many lights you see. how many how many lights this is your last chance.".

While on a covert mission to uncover and destroy a Cardassian biological weapon, Captain Picard, Lt. Worf (Michael Dorn), and Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden) inadvertently walk into a trap. After Picard's capture, Gul Madred works hard to break the Enterprise Captain's will, using various means of torture and brutal interrogation. Even while suffering intense pain, Picard refuses to say there are five lights when there are only four. As a final effort, Gul Madred tells Picard that the USS Enterprise-D has been destroyed in a battle with the Cardassians. Picard can either remain in captivity for the rest of his life or say there are five lights and live a comfortable life.

In the midst of the torture, Picard tells Madred: "In spite of all you've done to me, I find you a pitiable man."

Picard hesitates before guards enter and reveal that a ship is ready to take him back to the Enterprise. Before he leaves the room, Picard defiantly shouts "There are four lights!" Safely back on the USS Enterprise-D, in the final scene of the episode, Picard sits in his ready room with Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis). In a heartbreaking moment, Picard admits that, if his rescuers had not arrived when they did: "I would have told him anything. Anything at all. But more than that, I believed that I could see five lights." Picard has never been so broken, but he kept his composure just long enough that Madred and the Cardassians never saw him break.

Star Trek: TNG’s “Chain Of Command” Also Introduced Captain Jellico

"forgive me for being blunt, but the enterprise is mine now.".

When Picard, Worf, and Dr. Crusher left on their undercover mission, Captain Edward Jellico (Ronny Cox) took over command of the USS Enterprise-D. Jellico then began negotiations with the Cardassians regarding the strategically important Federation planet Minos Korva. Jellico had experience dealing with the Cardassians, as he had previously helped establish an armistice between the Federation and the Cardassian Union. With his by-the-book command style and tendency to micro-manage, Jellico clashed with Commander William Riker (Jonathan Frakes).

Jellico has been mentioned several times since his appearance on TNG , and the character returned in Star Trek: Prodigy as an Admiral stationed at Starfleet Headquarters.

When the Cardassians inform the Enterprise that they have Picard, Jellico refuses to admit the Captain was on a Starfleet mission, which would have given him the rights of a prisoner of war. Riker protests strongly, questioning Jellico's orders, and the Captain relieves Number One of duty, assigning Lt. Commander Data (Brent Spiner) as First Officer. Jellico later needs Riker's help to plant mines in the nebula where Cardassian ships are hiding. With the threat of the minefield, the Cardassians withdraw their fleet and release Picard. With its tense scenes and memorable characters, the "Chain of Command" two-parter remains one of Star Trek: The Next Generation and one of Captain Picard's best storylines.

Star Trek: The Next Generation is available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star Trek: The Next Generation is the third installment in the sci-fi franchise and follows the adventures of Captain Jean-Luc Picard and the crew members of the USS Enterprise. Set around one hundred years after the original series, Picard and his crew travel through the galaxy in largely self-contained episodes exploring the crew dynamics and their own political discourse. The series also had several overarching plots that would develop over the course of the isolated episodes, with four films released in tandem with the series to further some of these story elements.

• Jean-Luc Picard

10 Best Star Trek: Voyager Episodes, Ranked

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Everything about Star Trek: Voyager was a risk when the series debuted following the end of Star Trek: The Next Generation , an incredibly popular series. The flagship show of the nascent United Paramount Network, Captain Kathryn Janeway and her crew faced familiar struggles from fans. Their story, however, took the Star Trek universe to a new part of the galaxy. The Delta Quadrant hosted never-before-seen alien species and was the backyard of the Borg.

Through syndication and wide streaming access, Star Trek: Voyager is now regarded as a classic of this universe's second wave. Voyager finished its journey strong, and the addition of Seven of Nine -- a human drone rescued from the Borg collective -- changed the series for the better. Now in the third wave of the franchise, Seven of Nine is the captain of the USS Enterprise-G, and Janeway is now a Vice Admiral leading the young cadets of Star Trek: Prodigy . Below are the episodes that best showcase why Voyager is among Star Trek's most beloved series

10 'Distant Origin' Is the Kind of Social Allegory Star Trek Does Best

Voyager is caught up in a tale about scientific truth, immigration and acceptance, how did star trek: voyager become a tv series.

Star Trek: Voyager debuted after The Next Generation ended its historic run, but Captain Janeway's series was in development long before then.

The only episode on this list before Seven of Nine joined the crew, "Distant Origin" is representative of what Star Trek does best . It's a high-concept story about scientific exploration and the ways entrenched powers oppress the truth and those who seem "lesser" than them . The Voth are a superior race of intelligent beings that evolved tens of millions of years in Earth's past and took the stars.

The titular theory threatens the social order of the Voth, and the idea that they have a right to oppress others because they are "the first race" in their sector of space. Ironically, the episode spends much of its time away from the USS Voyager. It's not really their story, but rather the story of the Voth scientist facing punishment for violating "doctrine."

9 'Dark Frontier' Reveals Seven of Nine's Human Past and Importance to the Borg

This episode ties voyager to first contact and the next generation.

A feature-length two-part episode, "Dark Frontier" brings the Borg Queen to television for the first time since the character was created for Star Trek: First Contact . It also reveals how Annika Hansen and her parents came to be assimilated by the Borg. Part-heist story and part "mythology episode," which gives viewers a courtside view to how the Borg assimilate a species.

The USS Voyager plans to steal some Borg technology to help them get to Earth more quickly, but it's trap to recapture Seven of Nine. The Borg Queen reveals that Seven of Nine was "allowed" to leave the collective, and her recapture is meant to make her the human face of the Borg invasion of Earth, just as Locutus (Jean-Luc Picard) and Vox (Jack Crusher) were meant to be. In rescuing Seven of Nine, Captain Kathryn Janeway proves herself to be the Borg's biggest threat .

8 'Drone' Is a Perfect Blend of Star Trek Weirdness and Character Study

A high-concept voyager episode with a deeply emotional ending.

In "Drone," the holographic Doctor and Seven of Nine have a baby, of sorts. Originally bound to sickbay and the holodecks, the Doctor was given a 29th Century mobile emitter by Henry Starling. A transporter accident blends Borg "nanoprobes" with this technology creating a 29th Century Borg drone, just without a collective. He names himself "One," becoming something like a son to Seven of Nine.

One accidentally signals the Borg collective, which shows up to assimilate him and the USS Voyager. One is curious about his people, yet he's fully an individual . First, he helps the crew fight the Borg cube, but even his 29th Century know-how can't match the cube's raw firepower. He sacrifices himself in truly epic fashion, saving the ship but breaking Seven of Nine's heart .

7 'Endgame' Is the Epic Series Finale for Voyager and the Borg

Janeway brings the crew home and defeats star trek's worst enemy, star trek: voyager actor weighs in on controversial tuvix debate.

Star Trek: Voyager's Tuvix actor Tom Wright shares his opinion on whether Janeway made the right decision about his character's fate.

While everyone from fans to some of the cast lament the series finale of Star Trek: Voyager didn't show the ship actually arriving on Earth, it's still a fantastic finale. It begins many years after the previous episode, when the USS Voyager does arrive on Earth. Now a Vice Admiral, Janeway travels back in time with a plan to bring the ship and immobilize the Borg. All it will cost her is her life.

The beginning of the finale shows a version of the crew's future, though not everyone made it to Earth. The Elder Janeway's plan is ambitious and takes the ship right into the heart of the Borg society. While her younger counterpart gets her ship home, the elder Janeway has a final showdown with the Borg Queen. "Endgame" is full of spectacle appropriate for a series finale, while not sacrificing attention on the characters fans loved .

6 'Year of Hell' Is an Epic Two-Part Struggle for Survival

A year-long episode of star trek: voyager was almost a whole season.

The "Year of Hell" is a two-part episode that, according to Star Trek Voyager: A Celebration , could've lasted for an entire season. The episode centers on a new species called the Kremin, who developed a "timeship" that could erase entire civilizations from history. The captain and lead scientist, Annorax , continues these temporal incursions and sets his sights on the USS Voyager.

The two-part episode takes place over an entire year, with the USS Voyager and the Krenim engaging in a running war. The ship is damaged, the crew is battered and demoralized. The resolution resets the series' status quo. Had the fallout from this taken a full season, the show might have gotten too dark. This two-part epic is just enough "hell" to make this episode a classic instead of "the one where the season started to go downhill." The Krenim and the idea of the "Year of Hell" was mentioned in Season 3's "Before and After," when Kes visited a possible future.

5 'Timeless' Is About the Death and Resurrection of the USS Voyager

The survivors of the uss voyager break the prime directive to rewrite history.

Time travel is a Star Trek staple , and Voyager featured a lot of it. In "Timeless," select members of the crew survive after the USS Voyager is destroyed. The episode was directed by LeVar Burton who also appeared as Captain Geordi La Forge from the alternate future. As the surviving crew tries to change the past, La Forge has to stop them from violating the "Temporal Prime Directive."

Along with being a dark look at the future, the episode is emotionally heavy, especially for Chakotay and Harry Kim. The latter blames himself for the accident that destroyed the ship. He is determined to fix that mistake. Even though he's successful, the episode ends on a down note as the elder Kim sends a message to his younger self.

4 'Message In a Bottle' Brings Voyager One Step Closer to Home

The emergency medical holograms prove their mettle as starfleet officers, star trek: prodigy is the last hope for janeway and chakotay shippers.

Star Trek: Prodigy brought Voyager characters Kathryn Janeway and Chakotay back into their story and there is a chance for the romance fans never got.

The Romulans appear in "Message In a Bottle," one of the rare times a classic Star Trek alien species appears in Voyager other than the crew. The ship discovers a massive sensor array, and Seven of Nine sends the Doctor to another Starfleet vessel on the edge of Federation space. The array is the bottle, and he is the message. However, the ship is experimental and has been overtaken by Romulans.

The Doctor meets the Mark II version of the Emergency Medical Hologram used by Starfleet, and the irascible pair have to take on the Romulans. Along with being a thrilling episode in its own right, "Message In a Bottle" was important to the overall story. It's the first time the USS Voyager is able to make contact with Starfleet, letting them know the ship was not destroyed .

3 'Living Witness' Is Unlike Any Other Star Trek Episode

The closest the uss voyager ever got to the 'mirror universe'.

Another Doctor-heavy episode, "Living Witness" is a truly unique premise, not just for Voyager but Star Trek itself. Much of the episode is set far in the future from the 24th Century, in a society where the USS Voyager, Starfleet and Captain Janeway have become myth. A copy of the Doctor's program is discovered, and a researcher at the museum reactivates him.

The holographic recreations of the USS Voyager are like Mirror Universe versions of the characters fans know. As the Doctor tries to set the record straight, it causes social upheaval in the society. Ultimately, he urges the researcher to deactivate him and maintain peace on his planet, at the cost of the truth . Though, an even further future ending scene shows the truth eventually came out.

2 'Scorpion' Represents an Ending and a Beginning for Voyager

These episodes introdce the borg and seven of nine, star trek: prodigy's connection to voyager, explained.

Star Trek: Prodigy is a new series with new characters in the universe, but the series is directly connected to Voyager through characters and ships.

The end of Star Trek: Voyager Season 3 and start of Season 4 began the ship's frequent conflicts with the Borg. The second part of the two-part episode also introduces Seven of Nine, as Captain Janeway makes an alliance with the Borg . They encounter a new alien, species 8472 from a dimension of "fluidic space" with no other lifeforms. They are immune to assimilation.

The first episode cold open is short but powerful. A pair of Borg cubes descend on the unseen species 8472 and are destroyed. "Scorpion" is as consequential to Voyager as the classic Season 3 to 4 " Best of Both Worlds " was to The Next Generation . Unlike the USS Enterprise, which only had to deal with a single Borg cube, the USS Voyager was in the heart of Borg space.

1 'Blink of an Eye' Is a Classic Star Trek Episode with a Unique Concept

The top-rated star trek: voyager episode encompasses everything the franchise does best.

The USS Voyager finds itself stuck in the orbit of a planet that has a strange time variance, due to a heavy concentration of "chronaton particles." While the ship spends less than a week in this predicament, the time differential means the ship is viewed in the sky by the planet's indigenous population for a millennia. The "skyship" is the subject of myth, religion, pop culture and serves as an impetus for scientific advancement.

Because of the Prime Directive , the crew avoids making contact with the population, even though the presence of the ship causes frequent planetwide earthquakes. However, as the society advances, explorers from the planet come to the ship. It's a classic Star Trek episode despite being so unique. Just like "Distant Origin," it deals with the idea of scientific exploration, respect for other cultures or societies, and the propensity for any species to turn to violence when faced with the unknown .

Star Trek: Voyager is available to own on Blu-ray, DVD, digital and streams on Paramount+ and Pluto TV.

Star Trek Voyager

Pulled to the far side of the galaxy, where the Federation is seventy-five years away at maximum warp speed, a Starfleet ship must cooperate with Maquis rebels to find a way home.

New to Paramount+ in April 2024

I t’s a bittersweet April for Star Trek: Discovery fans at Paramount+. The series finale of the Star Trek series will premiere on April 4, according to Get Your Comic On.

While waiting for the third installment of Paramount’s smash hit Sonic the Hedgehog movies, this April also marks the debut of the new Sonic: The Hedgehog spinoff series Knuckles. Idris Elba will voice Knuckles the Echidna as he teaches the way of the Echidna warrior to deputy Wade Whipple (Adam Pally). The six-episode animated series will debut on April 27.

For the Sonic the Hedgehog movie Jim Carey is rumored to reprise Dr. Robotnik, while Jessica Jones star Kristen Ritter is also joining the sequel .

The 2023 British crime comedy film Sumotherhood will make its streaming debut on April 10. The movie follows the story of two friends who get into trouble after an attempted bank robbery gone wrong.

The Challenge All-Stars season four will also make its two-episode premiere on April 11.

The Ewan McGregor-led A Gentleman in Moscow continues with the rest of its episodes next month.

Here are the rest of the titles available on Paramount+ this April.

Star Trek: Discovery – season 5, episodes 1-2

A Gentleman in Moscow – episode 2

Sumotherhood – exclusive film

Star Trek: Discovery – season 5, episode 3

The Challenge All Stars – series 4, episodes 1-2

A Gentleman in Moscow – episode 3

Star Trek: Discovery – season 5, episode 4

The Challenge All Stars – series 4, episode 3

A Gentleman in Moscow – episode 4

Star Trek: Discovery – season 5, episodes 5

The Challenge All Stars – series 4, episode 4

The Retirement Plan – exclusive film

A Gentleman in Moscow – episode 5

Knuckles – box set drop

Like ClutchPoints’ content? Be sure to follow us.

The post New to Paramount+ in April 2024 appeared first on ClutchPoints .

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'Star Trek: Discovery' ends as an underappreciated TV pioneer

Eric Deggans

Sonequa Martin-Green as Michael Burnham. Michael Gibson/Paramount+ hide caption

First, an admission: Though this column will offer a lot of discussion and defense of Star Trek: Discovery as a pivotal show, it won’t spend much time talking up the series’ current, final season or its finale episode, “Life, Itself,” dropping Thursday on Paramount+.

That’s because, for this critic, the last few seasons of Discovery have been a bit bogged down by the stuff that has always made it a tough sell as a Trek series: overly ambitious, serialized storylines that aren’t compelling; new characters and environments that don’t impress; plot twists which can be maddening in their lack of logic; big storytelling swings which can be confusing and predictable at once.

'Star Trek: Picard' soars by embracing the legacy of 'The Next Generation'

The show’s finale features the culmination of a sprawling scavenger hunt which found the crew of the starship Discovery bounding all over the place, searching for clues leading to a powerful technology pioneered by an alien race which created humanoid life throughout the galaxy. Their goal was to grab the technology before another race, ruthless and aggressive, could beat them to it, laying waste to everything.

It's no spoiler to reveal that Discovery ’s heroes avoid that nightmarish scenario, wrapping its fifth and final season with a conclusion centered on Sonequa Martin-Green’s ever-resourceful Capt. Michael Burnham and fond resolutions for a multitude of supporting characters (there’s even a space wedding!)

Still, this good-enough ending belies Discovery ’s status as a pioneering show which helped Paramount+ build a new vision for Star Trek in modern television – breaking ground that more creatively successful series like Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds would follow years later.

And it all began with a singular character: Michael Burnham.

A take on Star Trek for modern TV

Discovery debuted in 2017 on CBS All Access — the streaming service which would become Paramount+ — facing a serious challenge.

As the first new Trek series in a dozen years, it had to chart a path which offered a new vision of the franchise without going too far — carving out a new corner in the universe of Capt. Kirk and Mr. Spock not long after the release of Star Trek Beyond , the third feature film produced by J. J. Abrams featuring rebooted versions of those classic characters.

Producers set Discovery ’s story 10 years before the days of Kirk and Spock (originally depicted on NBC for three seasons starting way back in 1966). The new series wouldn’t be centered on a starship captain, but its second in command: Burnham, a Black woman who also happened to be the hitherto unknown adopted daughter of Vulcan ambassador Sarek, Spock’s father (she would get promoted to captain of Discovery much later).

A Black human woman who was raised among the emotionally controlling, super-intellectual Vulcans? Who Trek fans had never heard of over nearly 60 years? Before I actually saw any episodes, my own feelings ranged from cautiously intrigued to cynically pessimistic.

But then I saw the first episode, which had an amazing early scene: Martin-Green as Burnham and Michelle Yeoh as Discovery Capt. Philippa Georgiou walking across an alien planet – two women of color marking the first step forward for Star Trek on a new platform.

People once sidelined in typical science fiction stories were now centerstage — a thrilling, historic moment.

Michelle Yeoh as Captain Philippa Georgiou and Sonequa Martin-Green as First Officer Michael Burnham in the very first episode of Star Trek: Discovery. Jan Thijs/CBS hide caption

And it got better from there. Back in the day, Trek writers often felt hamstrung by creator Gene Roddenberry’s insistence that, in the future depicted by the show, humans were beyond social ills like greed, prejudice, sexism, war, money and personal friction. The writers chafed, wondering: How in the world do you build compelling stories on a starship where interpersonal human conflict doesn’t exist?

But Discovery found a workaround, putting Burnham in a position where logic led her to mutiny against her captain, attempting a strategy which ultimately failed — leaving humans in open combat with the legendarily warlike Klingons. Discovery also featured a long storyline which played out over an entire season, unlike many earlier Trek shows which tried to offer a new adventure every week.

'First, Last And Always, I Am A Fan': Michael Chabon Steers Latest 'Star Trek'

The show’s first season had plenty of action, with Harry Potter alum Jason Isaacs emerging as a compelling and unique starship captain (saying more would be a spoiler; log onto Paramount+ and check out the first season). Fans saw a new vision for Trek technology, leveraging sleek, visceral special effects and action sequences worthy of a big budget movie, with design elements cribbed from several of the franchise’s films.

Later in its run, Discovery would debut Ethan Peck as Spock and Anson Mount as Christopher Pike, classic Trek characters who eventually got their own acclaimed series in Strange New Worlds . So far, five other Trek series have emerged on Paramount+ from ideas initially incubated on Discovery – including a critically acclaimed season of Picard which reunited the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation .

Not bad for a series one TV critic eventually called among “the worst in the [ Trek ] franchise’s history.”

Discovery’s unappreciated legacy

Unfortunately, Discovery has taken some turns which didn’t work out quite so well. At the end of Discovery ’s second season, the starship jumped ahead in time nine centuries – perhaps to remove it from Strange New World ’s timeline? – placing it in an environment only distantly connected to classic Trek .

And while Discovery initially seemed cautious about referencing classic Trek in its stories, later series like Strange New Worlds and Picard learned the value of diving into the near-60-year-old franchise’s legacy – regularly tapping the show’s longtime appeal, rather than twisting into knots to avoid it.

There are likely fans of Discovery who would disagree with this analysis. But I think it helps explain why the series has never quite gotten its due in the world of Star Trek , initially shaded by skeptical fans and later overshadowed by more beloved products.

Now is the perfect time to pay tribute to a show which actually accomplished quite a lot – helping prove that Roddenberry’s brainchild still has a lot of narrative juice left in the 21st Century.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5 review - "A spectacular but uneven final voyage"

GamesRadar+ Verdict

A spectacular but uneven final voyage for a spectacular but uneven TV show. With plenty of big ideas and some cute callbacks to classic Trek of the past, it's much more fun than the ultra-serious season 4, but it still can't match the spirit of adventure of Strange New Worlds and Picard's big finale.

Why you can trust GamesRadar+ Our experts review games, movies and tech over countless hours, so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about our reviews policy.

Warning - spoilers for the Star Trek: Discovery series finale follow. If you haven't seen the episode, look away now!

Talk about ambitious. Star Trek: Discovery’s fifth and final season spans the whole breadth of the Star Trek timeline (give or take), all the way from the distant future of the 32nd century back to the origins of humanity (and pretty much every other sentient species in the galaxy) billions of years ago.

Over the course of its 10 episodes, it does its best to tick off as many familiar Trek tropes as possible – the Mirror Universe, virtual reality simulations, wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff – as Captain Burnham and her crew lead us on a whistle-stop tour through key moments in the franchise’s history. And yet, for all its striking ideas and several genuinely thrilling episodes, Discovery’s swan-song can’t help playing it safe.

A treasure hunt

The season’s McGuffin is a bizarre contradiction, an unashamed slice of fan service that also has the potential to alter the Alpha Quadrant as we know it. Back in 1993, The Next Generation episode 'The Chase' provided a cute in-universe explanation for the fact that Klingons, Cardassians, Vulcans, and the vast majority of the galactic population look like humans with prosthetics stuck to their faces. It revealed that an ancient civilisation had seeded the primordial oceans of hundreds of worlds, shaping their evolution and ensuring that their genetic code lived on. But if it ever turned up again, this life-giving “Progenitor” technology could be twisted to become the ultimate doomsday weapon, much like the Genesis torpedo in classic Trek movie The Wrath of Khan.

With Discovery dispatched on a top-secret, race-against-time mission to ensure Starfleet tracks down the tech before anyone else, it develops into the perfect hook for a serialised Star Trek arc. Yes, there’s something inherently ludicrous about pursuing a treasure trail left behind by Federation scientists 800 years earlier (Raiders of the Lost DNA?), but – after an undeniably slow start – this framework allows the writers to add extra urgency to a range of traditional, effectively standalone stories. In this final season, the obligatory Prime Directive story, 'Whistlespeak', carries extra weight because the fate of an entire galaxy depends on whether or not Burnham announces her true space-faring identity to a pre-warp race.

The season is also packed with sci-fi invention, from a Doctor Who-esque library that’s home to all the knowledge in the universe to a journey into multi-dimensional space that plays out like a cross between 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy’s planet factories. That everything looks eye-poppingly spectacular is almost a given in an era where TV visuals regularly match their movie counterparts, but that doesn’t mean the VFX team don’t deserve a huge round of applause.

A sidelined crew

For all the leaps forward made by season 5, however, it turns out that the problems of the 32nd century never really went away. It remains a big disappointment, for example, that the Discovery crew have never encountered a worthy adversary in the distant future. Admittedly, despite displaying plenty of underdog ingenuity, interstellar Bonnie and Clyde duo L’ak and Moll were never likely to be the biggest bads on the game board. But bringing back the Breen, ruthless accomplices of the Dominion in the final season of Deep Space Nine, doesn’t fit the bill either.

With a general air of mystery (an incomprehensible language, gelatinous anatomy) and armor pinched wholesale from Princess Leia’s Boushh disguise in Return of the Jedi – their updated look in Discovery shouldn’t concern copyright lawyers quite so much – the Breen worked because we knew so little about them. But by giving us a glimpse behind the mask, that mystique evaporates as quickly as Boba Fett’s did in his self-titled TV show. Even with all that firepower behind the Imperium, the revelation that L’ak is the first Breen face we’ve ever seen on screen is more likely to generate a “huh?” than a “wow”.

But even more frustrating is the show’s ongoing inability to get the best out of its crew. Of all the Treks, Discovery features the least balanced ensemble, so over-reliant on the borderline superheroics of Michael Burnham (is there any puzzle she can’t solve?) that it’s still a struggle to name half of the bridge officers.

Sidelining familiar faces Detmer and Owosekun for the second half of the season is a weird choice (they’re nominally flying the Mirror Universe Enterprise back to base), while even names higher up the cast list feel short-changed. Saru – a former captain of the Discovery, don’t forget – arguably gets his best moment off-screen, when it’s revealed that his Mirror Universe counterpart instigated a rebellion. And it almost seems unfair that the season’s most satisfying arc should belong to the ship’s wonderfully prickly new first officer, Rayner (Battlestar Galactica’s Callum Keith Rennie), one of the few characters who doesn’t sound like they’ve swallowed a book of motivational quotes.

An implausibly neat bow

At the end of a season that – once again – sees every visible member of the crew defy impossible odds to make it to the end in one piece, the inevitable flash-forward coda ties things up in an implausibly neat bow. Book, in particular, appears to have been kept on board simply to prolong his on/off romance with Michael, and there’s something a little too contrived about their grown-up, Starfleet captain son turning up to introduce his new ship: the USS Discovery-A (especially after Picard’s son, Jack, did the exact same thing with the Enterprise-G in the Star Trek: Picard finale ).

Still, long-term fans will get a kick out of the revelation that the incongruous, suit-and-tie-wearing Dr Kovich (played by legendary director David Cronenberg) is actually Crewman Daniels, the time agent from Star Trek: Enterprise. They’ll also enjoy the nod to Discovery computer Zora’s upcoming meeting with a man named Craft in the even further future of Short Trek episode 'Calypso'.

But, like the two 32nd century-set seasons that preceded it, Discovery’s fun but uneven final voyage struggles to live up to the brave, twist-heavy storytelling that was a hypo-spray in the arm for a veteran franchise when the show launched in 2017. Discovery always did its best to boldly go where no one had gone before, but when it comes to exploring strange new worlds, there’s no question others did it better.

Star Trek: Discovery season 5 is available on Paramount Plus in the US and the UK.

For more, check out our guide to the  best Star Trek episodes  that every Trekkie should watch right now.

Richard is a freelancer journalist and editor, and was once a physicist. Rich is the former editor of SFX Magazine, but has since gone freelance, writing for websites and publications including GamesRadar+, SFX, Total Film, and more. He also co-hosts the podcast, Robby the Robot's Waiting, which is focused on sci-fi and fantasy. 

Star Trek Discovery showrunner says that they will be following up a 30-year-old mystery that was never addressed: "You don’t just let that go"

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• June 3, 2024 | ‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ Season 2 Coming To Netflix In July
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• May 30, 2024 | Recap/Review: ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Pulls It All Together For “Life, Itself”
• May 29, 2024 | ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Season 4 Filming Set For 2025; Anson Mount Thanks Fans For Patience

Recap/Review: ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Pulls It All Together For “Life, Itself”

| May 30, 2024 | By: Anthony Pascale 210 comments so far

“Life, Itself”

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5, Episode 10 – Debuted Thursday, May 30, 2024 Written by Kyle Jarrow & Michelle Paradise Directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi

A solid season finale ties things for the season plot and the characters, with a bonus bringing the series to a satisfying conclusion.

The Progenitors may be all-powerful, but would it have killed them to add some signage?

WARNING: Spoilers below!

“Let’s go get what we came for”

We are back at the binary black holes, the portal is out of reach of the Disco, there is no contact with the captain, the Breen dreadnaught is launching a swarm of fighters, and Primarch Tahal is one hour away from escalating things beyond any hope: just the kind of stakes and ticking clocks we expect for a finale. Inside the portal, Michael finds herself looking at a tunnel of seemingly infinite gateway windows she “cannot explain” to her tricorder, for posterity. She picks a bright light in the distance as her destination but when she notices an odd distortion, she is soon pulled through to a windswept desolate world and greeted by an angry Breen, who isn’t in a talking mood. After dispatching him and another Breen back in the tunnel, Moll shows up with some sarcastic praise, a bleeding wound, and a big gun. Michael offers a dermal regenerator as a peace offering. But soon enough they are at odds again, as Moll is willing to work with the Breen to use the tech to bring back L’ak and doesn’t trust the Feds. Michael has seen that dark future and isn’t going to let that happen, so cue the fight music and VFX as the pair punches and kicks their way through shifting gravities and multiple worlds like a TV-budget Christopher Nolan movie. Michael switches tactics, connecting emotionally over loss, giving Moll her personal promise to use the tech to bring back L’ak. (Remember Moll’s pattern buffer? Her heart is literally on her sleeve). Together the reluctant partnership heads off down the yellow brick road Progenitor tech tunnel.

Off to see the wizard?

“I have kind of a crazy idea”

Things are hectic on the Disco as Rayner realizes he can’t get to the portal and fight off the Breen at the same time, so Book volunteers to take a shuttle to grab the portal. Cleveland is given a short ticking clock before the black hole radiation will fry him but Dr. Culber volunteers to join anyway, as he has a weird feeling he is going to be needed. As they head off, Tilly hatches a plan involving a plasma cloud and the power of science. Back at Federation HQ, they need to divert the approaching Breen fleet, so Saru and Nhan volunteer to confront Tahal with an unarmed shuttle because for these Disco vets— and as the great Vin Diesel says —it’s all about family. They catch up with Tahal, who isn’t in the mood to have a nice chat and is curious why the Feds don’t want her finding out what’s going on with Runh’s old dreadnaught. Suru makes his first move, offering Tahal a Federation trade route through the L’Tar Nebula, which would give her an advantage over other Primarchs, but she rejects it. Nhan is nervous but Saru remains calm, even after being given 30 seconds to leave. The offer is rescinded after he calls Tahal a coward, then escalates to telling her he is a predator, she is his prey, and if she doesn’t take his deal, she will never get the Imperium throne. He now knows she already has hidden bases in L’Tar and his friends in the region will attack, diverting her attention and keeping her from winning the Breen faction war. She thinks he is crazy and bluffing but Saru compels her to look into his eyes and ask if she doesn’t see resolve. It works. Nhan is impressed: That’s some cold Kelpien cowboy diplomacy.

Sorry Commander Nhan, if one of us isn’t going to make it, I’m guessing it’s you.

“Every clue has prepared us for this”

To find their way through the endless tunnel of gateways, Michael starts thinking multidimensionally—like a Progenitor—and finds a new hidden vista, this time with flowers and a promising central dais. This whole place is the tech they have been looking for, and they are reminded of the danger as they pass a makeshift monument to the 24 th -century scientist who was killed trying to use it. The control interface is an unmarked scatter of triangles, and as the two debate how the “one between many” clue fits, when Michael can suddenly hear Book’s transmission. The distraction gives Moll a chance to knock the captain out before forming a pyramid on the interface, getting her zapped and pinned as the system wakes up with columns of energy. Outside, the portal draws matter from a black hole, impressive but not helpful to everyone out there. Tilly’s trick of blowing up the Breen fighters with a nearby plasma cloud works, and Book is ordered to grab the portal before the dreadnaught shows up, but he can’t get a tractor lock. Now Culber understands his mysterious drive to be there and relays the exact resonance frequency Book needs for the tractor beam… We’ll sort that out later. Michael wakes and pulls Moll off the pedestal, down but conscious. She works out the triangle puzzle (“one between many” means creating a larger triangle with the negative space, duh). She is rewarded by another transition and greeting from an actual extinct Progenitor, waiting to offer instructions… like Clippy , but with the power of creation. From what she heard from Book, Michael knows the portal is causing all sorts of dire problems, so the first thing is to shut it down. The Progenitor explains it is just powering up to perform its primary function: the creation of life, but it can’t bring back the dead, which is bad news for Moll and L’ak. Michael is concerned the tech can be used to create armies of destruction, but the Progenitor points to the evidence in the tunnel, all those gateways to worlds full of life. She then drops the big head-scratcher, the Progenitors didn’t create this thing, they found it. The Progenitors have progenitors? They are just part of a “cycle of creators and creations countless times over.” It’s progenitors all the way down. Mind Blown GIFs .

Let’s see what happens when I touch this invisible thing.

“It’s the right thing to do”

Tahal may have turned around, but she has sent a cloaked scout to see what’s going on. The Discovery crew can’t let that or the dreadnaught have access to the Progenitor tech, so Rayner has the craziest idea yet: Just remove all the Breen… with the spore drive. This is Discovery, where they do five impossible things before breakfast, so he rallies the crew with a speech to make it happen. Inside the portal, Michael is told she has passed the tests so she is now the “steward” of the tech. During a montage of the raging battle outside Tilly and Stamets zap the Breen away to the galactic barrier thanks to a cool saucer separation manuever. The Progenitor talks about how her race found themselves alone, so they found meaning by creating all the varieties of life throughout the galaxy, and now it’s Michael’s turn to play god. What is most meaningful to you? No pressure. For now, the captain wants the whole thing shut down while she considers her options. The Progenitor says she can wait and gives Burnham a quick data download of a few billion years of the history of life in the galaxy. No big whoop. Michael grabs Moll, lets her know about L’ak (sorry) and they beam to Book’s shuttle. Everyone reunites and hugs (Saru too, of course) but they soon debate the use of the Progenitor tech. Rayner talks of orders and Stamets of science, but Burnham is determined. They already have infinite diversity in infinite combinations, they don’t need the tech, and she’s sure Rillak and Vance will back her up. The portal is placed beyond one of the black holes’ event horizon, but the captain figures whoever made it could always figure out how to get it out if they are still around. Back at HQ, Moll and Book share a moment and her icy attitude thaws a bit; also, it turns out she is being offered a job with Kovich if she wants it. Speaking of that enigma, Kovich tells Michael the Red Directive is over, everything is classified, and that’s that. He tells her he has lived many lives and she is top of the list of aggravations, but he’s still impressed. Thankfully, she doesn’t let this latest mysterious comment go, pressing him to reveal who he really is. He finally introduces himself: “ Agent Daniels .” Damn, and I already used up all my mind blown GIFs.

Get ready for even more hugging.

“Last dance”

Cut to weeks later: We find ourselves at a beach destination wedding. Yep, T’Rina and Saru get hitched and seal it with a kiss. Aww. Everyone is there having a good time. Suru sums up the season with Michael as he looks at the gathering of diverse friends and well wishers, nothing it would make the Progenitors proud to see how “we are all in the most fundamental ways, connected.” After hearing how Tilly has a mentorship plan tailor-made for a spinoff series about Starfleet Academy , Michael finds Book and the two dip out to have a chat on the beach. He has been busy and now he is a free man, full of hope again. Both are looking to the future and agree that future should be together. “You, me, and Grudge.” More aww, more kissing, but they are interrupted: It’s a call from Kovich. Another mission. And the season ends with just the right note. “What are we waiting for? Let’s see what the future holds.” Fade to black… but wait, there’s more.

Marriage is logical.

Cut to an isolated cabin on Sanctuary Four (where Book planted that Kwejian world root, BTW). It’s Michael and Book, many years later, with gray hairs and fun banter over bad coffee. There is talk about it being a big day before a shuttle arrives, piloted by their son! He’s a Starfleet captain! She’s an admiral! New uniforms! They are not messing around. Mother and son head off, mentioning Tilly is still at the Academy, and she gives some advice for his first big speech in command. She reflects on her (classified) mission, talking of the question about what is most meaningful. Her answer, “Sometimes life, itself (title alert!) is meaning enough.” Channeling her own inner Diesel, she talks of their family, her Discovery family, and how her son will find family with his new crew. He drops her off at the USS Discovery in space dock, which is getting the -A removed from its registry as the ship is being reset to its original 23rd century design and parameters for its “final mission.” On board, the admiral greets Zora and informs the AI she will take the ship into deep space and then leave her, to await something to do with “ Craft .” Reflecting on how it’s been “a hell of a journey,” Michael sits in the captain’s chair and all the feels come back to her. We see her younger self on the bridge and she’s with her Disco family. Everyone is there, even Detmer, Owo, and Bryce. There is a lot of hugging and chatter and laughing and joy as we fade back to older Burnham coming out of the moment. The OG Discovery exits spacedock and all the ships and shuttles at HQ are lined up as an honor guard. Nice. For one last time, she orders “Let’s fly” as the classic music swells and we fade to black for the final curtain. Goodbye, Star Trek: Discovery . I really will miss you.

Zora, if you are so smart, how come you didn’t predict we would get canceled?

All good things…

This was a solid season finale that nicely tied up plot and character stories amidst fast-paced action and philosophical questions—with a few answers. Packing so much in did perhaps bloat the episode, which got even heftier when the epilogue (shot later, after the series wasn’t renewed) was tacked on. But the themes of the season were woven throughout, which in true Disco style were made clear with all the talk of connection, diversity, and family. From the beginning, this show has always been about Michael Burnham, and her hero’s journey was certainly on full display here as she was deemed worthy to hold the power of the gods, with Sonequa Martin-Green delivering a fantastic performance covering the required range needed for all the plot, romance, and action. The rest of the ensemble had hero moments throughout too, notably Doug Jones’ Saru, who ended the season strong showing just how formidable he is, without having to fire a shot (or quill). Everyone was smart, clearly worthy of their positions, and the show doesn’t need to make the baddies dumb to keep the plot moving. Even the USS Discovery itself got a hero moment, one of the many spectacular visual effects moments they saved up for with the finale. Director and EP Olatunde Osunsanmi really understands this show and these characters and knows how to pace things so that extra time did fly, although he is definitely over-enamored with the spinning camera rig.

Inside all that action were big and little moments of character to pay off elements that had built up through the season. A great example of this was Rayner, a new character introduced in conflict with Burnham at the start of the season, and who we learned later is haunted by his past with the Breen. For the finale, he spots his own errors and pivots, he has the trust of the crew, and he even has a tiny bit of mercy for the Breen. Callum Keith Rennie was one of the standouts of the season and its sad that we won’t get to see where the character would have gone had there been another season. Wilson Cruz’s Culber also had a nice bit of closure here, as the doctor’s spiritual journey brought him onto the (almost suicide) mission with Book, where he took that leap of faith and learned to embrace the mystery of how “Jinaal” has changed him. Sadly, the same can’t be said of his husband Stamets, who got the short end of the stick this episode (and all season) with Anthony Rapp mostly relegated to technobabble and subbing in as chief engineer in the weeks Tig Notaro couldn’t make it to Toronto. Stamets has looked for meaning after the spore drive and that journey will continue now that the Progenitor tech has been taken away. Mary Wiseman’s Tilly had fun moments this episode but her backstory about struggles at the Academy and her solution (a mentorship program) seems more about setting her up for the new show than servicing the character.

Did anyone see my dead husband? I seem to have lost him.

Meeting the makers

For the finale, the big bad Breen mostly took a back seat. We never got a glimpse into what was happening on the dreadnought with Moll gone. We got some FaceTime chat with Tahal, who was just as one-dimensional as Ruhn, but the various Breen ships did pose enough of a credible threat for there to be high stakes for our heroes. In the end, it was Moll who was the main adversary for the episode, as she stuck with her single-minded determination, resulting in probably too many fight scenes inside the Progenitor portal. Also, why did she fight the Breen who were supposedly working for her? The adversaries Moll and L’ak were certainly stronger than previous villains for the show, but the last few episodes didn’t really pay off some of the promise of earlier ones. Maybe her redemption was planned to come later as an agent for Kovich. Speaking of that enigmatic character, it was quite satisfying to finally address his backstory, and tying it into the Star Trek: Enterprise character of Daniels was clever and makes a lot of sense.

The biggest reveals for this episode were tying things up with the Progenitors as this season picked up the thread left by the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “The Chase” and really ran with it. The scenes with Burnham and the Progenitor (ably played by Somkele Iyamah-Idhalma) were strong, turning their mission of seeding the galaxy into Star Trek’s recurring theme of infinite diversity, as laid out nicely by Saru at the wedding (in case you missed it). The one thing that didn’t land was the “one between many” triangle thing, which turned out to be a basic IQ test and not something tied into the rest of the clues, tests, and cultural understandings Burnham has passed throughout the season.  Of course, Burnham was the one who was deemed worthy to become the steward, but it also fit with the character that she had the humility to reject the power and hide it away as the galaxy already had plenty of life and it was too dangerous to leave lying around. The twist that the Progenitors were only the latest in a line older than the universe itself is a very big idea straight out of classic sci-fi, and even scripture. It’s a nice touch to add a bit more mystery to all of it.

Sometimes even in Star Trek, dead is dead.

Sometimes it’s okay to cry

As for fans of romance, you got a twofer with Michael and Book getting back together and Saru and T’Rina getting married. A wedding in a finale is a bit cliché, but it was nice and used well to wrap things up. The final moment on the beach with Michael and Book was sweet and did a decent job of hinting at more to come, and it could even have made for a reasonable series finale, with an optimistic and hopeful Star Trek look to the future and the next mission, together.

But then the producers were given the chance to shoot an epilogue to wrap up the series after they found out this season would be their last. This brings us to the extra bits that start at the cabin with older Book and Michael. Wrapping things up with this kind of leap forward into the future was a bit trite, but they didn’t have a lot of time to pull it together and what they did was pretty impressive, albeit with the focus on Michael Burnham. It was still well-earned and satisfying to see her happy ending as an admiral, shepherding her son to be the next generation of Starfleet. They didn’t have to, but continuity-lovers will appreciate how they used this coda to really tie a bow onto connecting the series to the Short Treks episode “Calypso,” right down to explaining away how the ship in that future didn’t have the 32 nd -century refit. The conversation with Michael and Zora was very sweet, all part of the right tone for this coda. Things got even more on brand for Michael’s memory sequence, bringing in the rest of the cast—her Discovery family. Only Saru (barely) got an audible line, which may disappoint fans who want to know what’s up with the other characters, but the emotion of it all was there and this leaves plenty of opportunities for those characters later if they show up on the Academy series. All in all, it was very Discovery , and what more could you want to tie things up?

Did no one think to bring drinks for this party? Reno?

Final thoughts

This season had big ideas and “Life, Itself” answered the right questions and posed some more, which is a good thing. This is the best finale for the best season of Discovery , and sadly it will be their last. The show really hit its stride in season 5, delivering on the promise of a new adventurous tone while still servicing the characters and their many emotions.

Where have you been?

• At 1:25:35, the finale has the longest runtime of any episode of Discovery— or any single episode of Star Trek, not counting 2-part episodes.
• The epilogue added 15:40 to the runtime.
• Michael uses her Vulcan meditation technique to clear her head to solve the puzzle.
• The L’Tar Nebula sounds like the Lantar Nebula mentioned by Vash in “Q-Less,” but probably something different.
• After getting mentioned a lot over the last couple of seasons, we saw the Pathway Drive in action on Saru’s shuttle when it caught up to Tahal’s fleet.
• A possible continuity error: The first shot of the triangle test shows 10 triangles, but both Michael and Moll used only 9 for their different solutions, with no extra triangle.
• After Culber revealed the subspace frequency he said, “I’m a doctor, not a physicist,” classic Star Trek .
• The EV suit computer voice Julianne Grossman, who did the computer voice for the USS Discovery for the first 3 seasons before Zora (Annabelle Wallis) became the ship’s voice.
• When Kovich tells Michael that everything from the season will be classified, she says she was “familiar with how those things work now,” possibly referencing how the USS Discovery and spore drive were classified at the end of season 2 ; however, she was not present for that, as she had already jumped to the future.
• Reacting to Saru’s gambit with Tahal, Nhan said she didn’t want to play him in Ferengi Rummy.
• Book was late to the wedding because he ran into some Talaxian pirates.
• It’s not mentioned in dialogue, but Burnham and Book’s son’s name is Leto. He’s played by Sawandi Wilson.
• The registry on Leto Burnham’s shuttle was UFP 47 .
• Michael talked to Leto about recently visiting Crepuscula .
• Molly the trance worm had a baby. Aww.

Michael thinks back to Voq… yeah, she married the right alien.

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 premiered on April 4 on Paramount+ in Canada and was broadcast on Bell Media’s CTV Sci-Fi Channel in Canada.

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

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“He finally introduces himself: “Agent Daniels”

See, you wouldn’t have gotten that from a series inspired by the Kelvin reboot — or maybe yes since Enterprise is the only series that is canonical in the Kelvinverse. Thought it likely wouldn’t have been as satisfying…

Enterprise is actually not quite as canonical as you think it is in the “Kelvin” verse The origins and outcomes in Kelvin are vastly different from the Prime Universe. SNW pretty much confirms that. Kelvin is not as “divergent” as we thought it was. I figured he was around for the Temporal Cold War given his knowledge about Time Travel. My only gripe with Kurtzman Trek is that they act like they did not do a somewhat soft reboot of the Original Series canon and timeline which they actually did.

Exactly. Just say it’s a reboot and you give yourself freedom from the canon lawers (like me). They should have done that from day 1 of Discovery honestly. It was the perfect chance to re-*discover* what Trek is for us in the 21st century. Alas. No vision or guts.

Yeah Discovery should’ve been a reboot on day one and it could’ve stayed in the 23rd century. But as someone who actually likes that it got to do its own thing and put us in a completely new time period, I’m not too bothered in the end. But of course they could’ve just had the show in the 32nd century from the beginning and just set Trek on a completely different course in the modern era away from everything we knew making this century the ‘present day’ going forward which many fans like me wanted anyway once we heard a new show was coming.

But all of that is clearly in hindsight now.

That’s all on Bryan Fuller. Though his original plan was to set the series in a different era for each season set in the timeline of TOS, Discovery should have had a visual aesthetic that fell somewhere between Enterprise and TOS. Instead he took it in a much different direction. Had he said “It’s a different timeline!” most would have just run with it.

It was telling that when Fuller launched Discovery he didn’t bring in anyone from the Berman era to work on the series. Ron Moore, by contrast, brought in people from the Berman era to work on Battlestar Galactica, Outlander and For All Mankind.

Fuller wanted a full series and visual reboot and should have just said, yeah, this is a reboot set in a different timeline.

Yeah 100% agree.

Discovery made a lot of errors in the first season but the biggest was putting a show that was clearly meant to be a reboot in a 50 year old universe but pretended like it wasn’t a reboot.

Despite all it’s issues starting out that will always be the biggest IMO.

Actually he did bring on Joe Menosky who has worked on all the Berman shows minus Enterprise but it seems like what happened with Nic Meyer and he didn’t gel very well with the new group because he left after the first season and never talked about his time on the show.

I got the impression that Menosky was a bit frustrated by the entire experience and that he was this lone and ignored voice. Given a chance, Menosky probably would have loved working on Picard or SNW where his input would have been appreciated and not ignored.

I rewatched part of DSC S1. Still compelling television.

Aside from that, requesting the visual aesthetics of 60s science fiction? Get real. Its a tv show, not retelling of a future to come. It doesnt matter, if they say its a reboot or not. Technology advanced. Look at scripture. 4 variants of Christs story, in one book. Star Trek is art. Television has no obligation to align with anyones fantasy. Media shouldnt deliver, what people want, but what they might need. I also have an opinion. Did I like it? Dont know. Was I entertained? Yes. If this enough? Yeah, for the moment.

People creating want to create something on their own, always redesigns always new ideas, sometimes they take old stuff and build ontop of it, but usually they go rather somewhere else, like Bajor, Delta Quadrant, Child Universe. Artists are not engineers in that matter, as engineers try to make something work. Artists express themselves. So every iteration of Star Trek is different. So many new uniform styles to keep track off. The costume designers are off the leash.

But I always come back to what Phlox said to Trip about his people having something similar to television until they realized, their lives were more interesting. Live by Phlox’ wisdom!

The Khan episode from SNW confirms the Prime universe rebooth. The idea they dropped around Time trying to re-insert itself is interesting. That is the freedom they needed to upend the Gorn story from TOS for example. I have no problem with the soft reboot but just say that is what you did and be done with it.

SNW has begun the process of reimagining TOS. Look as much as I love TOS, not everything about it translates into our modern era. I always thought for years that TOS needed a soft reboot. It is no accident that Time Travel was emphasized in DISCO and SNW. Kurtzman needs to just say it. JJ deicded to be coy about Khan and look how that turned out.

I had my issues with DISCO but I enjoyed seasons 1 and 2.

EXACTLY. And Discovery could have that done too with the Klingons.

If you go by that, go by the Borg. Stranded, frozen from the sphere from First contact. Found in the arctic, chased by Enterprise. Any time travel episode that left stuff in the past could upend what has been established before. Could also be an out for Pike not getting irradiated.

Not exactly.

When Beyond came out, Simon Pegg (who worked on the script) floated the idea that changes in the timeline causes ripples BOTH WAYS. So, within their creative intent, they interpret the Kelvin Universe existing in a place where there may be no continuity with anything, since there’s no guarantee any of it matches if the past has been changed too.

Well, I forgot that since Nero and Spock crossed into another quantum reality through the singularity, they were already in a different timeline even before Nero attacked the Kelvin. Just like it happened with Worf.

So, Nero’s attack need not have changed the timeline both ways since it was already different from the moment he arrived.

That whole thing was awfully silly. Since Kovich said he’s lived lifetimes it just made sense he be El-Aurian.

The statement would be applicable to a time traveler too. It’s misdirection.

I don’t think “living lifetimes” applies to time travelers. The term is meant to denote longevity. Not jumping to other eras.

Doctor Who does that whenever they do an episode in which one of his companions is left behind and grows old, then resets to their original age by the end of the episode.

But in the Who case it for sure denotes longevity, too. I cannot think of a case where “lifetimes” refers to anything but a very long time.

Lifetimes can refer to multiple lives, not necessarily longevity.

Think of every time someone in Trek experienced an alternate timeline. Each one of those would be a lifetime.

That includes Jake Sisko in The Visitor, the Enterprise-D’s crew in All Good Things, and the Voyager crew in Endgame, and all other alternate timelines in between.

For instance, Harry Kim experienced at least five lifetimes that come to mind; Non Sequitur, Year of Hell, Timeless, Endgame, and his prime timeline lifetime.

Surely there were others as VOY did multiple alternate timelines.

Well they could have if they decided to focus the KT on the Temporal Wars in some way but obviously that was never in the cards.

But I get your basic point and probably why in the end fans will always gravitate to the Prime universe because this is where the now thousand year old history (wow) and all the cool and old characters most fans grew up with lives.

And it’s pretty crazy that Daniels was part of the 22nd and 32nd century. He has basically bookend the entire franchise. This is why I love this show so much because of how imaginative it is!!!

Whatever cements Enterprise further into canon makes me happy.

Although that’s always been the biggest irony that Enterprise is really the only show canon to both universes.

Yep, heh. Back in 2009 the thought that Enterprise was the only Trek series that was still part of canon made me laugh because of how much “real” fans hated it when it came out.

And now a lot of fans hate the Kelvin movies today so I guess it has come full circle lol.

(But for the record I’m NOT one of them)

How goes the white whale, Captain Ahab?

I actually liked what they did with the Kelvin films. How do you reboot a series without rebooting a series? Why, set it in an alternate universe, of course! Where they stumbled was allowing four years between the first and second films and then deciding to revisit Khan instead of trying something entirely new (something like “Beyond” should have been the next film). I was hoping for a new standalone, not a retread of a TOS and the feature film it inspired.

I’d still like to see another Kelvin film and with the cast being who they are now, I think it would do well.

Am I the only one who thought the big reveal was Kovich revealing themself to be Whoopi Goldberg as Guinan, especially given all the TNG-specific swag in his office?

Not saying I would have loved it, but it definitely felt like that’s where it was going as I watched the scene.

One of my Kovich theories was that he was EL Aurian. So close I guess.

My first thought, with the “many lives” snippet, was that he was going to reveal himself as Flint.

I thought that too, or, believe it or not, I considered he may have been Data or a Soong.

I thought a version of Data or a Soong relative at first too, there is beta cannon where Data gets an upgraded body and is able to change his appearance. But I wasn’t completely surprised with the Agent Daniels reveal as it’s been floating around as a theory for a while.

…just watched that episode an hour ago, actually. McCoy tells Spock at the end Flint is dying, will just live out a normal human lifespan.

True. Interestingly the novels (I know very much noncanon) had him fake his impending death.

Now that was not only an awesome episode of Trek but one of the best series finales in the franchise right up there with All Good Things and What We Leave Behind.

I will miss this show/cast and after 5 seasons it has earned its place as my 2nd favourite Trek show with DS9 still number 1.

Only a few episodes of Trek have made me cry tears of sadness like All Good Things, What We Leave Behind, The Visitor, Family, The Siege of AR-558 and now this episode Life, Itself joins the ranks. It was so well written, acted and directed it felt like a feature film and not just a series final of a TV Show. The Kovich reveal as Daniels from Enterprise was shocking as i never expected that but now thinking back at all the episodes of Discovery/Enterprise that Kovich/Daniels was in it makes sense to me.

Discovery separating the saucer section and using both it and the secondary hull to spore jump the Breen Dreadnought and the scoutship was amazing. One of the best CGI sequences in Trek.

Seeing one of the progenitors was cool though i would have loved it if it was Salome Jones but i understand she is in her 90s now. Also interesting to note that the ‘Progenitors’ didn’t invent the tech but found it and they themselves for creating by another race. Another mystery but maybe one that will probably best left unanswered.

As for Moll sadly she was the only thing i didn’t like about this episode. I understand her need/want to bring L’ak back but to be honest I’m not that interested in her story. But i do hope she and Book make amends with each other.

The epilogue was really nice though I wise we got a bit more of the rest of the cast. It does make sense that it featured Burnham as she is the show.

Also i loved the Calypso tie in and i do hope we find out someday exactly why Zora/Discovery has to wait in the Nebula for Craft and how did they know his name. Is it something to do with the Progenitor tech or perhaps Zora herself?.

Burnham told Zora it was a Red Directive, so perhaps Kovich/Daniels needed Craft to not die, and is no longer allowed to time travel due to the Temporal accords? An AI like Zora is timeless and can get to the future to save him in that Nebula. If Discovery still looked like a 32nd century upgraded ship, the Federation might be pinged for Temporal intervention?

Maybe we’ll get an answer, maybe it’ll always be people’s head canon?

The resolution of Moll’s arc was so frustrating. After everything she did to get to that point, all it takes is Burnham to tell her she can’t save L’ak and she’s just basically like, “Oh darn. That saddens me. Okie!”

The show should have had the guts to Toht her ass once she got her tangram puzzle wrong.

Wow! The finale episode was stunning! Lots to think about, but for now I will just rewatch and enjoy the spectacle and nice connecting of the Progenitors with IDIC and with the lives of the Disco crew.

I will miss Soniqua Martin Green. I loved this show.

I will miss Sonequa , too . But , I will follow her career. All of them, really. But Sonequa really spoke to me. Also, she was such a great Trek ambassador.

I adore her. Her grace, warmth, empathy, depth and thoughtfulness. I’m truly grateful to have had Discovery and her. What a great addition to the Trek family and herstory. From the very first episode, her complex performance really brought a depth and grounded reality to the Trek mythos for the first time in a way it hadn’t had before. Before Discovery, Trek was very stylized in its type of acting and character portrayal and SMG really made this universe we all love so much feel that more real.

Hugely underrated actress. Her performances have been richly compelling and, at least once her character initially relaxed a bit, full of warmth and humanity.

That Hope is You Part 1 is one of the show’s strongest episodes, largely due to the carefree performance she gives. I’d love to have seen more of that Burnham. SMG gave it her all to smooth over what was a fairly inconsistently written character amongst several inconsistently written characters. It reminded me of Kate Mulgrew and the shared burden they had of trying to steer a groundbreaking imperfect but semi-superhumanly capable woman through choppy waters with grace, charisma, and style. I’d be fascinated to watch a shared interview with them.

Agreed, greatly enjoyed Soniqua’s portrayal, and that of many of the Discovery crew.

Also, greatly enjoyed the poignant “Agent Daniels” moment and tie-in, thanks for that golden nugget, writers!

An enjoyable ending to a memorable show.

I will not miss her whispering during “dramatic” moments, nor her quivering lips. But hey, whatever floats your boat.

Interesting how often people with little talent lash out at those that are in the public eye and celebrated for theirs. Basic people… shhh. Remember that trying to hide someone else’s light doesn’t make you shine. I’d love to see your audition for the role. Do you have a link to your acting reel?

“ It’s not mentioned in dialogue, but Burnham and Book’s son’s name is Leto. ”

Yes, it is. She says his name.

For a second I thought it was a Dune reference before I realized it was Book’s nephew’s name.

Yep, caught it too. I didn’t know exactly what she said, but as soon as I saw the “Leto” in the recap, I knew that’s what she said.

Very underwhelming. The journey was far more interesting than the destination, although inside the portal looked really cool. The payoff lacked imagination, and didn’t warrant revisiting the material… so yeah I was disappointed. The science and explanation of the past two episodes was questionable too. They should have gotten Salome Jens or at least tried to imitate that character specifically. Would have made more sense. But the conclusion of what to do with the tech.. how they unlocked it. how they found someone ‘worthy’.. it just makes the mystery of the rest of the season fall apart. So as a season finale.. it’s a fail. Even worse is the series finale coda. If you like these characters and get some of the emotion of all the hugging and stuff in the coda, cool. I never really loved these characters, so it did nothing for me. I thought seeing Book and Burnham together in old age was really nice, and I did like that. The Kovich reveal? Felt a little like the ‘My name is Khan’ reveal in STID. Why should that name mean anything? I had to go look It up. Lt. Daniels was a background character from two of the TNG moves. Whatever. More to explore with that character in Academy? I guess. At this point, I couldn’t care less about him. I guess it’s fitting that a show that has distorted canon so much, would choose to tie in its ending to an event in a small short trek show. A show that they easily just could have (and should have) declared apocryphal, and pretended it didn’t exist or exists in some alternate universe. Whatever plan Chabon had for it didn’t happen, so just let it go. Why they were retrofitting Discovery to its former look makes no sense. The reasons they were taking it there aren’t even presented clearly (or at all.. did I miss something?) It was a dumb way to end the show. I suppose that means it’s an appropriate ending for this series. The season was pretty good up to this point, though.. it was fun. But.. I’m sorry.. it wasn’t a very good season finale, and it was a terrible series finale.

“I had to go look It up. Lt. Daniels was a background character from two of the TNG moves”

Nope… Daniels was the time traveller on ENT, a very, very meaningful player in the TCW… The reveal was AWESOME. I was cheering out loud when it happened….

Ah. I’ll go back and look that one up. When I put Daniels in to memory alpha, that was the only option that populated in the search box, and I didn’t look beyond it, because he had all that TNG and DS9 stuff on his shelf so figured that was THE connection. I stopped watching ENT a year or two in, so if I did see that character, I don’t recall him at all.

I think you’re confusing him with Picard’s chief of security in FIRST CONTACT and INSURRECTION (remember, Worf was stationed on DS9 during those movies and happened to come along for the ride).

The revelation more or less worked, but I thought Daniels died in season four of ENT.

He did, but when Archer defeated the space nazi aliens he was shown alive again.

Space nazi aliens, those were the days.

Why can’t he be BOTH? He said starship enterprise ‘and others’… and TNG is way after ENT. So why can’t he be BOTH Daniels?

Also, he said “USS,” and NX-01 wasn’t a USS. :-)

“ I had to go look It up. Lt. Daniels was a background character from two of the TNG moves. Whatever. ”

Incorrect. He was a recurring character from four seasons of Star Trek: Enterprise. He’s a time agent from the far future who was involved in the Temporal Cold War.

Garth Beat you to it.

Very underwhelming. The journey was far more interesting than the destination, although inside the portal looked really cool. The payoff lacked imagination, and didn’t warrant revisiting the material… so yeah I was disappointed… But the conclusion of what to do with the tech.. how they unlocked it. how they found someone ‘worthy’.. it just makes the mystery of the rest of the season fall apart. So as a season finale.. it’s a fail. Even worse is the series finale coda.

Pretty much exactly my thoughts (not for the first time, @heyberto seems to share my taste in Trek).

First off, on the epilogue — look, I didn’t *hate* it, but I found it…”superfluous” is the best word, I guess. The final beach wedding scene would have worked as a series finale just as well. I don’t see the point in revealing that Michael and Book had a son. The New Kwejian scenes looked gorgeous, but we’d seen Kwejian before; that wasn’t enough. Two minutes of hugging was *not* what we needed, and typically for the show, all the other characters were shunted aside. I also struggled to understand just why Starfleet was taking Discovery to meet Craft and how this was supposed to culminate in “Calypso.” Leaving it as Zora’s dream, as this season’s early episodes implied, would have sufficed.

The epilogue was So. Very. Discovery, in short.

As for the main act: lookit, it’s not terribly surprising that the takeaway was “the journey is more important than the treasure”; that’s almost par for the course in quest stories. Think back to “Sword of Kahless” or even “The Chase” itself, or any of the Indiana Jones movies (especially Raiders, Dial, and above all Crusade). Still, I think we needed a bit more ooph here beyond “humanity isn’t ready for this,” because it needed to be something “The Chase” was not. I would have been more impressed with the theories circulating that Discovery’s *were* the progenitors, a la PLANET OF THE TITANS. (Had they known this was to be a series finale, in fairness, perhaps they might have gone there.)

I somewhat enjoyed the revelation that the Progenitors didn’t create the technology, but I’m still left puzzled as to what, exactly, this great technology was and why it was so potentially galaxy-changing. The visuals were impressive, yes, but we’ve seen long-range, Stargate-style teleportation before: the Iconians, that Delta Quadrant tech that showed up in season one of PICARD, “All Our Yesterdays,” etc.

They spent too long dwelling on the Burnham-Moll fight scenes. One would have been enough.

I wanted to love this finale, because in the second half of the season, I actually found Discovery to be worthwhile — a word that, on the whole, I wouldn’t have applied to the series before. Moll turned out to be more than yet another courier. But they just didn’t *quite* stick the landing.

I should add that I binge-watched the last five episodes because I was out of the country and couldn’t get my VPN to work with P+. That may have favorably colored my impression of them; indeed, I suspect that a lot of NuTrek may improve with binge-watching.

of course it will because they are just too-long films. Not episodic television.

Agreed. I lot of what you said are my thoughts as well, as usual.. just stated much better. lol. I think the issue of payoff is a problem for me, not because It’s just a simple idea.. it’s that it’s not anything more than what we could come up with. Looking back, they should have not used the McGuffin of this story by getting it from a past Trek episode. If the goal is to simply tell this ‘kind’ of story, then just do that. I rewatched the Chase before this season, and I remember how I had no idea where they were going, and thinking ‘wow.. what a clever idea’. Granted it was over 30 years ago when I saw it, and I’m probably more cynical now, but I don’t think that’s it. They really needed to elevate the payoff, if they’re going to resurrect it. As you said, we’re in no different place after the episode ends, than when we were at the end of The Chase. Another case where the writer’s room just gets enamored with ideas from Trek’s past, without having a clear story to tell. The fact that they did it better in 9 out of 10 episodes this season than they have in the past is a pale consolation, now that we’re at the end. Just my take, though.

I have to say I was surprisingly satisfied with it all. The Chase had a baaad premise IMHO. Discovery corrects it by bringing mystery back to the origins of sentient life. So that “underwhelmingness” was a real, real plus to me. It´s a good resolution, with classic quest and classic Trek tropes (Michael is offered God status and turns it down).

The Daniels bit didn’t quite work for me (for a moment I thought it would be ole positronic Jean-Luc in a different golem), as didn´t the Calypso thing… but i did enjoy old Michael to my surprise, it was a good end point for her continuosly-restless-and-often-annoying-self and I found myself thinking I´ll miss her (and for a second there I thought Leto was getting the Enterprise-M or something).

Season 1 was the best for me, with 2 and 5 as close seconds. I reallly did enjoy the finale.

See, I think the Chase is fine for an isolated episode. Season 5 did a really great job of sustaining interest, and keeping up a good pace that made it feel like a light hearted romp, but with some significant consequences that felt plausible for this universe. Sadly, (and I was worried about this), the conclusion was just not fulfillable, and that’s the problem for me with the season ending. I think I could have come up with something more interesting, at the very least. It felt very formulaic, and predictable in addition to being underwhelming. I would have liked to have an ending with more stakes. I really thought Culber was going to move on to do something with it that was bigger. As for the finale Coda, it just did things it didn’t need to do. I’m with you on the Daniels thing. I think that wasn’t a bad tie-in at all, but I also thought if they had slow played that a little more after the character’s introduction, it might’ve landed better. I don’t know. I loved the Burnham/Book/Leto stuff. There was so much that wasn’t explained about taking Disco out there, to retrofitting it back to it’s original configuration, etc… Should’ve have kept the send off isolated to saying goodbye to the characters, IMO. None of this is intended to shoot down your opinion of the finale. I’m stoked it worked for you. Wish it did for me, because it was a really enjoyable season.

A good question is why waste time, effort & resources making the ship look like it’s former self? Obviously so it could tie in with that Short Trek. But man… Makes zero sense like a lot of what went down on this show.

My entire point exactly, well said. I think the original idea for what Chabon was doing with that episode got abandoned when he left the show, so they should have abandoned the tie in.

I thought this was an absolute mess.

To have the entire Progenitor story basically amount to a “well no one can be responsible with this, so let’s blow it up” plot, meant all of the running around this season amounted to a waste.

And tacking on “Calypso” because … they “had to” was stupidity on top of stupidity.

Also, for all the people who complained about “memberberries” with Picard , this entire season was memberberries but done in an awful, hacky way. The “Daniels/Kovitch” reveal both felt unnecessary (“why can’t Kovitch just be Kovitch and you reveal something interesting about Kovitch as a character?) and had elements that made no absolute sense to me (e.g., no way do I believe he would have Sisko’s baseball, there’s no way the Bajorans would ever let a “holy relic” from the Emissary sit at Starfleet HQ instead of having it on Bajor).

In Star Trek Online, the baseball is STILL on his desk at DS9, so technically, the Bajorans don’t think of it as THAT holy.

It has been hundreds of years since DS9. In that time, Sisko might have returned from the Prophets and given the baseball Daniels.

Yeah there was a ton of memberberries this season…so it shouldn’t t a shock why so many people loved it lol.

I say it again and again people complain about fan service and yet every time it’s presented the fanbase goes nuts over it.

The producers are just trying to give the fans what they want because it seems to work. Hence why Picard season 3 and SNW were partly so popular.

same thing happened in bond film ‘for your eyes only’ where after all the fighting, killing and chasing, bond destroys the McGuffin to stop falling into anyone’s hands.

I couldn’t agree more. I think the creatives behind this series wanted more to blow it all up, do it their way and comment on every contemporary social dilemma, than create great television and great Trek. The continual plot changes, character additions and deletions and never-ending changes in direction, made this a mess from episode 1. In contrast SNW’s is both classic and contemporary Trek rolled into one neat and tidy package. I sincerely hope the producers of Academy take a good long and hard look at this quagmire and learn what NOT to do. Trek can’t take too many more duds. They have gold sitting there on the table with “Legacy” – if that’s what it’s to be named) and the ongoing SNW iteration. Lets not pretend this was anything more than what many describe it as.

95% of the episode was awesome, really a great finale but I just don’t get the “Calypso” bit at the very end. It hardly makes any sense to me: erasing the “A” from the hull, downgrading the ship and dumping it somewhere… none of that made any sense for me, other than re-canonizing “Calypso” which had already been written off by most fans as non-canonical. No explanation given for any of that. Even if it’s a secret “red directive”, why then are they given a public send-off by the entire fleet???

It would have been so easy to write that off, and just give Discovery (the show) whatever finale would have been most satisfying. It’s an odd choice for a show that had abandoned the visual aspects of Trek’s canon from it’s very first episode.

I was on that page, too. Found it odd they went out of their way to change the ship back when originally they seemed to go out of their way to abandon anything that even evoked the feel of the era they were in. Just another thing where it feels like they want to supplant the old stuff with their own stuff.

“ which had already been written off by most fans as non-canonical ”

Fans don’t decide what is or isn’t canon, though. It was never non-canonical since it happened onscreen.

I preferred the theory that Discovery got duplicated during the jump to the future personally.

I like it too. There are a million explanations that would have worked better than what they did in this finale.

Yeah, this is where I’m getting hung up too. The episode was, to me, perfect until that moment. I thought the epilogue was supposed to bring it all together, not finish it all off with deep confusion. People keep saying the epilogue “set up” Calypso, but it literally didn’t. It introduced more questions, and if those questions don’t have answers, then it isn’t a mystery – it’s a lie.

I know I’ve been ragging on Disco lately, but that was a very good finale. Sure, Moll was a dull character from start to finish, and sure, SMG ramped up her whisper-acting to an annoying level (I will not miss Michael Burnham at all). But there was a lot to enjoy about this finale, and the two hours flew by before I’d even realized it. The Progenitor world was gorgeously shot, the scenes with the Progenitor were wonderful, and the Kovich/Daniels bombshell was far more satisfying than any theories I’d come up with. Just amazing. Also, I really got a kick out of seeing the ending set up Calypso. Despite my problems with this season (and they are legion), I do have to hand it to the writers for ending it well. The final puzzle was something a 10-year-old would have worked out in five seconds, so I wish the writers had come up with something more clever and non-obvious. Still, that’s a minor quibble, given how much I enjoyed the rest of it. To my surprise, it even made me look forward to Starfleet Academy, as I’m hoping the characters who were horribly short-changed this season (Stamets, Detmer, Owosekun, and Reno) might show up there with more to do. Plus, I’m relieved they didn’t decide to bring Gray Tal back for that hug-fest scene, because Gray never worked as a character. All in all, I’d give this one nine stars out of ten, and I’d rank it among the show’s best.

The big reveal has been a matter of speculation for quite some time so it was more of an, “Ah, OK” moment than a “Holy moly! Never saw that coming!” moment. For those entirely unfamiliar with the history behind that revelation, it won’t carry much weight.

As for the epilogue, it was an unnecessary choice, much like another, unrelated major franchise. That final scene would have been far more effective had it taken place within a year of the resolution of this seasons’ storyline, the other elements could have been left open to explore in the future.

I have never seen even a single person guess Kovich was Daniels.

My first thought was, GOOD ONE! “I never thought of that”.

It made the most sense, really.

Actually I saw a review of the finale on YouTube and they showed a post from Reddit that guessed Kovich was probably Daniels from 3 years ago. So someone certainly guessed right lol.

But yeah I’m guessing the overwhelming majority never thought he would be Daniels, certainly not me. I never thought he would be a legacy character at all, just someone part of a bigger organization Section 31 which many theorized. So it was a great reveal IMO.

I wonder if Discovery had continued we’d have seen a more extended Daniels reveal that brought in elements of the Temporal Cold War. It might seem less impactful simply because they ended up cutting straight to the reveal.

Give us a Daniels/Temporal War streaming movie! 😊

Not around here, no. Elsewhere, yes. We’re going back to season 3 on that one.

Also, they stupidly stated that Tilly was “the longest serving instructor in Academy history,” meaning they can’t place the character in jeopardy in ACADEMY.

And seriously, in 1000 years of history, no one has ever installed a mentorship program at Starfleet Academy? Even informally?

right – not great to write themselves into a box there. But – writing and plot has never really been the strength of this show

I don’t think putting canonical plot armor on the lead character of your new scifi show is as big a choice as you think. First, time travel/alternate futures, but also, I have never once assumed that Burnham or Sisko or Janeway were not going to make it to the final episodes of their series, yet every time they were put in jeopardy along the way I didn’t scoff at the implausibility. I went along and suspended my disbelief, because that’s what you do when you watch any TV.

That’s true of half the SNW characters and yet I don’t think dramatic tension is reduced.

Have watched it yet (spoilers don’t brother me), but if they tied it back to Calypso doesn’t that indicate the Federation goes to shit again? Wasn’t craft fight against the Fed?

And oddly… the vidraysh name apparently will come back into use.. so basically.. the universe is going to crap again, and Roddenberry’s optimistic future will not persevere…. again.

Yep. Federation will be at war.

Exactly my question. I supposed there are ways to square that particular circle (maybe Craft was in stasis and didn’t realize Covid^H^H^H The Burn was over), but the question is: why? What’s the point?

I’m fairly confident that in reality Calypso was based on an early draft of the ideas for the season 3 jump and that Craft was in fact a version of what became Book. But still, it was nice to find a way to acknowledge and incorporate that story, even with the possible holes.

I loved this episode. The final moments really threw me off though. Why was the ship reverted to its 23rd century appearance? Why was it abandoned? Why are they waiting for Craft, who merely shows up and leaves in 1,000 years? For me, the episode was perfect until the very end, and that ending so far is extremely distracting to me. I feel like I had to have missed something.

You didn’t miss anything. All of your questions are left to the imagination…or maybe to future Trek writers…

Clear writing and logical plot threads have never been a strength of Discovery. In this case it seems like they were doing their best to resolve a gaping plot hole that was created with the Short Trek about future Discovery abandoned in a nebula or whatever it was.

All of this is sadly very true. ;)

Yeah all of it is just a huge big question mark. Funny it was meant to tie in to Calypso to give us some answers but instead it just gave us even more questions lol.

But it is what it is I guess.

I got up early to view it. For what was supposed to be a season finale, and they morphed it into a series finale? It’s as close to a miracle as DSC will get. My nitpick issues with DSC won’t go away, so I won’t go into them here. I want to offer a few thoughts on S5. Firstly, I think DSC’s cancellation was planned at the end of season 4. I guess Par+ only agreed to make S5 with a lot of budget cuts. Look at Detmer and Owoshekun disappearing halfway through the season. They also needed to set up SFA. I hope I’m wrong, but if Tilly is a lead character in this show, it will struggle to succeed. Getting Holly Hunter was brilliant casting. I WILL watch SFA faithfully when it airs. The AR wall saved DSCs behind. Look at Federation HQ. It’s a plain white room. Very little was spent on new sets. I consider Michelle Paradise, the showrunner, the equivalent of Fred Freiberger, who produced season 3 of TOS. She got the job because she’s been described as a “details producer.” They hired her to get these eps in the can and within budgets. IMO, she’s just not that imaginative, and this is evident in some of her story choices. Maal and Laak were totally unnecessary this season as the bad guys. They were used as a lazy story idea to compete with the DSC crew for the coveted tech. The Breen were cool, and all that, but a competition with a Breen Fleet would have moved the plot along. Look at the ending- nothing happened with their characters. For all the DSC haters out there? This show wasn’t meant to cater to TOS or TNG fans. Once I accepted that, I could somewhat enjoy DSC and follow along. My issues were with (some) the writing and acting. DSC succeeded with inclusivity. My gay sibling and I cried together when we saw Culber reconcile with Stamets, and he went to the future with him. The non-binary and trans characters were a welcome addition. It’s a shame they didn’t do much with them, storywise. The lack of strong male characters from s3 onwards (until Rayner) hurt DSC’s storytelling. (Here come all the “butthurt” comments…) DSC brought new fans into the franchise. For a lot of them, DSC is THEIR Star Trek. They will measure past and future shows against that yardstick for comparison. I feel bad for those fans. Finally, a Trek series that marginalized members of the LGBTQ+ community could relate to. It was no different for us “nerdy kids” in the ’70s. We read sci-fi books, built models, and played Star Trek in the backyard. I had TWO friends growing up who liked Trek. We were the outcasts. It wasn’t until Star Wars that nerd culture started to take hold. I will rewatch DSC front to back to reevaluate my opinions on it. I AM grateful for DSC. It got Star Trek back on its best home, television. We have SNW, LDS and Prodigy. (with SFA and S31 to come.) Since 2017, we’ve had new Trek episodes to watch weekly. Just like TOS in 1969, DSC now belongs to the fans. I hope they rewatch it and share it with the people they love. If DSC fans nurture their show like we TOS fans have? There are always possibilities…

I consider Michelle Paradise, the showrunner, the equivalent of Fred Freiberger

That’s such a mean, mean thing to say, and wildly unfair. Paradise is an excellent writer who was given a very complex (perhaps convoluted) task when she took up the reins on Disco, and she did a fantastic job elevating it above a mere technical exercise.

The lack of strong male characters from s3 onwards

Dadmiral Vance, Cleveland Booker, and Agent Kovich would like a word. Plus, Culber’s role was really beefed up in seasons 3-5. Even Reese stepped up and became more than a background character in later seasons. Not to mention Saru being the ship’s captain in season 3. In season 4 you have the Tarka/Book plot, which I would describe as extremely male, and even the scientist Hirai played a major role in that season.

I know you anticipated this critique, but there really were lots of strong male characters in later seasons of Disco, they were coming out of its ears there were so many… it’s just that the main cast just wasn’t made up of a supermajority of traditional male archetypes like on previous Trek shows, so it feels like “less” somehow.

People praise Voyager and DS9 for their depictions of woman characters, but both those shows still had like an 80% male cast. DS9 had only 2 women as regulars, and Voyager had only 3.

Disco might seem very female-oriented, but trust me, it really only seems that way. I know that feels like I’m attacking your perception or accusing you of something, but I notice it, too, and have to remind myself sometimes that it’s my beloved older Trek shows that were wildly unbalanced, not Disco, and Disco wasn’t some corrective in the opposite direction, it’s just… actually balanced.

Re Paradise: Mean? Maybe so. Harsh? Yes. She has a (IMHO) dry, sterile form of storytelling. There was no actual coherent flow to this season. They took ideas from the writers’ room and plugged them in to tick a box. She was given the job of cleanup showrunner or backup QB. Her good organizational qualities hurt the passion of the show. A lot of the episode plot points felt contrived. When we compare how heroic Burnham, Georgiou, etc., were and are throughout the series? For myself, there were no male characters I either identified with or was rooting for until Rayner. I was looking for male characters that reminded me of Kirk, Pike, Scotty and the other male costars on TNG, DS9 and the others. For the record, I’m a fan of DSC. I was out there defending it and singing its praises. In S2, we got some of the best Star Trek, period. I stand by my opinion of Paradise as a showrunner, as mean as you think it is.

Wow you are so on the nose with Paradise. I still think she is an awful show runner but this season at least didn’t feel completely tedious with a lot of melodramatic schlock as the last two. But no I won’t miss her either.

She was absolutely the wrong person to leading the writers room, so your criticism is fair. They need sci-fi writers, and too few, if any, on staff. That’s the root of the problem.

For myself, there were no male characters I either identified with or was rooting for until Rayner. 

This post-2015-or-so idea that characters are legitimate only if a viewer can “identify” with them is bizarre.

If I can’t relate to a character, and the story is crap, then why should I watch?

To broaden your horizons. IDIC, and all that.

Yet I watched faithfully—each week. I applauded the strong female characters and DSC’s inclusivity. I didn’t dismiss DSC as crap or not “true” Trek.

I’m not sure I can speak to how being a “details producer” does or doesn’t help the show, but I think at this point it’s safe to say Paradise doesn’t have a ton of range. Problems are continually solved with variations on, “Trust ME! Feelings! It was CONNECTION all along!” She doesn’t have much of a defining stamp beyond that, and didn’t demonstrate a desire or ability to do any episodes that broke outside of a defined box. She peaked with her first season 3 episode IMO.

A “details producer” is usually very organized. Once a script is locked down, the showrunner is responsible for finishing the episodes on time and within the episode budget(s). Being organized is a good thing. As I mentioned, she took a checklist storywise and clicked the boxes. It didn’t matter that the plot points were out of order, didn’t make sense, or pay off at the end of the season. She got the episodes “in the can” on time and within the budget. Moll and Laak made ZERO sense to the plot besides someone to compete with to get the tech. At best, it’s the same retreading of ideas.

I know what a producer and a showrunner does. :) I just meant calling someone a “details producer” doesn’t necessarily mean they’re not more than their organizational prowess. It can mean they are good at intricate long term plotting for instance. JMS while running Babylon 5 could be called one, for instance.

From what we’ve seen of her work, I think your assessment is fair, especially as we know she was sweating the detail of “Calypso” for years. She has a vision and overarching direction for the show, but Paradise comes across as a workmanlike producer and writer who has a lane and a certain box of tricks she prefers and sticks to. She brought calm and order to a show previously defined by BTS chaos (and during the pandemic, no less) and no doubt Kurtzman appreciated not having to put out fires while dealing with the headache that was Picard. There’s not much flair to anything but it was competently made and the cast and crew were happy.

I actually really enjoyed this and would have found it a fitting finale even without the additional twenty minute epilogue. Although it was beautiful to see, and, man, Admiral Burnham aged a lot more flatteringly than Admiral Janeway.

I would have preferred Kovich had remained his own character. Some mysteries don’t need explanation.

nice tie in to Calypso though. I need to rewatch that again now.

I’ll miss the show. Despite the vitriol it’s received from so many, I’ve always had a soft spot for it and have enjoyed every season to greater or lesser degrees.

Well Janeway had 25th century aging tech vs Burnham’s 33rd century aging tech. ;D

And I really want to say something about black rarely crack but I guess it’s not appropriate here lol.

I thought we were going to cut away just as he was telling her.

well, that was a waste of everyone time

Not in the least.

I thought it was an absolute mess.

It wasn’t a waste of my time.

So long DISCO! Wow what a ride it has been. THANK YOU to all that had a hand in it’s creation over the years. TREK has never looked better, or had loftier goals. Thanks for the inclusiveness…I will always ship CulMets! AND, root for Adira! :-) Now, time for a start to finish DISCO rewatch. Without DISCO there wouldn’t be a SNW or Lower Decks or all the TREK that WILL follow. If you are ready….LET’S FLY!

100% agree on all of it :)

So happy you enjoyed it! :)

Without DISCO there wouldn’t be a SNW or Lower Decks 

I’m not sure that’s quite the talking point you think it is.

Well, it was a little better than the TOS “finale” but wasn’t as satisfying as the TNG era finales.

Sorry, but the whole Progenitor reveal was a major letdown for me. A lot of stuff to look at, but nothing really happening. Also, the forced tie-in to Calypso at the end made no sense at all. Was it Kovich/Agent Daniels who told Michael about it off camera? Seemed unnecessary.

I’m happy others liked it, but I never connected with the 32nd century version of the show. I watched and I tried to connect with it. It just never happened.

Seasons 1 and 2 will always be my preferred version Discovery.

Hard disagree. Nothing could be as dissatisfying and Voyager’s disastrous finale. Or, shudder, Enterprise.

At least the Voyager and Enterprise finales had an actual story to follow with characters I cared about. I enjoyed them more than what Discovery delivered in its finale. But again, glad you enjoyed it. I didn’t.

I’ve always liked Endgame but could’ve been stronger for sure. I always felt what was missing from it was its own epilogue. Yeah no comment on TATV lol. But I think most people feel Demons/Terra Prime is really that show’s true finale since TATV was Riker literally just in a holodeck reminiscing.

Sorry, but the whole Progenitor reveal was a major letdown for me. A lot of stuff to look at, but nothing really happening.

Exactly. This is what happens when you let the special effects, including that virtual reality wall, supplant solid writing.

I never connected with the 32nd century version of the show.

Agreed; I would have been content had they wrapped Discovery after season 2.

A pretty cool episode right up until the great reveal (even then it could’ve done without several minutes of Burnham-Fu that went absolutely nowhere), but everything after was oh so formulaic and therefore rather disappointing. Okay, at least the notion of “we don’t really NEED that super-powerful technology” added a tiny bit to the old “too powerful for any faction to own”-trope and yet it was that stale trope that drove Michael’s final decision… yeah and the rest was mostly nice, but really just padding. The Kovich-reveal? – Yeah, good old Daniels, so what? – Didn’t really tie into ENT’s Temporal Cold War-arc. Saru finally getting married? – Cute, but it would’ve been a real bummer if he wasn’t. Michael and Book getting back together? – So very predictable. And the epilogue? – Boy did they go to lengths only so a single Short Treks episode would finally make more sense. But at least we got to see Owo, Detmer and Bryce one last time.

So another site is reporting Saru was also promoted to Admiral? Did anyone hear this?

Apparently Admiral Vance calls Saru Admiral at the wedding.

It’s not mentioned in dialogue, but Burnham and Book’s son’s name is Leto.

It is mentioned. When I heard it, I wasn’t sure if I’d heard correctly (really, “Leto?” like from Dune?), but I did hear it.

Leto was thr name of Book’s nephew that was killed in S4.

Leto was Book nephew, tht died in the desctruction of the planet.

One last time. The shows problems have remained problems even after their move to the future. Bad writing and poor characters. The final few seasons relied heavily on the audience caring about the characters. Since I never really cared about any of them that just opened the door to the terrible writing and plotting. This season was pretty predictable all the way. The only thing I really didn’t see coming was Moll just believing Burnham when she told her resurrection wasn’t possible. Although Moll was pretty gullible thinking it was. Obviously it wasn’t. When Burnham told her Moll had bought into the idea so hard that there was no way she should have bought it. She gave up way too easily.

That tagged on coda really didn’t work either. Everyone showed up like the end of Titanic. I’m thinking “did everyone die?” That felt weird. And I guess they wanted to make that Sort Trek relevant but I honestly didn’t see the need to slavishly adhere to it. Still makes no sense, however.

Anyway, it’s unfortunate the Academy show remains in that time frame. All these shows made by Secret Hideout have built in uphill battles but I saw no reason to create more speed bumps by remaining in the 32nd century. Well, it is what it is. That’s one way to satisfy the fans who like Star Trek Discovery. Leaves it open for every actor to show up. And we all know they will.

It didn’t sound like you liked the ending at all but I can’t disagree with some of your issues. I am actually surprised they didn’t resurrect Lak by the end. This is Star Trek, it’s literally a given lol but nice to subvert expectations once in awhile. But overall I did really enjoy it although I was very mixed on the season as a whole.

But I know your thoughts on all the modern shows and they are not very positive lol. But maybe the Academy show will surprise you and others. If not, you will always have ENT, TOS and DS9 to watch.

I have TOS, Enterprise and the feature films on disc. If DS9 ever gets remastered I’ll pick that up. Until then those are the episodes and films I check in on from time to time for my Trek fix.

I did like Prodigy’s first half, however. Hoping their 2nd season can get back to that level.

Well, that’s done, then.

I truly loved the finale overall. Yeah, there were certainly questionable and unnecessary things in it to say the least but overall it worked for me. I just loved how Trek-y it all felt. I loved how everything looked inside the portal and we met a progenitor (I was hoping among hope we met the original from TNG but yes I know the actress is now 90) to ultimately deciding it was just too powerful to use and so they got rid of it. Yeah I think most people thought they would either destroy it or put it somewhere that no one could access it but it was a very Trek conclusion.

And the visuals and FX were very impressive and beautiful throughout the episode. It felt like a movie and very cinematic. All the money was on the screen for sure.

The best moment for me was when Kovich revealed he was Agent Daniels. That literally got a huge GASP out of me lol. I was truly surprised but a very welcomed one. It was a great twist in so many ways, mostly because we always knew he was involved with the Temporal Wars. I literally went back and watched a ton of Daniels clips on Youtube lol. It really makes you look at Kovich time on the show very differently now.

I thought Saru and T’rina’s wedding was a nice way to end the episode which was obviously the true ending of the episode. We saw it all coming but it was still nicely done.

And I loved the epilogue so much. It was sweet and very endearing. It was nice to see Michael and Book decades into the future happy with a family. And while the tie in to Calypso felt a bit clunky (and raises SO many questions lol) I still liked it as the final scene. It is a little sad Zora is basically out there just waiting for Craft until the 43rd century but I liked the existential feel to it.

While the season has been VERY mixed for me to say the least I thought it ended well enough and sadly the first finale I can truly say I loved on this show lol. I didn’t hate season’s four finale but I was so checked out on the show by then I just didn’t care by then. It’s certainly not All Good Things level but I will say it is better than Endgame and certainly better than TATV lol. But I give the finale an 8/10.

There are certainly things I didn’t like and had issues with which I will certainly talk about but I wanted to leave my overall thoughts on a more positive note. I have given Discovery a very hard time over the last five seasons, most of it well deserved in my book lol. But I have ALWAYS rooted for the show every season and maybe in time my feelings will change on a lot of it. It’s just a very hard show for me to love for sooooo many reasons and still remains my least favorite show in the franchise. But I can also say this was the best season for me by far and I hope everyone who has loved it from the beginning loved it just as much in the end.

Well now that it’s over with, it’s time to leave the 32nd century (for a little while at least ;)) and travel back to the 24th century. The only question is will it be LDS, PRO or Section 31 next? Whatever comes next, I’m excited for it!

Ok now that was awesome. It definitely was a fitting series finale, even if it wasn’t supposed to be originally! I also loved the epilogue, I almost cried as I knew this was the end for these characters. Let’s just hope Starfleet Academy lasts long enough for some of them to return.

Have to admit that while I found plenty to gripe about with regard to the resolution and outcome of the story, the journey and tone of the entire season (and especially the finale) felt pitch perfect Star Trek. Creative and contemplative with excellent character building through sharp writing. This season, more than any other Discovery season, has felt the most embedded in the franchise, I really felt at home and I loved spending every minute with this show. The tedium of recent seasons was gone and enjoyed every moment with this crew and setting. The real standout this season has been Michael Burnham, and that really is the true achievement of the season, she became a confident leader that I believed in and respected for the first time. This really is SMJ grand finale which is the perfect way to end the show.

I will admit to being a little confused by the Daniels revelation, mostly because Kovich didn’t resemble the Daniels I think of at all. I know it doesn’t hold up to scrutiny, but the Calypso finale was such a beautiful way to end the story of Discovery. Not only does it give us some finality to the ship, but it also gives a chance to see the ship restored to bookend the show. It’s still insane that Starfleet would abandon its only Spore Drive ship, especially since it’s impossible to classify this thing at this point so people are going to be looking for it. But the Red Directive gives us plenty of head canon to work with to cover those gaps, I suppose.

Either way, I’m extremely happy with the finale and thankful for a season I truly enjoyed…for once! Bravo and farewell! Thanks for giving this TNG+ fan an unexpected gift!

I really enjoyed the finale and this was certainly Discovery’s strongest season since season 2. Loved how it tied into Calypso and the Kovich/Daniels reveal was great.

I would agree as well. This is certainly the strongest season since season 2 and it’s probably a tie for me between them.

I got emotional. I will be watching that again. They did a good job.

So did I man…so did I.

Usually when I’m crying after watching an episode of Discovery it’s for an entirely different reason lol.

LOL True. But this season I was not crying and yelling at the same time!

One of the poorest final episodes I have ever seen.

I have wanted each and every episode to be better, I have tried to justify to others to keep trying to watch this show.

There are great sci-fi stories and adventures but on the whole something keeps missing the spot.

This is the first final I have ever wanted to end and spent time watching the clock.

I felt no emotion to the characters, even though I wanted too and I really wanted a great last episode.

The show ended consistently with how it always was throughout the five seasons: Heavy on loooong, manufactured emotional beats; light on particular details of the plot actually making any sense whatsoever. Heavy on characters wrestling with emotional quandaries the audience has moved well past already; light on organic character development that feels earned. Random thoughts immediately after watching: This episode had about five endings. Quite over-written. I love how we’ve been primed all season for SaT’rinaru’s wedding… and then Burnham and Booker ditch the reception because more space adventures! That’s just cold. Kovich is revealed as “Agent Daniels”… my mouth drops open for 10 seconds… and all I can think to say is… “Who?” Because I haven’t watched most of Enterprise, and what I have seen of that series I’ve forgotten. (Ironically, I did just start watching from the beginning along with the Greatest Generation podcast so I suppose there’s a chance I might finally see the whole show with Archer and co.) I know the writers were going for a deep cut and I suppose this technically qualifies. I’m guessing many Disco watchers had the exact same reaction as me: nonplussed. How does it make sense for there to be TNG and DS9 memorabilia on Kovich’s wall, if he’s a character from Enterprise? For a moment I was thinking they were going to make him out to be Luther Sloane (Section 31, DS9) and as dumb as that would have been, at least I would have known that character. Oh, sure, they tossed in a cryptic line about “other places” so you can head-canon Daniels into the other shows, if you care to try. But sorry, that’s not how nostalgia and callbacks work at all. It was completely shoehorned fake canon stuffed into a deep cut reference. That really clanged. Speaking of shoehorned—I had thought the writers had given up on resolving the Calypso conundrum. Turns out, they should have left it alone. Completely whiffed on tying things up in a way that made sense. Stripping “A” off the paint job and flying it to the middle of nowhere secretly because something something Red Directive? That’s not an explanation. That’s the writers throwing their hands in the air and going, “I got nothin’.” I did speculate this is exactly how it would play out, though. So, no surprise here. What really matters is, Burnham was teary-eyed for a good, long while, feeling her feelings! They sure used the heck out of every square inch of the AR wall. I didn’t believe any of those locations were actual, real, physical places. But that’s become the norm in modern TV. The contemporary equivalent of TOS-style purple skies and painted cardboard rocks on every planet. Not the worst sin, just not nearly as effective as the VFX-obsessed producers probably believe it is. (See most of Andor for an example of how to make sci-fi locations look dense, interesting, and realistic.) Kinda bold move not to bring L’ak back in the episode, I suppose. I expected they would go for the easy, happy ending. They did leave the door open for Moll to find some miracle way to return him in the future, of course. Sadly, I just feel nothing for either of those characters. I’m already forgetting about them. Tilly’s going to be in the Academy show. We get it. We get it. (sigh) I couldn’t help myself, I had to laugh out loud at the nonstop camera shakes and spinning. It’s always been too much. But they cranked it to eleven for the finale. Really felt like a parody, but it was done in earnest. I got dizzy and disoriented, and not in a way that enhanced my enjoyment of the show. I literally said out loud, “stop moving the camera for no good reason!” Lock it down and let these people act, for crying out loud. Speaking of crying, the final final final end scene had me going, “yeah, I don’t really feel anything when it comes to saying goodbye to at least half of these characters, because we don’t know them.” Sad that in five seasons the writers couldn’t give any meaningful characterization to most of the bridge crew. I hope the actors get good residual paychecks or something, because they will get zero career benefits from appearing as a glorified background actor. A few of those people weren’t even in this season, right? But they show up at the end to hug and cry and say goodbye. I do remember there was a scene where that Saurian sneezed a lot of snot on Burnham one time. I think that’s about it, though. Farewell, Disco. You went out the same way you came in. Trying way too hard, yet not hard enough, completely unaware of how awkward you really …  Read more »

I loved some things about this episode and hated others, which is how  Discovery  usually stacks up for me. :-) Exploring the galaxy with Starfleet never gets old, and the Starfleet mandate to not only explore but also to help allied planets in trouble, to protect everyone the Prime Directive allows, and to just generally make the galaxy a better place never gets old for me.

I do wish that we hadn’t had a REALLY extensive fistfight between Burnham and Moll during the middle of the episode, though. We’re trying to bring a person back to life, to keep the Breen from destroying everything, and to discover how life was created, and it all comes down to a FISTFIGHT? Seriously? I know Kirk had to have a fistfight in nearly every episode because NBC demanded “action,” but  Discovery  is on a streaming service … is a fistfight really still necessary? I mean, the backgrounds during the fight were gorgeous, but that just made the whole idea of a fistfight seem even more incongruous to me.

I hate, hate hate Olatunde Osunsanmi’s direction. EVERY time he directs an episode, his direction calls attention to itself, as if the director can’t resist saying, “Look at me; look at meeeee!” The constant camera spinning feels weird and juvenile to me; the direction is supposed to SUPPORT the story, not get in the way of it.

While I agreed with Burnham’s decision to let the Progenitors’ tech fall into the black hole, I thought that spending 30 seconds on that decision vs. twenty minutes on Admiral Burnham and her son and the setup to  Calypso  was a rather imbalanced placement of priorities. I would have liked to have seen Burnham talk aloud about the GOOD that Progenitors’ tech might have enabled her to do and to balance that against the possible negative consequences, whereas she only talked about building an army.

Good bye,  Discovery!  Thank you for bringing us  Strange New Worlds  and  Lower Decks  and  Prodigy .

“I hate, hate hate Olatunde Osunsanmi’s direction. EVERY time he directs an episode, his direction calls attention to itself … the direction is supposed to SUPPORT the story, not get in the way of it.”

I’m not a fan of his directing either. His signature move gets used far too much.

Plus, even from the start it was obvious that the Maguffin would either be fake or destroyed. No way can that sort of power be lying around for just anyone to grab. Even for the awful writing crews at Secret Hideout.

By and large a great episode.. the ending was great.. EXCEPT the contrived ending that made no sense from an in-show perspective. Having them redo the ship back to her original look and parking her in a nebula is a great idea for fans who just MUST have a connection to “Calypso”, but in-universe, from the characters perspective, the best they could do to make it make sense is ‘a red directive’. It literally makes no sense that this ship gets parked in a nebula after being remade to look like she originally did, and not at the fleet museum, if you’re looking at it from in-universe, in-show, at that moment perspective and NOT from a fan who is hung up on the show connecting to a 15-minute short from six years ago. And it took me right out of the moment.

It would have made far more sense to have her restored to her original configuration for the Fleet Museum and putting her there in the series finale so that fans that simply MUST have that connection to “Calypso” can use their imagination to say that some time after the show the ship must get stolen, pulled out of mothballs, or whatever.

Oh, and what a crappy thing to do to Zora, to deliberately leave her aboard an abandoned ship for a thousand years by herself. I guess there are no AI rights in the 32nd century.

I’m going to try to rewatch.. but I go back to.. what is the why? There was a mention of Craft.. but the only thing I could figure was to go back to season 2 when Discovery protected itself.. so they couldn’t destroy it.. had to abandon it.. so it was there to protect the sphere data?.. maybe?

My headcanon retcon: Discovery is also going back in time to 2258 and hiding, not just in a nebula, but in time… That’s why it’s disguised into its older form.

Okay – I’ll confess – I teared up a bit when the camera panned over some of that Trek memorabilia in Kovaks office

For all my railin against this episode.. that was cool. Not emotional for me, because this show has lost me to the point that not even those artifacts are enough to get me emotional.

I understand – I’m older than Kovak so anything that creatively integrates TOS and TNG hits me – lol

I thought it was weird he would have them. And Burnham wouldn’t have known what any of them were anyway.

That’s ok.. it was really just for us. I would’ve liked to have seen a bigger array of stuff.. Enterprise, TOS.. I just recall seeing TNG and DS9 stuff.

Oh, what an adventure. My thanks to the cast and crew of Star Trek: Discovery for a five-season voyage.

At the end of the day I’m glad Picard and Discovery had a beginning, middle, and end. Despite the fact sine may not consider it perfect, Star Trek, canon. I’m glad it was able to wrap up.

The final season was a lack luster excise of a Holy Grail quest. Agent Daniels reveal…I just didn’t care.

So basically, the whole season was reset to zero after chasing their tail. A lot like every Doctor Who story: everyone runs around concerned about universe ending consequences… and then nothing happens.

That’s not fair. Sometimes in Doctor Who the universe did actually end. Or at least part of it got wiped out.

I think the ending highlights that they had a great concept but watered it down concerning having a 23rd century starship crew end up in the future after something catastrophic had destroyed the Federation and having them having to completely rebuild it. You’d be back to starships being powerful capital ships in the middle of nowhere, no back up, the need to colonize and connect with alien races, threats being extremely dangerous, space the final frontier. The stakes would even be higher. In Balance of Terror the Captain had to make decisions on behalf of the Federation due to communication times, they could have had it where Michael was making decisions because she was all that was left of the Federation. Also a nice theme about the 23rd century frontier can-do boldly go spirit persevering, that today’s humanity still has a place in the 35th. You’d get to reboot Star Trek without having to reboot Star Trek! I think Discovery would have been much stronger had they gone all in vs. a watered down burn, the Federation isn’t destroyed or perverted, it’s just in hiding, the Burn is just a childs temper tantrum, etc. Ironically… I guess this means even this version of the Federation falls and only an old Discovery for some reason can save the day? What? Why? What happens? I actually want to watch that show, as long as they show and not just tell.

I think the ending highlights that they had a great concept but watered it down concerning having a 23rd century starship crew end up in the future after something catastrophic had destroyed the Federation (temporal war and all) and having them having to completely rebuild it. Outside that I think Discovery was a better show pre time jump. You’d be back to starships being powerful capital ships in the middle of nowhere, no back up, the need to colonize and connect with alien races, threats being extremely dangerous, space the final frontier. The stakes would even be higher. In Balance of Terror the Captain had to make decisions on behalf of the Federation due to communication times, they could have had it where Michael was making decisions because she was all that was left of the Federation. Also a nice theme about the 23rd century frontier can-do boldly go spirit persevering, that today’s humanity still has a place in the 35th. You’d get to reboot Star Trek without having to reboot Star Trek! I think Discovery would have been much stronger had they gone all in vs. a watered down burn, the Federation isn’t destroyed, it’s just in hiding, the Burn is just a tantrum, etc. There are still hundreds of Starships after all. Ironically… I guess this means even this version of the Federation falls and only an old Discovery for some reason can save the day? What? Why? What happens? I actually want to watch that show, as long as they show and not just tell.

It’s been a long road.

To me the final scene was a way to reintroduce the original discovery to the universe and delete the red directive on the time jump. Now they can say “oh look we found this long lost ship finally” Yeah it’s a stupid head canon but it could work.

I can’t stop thinking about Zora. Stuck out there, all on her own, for a thousand years.

Did Michael destroy/kill a Progenitor along with the tech?

Did this ending essentially rip off the ending of BSG?

The tech wasn’t destroyed, just moves inside the event horizon.

Thirty seconds of dialog by Kovich could have explained the Calypso situation. He could have said how remarkable Discovery was to history… and when it time jumped, a copy of the ship opened up a new alternate universe. One where they abandoned ship and history in that universe split. It would have tied his comments about the mirror and Kelvin universe he made earlier in the series to the Calypao short…. Plot hole solved … it also would have opened up future Trek storylines as Kovich leads research into this other universe…. Sigh ….

Umm who activated the spore drive at the end?

Burnham and a crew were aboard the Discovery as it departed. After travel to coordinates in deep space, Burnham and crew abandoned ship.

I thought the finale was very good, not great, but as others have said it felt very much like Star Trek. I am not sure what they ended up filming post production, but I assume it was much of the epilogue with Booker and Burnham and their son along with the final scene on board Discovery. Both scenes were filled with hope for the future (even if Zora has to wait for the 42nd century) and that is very Star Trek.

Regarding Agent Daniels, USS Enterprise – nice touch and connection with the much maligned Enterprise. Let’s hope we get to see what really happened to Archer and the rest of his crew sometime in the future (I choose to ignore that series finale as something that didn’t happen haha)

From a ranking standpoint, I would give this finale a solid 7.5 out of 10. Far better than the Enterprise and TOS finales which were simply terrible, but behind TNG and DS9. Maybe it slots in just behind Voyager’s Endgame.

As for legacy, yeah like many I hated the first half of S1 and the show did its best to slowly battle back from a terrible debut, with varying levels of success and failure. In retrospect I must admit Discovery did take some big chances, once again with varying levels of success and failure.

Ultimately, although alienating many legacy fans, Discovery was in many ways ground-breaking, in the last three seasons embracing IDIC more than any other series and targeting new demographics. The show did manage to attract an expanded audience as evidenced by the rather surprising ratings numbers – at least for S5. The show also helped spawn Short Treks, SNW, Picard, LDs and Prodigy and the upcoming S31 and SFA – and that is a worthy legacy by itself. Congrats to the cast and crew of Discovery.

Btw, even though it had just 5 seasons, the show did last 7 years (2018-2024). Let’s hope SNW will exceed that run. LLAP!

I will admit I found the “coda” a bit off-putting. All that to make Calypso canonical? But looking at it, I’m seeing more a bit of them using Calypso for the coda, not the other way around. But there was something else: The only people we really saw were Burnham and Book, and mentions of Tilly and Vance (still on duty? That’s a long time.) Everyone else was in Michael’s vision. Did they really have to do that? She said she had a crew, but there was no one else on the bridge. They had all the actors there- couldn’t the bridge doors have opened and they all would have come out, a little aged? (For that matter, why wouldn’t Book come along?) For all the criticisms that this was the Burnham show, that really sealed it.

Burnham’s Pointless Fisticuffs: Apparently, twenty minutes of gratuitous fighting is the best use of our protagonist’s time before she remembers that talking might be a more effective strategy.

Rayner and Nhan’s Non-Roles: Characters so crucial to the story that they could have been completely omitted without anyone noticing.

Culber’s Magical Connection: Culber’s metaphysical link to Jinaal conveniently giving him the knowledge of subspace frequencies. Because that’s how pseudoscience works, right?

Puzzle in Two Dimensions: Introducing the concept of extradimensional thinking only to present a mundane two-dimensional puzzle.

The Great Anti-Climax: Burnham’s profound encounter with ancient technology boils down to learning absolutely nothing new or exciting.

Unnecessary Epilogue: Adding a continuity fix for a short episode that no one really needed, because tying up loose ends from a Short Trek story is clearly a top priority in a series that utterly wrecked canon anyway.

Spore Drive Nonsense: The already ridiculous spore drive is taken to new heights with impossible feats of magic tech, defying all known laws of science and common sense.

Glad this series is over. Don’t know how anyone ever liked it, but if you did, sorry you’re losing a show you liked. But for me – don’t let the door hit you on the way out, Discovery!

I mostly agree with all points. Except that I think Rayner offer a lot to the season and that the climax was an anti-climax. Keeping the mystery was better drama, and better sci fi. It worked story-wise because Michael overcomes her God complex and makes a wise and reasoned choice that reflects the personal growth that she’s experienced in rumor with no evidence to support the rumor until this moment.

Star Trek finally realizes its potential in its finale. While remaining true to Discovery, the show finally feels like Star Trek. The writers managed to satisfy character arcs while subverting my expectations: Michael gets the opportunity to become a god, and refuses it, overcoming her messiah complex. Stamets doesn’t get his “legacy” but he learns to accept who he is and what he’s been a part of. The epilogue was mostly unnecessary. How fitting that the entire bridge crew would show up and have no dialogue and nothing to do.

And they didn’t even really show up! The actors did and the characters didn’t.

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Netflix’s Eric, Star Trek: Discovery’s series finale, and more new TV this week

Plus: The end of Hulu’s Under the Bridge, Hacks season 3, and more

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The week has barely started (if you’re in the U.S. and reading this on the Monday holiday: even less so!), and already there’s a whole lot of TV to get through.

With any luck, the long weekend gave you some time to catch up with things — after all, as our summer preview is any indication, there’s only gonna be even more coming soon. But while a bunch of new stuff might be coming up, there’s plenty to watch this week alone. Under the Bridge and Hacks are both wrapping up really strong seasons, while shows like Pyramid Game and We Are Lady Parts are just ramping up.

Here are all the best new TV premieres and finales this week.

New shows on Netflix

Genre: Drama miniseries Release date: May 30, with all episodes Showrunner/creator: Abi Morgan Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Gaby Hoffmann, and more

Vincent (Benedict Cumberbatch) is a puppeteer happily living and working in 1980s New York City. Then, his 9-year-old son goes missing on the way to school, plunging Vincent into a dark, volatile depression. Vincent believes his son will come back if only he can get Eric, a monster based on a drawing his son did, to the screen.

Genre: Teen show Release date: May 30 Based on the book by: Holly Smale Cast: Emily Carey, Sarah Parish, Emmanuel Imani, and more

Harriet (Emily Carey) is just another geek trying to get by in high school, even if it means brushing off some mean girl bullies to do it. But everything changes when — against the odds and Harriet’s wishes — she finds herself scouted to be the next hot supermodel.

New shows on Hulu

The veil season finale.

Genre: Spy thriller Release date: May 28 Showrunner/creator: Steven Knight Cast: Elisabeth Moss, Yumna Marwan, Josh Charles, and more

The stage is set in London for a deadly attack. But Imogen (Elisabeth Moss) and Adilah (Yumna Marwan) are also on the move. And with Imogen keeping her master plan secret from even us, it seems likely that this attack could go either way.

Under the Bridge finale

Genre: True-crime mystery Release date: May 29 Showrunner/creator: Samir Mehta, Quinn Shephard Cast: Lily Gladstone, Riley Keough, and more

There’s nothing about the murder of Reena Virk (Vritika Gupta) that feels easy to swallow, and it’s a testament to Under the Bridge that the show has been able to balance the complexities of that reality in its seven episodes so far. Now, it’s coming to a close — one that no doubt will carry the weight of every ounce of tragedy in this story.

New shows on Max

Hacks season 3 finale.

Genre: Comedy Release date: May 30 Showrunner/creator: Paul W. Downs, Lucia Aniello, and Jen Statsky Cast: Hannah Einbinder, Jean Smart, and more

It’s all happening for Deborah (Jean Smart), now that she finally got her dream of hosting a late-night show. Only suddenly, there’s some last-minute doubt: Will Ava (Hannah Einbinder) be allowed to come along for the ride?

New shows on Paramount Plus

Pyramid game.

Genre: Thriller Release date: May 30, with all 10 episodes Showrunner/creator: Choi Sui Cast: Bona, Jang Da-a, Ryu Da-in, and more

Seong Su-ji is a new student at the Baekyeon Girls’ High School, and everything is already feeling like a fight for survival as she battles bullies and studies alike. And then she’s introduced to a new ranking system that lets people secretly vote for who they think should be a class outcast. Now, Su-ji has to decide whether to keep going along (and possibly accepting the violence that comes with it) or else lead an uprising against this shadowy “Pyramid Game.”

Star Trek: Discovery series finale

Genre: Star Trek Release date: May 30 Showrunner/creator: Akiva Goldsman Cast: Sonequa Martin-Green, Mary Wiseman, Doug Jones, and more

The end of an era! By which I mean not only the season we got of 900 years in Star Trek’s future, but also Discovery , which wraps up this Thursday. It’s the end of the first Star Trek show of the modern era, and is free in a way Star Trek hasn’t been in a long, long while , all while paving the way for more Trek to come.

New shows on Peacock

We are lady parts season 2.

Genre: “Yeah, I’m in a band” teen comedy Release date: May 30, with all episodes Showrunner/creator: Nida Manzoor Cast: Anjana Vasan, Sarah Kameela Impey, Juliette Motamed, and more

We Are Lady Parts is back and ready to record their debut album. Which means it’s the perfect time for more bandmate shenanigans — including battling a rival Muslim band, playing a festival, exploring your “villain era.” All that and Malala Yousafzai is supposed to show up sometime this season!

New shows on Apple TV Plus

Loot season 2 finale.

Genre: Comedy Release date: May 29 Showrunner/creators: Alan Yang and Matt Hubbard Cast: Maya Rudolph, Joel Kim Booster, Nat Faxon, and more

The Wells Foundation — and Molly (Maya Rudolph), the billionaire woman who runs it — are nearing their greatest success yet. Which, of course, means reality is about to come crashing in with some major personal decisions. How will the dust settle in the season 2 finale?

New shows on Showtime

Couples therapy season 4.

Genre: Documentary series Release date: May 31, with one episode; on-air premiere at 10 p.m. EDT on June 2 Showrunner/creator: Dr. Orna Guralnik Cast: Real-life couples in therapy

It’s a new season of Couples Therapy, and an all-new cast of couples to undergo real therapy with Dr. Orna. The result will be unpredictable — couples therapy, after all, is about figuring yourselves out together, not necessarily saving the relationship. The good news? It will most likely be cathartic, one way or another.

The next level of puzzles.

Take a break from your day by playing a puzzle or two! We’ve got SpellTower, Typeshift, crosswords, and more.

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