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Star Trek: Discovery - Episode Guide - Season 1

The result was a season that Star Trek fans and science-fiction hardcores loved, but was likely a tad too geeky for the mainstream viewer. Two things, though: Despite its too-heavy reliance on complex story lines, it’s till the best season 1 of any ST series yet. And damn, those effects are awesome.

Star Trek: Discovery episode guide – Season 1, part 1

1. The Vulcan Hello . Welcome aboard the starship USS … Shenzhou? In an early deviation from the ST norm, Discovery’s first two episodes are a prologue of sorts telling of the rise and fall of promising former First Officer Michael Burnham. In this debut episode, Captain Georgiou (the Picard to Burnham’s Riker) urges her longtime Number One to take command of her own vessel. The personal story soon takes a backseat, however, when a number of Klingon ships advance on Federation territory.

Adding to the differences in Discovery may be added the amount of screen time given to a cadre of Klingon characters; at center is T’Kuvma, the ambitious reported inventor of cloaking technology. He seeks to unite the squabbling houses within the Klingon Empire in the fashion of the great hero Kahless. Naturally, not all of his would-be comrades see T’Kuvma as the proper leader for such a consolidation of power…***

2. Battle at the Binary Stars . Burnham’s attempt at mutiny, so as to take over the Shenzhou and respond to the Klingons as she’d been taught from Vulcan history, proves short-lived. However, Georgiou concocts an alternate plan which doesn’t go quite as successfully as planned. Suffice to say, a war is triggered and Burnham, at the speed of warp, becomes a pariah throughout the Federation. ****

3. Context is for Kings . Amid a bunch of generally pretty silly episode titles, “Context is for Kings” is king. After Discovery rescues Burnham’s prison transport ship from disaster, ship’s captain Gabriel Lorca employs Burnham to contribute to a “scientific” assignment which involves the subduing of a interstellar beastie big and bad enough to crush a shipful of Klingons. Impressed with her skills mentally and physically – Commander Landry oversees a “minor incident” involving another prisoner in what may or ay not have been a test – enough to grant her a temporary commission aboard Discovery. ***

4. The Butcher's Knife Cares not for the Lamb’s Cry . See what STG was saying (writing?) about episode titles? In this lengthily-named episode, Burnham and Lt. Stamets are ordered to implement a “spore drive” engine system which depends on living matter, i.e. the “Tardigrade” captured in the previous episode. (Sheesh, did none of these guys see the Voyager episode “Equinox”? Bad stuff happens when you do this…) Discovery employs the drive and successfully defends a Federation colony from a Klingon attack. ***

5. Choose Your Pain . Harry Mudd returns to the Star Trek universe … or rather is introduced into the … reintroduced? Damn, prequels are tough on grammar…

In any case, Lorca is captured by Klingons and imprisoned along with one Lt. Ash Tyler and the infamous swindler Mudd. After several rounds of the Klingon game “Choose Your Pain,” i.e. at torture o’clock, a random prisoner must choose who will get the Klingon workover. With the Tardigrade dying, Burnham, Stamets and Dr. Hugh Culbert must figure a way to work the spore drive without, in order to rescue the captain. Stamets replaces the creature and thus begins a slow David Bowman-like descent into groovy madness… ***

6. Lethe . Sarek’s ship is attacked by terrorists, and he’s left nearly dead aboard his ship. Burnahm, who is in deep mental-spiritual contact with her adopted father, convinces Lorca to let her go on a rescue mission. Together with new crewmate Tyler and Cadet Sylvia Tilly, they manage to maneuver closely enough to Sarek’s trapped ship so that Burnham can overcome his Matrix-like mental defenses, metaphorically slap him back into consciousness, and learn a bit about her past. ***

7. Magic to Make the Sanest Man Go Mad . Head trip for Burnham? Time paradox? The return of [redacted for spoilers]? Awesome. This is Discovery’s version of The Next Generation’s “Cause and Effect” and damn if it doesn’t feel enough like TNG to half-expect Commander Data to report on his level-3 diagnostic. Any ST fans not won over to Discovery by this episode lost their senses of humor probably sometime during season 3 of Enterprise. (Like so many of us did.) *****

8. Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum . Since the universal translator apparently didn’t work on this episode title, STG can tell you it’s “If you want peace, prepare for war.” In Star Trek: Discovery’s first proper away-mission episode, Burnham, Tyler and Saru are sent to investigate an apparently natural phenomenon capable of broadcasting radio waves on a massive scale. Everything goes swimmingly until “new life” is found on the planet – and Saru’s behavior becomes disturbing for reasons we don’t learn until season 2 in “The Sound of Thunder”. ***

9. Into the Forest I Go . Many (many, not all) of season 1 storylines come to a head (not necessarily resolved, mind you) in episode 9. Among the story threads at play here are Admiral Cornwell’s fate, the future use of the spore drive, the discord among Klingons and Burnham’s personal road to redemption. Lorca finally – finally – gets to unleash his inner badass in a firefight with the Klingons and Lt. Stamets comes away as more of a hero than ever.

It all ends ominously with yet another character on death’s doorstep and the Discovery itself in territory unknown – though fairly obvious to those up on their ST history…***

Star Trek: Discovery episode guide – Season 1, part 2

10. Despite Yourself. The Discovery crew rapidly surmises they’re in a parallel universe and adapts accordingly. Tilly is fascinated to find out that she’s worked/killed her way up to captain already, and she bears the nickname Captain Killy. Burnham and Lorca get aboard the ISS Shenzhou, where the plan is for Burnham to reassume his counterpart’s command of the ship, passing Lorca off as her captive. Oh, and at the very moment when Dr. Culber starts acting like a proper Starfleet doctor, Tyler ices him, either due to his EEEEvil Klingon impulses or his sheer boredom of the character. ***

11. The Wolf Inside . Burnham and Tyler undertake a mission to destroy a rebel camp; among the rebels are Mirror-Universe versions of Sarek and Voq; upon seeing Voq, the penny finally drops for Tyler and he remembers all, nearly blowing Burnham’s chances at helping the rebels. Despite Burnham’s attempts to convince them to flee, they are wiped out from the air via the starship ISS Charon commanded by the Emperor of Earth, one Philippa Georgiou. ****

12. Vaulting Ambition . Onboard the Discovery, Stamets finally recovers – but not before he has a very trippy encounter with his mirror-universe counterpart within the mycelial network. Lorca’s true identity is revealed – though, again, guessed by most fans beforehand – after a long series of carefully maneuvered-through chatter between Georgiou and Burnham, in which the latter reveals the nature of the Prime Universe. Lorca escapes and kills his jailer…***

13. What's Past is Prologue . Lorca begins freeing his Mirror-Universe compatriots, including Commander Landry (Remember her?). Lots of cat-and-mouse – then deaths – ensue, but the Emperor is nevertheless overthrown. Burnham at the last second saves Georgiou’s life and both are aboard the Enterprise as Stamets pilots the spore-driven Discovery through some incredibly risky maneuvers to get back to the home universe – only for the crew to discover (sorry) that they’ve arrived nine months after they left and the war, as Jean-Luc Picard once said, is going badly for the Federation…***

14. The War Without, the War Within . Georgiou’s reappearance causes quite a stir among the Discovery crew, as does the news of Mirror-Universe Lorca to the now-aboard Admiral Cornwall. Cornwall, Sarek, Burnham and the rest are soon back to business, however. Unfortunately, they arrive too late at 1, finding only the destroyed base marked with the insignia of a Klingon house and left with a whopping 80,000 dead. What’s more, a Klingon fleet is heading straight for Earth and conquest. An offensive is planned with the help of Georgiou: Spore jump *into* Qo’Nos, the Klingon home planet. ***

15. Will You Take My Hand? Georgiou is given command of the Discovery, and her first stop takes them to an Orion outpost. Georgiou, Burnham and Tilly hit the black market in search of drone weaponry to map the surface of Qo’Nos, while the Discovery heads for that planet itself. The three appear to procure such a weapon, but Tilly discovers that Georgiou has instead gotten a hydrobomb capable of destroying an entire planet. So Burnham gives the bomb to L’Rell, who may use it to unite the Klingons’ warring houses. The war ends, various Discovery crew members get awards for valor and/or promotions, and they’re soon out there, responding to distress calls again – the first from Captain Christopher Pike of the USS Enterprise… ****

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Season 1 – Star Trek: Discovery

Where to watch, star trek: discovery — season 1.

Watch Star Trek: Discovery — Season 1 with a subscription on Paramount+, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video, Apple TV.

What to Know

Although it takes an episode to achieve liftoff, Star Trek: Discovery delivers a solid franchise installment for the next generation -- boldly led by the charismatic Sonequa Martin-Green.

Critics Reviews

Audience reviews, cast & crew.

Bryan Fuller

Alex Kurtzman

Sonequa Martin-Green

Michael Burnham

Jason Isaacs

Captain Gabriel Lorca

Shazad Latif

Lieutenant Ash Tyler

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Den of Geek

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode Guide

Star Trek: Discovery has wrapped up Season 1! Relive the ride with our full episode guide and links to reviews...

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We’ve been waiting for Star Trek to return to its home (aka TV) for far too long, and now the franchise is back! Now that Season 1 is ending, we’re retiring this hub as a place you can come and check out all of our reviews from the first season.

Here’s our review of the season finale , and here’s what we think that crazy cliffhanger might mean .

Akiva Goldsman Defends “Darkness” of Star Trek: Discovery

Click on the blue links for a full review of the Star Trek: Discovery episode…

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Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 1 — The Vulcan Hello

We meet First Officer Michael Burnham and her co-workers and friends aboard the U.S.S. Shenzhou, under Captain Phillipa Georgiou’s command.

Original air date: 9/24/17

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 2 — Battle at the Binary Stars

After an unexpected encounter with the Klingons, the U.S.S. Shenzhou attempts to avoid all-out war with the alien species.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 3 — Context is For Kings

Six months following the events of the Battle at Binary Stars, Burnham ends up on the U.S.S. Discovery, captained by the mysterious Captain Lorca.

Original air date: 10/1/17

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 4 — The Butcher’s Knife Cares Not For the Lamb’s Cry

Burnham tries to determine the nature of a dangerous creature found on a Klingon ship as the war with the Klingons escalates.

Original air date: 10/8/17

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 5 — Choose Your Pain

The crew of the Discovery has some tough choices to make when Captain Lorca is captured by a Klingon ship.

Original air date: 10/15/17

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 6 — Lethe

Burnham rushes to save Sarek, while Lorca demonstrates how far he will go to win the war.

Original air date: 10/22/17

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 7 — Magic to Make the Sanest Man Go Mad

Harry Mudd traps the Discovery in a time loop in an effort to capture the ship and sell it to the Klingons.

Original air date: 10/29/17

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 8 — Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum

Burnham, Tyler, and Saru contemplate peace during an away mission to a strange new world.

Original air date: 11/5/17

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Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 9 — Into the Forest I Go

The Discovery stands as Pahvo’s last hope when the Klingon Ship of Death responds to the Pahvans’ call for peace.

Original air date: 11/12/17

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 10 — Despite Yourself

While in unfamiliar territory, the USS Discovery crew is forced to get creative in their next efforts to survive opposing and unprecedented forces and return home.

Original air date: 1/7/18

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 11 — The Wolf Inside

Tyler is forced to confront the truth about himself, as Burnham works to get vital information from the resistance.

Original air date: 1/14/18

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 12 — Vaulting Ambition

Burnham meets the emperor face-to-face, while Stamets searches for a way out of the mycelial network he’s become trapped inside of.

Original air date: 1/21/18

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 13 — What’s Past Is Prologue

Michael, Saru, and the rest of the Discovery crew fight to return to their own universe with the help of an unlikely ally.

Original air date: 1/28/18

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 14 — The War Without, The War Within

The crew of the Discovery return to the Prime universe to discover the Federation is losing the war with the Klingons.

Original air date: 2/4/18

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 15 — Will You Take My Hand?

The Discovery travels to Quo’noS in an attempt to end the war with the Klingons.

Original air date: 2/11/18

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Trailers

If you’ve yet to watch Star Trek: Discovery and want to get a taste for the show, here’s the official trailer…

And another…

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Release Date

Star Trek: Discovery launched Sunday, September 24th.

Moving forward, all new episodes of the first season will be available exclusively on CBS All Access every Sunday at 8:30 p.m. ET.

Star Trek: Discovery is All About the Fight For the Federation’s Soul

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Timeline

Star Trek: Discovery takes place ten years before the original Star Trek series. Make no mistake, though, this series is set firmly in the original timeline, not that of the new movies.

Star Trek: Discovery Timeline Breakdown

To learn more about the Star Trek: Discovery timeline and the status of Alpha Quadrant at the time of its story, check out this video from YouTube channel Templin Institute.

Star Trek: Discovery Cast

Let’s break down who all these characters are…

Discovery Crew

First Officer Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green)

Sonequa Martin-Green, best known as Sasha Williams in The Walking Dead and Tamara in Once Upon a Time ,plays Michael Burnham, a human who was mainly raised on Vulcan by Sarek following the deaths of her parents at the hand of the Klingons.

Cadet Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman)

One of the breakout characters of Discovery has been Cadet Tilly, Burnham’s roommate, friend, and mentee. Tilly is a bit socially awkward, but makes up for it with enthusiasm, ambition, and heart.

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Saru (Doug Jones)

Doug Jones ( Pan’s Labyrinth ) plays Lt. Saru, a science officer. Saru is a new species of alien.

Speaking to EW about his character, Jones teased:

[Producers] said Saru is the Spock of the series, he’s the Data of the series — and those are beloved characters that I always connect with whenever I would watch the past incarnations of Star Trek . On Falling Skies , I played an alien species who came to Earth to help the humans fight back the bad aliens who’d taken over, and I was intelligent, well-spoken, had a lot of answers and science-y smart. Saru is all of those things and then some.

Lieutenant Stamets (Anthony Rapp)

Rapp is Lt. Stamets, an astromycologist aboard the Discovery who is vital to the workings of the spore transportation drive.

Discovery is first Star Trek series to feature openly gay characters in a relationship. Rapps’ Rent co-star Wilson Cruz plays his character’s partner, Hugh.

Captain Lorca (Jason Isaacs)

Jason Isaacs plays the role of Captain Lorca, the military-minded captain of the Starship Discovery.

Lieutenant Tyler (Shazad Latif)

Shazad Latif ( Penny Dreadful , Toast of London ) plays Lieutenant Ash Tyler, a new member of the Discovery crew put in charge of security after escaping from a Klingon prison cell with Lorca. Ash is suspected by much of the internet of secretly being Klingon Voq, on board the Discovery as a spy.

Star Trek: Discovery Cast Talks Season 1 Romance

Dr. Hugh Culber (Wilson Cruz)

Wilson Cruz ( Rent ) plays medical officer, Dr. Hugh Culber. Culber is also Lt. Stamet’s romantic partner.

T’Kuvma (Chris Obi)

Chris Obi ( American Gods , Snow White and the Huntsman ) plays T’Kuvma, a Klingon seeking to unite the Klingon houses and Kol’s mentor.

L’Rell (Mary Chieffo)

Mary Chieffo portrays L’Rell. A former follower of T’Kuvma and current follower of Voq, she is currently undercover on Kol’s ship, though still seemingly loyal to Voq.

Kol (Kenneth Mitchell)

Kenneth Mitchell ( Frequency , The Astronaut Wives Club ) plays Klingon commander Kol, protege to T’Kuvma.

Captain Phillipa Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh)

Michelle Yeoh plays Captain Georgiou, the captain of the Starship Shenzhou and Burnham’s mentor.

Michelle Yeoh Will Be Back on Discovery

Sarek (James Frain)

James Frain plays Spock’s Vulcan father, Sarek. The character of Sarek has a long Star Trek history, first appearing in The Original Series before going on to make appearances in four of the Star Trek movies, Star Trek: The Animated Series , Star Trek: The Next Generation , and in the 2009 Star Trek movie.

In Discovery, Sarek is the adopted father of Michael Burnham.

Harry Mudd (Rainn Wilson)

Star Trek: Discovery is paying homage to The Original Series with the return of fan-favorite conman character Harry Mudd. This version of Mudd first appeared in Episode 5 when he was in a Klingon prison cell with Lorca and Tyler.

Amanda Grayson (Mia Kirschner)

Mia Kirschner plays Amanda Grayson, aka Spock’s mom and Burnham’s adopted mother.

Admiral Kat Cornwell (Jayne Brook)

Jayne Brooks plays Admiral Kat Cornwell, a high-ranking member of Starfleet and one of Lorca’s oldest friends.

Star Trek: Discovery Production

Gretchen Berg and Aaron Harberts assumed the role of showrunners after Bryan Fuller stepped away from the show, with Akiva Goldsman getting a “top creative role.”

Alex Kurtzman also executive produces the new show, and had this to say about the process:

Bringing Star Trek back to television means returning it to its roots, and for years those roots flourished under Bryan’s devoted care. His encyclopedic knowledge of Trek canon is surpassed only by his love for Gene Roddenberry’s optimistic future, a vision that continues to guide us as we explore strange new worlds.

Kurtzman was previously one of the masterminds of the recent Star Trek films that were directed by J.J. Abrams. He co-wrote Star Trek (2009) with Roberto Orci, and he also co-wrote Star Trek into Darkness (2013) with Orci and Damon Lindelof.

Star Trek: Discovery — What Led to Bryan Fuller’s Exit

Nicholas Meyer, the director and uncredited co-screenwriter of The Wrath of Khan , will serve as a consulting producer on Star Trek: Discovery .

TrekMovie got the word from Trek authority Larry Nemecek that Star Trek: Discovery has added two new writers: Aron Coleite ( Heroes ) and Joe Menosky (a Trek veteran with episodes of Next Generation , Voyager , and Deep Space Nine to his name).

Other writers include: Ted Sullivan, Erika Lippoldt, Bo Yeon Kim, Craig Sweeney, Sean Cochran, and Tyler Dinucci.

— Jason Isaacs (@jasonsfolly) July 15, 2017

Star Trek: Discovery Filming

The new Star Trek TV series boldly went where no other Star Trek TV series has gone before: Toronto. Discocery is the first live-action Star Trek TV show not to film in Southern California.

Production on season one began on January 24th, 2017 and went through September 2017.

Den of Geek Staff

Currently available on 11 streaming services.

Star Trek: Discovery - Season 1 (2017)

Streaming in:

We checked for updates on 242 streaming services on September 10, 2024 at 11:24:45 PM. Something wrong? Let us know!

15 Episodes

S1 e1 - the vulcan hello, s1 e2 - battle at the binary stars, s1 e3 - context is for kings, s1 e4 - the butcher's knife cares not for the lamb's cry, s1 e5 - choose your pain, s1 e6 - lethe, s1 e7 - magic to make the sanest man go mad, s1 e8 - si vis pacem, para bellum, s1 e9 - into the forest i go, s1 e10 - despite yourself, s1 e11 - the wolf inside, s1 e12 - vaulting ambition, s1 e13 - what's past is prologue, s1 e14 - the war without, the war within, s1 e15 - will you take my hand, streaming, rent, or buy star trek: discovery – season 1:.

Currently you are able to watch "Star Trek: Discovery - Season 1" streaming on fuboTV, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Spectrum On Demand, Paramount Plus, Paramount Plus Apple TV Channel , Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel or for free with ads on The Roku Channel. It is also possible to buy "Star Trek: Discovery - Season 1" as download on Apple TV, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store.

After a century of silence, war erupts between the Federation and Klingon Empire, with a disgraced Starfleet officer at the center of the conflict.

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The Playlist Kimber Myers The show couples pure "Star Trek" spirit and references that will make fans grin, but it has enough action and compelling characters to draw in people who don't know the difference between the Kelvin and Prime timelines.
USA Today Bill Keveney With its level of talent and commitment, Star Trek: Discovery has a decent chance of getting on course to complete its mission.
NPR Eric Deggans This show has boldly tried re-inventing and updating Trek, and, after the first episode, it works.
Variety Maureen Ryan Though Discovery has a number of patches of leaden exposition, the mentoring relationship between the two women is nicely sketched out by Yeoh and Martin-Green.
CNN.com Brian Lowry Despite being outfitted with some interesting wrinkles, Star Trek: Discovery is an unspectacular addition to the existing fleet of Trek-branded series.
New York Times James Poniewozik Discovery feels like it's adrift between the adventure-of-the-week format of its network-TV predecessors and the kind of complex serial favored by cable and streaming. It has the trappings of serious pay-TV drama... But they're mostly superficial.
Huffington Post Zaki Hasan The effects are suitably impressive, the characters and premise are compelling, and a clear effort has gone into producing something new and different that still upholds the spirit of hope and optimism the entire franchise embodies.
Salon.com Melanie McFarland Happily Star Trek: Discovery strikes a balance between what diehard Trekkies love about Roddenberry's universe and what J.J. Abrams injected into its theatrical resurrection.
Entertainment Weekly Darren Franich This feels like a show struggling to find its heart. But at least Martin-Green gives it a pulse.
Vox Emily St. James Star Trek is best when it's hopeful, but hope shines brightest amid horror. On some level, Discovery knows both of those things, and that's why it's a show I'm eager to keep watching.
Newsday Verne Gay The actor playing this mysterious Gabriel Lorca -- Jason Isaacs -- also happens to be a major talent who instantly lifts Martin-Green's game. These two appear to be a winning, multidimensional combo.
The Ringer Alison Herman Going into the second half of its season, Discovery has kinks to work out, but it's laid the all-important groundwork for a rich and tight-knit ensemble.
indieWire Liz Shannon Miller While Discovery is fundamentally quite different from much of the Trek that's come before, its engagement with the franchise, and willingness to both celebrate and examine its core values, keep it true to that spirit.
New Yorker Josh Rothman Star Trek has always marvelled at the eccentricities, habits, and feelings of ordinary people, which persist even in a high-tech future; these glimpses of individuality suggest that humanity has become comfortable in its own skin.
New York Magazine/Vulture Matt Zoller Seitz This is light years removed from being a perfect TV show, but it already shows signs of being a great one.
Los Angeles Times Robert Lloyd If I had any criticism of what is after all a giant gift horse, it would be that a certain lightness is missing from the initial episodes. This is remedied in the third, even as things get weird and spooky, so I am good. Live long and prosper.
NBC News THINK Ani Bundel This messy iteration is not what Trekkies deserve.
Slate Marissa Martinelli The real problem with Discovery is not its tone or visuals, but that it still needs to earn its place among the rest of the franchise. Everything we've seen so far feels more like a prequel to the real series.
The Atlantic David Sims As the medium of television evolves, it's comforting to know that Star Trek is there to evolve right along with it.
Hollywood Reporter Daniel Fienberg Discovery has to stand as Discovery and this is a disorienting start... So that really puts everything on Sonequa Martin-Green, at least for me, and even as great as she is, I'm not sure if she's enough.

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Star Trek: Discovery

Michael Burnham with the Discovery ship in background

The fifth and final season of Star Trek: Discovery finds Captain Burnham and the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery uncovering a mystery that will send them on an epic adventure across the galaxy to find an ancient power whose very existence has been deliberately hidden for centuries. But there are others on the hunt as well … dangerous foes who are desperate to claim the prize for themselves and will stop at nothing to get it.

Star Trek: Discovery Seasons 1-4 are streaming exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S., the UK, Canada, Switzerland, South Korea, Latin America, Germany, France, Italy, Australia and Austria. Seasons 2 and 3 also are available on the Pluto TV “Star Trek” channel in Switzerland, Germany and Austria. The series streams on Super Drama in Japan, TVNZ in New Zealand, and SkyShowtime in Spain, Portugal, Poland, The Nordics, The Netherlands, and Central and Eastern Europe and also airs on Cosmote TV in Greece. The series is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution.

Key art for Star Trek: Discovery Season 4

Season four of Star Trek: Discovery finds Captain Burnham and the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery facing a threat unlike any they’ve ever encountered. With Federation and non-Federation worlds alike feeling the impact, they must confront the unknown and work together to ensure a hopeful future for all.

Key art for Star Trek: Discovery Season 3

Follow the voyages of Starfleet on their missions to discover new worlds and lifeforms, and one Starfleet officer, Michael Burnham, who learns that to truly understand all things alien, she must first understand herself.

Key art for Star Trek: Discovery Season 2

Cast of Characters

Michael Burnham as seen in Season 4 of Star Trek: Discovery

'Past Tense' was acutely prescient about the hardships of the 21st Century, but it falls short of understanding how we can move beyond them.

Graphic illustration of a seated Data and Deanna Troi, with Tasha Yar and Jean-Luc Picard standing between them, and Q in a judge's robe in floating bubble

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Star Trek: Discovery

Sonequa Martin-Green as Cdr. Michael Burnham
Doug Jones as Cdr. Saru
Anthony Rapp as Cdr. Paul Stamets
Mary Wiseman as Ensign Silvia Tilly
Shazad Latif as Lt. Ash Tyler / Voq [ 1-2 ]
Wilson Cruz as Dr. Hugh Culber
Michelle Yeoh as Capt. Philippa Georgiou
Jason Isaacs as Capt. Gabriel Lorca [ 1 ]
Anson Mount as Capt. Christopher Pike [ 2 ]
Tig Notaro as Jett Reno [ 2- ]
David Ajala as Cleveland Booker [ 3- ]
Blu del Barrio as Adira Tal [ 3- ]
Callum Keith Rennie as Cdr. Rayner [ 5- ]
Emily Coutts as Lt. Keyla Detmer
Patrick Kwok-Choon as Lt. Gen Rhys
Oyin Oladejo as Lt. Joann Owosekun
Sara Mitich as Lt.Cdr. Airiam [ 1-2 ] / Lt. Nilsson [ 2- ]
Ronnie Rowe Jr. as Lt. Ronald Altman Bryce
James Frain as Sarek [ 1-2 ]
Mia Kirshner as Amanda Grayson [ 1-2 ]
Jayne Brook as Adm. Katrina "Kat" Cornwell [ 1-2 ]
Mary Chieffo as L'Rell [ 1-2 ]
Rachael Ancheril as Cdr. Nhan [ 2 ]
Ethan Peck as Cdr. Spock [ 2 ]
Alan Van Sprang as Capt. Leland [ 2 ]
Oded Fehr as Adm. Charles Vance [ 3- ]

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Star Trek: Discovery

‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Season 1, Episode 1: Engaging the Klingon

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By Sopan Deb

Sept. 25, 2017

Season 1, Episode 1: ‘The Vulcan Hello’

After multiple stops and starts the highly anticipated “Star Trek: Discovery” finally hit impulse speed on Sunday and this recapper set his phasers on disbelief.

The pilot, titled “The Vulcan Hello,” was full of promise, high-stakes and a few worrying signs for the rest of the series. We’re fighting Klingons again! There’s a mutiny from the show’s protagonist! Wait, what? But I thought the captain was the mutineer’s mentor? Shh, shh, “Star Trek” is on television again. (Not quite, though. If you want to find out how it all turns out, now you have to pay for CBS All Access.) The casting — especially Sonequa Martin-Green as the show’s protagonist, Michael Burnham — is well done. (The writing of her character, however — more on that later.)

For better or worse, “Discovery” is already a departure from past “Trek” series, both in style and serialized substance. This is not your Vulcan father’s “Star Trek.”

Usually, “Star Trek” pilots have some sort of handoff between characters from previous shows. For example, in the pilot for “The Next Generation,” Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley), at this point an admiral, walked the halls with Data (Brent Spiner) exploring the new Enterprise (“You treat her like a lady. And she’ll always bring you home.”) Captain Jean Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) handed off the baton to Commander Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) in “Deep Space Nine.”

Quark (Armin Shimerman), the bartender from Deep Space Nine, shows up in the pilot for “Voyager.” Zephram Cochrane (James Cromwell), previously seen in the film “Star Trek First Contact,” sends off the crew of the Enterprise NX-01 in the first episode of “Enterprise.”

Instead of a character, though, the “Discovery” handoff seems to be lens flares . (O.K., fine, and Sarek, Spock’s father.) That’s the visual style that J.J. Abrams introduced to the universe with his 2009 “Star Trek” reboot . There are the tilted and shaky camera shots zoomed in on character’s faces in tense scenes. That movie was divisive among “Star Trek” fans, many of whom yelled at each other over whether it was actually “Trek” or not.

The newest iteration of TV “Star Trek” will engender those same discussions. But it has enough fan service to keep fans tuned in. Did I mention Sarek, Spock’s father, is here? A first officer is referred to as “Number one!” References to Kahless!

1. The opening theme

“Discovery” has the best opening credit sequence of any of the series. True, it doesn’t have anyone narrating that space is the final frontier. However, the theme song has the familiar pings from the original series opener before it seamlessly transitions into faster paced strings that evoke the score from the Bourne franchise , eventually crescendoing into a familiar “Trek” riff that has become ingrained in pop culture. Its overlaid with gorgeous animations like those of “Westworld” or “Game of Thrones.”

2. The look

Given the budget and advances in CGI, this is clearly the most visually stunning “Star Trek” pilot. It’s almost to the franchise’s detriment that the show is confined to being set before the original series, which, for obvious reasons, looks clunky in comparison. “Discovery” is going to have to get creative in showing off its cinematography while staying true to the timeline.

(On that note: What’s with the hologram technology? When Sarek is talking to his adopted daughter, Michael, remotely, is he walking around where he is and sitting on a desk at his location that happens to line up with Michael’s desk? Similarly, when Admiral Anderson (Terry Serpico) is dialed in remotely talking to Philippa, he turns his head to make a biting remark to Michael standing behind him. Did he turn his head where he was transmitting from? Is he sitting in his office randomly turning his head to no one in particular? And are you telling me that this technology would not have been used by characters from the “Trek” series that are set after this one? See what I mean?)

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3. Captain Philippa Georgiou and Commander Saru

We don’t learn too much about the crew itself here — one of the many departures from typical “Trek” pilots — but both Philippa (Michelle Yeoh) and Commander Saru (Doug Jones), give commanding performances with limited material. Ms. Yeoh’s Philippa is vulnerable, capable, caring and loyal. Mr. Jones’s Saru plays a different — and seemingly more frustrated — fish out of water than Spock or Data. And his ominous delivery of the most quotable line of the episode — “My people were biologically determined for one purpose alone: To sense the coming of death. I sense it coming now.” — was flawless.

What didn’t work

1. The mutiny

I’ll admit: Michael’s mutiny brought me up from my sofa. It was a truly surprising moment. But it puts Michael’s character in a big hole. She has been under Philippa’s command for seven years. Philippa seems to value her role as mentor to Michael, even to the point of saying that she believes that Michael should get her own command.

There isn’t much evidence that Michael would ever attack her superior officer irrationally for not attacking a Klingon ship — let alone a mentor.

(The episode’s title is “The Vulcan Hello.” Michael describes this as how the Vulcans came to find peace with the Klingons, by pre-emptively attacking their ships, a plot point I am skeptical of, and one Michael was unconvincing in conveying.)

And how is the audience to view any of Michael’s future actions? To already put the viewer’s trust in the main character on shaky footing was a risky move. Kudos to the creative team for taking the leap. We’ll see if it pays off.

2. Where is the ship?!

We don’t see the Discovery. Not even a glimpse of the ship that is the namesake of the show. This is another departure from previous Treks. For any fan, it’s an exciting prospect to — ahem — discover the newest “Star Trek” ship. I understand the show is serialized now, but tease us at least!

3. The long Klingon scenes

In previous “Trek” series, even when Klingons are talking with each other, they mostly — for the viewer’s benefit — dialogue in English. It was a contrivance (Why did Klingons often know English and Klingon, while humans knew only one of the two?) but a necessary one. In “The Vulcan Hello,” the writers made the decision to fix that hole and show the Klingons talking exclusively in their language with subtitles. It interrupts the pacing of the show when the scenes drag as long as they do, especially as you have to scrutinize subtitles for long periods of time.

Did you catch that?!

A few Easter eggs and callbacks (or rip-offs) that I’d like to point out:

1. Early in the episode, the crew of the Shenzou are sent to the edge of Federation space to find out what happened with a relay. An object appears. Philippa asks Saru: “What am I looking at?” Saru responds, “An object of unknown origin.” Philippa snaps back: “Let’s get more specific.” In the “Voyager” pilot, after the ship is hit with an energy wave, Ensign Harry Kim (Garrett Wang) says to Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), “Captain, there’s something out there.” Janeway responds, “I need a better description than that, Mr. Kim.”

2. When Michael rushes out of sickbay and to the bridge to warn Philippa about an impending Klingon attack, it was very similar to Kirk sprinting out of sickbay in the 2009 film to warn Captain Christopher Pike about an impending Romulan attack.

3. When Philippa says, “We have engaged the Klingons,” I chuckled as I thought of Picard, in one of the most famous “Trek” moments in history, instructing Worf to tell Starfleet, “We have engaged the Borg,” another deadly enemy of the Federation not seen for some time.

4. And if you are really keeping close track:

Star Trek: Discovery

Star Trek: Discovery is the seventh series set in the Star Trek universe. Created by Bryan Fuller and Alex Kurtzman , Discovery was originally set roughly a decade before Star Trek: The Original Series , set primarily aboard the starship USS Discovery , before jumping from the 23rd century to the 32nd century .

The series was announced by StarTrek.com on 2 November 2015 . According to the press release, " The brand-new Star Trek will introduce new characters seeking imaginative new worlds and new civilizations, while exploring the dramatic contemporary themes that have been a signature of the franchise since its inception in 1966 . " [1]

It is produced by CBS Studios and Secret Hideout ; the executive producers are Fuller, Kurtzman, and Heather Kadin .

The first series to be developed for the CBS All Access subscription platform, it began airing on 24 September 2017 , with a preview broadcast of the premiere episode, " The Vulcan Hello ", on the CBS network ; the second episode being released on All Access on the same day. In the US, subsequent episodes were released exclusive to CBS All Access. The first season ran for a complete fifteen episodes, being released on successive Sundays, finishing on 11 February 2018 , with a mid-season break between November and January. [2] [3] The second season ran for fourteen episodes, between 17 January 2019 and 18 April 2019 , again released via CBS All Access, this time on successive Thursdays. The third season ran for thirteen episodes, also on Thursdays, from 15 October 2020 to 7 January 2021 .

Outside the US, the series was available on Netflix from 25 September 2017 and ending on 16 November 2021 , except in Canada, where Space and Z carry the series in English and French, respectively. The series was slated to begin a global rollout on Paramount+ in 2022. [4] However, on 24 November 2021 , it was announced that the program would instead release beginning on 26 November 2021 with the first two episodes in all markets where Paramount+ is currently available, with new episodes releasing weekly. In those markets still without the service, it will be made available on the free ad-supported streaming service Pluto TV on the same timetable. [5]

CBS aired the first season of Discovery on terrestrial broadcast, beginning on 24 September 2020 , exactly three years after " The Vulcan Hello " first aired. [6]

Discovery was the first official Star Trek live-action production the former franchise owner, Paramount Pictures , neither owned nor was involved with on any level (although since Viacom and CBS re-merged to form ViacomCBS in 2019 , Star Trek television is once again under the same corporate umbrella as Paramount – a distinction made even less significant after ViacomCBS rebranded itself as Paramount Global in February 2022 ).

On 2 March 2023 , it was announced that the series' fifth season would be Discovery 's last and will air in 2024 . [7] [8]

1.1 Special guest star
1.2.1 32nd century
1.2.2 23rd century
2.1 Season 1
2.2 Season 2
2.3 Season 3
2.4 Season 4
2.5 Season 5
3.1 Writing
3.4 Casting
3.5 Participation interest
3.6.1 Tie-ins
3.6.2 Products
4 Reactions
5 Related topics
7 External links
Sonequa Martin-Green as Michael Burnham
Doug Jones as Saru
Anthony Rapp as Paul Stamets
Mary Wiseman as Sylvia Tilly
Wilson Cruz as Hugh Culber (2019–2024)
Shazad Latif as Ash Tyler (2017–2019)
Rachael Ancheril as D. Nhan (2020)
Blu del Barrio as Adira Tal (2021–2024)
Tig Notaro as Jett Reno (2021–2024)
Callum Keith Rennie as Rayner (2024)
Jason Isaacs as Gabriel Lorca (2017–2018)
Anson Mount as Christopher Pike (2019)
David Ajala as Cleveland Booker (2020–2024)

Special guest star

Michelle Yeoh as Philippa Georgiou / Philippa Georgiou (mirror) (2017–2020)

Recurring characters

32nd century.

Ian Alexander as Gray Tal
Andreas Apergis as Xi
Noah Averbach-Katz as Ryn
Avaah Blackwell as Ina
David Cronenberg as Kovich
Orville Cummings as Christopher
Luca Doulgeris as Leto
Shawn Doyle as Ruon Tarka
Oded Fehr as Charles Vance
Rothaford Gray as Tareckx
Eve Harlow as Moll
Ache Hernandez as Kyheem
Chelah Horsdal as Laira Rillak
Vanessa Jackson as Audrey Willa
Hiro Kanagawa as Dr. Hirai
Janet Kidder as Osyraa
Ian Lake as Tolor
Alex McCooeye as Lee'U
Linford Mark Robinson as L'Teis Kardashev
Seamus Patterson as Harral
Katherine Trowell as Bandra
Tara Rosling as T'Rina
Phumzile Sitole as Diatta Ndoye
Giovanni Spina as Sta'Kiar
Elias Toufexis as L'ak
Jake Weber as Zareh
Annabelle Wallis as Zora
Adrian Walters as Taahz Gorev

23rd century

Jayne Brook as Katrina Cornwell
Mary Chieffo as L'Rell
Conrad Coates as Terral
Emily Coutts as Keyla Detmer
Raven Dauda as Tracy Pollard
James Frain as Sarek
Riley Gilchrist as Shukar (mirror) / Shukar
Harry Judge as Gorch (mirror) / Gorch
Mia Kirshner as Amanda Grayson
Patrick Kwok-Choon as Gen Rhys
Clare McConnell as Dennas
Kenneth Mitchell as Kol , Aurellio
Sara Mitich and Hannah Cheesman as Airiam
Sara Mitich as Nilsson
Ali Momen as Kamran Gant
Chris Obi as T'Kuvma
Oyin Oladejo as Joann Owosekun
Ethan Peck as Spock
Rebecca Romijn as Una Chin-Riley
Ronnie Rowe, Jr. as R.A. Bryce
Christopher Russell as Milton Richter
Damon Runyan as Ujilli
Sonja Sohn as Gabrielle Burnham
Hannah Spear as Siranna
Alan van Sprang as Leland
Terry Serpico as Brett Anderson
Rekha Sharma as Ellen Landry / Ellen Landry (mirror)
David Benjamin Tomlinson as Linus
Sam Vartholomeos as Danby Connor
Chris Violette as Britch Weeton
Romaine Waite as Troy Januzzi
Bahia Watson as May Ahearn
Rainn Wilson as Harry Mudd

Episode list

DIS Season 1 , 15 episodes:

DIS Season 2 , 14 episodes:

DIS Season 3 , 13 episodes

DIS Season 4 , 13 episodes

DIS Season 5 , 10 episodes [9]

Development

William Shatner claimed that a " 3 movie deal and then a new series [has] been in the cards since 2007 - 2008 . " [10] After the release of the Star Trek reboot in 2009 , Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci pitched an animated series to CBS, similar to their series Transformers: Prime for The Hub (now Discovery Family). [11] However, Orci said the success of the first film did not indicate whether a new show would be viable, explaining, " One movie doesn't make a trend. Two movies starts to indicate that there is a trend and it's viable. It will become more real as the year goes on. " [12]

By 2009, Bryan Fuller desired to produce a new live-action Star Trek series. " I told my agent and told the people of J.J. Abrams ' team I want to create another Star Trek series and have an idea that I'm kicking around, " he explained.

" I would love to return to the spirit of the old series with the colours and attitude [...] [of] the '60s fun and I would love to take it back to its origin [...] Star Trek has to recreate itself. Otherwise, all the characters start to feel the same. You always have a captain, a doctor, a security officer, and you have the same arguments based on those perspectives. It starts to feel too familiar. So all those paradigms where it takes place on a starship have to be shaken up. " [13]

In 2013 , after the release of Star Trek Into Darkness , a CBS Broadcasting representative reiterated interest in reviving Star Trek for television, in response to a comment from Abrams that he had heard the studio was not interested. [14] On 19 January 2014 , Fuller stated he "would drop everything" in order to become the showrunner for a Star Trek television series, commenting,

" I think it's finding a philosophy about it [that would be important], and I think there is such an interesting philosophy happening now with our identity as a planet and taking responsibility for what's happening on the planet, and I think I would make it about identity, in a specific way. " [15]

Meanwhile, however, Brannon Braga mentioned "the word on the street" was that " they probably won't do one until the movies have run their course, " while Rod Roddenberry concurred with this by saying he believed there would not be another series until after the conclusion of the films. [16] [17] In an October 2015 interview, comics writer Mike Johnson suggested the Tholians might "cause major trouble for the Federation" in the next Star Trek television series. ("Top 50 Alien Species!", Star Trek: Ongoing issue #50, " Live Evil, Part 1 ") Another idea for a new live-action Star Trek series, conceived by Worf actor Michael Dorn , would have focused on Worf as a captain . As early as 7 November 2015 , Dorn confirmed the newly announced series will not be the concept he had wanted. [18]

Netflix , Amazon , and Hulu all offered money to distribute the show, [19] but CBS Corporation President and CEO Leslie Moonves opted to develop the series as CBS All Access' first piece of original content, anticipating that millions would subscribe to watch the show. He also revealed,

" Our international distribution guy is going crazy; he can't wait to get out to the marketplace and sell [it]. Right away, we're more than halfway home on the cost of the show from international alone. The risk is small in seeing the track record. " [20]

Robert Hewitt Wolfe speculated the decision also " allows for good budgets so it makes sense for Star Trek." [21]

On 9 February 2016 , it was officially announced that Bryan Fuller would serve as showrunner on the new Star Trek series. David Stapf, President of CBS Television Studios, explained,

" When we began discussions about the series returning to television, we immediately knew that Bryan Fuller would be the ideal person to work alongside Alex Kurtzman to create a fresh and authentic take on this classic and timeless series. Bryan is not only an extremely gifted writer, but a genuine fan of Star Trek . Having someone at the helm with his gravitas who also understands and appreciates the significance of the franchise and the worldwide fan base was essential to us. "

Fuller himself said, " It is without exaggeration a dream come true to be crafting a brand new iteration of Star Trek with fellow franchise alum Alex Kurtzman and boldly going where no Star Trek series has gone before. " Added Kurtzman,

" Bringing Star Trek back to television means returning it to its roots, and for years those roots flourished under Bryan's devoted care. His encyclopedic knowledge of Trek canon is surpassed only by his love for Gene Roddenberry 's optimistic future, a vision that continues to guide us as we explore strange new worlds. " [22]

On 26 February 2016 , it was announced that Nicholas Meyer would be joining the show as a consulting writer and producer. [23] In an interview conducted the next day , Meyer expressed hope in getting to write some episodes, but was not yet sure how big the writing staff would be. Still to begin work on the show, Meyer said he was waiting to be notified when to do so. He did, however, have some ideas about what the new show would entail. Meyer elaborated,

" I think it's going to be a different Star Trek . It will go in a different direction. And I think that is probably good. Because the thing that mainly troubles me about Star Trek is the fear of it being maybe re-treads of itself [....] And I think that Bryan [Fuller] – who is a very clever fellow – has ideas – some of which I’ve heard – that are innovative and different. Different is what got me interested. "

Meyer also said Fuller considered Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country to be his touchstone for the new series. [24]

On 3 March 2016 , it was announced that Rod Roddenberry and Trevor Roth would be joining the show as executive producers. [25]

On 17 March 2016 , two photographs apparently showing behind-the-scenes test shots surfaced, but were later proven to be from an unrelated project. [26]

On 22 April 2016 , Pop Goes The News reported that it would be filmed in Toronto, Canada, saying CBS had booked studio space back in September 2015. [27] According to CBS' VP of communications Kristen Hall, however, CBS hadn't yet confirmed the shooting location by this point. [28]

Also in April 2016, Mark Worthington was confirmed as the series' production designer. Worthington's resume, in addition to confirming his own involvement, also revealed that Alex Kurtzman would direct the pilot episode. [29]

On 30 April 2016 , it was reported that the show would be filmed at Toronto's Pinewood Toronto Studios . [30] On 2 May 2016 , the Toronto location was confirmed in a tweet by CBS. [31] This marked the second time (after Star Trek Beyond ) that a Star Trek live-action iteration was not to be produced physically in Hollywood, [32] in itself a further indication of the diminishing relevance of Hollywood as a motion picture production hub, a trend that had set in in the early 2000s. [33] [34]

On 3 May 2016 , it was reported that the show would be available in weekly installments rather than a whole season all at once. Its premiere would simultaneously air on CBS' TV network and All Access, with subsequent episodes exclusive to All Access (for US viewers). [35]

On 18 May 2016 , the first teaser trailer, along with the logo for the show, was released, simply naming the series as " Star Trek ". [36]

On 6 June 2016 , it was reported that the project's code name might be "Green Harvest". [37] The Canadian industry union IATSE 873 confirmed the working title as "Green Harvest" and dated the filming between 26 September 2016 and 15 March 2017 . [38]

In a red carpet interview at the Saturn Awards on 22 June 2016 , Fuller revealed that the first season would be comprised of a thirteen-episode story arc. Filming was scheduled to take place from September 2016 to March 2017 . [39] This was to be the second season-long story arc in Star Trek history, the first having been in season 3 of Enterprise .

Fuller noted, " We are not subject to broadcast standards and practices. So we can have profanity if we choose – not that I want to see a Star Trek with lots of profanity. But we can certainly be more graphic than you would on broadcast network television. " [40] That also meant episodes could be longer than a typical broadcast show. [41]

On 18 July 2016 , Netflix was announced as the international broadcaster for the series in countries where it is available outside the US and Canada. In Canada, the series would air on Space in English and on Z in French. [42]

On 1 August 2016 , Bryan Fuller suggested that the series would be set prior to The Original Series , stating that the registry number of the Discovery was a clue as to the placement of the series in the timeline. He also stated that it would be possible to read a connection, "or not", to Section 31 in some aspect of the first season. [43]

On 8 August 2016 , Bryan Fuller tweeted a picture on Twitter for a makeup test for Discovery which was possibly a hint for the inclusion of an Andorian . [44]

On 10 August 2016 , Bryan Fuller announced that the series would take place in 2255 . [45] According to Fuller, the basis for the first season would incorporate "an incident in the history of Starfleet that had been talked about but never fully explored." [46]

In a radio interview on 27 August 2016 , Fuller revealed more details. The female lead would be the first officer of the Discovery and referred to as " Number one ", honoring Majel Barrett-Roddenberry 's character from TOS : " The Cage ". [47]

On 9 September 2016 , Fuller tweeted that the events of TOS : " Balance of Terror " would provide the "touchstone" for the series' story arc. [48]

On 14 September 2016 , Fuller announced that the series premiere would be delayed until May 2017, in order to ensure the quality of the show was not compromised. CBS agreed with the move. [49]

Variety reported, on 26 October 2016 , that Bryan Fuller would no longer oversee day-to-day operations on the show, but would remain executive producer. He was to remain involved in breaking stories and providing support for showrunners Gretchen J. Berg and Aaron Harberts . Sources indicated that CBS, while satisfied with the materials he had created, was concerned that Fuller had too much on his plate with his involvement in other work. This included Starz's then-upcoming drama American Gods . [50] Akiva Goldsman joined the show to provide additional support. [51] Fuller later clarified with Newsweek , on 2 December 2016 , that he was no longer involved with the production. [52]

According to issue #1 of the 2017 Emmy Magazine (p. 21), Star Trek: Discovery has a reported budget of US$6 to US$7 million per episode. [53]

At the CBS upfront presentation on 17 May 2017 , it was announced the first season had been extended to fifteen episodes. Talking Trek (now After Trek ), a post-episode discussion show, was also announced. [54]

The premiere date for the series was announced on 19 June 2017 , when it was revealed that the first season would be split into two airing blocks. [55]

On 23 October 2017 , it was announced that the series had been renewed for a second season, which began filming in April 2018. [56] [57]

On 27 February 2019 , it was announced that the series had been renewed for a third season, with Michelle Paradise becoming co-showrunner with Alex Kurtzman . [58]

The renewal for the series' fourth season was announced on 16 October 2020 ; the renewal for the fifth season was announced on 18 January 2022 . [59] [60]

Aaron Harberts and Gretchen Berg have said the characters will be more conflicted and not as perfect as characters from previous Star Trek series. Harberts said they would hold true to Gene Roddenberry's idealised view of future Humans with " how we solve those conflicts. So we do have our characters in conflict, we do have them struggling with each other, but it's about how they find a solution and work through their problems. " [61]

Having the female protagonist be given the traditionally male name of Michael is one of Fuller's signature motifs: other examples include Chuck in Pushing Daises and Jaye on Wonderfalls . [62]

In contrast to previous shows, the writers are ready to kill off characters even if their actors aren't planning to leave the series. [63]

Due to Gene Roddenberry 's belief religion would die out by the 23rd century , writer Kirsten Beyer felt references to God should be avoided, quipping to Jason Isaacs when he ad-libbed on set "for God's sakes", that "for f–'s sake" would be more likely. [64] Gretchen Berg later clarified, " I don't necessarily agree with [Isaacs'] quote. On a show about diversity and with different points of view, I feel like you have to accept that some people believe in God, some people want to worship a potato, and some people don't want to believe in anything. I think there is room for that on Star Trek . " [65] Harberts later confirmed that the incident had been taken out of context and was specific to Lorca at that juncture, not the show in general. He also expressed interest in exploring the issue of faith or lack of it in later episodes. [66]

Even when the series was yet to begin airing, a second season had already been mapped out, with a third season beginning to be mapped out. [67]

The writers regularly consult Memory Alpha. According to Harberts, the series' writing team are themselves "fanatical" about fact-checking the information they discover on the wiki. For example, they sometimes rewatch, or ask researcher Anthony Maranville to rewatch, an entire episode based on a single detail from one of Memory Alpha's many entries. [68]

Writing for Season 2 began in January 2018. [69]

In August 2020 Kurtzman said that writing for Discovery had continued during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the writers' room meeting via Zoom. [70] On 16 October 2020 Season 4 was officially announced.

The teaser title card for Discovery

Bryan Fuller was adamant the Klingon make-up be updated for the show. Aaron Harberts noted, " In the different versions of Trek , the Klingons have never been completely consistent. We will introduce several different houses with different styles. " [71] According to Neville Page , who also designed the Klingons for Star Trek – though the Klingon scenes were cut from that film as released – and Star Trek Into Darkness , Fuller mandated most of them should be bald. [72] Page, and fellow lead designer, Glenn Hetrick continued to identify the baldness as an enduring part of Fuller's intentions for the Klingons, allowing them to reveal what was on their heads (such as in AT : " Lethe ").

The lead costume designer is Gersha Phillips . The Starfleet uniforms were originally similar to those in the original series. [73]

The teaser clip presented at the San Diego Comic-Con on 23 July 2016 was scored by Fil Eisler as an audition for the show. At the following year's panel, Jeff Russo was announced as the series' composer, and it was revealed that he had already completed work on the Discovery theme. [74] Russo recorded the theme, along with the score for the first episode, with a sixty-piece orchestra in Los Angeles on 27 July 2017 . [75]

Russo returned for Season 2. [76]

The show was announced to have a female lead. [77] The first cast member, Michelle Yeoh , was revealed by Nicholas Meyer in an interview on 22 November 2016 . [78] Anthony Rapp and Doug Jones were confirmed the following week. [79]

Bryan Fuller commented that the cast should be diverse. "Star Trek is a show of firsts. And in researching the characters for this new iteration of Star Trek , I've been talking to Mae Jemison , who's the first black woman in space, and who saw Star Trek in the '60s and who saw Nichelle Nichols on the bridge of a ship and said, 'I see myself in space.' So there's something wonderful about the legacy that Nichelle Nichols represents as giving a gift to people who weren't previously able to see themselves in the future. We are going to be continuing that tradition of progressive casting and progressive character work to be an inclusive world. " He also said "eventually, eventually" there will be appearances from previously established characters. [80]

On 24 May 2016 , it was reported that some fans wished to see Castle and Firefly alumnus Nathan Fillion in the series. [81] It was even suggested that this was why Fillion ended his commitment to Castle . [82] Bryan Fuller ideally wanted Angela Bassett and Rosario Dawson ; Bassett declined due to prior obligations, and there is no evidence Dawson was ever approached for consideration. [83]

Star Trek alumnus Tony Todd also expressed interest in working on the new series and even confirmed he is on a casting list of the studio. [84] [85]

In late October, it was reported the cast would feature, in addition to the female lead, an openly-gay male lead, a female and a male admiral , a male Klingon captain, and a British male doctor. [86]

Early news stories of Sonequa Martin-Green's casting in December 2016 identified her character as "Lieutenant Commander Rainsford"; [87] CBS' official announcement on 3 April 2017 changed the name to "Burnham".

On 28 April 2017 , it was announced that Shazad Latif had been re-cast as Lt. Tyler, being replaced in the role of Kol by Kenneth Mitchell. Three other cast members were also added: Rekha Sharma as Commander Landry, Clare McConnell as Dennas, and Damon Runyan as Ujilli. [88]

Wilson Cruz's casting as Dr. Culber was revealed at the San Diego Comic-Con panel on 22 July 2017 .

Participation interest

Marina Sirtis has expressed interest in reprising her role as Deanna Troi in a phone interview with MZNOW , saying, " I loved playing her... It would be interesting to me to go back now, twenty years later and kind of go 'who did she become? Who is she now?' I would find that very interesting, and I would love to do that. " [89]

Both Kate Mulgrew and Jeri Ryan have expressed interest in reprising their roles as Kathryn Janeway and Seven of Nine respectively. In an interview with the TODAY show, Mulgrew said, " I want to be the admiral and I want to boss them around. " Ryan, in an interview with Digital Spy , said, " My understanding is that it's in a very different world from any of the previous shows – but never say never. It'd be fun to just drop in and revisit her – not that I want to revisit her all the time! " [90]

Scott Bakula , Jonathan Frakes , and Nichelle Nichols have also expressed interest in appearing on the series. [91] [92] [93]

In an interview with "Variety", Martin-Green's Walking Dead co-star Andrew Lincoln expressed his desire to appear on the show, possibly with alien make-up on. [94]

According to Michael Dorn 's publicist, brief discussions were held between Discovery producers and Dorn about a possible role on the show, but that there are no plans for him to appear on it at this time. An Orlando Sentinel writer expanded on the publicist's statement by stating that Dorn was offered less than one percent of what he had been paid for his last appearance as Worf. [95]

Robert Duncan McNeill has stated that he had to turn down the chance to direct an episode of Discovery due to being unavailable but that he would "love to do it". [96]

The show's title was revealed by Bryan Fuller at the San Diego Comic-Con on 23 July 2016 with a clip of the title ship, the USS Discovery (NCC-1031). [97] [98] The promo was produced in three weeks and scored by Fil Eisler as an audition for the show. It greatly resembled the Ralph McQuarrie concept art for the canceled film Star Trek: Planet of the Titans , which the staff could not confirm at the time for legal reasons. [99]

Fuller also announced, at a press junket immediately thereafter, the show would be set in the prime timeline, though Fuller declined to say exactly when in that timeline it would be set.

↑ John Van Citters has chosen "DSC" as the series' official abbreviation. [100] This is consistent with the studio's use of "VGR" for Star Trek: Voyager , but MA will use the abbreviation "DIS" for Discovery , for consistency with using "VOY" for Voyager .

On 31 January 2017 , a trailer was released, showing behind-the-scenes footage of early filming. [101]

Ahead of the CBS upfront presentation on 17 May 2017 , the first official promotional image of the series was released, featuring Yeoh and Martin-Green in character on location in Jordan. [102] At the presentation, Martin-Green appeared to debut the first full trailer for the series, which was released online immediately afterward. [103] A trailer featuring the same footage recut was released by Netflix at the same time. [104]

The first official teaser poster for the series was released alongside the trailer, with a second released to accompany the announcement of the season premiere date. Two further limited edition posters were released at San Diego Comic-Con in July 2017 . At the Discovery panel on 22 July 2017 , a second full trailer debuted, featuring the first footage of Isaacs' Captain Lorca and Wilson's Harry Mudd. The trailer was released online shortly after the panel. [105] [106]

The overall first year publicity efforts of CBS Television Studios on behalf of Discovery were coordinated by its Vice President Communications Kristen Hall , [107] which earned her an industry award nomination in 2018, the ICG Publicists Award; she did not win, however. [108]

Season 3 title card

At the Mission New York convention in September 2016 , it was announced that IDW Publishing would produce comics (written by Mike Johnson ) and that Gallery Books would produce novels (the first by David Mack ) tying into the series. Both tie-in lines are coordinated with the events of the series, and are supervised by Discovery writer Kirsten Beyer. [109]

In August 2017 , it was announced that Star Trek Timelines would be updated to include characters and ships from Discovery , including Philippa Georgiou, Michael Burnham, and Saru. [110] [111] In October 2017 , more Discovery characters were added to the game including Gabriel Lorca, Ash Tyler, and Harry Mudd. [112] A month-long event, Discovery: A New Frontier , gave players the opportunity to acquire other characters and ships from the series. [113]

In September 2017 , to mark the start of the series, Perfect World made Discovery 's Starfleet uniform available to players of Star Trek Online for a limited period. [114] In January 2018 , the publisher announced that the " Discovery Lock Box" would be added to the game, giving players the chance to win ships, weapons and equipment based on those of the series, including the Crossfield -class , the Sarcophagus , and the Walker -class . [115] Starting in the autumn of 2018, Age of Discovery allows players to create a character from the Discovery era. [116] Later additions include the uniforms worn by the crew of the ISS Charon and ISS Shenzhou and several weapons used by the Emperor .

Under Eaglemoss Collections ' Hero Collector imprint, Penguin Random House published the Star Trek: Discovery Designing Starships volume of the Designing Starship reference book series on 3 September 2019 . From an in-universe perspective, a number of DIS ships are also covered in the Star Trek: Shipyards - Starfleet Ships 2151-2293 volume from the Shipyards series. Starfleet ships from the show's third season will also be covered in the second edition of the Star Trek: Shipyards - Starfleet Ships 2294 to the Future reference book . [117]

Anovos produced a phaser pistol prop replica in December 2017 [118] and released a phaser rifle late in 2018. It began to retail Starfleet uniforms (replica costumes) in the summer of 2018 [119] and markets upscale "Studio-Scale Filming Miniatures" of the USS Discovery , USS Shenzhou , and USS Enterprise ( as seen in DIS ) along with a number of Eaglemoss and QMx products. [120] [121] Rubie's Costume Company also produces DIS costumes.

In January 2018, Eaglemoss Collections ' Hero Collector brand premiered the Star Trek: Discovery The Official Starships Collection partwork , featuring starship miniatures , dedication plaques , and a figure from the series. Other ships from the series were also released as larger models within the Star Trek: The Official Starships Collection , and polyresin busts of DIS characters were featured in the company's Star Trek: The Official Busts Collection . Following the release of its 33rd (numbered) issue in 2021, the company's DIS starships will be marketed as part of the Star Trek Universe: The Official Starships Collection .

QMx debuted its magnetic DIS Starfleet insignia badges at the San Diego Comic-Con in July 2017. FanSets launched its first wave of collectible Discovery pins in August 2017. [122]

Hallmark released a Keepsake Christmas ornament depicting the USS Discovery in July 2018. Another DIS ornament that featured Commander Saru and Michael Burnham was released a year later.

Beginning in August 2018, McFarlane Toys began to retail a series of seven-inch articulated figures which will eventually feature characters from DIS. [123] [124] [125] Toy weapons and accessories for role-play were planned but the production of phaser pistol toys was halted after regulatory issues (and the ensuing retailer reticence) came to light, due to the toys' perceived resemblance to real firearms.

Titan Merchandise debuted DIS "Titans" vinyl figures at a 2018 convention and planned to put them into wide retail release during 2019. [126]

Gentle Giant released a Saru bust in the summer of 2018, followed by figurines of Michael Burnham and the Torchbearer. Its toy division, Gentle Giant Toys , announced that it planned to release Fleet Flyers "starship danglers" in the autumn of 2018 but they did not reach retail and had been placed "on hold" as of February 2019. [127] [128] [129]

Branded as Polar Lights products, Round 2 began to release plastic model kits (and display models) of DIS starships in early 2019. [130]

Ukonic/Robe Factory released a USS Discovery pizza cutter in 2021.

On 13 July 2021 , ViacomCBS Consumer Products and Playmates Toys jointly announced that the latter had acquired new licensing for " action figures, vehicles and ships, role play and other toy categories ", and slated the first of these products for retail release in 2022. Among other Star Trek series and films, this licensing encompasses Star Trek: Discovery , Star Trek: Lower Decks , Star Trek: Picard , and Star Trek: Prodigy . [131]

Rick Berman responded to the new series with cautious optimism. On his Twitter feed, he tweeted, " I wish them nothing but good luck and smooth sailing. Just hope it stays true to Gene's vision. " [132]

Brannon Braga likewise wished the new series well, commenting on his Twitter feed, "Star Trek is a vast canvass with many artists. Constantly evolving. Godspeed to Mr Kurtzman. " [133] Braga additionally remarked, " Hopefully with the new series they can get back to more meditative storytelling. " In Braga's opinion, the new series is vital to ensuring Star Trek continues for another fifty years. He stated, " It's all about making sure the next television show is really good and finds a new generation of viewers to keep it going. " ( SFX , issue 270, p. 68) He later commented, " With Discovery , I am honestly as excited to see it as any other Star Trek fan. I devour each new trailer the moment it comes out. " [134]

Robert Hewitt Wolfe admitted to not knowing anything about the new series, apart from having read about it online, and stated he is currently too busy to write for it. He also commented, " Sounds like it could be great though. " As for the way the new series will be released, he stated, " Subscription streaming is an extremely successful model & allows for good budgets so it makes sense for Star Trek." Wolfe tweeted a "congrats" message to Bryan Fuller, upon him being named as the series' showrunner, adding, " You have the conn. Do us proud. " [135] [136] [137]

David A. Goodman reacted to news of the series by saying, " Hope it's good, will watch it even if it's bad. " [138]

As for whether he and wife Denise Okuda will be involved in working on the new series, Michael Okuda remarked, " We'd love to be involved. Kurtzman already has a talented, experienced team from the last two films, but who knows? " [139] Regarding the announcement that the series will be run by Bryan Fuller, Michael Okuda stated, " Congrats, Bryan! Go boldly! " [140]

Rene Auberjonois dismissed the notion that the new series will feature himself and Nana Visitor portraying their respective Star Trek: Deep Space Nine characters of Odo and Kira Nerys . [141]

On Seth MacFarlane 's Twitter feed, he recommended, " Let's make this new Star Trek series optimistic, eh? I think we're all dystopia'd out. " [142] MacFarlane incidentally, actually put his money where his mouth was, as he is the creator/star/producer of the Star Trek: The Next Generation inspired science fiction series The Orville , adopting the former's upbeat tone and which almost simultaneously premiered with Discovery in September 2017 on FOX TV, thereby de facto becoming a competitor for the latter, as it has inevitably led up to many fans and reviewers making head-to-head comparisons between the two. The overlapping airings continued when the respective second seasons of both series started their run in January 2019.

Former Star Trek , but now- The Orville , science consultant André Bormanis has stated, " When it comes back to TV, I hope they do something more in the spirit of the original. Everybody in Hollywood who has ever had even the smallest association with Star Trek I'm sure has a 'How would you do the next Star Trek ?' answer. I would probably do something a little more like Captain Pike's adventures. Go back to that era where it was a little more rugged, a little more fifties' sci-fi sensibility. " ( The Fifty-Year Mission: The Next 25 Years , p. 39)

Press reactions to the series' announcement pondered how Star Trek could appeal to a new generation and compete against darker, more mature shows of the 21st century, like Game of Thrones , The Walking Dead , and Ronald D. Moore 's reboot of Battlestar Galactica . [143] [144] [145] [146] National Post felt there was no need for a new series, arguing Star Trek had become a quaint retrofuture series akin to Flash Gordon and Buck Rogers . [147] The Independent was one of the few to argue the optimistic future of Star Trek would make a welcome antidote. [148]

Other articles concentrated on the decision to produce the series for streaming, with some expressing deep cynicism over the idea. [149] [150] [151] Others noted the decision was a win-win in terms of keeping the series going. [152] [153] [154] [155]

Den of Geek and io9 noted most fans would prefer the show be set after The Next Generation , Deep Space Nine , and Voyager instead of in the same timeline as the film series. [156] [157] UK magazine SFX reported that was the most wanted request for the series. Other requests, in order of most desired, included: having the new crew undertake a multi-year mission in a starship rather than having them occupy a space station; focusing on controversial social issues; retaining a sense of fun; and introducing new alien species and technology. The magazine also determined that their readers' "dream cast" for the series included Dan Stevens as the captain, Rooney Mara as the first officer, Gina Torres as the doctor, Nick Frost as the engineer, and Wil Wheaton as the Federation President . ( SFX , issue 270, pp. 36-37) USGamer expressed hope that the series' success could revive interest in Star Trek video games after the failure of the movie tie-in . [158]

During an interview given at CinemaCon (11-14 April 2016), Brent Spiner commented that "looking at such a pedigree" working for the show, he thinks it is going to be fantastic. He also remarked that J.J. Abrams allegedly just became a producer of the show. [159] In an interview with SFX magazine (issue 275, p. 67) that was published around the same time, Spiner remarked, laughing, that all the new series had to do in order to work in the 21st century was simply "to be there." He added, " And just be entertaining [....] And I think there's a good chance it'll work. There's a really great bunch of people attached to that project, really talented people. I have no doubt that's going to be a really huge success. "

A lawsuit alleging that elements of Discovery had been copied from an unreleased video game called Tardigrades was filed on 19 August 2019 , and dismissed on 20 September 2019 . The judge found that Discovery "is not substantially similar to [ Tardigrades ] as a matter of law." Memory Alpha was cited in the finding. [160] The case was appealed, but on 17 August 2020 the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the lower court's decision. [161] [162]

In April 2021 , the third season of Discovery won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Drama Series. The show had previously been nominated in 2018 and 2019 for each of the first two seasons. [163]

As of 2021, Discovery has been nominated for ten Emmy Awards , mostly in "technical" categories such as visual effects and makeup. It has won two: "Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup for a Series, Limited Series, Movie or Special" and "Outstanding Special Visual Effects In A Single Episode".

External links

Star Trek: Discovery at Wikipedia
Star Trek: Discovery at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
Star Trek: Discovery at the Internet Movie Database
Star Trek: Discovery writers at X (formerly Twitter)
1 USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-G)
3 Daniels (Crewman)

Cast & crew
User reviews

The Vulcan Hello

Episode aired Sep 24, 2017

Michelle Yeoh and Sonequa Martin-Green in Star Trek: Discovery (2017)

While patrolling Federation space, the U.S.S. Shenzhou encounters an object of unknown origin, putting First Officer Michael Burnham to her greatest test yet. While patrolling Federation space, the U.S.S. Shenzhou encounters an object of unknown origin, putting First Officer Michael Burnham to her greatest test yet. While patrolling Federation space, the U.S.S. Shenzhou encounters an object of unknown origin, putting First Officer Michael Burnham to her greatest test yet.

David Semel
Gene Roddenberry
Bryan Fuller
Alex Kurtzman
Sonequa Martin-Green
Shazad Latif
56 User reviews
53 Critic reviews

Sonequa Martin-Green in Star Trek: Discovery (2017)

Top cast 26

Michael Burnham

(as Javid Iqbal)
(credit only)

Paul Stamets

Sylvia Tilly

Captain Gabriel Lorca

L'Rell

T'Kuvma

Dr. Anton Nambue

Brett Anderson

Danby Connor

Young Michael Burnham

Keyla Detmer

Torchbearer …

Kamran Gant

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Did you know

Trivia The cabinets in Captain Georgiou's ready room are filled with props that contain Easter eggs, but most are too difficult to make out in during the show. Behind the scenes photos reveal a bottle of 2249 Château Picard wine, Starfleet medals previously awarded to Jonathan Archer and James T. Kirk and a diploma from an Andorian military academy. The books on these shelves all feature Star Trek (1966) episode titles including The Cage (1966) , Balance of Terror (1966) , The City on the Edge of Forever (1967) , Amok Time (1967) , Mirror, Mirror (1967) , Metamorphosis (1967) , The Deadly Years (1967) , The Trouble with Tribbles (1967) , Return to Tomorrow (1968) , Patterns of Force (1968) , By Any Other Name (1968) , The Omega Glory (1968) , Plato's Stepchildren (1968) , The Empath (1968) , Whom Gods Destroy (1969) , The Mark of Gideon (1969) , That Which Survives (1969) , The Way to Eden (1969) and All Our Yesterdays (1969) .
Goofs Despite a claim that Michael Burnham cannot be a mutineer, since the rest of the USS Shenzhou crew never disobeyed the captain's orders, Michael did knowingly attack the captain and tried to take over the ship, which is the definition of a mutiny, so Michael is in fact a mutineer, even if the rest of the crew is not.

Saru : Their hull is covered in hollow, ornamental metallic pods, thousands of them, tightly interlocked, forming a kind of... armor.

Michael Burnham : Not the most efficent defense.

Saru : I suspect its purpose is more symbolic than practical. They contain Klingon biological material in various states of decay. Remote dating is wildly divergent. Some bones date back thousands of years, others only hours old.

Michael Burnham : Their entire ship is covered with coffins.

Saru : Commander, the captain listens to you. Tell her. We must withdraw.

Michael Burnham : I'm afraid that's no longer possible.

Saru : Your world has food chains. Mine does not. Our species map is binary. We are either predator or prey. My people were hunted. Bred. Farmed. We are your livestock of old. We were biologically determined for one purpose and one purpose alone: to sense the coming of death. I sense it coming now.

Connections Featured in After Trek: O Discovery, Where for Art Thou? (2017)

User reviews 56

Oct 1, 2017
September 24, 2017 (United States)
United States
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Roddenberry Entertainment
Living Dead Guy Productions
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Runtime 42 minutes

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Star Trek: Discovery recap: 'Choose Your Pain'

Rainn Wilson debuts as the show continues to loosen up

Prior to its premiere, the team behind Star Trek: Discovery indicated to EW that the show would take some creative liberties — both in story format and content — that weren’t feasible for previous, network-TV-bound iterations of the franchise. With its serialized format, the CBS All Access sci-fi drama has already taken advantage of its platform in some ways. With Sunday’s fifth episode, “Choose Your Pain,” Discovery continued to loosen up, albeit in small ways.

Like last week’s “The Butcher’s Knife Cares Not for the Lamb’s Cry,” Sunday’s Discovery installment benefitted from the dense exposition that defined the first episodes of the series. Now that the show has introduced key players and themes, episodes can revolve around characters and smaller-scale stories.

In “Choose Your Pain,” Discovery ‘s crew grappled once again with the ethical ramifications of using the tardigrade — a creature introduced properly last week — to power the ship’s cutting-edge spore drive. (Characters now seem to conveniently label the technology an “s-drive.”) A massively enlarged version of a versatile, Earth-native microorganism, the enormous tardigrade, bestowed with the nickname “Ripper,” taps into a “mycelial network” of fungal roots spanning across the universe — the scientific explanations on Discovery can get a little mealy-mouthed — allowing the Discovery to jump anywhere in space instantaneously. The catch? As becomes increasingly evident in “Choose Your Pain,” each jump exacts a heavy toll on Ripper.

The episode begins with examinations of the relationships between two primary Discovery characters and Ripper. First, we see a jarring nightmare sequence where Burnham stands by in the engineering bay, watching Ripper as it undergoes significant physical trauma during a jump. Subsequently, we observe a meeting between Lorca and some of his Starfleet superiors. Admiral Katrina Cornwell (Jayne Brook), who in last week’s episode spurred the Discovery to begin using its s-drive technology in the Klingon conflict, urges Lorca to use the tardigrade sparingly. The Klingons may be onto the Federation’s secret weapon, she cautions, and besides, why tax Starfleet’s “prime asset”? Focus on obtaining more tardigrades in order to duplicate the technology, she instructs.

In private, Cornwell carries another stern message for Lorca. Having Burnham — Starfleet’s only convicted mutineer — aboard the Discovery harms morale. “Why give everyone another reason to judge you?” she asks. Lorca initially responds by citing a Starfleet regulation (139-82, for those keeping track at home) that allows captains to conscript civilians during wartime. But when pressed, he has a starker answer. “It’s my ship,” he says at the scene’s conclusion. “My way.”

The Discovery may be Lorca’s ship, but he doesn’t make it back to the vessel after his meeting with the Starfleet brass. (“Choose Your Pain” frustratingly fails to explain where this meeting was taking place and why it wasn’t occurring on Discovery.) His shuttle back to Discovery is intercepted by a Klingon battle cruiser; Klingons board, killing Lorca’s pilot companion and taking the captain himself hostage.

Back aboard Discovery, Lorca’s capture heightens tensions in multiple ways. Cornwell delivers the message to the bridge the capture appears to have been targeted — her theory that the Klingons have identified Discovery as the Federation’s secret weapon now seems prescient. Saru, now acting as captain, decides that the ship will need to take multiple jumps in quick succession to determine Lorca’s whereabouts. Burnham’s concerned. “The more you hurt someone, the less helpful they become,” she warns her former Shenzhou colleague. Considering their icy relationship since Burnham’s mutiny, Saru declines her advice and tells her to drop the issue.

Unsurprisingly, Burnham ignores the instructions. Earlier in the episode, she had enlisted Culber — the colorful doctor who debuted on last week’s episode — to ascertain the precise biological effects of s-drive jumps on Ripper’s brain. In engineering, the pair tells Stamets that they’ve concluded each jump causes the creature’s brain to deteriorate further. Stamets is cagey about exactly who’s responsible for the situation they now find themselves in — “You say portabella, I say portabello,” he quips when Burnham suggests it wasn’t her idea to use the tardigrade — but they arrive at a consensus that action is necessary.

Stamets and Burnham next discuss the tardigrade issue with Tilly. The chief engineer goes on an extended scientific soliloquy that essentially amounts to the following: The tardigrade can integrate foreign DNA (in this case, from the prototaxites stellaviatori mushroom) to travel the mycelial network, and Stamets and his colleagues need to determine a way to simulate a tardigrade’s DNA grafting in a creature that’s willing and understands the process. “You guys,” Tilly says in a moment definitely not suited for network television, “this is so f—ing cool.” She apologizes, but Stamets placates her: “No, cadet. It is f—ing cool.”

As Discovery’s officers continue their “f—ing cool” science experiment, Lorca’s situation has gone from bad to worse. Upon his transfer to a Klingon prison vessel, he meets Harcourt Fenton Mudd (Rainn Wilson). Wilson’s character — Harry, for short — revives some of the old-fashioned zaniness that defined Star Trek iterations of yore. Mudd explains that, after purchasing a moon for his lover and falling behind on his payments, creditors chased him into Klingon territory and he was captured. “The only crime I’m guilty of is loving too much,” he laments to Lorca.

Wilson’s acting predictably stands out, but his character’s presence is refreshing in and of itself. After focusing on the two sides of a military conflict in previous episodes, Discovery ‘s introduction of a more roguish presence in “Choose Your Pain” helps. Mudd isn’t quite so enjoyable for Lorca, though. Klingons enter the cell and brutally beat a third prisoner, Starfleet Lt. Ash Tyler, and Mudd shrugs it off. The Klingons order prisoners to “choose your pain,” he explains — to take a beating upon themselves or defer it to fellow prisoners — in order to prevent bonding. “You look conspicuously free of bruises,” Lorca retorts.

(Recap continues on page 2) As Lorca begins to bond with Tyler — who the Klingons captured during the Battle at the Binary Stars depicted in Discovery ‘s premiere — Mudd sows tension. When Tyler offers Lorca a meager scrap of food, Mudd’s scorpion-like pet, Stuart, intercepts the nourishment and retrieves it for Mudd. (“Stuart has boundary issues,” Mudd jokes.) Then Mudd begins to indict the Federation’s stated objective of boldly going where no one has before. “What did you think would happen when you bumped into someone who didn’t want you in their front yard?” he asks, citing “Starfleet arrogance.”

“Have you ever bothered to look out of your spaceships down at the little guys below?” Mudd continues. “If you had, you’d realize there’s a lot more of us down there than there are you up here — and we’re sick and tired of getting caught in your crossfire.” The chunk of dialogue hints at Mudd’s allegiances — after Lorca is tortured by the Klingon captain, he realizes Mudd has used Stuart to spy for the Federation adversaries — but compels for larger reasons. It’s a useful window into the collateral victims of war, and also serves as a larger allegory about imperialism’s ills.

Mudd keeps up his efforts to drive a wedge between Tyler and Lorca, explaining to Tyler — and viewers — that Lorca lacks “decency” because he detonated his previous ship, the U.S.S. Buran, when it was ambushed by Klingons, and was the only survivor. Lorca counters by noting that he’d have rather blown it up than allow his crew to undergo death by torture as Klingon prisoners.

Mudd’s efforts ultimately backfire. When Klingon prison guards return and extend the “choose your pain” choice, Lorca chooses Tyler, who pretends to pass out and then helps the captured captain incapacitate the guards. “Getting out of here was always a two-man job,” Tyler tells Mudd, “I just waited until I found the right man.” Lorca and Tyler then escape as Mudd screams that they’ve haven’t seen the last of him.

Back aboard Discovery, Saru discovers that Burnham has continued to search for solutions to the tardigrade quandary, despite his instructions. He doesn’t react positively when Burnham shows him a hypospray she and the team have devised that contains tardigrade DNA and would enable a gene transfer to allow humans to act as surrogate tardigrades. “Eugenics experiments are forbidden,” Saru reminds her. Burnham pleads with Saru that she’s “not an enemy,” and Saru fires back: She’s not an enemy, but a “proven predator” who is behaving in the same manner that led to Georgiou’s death. The acting captain orders the spore drive back online and confines Burnham to quarters.

Her message has resonated with other Discovery officers, though. The ship takes another jump — and the tardigrade promptly shrivels, entering what Culber describes to Saru as a state of “extreme cryptobiosis.” Saru instructs Culber to rehydrate the creature, but Culber explains it isn’t that easy and, noting that Ripper might be sentient, says he “will not be party to murder.” Stamets says he’ll comply, though that commitment doesn’t exactly come to fruition.

Saru and the Discovery find a formation of five Klingon raiders flying through space. Using his ingrained prey instincts, Saru determines one of them is fleeing the other four; Lorca and Tyler are helming the vessel and the Discovery beams them out, then jumps away. But it’s not the tardigrade that facilitates the exit — it’s Stamets, who has taken Burnham’s hypospray and used himself as a surrogate. He’s unconscious and appears severely wounded, but quickly returns to life.

The falling action of the episode provides fascinating endpoints for two sets of characters. Saru visits Burnham in her quarters and rationalizes his disdainful behavior by saying he’s been angry and deeply jealous that he wasn’t able to serve as first officer under Georgiou. As a peace offering, Burnham gives Saru the telescope Georgiou left her in the previous episode; in turn, Saru instructs Burnham to “go save [Ripper’s] life.” Burnham follows the order and, along with Tilly, releases the tardigrade into space.

Meanwhile, viewers discover something about Stamets’ personal life. Ahead of Discovery ‘s debut, news broke that Stamets would be the first openly gay character in a Star Trek iteration. The episode concludes in his personal quarters — along with Culber, the ship’s doctor. “One tends to worry when they’re doomed to love a brilliant but reckless maniac who’s willing to risk his life for glory,” Culber tells Stamets, as he treats his companion’s wounds from the s-drive jump earlier in the episode. Stamets, however, is still starry-eyed from the experience, describing it as “unspeakably beautiful” to finally witness the mycelia networks he’s devoted his life’s research to. “You may not care about you,” Culber notes, “but I do.”

Screen Rant

2 modern star trek shows faced exactly the same criticism (but had opposite solutions).

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10 Star Trek: Discovery Positives You Only Notice On Rewatch

Star trek isn’t supposed to have money: what is latinum, star trek officially brands a surprising deep space nine hero as a war criminal.

Two Star Trek shows of the modern era faced exactly the same criticism when they started, but ultimately succeeded with completely opposite solutions. Star Trek: Discovery faced the challenge of competing for attention with prestige television shows that often eschewed values like hope and optimism. In response, Star Trek: Discovery tried taking a realistic approach to the Star Trek: The Original Series era . Discovery season 1 focused on Michael Burnham's (Sonequa Martin-Green) mutinous part in igniting the Klingon-Federation War, and also took the USS Discovery crew to the fascist nightmare of Star Trek 's Mirror Universe. Discovery season 2 featured Starfleet's morally gray covert ops division, Section 31.

Star Trek: Picard reintroduced Admiral Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) long after the end of Star Trek: The Next Generation . Audiences had been assured — or perhaps warned — that Picard was not going to be a continuation of TNG , but a character study of Admiral Picard in his twilight years. We were instead treated to a bleak take on Star Trek , where Earth was no longer Star Trek 's paradise. Star Trek: Picard 's version of Starfleet was selfish, insular, and corrupted from within. Commander Raffi Musiker (Michelle Hurd) dealt with family estrangement and substance abuse. Xenophobia against Romulans and ex-Borg ran rampant. Something was off in these Star Trek shows.

Star Trek: Discovery & Star Trek: Picard Were Both Criticized For Being Too Dark

Star trek needs to be optimistic, so discovery and picard needed to change.

Both Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard were criticized for being too dark, and with good reason. Star Trek: Discovery season 1 went all-in on extrapolating just how brutal Star Trek 's Mirror Universe and Klingon War storylines could realistically be. While Star Trek: Discovery grappled with how to be Star Trek amid the popularity of grittier television shows, Picard contended with inevitable comparisons to Star Trek: The Next Generation. To differentiate itself from TNG, Star Trek: Picard steeped itself in despair. Neither show shied away from graphic depictions of murder, torture, sexual assault, animal cruelty, war crimes, or Star Trek 's first f-bombs — just to name a few.

There's a lot to love about Star Trek: Discovery that you only notice when giving the first four seasons of the series a second look.

Criticisms of the tone in both Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard were valid. Streaming allowed Star Trek to take a gloves-off approach to topics that had previously only been alluded to , in the name of realism. Earlier iterations of the franchise weren't often as explicit as Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard were in their first seasons. This new Star Trek had all the right superficial ingredients: starships, familiar aliens, moral quandaries, and complex questions; but both new Star Trek shows seemed to be missing Gene Roddenberry's optimism that had always been integral to Star Trek. Fortunately, that would change, but in very different ways.

Star Trek: Picard Became Lighter By Bringing Back The Original TNG Cast In Season 3

Embracing nostalgia made star trek: picard season 3 feel like a homecoming.

Star Trek: Picard season 3 became lighter with a Star Trek: The Next Generation original cast reunion. Embracing the theme of family, Admiral Picard took action to secure the fate of his USS Enterprise family as well as his own son with Dr. Beverly Crusher (Gates McFadden), Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers). Captain Worf (Michael Dorn) fit right in as a wise mentor to Commander Raffi Musiker. Captain Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis), and Data (Brent Spiner) were all back. The USS Enterprise-D itself even returned, courtesy of Commodore Geordi La Forge (LeVar Burton), as the last piece of the Star Trek: The Next Generation puzzle.

The highest IMDB audience rating of Star Trek: Picard season 1 went to episode 7, "Nepenthe", which featured Riker and Troi, suggesting that fans did want a continuation of Star Trek: The Next Generation after all.

The palpable shift in tone for Star Trek: Picard season 3 came from showrunner Terry Matalas leaning into what Star Trek: Picard should have been all along. Instead of trying to differentiate Star Trek: Picard from Star Trek: The Next Generation , Picard season 3 became the TNG sequel that fans had expected from day one. Star Trek: Picard didn't lose sight of the fact that it was a new show, with new antagonistic characters Captain Liam Shaw (Todd Stashwick) and Changeling Captain Vadic (Amanda Plummer) earning their spotlights. Picard 's look towards the past with the old TNG cast, however, finally made Picard season 3 feel triumphant and optimistic.

Discovery Became Lighter By Doubling Down On Its New Cast

Star trek: discovery found optimism in the voices of its 32nd century future.

Star Trek: Discovery became lighter by setting its sights on the future — in more ways than one. After Commander Michael Burnham deliberately led the USS Discovery into the 32nd century to thwart rogue A.I. Control, Discovery 's new characters took center stage alongside Burnham. Star Trek: Discovery 's love stories multiplied; the pairings of Cleveland Booker (David Ajala) and Burnham, Ni'Var President T'Rina (Tara Roslin) and Captain Saru (Doug Jones), and Adira Tal (Blu del Barrio) and Gray Tal (Ian Alexander) all mattered. Even Disco crew members like Lt. Commander Kayla Detmer (Emily Coutts) and Lt. Commander Joann Owosekun (Oyin Oladejo) became more well-developed, as Burnham got to know them better.

Star Trek: Discovery was always Michael Burnham's personal story.

With that focus on additional voices came a shift in tone for Star Trek: Discovery that represented Discovery 's core values of communication and empathy. Because Star Trek: Discovery was always Michael Burnham's personal story, Burnham's perspective dictated the tone. After 2 seasons plagued with self-doubt, Burnham's promotion to Captain reflected her steadfast belief in Starfleet's ability to connect with people. Not so coincidentally, Captain Burnham's command in Discovery season 4 is also when Star Trek: Discovery really began to shine. Although Star Trek: Picard and Star Trek: Discovery both struggled with darker tones, both shows ultimately succeeded with their opposite embraces of the past and the future of Star Trek .

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Set Phasers to Stream: Here’s Every ‘Star Trek’ Show and Movie You Can Watch on Paramount+

By Sage Anderson

Sage Anderson

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Rolling Stone may receive an affiliate commission.

From low-budget romps to high-energy blockbuster films, Star Trek has become one of the most influential sci-fi franchises of all time. While Trek has decades worth of TV, film, and animated iterations that might rival Star Wars , it also has its own unique legacy and long-time, passionate cult following (and merch ).

In the past few years, the Trek television universe has become one of the highlights of original programming on Paramount+ . Helmed by Alex Kurtzman, series like Star Trek : Lower Decks and Picard have pushed the boundaries of what can be done with the universe’s canon in their first seasons so far.

This year for Star Trek Day, with the premiere episodes of several Trek series and “Short Treks” will be available to view for free from Sept. 7-13. The episodes can be watched from Paramount+’s partner platforms Amazon, Apple and Roku, their official YouTube page, Pluto TV and the Paramount+ free content hub (U.S. only).

From the new releases like the second season of Strange New Worlds , to the old adventures of the Enterprise , Deep Space 9 , Voyager , and more, here’s how to watch Star Trek in order online.

How Can I Watch Paramount+ Free Online?

When you sign up for a Paramount+ subscription , you can actually choose between two plans to watch Paramount+ online. Pricing for Paramount+ plans include Essential (with limited commercials) for $7.99/month, or ad-free with Showtime for $12.99/month. But if you’re still not sure about committing to a full subscription, you can always stream Paramount+ for free with a 7-day free trial .

For a limited time, the streamer is also slashing the price on its annual plan by 50%, bringing the cost down to just $29.99 a year . Normally $59.99, the new Paramount+ deal gets you access to its full library of content for just $2.50 a month . Check out the latest Paramount+ deals here .

Buy Paramount+ Free Trial

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What Star Trek TV Shows Are Available on Paramount+?

Premiering on September 8, 1966 on NBC-TV, Star Trek brought in a new era of programming for the science fiction genre. Though it wasn’t a critical success at the time it aired, with all 79 episodes of the original series running in syndication, a devoted fan base grew. Decades later, there are eight TV series with hundreds of episodes, all currently streaming now on Paramount+ .

Here’s an updated list of all the Star Trek shows on Paramount+. Note that this isn’t the official timeline for when these shows take place in canon — Enterprise is actually the “earliest” Trek series—but we’ll cover that below.

Star Trek: The Original Series (1966-1969)
Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973-1974)
Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1994)
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993-1999)
Star Trek: Voyager (1995-2001)
Star Trek: Enterprise (2001-2005)
Star Trek: Discovery (2017-Present)
Star Trek: Short Treks (2018-Present)
Star Trek: Picard (2020-Present)
Star Trek: Lower Decks (2020-Present)
Star Trek: Prodigy (2021-Present)
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022-Present)
Star Trek: Section 31 (TBA)
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy (TBA)

What Star Trek Movies Are Streaming on Paramount+?

Paramount+ is the home to all the films featuring the cast of the Original Series, while many other Trek films are also hosted on other streaming services. Here are the Star Trek movies streaming on Paramount+ right now.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)
Star Trek: Generations (1994)
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)
Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)
Star Trek (2009)
Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)
Star Trek Beyond (2016)
Building Star Trek (2016) — Documentary
Woman In Motion (2021) — Documentary
Trekkies 2 (2004) — Documentary

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Star Trek: The Original Series: “The Cage”
Star Trek: The Next Generation: “Encounter at Farpoint, Part I & II”
Star Trek: Voyager: “Caretaker, Part I & II”
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: “The Emissary, Part I & II”
Star Trek: Enterprise: “Broken Bow Part I & II”
Star Trek: The Animated Series: “Beyond the Farthest Star”
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: “Strange New Worlds”
Star Trek: Lower Decks: “Second Contact”
Star Trek: Discovery: “The Vulcan Hello”
Star Trek: Picard: “Remembrance”
Star Trek: Short Treks: “The Girl Who Made the Stars,” “The Trouble with Edward,” “Ask Not,” “Runaway,” and “Ephraim and Dot”

How to Watch Every Star Trek Movie and Show In Timeline Order

Figuring out chronological timeline of Star Trek over can be overwhelming for even the most seasoned of Trekkies. With over 50 years of mirrorverses, time traveling back and forth, alternate timelines and spin-offs, we’ve created a guide for how to watch every Star Trek series and film in order. We’ve organized it by Stardate instead of year of release for optimal accuracy, but note that some series like TNG and DS9 run concurrently.

Star Trek: Enterprise (2151-2161)
Star Trek: Discovery Seasons 1 and 2 (2255-)
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2255-)
Star Trek: The Original Series (2265-2269)
Star Trek: The Animated Series (2269-2270)
Star Trek: The Motion Picture (2273)
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (2285)
Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (2285)
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (2286/1986)
Star Trek V: The Final Frontier ( 2287)
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (2293)
Star Trek: The Next Generation (2364-2370)
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (2369-2375)
Star Trek Generations (2371)
Star Trek: Voyager (2371-2378)
Star Trek: First Contact (2373/2063)
Star Trek: Insurrection (2375)
Star Trek: Nemesis (2379)
Star Trek: Lower Decks (2380)
Star Trek: Picard (2399-)
Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 (3155?)
Star Trek: Short Treks (2239-3300 Prime Timeline)

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Star Trek (2258 Kelvin Timeline)
Star Trek Into Darkness (2259 Kelvin Timeline)
Star Trek Beyond (2263 Kelvin Timeline)

Every Star Trek Series Coming To Paramount+ This Year (And Beyond)

L-R Noel Wells as Ensign Tendi, Gabrielle Ruiz as TíLyn, Tawny Newsome as Ensign Beckett Mariner and Jack Quaid as Ensign Brad Boimler appearing in episode 1, season 4 of 'Star Trek: Lower Decks.'

Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 (2024)
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 (2024)
Star Trek: Prodigy Season 2 (2024)
Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5 (October 2024)
Star Trek: Section 31 (TBA)
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy (TBA)

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The Original Series
The Animated Series
The Next Generation
Deep Space Nine
Strange New Worlds
Lower Decks
Star Trek Movies
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Along with the commentary, Discovery Season 5 includes production featurettes, a gag reel, and a deleted scene from the series finale. Some of the featurettes are more engaging and more essential than others, but overall there’s a good amount of interesting and informative behind the scenes content.

I do have one minor (but recurring) quibble — the title page for many of the features, particularly the text of the title itself, looks like something someone with a shaky understanding of kerning put together in PowerPoint. (It’s a little bit more of a “graphic design is my passion” situation that I would have expected on this kind of release, personally.)

Oftentimes “season roundup”-type features just rehash the plot and character arcs of the season, but The Voyage of Season 5″ (38:57) has enough production tidbits to make it worth watching. As someone who “always uses pockets in [his] acting,” for example, Callum Keith Rennie (Rayner) faced the challenge of figuring out how to play a character who wears a uniform without any pockets. Who’d have thought?

Eve Harlow (Moll) had never done any stunt work or stage fighting, and had to learn the process from scratch; meanwhile, Doug Jones’ (Saru) longtime stunt double Bauston Camilleri gets a well deserved spotlight for his work in “Under the Twin Moons.”

This season’s “Being Michael Burnham” (13:15) feature chronicles Sonequa Martin-Green’s experiences during the three-day shoot of the “Life, Itself” series coda. As I discussed in my review of the episode, the coda didn’t really work for me. This making-of piece, though… this is more moving than the coda itself!

Martin-Green’s genuine love for the people she works with, both in front of and behind the camera, is infectious to watch. When she says she’s honored to be on set at 1:30 AM for the application of her old age makeup, you know she means it 100%. (By the way, she is wearing a lot more prosthetic makeup in the coda than I realized.)

The rest of the cast make appearances as well, and we get a real sense that the footage filmed for the coda’s emotional slo-mo goodbye scene required very little acting.

“A Team Effort” (20:04) spotlights Q’Mau sand-speeder sequences from “Red Directive” and the fight sequences from the series finale in this walkthrough of the environmental design process for the AR wall — and the physical set elements that sit inside the virtual set.

We’ve seen Discovery get more and more sophisticated with its use of AR backdrops over the last two seasons, and it’s clear from the onscreen results (but also from this featurette) that Season 5 was the pinnacle of what they were able to accomplish. An incredible amount of work went into making this show look as good as it does, and this is a nice overview of the art department’s efforts.

“Character Development” (23:31) focuses on Stamets, Culber, Tilly, and Saru, and this feature follows their development throughout the series both onscreen and also with respect to how their actors viewed their characters. Showrunner Michelle Paradise also provides commentary throughout. A highlight is Doug Jones’ thoughtful examination of how playing Saru over these five seasons has impacted his personal life.

If you’re interested in learning about director Olatunde Osunsanmi’s technical or creative processes behind the camera, this feature probably isn’t going to be for you. If you want to hear about how much everyone involved with Discovery loved working with the guy, then you’re in luck. In “ Discovery’s Creative Force” (09:50), we do learn that he was responsible for a few significant creative decisions beyond his role as director, but for the most part this is a lovefest, pure and simple. Which, hey, always nice to be reminded that Discovery ’s was a happy and supportive set.

Season 5’s Gag Reel (3:53) is considerably more fun and higher energy than the one included on the Season 4 set, understandable given that Season 4 was filmed under strict pandemic protocols which surely dampened the mood. Highlights this season include Doug Jones repeatedly mispronouncing “nuptials” as “nupitals,” Sonequa Martin-Green and David Ajala (Book) clearly having a great time on set together, and the occasional bit of off-camera commentary from director Jonathan Frakes.

The season only provides one Deleted Scene (0:41), a short walk-and-talk from “Life Itself” as Nhan and Saru discuss wedding plans and the challenges and rewards of mixing work and relationships. These kinds of casual character moments are something of a precious commodity on Discovery , so for that reason it would have been nice for this to have been kept in. (Nothing substantive to the overall plot is lost by its omission though.)

That, of course, are not ALL of the Season 5 bonus material out on disc this summer — unfortunately for fans, there are three additional video features that have been held back from the season set and reserved as exclusive content for the Star Trek: Discovery Complete Series box set.

Two of them are extended slideshows set to music, which is no big loss unless you’re a hardcore Discovery completist — but the longest feature is something that has disappointingly been locked away on this big box set.

“The Art of Discovery: Costumes” (16:03) is essentially a slideshow. This feature is a visual journey through costumes throughout all five seasons of Discovery , comparing design drawings with episode footage of the final costume as it appears onscreen. It’s… interesting to a degree, but would have benefited from some narration from costume designer Gersha Phillips or the costume fabricators. Probably the most entertaining thing about this are the uh, questionable digital maquettes of the actors seen in some of the drawings.

Like the costume feature, “The Art of Discovery: Production Design” (41:51) is a slideshow of production art from throughout the series, set to music from the show. I have to be honest, I have a hard time imagining someone watching this more than once — and even that first time would quickly become a “leave it on in the background while you do something else” viewing experience.

(Maybe they could release this as a screensaver or something?)

The only really worthy feature is the “Series Roundtable” (57:15) , which starts out immediately weird: we join Alex Kurtman and five castmembers (Sonequa Martin-Green, Doug Jones, David Ajala, Blu del Barrio, and Wilson Cruz) as they silently watch a screenshare of a Season 1 featurette.

A strange beginning, but trust me you do want to watch this if you get the chance. The “work videocall” vibe quickly gives way to “punchy convention panel” as these six people (with great chemistry!) comment on old video clips and lovingly roast each other and the sometimes silly things they were asked to do in the name of Star Trek . “Sonequa saw my entire taint,” Wilson Cruz says at one point, laughing about his his nude rebirth in “Saints of Imperfection.”

“I did!” Sonequa Martin-Green agrees. It’s a good time.

Overall, the Season 5 package is fairly robust for bonus features this day and age; while a few additional commentary tracks or deleted scenes would have been nice, getting this much behind-the-scenes content on a physical release is still better treatment than most television shows get these days.

The cast roundtable piece is the lone detractor, relegated to the Complete Series box that (as of this writing) is only $15 more than the separate Season 5 set — but as exclusives go, it’s not as bad as some previous Trek releases in that department. (It’s still a disappointing move, certainly.)

But look — if you’ve been buying Star Trek: Discovery box sets for the last six years, it’s absolutely worth rounding out your library with the Season 5 collection. And if you’ve been waiting to open your wallet? The Complete Series box set is a no-brainer at the current retail pricing, and it’s a win-win with that extra cast roundtable feature.

You can order Star Trek: Discovery — The Final Season on Blu-ray or Steelbook Blu-ray now, or you can preorder the full-series Blu-ray collection here.

Behind The Scenes
DSC Season 5
Star Trek: Discovery

New Starfleet TV Show Is The Discovery Replacement Star Trek Desperately Needs

After the end of Star Trek: Discovery , which pushed Star Trek into the unknown again, the franchise desperately needs its latest upcoming TV show, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy . Since 2009, when JJ Abrams' reboot Star Trek franchise reintroduced a new and younger audience to the final frontier, Star Trek has been focused on the past. With prequel films showing an alternative timeline of beloved characters, Star Trek: Discovery took a bold leap forward – literally. Jumping to the 32nd century allowed the show to take on fresh, new mysteries that no Star Trek TV show has ever encountered.

With Star Trek: Discovery taking its final bow in May 2024, Star Trek 's current timeline consists mostly of nostalgia-based narratives. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is arguably Star Trek 's most popular series at the moment, and it does include some exciting new storylines, but it nevertheless acts as a prequel to Star Trek: The Original Series . Even Star Trek: Prodigy , whose second season has been a huge fan success, features nostalgic legacy characters from Star Trek: Voyager . The franchise needs to once again journey into the unknown and focus on the future with Star Trek: Starfleet Academy .

Starfleet Academy Is The Only New Star Trek Project Not Based In The Franchise's History

Focusing on the future is what star trek has always been about.

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy promises to focus on a fresh new take on a franchise classic. Starfleet Academy has been featured in many projects over the years, such as Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Picard . It's a well-known concept, but it hasn't been overdone, and it brings with it endless potential. The Star Trek: Starfleet Academy cast boasts some big names, such as Academy Award winner Holly Hunter as the lead. Star Trek: Discovery 's Mary Wiseman, Oded Fehr, and Tig Notaro are also returning to space and reprising their previous Star Trek roles.

Why Star Treks "Incredibly Optimistic" Next Show Is Set In Discoverys Timeline Explained By Executive Producer

Star Trek executive producer Alex Kurtzman explains why Starfleet Academy, the next Star Trek series, will be set in Discovery's 32nd century era.

Despite how Star Trek: Starfleet Academy adds legacy actors to its ranks, the new show can still focus on its 32nd-century setting instead of relying on the nostalgia often provided by old characters being recast and rewritten for newer audiences. With the promise to be set both on Earth and in space, there are plenty of opportunities to steer the show away from revisiting old narratives. While Star Trek: Strange New Worlds thrives on bringing back narratives and characters from older Star Trek projects, the franchise needs to have an effective counterbalance to the past .

Star Trek Needs Fresh, Future-Looking Projects In Order To Stay Relevant

After star trek: discovery's finale, star trek needs to look ahead.

With such a young cast – presumably playing students – along with some returning favorites, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy has everything it needs to look to the future while still tethering itself to established canon. Additionally, since Star Trek: Lower Decks has done its part in introducing a wide range of non-human species to Starfleet, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy can showcase a more diverse live-action group of students and narratives that speak to Starfleet's inclusive purpose to boldly go where no one has gone before. By focusing on the future, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy can highlight the very best of Star Trek .

Star Trek Casts Paul Giamatti As Starfleet Academy Villain In Next Series

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy casts Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe winner Paul Giamatti in a recurring role as the villain.

The 32nd century is the perfect playground for Star Trek to move the franchise into the future. By covering new ground, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy has the chance to be as groundbreaking as Star Trek: Discovery was during its acclaimed 5-season run. Without being tied down by established canon, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy can push through barriers that currently restrict every other upcoming Star Trek movie and TV show . Without these restrictions, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy could prove to be the perfect replacement for Star Trek: Discovery and take the franchise where no one has gone before.

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy

Cast Kerrice Brooks, Oded Fehr, Paul Giamatti, Holly Hunter, Mary Wiseman, Tig Notaro, Robert Picardo

Writers Noga Landau, Gaia Violo, Alex Kurtzman, Tawny Newsome

Showrunner Noga Landau, Alex Kurtzman

Franchise Star Trek

STAR TREK: STARFLEET ACADEMY introduces viewers to a young group of cadets who come together to pursue a common dream of hope and optimism. Under the watchful and demanding eyes of their instructors, they discover what it takes to become Starfleet officers as they navigate blossoming friendships, explosive rivalries, first loves and a new enemy that threatens both the Academy and the Federation itself.

New Starfleet TV Show Is The Discovery Replacement Star Trek Desperately Needs

IMAGES

'Star Trek: Discovery' Season 1 Episode 1 Preview: Photos, Plot, and Cast
‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Season 1, Episode 14: I’m Captain Now
Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 1 "The Vulcan Hello" REVIEW
Star Trek: Discovery Season 1
Star Trek: Discovery, Season 1 wiki, synopsis, reviews
Star Trek: Discovery, Season 1 wiki, synopsis, reviews

VIDEO

Star Trek Discovery Rewatch Season 1: Episodes 3, 4, and 5
Rediscovering Star Trek Discovery
Best Moments of Star Trek: Discovery Season 1

COMMENTS

Star Trek: Discovery season 1
The first season of the American TV series Star Trek: Discovery is set in the 23rd century and follows the crew of the USS Discovery during the Federation-Klingon war. The season consists of 15 episodes, released on CBS and CBS All Access from September 2017 to February 2018.
Star Trek: Discovery (TV Series 2017-2024)
S1.E5 ∙ Choose Your Pain. Sun, Oct 15, 2017. While on a mission, Lorca is captured by the Klingons and unexpectedly finds himself in the company of prisoner of war Starfleet Lieutenant Ash Tyler and notorious criminal Harry Mudd. 7.3/10 (5.8K)
List of Star Trek: Discovery episodes
Find out the titles, directors, writers, and release dates of all 65 episodes of Star Trek: Discovery, the seventh Star Trek series set in the 23rd and 32nd centuries. Season 1 consists of 15 episodes divided into two chapters.
Star Trek: Discovery -- Season 1 episode guide
A comprehensive guide to the first season of Star Trek: Discovery, with episode summaries, ratings and analysis. Find out how Burnham, Lorca, Stamets and the crew face the Klingons, the spore drive, time paradoxes and more.
Star Trek: Discovery (TV Series 2017-2024)
The U.S.S. Discovery battles against Control in a fight not only for their lives but for the future, with a little help from some unexpected friends. Spock and Burnham discern vital new connections between the red signals while Burnham faces one of life's harshest truths: the right decisions are often the hardest to make. 8.2/10. Rate.
DIS Season 1
Find out the episodes, stardates, production costs, and reception of the first season of Star Trek: Discovery, the CBS All Access series set in the Prime Timeline. Learn about the crossover characters, the chapter structure, and the awards nominations of the season.
Star Trek: Discovery (TV Series 2017-2024)
Star Trek: Discovery: Created by Bryan Fuller, Alex Kurtzman. With Sonequa Martin-Green, Anthony Rapp, Doug Jones, Mary Wiseman. Ten years before Kirk, Spock, and the Enterprise, the USS Discovery discovers new worlds and lifeforms as one Starfleet officer learns to understand all things alien.
Star Trek: Discovery: Season 1
Star Trek: Discovery: Season 1
Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode Guide
Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode Guide
Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episodes
Choose Your Pain. S1 E5. Oct 16, 2017. While on a mission, Lorca unexpectedly finds himself in the company of prisoner of war, Starfleet Lieutenant Ash Tyler (Shazad Latif) and notorious intergalactic criminal, Harry Mudd (Rainn Wilson). Starring Sonequa Martin-Green, Jason Isaacs, Doug Jones, Anthony Rapp, Mary Wiseman, Shazad Latif.
Star Trek: Discovery Season 1
Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 - watch episodes streaming ...
Watch Star Trek: Discovery Season 1
Watch Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 | Prime Video
Watch Star Trek: Discovery · Season 1 Full Episodes Online
With its level of talent and commitment, Star Trek: Discovery has a decent chance of getting on course to complete its mission. The RingerAlison Herman. Going into the second half of its season, Discovery has kinks to work out, but it's laid the all-important groundwork for a rich and tight-knit ensemble.
Watch Star Trek: Discovery
Watch Star Trek: Discovery | Netflix Official Site
Watch Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 1: Star Trek: Discovery
Series premiere. While patrolling Federation space, the U.S.S. Shenzhou encounters an object of unknown origin, putting First Officer Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) to her greatest test yet. Starring Sonequa Martin-Green, Michelle Yeoh, Doug Jones.
Star Trek: Discovery Iconic Episodes
Star Trek: Discovery - Watch on Paramount Plus
Star Trek: Discovery
Star Trek: Discovery
Star Trek: Discovery (a Titles & Air Dates Guide)
Star Trek: Discovery (a Titles & Air Dates Guide)
'Star Trek: Discovery' Season 1, Episode 1: Engaging the Klingon
Season 1, Episode 1: 'The Vulcan Hello'. After multiple stops and starts the highly anticipated "Star Trek: Discovery" finally hit impulse speed on Sunday and this recapper set his phasers ...
Star Trek: Discovery
Star Trek: Discovery | Memory Alpha | Fandom
Star Trek: Discovery
Star Trek: Discovery
Star Trek: Discovery recap: Season 1, Episode 8
Star Trek: Discovery recap: ... Discovery approaches its midseason finale — Sunday's episode was the penultimate installment before it takes a break until ... 9-1-1: Lone Star season 5 first ...
"Star Trek: Discovery" The Vulcan Hello (TV Episode 2017)
The Vulcan Hello: Directed by David Semel. With Sonequa Martin-Green, Doug Jones, Shazad Latif, Anthony Rapp. While patrolling Federation space, the U.S.S. Shenzhou encounters an object of unknown origin, putting First Officer Michael Burnham to her greatest test yet.
Star Trek: Discovery recap: Season 1, Episode 5
Mudd isn't quite so enjoyable for Lorca, though. Klingons enter the cell and brutally beat a third prisoner, Starfleet Lt. Ash Tyler, and Mudd shrugs it off. The Klingons order prisoners to ...
Watch Star Trek: Discovery Season 4 Episode 11: Star Trek: Discovery
Watch The Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 Teaser Trailer From New York Comic Con Star Trek: Discovery While investigating an 800-year-old Romulan vessel, USS Discovery uncovers a mysterious piece of technology believed to hold the key to unlocking the galaxy's greatest mystery.
2 Modern Star Trek Shows Faced Exactly The Same Criticism (But Had
Both Star Trek: Discovery and Star Trek: Picard were criticized for being too dark, and with good reason.Star Trek: Discovery season 1 went all-in on extrapolating just how brutal Star Trek's Mirror Universe and Klingon War storylines could realistically be. While Star Trek: Discovery grappled with how to be Star Trek amid the popularity of grittier television shows, Picard contended with ...
How to Watch Every 'Star Trek' Series and Movie 2024: Stream for Free
What Star Trek TV Shows Are Available on Paramount+? Premiering on September 8, ... Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 (3155?) Star Trek: Short Treks (2239-3300 Prime Timeline)
Review
The fifth and final season of Star Trek: Discovery arrived on Blu-ray at the end of August, and — in what is likely one of our last pieces about the series for quite a while — it's time to check out the Season 5 home media content, including that special bonus disc of exclusive extras! The four-disc Blu-ray set (available in standard packaging and the annual Steelbook special case ...
New Starfleet TV Show Is The Discovery Replacement Star Trek ...
After the end of Star Trek: Discovery, which pushed Star Trek into the unknown again, the franchise desperately needs its latest upcoming TV show, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. Since 2009, when JJ ...

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Season 1 – Star Trek: Discovery

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Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode Guide

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 1 — The Vulcan Hello

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 2 — Battle at the Binary Stars

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 3 — Context is For Kings

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 4 — The Butcher’s Knife Cares Not For the Lamb’s Cry

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 5 — Choose Your Pain

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 6 — Lethe

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 7 — Magic to Make the Sanest Man Go Mad

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 8 — Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 9 — Into the Forest I Go

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 10 — Despite Yourself

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 11 — The Wolf Inside

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 12 — Vaulting Ambition

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 13 — What’s Past Is Prologue

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 14 — The War Without, The War Within

Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 15 — Will You Take My Hand?

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Star Trek: Discovery - Season 1 (2017)

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‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Season 1, Episode 1: Engaging the Klingon

Season 1, Episode 1: ‘The Vulcan Hello’

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The Vulcan Hello

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Star Trek: Discovery recap: 'Choose Your Pain'

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