```
title = "Star Trek: Discovery"
```

<!-- episode "S01E01" 2019-04-20 -->
One little detail I liked was how when the Klingon ship uncloaked they weren't automagically oriented to the same plane, this seems much more realistic.

The biggest thing I did not like of this episode (and this season as a whole), was that they managed to shoe-horn a white savior into the alien race. I'm sure it wasn't intentional, but really? They couldn't have come up with any better distinguishing characteristic?

Also, Dutch angles are more than a little bit overused by this show.

<!-- episode "S01E02" 2019-04-20 -->
Aaahhh, they do the Vulcan farewell wrong. It goes "Peace and long life" spoken by the first person and then "Live long and prosper" by the second.

<!-- episode "S01E03" 2019-04-20 -->
Ugh, Stamets is annoying.

Also, I enjoyed the Alice in Wonderland bit.

<!-- episode "S01E04" 2019-04-21 -->
Good riddance, Commander Landry.

<!-- episode "S01E05" 2019-04-22 -->
Yay, it's Mudd!

Now we have to deal with dopey Stamets instead of jerk Stamets.

Georgiou's death and Burnham and Saru's attachment to her would be much more meaningful if we'd seen her for more than an episode and a half.

<!-- episode "S01E06" 2019-04-22 -->
"In times of crisis, ignorance can be beneficial"

Ok, not everything Sarek says needs to be phrased like a proverb.

The computer giving you positive feedback about your food choices after it replicates them is a bit weird.

<!-- episode "S01E07" 2019-04-23 -->
Yay, my favorite episode! Rainn Wilson does a truly fantastic job playing Harcourt Fenton Mudd.

In a complete non-coincidence, my favorite episode of this season is the one that stands alone from the overarching plot the best.

Also, I just thought of a [truly terrible pun](https://social.shadowfacts.net/notice/9i71bXXAQ7bbyleXpo).

<!-- episode "S01E08" 2019-04-23 -->
Oh right, it's the magic planet.

<!-- episode "S01E09" 2019-04-24 -->
Does the CMO ever show up? Shouldn't they be handling this, not Dr. Culber? Also is it really appropriate for Stamets' lover to be treating him.

You would think their secret beacon thingies wouldn't flash or make noise because, ya know, they're supposed to be secret.

Mirror universe, here we go! :D

<!-- episode "S01E10" 2019-04-27 -->
I love the mirror universe.

<!-- episode "S01E11" 2019-04-27 -->
Captain Killy is fantastic.

How has no one notice Tyler/Voq's behavior before now. He's been acting erratic for ages.

Yay, Georgiou!

<!-- episode "S01E12" 2019-04-27 -->
A predictable twist, but a good execution.

Culber somehow being still 'alive' in the mycelial network after he died though, was a bit hammy.

<!-- episode "S01E13" 2019-05-08 -->
Not everything needs to be "or else life as we know it will end".

Otherwise, a good episode. Mirror Georgiou is excellent, and Landry is an asshole in any universe.

<!-- episode "S01E14" 2019-05-09 -->
That's some impressively fast magic terraforming technology.

Sonequa Martin-Green is good.

Yay, more Georgiou!

<!-- episode "S01E15" 2019-05-11 -->
I love the Mirror Universe, but as a concept it doesn't make much sense. If everything is different, why would the circumstances that brought people together in our universe be the same in the other one? (What brought this on was Burnham asking about Georgiou's birth place)

"So first, I'm very high." Tilly is fantastic.

Good job Burnham, for being the only person to stand up to Cornwell. For a show that was a bit big on battle, that was a good way of peacefully ending the war.

That was a cool shot of future Earth at the end. I like it much better than (what little of) the future earth we saw in TNG/DS9. It looks much denser and populated and realistic. The wonders of modern CGI.

"Have we cleared the Sol system?" No clearly not, Uranus is right in front of you.

I like this rendition of the Enterprise. It does a good job blending the classic design with a more modern/matching aesthetic.

<!-- episode "Season 1 Conclusion" 2019-05-11 -->
Season 1 finished, on to Season 2!

Overall, S1 was pretty good. It wasn't great, but it certainly wasn't bad.

The main issue for me was that it is so focused on war and violence as opposed to the rest of Trek. I also would have liked more standalone episodes than just the Mudd one. 

Things it did well:
- The actors were all good, especially Sonequa Martin-Green (Burnham) and Mary Wiseman (Tilly).
- Character development, especially Burham, and to a lesser extent, Tyler.
- It felt like it was set in the Star Trek universe without being overly fan service-y.

I'm looking forward to Season 2 and seeing how things change (and also Pike, who seems really well received).

<!-- episode "S02E01" 2019-05-12 -->
"I'm drunk on power." I love Tilly.

9g in the pod thingies? Yeah right, nobody's getting in one of those without extensive training.

Thankfully and unsurprisingly, the asshole science officer dies in the first 30 minutes.

"Evolution's a fickle bitch, amirite?"

Anson Mount as Pike is pretty good.

Why did they switch aspect ratio from 18:9 to 21:9 (I think)?

<!-- episode "S02E02" 2019-05-15 -->
Not action packed, but still a pretty good episode. Felt much more like old Star Trek than Season 1.

Not sure how I feel about the 'red angel', though. (Iconians would be interesting, that one TNG episode wasn't enough.)

Also, I'm pretty sure this is the first time we hear details about WWIII, aside from just 'it happened'.

Anson Mount was good.

Re Tilly's friend: does everything need to be magical/mystical? This feels like a good 'angel' being juxtaposed with the red one.

<!-- episode "S02E03" 2019-05-16 -->
Why are the lights all flickery during the half marathon at the beginning?

Tilly's "eukaryotic organism" is very creepy.

Now that's a twist I did not see coming. (and that's one weird, spiky Klingon cradle)

Did Pike not tell Burnham about the helmet camera footage from last episode? Seems like a rather important detail...

I like that the Klingons still have purple blood, nice bit of continuity there.

'Mother'? Really?

Yay, more Georgiou! I'm curious to see what Section 31 will be like at this point in time.

<!-- episode "S02E04" 2019-05-17 -->
I love Commander Reno, she's hilarious.

Alright, the alien thing that lived in the network managed to get even creepier.

Not gonna lie, I was very worried towards the end that they were actually going to kill Saru. Doug Jones and Sonequa Martin-Green both did really good jobs.

Overall, this was a really good episode. It stood almost entirely alone from the overall plot, and the alien sphere thing felt like something straight out of TNG.

<!-- episode "S02E05" 2019-05-18 -->
Culber being alive in the mycellial plane, and then _coming back_ was not a twist I expected, or that even remotely makes sense (even the technobabble explanation was way more BS than usual).

Yay, I love Mirror/Section 31 Georgiou. Michelle Yeoh does a much better job with her than normal Captain Georgiou.

This wasn't as good as some of the others, but hey, more standalone episodes 👍

It's not like every episode of TNG was fantastic either

<!-- episode "S02E06" 2019-05-19 -->
One thing Discovery could do with less of is the voice over at the beginning/end of episodes.

Damn, Doug Jones is excellent.

The extremely creepy Ba'ul were done really well, as was the twist. The Ba'ul voices and ships were especially ominous and imposing, though the physical appearance of that one looked rather like Armus from TNG's "Skin of Evil".

Overall, that was a very good episode. Really felt like a Next Gen episode, in all the good ways. Also, they violated the Prime Directive (essentially). Discovery really is true Star Trek.

<!-- episode "S02E07" 2019-05-19 -->
Space time anomalies! The Captain needlessly risking his life! Ah, good old Star Trek!

I like seeing inside the Discovery's turbolift shafts, but it makes it seem like there's a lot of empty/wasted space in there.

I have to say, Amanda seems pretty stupid. Protecting Spock from Section 31? Sure. At the expense of letting him go insane? Ok there...

Aha, that's more like the Section 31 that I know. (How many ships do they have?! We saw 3 in that one shot.)

Oh no, what happened to Ariam.

Hah, Talos IV and Pike, nice...

<!-- episode "S02E08" 2019-05-20 -->
I really enjoyed all the references to "The Cage", especially Pike's flashback. It also does a good job tying together "The Cage" and "The Menagerie".

Section 31 infighting, that's more like it.

"Do you actually think the beard is working?" Damn, Burnham is savage.

I'm inclined to agree with Pike, Saru is being an idiot. Letting Tyler and Culber fight it out is not a solution.

Ethan Peck as Spock is also very good. He plays Spock differently than Nimoy, but he's good.
It was nice to see more of Spock and Burnham's relationship.
I also enjoyed how Burnham does the one eyebrow raise just like Spock.

<!-- episode "S02E09" 2019-05-20 -->
Ooh, another Jonathan Frakes episode! The ones he directs seem generally pretty good.

Starfleet's super secret black ops intelligence division goes rogue? ![Surprised pikachu](https://social.shadowfacts.net/emoji/custom/pika.png)

Giving a computer program all of your intelligence let alone entrusting it to aforementioned black ops people, seems really stupid on the part of Starfleet Command.

Ayy, 3D chess!

Ariam's death would have felt much more meaningful if we had seen any of the events or friendships that were described.

<!-- episode "Short Treks" 2019-05-21 -->
I forgot that the Short Treks came between seasons 1 and 2 of Discovery, so I just went back and watched them all, and they were surprisingly good.

Runaway was funny and Tilly was excellent.

Calypso was surprisingly dark for Star Trek.

The Brightest Star was a bit boring, but it was nice to see how Saru escaped.

The Escape Artist was incredible, Rainn Wilson is truly amazing as Harcourt Fenton Mudd.

"If I had any money, I'd be sipping jippers on a beach somewhere."

<!-- episode "S02E10" 2019-05-21 -->
Again, the whole memorial for Ariam at the beginning would have felt much more meaningful if she had, ya know, done anything before the last episode.

Was that actually Doug Jones singing? It sounded nothing like when he talks.

Does Burnham need to be the Red Angel? Couldn't it just have been an alien? TNG didn't feel the need to shoehorn the crew of the Enterprise-D into every seemingly inexplicable phenomenon.

The banter between Spock and Burnham is excellent (as was their more serious conversation). Peck does a good job with Spock.

lmao, I love mirror Georgiou.

It seems like a really obvious trap, so why wouldn't the angel see that, and realize Burnhams crewmates are standing by to rescue her, and just ignore her? This is a strange plan...

Aha, good job Spock.

Better her mother, than Michael herself.

Yeah, you have to have really close up eye scanners so they can stab you, instead of anything more reasonable.

<!-- episode "S02E11" 2019-05-22 -->
Of course the neural signature that perfectly matched Burnham but was somehow really her mother is never to be mentioned again.

Control taking over Leland looked rather like Borg nanoprobes, and I really hope it isn't actually Borg.

I really don't like how the Red Angel suit is more than a little bit of a deus ex machina. The time travel bit I could buy. But it's also a supercomputer? And has more storage capacity than a starship? Let me guess, it also magically generates its own power and life support and lets the wearer survive for years completely isolated. 🙄

Dammit Tyler, grow some morals already.

"It's my second favorite law of physics." I love Tilly.

Oh, there you go Tyler, good job.

Quoting Shakespeare, in true Trek fashion.

Mirror Georgioiu fighting not-Leland was badass. Michelle Yeoh flexing those Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon skills

If their sentimental goodbye had taken any longer, Control would have gotten all of the data from the sphere. Priorities, dammit.

<!-- episode "S02E12" 2019-05-22 -->
The Klingons _not_ using a weapon they have access to? Yeah right

Why do we never hear of these magical "time crystals" again? Ah, probably because they're far too powerful to exist without huge ramifications for the rest of the universe.

Yay, more Commander Reno!

The flash forward to Pike's accident and the chair was neat. Anson Mount is good.

OOOH, I want to see the Enterprise!

<!-- episode "S02E13" 2019-05-23 -->
Oh hey, is that Short Trek actually going to be important?

God, this iteration of Enterprise is gorgeous. It looks more modern, but it's still very clearly the Enterprise in all of its beauty. These updated TOS-era uniforms also excellent. (Actual color instead of just blue!)

What you can't add an autopilot to the suit?

Everyone staying with Michael is monumental idiots. (I mean they're clearly going to survive somehow, Spock obviously has to, but still.)

A couple of those Section 31 ships were weird 4-nacelle ones.

"Surrounded". Only in two dimensions, but that's not important at all.

<!-- episode "S02E14" 2019-05-24 -->
God, the Enterprise is gorgeous.

How do those two ships have (what seems like) hundreds of shuttles and other pods (pods that we never see again).

[iN eNgLisH pLeAsE](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_x9lSQ1SFLE)

They’re really blowing the CGI budge on this episode.

The shot of the Enterprise and the Discovery surrounded by all the tiny shuttles exploding because they’re being pummeled by the even bigger fleet was excellent.

Ah, the good old Star Trek shake and rocks flying out of exploding consoles.

Red angel? More like black and grey angel.

Spock’s obviously not going to return to Discovery and get left behind.

Somehow the suit also magically has it’s own propulsion?

Where did they get those fancy repair drones from?

What, one blast door protected Pike from a torpedo blast that destroyed a good chunk of the saucer?

That’s one way of retconning why Discovery or its tech are never mentioned again.

So is the mystery admiral going to be important, or is he left unseen to represent ‘Starfleet’ as a whole?

Ayy, Spock’s viewfinder thingy.

The TOS theme in the credits was nice.

<!-- episode "Season 2 Conclusion" 2019-05-24 -->
As a whole, Season 2 was substantially better than Season 1. It did not have anywhere near as much unnecessary fighting and violence, and it felt much more like old Star Trek for it.

Once again, I still would have liked to see more standalone individual episodes outside of the overarching season plot. (What I would give for another episode with Mudd (If I had any money, I'd be sipping jippers on a beach somewhere!))

Regarding the season arc: Sometimes it felt a bit contrived or ridiculous, but overall it was pretty good.

What it did well:

The actors were once again all good. Sonequa Martin-Green (Burnham) and Mary Wiseman (Tilly) were good. Anson Mount (Pike) and Ethan Peck (Spock) were _fantastic_, far better than I expected. And Michelle Yeoh as Mirror/Section 31 Georgiou was excellent, she was wasted on the normal Captain Georgiou.

The character development was also good, it was nice to see Spock and Michael's relationship evolve. 

This season was significantly more fan service-y (Number One, the references to TOS' "The Tage" and "The Menagerie", literally every time the Enterprise is shown (and wow, this design is amazing)), but I don't think that was a bad thing. It was nice compared to the first season, which, in many ways, tried to pretend the rest of the Trek canon didn't exist.

Dammit, I can't wait for Season 3. I am very curious to see how they continue it without feeling contrived.

<!-- episode "S03E01" 2021-01-08 -->
Season 3, here we go.

They’re really going all in on the future aesthetic, huh. I can’t imagine that those floating chairs are practical. Not to mention the holographic bird alarm clock.

Is “rocket girl” a reference to something? It brings to mind [this song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfwOdpur01M), but I’m sure that’s not it.

Is the temporal war Book mentioned the same as the Temporal Cold War from Enterprise?

A significant fraction of all dilithium exploded? Just out of the blue? That’s not really how elements work

Burnham high was truly hilarious. “It’s temperature sensitive and really valuable, so probably ice cream.”

Also, she killed a shocking number of those security people for a Starfleet Officer. Does the stun setting no longer exist?

One of the security people was  Lurian (Morn’s species)! A bit talkative, though…

How could the Discovery still come out of the wormhole? We saw it close behind Burnham. Was there a fork in the wormhole?

The scene with the Federation liaison was nice.

This was a really good series opener and I’m excited for the rest of the season. I’m looking forward to seeing how the Federation is rebuilt (I can only assume that’s at least partly what it’s about).

<!-- episode "S03E02" 2021-01-08 -->
This episode was good, but not quite as good as the season premiere.

It was weirdly wild west-y. What with the saloon doors, and that dude’s boot spurs, and the clearly-supposed-to-be-shotguns.

Sylvia “my name lacks authority” Tilly

How do they only have 88 people? I guess after un-evacuating the Disco in the S2 finale, they only sent a skeleton crew (presumably of volunteers) back?

I am concerned about Detmer. I hope it’s not anything to do with Control.

Reno was funny, I’m glad she’s back. Michelle Yeoh continues to be great as mirror Georgiou.

I’m surprised Burnham is reunited with the Discovery so quickly. That’s also a pretty big jump from the previous episode. I’m curious to see what Burnham’s been up to in that time.

<!-- episode "S03E03" 2021-01-11 -->
This was a very good episode. It felt very old-Trek-y with the main conflict getting resolved by forcing the two parties to talk to each other and empathize.

What feels less Star Trek-y is the amount of time they spent talking about their feelings. I don't think it's a bad thing, and character development is certainly good, but it's definitely not something that would have really happened in any episodic Trek show.

Speaking of character development, I really like the direction they're going with Burnham.

Some random thoughts:

I'm glad Saru is now actually the captain. He's both calm and very commanding.

I continue to grow concerned about Detmer. I know nothing, but it seems like she's suffering from PTSD (though, frankly, just about everyone on any Trek show should have PTSD)

It's Wesley Crusher 2.0... I'm not sure how to feel about that yet. The Trill thing is interesting. I guess medical science has advanced enough since that one episode of TNG that humans can host Trill symbionts long-term.

I'm skeptical of why the people on Titan would be so estranged from Earth. Saturn's distance from the Earth varies between about 8 and 11 AU, or about 91 light minutes. If full impulse speed is 1/4 the speed of light, that's only like a 6 hour trip. You could easily have a civilization that spans the solar system with only sub-light propulsion (I'm now curious if Trek ever deals with the relativistic effects of moving at 0.25c).

Is Book disappearing already? I've got to imagine he'll be back

<!-- episode "S03E04" 2021-01-20 -->
The long monologues at the beginning of each episode are starting to wear thin. The Captain’s Logs on other shows were a good way of introducing things, but this one dragged on.

The dinner scene was quite something. I’m glad Detmer finally realized she’s not ok.

I’m still not sure how I feel about Adira as a character. The jab at Burnham about the bad inspirational speeches was funny, though.

Burnham took out those three Trill impressively quickly.

Overall this episode was good, though a little slow.

<!-- episode "S03E05" 2021-01-22 -->
The Voyager-J, huh

The future EMH was amusing.

It made no sense whatsoever how Georgiou’s blinking managed to deactivate the two holograms. Aside from that, Michelle Yeah is a good actor, her ever so slight reaction to hearing that the Terran Empire was gone and her universe almost entirely cut off was subtle but good.

I find it amusing how almost 1000 years later, and 120 years after being cut off from Earth, Starfleet is still naming its ships after North American geographic features (the USS Cuyahoga).

Burnham in command is very, uh… commanding.

They tried to do that thing again with Nhan where they have a long emotional speech about a character the audience has no connection to whatsoever. It rang completely hollow for me.

I like the Admiral. He was gruff and kinda paranoid, but reasonably so. But he wasn’t entirely dismissive of Burnham and the crew’s now-old beliefs and ideals. Also I like the look of the 32nd century Starfleet uniforms.

This episode was quite good. It had a both an overarching plot and a monster-of-the-week. It seems like the show is finally finding a balance between S1 and old Trek like TNG.

<!-- episode "S03E06" 2021-02-06 -->
I do not get how the detached nacelles make even in-universe sense aside from “they look cool.”

I am shocked, shocked to find out that Burnham is going rogue.

I really enjoyed the references while they were in the scrapyard. Self-sealing stem bolts, the TNG phaser, there was something about baryon sweeps.

Nice slave revolt.

I’m curious about Georgiou’s flashbacks. (also, Michelle Yeoh is a good actor, have I mentioned that lately)

<!-- episode "S03E07" 2021-02-20 -->
Huh, unification actually happened (also I like that this episode is called Unification III).

The bit with Leonard Nimoy was really nice.

Are these the first actual Vulcan politicians we’ve seen? Sarek and Spock I wouldn’t really describe as politicians. These people seem way less interested in logic and science and more in constructing an argument that supports their political position.

I remain deeply disappointed that the Discovery writers have completely given up on the “peace and long life” part of “live long and prosper”.

I like Tilly, but an ensign as the acting first officer? Really? This feels like a prelude to promoting her and making her the non-acting first officer.

I feel like there have been far more, long, drawn-out weepy scenes. I like that characters express their emotions more, but this is… a lot. Overall this was still a good episode. They seem to be alternating between fast, action-y episodes and more slow, contemplative ones which is a nice balance.

<!-- episode "S03E08" 2021-02-22 -->
Not every Captain needs to have a catchphrase, and talking about it in-universe makes it lose some appeal.

~~There’s coffee in that nebula.~~

So Adira is indeed nonbinary. I’m not certain, but that might be the first enby character I’ve seen in a major TV show.

The actors who play Osira and Book’s brother were really hamming it up.

Speaking of, I found the conflict between Book and his brother utterly uncomplying. Also, they still haven’t made it clear what the glowing forehead (and now chanting?) thing is about.

The long, drawn-out emotional scenes are starting to annoy me. Displaying emotion is good. The length of the scenes I can manage. But the constant sappy soundtrack yelling at you “FEEL THIS WAY” is just too much.

<!-- episode "S03E09" 2021-03-05 -->
If only fixing software was as simple as “running a diagnostic”, Stamets.

The original TNG uniform…

The long sequence as Georgiou was walking through the door was really unnecessary.

We better get an explanation of the weird magic door next episode.

Sonequa Martin-Green is really good at playing mirror Burnham. Michelle Yeoh remains great.

I’m not sure yet how I feel about this episode… I don’t want to pass judgement until after part 2.

<!-- episode "S03E10" 2021-03-10 -->
I like the mirror universe world building.

Huh, Ariam but not a cyborg.

I already mentioned this last time, but Sonequa Martin-Green continues to be really good at playing mirror Burnham.

HOLY SHIT THE GUARDIAN OF FOREVER!! I like the voice, and how the shape of the portal is the same as TOS even though the material is different. I’m not sure how I feel about “Carl” though

So will the Michelle Yeah Section 31 show be set now, after Georgiou has been sent back in time, or before they all came to the future?

I’m going to miss Michelle Yeoh. She was really good as mirror Georgiou. That was a nice way to cap off her character arc, though.

And yet again with the weepy scenes at the end of the episode. I think a big part of the reason I dislike these scenes so much is that it makes it feel like the writers believe the audience is too stupid to understand the emotions being conveyed otherwise. Imagine if this episode had ended on the shot of Saur and Burnham sitting together in companionable silence. It would have conveyed the exact same emotions and it would have been way more poignant.

“You can’t just have your characters announce how they feel! That makes me feel angry!” — Robot Devil

<!-- episode "S03E11" 2021-03-18 -->
Huh, Doug Jones as a human

How did the Emerald Chain people manage to beam through the Discovery's shields? Even if they can beam through old 23rd century shields, Disco's been retrofitted with 31st century tech, hasn't it?

So The Burn was caused by a Kelpian? It feels contrived, but I'm not sure how a universe-wide with such massive repercussions couldn't be

Overall, this episode was pretty good. I'm enjoying the holodeck setting (the first time one's shown on Discovery?).

<!-- episode "S03E12" 2021-03-20 -->
How is there so much stuff in the transwarp conduit? I thought previous shows had made it clear that ships not actively staying inside fall out?

I’m curious who the Federation president is

A negotiation episode, in classic Trek fashion!

Lol, “it’s made of shit” really caught her off guard. Is that the first time a Trek show (outside perhaps Lower Decks) has made it clear that replicated matter is made from shit (among other waste material, presumably)?

I get that Stamets cares a lot about Culber and his kind-of-adoptive child, but I’m really with Burnham on that. Needs of the many and so on. Anthony Rapp was good, though

Ah, so the sphere data is indeed sentient. And that’s why the little anthropomorphic robots started showing up this season and getting so much screen time.

Oded Fehr as Vance was really good this episode.

I still don’t think Osyraa has a great actor, but I liked learning that the Emerald Chain isn’t just an Orion crime syndicate like was implied.

Only 1 episode left D:

<!-- episode "S03E13" 2021-03-25 -->
Ah, so that’s why Ensign Teenage Angst’s boyfriend matters.

I’m glad the Vulcan/Romulan fleet showing up didn’t magically save the day. That would have been a let down.

Why is there so much empty space inside the ship?

“She’s a queen!” I love how much Book loves his cat.

What is that stuff in the computer core?

They still haven’t explained Booker’s glowy-forehead-thing. Maybe that’s just what it looks like when he uses his empathic abilities

The new uniforms look pretty good. Not as good as some of the ones we saw used in the intervening time, but not bad.

So Adira is an ensign now? Basically Wesley Crusher 2.0

Once again, not every Stafleet captain needs a catchphrase

The TOS theme played over the end credits was nice (as was the TOS… motif? (I don’t know what it’s called) that played as Discovery was leaving Starfleet HQ)

Overall, I thought this was a good episode, even if it was a bit “Burnham saves the day and then Burnham saves the day some more”

<!-- episode "Season 3 Conclusion" 2021-03-25 -->
This season was very good. Miles better than season 1 and somewhat better than season 2.

It did a much better job than previous seasons of Star Trek-y and not just an action show set in space. It actually cared about the Federation’s ideals, unlike season 1 and its "action show set in space vibe". I also really appreciate that, like season 2, it felt like it was actually part of the Star Trek universe. Even after the 900 year time jump, it didn't try to completely divorce itself from the rest of Trek.

My biggest gripe is unchanged from past seasons, though. In spite of how much better Disco's gotten, what I still desperately want is for it to be an ensemble show. Season 3 moved in the right direction, especially with character development, but when it came down to it, it was more often than not still Michael who saved the day.

I look forward to the next season and hopefully seeing more of what the distant future of Starfleet holds, with the Federation (mostly) back together.

<!-- episode "S04E01" 2021-11-18 -->
That was a nice, feel-good opening scene of the second first contact.

I like the new uniforms that actually have colors.

big evil politician vibes from the President. "iN fEdErATiOn sTanDaRd pLeaSe"

"our Q nodes are squiddled"

glad to know the heisenberg compensators are still an integral part of the transporters in the 32nd or whatever century

IT'S A LURIAN!! (Morn's species) :D and he was very talkative, too

really? it sure looks like they all could have crammed in there.

even on books super-duper-future ship, rocks still explode out of consoles

I've expended enough words in the past about how I dislike Discovery's need for every season arc to so massive in proportion, so I'll leave it at that. Overall, I quite enjoyed this episode, though.

<!-- episode "S04E02" 2021-11-26 -->
I don't like the new look of the Ferengi. They have a way more imposing/intimidating vibe than the TNG/DS9 Ferengi.

You'd think at some point Starfleet would cotton on to the fact that seat belts might be a good idea. That was a very cool shot, though.

Burnham really should have trusted her captain's instincts and not sent Book.

Burnham called the computer Zora? Wasn't that the name of the computer in that Short Trek where the ship is abandoned?

What I would give for five minutes of this show without big, swoopy camera movements or over-the-top music. Just give me TNG, with half a dozen people sitting in a conference room, talking.

<!-- episode "S04E03" 2021-12-02 -->
the ship at the very beginning looks cool.
"choose to live" you're the one who chose not to just knock him out

can the Trill Guardian sense people or however it works through the hologram?

ah yes, Stamets will figure out the Direct Memory Access another way

so in the five minutes or whatever it takes Tilly to fix the engine, Burnham can just figure out how to operate the alien computer?

is Tilly going to leave Starfleet? that's the vibe I'm getting from her conversation at the end

I hope I'm not speaking too soon, but I seems like this season is moving back toward mostly-standalone episodes each week, and I _really_ like that. And it was slow by Discovery's standards and had a distinct A and B plot. This is the closest Disco's ever felt to old Star Trek. This was an excellent episode.

<!-- episode "S04E04" 2021-12-09 -->
A Captain's Log!

Is Culber the first ship's counselor since Troi?

A classic shuttlecraft crash. Once again, seatbelts.

Ni'Var brexit. Ni'Vexit.

The Federation President is indeed Bajoran and Cardassian!
Ah yes, Burnham is the chosen one and the only person who can resolve the conflict between the Federation and Ni'Var.

Who counsels the counselor?

A professor, really? I like Tilly, but she was an ensign like four years ago and does not seem experienced enough to be teaching

This was a Star Trek-y episode, but I didn't particularly enjoy it overall (though nor did I dislike it)

<!-- episode "S04E05" 2021-12-16 -->
USS Janeway and NSS T'Pau! and yay, Reno's back!

They only have four hours?! Don't just stand there talking, evacuate first, discuss what comes next next. No time for inspirational speeches either, jesus. Three and a half hours, so they've already lost an eighth of the time they had? 160 out of 1200? Is now really the time, Rhys. 

Oh hey, it's Sadivir Errinwright.

I remain unclear as to what exactly Cronenberg's role is. Does he work for Starfleet; does he have a rank?

Overall, this was a solidly enjoyable episode. I've said it before, but I really like that these past few episodes have been somewhat standalone.

The constant inspirational speeches make me feel like Discovery (the show, not the ship) is too far up it's own ass. Next Gen didn't have nearly so many speeches. People largely didn't need inspiring, they already believed in the cause.

Burnham politely telling the Magistrate to fuck off, though, was great and _very much_ something Picard would have done. I can hear practically Patrick Stewart coldly saying the "I hope you find a more just society..." line.

<!-- episode "S04E06" 2021-12-29 -->
has there ever been a senior staff briefing on this shown? it seems like it's always Burnham just announcing things on the bridge

if by sonar they mean radar, then yes, it's like sonar

i like how every single character needs to—at some point during a crisis—have a heartfelt one on one with their superior

they managed to successfully store everyone in the pattern buffers despite the last time that happened (TNG's "Relics") there being only a 50% success rate

<!-- episode "S04E07" 2022-01-04 -->
i like how the mystical magical sphere data just magically knows which of the 147 locations is the real one

i also like how in the span of a few episodes, with the help of this one scientist, they've gone from knowing nothing about the anomaly to knowing how it works to knowing how to build a bomb that will destroy it

I actually did like the discussion of whether the new, conscious Zora could be trusted. Though it was a bit odd how people kept on barging in.

February 10?! god dammit. The first few episodes of Prodigy and Discovery aired concurrently, then Prodigy went on hiatus until January, now Discovery's on hiatus until February. This feels like a naked attempt to get people to stay subscribed to Paramount+ for longer, and goddammit, it's going to work on me

<!-- episode "S04E08" 2022-02-10 -->
it's finally back. and i've forgotten most of what happened in the first half of the season >.>

"did you know this was coming? how did you not know this was coming?"
excuse me, that counts as double jeopardy

i'm calling it now, burnham is going to disobey orders and try to find booker on her own

oh, i guess not entirely off on her own

it's a Lurian!

the new changeling effect is good though. they didn't say anything but it sure looks like one of the Founders

i, too, keep key information secret from everyone so i can make a dramatic reveal in front of the president

i don't really have anything to say about this episode overall. it was... fine

<!-- episode "S04E09" 2022-02-17 -->
i remain disappointed that the dma species has to be some new enemy rather than, like, anything else

i don't understand why blowing up the dma is still so urgent. now that they know what it's mining for, can't the figure out which systems are at risk?

vulcans can telepathize through subspace communications?

since when can discovery cloak? did this happen last season and i just forgot?

oh look i was right (sort of) about the urgency

GIGAQUADS

tarka's ulterior motive fucked them? i'm shocked, shocked

I had some quibbles, but overall I enjoyed this episode.

<!-- episode "S04E10" 2022-02-24 -->
how's he the only guy who knows what confirmation bias is

ohh sure, negative energy

so having utterly failed, book is going to go off on his own again? and tarka having betrayed his trust, he's giving it to him again? good grief

it's time for another burnham special inspirational speech! feels like there's been one every other episode and it wears thin

because the threat of the dma wasn't urgent enough as it was.

this was... a fine episode. I am looking forward to the next episode (the finale, I believe?) if only because it'll mean the interminable end-of-the-universe plot is finally over

<!-- episode "S04E11" 2022-03-04 -->
based on the description, i guess this isn't the last episode. honestly no idea how many episodes there are left this season

once again michael is the only person who can do anything, so both the captain and the first officer must leave the ship

3d crosswords now

i have to say, the carpeted floors of the enterprise-d seem much better for sneaking around

i don't think klingon coffee has nutmeg in it

tarka is very bad at hide and seek

sorry, who's holding who hostage? if it's reno being held hostage: how the fuck did she manage to get taken hostage out of her own ship

not really sure what the point of that episode was. 'the aliens care about their children' doesn't seem that profound

<!-- episode "S04E12" 2022-03-11 -->
red alert, shields, weapons??? you wanted to make first contact and get inside the hyperfield, is this not the goal

reno wanted the black licorice to... stick some bits of a... calculator? together

tarka wasn't trustworthy? I am shocked, shocked

that was a good cliffhanger

I thought this was a very good episode, but I'm a sucker for things about figuring out how to communicate with aliens (Darmok, Arrival, Contact). This was a much better paced and balanced episode than the previous few. It had a scifi plot and some action  and some character development while not being overly sappy.

<!-- episode "S04E13" 2022-03-20 -->
tarka gets slugged by book once and then makes a complete 180

they started to make it clear last episode, but I am very glad the 10C didn't turn out to be just some evil alien species

how are they communicating such complex sentences to the 10C? just last episode they were only doing basic math

the multiple montages of everyone standing around looking happy at the end was a bit gratuitous

I am glad there was a peaceful ending, and not a giant cliffhanger

<!-- episode "Season 4 Conclusion" 2022-03-20 -->
I enjoyed this season a good deal more than the last. Though it was still a galaxy-wide threat that of course only Discovery could solve, it was a much better threat than "random kelpian breaks all warp reactors through the power of emotion."

It had more Trek-y episodes, but still often ended up being more soap-y than I enjoy. I was discussing Discovery with someone else recently, and we came to the conclusion that Becky Chambers' Wayfarers series is doing what Disco wants to do but better: having people who are kind and care about each other working together and supporting one another. Wayfarers does a fantastic job of that, but it kind of falls flat in Discovery because that attitude ends up being discordant with the big, action-y conflicts that Discovery also wants to do. The show flips back and forth between these super high-stakes moments and people having a personal conversation, and I end up getting a sort of tonal whiplash.

The other thing that struck me this season (though I think it's been true of past Disco ones too) is that, unlike, say, TNG, we never see the crew just like sitting at a conference table coming up with a plan. Everything has to be spur of the moment, nothing can be considered or thought through ahead of time. Yeah, it's kinda competence porn, but it's a big part of what makes Star Trek feel like Star Trek to me, rather than Generic Scifi Show #435769

I guess we'll see what Strange New Worlds brings.

