Story: Despite Yourself
Written By: Sean Cochran
The big question left with us before the break in the season, was where had the Discovery ended up? With all the teases of multiple universes to explore with the Spore Drive once they end the war, it could be anywhere right? My working theory before this episode aired was that they were never in the Prime Universe when the show began, as had been touted by the production team, but were in some yet unexplored Trek universe... and I thought just maybe, the big reveal might be that the strange new universe they now found themselves in, could be the original Prime universe of Trek of Yesteryear. I thought that might be a neat trick...it would show that they weren't really lying when they said the show took place in the Prime universe, but would be a simple explanation for all the design and other choices that seem so different from the old shows. I have no real problem with the design of this show, though I often wonder why they didn't just set it in the distant distant future. Like 100 years after the TNG era. That is neither here nor there in the end, because we finally find out where they ended up...and it turns out they are in the Mirror universe.
I think this was a solid start for the second half, I found it to be an entertaining and engrossing episode, the characters have really begun to click, and I rather enjoy the idea that they haven't just snapped back out of the Mirror universe after one episode. They could be there for the rest of the season as far as we know...maybe for the rest of the show (though that seems highly unlikely to me). And hey...my working theory may still yet come true by the season's end! I think that could still be neat, they manage to get out of the Mirror but step into Prime and they are still like "wait what?"
Trapped there, with Stamets and the Spore Drive out of commission, the extract some data files from a destroyed ship in order to figure out what this Mirror universe is all about, and who they are all meant to be in order to survive in this more ruthless version of the Universe. Tilly, it turns out, is the Mirror Discovery's Captain. Which leads to some fun awkwardness, before she manages to make it work. It turns out Lorca is on the run in the Mirror universe, having killed the Captain of the Shenzhou in an attempted coup against the Emperor of the Terran Empire...that Captain being Burnham.
Since neither is meant to be on the Discovery, they concoct a plan to get aboard the Shnzhou, and use Burnham's Captain status to access high security files, to see if they can figure out how the Defiant ended up in the Mirror universe (see Enterprise's "In a Mirror, Darkly"), hoping that whatever got it there can be reverse and send them home. It is a neat plot device built on Trek lore, it features a great new version of the Mirror Universe...and I am down to see if they succeed in their plan or not. And Lorca (treated as a prisoner to get aboard the Shenzhou with Burnham and Tyler in tow), who I am pretty sure put in the command that stranded them all there, is stuck in an Agony Booth. Good. The Jerk.
Beyond that, I think the rumors about Tyler being Voq are all but absolutely confirmed by name at this point. There were rumors once people noticed that Tyler showed up right after Voq disappeared, and I felt that it was a pretty clear indication that the theory was true at the end of the mid-season finale, because his talk with L'Rell just said "sleeper agent" to me...and since Voq would have to "give up everything" in order to take down the Federation, becoming human seems an obvious route. In this episode though he is briefly awoken by L'Rell via a poem, and then when he is somewhat confronted by Dr. Culber about how it seems his mind was probably tampered with and his entire body seems to have been restructured...he kills Culber in order to remain on the mission with Burnham and Lorca.
I also have a new theory about Lorca...I am beginning to think that if anything, maybe HE isn't from the Prime Universe. The Mirror Lorca is supposedly on the run from the Terran Empire...what if he managed to jump universes, ended up trapped in the Prime Universe (or whatever universe the show has actually been taking place in), and then managed to get into Discovery in order to hopefully devise a way back to his own Universe? It would explain why he is a bit overzealous with his war efforts, and there are little clues that might support this theory. In the previous episode, he tells the crew that when he took over as their Captain, they were just scientists, and now they are warriors. That was an accomplishment in his view. Maybe he had intended to hold off on the plan, but the worry of his plan being derailed if Cornwall made her recovery, the weirdness of getting some medal from this Federation he may not believe in, and the idea that Stamet may make no more jumps had him accelerate his plan to return home. And just after he put in his little command that screwed up the jump and sent them into the Mirror Universe, he, in fact, says the line "lets go home." To me this is some definite evidence in my theory's favor! I'm not usually one for spouting out all my crazy theories, because if I'm wrong I look dumb, and if I'm right who really cares. But I think I just needed to write these ideas out.
At any rate, this was a pretty great episode, it had me re-engage with the show, got me to rewatch a few and finally catch up on my reviews...and has me genuinely excited for more. The episode had a solid script, and some wonderful direction from Trek alumni Jonathan Frakes. There was a spark in this episode, and it bodes well for what is to come.
NEXT TIME: Lost in the Mirror
Written By: Sean Cochran
Series: Star Trek: Discovery
Year: 2018The big question left with us before the break in the season, was where had the Discovery ended up? With all the teases of multiple universes to explore with the Spore Drive once they end the war, it could be anywhere right? My working theory before this episode aired was that they were never in the Prime Universe when the show began, as had been touted by the production team, but were in some yet unexplored Trek universe... and I thought just maybe, the big reveal might be that the strange new universe they now found themselves in, could be the original Prime universe of Trek of Yesteryear. I thought that might be a neat trick...it would show that they weren't really lying when they said the show took place in the Prime universe, but would be a simple explanation for all the design and other choices that seem so different from the old shows. I have no real problem with the design of this show, though I often wonder why they didn't just set it in the distant distant future. Like 100 years after the TNG era. That is neither here nor there in the end, because we finally find out where they ended up...and it turns out they are in the Mirror universe.
Trapped there, with Stamets and the Spore Drive out of commission, the extract some data files from a destroyed ship in order to figure out what this Mirror universe is all about, and who they are all meant to be in order to survive in this more ruthless version of the Universe. Tilly, it turns out, is the Mirror Discovery's Captain. Which leads to some fun awkwardness, before she manages to make it work. It turns out Lorca is on the run in the Mirror universe, having killed the Captain of the Shenzhou in an attempted coup against the Emperor of the Terran Empire...that Captain being Burnham.
Since neither is meant to be on the Discovery, they concoct a plan to get aboard the Shnzhou, and use Burnham's Captain status to access high security files, to see if they can figure out how the Defiant ended up in the Mirror universe (see Enterprise's "In a Mirror, Darkly"), hoping that whatever got it there can be reverse and send them home. It is a neat plot device built on Trek lore, it features a great new version of the Mirror Universe...and I am down to see if they succeed in their plan or not. And Lorca (treated as a prisoner to get aboard the Shenzhou with Burnham and Tyler in tow), who I am pretty sure put in the command that stranded them all there, is stuck in an Agony Booth. Good. The Jerk.
Beyond that, I think the rumors about Tyler being Voq are all but absolutely confirmed by name at this point. There were rumors once people noticed that Tyler showed up right after Voq disappeared, and I felt that it was a pretty clear indication that the theory was true at the end of the mid-season finale, because his talk with L'Rell just said "sleeper agent" to me...and since Voq would have to "give up everything" in order to take down the Federation, becoming human seems an obvious route. In this episode though he is briefly awoken by L'Rell via a poem, and then when he is somewhat confronted by Dr. Culber about how it seems his mind was probably tampered with and his entire body seems to have been restructured...he kills Culber in order to remain on the mission with Burnham and Lorca.
I also have a new theory about Lorca...I am beginning to think that if anything, maybe HE isn't from the Prime Universe. The Mirror Lorca is supposedly on the run from the Terran Empire...what if he managed to jump universes, ended up trapped in the Prime Universe (or whatever universe the show has actually been taking place in), and then managed to get into Discovery in order to hopefully devise a way back to his own Universe? It would explain why he is a bit overzealous with his war efforts, and there are little clues that might support this theory. In the previous episode, he tells the crew that when he took over as their Captain, they were just scientists, and now they are warriors. That was an accomplishment in his view. Maybe he had intended to hold off on the plan, but the worry of his plan being derailed if Cornwall made her recovery, the weirdness of getting some medal from this Federation he may not believe in, and the idea that Stamet may make no more jumps had him accelerate his plan to return home. And just after he put in his little command that screwed up the jump and sent them into the Mirror Universe, he, in fact, says the line "lets go home." To me this is some definite evidence in my theory's favor! I'm not usually one for spouting out all my crazy theories, because if I'm wrong I look dumb, and if I'm right who really cares. But I think I just needed to write these ideas out.
At any rate, this was a pretty great episode, it had me re-engage with the show, got me to rewatch a few and finally catch up on my reviews...and has me genuinely excited for more. The episode had a solid script, and some wonderful direction from Trek alumni Jonathan Frakes. There was a spark in this episode, and it bodes well for what is to come.
NEXT TIME: Lost in the Mirror