Welcome back, fans of Disco! This week, Discovery’s quest to find the Progenitors’ tech hits a speed bump… well actually, more of a time bump. It turns out that the tracker that Moll planted on Adira last week was actually a literal Time Bug, a black market device designed to trap Discovery in a time bubble, where the ship goes back and forth through time from when it was being built to the end of its existence. This is to keep Discovery from the next clue so our villains can jump ahead.
Because Rayner and Burnham were trying to teleport the exact moment the Bug started the time jumping effects, they are outside of the time stream enough to be aware that they are being flung through time. Now, the two officers must put aside their differences to work together to fix things and keep Moll and La’k from getting too far ahead.
Victor: What did you think of the episode? I enjoyed it.
Mary: I did too! Though the reminder of how… pedestal-y… Disco treats its crew annoyed me, haha But I should be used to it. That’s just Disco.
Victor: “We are so special because we work together and respect our diverse viewpoints.” Rayner has a point about chain of command, and how he’s not here to make friends.
You’re in a quasi-military organization! You don’t get to put every decision to a vote!
Mary: Exactly. We also haven’t seen any true disagreements, where Michael has to make a judgment call that makes someone very unhappy.
Victor: Yeah, I think for the plot arc it would have been smart to have Burnham side with Rayner over her crew on how to proceed with Moll and L’ak.
Mary: Yup. Also the way Michael convinces her past crew that it’s really her didn’t land for me. “Airiam is going to sacrifice herself to save everyone!” Airiam: “I would! Therefore you must know me so well!” Really…?
Victor: Yeah, there was literally no reason for them to believe Captain Burnham from the future except for “the plot demands it.”
It was a shame we couldn’t get Lorca back for a scene or two!
*Captain Burnham phasers Lorca* “Okay, now, I know this sounds crazy, but he was from an evil mirror dimension…”
Mary: Agree, would have been cool to see Lorca. Actually it would have been cool to see Rayner confront Lorca and the two could commiserate about Michael (before Rayner has to knock him out to continue the mission).
Seeing Season 1 Burnham was also a reminder of how… confused… this show has been. Every season is almost a different show.
Victor: So true. The plot arcs have vacillated so widely.
Victor: (Stage whisper) It took Gene Rodenberry dying for TNG to figure themselves out without his meddling.
Mary: Ah yes, I saw that documentary too!
Victor: I read the book and saw the Fringe Fest play of it.
Mary: Anyway despite my gripes, it was a really fun episode overall. Michael and Rayner on a time quest? Yes, please!
Victor: Yes, it was very fun, even if it reminded m a little too much of the season one episode where Mudd “destroys” Discovery and sends it into a time loop.
Mary: Oh that’s right! Wow that was a million years ago. Also, I loved Stamets’ increasingly ridiculous ways of clearing engineering.
Victor: “I am grumpy! Leave!”
Mary: “There’s been a spore breach!”
Victor: “You’ll get mushrooms in your lungs!”
Mary: Later: “I’m concerned that they don’t know that a spore breach isn’t a thing…” More of this, Disco!
I realized this episode though that, among the other reasons we’ve discussed, the reason Moll and L’ak aren’t compelling villains is that they don’t feel like much of a threat. Because they are two scrappy mercs against a high-tech Federation ship with a full crew and the ability to call backup. If Moll were, say, a crime boss with a giant ship of her own and armies of minions, I’d buy the threat a lot more. It’s David vs Goliath, except we’re rooting for Goliath.
Victor: We got a little bit of their master plan this week, and seems to just be “money, please.” They’re just going to sell the tech to the highest bidder and go off to a tropical beach planet, I guess?
Mary: Indeed… Also we got yet another glimpse at the tragic backstory that seems to be setting up an inevitable redemption of some kind. “We used the same poison you used against us.” Great, so now we’re building sympathy. Disco, you can’t build sympathy for a villain before you even make them scary!
Victor: I’m sorry, it’s hard to take Ms. Smoky Eye seriously as a villain.
Mary: Right?? And her alien boyfriend is just a big galoot. Not scary at all. Just follows her like a puppy.
Victor: You can see what they’re setting up. He’s telling her to get out, she wants the big payday, at some point he’s going to sacrifice himself to save her. Then she will rage against Discovery, etc.
Victor: The Amazing Race: Space Edition (Also on Paramount Plus, probably.)
Mary: C’mon, Disco, Star Trek has given us the Borg, the Dominion, the Klingon Empire, the Orion Syndicate… and you’re pitting Captain Burnham against TWO INDIVIDUALS?? Can you imagine if there were a time-crossing episode where all the captains get to talk about their biggest battles?
Picard: I faced the Borg.
Janeway: That’s cute. I faced them in their own backyard.
Sisko: Please. I faced the Dominion.
Burnham: I faced my boyfriend’s long-lost sister
Victor: *Silence* “But she had raccoon eyes! Scary!”
Mary: Kirk: Hey, don’t judge her. One individual can be very scary, right, Khan?
Ghost of Khan: HOW DARE YOU??
Victor: It sounds like we’re being a touch hard on the good ship Disco this week.
But like we said, we enjoyed it!
Mary: I think it’s because the further we go into this season arc, the sillier it gets. And so far, they haven’t introduced any new factors to make the arc land better.
Victor: I really liked sad, lonely, ship computer Zora in the future. Just playing Sinatra, waiting to die…
Mary: Oh, yeah, that was well done. And I love that Commander Rhys got more of a spotlight.
Victor: And it was a classic Trek setup: Two people with different viewpoints/command styles forced to work together to solve a problem.
Mary: With just the right amount of humor woven in.
“The inspection’s not supposed to be today!” “Surprise!”
“Fail to prepare, you prepare to fail… I hate that saying”
Victor: Yup, Rayner is surprisingly good at improv.
What rating would you give this episode?
Mary: I’d say it’s a solid 4. You?
Victor: I agree.
Mary: Till next week, then!
Rating: 4 out of 5
