I feel dizzy for reasons completely unrelated to this – I am determined to watch this before I go to bed, I may collapse mid-way … even though the title suggests we’re in for some Mirror Universe content? Or maybe that’s what they want us to think ….
Book is reflecting on choices – in an episode about mirrors? Reflections? A ‘kin’ who made different choices? I can kinda see where this is going … Staments and Tilly, with some earned glee, show the fruits of their work and reveal a closing and opening wormhole, which is where the next clue is. Unfortunately we can’t see what is in it – the unknown. Burnham says she’ll go, which in private, Raynor points out is too risky and he’s right. She says he needs him on the ship – but doesn’t really explain why. She gives a more valid reason for no security (to be more diplomatic). Burnham, I think, alludes to Raynor being uncomfortable leading her crew as the reason he is reluctant (maybe but his reason is still very valid), and expresses her faith in him and reaffirms her orders.
The shuttle flies into the wormhole, and is able to maintain enough contact to confirm they survive but lose it soon, flying manually into a quiet space, where they spot Moll and L’ak’s broken ship – and the remains of the ISS Enterprise …
!tnɘtnoɔ ɿoɿɿiM ʜɒɘγ ʜO
It seems to be the NCC-1701 mirror, so the ship we see in the first ever Mirror Universe episode.
Tilly is working in sickbay on rerouting stuff, where she speaks to an unusually reserved Culbert. Like I, she immediately clocks on to this being unusual, but before we can open up, Staments calls for an update, and Culbert promises to speak to her later. Tal is being a relatable anxious bee, blaming themselves for the time bug and manifesting in them over-checking their calculations. Raynor walks in to demand updates in his trademark abrupt and hasty nature and I’m so happy he has grown but also not learnt – it’s somewhat novel for a character to not have to sanitise themselves as they arc.
Book and Burnham have boarded the bridge of the ISS Enterprise (a redressed Strange New Worlds set). Burnham notes that Book is standing at what would have been Spock’s station, making Burnham think of him. She comments she was sure his Mirror version was as ruthless as the rest of the Terrans, but of course Spock was actually more alike his Prime counterpart. They discover that the Terran crew abandoned ship, something very last resort for the Empire.
They track Moll, L’ak and a lifesign they assume is the clue in sickbay. As they head down, they are surprised to find what look like refuge points, with blankets and toys. A plaque on the wall details a story – the High Chancellor was killed making reforms (this was probably Spock) and the ISS Enterprise became a refugee ship, attempting to flee to the Prime Universe, with the help of a Kelpian freedom fighter (Saru). Meanwhile Burnham grabs a locket (is it of her?) and puts a pin inside it (????)?
Opening t he door to sickbay, Moll and L’ak have holo-doubles set as decoys. They hit the holo-emitter, revealing the real Moll and L’ak. Burnham and Book try to talk – Book reveals his connection. Moll rebuffs him, but appears to not underestimate their situation and tries to offer, in lieu of mutual destruction, Book and Burnham taking them off the ship in return for a replicated clue. Burnham rejects it as she claims it’s not the clue, instead claiming her locket is. I — think she’s bluffing??? Coz she just said earlier all three of them were in sickbay? Is the show bluffing me??? Honestly I would’ve taken Moll and L’ak’s offer, once they’re on the shuttle, it’s Federation home territory, you can just detain them, if not then, once they’ve left the nebula and are back at Discovery?
Book pushes his theory the two of them are in trouble in order to be taking such great risks, and Moll lets slip that they have a Breen blood bounty on them – L’ak is Breen, we finally see what’s under that helmet. Of course – there had to have been characters who have, Kira and Dukat knocked out some Breen and stole their uniform one time. But presumably they weren’t able to make a record that could be used with certainty to identify future members.
We crossfade (unusual for Trek) to a Breen ship (which, amusingly, looks like a Breen helmet) and see the new Breen type, with slightly more simplified helmets. It makes sense it would change in a thousand years but we do loose a lot of the snout. Fortunately, their ROBOTIC GARBLED speech has remained. L’ak, speaking in Federation standard (feels weird for a Breen, but okay) arrives and interrogates her. It’s a bit of a … weird back and forth, where Moll, clearly here for specifically L’ak, taunts him with a rehearsed bit, identifies who he is and his disgrace, they have some mutual manhandling that no one else standing around nearby seems bothered about. Somehow this convinces L’ak this person isn’t a looney as we snap cut back to the present. A firefight breaks out again, and Burnham and L’ak are locked in together while Book and Moll are locked out. To be honest, this is a brilliant opportunity for the Starfleet team – split up Moll and L’ak, get them in positions where they are vulnerable, talk to them separately, break down their defences, and hopefully reach them. Here’s hoping …
In another flashback, Moll and L’ak flirt until Moll gets L’ak to take off his mask, revealing a gelatinous version of his face, revealing more secrets about why the Breen dress the way they do. In the present, Moll reveals that the mentor Cleveland Booker left her and her mother with promises of paradise before never coming home, leaving her alone once her mother died. Book tries to make the case that Booker never knew that happened, but I hardly think that’s much of a defence and neither does Moll. Adorably, still holding each other at phaser-point, L’ok and Burnham have sat down in sickbay, fairly relaxed. L’ok explains they want the Progenitor’s tech to clear his bounty, but Burnham asks if he trusts the Breen to leave them over the Federation to protect them, and to L’ok’s credit he doesn’t argue – it says a lot about the Federation that not many people can really doubt their intent, and he seems to entertain the idea of turning himself in as long as they can both be imprisoned together.
As Moll and Book try to break the seal, Book tries another tactic, attempting to relate to Moll’s situation, comparing them to himself and Book, and that Booker used to talk about her a lot, but also doesn’t dismiss her feelings, apologising for what she went through and drawing another bridge with his hatred of his own father.
Moll and L’ak get discovered in the past by L’ak’s uncle, mainly because when they see him approaching they don’t do anything but stand there holding hands …
Moll gets impatient and activates the ship’s ‘everything go boom’ button, which does make the shields in sickbay go down, unfortunately it also makes everything go boom. Burnham refuses to let L’ak leave and so they fight … aw 🙁
The ship lurches forward towards the aperture, away from the shuttle which was their only escape. Moll tries to force Book to stay on the bridge, but he refuses to abandon Burnham or Moll, and explains that Moll is his only family now, proving his point by passing his phaser to her, a move which disarms her. A play that works.
Unfortunately, the fight between Burnham and L’ak ends up with L’ak stabbing himself. Erm. Oops. That’s not gonna end well with Book’s diplomacy.
In the past, his uncle tells L’ak he’s a disgrace for being with Moll and ‘holding’ his face (so if the jelly one was the ‘proper’ one why is that the one he was most embarrassed by?), then forces him to execute Moll to redeem himself. Naturally he kills the other Breen and wounds his uncle, and that is his bounty.
Burnham takes the conn of Enterprise as it flies towards the aperture. A tractor beam sends a signal through that clues Raynor into what is coming through, and he summons Tal, Staments (who walk in, so that does happen sometimes) and Tilly who beams in (Damnit). Staments wastes time asking how he knows the Enterprise is coming and Raynor wastes time trying to answer before shuffling them back on to the task. The bridge crew are stuck, so Raynor tries to get them to do what they do best and spitball. And they do, earning them some mash! Yay!
Moll and L’ak flee from the Enterprise through … something they probably threw together … that also has a warp signature. I mean, it’s silly, but it’s Star Trek. The ‘villains’ need to flee to fight another day! At least Discovery is on the lead again.
We pick up with Culbert from his one scene this episode where he’s like ‘yeah my life’s a bit crazy, I’m kinda due an existential crisis …’
Tilly makes a connection between the spiritual and intellectual this commenter appreciates, because she’s absolutely right. Speaking of commentary, Booker makes his own meta version regarding how each of the clues come with a lesson (eh, it works, considering what we know of the Progenitors). And to punctuate the theme of choice and shaping one’s future, Burnham reveals the survivors of the ISS Enterprise ended up joining the Federation, and became Starfleet.
The quest continues.
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