Star Trek: Discovery - Episodes 10-12 Review
The revelation that the USS Discovery crew had arrived in what has been officially titled "The Mirror Universe" (which, according to the internet, was the basis for an episode or story-line in Star Trek: The Original Series), was an intriguing way of re-directing the series' narrative. Initially, the decision made little sense. Surely pushing these characters in such a way would be better suited for a second or third season, and not the second half of the show's first? Surprisingly though, the writers had clearly thought this through, beyond the not-so-subtle foreshadowing in 'Into the Forest I Go'. If there is one problem with this set-up though, its how the revelation is handled.
Despite a rocky road getting the information, once Ash recovers a data core from a Klingon/Vulcan hybrid ship, Burnham basically mentally downloads the entire contents of the drive to learn and understand this new Universe, including the Terran Empire - that Universe's equivalent to the Federation. Thus, Michael is able to dump huge amounts of exposition onto other characters to ensure that everything runs smoothly...and it does, surprisingly. While the characters dealing with such a different parallel universe is interesting, one can't help but wonder if the show would have been better off introducing these elements more slowly, and building on them over time to achieve a more natural and believable revelation. The crew of the Discovery seem almost too well equipped for every obstacle that comes their way, despite their character flaws frequently creating new and more dangerous challenges for everyone to overcome.
The exploration of the Terran Empire as being based on "strength" and "purity" is an interesting alternate approach, even if the real-world influences are somewhat neglected by the writers - most likely to avoid political divisiveness. I do think, however, that the subtle changes to the production design are almost a bit too subtle, and perhaps radically different lighting or colour grading could have helped to differentiate Discovery from the alternate universe Shezhou. The new costume designs, however, work really well, the use of black instead of blue makes for a great "evil" look, whilst not drawing attention to it too much. Georgiou's return to the series was a welcome one, and Michelle Yeouh clearly had a lot of fun not only returning to the character, but getting to play such an evil version of her. It puts Burnham against a huge obstacle, and one she can't fully overcome. Even as she confesses to Georgiou the truth of the situation, the unresolved guilt shines through, and with Georgiou's own complicated relationship with her version of Michael, there's a real sense of bonding between the two, making their truce more believable.
Of course though, it's worth mentioning the whole Ash is really Voq reveal. Sadly, the show hadn't fooled most of its fans, and as the reveal comes to light, it feels a bit...anti-climactic. It's never fully established what happened exactly - or at least, I couldn't explain. Hugh mentions that Ash's bones were moved around, but the body-swapping appears to be mental, given the way L'Rell "treats" Ash with her magic gloves. The whole reveal doesn't entirely work as a twist, but as a character beat, it's a bit of a misstep. Not only does it take ridiculously long for Burnham to realise, but after a short fight with him, the two characters are immediately separated. The inner conflict between Ash and Voq isn't given any development, and the whole thing just feels a bit disappointing. Perhaps they'll explain it further in future episodes, but I'm a bit unsure about the whole thing.
Quite possibly the only shocking twist surrounding Ash's revelation though was his brutal murder of Hugh; I actually gasped as he reached over and snapped the poor doctor's neck, Stamets watching helplessly from his bed. Hugh wasn't the most developed character on the show, but his lovable personality and close connection with Stamets made his death all the more emotional. The sight of a deranged Stamets cradling Hugh in his arms was horrifying, and their farewell to one another in the Mycellian mind-meld was very emotional. Stamets' whole experience in the place was intriguing, although his waking up felt a little...off, somehow. I thought for a second that the two Stamets has switched places!
And then of course, we come to Captain Lorca. Oh, Jason Isaacs, I knew you'd have to be really evil in this show. He's just too damn good at it. The actual revelation was one I guessed while watching Episode 10, but I'll admit that the final reveal at the end of Episode 12 was brilliantly-handled. I even began to doubt as Lorca stood in his cage, pleading that he didn't know the name of the guard's sister. But, of course, as he stepped out and attacked the guard, he revealed all. His plans for Michael are also hinted at, creating a whole new issue for Burnham and the rest of the crew to overcome as the show races towards it's first season finale. I can't see how it'll be satisfactorily resolved, although the "common enemy" set-up for a Klingon truce should be interesting to explore. While so far I've found Chapter Two a little rushed in places - even the resistance appeared very briefly in Episode 11 - I'm very much invested in what will happen in the next three episodes.
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