A few spoilers ahead.
The latest season of "Star Trek: Discovery" offers lots of interesting new characters and a big revamp of its premise. Now the year is 3188, far beyond any era of "Star Trek" we've ever seen before. Michael Burnham and the Discovery face a vastly different galaxy where all warp technology has failed, due to a mysterious event called "The Burn," and the Federation is a shadow of its former self. Michael arrives in this future ahead of Discovery, and has to survive on her own - including getting herself a new love interest, a mercenary named Book (David Ajala), who helps her to adjust.
I think this is in the running for the best season of "Discovery" yet. The new setting and changed circumstances means there's lots to explore every week, from what Earth looks like in 3188, to how civilizations are functioning without warp technology. Some things have regressed, but other technology has jumped forward considerably. And what exactly caused the Burn? What happened to the Federation? The story remains serialized, but loose enough that individual episodes are able to be more distinct and memorable. The dynamics of the crew change in a big way this year. Saru becomes Captain and Burnham First Officer, but we also get a lot more time with bridge crew regulars like Owosekun (Oyin Oladejo), Rhys (Patrick Kwok-Choon), and Detmer (Emily Coutts). Tilly gets a great arc, which I thoroughly enjoyed. We also welcome the newest member of the crew, a nonbinary human teenager, Adira (Blu Del Barrio), who hosts a trill symbiote, and the consciousness of their deceased boyfriend Gray (Ian Alexander). Oded Fehr, Janet Kidder, Noah Averbach-Katz, and David Goddamn Cronenberg show up in other roles that require too many spoilers to go into any detail about.
Unlike the prior seasons of "Discovery," this one manages to maintain a fairly high level of quality all the way through. There are no characters or storylines that outstay their welcome, and the pacing is pretty brisk. While some of the ideas and execution could have been improved, like this season's big bad, the Emerald Chain, others are very successful. I loved seeing all the updated ship designs and all the new tech, like programmable matter, personal transporters, and new virtual UI for the ship's systems. I still have most of my issues with the characters' interpersonal dynamics, which are rife with the kind of melodrama I can't see Picard or Sisko ever putting up with. One episode involving Saru trying to shore up the fragile mental health of the crew is pretty painful.
Still, three seasons into "Discovery," I'm very happy with what the show has evolved into. All of the early criticisms of it are still true to some extent - the show is much more touchy-feely than its predecessors, Michael Burnham stays at the center of the action, like it or not, and boy is everyone invested in being as inclusive and progressive as possible. And yet, it's also the closest in tone and in philosophy to the original "Star Trek." Sure, it's an obvious product of its time, and some elements are going to age badly, but "Discovery" also has its own verve and personality that is different from any of the other "Trek" shows. And it is just as nerdy as anything else in the wider franchise. Now that we're so far into the series, some of the longer character arcs are paying off in satisfying ways, and there are a few bittersweet departures. I also like the way that "Discovery" handles its callbacks and moments of nostalgia. There's a really fantastic reveal, late in the season, that's sure to give the old school "Trek" fans a thrill.
Looking ahead, we have "Strange New World" and potentially the Section 31 spinoff to look forward to. I expect the former will be a much more traditional formal "Star Trek" show, and the latter will hopefully be something completely different. However, I'm the most happy about "Discovery" getting a fourth season, as the series has fully proved worth diving back into this universe for.
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