Star Trek Discovery S2E1 & E2: Quick Thoughts

• I’m really glad to see how they’re dealing with Paul Stamets’ grief about Hugh. The hinting at Hugh being in the network is interesting, but I can’t see them committing to him being resurrected. My guess is that Stamets will remain aboard and eventually find another love interest, resulting in him feeling guilty for moving on.
• Michael Burnham continues to be an excellent lead character, and I’m glad we’re delving deeper into her relationship with her adopted brother, Spock. I’m interested to see how it’ll play into the overall arc because I don’t feel like we’ve really seen what role she’ll play this season yet.
• Sylvia Tilly really grew on me through season one, moving from a character that I thought may become irritating to one that is actually a real delight. Her enthusiasm is infectious, and her journey through the first two episodes is helping flesh her out a lot. Her desire to help those she cares about playing off her attempt to move up the ranks is good, and I can see it creating some good conflict going forward as she learns when to take risks, and which ones to take. I could actually see her as a good captain if she can ground herself.
• Anson Mount is doing a great job as Christopher Pike in my opinion. He’s a very different authority figure to season one’s Gabriel Lorca and Phillipa Georgiou, but that change of pace works well with the emerging themes of the season. I wasn’t too unhappy to see his annoying crewman go in episode one though.
• Is there anyone working in TV and film that’s better than Doug Jones at humanoid monster-suit work? I really doubt it. He’s phenomenal in these roles, and Saru is no exception. As a character, he continues to be a good balance of logic and knowing when to show compassion.
• I hope we get to see more of Jett Reno, she seems like a fun character that may bring a bit of quirkiness with her.
• The nod to Arthur C Clarke in episode two was really cool, especially the adaption to move his famous phrase from magic to god.
• This is tonally very different to the first season, with the cessation of war being a good tool to allow the series to move into something more akin to traditional Trek. Thus far, it’s doing a great job of doing so while still maintaining the serious edge that season one had.
• Is anyone else just begging to know more about the cyborg character, Airiam? She appears regularly but isn’t a main cast member, so as it is, we know nothing about her. She has such a striking appearance though.

But what about yourselves? How are you enjoying the season so far? Let me know in the comments below.