Welcome, one and all, to my continuing ‘Quick Thoughts on Star Trek Discovery’ series. Today’s episode, ‘Perpetual Infinity’, saw the battle against Control heat up. So, let’s talk about the key players.
- Michael was put through the ringer this week. She got her Mom, Gabriel, back, but it didn’t go as she’d hope. From the initial refusal to speak with Michael to the eventual losing her back to the ebb and flow of time, this was an emotional rollercoaster for her. It did lead to a proper reconciliation with Spock though, as he finally stepped p and admitted he was wrong about Michael. In the end, while Michael is at her lowest, he even talked her down and -in a nice callback – set up a game of 3D chess to help calm her.
- Leland got some good focus too. Well, sort of. When we first see him, we learn that he’s not actually dead, but strapped to a chair. Control speaks with him and says that it can’t simulate flesh. The solution? It takes over Leland by flooding his body with nanobots. What followed was the AI using the body to try manipulating things to achieve its own goals. Despite some confidence that it can be indistinguishable from humans, it does show some weakness. For one, it was a perfect impersonation of Leland. For two, it failed in its plan. That’s important as, with Gabriel having built up the message that the future seems to always end the same way, having the reminder that Control is not unbeatable gives hope.
- For me, Georgiou was the star again. She first picks up on Leland not acting like himself when she notices him being more decisive than normal. While she almost falls for his attempt to play into her desire for power, she’s also smart enough to pick up on his wording when she talks with Gabriel and starts taking action with Tyler to stop Control gaining the sphere data. Finally, she seems to be the only one that manages to keep up with Leland in terms of combat. She works for the greater good while keeping her own goals in view. Good stuff.
- In the end, we’re left with the characters in disarray. Michael is hurting, but recovering thanks to Spock. Tyler is in a bad way after being stabbed by Leland. Leland is back on the Section 31 ship and has escaped. The Red Angel suit ahs been damaged, meaning that there’s no now guarantee that Gabriel will ever be able to get back to her own timeline. Pretty exciting given that we’re only a few episodes form the end, isn’t it?
After last week’s longer piece, I want to keep this one more bite size, so I’ll stop there in terms of summarizing the episode. It’s definitely worth watch though! I felt like it was a great showing for Michael’s various familial relationships.
As we’re nearing the end, I will make a few predictions though.
- Leland will be instrumental in stopping Control. There were a couple of little things said that I think may be important going forward. Before AI took him over, he told it that it won’t win. When Georgiou questioned how resolute he was, he responded that the circumstances called for it. The AI may have control of his body, but I suspect that Leland is still in there and will find a way to regain control long enough to sacrifice himself.
- There was also the point that Leland said he saw Gabriel’s corpse. While that was part of the manipulation when trying to get Tyler and Georgiou to do what he wanted, I do wonder if it’s a true memory, and Gabriel is going to end up back at the moment she first jumped, leading to her actual death.
So, those were my thoughts, but what about yourselves? Are you watching Star Trek Discovery? How are you finding this second season? What did you make of this episode? How do you think the series will end? Let me know in the comments below.
Matt Doyle Media 