Star Trek: Discovery’s fourth season is set to boldly go where no one has gone before on Paramount Plus on November 18, 2021, and it looks to put Captain Burnham and her crew face-to-face with “a threat unlike any they’ve ever encountered.” To help you prepare for this upcoming adventure, we thought it would be the perfect time to look back at the best moments from Star Trek: Discovery’s first 42 episodes, including reuniting with Captain Pike and the U.S.S. Enterprise, finding Spock, discovering who the Red Angel was, and travelled through not just space and time, but also parallel universes.
There is a lot to keep track of in Star Trek: Discovery, so join us as we go through each season and break down everything you need to know before the crew takes off on their newest journey.
Season 1
Commander Michael Burnham Commits Mutiny and Is Sentenced to Life in Prison
Commander Michael Burnham, played by Sonequa Martin-Green, was the first officer on the U.S.S. Shenzhou before she committed mutiny by overriding the orders of her captain, Philippa Georgiou. She attempted to fire on a Klingon vessel before it could launch its own attack and this caused a major conflict when a Klingon armada arrived. It is made very obvious that the Klingon Empire was looking for a war against the Federation and a battle then ensued. While attempting to capture the Klingon leader T’Kuvma, Georgiou is killed before Burnham was able to kill him. Following the battle, Burnham is tried by Starfleet and is sentenced to life in prison, all while the Klingon Empire officially declares war on the Federation.
Burnham Is Rescued By the U.S.S. Discovery and Joins Its Crew
Six months after being convicted of mutiny, Burnham is rescued by the U.S.S. Discovery, an experimental starship that features some of the most advanced and top-secret technology ever created, including the spore drive propulsion system. This new drive, developed by Lieutenant Paul Stamets, allows for near-instantaneous “jumps” through a “mycelial network” in subspace to any point in the universe. Discovery’s captain, Gabriel Lorca, assigns Burnham to help Stamets with the spore drive and other experiments in hopes they can help the Federation win the war against the Klingons.
Lorca Is Captured by the Klingons and Meets Ash Tyler and Harry Mudd
Captain Lorca was captured by the Klingons and meets Lieutenant Ash Tyler and Harry Mudd, the latter of whom is a returning character from Star Trek: The Original Series. These three prisoners devise a plan to escape, but they learn that Mudd was working with the Klingons and leave him behind. Upon their return to the U.S.S. Discovery, Lorca makes Tyler the ship’s chief of security.
The U.S.S. Discovery Finds Itself in a Parallel Reality
While attempting to work on tech that would detect cloaked Klingon warships, the U.S.S. Discovery accidentally makes a jump that sends the ship to a parallel reality. There, the crew chooses to impersonate their “Mirror Universe” counterparts, with Burnham being the former captain of the U.S.S. Shenzhou and Lorca being a fugitive who attempted to assassinate Philippa Georgiou, the leader of the Terran Empire.
Ash Tyler – Klingon Sleeper Agent
Dr. Hugh Culber discovers that Ash Tyler is actually a Klingon sleeper agent that has been surgically altered by L’Rell, the new Klingon leader, to look human and infiltrate Starfleet. Once Culber confronts Tyler, he is killed by Tyler.
Lorca’s Betrayal and the Return to the Right Universe
Burnham discovers that the Lorca she has always known is actually from this “Mirror Universe” and has been working to return so he could overthrow Emperor Georgiou. After Lorca claims the throne with the help of those like the mirror version of Stamets, Georgiou goes into hiding and ends up working with Burnham to attack Lorca. Georgiou kills Lorca and Burnham transports her back to the Discovery before her ship is destroyed.
This is all after Burnham learns that Georgiou’s ship is powered by a source that originated in the mycelial network and realizes they could destroy it and use that energy to go back to their own universe.
The End of the Klingon War and a Distress Call from the USS Enterprise
The Discovery crew successfully finds their way home, but quickly notice nine months have passed since they left and the Klingons are well on their way to winning the war. Georgiou offers a plan that was similar to one she used in her universe to combat the Klingon Empire, but it is a brutal and dangerous one. It involves planting a bomb on the Klingon’s home world or Qo’noS and annihilating all life. Burnham wants to avoid committing genocide, so she convinces Georgiou to abort the action and give L’Rell the means to detonate the bomb. This gives her the power and leverage to unite the Klingon houses and end the war alongside making the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery heroes.
After being issued a full pardon from Starfleet, Burnham heads on a new mission to pick up a new captain, but receives a distress call from Captain Pike and the U.S.S. Enterprise.
Season 2
Captain Pike and the USS Enterprise
The U.S.S. Discovery finds the crippled U.S.S. Enterprise and Captain Christopher Pike ends up taking emergency command of the Discovery after explaining that his ship was damaged while investigating seven mysterious signals that are scattered throughout the galaxy. When they follow one of the signals, they discover the wrecked U.S.S. Hiawatha and one of its last survivors in its chief engineer Jett Reno. During the mission, Burnham sees a strange Red Angel.
The Red Angel and the Mystery of Spock
Burnham searches for clues of her adoptive brother, Spock, who was serving aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise. Pike informs her that he was actually on leave from Starfleet and committed himself to a psychiatric unit after being plagued by the visions of this same Red Angel. Furthermore, he appears to have killed three doctors when he decided to escape the facility.
As the crew continues to follow another signal, they discover a planet that is populated by humans who were descended from people taken from Earth after World War III. Pike discovers that this so-called Red Angel was the one responsible for bringing them here from Earth.
The Sphere of Knowledge
The U.S.S Discovery happens upon a living, planetoid-sized Sphere that has gathered an incredible amount of knowledge from travelling the galaxy. It is also nearing the end of its life and wants to transfer all it knows to Discovery so it won’t be lost. It does so, but not before its hold on the ship triggers the Vahar’al – a fatal disease – in Commander Saru. Fortunately, Saru survives the encounter and does so with the added benefit of no longer feeling the overwhelming fear that his species, the Kelpiens, are known for.
Tilly, Culber, and the Mycelial Network’s Troubles
Tilly was pulled into the mycelial network by a parasite that reveals Discovery’s spore drive has been harming its ecosystem. While attempting to find her, Burnham and Stamets find a “monster” that ends up being Dr. Hugh Culber. Since Stamets was connected to the mycelial network when Culber was killed by Tyler, his energy was recreated by the spores. He is brought back to our world, and the Discovery crew finds the shuttle Spock used to escape the psychiatric facility, which just so happens to also have former Emperor and now Section 31 operative Philippa Georgiou on it.
The Search for Spock
Burnham finds Spock on Vulcan and discovers he was in hiding and being helped by his mother Amanda Grayson. Spock is in distress, and is constantly repeating phrases and a series of numbers over and over again. Burnham discovers these may be coordinates, and they end up taking them to Talos IV. The Talosians help Spock become himself again, and he then reveals he mind-melded with the Red Angel, who is said to be a time traveler trying to stop some disaster from occurring in the future. Since Section 31 was also searching for Spock, Burnham and the Discovery crew are now all fugitives from Starfleet.
Airiam’s Ultimate Sacrifice
Saru learns that Section 31 was behind framing Spock and created the video evidence that showed him murdering the doctors. Specifically, it was Section 31’s AI oversight apparatus, Control. Airiam is asked to restore Control to its normal function, but she is infected by Control and a virus that is from the future. Control attempts to take the Sphere data from Discovery, but Airiam sacrifices herself to prevent it.
The True Identity of Red Angel Revealed
While preparing Airiam for her funeral, Tilly finds a bio-neural scan of the Red Angel in her code that matches Burnham. It is then found out that Section 31 created this Red Angel suit 20 years ago in an attempt to get ahead of Klingon’s possible goal of weaponizing time travel. Burnham’s parents were actually part of this program, and her mom Dr. Gabrielle Burnham is discovered to be the Red Angel after a trap is set.
Stopping Control and Paving a Way Toward the Future
Section 31 operative Leland was attacked by Control and intercepted the Sphere data that was being sent to the Red Angel suit so it could be sent safely to another time. The crew of the Discovery must abort the transfer and Dr. Burnham is sent back to the future. The Red Angel Suit was damaged in the process, and the team travels to the Klingon world of Boreth to obtain another “time crystal.” When acquiring the crystal, Pike sees a vision of the future he can’t avoid, but accepts the responsibility to complete the mission.
With Section 31 in pursuit, Pike orders that Discovery be destroyed to prevent Control from getting the Sphere data. The destruct sequence is aborted, but a plan is put in place to build a new Red Angel suit that Burnham will use to guide Discovery through a temporal wormhole to the future that will keep the Sphere data safe. Georgiou kills Leland to help the plan succeed, and Burnham uses the suit to travel to give different points in space and time to send these Red Angel signals. The sixth signal is meant for Discovery to travel 900 years in the future. The seventh and final signal is seen months later, when Pike and the crew of the Enterprise see that Burnham and Discovery’s mission was a success.
Season 3
The Burn
Burnham arrives in the year 3188 and disables a spaceship owned by Cleveland Booker, a “courier” who traffics in dilithium. In the 23rd century, the element is even rarer than it was before thanks to a catastrophic event known as The Burn. This rendered all processed dilithium inert and destroyed both starships and planets and changed the course of interstellar travel. Following these events, the Federation also became a hollow shell of what it once was.
Adira and Tal and the Return to Earth
Burnham and the crew of the Discovery return to Earth to learn more about the Federation’s fate and find Admiral Senna Tal, or rather the new Tal that has been joined with the Trill known as Adira. Adira can’t recall the memories of Tal, so they travel with the U.S.S. Discovery to the Trill homeworld to help unlock her host’s past. It turns out that when Tal died, he was transferred to Adira’s boyfriend Gray. When Gray was killed shortly thereafter, Adira offered to become the new host. These memories were now preserved and unlocked in Adira, and they used this knowledge to help find the Federation Headquarters, where the Discovery is upgraded with 32nd century tech.
The Origin of The Burn and the Reunification of a Vulcan and Romulan Society
After finding a black box from a Starfleet ship that was destroyed in The Burn, Burnham believes she can find the origin of the catastrophe. She needs help from scientists on Ni’Var, the planet formerly known as Vulcan that is now the home to a reunified Vulcan and Romulan society. While lobbying for their support, Burnham learns that Spock was integral in bringing these two people back together.
Hot on the trails of The Burn’s origin, Burnham believes the source is located in the Verubian Nebula on a planet made of dilithium. Once there, they meet a Kelpien named Su’Kal who was born and possesses a biological and psychic link to the planet itself. When he was a child, he witnessed his mother’s death and the trauma sent a psychic shockwave in the planet’s dilithium which caused The Burn and spread across the galaxy.
Georgiou’s Sickness
Georgiou began experiencing blackouts and flashbacks thanks to a condition that is being caused from her being from both a different universe and time. Dr. Culber used the data from the Sphere to find out she may be able to be saved if they visit Dannus V. Once they arrive, they find the Guardian of Forever, a time portal that can send Georgiou back to a place she can survive. She walks through, in hopes this gamble will work.
The Fall of the Emerald Chain and Captain Michael Burnham
Minister Osyraa, leader of the Emerald Chain, seized control of Discovery in an attempt to replicate its spore drive and force Admiral Vance to accept a peace treaty. Burnham ends up killing Osyraa, which leads to the apparent end of the Emerald Chain. Following the events, Saru choses to help Su’Kal being a new life on Kaminar, resulting in Vance promoting Burnham to captain of the U.S.S. Discovery. Captain Burnham and her crew begin delivering dilithium to planets that were impacted by The Burn while others request to rejoin the Federation.
For more on Star Trek: Discovery, check out the cast’s favorite moments from the show and our review of Season 3’s finale – ‘That Hope Is You, Part 2.’