'Star Trek: Discovery' Season 3 Episode 4: Love, hope and healing in the face of overpowering grief and trauma
Hope is a curiously tricky thing to have, especially in the direst situations and perhaps worst of circumstances. It takes all the courage to find that one morsel of hope when the odds are stacked against one. Sometimes, it's in the people around you.
In this regard, the entire premise of 'Star Trek' was built on the ideas of hope and humanity. It was a utopian vision for people to enjoy, so they could recover from the wounds the war had left behind. Over the years, the 'Star Trek' franchise kept intergalactic action at the foreground in the form of thrilling storylines of new species, but it never let go of the themes of love, hope and unity. Lately, 'Star Trek: Picard' appeared to have a disillusioned outlook, as it echoed the real world's sentiments of dystopian fantasies and corruption. Yet, there were shreds of the old 'Star Trek' utopian ideals floating around.
And so, coming to the latest episode of 'Star Trek: Discovery', Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin) might have jumped forward a Millenium with her team. The world is not as she remembers it, as the ramifications of the Burn had destroyed the Federation. United Federation Of Planets had fallen away as people had died. Once again, hope seems to be elusive. Her teammates are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder after the crash landing, along with physical injuries. Yet, slowly, the crew of Discovery picks up the pieces, literally. They acknowledge that they all contributed in saving each other, not just one. It is time to stand united again, however painful and difficult. They have to create a new world within their alien world, and for that, they must overcome their own egos and bitterness. Discovery slowly tries to heal the Federation again.
But that was not the only striking part of 'Discovery' Episode 4. We got to see Adira, a human Trill host (Blue Del Barrio) and her unique romance with Senatal, and how she decided to keep his memories along with the rest of the hosts so that they wouldn't die completely. It's the heartwarming and emotional part of the episode, as we watch Adira struggle to remember who she is, and her past. The themes of love and humanity triumph over grief and loss, strangely – and perhaps, this is what the world needs to see at this point, even if it's just in fragments. It resonates through the episode.
'Star Trek: Discovery' streams on Thursdays on CBS-All Access.