The 10 Worst Episodes Of Star Trek: Discovery, According To IMDb

The newest incarnation of the Star Trek franchise, Star Trek Discovery, has now been running for two seasons, with two more on the way. Set before The Original Series, Discovery has given us a crew made up of almost entirely new faces and some unique story arcs.

Overall, the series has been reasonably consistent so far, with the majority of IMDb scores falling between 7 and 8. However, that doesn't mean it hasn't had its failures. Some story arcs failed to hit their target, and others fell short of expectations. Here we take a look at the very worst episodes of the first two seasons, as rated by IMDb.

10 S1 E5 Choose Your Pain: Score 7.2

One of the reasons this episode is rated likely lower than many is because it gets very weird, very fast. After Lorca, Ash Tyler and Harry Mudd are captured by Klingons we discover that Lorca actually killed his entire crew to "spare them" from the wrath and torture of the Klingons. Yet, he himself escaped with his own life.

As well as discovering Lorca's dark past, a hint of things to come, we also learn more about Ripper, who Burnham is concerned about after the spore drive use takes its toll. Stamets' ends up using Ripper's DNA to power the spore drive himself as an alternative.

9 S1 E6 Lethe: Score 7.2

This episode is another which brings in some random aspects of Burnham's past, as we discover more about her relationship with Sarek and her upbringing.

When Sarek is injured while trying to reach a peace deal between Klingon houses, encouraged by Burnham, Lorca agrees to rescue him. The truth about the Vulcan Expeditionary Group, which Burnham was rejected from, comes to light as Burnham attempts to connect with his mind.

Meanwhile, Admiral Cornwell questions the rescue mission, along with some of Lorca's other decisions. He later beds her but this doesn't ease her concern and she plans to remove him from command. In the meantime, she takes Sarek's place in the Klingon peace talks, which turn out to be a trap.

8 S2 E4 An Obol For Charon: Score 7.2

The main issue with 'An Obol For Charon' is that the episode tries to cram a huge amount of drama and story into an hour that has the ship doing absolutely nothing, due to being immobilized. While the strong cast helps the sheer level of threat just feels like a huge overkill and it all just begins to lose its impact.

After being pulled out of warp by a sentient planet-sized sphere Discovery realize that it is trying to pass the information it has gained before it ceases to be. The process triggers Vahar'ai in Suru, a condition that will result in his death. As Burnham is helping prepare him, Tilly is once again possessed by the parasite, which then consumes her.

While Suru recovers, Tilly vanishes and it's all very dramatic as the parasite claims the mycelial network and spore drive use of Discovery have almost destroyed its ecosystem.

7 S2 E10 The Red Angel: Score 7.2

This episode reveals the identity of the Red Angel, which seems to be linked to Burnham and Spock. After Tilly wipes the control virus from Airiam, she uncovers a scan of the Red Angel, which matches Burnham's genetic code. This leads to a plan to use Burnham as bait to lure it out, believing the link will save them as the thought is that the angel is a version of Burnham from the future.

Leland reveals that the time-traveling angel suit was built by section-31 in a project led by Burnham's parents. Unsurprisingly, when they lure out The Red Angel, by literally killing Burnham, it is her mother, who was long thought to be dead.

6 S1 E1 Vulcan Hello: Score 7.1

Pilot episodes are often less than stellar and this one is no exception. While not the worst episode in the series, it is nevertheless rough around the edges, mainly due to the strange way the story pans out.

This pilot sets up the entire series, revolving around the events that led to Burnham being placed under arrest as the Klingon's declare war against the Federation.

After trying to set straight the accidental killing of the "Torchbearer" and prevent a war, Burnham fires on the Klingons first, against the direct order of Georgiou, and is arrested for mutiny. The whole situation feels slightly off and that is likely reflected in the episode's score.

5 S1 E4 The Butcher's Knife Cares Not For The Lamb's Cry: Score 7.1

This episode is pretty dark and quite creepy as Burnham is tasked to study a Tardigrade, that she names Ripper. The reason for this is that Lorca wishes to use its biology as a weapon. While this is happening, the Discovery is forced to make a long jump using the spore drive, against Stamets's advice. After Discovery nearly collides with a star, Stamets caution is proved correct.

After Landry is killed while trying to cut of Ripper's claw, Burnham and Stamets discover that Ripper is drawn to the spore drive and can connect and interface with it, something Lorca soon takes advantage of to allow the ship to jump to Corvan II and save the colony.

4 S1 E15 Will You Take My Hand? Score 7.0

The ending of the first season falls on this list due to its lackluster and predictable ending. As soon as we saw Burnham inadvertently start the war we knew she'd be the one to end it and in this episode, she does just that. However, the way it plays out just felt dull.

Tilly and Burnham discover that the drone that Georgiou has is actually a hydro-bomb, set to detonate under an active volcanic system, wiping out all life on Qu'noS. After Burnham convinces Georgiou that mass genocide is not the answer, L'Rell takes the detonator and uses it as a threat, uniting the Klingon houses under her leadership. At the end of the episode, Burnham is pardoned and the crew hailed as heroes, just as they receive a distress call from Captain Pike of the USS Enterprise.

3 S1 E8 Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum: Score 6.8

Every sci-fi show seems to have a weird episode that involves some form of primitive species or innocuous looking clump of plants or crystals turning out to be a threat and brain-washing everyone. 'Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum' is Discovery's version.

While trying to create a way to detect cloaked Klingon ships, the crew discover the planet they thought was uninhabited is actually inhabited by indigenous lifeforms who seize the opportunity to try and convince the crew to stay. Burnham manages to broadcast the signal but the episode just falls flat, despite the subplot involving Kol, Cornwell, and L'Rell.

2 S2 E5 Saints of Imperfection: Score 6.6

This episode may be one of the weirdest in the show's run so far. It delves deep into the tiny details of the mycelial network, quite literally. We see Tilly has been transported inside, where the parasite wants her help to stop a monster.

The Discovery itself jumps half into the network so Burnham and Stamets can go inside to rescue Tilly. On the way, they realize the monster is Culber, who was recreated by the spores after he died while Stamets was connected to the mycelial network. The episode ends with Tilly and Cuber both being rescued.

1 S2 E3 Point of Light: Score 6.5

This episode is an attempt to tie up some loose ends and set up the new season. It introduces us to the Red Angel and tells us more about Spock's breakdown. We also see Spock's mother, who connects the Red Angel drawings to Spock's childhood.

Meanwhile, there's trouble for Ash Tyler, formerly known as Voq, as Kol-Sha threatens him and L'Rell as well as their baby. Instead, Kol-Sha ends up dead and Tyler flees to section 31 with Georgiou, after his and L'Rells child is sent to safety. Back in Klingon territory alone, L'Rell convinces everyone that both Tyler and their baby are dead, in an attempt to recover her power.

Source: screenrant.com