Star Trek: Discovery: 10 Questions Season 3 Needs To Answer

Season 3 of Star Trek: Discoveryhas been off to an exciting start, with Michael Burnham flung 930 years into the future, and the USS Discovery appearing to be one of the only warp-capable ships in a traumatized 32nd century devoid of dilithium. Galaxy-shattering events have occurred in the hundreds of years since Burnham and the crew stopped the rabid AI Control from destroying all life, and they may be worse off than they thought possible.

Season 2 ended with much of the events surrounding Discovery, The Sphere, and Control collectively expunged from historical record, with the Enterprise crew vowing never to speak of the lengths Discovery went to in order to preserve the timeline. But lingering questions remained about the strange new future Discovery went to, and what shape the series would take so far removed from Star Trek canon.

10 What Happened To The Federation?

Burnham's uniform and Starfleet insignia are anachronistic in the 32nd century, and not just because they stand out. The Federation hasn't been around for entire generations, thanks to a cataclysmic event in galactic history called The Burn.

The Burn took place in 3188 according to Burnham's new companion Book, but even he couldn't provide exact details about it because he wasn't alive when it happened. The Federation has been in shambles for over 100 years, with only 38 planets out of a previous 350 still in it, but why hasn't it come further along in the last century?

9 Who Or What Was Responsible For The Burn?

According to Booker, when dilithium went completely inert during The Burn, millions died when almost every single Federation ship exploded simultaneously. Paul Stamets already declared the event "impossible", and so far in Season 3, not even Admiral Vance has been able to shed light on who - or what - was responsible for The Burn.

Some fans have wondered if the cataclysmic event was the work of Federation enemies, or some species wronged by Starfleet wanting revenge. If it wasn't an act of sabotage, could it have something to do with the timeline itself? Will Discovery's presence in the 32nd century end up causing the very event that wiped out Starfleet?

8 Why Did The Gorn Destroy The Subspace Relay?

Booker mentions to Burnham in the season premiere that the destruction of subspace communications occurred when the Gorn, a traditionally hostile reptilian species, decided to experiment with wormholes. It resulted in the Federation and Starfleet losing their primary ways of communicating.

Was this by accident or did the Gorn have a grudge against Starfleet? In Season 1, Captain Lorca had a Gorn skeleton in his ready room, so perhaps in 930 years they became particularly resentful.

7 Will Discovery's Spore-Drive Inspire New Space Travel?

An extreme shortage of dilithium crystals, the power source by which all starships engage their warp drives, would cripple any ship but the USS Discovery. Thanks to its unique spore drive, it can travel without warp capabilities and still make its way through the galaxy.

Given that there are so few ships in general in the 32nd century thanks to the absence of dilithium, will Discovery be the ship that inspires a new kind of space travel? And will the spore-drive be able to be replicated safely without injury to any living conduit?

6 What Happened To The Klingon Empire?

While it's clear that the Federation is in shambles in Season 3, what happened to other prominent bodies of government? What happened to the Klingon Empire, or the Romulan Star Empire? Are they still part of the few dozen planets loyal to the Federation or did they return to their aggressive roots?

Discovery didn't have any direct interactions with Romulans, but Starfleet's history with them goes back as far as Star Trek: Enterprise, and like the Klingons, they represented a dominating presence in the galaxy. It's difficult to believe that it's not felt even in the 32nd century.

5 What Happened To The Red Angel?

At the end of Season 2, Captain Pike and the rest of the crew of the Enterprise that didn't go forward into the future agreed to never reveal the nature of the Red Angel's mission, nor anything about the crew of Discovery and their voyage into the future. No historical record would have existed.

This appears to be the case in Season 3, because Admiral Vance has no "historical knowledge" of the Red Angel, and doesn't necessarily believe Saru and Burnham's story about being from the past. What happened to Burnham's mother given there's no record of her or the Red Angel's existence?

4 What's Going To Happen To The Sphere?

In the previous season, Discovery came across The Sphere, a sentient planet-like entity that traveled the galaxy collecting data about intelligent life forms. When Discovery happened upon it, it was at the end of its incredibly long life, and it offloaded its knowledge to Discovery shortly before it expired.

When speaking with Admiral Vance, Acting-Captain Saru and Commander Burnham informed him that they still had The Sphere's data in Discovery's database, and he seemed intrigued. Will Discovery keep possession of the information or will it be turned over to what remains of Starfleet? The Sphere's data is the second most important piece of tech Discovery possesses, next to its mycelium drive.

3 What Happened To Prime Captain Lorca?

Back in Season 1, Gabriel Lorca presented himself as the hawkish captain of the USS Discovery, but his entire crew was being deceived. Lorca was in fact the Mirror Universe counterpart to the Prime timeline Captain Lorca, who was presumed dead after the USS Buran was destroyed and he was the only survivor.

When did Mirror Lorca encounter Prime Lorca? Did he assume his identity after he died, or did he have to kill him to do so? Prime Lorca may very well be in the Mirror Universe (possibly trapped because the mycelial network changed the locations of the USS Discovery and the ISS Discovery), or in another timeline, such as the one Burnham currently resides in. If it's the latter, he could still make an integral appearance.

2 Will Philippa Georgiou Flip The Script?

At the end of Season 1, Mirror Universe Phillipa Georgiou left her timeline and became a part of the Discovery crew. She joined the ship in its jump to the 32nd century, where the Federation was all but obliterated, and Starfleet principles didn't guide anyone's behavior.

Surrounded by rampant lawlessness, and without Starfleet to enforce the Federation's disciplinary actions, will Georgiou fall back on her own ruthless nature to survive? Not particularly liked by the rest of the crew, will she become a vigilante out for herself, with the hopes of regaining the influence and power she once had?

1 What Happened To The Timeline Of The Enterprise Crew?

Tilly has an emotional moment early on in the season when she recounts to a newly-reunited Michael Burnham that it's difficult to fathom that all her friends and family have been dead for generations. This should inspire Burnham to try to see what happened to her adopted brother, Spock.

Did anything change about the timeline in the 23rd century? Was the fate of Spock and the rest of the Enterprise crew the same as it had always been? And will anything that Michael Burnham and the Discovery crew in the 32nd century affect the past?

Source: screenrant.com