As the second season of Star Trek Discovery came to a close, the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery had successfully stopped Control from gaining access to the Sphere data and thereby preventing the end of all sentient life. However, in order to do so, they needed to make a one way trip 930 years into the future. Those aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise had sworn to never speak of these events, or of what really happened to the crew of the Discovery, which The Federation now presumed to be dead. It was a heroic act by the entire Discovery crew, who sacrificed all the family and home they have ever known for an unknown future.

The show’s third season picks up in the year 3188, as Commander Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) emerges from her wormhole to the future. As Burnham exits, she strikes and damages a cargo ship that is being rapidly pursued by another vessel. Burnham and the cargo ship both crash land on a nearby planet, where Burnham meets the pilot, Cleveland “Book” Booker (David Ajala), a long haul trucker known as a Courier, who transports supplies across the galaxy. Book is a rugged Han Solo type who travels with his large pet cat, Grudge. He is an empath who can communicate with plants and animals, and appears to be a nice guy, despite the fact that he is currently transporting some stolen cargo. Burnham is anxious to contact Discovery to make sure the others have arrived safely into the future as well, and Book is the only person who can help her. However, she soon discovers that things have changed a lot in the 930 years that she missed. In addition to vast new technology developments like programmable matter and personal transporter devices, the political landscape has also changed dramatically. “True Believers” who trust in Starfleet and the Federation are few and far between. 120 years earlier, there was a mysterious incident known as The Burn, in which most of the dilithium everywhere across the world just suddenly blew up simultaneously, taking out most of the warp-capable ships and killing millions of people. This ultimately led to the collapse of Starfleet and of the Federation itself. Without long-range scanners and communication systems, and the dwindling supply of dilithium, things have become dire. People rely on the Couriers to deliver much needed supplies, and there are those who have taken advantage of this situation. This has given rise to a federation of mercantile exchanges, a capitalist syndicate called Emerald Chain, run by the Orions and Andorians, who use slave labor gather their supplies, and a team of armed “regulators” to enforce their rules.

Burnham makes it her mission to find what is left of Starfleet and the Federation and learn more about what caused The Burn—was it an accident, a natural disaster, or something more sinister?! She believes that uncovering the truth about The Burn is the only way to restore the Federation and save the world (again). However, first she must locate the rest of her crew and find out what happened to the Discovery. Meanwhile, the crew of the Discovery makes their own crash-landing in this new timeline, and also discover the lawlessness that has taken over in the absence of the Federation. Saru (Doug Jones) asks Ensign Tilly (Mary Wiseman) to join him on the away mission to gather supplies to fix the ship, but they have arrived on a frozen planet where a Courier named Zareh (Jake Weber) has been terrorizing the locals and threatening them for their limited resources. The U.S.S. Discovery, with its large supply of dilithium, and its unique spore drive that isn’t dependent on these increasingly rare crystals, could quickly become a target of thieves in this new world. So they must work quickly to repair their ship and avoid any unnecessary attention. And then proceed with locating Burnham.

The third season is in some ways a reboot for Star Trek Discovery. The crew finds themselves in a brand new world, with unfamiliar technology, and a whole new geo-political dynamic. Some alien races that were once at war are now allies, while others that were part of the Federation are now on their own. There isn’t much left of the Federation and Starfleet, but Saru and Burnham must prove to Admiral Charles Vance (Oded Fehr) and the others who remain that they belong in Starfleet and that their crew should stay intact. The season introduces some excellent guest stars as well as some great new recurring characters this season. Burham has been pretty much a by-the-books type Starfleet officer (though she’s had her defiant moments), but now she is partnered up with Book, this rogue Courier who doesn’t follow the rules. At the same time he has a kind heart and his actions are generally for the greater good. Admiral Vance doesn’t always trust these new (or is it old?) Starfleet officers, and is stern with them, but also gives them the leeway to do what they need to. Also joining the Discovery crew this season is 16-year-old Adira (Blu del Barrio), a brilliant young Starfleet officer who is also the only known human host for a Trill symbiont. Stamets warms up to Adira immediately, and takes them under his wing, like the child he never had. Also new this season is the wonderfully villainous Orian, Osyraa (Janet Kidder), the ruthless head of Emerald Chain.

What I really appreciate about this show is how each season it focuses on one major arc that ultimately gets resolved by the end, but at the same time, there is easily room to tell more stories. So, should the show come to an end, the viewer is not left with some big cliffhanger—I wish all TV shows would take this approach! This season, that arc is solving the mystery of what caused The Burn, and how to fix it or at least the Federation and Starfleet. I thoroughly enjoyed this season, binging all 13 episodes in a single day! The third season finds a nice balance between the main season-long story arc as well as some mission of the week type stories, plus some excellent character development. The primary quest takes several of the characters on some personal journeys of self-discovery. Burnham spends quite a bit of time in this new world before the rest of her crew arrives, working as a Courier alongside Book. Once reuniting with the Discovery, she starts to question what exactly her role should be. At the same time, Saru’s leadership abilities are being tested under the new admiral, and Ensign Tilly is also getting more responsibility aboard the ship, and must quickly learn to step up and be a leader. Meanwhile, Stamets is enjoying this new father-like role with Adira, and Emperor Philippa Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh) finds herself having to confront her own past and how much she has changed, even if she’d like to think she hasn’t. The season also sees a lot more development for the bridge crew, particularly pilot Lt. Keyla Detmer (Emily Coutts), who is feeling the pressure of her position and the stress of the time jump, as are many of the others on the ship.

The season has some pretty solid pacing, with the opening two-parter taking the first episode to look at Burnham’s arrival in the new timeline, and the second episode to follow the arrival of the Discovery and how the crew manages without Burnham. In the middle, the crew investigates various leads to learn more about The Burn, helps out various civilizations in need, and stages some rescue missions of their own. Like the first season, we get an action-packed two-parter set in the Mirror Universe—which allows both the actors and the writers to have some fun with the alternate versions of the characters we know and love—and the season closes out with an extremely exciting thrill ride in the final three episodes. Over the course of the season there is this great blend of action, adventure, humor and drama. I am especially fond of the humor—I always enjoy the scenes containing either Cmdr. Jett Reno (Tig Notaro) or Emperor Philippa Georgiou, who have some of the best one-liners.

CBS Home Entertainment’s Blu-ray release of this third season looks and sounds amazing. The video is presented with a pristine picture that looks quite clean and detailed throughout. The various alien planets and ships all have varying levels of brightness and color palettes, but the picture always looks stunning, especially the scenes in the opening two-parter that were filmed in Iceland. The sound is also excellent, making extensive use of the surround and stereo channels to provide a fully-immersive experience. The general ambiance of the ship really comes to life, and when there is gunfire or explosions, you feel right like you’re right in the middle of the action.

The season’s thirteen episodes are spread across 4 discs, which are placed on trays in a multi-disc HD keepcase, covered with a glossy carboard slipcover. The release is loaded with bonus material, starting with 15 minutes of deleted scenes spread across the discs with their respective episodes. The remaining supplemental material can be found on the fourth disc, and includes over 2 hours of behind-the-scenes featurettes with the cast and crew, as well as a fun gag reel. There is a lot of interesting and entertaining material here that is sure to please fans of the series.

What’s Included:

Episodes: (11:08:00)

• All 13 episodes of the third season:
  Disc 1: “That Hope Is You, Part 1”, “Far from Home”, “People of Earth”, “Forget Me Not”
  Disc 2: “Die Trying”, “Scavengers”, “Unification III”, “The Sanctuary”
  Disc 3: “Terra Firma, Part 1”, “Terra Firma, Part 2”, “Su’Kal”, “There Is a Tide…”
  Disc 4: “That Hope Is You, Part 2”
• 1080p / Widescreen 2.35:1
• Audio: English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, French Dolby Digital 5.1
• Subtitles: English SDH, French

Extras:
Content that is brand new and exclusive to the disc release are noted with an *.

• Deleted Scenes* (15:05)
  Deleted scenes can be found on each disc under the Episode Selection menu. Select from:
  • “People of Earth” (:56) 1 scene
  • “Forget Me Not” (:55) 1 scene
  • “Unification III” (1:02) 1 scene
  • “Terra Firma, Part 1” (1:32) 1 scene
  • “Terra Firma, Part 2” (7:02) 3 scenes
  • “Su’Kal” (2:10) 2 scenes
  • “There Is a Tide…” (:27) 1 scene
  • “That Hope Is You, Part 2” (1:01) 1 scene
• Writer’s Log: Michelle Paradise* (13:49)
  Executive producer Michelle Paradise provides a fun behind-the-scenes video log as the series starts filming season 3 in Iceland in early July 2019. Includes appearances by line producer Thom J. Pretak, associate producer Emma Sampson, executive producer/director Olatunde Osunsanmi, property master Mario Moreira, first assistant director Felix Gray, stunt coordinator Christopher McGuire, stunt doubles Dennis Lafond & Ieisha Auyeung, and stars Mary Wiseman (“Sylvia Tilly”), Doug Jones (“Saru”), Sonequa Martin-Green (“Michael Burnham”) & David Ajala (“Cleveland Booker”).
• Star Trek Discovery: The Voyage of Season 3 (28:32)
  The cast and creators talk about the new characters, guest stars sets, technology, and storylines of season 3. Some of the topics include creating a western in the second episode, introducing the show’s first non-binary character with Adira, and more. includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with executive producers Michelle Paradise & Alex Kurtzman, art directors Matt Morgan & Matt Middleton, executive producer/director Olatunde Osunsanmi, director Jonathan Frakes, and stars David Ajala, Sonequa Martin-Green, Doug Jones, Mary Wiseman, Anthony Rapp (“Paul Stamets”), Blu Del Barrio (“Adira”) & Michelle Yeoh (“Emperor Philippa Georgiou”).
• Stunted (14:33)
  A behind-the-scenes look at the process of conceptualizing and filming the stunts and action sequences. The cast and crew also discuss the unique and important role Michelle Yeoh plays in the process. Includes behind-the-scenes and training footage, storyboards, and interviews with stunt coordinator Christopher McGuire, executive producer Michelle Paradise, stunt doubles Ieisha Auyeung & Shara Kim, director Douglas Aarniokoski, property master Mario Moreira, and stars Sonequa Martin-Green, Ian Lake (“Tolor”) & Michaelle Yeoh.
• Being Michael Burnham* (24:20)
  Star Sonequa Martin-Green provides a personal video log throughout her time filming the third season of the series. She includes footage from the set, attending San Diego Comic-Con & New York Comic-Con 2019, and more. She talks abut her process, her character, her feelings and experiences, balancing her role as a mother, and more. Primarily presented as a vertical phone video on top of static promotional photos and behind-the-scenes shots, but also includes interspersed clips from another standard interview from the set. Make-up department head Shauna Llewellyn also discusses Burnham’s changing look over the course of the series.
• Kenneth Mitchell: To Boldly Go (18:04)
  Actor Kenneth Mitchell has been “the man behind the mask” since the start of Star Trek Discovery, playing Klingon roles such as “Kol”, “Kol-Sha” & “Tenavik”, without showing his real face until this season as “Aurellio”. The cast and crew talk about his many roles, Kenneth’s 2018 diagnosis with ALS, and building a custom wheelchair for him to play “Aurellio” in the third season. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with make up department head James MacKinnon, prosthetics key Hugo Villasenor, executive producers Michelle Paradise & Alex Kurtzman, property master Mario Moreira, director Jonathan Frakes, and stars Kenneth Mitchell, Mary Chieffo (“L’Rell”), Sonequa Martin-Green & Anthony Rapp.
• Bridge Building (25:37)
  The cast and crew discuss the important role of the bridge crew, the actors who bring these five characters to life, and their storylines this season. The actors talk about getting to do a fight sequence in the mirrorverse, the fun they have on set, how they’ve become a family, and more. Includes behind-the-scenes footage, and interviews with executive producers Alex Kurtzman & Michelle Paradise, director Jonathan Frakes, c-executive producer Kenneth Lim, and stars Sonequa Martin-Green, Michelle Yeoh, Doug Jones, Emily Coutts (“Keyla Detmer”), Oyin Oladejo (“Joann Owosekun”), Patrick Kwok-Choon (“Gen Rhys”), Ronnie Rowe Jr. (“R.A. Bryce”) & Sara Mitich (“Lt. Nilsson”).
• Gag Reel* (4:33)
  The cast flub lines and miss marks, deal with misbehaving props, crack themselves up, and just have fun on set.

Final Thoughts:

I hadn’t watched any of Star Trek Discovery until two weeks ago, but have now seen all three seasons, and it is definitely one of my favorite Trek shows. The series has a nice level of humor in addition to the action, adventure and drama. This third season of the show is a bit of a reboot, which gives the chance to introduce some creative new technology to the franchise as well as explore some new dynamics and foes in this universe. In addition to some interesting character development for the existing crew, the series also introduces some great new characters this season, and takes viewers on an exciting, action-packed voyage into the future. CBS’s Blu-ray release looks and sounds great, and includes a solid selection of supplemental material, making this release highly recommended for any fan of the series or of the franchise in general.