The Shuttle Pod Crew Hurdles Over The Mirror Universe In “Vaulting Ambition”

Jared, Kayla, and Matt discuss the third episode in the Mirror Universe arc.

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Star Trek: Discovery Season 1, Episode 12 – Debuted Sunday January 21th

Written by Jordon Nardino
Directed by Hanelle M. Culpepper

We were a bit less enthusiastic about this episode feeling the shorter run time worked against it somewhat. The return of Michelle Yeoh is always welcome, and we think she does a fantastic job being an imposing Emperor, with a scary “fidget spinner of death.”

No one messes with Emperor Georgiou

A few new plot twists were revealed in this dark episode, one many fans have long suspected, and a few smaller unsettling bits too. Enjoy the threat ganglia! Don’t forget to tip your waiter!

Onboard the Discovery, there were some quieter moments with Anthony Rapp (and Anthony Rapp) and Wilson Cruz that showcased their acting talents. We wonder just what is it that Stamets is experiencing in the Mycelial Network?

This may not be the end for Stamets and Culber

We also ponder just what exactly did L’Rell do to Voq/Tyler?

Worst scalp massage ever…

Join us as we discuss the latest episode of Star Trek: Discovery

 

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“Hurdles over the Mirror Universe?” What is that even supposed to mean?

A play on “vaulting” from the episode title

Correct :) It’s just us having some fun with the title.

What’s the chance they get thrown back into the Prime universe, time shifted to a time between TOS and TNG or after? It’s obvious they don’t get back to their time because the federation never gets the cloak detecting technology and the war is probably over for now because Kol is dead and he was the one bringing the factions together.

If they do get to another timeline and the spore drive is redundant, all this will still fit into cannon as nothing Discovery has done will have really affected the canon of the Prime universe (other then explaining why Klingon’s have a cloak which I always thought they stole from the Romulan’s). After all, Brian Fullers idea was to incorporate multiple timelines in this series so that each season would be different.

I doubt they will go in that direction but it would solve all the timeline problems you bring up. I’ve also been wondering about Disco’s return to their own universe at their correct time. If that’s where they end up then why doesn’t Kirk seem to know anything about the MU if Disco was just there 10 years earlier. Also, wouldn’t the Disco crew feel any obligation to warn the USS Defiant about what is going to happen to them? I guess we shall see if the writers resolve any of these issues.

Jason Isaacs wont be back for season 2. There’s an interview he did on you tube where he talks about how he took one of his uniforms home, but that he’ll never be able to wear it again because he had to starve himself to get into it. I don’t even think he realized what he was implying.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBacdpT7DSk

Have to disagree with you guys, this was one of the best episodes (Right up there) and as you all proved by talking on about it, so much happened in this short 38 minute episode.

A work colleague told me yesterday that this is the best Star Trek series, couldn’t disagree apart from TOS of course and the last few years of TNG. Can it keep it up next season. Maybe losing too many key characters will finally catch up with it.

I’m sure glad I wasn’t the only one who really enjoyed this episode. I knew about the MU Lorca theory but still felt the reveal was cool. The rest of the episode had me very intrigued and I felt like this was Disco’s “Empire Strikes Back” moment. My son watched this with me and he seemed very underwhelmed much as the Shuttle Pod crew did. I’m totally hooked and can’t figure out how they are going to wrap all this up in 3 episodes.

Mirror universe was always one of my least favorite Star Trek concepts but Discovery is doing a good job with it. What does it say about the Federation in this time period that mirror Lorca can hide in plain sight for so long in prime? How long can prime federation characters survive in the mirror universe without the environment chipping away at their ideals? Burnham is going through a lot here. On the flip side, has Lorca been influenced by prime in any way or is he just a purely evil character? Much of the campiness has been stripped away thankfully. DS9 went too far in that direction. I like the juxtapositions. So kelpians in MU are slaves that get eaten, while in prime with Saru they/he are a valuable member of the team. As for the MU Burnham+Lorca thing, you forget this is the mirror universe! The creepiness and un-pc aspects are supposed to be there, it’s not an endorsement. It’s an endictment. I’m pretty sure Spore Culber is the network communicating with Stamets. I got a very clear Solaris vibe out of those scenes.

Just had a chance to listen to the podcast analysing “Vaulting Ambition”.
I know the idea of m-Burnham and m-Lorca having a sexual relationship is really grossing out everyone, but actually the idea is not that far-fetched.
Remember, Lorca is ruthless. He will use anyone and anything to achieve his ends. Crossing the line and binding Burnham to him emotionally by becoming her lover is deadly strategy. One can be loyal to a parent, but when love and sex come into things — the bonding that takes place in that scenario — people will sell their grannies for 2 cents!
In order to ensure Burnham’s loyalty to him and him utterly, Lorca used the most powerful weapon he had at his disposal to win her over from the Empress — basically, to engender a new level of loyalty in her, away from her mother, to her lover.
All in all, it was a master strategy and it worked. And yes, it was kinda gross and exploitative, but we know Lorca has no limits. Any act of seeming kindness always has an underlying agenda.

I think Culber was more of a ‘spore ghost’ in this episode than a ‘force ghost’. :-)