Preview ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Episode 405 With New Photos And Trailer From “The Examples”

The fifth episode of season four of Star Trek: Discovery arrives on Paramount+ this week. We have some new details and photos plus a trailer and a clip to get you started.

“The Examples”

The new episode features another appearance of David Cronenberg as Dr. Kovich, and the introduction of the new character Ruon Tarka, a Risian played by Shawn Doyle (The Expanse). There is also a new alien Starfleet officer on the bridge: a Shlerm from Star Trek Beyond. The trailer also reveals the promised return of Tig Notaro as Commander Jett Reno. “The Examples” debuts on Paramount+ on Thursday, December 16.

Synopsis:

Burnham and Book race to evacuate a group of stranded colonists in the anomaly’s path as one of the Federation’s brightest scientists comes aboard the U.S.S. Discovery to do high-stakes research with Saru and Stamets.

Captain Burnham in tactical outfit

Doug Jones as Saru and Sonequa Martin Green a Burnham

Sonequa Martin Green a Burnham

Mr. Saru in command

Doug Jones as Saru

Doug Jones as Saru and David Benjamin Tomlinson as Linus

Doug Jones as Saru and David Benjamin Tomlinson as Linus

Shawn Doyle as Ruon Tarka, Doug Jones as Saru and Anthony Rapp as Stamets

New Shlerm bridge crewperson

Kovich back again

David Cronenberg as Kovich and Wilson Cruz as Culber

David Cronenberg as Kovich

David Cronenberg as Kovich

New character: Ruon Tarka

David Ajala as Book and Shawn Doyle as Ruon Tarka

Shawn Doyle as Ruon Tarka

Shawn Doyle as Ruon Tarka

More photos

Doug Jones as Saru

Anthony Rapp as Stamets and Doug Jones as Saru

Wilson Cruz as Culber and Anthony Rapp as Stamets

David Ajala as Book

Trailer (featuring Tig)

(also available at startrek.com)

Clip

The latest episode of The Ready Room featured a clip from this week’s episode at the end (23:06).

New episodes of Star Trek: Discovery premiere on Thursdays on Paramount+ in the U.S. and on CTV Sci-Fi Channel in Canada, where it’s also available to stream on CraveDiscovery will debut on Paramount+ in 45 countries around the world in 2022.


Keep up with the Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com.

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That reminds me, maybe Naren Shankar is free and interested to showrun a Star Trek show now…

Don’t think anyone from that era can save this show now

Seems to me like it’s doing a pretty good job of saving itself.

Since the show is a huge success with a large fanbase and has revitalized a flagging franchise by ushering in a new era of prosperity, no saving is required. This season has been outstanding and has been very well received.

I think the season has been a marked improvement but it’s far from getting to any dizzy heights of other past trek shows…it’s needed four seasons to get the basics right. You could argue LD and Prodigy despite being animated shows hit the ground running. Picard for all it’s flaws outpaces Discoverys first season.
Just because it’s the show with the biggest budget and the first of the new era tv shows doesn’t mean it saves the franchise

Well, that’s where it all comes down to opinion, Commander K, and not objective fact. Discovery hit the ground running for me, and if anything I prefer the first two seasons to seasons three and four.

I enjoy Star Trek Discovery. I like the fact that they’re doing both a central theme as well episodes surrounding the philosophy of Star Trek. If it seems a little slow, let’s not forget Star Trek the Next Generation during its initial seasons was a little plodding. I like the look back we can do a 900 yrs in the future.

Yea, I like first two seasons better as well. Those are the best first two seasons of a Trek series since DS9 in my opinion.

LD is fun in a guilty and juvenile way that makes me laugh, but I can’t take it seriously as Star Trek.

You like LD, but not Discovery? I could understand if you didn’t like both as that would be consistent, even though my opinion would differ with yours.

Yeah, I don’t like LDS I love it. It’s the best Star Trek show in 20 years imo. It’s been a delight from start to finish.

Discos got too many problems and is not a success at all. It ranks at the bottom for me of all Trek shows.

Commander K, looks like you forget to switch ID’s.

Well that’s rather embarrassing. lol

I’m just plain Dvorak ;)

Dude don’t start that stuff here. Just accept other people have different opinions and move on. Two different people can simply share similar feelings. Yeah.

It certainly came across that Dvorak was responding like he was Commander K, who I had addressed that question to. I have no issue with his opinion. It simply looked like he just forgot to change his ID, that’s all. I don’t really care if some people have a couple ID’s, but it’s amusing when they might forget.

I think the site actually detects and blocks that…

Both Dvorak and especially Commander K has been here awhile and don’t always share the same opinion on everything. They are not the same person. They just think Discovery sucks which isn’t exactly a bold statement to have here on this site.

LOL same! LDS has been the best of the new shows by far for me. Really enjoy it. But get why others don’t.

Same thing with Discovery. I like it too but yeah TONS of issues. It’s my second least favorite show out of all them four seasons in. But I do like it a lot more today than at the beginning. I know you feel the opposite though.

I do think more people like Discovery today but yeah, it still seems to be a pretty divisive show. I was hoping by fourth season people would be a lot more into it, but as this and other sites prove, that doesn’t seem to be the case. There is still a lot of bitterness with this show with a lot of fans. I personally like it more today and I hope it goes several more seasons though and I used to have a lot more issues with it than now.

But I do agree with you on one thing, I don’t think it ‘saved’ the franchise either. Because I don’t think Star Trek needed ‘saving’, simply a break for a few years. After 12 years with no show on, fans were craving a new show, ANY show to be honest lol.

It’s kind of a misnomer to me. Fans were going to tune into anything half decent. And even if was less than that, most would still watch.

It’s a success for Paramount+ (not a huge success) with a dedicated fanbase (not a large fanbase) but it lags behind its predecessors. It isn’t pulling the numbers of Disney+ offerings nor has it expanded Star Trek beyond its fanbase. It’s a product produced for a streaming service that has no life outside of it and it’s something they need to work on so that it’s more than just a show for Paramount+.

You could say the same thing for Trek on UPN back in the day…there is no way those numbers would compete against Disney Plus either, and that wasn’t even a pay channel.

Only TOS would be a fair comparison in terms of numbers watching versus Disney Plus.

It’s not so much about total number of viewers for Star Trek but WHO those viewers are. Disney has been very smart about how to broaden the reach of their Star Wars and Marvel franchises beyond their core audiences by making them accessible to casual audiences and multiple generations of both franchises. Star Trek needs to accomplish the same.

Is that really fair? Disney produces cartoons and fantasy-based products which have been the main-stay of the entertainment industry since… STAR WARS. They produce products for a broader based demographic. Take a look at the top grossing films in the last 40+ years and see my point. Predominately cartoon, comic book and fantasy. STAR TREK is drama and science fiction based, with action thrown in.

Kudos for TREK attempting to broaden it’s appeal with Lower Decks and Prodigy, but the product brand has already been set for TREK. Also, both STAR WARS, MARVEL and DISNEY have a brand name which has been designated, designed and representative for that broader based demographic. No way “exploring strange new worlds” is ever gonna compete with that. STAR TREK never has.

It’s a challenge but it’s possible and they managed to pull that off with J.J. Abrams Star Trek in ’09. What was demonstrated with that film was that the audience for Star Trek could be broadened and skew younger. Paramount did a great job marketing that film and the ability to make the creative team part of the marketing was a big part of that film’s success. Where Paramount stumbled was by allowing four years to lapse between movies, losing any momentum that they had with the reboot.

Can you imagine launching Discovery on All Access by being able to promote it as coming from Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, Sopranos creator David Chase, The Wire creator David Chase or The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman? Such a move would have generated a lot of buzz and altered viewers expectations of what a new Star Trek series could be.

I think it was interesting that the senior execs said to investors early this year that all the Trek fans watch all the shows.

So, it sounds as though the current strategy hasn’t been as successful as hoped as bringing in new viewers to the franchise.

( I would argue that the rewatches aren’t as evenly distributed as fans focus on their favourites, but that’s a different consideration.)

What I found interesting in the same comments from executives was that adjacent properties, such as the Avatar the Last Airbender franchise, kept Trek viewers engaged and also brought viewers to Trek.

So, Denny C, it sounds as though ViacomCBS has realized that it needs a target market franchise strategy instead.

The choice to move the Halo series to Paramount+ rather than Showtime seems to fit it even if they are very different types of space opera.

That’s a valid point.

Ultimately all it takes is one breakout series that generates buzz, pulls in new subscribers and broadens the channels appeal. “Star Trek” is doing what it needs to but Paramount + needs a breakout hit along the lines of “The Handmaid’s Tale”, “The Marvelous Maisel” or “Stranger Things”.

Am I excited about “Strange New Worlds” and “Picard” season 2? Yes! Are most people I know excited? Only those who have always watched Star Trek.

I hope no one from Paramount+ read this Denny C, I think you just made them cry lol.

LOL! You may be right!

Huh?

Agreed its a dead duck.

If Naren Shankar were to return to Trek, he should be given the authority to create a new series in an era that we haven’t seen on screen.

He’d be great for example running a show in the late 23rd or early 24th century between the TOS movies and TNG.

I wouldn’t expect a show that he created to look like the Berman era. He’s worked with Moore and Braga but his own work has a different feel.

He came in as a science consultant, but the episodes he penned – starting from TNG’s
Face of the Enemy – stretched the boundaries of that era. Strong women, authentic espionage and novel employment of abilities and expertise.

Undersecretary Errinwright! That’s funny, I’m midway through a rewatch of The Expanse right now. Great timing.

True story –

I was on Twitter perhaps 2 years ago talking about how cool it would be if Shohreh Aghdashloo could be cast as a senior political official in a Star Trek: Federation show focused on the political intrigue within The Fed / United Earth / Star Fleet.

Honestly, I just want to see her “Chrisjen Avasarala f-bombing awesomeness” in a Star Trek role. But the powers that be in Trek would tone her down to the point of removing any and all “Chrisjen hot saucy-ness”. Besides, she is already living her best Chrisjen-self on The Expanse.

Anyway, some Shohreh fan club members sent her my tweets… and a few hours later, she actually (Shohreh actual and verified) showed up with a reply to my tweets. In a cute and embarrassing way, she reminded me that she was actually in ST Beyond as an admiral. Then she mentioned that if the chance to return to Trek ever came, she would jump at it.

I had a small twitter melt down with her as I realized that “Shohreh-actual” was tweeting at me. Imagine a 50 year old black dude melting because he is chatting with Shohreh.

If I could put a photo of the chat in here, I would. It was so cool!

Thanks!

Aww, that was cute, thanks for sharing. <3

“I was on Twitter perhaps 2 years ago talking about how cool it would be if Shohreh Aghdashloo could be cast as a senior political official in a Star Trek: Federation show focused on the political intrigue within The Fed / United Earth / Star Fleet.”

When ST: ENT was nearing the end of its 4th season, producer Manny Coto was quoted in one of the Trek magazines as saying he would want to ask Paramount to re-open freelance script submission policy with WGA (Writer’s Guild of America) like was granted for TNG, DS9 and VGR, if they were given a fifth season. A freelance author who read that, in hopeful response, DID write a 2-part story to open Season Five, with — yes — SHOHREH AGHDASHLOO in mind to portray the lady who heads up the United Earth Space Probe Agency – and who was to be a personal friend of Jonathan Archer, and a former student of his father, Henry Archer. Her part would have been a major guest role which could be reprised in any episode past that one. Of course ENT was cancelled, so Manny and Co. never even got to see the teleplay nor the outline, but it still exists if Paramount ever chooses one-off stories with any of the ‘Trek shows. Interestingly, a decade later she would be in Star Trek – as Commodor Paris in ST: Beyond.

I read, above, her statement from Twitter that if she ever got the chance to go on Star Trek again she’d do it …. so if you guys have a LINK to her, PLEASE tell her about this fact – and that I know the author and that he wishes to get a copy of the teleplay to her agent (following proper Hollywood protocol) whenever she would like to read what “might have been” and what could be again should the current ‘Trek production people ever seek it out.

Shawn Doyle seems an excellent choice for a recurrent and annoying scientist expert.

He also looked like he was having a lot of fun with the role in the preview.

Having seen the episode just now, I’d say he was excellent. I hope he will be in the rest of the season.

Still not sure why Burnham the captain is on away missions again with a non Starfleet crew member…

Because she’s the captain.

That’s pretty much it.

The captain can go as they please and take anyone that they want. I fail to see the problem.

Yes, there is no problem. She’s the Captain, and fans who are always deriding her need to just deal with it and move on. And nothing she is doing on Away missions is inconsistent with Kirk in TOS.

I assume the in-universe explanation is that it’s a completely different era. Captain’s used to lead away teams until they didn’t. With Starfleet and the Federation a shadow of what they once were we can assume there are a number of regulations that have changed or reverted. As for the non-Starfleet crew member, he’s been referred to already as a “consultant”. Starfleet appears to have assigned Book to Discovery. His presence isn’t that odd, really.

The real world explanation is simple; she the main character.

Folks,

When I was in the military, it was always “RHIP” as in “rank hath it’s privileges”….

McCoy and Kirk make this joke in “Arena” prior to beaming down to Cestus III.

No, it’s in “The Menagerie,” when Mendez points out that “RHIP” after Kirk blasts him for coming along on the shuttle ride for no good reason.

It’s both. IIRC the RHIP from “Arena” is when Kirk and Bones are preparing to beam down in the pre-title. They’re talking about an officer based at Cestus III, who has his own personal chef. Kirk says “Well rank does have it’s privileges.” By the time Spock is ready, Bones jokes about the prospect of enjoying a good non-reconstituted meal because of it.

There’s no reason she wouldn’t.

Who is Discoverys chief of security?

Don’t think a new one was identified after Nahn left.

Rhys is now a Commander and apparently is the second officer so he may have security as well as tactical.

Wow, I didn’t realize until now there is no security chief on Discovery until now? This show does seem to have these kind of weird issues. Will we ever find out who the Chief Engineer is before the show is even over?

Why is this a problem now but wasn’t since TOS?

All the 90s series had a chief of security, and Discovery also did for 2.5 seasons. So, why wouldn’t the question come up?

So, that’s where you went, Errinwright…

Oh, btw – TrekMovie staff (etc), no word yet on episode titles beyond this week’s? It occurred to me the other day that we were completely in the dark on that.

Nope. Since season 3 they’ve been very guarded with the episode titles.

Still no word of how many episodes this season has. Weird.

Thirteen. It was said.

I just did a quick Google search… 13 episodes has never been confirmed.

It hasn’t been said.

13

That preview looks GREAT! More of that, please.

First we got a “shuttle crash” episode and now an “eccentric scientist” episode!

So the Shlerm have the completely alien looking heads and human hands?

Who knows what’s under those gloves?

Ha! I was going to comment about that. But then I realized maybe it’s green screen gloves.

What a name!

If those gloves were for VFX purposes they would have probably gone for a colour with more contrast to the uniform.

I concur with this objection. Going from “forehead alien” to “full-head mask, but otherwise humanoid” isn’t an improvement, IMHO: it’s still obviously a human actor. There’s no attempt to change the contours of the torso, or number of limbs, or the manipulatory appendages on those limbs. In that respect, “Trek” is bested by “Star Wars,” “The Orville,” and sometimes even classic-“Doctor Who” and “Babylon 5.”

(There’s that one time we saw Saru shirtless, and his torso had curvy shapes to match his head, which kinda acknowledges the issue.)

I know I’m hearing it wrong but I hear Burnham say “It’s occupied by the Ocampa species” but I’m sure I heard that wrong and we’re not seeing Kes’ great great great great great great great great great great great great great great etc. siblings….

She said Akaali (the pre-warp people from an early ENT episode)

Ruon Tarka looks like the guy I’m going to hate. I get the arrogant smug vibe from him. Not the actor but the character. But he might turn out to be lovingly pompous. We’ll see.

FINALLY some Linus!! The blink and you’ll miss him appearance in the first episode was not enough,lol! Not seen the one other episode he was in yet.

Yeah, we need more Linus!!!

One of the best characters on the show…on any show.

*high fives*

He was a highlight for me in episode four. You even got to see some of his people in the delegation(they didn’t have any speaking lines though)

A “Shlerm”? What is this? Rick and Morty? Star Wars? One of the best things about Star Trek was that the alien species names were well-thought-out and not just onomatopoeia nonsense.

How is Shlerm more ridiculous than any other Trek alien name?

Schlopp and Schlerrp haven’t been taken yet. Lol.

Saru feral scream. Me in almost every meeting I have ; )
Gods i wish that was in the realm of professional.