STAR TREK: DISCOVERY
SEASON 4, EPISODE 1
SEASON 4, EPISODE 1
Kobayashi Maru
Series: Star Trek: Discovery - (2017 - 2024)Season: 4
Episode #: 1
Original Airdate: November 18th, 2021
Writer(s): Michelle Paradise, Jenny Lumet, and Alex Kurtzman
Director(s): Olatunde Osunsanmi
Guest Stars
Oded Fehr as Fleet Admiral Charles Vance
Ian Alexander as Gray Tal
Chelah Horsdal as Federation President Laira Rillak
Bill Irwin as Su'Kal
Co-Stars
Emily Coutts as Lt. Cmdr. Keyla Detmer
Patrick Kwok-Choon as Lt. Cmdr. Gen Rhys
Oyin Oladejo as Lt. Cmdr. Joann Owosekun
Ronnie Rowe Jr. as Lt. Cmdr. R.A. Bryce
Sara Mitich as Lt. Cmdr. Eva Nilsson
Raven Dauda, Cmdr. Tracy Pollard, MD
David Benjamin Tomlinson as Ltjg. Linus
Orville Cummings as Lt. Christopher
Luca Dougleris as Leto
Rodrigo Fernandez-Stol as Nalas
Ache Hernandez as Kyheem
Vanessa Jackson as Lt. Audrey Willa
Jodi Jahnke as Kelpien Council Member #1
Avaah Blackwell as Kelpien Council Member #2
Alex McCooeye as Lee'u
David Sobolov as Ba'ul Council Member #1
Adrian Walters as Cadet Taahz Gorev
Uncredited Guest Stars
Avaah Blackwell as an Osnullus Bridge Officer
Victoria Dunsmore as an Alshain Female
Golden Madison as an Alshain Female
Jahvonte Morrison as an Alshain Male
Donald Olango as an Alshain Male
Shelley Owens as a Discovery Medical Crewmember
Stardate: Unknown
Synopsis
Following Osyraa’s defeat and the Emerald Chain’s collapse months earlier, the Federation has been experiencing a resurgence and using its newfound dilithium supply to reconnect with both member and non-member planets. Captain Michael Burnham and Cleveland “Book” Booker undertake one such mission, attempting to smooth relations with the Alshain, a species that exists in harmony with butterfly-like creatures and remains suspicious about the Federation’s intentions. After a misunderstanding over Queen Grudge’s status as a pet or prisoner, the Alshain take to the sky and pursue Burnham and Book. The captain and her crew salvage the situation by noticing the Alshain’s erratic paths, deducing that the satellites which orbit the planet actually help guide the natives in flight. With a quick fix from Discovery’s DOTs and a gift of dilithium, Burnham averts disaster and impresses the local emperor.
Meanwhile, on Kaminar, the Kelpiens and Ba’ul discuss the potential for returning to the stars, with Su’Kal, the individual who accidentally caused The Burn, and Captain Saru, temporarily on leave from Starfleet, arguing in favor of exploration.
Back at Federation HQ, where Starfleet Academy is reopening, Burnham expresses doubts about Federation President Rillak’s political ambitions. With its HQ no longer cloaked, the Federation has increased its membership from thirty-eight planets to fifty-nine and is planning to upgrade and expand its fleet using the newly constructed Archer Spacedock. During the ceremony, Admiral Vance receives a distress call from Commander Nalas at Deep Space Repair Beta 6 and sends Discovery to assist. The crew finds the station spinning out of control from a collision with a gravitational distortion. Nalas an Akoszonam, gruffly welcomes Lieutenant Sylvia Tilly and Ensign Adira Tal aboard to aid with repairs. Unfortunately, an unexpected debris cloud rains down upon Discovery and the station, forcing an evacuation. With the station’s only escape vessel inaccessible, Burnham takes it upon herself to fly a worker bee to free the pod.![]()
[ Screencap Index ]
On nearby Kwejian, Book and his brother, Kyheem, share a special ceremony with Booker’s nephew Leto, but the touching scene is soon interrupted by a mysterious noise that Book departs to investigate. In Kaminar’s council chambers, Su’Kal implores Saru to return to Starfleet, believing that the elder Kelpien has more than fulfilled his promise to ensure Su’Kal reacclimated into his planet’s society.
Back on Discovery, the first group of evacuees arrives, with only Nalas, Tilly, and Adira left on the station. With shields failing, Burnham wants to risk the ship to buy the trio enough time to escape, yet President Rillak insists the situation is a no-win scenario and that Discovery must retreat. Burnham resists, opting to wait until the pod returns, but a piece of debris strikes the shuttle bay as soon as the starship jumps away, killing Nalas and two others.
Cruising through Kwejian’s sky on his starship, Book encounters a flock of dead birds plummeting from above. Exiting the atmosphere, Book braces for impact as a shockwave decimates a nearby planetoid and heads straight for his vessel.
In Burnham’s ready room, Rillak references Starfleet’s infamous Kobayashi Maru test. The captain and president debate the merits of accepting loss, as Rillak discloses that she accompanied Discovery to assess Burnham’s abilities. With a next generation spore drive and new propulsion system, called a pathway drive, proceeding toward the testing phase on the U.S.S. Voyager-J, Rillak needs a leader to oversee their development. Rillak believes that, despite the captain’s experience, she would not be suited to take command of those projects, but the chat is interrupted by a notification that Book’s ship has arrived via autopilot. In a frenzy, Book asks Lt. Commander Owosekun to use the deep space array to scan for Kwejian. Theorizing that the same gravitational wave had somehow struck the planet, the crew is shocked to learn that Kwejian is not at its proper coordinates, but hundreds of thousands of kilometers away.
A fiery, broken orb appears on the viewscreen. Kwejian, a beautiful sanctuary of life, has been completely destroyed.
Trailer
| That Hope Is You, Part II (S3:E13) | ~ | Star Trek Discovery Season 4 Episode List | ~ | Anomaly (S4:E2) | 