The Mirror Universe Clue Every ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Fan Missed

Star Trek: Discovery‘s jump to the Mirror Universe might have taken fans by surprise, but it looks like the evidence was hiding in plain sight.

The Twitter account TrekCore recently discovered a sly connection between the Terran Empire’s symbol and the initial poster for Discovery. As the parallel points out, the general composition of the first poster mirrors the symbol pretty perfectly, with Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) making the iconic “live long and prosper” hand gesture, behind a Starfleet ship leaving a planet.

Even for those who were early to the Mirror Universe theory (or, at least, heard Jonathan Frakes spoil it), this parallel might not have necessarily been noticed. But it does show just how much of Discovery is rooted in the Mirror Universe mythology – something that was experienced firsthand within the most recent episode.

The most recent Mirror Universe twist – that Gabriel Lorca (Jason Isaacs) actually hails from that timeline – took quite a few fans off guard. But as a video posted on Discovery‘s social media proved, the answers have been there all along.

The first clue was Lorca’s fixation on Michael Burnham. Lorca never adequately explained why he went out of his way to save Burnham from imprisonment and make her a part of his crew. After that he was singularly focused on her well-being and potential. It turns out that was all because of Lorca’s relationship with the Burnham of the mirror universe.

Another clue was Lorca’s strange behavior with Admiral Cornwell, who was supposedly an old friend of his. Lorca clearly did not remember the anecdotes that Cornwell was reminiscing about during their romantic evening together. What’s more, Lorca had scars on his back that Cornwell did not recognize. It turns out those are scars from an agonizer booth. Lorca also sleeps with a phaser under his pillow, which is not uncommon behavior for someone from the mirror universe.

The next clue was how Lorca managed to manipulate Stamets into making so many jumps with the spore drive. He then dodged questions about how they ended up in the mirror universe, brushing aside Saru and Burnham’s desire to analyze the data by saying it was simply the result of pushing Stamets too far. However, it was Lorca himself who punched in the final jump and set it off by saying he was going “home.” He even sabotaged Stamets’ recovery by taking Culber off his case in order to make sure the Discovery was in the mirror universe for the foreseeable future.

Some other details include how the dish Lorca is dining on in the prime timeline is the same as the meal served to Burnham in the mirror universe. The final clue was learning that all humans in the mirror universe are averse to bright lights, just like Lorca.

New Star Trek: Discovery episodes become available to stream Sundays at 8:30 p.m. ET on CBS All Access.