‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Episode 7: “Magic To Make The Sanest Man Go Mad” Recap With Spoilers

Burnham makes a personal log about how she seems to have found a friend and a place on the Discovery, how the ship seems to have found a routine, and how the Discovery has turned the tide in the favor of the Starfleet in the war against the Klingons. Stamets has found new aspects of his personality, and Burnham has taken a particular interest in Ash Tyler. Burnham notes that tonight the Discovery will have a party.

At the party, Burnham stands alone and awkward. She notes after a flickering in the lights that the Discovery should have redundancies in place to prevent that. Tyler makes a speech and then joins Burnham just before the two of them are called to the bridge.

On the way to the bridge, Burnham and Tyler literally run into Stamets and Culver. They make some awkward small talk, egged on by Stamets’ new personality, before heading to the bridge.

The Discovery encounters a creature on the endangered species list called a gormagander and, following protocol, beams it on board. Harry Mudd, wearing a helmet, steps out of the creature and opens fire on the crew, killing several members. Once Lorca gets his attention, Mudd reveals himself to and threatens to find out what is so special about the Discovery, then sell it, guaranteeing the Federation will lose the war. Mudd says Lorca leaving him behind caused him to lose Stella, his love, and that he was going to pay Lorca back by killing him as many times as possible. He then triggers a device that causes the Discovery to explode.

Then time goes back to Tyler’s speech. He and Burnham are called to the bridge again, as before, only this time they don’t run into Stamets. He catches up with them though and tries to explain to them that time is wrong. He warns them about the gormagander.

On the bridge, the ship encounters the creature again. Burnham and Tyler volunteer to check it out. The creature is beamed aboard, but this time the black alert sounds. Lorca says he didn’t order a jump.

Burnham and Tyler head to engineering and find Mudd waiting for them. Mudd is trying to figure out how to work the engines. Tyler fires, but there’s a barrier between them. They argue until Stamets show up behind Mudd and shoots him with a phaser.

Act II

Tyler and Burnham warn Stamets about the engine’s impending critical overload, but Stamets says he knows and that they’ve been through this multiple times before and he hasn’t figured out how to fix it. He says he’ll see them soon just before the ship explodes.

They get sent back to the party. This time Stamets is looking for Burnham at the party but misses her. He catches up with her leaving the bridge after discovering the gormagander. She doesn’t believe him when he tells her about the time loop, but he predicts her exact next words and then pulls her aside.

Lorca leaves the bridge and Mudd finds him. Mudd has somehow taken control of the ship’s commands and threatens to trigger self-destruct if Lorca doesn’t let him into a restricted area of the ship.

Stamets explains the situation to Burnham and that Mudd is trying to find the missing piece of the engine, that being Stamets himself. Realizing that their 30 minutes are almost up, Stamets asks for Burnham to tell him a secret that he can tell her in order to speed things along in the next cycle. Stamets tells her she’s sorry and then that this is right around the time that Mudd kills the captain.

Act III

In Lorca’s secret armory, Mudd examines some of Lorca’s weapons. Lorca threatens him, but Mudd just tells Lorca about the 53 times that he has killed him so far.

Time reset back to the moment the lights flickered. Stamets finds Burnham and tells her that she’s never been in love in order to get her to believe what he tells her about the time loop. He tells her to pull Tyler aside, but she can’t do it and things proceed as they did.

Stamets catches up with Burnham afterward and he tries to help her figure out how to talk to Tyler, including dancing with here in the middle of the hallway. Stamets recounts how he and Culver met and fell in love. It involved some rude exchanges and a lot of honesty.

The ship explodes and time loops back again. This time Burnham immediately pull Tyler onto the dance floor and asks him to lead. She awkwardly broaches the topic of Harry Mudd sharing a cell with Tyler. Tyler is taken back, but Burnham tells Tyler that Mudd is there and he’s trapped them in a time loop. She explains that Stamets tried to talk to him and it didn’t work. He thought he’d believe Burnham because they like each other. Figuring it won’t matter if they’re in a time loop, Tyler kisses Burnham. She says that was nice. They’re called to the bridge, but Burnham says they have to ignore it. Tyler recalls Mudd claiming to have broken into a betazoid bank by memorizing everything about it. Burnham realizes Mudd has a time crystal, but they’re said to be unstable. Mudd’s must be unique. Now with info on their side, they and Stamets leave the party.

Act IV

On the bridge, Lorca is wondering where Burnham and Tyler have gotten to when classical music blares over the comms. Mudd marches on board and claims to be Captain Mudd. He has Lorca beamed to the bridge. He then pulls out a dark matter device he took from Lorca’s armory that is said to be among the most painful ways to die. He threatens an officer with it but Stamets, Burnham, and Lorca show up. Tyler fires his phaser, but Mudd is shielded. he uses the device on Tyler, killing him, then demands ot be told how to operate the engine. Finally, Stamets tells Mudd that he is the missing component to the engine then beams to engineering with Stamets.

Burnham fills in Tilly. Together they find a ship hidden in the gorgamander that houses the crystal that is attuned to the crystal on Mudd’s wrist.

Burnham finds Mudd in Lorca’s ready room. Mudd sends their coordinates to the Klingons. Burnham offers herself to Mudd as a more valuable prize to sell to the Klingons than the ship. Burnham wants Lt. Tyler back in exchange. She swallows one of the dark matter devices, killing herself and forcing Mudd to restart time again if he wants to sell her.

The ship blows. Time restarts. Events move forward. This time, Lorca is warned before Mudd arrives. Lorca hands the captain’s chair over to Mudd. Burnham claims that Stamets determined Mudd’s victory is a universal certainty and so they have surrendered. Lorca offers the ship, Stamets, and Burnham in exchange for the lives of the rest of the crew. Lorca offers a hand in agreement and they shake on the deal.

Mudd sits in the chair and sends coordinates to the Klingons. His wrist device dissolves. The Klingon ship arrives. Mudd orders the Klingons beamed aboard and he escorts Stamets and Burnham to them.

Stamets and Burnham reveal that they’re onto Mudd, that they know he’s running from Stella, not to her. Tyler arrives and tells Mudd that the coordinates were sent not to the Klingons, but to Stella and her arms-dealing, baron father and that they are the ones being beamed aboard.

Mudd grovels before Stella and tries to justify his actions to her. Stella is still happy to see him and has convinced her father to consolidate his debts. Mudd is forced to go with them and make an honest woman out of Stella.

Later, Burnham and Tyler discuss how Stamets told them they had danced in a previous timeline. Burnham says what she’s feeling is complicated and strange, but he says he’s not going anywhere and that he’s sad they missed their first kiss.