‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Episode 8: “Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum” Recap With Spoilers

The Discovery teleports in to attempt to rescue another Starfleet ship from attack by six Klingon ships. The Klingons are making excellent use of their cloaking capability. Another Klingon ship decloaks. The Discovery takes a hit for the other ship, but they’re unable to stop the Klingons from destroying the other Starfleet ship. The Discovery goes on black alert and jumps away.

Stamets steps out of the drive chamber after making the jump. He refers to Tilly as “captain” and then becomes irritable when he realizes what he’s said.

Captain Lorca reports to Admiral Terral. Lorca wonders why Starfleet was so thoroughly outgunned. Terral explains that Kol of House Kor managed to get the Klingon ship of the dead working again and is offering its technology to any Klingon house that swears fealty to him.

Burnham is part of an away team with Saru and Tyler on an away mission to Pahvo, a planet on which every organic object vibrates with a kind of song. Starfleet hopes to use those vibrations to create a kind of sonar capable of finding cloaked Klingon ships.

Saru is just commenting on how the constant noise of the planet is torture on his enhanced senses when floating lights in the air coalesce into a sentient being. Saru notes that Pahvo is supposed to be uninhabited. Burnham says that the being isn’t registering as a lifeform and that it appears to be the consciousness of the planet itself.

General Kol comments on L’Rell’s scar. He makes it clcear that he is not

Kol seeks to rule, not to unify. L’Rell wishes to swear fealty to Kol for her house. She offers to use her interrogation skills to get information out of Kol’s prisoner. Kol offers to fulfill her request if she can bring him some useful information

Act II

On Pahvo, the away team continues to journey through Pahvo. They come across a kind of hut with crystals inside of it. The universal translator cannot translate what the species is trying to tell them. Saru tries to make contact. The lifeform latches on to Saru. It is disorienting, but he understands their intent. The away team continues following first contact protocol.

L’Rell enters Admiral Cornwell’s cell and tells her to scream. She is resistant at first but then they scream at each other, convincing the guard outside to walk away and allowing the two of them to talk.

Burnham and Tyler make small talk about what they might do once the war with the Klingons is over. Burnham knows that once the war is over she’ll have to finish her life sentence. Tyler suggests maybe they shouldn’t let the war end. They kiss.

Tilly finds Stamets and asks him what’s going on. Stamets admits that something has been happening to him. What he knows changes at times. He can’t tell Dr. Culber because it would require Culber to report him and then he would be sent to a lab.

L’Rell asks Cornwell what the Federation does with their prisoners of war. When Cornwell says they do not have a death penalty, L’Rell tells her she wants to defect. She offers to help Cornwell escape in exchange for safe passage.

Saru’s conversation with the Pahvo consciousness is going slowly. he says the organism is the planet. The transmitter on the planet is Pahvo’s attempt to make themselves known and to make contact with others.

The away team rests inside the hut. The noise of the planet wakes Saru. He stumbles outside and asks the consciousness to make the noise stop. The lifeform makes contact with Saru again, seeing the events of past episodes.

In the morning, Saru seems rested and says he made contact with Captain Lorca and updated him. He then takes Burnham and Tyler’s communicators and destroys them. He tells them they will now stay on Pahvo and live in harmony.

Act III

Saru leaves to tell their host that they’ve accepted their offer. Realizing Saru is compromised, Burnham and Tyler argue about how to proceed. Tyler eventually pulls ranks and determines they’ll take what they need from that Pahvon.

L’Rell and Cornwell make their way to L’Rells’s ship. They’re discovered by Kol. L’Rell and Cornwell fight. L’Rell slams Cornwell against a device, seemingly electrocuting and killing her.

Saru discusses things with Tyler. He says he believes he was the problem before when the planet was making too much noise. He was not at harmony. Tyler believes Saru was fighting something and then decided to stop, something Tyler doesn’t know how to do. He wants to make the Klingons suffer the way they made him suffer. Saru shows Tyler a crystal rock of some kind that the Pahvan gave him. Tyler touches it and it glows. Tyler pulls away. Saru realizes that Tyler has been distracting and delaying him while Burnham is off somewhere else.

Burnham arrives at the transmitter tower. She begins setting up her equipment to interface with it. Saru sprints towards her, making use of his Kelpian speed.

L’Rell drags Cornwell into a room with a coffin. She finds another Klingon, Grafk, dead, as well as Torath and Sirek. She is determined to end Kol. She leaves Cornwell’s body with the others.

Act IV

Burnham continues to try to make contact with the Discovery when Saru arrives and begins smashing her equipment. They begin fighting. Saru continues smashing the equipment. Burnham grabs her phaser and tries to stun Saru. Burnham tells Saru that they can’t have the peace he seeks until the war with the Klingons is over.

The Pahvon brings Tyler to the transmitter. Saru apologizes to the creature. Burnham appeals to the Pahvon, saying that together they end a conflict and bring harmony. Saru worries that the Klingons will hurt the Phavon if they find out.

The Pahvon activates the transmitter. The Discovery makes contact and beams the away team back aboard.

Tyler and Saru are brought to med bay. Burnham tries to check on Saru. He admits that he lied to her and attacked her, nearly killed her. She says he wasn’t himself. He says he was himself. Fear is how Kelpians survive, and so he’s never known a moment without fear. He found that for the first time on Pahvo.

L’Rell reports to Kol about the technology being used on the Discovery. Kol was hoping for something more. L’Rell attempts to leave, but she’s stopped. Kol believes her skills as an interrogator can still be of use, and so allows her to stay as long as she swears loyalty to House Kor. She does so, and he smears red paint on her face. However, Kol reveals that he knows she was lying and guards take her away. The ship then receives an invitation from Pahvo.

Tyler and Burnham arrive on the bridge. The music on Pahvo has changed to an electromagnetic signal. The Pahvons are trying to bring the Klingons and Federation together to work out their differences. The ship of the dead is on their way their and Discovery is Pahvo’s only defense against it.