As Star Trek: Discovery enters its second season, the crew of the USS Discovery is recovering from being under the command of Captain Gabriel Lorca (Jason Isaacs). Originally believed to be a particularly military-minded Starfleet officer, Lorca was eventually revealed to be a native of the Mirror Universe who had been manipulating the Discovery‘s crew throughout the season.
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Speaking to IGN, executive producers Alex Kurtzman and Heather Kadin say that the memory of Lorca still lingers as Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) takes command of the ship.
“I think, as a crew though, there’s still a cloud of Lorca,” said Kadin. “And I think it feeds into when Pike first shows up. You know, their reaction — I think they’re pretty unnerved because of that.”
When Star Trek: Discovery‘s first season came to a close, Cmdr. Saru (Doug Jones) was in command of Discovery while en route to Vulcan. Kurtzman says that Saru is happy to hand command of the ship over to Pike, who quickly earns the Kelpien’s trust.
“It’s not tough for Saru from an ego point of view,” he said. “I think Saru is such a team player, and he recognizes …Captain Pike very quickly earns their trust, and he does it by being very honest and being very direct and just showing them, through action, that he is not Lorca. So I think Saru trusts Captain Pike very quickly. Later in the season, there will be, because of things that are happening with Saru … there’s a little more friction between the two of them, but not because Pike is doing anything wrong.”
In a separate interview, star Sonequa Martin-Green, who plays Cmdr. Michael Burnham has suggested that Pike’s leadership and commitment to Starfleet ideals will help the Discovery crew recover from their time under Lorca’s command.
“Well, I think that Burnham is ready to have a more Starfleet-like experience with a captain,” laughs Martin-Green. “We all have a little PTSD from Lorca and what he did, and all his illicit behavior, so it’s good to return to normalcy. It’s good to return to principle, and it’s good to return to what Starfleet really is, where your captain is someone you really do look to, that leads you and guides you. And he has such a kindness, such a genuine … such a genuine quality to him. And as [Mount] said in the panel, he’s willing to admit when he’s wrong, and he understands the true strength of a mastermind. And so it’s moving us, and healing us at the same time.”
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The first season of Star Trek: Discovery is available to stream in its entirety on CBS All Access in the U.S., through CraveTV in Canada and through Netflix in other international markets.
Star Trek: Discovery Season Two is now filming in Toronto and will premiere on CBS All Access on January 17, 2019.
