A stubborn farmer living on a Bajoran moon gives Kira a hard time, and Jake and Nog go about trying to turn useless items into gold pressed latinum! In "Progress", Kira is forced to confront how her responsibilities to her people have changed when she's placed into a situation where she has to play the role of the authoritarian. Also, Jake and Nog go into space business and end up extorting the newly formed Bajoran government. Amy joins me to discuss getting older and becoming "the man", the attractiveness of Morn, and what to do with self-sealing stem bolts!

With the war against the Klingons starting to take a turn for the worse, Burnham joins Saru and Tyler on a mission to the planet Pahvos. They seek to use the planets mysterious sound waves to detect cloaked ships, but Saru might have different intentions altogether! Also, we get some Klingon scenes. Clay joins me to discuss being confused, Klingon face paint, and sending the Discovery into battle for no good reason!

Mudd returns to Discovery, and he's got a plan that weaves together some of TNG and TOS' finest episodes! When Harry Mudd reveals that he's using time travel to attempt to steal the USS Discovery, Burnham and crew must look within their own hearts to find a way to stop the devious con man. Clay joins me to discuss "Cause and Effect" and "I, Mudd", grinding in the corridors, and ironically listening to contemporary music!

O'Brien and Bashir try to save a Bajoran village from destruction, while Jake and Nog befriend the young leader of a faction involved in a land dispute. The Storyteller kick starts the O'Brien and Bashir relationship, and it also bears a lot of the hallmarks of TNG's first season. I wonder why? Wes is alone to tell this story, and he gives his thoughts about DS9 versus Discovery, the religious implications of the episode, and the pleasant dullness of land disputes in Star Trek!

Burnham attempts to rescue Sarek and learns something about their relationship, while Lorca has a relationship and then decides not to rescue someone! "Lethe" doesn't bring up Mirror Stamets or the Tardigrade, but it does attempt to tell a self contained story that establishes some background to a few of our lead characters. Does it succeed? Clay joins me to discuss Burnham the Vulcan, why Lorca sleeps with a phaser, and why placing continuity before a solid story tends to be a mistake.

When Sisko, Kira and Bashir take Kai Opaka on a trip to the Gamma Quadrant, they discover a prison planet where the inmates are forced to endlessly fight each other. "Battle Lines" features Jonathan Banks in a stand out guest spot, and it also does a good job of examining some of the DS9 plots that have been on the back burner for a while. Modi joins me to discuss having good actors in your TV series, the nuance of Ben Sisko, and new information about the Bajoran religion!

When Captain Lorca is captured by Klingons, Saru demands that the Tardigrade be hooked back up to the Spore Drive to enable a rescue attempt. Unfortunately, Burnham's suspicions about the nature of the using the Tardigrade this way are bearing out. We also meet Harry Mudd! Clay and I discuss the fifth episode of the first season, and we break down Saru's use of protocols, lists made of fan service, and escaping from Klingon prison ships.

When an alien from the Gamma Quadrant shows Odo a shape shifting necklace, the DS9 Chief of Security begins to wonder if he'll ever find another shape shifter like himself. "Vortex" is an interesting character story built around Odo, and it likely plays very differently for DS9 veterans and newbies! Modi stops by to discuss shape shifters versus changelings, long character interactions, and Vulcans in the Gamma Quadrant!

In the fourth episode of Star Trek: Discovery, the wonderfully titled "The Butcher's Knife Cares Not for the Lamb's Cry", Burnham settles into life aboard the Discovery and we get a closer look at the turmoil within the Klingon Empire! We also learn more about the Tardigrade and its piloting capability, and wonder if everything will come down to a "Devil in the Dark" moment? Clay and I discuss feeling lost in space, missing T'Kumva, and trying to solve the riddle of losing spore drive.

Burnham gets a new ship, and Discovery gets a new start! When mutineer Michael Burnham is transported to the USS Discovery, she finds a ship full of suspicious and mysterious characters, led by the extremely suspicious and mysterious Captain Gabriel Lorca. Clay and I discuss the second "pilot" of Star Trek: Discovery, including vigorous debates about monsters from Doom, getting to know the crew, and travelling via spores!