BADLANDS AND BOOKMARKS. While Discovery fends off an advancing Breen force led in part by Moll, Michael Burnham must therapyspeak her way through a mindspace to get the last piece of the puzzle needed to complete the map that will lead her to the Progenitors' tech. Is the antepenultimate episode of Star Trek: Discovery a TREK, MARRY, or KILL?

BIG EVIL HELMETS. Michael Burnham must lead the Federation against a faction of the Breen Imperium in order to protect what they know about the Progenitors' technology from falling into the wrong hands -- but is Starfleet's bluff enough to stave off a hostile force, and is the episode a TREK, MARRY, or KILL? Bryan and Shereese investigate. 

DENOBULAN GOD COMPLEX. Burnham and Tilly go undercover as a pair of true believers to find the next clue which has been hidden in a malfunctioning water tower built by a Denobulan scientist who was part of the team that discovered the Progenitors' technology. Are they convincing spies? Bryan & Shereese investigate. 

The grades begin at (18:03). 

REPLICATORS AND RESERVATIONS. This month's animated spotlight on Lower Decks looks at two episodes midway through the show's second season that show off the real strengths of the series to this point while shining a big bright light on the problematic portrayal of the Pakleds. Beyond that, there's perfect deployment of beloved character actor Richard Kind and a long overdue and novel use of Star Trek's replicator technology.

The grades begin at (18:36).

VIDEO GAME LOGIC. Burnham and Book board the ISS Enterprise from "Mirror, Mirror" and engage in a series of video game levels that leads to an exposition dump via cut scene. Is this a clever stop along the clue trail or Exhibit A in the case for Star Trek: Discovery being a live action video game? Shereese the Sci Fi Savage helps Bryan investigate. 

The grades begin at (36:20).

SPACE-TIME BURNHAMUUM. It's training day for Michael Burnham's new first office, Commander Rayner, and he has to learn on the job as both of them are thrust through the history of Disco thanks to a pesky Krenim timebug installed on the ship by Moll & L'ak. Will the tension between the two Starfleet personnel resolve in time to save the ship and the galaxy? Only time will tell.

The grades begin at (15:44). 

JAKOTAY OR CHANEWAY? Did we ever settle on the label for a Janeway-Chakotay relationship? Oh well, it hardly matters, since those two crazy kids are always on the fence about making a move. It all comes to a head in this time travel adventure from season 7 where a Janeway from just before the pilot finds herself becoming more and more attracted to a season 7 Chakotay even as he fills her in on the horrible fate that awaits her during her first command. Does this episode serve as a love letter to Star Trek: Voyager or something better? Will Bryan & Kristen TREK, MARRY, or KILL IT? 

The grades begin at (22:15).

Don't forget! We're giving away a Blu ray box set of Star Trek: Discovery - The Complete Series. To enter, all you have to do is submit a poem about Discovery to our email: trekmarrykpod at gmail. We're accepting poems until 11:59pm PST on December 1, 2024. If we like your poem the best, we will send you the box set as a Thank You!

PING PONGIN' SEVEN. It's a time travel romp as Seven of Nine gets roped into a game of chicken with a vengeful Captain Braxton previously seen (and played by a different actor) in the "Future's End" two-parter. Will Bryan & Kristen TREK, MARRY, or KILL it?

The grades begin at (20:30).

RESURRECTIONS AND DIPLOMACY. Katie Hampton of the Napping Through Happy Hour Podcast returns for our monthly animated spotlight. This time out, our core four Lower Deckers get paired up unusually: Tendi & Mariner go on a Girls Trip in the first episode and Rutherford & Boimler have an adventure together in the second. Instant classic pairings that make for classic episodes? 

The grades begin at (19:10). "Mugato, Gumato" review begins at (51:18). 

POETRY IN COMMOTION. Data's Ode to Spot is about as lighthearted as it gets in an episode inspired by the alien abduction pop culture phenomenon. It's a terrific episode to watch ahead of Halloween, but is it a TREK, MARRY, or KILL?  

The grades begin at (18:19).