Star Trek: Age of Discovery Gary Anderson, Star Trek: Age of Discovery, Addell Austin Anderson

Captain Burnham, Commanders Rayner, and Stamets must manage their way through a series of time jumps through Discovery's past and possible future as they attempt to disarm a dangerous time weapon. The device traps the ship in a time cycle related to its 900+ year history. Only Michael, Rayner, and Stamets know what is happening, so they must find a way to break the cycle without significantly altering the known timeline.

The Discovery crew travels to Trill for another clue to solve the Progenitor mystery. Captain Burnham, Dr. Culber, Book, and Ensign Adira seek information about a 24th-century Trill scientist named Jinaal, who was part of a group of researchers studying the Progenitor technology believed to be responsible for all humanoid life. The scientists decided the technology was too dangerous to fall into the wrong hands. Thus, they decided to each take and hide a map piece that would disclose the Progenitor technology's location. To preserve his knowledge, Jinaal joined with a Bix symbiont.

Today, we’re analyzing the premieres of the first two episodes of Star Trek: Discovery's fifth and final season — “Red Directive” and “Under the Twin Moons.” We’ll end our podcast with the latest Star Trek News.

Also, our podcast has a new format to afford a freer flow of discussion for the analysis. Once we list the production credits, provide a synopsis, and establish the episode’s theme, we will each discuss standout moments and thought-provoking questions and raise story or character challenges in a segment titled "Where is this Going?"

Today, we are closing out our review of our favorite Star Trek series, Deep Space Nine, with our analysis of DS9 Season 7. Because of the exceptional quality of Season 6, DS9’s writers, artists, and production staff had a huge task ahead of them to match that season’s excellence. But despite the season’s original plans, their efforts were hampered by an unforeseen complication that made their work more difficult.

It’s hard to produce a full season of television containing 75-80% top notch episodes. “Favor the Bold,” “Sacrifice of Angels,” “Waltz,” and “Far Beyond The Stars” are just a few of the high quality episodes featured during Season 6 of Deep Space Nine. They are the reason DS9 Season 6 stands out for its consistent high quality. In terms of raw drama, powerful character arcs, and sheer excitement, DS9’s Season 6 remains the single best season of Star Trek ever.

“In the Pale Moonlight” is applauded for its outstanding quality. It is repeatedly cited as the best episode of Deep Space Nine and one of the best episodes of the entire franchise by many fans and TV critics across the globe. It’s held in such esteem because of the high quality of the writing and acting. It sets the bar very high in both categories and dares others to attempt to match.