Episode:401
Kobayashi Maru

Jack's Rating:

After months spent reconnecting the Federation with distant worlds, Captain Michael Burnham and the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery are sent to assist a damaged space station.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 11/18/21
Director: Olatunde Osunsanmi

Jack's Review
Okay - I am going to get the two things I really dislike about Discovery out of the way in this first review.....Let me start off by saying that I still dislike the fact that Burnham was made captain after her antics from season 1....you remember - staging a mutiny, starting a war, getting her captain and countless others killed, being court-martialed....all that stuff. Also, as a professional designer, I can state that I absolutely detest the detached nacelles on the new ships. The writers even exposed it as a vulnerability in season 3 - just a few episodes after the things debuted on-screen. It's the laziest possible solution to "How do we make future spaceships look even more futuristic?" - that being said, I will now digress into the review of the first episode. The episode has a nice Star Trek feel to it. Problem to be fixed, away mission to rescue people, peril and the unknown, nosy politician trying to horn-in on the captain's decisions. I just wish the show was episodic and not serialized because I fear this gravitational anomaly storyline will fizzle about two-thirds through the season - but I do hope I am wrong. The crew of DISCO is moving along nicely and the bridge crew is starting to feel like a real crew and not a bunch of characters that get random speaking lines from time to time. Book continues to be a terrific character, as does Adira. Overall, a decent start to the fourth season overall.

Episode:402
Anomaly

Jack's Rating:

Saru returns to help the U.S.S. Discovery uncover the mystery of an unusually destructive new force; as Burnham leads the crew, she must also find a way to help Book cope with an unimaginable loss.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 11/25/21
Director: Olatunde Osunsanmi

Jack's Review
A really fun episode that, overall, shows the growth of Discovery. There is a genuine connection between the viewer and the characters now. The bridge crew is becoming less background characters and more real contributors to the crisis at hand. I was actually a tad emotional with the return of Saru. Stamets is becoming one of my favorite characters. And the ability for us to chuckle at the gravity surge effects while still feeling a sense of dread is well done. Overall, it really does feel more like Star Trek. I just think that Burnham needs to take some command courses. She questions herself too much, lets her emotions get in the way of decisions, and needs way too much hand-holding.

Episode:403
Choose to Live

Jack's Rating:

Burnham and Tilly hunt the killer of a Starfleet officer as Stamets and the science team race against the clock to prevent the anomaly from killing anyone else.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 12/02/21
Director: Christopher J. Byrne

Jack's Review
Okay...no. This is Star Trek. Not Lord of the Rings. Stop with the warrior nun swordplay. I was actually yelling USE A PHASER! by the end of the episode. So far, the whole episode was pointless. I doubt this new species will play into the DMA plot other than this mess of an episode.

Episode:404
All Is Possible

Jack's Rating:

Tilly and Adira lead a team of Starfleet Academy cadets on a training mission that takes a dangerous turn. Burnham is pulled into tense negotiations on Ni'Var.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 12/09/21
Director: John Ottman

Jack's Review
Just when I thought this team of writers were getting their space-legs....Blam! They hit with this mess of an episode. Oh, there's a huge anomaly that will wipe out all life? Let's sit around and work on one guy's PTSD. Tilly crashes a shuttle with cadets aboard. Said cadets are belligerent and insubordinate. Subspace comms don't require line of sight. Interference from the planet would be prevalent at any altitude. Oh, we're being chased by giant creatures? Let's stop and have a 15 minute discussion in the open. Hey look! Adira was sprayed with some kind of freeze stuff. Let's pull her out and it will stop flash freezing six inches from her for no reason....then we can sit around and talk. And as long as I am complaining....is it too much to see a phaser shoot a damned BEAM instead of Star Wars blaster-style bolts? A collimated energy beam would be way more powerful than a single small burst. *sigh* okay. I give up my tirade. Horrible episode that serves as exposition to get the floundering Tilly off the ship.

Episode:405
The Examples

Jack's Rating:

Burnham and Book race to evacuate a group of stranded colonists in the anomaly's path as one of the Federation's brightest scientists comes aboard the U.S.S. Discovery to do high-stakes research with Saru and Stamets.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 12/16/21
Director: Lee Rose

Jack's Review
Okay....I am going to say it again. Burnham is not worthy of being a captain. The writers need to actually watch Star Trek before writing for a Star Trek show. Just because Starfleet has deigned it necessary to swoop in and rescue people doesn't make it a Starfleet mission under 100% Starfleet jurisdiction. Discovery would still need to adhere to the Prime Directive. Burnham and Book have to fight some CGI droid bug things - which just feels silly. Then by the end of the whole mess, Burnham has to Google one of the MAIN things a Starfleet Captain would know- hell, a first officer would too - Any non-Federation citizen can request asylum aboard a Starfleet vessel. I will give this episode one more pip than it really deserves thanks to the introduction of Ruon Tarka - who feels a tad scary and yet fun at the same time. I get a very Kosinski feel from him. Like he thinks he knows more than he actually does.

Episode:406
Stormy Weather

Jack's Rating:

Seeking answers, the U.S.S. Discovery ventures into a subspace rift created by the Dark Matter Anomaly. Meanwhile, Book faces a strange visitor from his past.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 12/23/21
Director: Jonathan Frakes

Jack's Review
And with one episode the season redeems itself well. Finally, an actual Star Trek story! It has the sci-fi element, a moral, and a good conclusion. There were a couple of flubs that made me scratch my head but nothing too awful. The main thing I found annoying - really the only thing this round - Burnham needs to let people finish their sentences! She constantly cuts people off because she knows everything. A solid episode overall - and once again - directed by Frakes!

Episode:407
...But to Connect

Jack's Rating:

Tensions rise as representatives from across the galaxy gather to confront the threat of the Dark Matter Anomaly; Zora's new sentience raises difficult questions.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 12/30/21
Director: Lee Rose

Jack's Review
Another good episode and well done end to the half-way point of the season, held securely aloft by Anthony Rapp and David Cronenberg. The Zora conundrum is actually a really nice addition to the series....kind of like correcting the mistake Picard made by not putting Data into a golem body. I do, however, wish the writers would realize that Burnham really has absolutely no business in political meetings.

Episode:408
All In

Jack's Rating:

Following a hunch, Captain Burnham tracks Book to an old haunt from their courier days and gets drawn into a high-stakes competition for a powerful weapon.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 02/10/22
Director: Christopher J. Byrne & Jen McGowan

Episode:409
Rubicon

Jack's Rating:

Captain Burnham and the U.S.S. Discovery race to stop Book and Ruon Tarka from launching a rogue plan that could inadvertently endanger the galaxy.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 02/17/22
Director: Andi Armaganian

Episode:410
The Galactic Barrier

Jack's Rating:

Captain Burnham and her crew must go where few have gone before: beyond the Galactic Barrier. Meanwhile, Book learns the truth of what drives Ruon Tarka.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 02/24/22
Director: Deborah Kampmeier

Episode:411
Rosetta

Jack's Rating:

While Captain Burnham leads an away mission to a planet that was once home to the aliens responsible for the DMA, Book and Tarka secretly infiltrate the U.S.S. Discovery.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 03/03/22
Director: Jeff Byrd & Jen McGowan

Episode:412
Species Ten-C

Jack's Rating:

As the DMA approaches Earth and Ni'Var, Captain Burnham and the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery attempt to make First Contact with the powerful species responsible before it's too late.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 03/10/22
Director: Olatunde Osunsanmi

Jack's Review
Not a bad episode, but when facing a completely new species that may or may not hold the key to saving the galaxy, do you really need to take a sidebar about your crush? Discovery is too much about the touchy-feely emotions of the characters without giving us any substance to the characters. It's like watching 8-year-old girls play with Barbie dolls dressed in Star Trek clothes. But you know what? I still watch it and have learned to accept and enjoy it.

Episode:413
Coming Home

Jack's Rating:

The DMA approaches Earth and Ni'Var. With evacuations underway, Burnham and the team aboard the U.S.S. Discovery must find a way to communicate with a species Ten-C before time runs out.

Features:
Stardate: Unknown
Air Date: 03/17/22
Director: Olatunde Osunsanmi