On Thursday the fourth season of Star Trek: Discovery debuts in the USA and Canada. Paramount+ shared a clip from the episode titled “Kobayashi Maru” featuring Federation President Laira Rillak, a new character played by Chelah Horsdal.
The president reveals the Federation’s future by honoring its past
This clip from Thursday’s episode features President Rillak (who is a mix of Cardassian, Bajoran, and Human) addressing a crowd to thank Captain Burnham and the crew of the USS Discovery for all their hard work in season three. She gives an update on what has been going on since we last saw our characters, including making a big introduction.
Archer Spacedock
Say hello to Archer Spacedock, introduced with “Archer’s Theme” from Star Trek: Enterprise. Inside is what appears to be the USS Voyager-J set to be “upgraded.” The president also reveals plans to construct “the next generation of Starfleet vessels,” as the Starfleet intends to return to exploring new worlds.
Rillak also addressed “cadets” hinting that she was speaking to a new class for Starfleet Academy, which has also been hinted at in preview images and of course with the episode title itself.
For more, check out the preview images from “Kobayashi Maru.”
Star Trek: Discovery season 4 premieres on November 18, it streams exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. In Canada Discovery is broadcast on CTV Sci-Fi Channel and streams on Crave. Discovery will debut on Paramount+ in 45 countries around the world in 2022.
Keep up with the Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com.
My god… very effective nostalgia in place here… Goosebumps!
Right? When the music came in, I just about melted.
Nostalgia is really overdone now.
Exciting stuff! I just wish the show would stop having characters constantly exchanging glances, to the point of silliness. It occurs so often.
I thought this too, until my last company conference. Some good news was shared and I noticed how many people were nudging each other and whispering and smiling. I instantly thought “heh…I guess it does happen”
Good Point!
An example of their lazy writing, just more filler and very overwrought, cliched at that.
A lot of these steaming/cable shows have about two episodes worth of actual plot for 8-10 episodes.
Please send me the link to the series that you wrote. Your constant ragging on these threads is really old.
I’d love to see you try to write a TV show.
A lot of “exchanging glances” isn’t scripted, it’s actors doing what actors do — finding moments for human responses in material that might not, at first glance, lend themselves to human interactions. The choice to encourage and film that material is the director’s, and the choice to include it in the finished episode is the editor’s. Stop blaming “lazy writing” for every choice you don’t like.
You can say anything about Discovery, but not that they have ugly uniforms. Stylish all the way
There is no way the President of the UFP should be wearing a Starfleet Uniform. None.
You scared me, looking at her uniform she has a UFP logo and her uniform is different than that of Starfleet.
I hope her uniform is totally different than the Starfleet uniforms to avoid any pretext that everyone has to work for Starfleet and the UFP has gone full autholitarian.
In other images, it seems like all the members of the Federation Council have a specific uniform and the President has the sash to distinguish them.
By the way, doesn’t Chelah Horsdal do a great job with the gravitas of ceremony as President Rillak.
This is a step backwards I think versus the Federation Council in Star Trek IV which looked diverse with clear civilian influences (with Starfleet representation being there, but in the minority).
One looks like a real alliance of peoples allowed to be different, one looks like forced comformity.
It’s too bad they didn’t use the far superior and elaborate outfit seen in IV and VI, with that cool more alien looking pin.
Maybe this can be a plot point, the Federation having gone a bit autholitarian given TNG the burn, etc and driven everyone out forcing all to be the human ideal of perfection including humans, has to learn to accept diversity and civilian control again. Learn something from those who left, learn some mistakes. Good lesson there.
I don’t get this argument at all. The Federation President is Bajoran, Cardassian and human. I mean this is the very definition of diversity! And it’s exceptionally beautiful given the brutal history between the Bajorans and Cardassians.
And how is this ‘Authoritarian’?? It was one scene of someone introducing a new space dock lol. It’s one costume. And why would they use outfits from 900 years ago?? And we haven’t even seen anything directly dealing with the Federation or the Council yet. It was all Starfleet related last season.
Having everyone in the same uniforms and act the same regardless of some genetics isn’t real diversity.
Watch the Federation Council in Star Trek IV and then watch Discovery. Which one do you think is a functional democracy with diversity and which one looks like some military dictatorship?
It’s one character in a similar costume, that doesn’t imply authoritarianism; simply that they can be working closer together. There is a huge difference there lol. It’s been 800 years and the Burn, there has probably been a lot of necessary changes just for both organizations to survive. Yeah it’s not like the old days, obviously for a very big reason.
In Star Trek IV, it was just a bunch of aliens thrown in the background and didn’t even talk or voiced their opinion about anything, so I don’t really get your point. And the Federation President was just another human. was he not? So this talk of ‘diversity’ is pretty moot so far. Although from TUC and on all the other Presidents (that we seen) were alien which was cool.
And we only seen ONE character who represents the Federation so far on Discovery who happens to be President. So it’s weird to even compare the two. Are you worried everyone on the Council are suddenly all human or something? Look at Starfleet itself, still a very diverse group of aliens, so I’m guessing the same for the Federation Council. Why wouldn’t it be if the President herself is alien and human? I don’t understand the issue at all?
Maybe we should wait and see what the Federation Council itself is made up of and how they actually interact with Starfleet in this century before we call it a ‘military dictatorship’. But that’s just me.
The costumes look very cheap.
Nice touch about time Enterprise gets some love!
Fully agree. It’s 20th anniversary recently passed with barely a mention which is a great pity in my view.
I’m crying hearing that theme again in a new show. Enterprise has been my favorite of the series for many years now, and the nostalgia combined with the honoring of Captain Archer in the new shipyard is just perfect.
I’m still hoping they can find a way to bring Archer back in a cameo like on SNW. I would love a scene of him and Pike together!
Archer would be almost 150. I guess he could still be alive, but they’d have to make him look like an old man like McCoy in Encounter at Farpoint.
I’m thinking more of a flashback scene like when Pike first started his career in Starfleet and meets Archer for some reason. That should get down by 20-30 years. Whatever it takes. ;).
Archer is dead by the point SNW takes place – his bio from “In a Mirror Darkly” has him dying in 2245, just after the Enterprise is built.
(https://twitter.com/_MichaelSussman/status/900895290063847424/photo/1). Granted, that’s not quite “canon” as that part of the bio did not appear on screen.
SNW takes place (presumably) between 2257 (Discovery S2) and 2265 (when Kirk takes command of the Enterprise).
It is possible Archer could appear in a flashback or a recording however.
Which is literally what I said in my second post lol That he could appear in a flashback.
And yes his death is not canon since we didn’t see it on screen. And we also know Archer was still living in the Kelvin Timeline at least by 2258, so it wouldn’t be impossible to be living in the Prime universe as well…but yes very old.
Didn’t Archer die when the 1701 launched? Tho I suppose that’s not canon so they could totally do it.
Not trying to be rude here, I promise, but do people just skip over the actual discussions?? It’s discussed in this exchange right above your post days before you posted this.
Nice touch of nostalgia with that strain of Archer’s Theme
Like the spacedock, the ships still look like uncompleted 3d models to me Lol A couple of chamfered boxes and… done!
If they trust power so much, the whole interior of the ship should be one big holodeck that you can reconfigure and projects data and everything instead of windows and walls with blinky uninformative hard drive lights.
They actually said in Die Trying that most vessels had holographic walls.
Baby steps, I’ll even take a wall with a functional and informative interactive display. Kind of like the screen they are using to project bland doors, windows and blank walls with.
The ships should actually be much smaller in size. Enterprise showed future tech where ships were bigger on the inside than the outside. And DISCO seasons 3 and 4 take place even further in the future than that. But the tech showed in ENT was way more impressive.
Presumably all the “TARDIS” technology was banned, not just time travel…
Archer Space Dock, that gave me the feels… and that theme was so apropos. I like when she said they “they will seach for alternative to dilithium”
Nice touch, a little love for Enterprise.
Yeah, there’s no pleasing some people, I guess.
No offense, but some people may just have higher standards.
The easy nostalgia template, Force Awakens is an example, is rather tired and doesn’t actually do anything new.
You seem to be trolling. Every replay you have to someone if counter productive and looks as though you are looking to start something. You are entitled to your opinion, but how about making your own comment and move on. You tend to reply to everyone that has a good reception of the episode.
Gatekeeping troll.
Brought a tear to me eye…
Me too
Naming the space station after Archer was an amazing and brilliant touch! But then hearing that theme song just got this fanboy emotional for a moment. Acknowledging the original pioneers of Starfleet a thousand years ago as they begin exploring the final frontier again has both great symbolism for the universe and Discovery as a show.
Seeing the Voyager J and the TNG reference was also very well done. Discovery is trying very hard to honor its roots! Now hopefully it will honor it best by giving us a great season!
And there was a subtle DS9 allusion in the President’s species background.
Welcome back Elrond!! :)
And you’re right, didn’t think about that until now.
Endless references are just that, easy nostalgia, and nothing more there.
We haven’t seen the episode yet man. 😏 But I know you’re not it’s biggest fan.
Not if those references remind at least some viewers of responsible leaders of the real world past who valued certain virtues that often seem disregarded today.
We get it. You don’t like the show. You don’t need to remind us every time somebody posts.
The symbolism could go beyond that. Remember that Archer later became the Federation President too. So this is also like NASA’s Cape Canaveral being called “Cape Kennedy” to honour JFK (for a few years, anyway). Two for one ;)
By the way, thank you for your long comment about UFOs/Elizondo etc on the other thread last week. I wrote you a long reply there a couple of days ago. Sorry about the delay in replying man — I was offline for a few days around last weekend.
Also very true! I forget Archer was a Federation President as well and not just an iconic starship Captain.
And sorry, I didn’t see your new post about Elizondo in the other thread. I love TM, but I do wish they had a more updated and direct posting system where you just have a history of your own posts and can see whoever responded to them. It’s really hard to keep up on posts at times. But I’ll go back to read it and comment on it!
A nice touch. I would have love to see the future Enterprise in spacedock or bring the NX01 out of the space museum.
Beautiful. Gives me faith of the heart.
🤔
Costume looks very cheesy, like a fan film.
Off topic but anybody in Canada watching Discovery on CTV SCIFI the US History Channel Star Trek documentary Centre Seat is airing after Discovery. Pretty sweet.
I was waiting for her to say “to boldly go where no one has gone before”.
I’m not the biggest ENT fan but that hit me in the feels! Brought a tear to me eye…..now I want to watch ENT….
Also, after 900 years, they couldn’t perfect quantum slipstream or transwarp drive? I wasn’t a fan of the hand waving of these propulsion systems in the S3 premiere. My head cannon imagined them exploring the Delta Quadrant by slipstream in the 25th Century.
Benamite is rarer than dilithium.
I just wet myself. More than usual.
LOL!
awww more memberberries!
I stopped watching Discovery halfway through the last season. I haven’t watched more than 3 or 4 episodes of it and I was reminded today why I stopped and why I still have hope. I stopped because the facial expressions the characters show, totally over the top…so the emotional fluff is still there. But I have hope because somewhere, locked in the basement of the writers room… is the person responsible for putting that beautiful piece of music in at just the right moment. Whoever he or she or they is, I hope that they escape the dungeon and they put a pen in their hands…
Releasing this on the same day that Paramount pull the show from Netflix and delay it for god knows how long is an extra slap in the face to international fans. ViacomCBS truly hate their non-US fans, huh?
Being in the UK, I know I shouldn’t really have watched the clip but I couldn’t help myself and it hit doubly hard that it’s out of reach for the foreseeable. Loved the use of Archers theme though.
NO SPOILERS – For all fellow Canucks north of the border, I noticed CTV Sci-Fi Channel has picked up the documentary The Centre Seat – 55 Years of Star Trek. It will debut tonight after the season premiere of Discovery and the new episode of Prodigy. I may have to skip the Leaf game haha. Should be a fun evening.
It’s really cool that we got the Archer spacedock but why does it feel like the entire franchise has forgotten all about Kirk?