Thirteen months ago,Star Trek: Discoverykilled a delightful character for no good reason.
As Hugh Culber, Wilson Cruz was an unfussy breath of fresh air on a show full cosmic melodramatics.
His couple chemistry with Stamets (Anthony Rapp) had a playful old-married quality.
Credit: Michael Gibson/CBS
He looked great in that snazzy white medical uniform.
Andthen he was dead, his neck snap-crackle-popped by poor body-gurgled sleeper agent Ash (Shazad Latif).
Hughs death always felt like a shock tactic, a wowza cliffhanger with zero buildup and no follow-through.
I guess you could say Culbers death was an Important Turning Point for Ash and for Stamets.
But even in that direction reducing Culber to a notch in somebody elses plot arc the show whiffed.
Ash wasnt entirely to blame for his own murderous actions.
Stamets was very sad, but his sadness got lost in season 1s hyperkinetic shuffle.
And sometimes he briefly mourned.
For no reason, turns out!
In Thursdays Saints of Imperfection, Culber returns.
Science tells us that matter cannot be created or destroyed, only rearranged.
So theDiscoverycrew discover Culber inside the mycelial web connection, gone fullCast Away.
This is an interesting idea for an episode!
An old friend/loved one, rediscovered after who-knows-how-long living in a freakish reverse dimension.
And, heres a cool twist: Hughs mere presence is destructive, eradicating the world around him.
Fleeing monsters, the sorrowful victim becomes a monster himself.
Unfortunately, the return of Culber gets lost in a narrative 10-car pileup.
She brings a friend: Ash, who takes up residence onDiscoveryto coordinate between the two ships.
All this plus some curious bookending narration from Michael (Sonequa Martin-Green) that sounds oddly elegiac.
Thereweregreater hands writing this story.
Hugh is alive again, hooray!
Ash doesnt have to feel sorry for killing him anymore, huzzah!
Or maybe the behind-the-scenes drama doesnt explain anything.
The episodes written by Kirsten Beyer, a longtimeTrekace who wroteVoyagerspinoff novels before joining theDiscostaff.
The latter never lands.
The sudden-onset friendship between Mycelial May and Tilly comes out of nowhere, too.
There are some intriguing teases forward here.
Section 31 operates as the dark inverse of the usual Starfleet philosophy.
Credit to Anson Mount, man: Pike has become one of the better things aboutDiscovery.
Hes just for now,for now an effective commander balancing playful curiosity with a tough moral code.
I remain unconvinced thatDiscohas much of a handle on Section 31, though.
By episodes end, Pike and Leland come to a mutual understanding.
Heres hoping for more principled conflict down the road.
Also, um, I think the Red Angel might be a time traveler?
What Airiam Said This Week:Incredible!Twolines from Hannah Cheesmans robo-officer!
A predetermined course with no set endpoint?
The hull of the port nacelle is too compromised!
