Star Trek: Discovery wrapped up its second season in the boldest way possible last week, as the U.S.S. Discovery crew elected to travel through a portal which would strand them 1,000 years in the future. It should mean that the series will now be able to do whatever it wants without worrying about being beholden to established canon, but it leaves the question of what’s next for our heroes totally up in the air.
While speaking to StarTrek.com, star Sonequa Martin-Green explained what she hopes is coming for Cmdr. Michael Burnham. Spock’s adoptive sister has had a rough time of it over the past two years, as she’s struggled to maintain her Vulcan upbringing with her natural human emotions, but Martin-Green hopes that season 3 will see Michael be able to reach an equilibrium. Much like season 2 did for Doug Jones’ Saru and Spock himself (Ethan Peck).
“Well, in a perfect world, I’m hoping for a balance; that very same balance we saw Spock find, that Saru’s trying to find, that all the other characters are trying to find.
I’m very excited for it because when you pick up with Michael Burnham, [she’s] this Vulcan-Human. I have this image I have built up, and it is made of diamonds. It’s almost impenetrable, these defenses I’ve put up as I’ve been overcompensating and seeking absolution. [I’m] being driven by shame and guilt and needing to prove myself. That’s where you picked up with me, at the beginning of this show.
So, what I love is that you see this outpouring of emotion in season two, because the pendulum has swung the other way. Now I’ve really connected with my humanity like never before. So now it’s time for us to swing, and swing, and swing, and swing until it gets to the middle and we find this balance.
That balance is something I’m going to be working on for some time to come, and that’s what I’m really excited to find. I’m excited for the freedom that is to come for Michael Burnham, as well, now that I’m not driven by shame. All these things have been plucked out and uprooted, so now I have the freedom to be who I am.”
Martin-Green seems to be speaking from her personal hopes for her character rather than from any insider knowledge, but it seems likely that this is the arc Burnham will undergo next season. As the actress reminds us, Discovery likes to take its characters to extremes and then let them find a balance. Saru was initially defined by his species’ fear of death before season 2 saw him lighten up somewhat. Spock, on the other hand, first appeared at his wits’ end before healing and rejoining the U.S.S. Enterprise.
We’d also expect some rivalry between Burnham and Saru as, now that Pike has likewise returned to the Enterprise, the ship is in need of a new captain. Both officers are qualified for the job, so it remains to be seen who’ll step up to the plate permanently. Unless Star Trek: Discovery plans to introduce yet another temporary captain.