Star Trek: Discovery Teases Saru’s Return In Season 4

Star Trek: Discovery season 3’s finale saw a big change to the show’s status quo. Not quite as big as the whole crew jumping 1000 years into the future like at the end of the last run, but something pretty major all the same.

Saru elected to leave the U.S.S. Discovery in order to return to his homeworld of Kaminar, appointing Michael Burnham as his successor in the captain’s chair. But though the Kelpian has currently taken leave from Starfleet, he won’t be gone for good.

The latest post on the official Star Trek Logs Instagram account recounts Saru’s final log as captain of the Discovery, and it heavily hints that he’ll be returning to the ship in season 4. As it reminds us, in the finale, Saru managed to convince fellow Kelpian Su’Kal, who it turns out is the one who was accidentally responsible for The Burn, to emerge from his home in a holographic situation so that he could return him to Kaminar.

Here’s the full text of the log:

“My final Starfleet log, for now,” the log begins. “I have relinquished command of Discovery so that I may accompany Su’Kal to Kaminar. A difficult decision, to be sure, but I have no doubt it is the right one. Adjusting to life outside the nebula will not be easy for him, especially as the repercussions of the Burn become clear. I will help him acclimate into Kaminar society, ensure he feels safe and cared for, however long that takes, and I know I leave Discovery in excellent hands. Michael is more than a capable officer, she is a dear friend. I have no doubt she will exceed all expectations as Captain. I cannot deny that I am quite eager to rediscover my home world… and I am also comforted knowing that when I am ready to return to the stars, Discovery will be there. Until then…”

Of course, this isn’t the first time we’ve been assured that there’ll be more of Saru in the next run. For one, Doug Jones took part in the season 4 announcement video (which you can see in the player above) and gushed about how excited he was to get back to work, so we know he’s involved in it. Sure enough, co-showrunner Michelle Paradise has also confirmed that Saru will make his way back to the Discovery bridge. “[W]e are not letting Doug Jones go anywhere,” she told TV Line. “He’s definitely back in action for season 4.”

With The Burn mystery solved, Captain Burnham’s new mission is to share the newfound supply of dilithium around the galaxy and go about restoring the Federation to its former glory. And seeing as Star Trek: Discovery has been back in production for a while now, expect there to be a much shorter gap between the airing of seasons 3 and 4 than there was between seasons 2 and 3.