flying ghoti
@flyingghoti.bsky.social
I'm currently watching every single Star Trek episode in in-universe chronological order and posting my thoughts on every single one. It seemed like a good idea at the time.
Currently in 3190 with “Discovery” season four. Let's fly!
Currently in 3190 with “Discovery” season four. Let's fly!
DIS S4E1, “Kobayashi Maru”: Burnham leads a rescue mission after a station is hit by an anomaly. This is actually my first time watching S4! I liked S3 when I first saw it but never got around to continuing, so this is all new to me. I like it so far; this is an intriguing opening episode.
January 23, 2026 at 12:23 AM
DIS S4E1, “Kobayashi Maru”: Burnham leads a rescue mission after a station is hit by an anomaly. This is actually my first time watching S4! I liked S3 when I first saw it but never got around to continuing, so this is all new to me. I like it so far; this is an intriguing opening episode.
DIS S3E13, “That Hope Is You, Part II”: The Discovery crew must stop Osyraa from using their ship to destroy the Federation. A very strong closing episode to a very strong season! It's not the best Star Trek has ever been, but it's relentlessly optimistic that good will triumph because it is good.
January 21, 2026 at 11:12 PM
DIS S3E13, “That Hope Is You, Part II”: The Discovery crew must stop Osyraa from using their ship to destroy the Federation. A very strong closing episode to a very strong season! It's not the best Star Trek has ever been, but it's relentlessly optimistic that good will triumph because it is good.
DIS S3E12, “There Is a Tide…”: The Emerald Chain has a surprising pitch for Admiral Vance. I really like the negotiation scenes here; Osryaa's pitch is actually kinda compelling and seems to be meant 100% sincerely. She only asks a small compromise from the Federation: their sense of justice.
January 21, 2026 at 6:25 AM
DIS S3E12, “There Is a Tide…”: The Emerald Chain has a surprising pitch for Admiral Vance. I really like the negotiation scenes here; Osryaa's pitch is actually kinda compelling and seems to be meant 100% sincerely. She only asks a small compromise from the Federation: their sense of justice.
DIS S3E11, “Su'Kal": Discovery tries to save the stranded Kelpian at the heart of the Burn. Damn, remember when Star Trek seasons had more than 10 episodes? It's amazing how even just having 13 feels like a luxury. Especially in an era of season-long arcs, it makes a huge difference to the pacing.
January 20, 2026 at 2:17 AM
DIS S3E11, “Su'Kal": Discovery tries to save the stranded Kelpian at the heart of the Burn. Damn, remember when Star Trek seasons had more than 10 episodes? It's amazing how even just having 13 feels like a luxury. Especially in an era of season-long arcs, it makes a huge difference to the pacing.
DIS S3E10, “Terra Firma, Part II”: Georgiou attempts to find a way to rule the Terran Empire with a slightly less iron fist. The growth in Georgiou's character shown here feels earned and does actually work for me. She's still ruthless and evil, but she can't be the same kind of evil she used to be.
January 19, 2026 at 3:14 AM
DIS S3E10, “Terra Firma, Part II”: Georgiou attempts to find a way to rule the Terran Empire with a slightly less iron fist. The growth in Georgiou's character shown here feels earned and does actually work for me. She's still ruthless and evil, but she can't be the same kind of evil she used to be.
DIS S3E9, “Terra Firma, Part I”: Georgiou, dying of acute time travel, gets the chance to go back and fix her past in the Mirror Universe. I keep on thinking we're done with the MU only for it to come back again, usually disappointing me in the process. But there is something here worth the revisit.
January 18, 2026 at 12:59 AM
DIS S3E9, “Terra Firma, Part I”: Georgiou, dying of acute time travel, gets the chance to go back and fix her past in the Mirror Universe. I keep on thinking we're done with the MU only for it to come back again, usually disappointing me in the process. But there is something here worth the revisit.
DIS S3E8, “Sanctuary”: Book has to go home to make sure his planet is safe from the 32nd century version of the Orion syndicate. I think it was actually a mistake to make the Orions the baddies. It'd be more interesting to make them Federation members and the bad guys… idk, Tellarites? Betazoids?
January 17, 2026 at 4:44 AM
DIS S3E8, “Sanctuary”: Book has to go home to make sure his planet is safe from the 32nd century version of the Orion syndicate. I think it was actually a mistake to make the Orions the baddies. It'd be more interesting to make them Federation members and the bad guys… idk, Tellarites? Betazoids?
I didn't plan my chronological Star Trek watchthrough so that I would get to the 32nd century right in time for Starfleet Academy, but it looks like I got pretty close anyway. I am forcing myself to finish Disco before starting SFA, even though I'm as uncautiously optimistic as I get for new Trek.
January 17, 2026 at 4:25 AM
I didn't plan my chronological Star Trek watchthrough so that I would get to the 32nd century right in time for Starfleet Academy, but it looks like I got pretty close anyway. I am forcing myself to finish Disco before starting SFA, even though I'm as uncautiously optimistic as I get for new Trek.
DIS S3E7, “Unification III”: 821 years after Spock first tried to bring about the reunification of Romulus and Vulcan, the two populations finally live at something resembling peace on their shared ancestral homeworld. Now Michael has to ask both groups to trust her and share data about the Burn.
January 16, 2026 at 3:13 AM
DIS S3E7, “Unification III”: 821 years after Spock first tried to bring about the reunification of Romulus and Vulcan, the two populations finally live at something resembling peace on their shared ancestral homeworld. Now Michael has to ask both groups to trust her and share data about the Burn.
DIS S3E6, “Scavengers”: Burnham goes rogue to rescue Book and learn more about the Burn. This was a hard episode to watch for me because I really don't like seeing Saru disappointed in Michael. But I do like Admiral Vance. Weird to like a Starfleet admiral, but he's the rare exception (so far…)
January 15, 2026 at 1:35 AM
DIS S3E6, “Scavengers”: Burnham goes rogue to rescue Book and learn more about the Burn. This was a hard episode to watch for me because I really don't like seeing Saru disappointed in Michael. But I do like Admiral Vance. Weird to like a Starfleet admiral, but he's the rare exception (so far…)
DIS S3E5, “Die Trying”: Once again Discovery comes to what should be a safe harbor and finds a cool reception, but this time they're staying anyway. A bit of a side quest episode as the crew has to prove their worth to Starfleet, but it's a decent side quest as they go. The crew dynamics are great.
January 14, 2026 at 2:18 AM
DIS S3E5, “Die Trying”: Once again Discovery comes to what should be a safe harbor and finds a cool reception, but this time they're staying anyway. A bit of a side quest episode as the crew has to prove their worth to Starfleet, but it's a decent side quest as they go. The crew dynamics are great.
DIS S3E4, “Forget Me Not”: New crewmate Adira, a Human host to a Trill symbiont, needs help unlocking their memories. I love the Guardians of Mak'ala. They're my favorite Weird Cave Dudes in all of Star Trek canon. I can't even tell you why, I just really appreciate them and their weird milk pools.
January 13, 2026 at 2:06 AM
DIS S3E4, “Forget Me Not”: New crewmate Adira, a Human host to a Trill symbiont, needs help unlocking their memories. I love the Guardians of Mak'ala. They're my favorite Weird Cave Dudes in all of Star Trek canon. I can't even tell you why, I just really appreciate them and their weird milk pools.
DIS S3E3, “People of Earth”: Discovery arrives at Earth but finds a cool reception. There's a recurring theme to these episodes so far; the world sucks, then Disco shows up and is like “what if we Starfleet at this problem” and then they solve the problem. I'm not mad about this in the slightest.
January 11, 2026 at 5:35 AM
DIS S3E3, “People of Earth”: Discovery arrives at Earth but finds a cool reception. There's a recurring theme to these episodes so far; the world sucks, then Disco shows up and is like “what if we Starfleet at this problem” and then they solve the problem. I'm not mad about this in the slightest.
DIS S3E2, “Far From Home”: Discovery arrives in the future, but it's a rough landing. Not as good as episode 1, but with some definite highlights. Saru is particularly great here, with some really top-tier captaining. Plus I missed the way Doug Jones swings his arms behind his back when he walks.
January 10, 2026 at 2:27 AM
DIS S3E2, “Far From Home”: Discovery arrives in the future, but it's a rough landing. Not as good as episode 1, but with some definite highlights. Saru is particularly great here, with some really top-tier captaining. Plus I missed the way Doug Jones swings his arms behind his back when he walks.
DIS S3E1, “That Hope Is You, Part I”: Burnham finds herself alone in the 32nd century, a hundred years after the fall of the Federation. This episode is, for starters, gorgeous – the cinematography does the Icelandic landscapes proud. It's also well written; the exposition in particular is smooth.
January 9, 2026 at 3:11 AM
DIS S3E1, “That Hope Is You, Part I”: Burnham finds herself alone in the 32nd century, a hundred years after the fall of the Federation. This episode is, for starters, gorgeous – the cinematography does the Icelandic landscapes proud. It's also well written; the exposition in particular is smooth.
VOY S4E23, “Living Witness”: Sometime in the 3070s, a copy of the Doctor is found and called on to defend Voyager's good name from 700 years of revisionist history. One last little blip of second wave Trek in our chronology before we hit the 32nd century, and it took the bad taste of Picard S3 away.
January 8, 2026 at 12:18 AM
VOY S4E23, “Living Witness”: Sometime in the 3070s, a copy of the Doctor is found and called on to defend Voyager's good name from 700 years of revisionist history. One last little blip of second wave Trek in our chronology before we hit the 32nd century, and it took the bad taste of Picard S3 away.
All in all, season 3 of “Picard” was a frustrating mess of a story that felt like a loveless, color-by-numbers tribute to second wave Trek. There were moments when the constant hammering on the nostalgia button worked on me, but that, if anything, just made me resent it more. It felt manipulative.
January 6, 2026 at 1:45 AM
All in all, season 3 of “Picard” was a frustrating mess of a story that felt like a loveless, color-by-numbers tribute to second wave Trek. There were moments when the constant hammering on the nostalgia button worked on me, but that, if anything, just made me resent it more. It felt manipulative.
PIC S3E10, “The Last Generation”: The old Enterprise crew comes together to save Earth yet again. This has all the ingredients of a big cinematic goodbye to the 24th-25th century era of Star Trek, but it just doesn't do it for me. They pressed the nostalgia button one too many times and I'm over it.
January 6, 2026 at 1:27 AM
PIC S3E10, “The Last Generation”: The old Enterprise crew comes together to save Earth yet again. This has all the ingredients of a big cinematic goodbye to the 24th-25th century era of Star Trek, but it just doesn't do it for me. They pressed the nostalgia button one too many times and I'm over it.
PIC S3E9, “Võx”: Troi helps Jack figure out his secret, and the Frontier Day conspiracy comes to a head with an unexpected antagonist. They honestly lost me with this twist. It's just disappointing. The earlier surprise antagonist at least felt fresh; this is just going back to the same old well.
January 5, 2026 at 3:23 AM
PIC S3E9, “Võx”: Troi helps Jack figure out his secret, and the Frontier Day conspiracy comes to a head with an unexpected antagonist. They honestly lost me with this twist. It's just disappointing. The earlier surprise antagonist at least felt fresh; this is just going back to the same old well.
PIC S3E8, “Surrender”: Vadic wants Jack to surrender; Lore wants Data to surrender. I don't much enjoy “I'll kill one hostage every X minutes until you surrender” stories; they're never fun, and feel as manipulative of the audience as they are of the hero. It's cheap drama, and it's played out.
January 4, 2026 at 3:08 AM
PIC S3E8, “Surrender”: Vadic wants Jack to surrender; Lore wants Data to surrender. I don't much enjoy “I'll kill one hostage every X minutes until you surrender” stories; they're never fun, and feel as manipulative of the audience as they are of the hero. It's cheap drama, and it's played out.
PIC S3E7, “Dominion”: Picard has the terrible idea to spring a trap for Vadic. And now, a rant: The fact that Section 31 has become so indistinguishable from Starfleet that they don't even bother trying to draw a distinction anymore is maybe the thing I dislike the most about third wave Trek.
January 2, 2026 at 2:03 AM
PIC S3E7, “Dominion”: Picard has the terrible idea to spring a trap for Vadic. And now, a rant: The fact that Section 31 has become so indistinguishable from Starfleet that they don't even bother trying to draw a distinction anymore is maybe the thing I dislike the most about third wave Trek.
PIC S3E6, “The Bounty”: On the run from literally everyone, Picard and the Titan crew still find time for a little grand larceny. This episode is definitely trying hard to push my nostalgia buttons – there's actual footage in it from “Encounter at Farpoint” – but I think it's trying a bit TOO hard.
January 1, 2026 at 12:24 AM
PIC S3E6, “The Bounty”: On the run from literally everyone, Picard and the Titan crew still find time for a little grand larceny. This episode is definitely trying hard to push my nostalgia buttons – there's actual footage in it from “Encounter at Farpoint” – but I think it's trying a bit TOO hard.
PIC S3E5, “Imposters”: Picard and Riker are in trouble with no less than Ro Laren; meanwhile, something's wrong with Jack. A well-executed episode, but I find “conspiracy in Starfleet” stories a bit drab. DS9 pulled it off because they earned it and tied it in with some important social commentary.
December 29, 2025 at 1:17 AM
PIC S3E5, “Imposters”: Picard and Riker are in trouble with no less than Ro Laren; meanwhile, something's wrong with Jack. A well-executed episode, but I find “conspiracy in Starfleet” stories a bit drab. DS9 pulled it off because they earned it and tied it in with some important social commentary.
PIC S3E4, “No Win Scenario”: The crew of the Titan will plummet to their deaths if they can't come up with some Classic Starfleet Bullshit to save the day. I joke, but this is my favorite episode of S3 so far. High stakes, some serious emotional beats, and a very Star Trek ending to it all.
December 28, 2025 at 2:32 AM
PIC S3E4, “No Win Scenario”: The crew of the Titan will plummet to their deaths if they can't come up with some Classic Starfleet Bullshit to save the day. I joke, but this is my favorite episode of S3 so far. High stakes, some serious emotional beats, and a very Star Trek ending to it all.
PIC S3E3, “Seventeen Seconds”: The Titan tries to escape the Shrike while Raffi and Worf make a discovery. The discovery in question has really given the show a shot in the arm, though it's too early yet to know if I'm just experiencing passing “hey, I've heard of that thing!” fanservice euphoria.
December 27, 2025 at 12:43 AM
PIC S3E3, “Seventeen Seconds”: The Titan tries to escape the Shrike while Raffi and Worf make a discovery. The discovery in question has really given the show a shot in the arm, though it's too early yet to know if I'm just experiencing passing “hey, I've heard of that thing!” fanservice euphoria.