During Star Trek: DiscoveryOver the course of four seasons, Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) has changed more than any other Star Trek captain over the course of their run. Star Trek: Discovery season 5 promises a shift to a more adventurous tone as Captain Burnham leads the USS Discovery-A on a quest to find the “the greatest treasure in the known galaxy.” As the central character of Star Trek: DiscoveryMichael’s character development coincides with the continued evolution of the series.
Star Trek: Discovery is unique among Star Trek shows because Michael Burnham is undeniably the star and main character. Other Star Trek series are more of a whole; although the captain is the traditional lead, he does not necessarily direct the main plot of every episode of an entire season. Star Trek: Discovery was designed to break the mold in several ways, starting with the fact that when the series began the central character was not a captain but Michael, a former Starfleet commander who was broken for causing the devastating war of the Klingons from 2256-2257. As Star Trek: Discovery continued, Michael has transformed significantly, not just in his physical appearance and hairstyles, but in the very nature of his character.
How Burnham has changed since Star Trek: Discovery began
Since its introduction in Star Trek: Discovery season 1, Michael Burnham is still highly intelligent, intuitive, and ready for action at any time. But Discovery Season 1’s Burnham was a very different person as the fact that she was raised on Vulcan by Ambassador Sarek (James Frain) was pretty obvious. Michael abused logic to act unilaterally to prevent the Klingon War, and his mutiny ended up sparking that same war, which led to the death of Captain Phillipa Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh) and the destruction of his ship, the ‘USS Shenzhou. After serving a prison sentence, Michael was broken and humiliated, and she gradually fought to regain her redemption and her rank as a commander.
Through Star Trek: Discovery, Michael lost his adopted Vulcan coldness and openly embraced his emotions as she formed family bonds with Sylvia Tilly (Mary Wiseman), Saru (Doug Jones) and the crew of Discovery. In Star Trek: Discovery season 3, Michael has fallen in love with Cleveland Booker (David Ajala), and she precariously balances her relationship with Book and her Starfleet responsibilities. The original Michael passed Discovery season 4, and Burnham is now more than a starship captain. She is the de facto head of the USS Discovery family who openly expresses his love for Book and his crewmates who sacrificed everything to travel with her to the 32nd century.
Discovery’s future means Burnham’s development isn’t over
The evolution of Michael’s character is set to continue in Star Trek: Discovery season 5, which teases that Captain Burnham will spearhead a galactic treasure hunt. This will bring her into contact with thieves she met during the missing year that Burnham and Book worked as couriers, which is sure to reveal even more about her character. In fact, that year Michael spent with Book marked the biggest change in Michael’s personality, as she was released from her Starfleet duty and reveled in a kind of freedom that Burnham never had. previously known. Michael was clearly a changed woman when she returned to the USS Discovery and climbed into the captain’s chair.
Captain Burnham continues to be a work in progress whose evolution is the core of Star Trek: Discovery. Trace Michael from Discovery The start of Season 1 through the end of Season 4 shows a woman who has learned tough lessons, overcome insurmountable challenges, and faces the harshest truths about herself in order to rise above. With Star Trek: Discovery now permanently settled in the 32nd century, Michael is literally nearly a thousand years away from her debut as a character, and Burnham embraces her changes, emotions, and betterment with the same enthusiasm as she faces the unknown future. .
Star Trek: Discovery Season 5 is scheduled to air in 2023 on Paramount+.
