“Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum” has Burnham, Tyler, and Saru exploring Pahvo in search of a crystalline transmitter on its surface. Saru seems profoundly affected by the planet and its inhabitants, and spends the rest of the episode being really hard to like.
Behind the Camera
John Scott sits in the director’s chair for “Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum.” This marks his first, and so far only, contribution to the Star Trek universe. His contributions to TV as a whole, however, are numerous! From shows like The Magicians to Nip/Tuck to Suits, Scott has had his hand in the direction of an impressive number of hit television shows.
Credit for the script this time around goes to Kirsten Beyer. She’s a staff writer on the show, so she’s undoubtedly been involved in crafting most of the episodes so far in some capacity. But “Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum” is her first solo writing credit in season one. She’ll return with another solo writing credit in season two with “Saints of Imperfection.”
Kirsten Beyer is also the one that a bunch of those Anti-Disco nutjobs on Twitter love to target. Her television writing credits before this don’t exist. “How can she be a real science fiction writer?! Does she even know anything about Star Trek?!” These are things fools shout into the void, making a concerted effort to avoid recognizing the existence of the dozen Voyager novels she has written.
But personally as a fan of Star Trek novels in general (I haven’t read any Voyager books YET), I somehow got the impression that part of her job on Discovery is to be a liaison to book side of Star Trek. My feeling is that this will make the books feel more tied into the shows, and if the first three Discovery novels are any indication, this is definitely a thing that’s happening. And a thing for which I am deeply grateful. Great Star Trek content is something I crave, regardless of what medium it’s provided in.
In Front of the Camera
- Jayne Brook returns as Admiral Cornwell and continues to be a treasure.
- Mary Chieffo’s L’Rell continues to be an absolutely fascinating character, but geeze. I am unsure how they’re going to keep this character sustainable and a regular part of the show.
- Kenneth Mitchell returns as Kol! He’s been with us since way back at the Battle at the Binary Stars! He also popped by briefly in “The Butcher’s Knife Cares Not for the Lamb’s Cry” and “Lethe.” It’s looking like Kol will finish his run with “Into the Forest I Go.”
Don’t forget to subscribe to Disco Night: A Star Trek Discovery Podcast in iTunes. It’s always more fun to watch Star Trek with friends. Speaking of which, check out our other Star Trek podcast. We’re going through all the episodes in stardate order. And that’s a fun thing.
Disco Night is a Star Trek Discovery Podcast, released every Monday.