The story begins right in the middle of a fight, as Star Trek: Discovery’s final episode, Life Itself, kicks off. Michael Burnham regains consciousness in a strange place she doesn’t recognise. She quickly realises that she has lost all contact with the USS Discovery and her crew, and her tricorder readings offer no clear answers.
Around her is a long corridor that looks like it stretches without end, lined with windows along both sides. As Burnham examines the environment, she starts to believe the windows may serve as more than just architectural features.
Discovery’s last stand balances diplomacy and danger (Photo: Star Trek Discovery Season 5/CBS Television Studios in association with Secret Hideout, Roddenberry Entertainment, and Living Dead Guy Productions)She suspects they might be viewing points used by the Progenitors to observe life across various planets, or even devices they used to spread life throughout the galaxy. This part of the episode focuses solely on Burnham, allowing the audience to witness the emotional depth she brings.
Sonequa Martin-Green’s performance once again shows how central her role has been from the start of the series until this concluding chapter.
What Became of the Breen During the Discovery Finale?
While Burnham tries to make sense of her situation, the rest of the crew and Starfleet continue their effort to locate her. Tensions rise fast as a harsh Breen primarch called Tahal prepares to arrive. Commander Rayner gets Discovery ready for battle, but Saru wants a peaceful resolution and urges Admiral Vance to let him try negotiating.
There’s no clear solution at this point. Both choices come with big risks, and time is slipping away. They all understand that the Progenitor technology must not fall into dangerous hands. Book decides to head straight for the Progenitors’ portal.
Doctor Culber joins him, believing this journey might help him deal with the emptiness he has felt since the zhiantara ceremony on Trill. At the same time, Saru and Commander Nhan make an effort to meet with Tahal. Although she shuts down talks quickly, they manage to get insight into her true motives.
Saru and Nhan later manage to corner Tahal, and with Saru’s firm stance, he successfully pressures her to retreat. That threat is handled, but another one remains: the first group of Breen continues attacking Discovery.
Rayner then proposes a plan that sounds unusual: rather than jumping the Discovery with the spore drive, they would jump something else entirely.
After debating with Tilly and Stamets – especially over whether it’s possible to reverse quantum entanglement polarity – they move forward with what might be the boldest black alert operation ever attempted.
Discovery’s saucer and hull separate, take position on either side of the Breen dreadnought, and send it far across the galaxy.
Understanding the Progenitors’ Technology
Eventually, Burnham walks through one of the portals and ends up on a rocky and windy planet. For a second, it looks like she’s stepped into a set from Doctor Who. But her attention quickly turns to a Breen soldier who confronts her.
She manages to fight back and return to the Progenitors’ base. There, she runs into Moll, who is also after the Progenitor tech. Moll believes it could bring her partner, L’Ak, back from death.
They both fall through different worlds during their struggle – lush pink forests, intense lava pits – before Burnham tries to reason with Moll. She makes a promise to support her mission to help L’Ak, and that leads to a fragile truce between them.
Together, they find what seems to be the source of the Progenitors’ technology, in an area covered with bright yellow plants. But they meet one last challenge: they have to arrange triangular tiles based on the phrase, “make the shape out of the one between the many.”
They disagree on what the phrase means, and right at that moment, Book’s distorted voice breaks in on comms. As Burnham gets distracted, Moll takes the chance to knock her out. Thinking she’s solved it, Moll creates one large triangle using nine smaller ones – but she’s missed the true meaning of the puzzle and ends up getting stunned.
Outside the realm, the portal begins to flicker and lose stability. Book and Culber try to steady it, using a frequency from the spiritual ritual Culber experienced.
Burnham wakes up and makes a fresh attempt. Rather than building the triangle outright, she arranges the tiles so that the space between them forms the large triangle, crafting “the one between the many.” This solution brings forth a Progenitor – calm, dressed in white, and almost sacred in their demeanour.
The Progenitor explains that they didn’t build the tech. They found it, most likely abandoned by an ancient race even older than theirs. This discovery also comes with limits: it won’t help Moll bring L’Ak back in any real sense.
Burnham’s Final Decision
As the conversation with the Progenitor continues, Burnham begins to see what they truly want from her: they are offering her the responsibility of deciding the tech’s future. They ask her to serve as guardian of the technology, but she feels unsure at first.
Sonequa Martin-Green commands the screen one final time (Photo: Star Trek Discovery Season 5/CBS Television Studios in association with Secret Hideout, Roddenberry Entertainment, and Living Dead Guy Productions)After reflecting on the principles that define her commitment to science, loyalty, compassion, appreciation for beauty, and openness to change, she returns to Discovery with a clear idea. Burnham gathers the crew and tells them her choice.
Rather than dissect it like Stamets wants or weaponise it like Rayner fears, she believes it should be destroyed. They send the Progenitor tech into the pair of black holes orbiting near the portal, which mirrors the binary stars where the Discovery’s journey first began.
Burnham trusts that the true creators of the tech will reclaim it if the time ever comes again.
The Truth About Dr Kovich
After the crew gets back to Federation headquarters, Burnham meets with Dr Kovich for a debrief. The Progenitor technology is now classified and will never be discussed again, just like Discovery’s own spore drive project once was.
Kovich also says Moll is now in his care and hopes she’ll use her skills as a courier to assist the Federation in new ways.
Before leaving, Burnham looks around Kovich’s office and notices several objects from different periods – a wine bottle from Chateau Picard, a familiar visor, and a baseball that might have once belonged to Sisko. It dawns on her that “Kovich” could just be another top-secret alias.
Kovich then reveals his true identity. He introduces himself properly as Agent Daniels, a character last seen in Star Trek: Enterprise. He was deeply involved in the Temporal Cold War and helped set Captain Archer’s early missions in motion.
Did Saru and T’Rina Finally Wed?
The finale wraps with Saru and T’Rina’s wedding, attended by their friends from Discovery and other Starfleet leaders. As the celebrations go on, Burnham moves through the guests, having short but meaningful conversations.
Tilly shares her decision to start a mentorship programme at the Academy, inspired by how Burnham and Rayner worked together under pressure. The book then shows up – dressed up and arriving late – and he meets Michael. They leave the party together for a walk by the beach, reflecting on their past and present.
Though both agree that the future still feels uncertain, the journey they’ve taken gives them hope to face whatever lies ahead.
