After re-subscribing to Paramount Plus after bowing out around the sixth episode of Discovery, I jumped ahead to see what or who the Species 10-C aliens were that I was expecting/hoping we would see in this episode. But after seeing the episode, I would be okay if they stay mysterious and new to Trek. I rather liked how they were depicted, it made them feel more alien. Also, how the crew couldn't easily communicate with them. While that was a bit drawn out, it was still very Trek and I appreciated that.
I'm torn a bit about this episode, as well as the fourth season (that I've seen). In many respects I got to give the writers/creators a lot of credit because they are moving in the right direction. We've gotten more across the board character development, we've gotten more personal stakes, we've gotten conflict rooted more organically in those stakes between Booker and Burnham, and we've got a science/science-fiction mystery (and while the fate of the galaxy still hangs in the balance), it's not quite the shoot 'em up that we've gotten in the past. This season is more like The Motion Picture and The Voyage Home. However, I still don't think it's quite gelled.
In this 12th episode, the pacing felt a bit off, like they were dragging things out. But then there were things like the Burham-Saru scream moment which really showed how far they've come since the first season, but at the same time felt like it was the wrong time to have that moment with a countdown ticking. (It felt as strangely placed as the retconned ENT holodeck scenes inside the TNG episode "The Pegasus"). But the thing is I liked the scene well enough, and I really liked how Burnham had offered Saru her insight into Vulcans to help him understand T'Rina. That was a cool, full circle kind of aside.
Another moment I liked, but at the same time felt was stretching things was when Burnham had the bridge crew involved in figuring out how to communicate with the aliens. This was a time they did need Tilly. It was great to have the bridge crew get more lines, but it felt like Saru, Burnham, the others already in the room, and Zora for that matter could've figured it out. If anything, I think Stamets and Adira would've been more helpful.
It's standard for this series, but the production values are great. The cliffhanger ending wasn't unexpected, but it was a bit saddening to see Species 10-C mistake Tarka's actions for those of Discovery.