Well, I certainly didn't expect to revisit the Mirror Universe any time soon. I wonder how real Georgiou's experience is, because it felt really dreamlike, especially with how she kept narrating what was happening around her ("this is the day that...") during her discussion with Killy, who didn't seem to find it weird at all. Is it some sort of mental time travel like what Q did with Picard in
Tapestry, that would ultimately not change history? Perhaps a bit like Kirk in the Nexus in
Generations, using it as a chance to make things right at first before ultimately realizing none of this is real. Hearing Mirror Burnham's confession about how she resents the Emperor turning her from a master of the trash heap into someone whose entire existence is dependent on her, it feels to me as if "Carl" sent Georgiou to this exact moment in space and time to help her resolve her issues regarding Michael. She chided Prime Michael for how she only brought her to the Prime Universe because she couldn't let go of Prime Georgiou, but it seems like she is just as unable to let go of her adoptive daughter herself. I don't see yet what endgame this could lead to, but possibly it's to prepare her emotionally for the decision to leave Prime Michael behind and return to the 23rd century where she might survive, thereby setting up the scene for a Section 31 series. Whether that's correct or not, I feel we're missing a lot of context here that will only get clarified the next week.
Overall, I found I didn't care as much for the Mirror Universe as I first thought I would (I mean, Captain Killy the Very Awesomest in the flesh, how cool is that?), because I felt the whole time as if none of this was real at all, that this is all a journey to the center of the mind for Georgiou's own benefit, not unlike how Deep Space Nine and Voyager usually served as the setting for Bashir's and Janeway's mental experiences. And, well, also because the moment Georgiou stepped through that door, the entire focus went with her and we didn't hear about our Discovery for the rest of the episode. I wasn't exactly sold on her as a protagonist, because (for me, at least), she works better as a snarky foil to our heroes than as a master of her own story. That being said, I'm still worried for her and I keep wondering what this is all about.
I'm also curious who "Carl" is, with his oh-so-mysterious attitude, constant obfuscation, his bowler hat and tweed jacket, and I suspect we'll find out the next week. I have a feeling he gave evasive answers to Burnham's questions because he wanted to convey that this was Georgiou's journey alone and she should stay out of it. And he would've probably been right... I was convinced she would run through the door right after Georgiou.
Vance keeps being a pleasant surprise, with both his advice to Saru about leaving no one behind, and also letting Burnham help Georgiou while signaling she should be able to let her go. I loved that he had read up on Discovery and pointed out what had happened with Airiam, but perhaps he could've also mentioned that it was Burnham's fault that Georgiou was in the Prime Universe in the first place, because she couldn't let go of a mentor who was already dead. Of course, Georgiou told her that later herself.
Observations:
- Kovich talking about Terrans being driven by instinct felt quite a bit racist to me. No wonder Hugh immediately called bullshit and prompted the computer to find a cure for her.
- I was pleasantly surprised by Georgiou showing begrudging respect to Saru and Tilly, and found it very funny how she basically went all "does not compute" at receiving the full Tilly hug treatment... then she hugged her back, then immediately realized what she was doing and asked Burnham to get the hell out of here with a really embarrassed look on her face. I still maintain she has a shriveled, smoking, gray Romulan heart deep inside somewhere.
- I'm especially intrigued by the dilithium nursery the Kelpiens claim to have found inside the nebula. Could it be that SB-19 was an attempt to artificially grow and farm dilithium crystals (instead of simply recrystallizing them over and over with possibly ever-diminishing results) that somehow went horribly wrong?
- Did Mirror Stamets and Culber seriously use agonizers as party games? They reminded me of Brunt's Nausicaan henchmen from Body Parts (EDIT: Bar Association. I mean Bar Association. I never wrote Body Parts, no sir), the ones who kept throwing darts at each other.