When Do You Want To See Burnham Become The STD Captain?

Spin off series.

 

About Prime Lorca...for anyone curious, he is a main character in the latest DSC novel, Drastic Measures.

Spoiler: novel

Most of the novel is about the disaster at Tarsus IV and the subsequent search for 'Kodos the Executioner'. LCDR Lorca is stationed at a monitoring outpost near the colony and is unable to prevent the disaster but he teams up with Georgiou for the investigation and search for Kodos.

The last scene in the novel is set in the present...it turns out that Prime Lorca is still alive, is in the MU (apparently ended up there when Mirror Lorca crossed over), and is being held prisoner by persons unknown.

 

After the reset. After they go back in time to save her parents and get rid of the raised by Vulcans thing. After they make her a normal human woman without Vulcan superpowers. Yes, I do know I'm dreaming in Technicolor - I can do that.

 

There doesn't seem to be cast iron agreement as to whether Burnham was guilty of mutiny (as opposed to a series of offences like striking a superior officer, disobeying a direct command etc). However, whatever the logic (and what we believe), canon has shown (ST:IV) Starfleet/the Federation have no compunctions in dropping charges against a group of officers who do seem to be guilty of mutiny (they only kept the single charge against Kirk - disobeying a superior officer, a crime less than Burnham's but clearly stated not to be mutiny). Yes they did it because Kirk and co saved the Earth and they wanted to put him back in the Captain's chair "officially" as opposed to "temporary rank reduction" (which is implied in ST:TMP).

So if by season ending Burnham is considered to have redeemed herself (and/or that her tribunal was unfairly harsh) then I'd expect her to regain a commission....but they won't make her Captain, even if (when) they kill off the Emperor. Some reprimand (a la Kirk) is clearly needed to show they don't just let people off regularly (even though by the time of later ST iterations we know they do!)

I'm guessing they want to keep her POV as being a below-decks/lowly officer person. Let her "journey" be moving back up the ranks. I don't think, assuming she does perform a pivotal role in the finale, that they will intend her long-term fate to be set in stone as someone never to be given a command. But neither do the writers want her in a senior role from the get-go, given the show's stated premise. Giving her a commission but low rank might indeed be an in-universe "PR thing" as a sop to the (presumably defeated) Klingons, just as Kirk's demotion in ST:IV might be argued to be PR so they'd shut up about him "murdering" (according to them) Commander Kruge!

 

Will ordinary viewers like Burnham starting at Ensign?

 

Never.

 

No, just disobeying a direct order, stealing Starfleet property, destroying said property, luring Klingon officers under a false flag of truce and murdering them, violating a quarantine zone, springing a prisoner from Starfleet custody, false imprisonment, assaulting Starfleet personnel, sabotaging Starfleet equipment, and there is probably something I'm forgetting.

Neither mind, Spock's insubordination, falsifying orders, and usurping lawful chain of command.

But, Burnham's crimes are far worse...