Why would Lorca want Saru as an XO?

[Lord Garth]

Before someone jumps up and says, "Garth has seen the light! See? STD sucks!" No. But some things do strike me as odd. Like why would Lorca want Saru as an XO?

Maybe, after the Buran was destroyed, Saru was still waiting around for a new assignment after the Shenzhou was abandoned. So he was one of the few XO's available and basically the luck of the draw and all Lorca had to choose from...

... but if he had a choice, why would he go with Saru? Lorca having Saru as an XO would be like having me, if I still ate meat, have a talking lamb as my First Officer. Lorca must've found it beyond weird.

But, even taking that out of the picture, Lorca's a pragmatist. I'd think that would include someone who'd be on the same page as him. Lorca loves danger. And Saru, with his ganglia, shies away from it at all costs. They seem to be a total mismatch of a Captain and First Officer.

 

[Locutus of Bored]

Lorca comes from a universe where you constantly have to watch your back lest someone stab you in it. Given that paranoia, he might find it useful to have someone with a threat detection Spidey-sense nearby to warn him of danger, but also someone he considers passive and not a threat himself. Hence, Saru makes a perfect choice.

Additionally, since he was trying to court Burnham to join him, he wanted as many of her familiar Shenzhou crewmates around as possible to recreate the bridge dynamic. And they can provide him with details on her version in this universe that her bio might miss.

 

[Lord Garth]

Lorca comes from a universe where you constantly have to watch your back lest someone stabs you in it. Given that paranoia, he might find it useful to have someone with a threat detection Spidey-sense nearby to warn him of threats, but also someone he considers passive and not a threat himself. Hence, Saru makes a perfect choice.

That makes sense.

Additionally, since he was trying to court Burnham to join him, he wanted as many of her familiar Shenzhou crewmates around as possible to recreate the bridge dynamic. And they can provide him with details on her version in this universe that her bio might miss.

And would be effective emotional manipulation.

 

[EmoBorg]

Lorca was intelligent and cunning in manipulating the Discovery crew. He hid his imperial hatred of non humans well.

 

[F. King Daniel]

It was in case they got lost on an away mission and he got hungry

 

[EmoBorg]

It was in case they got lost on an away mission and he got hungry

Mirrior Universe Philippa Georgiou might have the same idea.

 

[Vger23]

I think the idea that it was part of how Lorca wanted to manipulate Burnham makes sense.

 

[Trekkin]

Especially as he apparently made a point of also recruiting Detmer.

 

[Timo]

...How would Lorca go about getting people assigned to his ship? Indeed, how would he get the ship in the first place?

I mean, we know that he would. He is the master manipulator after all - if he wanted, he would be the UFP President by the time of the third episode. But he wants the spore drive ship, and he wants Stamets, and he wants Saru, and he wants Burnham. And perhaps he wants Tilly, too, for being Tilly, even if his native counterparts of Detmer and Owosekun and other background characters are relative no-names. How does he go about it specifically?

Getting the Discovery first would let him get all the rest with relative ease - covert ops and all that, "I could tell you who authorized me getting Cmdr Saru as XO but I'd have to kill you then", yadda yadda. Would Lorca have enough inside info on the Mirror spore project to force himself into the Regular counterpart, "I know all about Ellie so you have to let me in" style? Would he work himself in through Stamets somehow? Or would Cornwell give him the ship because he was the most competent black ops skipper available at the time the re(gul)al Lorca lost his ship and the Discovery became available? Quite a coincidence there - not the part where Lorca makes himself look impressive in Cornwell's eyes, but the part where one ship so smoothly follows the other... Unless Mirror Lorca arranges for the loss himself, immediately seeing it as the most prudent way of dealing with his transposition to his wussier self's seat.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Groppler Zorn]

Maybe it’s all part of the deception? Lorca is trying to hide his MU evilness. Saru is the epitome of that (and of starfleet more broadly with his principles but we can’t expect Lorca to know that). Who better than to convince everyone that you’re not a snarling morally inverted human set on galactic domination than a Kelpien whose natural state is to be cautious and fearful of enemies? My guess would be it’s all about the perception Lorca wanted to put forward of himself.

Essentially not evil by association.

 

[The Wormhole]

It's war time, and even the CO of the fleet's most important asset with carte blanche as to yield somewhere. It's possible Starfleet felt Saru was the best suited to the position and told Lorca this would be non-negotiable. Lorca figured having an XO who could also double as a meal in an emergency had advantages so went along with it.

 

[Kane_Steel]

Personally, I hate the CW Flash series at this point. The writing is terrible. But Season One did something great... It already did a storyline very similar to the Lorca one.... with the team leader revealed as a villain trying to get back home.

But they did it and executed it in a way that actually made sense. The build-up was great. Would have loved for the Lorca reveal scene to have this kind of emotion behind it;

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There are so many holes in Lorca's plan.... it honestly comes across like they writers couldn't really make up their mind what to do with him, and how to get rid of Isaacs.

 

[NaughtyTrekkie]

Maybe he just wanted to create a familiar atmosphere for Burhman

 

[Lord Garth]

I think Lorca was hungry like Hungry Jack. He saw the list of available First Officers and chose from it like a menu. "I want this one!"

I'm kind of hungry now. And so is Philippa.

"Wait a minute! What?!" Yup. When in the Terran Empire, do as the Terrans do.

 

[Mirror Tuvix]

What I am intrigued about is learning of Kelpish culture; i.e. do other Kelps cover their ganglia slits in public, out of modesty? Does Saru leave his exposed in an act of Kelpish Pride?

 

[Jinn]

I'm kind of hungry now. And so is Philippa.

I wonder what mirror Georgiou would say about her prime counterpart being eaten by Klingons...

 

[Hythlodeus]

In case the replicators malfunctions and the Disco is out of food, obviously

 

[Tuskin38]

I wonder what mirror Georgiou would say about her prime counterpart being eaten by Klingons...

L’Rell told her in the episode they met.

She got angry.

 

[The Wormhole]

I wonder what mirror Georgiou would say about her prime counterpart being eaten by Klingons...

They totally should have had a scene with Saru, Tyler, and Georgiou sitting around a table acting awkward over the fact that in a manner of speaking they've all eaten each other.

 

[USS Triumphant]

Lorca was intelligent and cunning in manipulating the Discovery crew. He hid his imperial hatred of non humans well.

I'm not certain he really had one. Remember the speech he gave to the Discovery crew when he was telling them that he would let them go in exchange for Burnham having agreed to stay with him? It *could* have been manipulation, for Burnham's benefit, when he expressed respect for them - but there was really very little point to that, so I think it might have been sincere.

Sometimes the leaders just pay lip service to the things their followers believe so that the followers will keep following...