Forward thinking

THE MISSION PLAN FOR STAR TREK: DISCOVERY’S BOLD THIRD SEASON...

1 IT’S A WHOLE NEW ERA

S2 spoilers follow… Season 3 of Star Trek: Discovery picks up with Federation Science Officer Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) in the year 3188, having travelled through a wormhole 930 years into the future. As such, you can expect a mix of familiarity and strangeness. “Our guiding principle in everything we do is to maintain the Star Trek universe,” says co-showrunner Michelle Paradise. “So, there will be species that you recognise but they may be a little bit different. And they may have different points of view than you might expect.” Teleportation has changed, too. “The transporter technology is very well established [in Star Trek],” says Paradise. “But now we have personal transporters – and that’s really cool, because it’s honouring what came before.”

2 THE GOVERNMENT’S BEEN BURN-ED

Burnham is shocked to immediately discover that the Federation, the universe’s governing body, is no more. “We hear about something in the first episode called ‘the Burn’,” Paradise teases. “We know that it had an impact on the Federation. That’s obviously something that, by the end of the episode, Burnham is keyed up to explore and learn more about.”

3 NEW LIFE, NEW LOCATIONS

To represent new planets, the production sought out new shooting locales, such as Iceland. “If you’re jumping 930 years into the future, you want to start with a bang,” reasons Paradise. “And if you’re going to land on a new planet, it should feel very, very different than anything we’ve seen before.” Iceland was the perfect place to level up the show’s visuals. “It’s just gorgeous,” she says. “And such a great way to kick off the season.”

4 INTO LIGHTNESS

If, like some critics, you’ve previously found the series’ tone to be a little on the ‘heavy’ side, you could be in for a surprise with S3. Despite their predicament, Burnham and company are set to discover more hope – and more laughs, according to Paradise. “Sonequa is hilarious!” she says of the show’s lead. One way S3 aims to tap into the star’s comedic side is by giving her a new foil, Cleveland Booker (David

Ajala). “Finding new colours for Burnham is also about