DISCLAIMER: This recap of Star Trek: Prodigy holds a whole quadrant full of spoilers.
In Star Trek: Prodigy’s Episode 10, “A Moral Star, Part 2,” written by Kevin & Dan Hageman, Julie Benson, Shawna Benson, Lisa Schultz, Nikhil S. Jayaram, Diandra Pendleton-Thompson, Chad Quandt and Aaron J. Waltke and directed by Ben Hibon, we get the conclusion of the animated show’s first multi-episode arc!
The Protostar Compromised
We open on NX-76884, the U.S.S. Protostar, now under the control of The Diviner (John Noble). Corrupted Hologram Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) informs The Diviner there’s no sign of the missing proto-core on-board the vessel. But without it, The Diviner can’t complete his objective of executing a proto-warp to reach Starfleet.
Trekkies met Corrupted Janeway last week and this intrepid reporter explorer took it upon herself to ask Waltke about the inspiration behind the character and if it was at all inspired by the Star Trek: Voyager episode “Revulsion.” Waltke said (quoted with permission):
That certainly was an inspiration, along with ‘hologram characters gone wrong’ episodes like “Darkling”. As far as the color shift being so dramatic, we also wanted to visually indicate that the malicious Solum code Drednok was activating was different from Starfleet’s.
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The Diviner demands to know the proto-core’s location from his progeny, Gwyndala (Ella Purnell), but he attacks him using the Vau N’Akat heirloom.
Drednok (Jimmi Simpson) swiftly extends his blade, holding it to Gwyn’s neck as she holds the heirloom to her father’s jugular. The situation quickly diffuses once The Diviner reveals he can control the heirloom he gave her.
The Diviner mocks Gwyn as she struggles against his restraints. He then orders Corrupted Janeway to reset the security protocols and take Gwyn to the brig, where she is to watch over her.
In the meantime, he orders Drednok to reactivate the Watchers and set a course for Tars Lamora.
Universal Rescue
On Tars Lamora, Captain Dal R’El (Brett Gray) and Zero (Angus Imrie) split up to cover more ground.
Dal finds a pair of miners and informs them the atmospheric shields will only hold for so much longer, so they need to seek shelter on the Rev-12 . The miners are incredulous that can understand each other, but Dal explains that they can communicate thanks to the Starfleet combadge’s shortwave translator.
Meanwhile, Rok-Tahk (Rylee Alazraqui), Jankom Pog (Jason Mantzoukas), and Murf (Dee Bradley Baker) make their way towards the Rev-12’s damaged engine room, which they enter just before the Watchers activate outside. Jankom realizes they’ve come back on just before they attack, and the trio allows the Rev-12’s engine room door to close behind them.
Jankom groans as he surveys the damage done by the Protostar’s phasers and then instructs Rok to hold the door as he repairs the wreckage. Rok protests she can do more than hold the door.
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Jankom tells Rok to keep quiet unless she’s got an idea on repairing the engine. But here’s the thing: Rok does have an idea! Rok spouts some serious Treknobabble, which goes over Jankom’s head despite the universal translator. He proposes a new plan: he’ll hold the door while Rok does that thing she said!
Rok picks up Murf, who currently contains the proto-core integral to the execution of Rok’s plan, and approaches the damaged engine.
Elsewhere, Zero approaches the young Caitian and offers some soothing words. While Zero’s attention is on the Caitian, one reactivated Watcher attacks them! Dal leaps into action and defeats the Watcher.
Dal laments it’s taking too long to inform the miners individually, but that’s when he gets an idea inspired by a glimpse of the manacles on the Caitian’s paw.
Back at the Rev-12 engine room, the situation is much tenser. Rok is almost done, but the Watchers are almost inside! Fortunately, the mechanical limb Jankom has been using for “percussive maintenance” is also effective for fending off robots.
As the Watchers successfully make their ingress, Jankom continues to be effective in defending against them: he’s quite the security officer, and it feels like he may have just found his calling!
Speaking of which, Rok brings the Rev-12’s engines back online, and the atmospheric shields are reactivated. The artificial gravity sends miners and debris alike raining down on the surface of Tars Lamora, and the trio in the engine room and the rest of the scattered Protostar crew celebrate the victory – except Dal. He is preoccupied with modifying the Caitian’s manacles using his combadge.
But Zero points out their time is up: the Protostar has returned to Tars Lamora.
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The Diviner’s Time
The trio in the Rev-12’s engine room has their celebrations cut short by Drednok, who beams in and demands the -roto-core. Drednok goes into full attack mode, and Murf absconds with the proto-core as Rok and Jankom make an admirable (but unsuccessful) attempt to fend off Drednok.
But just as Drednok is about to do away with our heroes, the miners throw open the engine room doors and flood inside, led by the young Caitain! With their ranks organized, the miners overwhelm Drednok, the Caitian himself delivering the coup-de-grace by decapitating the robot using razor claws!
Dal and Zero appear and help Jankom and Rok to their feet, explaining that they could turn the ankle monitors into universal translators. Thanks to lessons learned on the Protostar, they turn technology used to oppress the miners into a method of liberation.
But the sound of a transporter beaming reveals the victory is not unequivocal: Drednok transmits the location of the proto-core (inside Murf) to the Protostar, and as a result, The Diviner now has everything he needs to proto-warp directly to the Federation.
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On-board the Protostar, The Diviner finishes installing the proto-core, and the ship’s computer (Bonnie Gordon) informs him the proto-drive will be online in ten minutes.
Meanwhile, the miners head to battle stations on the Rev-12, and The Diviner’s immense craft lifts off and jumps to warp.
Janeway the Incorruptible
The Diviner discovers Gwyn is disabling the shields back on the Protostar. So he asks Corrupted Janeway why she didn’t warn him, which is when she reveals he never corrupted her!
Gwyn says she upgraded Hologram Janeway’s program so she wouldn’t be susceptible to The Diviner’s corrupting Solum code, and she can also now physically manifest, a fact demonstrated by incapacitating The Diviner.
Gwyn’s almost managed to gain control of the Protostar, and The Diviner knows it. He pleads with with Gwyn, and says that if she continues on this path, all he has done will amount to nothing; he must save their people.
Gwyn says The Diviner previously said they were the last survivors of the Vau N’Akat, so what gives? It turns out he was sent back in time to save their home planet, Solum, before its extinction later on the timeline! Gwyn freezes Hologram Janeway.
The Rev-12 has caught up with the Protostar. Rok worries something’s happened to Gwyn, but they can’t help until the shields are down.
Zero suggests they aim the Rev-12’s weapons at the Protostar‘s shield emitters, and Rok finishes their sentence, “That could lower the shields long enough to beam aboard!”
The Rev-12 fires on the Protostar and the shields begin to shimmer.
Solum’s First Contact
On the Protostar, The Diviner activates the program Solum One. He and Gwyn find themselves standing amidst a holographic reproduction of their home planet as it exists on the current date: a lush world featuring a bustling city skyline. The Diviner explains this is their homeworld today, where the Vau N’Akats are flourishing (and believing they are alone in the universe).
The Diviner advances the simulation to show Solum fifty years after First Contact with the Federation. Gwyn’s homeworld decays before her eyes, the once lively city now a ruined husk.
Gwyn is incredulous Starfleet would do such a thing. The Diviner explains that First Contact sparked a civil war on Solum, with one side hoping to join the Federation and the other willing to die to “preserve our way of life.” The Diviner believes he can avert this future with a weapon aboard the Protostar.
Over on the Rev-12, Zero states the energy fluctuations on the Protostar reveal the proto-drive is ready to be engaged. While Jankom can keep blasting the shields, he can only manage to lower them enough to beam over one at a time. Dal hurries to the transporter pad.
The Diviner reveals to Gwyn that once the Protostar comes into contact with another Starfleet vessel, it will transmit a program that will infect all of Starfleet, causing their ships to turn against one another.
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The Diviner tells Gwyn when Starfleet has fallen into ruin, he and Gwyn can return to Solum, where they belong. Gwyn reels from the realization that if the crew fulfills their dreams of returning to Starfleet, they’ll destroy the very thing they seek to join.
Gwyn protests that they can’t fix one tragedy with one another and insists he should communicate with Starfleet rather than attempt to destroy them. The Protostar computer announces the proto-drive is ready, and The Diviner activates the arch to leave the hologram.
But standing there is Dal! The Diviner quickly dispatches him. Then Zero reveals themself (in more ways than one)! Zero sheds their protective suit and appears before The Diviner unshielded. With Medusians, this is a process that will inevitably drive the beholder mad!
As The Diviner gets an eyeful of Medusian, Dal forces Gwyn to look at him rather than Zero to avoid going mad. However, Gwyn catches a glimpse of Zero’s reflection in Dal’s comm badge.
In the wake of Zero’s appearance, The Diviner softly gibbers to himself, while Gwyn repeats “we can’t go” over and over.
Training Log Stardate 61103.1
Hologram Janeway’s log provides us with an epilogue for the first season of Prodigy. The miners command the Rev-12, transforming a symbol of oppression into a symbol of liberation. The Diviner is now abandoned alone on Tars Lamora.
Zero has remained by Gwyn’s side throughout her recovery. Janeway explains that if she had seen more than the Medusian’s reflection, she also would have gone mad, but she only lost her short-term memories surrounding the event.
Ignorant of the threat their ship represents, the crew of the Protostar feels more unified than ever, and set a course to reunite their ship with Starfleet at large.
Vice Admiral Janeway
In the teaser scene, we cut to Vice Admiral Janeway, who is in command of the NCC-80816 U.S.S. Dauntless (!) and wearing a uniform and comm badge that will look familiar to those who have watched the series finale of Star Trek: The Next Generation, “All Good Things…”
According to the Trill bridge officer Asencia (Jameela Jamil), the Dauntless has received their third signal of a proto-warp. That establishes a pattern. Coffee mug in hand, Janeway orders the crew to set a course for the latest signature, vowing to Chakotay that she’s on her way.
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