We’re just a few weeks away from the launch of Season 2 production, and today we’ve got a collection of Star Trek: Discovery news tidbits that have arrived over the past few days – including some new convention appearance plans and merchandise reveals!

First up comes comments from Saru actor Doug Jones, who tells ScreenRant.com that he while the Kelpien definitely wants to take on the center seat, Jones prefers Saru away from the captaincy at the moment.

[Saru] very much wants to be captain. He’s been on that deck for so long in the command track and as the first of his species to have gone through Starfleet Academy and have come out as a high ranking officer on a starship, he’s the first of his kind to ever even come close to this, so he’s got a lot to prove and he’s got a lot to say.

But, me personally, as Doug Jones the fan of ‘Star Trek,’ I think the dynamic of that character works very well as a first officer; as second fiddle to a captain.

I think [Saru will have] the captain’s chair one day. Early on, we’re only about to start filming season 2, there’s still a lot of room ahead of us. So I think for now, he still has more to learn in the leadership department and the courage department under a captain who’s been there and done that a lot, a seasoned captain.

After seeing his aptitude for the role, some fans were disappointed that Saru wasn’t tapped to lead the USS Discovery after Gabriel Lorca perished in the Mirror Universe last season, ending the year with the starship headed to Vulcan to pick up the crew’s new captain — but Saru is still relatively new to the first officer position, having only been promoted after the Battle of the Binary Stars.

Speaking of Saru, yesterday StarTrek.com revealed the newly-revised, final cover artwork for the third Discovery novel, the Saru-centric Fear Itself from author James Swallow, set to arrive from Simon & Schuster this June.

Lieutenant Saru is a Kelpien, a member of a prey species born on a world overrun by monstrous predators…and a being who very intimately understands the nature of fear.

Challenged on all sides, he is determined to surpass his origins and succeed as a Starfleet officer aboard the U.S.S. Shenzhou. But when Saru breaks protocol in order to prove himself to his crewmates, what begins as a vital rescue mission to save a vessel in distress soon escalates out of control.

Forced into a command role he may not be ready for, Saru is caught between his duty and the conflicting agendas of two antagonistic alien races.

To survive, he will need to seek a path of peace against all odds, and risk compromising the very ideals he has sworn to uphold….

This purple-hued artwork replaces the previously leaked cover design which briefly held a place on Amazon’s product page for Fear Itself last month.

In other Discovery merchandise news, FanSets has revealed their new Admiral Katrina Cornwell ‘MicroCrew’ character pin, styled after Jayne Brook’s breakout character.

The metal pin is available for purchase now at FanSets’ site for $5.95. The company has also revealed that another Discovery character pin, based upon the augmented human Airiam, will be coming in June.

In convention news, several of the Discovery cast have been added to the guest lists for both the upcoming Destination Star Trek convention in Dortmund, Germany and at Star Trek Las Vegas later this year.

Jason Isaacs (Lorca) had to cancel his appearance at the Dortmund convention, scheduled for April 27-29 in Germany, but he’ll be replaced by both Shazad Latif (Tyler) and Mary Wiseman (Tilly), both making their first Trek convention appearances. Previously-announced Discovery guests include Ken Mitchel (Kol) and Mary Chieffo (L’Rell).

At August’s Las Vegas convention, Discovery bridge officers Emily Coutts (Detmer) and Olin Oladejo (Owosekun) will be joining already-announced Wilson Cruz (Culber), James Frain (Sarek), Ken Mitchell (Kol), Mary Chieffo (L’Rell), Rainn Wilson (Mudd), and Jason Isaacs (Lorca).

Keep checking back for the latest in Discovery news here at TrekCore!

Novel #4: "The Way to the Stars"

Novel #5: "The Enterprise War"

Novel #6: "Dead Endless"