Ahead of January’s premiere of Star Trek: Discovery season two, CBS All Access has released the first in a series of four planned Short Trek mini-episodes for viewers in the USA and Canada. Entitled “Runaway,” and focusing on the character of Ensign Sylvia Tilly, this 15-minute character piece is a welcome return to the Star Trek universe.
Following a difficult conversation with her mother via subspace, Tilly encounters a stowaway in the Discovery mess hall between crew shifts. The Xahian stowaway Me Hani Ika Hali Ka Po (Yadira Guevara-Prip) — thankfully shortened to ‘Po’ rather quickly — is revealed to be a child prodigy on her world, which is rich in dilithium deposits and has just developed warp drive.
Both characters find themselves in similar situations – struggling to deal with the expectations of others, not sure they are up to the challenges ahead of them, and yet considered to be brilliant by their peers. Tilly convinces Po to return to her planet and accept her responsibilities, which leads Po to reveal she is set to become the next monarch of Xahia, and in the process seems to become more comfortable with her own situation.
“Runaway” appears to be set sometime after the Earth sequence from the Season One finale, “Will You Take My Hand?” as Tilly is now an ensign, participating in the Command Training Program, and the medal she received for her part in ending the Federation/Klingon War is displayed in her quarters. However, where it fits into the timeline for Season Two is unclear, as Tilly is the only main character from the show encountered during the episode.
The rigors and demands of modern television sometimes made it difficult during Discovery’s first season to give the characters the time to breathe that they deserved. Hopefully, Short Treks can help fill that space and give us closer examinations of the characters we would love to get to know better. Based on the experience of “Runaway,” it seems that is very much possible.
In addition, the tone of this episode is much lighter than many episodes of season one of Discovery, continuing the tonal shift that started around the middle of season one away from a much broodier Star Trek towards one that has a sense of fun and isn’t afraid to be funny. There are some classic lines in this episode: “Espresso… I release you.”
Mary Wiseman is a maestro of comic timing, and her skills are on full display here.
Through this episode, we get a deeper insight and appreciation into Tilly’s character, we meet her mother for the first time — who reveals that Sylvia has (to her mother at least) a more confident and successful stepsister — and get to spend a prolonged period focused on a problem that does not threaten the galactic peace.
The character of Po is used as a mirror for Tilly’s insecurities, and the two women recognize their shared circumstances. We also see Tilly take on a command role – she must make decisions throughout the episode, decide what’s right, and execute against them.
Also, with a single exception (where the gender is unclear!) this is the first episode of Star Trek in which the speaking roles are entirely female characters. Discovery has always embraced its diversity, and I’m pleased to see that continue into season two. It is also directed by a woman, Maja Vrvilo, and co-written by Jenny Lumet (with Alex Kurtzman.)
The race introduced in this episode, the Xahians, are a welcome new addition to the Star Trek canon. Their abilities, including being able to become invisible and having some control over technology, are very cool. Yadira Guevara-Prip turns in a great performance as Po, expressing the turbulence of adolescence in an alien way.
I was particularly pleased that the Xahians were a new race to the Star Trek canon, as it is important to balance introducing new ideas with revisiting old ones. I enjoy canon references as much as the next person, but I also like to see new things that expand the size of that canon.
We were not without a wonky canon reference though! It appears as though the Xahians have developed the first technology capable of re-crystalizing dilithium, a technology which was increasingly in use towards the end of the 23rd century and advanced by the 24th.
Despite being a more intimate story with a smaller cast than a regular episode, “Runaway” has the same cinematic values that we have come to expect from Discovery. During the episode, we see the largely digital shuttle bay set, there is an amusing sequence involving malfunctioning food slots in the mess hall, a scene in Tilly’s quarters begins by pushing in through the bulkhead of her cabin from space, and a transporter sequence.
Short Treks do not appear in any way to be lesser episodes of Discovery just because they are shorter in duration, and I look forward to seeing what other cool sequences the later episodes will show us.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed “Runaway.” It was a great choice to pick Tilly as the first focus character, given the exceptional performances Mary Wiseman has given us so far that just ooze both humor and charisma. I can’t wait to see where it goes next with “Calypso,” in November, which focuses on a new character and is not set on the Discovery.
The only downer to the Short Trek celebration is that only viewers in North America currently have access to it. It is extremely disappointing and frustrating that CBS was not able to get its international distribution agreements for Short Trek in place before the North American premiere, and that fans outside the US and Canada are unable to access the episode through legal means. In today’s world where media is largely synchronized across the globe, this is unacceptable.
Here’s hoping CBS and Netflix get their ducks in a row, and international viewers can get to enjoy the episode soon. Having grown up in the UK, I recognize how privileged I am to live in the US and have access to “Runaway” now, and how frustrating it can be to be locked out of accessing something other fans can already enjoy. Let’s get this fixed!