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The Best Episodes of Star Trek: Discovery

Every episode of Star Trek: Discovery ranked from best to worst. Let's dive into the Best Episodes of Star Trek: Discovery!

Binge this in 2d 7h•Peaking at 7.3/10

Follow the voyages of Starfleet on their missions to discover new worlds and new life forms, and one Starfleet officer who must learn that to truly understand all things alien, you must first understand yourself.

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
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    Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 13 - What's Past is Prologue
    7.3/10(5082 votes)

    #1 - What's Past is Prologue

    S1:E13

    Lorca plans to move forward with a coup against the Emperor, propelling Burnham to make a quick decision to save not only herself, but the U.S.S. Discovery.

    Director:Olatunde Osunsanmi
    Writer:Ted Sullivan

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  2. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 1 - The Vulcan Hello
    7.0/10(8548 votes)

    #2 - The Vulcan Hello

    S1:E1

    While patrolling Federation space, the U.S.S. Shenzhou encounters an object of unknown origin, putting First Officer Michael Burnham to her greatest test yet.

    Director:David Semel
    Writers:Bryan Fuller, Alex Kurtzman

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  3. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 3 - Context Is for Kings
    7.0/10(7192 votes)

    #3 - Context Is for Kings

    S1:E3

    Burnham finds herself aboard the U.S.S. Discovery where she quickly realizes things are not as they seem, including the mysterious Captain Gabriel Lorca.

    Director:Akiva Goldsman
    Writer:Unknown

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  4. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 9 - Into the Forest I Go
    7.0/10(5522 votes)

    #4 - Into the Forest I Go

    S1:E9

    Bypassing Starfleet's orders, Lorca uses the U.S.S. Discovery crew's ultimate asset, the ship itself, in an effort to end the war with the Klingons once and for all.

    Director:Christopher J. Byrne
    Writer:Unknown

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  5. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 10 - Despite Yourself
    7.0/10(5373 votes)

    #5 - Despite Yourself

    S1:E10

    While in unfamiliar territory, the U.S.S. Discovery crew is forced to get creative in their next efforts to survive opposing and unprecedented forces and return home.

    Director:Jonathan Frakes
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 12 - Vaulting Ambition
    7.0/10(5282 votes)

    #6 - Vaulting Ambition

    S1:E12

    Burnham heads to the ISS Charon with a special "gift" for the Emperor. With the help of an unexpected source, Stamets gains clarity while trapped inside the mycelial network. Saru asks for L'Rell's help.

    Director:Hanelle M. Culpepper
    Writer:Jordon Nardino

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    The 20 WORST Episodes of Star Trek: Discovery

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  7. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 14 - The War Without, The War Within
    7.0/10(4345 votes)

    #7 - The War Without, The War Within

    S1:E14

    Burnham and the U.S.S. Discovery crew are faced with the harsh reality of the war during their absence. In order to move forward, Starfleet must use unconventional tactics and sources to take their next action against the Klingons.

    Director:David Solomon
    Writer:Unknown

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  8. Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 8 - If Memory Serves
    7.0/10(4668 votes)

    #8 - If Memory Serves

    S2:E8

    Spock and Burnham head to Talos IV, where the process of healing Spock forces the siblings to confront their troubled past. Stamets desperately tries to reconnect with Hugh, while Tyler struggles to shed the crew's suspicions of him due to his past as Voq.

    Director:T.J. Scott
    Writers:Dan Dworkin, Jay Beattie

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  9. Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 9 - Project Daedalus
    7.0/10(4228 votes)

    #9 - Project Daedalus

    S2:E9

    When the Discovery crew infiltrates Section 31's headquarters, suspicions arise that the crew may have a traitor in their midst. Burnham tries to help Spock but her efforts don't go as planned.

    Director:Jonathan Frakes
    Writer:Michelle Paradise

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  10. Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 14 - Such Sweet Sorrow (2)
    7.0/10(5414 votes)

    #10 - Such Sweet Sorrow (2)

    S2:E14

    The U.S.S. Discovery battles against Control in a fight not only for their lives but for the future, with a little help from some unexpected friends. Spock and Burnham discern vital new connections between the red signals while Burnham faces one of life’s harshest truths: the right decisions are often the hardest to make.

    Director:Olatunde Osunsanmi
    Writers:Alex Kurtzman, Michelle Paradise, Jenny Lumet

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  11. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 2 - Battle at the Binary Stars
    6.9/10(7724 votes)

    #11 - Battle at the Binary Stars

    S1:E2

    Face to face with Klingon vessels, the U.S.S. Shenzhou prepares for the possibility of war if negotiations fail. Amidst the turmoil, Burnham looks back to her Vulcan upbringing for guidance.

    Director:Adam Kane
    Writer:Unknown

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  12. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 11 - The Wolf Inside
    6.9/10(4918 votes)

    #12 - The Wolf Inside

    S1:E11

    The crew continues their guise, and Burnham is ordered on a merciless mission to end the resistance in hopes of returning home. Meanwhile, Tilly works on restoring Stamets’ neurofunction.

    Director:T.J. Scott
    Writer:Lisa Randolph

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  13. Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 1 - Brother
    6.9/10(5505 votes)

    #13 - Brother

    S2:E1

    After answering a distress signal from the U.S.S. Enterprise, the U.S.S. Discovery welcomes aboard Captain Christopher Pike and begins a new mission to investigate the meaning behind seven mysterious red signals. Michael Burnham grapples with her past growing up on Vulcan with her foster parents and brother Spock.

    Director:Alex Kurtzman
    Writer:Unknown

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  14. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 5 - Choose Your Pain
    6.8/10(6083 votes)

    #14 - Choose Your Pain

    S1:E5

    Lorca unexpectedly finds himself in the company of a prisoner of war, Starfleet Lieutenant Ash Tyler, and a notorious intergalactic criminal, Harry Mudd. Meanwhile, Burnham voices her concerns about the repercussions of the spore drive jumps on “Ripper.”

    Director:Lee Rose
    Writer:Kemp Powers

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  15. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 4 - The Butcher's Knife Cares Not for the Lamb's Cry
    6.7/10(6177 votes)

    #15 - The Butcher's Knife Cares Not for the Lamb's Cry

    S1:E4

    With tensions and stakes high as Starfleet continues in their efforts to end the war with Klingons, Burnham begins to settle in to her new position aboard the U.S.S. Discovery.

    Director:Olatunde Osunsanmi
    Writers:Aron Eli Coleite, Jesse Alexander

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  16. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 6 - Lethe
    6.7/10(5673 votes)

    #16 - Lethe

    S1:E6

    The U.S.S. Discovery crew is intrigued by new addition, Lt. Ash Tyler. Sarek seeks Burnham's help, rekindling memories from her past. Admiral Cornwell questions Lorca's tactics.

    Director:Douglas Aarniokoski
    Writers:Ted Sullivan, Joe Menosky

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  17. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 7 - Magic to Make the Sanest Man Go Mad
    6.7/10(6138 votes)

    #17 - Magic to Make the Sanest Man Go Mad

    S1:E7

    As the U.S.S. Discovery crew attempts to let loose at a party, an unwelcome visitor comes aboard bringing about a problematic and twisted sequence of events.

    Director:David Barrett
    Writers:Aron Eli Coleite, Jesse Alexander

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  18. Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 2 - New Eden
    6.7/10(5062 votes)

    #18 - New Eden

    S2:E2

    A new signal appears, prompting Stamets' emotional return to the mycelial network and leading Burnham, Pike and Owosekun to a pre-warp planet, where they face a complex ethical dilemma. Tilly's overeagerness lands her in trouble but when the planet - and Discovery's landing party - are threatened, her curiosity may be the one thing that can save them.

    Director:Jonathan Frakes
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 6 - The Sound of Thunder
    6.7/10(4256 votes)

    #19 - The Sound of Thunder

    S2:E6

    When a new signal appears over Saru's home planet, Burnham, Saru and the crew embark on a perilous mission that puts Saru in danger and raises questions about the Red Angel's intentions. Hugh struggles to come to terms with his new reality.

    Director:Douglas Aarniokoski
    Writers:Erika Lippoldt, Bo Yeon Kim

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  20. Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 4 - An Obol for Charon
    6.6/10(4429 votes)

    #20 - An Obol for Charon

    S2:E4

    A mysterious sphere threatens the U.S.S. Discovery even as May, in her original form, implements a plan that puts Tilly's life in danger. Saru and Burnham's bond grows when Saru is forced to acknowledge a deeply unsettling Kelpien truth. Pike receives new intel on Spock from a loyal friend.

    Director:Lee Rose
    Writer:Unknown

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  21. Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 10 - The Red Angel
    6.5/10(3979 votes)

    #21 - The Red Angel

    S2:E10

    Burnham is stunned when she learns her ties to Section 31 run deeper than she ever fathomed. Armed with the identity of the Red Angel, the U.S.S. Discovery goes to work on its most critical mission to date.

    Director:Hanelle M. Culpepper
    Writers:Anthony Maranville, Chris Silvestri

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  22. Star Trek: Discovery Season 2 Episode 11 - Perpetual Infinity
    6.5/10(3752 votes)

    #22 - Perpetual Infinity

    S2:E11

    Burnham receives the reunion she's been longing for, but it doesn't go quite as she imagined. Georgiou and Tyler sense a disturbing change in Leland.

    Director:Maja Vrvilo
    Writers:Alan B. McElroy, Brandon Schultz

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  23. Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 Episode 1 - That Hope Is You (1)
    6.5/10(5441 votes)

    #23 - That Hope Is You (1)

    S3:E1

    Arriving 930 years in the future, Burnham navigates a galaxy she no longer recognizes while searching for the rest of the U.S.S. Discovery crew.

    Director:Olatunde Osunsanmi
    Writers:Alex Kurtzman, Michelle Paradise, Jenny Lumet

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  24. Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 Episode 5 - Die Trying
    6.5/10(3867 votes)

    #24 - Die Trying

    S3:E5

    After reuniting with what remains of Starfleet and the Federation, the U.S.S. Discovery and its crew must prove that a 930 year old crew and starship are exactly what this new future needs.

    Director:Maja Vrvilo
    Writer:Unknown

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  25. Star Trek: Discovery Season 1 Episode 8 - Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum
    6.4/10(5110 votes)

    #25 - Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum

    S1:E8

    The U.S.S. Discovery is tasked with a high priority mission to planet Pahvo and learn the science behind the Klingon's cloaking technology.

    Director:John Scott
    Writer:Kirsten Beyer

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Best Episodes Summary

"What's Past is Prologue" is the best rated episode of "Star Trek: Discovery". It scored 7.3/10 based on 5082 votes. Directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi and written by Ted Sullivan, it aired on 1/28/2018. This episode scored 0.3 points higher than the second highest rated, "The Vulcan Hello".