Episode Discussion | Star Trek: Discovery | 5x05 "Mirrors" - eviltoast
Logline

Captain Burnham and Book journey into extradimensional space in search of the next clue to the location of the Progenitors’ power. Meanwhile, Rayner navigates his first mission in command of the U.S.S. Discovery, and Culber opens up to Tilly.

Written by: Johanna Lee & Carlos Cisco

Directed by: Jen McGowan

  • veee@lemmy.ca
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    7
    ·
    7 months ago

    I’ve got a bit of a spoilery kind of question:

    Tap for spoiler

    If L’ak is Breen, how come he bleeds after the fight with Burnham? I thought that they don’t have blood, or did I miss something established earlier?

    • khaosworks@startrek.website
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      6
      ·
      7 months ago

      Bashir said in DS9: “In Purgatory’s Shadow” that the Breen didn’t have blood, but considering they never took off their suits, how did he know that? And if they don’t have blood, how does circulation work?

      There are animals that don’t have circulatory systems, but they’re usually of a very simple order like sponges, nematodes and flatworms for example.

      So either the “fact” that the Breen have no blood is misinformation, or they have something else that substitutes for blood.

      Some invertebrates have circulatory systems which carry hemolymph, a fluid made most of water and contains various substances like carbohydrates, lipids, amino acids, etc. It’s not blood, but it still serves a circulatory function.

      • Value Subtracted@startrek.websiteOPM
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        5
        ·
        7 months ago

        There was also the stuff in this episode about “two faces,” one of which they say they have evolved past (or whatever their phrasing was). The Breen of this time could be a little more complicated than the Breen of the DS9 era. I assume we’ll learn more about what that’s all about later this season.

    • Stormygeddon@startrek.website
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      2
      ·
      7 months ago

      I would posit that the Solid “face” Breen biology that L’ak is maintaining bleeds, while the transparent gelatinous one doesn’t bleed, making the non-bleeding Breen the social norm.