The trouble with Lorca

Not gonna lie: The Disco writers have disappointed me.

It turns out Lorca's story was simply, "He was fooling everyone; he's evil." So all the things that didn't make sense...just don't make sense. And not just on a plot level, which I could easily forgive under the right circumstances, but on a thematic level, in a way that leaves us dissatisfied and disbelieving the internal logic of this world.

A captain destroys his own crew, ostensibly to save them from torture at the hands of the Klingons. So Starfleet claps him on the back and gives him the most important command in the fleet. He goes on to run that ship in a decidedly un-Starfleet-like way, and the only person who's especially troubled by this is Cornwell. He throws her to the Klingons and gets away with it easily. He dupes his own crew handily, threat ganglia notwithstanding.

All the while, the story is peppered with signs that none of this is as simple as it seems; things that make us think that all this is about a leader in a time of war making tough decisions and sacrifices in order to achieve the larger goal; a man tormented by something (PTSD?) but trying to power through. How else could they expect to keep the audience on the hook? They have to make us feel that there's a reason this character is getting away with it; that there's some internal thematic logic playing out, and there will be redemption in the end.

I had assumed we were in Search for Spock territory: Kirk disobeys the rules because of his internal moral compass that places loyalty and friendship even above duty. He risks everything to save Spock. It made so much sense to me to think that the crew of the Buran was alive in the MU, and Lorca, Kirk-like, was going after them. Better yet, in The Undiscovered Country, Kirk is chastened; he must confront his own failings and prejudices; he hasn't always been right. That same kind of story arc would have made sense of Lorca's story; you'd still have had to squint to accept Starfleet's lack of concern about his actions and the Discovery crew's credulousness, but at least you'd have a sense of thematic logic that justifies all that squinting.

[EDITING TO ADD: Then there's that memorable Spock quote from the end of "Mirror Mirror": "It was far easier for you as civilized men to behave like barbarians than it was for them as barbarians to behave like civilized men." That should have counted for something; Lorca should have been able to pull off the charade only because there was something more to the story.]

But...no. Lorca is simply a very sneaky villain; Starfleet and his own crew just look foolish. Hence my disappointment. It feels like the writers crafted an interesting, complicated character on a meaningful arc, and then just tore his page out and threw it away unfinished. It's a shame. While I'm still interested in the rest of the characters, the spark is a little dimmer. Next season they're going to face an uphill battle getting me to re-invest in them. Burnham, Tilly, Saru, and Stamets all seem worth the effort, but despite Lorca, not because of him.

And then there's Emperor Georgiou. If she's the one who gets the redemption arc, I'll be dumbfounded, because she's a known genocidal psychopath who eats sentient beings. Hey, maybe she, and not Cornwell, turns out to be the Lethe of "Dagger of the Mind." Now THAT would be a neat twist. It certainly fits that, in the Prime Universe, Georgiou would wind up in a facility for the criminally insane, mind-wiped, describing the person she once was as malignant and hateful. But it sure seems like Burnham should have just left her to die in the Mirror Universe.

Aside: There's a certain glee in evidence on social media from those who've decided that Lorca "stans" have just been mindlessly fan-girling the white man and have now gotten their come-uppance. But the writers worked hard to misdirect the audience about this character, so you really can't blame the audience for being misdirected.

Last thing: That speck that fell on Tilly’s shoulder? Either Culber, who was last seen wandering the mycelial network, or Lorca, who was last seen disappearing into the heart of the mycelial engine. Or Tilly hears a Who. Or something else. With my track record, I wouldn't put much faith in me.

You do what you must

This piece covers a lot of ground on the mirror-Lorca theory quite well -- and I really hope it's wrong. Because if we've been watching mirror Lorca, and the other Lorca is dead, then I can’t see how any Lorca will be on Discovery in season 2. Even if mirror Lorca were to survive, the series is going to move on from the Klingon war and this particular story line, and there won’t be a place in it for him. And I really want to keep him. More than just keep him -- I want to be right about him. I’ve gotten really invested in the idea that he is not a bad guy; that all the bad-guy signals are misdirection; that there’s some greater good in play; that he's complicated, not evil. And I hate being wrong.

But obviously, Lorca has known about the mirror universe all along and has some reason for bringing Burnham and Discovery there. So I concocted a theory about a mission to rescue the Buran crew (more on that here). I'm trying not to think about the fact that I have a history of overthinking; of seeing misdirection when there's just plain old direction; of looking for a redemption arc where there isn't going to be one (hello, Tenth Doctor).

But I take heart from these lines: “From now on, we're Terrans. Decency is weakness, will get us killed. And the lives of everyone on this ship and in the Federation are at stake. So you do what you must. Whatever you must. To anyone. Understand?” He says it like he means it -- like a guy who’s had a lot of experience repressing his natural decency for the sake of the greater good. And sure enough, the next thing we know, Burnham has knifed her former friend’s doppleganger, then two seconds later stepped out of the lift, put on her game face, and hailed the Empire. If she can do it and still be the hero underneath, so can he. Right?

Lorca, Lorca, in the booth, what you up to? Tell the truth.

After "Despite Yourself" (SPOILERS AHEAD), it's more obvious than ever that Lorca has brought Discovery to the mirror universe intentionally, and that he has an agenda there. We learn that mirror-Lorca (who may or may not be the Lorca we've been watching all along) has been on the run after mounting a coup against the mysterious emperor (who people seem to feel might be Philippa Georgiou, and I guess that makes a certain amount of sense). Obviously, he's known all along that he needs Burnham to accomplish whatever he's trying to accomplish, because he's gone out of his way to get her on his ship and make sure she doesn't get herself killed.  He needs something that only Burnham can get, that much is clear. Presumably, he knows that mirror Burnham is dead, so he has to bring this Michael back with him. (ETA: Come to think of it, there's no reason to assume this, only that he knows mirror Burnham wouldn't get him what he wants, but this one will.) What exactly he needs from her, I don't know.

And what is he trying to accomplish, exactly? Could he be an agent of the anti-Terran rebels planning to use Discovery to overthrow the empire? Was that the nature of mirror Lorca's coup, and he's out to finish the job? If so, he won't succeed, because we know the empire will still be there when Kirk & co. arrive a decade or so later. Or does he simply want to seize power for himself? Maybe, but I don't think so (I'll get to my reasons in a minute).

I think it's far more likely that he has a smaller, more specific agenda, and, as I've been saying for ages, it has to do with the Buran. As I pointed out previously, when Burnham brings up the mirror-Buran, Lorca jumps at the chance to ask if the crew is alive, and he seems genuinely not to know. Whether the Lorca we've been watching originated in the mirror universe or ours, it seems clear that whatever happened to the Buran is the driving force behind everything he does. It's the only thing we know about him, really.

From "Choose Your Pain," he says of the Buran crew's fate: "Degradation. Torture. Slow, public death. It's the Klingon way to spread terror. Not my crew. Not on my watch." (Was he really talking about the Klingons there? Or the Terran Empire? Noteworthy similarity.)  And there's this: "Tyler: Your eyes. That happened when you destroyed the Buran, didn't it? Lorca: We choose our own pain. Mine helps me remember." There's a sincerity and a depth to this part of Lorca's story that is missing from every other aspect of him. I feel it has to be the key.

Whether this is a rescue mission and the crew is not actually dead (my preferred theory), or this is simply an attempt to avenge them, or he's after something else related to his crew's fate, I feel sure this is about the Buran. That's why I don't think we're watching mirror-Lorca just making a power grab. Everything about this guy's motives feels personal; his loyalty to his crew feels utterly sincere. I have drunk that Kool Aid. I'm buying it. It's why, no matter how devious he is and how much he manipulates events, you can't quite despise him. Leastwise, I can't. I just can't shake the feeling that, whatever it is he wants, it's not for himself. And if I prove to be wrong -- well, boy howdy, will I be disappointed.

The burning question is, which Lorca is this? Have we been watching mirror Lorca all along, and if so, will Discovery return to its own universe with him, with his doppleganger, or with no Lorca at all?

I just can't shake the feeling that this is not mirror Lorca. I know there are lots of sign pointing to yes, but I have a gut feeling that it's intentional misdirection. As Spock said in "Mirror Mirror": "It was far easier for you as civilized men to behave like barbarians, than it was for them as barbarians to behave like civilized men." Could a mirror-universe barbarian pull this off in command of the most important ship of the fleet through an entire war? Doesn't seem likely. And there's something else. If there's one thing we learn in "Despite Yourself," it's that Terrans don't apologize. But what's the first thing Lorca says when startled awake by Cornwell in "Lethe?" "I'm sorry. I'm not used to having anyone in my bed." Maybe mirror Lorca is so good at playing the part that, even in an unguarded moment, he thinks to apologize, but again, doesn't seem likely. So much about Lorca just doesn't fit the Terran mold, especially if I'm right about the authenticity of his feelings about the Buran. Because another thing we know with certainty about mirror Terrans, other than that they don't apologize, is that they are treacherous, self-serving back-stabbers, and they don't make captain by being fiercely loyal and self-sacrificing. They're not the types to voluntarily step into an agony booth so that others may live. So either this Lorca is a freakishly deviant mirror-universe native -- or he isn't, and there's some other explanation for the scars, the deceit, and Cornwell's conviction that he's not himself.

One last point. Tyler and Lorca's stories of subterfuge are set up in parallel. One of them is such a nice, sensitive guy that he earns Michael Burnham's affection. The other is such a sneaky bastard that he alienates Kat Cornwell's. I'm guessing that, by the end, we'll be meant to see some irony there.

Random thoughts and speculation: Despite Yourself

Before I get into my usual bananas-cuckoo speculation, a few things (SPOILERS AHEAD):

1. All hail Captain Tilly!

2. What have you done to Rickie, you bastards?!?! (Is this the end for the Dynamic Duo? Tune in next time…Same bat time, same bat channel…)

3. Lorca in the agony booth: If you didn’t believe he was working for some greater good before, that should change your mind, because it takes some serious commitment to something to volunteer for that duty.

4. This isn’t going to end well for Tyler, is it? Poor Burnham.

5. Am I the only one who caught the reference to Organia? Lorca: “What happened, here? I don’t remember reports of battles anywhere near Organia.” So apparently Starbase 46, to which they had intended to jump, is near the future birthplace of the Organian Peace Treaty. Significant plot point, or just a passing nod to canon?

Now that that's out of the way, let's look a this snippet of dialogue:

Burnham: I was the captain of the Shenzhou, and you had the Buran here, too, Sir.
Lorca: My crew? Are they alive?
Burnham: No.
Lorca: Well, there’s me hoping hoping I’d find a better version of myself over here.

If that doesn’t support my theory that Lorca brought the Discovery to the mirror universe to rescue the crew of the Buran, I don’t know what does. A better version of himself – i.e., one who didn’t get his crew killed, the way this Lorca got the mirror-universe Buran crew killed in his own universe. 

We learn that this Discovery probably got switched with its mirror twin, which suggests that the same thing could have happened with the Buran. If my theory is correct, Lorca, having figured it out and brought Discovery to the mirror universe on a rescue mission, obviously believes the Buran crew to be alive. But if they are, why does the Klingon ship’s database say they’re not?

The secret to returning to their own universe lies in whatever the Defiant did – which involved not just universe hopping, but also time travel. Soooo…the Buran crews from both universes may be dead now – but now may not be where this story ends up, if you see what I mean. With a little time-travel magic, the Buran crews might be returned to their native universes before they die. What’s more,  they’re saying the Stamets/Culber story isn’t over yet. Given that little…incident…in sick bay, perhaps the Discovery is destined for a little time travel as well. Though, if they return to a time before the Buran is destroyed, they’ll have to do a lot over again. Hmm.

ETA: I just realized…duh…if Discovery’s return to its own universe involves time travel, that could not only solve Culber’s little neck problem and bring the Buran crew back to life, but also explain why Kirk & co. never heard of the mirror universe. The Discovery crew may return and remember nothing about it. For that matter, Ash Tyler may not remember having been Voq – or intimate with Michael Burnham. That would be one really big reset button.