Discovery’s Final Season Gave 2 Characters The Same Story

Star Trek: Discovery season 5 brought the show to its conclusion in 2024, but it did so by giving one of its new characters the same storyline as one of its longest-serving figures. The Star Trek: Discovery season 5 cast was a blend of familiar faces and franchise debuts. Everyone contributed to give the show a proper sendoff, but a strange writing choice resulted in a duplicated character arc. They weren’t completely identical, but close enough to be noticeable. That being said, with all the chaos in Discovery‘s final season, the similarities would be easy to miss.

After traveling to the 32nd century at the end of Star Trek: Discovery season 2, the titular vessel’s crew was exposed to settings and characters that hadn’t previously been accessible to the rest of the franchise. Some of Star Trek: Discovery‘s best characters only arrived after this massive time jump, so it was a very worthwhile twist. Weirdly, despite the vast array of possibilities, the Discovery writers got in each other’s way in one specific area just before the show ended.

Rayner & Saru Were Both Captains Without A Ship In Star Trek: Discovery Season 5

Captain Saru & Captain Rayner both accepted different positions (for different reasons)

Saru (Doug Jones) steps down as the USS Discovery’s captain in Star Trek: Discovery season 5. He moves into diplomatic work and becomes a Federation Ambassador. So, Michael Burnham is the ship’s captain throughout Star Trek: Discovery season 5. Although Saru was forced to resign his Starfleet commission to become an ambassador, he had already proven himself worthy of a command position. So, while he was still at the level of a Starfleet captain, he wasn’t in charge of a ship. Weirdly, Callum Keith Rennie’s Rayner experienced something similar.

Like Saru, Rayner was a former captain who had ceased to be a ship’s leader.

Rayner was also a captain at the beginning of Discovery‘s finale season. Just like Saru, his career took an unexpected turn. The biggest difference is that Rayner was asked to retire from Starfleet after acting recklessly during a mission while in command of the USS Antares. However, Captain Burnham needed a first officer, so she made the unconventional suggestion of Rayner being demoted to commander instead and installing him aboard Discovery. So, like Saru, Rayner was a former captain who had ceased to be a ship’s leader.

Rayner Probably Became A Starfleet Captain Again After Star Trek: Discovery

Rennie’s character did more than enough to prove he could be trusted again

Saru became a happily married Kelpien before the end of Star Trek: Discovery, and he displayed no interest in returning to action for Starfleet. Inversely, Burnham’s faith in Rayner’s redemption proved to be well-placed. Although they had a bumpy start to their working relationship at first, they went on to become a formidable pair that both taught each other lessons they never expected to learn.

If it hadn’t been for Burnham’s intervention, it seemed unlikely Rayner would have ever been permitted to return to Starfleet. Thankfully, Martin-Green’s character saw something in Rayner that could be nurtured and reshaped into an officer who got things done without the need for such bold and drastic tactics that had previously put countless lives at risk. So, it’s tough to imagine a scenario where he didn’t earn his way back to the rank of captain after Star Trek: Discovery ended.