10 No-Win Scenarios In Star Trek (And How They Were Resolved)

4. The Battle Of The Binary Stars

Star Trek Binary Stars
CBS Media Ventures

Scenario: Starfleet's message of peace is doomed to failure against the Klingons led by T'Kuvma, but the Captain has ordered Burnham to stand down.

Resolution: Michael Burnham faced an impossible choice in this situation, with time vindicating her decision. Though mutiny was a certain road to the brig, she knew from experience with Sarek that the Klingon Empire would only respond to force and not to peace. However, Philipa Georgiou couldn't imagine Starfleet firing first.

This is a situation where initially, everybody lost. T'Kuvma was the man responsible for every death during the Battle of the Binary Stars, yet Georgiou's hesitation to attack left Starfleet trying to play catch up.

Had Burnham succeeded, there is a very real chance that war could have been averted. However, her failure to overpower Georgiou, and the subsequent murder of Georgiou by T'Kuvma, was another contributing factor to the war. Whichever way the day went, Burnham was stuck at the end of a very short path.

The long term resolution came about with the installation of L'Rell as Chancellor. This had not been an option on the first day, though it was an inspired choice by the last day.

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Seán is the host and head writer/presenter for TrekCulture, as well as a writer/presenter on WhoCulture and WhatCulture Horror. He has authored two novels, dozens of short stories, and hundreds of articles for WhatCulture. He holds a Master of Arts in Creative Writing from University College Dublin. As part of his work with TrekCulture, Seán has been invited to participate in collaborations with Roddenberry Entertainment, as well as contributing to several Star Trek community projects. An avid fan of Star Trek, Doctor Who, and the horror genre at large, Seán's expertise has helped develop these channels to the successes they are today. As host of the Ups & Downs series on TrekCulture, Seán has become internationally recognised for his positive yet critically informed approach to reviewing every episode of modern Star Trek, ensuring he is one of the go-to voices in the Trek community. Favourite Quote to describe himself: "I'm serious about what I do, just not always about the way that I do it"