Star Trek: Zora, Explained

Star Trek
doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to advanced technology. Whole episodes have been created around Starfleet’s misuse becoming everyone else’s problem. One example was when

Section 31’s Control went rogue in
Discovery
and killed a bunch of people – including crewmember Airiam. So in a way, Zora’s sentience was a blessing. She had all the capabilities of a complex computer system, plus she wasn’t beholden to the whims of power-hungry officers.She might have struggled to manage her emotions at times, like in season 4, episode 6, “Stormy Weather.” But Zora eventually got the hang of doing what humans and other sentient beings do all the time: succeeding under emotional distress.

The crew of the USS Discovery
helped her find a healthy balance between feeling and knowing. In “…But to Connect,” Zora described herself as:

The Sphere’s existence and all the Discovery’s records, tasks, and past events combined.

“more than the sum of those parts.”
While she never developed a physical body, Zora’s heart grew as much as anyone else’s with the help of her friends.

Star Trek: Discovery
. Why wouldn’t she? She provided information, helped them survive tricky situations, and even comforted them when they got upset. She’s the best friend anybody would want, but that not everyone is lucky enough to receive. Similar to

Data’s cat Spot in
The Next Generation
, she was an unlikely hero that no one saw coming. Still, she favored some characters more than others.Ensign Adira’s boyfriend, Gray Tal, was only with the USS Discovery for a short period of time. But while aboard, he was one of the first people to notice Zora struggling with her feelings. So, he introduced her to the simple fun of playing games and using them to center herself emotionally. Meanwhile, Zora’s gentle companionship with Michael gave them both new perspectives. The sentient AI allowed the captain to let her hair down and open up a little. In return, Michael helped Zora create a family tree using her memories with the crew. She wasn’t just learning how to make moments with her found family. She was also learning how to cherish them.

Star Trek: Discovery
and the depth of her relationships made her tragic ending difficult to accept. Saying that many fans just didn’t take it well feels like an understatement. Zora was loyal, kind, and always willing to help – even at her own expense. Starfleet should have showered her with accolades for all that she did for the USS Discovery and the Federation. Instead, she was relegated to spending over a thousand years alone on one of those infamously mysterious

red directive missions
, with only old movies for company.At the end of Season 5, episode 10, “Life, Itself,” Admiral Burnham sends Zora off with only a few details of her primary goals outside of something to do with the word “craft.” Worse, Zora is told upfront that all the people she’s come to care about will cease to exist during her time away. Many

Discovery
fans argued that this abandonment was unnecessarily cruel to a fantastic character. Seeing her holo-projection shed a tear at the end of “Calypso” certainly didn’t help. Regardless,

Star Trek: Discovery
made the most of Zora while she was around. Maybe in another lifetime, she’ll get the happy ending she always deserved.