Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Discovery Season 5, Episode 8 – “Labyrinths”
Star Trek: Discovery heads into its series finale with a major upheaval among the Breen that reveals the real Big Bad of season 5 all along. Written by Lauren Wilkinson & Eric J. Robbins and directed by Emmanuel Osei-Kuffour, Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 8, “Labyrinths” pits Captain Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green) and the USS Discovery against the Breen led by Primarch Ruhn (Tony Nappo). Perilously allied with the Breen is Moll (Eve Harlow), who promised to lead Primarch Ruhn to the Progenitors’ ancient treasure.
Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 8, “Labyrinths” sends the USS Discovery and the Breen to the Badlands, the location of the final clue to the Progenitors’ treasure. Captain Burnham retrieves the clue from the Eternal Gallery and Archive by facing her own deepest fears and proving to the program left behind by Betazoid scientist Dr. Marina Derex that Michael is worthy of the Progenitors’ technology. Aboard the Breen Dreadnought, however, Primarch Ruhn grows increasingly violent and dishonorable, even after Burnham surrenders the Progenitors’ complete treasure map to the Breen. A power struggle between Moll and Ruhn defines who really is the main adversary of Star Trek: Discovery season 5.
At the end of Star Trek: Discovery season 5, episode 8, “Labyrinths”, Moll kills Primarch Ruhn and takes control of his faction of the Breen Imperium, the Sixth Flight. Ruhn’s sadistic behavior and his lack of honor proved too much for Lieutenant Arisar (Dorian Grey), the Breen who was guarding Moll, and he supported the human’s takeover of the Breen after she killed Ruhn. Because Moll is the wife of L’ak (Elias Toufexis), she asserts her control in his name as the Scion of the Breen, making Moll the main villain of Star Trek: Discovery season 5 all along.
Moll was introduced as one half of a couple with L’ak, but her importance within Star Trek: Discovery season 5 has only increased. As the daughter of Cleveland Booker’s (David Ajala) late mentor, Cleveland Booker IV, Moll’s redemption as Book’s ersatz ‘sister’ didn’t work out the way he intended. Moll remained unshakable in her devotion to L’ak, and vice versa. Originally, Moll and L’ak’s goal was to trade the Progenitors’ technology for the Breen living their Erigah blood bounty on their heads. Now, Moll’s only focus is to resurrect L’ak with the life-giving power of the Progenitors’ treasure.
However, Moll isn’t really a Star Trek villain as others in the franchise have been. Star Trek has its share of diabolical heavies like Khan Noonien-Singh (Ricardo Montalban), Shinzon (Tom Hardy), and Nero (Eric Bana). But Moll isn’t out for vengeance, destruction, or even power. Moll simply wants to bring L’ak back to life. It’s not clear if Moll has considered what happens if she succeeds and resurrects L’ak. Most likely, Moll hopes that she and L’ak can still leave the Breen and have the freedom to live their lives together, which is all they ultimately wanted.
However, greater issues surround Moll’s attempt to bring L’ak back with the Progenitors’ treasure. Moll giving the Breen control of the ancient technology would be catastrophic to the United Federation of Planets and the galaxy at large. This means that Captain Burnham has to stop Moll from getting what she wants, even if it means L’ak has to remain dead to safeguard the Federation’s future from the Breen. Moll isn’t a Star Trek villain in a traditional sense, but Moll achieving her goal and bringing back L’ak would still jeopardize billions of lives in Star Trek: Discovery.
New episodes of Star Trek: Discovery season 5 stream Thursdays on Paramount+