WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Star Trek: Discovery's Season 3 finale, "That Hope Is You, Part 2," now streaming on CBS All Access.

Star Trek: Discovery Season 3 has been one of heavy transition, with the titular ship's crew adjusting to life in the 32nd century. This has meant a number of major adjustments for the U.S.S. Discovery, including in regards to who sits in the captain's chair, which is one of the most highly-visible positions in the franchise. Now, after a season of changing hands, the Discovery has yet another new captain: Michael Burnham.

This, of course, has been a promotion long time coming for both the character and the show proper. Discovery marked the first time that the main character of a Star Trek show wasn't the captain, but Burnham served as second-in-command a number of times, working under Philippa Georgiou on the Shenzhou and Saru on Discovery proper. Regardless of rank, though, there were quite a few times during the Discovery's three seasons when she stepped up and took charge in a heated moment.

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The most recent example comes in Discovery's Season 3 finale. After the Emerald Chain and its leader, Osyraa, commandeer the Discovery, Burnham goes full John McClane and spends two episodes working from within to take it back. She single-handedly disposes of many highly-trained regulators and constantly escapes the grasp of the Chain. She's even able to kill Osyraa herself, taking back the ship and saving the crew from dying of asphyxiation.

Even after the crew re-unites, Burnham remains in charge. Acting captain Tilly cedes control to her, looking to her leadership. And she makes good on the opportunity, coming up with a risky but ultimately successful plan to eject their warp core and use Book as a new conduit to re-engage the spore drive. Her initiative not only destroys the flagship of the Emerald Chain, but also allows the Discovery to jump back to the dilithium planet and rescue the crew members marooned there, including Captain Saru.

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Only, Saru doesn't remain the captain for long. After connecting with Su'Kal over the last few episodes, Saru opts to take his fellow Kelpien to their home planet of Kaminar, and the finale shows him silently watching the stars. Burnham narrates that Saru has taken a leave of absence from Starfleet to "figure out next steps," assumingly reconnecting back with a people he left long ago.

In Saru's absence, a captain is needed. And both he and Admiral Vance recommend Burnham. She takes the news with surprise, given how much the admiral disapproved of her unorthodox techniques over the course of Discovery Season 3. But Vance can't deny that Burnham gets results and so asks her to do exactly what Philippa Georgiou wanted in their final conversation: Step up and be the leader.

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In the final scene of the Discovery Season 3 finale, a newly-uniformed Burnham heads to the bridge and greets her crew with smiles. She takes the big chair for the first time as the Discovery's true captain. And with that, she sends the ship off on the first of seemingly many delivery missions, issuing a cool, "Let's fly." It's unknown how long she will remain captain, given how much the seat seems to change hands on Discovery. But considering how critical she is to the show at large, it's safe to say we should get use to saying Captain Michael Burnham.

Streaming on CBS All Access, Star Trek: Discovery stars Sonequa Martin-Green as Commander Michael Burnham, Doug Jones as Commander Saru, Anthony Rapp as Lt. Commander Paul Stamets, Mary Wiseman as Ensign Sylvia Tilly, Wilson Cruz as Dr. Hugh Culber, David Ajala as Cleveland "Book" Booker, Blu del Barrio as Adira, Ian Alexander as Gray, Tig Notaro as Chief Engineer Reno and Michelle Yeoh as Philippa Georgiou. New episodes of Season 3 air on Thursdays.

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