Michael Burnham Michael Burnham was a female 23rd century Human Starfleet officer raised on , by Ambassador Sarek and Amanda Grayson . As a commander , she served as the first officer aboard the in 2256 , under Captain Philippa Georgiou , with whom she had served since 2249 . ( ) In 2256 , she was stripped of rank and sentenced to life imprisonment for mutiny , but she gained a second chance when she was assigned to the . ( ) After the Battle at Pahvo , " Discovery " was " accidentally " transported to the mirror universe , eventually forcing Burnham to impersonate , who had been captain of the prior to her presumed death , taking Captain , supposedly impersonating his own mirror counterpart , as a prisoner to the Emperor - as it turned out , the mirror - while searching for information on the . However , after meeting Georgiou , Burnham realized that Lorca " was " his mirror universe counterpart and that she had been serving under an impostor . After warning " Discovery " of this , Burnham and Georgiou fought Lorca and defeated him , in the process destroying the and enabling " Discovery " to return to the prime universe , Georgiou in tow . However , difficulties with navigating the mycelial network caused " Discovery " to emerge at the wrong point in the timestream , at a time when the Federation was on the verge of defeat . ( ) With no option left , Starfleet assigned Georgiou to command " Discovery " and ordered her to plant a hydro bomb on Qo ' noS ; however , Burnham refused to abandon her principles again and prevented Georgiou from activating the bomb , instead using it to force a truce with the Klingons . For her role in ending the war , Burnham was pardoned and her rank restored ; in addition , she was awarded the Starfleet Medal of Honor . ( ) Early life . Burnham was born on Earth , in 2226 . ( ) In the early 2230s , Burnham ' s parents were stationed on Doctari Alpha . They originally planned a vacation to Mars but a young Burnham begged them to stay three more days to witness a nearby star go supernova . The Klingons then attacked . Burnham ' s father attempted to barricade the kitchen door , while her mother hid her in a cabinet . Burnham did not witness the death of her parents , but she heard everything happen , saying that they killed her father quickly , but took longer with her mother . The Klingons then sat down on Burnham ' s family table , made dinner and laughed . ( ) She was then raised on Vulcan by Sarek and Amanda Grayson and was the first Human to ever attend the Vulcan Learning Center . She initially struggled to adapt , having to recall the events of her parents ' death in a series of questions posed by the Centre . Sarek assured her that when emotion brought her ghosts from the past , only logic can root her in the present . A young Burnham suggested she learn Vulcan , but Sarek told her it was her Human heart , not her Human tongue that was the problem . ( ) Shortly after she arrived on Vulcan , Burnham was targeted by Vulcan logic extremists who believed that Humans were a threat to their logical civilization and who launched an attack on the Learning Center . The bombing left Burnham physically dead for three minutes , forcing Sarek to initiate a mind meld with Burnham in order to revive her . As a result of this , a portion of Sarek ' s " katra " remained inside her mind , which later allowed him to communicate with her across interstellar distances and the two to share physical sensations such as pain . ( ) During her childhood , her foster mother often read to Michael and to her biological son , Spock , particularly " Alice ' s Adventures in Wonderland " . Even as an adult , Michael still owned a physical copy of this book , which was a gift from Amanda . ( ) On Burnham ' s tenth birthday , she and Amanda visited the seventh moon of Eridani D to attend a book exchange , an ancient Human ritual . ( ) In 2245 , Burnham began attending the Vulcan Science Academy , where she studied quantum physics . She graduated four years later at the top of her class , and was a recipient of the Vulcan Scientific Legion of Honor . ( ) After her graduation , Burnham applied to join the Vulcan Expeditionary Group . Unbeknownst to Burnham , the Group rejected her application on the basis of Burnham being Human , and forced Sarek to choose between allowing Michael to join now , or allowing Spock – who was " half " - Human – to join in the future . After reluctantly choosing Spock over Michael , Sarek hid the truth out of personal shame and reported her rejection as being a result of her " insufficient " abilities . This led Burnham to believe that it was her weaknesses that resulted in the decision , and that Sarek was wrong to believe in her – a sentiment her foster mother dismissed . Sarek ' s shame ultimately only grew when , eventually , Spock unexpectedly chose to join Starfleet instead of the Expeditionary Group , rendering Sarek ' s sacrifice of Michael ' s Vulcan career pointless . ( ) Starfleet career . USS " Shenzhou " . Sarek sought to find Burnham a place where she could thrive , and approached Captain Philippa Georgiou to give his ward an opportunity in Starfleet . Burnham therefore joined the service and was assigned to the " Shenzhou " under the command of Georgiou in 2249 , at the age of 23 . Serving as a xenoanthropologist , she eventually rose to the rank of commander , and by 2256 , had become Georgiou ' s first officer . ( ) Encountering the Klingons . Just prior to the Battle of the Binary Stars , Burnham was charged with mutiny after incapacitating Captain Georgiou and taking command of the " Shenzhou " , preparing to attack the Klingons by firing on them first . She subsequently pled guilty to these charges during a court martial , and was stripped of rank and sentenced to life in prison . ( ) She thus became the first and only officer ever convicted of mutiny in the history of Starfleet to that date . USS " Discovery " . After serving six months in prison , Burnham was transported via shuttlecraft to another facility at Tellun . The shuttle transporting them was disabled , but she and three other prisoner s were rescued by the USS " Discovery " . Following orders by Captain , she participated in a boarding party aboard the . Lorca then offered her a berth aboard " Discovery " , assuring her that her life sentence would not be a problem . Burnham began sharing quarters with Sylvia Tilly . ( ) Burnham was reassigned from the command division to the sciences division and allowed to wear a Starfleet uniform again , albeit without any rank or other insignia . Lorca assigned her to work on the , which had been captured aboard the " Glenn " . Burnham named the creature " Ripper , " because of its strength and ability to damage even a starship ' s tritanium hull . In collaboration with Tilly and Paul Stamets , she discovered the tardigrade ' s connection to the mycelial network , which enabled the full utilization of the spore drive in order to stop the Klingon attack on Corvan II . ( ) In the following weeks , the " Discovery " used the spore drive several times ; Burnham grew concerned with the effects of this usage on the tardigrade , which became weaker and seemed to be at great discomfort when utilized for the drive . After voicing her concerns to acting captain Saru , she was confined to quarters by him . Following the successful mission to rescue Captain Lorca , she and Tilly released the tardigrade into space , where it regained its strength and traveled away . ( ) After recovering Sarek from an assassination attempt by the same extremists who had targeted her as a young girl , Burnham was offered a position as bridge science specialist by Lorca , which she accepted . In the process , Burnham learned the truth about her rejection by the Expeditionary Group – Sarek had chosen to enable Spock to serve with the Group instead ( although Spock had turned down that offer ) . ( ) Relationships . Friendships . Philippa Georgiou . Burnham and Philippa Georgiou had almost a mother – daughter relationship ; after taking on Burnham as a member of her crew , Georgiou decided to take a chance on Burnham and made her first officer . From their first encounter , Philippa boosted Michael ' s self - esteem , telling her that her confidence was justified , much to Michael ' s shock and complimenting her back . Over the course of seven years , they developed an extremely close relationship . Georgiou grew to trust Burnham , and while exploring with her in 2256 , said she trusted her with her life . On a relatively primitive planet , the duo opened a well , and enabled the planet ' s residents to survive a coming eighty - nine - year drought . Burnham warned Georgiou of her encounter with a Klingon , and with hesitation , Georgiou believed her and locked weaponry on the object . Starfleet ordered the " Shenzhou " to wait until reinforcements arrived . When Burnham recommended firing first against the Klingons , Georgiou refused . Burnham disabled Georgiou with a Vulcan nerve pinch and took command of the ship , ordering an attack on the Klingon vessel . Georgiou recovered in time to stop the attack . ( ) Georgiou arrested and imprisoned Burnham for mutiny . However , Burnham escaped the brig after telepathic encouragement from Sarek , and convinced Georgiou to take T ' Kuvma hostage , instead of making him a martyr . Georgiou told Burnham she worried that one day her Vulcan upbringing would cloud her Human side , and was disappointed to learn that she had such an ego to believe she could rip the Vulcan shell away from Burnham . Burnham retorted that she turned against her because she believed it was the only viable option to avoid a full scale war , and to save her life as well as the crew ' s , which was worth going against Starfleet ' s principles . Georgiou did not respond to her justification , but agreed to go with her plan to infiltrate the ship together , rather than Burnham alone as she originally suggested , indicating Georgiou had not given up on her . Using an explosive sent to T ' Kuvma ' s ship with a Klingon corpse as a distraction , the duo boarded the ship and attacked . Burnham fought off Voq , but Georgiou was killed during the Battle of the Binary Stars , by T ' Kuvma . A moment later , Burnham shot T ' Kuvma and made a martyr of him . Burnham was distraught , weeping at the loss of her friend and captain , and becoming consumed with grief . Following Georgiou ' s death , Burnham felt she was responsible for the death of her captain and friend , completely guilt - ridden . ( ) Six months after Georgiou ' s death , Burnham received Georgiou ' s will , in which Georgiou had left Burnham her most prized possession , a telescope handed down through her family for centuries . In her will , Georgiou said she was proud of Burnham as if she were her own daughter . ( ) However , Burnham felt undeserving of the possession , believing herself to be guilty of Georgiou ' s death , so she gave the telescope to Saru instead . ( ) Burnham felt having to face Georgiou ' s terran counterpart , the emperor , was a reckoning for her betrayal . She remained feeling extremely guilty for having went against her captain ' s wishes . After revealing her true identity , Burnham told Emperor Georgiou that their bond seemed to cross universes , as Burnham and Georgiou ' s mother / daughter - like bond is a literal mother / daughter bond in the mirror universe . ( ) Burnham ' s guilt over her captain ' s death led her to declare she would not let Emperor Georgiou die , no matter how cruel or ruthless she is . ( ) When she returned to the prime universe with Georgiou , having kept her promise , she admitted she wanted to show her a place of morality and hope . Mirror Georgiou told her that she wished to save her because she couldn ' t save her own Georgiou , and that it weakens her , to which Michael responded , " Well I feel it every day of my life " . ( ) Sarek . Sarek and Burnham had a father - daughter relationship due to the fact that , after her parents were killed , Sarek took Burnham as his ward . Afterwards , he helped her countless times whenever her judgement was clouded by her Human emotions . ( ) Saru . Burnham served with Saru aboard the " Shenzhou " , though they were meanwhile in near - constant disagreement in how to read and approach situations . Georgiou noted their rare agreement for once . ( ) Even after Burnham ' s mutiny , which came as a surprise to Saru , he still considered Burnham a valuable asset and the smartest officer in Starfleet , but he was now afraid of her and considered her very dangerous . ( ) Burnham reported to Saru that every jump the ship made with the spore drive was negatively impacting Ripper . Saru dismissed this , while she warned that she was unsure of how many jumps the tardigrade could sustain . Later , Saru confronted Burnham upon discovering Stamets had taken the spore drive offline . Tilly , Stamets , and Burnham were looking for compatible DNA sequences , as Burnham said they could use a Human host . Saru noted that he told her to stand down earlier and she disobeyed another order . Burnham said she knew his Kelpien culture made him alert of enemies , but assured him she wasn ' t one of them . Saru angrily fired back that she wasn ' t an enemy , but a predator , leaving Michael hurt . He told her that saving Ripper would not bring back nor change the fact that her behavior was exactly the kind that led to the death of Georgiou . Burnham later asked Saru whether he was afraid of her . Saru said he was angry and jealous that he never had the chance to be First Officer under Georgiou and learn everything she had to teach . He anticipated that Burnham would get her own command and he would move up , but he never got that chance . He believed that if he had , he would have been more prepared for the events of today . Burnham assured Saru that he did very well and that Captain Georgiou would have thought so , as well . Burnham then went under her bed to get Captain Georgiou ' s telescope and told Saru that it is his now . Saru then told Burnham to save Ripper . ( ) Sylvia Tilly . Burnham and Sylvia Tilly eventually grew to have an unlikely bond . She was assigned to be Cadet Tilly ' s roommate on the Discovery after six months of imprisonment . Tilly awkwardly admitted that Burnham was sleeping on her bed , and that she suffered from chronic snoring . She then tried to make conversation with Burnham , learning her name and trying to form a " more approachable " nickname with " Mickey " . Burnham rejected this , however . Tilly then noted that the only other person she had heard of with the name was the infamous mutineer , Michael Burnham , but it couldn ' t be her new roommate . Burnham glared at her , confirming the outlandish notion , making Tilly nervous . Burnham and Tilly had another awkward exchange when Tilly lied , saying the engineering officers had assigned seats . Burnham learned from Stamets later that this wasn ' t true and went back , next to Tilly , as she tried to ignore her . On Tilly ' s first boarding party with Burnham , Tilly apologized , explaining that it was important for her to make a good impression and that she didn ' t want to be seen with a mutineer . Burnham understood and said it was okay , but Tilly said it wasn ' t okay , and that she was just afraid of what other people would think of her . Later , Tilly was shocked to see that Burnham had not left the ship , as Lorca extended her stay to contribute to the war effort . Tilly told her she was glad and confided that she intended to be a captain someday , but there were things about command she didn ' t yet know . Having read everything on Georgiou – which Burnham quietly corrected to " Captain Georgiou " – she suggested that Burnham could help teach her . Tilly was surprised when Burnham unpacked an actual , physical book , which Burnham handed to her : " Alice ' s Adventures in Wonderland " . Burnham explained that her foster mother used to read it to her son and Burnham , and that it taught her that the world is not always logical . When Tilly asked her name , Burnham replied , " " Amanda . " " ( ) Tilly secretly helped Burnham , giving her spores to successfully tame and befriend Ripper . Burnham smiled , appreciating her help . Later , in her shared quarters with Tilly , the cadet congratulated Burnham on a job well done , but the tardigrade being utilized in a way that caused it to feel agony clearly weighed on Burnham , in spite of the heroic act . She then said she had another reputation growing . Tilly noticed Burnham hadn ' t opened the capsule containing Georgiou ' s will , and encouraged her to open it by noting her bravery and saying she wasn ' t afraid of anything . ( ) Tilly and Burnham later ate lunch together . Tilly told her roommate that she looked awful , and Burnham sarcastically thanked her . Tilly suspected something is wrong with her , but Burnham dismissed this . Tilly then assumed Burnham had made new , more interesting friends but she assured her it wasn ' t her . Burnham explained it is about her , having been preoccupied with Ripper ' s condition from the use of the spore drive that she has no job to do aboard the ship . Tilly told her that it was time to reflect upon herself , emotionally . Burnham said she didn ' t like that , to which Tilly responded , " " Really ? I love feeling feelings " " . Later , they worked on helping Ripper together . Burnham and Tilly released Ripper together . ( ) Romance . Ash Tyler . Ash Tyler is one of the very few aboard " Discovery " who does not judge Burnham harshly for her earlier crimes and escaping justice . Upon meeting her , Tyler declares that he prefers to evaluate people based on their current behavior rather than their pasts . ( ) As time goes by , the two begin to form a friendship which eventually blossoms into romance . Rivals . T ' Kuvma . T ' Kuvma ' s plan to wage war against the Federation was set in motion . Burnham committed a failed mutiny in order to stop this with the intention of firing at the Klingons first . Later , after escaping captivity , Burnham suggested capturing T ' Kuvma to cause his reputation to damage . By doing so , Burnham predicted the Klingon war effort would not be successful if its leader had been quickly suppressed . However , when Burnham and Georgiou encountered T ' Kuvma and Voq at the Binary Stars , T ' Kuvma killed Georgiou . Burnham disregarded her previous suggestion upon seeing Georgiou being killed , and in an emotional response , she killed T ' Kuvma . ( ) Gabriel Lorca . The nature of ' s relationship to Burnham was mysterious for a long time . Unknown to Burnham and the rest of " Discovery " at the time , Lorca was secretly his mirror universe counterpart in disguise , with a plan to get back to his universe and convince Burnham to pose as her presumed dead counterpart to rebel against Emperor in an attempt to take the throne for himself . ( ) Tilly felt that Lorca " practically adopted " Burnham . ( ) Emperor Georgiou revealed to Burnham that her mirror universe counterpart had conspired with Lorca to kill her , and that he groomed her . At one point as a child , Georgiou felt the mirror universe Burnham saw Lorca as a father figure , but when she grew up , the relationship became romantic , much to Prime Burnham ' s shock and disgust . ( ) Upon their initial meeting , Burnham noted to Lorca that her prison shuttle changed course halfway through the journey , and assessed that Lorca had brought her to " Discovery " intentionally , testing her abilities . She revealed she knew about the experimental technology he had been using . Lorca told Burnham her suspicions were correct , but he didn ' t choose her for the reasons she thought . Lorca explained that , due to the circumstances of the war , he wanted to recruit her because her actions leading up to the Battle of the Binary Stars were predictive , and she chose to do the right thing despite it being against protocol . He believed this to be thinking that " wins wars " . Lorca convinced Burnham to stay , manipulating her by suggesting that she stay to achieve atonement or redemption for Georgiou ' s loss . ( ) Lorca was hesitant to send Burnham away to find Sarek , who was in danger . Lorca told Ash Tyler to bring Burnham back in one piece or don ' t come back at all , to which Tyler assumed he was referring to the ship . At one point , Lorca questioned how Sarek could mind meld with her , as she was not Vulcan . In actuality , Lorca had been using information based on the mirror Burnham by mistake , who had not been raised by Vulcans . Later , Burnham told Lorca she was grateful to be serving under a captain like him . ( ) Tyler and Burnham transported to ' s ship and plant sensors that created an algorithm for detecting the cloaked Klingon ships , much to the disapproval of Lorca . Eventually Lorca agreed to let her go . Burnham explained that she needed to go , being the most qualified person having been on the same vessel and knowing the surroundings , but Lorca curiously and illogically disagreed . Due to the nature of Lorca ' s relationship being revealed later , it was clear Lorca did not want to face Burnham getting killed again , being vital to his plan to stop the emperor and also because of his romantic feelings for her based on her mirror counterpart . ( ) When Lorca jumped " Discovery " to the mirror universe , Burnham revealed , based on the personnel files , she was presumed dead and his counterpart was a fugitive wanted for her murder . Lorca told Burnham to look outside and said , " " A different universe and yet somehow the same people have a way of finding each other . . . might be the strongest argument that I ' ve ever seen for the existence of destiny . " " Burnham dismissed Lorca ' s destiny argument , insisting that " " Destiny didn ' t get me out of prison , captain . You did . " " At this point , Lorca relied on Burnham to take care of the crew . Burnham agreed with the plan to disguise as their Terran selves in order to retrieve the files on the USS " Defiant " to find a way back home . ( ) After Tyler was revealed to be a sleeper agent Klingon , Lorca held Burnham ' s hand , telling her she wasn ' t alone . ( ) Lorca ' s secret plan to lead Burnham to Emperor Georgiou was successful , as she was summoned to the . Burnham told Lorca it felt like having to face Georgiou again was a reckoning , but Lorca told her that Captain Georgiou was dead and Emperor Georgiou was a ghost . Burnham retorted , " " Haven ' t you ever been afraid of a ghost ? " " Later , after spending time with Emperor Georgiou as Lorca went to an agonizer booth , Burnham finally realized that Lorca ' s sensitivity to light was a trait all Terrans possessed , and from Georgiou ' s words , Lorca believed destiny brought her daughter and Lorca together . Burnham pieced together that Lorca was from the mirror universe and it was not an accident they jumped there . ( ) With Lorca ' s true nature revealed , Burnham agreed to help Emperor Georgiou due to her attachment to the prime Georgiou . She tricked Lorca the same way they intended to trick Georgiou , by handing Georgiou over to Lorca , and a bemused Lorca told Georgiou that Burnham was destined to betray her in every universe . Lorca questioned Burnham ' s motives , and Burnham told him that in exchange for " Discovery " s safe passage home , he could have her , but only " her mind " ( indicating to Lorca her awareness of his romantic feelings for her ) . Lorca agreed and communicated this information to Saru on " Discovery " . However , Burnham and Georgiou worked together to attack and kill Lorca ' s men . Burnham and Lorca fought , and he told her he didn ' t want to have to kill her . Burnham grabbed a phaser and told him that they would have brought him home had he asked , and because she was Starfleet , she wouldn ' t kill him . Emperor Georgiou quickly impaled Lorca instead and Lorca attempted to die holding onto Burnham , but she turned away instead . ( ) Memorable quotes . " " We see something we don ' t understand and immediately cast judgement ? Maybe it ' s lost . Maybe it ' s afraid to show its whole self " . " " " We come in peace , that ' s why we ' re here . Isn ' t that the whole idea of Starfleet ? " " " " Hey – I taught you that . " " " " You wanna know how I turned on you ? I believed saving you and the crew was more important than Starfleet ' s principles . Was it logic al ? Emotion al ? I don ' t know . " " " " From my youth on Vulcan , I was raised to believe that service was my purpose . And I carried that conviction to Starfleet . I dreamed of a day when I would command my own vessel , and further the noble objectives of this great institution . That dream is over . The only ship I know in ruins . My crew . . . gone . My captain . . . my friend . I wanted to protect them from . From the enemy . And now we are at war . . . and I am the enemy . " " " " The real world doesn ' t always adhere to logic . Sometimes down is up , sometimes up is down . . . and sometimes when you ' re lost , you ' re found " . " - Burnham , telling Tilly about the physical book copy of Alice in Wonderland given to her by Amanda Grayson , ( ) " " Sometimes the only way to find out where you fit in is to step out of the routine . Because sometimes , where you really belong was waiting right around the corner all along . " " " " He needed me to get onto this ship ; you wouldn ' t have let him on otherwise . [ . . . ] He needed me to get to you . [ . . . ] None of this was an accident . My so - called captain ' s not from my universe . He ' s from yours . " " " " But doesn ' t get to tell me what my future is . I ' m responsible for forging my own path . We all are . My taught me that " . " " " We would ' ve helped you get home if you had asked ! That ' s who Starfleet is . That ' s who I am . That ' s why I won ' t kill you now . " " Appendices . Background information . Development . Burnham was played by Sonequa Martin - Green as an adult and Arista Arhin in scenes of her childhood . One reason the first name " Michael " was chosen for this character was that Bryan Fuller often had female protagonists who had typically male first names ( such as " Chuck " and " Jaye " ) . " " When we all sat down , of course , the idea was going to be that she was going to have a male name , or typically male name , " " recalled Executive Producer / Writer Aaron Harberts . " " We were just pitching around the writers ' room . We had a couple on the board and I said , ' Well , how about Michael ? ' Because I had remembered a gossip columnist in Chicago . I used to work in Chicago in publicity , and Michael Sneed , she wrote for the Chicago Sun Times . Then , there was the bass player for The Bangles , a musician named Michael Steele . I ' d always thought that the name Michael was just really cool and different . We pitched that to Bryan and he was like , ' Let me think about that . ' That ' s how we seized on it . " " Bryan Fuller was the person who publicly revealed that the main character of DIS would be a female who wasn ' t a captain . He announced this news on , during an interview session with journalists at the Television Critics Association Summer Tour . In , Bryan Fuller met with Sonequa Martin - Green to play his lead character , Michael Burnham . " " Her audition was fantastic , " " Fuller remarked . " " I found her incredibly insightful as an actor and delightful as a human being . " " Aaron Harberts was also impressed with the actress . " " We read a lot of people who either went too robotic or too emotional , " " he recalled . " " She was able to be aloof and logical but still warm and surrendering her emotional side to the audience . " " ( " Entertainment Weekly " , issue 1476 , p . 27 ) When she learned that she had won the role of Michael Burnham , Sonequa Martin - Green was with her husband at a restaurant in Buenos Aires . " " My team called , and they said , ' It ' s happening . ' My husband actually recorded it . And so , I cried , and everything , and it ' s forever captured , " " she reminisced . " " So , it was just . . . surreal . It was completely surreal . Like , ' Is this happening ? ! ' My husband and I kept looking at each other , and we wouldn ' t say anything . We would just look at each other and go ( she opened her mouth , and kept it open ) . " " In early news stories which suggested the casting of Sonequa Martin - Green in this role , the character was given the name " Rainsford " . Martin - Green ' s casting as Burnham was officially announced on . Continuity . Burnham is not the first character to have been depicted as being adopted by Sarek ; in the first draft script of , Sarek adopted a Vulcan male named Galt , who had been spying for the Klingons . Burnham ' s backstory , involving her parents being killed in a terror raid by Klingons and she then being raised on an alien planet ( i . e . Vulcan ) , also shares some similarities with Worf , whose father was killed in an attack by Romulan s before he himself was likewise raised on an alien planet ( i . e . , Earth ) . This was pointed out to Aaron Harberts on , but he stated that he hadn ' t previously thought of the similarities between Burnham ' s backstory and that of Worf . Apparently , Burnham never attended Starfleet Academy ; she graduated from the Vulcan Science Academy in 2249 and was immediately assigned to the USS " Shenzhou " . Burnham is the second of two main characters to be canon ically portrayed as being recruited aboard a series ' main starship immediately after serving time in prison ; Tom Paris likewise joined the crew of the after serving time at New Zealand Penal Settlement . Aaron Harberts once joked that Michael Burnham doesn ' t ingest fluids , but then stated that he reckoned her favorite drink was tea . ( ) Apocrypha . In the Pocket DIS novel " Desperate Hours " , Burnham became first officer in 2255 , following the promotion of the previous first officer , , who left to accept a post as the commanding officer of the starship .