Star Trek: Discovery's fifth and final season has finally begun and if you live in the United States, the only place you can watch it is on Paramount+. It's the home for all Star Trek: Discovery has to offer, at least for now. There are constant concerns about the platform and its longevity, but for now, it's the home of Discovery.
But what if you're overwhelmed by streaming services? More importantly, what if you've never watched Discovery, or you did and you didn't like it? It doesn't make sense to drop any money on Paramount+ then, especially when you can watch great Star Trek content for free on Pluto TV.
So there isn't really a need to buy a service, just to watch a show you're not a fan of or haven't seen before. But maybe you want to give it a chance, be it for the first time a second, or even a third. Maybe you're curious to see if the fifth season had any extra magic in it that prior seasons didn't. Maybe you just want to say you gave it one final chance before the show is gone for good.
Well, you don't need Paramount+ to watch the premier of Star Trek: Discovery. At least, not the fifth season's premiere episode. The first episode of season five, titled "The Red Directive" is now airing, for free, on YouTube, and you don't need anything but an internet connection to watch the episode.
It's the 56th episode of the season and should give you a good idea of whether or not you want to stick around for the rest of the season. The rest of the fifth season episodes won't be made free, but the second episode of the season (episode 57, Under the Twin Moons) is out now on Paramount+ should you enjoy what you saw for free on YouTube.
Though, you'll need a subscription to Paramount+ to watch the rest of the next episode and the rest of the season, as the rest of the episodes get released.