Is he gone for good?
The Culber we saw task Stamets with saving the mycellium is I think an agent of the Mycellium itself. I think the network has a consciousness and has manifested itself as Culber as this would be the form that Stamets would be most receptive to. It's possible that he will continue to appear to Stamets as he tries to solve the problem caused by mirror Stamets. This may mean that he remains in the programme for quite a while yet which would be good it also allows the possibility at some point of Stamets being absorbed into the network to be reunited with his partner. I think also that the network forms some sort of framework to the universes and if it fails then then the universes will also fail.
The writers have done a very clever job of keeping doors open, that's for sure. I mean, this episode focused on two characters I thought for sure were dead at various points of the season!
Just a stray thought, Lorca was absorbed by the mycellium. If it could bring back Culber it could bring back Lorca.
The spore network has information that neither Stamets would have and about both universes. It picked Culber to interact with Stamets . I think it will have the ability to materialize a Culber because it would understand his importance to Stamets and what Stamets has done for the spore network
I love these ideas, kev may, and I think they really tie it all together. The idea of the network having a consciousness is absolutely fascinating, and might let us return to some classic Trek moral questions of what life is and what type of lifeform counts as one worth respecting.
Daniel Falch, can you say more about your reset theory? I’m intrigued!
I definitely like kev may's explanation, AND Daniel Falch's story pitch about Mirror Stamets sacrificing himself to help his Prime Self be with Culber. That's so romantic!
Wow, I love these ideas. Kev, your understanding of what Dr. Culber is makes me feel a lot better about something that was bothering me. I thought it was a bit lazy and perhaps even rule-breaking to just have a "ghost," but Dr. Culber seemed to know more than Stamets himself could possibly know so it wasn't his subconscious, either. But this all makes sense to me.
I have an opinion that the network will remake or reset things when Stamets saves the network. It will give Culber back to the prime universe. I also think mirror Stamets won't make it, sacrificing himself after meeting network Culber. I'm probably totally wrong.