Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 Trailer Breakdown: It's Time To Go Boldly And Have A Blast Doing It
"Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" was a warm, exciting surprise addition to the "Star Trek" franchise, reintroducing fans to new versions of old favorites from the original series and telling the story of the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise under Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount). The first season was a total blast with a little something for every kind of "Star Trek" fan, and now the trailer for season 2 is here and it looks even better than the first. That's right, the Enterprise is back, bringing Pike, Una (Rebecca Romijn), Spock (Ethan Peck), and the rest of the courageous and charismatic crew. We already know about some of what we're going to see in season 2, like the "Star Trek: Lower Decks" crossover episode directed by Jonathan Frakes and an episode giving Ortegas the starring role, but the trailer gives us even more of an idea of what the upcoming season will hold.
Part of what makes "Strange New Worlds" so great is its willingness to go boldly in a variety of directions, from shore-leave silliness and body swaps to horror-tinged episodes that feel more like Ridley Scott's "Alien" than any "Star Trek" we've seen before, and this trailer has just about every flavor of Trek imaginable. I wish we had time-travel tech now so I could jump to June already, because season 2 of "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" will premiere on June 15, 2023 on Paramount+.
Our first look at the new engineer
Near the end of last season, Chief Engineer Hemmer (Bruce Horak) died in the line of duty, leaving an engineer-shaped hole in the crew of the Enterprise. Last autumn, the "Strange New Worlds" team revealed that the new Chief Engineer will be Pelia, played by the inimitable Carol Kane. Carol Kane joining Star Trek is pretty stinking cool, and fans might recognize her from roles in "The Princess Bride," "Dog Day Afternoon," and "The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt." Kane has both serious comedy and dramatic acting chops, which means she'll be a perfect fit for "Strange New Worlds." Hemmer will be deeply missed and we're all curious to see young Montgomery Scott (played by James Doohan in the original series), but Pelia looks like she'll be a lot of fun to spend time with in the meantime.
Ortegas pilots; Spock doubts
As Pike's Number One, Una, gives a voiceover explaining the diversity of the crew of the Enterprise and why their differences make them stronger as a team, we see some quick shots around the ship, including one of Una talking to someone just offscreen. Una was arrested by the Federation at the end of last season for lying about her Illyrian heritage, which should ban her from Starfleet, but it looks like she'll be back without too much fuss. There's sure to be some repercussion for her deceit, but with Pike on her side, she should be able to make Starfleet understand why their ban of bio-engineered people in the fleet is bogus.
We also get to see Ortegas doing some fancy piloting and shooting her way through an asteroid, while Spock looks extremely dubious that they're going to survive. It's the kind of fun moment that feels authentic to the original series where the crew play against one another, and Spock's concerned face alone makes me excited for the new season.
Some potential pairings
When Ortegas blasts through the asteroid, a bouncy version of The Postal Service's "Such Great Heights" kicks in and we get to see a few more clips of various characters in all kinds of situations, and some of them are paired in ways that seem to hint they might have a romantic arc. The one that seems the most out of left field (but totally works in the trailer) is Nurse Chapel (Jess Bush) and Dr. M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun), who had a friendly relationship in season 1 that looks a bit more intense here. There's also a shot of Chapel and Spock, who had a potential romance teased throughout the first season, so who knows?
This effin' guy
At the end of season 1, Captain Pike saw an alternate version of the future caused by his attempts to alter his own fate, and in that future was a version of James Tiberius Kirk (Paul Wesley), but now it looks like we're going to get to meet the actual Jim Kirk! It was only a matter of time, given that Kirk will eventually take control of the Enterprise in ten years when Pike is the victim of a horrible accident that will nearly kill him and will destroy his ability to walk, talk, or really do much at all besides exist inside of a sort of futuristic iron lung, but it's kind of neat that we're getting to meet Kirk already in season 2. La'an (Christina Chong) seems a bit flustered when he arrives and tries to hide it, but Una comments on the whole thing and makes it just that much more awkward. Crewmates making one another uncomfortable by pointing out the obvious? Ahhh ... now that's what I call Star Trek.
Qapla'!
In the trailer, we see Spock sharing bloodwine and a toast with some Klingons, even giving his best version of a Klingon grunt, and it's a thing of beauty. The Klingons actually look like Klingons, too, not the TOS versions where they were pretty much human or the "Star Trek: Discovery" versions that I simply refuse to acknowledge. This is also still well before the Khitomer Accords that brought peace between the Federation and the Klingons, so Spock is potentially sharing a drink with the enemy, which makes this quick moment all the more interesting. If we get to see Spock do a Klingon headbutt, I can die happy.
Not all fun and games
It's not all celebrations and hijinks, however, as we also see what looks like the return of the mysterious, murderous Gorn, who terrorized the crew in season 1. Far from being the funny green guy that the original Kirk (William Shatner) battled on TV in the 1960s, the new Gorn are a lot more like the Xenomorphs of the "Alien" franchise, complete with parasitic reproduction and acid blood! La'an is the most experienced with the Gorn, having survived a Gorn attack when she was a child, but the rest of the crew got a chance to get up close and personal with the nasty extraterrestrials and learned that they're nothing to be trifled with. The Gorn killed Hemmer, for Spock's sake! Here's hoping they don't take out any other major characters in season 2 and we get another fun, horror-filled episode.
Make ship go
It also looks like Spock will take command of the Enterprise at some point this season, which means that both Una and Pike are elsewhere and cannot captain themselves. Ortegas and Uhura want to know what his catchphrase will be and he's very typically Spock about the whole thing, and the levity of the scene leads me to believe that Una and Pike aren't in terrible danger. There's a lot of little jokey stuff in the trailer that might not work for all fans, but it definitely harkens back to the banter of the original series and works because of this cast's chemistry. There are some very dark themes and plotlines in "Strange New Worlds," but the comedic moments help keep it feel balanced, and that's represented pretty well in the trailer.
Starfleet's future greatest captain vs. 20th century technology
Captain Kirk cannot operate revolving doors. I repeat: Captain Kirk cannot operate revolving doors. In fact, instead of going all the way around and coming back through, he forces the door the wrong direction in order to get his way. If ever there was a more succinct way of summing up his whole stubborn, headstrong personality in one single moment, I sure haven't seen it.
"Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" season 2 will premiere on June 15, 2023 exclusively on Paramount+.