What We Want To See In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3
Spoilers for "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" follow.
It's been over a week since season 2 of "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" wrapped. I'd call the season a success; it built upon the rock-solid first season and swung further toward the fences. "Strange New Worlds" season 2 was daring, goofy, and pushed "Star Trek" into new frontiers while capping off with a bold cliffhanger right out of "The Next Generation."
While the premiere is at least a year away, it was confirmed back in March 2023 that "Strange New Worlds" has been renewed for a third season. The cast has already floated some ideas; Rebecca Romijn (Commander Una-Chin Riley/Number One) wants an episode showing how her character met Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), for example. But it's not just the show's cast and crew with hopes and dreams for season 3.
After season 1 ended, I wrote a list of what /Film wanted out of season 2 — I basically got everything I wanted. Now that the second season is behind us, I'm here to write the season 3 wishlist and see if lightning will strike again.
More of Kirk and Spock
Last year, I said I wanted season 2 of "Strange New Worlds" to show the beginnings of this famous friendship. In the words of Senator Bernie Sanders, I am asking once again!
"Strange New Worlds" had fun teasing Jim Kirk (Paul Wesley) and Spock (Ethan Peck) meeting. They met in alternate timelines twice, first in the season 1 finale "A Quality of Mercy" and then again in the season 2 episode "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow." When the "main" Kirk finally visits the Enterprise during season 2's "Lost in Translation," he spends most of the episode palling around with Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding), not Spock. Kirk and Spock do have a chance meeting in the Enterprise bar; Uhura introduces them, and then they share a handshake (with a close-up to underscore this encounter's importance) and a drink. Amusingly, the thing that kicks off the meeting is their mutual frustrations with Sam Kirk (Dan Jeannotte), Jim's older brother and a science officer on the Enterprise.
I'm relieved the series didn't repeat the J.J. Abrams "Star Trek" films, where Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) initially hate each other. Rather, their friendship seems to be forming gradually. Think about it — were your closest friendships forged by a single dramatic event or just by spending a lot of time with someone and forming a groove?
In "Subspace Rhapsody," after Spock spews some technobabble, Kirk compliments him: "Mr. Spock, you explained that very well. I almost understood it." From Kirk's grin to Spock's bemused silence, the whole exchange seemed like it could've been delivered by William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy themselves. More of this, please.
Dr. McCoy and/or Mr. Sulu
The season 2 finale of "Strange New Worlds" — "Hegemony" — introduced a younger version of Montgomery "Scotty" Scott, future Chief Engineer of the Enterprise (once James Doohan, now Martin Quinn).
The series now has even more of "The Original Series" characters on board — the main missing faces so far are Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy (DeForest Kelley) and helmsman Hikaru Sulu (George Takei). I'd say it's a sure thing we meet them before the end of the series. Co-creator Akiva Goldsman told Variety, "The longer we stay on air [...] the more likely it becomes."
However, I'll also play it safe and not bet which character season 3 brings in. Since "A Quality of Mercy" introduced Kirk and "Hegemony" brought in Scotty, I will say it's a good chance the pattern repeats and we meet another "TOS" character in the eventual season 3 finale.
Maybe McCoy is currently serving on the USS Farragut with Kirk? I wouldn't mind the series incorporating the Abrams films' idea that Kirk knew Bones before he knew Spock. Considering Dr. M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun) will be busted down from Chief Medical Officer by the time of "The Original Series," maybe his actionable actions in "Under the Cloak of War" come back to haunt him and McCoy steps in as his replacement. Meanwhile, current Enterprise pilot Erica Ortegas (Melissa Navia) was abducted by the Gorn in the season 2 finale. If fate doesn't smile kindly on her, will Sulu take her place?
The biggest challenge "Strange New Worlds" will face is the shadows of Karl Urban as Bones and John Cho as Sulu in the Abrams films. Maybe they should repeat the Scotty gambit and cast total unknowns.
Show the Gorn
"Strange New Worlds" has made the reptilian Gorn into its signature villains. The series turned them into basically intelligent xenomorphs, right down to the "laying their eggs in people's bodies" shtick.
However, the series has been restrained in featuring them onscreen. "Memento Mori" showed only their ships. "All Those Who Wander" showed freshly-hatched Gorn juveniles (portrayed with both CGI and puppetry). Between walking on all fours and their growls, these Gorn feel more like pack-hunting animals than sapient beings. The baby Gorn return in "Hegemony," and we finally see an adult one too ... sort of. The adult Gorn is seen prowling the remains of the USS Cayuga and runs afoul of Spock and Nurse Chapel (Jess Bush). Because of the oxygen-free, zero-gravity environment, this Gorn is wearing a spacesuit. Thus, only its face is semi-visible.
Keeping the villain hidden is a horror tradition, but I think it's time to stop playing around. Give us a full glimpse of the adult Gorn, not to mention their culture. Goldsman told Variety, "The Gorn are monsters," but such an attitude doesn't fit the optimistic exploration of "Star Trek."
Don't kill La'an
One of the highlights of "Strange New Worlds" is La'an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong), the Enterprise's security officer. A descendant of the infamous Khan, La'an was abducted by the Gorn as a child and rescued by Una (Rebecca Romijn), turning them into lifelong friends.
La'an is the Enterprise's straight woman, but the show delights in putting her in comic situations and the contrast is always funny. It helps that Chong is one of the best actors in the cast (and a dang good singer too).
Season 1 ended with La'an on a leave of absence, but the show's writers must've realized how important she is because she returned immediately in the season 2 premiere, "The Broken Circle." But season 2 ends with her in mortal danger, abducted by the Gorn once more. It might be tempting to end her story here and have her die facing the monsters of her childhood. Plus, she's not in "The Original Series," so she's disposable. But I hope the writers resist this temptation.
A La'an-less "Strange New Worlds" would be a diminished one. Plus, she's recently resolved to open herself more to others. Seeing her character development cut short would be disappointing.
Keep experimenting
"Strange New Worlds" can seem like vintage "Star Trek," repackaged with a new sheen for the 2020s. It uses episodic storytelling, and the plots of those episodes — court-martials, time travel, alien civilizations that mirror Earth — were also ones featured during "The Original Series."
However, "Strange New Worlds" isn't content to only mirror the past. In particular, season 2 got creative with episode structure. "Those Old Scientists" was a crossover with the animated series "Star Trek: Lower Decks." So as to not give one series precedence over the other, the episode featured the characters in both live-action and animation. The splendid musical episode, "Subspace Rhapsody," was the first of its kind in "Trek" history (not for lack of trying).
Then there's "Charades," which featured Spock temporarily becoming a full-blooded human. Aliens becoming humans (or vice versa) isn't new ground for "Star Trek," but "Charades" still showed us a new side to a familiar character. The show shouldn't be afraid to keep doing so or to craft new types of episodes.
The Mirror Universe
One "Star Trek" trope that "Strange New Worlds" hasn't used yet? The Mirror Universe, where our heroes are bad guys, and in the Federation's place exists the Terran Empire. The concept was first created by writer Jerome Bixby for "The Original Series" episode "Mirror, Mirror" and has been revisited plenty of times since — most recently on "Star Trek: Discovery," the parent show of "Strange New Worlds."
While I don't think "Strange New Worlds" should do a season-long storyline in the Mirror Universe, a one-off visit could be a lot of fun. Why? To see how the character's personalities are flipped around. I'd pay good money to see Anson Mount playing a ruthless version of Captain Pike, not the warm team dad we're used to. The series could even pull from "Enterprise" two-parter "In A Mirror, Darkly" and do a whole episode on the Mirror universe Enterprise, without forcing a crossover from the Prime reality.
We know from "Mirror, Mirror" that Mirror Pike was assassinated by his universe's Kirk to seize control of the ISS Enterprise. "Strange New Worlds" has a chance to show how that happened. Maybe Mirror Spock assisted in Kirk's coup, which could mirror (heh) Prime Spock and Kirk growing closer. If nothing else, Ethan Peck rocking a goatee would be worth it.
Pay the writers and actors fairly
"Strange New Worlds" season 3 began filming around March 2023, but it was quickly shuttered. Why? In case you haven't heard, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike effective May 2, 2023. The Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) joined them on July 14.
This means production on "Strange New Worlds" season 3 is delayed for the foreseeable future. Plenty of the "Strange New Worlds" cast have been seen walking the picket line. I don't want any Trekkies to walk away from this piece with the idea that the writers or actors are to blame for this delay. Without them, the show we love wouldn't exist, so it's only fair that they're compensated equitably. Rather than airing on TV and/or in syndication like "Star Trek" of old, "Strange New Worlds" streams on Paramount+. We've written before about how the shift to streaming has impacted creatives' residual payouts. Paramount+ is also not the only platform to delete shows rather than pay its writers and actors, as seen with "Star Trek: Prodigy."
If you want to see "Strange New Worlds" season 3 as soon as possible, support the strike in any way you can. "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" is streaming on Paramount+.