On Thursday, June 15, 2023, Star Trek returns to Paramount+ with the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 premiere. With less than one month until the flagship returns, here’s everything to remember about the crew before the sophomore season begins.
Number One
Photos: Marni Grossman/Paramount+ ©2022 ViacomCBS. All Rights Reserved.
In “Ghosts of Illyria,” it was revealed that U.S.S. Enterprise First Officer Una Chin-Riley (Rebecca Romijn), aka Number One, is a genetic augment. Because augments are not permitted to join Starfleet, Una concealed this fact. When Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) learned the truth at the end of the episode, he kept her secret.
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Nevertheless, at the conclusion of the Strange New Worlds season 1 finale, “A Quality of Mercy,” Una was arrested.
La’An Noonien-Singh
As a child, La’An Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong) was teased for her last name. This is because of the infamous Earth historical figure Khan Noonien-Singh, an augment warlord. La’An was the sole survivor of a Gorn attack on her family. She was rescued by Una. The connection La’An has with Una is what brought her to the Enterprise in the season 1 premiere, “Strange New Worlds.”
In “Memento Mori” La’An’s experiences with the Gorn prove invaluable for the survival of the Enterprise crew. In “All Those Who Wander,” it is revealed she has begun seeing the ship’s counselor. Later in that episode, they discover a child named Oriana (Emma Ho) who has survived a Gorn outbreak on another Starfleet ship. At the conclusion of the episode, La’An leaves the Enterprise to help Oriana locate her family. However, Pike extracts a promise for her eventual return.
Nurse Chapel
Don’t catch feelings, nurse.
Nurse Christine Chapel (Jess Bush) came to the Enterprise through her professional history with Doctor M’Benga (Babs Olusanmokun). In “Spock Amok,” it was hinted that she has a secret and possibly tragic romantic past. However, she is unable to share details about this, even with her close friend, hotshot Enterprise pilot Erica Ortegas (Melissa Navia).
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Chapel also has intense chemistry with Science Officer Spock (Ethan Peck). In “The Serene Squall,” she and Spock kiss as a ruse to regain control of the Enterprise from pirate Captain Angel (Jesse James Keitel).
Doctor M’Benga
Based on the book The Illyrian Kingdom by Benny Russell.
M’Benga has a personal history with Pike, as revealed in the series premiere. In “Ghosts of Illyria,” it was revealed he had effectively been keeping his terminally ill daughter Rukiya (Sage Arrindell) in suspended animation using the pattern buffer of the emergency medical transporter. During the episode “Lift Us Where Suffering Cannot Reach,” M’Benga is strongly motivated by his desire to cure his daughter.
At the conclusion of “The Elysian Kingdom,” Rukiya departs with an extraterrestrial entity she names after her mother, Debra.
Spock
Star-crossed Vulcans.
In the Strange New Worlds season 1 premiere, Spock became officially engaged to T’Pring (Gia Sandhu). In “Spock Amok,” T’Pring and Spock swapped bodies. Naturally, hijinks ensued. In “The Serene Squall,” their relationship was tested but survived. At the conclusion of that episode, it was revealed that Spock’s half-brother Sybok is incarcerated at the Ankeshtan K’Til Vulcan Criminal Rehabilitation Center, where T’Pring works.
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In “All Those Who Wander,” Spock accessed his emotions in order to overcome a Gorn in battle. However, at the conclusion of the episode, these emotions seem to be overwhelming him. As a result, he sought assistance from Chapel.
Uhura
In space, no one can hear you hail.
During “Children of the Comet,” it was revealed that Cadet Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) had initially planned to attend the University of Nairobi where her parents taught. After they were killed in a shuttle crash shortly before her matriculation, she joined Starfleet instead. Later in that episode, Uhura played an integral role in avoiding diplomatic conflict with an extraterrestrial race known as “the Shepherds.”
In “Memento Mori,” she and Chief Engineer Hemmer (Bruce Horak) work together to help save the ship. Uhura is also close at hand when Hemmer sacrifices himself after being infected by the Gorn in “All Those Who Wander.” The experiences help her realize the Enterprise is where she belongs.
Captain Pike
What If… Pike was one of “Those Old Scientists”?
Captain Pike appeared in Star Trek: Discovery season 2. In the episode “Through the Valley of Shadows,” he experienced a haunting vision of his future thanks to a time crystal. The vision revealed he will become paralyzed and disfigured during a training exercise accident. He is haunted by this vision over the course of Strange New Worlds season 1. In the first and last episodes of the season, we see him engage in romantic trysts with Captain Batel (Melanie Scrofano).
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In the Strange New Worlds season 1 finale, “A Quality of Mercy,” Pike considered using his knowledge of the future to alter the events. However, as he did so, an alternate future version of Pike appeared in the Captain’s Quarters. Pike received a vision of an alternate version of the events of the Star Trek: The Original Series season 1 episode “Balance of Terror.” After learning that this would cause Spock to “take his place,” Pike yielded to established continuity.
The Kirk Brothers
A Tale of Two Enterprise Captains.
Sam Kirk (Dan Jeannotte) continues to serve aboard the Enterprise in the Sciences Division. However, some tension between Sam and Spock occurred during the events of “All Those Who Wander.” Sam grew angry that Spock displayed no emotion after a crewmember was taken by the Gorn.
Meanwhile, we have only met the alternate future version of James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley) so far on Strange New Worlds. In the parallel future timeline shown in “A Quality of Mercy,” Kirk served as captain of the U.S.S. Farragut. Before Pike returns to his own time and witnesses the arrest of Una, he and Kirk share a conversation. Kirk tells Pike that sometimes a fight cannot be avoided.
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This article was originally published on 5/18/23.
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