About:
- Genres:
- Action-Adventure
- Science Fiction
Fix: Star Trek, Space Adventures, Found Family, Hot People in Space, A Star Prequel That’s Actually Great
Platform: Paramount+
Paramount+ Summary:
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will follow Captain Pike, Science Officer Spock and Number One as they explore new worlds around the galaxy.
FYA Summary:
The U.S.S. Enterprise had a captain before Kirk: Christopher Pike (no relation). In the infamous ship’s first five-year mission, Captain Pike led a group of Starfleet officers on an exploratory trip around the galaxy, helping where they could, trying to follow the Prime Directive, and getting stuck in the occasional improbability field that caused them to sing and dance as though they were in a musical. (No really.)
Familiar Faces:
L–R: Rebecca Romjin as Number One, Anson Mount as Captain Christopher Pike, and Ethan Peck as Lieutenant Spock
Romjin’s been a household name for a while now, having acted in iconic roles such as Mystique in the original X-Men trilogy and Girl 1 in the music video for New Kids on the Block’s “Please Don’t Go Girl.” She’s got quite the range, but it’s great seeing her flex her leadership muscles as Number One, the second in command of the Enterprise, and breathe a lot of life and nuance into a character who only existed previously in Star Trek as a character who didn’t make it past the pilot. (Rumor has it that studio folk *cough*men*cough* didn’t find a woman in such a high position of power believable; imagine that.)
Some might recognize Mount from Hell on Wheels, in which he played the main character Cullen Bohannon, but I think his role as Ben in the classic movie Crossroads will be the most interesting piece of filmography to most folks reading this review. All jokes aside, he is truly amazing as Pike, and quickly jumped to second place in my Star Trek Captains Ranking—you’re not a true Trek fan if you don’t have one—thanks to the passion, kindness, humility, and strength he shows throughout each episode. (He’s funny, too, and has stellar hair. It’s almost unfair.). If you’re not familiar with Trek lore, you might not know that Pike is a man with a brutal future hanging over his head. And because he knows what’s coming for him, he treats almost every day like a gift; a practice we could all learn from.
Ethan Peck might not have as many credits as the other two series leads, but he did play Patrick Verona in the TV adaptation of Ten Things I Hate About You. That ability to brood and be a bit of an MLD lends itself nicely to the role of the most famous Vulcan, who is also often broody and mysterious. Peck obviously spent a lot of time studying the Spocks who came before but leans into the freedom of the “prequel” nature of the role. He can have more fun with it and more leeway to lean into the character’s emotions without straying too far from the established canon. He’s actually done a lot to grow the character, and that can be very hard to do with such a well-known one.
Melanie Scrofano as Captain Marie Batel
Wynona Earp would be proud: Her future self is a ballsy starship captain in a relationship with a nearly perfect (and perfectly flawed) man. I do wish we go to see more of Scrofano outside of her relationship with Pike, but she’s a tertiary character who didn’t do all that much aside from eating Pike’s cooking until the—SEMI SPOILER ALERT—season finale of the second season. She’s one of the many characters in this show who have a bit of an expiration date in that they aren’t part of any Original Series storylines, and the showrunners seem to be holding pretty closely to the future that’s already set up for them (unlike the creators of the Kelvin universe movies). Scrofano makes an impact, regardless, and I hope we see more of her before she and Pike break things off for good.
Paul Wesley as James T. Kirk
Having experienced Hero Hair in his most famous role to date (maybe ever?) as Stefan Salvatore, I gave a lot of side-eye to the casting news that Wesley would be playing a younger version of the Enterprise’s second captain. He does … fine … but is definitely not nearly as charming as William Shatner or as charmingly goofy as Chris Pine. He’s kind of shoehorned into the series, and not entirely necessary, but I suppose the showrunners wanted to bring as many TOS characters as they could into the show without making it all about them.
If you’re a Broadway geek, you might also recognize Celia Rose Gooding, who starred in the Jagged Little Pill musical, as Uhura. And all of you Bold Type fans will chuckle when you see Pinstripe with his Sam Kirk mustache.
Couch-Sharing Capability: Movie Night in the Captain’s Quarters
I try not to be pushy when it comes to pop culture that I love. I know superhero movies and science fiction/fantasy isn’t for everyone, and I respect that. But if I ever were to push something on someone, even knowing full well that they weren’t a Star Trek fan, it would be Strange New Worlds. The older series will always have a place in my heart, but my love for them is tinged with nostalgia, and–to be quite honest—they really aren’t that easy to watch if you didn’t watch them “back when.” (I feel much this way about TOS, which my mom absolutely adores because she was there when the old magic was written the series first aired. My son might feel similarly about Strange New Worlds in 20+ years.)
The show can go from silly to deadly serious to musical (again, not joking) within the span of three episodes, and although it causes a bit of whiplash, none of it seems out of place or outside the realm of feasibility for the series. They’ve covered topics like genocide with grace and caution, had a crossover with an animated series, and been stuck in a fantastical feudal dreamland with sets that harken back to TOS (and some high school drama productions). Throughout it all, the cast shines—when they’re happy, heartbroken, and everything in between. Strange New Worlds is a Star Trek show for a modern audience that pays homage to its predecessors without rehashing storylines or altering them just enough and calling it a day (glaring at you, Star Trek Into Darkness). Every episode delights with highs and lows, the relationships are messy and lovely in equal measure, and the sets, makeup, and CG are expertly done.
I’ve never wanted to be part of a crew more … and I have tattoos of the Enterprise D (Star Trek: The Next Generation) and the Deep Space Nine space station (Star Trek: DS9).
Recommended Level of Inebriation: Head to Ten Forward
OK, yes, Ten Forward is the bar on TNG, which is generations removed from Strange New Worlds, but the earliest Enterprise’s bar doesn’t have a name. Feel free to grab a Romulan ale, Klingon Blood Wine, or Orion Dulaq from any nearby bar and settle in for a binge. Some of them might be synthehol, but it’s the thought that counts.
Use of Your Streaming Subscription: Stellar
Although I now watch more than just Star Trek shows* on Paramount+, the only reason we subscribed to it in the first place was to watch new Star Trek shows. So if you’re interested in Strange New Worlds (or Discovery, Picard, or Lower Decks—or any of the older series or movies) this is the place you need to be. I’m happy to pay for the service, even in the off months, because of the gift it’s given me in Strange New Worlds. And will continue to pay for it as long as it provides me such quality entertainment.
*I also watch Evil and The Equalizer and … the FBIs, she says, with a lot of embarrassment.
We published this review during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. This work would not exist without the labor of writers and actors, and we support their goals.
