TV Review: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season One (2022)

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season One (2022) created by Akiva Goldsman, Alex Kurtzman, and Jenny Lumet based on Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry

In this prequel to the original Star Trek series, Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) has had a troubling vision of his future, specifically of his own death. He's reluctant to take command of the Enterprise but is convinced by some friends. His biggest motivation is that his favorite first officer has gone missing while making contact with a new civilization. Throughout the season, they go off on a bunch of unrelated but interesting adventures, encountering a variety of strange and wonderful aliens.

The crew is a mixture of familiar and new characters. Number One (Rebecca Romijn) is second in command and has her own secret that could get her into big trouble. Spock (Ethan Peck) is the science officer and is dealing with his engagement to T'Pring (Gia Sandhu) who does not approve of Star Fleet and has some concerns about Spock's human half. Ensign Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) is a brilliant poly-linguist but is unsure if she really wants to be part of Star Fleet. Nurse Christine Chapel (Jess Bush) is romantically adventurous but not seriously involved with anyone; she serves as a good friend to the other characters. Then there's the new characters. Hemmer (Bruce Horak) is an Aenar native who is blind and a bit grumpy, an interesting choice for Chief of Engineering. Erica Ortegas (Melissa Navia) is a helmsmen who likes to crack jokes. La'an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong) is a descendant of Kahn Noonien-Singh so she has a troubled history with genetic enhancement, which is illegal in the Federation. Dr. M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun) is ship's doctor and also has his own problem that he's hiding from the rest of the crew, at least at the beginning of the show.

The show does a good job following the model of the original series, with episodic stories that focus on the relationships in the crew and the creatively-conceived, exotic new places the Enterprise visits. While Pike and Spock get the most character time, all of the other characters get a lot of attention and backstory (more than in the original series, a plus). The actors playing Spock and Uhura are exceptional. The characterization of Nurse Chapel seems off at first glance, but she had very little character in the original show so they make her a bigger personality. The characters and the writing share a good sense of humor. They use intelligence more often than force to resolve problems. The series has an optimistic tone even as they deal with some difficult situations. Fear of death is a pervasive theme (not just for Pike) that is dealt with in interesting ways. The writing is sharp and enjoyable.

The show is unlike the original series in the amazing special effects and the high-tech Enterprise. Modern audiences would have a hard time if the show was on sets that looked like the 1960s Enterprise. The bridge is a bit darker than the original but the rest of the ship is the usual gleaming, brightly-lit flagship of the Federation. The alien world and creatures are much better looking thanks to sixty years of advancements in make-up and visual effects. The show looks great.

Ongoing plot lines are threaded throughout the episodes, like Pike's worry over his future or Dr. M'Benga's secret. Some get resolved, some are left for future resolution. The season ends with a cliffhanger, encouraging people to watch the next season, which starts soon as I write this in June 2023.

Highly recommended--this is a nice return to the roots of the franchise.