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Paramount+'s Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 ending explained

Let us help answer your questions about the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 finale

We're here - the end of the second season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds on Paramount+ . No spoilers (yet, anyway) but it feels pretty good - and feels even better knowing a third season has already been ordered.

Part of the reason Strange New Worlds works is its ability to put the Star Trek slant on a variety of genres. We've watched a courtroom drama mirroring current social events, a time traveling adventure, plenty of romance, an animated crossover, and even a musical episode .

And now with the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 finale on Paramount+ , we have something even more different.

Captain Marie Batel and the Cayuga help a colony on the planet Parnassus Beta, which is on the fringe of Federation space. Nurse Chapel hitches a ride on her way to her new research fellowship, and helps in the efforts to inoculate the residents. While Batel is on a call with Captain Pike, the visuals become glitchy until the signal is lost. It is all a precursor to an invasion by the fierce reptilian alien species known as the Gorn. The Federation have an uneasy peace with the Gorn, so Pike must tread carefully to launch a rescue effort.

You probably have plenty of questions following 'Hegemony,' and we'll try our best to answer them. Let's explore the events of the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 finale.

What happens between Spock and Nurse Chapel?

Nurse Chapel is on board the Cayuga when the Gorn attack, and the destroyed remains of the ship when the Enterprise arrives doesn't inspire much hope. Though everyone is worried about their crewmate, they must soldier on and devise a way to save the rest of their people on Parnassus Beta. Ensign Uhura and Chief Engineer Pelia formulate a plan to destroy the Gorn's communication jamming device by using the debris of the Cayuga in space.

While Spock places thrusters on what's left of the Cayuga's saucer, Chapel regains consciousness and sees her friend outside a window. The pair reunite to take down a scavenging Gorn. They don't have much time to savor the moment as they are both needed elsewhere, but their brief holding of hands as the ship rockets down to the planet is enough reconciliation.

What happens between Pike and Batel?

Thanks to some fancy flying from helmsman Ortegas, Pike leads a rescue party onto Parnassus Beta. They discover that Batel has gathered the remaining survivors, and they are hiding out from the Gorn. A resourceful Starfleet engineer (more on them later!) fabricates a machine that can mimic Gorn transponders allowing any ship that uses it to hide in plain sight from the enemy. Unfortunately, the machine is amongst the wreckage of the engineer's ship, so Pike and Batel join him to retrieve it.

Which character from the original series appears in the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds finale?

The engineer is none other than Montgomery 'Scotty' Scott. This Scott is younger than the one first seen in Star Trek: The Original Series (TOS). He is a lieutenant junior grade stationed on the solar research vessel the Stardiver. He was monitoring solar flare activity one system over when the Gorn overwhelmed the ship. Scott escaped in a shuttle and landed on Parnassus Beta due to mechanical failure. He was one of Pelia's best students at the Academy but also inherited some of her worst traits. Scotty is played by Martin Quinn.

How does the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds finale end?

While Pike, Batel, and Scotty rummage through the shuttle to find Scotty's machine, Batel encounters a lone Gorn youngling. The other two officers are perplexed that the alien doesn't attack until Batel confesses she is infected with Gorn eggs. She only has a day before they violently hatch from her body. Pike is unwilling to give up on his partner.

Meanwhile, Uhura and Pelia's plan to destroy the communication jamming device works, and the Enterprise is able to beam up Spock, Chapel, Pike, Batel, and Scott onboard. Alas, they aren't fast enough transporting the survivors and the rest of the away team, including Sam Kirk, La'an Noonien-Singh, Doctor M'Benga, and Ortegas. The Gorn capture them and begin an assault on the Enterprise. During the attack, Pike receives orders from Starfleet for an immediate withdrawal. He faces the tough choice to retreat and leave his people behind or mount a counteroffensive against several Gorn ships. We'll have to wait until season 3 for his decision.

Is there a Star Trek: Strange New Worlds post credits scene in the season 2 finale?

Star Trek television shows have started to incorporate post credit scenes in their season finales. Season 3 of Star Trek: Lower Decks was the first series to have one in the episode 'The Stars at Night.' The most recent season of Star Trek: Picard also had one. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds doesn't follow the trend and has no post credits scene.

Will there be a Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3?

In March this year, Paramount+ announced Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' renewal for a 10-episode third season. Filming was supposed to begin on May 2, 2023. However, that was the same day the Writers Guild of America went on strike. Combined with the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists strike, production on the new season stops until the strike ends.

When does Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 begin?

Considering the season 2 cliffhanger finale, the following season will not have a significant time jump and occur immediately after 'Hegemony.'

When will Leonard McCoy, Hikaru Sulu, and Pavel Chekov from TOS show up on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds?

With Montgomery Scott's appearance in 'Hegemony,' fans wonder when other main characters from TOS will make their way onto Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. After all, we do know they eventually become crewmen onboard the Enterprise. There is no news or teases whether there are any plans to introduce 'Bones' McCoy, Sulu, or Chekov on the series. We have an idea of what they were up to during the same time period.

How close are we in the timeline between Star Trek: Strange New Worlds and James T. Kirk becoming captain of the Enterprise and learning Captain Pike's final fate?

'Hegemony' takes place in 2259. James Kirk becomes captain of the Enterprise in 2265. In 2266, Pike has a tragic accident leaving him disfigured and in a life-support chair. One year later, in 2267, Pike would return to the planet Talos IV where the Talosians' power of projecting illusions would grant him a 'normal' remaining life.

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Published Oct 10, 2023

Dr. McCoy Sums Up My True Feelings About Space Travel

'One tiny crack in the hull and our blood boils in 13 seconds.'

StarTrek.com

Watching Star Trek as a kid in the ‘90s, I was obsessed with the idea of warping around the galaxy, visiting strange new worlds, and meeting new forms of life. What I wouldn’t give to spend a day aboard a starship! But as I think about the logistics of boldly going through the unforgiving vacuum of space as an adult, the excitement melts away into sheer panic.

To echo Zefram Cochrane, the inventor of warp drive, “I don’t even like to fly.” How could I stomach traveling faster than the speed of light, running headlong into dangers like hostile non-corporeal beings, extraterrestrial plagues, and a variety of deadly space phenomena? More importantly, how can I seriously call myself a Star Trek fan if space terrifies me? Luckily, there’s a person in whom I can take solace — Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy, a character who represents all of us who love the idea of futuristic space travel but aren't exactly cut out for it.

"Miri"

It’s an accident that I relate so much to Dr. McCoy; he and I couldn't have less in common (besides the 200-year age gap, of course). He’s from Georgia; I’m from New York. He was the brilliant chief medical officer aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise who cured alien diseases. I’m a writer whose knowledge of the body stops at high school biology. McCoy once tested a potentially lethal vaccine by injecting himself with it in The Original Series episode “ Miri .” I’m a hypochondriac who needs to look away from the needle every time I get my blood drawn. He’s a country boy who likes mint juleps; I couldn’t tell you what’s in one. Despite our differences, it’s on the topic of space exploration that we both agree — it's necessary, it’s noble, but it’s damn dangerous.

The feature films are where we really see McCoy lean into this mindset, and where I find myself nodding in agreement most often. In 2009’s Star Trek , Bones (albeit the alternate-timeline version) delivers his feelings most succinctly, telling his future captain exactly why he hates space within moments of first meeting him —

One tiny crack in the hull and our blood boils in 13 seconds. A solar flare might crop up, cook us in our seats. And wait till you're sitting pretty with a case of Andorian shingles. See if you're still so relaxed when your eyeballs are bleeding. Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence.

Dr. Leonard 'Bones' McCoy, Star Trek (2009)

Star Trek (2009)

So much for making a good first impression.

Back in the Prime universe, we learn in The Motion Picture that Bones apparently left Starfleet after his five-year mission on the Enterprise and vowed never to return, that is, until he was essentially drafted back into service. We even see him call entire missions into question, criticizing Kirk’s plan to go back in time to save Earth via a slingshot maneuver around the sun in The Voyage Home and flat out calling their orders to stop a hostage crisis on Nimbus III a “terrible idea” in The Final Frontier . Granted, these aren’t your typical NASA space missions, but they’re par for the course for Starfleet. If I magically got my boyhood wish of spending a day on a starship, I’d be right next to McCoy throwing shade at these missions too.

It’s easy to write off McCoy as just a cynical foil to the swashbuckling Captain Kirk and logical Mr. Spock, but I think he’s there to validate us more risk-averse fans — to say, “Hey, you’re not wrong in thinking this stuff is scary, because it is!”

"Plato's Stepchildren"

When Star Trek debuted in 1966, humans were only five years into spaceflight, which presented a very real and new danger to people. If Kirk represented the bold astronauts who would soon be journeying to the moon and back, and Spock mirrored the genius engineers who would get them there, I think McCoy represented Americans who’d be biting their nails watching it all unfold on TV — thrilled by the prospect of space exploration, but unnerved by the realities.

There are other terrifying aspects of space travel in Star Trek besides the physical act of moving through space. Take the transporter, an invention that “saves” you the trouble of spaceflight by disintegrating your body, beaming it down to a planet, and putting it back together again (if all goes to plan).

Again, McCoy sums up my feelings like only he can, protesting in the classic episode “ Space Seed ,” “I signed aboard this ship to practice medicine, not to have my atoms scattered back and forth across space by this gadget.” And then there’s McCoy’s general distrust of technological progress. Bones laments in The Motion Picture how the engineers have turned sickbay into a “damned computer center.” I can relate, because I find myself becoming more and more resistant to change as I settle into my mid 30s. Watching Star Trek as a kid, I thought it would be so cool to talk to a computer and have it talk back. But now that smart home assistants are a thing, a computer that listens to my every word and knows my favorite burrito fillings is a little too intrusive for my tastes.

If there’s a lesson to be learned in any of this, I think it lies in the fact that, despite Dr. McCoy’s fear and frustration around space travel, he still chooses to serve aboard a starship. Is it out of a sense of duty? Is out of loyalty to his friends Captain Kirk and — dare I say — Mr. Spock? Or is it because he doesn’t have any other place to go? In the end, it doesn't really matter. What matters is he does it, and that's good enough for me. Doing things that scare you is the key to growth. I’ll try my hardest to remember that if I ever do get the chance to go to space, or the next time I face a challenge that’s a little closer to home.

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This article was originally published on April 13, 2021.

Chris Vespoli (he/him) is a New York-based writer, producer, and performer who thinks Star Trek: Enterprise gets a bad rap. Follow him on Twitter @ChrisVespoli.

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds

A prequel to Star Trek: The Original Series, the show follows the crew of the USS Enterprise under Captain Christopher Pike. A prequel to Star Trek: The Original Series, the show follows the crew of the USS Enterprise under Captain Christopher Pike. A prequel to Star Trek: The Original Series, the show follows the crew of the USS Enterprise under Captain Christopher Pike.

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Episodes 31

• Captain Christopher Pike …

• La'an Noonien-Singh …

• Lt. Erica Ortegas …

• Una Chin-Riley …

• Nurse Christine Chapel

• Nyota Uhura …

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• Trivia Bruce Horak , the actor who plays Hemmer, is legally blind, just like his character's species, the Aenar, who are also blind.
• Goofs There are some rank insignia mistakes. Number One is introduced as "Lieutenant Commander Una Chin-Riley" yet she is wearing the rank insignia of a full commander: two full stripes. A Lieutenant Commander's rank insignia is a full stripe under a thin stripe (in TOS it is a full stripe and a staggered stripe). It is not uncommon for a ship's first officer to be a Lt. Commander if they have not been in the position long. Spock at this point is a Lieutenant but he is wearing Lieutenant Commander's stripes; a Lieutenant just has one stripe. La'an is the ship's chief of security and the ship's second officer. She is also wearing Lt. Commander stripes but is addressed as a Lieutenant, but it would make more sense for her to be a Lieutenant Commander. Either way both of their rank insignia are not matching the rank they are addressed by. Ortegas is addressed as a Lieutenant but is wearing Lieutenant Commander's strips. A Lieutenant Commander may be addressed as a Commander or Lieutenant Commander but never as just a Lieutenant, so either her rank insignia or the manner she is addressed by the rest of the crew is in error.

[opening narration]

Captain Christopher Pike : Space. The final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no one has gone before.

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Let's Break Down That Amazing Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Cameo

This post contains spoilers for the season finale of "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds."

The first season finale of " Star Trek: Strange New Worlds " — called "A Quality of Mercy" — is a fan service episode writ large. In it, an older version of Captain Pike from an alternate timeline visits present-day Pike (Anson Mount), offering him a magical Klingon time crystal that would allow young Pike to visit the future. In touching it, Pike finds himself thrown forward seven years, occupying the events of the 1966 "Star Trek" episode "Balance of Terror." What if, a fan might be asking themselves, Pike was captain of the Enterprise during that episode, and not Kirk (William Shatner)? The ultimate answer would be that Pike would not resort to military tactics alone, but be very open to the idea of talking it out. In "A Quality of Mercy," diplomacy almost works. 

A brief aside: Pike is quickly becoming one of the best captains in "Star Trek" history. Not since Picard has a captain been so devoted to talking out conflicts. Only Pike is warmer and more genial than Picard. 

But since Pike is visiting "Balance of Terror," the Enterprise bridge now has to match classic 1966 "Star Trek." The "Balance of Terror"-era Enterprise also includes certain original series characters that haven't yet appeared on "Strange New Worlds," as well as some "Strange New Worlds" characters back in their classic positions. It had already been announced that an alternate Kirk would appear, this time played by Paul Wesley, but other characters have a role to play as well, including stalwart engineer Montgomery Scott, originally played by James Doohan.

The Pike-commanded "Balance of Terror"-era Enterprise from "A Quality of Mercy" — heretofore called AQOM Enterprise — has caught a case of pop culture fatalism. It seems that had Pike remained in command of the ship, then Spock would have become first officer as he was in 1966, Uhura would return to serve as communications officer, and Dr. M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun) would remain the chief medical officer. Dr. M'Benga , originally played by Booker Bradshaw, was seen in the "Original Series" episodes "A Private Little War" and "That Which Survives." There is no mention of Dr. Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley) on AQOM Enterprise. 

While he doesn't appear on camera, Lt. Commander Scott is heard very clearly over an intercom during "A Quality of Mercy," consulting another character about engine troubles the ship is currently having ... and Scotty wouldn't appear unless there were engine troubles. It seems that Scotty, no matter who is captain, is destined to become the chief engineer on the Enterprise. Or at least work there; there is no explicit dialogue referring to him as the chief. Sadly, the position is now open on SNW Enterprise thanks to a tragic event that befell Hemmer (Bruce Horak) in the episode "All Those Who Wander." 

This raises the question: Could Scotty be added to the cast of "Strange New Worlds" in season 2? Let's get nerdy and comb through some expanded universe timelines to find out. 

Star Trek chronology

According to Michael and Denise Okuda's ancillary sourcebook " Star Trek Chronology: The History of the Future " (published in 1993, so very much an incomplete history), Montgomery Scott was born in 2222. This date is extrapolated from the age of actor James Doohan during the first season of "Star Trek" — he was 44 — cast backward from the show's eventually-revealed starting year  of 2265. To put that in perspective, Kirk wouldn't be born until 2233. In the 1995 "Star Trek" tie-in novel " The Fearful Summons " by Denny Martin Flinn, Scotty graduated from Starfleet Academy in 2241 at age 19 or 20. 

Once again referencing a novel — this time D.C. Fontana's 1989 book " Vulcan's Glory ," perhaps considered slightly more canonical, coming as it does from one of Trek's original writers –  Scotty served as a junior engineer on the Enterprise beginning in 2253. That same book depicts Scotty constructing his own handmade whiskey distillery in main engineering. The events of the original "Star Trek" pilot, called "The Cage," took place in 2254, meaning a young Scotty was already on board. "Strange New Worlds" picks up in 2258.

It's entirely possible, then, that a certain hardworking engineer has been toiling away on the Enterprise's engines on "Strange New Worlds" the entire time the show has been on the air. Research was unable to uncover any kind of gap in Montgomery Scott's career where he was off the Enterprise at this time. There's no reason why Scotty shouldn't naturally appear on "Strange New Worlds" again in the future, prior to arriving on the AQOM Enterprise.

 Of course, the SNW showrunners could easily introduce any number of gap years into Scotty's career, effectively removing him from the show. Which may, perhaps, be the wise course of action. It would allow new characters to shine instead.

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Leonard McCoy

• View history
• 1.2 Early years
• 1.3.1 Aboard the Republic
• 1.3.2 Aboard the Richard Feynman
• 1.3.3 Aboard Starbase 7
• 1.3.4 Aboard the Constitution
• 1.3.5 Starfleet Teaching Hospital
• 1.4.1 The Three-Month Voyage
• 1.4.2 Mission to Capella IV
• 1.4.3 Return to the Enterprise
• 1.8 Later years
• 3 Starfleet service record
• 4.1 Connections
• 4.2 Appearances
• 4.3 References
• 4.4 External link

Biography [ ]

Leonard H. McCoy, the son of David Andrew McCoy and Eleanora McCoy , was born in Atlanta , Georgia , United States of America , Earth in 2227 . His grandfather, Thomas Jackson "T.J." McCoy , M.D., was the Chief of Medicine at Emory University Medical Center in Atlanta in the 2220s . ( TOS novelization : The Final Frontier ; TOS - Strange New Worlds VI short story : " Bum Radish: Five Spins on a Turquoise Reindeer "; TOS comic : " Who's Who in Star Trek, Issue 1 ")

One of his great-uncles was a proprietor to one of the top productive plantations in the South during the 19th century. His ancestor's advantage was a self-mixed form of herbicide. McCoy still had the recipe on Enterprise , and synthesized the concoction in his lab. He later used the " weed spray " to immobilize the swoopers of Phylos . ( TOS novel : The Final Reflection ; TAS episode : " The Infinite Vulcan ")

One of McCoy's grandmothers lived in Tennessee , where she taught Sunday school . ( TOS novel : Vulcan's Forge )

Early years [ ]

In 2231 , at the age of four, Leonard accompanied his father on a trip to Aberdeen , where he briefly met young Montgomery Scott , thus giving birth to not only their shared tastes (such as alcohol), but their smooth delivery in performing as scientist and assistant on 20th century Earth . The two also had done a convincing act while on the android world of Mudd , and when on jury duty during the Kirk / Lester trial. ( TOS - Strange New Worlds VI short story : " Bum Radish: Five Spins on a Turquoise Reindeer ", TOS novelization : The Voyage Home , TOS episode : " I, Mudd ", TOS episode : " Turnabout Intruder ")

Disaster struck McCoy at the age of seven on August 17, 2234 , when Leonard and his cousins built a raft and sailed down the Chattahoochee River . Leonard's cousin, David McCoy drowned when the raft broke apart. ( TOS novel : Ice Trap )

In September 2236 , Leonard, aged nine, and his family moved into another southern town on Earth. Leonard met Mark Rousseau at school, and the two became best friends. The two parted in 2243 when Rousseau entered Starfleet Academy . At the time McCoy was determined to enter medical school. ( TOS novel : The Better Man )

In 2238 , at age eleven, Leonard ate something that was still alive on a dare. ( TOS novel : In the Name of Honor )

While in Texas in 2243, McCoy was thrown from the horse that he had been riding. McCoy suffered a concussion and bruised ribs, and was treated at a hospital in Waco , Texas. After suffering another head injury in 2268 , McCoy briefly forgot everything that had occurred from the time of the first accident until the time of the second accident. ( TOS novel : Dreams of the Raven )

At sometime during his childhood, McCoy attended a religious "revival" meeting held on Earth, led by a preacher who railed against non-human races. This man later made an attempt on the life of the Andorian ambassador . ( TOS novel : Vulcan's Forge )

McCoy first became attracted to his future wife, Jocelyn Darnell , at a high school social in early 2244 , when Jocelyn forced McCoy to dance with her to counter the jealousy of her over-possessive boyfriend, Clay Treadway . Treadway brawled with McCoy there on the dance floor, but McCoy knocked him down and left with Darnell. This began their relationship. ( TOS novel : Shadows on the Sun )

In late 2244/early 2245 , McCoy, aged 17, entered college at the University of Mississippi ("Ole Miss"). During his time there, his roommate was a Tessma , Sinnit Arvid . In 2245 , McCoy met the Trill , Emony Dax at a gymnastic tournament in the Menlo T. Hodgkiss Memorial Gymnasium , and the two had a brief relationship. Undecided at the time on his choice of career, Dax suggested he should be a doctor, because he had "the hands of a surgeon." ( DS9 - The Lives of Dax short story : " Old Souls "; DS9 episode & novelization : Trials and Tribble-ations )

Later that year, McCoy served as an observer aboard the USS Hood ( TOS novel : Crisis on Centaurus ) before officially enrolling in medical school, though he studied at his home in Georgia. ( TOS novel : Shadows on the Sun )

While he was a medical student, McCoy often took skiing trips to the Alps in Europe . ( TOS comic : " No Time Like the Past ")

Shortly after receiving his doctorate, McCoy married Jocelyn, and around 2249 , their daughter, Joanna McCoy was born. ( TOS novel : Shadows on the Sun ; TAS episode : " The Survivor ")

In 2249, McCoy commanded an inoculation program to combat a virus on planet Dramia II . However, when the team left, a plague broke out, wiping out half the population. ( TAS episode : " Albatross ") It was his second extrasolar assignment and his first medical command. ( TOS - Log Six novelization : Albatross )

Later in the 2250s McCoy met Lieutenant Clark Terrell . The two were friends until the latter's death in 2285. ( TOS novelization : The Wrath of Khan )

Early Starfleet Career [ ]

Aboard the republic [ ].

In 2253, after Jocelyn left with Joanna (presumably before becoming involved with Clay Treadway once more), McCoy grew extremely depressed, and by chance saw an advert for Medicine on the cutting edge - Practicing in space . He immediately signed up at the Jackson Mall , entered Starfleet and underwent the course, which was taught by Angelina Mola , before he was assigned as a junior medical officer aboard the USS Republic under the command of Captain Hillios . McCoy worked in sickbay under chief medical officer , Vincent Bando . While aboard the Republic , McCoy saved the life of a ruthless assassin on the planet Ssan . ( TOS novels : Planet of Judgment , Shadows on the Sun , Recovery , The Better Man )

Aboard the Richard Feynman [ ]

In 2254 , thanks to McCoy's excellent work on the Republic , he was made chief medical officer aboard the USS Richard Feynman , under the command of his old friend, Mark Rousseau. However, following a fall-out with Rousseau, McCoy accepted a demotion as a junior medical officer aboard the USS Koop . ( TOS novel : The Better Man )

Aboard Starbase 7 [ ]

By 2255 , McCoy transferred to Starbase 7 as chief medical officer. A few months later, Lieutenant James T. Kirk, of the USS Farragut , was sent to the base for rehabilitation after Kirk was badly injured battling pirates from Epsilon Canaris III . In Kirk's many months at the base, McCoy and he became good friends, and Kirk visited McCoy's home on Centaurus many times. ( TOS novel : Crisis on Centaurus )

While on Starbase 7, McCoy also had a brief relationship with a woman named Nancy Pagano , who later married Professor Robert Crater . ( TOS episode & novelization : The Man Trap )

Aboard the Constitution [ ]

In 2257 , McCoy transferred aboard the USS Constitution (NCC-1700) to work under chief medical officer Christina Velasquez . Also serving aboard the Constitution at that time was McCoy's old friend, Lieutenant Commander Kirk. ( TOS - My Brother's Keeper novel : Enterprise )

Starfleet Teaching Hospital [ ]

McCoy returned to Earth in 2262 , and took up a position at Starfleet Teaching Hospital working with Dr. Carol Marcus and Christine Chapel . In late 2263 , Captain Kirk and Lieutenant Commander Gary Mitchell were placed under McCoy's care after the destruction of the USS Lydia Sutherland at the Battle of Ghioghe . ( TOS novel : Enterprise: The First Adventure )

The Enterprise (NCC-1701) Years [ ]

The three-month voyage [ ].

In 2264 , McCoy accepted Captain Kirk's offer to become Chief Medical Officer aboard the USS Enterprise (NCC-1701) . ( TOS novel : Enterprise: The First Adventure )

According to the elder Spock in TOS novelization : Star Trek , "In both our histories the same crew found its way onto the same ship in a time of ultimate crisis." This may imply that there is an untold story set in the prime timeline in which Kirk's crew faced an extremely serious challenge while still a new and untested unit.

McCoy's first stint aboard the Enterprise was cut short when he learned that his father was dying of pyrrhoneuritis . McCoy took an extended leave of absence to look after his father, and was replaced by Dr. Mark Piper . ( TOS novel : Strangers from the Sky ; TOS episode : " Where No Man Has Gone Before ")

A memory that would haunt McCoy for years was when, at the request of his father, he turned off all his life support, allowing his father to die with dignity. However, a few weeks later, a cure for pyrrhoneuritis was developed. ( TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Final Frontier )

Mission to Capella IV [ ]

Following the death of his father, McCoy was asked by Starfleet Medical to take part in a medical relief mission to Capella IV . He gratefully accepted, to get as far away from Earth as possible and to help others. However, by 2265 , he was tired of locking horns with the Capellans , who refused any modern medical technology. ( TOS episode : " Friday's Child ")

Return to the Enterprise [ ]

McCoy in 2267.

Luckily for McCoy, the Enterprise had returned to Earth for the funeral of Gary Mitchell, so when Kirk offered McCoy his old position as CMO back, McCoy jumped at the chance. ( TOS - My Brother's Keeper novel : Enterprise )

Jocelyn Darnell sent McCoy their divorce papers in 2266 , and McCoy signed them without a fight. Although he would go on to refer to Darnell as "whatsername" and worse, he wore his wedding ring for the rest of his life. ( TOS novel : Shadows on the Sun )

While in a Cordrazine -induced frenzy in 2267 , McCoy jumped through the Guardian of Forever and was transported to Earth in the year 1930 . While there, the shape of time itself hinged on his actions, resulting in a drastically altered timeline when he saved Edith Keeler from a fatal traffic accident. Although time later resumed its normal course, the phaser McCoy had brought with him was stolen by " Rodent ," a Twenty-First Street Mission resident, who was vaporized along with the weapon when he inadvertently triggered it. ( TOS episode : " The City on the Edge of Forever ") Later the same year, while serving aboard the Enterprise , McCoy was accidentally transported into the mirror universe . McCoy risked being left behind in the parallel reality to save the mirror version of Spock from a fatal subcranial hemorrhage . Spock then mind-melded with McCoy, and learned about the Federation of the regular universe. McCoy returned successfully to his own universe, but Spock's visions of a better reality would be passed on to multiple Vulcans in the mirror universe, and lead to a secretive resistance group against the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance . ( TOS - Mirror Universe novel : The Sorrows of Empire )

The following year Doctor McCoy suffered a severe head injury after a gravity adjustment on the Enterprise caused him to fall and hit his head on a bulkhead. Even though Dr. Eduardo Cortejo Alvarez was able to operate almost immediately, McCoy was still left with severe amnesia for a period of about two weeks. During this time he had lost all memory of the past twenty five years, including his prior service on the Enterprise and his relationships with colleagues such as Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock. After Spock was seriously injured and required surgery, the impact of watching Spock dying on an operating table was enough to bring Dr. McCoy out of his amnesiac state, and McCoy was able to save Spock's life. ( TOS novel : Dreams of the Raven )

In 2269, McCoy accompanied Captain Kirk, Spock, and Crewman Alonzo to one of the planets in The Strand where they met Dr. Othello Beck . A few minutes after he arrived, McCoy examined Alonzo's corpse after he was killed by a B'Nai . McCoy then examined Beck's discovery. Unfortunately, he and Kirk were captured and put into cell when they found out about Beck's wife's Logan's disease . They were however able to escape and return to the Enterprise . ( TOS comic : " Year Four, Issue 1 ") McCoy then went to a reception on Aarak III after trading technology for mining dilithium . McCoy was able to throw a bomb away from them and King Marat . McCoy then agreed that they could interfere with Aarak's situation between Marat's government and the traditionalists, despite the chance of losing of the dilithium. McCoy then accompanied Spock in his search for Kirk on Aarak III, to which they were successful. ( TOS comic : " Year Four, Issue 2 ")

McCoy and the Enterprise were then sent to investigate Phi-11 . There he found all the colonists were dead. McCoy and the rest of the ship was affected by a viral lifeform. McCoy, Spock and most of the crew mutinied against Kirk. They were then able to take the Enterprise and return the life form home. ( TOS comic : " Year Four, Issue 3 ") McCoy then went with the away team to the surface of Gobi III to find survivors of the USS Pasteur . He and the away team were then captured by Avatar and place in holding cells. McCoy then examined Mallard and saw that avatar had strip-mined his DNA. McCoy was shocked that Avatar was treating babies as "merchandise" and that there was Human DNA. McCoy helped then Kirk hold off Avatar while Lt. O'Hara escaped with one of the babies. McCoy and the others were then able to return to the Enterprise . ( TOS comic : " Year Four, Issue 6 ")

After McCoy and Scotty attended a biotechnology conference on Starbase 10 , the USS Lexington dropped them off on Denebia for the Enterprise to pick up. They got drunk on Denebian slime devils and engaged in a barroom brawl with some locals and a Klingon named Krong , but afterwards convinced Kirk to ferry Krong to another neutral planet aboard the Enterprise . On this occasion McCoy considered the possibility of leaving the Enterprise at the end of its five-year mission. He had learned the Vulcan nerve pinch , but kept this a secret from Spock. ( TOS short story : " Where Everybody Knows Your Name ")

In 2270 , McCoy went with Kirk and Ambassador Cassady to oversee the ceremony accepting Archenar IV into the Federation. McCoy then went to the surface to look for a leaf that could cure Blake's disease . McCoy and Pavel Chekov were captured by Crawlers . McCoy was then forced to treat the wounded crawlers. Afterward, McCoy resigned and retired from Starfleet. ( TOS comic : " Mission's End ")

McCoy then joined the Federation's Frontier Medic Program using an antiquated starship that he named after his daughter, Joanna . Alongside fellow doctor, Jon Duncan , and Theela went to worlds such as Omicron Testus IV , Ophiucus III , and Gamma Tarses VII where met up with Chief Engineer Montgomery Scott . McCoy, Duncan, and Theela, after the Joanna was destroyed, met up with Gary Seven and Roberta Lincoln at a planet inhabited by clones from the US Army in the 1960s . There they stopped Klingon commander Kloor from exploiting the human clones for war games. He was then rescued by the USS Yorktown under Captain Pike 's former first officer who was now an Admiral and its CMO , Christine Chapel . ( TOS - Leonard McCoy, Frontier Doctor comics : " Weeds ", " Error ", " Medics ", " Hosts ") At least two and a half years later, he was "drafted" (as McCoy himself once put it) back into service for the V'Ger mission. ( Last Unicorn RPG module : All Our Yesterdays: The Time Travel Sourcebook ; TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Motion Picture )

In 2273 , after the Enterprise' s shakedown cruise, McCoy helped escort ambassador R'Kgg and then recapture prisoner Raytag M'Gora . McCoy then went to Captain Kirk and Spock to investigate a " Haunted house adrift in space. After beaming in, they then heard a woman. McCoy then saw Frankenstein 's monster strangling her. McCoy and the others tried to stun it to no avail. At first McCoy wanted to study it, but was forced to kill it. After the creature was pushed out a window. McCoy then saw the girl run towards them. It then dissipated and Klingons came and captured them. ( TOS comic : " The Haunting of Thallus! ") Kirk, McCoy, the girl and the rest team were able to escape despite Spock being captured by the Klingons. After the Klingons left, McCoy questioned the girl with little success. Back onboard the Enterprise , his analyzed his tricorder readings and realized that she was not Human. He informed Kirk of this. ( TOS comic : " The Haunting of the Enterprise! ")

In 2276 , McCoy was placed in temporary command of the Enterprise by Captain Kirk after complaining too much about how the ship should be run. Captain Kirk beamed down to a planet known as Flyspeck to engage in a routine diplomatic mission. Intending to leave McCoy in command only for one afternoon, Kirk did not realize that he had been transported ahead in time one week. Unable to locate Captain Kirk, McCoy was forced to remain in command of the Enterprise for the week. Complicating the search for Kirk was the arrival of Klingons who had their own designs on Flyspeck, plus having to deal with an Admiral who had a reputation for being difficult. When Kirk realized that he had been transported ahead in time, he asked to be returned to the Enterprise so that McCoy could return command to him. ( TOS novel : Doctor's Orders )

Spock's Fal-tor-pan in 2285.

In 2285 , Khan Noonien Singh escaped from the surface of Ceti Alpha V on board the USS Reliant . Khan went to find James T. Kirk and take revenge against him for leaving him on Ceti Alpha V and not bothering to check on Khan's progress. Khan managed to seriously damage the Enterprise . Khan then took the Genesis Device from the underground laboratory on Regula. In a deadly game of cat and mouse, Kirk finally defeated Khan in the Mutara Nebula, however in a last ditch effort to destroy Kirk, Khan set the Genesis Device to explode. The Enterprise was only able to escape when Captain Spock sacrificed himself to bring the warp drive back on line just before the Genesis Device exploded. ( TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Wrath of Khan )

Just before Spock had entered the radiation-soaked dilithium chamber, he entered into a mind meld with Dr. McCoy, and transferred his katra into McCoy's mind. Spock's body died shortly after the Enterprise escaped the detonation of the Genesis device, however Spock's consciousness was still alive in the mind of Leonard McCoy.

McCoy stayed on the Enterprise as its Chief medical officer despite the loss of Spock. McCoy then treated the wounded after the Klingons' attacked near the Neutral Zone . He also gave the current science officer, Lieutenant Saavik , some advice on how to meet Kirk's needs. He then told Kirk not to push Saavik too hard. ( TOS comic : " The Wormhole Connection ") When Kirk, Saavik and the away team returned with Klingon defector Konom , McCoy, despite never operating on one, did so none the less. ( TOS comic : " ... The Only Good Klingon... ") McCoy was surprised to hear that the Federation and the Klingon Empire had entered into a state of war against each other. ( TOS comic : " Errand of War ")

In the weeks after Spock's apparent death, McCoy began behaving strangely. As the Enterprise docked in spacedock , McCoy broke into Spock's quarters. This tripped a security alarm on the bridge, and Admiral Kirk went to confront the intruder. Kirk was shocked to find McCoy in the quarters, who asked Kirk why he had been left behind on Genesis, and requested that Kirk climb the steps of Mount Seleya on Vulcan . A horrified Kirk called for medics to be brought to Spock's quarters when McCoy collapsed in his arms. McCoy was examined and it was believed that he was suffering from exhaustion. McCoy promised Kirk that he would stay at his home on Earth for the time.

Sarek soon arrived on Earth and revealed the possibility that Spock's katra might have survived. Sarek did not find the katra in Kirk's mind. The two searched through engine room recordings, and discovered that McCoy was carrying Spock's katra. Sarek asked Kirk to retrieve Spock's body and bring the body and Dr. McCoy to Mount Seleya , claiming that it was the only way both could find peace. Learning that he was suffering from the effects of a Vulcan mind meld, McCoy stated that it was the "green blooded son of a bitch" getting revenge for all the arguments he had lost over the years.

When Starfleet Command refused to allow McCoy, Kirk, and the remaining senior staff of the Enterprise to return to the Genesis Planet , Kirk and his senior officers stole the Enterprise . En route to Genesis, McCoy took the science station, and using Spock's skills was able to use the scanners to determine that there were no vessels pursuing the Enterprise. After arriving at Genesis, they learned that Spock's body had been regenerated by Genesis. Kirk and his crew managed to defeat Commander Kruge . However, they lost the Enterprise in the process. Spock's body had reached the same age as it was just prior to his entering the dilithium chamber of the Enterprise at this point.

After being beamed on board Kruge's Bird-of-Prey , the crew of the late Enterprise proceeded at best speed to Vulcan . Arriving at Vulcan, the crew climbed the steps of Mount Seleya, where Sarek requested that the Fal-tor-pan be performed on Spock. Agreeing to this request, the High Priestess T'Lar performed the Fal-tor-pan, removing the katra of Spock from McCoy's mind and refusing it into Spock's body. ( TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Search for Spock )

Over the next three months, Captain Spock recovered his memories. Spock and McCoy underwent a number of mind melds to ensure that any remaining vestiges of Spock were transferred from McCoy back to Spock. Despite losing memories of his past life, Spock remembered Kirk's first name as "Jim", to his own fascination. Which McCoy warmly smiled, pointing to his head, for his Vulcan friend.

McCoy named the captured Klingon bird-of-prey HMS Bounty in reference to the mutiny on board the British naval vessel nearly 500 years earlier. McCoy and the senior staff of the Enterprise all voted to return to Earth to face the consequences of traveling to the Genesis Planet to rescue Spock. Spock joined them, even though McCoy was concerned that Spock's recent experiences meant that he was not yet ready to resume his post. McCoy asked Spock what being dead had felt like, saying that Spock really had gone where no one had gone before. Spock for his part said it would be impossible to discuss what he had experienced without a common frame of reference.

On their way back to Earth, the Cetacean Probe arrived, searching for the humpback whales that it had lost contact with. The probe began reconditioning Earth, which endangered the population of Earth. To get the probe to stop damaging Earth, McCoy and the crew of the Bounty traveled back to 1986 . While in the past, McCoy worked with Montgomery Scott and Hikaru Sulu went to find materials to enclose a tank on board the Bounty to hold humpback whales. The Bounty took the whales George and Gracie in to the 23rd century , where they managed to convince the probe to stop its assault on Earth.

After arriving back in the 23rd century, McCoy was concerned that he and Spock were not fully separated from each other, and that depending on his punishment he might not be able to participate in further mind melds with Spock. Spock reassured McCoy that the two men had been completely separated from each other. Though now the doctor had a better perspective in Spock's field of expertise. Understanding his problems with raw data inherent with time travel computation, he told him to make an educated guess. And that even though it wasn't in his nature to do so; no one is perfect. In a session of the Federation Council , McCoy learned that any charges against him had been dropped. The only punishment was directed at Kirk, who was reduced in rank from Admiral to Captain.

Following the council session McCoy joined his friends on the new USS Enterprise as chief medical officer, and stood next to his friends Kirk and Spock on the bridge as Captain Kirk said, " Let's see what she's got." ( TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Voyage Home )

After launch the Enterprise returned to Earth Spacedock , whereupon most of the crew went on shore leave and Scott set about fixing the large number of technical problems the ship was experiencing. During this time a new bridge module was installed on the ship. Meanwhile McCoy went on a camping trip to Yosemite National Park in California with Kirk and Spock. The trip was nerve wracking for McCoy as Kirk had insisted on climbing El Capitan without any sort of protective equipment. His worst fears were nearly realized when Kirk slipped and fell off the mountain, only to be rescued by Spock at the last possible moment.

At dinner that night McCoy informed Kirk that he and Spock could drive a man to drink, angrily chastising Kirk for his recklessness. After trying to sing Row, Row, Row Your Boat with Spock and Kirk the three called it a night, only to be woken up a few minutes later by Uhura, informing them that they were being recalled to duty by Starfleet.

McCoy once again told Spock no one is perfect after missing their target deck, in the escape from Enterprise 's brig . He came to Spock's defense, reminding their captain that Spock could no more kill his brother Sybok than Spock could kill him, and that Spock is both Vulcan and human . McCoy stated that Spock never ceases to amaze him. Spock replied the same for himself. ( TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Final Frontier )

Later years [ ]

In 2293 , the Enterprise -A was sent to escort a Klingon diplomatic party, led by Chancellor Gorkon , to Earth. During the encounter, it appeared the Enterprise fired photon torpedos at Gorkon's ship, damaging it. McCoy and Kirk then beamed over to the ship to see if the crew needed assistance. They discovered that Gorkon was dying and McCoy attempted to save the Chancellor, but was unsuccessful due to his lack of knowledge about Klingon physiology. McCoy and Kirk were then arrested and sentenced to serve a life term on Rura Penthe . With Spock's help, the two were able to escape the prison planet. Afterwards, McCoy helped Spock modify a photon torpedo to destroy General Chang 's cloaked starship. ( TOS movie , novelization & comic adaptation : The Undiscovered Country )

In 2294 , McCoy became seriously ill, necessitating the replacement of several organs by ones that had been cloned earlier and held in storage for such an eventuality. ( TOS novel : The Captain's Daughter )

Likewise in 2294, McCoy served aboard the USS Enterprise -B in a temporary capacity as chief Starfleet medical advisor under the command of Captain John Harriman , during a crisis involving the release of Terrellian plague by renegade Klingon forces in the Antares star system. ( Captain's Log comic : " Captain's Log: Harriman ", TNG episode & novelization : Encounter at Farpoint )

Also during this same year, McCoy tracked down his former crewmate, Montgomery Scott, and gave him a stern lecture about his solitary drinking, after Scott slipped into a depressed state following the loss of Captain Kirk. ( Star Trek novel : Engines of Destiny )

McCoy successfully recovered, and in 2296 , was serving under Captain Spock on board the starship USS Intrepid II . ( TOS novel : Vulcan's Forge )

Around the turn of the 24th century , McCoy joined the teaching staff at Starfleet Medical Academy . One of his students was Jo Stern , with who he would form a lasting friendship. Stern would call him "Mac," the only person he allowed to do so. ( ST - The Lost Era novel : Well of Souls )

At some point during the USS Enterprise -B 's time in service, McCoy served as her chief medical officer . ( TNG episode & novelization : Encounter at Farpoint )

In 2327 , McCoy attended Sarek and Perrin 's wedding on Vulcan. ( TOS comic : " Enter the Wolves ")

By 2336 , he was working at Starfleet Medical . ( ST - The Lost Era novel : Well of Souls )

In 2344 , McCoy escorted Spock and Saavik to their wedding ceremony. ( TOS novel : Vulcan's Heart )

In the 2350s , he accompanied Spock to the Romulan Empire , where he met Eric John Stiles . ( TNG - Double Helix novel : Red Sector )

McCoy retired from Starfleet in 2353 .

In 2363 , McCoy suffered an injury after tripping over one of his great-great-grandchildrens' toys which necessitated a stay at Bethesda Starfleet Hospital , preventing him from attending the launch of the USS Enterprise -D . In "revenge", McCoy connived the USS Hood to take him to Farpoint Station , where they would be transferring crew to the new Enterprise . McCoy inspected the ship's medical facilities, and was escorted back to the Hood , via shuttlecraft, by Lieutenant Commander Data . McCoy told the young android the ship was new but had the right name, and that if she was treated well she'd always bring the crew home. ( TNG episode & novelization : Encounter at Farpoint )

By 2364 , McCoy was 137 years old while his daughter Joanna was 115. ( TNG episode & novelization : Encounter at Farpoint )

McCoy revisited the Enterprise -D in 2367 , and again in 2371 . ( TNG comic : " In Memory Yet Green... ")

During this second visit, when assigned to assist the Enterprise in rescuing Spock from Romulus after a meeting of the Unification movement was captured with Spock among them, McCoy attempted to take command when he felt that Picard was taking too long to negotiate for Spock's release, approaching the governor of the colony that had captured Spock directly rather than negotiating through the Romulan High Council. However, his actions actually made matters worse as the governor realized McCoy's identity and thus guessed that he had Spock prisoner rather than just another group of Unificationists, leaving McCoy feeling ashamed at the revelation that he had acted like the kind of arrogant admiral he had always hated in his own time on the ship, assuming that they knew better than the captain while ending up making matters worse. However, a conversation with Guinan helped him move past this mistake, and he was later able to use his own knowledge to convince the Romulans to stand down after the unexpected intervention of the returned Scotty, drawing the Romulans' attention to the imminent reunion of another species on the border of the Neutral Zone whose presence would force the Romulants to face a threat on multiple fronts if they pressed the Federation into a fight. ( TNG novel : Crossover )

Spanning these four years, his lifelong friend and colleague Spock asked him a personal question. Comparing the captains of Enterprise (1701,1701-A and 1701-D), which would McCoy summon in a time of need. He answered, in honesty, Spock himself. ( TNG comic : " In Memory Yet Green... ")

This, in fact, came true aboard the bridge of a Defiant -class starship . ( TOS novel : The Return )

Spock swore to secrecy his choice of command; not even to share with Saavik , lest McCoy totally deny it. ( TNG comic : " In Memory Yet Green... ")

During this period, McCoy was also an occasional guest lecturer at Starfleet Medical Academy . ( SCE eBook : Wounds, Book 2 )

By the late 24th century , McCoy was forced to have to wear an exoskeleton, including leg braces, although he later was given implants which allowed him to discard the exoskeleton. ( TOS - Strange New Worlds II short story : " Doctors Three "; TOS novel : The Return , TOS novel : Spectre ) At the age of 144, he assisted Julian Bashir during his operation to remove Borg implants from Kirk's body following his resurrection. The procedure was a success, and McCoy spent some time with Kirk, informing him on what his former crewmates had done with their lives. ( TOS novel : The Return )

In 2375 , he assisted Kirk, Spock and Montgomery Scott in fighting the denizens of the mirror Universe before attending the wedding of Kirk and Teilani and setting out to find a cure when Teilani was poisoned by eugenic child 7. ( TOS novel : Spectre , TOS novel : Dark Victory , TOS novel : Preserver )

In 2376 , McCoy joined in the celebrations surrounding Starbase 11 . ( ST - New Worlds, New Civilizations short story : " 225 Years of Service ")

In 2378 , he and Spock, both wearing the current Starfleet uniform, retrieved an unconscious James T. Kirk from his battle with the Bajoran called Corrin Tal . ( TOS novel : Captain's Peril )

While the USS Enterprise -E underwent repairs in Earth 's orbit in late 2379 , Captain Jean-Luc Picard visited the retired admiral. Picard consulted McCoy about the fal-tor-pan ritual, to determine whether to stay hopeful about a return of his recently deceased fellow officer and friend, Lieutenant Commander Data . ( TNG - Strange New Worlds 8 short story : " Final Flight ")

In 2381 , McCoy assisted in the Médecins Sans Frontières relief operation on P'Jem following the Borg invasion. As of 2381, Admiral McCoy was 154 years old. ( ST novel : A Singular Destiny ).

When Nero and Ambassador Spock were sent back to the 23rd century , causing what was called the Kelvin timeline after Nero's assault of the USS Kelvin , a photo of McCoy and Spock's crewmates aboard the USS Enterprise -A was among the personal effects bequeathed to the alternate Spock after Ambassador Spock passed away in the year 2263 . ( TOS movie : Beyond )

Starfleet service record [ ]

Appendices [ ], connections [ ].

Template:USS Richard Feynman personnel

Appearances [ ]

References [ ].

• ↑ 1.0 1.1 ST - Who's Who in Star Trek comic : " Issue 1 "

External link [ ]

• Leonard McCoy article at Memory Alpha , the wiki for canon Star Trek .
• Leonard McCoy article at the Star Trek Timelines Wiki .
• 2 Ferengi Rules of Acquisition

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Strange New Worlds Finally Explains Return of Classic Star Trek Original Series Character

Strange New Worlds showrunners had long wanted to beam up Scotty to the Enterprise. Will more Original Series characters to follow?

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This Star Trek: Strange New Worlds article contains spoilers.

Prequel cameos are always tricky storytelling gambits. When done right, they can thrill fans with a shiver of recognition. When done wrong, it can feel cheap and sentimental, like almost everything with baby Leia in Obi-Wan Kenobi . But against all odds, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has managed to stay on the right side of this balancing act.

Casting delightful actors such as Celia Rose Gooding and Jess Bush has allowed showrunners Akiva Goldsman and Henry Alonso Myers to explore characters who never really got their due in The Original Series . Ethan Peck and Paul Wesley manage to pay homage to Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner while forging their own takes on Spock and Kirk. Add to that number Montgomery Scott , the beloved engineer who made his SNW debut in the season two finale, “ Hegemony .”

We meet Scotty in the best possible way, when the Enterprise crew stumble into an ingenious trap the Lieutenant Junior Grade cobbled together to survive the Gorn. Played with both humility and abundant charm by True Scottsman Martin Quinn, Scotty immediately establishes himself as one of the episode’s highlights.

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For Myers, Scotty’s appearance was a long time coming. “We’ve been talking about him for a while as a general idea,” Myers explained to TVLine . “As we were going into the finale, it suddenly became a weird, rare opportunity to introduce him for a lot of different reasons.” Once they realized that they had spot for Scotty, Myers and Goldsman then had a chance to make Star Trek history with the casting. “We also had a great opportunity to cast someone who’s from Scotland,” Myers enthused.

Of course, it wasn’t just about the accent. Quinn also had to be both recognizable and distinct as Scotty, as he isn’t yet the miracle worker who saves Kirk’s Enterprise time and again. According to Myers, Quinn is an actor “who can do that Scotty, but also who can go through all of the things that we want to see him go through before he becomes the person that we know.”

Indeed, all of the major TOS characters have had this mixture of familiarity and difference, whether it’s Uhura unsure if she wants to join Starfleet, Kirk considering monogamy with Carol Marcus, or Spock experimenting with emotions. According to Myers, that tension makes for good storytelling with well-worn TOS characters. “We don’t meet our understanding of who they are in that series, we meet who they are before,” he explained. “They don’t know who they will be, and they aren’t that person yet. They have some stuff to go through.”

For Goldsman, Scotty’s appearance is just part of the nature of a prequel series like SNW . “[I]t starts to become inevitable that we start to pull in more folks that are sort of  TOS -based,” he admitted. Does that mean that Sulu, Chekov, and Rand will drop by in season three? Goldsman and Myers aren’t saying anything yet, but they do promise this about the great Montgomery Scott: “We will see him more.” As with all things Scotty, that’s miracle enough.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is streaming now on Paramount+.

Joe George | @jageorgeii

Joe George’s writing has appeared at Slate, Polygon, Tor.com, and elsewhere!

10 glorious Star Trek cameos that could totally happen in Strange New Worlds

Here's who we would love to see tango with Pike, Spock and Number One.

We're still at least a year away from the next live-action Star Trek series, Strange New Worlds , but it's never a bad time to start fantasizing about random characters who might return. Before Strange New Worlds hits we'll have Discovery Season 3, Lower Decks Season 1 , and probably Picard Season 2. So, that's a long time for the writers and producers of Strange New Worlds to start figuring how to make the Captain Pike-centric series even more entrenched in Trekkie canon.

A list of characters from the 2258-2264 era of Star Trek could be endless. We all know the big ones we'd love to see. Kirk. Bones. Uhura. Maybe Spock's dad again. But what about the super deep-cuts? Lately, new Trek shows have done a good job of bringing back very random characters and making those characters super-important. So, with that in mind, who from the Strange New Worlds pre- Original Series era could return? Here's our dream list of 10 characters you maybe haven't thought about in a while, but that everyone would love to see.

All these people are Klingons.

10. Klingons...nothing but Klingons

Okay, this one is a little bit of a cheat. But, it seems fairly obvious that Strange New Worlds is a direct sequel to Star Trek: Discovery Season 2. That means it would make a lot of sense to bring back Klingon Chancellor L'Rell, as well as former Klingon, turned human, turned Section 31 agent, Ash Tyler.

Essentially, a lot of Klingon lore from the era of Discovery remains unexplored before it becomes the era of TOS . In Discovery , we met two Klingons from the house of Kor — Kol and Kol-Sha (both played by Kenneth Mitchell). But, the name Kor comes from TOS , specifically, the Klingon Commander Kor matched wits with Kirk in "Errand of Mercy." If the DISCO Klingons return, it would be amazing to see them reunited — for the first time — with original Klingons like Kor, Koloth, and Kang.

'Strange New Worlds' could actually give Dr. Daystrom a proper episode or two.

9. Richard Daystrom

If you've been watching Star Trek: Picard , you might have wondered why the name "Daystrom" sounds so familiar. By the time of The Next Generation , the Daystrom Institute is a scientific organization renowned throughout the entire galaxy. Mostly, it's famous for studying artificial life, and that's because it was founded by a guy named Richard Daystrom (William Marshall), who was all about creating really advanced robots.

In the TOS episode "The Ultimate Computer," Daystrom was presented as a kind of mad scientist who used to be awesome. But, we know from a few lines in Discovery that the Daystrom Institue was highly respected in the 2250s. In his one and only TOS episode, Daystrom doesn't really get a chance to shine as a robotics or A.I. genius, even though he totally is. It would be amazing to see just how cool and smart this guy was in his prime.

We need more of Rainn Wilson's Harry Mudd.

8. Harry Mudd

When Rainn Wilson was first cast in Discovery as Harry Mudd, it was hard to imagine anyone playing the character made famous by Roger C. Carmel in TOS . And yet, in Season 1 of Discovery and Short Treks , Rainn Wilson's Mudd has become our favorite Mudd. He must return for Strange New Worlds . Sure, Spock will have to hide somewhere on the ship, if only because Spock has seemingly never met Mudd in TOS . But, then again, Mudd had time-travel tech in Discovery , maybe he'll have some kind of memory-eraser in Strange New Worlds.

Finnegan is ready to fight.

7. Finnegan

In the classic TOS episode " Shore Leave " Kirk meets an android doppelganger of a guy who bullied him at Starfleet Academy. That guy's name is Finnegan (Bruce Mars) and he is just the worst. Chronologically, he was an upperclassman when Kirk was at the Academy, which means he could be a junior officer in Pike's time. Finnegan would make a great human nemesis in Strange New Worlds , and interesting because villains within Starfleet are rare and compelling. Finnegan is also hilarious.

Dr. Dehner in "Where No Man Has Gone Before."

5. Dr. Elizabeth Dehner

In the episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before," Elizabeth Dehner (Sally Kellerman) was a psychiatrist who worked on the USS Enterprise for precisely one mission. But did Spock know her before that? By the end of "Where No Man Has Gone Before," Dehner sacrifices herself to save Kirk and the Enterprise, but her career before that could have been super interesting. Technically, Dehner first came on board the Enterprise in 2265 after being picked up on the Aldebaron Colony. So, if the Enterprise visits the Aldebaron Colony in Strange New Worlds , Dehner could easily appear.

Best. Romulan. Ever.

4. The Romulan Commander (Nevesa)

In the TOS episode "The Enterprise Incident," we met easily the coolest Romulan in all of Trek canon. Although her name was just "The Romulan Commander" in the script, actress Joanne Linville played her so well, that countless pieces of fan fiction have focused on her and Spock's (possible) relationship for years. Recently, the mobile game Star Trek: Timelines gave her the name Nevesa, which is actually pretty cool. Could she appear in Strange New Worlds ? Well, yes. But, the regular Enterprise crew couldn't actually meet her. In the pre- TOS era, the Federation is largely unaware of what the Romulans actually look like. (In "Balance of Terror" it's actually a shock when they find out the Romulans look like Vulcans.)

So, how would Nevesa appear? She could meet Pike! She could meet Number One! And the whole thing could be part of a Section 31 mission that is totally classified. She cannot, however, meet Spock.

There were a lot of Dax hosts before Jadzia.

3. Audrid Dax

Oh yeah. You didn't see this one coming, did you? That's right, the symbiont known as Dax was alive in the 2250s, and existing in their fourth incarnation. (Jadzia in DS9 was the eight Dax host, and Ezri, the ninth.) In the DS9 time travel episode "Trials and Tribble-ations" Jadzia mentions "I lived in this time!" And that's because, she did, as Audrid Dax, and probably as Emony Dax, too, who, apparently, met a very young Dr. McCoy.

That said, Audrid is the best candidate for an earlier version of Dax, simply because the timeline works out a little better. If Emony met a young Leonard McCoy, it's doesn't make much sense that Emony would be around in the 2250s, when McCoy was a little older. So, that means its Audrid. This is pretty cool, because, there's already a short story in The Lives of Dax (1999) which features Audrid Dax teaming-up with Captain Pike, a little while after Pike is promoted to Fleet Captain. See! There's a precedent for this!

The other very compelling reason for Strange New Worlds to introduce an earlier version of Dax is that it's possible that Discovery could give us a later version. In the Discovery Season 3 trailers, we've seen that that Trill are returning, which could mean that a future version of Dax is in the new season. If Audrid Dax appeared in Strange New Worlds, it would create some slick symmetry.

Was this guy cool? Ever?

2. Commodore Matt Decker

In the TOS episode "The Doomsday Machine," Commodore Matt Decker becomes the first Star Trek captain to go full-on Ahab. Like Daystrom, Decker isn't a very sympathetic character in his one and only TOS appearance, but considering he's a Commodore (a step above Captain) and he's in command of an Enterprise sister-ship (the USS Constellation ) it feels like was probably cool at some point in his career.

The idea of seeing more old-school Star Trek starships in Strange New Worlds is part of what makes it exciting and seeing another Constitution-class ship, working alongside the Enterprise could be really cool. Maybe there's a reason Matt Decker was promoted from Captain to Commodore, and maybe we could see it happen.

Could this guy be a series regular on 'Strange New Worlds'?

1. Dr. M'benga

One of the greatest guest characters in TOS only appeared in two episodes — Dr. M'benga. Played by Brooker Bradshaw, M'benga was equal to Dr. McCoy and worked in sickbay in "A Private Little War" and "That Which Survives." There's not a clear consensus within canon as to how long M'benga served on the USS Enterprise , or if he transferred there, and then left and came back later.

M'benga is one of those rare reoccurring TOS characters who wasn't killed off, but was totally competent and genuinely likable. His presence as part of the TOS crew is another example of the pioneering early diversity of the original Star Trek , too. M'benga was heroic, funny, and once had an internship on the planet Vulcan. This means that if the USS Enterprise visits the planet Vulcan we could meet Dr. M'benga again.

In the non-canon novel The Vulcan Academy Murders , we learn that M'benga knew Spock's father, Sarek. Strange New Worlds already has an incumbent Sarek — James Frain from Discovery — so, bringing on M'benga seems only... logical.

“We absolutely keep track of it”: Despite 5 Seasons, Star Trek: Discovery Failed to Learn the Real Reason Strange New Worlds is a Better Show

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds may have been relatively new to the scene as far as the adventures of the USS Enterprise are concerned but it is far from being a lame attempt at a cash-grab spin-off. Starring Anson Mount, Rebecca Romjin, and Ethan Peck in the lead cast, the new series explores worlds far beyond the stretches of what the known galaxy holds.

For a reason not too dissimilar,  Star Trek has become a subject of debate over the difference between Discovery  and its more modern counterpart and the reason behind its failure to surprise the audience as much as Strange New Worlds  is capable of doing.

Star Trek Learns a Way to Balance the Old and the New

However, if a show veers too far off the given track so as to entirely fall off the plane of acceptable storytelling, the audience not only gets whiplash from the ruined plotline but feels deceived and harassed by the destruction of a perfectly good story (for instance,  The Witcher  Season 2).

“We’d like to use you as much as possible”: Star Trek: Discovery Actor Was Sure Her Character Won’t Make it Past Two Episodes

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds  finds a perfect balance between what can be done and what ought to be done and presents the fans with a show that allows creative liberty and experimental storytelling within the limits of the established mythology of the 58-year-old franchise.

Star Trek  Fans Discover the Reason Behind Showʼs Success

The audience has understandably felt the connection and the intensity of  Strange New Worlds  over that of  Discovery  and it is high time to reflect on what makes the former more deliberately successful as a show as compared to the latter. In a Television Critics Association panel held on February 2022, Strange New Worlds  creator Alex Kurtzman revealed [via Showbiz Cheat Sheet ]:

I think anyone who has ever traveled in the world of Star Trek knows they’re inheriting canon. That sort of fires in both directions. We absolutely keep track of it, we have writers on all the staff that keep track of it, we have a frequent showrunners’ meeting where the showrunners of all the shows get together in advance of the scripts they’re about to write as they’re starting to break seasons. And they all share ideas and information about what they’re doing so that we can stay ahead of any problems that may come up so we’re not stepping on each other’s toes.

“It didn’t do us any good”: Star Trek Legend Leonard Nimoy Never Forgave a Movie That “Nearly Derailed” the Franchise

Alex Kurtzman also contributed to the Star Trek  reboot by penning the scripts of the 2009 film starring Chris Pine and its 2013 sequel starring Benedict Cumberbatch in  Star Trek Into Darkness that served as a direct remake of  Wrath of Khan.  After Star Trek Beyond underperformed at the box office, a fourth film that has been in development hell since 2018 is still in the works at Paramount.

Star Trek: Discovery and Strange New Worlds are available for streaming on Paramount+

Live Long & Prosper: 21 Best Quotes From Star Trek's Spock

Spock is known for his highly quotable lines, which range from wise observations about the universe to downright sarcastic responses.

When Leonard Nimoy stepped into the shoes of the Enterprise's resident Vulcan First Officer, he created a pop culture icon like no other. Spock, with his unique personality and character design, is perhaps the most recognizable figure from Star Trek . As his story continues in Star Trek: Discovery and Strange New Worlds , it's clear Spock's importance to Star Trek isn't changing soon.

Spock is also known for his highly quotable lines, which range from wise observations about the universe and his scientific research to hilarious quips about his companions and downright sarcastic responses to their excessive humanity. Being half-Vulcan gives him a completely different perspective, and how that aligns with his human side makes him such a beloved character nearly sixty years since his creation.

Updated May 17, 2024 by Joshua M. Patton : Spock wasn't originally Star Trek's central character , though he was the only character (and actor) carried over after the first pilot with the original Christopher Pike and Number One failed. His relationship with Captain James T. Kirk and Doctor Leonard McCoy formed the emotional core of The Original Series. Through his appearances in the movies, Star Trek: The Next Generation and J.J. Abrams' reboot movies, his beloved stature isn't in doubt. So, it's no accident that some of Star Trek's best lessons come from his lips.

20 "No Words for What I Feel"

Star trek: strange new worlds, season 2, episode 1, "the broken circle".

I...I'm not...I have no worlds for what I feel.

In the Season 2 premiere of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , Spock realized he was struggling with his emotions, specifically where Christine Chapel was concerned. However, in "The Broken Circle," he'd been through his biggest ordeal yet.

Spock committed mutiny (for the first time) , stealing the USS Enterprise to rescue La'an from a Klingon-occupied world. While there, he stopped a plot by rogue Klingons to restart the war with the Federation, as well.

Yet, both Doctor M'Benga and Nurse Chapel were nearly killed when they went, unprotected, out of an airlock. While M'Benga recovered quickly, Chapel did not. As Spock stood over her biobed, M'Benga asked if he was alright. The normally loquacious Vulcan couldn't find the words to describe his feelings. Or, at least, he couldn't bring himself to admit what he was feeling at the time.

19 "Men Sometimes See Exactly What They Wish To See"

Star trek: the original series, season 3, episode 9, "the tholian web".

In critical moments, men sometimes see exactly what they wish to see.

In "The Tholian Web," Spock finds himself in charge after a mysterious encounter with an unknown alien force leads the crew of the Enterprise to believe that Captain James T. Kirk has slipped into another dimension and is now lost forever. Faced with the dilemma of sacrificing the ship's energy to rescue his friend or proclaiming him dead to maintain the ship's status, Spock deliberates the best course of action while having to deal with increasingly aggressive shipmates.

The episode comes to a head when several crew members claim to have seen strange apparitions of the Captain. While in a conversation with Dr. McCoy where Spock explains that in dire situations such as this one people could turn delusional, Kirk reappears before them. Seeing is believing for Spock, and they're able to rescue him.

18 "A Stallion Must First Be Broken Before It Can Reach Its Potential"

Star trek (2009).

"A curious metaphor, doctor, as a stallion must first be broken before it can reach its potential."

'I Thought There Was Already a Script': Chris Pine Comments on Star Trek 4

One of the most controversial moves in J.J. Abrams's reboot of Star Trek in 2009 was the decision to put Spock and James T. Kirk against one another. After Captain Christopher Pike makes Kirk the acting First Officer of the USS Enterprise, Spock has him removed from the ship and marooned on a hostile planet. Shortly after this, he has his first one-on-one with his frequent rhetorical sparring partner Doctor Leonard McCoy.

After asking if he could speak freely, McCoy asks if Spock "is out of his Vulcan mind" for doing so. While Spock's actions weren't perhaps the most logical ones, this quote does ring true for what the Kelvin Timeline James T. Kirk needed. He was brash and arrogant, but without the sense of duty his father instilled in him in the Prime Universe. "Breaking" him by putting him on that planet (only to meet the Prime Universe Spock) is what saved Earth and the rest of the Federation.

17 "Having Is Not So Pleasing, After All, As Wanting"

Star trek: the original series, season 2, episode 1, "amok time".

After a time, you might find that having is not so pleasing, after all, as wanting. It is not logical, but it is often true.

Perhaps one of — if not the most — well-known episodes in Star Trek , "Amok Time" introduced several details about the Vulcan race to the audience, most notably the existence of pon farr , the Vulcan time of mating . Deeply embarrassed by this predicament, Spock refuses to tell his friend Captain Kirk what's going on. Once Doctor McCoy discovers it is a life or death situation, Kirk diverts the Enterprise from its scheduled trip towards Vulcan against Starfleet orders.

T'Pring decides to challenge their bond by choosing Kirk as her champion, thus forcing Spock and his Captain into a duel to the death. After defeating Kirk and thinking him dead, Spock bitterly tells Stonn that having T'Pring might not be as satisfying as merely desiring her. Upon returning to the Enterprise, Spock surrenders himself for the murder of his friend and captain. However, a quick dose of sci-fi medicine from McCoy makes Kirk only appear to be dead. On seeing him, Spock actually smiles.

16 "I Am, Quite Simply, 'Spock'"

Star trek: strange new worlds, season 1, episode 5, "spock amok".

I admit I have been afraid that I was not Vulcan enough for you. That...you saw me as human, more concerned about my duty to Starfleet than to my culture or my betrothed. My feelings about Vulcan are not easy. On our world, I was forced to prove my Vulcan-ness. Any deviation was seen as proof I did not belong. In Starfleet, I am accepted for who I am. Half-Vulcan, half-human. I am quite simply, 'Spock. '

In Season 1 of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds , the series changed the implied canon which suggested in The Original Series episode "Amok Time," Spock and T'Pring had not seen each other since childhood. This allowed for a necessary expansion of their relationship, both to make Vulcan seen like a less antiquated culture and explore Spock's duality. T'Pring resented his committment to Starfleet, especially as it interfered with their time together.

Thanks to a Vulcan ritual that collided with some genuine Star Trek hijinks, Spock and T'Pring were forced to spend a day living as the other person. At the end of the episode, Spock explains why Starfleet feels more at home to him than his home planet. His half-human nature is not see as a hindrance or disability, but merely a part of who he is. Quite simply, he is Spock.

15 "Of Course I Care, Leonard"

Star trek beyond.

Of course, I care, Leonard. I always assumed my respect for you was clear.

The final movie in the rebooted Kelvin Timeline (for now, at least) featured the devastating destruction of the USS Enterprise in the first half-hour of the film. Spock and Doctor McCoy end up crash-landing on a planet together, with Spock near-fatally wounded. He encourages Doctor McCoy to leave him behind, calling it the logical course of action. McCoy responds, "And here I was, thinking you cared."

As much as Kirk and Spock are a big-ticket partnership , McCoy is equally important to him. Their playful rivalry is how Spock shows affection for McCoy. And, for what it's worth, Spock still doesn't come out and say he loves his friend Leonard. McCoy stops him because their love language is picking on each other.

14 "Computers Make Excellent And Efficient Servants"

Star trek: the original series, season 2, episode 24, "the ultimate computer".

Computers make excellent and efficient servants, but I have no desire to serve under them.

Star Trek canon is replete with references to the "Daystron Institute." The man who gave it its name was Richard Daystrom, the man responsible for the Enterprise's advanced computers. This series constantly has its characters question the value of human life, and "The Ultimate Computer" is not different. An early, prescient story about automation and artificial intelligence, the episode explores the value of the human mind compared to a highly intelligent supercomputer. In advance of battle exercises with two other Federation ships, Spock tells Kirk that having a computer run the Enterprise would be undesirable as the crew is loyal to a person, in this case, Kirk.

As expected, the supercomputer swiftly takes over the Enterprise's systems. Kirk tries to reason with Daystrom, the machine's creator, who snaps at him before Spock applies the Vulcan nerve pinch , rendering him unconscious. Ultimately, Daystrom sees the folly of his ways, but not before the Enterprise killed a number of Federation officers on the other ships while the computer was in control.

13 "We Have Only Now"

Star trek: discovery season 2, episode 11, "perpetual infinity".

Now does matter. What happened before no longer exists. What will happen next has not yet been written. We have only now.

Star Trek's Use of Transporters, Explained

The first new series in the third wave of the franchise, Star Trek: Discovery , introduced Ethan Peck's Spock as part of its Season 2 storyline. Michael Burnham is Spock's foster sister, raised by Sarek and Amanda Grayson after her parents' death. Once Michael finds out the truth about how her father died and her mother was trapped in a dead future, she almost gave up. Until, at least, her little brother snapped her out of it.

Spock and Michael are presented as having an antagonistic relationship, as most siblings do. Yet, there is some deeper pain there that the show covers. In this moment, Spock is talking about how their baggage with each other and worries about the fear don't matter. Only what they do in the present can save themselves and the galaxy.

12 "Logic Is The Beginning Of Wisdom"

Star trek vi: the undiscovered country.

Logic is the beginning of wisdom, not the end of it.

In The Undiscovered Country , the final film featuring the original cast, a space disaster leads to a rare peace offering from the Federation's most iconic villains , the Klingon Empire. Days before retirement, Spock ropes his old crew into this peace mission, but a secret plot is afoot. Chancellor Gorkon, named after Mikhail Gorbachev, is murdered. Kirk and McCoy beam over to their ship to try to save his life but are instead arrested and sent to a prison colony. During this journey, Spock gets to know Valeris, a young Vulcan lieutenant who has recently joined the Enterprise.

Early in the film, the two have a discussion about logic, prompting Spock to sensibly advise that logic should not be the end goal, but rather the starting point of obtaining absolute wisdom. This interaction takes on deeper meaning when Spock discovers Valeris was one of the people who murdered the chancellor. When confronted, she tells him she tried to explain her actions ahead of time. Spock refers back to this quote to say he was also trying to warn her away from her fear of peace with the Klingons .

11 "I Object To Intellect Without Discipline"

Star trek: the original series, season 1, episode 17, "the squire of gothos".

I object to intellect without discipline, I object to power without constructive purpose.

With Kirk and helmsman Hikaru Sulu trapped by Trelane, a man who calls himself the Squire of Gothos in the episode of the same name, Spock and the rest of the crew do the impossible to bring their crewmates back to safety. Seemingly possessing the power of a god, Trelane treats the crew of the USS Enterprise like his playthings. This annoys the ship's science officer, and he doesn't hide it.

Upon meeting the mischievous Trelane, Spock dismissively protests his petty ways, asserting that he objects to Trelane's intellect and power if there's nothing substantial but fun and games behind them. Trelane seems amused by this, remarking that Spock's human side has made him ill-mannered.

10 "You Are Defensive And, Therefore, Find My Opinion Valid"

Star trek into darkness.

Reverting to name-calling suggests that you are defensive and, therefore, find my opinion valid.

Star Trek: The Original Series had 78 episodes and six movies to define the friendship between Kirk and Spock. The Kelvin Timeline movies had just around seven hours to try to establish that bond, and Spock and Kirk are at odds for most of the first film. Star Trek Into Darkness showed they were friendlier, but when Kirk breaks the rules to save Spock, he reports it to Starfleet. Well, he does it inadvertently, but Kirk doesn't see it that way. Frustrated, Kirk shouts that he "won't take ethics lessons from a robot!"

Whatever one might think of how well those movies captured the spirit of The Original Series characters, this is a classic Spock retort. At a moment when any other character would also get angry, he simply plays it cool while still saying something perfectly designed to get under Kirk or McCoy's skin. Vulcans may suppress emotions, but they still have rhetorical charm and style.

9 "They Are In Every Way...The Very Flower Of Humanity"

Star trek: the original series, season 2, episode 4, "mirror, mirror".

They are brutal, savage, uncivilized, and illogical. They are in every way examples of Homo sapiens, the very flower of humanity.

"Mirror, Mirror" is a fan-favorite episode that expanded the Star Trek universe and acknowledged the existence of parallel dimensions within the storytelling universe. In the episode, Spock deals with Kirk, McCoy, Uhura, and Scotty's barbaric counterparts, capturing them and keeping them from harming the rest of the crew while he tries to figure out how to proceed. Meanwhile, the Prime Timeline versions of these characters have to survive in the murderous Mirror Universe.

Mirror Spock, wearing an iconic "evil" goatee, finds out about what happened by performing a mind meld on McCoy. Still logical and kind, he agrees to send the four universe hoppers back to their dimension. Once back onboard the original Enterprise , Spock ponders over his crewmates' mirror selves and their humanity.

8 "[Love] Is No Handicap, That Is True Strength"

Star trek: strange new worlds, season 2, episode 5, "charades".

You refer to my human side as a handicap. Yet my mother is the most resilient, compassionate, tolerant person I have known. One who has been judged by Vulcans her entire life. And yet she stands by... For love, for family, for me. That is no handicap. That is true strength.

15 Greatest Star Trek Villains Of All Time, Ranked

In its second mid-season "Spock hijinks" episode, a sci-fi accident leaves Spock purged of his Vulcan DNA just as his fiancée's parents insist on doing a ritual engagement dinner. Amanda Grayson, Spock's mother, teaches him what she knows about being a human living among Vulcans. When T'Pring's mother calls Spock's human ancestry a "handicap" he reveals the titular charade.

Spock often speaks with pride about his Vulcan nature and commitment to logic, yet his human half is equally important. In this episode, Spock made it clear why he respects humanity so much. While their emotions get them into trouble, their capacity to love is what makes it all worth it.

7 "You Mistake My Choice Not to Feel as a Reflection of My Not Caring"

Anger. Confusion. Loneliness. Fear. I had experiences those feelings before, multiplied exponentially on the day my planet was destroyed. Such a feeling is something I choose never to experience again. Nyota, you mistake my choice not to feel as a reflection of my not caring. Well, I assure you, the truth is precisely the opposite.

Another controversial change to the canon in the reboot films was Spock's romantic relationship with Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, which was in a rocky place in Star Trek Into Darkness . After nearly dying in the opening scene of the film, Uhura harbors resentment for Spock's seemingly callous disregard for his own safety. She specifically resents how his loss would affect her.

His reply, however, explains his "choice not to feel" in a way that leaves her and Kirk in stunned silence. He mind-melded with Christopher Pike when he died, which reminded of him how he felt when Vulcan was destroyed. His commitment to Vulcan suppression of emotions is not because he is unfeeling, but because of the powerful intensity of what he does.

6 "Evil Does Seek To Maintain Power By Suppressing The Truth"

Star trek: the original series, season 3, episode 4 "and the children shall lead".

Evil does seek to maintain power by suppressing the truth.

In "And The Children Shall Lead," the crew of the Enterprise is at a loss when a small party beams down to the surface of Triacus. Meant to visit a small Federation outpost, the away team finds all the adults dead from an apparent mass suicide. The only survivors are a group of carefree children who seem completely unaffected by the newcomers and the scattered bodies of their dead relatives.

Upon discovering that the children are being manipulated by an evil spirit named Gorgan, Spock tells McCoy that Gorgan's goal was to keep the truth of what happened hidden in order to maintain control over his young minions, letting his evil power grow at their expense.

5 "We Will Find Hope In the Impossible"

"We will do what we have always done, Jim. We will find hope in the impossible."

Star Trek Beyond was the first fully original story set in the Kelvin Timeline, and things get very hopeless for the film's heroes. The USS Enterprise is destroyed, and the crew is captured by the villains on a mysterious planet. On top of that, Spock is almost fatally injured before he's rescued by Kirk and Scotty.

In the film, Captain James T. Kirk is losing faith in his ability to command the ship, alluding to many off-screen adventures. When faced with his friend, wounded and weak, Kirk asks him what they should do. Spock tells him that they will do what they've done (throughout all timelines) which is turn certain death into a fighting chance to live.

4 "A Friendship That Will Define You Both..."

I could not deprive you of the revelation of all that you could accomplish together, of a friendship that will define you both in ways you cannot yet realize.

Star Trek in 2009 gave fans two Spocks for the price of one. Leonard Nimoy reprised the role for the first film and its sequel, his final role. The presence of Prime Spock , as he's called, allows for time-travel changes so that Zachary Quinto can don the ears as the younger version of the character. He meets his older self after Nero, the villain who chased Spock into the past, destroyed the planet Vulcan. Younger Spock asks why the Prime Spock sent James T. Kirk instead of just seeking him out, and this was his answer.

It proves that no matter the universe, Prime Timeline, Kelvin Timeline, or Mirror Universe, James T. Kirk needs Spock at his side if he is going to succeed. Luckily, in every universe but the famously evil one, Spock and Kirk become the kind of friends who save the universe together.

3 "I Have Been And Always Shall Be Your Friend"

Star trek ii: the wrath of khan.

I have been and always shall be your friend.

Star Trek II: Wrath Of Khan is beloved for not only bringing back the best Star Trek villain and giving him the screentime he deserved but also for being a love letter to Kirk and Spock's extraordinary friendship. The series always had them at the center of every narrative, positioning them as the heart and mind of the Enterprise and making their relationship an essential part of their adventures.

Spock's death at the end of the movie is one of the most significant events in Star Trek lore, showing Spock's most vulnerable human side as he deliriously expresses the importance of their friendship to Kirk in his last moments. Sure, he came back in the next movie, but it doesn't undercut the impact of this scene in the slightest.

2 "The Needs Of The Many Outweigh The Needs Of The Few"

The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few. Or the one.

The Star Trek Economy From Latinum to Federation Credits, Explained

In the first part of Wrath Of Khan , when discussing who should lead their new mission, Kirk and Spock have a conversation about Kirk's recent promotion to admiral. Spock remarks that he thinks it's a mistake, as being a captain is Kirk's first and foremost destiny, and supports his claim by invoking that the needs of the many, in this case, the Enterprise's crew, outweigh the needs of the few.

Tragically, this line is later reprised during Spock's sacrifice, with Kirk saying the words with a dying Spock, who slowly falls victim to the radiation inside the engine room. This scene was played with the characters reversed in Star Trek Into Darkness, which also featured Khan .

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Star trek: strange new worlds season 3 - everything we know.

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Star trek: strange new worlds season 3 is now filming, when star trek: strange new worlds season 3 could premiere on paramount plus, what star trek: strange new worlds season 3 could be about, star trek: strange new worlds is renewed for season 4, latest news about star trek: strange new worlds season 3.

• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 filming began in December 2023 and is expected to last until May 2024.
• Strange New Worlds season 3 likely won't premiere until 2025 but the show has been renewed for season 4.
• Season 3 will explore the fate of Captain Batel and the captured Enterprise crew, as well as introduce Nurse Chapel's fiancé Roger Korby, and other exciting storylines.

Anticipation is high for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 following season 2's nail-biting cliffhanger. Strange New Worlds season 2's finale, "Hegemony," saw Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) and the crew of the USS Enterprise defy Starfleet orders to rescue Captain Marie Batel (Melanie Scrofano) and the colonists of the planet Parnassus Beta. By the end of Strange New Worlds ' thrilling season 2 finale, Lt. La'an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong), Lt. Sam Kirk (Dan Jeannotte, Dr. Joseph M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun), and Lt. Erica Ortegas (Melissa Navia) are captured by the Gorn and Batel has become a host to the terrifying alien species' parasitic eggs.

When the cast of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds returns in season 3, it will be to a very different Star Trek on Paramount+ landscape. Star Trek: Discover y will have ended with season 5, essentially passing the torch to Strange New Worlds as the flagship Star Trek on Paramount+ live-action series. Star Trek: Lower Decks also will have ended with season 5. The next Star Trek series, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy , will begin production in fall 2024. The first made-for-streaming Star Trek on Paramount+ movie, Star Trek: Section 31 starring Academy Award-winner Michelle Yeoh, is completed and awaits a Paramount+ premiere date. But it's safe to say Strange New Worlds will be the franchise's new crown jewel series, especially after the positive reception to season 2.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 Ending & Cliffhanger Explained

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2's finale nailbiter brings back the fearsome Gorn and ends with Captain Pike facing an impossible choice.

Production started in December 2023 and is expected to last until May 2024

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 was ready to begin filming in May 2023, but production was halted and delayed for 7 months thanks to the dual Writer's Guild and SAG-AFTRA strikes. When the picketing was over, Strange New Worlds season 3 production finally began filming in December and is expected to last until May 2024 . Producing director Chris Fisher is directing Strange New Worlds season 3's premiere, which will resolve Strange New Worlds season 2's Gorn cliffhanger. Fisher directed Strange New Worlds season 1's finale , "A Quality of Mercy," and Strange New Worlds season 2's premiere, "The Broken Circle."

Other directors lined up for Strange New Worlds season 3 are Jordan Canning, who helmed Strange New Worlds season 3, episode 2, and Dan Liu, who takes over for Strange New Worlds season 2, episode 3. Canning directed the Vulcan comedy romp Strange New Worlds season 2, episode 5, "Charades," while Liu helmed the tense Strange New Worlds season 1, episode 4, "Memento Mori," and Strange New Worlds season 2, episode 6, "Lost in Translation." In addition, Jonathan Frakes will direct a "Hollywood noir" episode of Strange New Worlds season 3 after he was lauded for directing Strange New Worlds ' comedy crossover with Star Trek: Lower Decks .

The other Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 directors are Valerie Weiss, Sharon Lewis, Andrew Coutts, and Maja Vrvilo.

The wait for Strange New Worlds season 3 will likely last until 2025.

Realistically, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 probably won't premiere on Paramount+ until some time in 2025 . When filming finally wraps in May 2024, post-production and visual effects for Strange New Worlds season 3's 10 episodes will take time to complete. Further, Paramount+ will need Strange New Worlds season 3 as the centerpiece of Star Trek in its 2025 schedule. However, this doesn't stop eager audience members from hoping Strange New Worlds season 3 could split its release and drop the first episodes by the end of 2024, mainly so that they can see the resolution of Strange New Worlds season 2's cliffhanger .

Expect more "big swings" from Strange New Worlds season 3

As well as resolving the fate of Captain Batel and the captured Starship Enterprise crew, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has already set up multiple storylines for season 3 . One of the biggest storylines will be the arrival of Nurse Christine Chapel's (Jess Bush) fiance Roger Korby which will create new a love triangle involving Lt. Spock (Ethan Peck). Other big storylines set up in Strange New Worlds season 2 include Dr. M'Benga and his dark secrets from the Klingon War, the impending fatherhood of Lieutenant James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley), and Kirk's promotion to Commander aboard the USS Farragut. Scotty (Martin Quinn) also joined the cast of Strange New Worlds and could recur in season 3.

The USS Enterprise will have a new Science Lab in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3.

Viewers can also expect some big genre swings to follow in the footsteps of Star Trek 's first-ever musical episode and the animated crossover with Star Trek: Lower Decks . Already announced is Strange New Worlds season 3's "Hollywood Noir" episode directed by Jonathan Frakes. Most excitingly for fans of Star Trek: The Original Series will be a chance to see the young Montgomery Scott learn and grow into the USS Enterprise's legendary Chief Engineer. There are still at least six years before Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) takes command of the Starship Enterprise giving Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 plenty of ground to cover when it returns.

Expect Strange New Worlds to help celebrate Star Trek's 60th anniversary

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds received an early season 4 renewal from Paramount+. Although Strange New Worlds season 4 won't film back-to-back like Strange New Worlds seasons 1 and 2 did, it's possible that production for the show's fourth season could begin in late 2024 or in 2025 after a hiatus. This projects Strange New Worlds season 2 to premiere on Paramount+ in 2026, which would help mark Star Trek 's 60th anniversary. Given that very little has been revealed about season 3, it's too early to tell what Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 will be about, but it's thrilling to know that more voyages of Captain Pike's Starship Enterprise are assured.

All episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds are streaming now on Paramount+

The latest news about Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 as it films in Toronto.

• More Scotty In Strange New Worlds Season 3? "Definitely", Says Star Trek EP
• Strange New Worlds Season 3 Episode 2 Wraps, Director Shares BTS Star Trek Photos
• Strange New Worlds Season 3 Filming Resumes, Star Trek Director Shares BTS Enterprise Pic
• Star Trek's Christina Chong Promises "Epic" Strange New Worlds Season 3 Premiere
• Star Trek's Jess Bush Announces She's Back For Strange New Worlds Season 3
• Strange New Worlds Season 3 Begins Filming, Confirmed By Star Trek Producers
• [UPDATED] Spock & Chapel Return To Space In Jess Bush's Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 BTS
• Star Trek Director Celebrates Season 3 Episode Wrap With BTS Videos
• Jonathan Frakes Teases His Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 3 Episode