TL;DR – is a good grounding for the rest of the season while being an excellent adventure romping through the quadrant.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ streaming service that viewed this episode. 

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Review –

Last year we got one of my recent joys was discovering the first season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. I have been enjoying this new batch of Star Trek, but this hit something a little special. I loved the wild swings in the genres that we got, some truly spectacular effects, and some solid character work. It was a new high watermark for modern Science Fiction, and I am glad we are jumping back into it today.

So to set the scene, the USS Enterprise is back in Spacedock for a complete refurbishment and inspection after everything it has been through. Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) has gone on leave to find someone to defend Commander Una ‘Number One’ Chin-Riley (Rebecca Romijn), who is still under arrest for lying on her Starfleet application. He leaves Spock (Ethan Peck) in charge and tells him not to worry because what can happen in Spacedock? Fast forward to Ensign Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) getting a secret message from La’an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong) that there is a danger on a planet on the Klingon border, and it could be a problem for the whole Federation. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

In this first episode, we get a classic adventure romp with hints of Star Trek III: The Search for Spock and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. Because first, we have to steal the Enterprise, and then we have to stop a Klingon-Federation team up to restart the war. That might have sounded like a dig, but it is not because this was a blast. Without the Captain and Number One being on board, it gave some other characters time to shine as they try to stop the war from breaking back out.  

Well, let’s rip that bandaid off and talk about the one thing people will be discussing: the appearance of the Klingons. We have gotten another rework of the Klingon design pulling back from what we have seen in Star Trek Discovery and a little closer to the more traditional version we saw in the TNG/DS9 era. After we saw Worf in Star Trek Picard, you kind of felt that this was always going to happen, and for me, I prefer the less plastic-y style of prosthetics, but it looks refreshed for the new era.

Visually, this was a stunning show, from the crystals in the rings, to the settlement on Cajitar IV, to a beautiful rendition of the D7 Battle Cruiser and what looks like the pre-curser to the Miranda Class. I instantly believed this was a border planet in a world that switched from Klingon to Federation. I am trying to remember what La’an’s jacket reminds me of. I think it might be from Farscape, but not quite sure.

As for the narrative, it felt both authentic in the modern sense and also fits into the Star Trek franchise. Klingons and the Federation getting to share the dilithium feels like a thing they would do in treaty negotiations. Also, Klingons and Federation citizens coming together to restart a war so they could get those sweet profits felt a bit too close to home. I liked that we got a bit more time with Dr M’Benga (Babs Olusanmokun), who got kind of pigeonholed in the first season. Spock getting to be the captain was a good touch for his character. Also, what an introduction for the Lanthanite Pelia (Carol Kane).

In the end, do we recommend Star Trek: Strange New Worlds – The Broken Circle? Yes, yes, we do. It was a good grounding for the new season with little hints as to where it will be going while also being a solid story in its own right. Also M’Benga & Chapel (Jess Bush) wreck some noses.

By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Twitter Here, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System.

Have you seen Star Trek: Strange New Worlds yet ?, let us know what you thought in the comments below, feel free to share this review on any of the social medias and you can follow us Here. Check out all our past reviews and articles Here, and have a happy day.
    
Credits – All images were created by the cast, crew, and production companies of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds
Directed by – Chris Fisher
Written by – Henry Alonso Myers & Akiva Goldsman
Created by – Akiva Goldsman, Alex Kurtzman & Jenny Lumet
Based On – Star Trek Created by Gene Roddenberry
Production/Distribution Companies – CBS Television Studios, Roddenberry Entertainment, Secret Hideout & Paramount+
Starring – Anson Mount, Ethan Peck, Jess Bush, Christina Chong, Celia Rose Gooding, Melissa Navia, Babs Olusanmokun & Rebecca Romijn with Adrian Holmes & Carol Kane and Rong Fu, Emma Ho, Andrew Jackson, Kyle Kass, Noah Lamanna, Cihang Ma, Tiffany Martin, Jamillah Ross, Samer Salem, Izad Etemadi, Hannah Spear, Alex Spencer, Abbas Wahab, Laura Wilson, Russell Yuen & Alex Kapp