TL;DR – This could have been a very silly episode of Star Trek, but there was some real heart and design that helped elevate the story.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ service used to view this series.

End Credit – There is a mid-credit scene

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Review Introduction

It feels like this season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has been all about the curveballs, and today’s entry is no exception. It uses sci-fi technobabble to explain why a whole episode is broadcast in black and white. But as silly as this sounds, it is a choice that I can’t help but love seeing played out.

So, to set the scene, the USS Enterprise is on a secret mission near the border of Klingon Space. The Angelo-1 probe lost power and slipped past the border near the Mat’Aaran system, which could reignite a war if found. Una (Rebecca Romijn), Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding), and M’Benga (Babs Olusanmokun) have slipped across the border in a shuttle hidden because the local sun puts out energy that affects visual receptors and makes things hard to spot on scanners. But that scanner issue can cut both ways, and the shuttle is forced to hide on Mat’Aar XII, an occupied Klingon planet, to avoid a D7 battle cruiser. The crew must blend in with the local population until a window of escape can be found. But Una discovers that she might be wrapped into the fabric of this world more than she expects. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

Here’s Looking at You, Kid

Well, I will say that it was a good thing the crew brought their Klingon guerrilla warfare expert on this shuttle mission, because it is time to have our Casablanca homage episode. While the other homages so far this season have been dancing around their respective inspiration material, we get an ‘all the gin joints’ reference to make it clear that everyone knows that is happening. But I have no problem with a homage like this if you put the work in, and I can say that this episode did just that. Yes, was it very lucky that the people of Mat’Aar XII look like humans, and one of them looked just like Una? But come on, that’s so Star Trek.

From the vibes, I would say the closest this episode gets is that one Voyager romp when the Hirogan put everyone in holodecks and had them fight out WW2. There are also hints of films like The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare or if ‘Allo ‘Allo! was played straight. That intrigue helped build a world, added with these little touches such as using high-pitched noise to warn of Klingons. It also helped add a level to the Klingon Empire that we always suspected. Given the limitations of Klingon culture, it needed this large, occupied workforce to fill in all these missing roles. Pairing the episode back to mostly just Una, Uhura, and M’Benga gave the actors space to shine this week. Which was good, because we have not seen a lot of them so far this season.

Black and White

The one thing I was worried about was that the black-and-white colour effect was going to be a gimmick, but I am happy that they took the opportunity to really play with the art form. Dune Part 2 showed how striking the medium can be in a science fiction setting, and while we are not working on the same level of budget, it does not mean there were no moments where things truly shone. A good example of this was the interrogation scene with Commander Kor (Demore Barnes). The use of light, shadows, and negative space made for an electric sequence. Adding a world that is both old-timey and futuristic also helped play out that visual texture.

Recommendation

In the end, do we recommend Star Trek: Strange New Worlds? Yes, yes we do. I think this might be one of the strongest episodes so far this season. I hope this is a good sign as we advance. I will say that it feels like Season Four of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is undertaking a grand tour of the cinematic landscape. Valles Marineris was their homage to Jurassic Park, The Griffin Incident to Event Horizon, Human Best Friend to The Hangover, and now today as we dipped into Casablanca territory. Now, to be clear, this is not a criticism; if the episodes are done well, indeed DS9 would make homages like this all the time. But it is a trend that has occupied the first half of the season, and I am intrigued to see if it continues throughout. Have you seen Star Trek: Strange New Worlds yet? Let us know what you thought in the comments below.

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

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Credits – All images were created by the cast, crew, and production companies of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds
Directed by – Meera Menon
Written by – Skylar Ojeda & Dana Horgan
Created by – Akiva Goldsman, Alex Kurtzman, & Jenny Lumet
Based On – Star Trek by Gene Roddenberry
Production/Distribution Companies – CBS Studios, Secret Hideout, Weed Road Pictures, HMRX, Roddenberry Entertainment, & Paramount +
Starring – Anson Mount, Ethan Peck, Jess Bush, Christina Chong, Celia Rose Gooding, Melissa Navia, Babs Olusanmokun, Martin Quinn, & Rebecca Romijn
With – Demore Barnes, Albert Chung, & Andy McQueen
And – Alex Kapp, & Bianca Nugara