Writers:Dana Horgan & Davy Perez
Director:Marja Vrvilo
There’s something quite nice about the idea of this episode. Strange New Worlds has leaned on retelling the 23rd century era for a lot of it’s main hooks, whether that be revisiting the Gorn, Vulcan romance or going to the length of an alternate history style retelling of Balance of Terror to close the first season. New Life instead relies on Strange New Worlds own mythology and world building, with the season 3 finale being a sequel to an earlier episode and a new baddie who is both strange and new.
How Gamble escaped to a far away planet was also interesting. The idea of ‘laylines’ between worlds you can travel to plays on some already existing Trek logic, like mycelial and transwarp networks. Even seeing Skygowan, a planet following the Vezda in a cult like way with unexplained hovering structures was fairly cool, and showed an advanced technology surrounded by less advanced inhabitants much like the ideas used in Stargate.
But with all the half-baked science and rush from moment to moment, it didn’t quite fee like an episode of Star Trek in any way or lean on the elements that haver made SNW a nice combination of old and new storytelling. Instead it almost felt more like Doctor Who, both in how it leaned into hand waving quick explanations that muddied science and fantasy while running around a lot from bit moment to big moment, racing to the end as fast as it could.
It really made it hard to focus on much of anything. One minute Gamble’s back. Then there’s a mysterious message only M’Benga can understand, and his understanding of that message means he and Gamble can travel back to the prison the rest of the Vezda are in so they can be released. But before that comes to any logical conclusion, there’s Kirk joining in for funsies, the DNA cocktail inside Batel becoming an important factor, then she’s with Pike in the temple in a good versus evil fight that’s not entirely dissimilar to Deep Space Nine’s Rapture.
By the end we know that Gambles evil, because he’s the bad guy taunting people, chewing up the scenery and having his cult stab their eyes out before unleashing demonic aliens into the Galaxy. And he gets to the shrine to unleash those aliens, bu is confronted by Pike and Batel; the latter of which has had her entire DNA rearranged with unusual side effects throughout the season. Batel’s realised that all those side effects have made her the countermeasure for Gamble and only she can stop him. Fair enough, I guess. Massive leap to get there, but sure.
The next step to that does play out with some logic. Gamble needed M’Benga to travel across the laylines to get to the Vezda prison. So we need two to travel, and Batel needs her second to draw the power she needs to defeat Gamble. Her power is generated by taking Pike through an internal journey through their lives together; in his mind, she creates a reality where he survives unscathed from his future incident, they grow old, have children, and die. All that to draw the power of love to overwhelm Gamble’s hate and save the day. And theres the Russell T Davies type of conclusion.
On paper none of it’s a horrific idea. It’s not uncommon for Star Trek to lean into mysticism over hard science. Deep Space Nine balancing that regularly as the biggest, but far from the only, example while The Next Generation brought in the all powerful Q for a lasting legacy. But there are so many ideas crammed into the one episode that we really don’t get any time to digest it, let alone explore it, which really lets everything down. For a show that spent it’s first two seasons focusing on adventure of the week storytelling, this finale showed us that the whole idea – both in Gamble being the thing of evil incarnate, and Batel’s evolution – really needed a proper season arc. Or at the very least a two parter to cram in all the ideas they laid out here.
A lot of it was fine. The ideas were there, but it was too much, too fast and while the cast did brilliantly and we got some great moments for the whole cast, this was an episode with too many ideas and not enough time to really enjoy any of them. Even Gamble, the big bad, just seemed a side piece that was so easily brought down that his end felt underwhelming.
I will say though, the Inner Light inspired like of Batel and Pike – while crammed into an already overstuffed concept – was a nice get out clause for Pike’s fate. We saw Pike accept that his future was bleak in the first season and him wrestling with how that fits into a relationship with Batel in the second. So her gifting him a life he could never have does let us have the happy ending of sorts It also shows a nice twist in that Pike was so concerned with his own fate that he never saw Batel’s coming. Not that anyone could have predicted she’d morph into an uroboros statue…
Season 3 as a whole didn’t quite live up to the expectations laid down to the first two. And that ends with a finale that also felt like it needed more work. Maybe it was the industry strikes, maybe it was just a few ideas too many. But the finale, much like the season, showed all the talent and potential, but needed a lot more focus.
Highlights
- It was a fun moment seeing Chapel realise Spock taught La'an the nerve pinch.
- The scene with Pike and Una quietly drinking said more than any dialogue heavy scene could.
- Korby's off on an adventure. Wonder how that'll pan out....
All Connected...
While the return of Gamble was a nice nod back to SNW’s own original stories, so was Scotty’s dress uniform. In the first season Uhura wears full cadets dress uniform to attend her first dinner at the Captains Table. Mostly because Ortegas told her what a big deal it was only to be the only one dressed up for the casual dinner. Here, Uhura gets to pass down the prank resulting in Scotty coming in in full dress uniform – kilt included of course – to a relaxed gathering.
About the author
It’s Not Easy Being Green Blooded: ‘Level Five Transporter Accident’, Strange New Worlds S4E05
Spock's going through a bit of a personal crisis and Scotty's become madly competitive with an old Academy rival. These two separate threads collide in the weirdest way when Spock finds himself as the only person who can control the ship as Scotty's transporter antics turn everyone into puppets... Writers: Henry Alonso Myers & Dana HorganDirector: Jordan Canning Spock's not quite feeling himself and he hasn't quite been himself since the Griffin Incident. And things are getting worse. Leaning heavily towards logic over his exploration of his human side, and in the wake of La'an deciding their relationship had reached it's 'natural conclusion', he's spiraling. Well, as much as a Vulcan would allow themselves to. Desperately trying to balance himself, he's leaning into logic and reaching out to his scorned ex-fiancee for help in re-establishing his Vulcan side.While thats happening, Scotty's on a […]
1701 Shades of Grey: ‘A Case of Chiaroscuro’, Strange New Worlds S4E04
It's been a stressful few months for the Enterprise crew and they want, well, demand, shore leave. Choosing a tech-free planet with natural psychedelics in the atmosphere, the command crew take a shuttle down, take in all the wonders the world provides. And then it all goes a bit wonky... Writers: Skylar Ojeda & Dana Horgan Director: Meera Menon Aside from orbiting a star who's radiation gives an altered perspective of light, Mat'aar XII is a world occupied by Klingon overlords. Having taken control of the population, and implemented strict monitoring and restrictions on movement, the Klingon's rule with fear, torture and by creating division. Like any good occupiers, they've given cushy jobs to some locals including their top Lieutenant, Navatte, a local who proudly wears her silver Klingon armband and interrogates anyone who oppose the Empire. Or so […]
[Departmental] Introducing General Board
The General Board is a relatively new concept and the next evolution of Fleet Support. Mirroring the Captains Table, the General Board is constructed to help overall fleet operations and to contribute more voices and ideas to the clubs operation. Based very loosely on the political 'two house' structure, and named after the real-world General Board within the US Navy in the first half of the 20th century, the starting point was to appoint two sets of voices within the fleet. The Captains represent their unit and their members need within that unit, each representing an area or group that makes up the whole. To contrast and add to the Captains Table, Fleet Support – and now the expanded General Board – allows to give both opinions of fleet leadership and fleet membership equal standing and ensure we hear a […]
Welcoming Our New Fleet Development Officer
To quote Heraclitus, the only constant in life is change. Quadrant 2 has been through many changes before and with the recent appointment of a new Admiralty Board, we're looking ahead with more changes to the fleet structure. With Piers Drinkall joining the board alongside David Shires, there were some discussions about what to do with Piers' Fleet Development role and after some serious thinking, a decision was made. After aiding in Piers' efforts within the Command Training Program, and being a solid right hand on the USS Sovereign, we're pleased to welcome Karl Drinkall to the Fleet Development position. Karl is a sharp mind with a lot to give to the fleet and a clear grasp of our aims and goals in the coming months and years. With his dedication and string mindset, it was an easy decision to […]
[Retro Review] Errand of Mercy
Relations between the Federation and the Klingons are in tatters and the prospect of an all out war casts a shadow over the region. To help prepare for the worst, Kirk and the Enterprise are sent to Organia, a planet populated by inherent pushovers right on the border between Federation and Klingon space. With the prospect of the Klingons getting a foothold that would help their war efforts, Kirk's job is to negotiate a protection order, getting the Organians on their side before the Klingons annexe the planet as a launching pad for conflict. Problem is, the Organians are hardcore pacifists and their native tech is limited. They don't want to be part of any war, and they don't want to change their values to resist. Which becomes a bit of a problem when the Klingons arrive ready to occupy the […]
Dude, Where’s Your Shuttle? Human Best Friend; Strange New Worlds S4E03
It's been a stressful few months for the Enterprise crew and they want, well, demand, shore leave. Choosing a tech-free planet with natural psychedelics in the atmosphere, the command crew take a shuttle down, take in all the wonders the world provides. And then it all goes a bit wonky... Writers: Kathryn LynDirector: Yana Gorskaya Engineers and pilots hate each other. It's the rules. Scotty and Ortegas have been following those rules to the letter, with the bickering pair opening with a dual monologue highlighting how irritating they are to each other between Scotty setting up alerts and alarms to keep the engines in check, and Ortegas duct tapping over the console to get rid of them so she can push the limits freely.While they're constantly irritating each other, the rest of the Alpha shift command team are exhausted. Months […]
Related
It’s Not Easy Being Green Blooded: ‘Level Five Transporter Accident’, Strange New Worlds S4E05
Spock's going through a bit of a personal crisis and Scotty's become madly competitive with an old Academy rival. These two separate threads collide in the weirdest way when Spock finds himself as the only person who can control the ship as Scotty's transporter antics turn everyone into puppets... Writers: Henry Alonso Myers & Dana HorganDirector: Jordan Canning Spock's not quite feeling himself and he hasn't quite been himself since the Griffin Incident. And things are getting worse. Leaning heavily towards logic over his exploration of his human side, and in the wake of La'an deciding their relationship had reached it's 'natural conclusion', he's spiraling. Well, as much as a Vulcan would allow themselves to. Desperately trying to balance himself, he's leaning into logic and reaching out to his scorned ex-fiancee for help in re-establishing his Vulcan side.While thats happening, Scotty's on a […]
1701 Shades of Grey: ‘A Case of Chiaroscuro’, Strange New Worlds S4E04
It's been a stressful few months for the Enterprise crew and they want, well, demand, shore leave. Choosing a tech-free planet with natural psychedelics in the atmosphere, the command crew take a shuttle down, take in all the wonders the world provides. And then it all goes a bit wonky... Writers: Skylar Ojeda & Dana Horgan Director: Meera Menon Aside from orbiting a star who's radiation gives an altered perspective of light, Mat'aar XII is a world occupied by Klingon overlords. Having taken control of the population, and implemented strict monitoring and restrictions on movement, the Klingon's rule with fear, torture and by creating division. Like any good occupiers, they've given cushy jobs to some locals including their top Lieutenant, Navatte, a local who proudly wears her silver Klingon armband and interrogates anyone who oppose the Empire. Or so […]
Dude, Where’s Your Shuttle? Human Best Friend; Strange New Worlds S4E03
It's been a stressful few months for the Enterprise crew and they want, well, demand, shore leave. Choosing a tech-free planet with natural psychedelics in the atmosphere, the command crew take a shuttle down, take in all the wonders the world provides. And then it all goes a bit wonky... Writers: Kathryn LynDirector: Yana Gorskaya Engineers and pilots hate each other. It's the rules. Scotty and Ortegas have been following those rules to the letter, with the bickering pair opening with a dual monologue highlighting how irritating they are to each other between Scotty setting up alerts and alarms to keep the engines in check, and Ortegas duct tapping over the console to get rid of them so she can push the limits freely.While they're constantly irritating each other, the rest of the Alpha shift command team are exhausted. Months […]
Some Scary Ship! The Griffin Incident; Strange New Worlds S4E02
Returning from a conference for future leaders of Starfleet, Spock and La'an (with Kirk hitching a ride) find a long-lost ship adrift. The USS Griffin's disappearance nine years prior had never been explained, becoming a bit of folklore within the fleet. Stum,bling upon it by chance, the trio board the ship hoping to find an answer to the mystery only to get more than they bargained for... Writers: Robbie Thompson Director: Axelle Carolyn I'll preface this now by pointing out I love creepy sci fi settings.. The isolation of being trapped on a derelict ship with no escape and no one to call for help has always been something I've enjoyed from the obvious Event Horizon, even to old classics like The Thing. So I was excited for this one by the trailer alone and can't say I was disappointed! […]
Mars Attacks! Valles Marineris; Strange New Worlds S4E01
Since losing Batel at the end of the last season, life for the crew of the Enterprise hasn't stopped. Mainly because Pike won'd let them. Racing from mission to mission without even a water break in between, the crew are getting a little run down after six months of back to back nonsense. And it's all because of Pike running away from the loss and burying himself in adventure to keep the grief at bay. As Admiral April pops over for a chat, and to offer Pike a promotion he doesnt seem too interested in, a break doesn't seem to be coming any time soon. Writers: Henry Alonso Myers, Alan B. McElroyDirector: Chris Fisher Sent to investigate some new weird space stuff, things go completely mental when the Enterprise gets pulled into it and thrown, Caretaker style, into an unfamiliar […]
Across The Universe And Back To Strange New Worlds!
Time has certainly flown by as Strange New Worlds penultimate season is just days away. Things have been a little guarded since the show was announced to be ending with a shortened 5th season, but it gave the production plenty of warning to wrap things up and bring an end to the original Captain and his crew! With some cast announcements for Season 5 seeing new additions including Thomas Jane as Leonard McCoy, as well as knowing it'll a shorter season to bring the show to a close, the fourth instalment feels a little bittersweet. But from recent hype from Paramount, we might just be in for a fun time. Season 4 Episode Titles Ahead of the series launch, the Star Trek social media team have been hard at work with some teases including short clips of each of the […]
