Review: Celia Rose Gooding Steals the Show in ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Episode 2
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has gotten off to a perfect start. The first episode launched us back into a classic episodic form of Trek storytelling, and episode 2 loses none of the charm.
Episode Two: Children of the Comet, gives us a viewpoint from the Enterprise we haven’t really gotten before; an episode from Cadet Uhura’s point of view. She (Celia Rose Gooding) stands front and center, and delivers a bright beaming performance I won’t soon forget. This series has the feel of something shiny and brand-new, but with an absolute retro vibe mixed in. The crew of the Enterprise churns out the yearning for adventure in each of us while also being able to lace in the appropriate amount of fun and fear that goes along with traveling the cosmos. Each episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds promises to be its own unique journey, and Children of the Comet was something special.
Spoilers for episode 2 of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds ahead.
We get a taste of some Starfleet hazing as Lt. Ortegas (Melissa Navia) pulled one over on Cadet Uhura by telling her to dress in her formal uniform for the bridge crew’s dinner with the captain. Even Spock (Ethan Peck) and Hemmer (Bruce Horak) get in on the teasing. The crew enjoys each other’s company, swapping stories and indulging in some ribs prepared by Captain Pike (Anson Mount). After a hilarious tale by Pike which leaves Spock bewildered as he doesn’t understand why laughing at another misfortune is funny (sometimes things go so bad you just have to laugh) the dinner takes a much more serious tone. When Pike probes the Cadet about where she sees herself in ten years, we learn Uhura joined Starfleet after a great family tragedy, and she isn’t even sure if she belongs or wants to continue. Rose Gooding was incredible in this moment, and you feel connected to a character we have known for decades in an even deeper way.
Once again, we get a scene with Captain Pike grappling with his future. This time, Number One is his confidant. She had noticed the way he tensed up when asking about Uhura’s future, and could feel his inner anguish. Pike wrestling with his mortality and the knowledge of when and how his life ends will be a continuing theme throughout the season. Commander Una is insistent his future is not yet written, and he should blaze his own path forward.
After all this, the episode truly ramps up. The crew is following a comet that is on a direct collision course with Persephone III, a mostly desert M class planet with a pre-warp civilization. Life on the planet will be completely destroyed without the Enterprise directing the comet’s path. A seemingly easy task, the crew is shocked when the comet erects a force field to prevent the Enterprise from moving it directly. Now, with time against them, an away team including Spock, Samuel Kirk (Dan Jeannotte), La’an (Christina Chong), and Uhura (in her first away mission) beam down. What they discover on the comet’s surface is alien technology unlike they have ever seen before. As they are trying to decipher the various imagery and symbols in the center chamber, Kirk is compromised by a large energy blast radiating from the main energy source. With Uhura being the linguistics expert, it’s up to her to decipher this “language” in order to save themselves and the planet.
As if that isn’t challenging enough the Enterprise gets thrust into a conflict with a highly technologically advanced group called The Shepherds, who believe the comet is no comet at all, and are greatly offended when Pike refers to it as such. They call it M’Hanit and believe it’s an ancient arbiter of life. They are tasked with safeguarding it and view what the Enterprise is doing as direct interference with M’Hanit’s judgment. This goes beyond science for them. It is a spiritual and religious calling to stand watch. They make it clear to Pike and the Enterprise any further interference in M’Hanit’s “divine providence” will be seen as an act of war. Mount has the perfect blend of seriousness and playfulness as Captain Pike that grows on me with each passing moment. How he handles this situation puts this on full display.
Meanwhile, on the surface of M’Hanit, Uhura has discovered it responds to music. She comes up with a plan to communicate through music a plea to turn the force fields down so they can beam back to safety. Uhura’s gift with song is well documented, and the moment her plan was put in action was the best part of the episode for me. Her and Spock begin harmonizing together in an effort to communicate with M’Hanit, and it responds in kind with its own melody. It was truly a magical moment with bright colors dancing across the scene in an entrancing musical dance. It garnered every ounce of the sense of wonder Star Trek can offer.
After successfully beaming the away team out, the Enterprise begins taking heavy fire from The Shepherds. Massively outgunned, Pike calls on Lt. Ortegas to show off her best piloting maneuvers, and they work themselves around to a point where they sit between The Shepherds and M’Hanit. Knowing they will be afraid of firing in the comet’s direction, Pike stalls for time. Spock is secretly in a shuttle in an effort to divert M’Hanit’s path away from the planet while The Enterprise pretends to need rescue by The Shepherds. The daring ploy was a success, The Shepherd’s and Enterprise were able to leave on peaceful terms, and the planet was saved. There is another beautiful surprise twist at the end of the episode, but it’s one of the Trek moments you should just take in for yourself.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is fantastic fun from start to finish so far. This diverse cast has incredible chemistry already, and it’s exciting for episodic storytelling to be back in the Star Trek universe. Come back next week for our review of episode 3.
Tyler Bradshaw is a Florida social services coordinator with a passion for movies and filmmaking. While The Empire Strikes Back is his favorite movie all time some other favorites include Seven Samurai, Little Women (2019) and The Lord of the Rings trilogy. He has an always growing list of movies he needs to see with David Lynch being his current favorite director. He loves to engage in thought-provoking conversations about his favorite movies.
