Star Trek: Strange New Worlds returns for a penultimate season that’s more episodic and endearingly chaotic than ever before. While previous seasons of Star Trek‘s The Original Series prequel have typically been less serialized than most of today’s streaming TV shows — despite its relatively short, 10-episode outings — season 4 leans into its episodic structure even more heavily, forgoing the need for a returning villain like the Gorn or season 3’s terrifying Vezda (at least, in the six episodes made available for review).
Given the season’s placement in the Star Trek timeline, so close to James T. Kirk’s (Paul Wesley) takeover of the Starship Enterprise, this was probably the safest route the show could take. What Strange New Worlds needs to do now and in its shorter, six-episode fifth season is focus more on the characters who do not make it onto Kirk’s Enterprise, specifically Anson Mount’s Captain Christopher Pike, Rebecca Romijn’s Una Chin-Riley, Melissa Navia’s Erica Ortegas, Carol Kane’s Commander Pelia, and Christina Chong’s La’an Noonien-Singh, setting up “endings” for them that respect their development and importance to Strange New Worlds‘ storytelling while, crucially, keeping canon intact.
The result in season 4 is a fun, inventive mishmash of genres and narrative styles with interesting new character pairings. It works, for the most part. It was definitely built for a weekly release schedule rather than an all-out binge; watching some episodes back-to-back can be a little jarring, given the enormous shifts in tone. I anticipate one or two installments this season will prove just as polarizing as certain episodes in season 3, but then again, that’s the beauty of episodic television. What doesn’t work for one person will work for another, and there’s always next week’s chapter to look forward to.
No Two Episodes Are The Same In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4
Four of the first six episodes in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 are decidedly not Enterprise-centric, giving the crew a chance to stretch their muscles and skills in new, exciting environments. The first episode, “Valles Marineris,” pairs Una, Ortegas, and La’an on a mission to a volcanic, Jurassic Park-inspired setting. Another episode takes place in a black-and-white, film noir world, and yet another is set on a haunted, missing Starfleet ship. So far, there’s more variety in locations compared to season 3, which works in the show’s favor.
Each episode fully embraces its new genre. The much-discussed puppet episode sticks to its guns with overwhelming confidence and sincerity, making the season’s most absurd and silliest story feel like it has something to say, even if that message sometimes gets lost among the felt-textured madness. The puppeteers did an incredible job, and I genuinely laughed out loud at times, even though I was (and still am, to some degree) skeptical of this concept. A musical episode is one thing; muppets in space is quite another.
Because there’s no narrative throughline — rather, it’s the characters and their relationships with one another that provide the season’s connective tissue — it feels easier to judge each episode on its own merits. The standout so far is episode 6, which, despite taking place on the Enterprise and separating the crew, beautifully showcases each character’s strengths and their value to the team. It’s a celebration of Pike’s reign as captain and Strange New Worlds as a whole. The space shots are stunning, and the danger feels tangible — for the most part.
Strange New Worlds has such a personable, charismatic crew, played by an equally impressive ensemble cast.
One of the difficulties of creating a prequel like this, especially one so closely connected to the show it’s spun off from, is that many of the characters’ fates have already been decided. As such, any danger involving Spock (Ethan Peck), Scotty (Martin Quinn), Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding), Nurse Chapel (Jess Bush), Dr. M’Benga (Babs Olusanmokun), the Kirk brothers, and even Pike has much less of an impact on the audience’s experience of the show. While most episodes present high-stakes stories, they rarely actually feel high-stakes.
This is a natural consequence of Strange New Worlds‘ place in Star Trek’s continuity, but it does somewhat undercut the tension, an issue that feels more pronounced this time around. Each episode relies on a new hook and a new form of danger, whether that danger is meant to be comedic or not. Still, a part of me is always relieved when they do make it out unscathed, if only because Strange New Worlds has such a personable, charismatic crew, played by an equally impressive ensemble cast.
The Characters Are The Heart & Soul Of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4
Since the show can’t rely on an ongoing conspiracy and each episode presents a new experience, season 4 instead depends on its characters to keep audiences invested. Thankfully, Strange New Worlds has a great cast of characters to choose from, and it experiments with a few interesting character pairings this season. I particularly enjoyed the dynamic between Ortegas and Scotty in one episode. Despite their building irritation with each other, they’re forced to work together while the rest of their friends are… incapacitated, giving them a chance to air out their differences and finally find some common ground.
Ethan Peck is once again a highlight as Spock, assured in his portrayal of such an iconic character (and hilarious when he needs to be). His character development is much less focused on romance this time around; instead, the show continues to build his friendship with Jim Kirk. This is a double-edged sword, however. While their dynamic is obviously a cornerstone of Star Trek as a franchise, Kirk’s continued involvement in Strange New Worlds season 4 feels too indulgent, at times.
There’s one episode this season where I honestly couldn’t figure out why he needed to be there, specifically. His traumatic experiences in that story could have better served another character entirely — Pike, perhaps. Oddly, despite being the captain, Pike feels strangely underserved this time around. He’s there on the fringes, leading the ship with his usual good intentions and strong instincts, and Mount turns in a predictably great performance. Even so, aside from a few brief moments of reflection in the season opener, in which a guest character points out his understandable grief for Captain Marie Batel, he’s been sidelined this season.
As it’s still his ship, this feels like an oversight, and I truly hope he’s utilized more in the season’s final four episodes (even Cowboy Pike has tragically little screen time). Still, the other characters do a great job of filling in the gaps. La’an’s worries about her genetic heritage, Una’s thoughts about her future; there’s a lot of compelling character work at play here. All in all, I had a grand old time watching this new season, and I’m excited to see what Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has in store for the last few episodes. Where will they head next?
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds premieres July 23 on Paramount+, with new episodes releasing weekly on Thursdays.
- Release Date
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July 23, 2026
- Network
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Paramount+
- Episodes
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