Posted in: Paramount+, Review, Star Trek, streaming, TV | Tagged: La'an Noonien-Singh, paramount, paul wesley, Review, star trek, strange new worlds

Strange New Worlds S02E03 Review: Kirk & La'an's Excellent Adventure

Christina Chong & Paul Wesley deliver one of the most memorable time travel stories of the Star Trek franchise in Strange New Worlds S02E03.

The Star Trek franchise has never been too shy away when it comes to leaning on fan service if it serves a greater purpose. We know that there's a lot still to go to build up to the day Paul Wesley's James T. Kirk will eventually become the captain he's destined to be – the one we'll see continue on in William Shatner with The Original Series. That doesn't mean we can't create new narratives along the way – and teetering on the edge of established continuity, we have an alternate timeline story between Kirk and a Noonien-Singh. In this case, La'an (Christina Chong) tries to hide the shame of her augment ancestor in Khan Noonien-Singh, given his infamy as a conqueror and dictator. While Chong alludes to the fact that we still don't know if her character shares her ancestor's augment abilities, her lineage remains the proverbial chip on her shoulder. The following contains minor spoilers for the Strange New Worlds episode "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow."

Star Trek: La'an and Kirk's Temporal Journey

The episode continues the self-contained tradition and is meant to build up both Chong's La'an by having her confront her nature & embrace her destiny and remind us why Kirk is such a charismatic figure in the Star Trek mythos. Directed by Amanda Row (and written by David Reed), the team behind the memorable season one episode "The Elysian Kingdom" (which also helped bring out the best in Chong), the episode allowed Chong and Wesley to shine in their fish-out-of-water 21st-century story. While she's trying to repair her future by fixing the past, the Kirk that came from the alternative timeline doesn't have a vested interest in helping her as it eliminates his present.

Sure, it stunts Wesley's growth as Kirk since the two episodes that most focus on him in Strange New Worlds are alternative timeline stories, but it also proves why he's the proper torch bearer on the TV front for the character. As much as I want the Paramount+ series to build the character, one can hope they don't do so much as it gets in the way of developing the other characters. Kirk had his own series already, so he doesn't need to be the focus yet on what's still, essentially, Pike's show. I also don't feel it necessary to see every single other TOS character in there at once. Otherwise, why would we care about the new characters they're trying to further establish and define – like Ortegas, M'Benga, and George Kirk?

"Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow" is a minimalist present-day episode that allows Chong and Wesley to shine in their natural element even when it teeters on continuity issues as both Kirk and Spock will encounter La'an's ancestor in the TOS episode "Space Seed." And that creates a problem since La'an is an original creation of SNW and never mentioned in canon previously… kind of like Spock's adopted sister that no one in Starfleet conveniently ever mentions again when Discovery jumps forward in time following season two in the pre-TOS timeline. All of that timey-wimey stuff can get messy if you're not careful.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: Season 2 Episode 3 "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow"

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Review by Tom Chang

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9/10

Christina Chong and Paul Wesley deliver one of the most impressively memorable time travel stories of the Star Trek franchise in Strange New Worlds S02E03 "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow." The pair have an impeccable chemistry together that shines in both the action-packed & quieter moments, while also establishing the naunaces in La'an that help separate her from her ancestor, Khan.

Credits

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Director

Amanda Row

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