It’s hard to imagine a season more perfect than Season 1 of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, but those involved keep assuring the best is yet to come. Star Trek Day provided some evidence that was the case, as the Paramount+ series announced it’s welcoming a legendary actress to Season 2, as well as an episode for a fan favorite character.
Melissa Navia teased to CinemaBlend that Strange New Worlds Season 2 outdoes Season 1, and now we might have an idea why. Star Trek Day revealed a clip that teased Lt. Erica Ortegas is getting her own episode in the upcoming season, and that acclaimed television and film actress Carol Kane (The Princess Bride, Gotham) will join the crew in Season 2. Let’s dive into each reveal, and try to uncover any details we can on the announcements.
Carol Kane Joins Strange New Worlds As Chief Engineer Pelia
Carol Kane will enter Season 2 as engineer Pelia, and is described as an intelligent and capable member of Starfleet who doesn’t take any nonsense. She’s able to handle problems quickly, and without much stress, and is also described as an experienced member of Starfleet. That character description flies in the face of some of Kane’s most iconic roles as an actress where she’s a bit more erratic and unpredictable, so it’ll definitely be exciting to see another side of her.
Pelia’s arrival means she will serve as the replacement for the former Aenar Chief Engineer Hemmer, who tragically sacrificed his life in Season 1. Kane will only be featured as a recurring character in Season 2, so it’s possible she may be just an interim replacement until a more permanent officer can arrive and fill the position on the Enterprise. After all, we know Scotty will ultimately get the job ahead of Kirk’s official tenure as Captain, so it’s hard to imagine Pelia’s tenure on the ship will be a long one. In either case, it’s awesome to see the series pulled such an awesome and iconic talent for the upcoming season.
Lt. Erica Ortegas Is Getting Her Own Episode
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds has a tremendously lovable ensemble cast of characters, and while many characters had a chance to shine in Season 1, there was a fan favorite left out of the mix. Melissa Navia’s Lt. Erica Ortegas was always around the action, but didn’t get her own starring episode in Season 1. Star Trek Day revealed a clip that appeared to be the opening of an Ortegas-centric episode, though it’s already off to a bummer opening.
In the clip, Ortegas is thrilled when she gets pulled for an away mission, but some last minute news from Spock reveals that they need her to stay back on the Enterprise to manually navigate the ship. Take a look at the scene below, and be excited for "Moretegas" in Season 2:
Ortegas is upset she doesn’t get to tag along on the adventure, and Spock’s Vulcan logic doesn’t do much to help. It appears there are downsides to striving to be one of the best pilots in Starfleet, especially when your ship has no one else more trusted to navigate during away missions. Hopefully, there’s some adventure still for Ortegas in this episode, and in other ones as well! I feel like she’d be a perfect supporting cast member in the upcoming Lower Decks crossover, so hopefully she has a notable role in that as well.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 will arrive on Paramount+ in 2023. Be sure to snag a Paramount+ subscription to stay on top of all of the new Trek shows, and to recap the fun of Star Trek Day.
