Strange New Worlds Just Showed Us Captain Kirk's Star Trek: Year One & It’s Great
John Orquiola is a New & Classic TV Editor, Senior Writer, and Interviewer with a special focus on Star Trek. John has over 5,000 published articles at SR, and he has interviewed the biggest names in Star Trek on the red carpet and VIP events, among other beloved shows, movies, and franchises.
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Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 4's Finale - "Tomorrow's Enterprise"The idea of a spinoff about Captain James T. Kirk's (Paul Wesley) USS Enterprise made fans wary, including myself, but Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4's finale gave us a glimpse of Star Trek: Year One, and it's great. Directed by Chris Fisher and written by Henry Alonso Myers and Robbie Thompson, "Tomorrow's Enterprise" brought us aboard Captain Kirk's Starship Enterprise in a dazzling and gratifying way.
"Tomorrow's Enterprise" depicts an alternate future, since Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 is set in 2262, and Kirk doesn't canonically become Captain of the Enterprise until 2265. In this reality, which was changed from 3 years in the future after Paramount+ greenlit Strange New Worlds' fifth and final season, Kirk takes command of the Enterprise after Christopher Pike (Anson Mount) is promoted to Admiral.
Anticipating that Paramount+ would cancel Star Trek: Strange New Worlds after season 4, "Tomorrow's Enterprise" was originally planned as the series finale. Executive producers and co-showrunners Akiva Goldsman and Henry Alonso Myers wanted to show what Strange New Worlds was building to, with Captain Kirk in command of the USS Enterprise, before they were given 6 episodes in season 5 to build toward Strange New Worlds' intended ending.
Star Trek: Year One Was Strange New Worlds Season 4’s Finale & It’s Great
"Tomorrow's Enterprise" is an eye-opening and vividly persuasive proof of concept that Star Trek: Year One, Goldsman and Myers' proposed Paul Wesley-led spinoff about Captain Kirk's Enterprise, would work as wonderfully as Strange New Worlds always has. The transition from Pike to Kirk was not only seamless, but felt right from the get-go. It all seems as destined as Kirk's career as Captain.
Paul Wesley has played a pair of alternate-reality Captain Kirk variants, as well as the younger, emerging James T. Kirk. Still, it's astounding how easily and confidently Wesley embodied Kirk as Captain of the Enterprise. Wesley is the Captain in full; dynamic, good-humored, compassionate, and curious in the best tradition of William Shatner's Kirk. Paul was so impressive that he left no doubt that he could lead Star Trek: Year One as Captain Kirk.
After four seasons of Strange New Worlds, Celia Rose Gooding and Jess Bush became the Lieutenant Nyota Uhura and Nurse Christine Chapel that they were meant to be, with gusto. Resplendent in their retro-1960s uniforms and hairdos, Uhura and Chapel not only looked fantastic, but conveyed their growth and maturity. Nyota and Christine were truly the Star Trek icons seen in The Original Series.
"Tomorrow's Enterprise" also included the surprising delight of making Star Trek: The Animated Series' Lieutenant M'Ress, Sord, and Aleek-Om canon, depicting the aliens in live-action among Captain Kirk's Enterprise crew. Star Trek: Year One would potentially showcase TAS's diverse cast of humans, Caitians, Aurelians, Edosians, and more serving together.
"Tomorrow's Enterprise" doesn't have Captain Kirk's complete crew aboard since the episode was produced before Thomas Jane was cast as Dr. Leonard McCoy and Kai Murakami was cast as Hikaru Sulu, but it was a fully realized and persuasive vision of Star Trek: Year One. From Mr. Spock (Ethan Peck) being frustrated by humans, to Uhura and Scotty's romance, "Tomorrow's Enterprise" makes one yearn to see more, and for Star Trek: Year One to happen.
Why Star Trek: Year One Isn’t Going To Happen
Unfortunately, Akiva Goldsman laments that the window where Star Trek: Year One could have been greenlit by Paramount+ has passed. As Goldsman says, production of Year One could have mounted swiftly before Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' Toronto sets were torn down in April. Paramount+'s silence about Year One indicates they have other plans for Star Trek.
Stardate 47988.1 · Crew Assessment
The Final Frontier
Trivia Challenge
🚀ShipsEnterprise!
⭐CrewMake it so
☠EnemiesResistance is…
⚡TechWarp speed!
📖LoreLive long…
01
The USS Enterprise is the most iconic starship in science fiction. What is the registry number of Captain Kirk’s original Enterprise from The Original Series?
✓ Correct! NCC-1701 is the registry of Kirk’s original Constitution-class Enterprise. The “-D” suffix belongs to Picard’s Galaxy-class ship, NX-01 is Archer’s Enterprise, and NCC-74656 is Voyager.
✗ Red alert! The answer is NCC-1701. Kirk’s original Constitution-class Enterprise carried this now-legendary registry. NCC-1701-D is Picard’s Enterprise from TNG, NX-01 is Captain Archer’s, and NCC-74656 belongs to Voyager.
02
Kirk’s most trusted officer is a half-human, half-Vulcan science officer famous for his logic and iconic salute. Who is this legendary character?
✓ Correct! Mr. Spock, played by Leonard Nimoy, is the half-Vulcan science officer whose “Live long and prosper” salute became a cultural icon. His struggle between logic and emotion defines the heart of the Original Series.
✗ Red alert! The answer is Spock. Data is an android from TNG, Tuvok is Voyager’s Vulcan tactical officer, and Sarek is Spock’s Vulcan father. Only Spock is the half-human, half-Vulcan first officer of Kirk’s Enterprise.
03
Starfleet’s most important regulation forbids interference with the natural development of alien civilizations. What is this guiding principle called?
✓ Correct! The Prime Directive (also known as General Order 1) is Starfleet’s most sacred law. It prohibits interfering with less-developed civilizations — though Kirk, Picard, and Janeway have all famously bent or broken it when lives were at stake.
✗ Red alert! The answer is the Prime Directive. While “General Order One” is technically another name for it, the Prime Directive is the universally known term. The Omega Directive and Temporal Accord are separate, more specialized Starfleet protocols.
04
“Resistance is futile.” This chilling declaration belongs to a cybernetic collective that assimilates entire civilizations into its hive mind. What is this fearsome species called?
✓ Correct! The Borg are Star Trek’s most terrifying villains — a hive-mind collective that forcibly assimilates species and technology. Captain Picard was famously assimilated and transformed into Locutus in the landmark TNG episode “The Best of Both Worlds.”
✗ Red alert! The answer is the Borg. The Dominion is the Gamma Quadrant empire from DS9, the Romulans are a rival empire, and Species 8472 is actually one of the few species that the Borg themselves fear. Only the Borg declare “Resistance is futile.”
05
Captain Jean-Luc Picard commands the Enterprise-D in The Next Generation and later received his own series, Star Trek: Picard. Which acclaimed actor portrays him?
✓ Correct! Sir Patrick Stewart brought gravitas, Shakespeare, and Earl Grey tea to the captain’s chair for seven seasons of TNG, four films, and three seasons of Star Trek: Picard. His “Make it so” is one of TV’s most iconic catchphrases.
✗ Red alert! The answer is Patrick Stewart. William Shatner plays Captain Kirk, Avery Brooks is Captain Sisko on Deep Space Nine, and Scott Bakula captains the NX-01 Enterprise. Only Sir Patrick Stewart portrays the legendary Jean-Luc Picard.
06
Starfleet vessels travel faster than light by bending space around them using a matter-antimatter reaction. What is this propulsion system called?
✓ Correct! Warp Drive is the standard faster-than-light propulsion in Star Trek, powered by dilithium-regulated matter-antimatter reactions. Zefram Cochrane invented it in 2063, which led to humanity’s first contact with the Vulcans.
✗ Red alert! The answer is Warp Drive. Transwarp is an advanced Borg technology, Slipstream is an experimental quantum drive, and the Spore Drive uses mycelial network navigation (from Discovery). Standard Starfleet vessels use Warp Drive.
07
At Starfleet Academy, cadets face a notorious no-win scenario designed to test their character under impossible circumstances. James Kirk is the only cadet who ever beat it — by cheating. What is this test called?
✓ Correct! The Kobayashi Maru is an unwinnable rescue simulation that tests how cadets handle certain death. Kirk reprogrammed it so he could win — earning a commendation for original thinking. It was memorably featured in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
✗ Red alert! The answer is the Kobayashi Maru. The Corbomite Maneuver is a TOS episode, not an Academy test. The Kobayashi Maru is the famous no-win scenario that Kirk defeated by reprogramming the simulation — because he doesn’t believe in the no-win scenario.
08
In the widely regarded greatest Star Trek film, a genetically enhanced superhuman from Earth’s past seeks revenge against Captain Kirk. “KHAAAAN!” Who is this iconic villain?
✓ Correct! Khan Noonien Singh, played by Ricardo Montalbán, is Star Trek’s greatest villain. First appearing in the TOS episode “Space Seed,” he returned in The Wrath of Khan (1982) for a devastating revenge plot that cost Spock his life.
✗ Red alert! The answer is Khan Noonien Singh. General Chang is a Klingon from Star Trek VI, Q is TNG’s omnipotent trickster, and Gul Dukat is DS9’s Cardassian antagonist. Only Khan inspired Kirk’s legendary scream across the cosmos.
Mission Complete Your Starfleet Record
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Are you an Admiral — or still a cadet on deck-scrubbing duty?
The cancelation of every Star Trek on Paramount+ series is the result of Skydance Media's purchase of Paramount Global. The new corporation, Paramount Skydance, has different plans for the Star Trek franchise, starting with launching a new theatrical movie before following with new streaming TV series.
Unfortunately, Paramount's future for Star Trek seems to hinge on distancing from the franchise's 60 years of canon, in hopes of attracting new audiences. Strange New Worlds ending after five seasons and only 46 episodes, as well as disinterest in continuing Goldsman and Myers' brand of Star Trek with Year One, is because the IP's corporate owners want something new and different.
Even if fans become infatuated with the vision of Captain Kirk's Year One seen in "Tomorrow's Enterprise," Paramount Skydance may not be listening. After all, three years of constant fan outcry for Star Trek: Legacy, Star Trek: Picard season 3's proposed spinoff, has been stonewalled by Paramount.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds took 57 years to get made, after Gene Roddenberry originally produced “The Cage" as Star Trek's first pilot in 1965. Maybe Star Trek: Year One could still get made someday, although it would be with a different cast and producers. Then again, the point of Year One is to continue the magic of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. "Tomorrow's Enterprise" proved just how good it would've been.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 is streaming on Paramount+
- Release Date
- 2022 - 2027-00-00
- Network
- Paramount+
- Showrunner
- Henry Alonso Myers, Akiva Goldsman
- Directors
- Dan Liu, Amanda Row, Maja Vrvilo, Akiva Goldsman, Dermott Downs, Eduardo Sánchez, Jeffrey W. Byrd, Jonathan Frakes, Jordan Canning, Leslie Hope, Valerie Weiss, Sydney Freeland, Christopher J. Byrne, Rachel Leiterman
- Writers
- Onitra Johnson
-
Captain Christopher Pike
-
Spock
- Franchise(s)
- Star Trek
- Creator(s)
- Akiva Goldsman, Alex Kurtzman, Jenny Lumet
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