‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Brings Back Klingons in “The Broken Circle”
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is back, baby! And with it comes talk of wars both old and new. But what is “The Broken Circle”?
We’re back! And here are some facts from last season. Una is in jail for hiding that she’s an Illyrian! Pike is very angry at his girlfriend Captain Batel for arresting his first officer. Uhura is no longer a cadet, she is an ensign. Spock and Chapel have feelings for each other they can’t do anything about. Spock is angry because he let his rage out fighting Gorn and can’t unrage himself. The Gorn are very dangerous, by the way. Also, the Enterprise’s engineer Hemmer is dead.
Got it? Great. “The Broken Circle” picks up a little while after Una’s arrest. The Enterprise is in space dock for some routine repairs. And Pike is leaving for three days to seek the aid of a mysterious woman who is, allegedly, Una’s only hope in her upcoming trial.
That’s the last we see of both Pike and Una. Shocker! But that means more time delving into the camaraderie of the rest of the cast. And it means that Spock is in charge. Unfortunately, he’s still dealing with heightened emotions from the Gorn attack. And he’s avoiding Chapel and his feelings for her as well.
But the show must go on!
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To Boldly Recap “The Broken Circle”
While in space dock, the Enterprise receives a message from their wayward security officer, La’an Noonien Singh. Apparently, there’s trouble afoot that spells trouble for the Federation. Only one problem: the trouble is on a planet that has a really strict timeshare with the Klingons–and it’s the Klingon’s turn at the proverbial beach.
Spock asks Admiral April for approval to go check things out anyway but April says no dice. Naturally, Spock, the logical Vulcan that he is, completely blows off a direct order and decides to steal the Enterprise. Equally naturally, the entire crew agrees this deeply unsafe plan is the only thing to do.
Spock tries to fake a warp core breach so that the Enterprise can leave space dock and warp away. However, Pelia, an engineer repairing the ship, figures out what’s really going on. Does she rat on Spock and company? Heck no! She helps them convince Starfleet to let the Enterprise off its leash and together they speed away to help La’an.
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Good for Business
In civilian clothes, the crew of the Enterprise meets with La’an. She explains that something is happening that involves people who have defected from both the Federation and the Klingon Empire. Apparently, there’s a desire to kickstart a war between the two groups again because war is good for business.
The team splits up. La’an and Uhura go to meet up with Klingons to trade Starfleet phasers and try to figure out what’s going on. Chapel and M’Benga meet with Oriana‘s parents in order to provide medical aid. And the rest of the crew heads back to the Enterprise. Everything seems like it’s going according to plan when Chapel and M’Benga get kidnapped by Klingons who require their medical assistance.
Chapel and M’Benga find themselves deep underground where a fake Starfleet vessel is being built. And it’s clear what the plan is: use the fake ship to make it seem as though the Federation is redeclaring war against the Klingons. There’s just one thing they didn’t count on–Chapel and M’Benga being veterans of the last Klingon War.
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Avoiding Star Wars
M’Benga has something up his sleeve–a drug that increases both response time and strength. The drug is from “the war” but apparently M’Benga just kind of always has it on him. Weird! He and Chapel take it so they can fight the Klingons aboard the fake Starfleet ship. Their goal is to get a message out to Enterprise–destroy the ship before it can rekindle the war. And if they die in the process, so be it.
Long story short, they get the message out. On Enterprise, Spock waits to fire even though there is a Klingon ship in range of attack because he doesn’t want to kill Chapel. Or M’Benga. But mostly he doesn’t want to kill Chapel. M’Benga and Chapel do find a way off the fake Starfleet ship–they blow themselves out of an airlock! Don’t worry, they have a minute before they freeze to death. They activate a homing beacon and Enterprise picks it up, beaming them aboard just in time.
Is the day saved? Not yet! First Spock has to cry over Chapel’s body because he’s so relieved she didn’t die. And then the commander of the Klingon ship tells Spock he doesn’t accept that the fake ship is part of a false flag operation–unless Spock drinks some blood wine with him. Spock drinks the blood wine. S’all good.
Oh, also the reason Admiral April is so huffy is because there’s a Gorn war on the loom. Uh oh.
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To Boldly Review “The Broken Circle”
After three viewings of “The Broken Circle” my professional opinion is that it is a wonderfully messy rollercoaster ride. It’s shocking to see a debut episode so quickly write out what is the closest thing Strange New Worlds has to a protagonist. But if you need proof that the show doesn’t need Pike front and center, “The Broken Circle” is it.
“Let’s steal the Enterprise” is a classic Star Trek plot, and it’s brought to life beautifully here. Spock being the one to choose to abscond with the ship syncs up perfectly with the Spock who steals the Enterprise to bring Pike to Talos IV so many years later in “The Menagerie”.
However, what this episode reminds me most of is not “The Menagerie” or Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, but the 2009 Star Trek movie. And by that I mean it has big Star Wars energy. The music, the costumes, the alien worlds, and the space battles all feel more akin to Trek’s fantastical counterpart.
There’s one element I truly don’t know what to make of, however–and that’s the drug that seems to give Chapel and M’Benga superpowers. It feels like a cross between Bloody Eye from Cowboy Bebop and the Venom Bane takes in Batman comics. But it doesn’t feel very Star Trek. Yes, there are drugs used in the war on Earth in the 21st century, but it’s established that, by the 24th century, narcotics are essentially a thing of the past.
Maybe that’s just me, but that sequence took me out of the episode. That being said…
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Carol Kane as Pelia Absolutely Rules
The moment Pelia walks on the bridge, you know you’re in for something different. And Kane’s portrayal of this nigh immortal alien is like nothing we’ve seen on Star Trek. There are familiar ideas. Pelia flusters Spock in an almost Lwaxana Troi-like manner (minus the flirting… I think). And, yes, Whoopi Goldberg’s Guinan is an ageless El-Aurian whose wisdom and humor bring enormous depth to the franchise.
But Kane’s execution of these character elements is totally original. And when she helps Spock and the crew steal the Enterprise, it’s clear that she is an agent of chaos. However, unlike someone like, say, Q, she seems mostly like a force for good–so far anyway.
After last season proved Strange New World has a gift for playing with familiar Star Trek toys, it’s a breath of fresh air to see them introduce a character completely unlike anyone we’ve seen in Trek before. That’s the bold decision this show needs in its second season. And introducing the idea that Pelia “came out” (hello, queer-coding, my old friend) as an alien to Spock’s mom Amanda Grayson gives us new lore to explore.
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The Spock and Chapel Stuff
If the thing foremost on your mind is the ongoing will they or won’t they of Spock and Chapel, this episode goes HARD just for you. In fact, it goes so hard that I think it may have introduced another love triangle. Is M’Benga into Chapel? Is this a paternal thing? Uh oh, is it both? It may be both. Regardless, M’Benga and Chapel give each other eyes before launching themselves into the vacuum of space.
And then Spock cries. He makes a full production out of it and everything. In fairness, Leonard Nimoy’s Spock has squirted out a tear or two in his time so this isn’t out of bounds. But I do find myself pondering what the correct pacing and intensity are for this ongoing relationship. Basically, I think the show is best served if Spock/Chapel is a sometimes food, not the main focus.
All that out of the way, any doubts I have are balanced out by the incredible performances from Ethan Peck, Jess Bush, and Babs Olusanmokun.
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The Stakes of “The Broken Circle”
There’s a wise narrative choice in this premiere episode. Obviously, we know our cast is going to be just fine. Spock, Uhura, Chapel, and M’Benga cannot die because we know they are alive come Star Trek: The Original Series. And really the odds of killing off anyone at this point are extremely unlikely.
So what the writers do instead is give us a real risk: a return to the Klingon War. We know in Kirk’s time as captain that the Klingons are still reviled. There’s nothing that says Spock and company cannot fail at preventing the false flag operation. And even in victory, their decisions may lead to more skirmishes, suffering, and even death down the line. Spock takes a huge risk stealing Enterprise.
Closing on the reveal that the Gorn are coming is similarly wise. That cliffhanger plants the seeds for what we know will lead to a likely bloody season finale. Similarly, we know Pike is off to see someone about helping Una so the seeds are planted for that as well. And Pelia says she knows Amanda Grayson which pretty much guarantees we’ll be finding out more about that soon this season as well.
“The Broken Circle” is a roller coaster. It’s on rails. We know everyone is going to be fine, but it’s still thrilling because the action is there and it sets up even more complex stories down the line.
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Questions, Queries, Quibbles
We’ve covered most of this. But, for the record, the big questions mostly involve Pike and where he’s heading. We also have to wonder if the Klingons will return this season. What’s up with Pelia’s species? Apparently, they hid on Earth for a while–do they have any connection to the El-Aurians? Because they sound like El-Aurians. I’m just saying!
Do we think that the stimulant M’Benga uses to fight the Klingons will come back? More importantly, are Spok and Chapel heading towards an actual romance or is Spock going to wind up cheating on T’Pring? Oh, no, are Spock and T’Pring going to break up? Not my favorite body swapperinos!
Next week is our courtroom drama episode. It seems pretty likely that things will work out for Una, but it will be exciting to see what price she and Enterprise may have to pay to get her back on the bridge.
All in all, “The Broken Circle” is a thrilling action-adventure that doesn’t always necessarily make perfect sense. But as promised, it’s a big swing. We’re looking forward to more of those.
4/5 stars
