In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2's finale, Martin Quinn appeared as a young Lt. Montgomery Scott for the first time, and Scotty will be part of season 3. Since the beginning, Ethan Peck's Lt. Spock and Celia Rose Gooding's Ensign Nyota Uhura have been core members of Strange New Worlds' cast. Although all of them have given awesome performances, I find myself hoping not to see more characters from Star Trek: The Original Series. And there is one character, in particular, I don’t want to see in Strange New Worlds season 3.
Dr. McCoy In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Would Distract From Dr. M'Benga
The USS Enterprise Only Needs One Doctor For Now
I don’t want to see Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy in Strange New Worlds season 3, no matter how much I love DeForest Kelley in Star Trek: The Original Series. Luckily, so far, there’s no evidence that Bones will appear. The biggest reason I think it’s a bad idea to bring Dr. McCoy in for Strange New Worlds season 3 is there is already enough drama in sickbay. Lt. Spock and Nurse Christine Chapel's (Jess Bush) romance remains a big part of Strange New Worlds season 3. Adding one more doctor into the mix would just be a distraction.
The USS Enterprise had another chief medical officer between Dr. M'Benga and Dr. McCoy: Dr. Mark Piper (Paul Fix). As yet, however, there is no indication that Dr. Piper will appear in season 3 of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
Dr. Joseph M'Benga (Babs Olusanmokun) has so much unresolved from Strange New Worlds season 2, it’s hard to imagine there will be much time left to introduce Dr. McCoy. At the end of Strange New Worlds season 2, episode 8, "Under the Cloak of War," Dr. M'Benga killed the Klingon ambassador, Dak'Rah (Robert Wisdom), and it’s unclear just how much Captain Pike knows. There is more than enough story for Dr. M'Benga, and no matter how much I like Bones in TOS, I would rather see Star Trek resolve Dr. M'Benga's current story gracefully than see them bring in a new character.
It's Too Soon For Strange New Worlds To Have Star Trek's Kirk, Spock & McCoy Together
They're Great On TOS, But Strange New Worlds Should Focus On Its Characters
Introducing Dr. McCoy would create a dynamic that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds just isn't ready for. One of my favorite parts of Star Trek: The Original Series is seeing Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy), Captain Kirk, and Dr. McCoy work together on the Enterprise. While it is great to see classic characters like Lt. Spock on Strange New Worlds, the more characters from Star Trek: The Original Series that become recurring characters on the show, the more it could seem like TOS is haunting Strange New Worlds.
The teaser trailer for Strange New Worlds season 3 ends with Lt. James Kirk and Lt. Scott sharing a toast because, in Kirk's words, "You know, Mr. Scott, we make a pretty good team." At this point, Dr. McCoy is one of the only characters from Star Trek: The Original Series who hasn't appeared on Strange New Worlds, and once he joins, it will seem like Strange New Worlds is winding down its story.
It is just too soon to get the whole crew of TOS together on Strange New Worlds.
Even though we don't have any evidence that this will happen, I would love it if Star Trek: Strange New Worlds could run for seven seasons like Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, or Star Trek: Voyager. If the show is able to keep going that long, then Dr. McCoy would be a great addition for a future season. For now, however, it is just too soon to get the whole crew of TOS together on Strange New Worlds.
Strange New Worlds Should Keep Its Own Identity, Not Become Star Trek: The Original Series
The Stories Strange New Worlds Tells Have Been Great Because Of Their Uniqueness
Everyone watching Strange New Worlds knows the prequel is building to Star Trek: The Original Series. Even Pike knows that he won’t be Captain of the Enterprise forever. But until Strange New Worlds reaches that inevitable conclusion, it should keep on doing exactly what made the first two seasons so excellent: telling some of the best new stories in Star Trek. "Subspace Rhapsody" was Star Trek's first ever musical episode, and "Ad Astra per Aspera" put Commander Una Chin-Riley (Rebecca Romjin) on trial in an episode that could rival Star Trek: The Next Generation's "The Measure of a Man."
I want to see Strange New Worlds continue putting out new stories, not live in the shadow of Star Trek: The Original Series. I don't want to see Dr. McCoy in Strange New Worlds season 3 because, even if he only appeared as a guest in one episode, it would bring the show too close to TOS. For now, I hope that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds keeps putting out original stories, without worrying too much about bringing more classic Star Trek characters onto the show.
