Summary
- Star Trek: Strange New Worlds combines classic and modern elements with nostalgic details from the Original Series.
- The show honors the franchise's past with updated designs and a modern touch.
- Physical sets and makeup effects enhance the show's realism and personality, setting it apart in the Star Trek universe.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is no stranger to using nostalgic details to boost its ongoing connection to Star Trek: The Original Series, and it does three important things to bring a classic Star Trek feel to an otherwise very modern production. In its first two seasons, Strange New Worlds' characters, tropes, and creatures have introduced - and sometimes reimagined - essential aspects of Star Trek lore. The effortless blending of old and new makes the show an exciting prequel to Star Trek: The Original Series while encouraging a freshly modern take on the classic, established canon of past Star Trek projects.
The timeline of Star Trek TV shows and movies has been evolving for decades, and Strange New Worlds hasn't missed its opportunity to recognize the bygone eras of Star Trek. Strange New Worlds season 3 promises to bring even more new takes on quintessential characters, adding to the ranks of current regulars Lt. James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley), Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), Ensign Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding), and Nurse Christine Chapel (Jess Bush) to further its association with TOS. However, instead of relying only on characters to connect to the past, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds utilizes three authentically Star Trek tactics.
Strange New Worlds' Sets Make The Show Feel Like Classic Star Trek
Detailed sets help Strange New Worlds seem more realistic
The newest version of the USS Enterprise proves Star Trek:Strange New Worlds' commitment to its 20th-century roots through meticulous set design. Second only to its iconic characters, the settings of Star Trek have always been near and dear to the heart of the franchise. Some of the most memorable moments from the best Star Trek movies and TV shows have happened on one of the franchise's many starships, and these sets often make returning to these projects feel like coming home. The sets of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds show off a vintage mid-century style with a sleek, futuristic edge.
Strange New Worlds utilizes many physical callbacks to Star Trek: The Original Series, like featuring the classic console design and the familiar circular pads of the transporter room. Captain Pike's living and working quarters provide 1960s stylistic choices and personal touches like horse figurines and Earth artifacts, making the space feel more lived-in. While every version of the Starship Enterprise has its own unique style that demonstrates different time periods, Strange New Worlds' flagship recreates sets incorporate the classic Original Series bridge and uses Star Trek: The Next Generation's style of warp core, calling back to TNG's episodic environment.
Instead of using a green screen to depict a computer-generated backdrop, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds opts for physical settings with personal touches.
By rethinking familiar sets from previous Star Trek shows, Strange New Worlds creates space to introduce new designs that could become as iconic as the scenery that inspired them. Instead of using a green screen to depict a computer-generated backdrop, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds opts for physical settings with personal touches. Remaining loyal to the franchise's past lets the show honor classic characters, but adding a modern edge adds anticipation for new characters in future seasons and other upcoming Star Trek projects. Sets in Strange New Worlds are closely tied to characters, and character design adds to the setting.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' Makeup Gives Aliens More Character
Physical makeup effects instead of CGI help non-human characters feel personable
Like its rejection of green screen backdrops, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds avoids computer-generated design for its alien characters. While Strange New Worlds' first 2 seasons feature fewer recurring non-human characters than other Star Trek shows, its alien species have more personality thanks to their special effects makeup. Characters like Vulcan Lt. Spock (Ethan Peck) and Chief Engineer Lt. Hemmer (Bruce Horak) have prosthetics in every scene, and this choice makes them more personable than post-production CGI. The old-fashioned makeup choices are evidence of the show's desire to remain realistic while still honoring Star Trek's sci-fi origin.
While a few characters wear minimal prosthetic makeup throughout the show, guest stars offer Star Trek: Strange New Worlds its biggest dose of classic one-off Star Trek aliens. One-episode characters such as Orion pirate Remy (Michael Hough) and the puppeteered Buckley are the greatest testament to the special effects makeup team on Strange New Worlds. The Orions' green skin is a simple but eye-catching design, but Klingons are a species whose iconic look is harder to nail. After divided opinions regarding Star Trek: Discovery's controversial Klingons, the makeup for Klingon Ambassador Dak'Rah (Robert Wisdom) was among Strange New Worlds' best accomplishments.
Strange New Worlds Made Star Trek's Gorn Scarier By Making Them Real
The Gorn look and feel much scarier because they're hand-built animatronics
The history of the Gorn in Star Trek canon is long and well-known, but Star Trek: Strange New Worlds changed the Gorn in a big way. The Original Series is often mentioned and reimagined in newer Star Trek shows, but Strange New Worlds' Gorn take updating the past to a whole new level by retconning the stiff, humanoid costumes of the 1960s. Instead, the new Gorn are a terrifyingly deadly new alien species threatening Starfleet, but they still have a hint of Star Trek:The Original Series' lizard-like enemies, with greenish skin and wide, hungry eyes.
Strange New Worlds changed the Gorn a lot from their original introduction in 1967, but updating them was essential for making them scarier and more fitting for a modern production. To achieve this updated look, creatives behind the scenes chose a more traditional route when redesigning the Gorn. From fully grown, aggressive adults to the smallest of hatchlings, the Gorn in Strange New Worlds are predominantly physical creatures in real life. Unlike a computer-generated species, these puppets and animatronics were explicitly created to show up more realistically on screen.
As seen in Paramount+'s The Ready Room on YouTube, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds' Gorn are physical props on the set of the show. This change from CGI creatures featured in other Star Trek projects makes the Gorn scarier on screen, and actors also have the benefit of working face-to-face with their characters' terrifying adversary. Instead of acting against an unseen entity in front of a green screen, the cast of Strange New Worlds is subjected to real, physical creatures handled by crew members, moving and reacting in front of them in each scene.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is a modern production with a vintage twist, incorporating both old and new techniques and technology to blend classic and contemporary aspects of Star Trek. Its set designs offer the show a classic feel, calling back to Star Trek: The Original Series and shows from the 90s era of Star Trek. The characters make the meticulously detailed sets come to life with more personable character design, thanks to old-fashioned makeup and traditional prosthetics. The newly designed Gorn offer Star Trek: Strange New Worlds the perfect adversary for a show determined to be both old and new.
