This past Thursday, I watched the season 3 finale of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. And overall, it was exactly what I’d come to expect from the series writers: a thrilling tour-de-force, and an instant Trek classic. Once again, SNW blew through an incredible season and stuck the landing.

Now, we wait. Season 4 is expected sometime next year, and the final season is set to begin filming. For me, and other viewers, it means we have at least two more seasons of incredible Trek storytelling before the franchise moves on to whatever comes next, be it a continuation series headlined by Paul Wesley, the long-awaited Star Trek: Legacy, or the upcoming Starfleet Academy carrying the banner alone for the time being. For the series writers, however, it means they’ve got just sixteen episodes left to set things up for the original series. That said, here are my parting thoughts of the season on the whole: what I loved about the finale, how the season progressed, and what I believe lies ahead for Capt. Pike and his gallant crew.

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD

Finale: “New Life and New Civilizations”

So the season ended by doing something writers had enjoyed all season: ripping viewers’ hearts out. The anticipated payoff to the Vezda story arc ended with the departure of Marie Batel, who’d been tortured by the writing staff since last season’s finale. It was a painful but expected goodbye: Batel deserved a noble sacrifice, rather than being left to grieve after Pike meets the end he knows he can’t escape. And by ending the season like this, the writers managed to circle back to the theme of the first season. Except now, Pike was forced to realize his destiny wasn’t the only one he couldn’t prevent.

I’ll admit my only complaint was the opening setup. Viewers had known something was up when the possessed Nurse Gamble was destroyed by the transporter in “Through the Lens of Time”, and the episode ended showing alien script distorting the Enterprise computers. My expectation had been that the Vezda inhabiting Gamble had hijacked the ship’s systems. It would then commandeer the Enterprise, forcing Pelia and Scotty to perform some sort of high-tech exorcism. Instead, the entity managed to not only reconstitute itself (and Gamble), but also teleport to a distant planet, all without anyone noticing. I couldn’t help but think of the infamous line from Poe Dameron in Rise of Skywalker: “Somehow, Palpatine returned.”

But I can forgive that, mainly because of time constraints. With only ten one-hour (or so) episodes to work with each season, unfortunately the writers have at times been forced to “yadda-yadda” some pretty important plot elements. And as I said earlier, they stuck the landing. What followed was one of those heart-wrenching time travel stories great Star Trek episodes have been built on. The incredible scene in which Batel lives out an entire life with Pike reminded me of “The Inner Light” in the best, most painful way.

And I can’t help but think that, after the emotional rollercoaster of the finale, not ending on another cliffhanger was a sort of gift from the writers to their fans. “You can relax this time.” In a way, the finale almost felt like the lead-in to one of those “second pilots” great Trek series have enjoyed, from the aptly named “Evolution” episode of TNG to “And That Hope Is You, Pt. 1” of Star Trek: Discovery. So that said, some quick thoughts on how this season advanced the overarching story toward the end we all know is coming:

Thank Q for no more villain callbacks

From the moment the Vezda were introduced, Trekkies across the internet were speculating: what classic Trek villains would the Vezda be unmasked as? The leading culprit: DS9‘s Pah Wraiths, despite the Bajorans having not even been mentioned thus far in SNW. I generally dislike callbacks; I only enjoyed the Q-Trelane link earlier this season because it was a way to clear up longtime fan speculation (plus it was more than a little tongue-in-cheek). But I really wanted the Vezda to be wholly original. And I was relieved to find that, in fact, they were. And that they likely won’t be seen again.

No new TOS characters from season three…

…kind of. While we didn’t see even a cameo by Leonard McCoy or Hikaru Sulu, the second half of the season did a hell of a job turning James Kirk into a sort of “unofficial” member of the Enterprise crew. The incredible episode “The Sehlat Who Ate Its Tail” gave eager fans their first glimpse of Kirk in the captain’s chair (albeit aboard the Farragut). And with Spock, Chapel, and Scottie in attendance, no less.

That same episode also served as the effective starting point of Kirk’s friendship with Spock. Honestly, to me that was perhaps the most impressive writing of the entire season, possibly even the series. Introducing Spock as almost a mentor, or at least an advisor, to a Kirk who’s lost his seemingly endless confidence. And showing him rallying his future crew gave me chills. The mind-meld in the finale sealed the deal, providing an incredible basis for the enduring friendship between the two men.

On to Season Four

With this season wrapped, all eyes turn to the coming fourth and penultimate season of Strange New Worlds. Without a cliffhanger ending, for the first time fans are left to wonder where the next season will pick up. How will the crew change? How much closer will we get to the original series? Needless to say I’ve spent a lot of time speculating. And here’s where I think things are headed:

Here comes Kirk

It’s telling that the cast photo released when season four completed filming showed Kirk alongside the Enterprise crew, front and center no less. It’s likely that his position next to Cmdr. Chin-Riley, the current first officer, indicates where things are headed.

Though it has never been firmly established on screen, it’s long been speculated that Kirk served as Pike’s first officer prior to assuming command of the Enterprise. SNW has already established that Pike served as first officer to Capt. Robert April before taking command himself. And though it took place in an alternate reality, a line from the TOS episode “Mirror Mirror” established that at least in that universe Kirk was first officer before succeeding Pike.

In any event, Kirk was the only character shown in the wrap photo who is not currently a member of the crew. More than likely, that means at some point this season Pike’s current Number One will move on, likely taking command of a ship herself. That will pave the way for Pike to take Kirk under his wing, and groom him as his eventual successor. It’s worth noting that while showrunners have been incredibly tight-lipped about details of the show’s future, they’ve stated unequivocally that the series will end with Kirk’s first day in command.

No Chekov, but probably McCoy and/or Sulu

Showrunners also recently hinted that most of the other TOS regulars will eventually appear in the series. The only one the explicitly ruled out was Pavel Checkov, who they rightly pointed out was an ensign in the second season of TOS and would therefore be roughly sixteen at this point. Checkov’s age was firmly established on screen (albeit in yet another alternate reality) in the 2009 film Star Trek.

That still leaves the door open for at least one, if not both of the original series characters still missing to crop up in the next season. If Kirk does, in fact, join the crew, it would make sense to bring in Leonard McCoy as a doctor under Mbenga’s command (Dr. Mbenga is safe, as he appeared in TOS). The season could not only show the beginnings of his long-lasting friendship with Kirk, but also his equally-long animosity toward Spock.

As for Hikaru Sulu, well, current helmsan Erica Ortegas is a real fan-favorite, and way too good of a character to throw away just to make room for the next guy. But Sulu’s age in TOS suggests he could join the crew as an ensign, just as Uhura did. It would be fitting, after Uhura’s own struggles to fit in aboard the Enterprise, to have her take Sulu under her wing. It would allow her to come full-circle from unsure cadet to mentor, and set up the established friendship between the two of them.

Wherever season 4 takes us, rest assured we can expect more space adventure and incredible writing. And though I hate knowing we only have two seasons left, after watching this one I say season 4 can’t come soon enough. – MK

All episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds to date are available on Paramount+. Season 4 is expected to premiere in spring of 2026.