Una must confront a secret she’s been hiding when a contagion ravages the ship, incapacitating the rest of the crew.

I guess this is the point where I raise a concern that this episode is 3 for 3 on well-used tropes from the Star Trek playbook. That’s not to say there aren’t moments to enjoy during the hour, but the ‘infected crew’ has never been the most exciting premise, and it has been pretty much downhill after The Original Series’ The Naked Time.

We start with a cold open, with a landing party examining an abandoned outpost of a race who have genetically modified themselves. Such experimentation is forbidden by the Federation following the Eugenics Wars (La’an Noonien Singh explains how she was teased for being a descendant of Khan). They inadvertently bring back a contagion to the ship, and with Pike and Spock away, it’s up to Una to step up to the plate. True, we get some fun moments with Chapel and M’Benga, and there’s a pointed reference to lockdown, but ultimately it just doesn’t have the stakes or interest of the opening two hours, even if we get to learn a bit more about Number One.

Verdict: Not exactly a blip, it’s just that the first two episodes were so good. Proficient, but not a classic, it serves best as a means to get to know the new crew. 6/10

Nick Joy