star trek rhapsody lyrics

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds “Subspace Rhapsody” Soundtrack and Musical Influences

Here's a list of every song in Star Trek: Strange New World's musical episode "Subspace Rhapsody" and what influenced the soundtrack!

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This Star Trek: Strange New Worlds article contains spoilers.

Star Trek has always had a habit of taking unlikely detours into other genres, whether it was Kirk and Spock dressing like gangsters in the TOS episode “A Piece of the Action” or the powerful Deep Spine Nine period piece “Far Beyond the Stars.” But with its most recent episode, Strange New Worlds takes the franchise in the most unexpected direction.

Directed by Dermott Downs, “ Subspace Rhapsody ” finds the Enterprise crew breaking into song after discovering an anomaly at the edge of the Alpha Quadrant. The episode gives Uhura actor Celia Rose Gooding a chance to show off the pipes that landed them a role in Jagged Little Pill: The Musical on Broadway , and also featured a Klingon hip-hop number that recalls Han Solo’s lowest moment .

As shocking as the episode was for Trekkies, “Subspace Rhapsody” benefited from a steady hand at the helm, thanks to Downs’ previous experience working with musicals. The mind behind the “ Duet ” episode of The Flash , which saw Supergirl and Flash forced to sing to battle the Music Meister, Downs knows how to make normally straight-laced heroes burst into song.

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Although he knew the risks of such a stylistic divergence for Strange New Worlds , Downs told Comicbook.com that he drew from familiar influences. For Pike’s argument with Captain Batel, Downs designed “kind of [a] country duet that goes sideways in front of the whole crew.” The Klingon hip-hop moment came about after shooting a version without dancing but Downs decided that it didn’t work. “You want it to be something outrageous,” he explained, arguing that only an act that filled Klingons with dishonor would “help us propel to this final conquering of the anomaly.”

The most complex of the numbers involved Nurse Chapel’s excitement over a career opportunity, even at the cost of her relationship with Spock, which overtakes her in a crowded mess hall. “There were so many elements and interactive elements to that, that that probably had the most full-blown rehearsals, just so everybody would be prepared on the day and you’re not trusting someone’s going to catch you, and on the day they don’t,” said Downs.

But the most interesting of the numbers featured La’an ‘s heartbreak at seeing Kirk , who does not know about the romance the two shared in an alternate reality. After watching Kirk and Una perform a playful duet, La’an retreats to her room for an intimate song, one that includes insert shots of the life she and Kirk could have had. “I know it probably has a music video feel, but I was going for something much more like Terrence Malick and emotional,” contended Downs, referencing the vulnerability in movies such as Tree of Life and Days of Heaven .

Initially, however, Downs planned to take a bigger approach. “Originally, that breakout moment, we were talking about doing something like  The Sound of Music ,” he revealed. “[B]ut it just became too huge and out of step with the episode and it would’ve been fun to go completely opposite of outer space.”

Of course, “Subspace Rhapsody” ends up delivering much more than a worthwhile musical. It pushes the story forward for several characters, while revealing some interesting backstory for Kirk by bringing back Carol Marcus , who you might know best from The Wrath of Khan . It’s an impressive amount of ground to cover for the Star Trek series, especially when doing it in song and dance!

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds “Subspace Rhapsody” Soundtrack

As space-bound as “Subspace Rhapsody” is, you can enjoy the music here on Earth. On Aug. 4, the “Subspace Rhapsody” official cast recording will be available to purchase, which includes the following tracks:

• Star Trek Strange New Worlds Main Title (Subspace Rhapsody Version)
• Status Report
• Connect to Your Truth
• How Would That Feel
• Private Conversation
• Keeping Secrets
• Keep Us Connected
• Subspace Rhapsody End Credit Medley

You can listen to the full soundtrack of the episode below:

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Joe George | @jageorgeii

Joe George’s writing has appeared at Slate, Polygon, Tor.com, and elsewhere!

The Best Singers In Star Trek's Subspace Rhapsody, Ranked From Uhura To Worst

Season 2 of "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" is almost over and it didn't miss a chance to leave its mark on "Star Trek" history. The ninth and penultimate episode, "Subspace Rhapsody," is the first "Star Trek" musical episode. Like any good musical, it opens with a group number, branches off into solos, and then reunites the cast for a grand finale.

But wait, you might ask, how does the show justify such an odd premise? "Strange New Worlds" is the show that, back in season 1's "The Elysian Kingdom," turned the Enterprise crew into characters out of a child's fairy tale. A musical episode is well within the show's tonal range and ability to excuse.

At the start of the episode, the Enterprise is investigating a "naturally-occurring subspace fold" — Starfleet hopes the fold can be harnessed to enable faster communication. When Uhura and Spock send a song into it hoping for a response, it responds by altering probability to turn the Enterprise into a reflection of a musical universe. Long story short? The cosmic phenomenon of the week is making the Enterprise act like they're in a musical, so just go with it.

Every cast member, main and recurring, gets at least one moment singing. Musical episodes on TV will always put a cast out of their elements; they signed up to act, not sing and dance. How do the respective musical talents of the cast of "Strange New Worlds" compare?

1. Ensign Nyota Uhura

Taking the crown as best singer on the Enterprise is Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding). As the ship's communications officer and polyglot, it's only natural that's she also skilled in song. The final solo of the episode, "Keep Us Connected," is hers. It's basically a musical recap of her character arc; she sings about how she's been alone since her family's death. That is, until she came to the Enterprise and found friends who had faith in her.

Even before "Subspace Rhapsody," Uhura was canonically a good singer. In "Star Trek: The Original Series" episode "Charlie X," she sings for the rest of the crew. Nichelle Nichols' singing was high energy but her voice was soft and melodic like a lullaby. Gooding, on the other hand, goes loud. Once Uhura has the engine room to herself, she belts her heart out, singing at the top of her lungs, yet stays perfectly in tune with the strumming instrumentals. 

Gooding is not just an actor, they're a Broadway star too; they first broke out from the 2018-2020 runs of the rock musical "Jagged Little Pill." That theatrical spirit hasn't left Gooding; while singing as Uhura, they animate their body and project their voice like a stage performer. The results are enrapturing.

2. Lieutenant La'an Noonien Singh

La'an Noonien Singh, the Enterprise's uptight security chief, is played by Christina Chong. On top of her acting, Chong is a singer with the solos "Twin Flames," "No Blame," and "Can't Show Love" to her name. Surprise, surprise — the other trained musician among the cast gets second place as the show's best singer.

After spotting Una (Rebecca Romijn) and Jim Kirk (Paul Wesley) hitting it off, La'an retreats to her quarters and breaks out into a solo ballad, scored to a sad piano melody. La'an is usually rather stoic and closed off from others. Her song, "How Would That Feel," from the isolated setting to the lyrics, is all about that. She asks herself if she should "change her paradigm" and open herself up to others — but in turn, if she could manage to "fly blind" in her life.

The blocking reflects the song's theme of self-reflection — there's a shot of La'an standing in front of a mirror and then out a window. Most of the shots, though, are still close-ups of her as she sings. Rather than a theater star, Chong feels like someone most used to singing in place before a fixed microphone. It works, though, thanks to her expressive face (that she finally gets to put to full use) and how she keeps hitting higher and higher notes as the song goes on.

3. Lieutenant Commander Spock

Spock (Ethan Peck) has always shown some musical inclinations, even back during "The Original Series." He plays a Vulcan lute in his spare time; this season revealed that it was prescribed to him as a coping method for his emotions. We've never seen Spock singing along as he plucks the lute's strings, but "Subspace Rhapsody" reveals that isn't due to lack of talent.

Spock is the first crew member to break out into song during the first group number, "Status Report." Seeing an emotionally-restrained Vulcan singing underlines the surreality of the musical; normally, Spock would be the least likely to express himself so overtly.

He gets a solo later in the episode, right before Uhura's: "I'm The X." The title's meaning is twofold. For one, Spock is the ship's science officer, so he's always trying to solve the unknown like an equation. It's also a pun on how Christine Chapel (Jess Bush) has chosen her career over continuing their relationship. Spock's feelings of betrayal tie the meanings together; he's decided that giving over to his emotions yielded disastrous consequences so he will return to cold analysis.

"I'm The X" is one of the calmest heartbreak songs I've ever heard. Underscored by a dour electronic tune, Peck maintains a strong and even timbre while moving his face as little as possible; Spock's shields haven't dropped even under these circumstances. Yet somehow, you can still feel the rawness in his voice.

4. Captain Christopher Pike

A plot point in "Subspace Rhapsody" is that the musical behavior is causing the Enterprise crew to reveal information they'd rather keep secret. Captain Pike (Anson Mount) gets the worst of it. His partner Captain Marie Batel (Melanie Scrofano) calls after the music plague spreads to her own ship. She and Pike get caught in a duet where they have "A Private Conversation" about the relationship, their frustrations with one another laid bare for the Enterprise bridge crew to see. 

The one thing that isn't embarrassing? Pike's singing ability. Scrofano is a capable scene partner, but Mount steals the scene for himself with a smooth, mellifluous baritone — exactly the kind of voice you'd picture coming out of his handsome face.  

Since "A Private Conversation" is the most comedic of the setlist, it has a playful orchestral tune, like something out of "Peter and the Wolf." Tragically, it's cut short when La'an disconnects the transmission. We do get to hear a bit more of Pike singing in supporting parts during "Status Report" and "We Are One." Pike might've been uncomfortable singing, but I was eating it up.

5. Commander Una Chin-Riley and 6. Lieutenant James T. Kirk

Back in episode 6, "Lost In Translation," it was revealed that Kirk (Paul Wesley) has been promoted to First Officer of his current ship, The USS Farragut. So, he spends some time on the Enterprise shadowing Una (Rebecca Romijn), an experienced First Officer. Their duet, "Connect To Your Truth," is about this new mentor-student relationship; Una explains how to best be a starship second-in-command.

Naturally, Commander Chin-Riley takes the lead in the duet. "Connect To Your Truth" boasts some of the most complex lyrics and creative rhyming schemes in the song's tracklist; from the wordplay to the flighty mood it often feels like a "Star Trek" themed "Mary Poppins" song. The nature of the song also evokes "My Fair Lady" (or rather, "My Fair First Officer"). Romijn understands how to handle this, drawing out some of her line deliveries even if her singing voice doesn't quite escape the confines of her normal one. Wesley handles himself just fine but definitely cedes the spotlight to his costar.

Romijn must have been eager to sing; she  was  a Music major before becoming an actress and model. Thus, Una also gets a solo — "Keeping Secrets" — a follow-up to La'an's "How Would That Feel" as the Commander advises her younger friend. Una confesses that "in another life, [she] could see herself on a stage." By enthusiasm alone, I could see her getting there.

7. Nurse Christine Chapel

Back in "Charades," Nurse Christine Chapel had been rejected from a scientific fellowship. In "Subspace Rhapsody," she's applied to another one and gets it — but that means she'll have to leave the Enterprise. Spock confronts her about it while she's toasting to her success and the number makes it clear where her priorities are. "I'm Ready" is all about how Christine's been working so hard to get to the top of the scientific field; she can't even bother paying attention to Spock, so focused on her own dreams and ambitions.

The music is a poppy dance song, with everyone in the bar joining in and swaying back and forth; only Christine's voice is clearly audible but there's some background vocal harmonizing too. "I'm Ready" has the most extras and complex choreography of any "Subspace Rhapsody" sequence. Some of those extras take turns carrying Christine around as she dances around the room, climbing onto the bar and some tables along the way.

Sadly, the most underwhelming part of the scene is Jess Bush's own singing. From my own ear, it sounded like her voice had been auto-filtered. It might have been a creative choice, whether to have her voice match the upbeat mood of the song or to show that Christine's not her usual, more reserved self. I'm not convinced it was the right one, though.

8. Lieutenant Erica Ortegas and 9. Dr. Joseph M'Benga

Musical TV episodes always reveal which cast members are comfortable/capable with singing and which aren't. Those in the latter category for "Strange New Worlds" appear to have been Melissa Navia (Erica Ortegas) and Babs Olusanmokun (Dr. M'Benga). Neither one gets a solo song, whether due to runtime constraints, the actors' disinterest, or something else altogether. As a result, it's hard to judge these two against their castmates.

Both Ortegas and M'Benga do sing during the group numbers. M'Benga's parts in both songs feature him harmonizing with Chapel (they both work in Sick Bay, after all), so it's especially hard to get a read on his own voice.

Ortegas, though, does get a brief solo as part of "Status Report." The song features a bridge of the Enterprise Bridge crew describing their stations on ready; Ortegas does so for the ship's helm. Navia's voice sounded good, to the point where I'm puzzled why they didn't give Ortegas more material . She's generally a comic relief character, so a funny song would fit her like a glove. Maybe "Strange New Worlds" season 3 will have to feature "Subspace Rhapsody II" to give Ortegas a moment at the mic.

"Star Trek: Strange New Worlds" is streaming on Paramount+.

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Preview “Subspace Rhapsody” With New Images, Trailer & Clip From ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Musical

| July 31, 2023 | By: TrekMovie.com Staff 73 comments so far

This week the penultimate episode of  Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2 arrives and it is something different indeed. We have details along with new images, a trailer, and a clip from the musical episode. SPOILERS .

“Subspace Rhapsody”

Episode 9 of Strange New Worlds’ second season is called “Subspace Rhapsody.” The special musical episode was written by Dana Horgan & Bill Wolkoff and directed by Dermott Downs with original songs by Kay Hanley and Tom Polce. It debuts on Paramount+ on Thursday, August 3

An accident with an experimental quantum probability field causes everyone on the U.S.S. Enterprise to break uncontrollably into song, but the real danger is that the field is expanding and beginning to impact other ships—allies and enemies alike.

Anson Mount as Pike in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Best Possible Screengrab/Paramount+

L-R Carol Kane as Pelia, Christina Chong as La’an, Ethan Peck as Spock in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Best Possible Screengrab/Paramount+

Jess Bush as Chapel in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Best Possible Screengrab/Paramount+

Celia Rose Gooding as Uhura in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Michael Gibson/Paramount+

L-R Rebecca Romijn as Una and Paul Wesley as James T. Kirk in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Michael Gibson/Paramount+

Paul Wesley as James T. Kirk in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Michael Gibson/Paramount+

L-R Ethan Peck as Spock, Anson Mount as Pike and Rebecca Romijn as Una in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Best Possible Screengrab/Paramount+

Ethan Peck as Spock, Babs Olusanmokun as M’Benga, Celia Rose Gooding as Shura, Anson Mount as Pike, Christina Chong as La’an and Rebecca Romijn as Una in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Best Possible Screengrab/Paramount+

The latest episode of The Ready Room , the official Star Trek aftershow, includes a clip from the musical episode. Uhura and Spock are in engineering testing a new way to send messages in subspace, Pelia walks by and suggests they try sending music. (The clip starts at 32:50.)

A trailer for the episode was released at Comic-Con.

Here’s an alternate link to trailer on StarTrek.com for international readers

Also released at SDCC…

Keep up with news about the  Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com .

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Oh, please tell me the field is going to hit a D7 and we get some full-on Klingon opera.

I had the same thought! An earlier iteration of Dax could cameo and set up their love for Klingon opera. This is certainly a much touted “big swing.” Hope it’s a home run and not a strike out.

That was my thought too. But why do klingons prefer opera? Should’t extreme musical styles like Death Metal (or the klingon equivalent) be appropriate for their taste?

Ensign Tendi is a fan of Klingon acid punk, which I would very much love to hear.

opera: honor, betrayal, death, vengeance, elaborate costumes…why WOULDN’T they like it? The examples we have heard seemed very Wagnerian, which tracks with their quasi-fascist society in general

The same exist in various extreme metal styles too and some even cite Wagner as influence. Wuy wouldn’t they like these topics combined with brutal music? The sound of the klingon language even fits to extreme metal.

maybe it’s too much like Jono’s Talarian metal

Klingons also love theater

Klingons love Acid Punk more

They don’t even love it, they invented it! :-)

I don’t know much about opera but don’t a lot of people die in them? Klingons love love talking about death. They even mark certain days on their calendars when its the best day to die. That’s just being obsessive.

Guess which musical style uses lyrics about such topics… And by the way, I just found this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOirKrzSVgI

That would be a nice idea and a nice contrast for the next episode. ;-)

LOL nice one! Wow, Klingons are passionate, I give them that.

Off topic, I feel a little bad for Mary Chieffo, she has committed herself to playing a Klingon like we never seen and the last time we seen her on a show was four years ago now. If you’re never going to bring back L’Rell, then give her another role, she’s fantastic.

Klingons would he cool, but I want some singing Gorn.

‘feed me’ or ‘mean green mother from outtaspace’ from littlespaceshipofhorrors

it was a total eclipse of the canon

If we’re on a bonnie tyler streak, then if there are any 09 fans out there, they should be holding out for a return, clamoring, ‘i need a ne-ro!’

Haha! I’m late to the party but it seems everybody is already having fun only because of the announcement of a musical episode

Klingons would love musicals. They’d be having a great time. I know it’s true.

On the flip side, won’t happen because it can’t but I want to see it hit a Romulan ship.

It could still happen so long as the audience sees the dancing Romulans and the Enterprise crew does not.

So many hands extended, I wonder if this is a musical about Zefram Cochrane’s statue.

Trek is Trek…

sigh…JTK still on the ship. Farragut going to mark him AWOL pretty soon.

And, they just had to have Kirk and Khan…

Musically – that sounded like two-week run then closed Broadway genericism at it’s finest.

I would love to be wrong fwiw, but I have low expectations.

The episode synopsis says the wave strikes allied ships as well so I am hoping that at least makes Kirk’s appearance plausible. Although I confess to struggling with the Kirk character. The acting and the writing is fine. I think it’s just my general lack of enthusiasm for Kirk. We know so much about him that SNW has very little to play with. To give credit to the SNW team the relationship with his brother is one area left unexplored and they are trying to go there. But his appearances this season have been very frequent both prime and alternate timelines. I feel they are doing too much with him. However, I feel like I am in the minority. As for the low expectations, I feel you but I am hoping this episode proves me wrong. If not I am sure others will love it! As the viewpoints seem polarizing ahead of actually viewing it.

Kirk is being used quite a bit for not even being assigned to the Enterprise, but I do like seeing what he was like before he became Captain.

Since it is looking like something might be developing between Kirk and La’an, I’m just waiting for Carol Marcus to show up and spoil it all. Kirk and Carol’s meeting would be kind of neat to see.

I disagree that we know so much about him. We certainly know a ton about Captain Kirk, but I don’t have the slightest problem with seeing Lieutenant Kirk and getting stories about how he became the man we know. If those stories are well-written, that is. So far, they are.

I think that’s my point. I don’t think I am the target audience for Kirk hence why I think he is too much and others think he is great. You are their target audience. Glad there are fans that are really appreciating what he brings to this season even if I don’t get it. Personally I would rather see other legacy characters with more of a blank slate or even brand new ones.

Kirk is by far my favorite captain. I was too young during the original run in the 60’s to relate, but watching in the 1970’s when I was older was when his character really struck a nerve with me. This Kirk just doesn’t appeal to me at all. They’re trying, but not hitting the mark. Maybe it’s the actor, and maybe it’ll take him more time to find Kirk’s mojo. But, IMO, they should not have used Kirk at all. I agree with you about other legacy characters which they should have expanded on from The Cage, or new characters unique to Pike’s Enterprise. Using TOS legacy characters, other than Spock, just seems like another easy way out.

are you saying that like a poor marksman he

I’m the target audience and, unfortunately for me, I still can’t see him without thinking of Jim Carrey.

He is utterly unconvincing as Kirk. He actually does strike me as a bit of a young Matt Decker from “The Doomsday Machine.”

Yeah I still think he sucks too. He just doesn’t appeal to me at all. I really wish they kept a Kirk off the show completely.

🎶 The best is yet to come 🎶

Haha that Sisko and Vic Fontaine (Avery Brooks and James Darrin) duet was outstanding, especially considering the song was extremely diificult to sing. Also liked Nana as Kira singing Fever, plus the DS9 finale version of The Way You Look Tonight! Star Trek is loaded with great music… We Reach!

I forgot that one. Good point. And yeah.

Yes that duet was fantastic. Brooks is quite the signer.

“Praise the Lord” is more like it, judging from that blocking on the bridge…

Contrary to my usual rants about this show, I’m not opposed to doing something like this. But I do think it should completely break the 4th wall, and not exist within any form of canon. I’m 98% sure that’s not the route they’re going though.

This seems like a “And now let us vow to never speak of this again” kind of thing. I’m excited to see what the BS scientific explanation is for this. Should be funny.

Yeah, exactly.

I, too, wish they’d just declare this a non-canon, sui generis musical take on Star Trek, without trying to shoehorn in some ridiculous pseudoscience explanation.

No one is claiming that BACK TO THE FUTURE: THE MUSICAL is somehow a fourth installment of that franchise; that allows the audience to enjoy it for what it is.

If they stick to their own canon (“Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow”), Ensign Uhura will receive a visit from the Department of Temp Track Investigations asking that she pinky swear to never discuss this with anyone.

Awesome- please do The Wrath of Khan opera in Italian next.

Mark my words – instant classic.

The degree of success in execution will depend on how well the songs do in speaking to things that cannot be said any other way. Star Trek has always been really great at dramatizing certain emotions that are difficult to express while wrapping wonder/sci-fi around it; so, in Star Trek terms I’m not sure how they’ll do anything interesting with the concept beyond “here’s a gimmick we spent $10 million on.” I’m, like, 10% open to being surprised, though, even though I can only see laziness and cynicism dripping off of this right now (I really don’t think very much of the people making this show, which I get is a *me* problem).

The problem is.. there is no organic reason to do this. No letting the story take you where it would naturally go… no reason other than the creator’s indulgence. Not one person anywhere has asked the question ‘What is Star Trek Missing?” and answered with a musical. So we’ll see if they manage to pull It off.

I love musicals, yet I am dubious that this will work. It feels much too gimmicky. That said, however, i’m withholding any judgement until I actually watch the episode.

Seems like we’re going to have a lot of people fighting the “gimmick” label on this one right up until Thursday when they’ll whip around and say they LOVE gimmicks and we should too and who cares if it’s a gimmick because everyone had a good time!

Yeah that is 1000 percent a you problem. It also has no correlation with reality.

My dislike of the people making the show has no correlation with reality or the sweaty, desperate gimmicky, warmed over because it’s already been done before appearance of this concept/episode does?

I heard samples of all the songs and they sounded very good. I don’t know if the episode will be good or not but you may enjoy some of the numbers themselves.

I read the synopsis and the first thing that crops into my head is the lyrics to the opening number of Starkid Productions’ The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals: “so tonight we’re gonna chronicle a story so astronomical.”

Isn’t this the same clip that was posted on this site four days ago?

And not much of a spoiler to be honest.

I was dubious back in the day (2001) with the Buffy the Vampire Slayer musical episode, but I ended liking a few of the songs. So, I’m cautiously optimistic to see how Star Trek handles this kind of thing.

I’m only happy with Paul Wesley being in this episode if he sings “Rocket Man.”

Ooops! I swear I didn’t read your post before mine!

This would only work for me if Spock sings “The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins” and Kirk “sings” “Rocketman”.

Apple Music actually had a preview list of all the songs a few days ago. Someone on Reddit linked it there. It was about 10 songs so there are many. I have to say they actually sounded pretty good. Even the title credits will have a different score with people singing (they are getting really creative with those credits this season).

You could only listen to about 30 seconds of each one, but yeah not bad. The episode still might the worst idea in bad musical TV history but I think people will be humming a few of them.

I was going to link it here, but sadly Apple has taken it down.

This show is getting a bit ridiculous.

Yeah, I’m not totally certain it’s earned a musical episode this early.

Its really not needed at all. Granted DS9 had Vic Fontane but those were isolated parts of the story. Not need a whole 40-50 minute musical number.

How much would the tears of Old School Trek fans go for on Ebay? Just asking for a friend.

Not much, there seem to be gallons of them. I found the franchise in the mid 70’s, and this old school fan thinks this is (potentially) great.

We’re crying for the poor simps who think this new stuff is any good.

Of.course.Kirk. is. gonna.sing.. ROCKET MAN!

I hope, just to keep in theme, they do the intro with (at least some of) the lyrics that Gene Roddenberry wrote so that he could steal legitimately claim half of the royalties for the music

Hard pass. Not even going to entertain the thought of this episode. Who’s idea was this in the first place????? Just as bad idea as having the Vampire guy play dress up with a Kirk costume.

Wont be watching this episode. Last season it was the fairy tale episode. Now this. Im sorry but shows like Buffy The vampire Slayer did it and went downhill since. Pass on this one. Whomever gave the greenlight to this idea should get a pay cut.

Funny thing is, the musical Buffy was probably the only decent episode in a dumpster-fire season.

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Let’s Rank the Songs of ‘Strange New Worlds’ Musical Episode, ‘Subspace Rhapsody’

At last, the Star Trek: Strange New World s musical episode is here! TMS’ Lauren Coates has us covered with a review of “Subspace Rhapsody” as a whole, but I’m here to talk specifically about the music . After all, a musical is judged by how likely you are to keep singing and listening to the songs long after the show is over. At least, that’s how I rate musicals.

So, how does the music stack up? Allow me to provide a humble ranking of the songs from “Subspace Rhapsody” from least to most awesome. Feel free to disagree with me about the order in the comments!

10. “ How Would That Feel ” – La’an Noonien-Singh (performed by Christina Chong)

Sadly, my least favorite song was performed by one of the characters I was most looking forward to hearing from.

La’an’s going through a lot: she traveled through time, she’s not supposed to talk about it, and she had romantic feelings for a version of Kirk who is now dead. She’s also one of the more guarded members of the crew, due to her harrowing experience with the Gorn and the assumptions people make from her last name. I was sure we wouldn’t hear from La’an for a while, but when we did, it would be meaningful .

Instead, we got a La’an song way too early, singing feelings I’m not convinced she’d sing, even on her own. Especially since she had the self-control not to sing when revealing her actual strong feelings to Kirk later in the episode. Imagine how much more powerful Kirk’s rejection would’ve been if it followed a heartbreakingly honest musical confession. Instead, we were served an emotionally incoherent, lyrically generic ballad way too early in the episode.

9. “ Keeping Secrets ” – Una Chin-Riley (performed by Rebecca Romijn)

Una Chin-Riley is another character who’s way more fascinating than the songs she was given. Unfortunately, Una’s two numbers in the episode are among the weakest. “Keeping Secrets” is the weaker of the two, as Una commiserates with La’an by comparing her unrequited love of Kirk to … her own battle to keep her identity a secret to avoid persecution? Una, all secrets are not equal. And in this context, Number One doesn’t know the timey-wimey reasons why La’an’s feelings for Kirk are so complicated. So, the fact that her approach is this serious in this song makes little sense.

I’d be able to forgive that if the music or lyrics were more interesting, but like “How Would That Feel,” this was another plodding, generic ballad during which I found myself checking my phone.

8. “ Connect to Your Truth ” – Una Chin-Riley and James T. Kirk (performed by Rebecca Romijn and Paul Wesley)

“Connect to Your Truth” was a stronger song for Number One, not only because it was a fun callback to her love of Gilbert & Sullivan—which she expressed in the Short Treks episode “Q&A” —but because it was a duet with a James T. Kirk who is not yet a captain. This allowed Una to give Kirk advice on how to be a better leader by staying true to who you are and connecting to your crew through vulnerability.

Also, this song was fun , which goes a long way. While this song is only slightly better than the first two songs on this list (and it’s probably the cheesiest song in the episode), both Romijn and Wesley seemed to be having a great time singing it. The song also makes sense on a character level as well as thematically.

7. “Main Title (“Subspace Rhapsody” Version)” – composed by Jeff Russo

I love when a themed episode of a TV show goes to the trouble of creating something different for the opening title sequence. SNW already did this once with a Lower Decks -inspired opening for “Those Old Scientists.” For “Subspace Rhapsody,” composer Jeff Russo orchestrated a boppy, choral version of the opening theme that will give you chills.

Hearing this version in the trailer truly got me excited about watching the episode! Literally the only reason for its “low” placement on this list is that it’s an instrumental and not really a “song,” but it needed to be on here!

6. “ Private Conversation ” – Christopher Pike and Marie Batel (performed by Anson Mount and Melanie Scrofano)

“Private Conversation” is a fun and hilariously awkward moment between two characters who are still trying to figure out what their romantic relationship looks like long distance.

Before any of the singing starts, we know that Pike and Batel have been discussing taking a vacation together. As Batel shares her preferred destination, it’s clear that Pike isn’t into it. But rather than being upfront about it, he deflects. Then, despite being so not thrilled about the singing, Pike is forced to reveal how he feels in song when Uhura patches a call from Batel to him on the bridge.

Hearing them both absolutely hate that they’re being compelled to sing while also having an awkward lovers’ squabble in front of subordinate crew members was an absolute delight.

5. “ Status Report ” – Enterprise Crew (performed by the SNW Cast)

“Status Report” understood the assignment, and is a perfect opening number for a Star Trek musical. It manages to sound very Trek (technobabble and all), while also sounding like a true musical number. Every cast member takes part in the number in a way that is true to their character. The song is a perfect, fun, and funny introduction to the unique nature of the problem: there’s nothing technically “wrong” on the ship, and yet there’s something very, very wrong on the ship.

I mean, just look at Pike’s face above. He really, really hates that this is happening, and I love it so much .

4. “ I’m the X ” – Spock (performed by Ethan Peck)

This darker, angrier reprise to Nurse Chapel’s song (which is slightly higher up on the list) is not only a perfect song for Spock at this point in his life, but it marks the beginning of the more stoic Spock that we (and Boimler) will come to know in the future. Freshly dumped by his fiancée, Spock learns that the woman he basically left her for has no qualms about leaving him to take a fellowship. So Spock decides that the only way to handle this is to put away emotions entirely . Oh, Spock. You adorable stupid jerk.

And leave it to Spock to sing a song about emotions and romantic relationships that uses math as a metaphor. I mean, it’s no “ The Math of Love Triangles ” from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend , but it is more accurate about math.

3. “ I’m Ready ” – Christine Chapel (performed by Jess Bush)

Thankfully, not all the women of the cast got sub-par songs to work with. “I’m Ready” has the distinction of being the only song in the episode that truly works both as a song for Chapel (in the context of the story) and as a completely standalone song that I cannot wait to hear someone crush at karaoke.

It’s also a great song musically and has a fun, flirtatious energy. Not flirty as in “with a person,” but flirting with the possibilities of life. And I love that the song subverts TOS Chapel, whom we see pining after Spock all the time. “I’m Ready” gives us a Christine who has feelings for Spock, but is more in love with her own future. Like Billie Eilish .

2. “ We Are One ” – Enterprise Crew (performed by the SNW Cast)

“Subspace Rhapsody” came out of the gate strong with a solid opening number, and it ended strong with a finale as optimistic as Star Trek is at its best. Of course the solution was going to be that we need more voices singing . Of course the solution was going to come from Uhura, Trek’s Queen of Communication. And of course, Uhura was going to highlight that music isn’t just about expressing one’s bad or secret feelings, it’s about expressing the good ones too!

She rightfully points out that cultures throughout history have used songs to celebrate and engage in communal activities, and she reminds the Enterprise crew that they are always at their best when they work together. “We Are One” ended the episode on a joyful note that made me proud to be a Trekkie.

1. “ Keep Us Connected ” – Nyota Uhura (performed by Celia Rose Gooding)

The clear standout of the episode is Uhura’s passionate ballad, “Keep Us Connected.” This song is an emotional roller coaster, and it was the one song in the episode that made me cry.

First, it honored a Trek legacy character whose contributions can never be praised enough. Second, it was deeply personal for Uhura, charting her journey from experiencing the death of her family at a young age to making a career out of bringing people together, giving her a depth that she’s rarely been given elsewhere. And third, because this song resonates on the same level as Encanto ‘s “Surface Pressure,” relatable to every woman who’s ever felt the pressure of, and recognized the strength required for, the invisible labor in which they so often engage in to care for others.

And Gooding performs the song brilliantly. They have an amazing voice, and while it took the entire cast to make me feel this strongly during the opener and the finale, Gooding was the only cast member able to elicit this level of emotion all on their own. I loved that what started as a song of grief and self-pity turned into Uhura recognizing that her ability to help others communicate is a gift. And in recognizing this gift, they arrive at the solution that saves the Enterprise from being a forever musical.

I will be listening to this song on a loop all weekend. You can, too, as the soundtrack for “Subspace Rhapsody” is available wherever you stream music.

(featured image: Paramount+)

Subspace Rhapsody (episode)

• View history
• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 2 Soundtrack
• 3 Memorable quotes
• 4 Log entries
• 5.2 Production
• 5.4 Continuity
• 6.1 Starring
• 6.2 Special guest star
• 6.3 Guest starring
• 6.4 Co-starring
• 6.5 Uncredited co-stars
• 6.6.1 S/COMS references
• 6.6.2 Soundtrack references
• 6.6.3 Star chart references
• 6.7 External link

Summary [ ]

The USS Enterprise is on the site of an unusual phenomenon – a naturally-occurring subspace fold , which Spock has theorized could triple the speed of subspace communication . Unfortunately for Uhura , the amount of computer power required for his experiment has resulted in her having to essentially become a switchboard operator: a call from Captain Batel to Captain Pike , another from Dr. Roger Korby for Nurse Chapel , Una checking on Lieutenant James Kirk 's imminent arrival from the USS Farragut , and Spock in engineering asking if she was ready to continue their experiment. Once these were all sorted, Uhura takes a deep breath to recenter herself, before going right back to work.

Batel is planning her and Pike's first vacation to Crivo , a planet Pike considers "touristy". Batel is enthusiastic, wanting to see the Planetary Museum , and take day trips to the Glass Islands and Smoke Lakes . She sees the look on Pike's face and stops short, wondering if something was wrong. Pike muses that perhaps the timing was bad, and he was uncertain he could get away. Batel wonders if there was something he wasn't telling her, and he assures her there wasn't, but suggests delaying for a few days. Batel curtly agrees, before closing the channel.

In the transporter room, Una is joined by La'an , explaining that the Farragut is sending Kirk to the Enterprise so that the crew can "show him the ropes"; the captain's note adds that Kirk is "full of talent" but still has "one or two issues" to work out before beginning his commission as the ship's first officer . La'an thinks punctuality is one of those "issues". Una notes that La'an is unusually energetic, to which La'an simply replies she is waiting for their guest to run a security clearance. Una, however, thinks La'an came in "hot", but La'an again assures her she was fine, and it was standard procedure. Una activates the transporter, and welcomes Kirk back to the Enterprise . He notices his brother Sam is absent this time; Una explains Sam was busy, and they'd find him later. Kirk thanks Una for agreeing to do this, even if he felt it was not fully necessary. Una recalls that when she took her commission, she spent a week shadowing Pike, which made all the difference for her, and she hopes it will do the same for him on the Farragut . Kirk then notices La'an, and reminds her she owes him a drink . La'an is flustered somewhat as she leads him to undergo his security clearance.

In sickbay , Chapel paces nervously, wondering if the message from Dr. Korby would be another rejection notice . Ortegas tells her to forget the Vulcans and their Science Academy , and Chapel seems to go along with this… but this fellowship she had applied for was different, knowing of Korby's reputation. So does Dr. M'Benga , who calls him the " Louis Pasteur of archaeological medicine ". Thousands of people apply for his fellowship every year, and only five are accepted. Mustering her nerve, Chapel reads the message… and her expression tells both Ortegas and M'Benga that her application was accepted. M'Benga jokingly wonders what she would do without her for three months, and Ortegas points out he wouldn't be the only one who would miss her. Chapel's joy is dampened somewhat as she realizes she had to tell Spock.

In engineering, Spock is engrossed in the experiment, having failed twelve times in sending a message through the subspace fold. Pelia corrects that to thirteen, and asks why he thinks this particular fold would lead to faster communications. Spock explains that frequencies propagate through it three times faster than normal. With their current subspace relay network , Uhura adds, it takes weeks to get a message across; if their experiments work out, they could have real-time communications across thousands of light years … only so far, no one has heard them. As she returns to work, Uhura begins humming a tune, which gives Pelia an idea: sending music through the fold. They were attempting to communicate through a medium with different laws of physics, so perhaps fundamental harmonics were the answer. Pelia off-handedly says it was "just a thought"... but Spock thinks it may be an excellent one, and leaves Uhura to pick the song. Uhura hopes subspace was a "fan" of the Great American Songbook , and selects the song " Anything Goes ".

The music does indeed cause a reaction, but not what they had been hoping for. A wave of energy projects from the fold and goes through the entire ship, momentarily disorienting everyone on the crew as it passed through them – including Pike, in the turbolift on his way to the bridge . As he exits, he asks Mitchell what hit them. She reports that there were no other ships in the sector, and that whatever it was had come from the fold. Pike calls to Uhura in engineering, asking for a full report. When Uhura checks in with Spock, he surprises her by singing his response, that the intermix chamber and containment field generator were stable ("Status Report"). Pike wonders where the music is coming from, and Ortegas knows it was not anywhere on the ship. Spock apologizes for the most "confounding" thing, that he appeared to be singing his answers. Sickbay seems to catch onto it as well, as M'Benga and Chapel musically report no injuries, "just the mundane".

The musical "infection" spreads to the bridge, as Ortegas, then Una, then La'an and Kirk sing their status reports from their stations. The entire crew is caught up in the music, which ends at that moment with Pike's question: " But why are we singing? "

Act One [ ]

" So… that happened, " Pike comments, meeting with the crew in the ready room. La'an reports "musical outbreaks" all over the ship. Kirk had assumed it was something the crew had rehearsed, but he had sang too – as did M'Benga, who emphatically says he does not sing. Pike knows the surge came from the subspace fold, and asks Spock to help him "connect the dots". Spock explains how they had sent a series of transmissions, the last being a song. When asked why that would make them sing, Spock theorizes the frequency of the transmission dislodged a quantum uncertainty field , asking them to imagine an area of space where multiple quantum uncertainties collapse so rapidly and randomly that new realities were created; in one of which, the inhabitants sang uncontrollably. La'an sarcastically wonders if that meant more uncertainty or if the crew would just "poof into bunnies ", to which M'Benga makes clear he'd prefer not to be a bunny, either. Spock assures them that was unlikely, but they may not be done with the music: the Enterprise has become tethered to that particular improbability field , and attempting to fly out would widen it. Pelia notices it looks similar to a zipper , and asks if it could work like a zipper. Pike, seeing where she's going, points out that zippers work both ways, and asks if they could somehow "zip" the improbability field back into the fold. Spock thinks it possible, if they combined shield harmonics with the Heisenberg compensator and connected it to the navigational deflector to generate a beam. Una knows this would have to be done manually. Pike tells them to go ahead with it, not knowing how the singing would affect them and wanting to "nip it at the bud". Kirk jokingly adds that Spock explained that very well, and that he almost understood it.

The "zipper beam" had to exactly match the resonance of the fold, and Spock asks Uhura about the frequency of the song she sent through. As he observes, he sees the message from Dr. Korby to Chapel, asking if it was about her recent fellowship application and if the news was "favorable". Uhura reminds him that she didn't look at personal correspondence, and Spock agrees it would be unethical. Uhura realizes that Spock and Chapel have become close, and Spock confirms that it would be accurate to say they had become "more than colleagues". Uhura jokes about that "classic Vulcan romance" she had heard about, then more seriously asks why he doesn't ask Chapel about it. Spock admits that their communications have run into challenges. Una calls to report that she and Kirk were in place, and asks Uhura for the harmonics data.

Down below, Kirk is working inside a Jefferies tube connecting the relays. " One down, only four to go, " he says. Una wonders if he was running out of steam already. Kirk recalls what his brother told him about her, calling Una the first officer that he should be – keeping distance from the crew because of the hard decisions a first officer had to make. Una is aware of her reputation, and has elected to take a more "hands-on" approach. Kirk recalls the last first officer on the Farragut definitely kept his distance. Una calls that style of command a "first mistake" – and the music starts again as she advises Kirk to "connect to [his] truth" and interact more with his crew than other first officers would ("Connect to Your Truth"), admitting (as she normally wouldn't) that she would enjoy taking to the stage regaling others with her renditions of her favorite composers, Gilbert and Sullivan . They actually begin to dance their way to the next access tunnel , while La'an watches from around the corner.

La'an, caught in the music herself, questions how Una was able to express herself ("How Would That Feel"), and wonders if she can do so herself, wondering how it would feel to be "flying blind", but has "never met that part" of her. Her words harken back to the time she first met Kirk – in an alternate reality, then shifted back in time to the 21st century – and fantasizes about having a future with him, taking out the wristwatch she had used during that incident. As the song ends, she comes to a realization, one she shares with Pike in the turbolift to the bridge: the singing was causing them to express highly personal emotional information about themselves. Pike is somewhat dumbfounded at the idea that their emotions could constitute a security threat, but La'an is sure that they do. Seeing how uncomfortable she is, Pike hopes that whatever she's holding back doesn't turn out that way, and assures her Spock and Uhura have a plan.

As they arrive on the bridge, Spock reports that the Heisenberg compensator is adjusted with the shield harmonics to collapse the musical reality. Uhura calls to "Lieutenant Kirk", saying she wasn't rushing him, but then says she was. It turns out both Lieutenant Kirks are down in the transporter room making the final adjustments, and both acknowledge. Jim thinks she was talking to him, but Sam points out that he worked there. Jim reminds him that it wasn't his department, that he was in xenoanthropology ; Sam counters that he had been assigned at Jim's request, because Jim "missed" him. Jim activates the deflector, and Una gives the order to fire the "zipper beam".

At first, it appears to be working, but the fold releases another surge of energy, and Ortegas sees it was not "zipping". Pike asks Spock what happened, but Spock is unable to determine. Just then, a message comes in from the USS Cayuga . " When it rains, " Pike says, given who the captain is. He tells Spock to determine what happened, before he has Uhura put Batel through. Batel seems to be caught up in the same trouble as the Enterprise , as her message is a rhyming request to have a private conversation, in a more discreet location, about their cancelled vacation… and then sings her apologies for the rhyming. Pike tells her he will have to call her back, but Batel musically cuts him off, accusing him of always running away ("Private Conversation"/"Status Report (reprise)"). Pike is now caught up in the song as well, questioning why all the blame was on him, and about to make a comment about her choice of vacation destination… before he catches himself, not willing to speak so in front of his crew.

As their musical duel goes on, trying to have a "private" conversation about their frustration, La'an springs into action and cuts the communication. Pike is confused as to why he was admitting all of what he had just sang, and La'an again emphasizes it was a security threat. He then asks why the Cayuga was also affected, and Spock reports that the improbability field was expanding across the entire subspace communications network… affecting all of Starfleet .

Act Two [ ]

Una has been in contact with Admiral April , who informed her that the improbability field has spread to twelve starships, and let her know (in a "surprisingly beautiful baritone", she adds) that he would like it stopped. Pike asks if they had any idea why the reality was compelling them to confess their deepest emotions; at that, La'an glances slightly behind her at Kirk. Uhura has a theory: because it was a musical reality, they were following the rules of musicals – and Una, a fan of musicals, knew that characters in musicals began to sing in them when their emotions were so heightened that words would not suffice. Pike suggests firing a spread of photon torpedoes to "bring the curtain down" on it, and Spock thinks it possible; a sufficient explosion of matter and antimatter could untether them from the improbability field and release the affected ships from the musical reality. However, he wants to test it in a controlled environment first, in case the results are more explosive. La'an has the thought (and Kirk completes it) of beaming subatomic particles from the fold itself. Una points out it requires cross-targeting, which makes it a two-person job. Kirk replies that they had "two persons" right there.

To Una's surprise, La'an refuses the assignment, and Una knows that was not like her. La'an confesses that she wasn't feeling like herself; indeed, none of them were. Una realizes that she is uncomfortable of the idea of singing to Kirk, seeing how she was acting around him. La'an, struggling to admit it without actually admitting it, says that "hypothetically", she might have feelings for him, and those feelings pose a potential space-time security risk. La'an finally gets fed up enough to say she should just tell him and "stop being a child" about it, before it got out of her control. The music starts again, Una telling her about the people who would complicate her life ("Keeping Secrets"), and urging her to tell as much of the truth as she felt, "no drama". She deactivates the artificial gravity in the ready room, dancing in the air with La'an as the song continues. Throughout the ship, others in similar situations are contemplating their own futures with someone else: Chapel in sickbay, Spock in engineering, and Pike in his quarters. Una also points out her own skill with keeping secrets, and how that skill didn't serve her anymore .

La'an joins Kirk in the transporter room, trying to beam the particles aboard; he apologizes for sounding as if he was giving orders, as he was on her ship. The molecular imaging scanner was unable to focus the signal, but La'an adds power, and they successfully bring the particles aboard. Kirk then transports them to engineering, then sarcastically notes it was "exciting", though not as exciting as Spock and Uhura getting to blow them up. Nonetheless, he thinks he and La'an make a good team, and should work together more often. La'an, struggling to put her feelings into words, is unable to go much further before the ship violently rocks.

The test explosion nearly destroyed engineering, leading Pike to wonder what would happen if they applied it to the fold itself. Spock's analysis shows that the effect would spread through the entire subspace network, destroying everything; he compares it to soaking the improbability field in kerosene and holding a match to it. Uhura then picks up an incoming transmission, and Pike warns her not to answer for fear of spreading the musical "infection" further. Spock triangulates the source, detecting a signature coming in at high warp speed, with Klingon encryption. Una thinks the last thing anyone would want is singing Klingons. Pike orders Uhura to send a proxy message through Starfleet Command , telling them to turn back immediately. The ship has stopped hailing, but Uhura gets a message... the improbability field has already hit them.

Uhura plays back the message. The sender identifies himself as General Garkog of the Imperial Klingon Defense Force , who tells them that their "evasion" has raised suspicions, and that the Klingons have identified the source of their "dishonor". He intends to destroy it, and warns the Enterprise not to try to stop him. Pike realizes they were going to fire on the subspace fold.

Act Three [ ]

In the ready room, Pike informs the crew that Garkog's ship will arrive in two hours. Spock warns that if the Klingons completed their mission, everyone affected by the improbability field would be destroyed. " So, just the entire Federation and half the Klingon Empire , " Kirk sums up. Pike knows they had to be stopped at all costs, and asks for options. Una points out that firing first constituted an act of war, but Pike sees little option, asking if they could just disable the Klingons' disruptor cannons ; La'an adds the torpedo launchers. Una asks La'an for a tactical strategy, and La'an gets on it… then asks Kirk to join her. Pike then turns to Spock and Uhura, asking what the odds were of disabling the improbability field before the Klingons arrived. Spock concedes they were not good with the data they had. Pike suggests he find new data, urging them both to fix the problem; they were applying old rules to a new reality, and suggests finding a different tempo – and fast.

Spock proposes using the songs themselves, and the frequency they generate, as their means. He wonders how to generate a song, and Uhura reminds him that per the musical rules, songs began during moments of intense emotion… and she looks into the open door of the crew lounge, where Chapel is sharing a drink with Ortegas and Sam Kirk, celebrating Chapel's fellowship. Chapel thinks it strange to celebrate in a time like this, but Sam is adamant that their lives shouldn't end every time the ship got into trouble, and Ortegas agrees, saying they were there to celebrate her win. Spock approaches then, believing the toasting indicated good news about her fellowship. He then asks why she didn't tell him, and whether it was intentional or merely an oversight. Chapel wants to discuss it later, but Spock insists that he was "merely curious". On cue, the music starts, and Uhura begins her scans. Chapel thinks that it was a "distant dream", and that she confesses she didn't think she deserved it, but now the fellowship saw her as "one of their own" (""I'm Ready"). The entire crew in the lounge get in on the spontaneous singing and dancing that breaks out, celebrating Chapel's accomplishment, and Chapel admitting that she was ready for it, and "won't fight it" if she had to leave Spock behind. Spock stares for a moment, then quietly leaves.

La'an and Kirk are going over the specifications of the K't'inga -class they will be facing; Una had suggested the disruptor cannons and fore torpedoes, but La'an knows the aft launchers were the ones to worry about. Kirk elects to trust her aim, then asks about that "thing" she was going to tell him before in the transporter room. La'an finally admits, choosing to do so before she broke out into a 17th century sea shanty , that she had met an alternate version of Kirk. Kirk, though admittedly not one for rules, can see that La'an is about to break a big one. La'an tells him that the other Kirk had met her "real" self, because he had never heard her name or all it stood for , and admits she had liked it, liked the way he had looked at her. In his eyes, she could see who she wanted to be, someone who could feel, take chances… and make connections. Kirk asks if he was anything like that other self, and La'an at first says no… but then adds that yes, because she likes the way he looks at her, too. Kirk confesses that he had felt a similar connection when she first called him, but reminds him he was not that other Kirk. His life was complicated, perhaps not by time travel, but he admits he was in a "sometimes" relationship with Carol Marcus , a scientist on Starbase 1 . He thinks La'an would like her, and that they were both very similar in that they were dedicated to their work. He admits he didn't tend to stay in one place for very long, which was a growing problem… because Carol was pregnant . " Wow, " is all La'an can say to that.

Uhura finds Spock in engineering, clearly looking unhappy; he has been analyzing the data they gathered. He is looking for a pattern, and finding none. He adds that he was not expecting Chapel to be definitive about ending their arrangement. Uhura knows relationships are difficult. For Spock, who is half- Human , he feels things differently compared to most Vulcans. He knows Chapel's decision was logical, but nonetheless he is hurt. Taken by the music, Spock admits he had "betrayed" his core philosophies for the relationship with Chapel, and did not intend to make the same mistake again, accepting that he was "the ex" ("I'm the X"/"I'm Ready (reprise)"). The song done, he apologizes and leaves Uhura alone – to also be taken by her own song (""Keep Us Connected"), searching for the pattern, and knowing she would have to do the work alone. She also thinks on her memories of her parents and elder brother, and the shuttle crash that killed them, as well as her meeting with Hemmer when she was a cadet . She wonders if her life is meant to be lived "solo", and engrossed in her work in keeping people connected. She then has a realization, seeing the patterns repeating, and soon accepts that she was "good with solo".

Act Four [ ]

Uhura reports to Pike that the singing causes spikes in the quantum probabilities in the field. She believes if they can get the spikes to 344 giga electron volts, it would shatter the field. Spock enters then, seeing she has found the improbability-breaking event they need to escape. Pike asks how they can do it, because two more K't'inga s have been detected en route. Uhura reminds him that song could be communal – used in worship and celebration. With just a solo with some backup vocals – Chapel and Uhura earlier – they generated a spike of 40 electron volts. Uhura thinks they require a "grand finale", needing melodies and harmonies with tone ratios with both algorithmic and logarithmic balance on a mass scale. To do that, the entire crew had to sing together. Spock sees the challenge of inspiring all two hundred members of the crew to spontaneously break into song, and Pike thinks this a job for a communications officer . Uhura protests that she couldn't get the entire ship to sing, but Pike is confident that she can, as she sees the connections between them, while all the others can see was empty space.

Pike addresses the entire ship, remarking on the challenging situation, and how they may not have all been acting like a crew, but he believes they would get through together by following one voice: the voice of the Enterprise . He then turns it over to Uhura, who introduces herself, saying that while they may not all know her, she knows them. She used to think of herself as always alone, but not on this ship; each of them were connected as a crew. As she brings up the improbability field levels, Pike silently encourages her to keep going. Uhura asks what the odds were of all of them being there, together, on that ship and at that moment. The music begins, and Uhura guides them all in singing of their purpose – "to protect the mission" – and the others in the crew join in ("We Are One"), some praising Uhura for saving them, and Kirk believing it will be thanks to them that he makes captain. Little by little, the crew gets in on the music, singing and dancing through the corridors, as the electron volt levels rise. But even with the entire crew, it was not enough, and Pike has Uhura hail the Klingons. Garkog resists at first, then he and his crew break into a pop number threatening vengeance "at the ends of [their] mek'leths ". The Enterprise and the three Klingon ships spin in a musical pattern as the song reaches its climax, hitting the required levels, causing the subspace fold to explode in a shower of light. The Enterprise crew celebrates the success, though some tensions remain. For a start, Pike has Uhura hail the Klingons, thinking they had to "mend some fences".

In the crew lounge afterward, La'an is alone with her thoughts when she is joined by Una. La'an admits she told Kirk the truth, and it didn't go well; while it hurt, she is still glad she took the chance. She thinks that maybe she could be someone who took chances more often. Una toasts to that.

In his quarters, Pike is preparing dinner for himself and Batel, who is still incensed about the fact that Pike had lied to her about not wanting to go to Crivo, asking why he didn't just say he hated it. Pike tries to deflect at first, before he confesses that it sounded like his nightmare; he preferred something simple and quieter, like camping. Batel reminds him that they wouldn't work out if he couldn't be honest about something as small as a vacation, and he is apologetic. However, she has "good news and bad news" – they had more time to plan their "compromised vacation", as she had been called on a priority one mission. Pike jokingly asks how he could be sure she wasn't the one making excuses now, and Batel answers that when she comes back, they can go somewhere they both want to go, adding that she wouldn't do any camping unless it had room service. Pike calls it a deal.

All Federation ships return to normal, and Spock was able to again engage in diplomacy over bloodwine , entering the bridge feeling the effects of another hangover . As Pike enters, he thinks it might be an idea to share their findings with non-Federation ships as well, and suggests opening a channel to anyone who's nearby. As she gets to work, she begins humming the song she had sung to herself in engineering, causing the bridge crew to all look over at her. " Sorry, earworm, " she says apologetically, before returning to work.

Soundtrack [ ]

As a musical, the episode features the following songs:

• " Status Report "
• " Star Trek Strange New Worlds Main Title" ( Subspace Rhapsody Version)
• " Connect to Your Truth "
• " How Would That Feel "
• " Private Conversation "
• " Keeping Secrets "
• " I'm Ready "
• " I'm the X "
• " Keep Us Connected "
• " We Are One "
• " Subspace Rhapsody End Credit Medley"

Though not included in the official soundtrack, Uhura plays a clip of " Anything Goes ", specifically the 1962 off- Broadway cast recording by Eileen Rodgers . "We Are One" concludes with a rendition of the Star Trek: The Original Series theme by Alexander Courage .

Memorable quotes [ ]

" So... that happened. "

" So, what's next? More improbability? Or will we just suddenly poof into bunnies? " " I would prefer not be a bunny, either. " " I doubt we will be bunnies. "

" Mr. Spock, you explained that very well. I almost understood it. "

" When people sing, they are confessing highly personal… emotional information. " " Lieutenant, are you telling me our emotions constitute a security threat? " " I am. " " Well, whatever you're not saying, hope it doesn't come to that. "

" Wow. That was exciting. I mean, Spock and Uhura get to blow it up which is the real fun part but, uh… we make a good pair. "

" I tend not to stay in the same place for very long, which is… a growing problem because Carol is… pregnant. " " Oh, um… wow. "

Log entries [ ]

Background information [ ].

• The title was revealed on StarTrek.com on 22 July 2023 . [1]

Production [ ]

• This is the first licensed Star Trek production to be a musical.
• The closing credits feature an instrumental medley of three of the songs previously sung during the episode proper: "I'm Ready", "Private Conversation", and "Connect to Your Truth".
• As the episode establishes that the characters hear the music diegetically, the fact the Alexander Courage TOS theme is heard at the conclusion of the grand finale means this melody is heard in-universe for the first time.

Continuity [ ]

• The opening credits feature an a cappella choral version of the usual main title theme. This is the second Strange New Worlds episode in which the opening credits sequence has been significantly altered, following the Star Trek: Lower Decks -style credits in " Those Old Scientists ".
• First introduced in the series premiere " Strange New Worlds ", this is the first episode in which Captain Marie Batel's first name is spoken onscreen. It was previously introduced as text on a PADD in " Ad Astra per Aspera ". [2]
• This episode marks the earliest chronological appearance of the K't'inga -class , and the first time the name of the class is spoken aloud.
• In TOS : " What Are Little Girls Made Of? ", set in 2266 , it is revealed that Nurse Chapel and Dr. Roger Korby had become engaged at some point prior to his 2261 disappearance. As this episode is set in 2259 , their relationship progressed to that point within a span of two years.
• James T. Kirk mentions his relationship with Carol Marcus and her pregnancy. Dr. Carol Marcus (as well as her and Kirk's son, David Marcus ,) were originally introduced in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan .
• Subspace Rhapsody (soundtrack)

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• Anson Mount as Christopher Pike
• Ethan Peck as Spock
• Jess Bush as Christine Chapel
• Christina Chong as La'an Noonien-Singh
• Celia Rose Gooding as Nyota Uhura
• Melissa Navia as Erica Ortegas
• Babs Olusanmokun as Joseph M'Benga
• Rebecca Romijn as Una Chin-Riley

Special guest star [ ]

• James T. Kirk
• Alternate Kirk (fantasy; no lines)

Guest starring [ ]

• Melanie Scrofano as Marie Batel
• Dan Jeannotte as George Samuel Kirk
• Bruce Horak as Garkog
• Carol Kane as Pelia

Co-starring [ ]

• Rong Fu as Jenna Mitchell

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• Daniel Ryan-Astley as Enterprise crewmember
• Garkog's bridge crew
• Tellarite command officer

References [ ]

17th century ; admiral ; Alpha Quadrant ; Andorian ; " Anything Goes "; April, Robert ; archaeological medicine ; authors ; baritone ; bloodwine ; boatswain's whistle ; captain ; Cayuga , USS ; commander ; communications officer's log ; computer ; Constitution -class ; crew ; Crivian Planetary Museum ; Crivo ; D'Chok's Great House ; data ; deflector ; divers' watch ; doctor ; earworm ; ensign ; Enterprise , USS ; experiment ; eyepatch ; Farragut , USS ; Garkog's battle cruiser ; general ; Gilbert and Sullivan ; Glass Islands ; Great American Songbook ; Heisenberg compensator ; Human ; hybrid ; Illyrian ; Jefferies tube ; K't'inga -class ( unnamed (x2) ); Klingon ; Klingon Defense Force ; Klingon Defense Force uniform ; Korby, Roger ; Lanthanite ; laughter ; lieutenant ; lieutenant commander ; lying ; Marcus, Carol ; Marcus, David ; mek'leth ; mister ; month ; musical ; musical reality ; name ; Nimerfro , USS ; number ; nurse ; partner ; Pasteur, Louis ; pattern ; power ; pregnant ; priority one ; prose ; quarters ; Republic , USS ; rehearsed ; S/COMS ; ship ; singing ; Smoke Lakes ; song ( sea chantey ); speed ; star chart ; stardate ; Starfleet uniform ; stocking ; subspace communications ; subspace fold ; Tellarite ; transporter room ; turbolift ; voice ; Vulcan (species); Vulcan Science Academy ; warp core ; words (" four-letter words "); xenoanthropology ; zipper

S/COMS references [ ]

aperture ; artificial gravity ; buffer capacity ; communications log ; compensation factor ; coordinates ; crew quarters ; deflector array ; electromagnetic emission ; electronvolt ; engineering ; Farragut -type ; gravitational radiation ; improbability level ; perimeter alert ; power system ; rate of dematerialization ; rate of refraction ; ready room ; receiver ; spacetime distortion ; subspace fissure ; system operations ; transmission band limit ; transmitter ; transporter ; transporter chief ; wavelength

Soundtrack references [ ]

alone (aka solo ); blood ; brother ; cadet ; containment field ; conversation ; dad ; dramas ; " draw your last breath "; ex ; Hemmer ; intermix chamber ; mom ; " pick up the pieces "; screaming ; torture ; Uhura's brother ; Uhura's father ; Uhura's mother ; X ; Y

Star chart references [ ]

'etnap Nebula ; 81 Cancri ; Acamar ; Aldebaran ; Adelphous ; Ajilon ; Akaali ; Algol ; Alpha Centauri ; Alpha Majoris ; Andoria ; Aneto ; Archanis ; Archanis sector ; Ardana ; Argelius ; Argus Array ; Azati Prime ; B'Moth ; Babel ; Balduk ; Barolia ; Barradas ; Benecia ; Beta Lankal ; Beta Leonis Minoris ; Beta Niobe ; Beta Tauri ; Beta Thoridar ; Beta Zeta ; Betazed ; blue ; Boreth ; Brestant ; Cait ; Cajitar ; Capella ; Cardassia Prime ; Carraya ; Celes ; Cestus ; Chantico Nebula ; Chin'toka ; Cor Caroli ; Coridan ; Corvan ; Cygnet ; D'Ryb J ; Davlos ; Dayos ; Deep Space 2 ; Deep Space Station K-7 ; Delphi Ardu ; Delta Outpost ; Delta Outpost 10 ; Delta Outpost 11 ; Delta Outpost 3 ; Delta Outpost 4 ; Delta Outpost 5 ; Delta Outpost 6 ; Delta Outpost 7 ; Delta Outpost 8 ; Delta Outpost 9 ; Demilitarized Zone ; Deneb (aka Kaitos ); Deneva ; Denobula ; Doctari Alpha ; Donatu ; Dorala ; Dreon ; Earth ; Elas ; Eminiar ; Epsilon Ceti B ; Epsilon Hydrae ; Epsilon IV ; Epsilon Outpost ; Epsilon Outpost 1 ; Epsilon Outpost 2 ; Epsilon Outpost 3 ; Epsilon Outpost 4 ; Epsilon Outpost 5 ; Epsilon Outpost 6 ; Epsilon Outpost 7 ; Epsilon Outpost 8 ; Epsilon Outpost 9 ; Eridani ; Evora ; FGC-321 ; Forcas ; Free Haven ; Galdonterre ; Galen ; Galorndon Core ; Gamma Eridon ; Gamma Hromi ; Gamma Tauri ; Ganalda ; Gariman sector ; Gorath ; Gorn Hegemony ; Grazer ; green ; H'atoria ; Halee ; Halka ; Harlak ; Hetemit ; Hood , USS ; Hromi Cluster ; Iridin ; J'Gal ; Janus ; Japori ; Jouret ; Kaferia ; Kantare ; Kazar ; Kelfour ; Khitomer ; Kiley ; Klaestron ; Klingon Empire ; Kobliad ; Kongo , USS ; Korinar ; Korvat ; Kressari ; Lexington , USS ; Lya Station Alpha ; Mab-Bu ; Majalis ; Maluria ; Manzar ; Megara ; Mempa ; Mempa sector ; Merak ; Minos Korva ; Miridian ; Mizar ; Morska ; Narendra ; Nequencia ; Nivalla ; No'Mat ; O'Ryan's Planet ; Ogat ; Omega ; Omega Leonis ; Organia ; Orion ; Outpost MZ-5 ; Pahvo ; Peliar Zel ; Persephone ; Pheben ; Pi³ Orionis ; Planet Q ; Platonius ; Porathia ; Potemkin , USS ; Preenos ; Priors World ; Prospero ; Qo'noS ; Qo'noS sector ; Quam ; R'ongovia ; Ramatis ; red ; Regulus ; Renavi ; Risa ; Romulan Neutral Zone ; Romulan Star Empire ; Rura Penthe ; Sarpedion ; Scalos ; Septimus ; Setlik ; Sherman's Planet ; Sigma Draconis ; Sol ; Sorna Prime ; Starbase 11 ; Starbase 18 ; Starbase 2 ; Starbase 21 ; Starbase 211 ; Starbase 234 ; Starbase 24 ; Starbase 4 ; Starbase 46 ; Starbase 88 ; Starbase 9 ; Starbase G-6 ; Suliban ; Talar ; Talarian Republic ; Talos ; Tagra ; Tau Ceti ; Thasus ; Tellun ; Thalos ; Tholia ; Tholian Assembly ; Tiburon ; Tika ; Tonnata ; Toroth ; Tribble Prime ; Trill ; Troyius ; Turkana ; Unefra ; Valiant , USS ; Ventax ; Vulcan (system); Wolf 359 ; Wurna Minor ; Xahea ; Xarantine ; Xepolite ; Y'tem ; Ya'Vang ; yellow ; Yridia ; Zibal

External link [ ]

• " Subspace Rhapsody " at the Internet Movie Database
• 3 Marlys Burdette

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Weird Al Yankovic – Star Trek Rhapsody lyrics

Kirk: I am the captain of the Starship Enterprise. Spock: Captain Kirk: This is Spock. Please step on the transporter. Scotty: Dilithium crystals! Hit by Klingon missiles! No! McCoy: I'm a doctor! Kirk: Not an actor! McCoy: Not a milkman! Kirk: What does that mean? McCoy: And I'm sorry -- He's dead, Jim. Chekov: Photon torpedo . . . ! Kirk: Lieutenant Uhura, Open hailing frequencies Uhura: Yes, Captain Kirk, Opening hailing frequencies, sir Kirk: Let's boldly go where no one's gone before! Ha ha ha ha ha ha . . . Beam me up, Mr. Scott; Sulu, go to warp! Sulu: Warp three, sir. Kirk: No! That will be way too slow! Sulu: Warp four, sir? Kirk: That still is way too slow! Sulu: Warp five, sir. Kirk: It still is too damn slow! Sulu: Warp six. Kirk: It's too damn slow! Sulu: Warp seven? Kirk: It's still damn slow! Chorus: It's too damn slow . . . ! Kirk: No, no, no, no, no, no, no! Mr. Chekov, Mr. Chekov -- Chekov: I am firing torpedo! Spock: That will not work and would be illogical To me, to me, to me . . . !

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