Star Trek Strange New Worlds Season 2 Episode 2 Reaction / Review - Ad Astra per Aspera

Commander Una Chin-Riley faces court-martial along with possible imprisonment and dishonorable dismissal from Starfleet, and her defense is in the hands of a lawyer who’s also a childhood friend with whom she had a terrible falling out.

SNW S02E02 Memory Alpha Teaser Summary:

Una thinks back to an injury that occurred during her childhood, her parents worried that her Illyrian genetics would be discovered if they went to a hospital. In the present, she is seated across from Captain Batel, who tells her Starfleet is willing to offer a deal: If Una pleads guilty, she will be granted a dishonorable discharge, with no prison time. Una notes the "dishonorable" part, but Batel assures her that it would not result in her exile; she would be a free citizen of the Federation, and Starfleet would seal her records. She considers it a "good deal" given the evidence, and Una's defender from the Judge Advocate General's office agrees. Una elects to "sidebar" that particular conversation, and Batel gets up to leave and allow Una to speak with her counsel. Una pointedly asks how she can get proper counsel when her defender works for Batel.

Meanwhile, Captain Pike has traveled to a world in the Vaultera Nebula seeking legal aid for Una; the planet's atmosphere is not suitable for Humans, and so he is forced to wear a breathing mask. He seats himself in the office of Counselor Neera Katoul, whose secretary speaks with her boss about Pike still being there. Afterwards, the secretary turns and tells Pike that the counselor could not see him today, as she was completely booked. Pike replies he can wait. However, his oxygen supply is at two percent, and begins beeping with an alarm; the secretary takes this as evidence that Pike actually can't wait. "Try me," is his response, as the oxygen runs out entirely. The secretary scrambles to get Pike his meeting.

Katoul adjusts the atmosphere in her office for Pike. He knows that she and her people were Illyrians, and Katoul had thought this fact would grant a measure of privacy. Katoul had known it was only a matter of time before Una was outed, and that Starfleet would never allow an Illyrian to serve openly, but that was not her problem. Pike isn't sure what happened between the two of them, but points out Una is her friend; Katoul replies that Una is not her friend, and neither is Pike. Pike knows this is because of her opposition to the Federation's policy. He admits that Starfleet (and he himself) was wrong about Illyrians, explaining about the mission to the abandoned Illyrian colony on Hetemit IX, which wasn't so abandoned. There, he discovered what happens to Illyrians trying to reverse their genetic modifications so that the Federation would accept them. Katoul sarcastically congratulates him for discovering empathy, and asks him to let her know when the rest of the Federation caught up. Pike reminds her that Starfleet wanted to dismiss Una from the service. Katoul thinks dishonorable discharge was "getting off easy"; given Starfleet's "draconian" race laws, she should be glad she was not being charged with sedition. Pike is surprised, as the proceedings were sealed, but Katoul has her ways of getting to the truth to save her clients' lives.

...

Una and Katoul are waiting in Admiral Javas' office for the prosecution to arrive. A moment later, Batel enters, accompanied by Vice Admiral Pasalk. Batel informs Javas that the charges are being amended: in addition to falsifying her records and violating Starfleet's code against genetic modification, Una was now being charged with two counts of sedition, with the recommended penalty being dishonorable dismissal and twenty years imprisonment in a Federation penal colony.

Strange New World Season 2 Cast:
Carol Kane as Commander Pelia
Melissa Navia as Erica Ortegas
Christina Chong as La’an Noonien-Singh
Celia Rose Gooding as Nyota Uhura
Babs Olusanmokun as Joseph M’Benga
Jess Bush as Nurse Christine Chapel
Rebecca Romijn as Una Chin-Riley / Number One
Ethan Peck as Spock
Anson Mount as Christopher Pike
Melanie Scrofano as Captain Batel
Adrian Holmes as Admiral Robert April
Yetide Badaki as Counselor Neera Ketoul

Qapla' all... This is my reaction and review for Star Trek Strange New Worlds Season 2, Episode 2, Ad Astra per Aspera.

Captain Pike, Spock, Uhura and the rest are back for a new season of Trek on Paramount+.

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