Bringing the Lower Decks crew to Star Trek: Strange New Worlds required a few tricky genre-blending maneuvers.
"It was probably more complicated than we anticipated just in terms of tone," Strange New Worlds executive producer Akiva Goldsman admitted in an interview with StarTrek.com. As the first Trek crossover starring Star Trek: Lower Deck's original characters in live-action -- complete with Tawny Newsome and Jack Quaid playing their respective ensigns -- Goldsman nevertheless revealed that merging the shows' styles together, "allowed us to get something pretty lovely. We were served in the best possible way by Tawny and Jack, and Jonathan Frakes, who was directing. We have funny people there."
Likewise, co-executive producer Henry Alonso Myers insisted that Lower Deck's unique tone will be properly incorporated into the episode. "We really wanted to show and have it feel like Lower Decks," he said. "We had to find a way to touch on that for people who like both shows." However, the duo also made a critical distinction between these shows' formats, with Goldsman labeling the crossover, "a Strange New Worlds episode with Lower Decks joining. It's not a Lower Decks episode."
What to Expect From Strange New Worlds Season 2
First announced in 2022 during San Diego Comic-Con, fans received their look at the Lower Deck/Strange New Worlds team-up in an official Season 2 trailer. While they only appear briefly, the trailer ended with Newsome's Beckett Mariner and Quaid's Brad Boimler standing in a Transporter room with Captain Christopher Pike. Before dematerializing them, Spock offers Boimler his signature "Live long and prosper" farewell, only for Boimler to fumble his response in turn. Other plot details, including how Mariner and Boimler wound up on the USS Enterprise, have yet to be announced.
Along with the Lower Decks cast, Strange New Worlds Season 2 received a new addition in Carol Kane's Commander Pelia, a Starfleet engineer and member of the Lanthanite species. Like season 1, the new season has been very well-received, with CBR's review deeming Strange New Worlds, "just as strong as ever, avoiding the sophomore slump, while more willing to take creative risks as it puts the focus on its characters."
Paramount+ has renewed both Strange New Worlds and Lower Decks, but recently canceled Trek's other animated series Star Trek: Prodigy, despite previously greenlighting it for a second season. It's unclear whether the cartoon will be acquired by another streaming platform, though executive producer Aaron J. Waltke revealed that 20 episodes of Prodigy Season 2 are "nearly complete/exclusive for debut."
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 is currently streaming on Paramount+.
Source: StarTrek.com