“Never say never.”
Captain Christopher Pike’s tragic fate is a central theme in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. In The Original Series episode, “The Menagerie,” it’s revealed that Pike was badly injured by Delta Rays radiation, confined to a wheelchair, left unable to speak, and disabled. Actor Anson Mount’s version of the character learns about his own similar destiny in the Discovery episode “Through the Valley of Shadows.”
However, despite what lies ahead for the current captain of the USS Enterprise, Mount has a positive outlook about whether Christopher Pike will return after the fifth and final season of Strange New Worlds. Mount said in an interview with TV Insider, “I’ve learned in this business, never say never. And who knows?”
Mount continued by saying:
“But you have to be able to not hold on to things. Live in the moment. That’s both an acting lesson and a life lesson, and you really have to get good at it if you’re going to live this life. So, I say, ‘You never know.’ I got a call from Kevin Feige to come back and play Black Bolt. That was great. Never say never. But at the same time, don’t hold on to anything.”
Like myself, many Star Trek fans love Mount’s portrayal of Captain Pike. Certainly, the character could return even after the accident, but I’d like to circle back and address what Mount said at the end: “Don’t hold on to anything.” While he meant it in a different context, I’d like to use it to posit what is even more probable.
Yes, Strange New Worlds is a prequel to The Original Series, but it is NOT directly connected to it. The streaming sequel has taken many liberties over the years in regard to the foundation laid down by TOS. What I mean is that Mount's Captain Pike may end up avoiding the accident altogether in SNW.
This is not the same version of Pike that Jeffrey Hunter originally portrayed. I know this will undoubtedly bother some Strange New Worlds enthusiasts, but the simple fact is that Hunter’s iteration of Pike never met James T. Kirk (William Shatner) until he was promoted to Fleet Captain.
In Strange New Worlds, Kirk (Paul Wesley) is a recurring character that interacts with Pike — who is still only captain of the Enterprise — all the time. I’d also like to point out that SNW is also an offshoot of the Kelvin Timeline.
Wesley’s "A Quality of Mercy" version of Kirk says in the streaming series that his father served as first officer aboard the USS Kelvin — a vessel that first appeared in J.J. Abrams Star Trek (2009) some 30 years after TOS went off the air. Chris Pine's Kirk also had a father (Chris Hemsworth) who served aboard the Kelvin — a completely different James T. Kirk but still in the Kelvin Universe.
At the end of the day, Mount’s Christopher Pike is simply another version of the character, not unlike the Kelvin Timeline Pike portrayed by Bruce Greenwood, who faced a far deadlier fate than the Delta Rays radiation at the hands of Khan (Benedict Cumberbatch). “Don’t hold on to anything,” Star Trek fans.
Mount is playing a completely different version of the character. That distinction opens up even more doors and ways Pike could return in the future, assuming he, in fact, somehow avoids the fate he saw in Discovery’s “Through the Valley of Shadows,” which pays homage to the Delta Ray accident Pike endured in The Original Series.
Are you like me hoping this version of Captain Pike saves the day, but gets to walk away from commanding the Enterprise on his own terms? Share your thoughts and comments with us on the Redshirts Always Die Facebook and X pages. And Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 debuts Thursday, July 23, on Paramount+.
Live long and prosper, Trekkies!
Add us as a preferred source on Google