Why are [SPOILERS] only remembered as lieutenants? And where is…
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 4 will feature the return of the entire core cast. However, was the fate of three SNW characters actually teased during season 1 of the Starfleet Academy series? The famed Wall of Heroes, which appears on SFA and includes the names of Starfleet’s best and brightest, listed La’an Noonien Singh and Erica Ortegas as lieutenants — and I couldn't find Number One’s name, Una Chin-Riley, at all!
For those who are new to the Star Trek fandom, La’an (Christina Chong) and Erica (Melissa Navia) are original characters created for Strange New Worlds, and they are both ranked as lieutenants on the 32nd century wall of fame — some 800 years in the future.
And what about Number One, aka Lt. Commander Una Chin-Riley (Rebecca Romijn)? On SNW, she is already second in command of the USS Enterprise, so she would have surely garnered her on command, at the very least, by the end of such an illustrious career.
Does the absence of Number One’s name on the Wall of Heroes mean that the character dies during either season 4 or 5 of Strange New Worlds (23rd century)? I also worry that similar fates await La’an and Erica since they are still listed as lieutenants in Starfleet Academy's 32nd century.
Navia participated in an interview with TrekCulture, and she was actually asked about her character being listed on Starfleet Academy’s Wall of Heroes as only a lieutenant.
Obviously, Navia didn’t give away any spoilers about Erica Ortegas’ fate, but I didn’t expect she would. Navia is always extremely friendly but also very savvy when it comes to approaching the media, and she was not going to let a tribble-sized spoiler out of the quadrotriticale storage bins.
So, what do you think? Are you also worried showrunners Akiva Goldsman and Henry Alonso Myers might kill off these beloved characters? 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!
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