Fans of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds have gotten used to its unique retcons of Trek history. Among them is the revelation that Mr. Spock (Ethan Peck) and Nurse Christine Chapel (Jess Bush) had a romantic relationship, which came to an end in season 2's musical episode, "Subspace Rhapsody." Bush talked about the fan reaction to the breakup and even seemed to agree with fans on how "brutal" it was (via TrekMovie.com). The actress said:
“Yeah, look, I didn’t write it… I got to be honest, when I read the script for the musical, I was like [to episode co-writer Bill Wolkoff], 'Bill, this is brutal, like, what?' But, yeah, look, I don’t know what to say. I honestly don’t know what to say. I think that it was a brutal end, but we — it might not be the end. Who knows?”
Even though Trek fans knew the romance was always doomed, having it end almost as soon as it started was unexpected. It was as if the writers bowed to fan demand to get Spock and Chapel together, only to split them too fast.
The pair continued to work together in season 3 with some tension between them. However, Chapel was with Roger Korby (Cillian O’Sullivan), who, in Trek lore, becomes her fiance, according to The Original Series episode, "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" That would seem to forever doom Spock and Chapel, but then again, Strange New Worlds may have a surprise wrinkle in this romance.
Maybe the beloved Vulcan will just keep on dancing with La'an Noonien Singh instead. Share your thoughts and comments about Spock and Chapel's breakup with us on the Redshirts Always Die Facebook and X pages. And Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is streaming on Paramount+.