6 Ups And 3 Downs From Star Trek: Strange New Worlds 3.6 — The Sehlat Who Ate Its Tail
7. UP — Keep (Kind Of) Calm And Baryon
It's an UP for the duo, and thankfully not another couple, formed by La'An and Pike this week. The pair complement each other effortlessly as they attempt to thwart the scavengers' dastardly plans for the Enterprise. Well-crafted moments of levity between the two provide temporary relief for the underlying tension of the episode. Even Pelia's interruption into the dynamic was rather funny. Don't kill the messenger. She probably knew Sophocles as well.
More widely, and not without the odd caveat, La'An has been one to watch so far this season. At the very beginning of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, the series, La'An admitted that she found people "challenging" (don't we all). Now, after some great character progression and insight, to see her excel as chief of security and be comfortable around others is a boon. Her own dry, often dark, sense of humour is always sharper than a sehlat's tooth. This week, it was on full display. Pike really will just have to get another bottle from that Ithenite distillery!
Baryon particles plus deuterium stream of the umbilical cord also equals possible explosion that could take out the entire engineering hull, as La'An pointed out to Pike, calmly but wryly. Pike's comment in return, also calm, also wry, was one of the best lines of the episode: "a big step, then?"