Strange New Worlds Season 3 Will Finally Give Lieutenant Ortegas A Star Trek Episode Worthy Of Her Greatness

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds co-showrunner Henry Alonso Myers teases an episode that will finally put the focus on Lieutenant Erica Ortegas (Melissa Navia). Debuting in 2022, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 is currently airing on Paramount+.

The series follows the crew of the USS Enterprise years before Captain Kirk took command of the ship. Much like how Kirk is not yet in the Captain's chair, Lieutenant Sulu has not taken over as helmsman, with that role being filled by Ortegas.

In an interview with ScreenRant's Joe Deckelmeier, Myers teases an episode that will focus on Ortegas. He points out that the character is often heavily involved in storylines because of her invaluable skill as a pilot. The upcoming episode will get to dive into her history, and Myers describes it as "one of my favorite things that we've ever done."

One of the great things about Melissa is she's literally at the center of every storyline, because she's at the helm. She is incredibly great with comedy, and was really easy to fit into lots of different stories, but one of the things that we hadn't gotten a chance to do was to give her her own story and drive, and learn something about her history. That is absolutely one of the things that we get to do in season 3.

And there is an episode that deals directly with her that, I think, is one of my favorite things that we've ever done. You haven't seen it yet. I'm excited for you to see it.

What This Means For Season 3

Ortegas Will Finally Get An Episode

Ortegas has been a key player on the Enterprise since Strange New Worlds began. Her character can be deadly serious, but she also has a sense of humor, good camaraderie with the crew, and is highly skilled at her job. However, what will happen to the character in the future remains a mystery, as by the time of Star Trek: The Original Series, Ortegas is nowhere to be seen.

An episode focusing on Ortegas will give an opportunity to get to know the character better. Season 3 has already introduced her brother, so family ties will likely play a part in the Ortegas-centric episode. Despite almost always being part of the action, Strange New Worlds will finally dedicate some more time to the character.

Our Take On The Upcoming Episode

It's Good To Put A Spotlight On All Of The Bridge Crew

Strange New Worlds is right to spotlight all of the members of the bridge crew. The series shares the most similarities with TOS and Star Trek: The Next Generation, where the focus was on the main bridge crew. When Star Trek: Discovery debuted, it changed this formula, where many bridge crew members became secondary, with very little time dedicated to them.

It has already been announced that Star Trek: Strange New Worlds will be ending with season 5. With that in mind, it's good to give the main characters an episode dedicated to them. As the show has 10-episode seasons, and only 6 episodes in season 5, there isn't as much time to spend on all of the characters. Although it took three seasons, Ortegas will finally get an episode that revolves around her.