Star Trek: Strange New Worlds S4 Ep. 5-Level Five Transporter Accident

• Directed by Jordan Canning
• Written by Skylar Ojeda and Dana Horgan
• August 20, 2026
• Paramount+
• A humiliation of Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry courtesy of Alex Kurtzman

Episode Cast

• Captain Christopher Pike-Anson Mount
• Commander Una Chin-Riley-Rebecca Romijn
• Lt. Spock-Ethan Peck
• Nurse Christine Chapel-Jess Bush
• Lt. La’An Noonien-Singh-Christina Chong
• Ensign Nyota Uhura-Celia Rose Gooding
• Lt. Erica Ortegas-Melissa Navia
• Dr. Joseph M’Benga-Babs Olusanmokun
• Lt. Montgomery Scott-Martin Quinn
• Commander Pelia-Carol Kane
• Admiral Robert April-Adrian Holmes
• USS Enterprise Computer (voice)-Alex Kapp
• T’Pring-Gia Sandhu
• Captain Ch’Rol-Rachael Harris
• Ejachi-Joe Lo Truglio
• Red Shirt-Landon Nesbitt
• Orion Pirate-Darryl Scheelar

After a ship wide transporter accident turns everyone into puppets, Spock must fight to reclaim the ship from Orion pirates.

We have reached the long-teased puppet episode. Level Five Transporter Accident was possibly the MOST teased episode of Season Four with the feeling that Valles Marineris got tossed out there in the teasing because this SNW version of Smile Time was not getting people excited.

Transporter accident episodes are nothing new. TOS did it as did TNG as did DS9 as did VOY. Not sure about ENT. Point is despite numerous times with characters labeling transporter as the safest way to travel it’s had its fair share of dangers. Those dangers have been used to make a point or exam something. This is just a wacky story like the old Lost in Space might do. Comedic science fiction aimed more at children than adults.

I’m not against a lighter episode of Star Trek. They can be entertaining if not outright funny. The Trouble with Tribbles was funny and The Magnificent Ferengi had some excellent dark humor. I still laugh when they use neural stimulators to reanimate Keevan. But those were a treat and not the norm. There was also a point to it all rather than ‘wacky space adventure’.

T’Pring (Gia Sandhu) makes yet another appearance on the show despite dialogue in Amok Time implying she and Spock had not seen each other in quite some time. The character adds nothing to the episode and despite Spock wanting to connect with her to help with his logic, she does not even help with that. Sandhu and Peck perform stiffer than a marble statue having forgotten (or never having learned) that Vulcans are flesh and blood instead of machines.

It gets things wrong like Vulcans using the word ‘happy’ (an emotional state) over something more neutral like ‘pleased’ or ‘satisfied’. A good Star Trek script takes some thought. It is one of many things that were done so wrong. The ending did not excuse that.

Not to ruin too much but the big reveal of this is that it’s all a dream. One of many issues with that is there are elements shown without Spock (Ethan Peck) who is having the dream. Conversations between Scottie (Martin Quinn) and Commander Pelia (Carol Kane) that discus and work through aspects of their relationship make no sense like being a dream was an afterthought. Or the writers did not know how to tell a story just from Spock’s perspective because why would Spock dream about the crew plotting to rescue him?

I have trouble understanding why Spock’s mind created a scenario where he for a bit had to run the whole ship or the transporter created a pulse that did anything. Does Star Trek no longer employ technical advisors or story editors to maintain plausibility? Our Man Bashir may have pushed the envelope but the scenario had an adequate explanation to get you through the episode.

The transporter accident is connected to Scottie trying to break a beaming distance record established by a rival in a nod to the Kelvin films that made us all ask why they still needed starships. Let us also not forget the running gag of them referencing once again Scottie sticking himself in a pattern buffer to survive.

Before the reveal of it all being a dream, I could not understand why nobody used a stylus since the puppet crew had trouble working the controls. SNW and Star Trek in general lately has had no trouble mixing things up a bit. I would think with the use of touchscreens over buttons like in the later set TOS then why could they not use a stylus to do some rudimentary things. Or why couldn’t Spock just set a course for the nearest starbase over waiting for a ship to arrive? It has been shown one person can conduct simple maneuvers or control the ship enough to travel (warp) so why not, with a little guidance, did they not have Spock take the ship elsewhere? The glove Scottie makes solves the contact issue, but it just feel like an excessive solution.

We get Orion Space Pirates lead by Captain Ch’Rol (Rachael Harris). She is more mean than a threat. Her evil is more rude than piracy. As a villain she is not dangerous. I cannot say much of anything about her. She’s not really evil or an antagonist. Mean or jerky is not the same as evil. Star Trek doesn’t seem to get that anymore. Her aid Ejachi (Joe Lo Truglio) is way less intimidating. Both unimpressive adversaries give this a low stakes feel.

A regular mistake this show makes is putting characters with plot armor in jeopardy. Last episode it was Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) whom we know makes it to retirement. This episode it is Pike (Anson Mount) who, in puppet form, is shot into space. We know he makes it to Talos IV so he will survive. Shoot any number of OTHER characters into space! Una (Rebecca Romijn), La’An (Christina Chong), Ortegas (Melissa Navia), and Commander Pelia (Carol Kane) all have dubious post series fates. Use them.

Jim Henson’s Creature Shop created the puppets and kudos to them. They did an excellent job as one would expect. Good or bad when the puppets reacted, they reacted like Muppets would. It gets old and pushes this into the realm of being a children’s show.

The first episode was Jurassic Park. The second episode was an X-Files episode. The third was Dude, Where’s My Car? or any stoner comedy. The fourth was an attempt at Casablanca. And now we have Smile Time. This does not draw from Star Trek in a shallow way or some deep cut. This is the writers living out their dream of writing for another show. This is not a subtle genre acknowledgment.

It was hard to invest in the episode based on a lack of a good explanation of a ship wide transporter incident. Rascals and Tuvix were both accident episodes (though not dreams), but given what viewers knew of how transporters worked were plausible enough to believe it could happen for the duration of the story. Unlike other transporter episodes, this created a whole new lifeform made of living fabric. We see characters survive the vacuum of space, get holes stitched, or arms removed to reveal stuffing.

Level Five Transporter Accident was just another gimmick episode that failed to think itself through or discern, whether or not, they actually should. It’s bereft of humor and intellect and entertainment value.