The teaser trailer for Star Trek: Starfleet Academy's next new episode has been released, teasing what looks like the most-action packed episode of the season thus far. Up until now, most of what our cadets have had to deal with has been fairly low-stakes. But when Starfleet discovers an abandoned ship, they also encounter a dangerous new enemy.
"During the cadets’ first training mission on an abandoned ship, they encounter a dangerous new enemy," the episode description teases. "As our cadets fight for survival, Nahla must risk everything to save them by seeking help from an unexpected, untrustworthy, source."
The trailer reveals this new enemy to be "the Furies," a deadly new species we've not yet seen before. As far as Star Trek canon goes, the Furies are a completely new species; however, the name may sound familiar to anyone who has ever read the Star Trek: Invasion! book series from the mid-90s.
In this crossover series, the Furies are a powerfuly and highly intelligent extra-dimensional alien species who are capable of possessing and influencing other beings. Masters of manipulation, they operate through psychological warfare, infiltration, and proxy conflicts.
As beloved as the Invasion series is, it's technically not canon within the TV and film continuity. It exists as part of the old Star Trek expanded universe. Now we don't know if these Furies are the same ones from the Legends universe, but it sure would be awesome if the writers of Starfleet Academy used these books as inspiration. That said, the Furies in Invasion! are more about subversion and chaos tactics rather than full-out assault seen in the trailer.
Elsewhere in the trailer, we see the return of Paul Giamatti's Nus Braka. We haven't seen the volatile antagonist on screen since the first episode, so his return is quite exciting. As I predicted, it looks like he'll serve as the "unexpected, untrustworthy source" that helps save these cadets from what looks to be certain death.
After multiple episodes that focused more on academy lessons, it's nice to see Starfleet Academy raise the stakes a bit and introduce some real conflict and dangerous threats.
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Episode 6, “Come, Let’s Away," is written by Kenneth Lin and Kiley Rosseter, and directed by Larry Teng. Thenew episode will premiere on Thursday, February 12th exclusively on Paramount+. If you want to see more about the episode ahead of its release, be sure to check out the all-new batch of photos.
How are you enjoing the series so far? Let us know in the comments below.