Summary

• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 may finally answer a mystery that started 57 years ago in Star Trek: The Original Series.
• Lieutenant James T. Kirk has integrated seamlessly into the crew of the USS Enterprise and has links to other characters, including Lt. La'an Noonien-Singh.
• The introduction of Gary Mitchell in season 3 could solve a long-standing question about Kirk's past, and Carol Marcus is speculated to be the "little blonde lab technician" he almost married.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 has the answer to a mystery that began in Star Trek: The Original Series 57 years ago if a pair of pivotal characters appear. Strange New Worlds successfully introduced Lieutenant James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley) and integrated him into the crew of the USS Enterprise commanded by Captain Christopher Pike (Anson Mount). Even though Kirk is assigned to the USS Farragut as First Officer, James has smoothly fit in on the Enterprise, the starship he is destined to lead as Captain.

In Strange New Worlds season 2, Lt. Kirk met Ensign Nyota Uhura (Celia Rose Gooding) and his future best friend, Lt. Spock (Ethan Peck), for the first time, setting into motion over three decades of loyalty and adventures by the iconic Enterprise trio. Kirk also has another link to the Enterprise in his friendship with Lt. La'an Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong). James and La'an share a mutual attraction, although Kirk can't act on it because he confessed to La'an that his on-again/off-again girlfriend, Carol Marcus, is pregnant. However, Strange New Worlds season 3 can introduce other significant figures from Kirk's past who factor into Star Trek: The Original Series, and answer one of TOS's oldest questions as a result.

Strange New Worlds Can Answer A 57-Year Old Star Trek Mystery

Strange New Worlds season 3 can potentially introduce Gary Mitchell to answer a question he left behind in Star Trek: The Original Series' second pilot episode, "Where No Man Has Gone Before." In Strange New Worlds' prequel timeframe, Mitchell is still alive and potentially serving on the USS Farragut with Lt. Kirk. Gary Mitchell's (Gary Lockwood) and James Kirk's (William Shatner) friendship goes way back to Starfleet Academy when Kirk was his instructor, who Mitchell described as "a stack of books with legs." To ease up on his Academy workload from Kirk, Gary set Jim up with a "little blonde lab technician" whom Kirk almost married, but it was never revealed who this mystery woman was.

By introducing Gary Mitchell, Strange New Worlds season 3 can finally solve this mystery, and the identity of the "little blonde lab technician" could very well be Carol Marcus. It's the simplest solution; after all, Carol is blonde, and she is the future mother of Kirk's son, David Marcus (Merritt Butrick). Other women introduced in TOS could also be Kirk's "little blonde lab technician," including Ruth (Shirley Bonne) from the TOS episode "Shore Leave" and Janet Wallace (Sarah Marshall) from the TOS episode, "The Deadly Years," but Carol Marcus would be the most logical and satisfying answer.

Will Carol Marcus & Gary Mitchell Appear In Strange New Worlds Season 3?

Although it's not confirmed whether Paul Wesley will reprise Lt. James T. Kirk in Strange New Worlds season 3, it would make sense to not only continue the young Kirk's development and relationship with the Starship Enterprise's crew but also introduce younger versions of Star Trek: The Original Series characters tied to Kirk's history, including Gary Mitchell and Carol Marcus. Carol has already been name-dropped, which created an expectation she would appear in Strange New Worlds. Mitchell would also be a fascinating guest star, which would seed Gary and Kirk's friendship before its inevitable ending when TOS' "Where No Man Has Gone Before."

Carol Marcus was played by Bibi Besch in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, which happens about 25 years after Strange New Worlds season 2. Carol was also played by Alice Eve in Star Trek Into Darkness, which takes place in the alternate Kelvin Timeline of J.J. Abrams' Star Trek movies. Strange New Worlds has proven how deftly it can juggle multiple character arcs and relationship storylines, and it seamlessly wove James T. Kirk into the series. Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 3 should have no trouble introducing the younger Carol Marcus and Gary Mitchell to answer one of the oldest questions posed by Star Trek: The Original Series.