Unusual New Worlds’ Paid Off a ‘Physician Who’ Joke

The newest episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds planted the seeds for what’ll ultimately develop into traditional Star Trek by giving James Kirk (Paul Wesley) time within the captain’s chair. Alongside the best way, it additionally determined to have a bit crossover with Physician Who.

On this week’s “The Sehlat Who Ate Its Tail,” Kirk and the Farragut crew should rescue the Enterprise from the tendrils of a power-draining scavenger ship. All through the episode, the digicam cuts to the wrapped up Enterprise, and every establishing shot incorporates a tiiiiiiny glimpse on the Physician’s TARDIS on tendrils protecting the ship’s left engine.

In the course of the premiere of Ncuti Gatwa’s inaugural Who season, the Fifteenth Physician’s companion Ruby compares his transporter expertise to Star Trek, which he agrees with and suggests they go take a look at that universe someday. Properly, it occurred right here in “Sehlat,” and after the Enterprise breaks free, the TARDIS has disappeared.

For the Who heads who watched Gatwa’s two seasons, this little Unusual New Worlds cameo may be learn one in all two methods: both the TARDIS additionally obtained trapped within the tendrils and left as soon as it might keep away from the explosion that worn out the scavenger ship, or it survived mentioned explosion due to its shields after which left with out anybody conscious. It feels like this Doctor would’ve let the scavenger crew perish, since they’ve been stealing energy from ships and killing the crews inside for hundreds of years.

Throughout 2024’s San Diego Comedian-Con, then-Who showrunner Russell T. Davies and Star Trek architect Alex Kurtzman did a panel collectively, the place Davies talked about he’d love to do a Trek episode that includes the Borg. This most likely received’t result in such a crossover, however when it does occur, this generally is a enjoyable point out made by the Physician for viewers members within the know.

Need extra io9 information? Try when to count on the most recent Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s subsequent for the DC Universe on film and TV, and every thing you have to find out about the way forward for Doctor Who.