Movies & TV Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Unfound Footage — Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: “What is Starfleet? This week’s episode tackles a confusing bit of Star Trek lore: how exactly does Starfleet function? By Keith R.A. DeCandido | Published on August 21, 2025 Credit: Paramount+ Comment 0 Share New Share Credit: Paramount+ One of the dumbest lines of dialogue ever uttered on a Star Trek TV show—and in a lot of ways, one of the most damaging to the franchise—was put in the mouth of Jean-Luc Picard in the second-season TNG episode “Peak Performance.” He said, “Starfleet is not a military organization, its purpose is exploration.” Those words are utter fucking nonsense, and are borne of Gene Roddenberry’s tendency late in life to believe his own bullshit—and also, apparently, forgetting that “military” and “militaristic” are two different words that mean different things. First of all, the dichotomy Picard implies in that line of dialogue doesn’t exist: being a military and having your purpose be exploration aren’t mutually exclusive. Secondly, of course Starfleet is a military organization. It has a rank structure. It has rules and regulations that must be obeyed. Those rules are enforced via courts-martial that are independent of the civilian legal system. Roddenberry served in the military (he was a lieutenant in the Army Air Corps during World War II), so you’d think he’d have remembered that. This philosophy in general and that line in particular has been the source of a great number of arguments and a great deal of confusion about what Starfleet is supposed to be. It’s also led to silly things like Archer’s crew on Enterprise saying they need a military presence on board when going into the Expanse, even though they are a military. The latest episode of SNW tackles this head-on with the aptly titled “What is Starfleet?” It’s done in the form of the documentary that Beto Ortegas was given permission to film in “Wedding Bell Blues,” and which we’ve seen him recording in “Through the Lens of Time.” And it is absolutely fantastic, a brilliant episode of Star Trek. The entire episode is Beto’s documentary, with interviews with the crew intercut with footage both from Beto’s free-floating cameras and security footage from the Enterprise computer, with captions explaining that they’ve been declassified for this documentary. It opens with the titular question, and pointing out one other issue with the whole military thing: Starfleet ships have enough armament on board to lay waste to a planet, plus they’re incredibly heavily stocked with hand weapons. The capability for violence is huge on a starship, and Beto starts off questioning that. What’s the difference between a starship and a warship? The mission that’s at the heart of the documentary involves the Enterprise assisting the Lutani, who are in the midst of a conflict, and Starfleet is to provide aid. Part of that aid is to escort a life-form called a Jikaru that is listed as “livestock” to the Lutani homeplanet. Over the course of the mission it becomes clear that the Jikaru isn’t livestock, it’s sentient, and has been enslaved. Watching this conflict play out is a joy, and having it be through the documentary just makes it more fascinating. It’s a trope that Trek has revisited plenty of times, indeed is one of the franchise’s signature moves: an alien being that they think is one thing turns out to be something else, and they have to adjust their assumptions and their actions. And yes, Starfleet is a military organization (sorry, Jean-Luc), and that means they have to commit violent acts in the name of keeping the peace. It also means they sometimes have to kill—and sometimes be killed. And, as is mentioned plenty of times on this mission that grows ever-more distasteful as it goes on, it means they have to follow the orders of their superiors. But it doesn’t mean they can’t be compassionate and understanding. As the episode goes on, Spock and Uhura find ways to communicate with the Jikaru, and they eventually realize, not only that she has been enslaved, but that she is sentient and wants to commit suicide. (Her initial attacks on Enterprise were in the hopes that the Starfleet vessel would kill her in retaliation.) The focus shifts from escorting the Jikaru to a war zone to helping her die with dignity and stopping the Lutani from exploiting the other Jikaru. Along the way we get some lovely character insights, mostly through the interviews. Spock discusses the prejudice he encountered as a halfbreed on Vulcan (as also seen in the animated series’ “Yesteryear,” the 2009 Star Trek, and Discovery’s “Brother” and “Light and Shadow”), and says that Starfleet allows him to explore his human half in a way he would not be permitted to on Vulcan. Uhura discusses the loss of her immediate family (as first revealed in “Children of the Comet”), and also is told that one of her Academy friends died on the Cayuga back in “Hegemony.” La’an talks about how important it is for her to protect people. M’Benga makes it clear that he very much wants to bury his past (as established primarily in “Under the Cloak of War”) and has no interest in discussing it. Pike and Number One are much more mature in their interviews, with Pike solemnly telling the story of having to put down an injured horse as a boy, and Number One very calmly discusses the realities of having to follow orders. Credit: Paramount+ The biggest character revelation, though, is about the documentarian. Talking to Beto, Uhura realizes that a big reason for this documentary is Beto working out his anger at Starfleet for what was done to his sister in the “Hegemony” two-parter. Erica Ortegas nearly died, and Beto is furious at Starfleet for letting that happen to her, and furious at his sister for staying in Starfleet after it happened. Tellingly, the interviews with Ortegas are the only ones that aren’t structured and settled. Everyone else is interviewed while sitting calmly and talking into the camera. Ortegas, though, is in her quarters tinkering, constantly moving around, and also constantly giving her brother shit. She’s unwilling to sit still for an interview—or for Beto’s issues. That’s one of many excellent touches by director Sharon Lewis, who did a superlative job here. The documentary feel is expertly captured, but she also makes use of that feel to do some excellent visual work. In particular I love the use of closeups (the security footage from the different consoles, which give extreme looks at the faces of the crew), but also of distance. One of the most effective shots is of Pike and Number One speaking with Starfleet Command. The camera is very far away, so the captain and first officer are extremely small, reflecting how small they feel in the face of this mission, which keeps getting more insane. We also can’t hear what Starfleet Command is saying, a nice touch that shows the Enterprise’s isolation. This is a brilliant episode of Star Trek, a fantastic hour of television, and one that reinforces the Trek ethos of compassion over violence, of understanding over blindly following orders. And it reminds us that a military organization doesn’t have to be brutal or unthinking or cruel.[end-mark] The post Unfound Footage — <i>Star Trek: Strange New Worlds</i>: “What is Starfleet? appeared first on Reactor.