Who is Pelia in Star Trek Strange New Worlds season 2? We all love a new character, and it looks like Pike’s Enterprise just got its new chief engineer after the death of Hemmer.
Introduced in Star Trek Strange New Worlds season 2 episode 1, the new Star Trek character Pelia is one of the few faces on the ship who have no connection to existing canon and continuity (the only other main character being Lieutenant Erica Ortegas). Pelia is instantly magnetic with a bold and eccentric personality and plenty of mystery.
So what do we know about the latest addition to the Star Trek series? We analyzed the transmission for everything you need to know about Pelia, including her backstory and species.
Who is Pelia in Star Trek Strange New Worlds?
Pelia is the new chief engineer of the Enterprise, replacing Hemmer, who died toward the end of Star Trek Strange New Worlds season 1. She comes aboard the Enterprise as an inspector in Star Trek Strange New Worlds season 2 episode 1, where she is introduced to the rest of the show’s characters.
Pelia is played by Carol Kane, an Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning actor known for Dog Day Afternoon and Princess Bride, as well as the sitcom TV series Taxi.
Pelia’s backstory explained
Like Guinan in TNG, Pelia is ancient and mysterious, and very mischievous. She suggests that she is well over a hundred years old and spent time living on Earth during the 21st century.
When Pelia boards the Enterprise, she does so as a lead inspector qualified through being a professor of engineering at Starfleet Academy, where she teaches a course in warp core breaches. She also holds the rank of commander and knows Spock’s mother Amanda Grayson.
With her adventurous nature, Pelia joins in on Spock’s mission to steal the Enterprise and deal with La’an’s distress call because she wants to be back in space and finds that teaching at the academy has become boring.
What species is Pelia?
Pelia is a Lanthanite. This is spotted by Uhura who notices her accent, and Pelia later confirms this to Spock.
Lanthanties are a new species to Star Trek lore introduced with Pelia. While they’re clearly very mysterious, she does give some clues as to their history, saying they lived alongside humans in undetected until the 22nd century.
That’s it on Pelia for now. For more on Star Trek, check out our ranking of the Star Trek captains and find out which would survive a zombie apocalypse. Or, read our full Star Trek Strange New Worlds season 2 review.