Q&A (episode)
Ensign Spock's first day aboard the USS Enterprise doesn't go as planned when he and Number One are unexpectedly stuck together in a turbolift.

Summary 
In 2254, Ensign Spock, a Vulcan, boards the . After beaming aboard using a transporter, he meets Una Chin-Riley, the ship's Illyrian first officer, and announces that he is reporting for duty. She reminds him that there is no need to yell. The two board a turbolift, and Spock asks her for "the three most salient facts about Captain Pike", referring to Christopher Pike, the captain of the ship, and she tells him about his diplomatic skills and that he is "utterly unsentimental except when it comes to horses." The turbolift eventually malfunctions and the two officers are trapped inside. With nothing to do, Spock annoys her with questions such as "Has it ever occurred to you that the Prime Directive is not only not ethical but also illogical?" and "Do you like eggplant?" Eventually, the two discover their similarities and bond over them before being rescued by Amin.

Memorable quotes  
"Sir, Ensign Spock, S 179-276 SP, reporting for duty." 
- Spock to Una Chin-Riley, after being transported to the Enterprise

"What are the three most salient facts about Captain Pike?"
"One, his capacity for hearing out another point of view is exceeded only by his willingness to change his own once he's heard you out. Two, even though he is the most heavily decorated fighting captain in Starfleet, he views resorting to force as an admission of failure. And three... he is utterly unsentimental except when it comes to horses."
- Spock and Una Chin-Riley, on Captain Pike

Background information 

 This episode was released on Saturday, , in conjunction with a Star Trek panel at the New York Comic-Con.
 This is the first episode or film in the Star Trek franchise to premiere on a Saturday since ' , 45 years earlier.
 This is the first Star Trek episode or film to debut without the premiere date having been announced ahead of time.

Writing 
 Michael Chabon wrote this episode to provide an in-universe explanation of why Spock's behavior and manner in  are so different from those seen in the rest of TOS.

 Chabon described this episode as "patching the hole" of "the mystery of Spock’s smile, when he encounters the singing flower on Talos IV." Chabon wrote that in "The Menagerie", "apart from the ears and the gull-wing eyebrows, the Spock who served under Captain Pike was nothing like the Spock who later launched a thousand zines."

 During the writing of this episode, Alex Kurtzman texted Rebecca Romijn and asked her whether she had any special skills. She replied that she played badminton, was good with foreign languages, and sang Gilbert and Sullivan. Because of the last, Michael Chabon decided that Una Chin-Riley's "freaky" would be a fondness for Gilbert and Sullivan, and wrote the scene in which she sings "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General". (; )
 When Chabon pitched this Short Trek episode, he also pitched, as a bookend, a Short Trek about Number Ones last day on the Enterprise. ()

Production 
 This episode appears to have initially been called "Chaos Theory". That title was announced in an Instagram post by director Mark Pellington in late . Another post by Pellington contained images of the director with actors Rebecca Romijn and Ethan Peck, and the hashtag #Chabon, suggesting the episode was written by Michael Chabon.  The title "Q&A" was first mentioned in passing in the press release announcing that Michael Chabon had been named the showrunner for .  On , Alex Kurtzman confirmed that there would be six episodes in the second season of Short Treks. The same day,  a trailer for the season was released, including six episode titles; "Chaos Theory" was not among those names.  This episode was written by Michael Chabon and was mainly focused on Una Chin-Riley and Spock, the characters played by Romijn and Peck, respectively, leading to the idea that "Q&A" is likely a new name for what had previously been referred to as "Chaos Theory".
 The episode is dedicated in memory of Dr. Robert Chabon, father of Michael Chabon. As Chabon recounted in an essay in The New Yorker, he wrote part of "Q&A" in his father's hospital room as he lay dying.

Cast and characters 
 Samora Smallwood (Amin) first appeared in the DIS Season 2 episodes,  and . The Enterprise War had established that Amin had joined the Enterprise crew at some point before the events of the book in 2256, which is consistent with her being aboard in this episode which is set in 2254.
 In this episode, Jenette Goldstein took over as the Enterprises computer. The role was held by Majel Barrett-Roddenberry from  until her death in . Goldstein previously portrayed the science officer aboard the  in .

Music and sound 
 Michael Giacchino served as a supervising composer on this episode, and some themes reminiscent of the alternate reality films can be heard in the short.
 Israeli/Dutch composer Nami Melumad composed music for this episode, including the end titles cue. This is the first episode in the franchise to be scored by a female composer.

Continuity 
 This episode takes place before the events of , which is set in 2254. 
 The crew already wear what were described as "the new uniforms" in , set in 2257.
 Spock's observation that Una Chin-Riley has "made a most careful study" of Capt. Pike, and Number One's subsequent reaction to that comment, foreshadow the revelation in "The Cage" that she is attracted to Pike.
 After beaming aboard, Spock stated his serial number "S 179-276 SP", which was also stated in .
 When conversing about the nature of General Order 1 with Number One during this episode, Spock refers to it as the "Prime Directive." In , which takes place several years later in 2259, Admiral Robert April describes that the Federation Council had only just ascribed that moniker to the directive in the wake of the Enterprises incident response on the surface of Kiley 279.
 There are a number of similarities between this episode and the  episode . In addition to having characters stuck in a turbolift and having to exit through the turboshaft, both episodes feature a character singing "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General", then being embarrassed by it. Writer Michael Chabon acknowledged the similarities, but said that they were inadvertent:

Links and references

Starring  
 Rebecca Romijn as Una Chin-Riley
 Ethan Peck as Spock
 Anson Mount as Christopher Pike

Co-starring 
 Samora Smallwood as Lt. Amin
 Sarah Evans as Upjohn
 Jenette Goldstein as Enterprise Computer

References
99 Pegasi; animal; animalculous; binomial theorem; belaying rig; boson sampling; bullshit; combat salvo analysis; Delta Scuti star; differential calculus; diode; ; eggplant; England; ; fan; first officer; food synthesizer; golden ratio; Gupta glucose matrix; helmsman; horse; hypotenuse; "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General"; integral; Katzman glucose matrix; king; Ling plateau; Major-General; ; mathematical constant; memorandum; microbox; mineral; Neo-Wayne model; news; Onafuwa; Onafuwa model; Prime Directive; quadratical equation; quantum stochastics; quantum-stochastic combat modeling; rock climbing; science officer; OS; service hatch; smile; Starbase 40; square; tricorder; turbolift; Una glucose matrix; vegetable; Vulcan;

External links 
 
 
 

ST episodes