It’s been a long road, getting from Lower Decks’ slightly rough-around-the-edges first episode to here. But it hasn’t taken that much time, since Star Trek’s first animated sitcom very quickly found its feet to become my favorite Trek of the streaming era. The The company showed increasing confidence in its execution. concludes, we find it proud to show the world what it’s now capable of.
The real clue was found in the quick resolution of the Pakled Cliffhanger that ended the second year. A sitcom like “Sitcom” is one thing. Lower Decks doesn’t need to turn into The WireYou will be hooked. But it’s also aware that it can sow the seeds of a running plot thread – the story of Rutherford’s implant – into the fabric of so many episodes. That the payoff was much more concerned about the character’s impact that the cliffhanger.
And these strands certainly paid off in “Reflections,” which revealed that a person, or persons unknown, were behind Rutherford’s implant. But even that paid off in a way that you weren’t necessarily expecting it to come back here in the two-ish part finale. Who was the real big bad in this season? Nothing more than the bete noire of so many Golden Era Trek episodes, the Evil Admiral™. I loved the show’s attempted justification for why Starfleet churns out so many of them – the lack of career development pushes people to extremes – too.
If there was a sore spot, it was that the penultimate episode, “Trusted Sources” wheeled out the hacky Journalist Makes Everybody Look Terrible plot. It’s about as hackneyed as the one where a sitcom character has their boss over for dinner yet accidentally forgets to tell their partner. It’s only really a crowbar to get Mariner pushed out of Starfleet in preparation for the finale, and it never looked like it was going to stick given her obvious love of the Cerritos.
Naturally, the season finishes with a punch to the air victory not only for the Cerritos but also for the entire California Class. I’ve always loved Lower Decks’Celebration of the hard-working, meticulous, and often boring work that Starfleet requires. It is Of the, uh… more KurtzmanesqueI love the series for its quirky tendencies. Because like science, great work is slow, gradual, and boring until it makes a fundamental shift in the way we see the universe. And you can’t really do that if you’re spending your whole episode running from an explosion or proving how tough you are.
Another sign of the show’s confidence is in its second crew-lite episode (I’m always a fan of a show that’ll take you For a few episodes. It was focused on the fate and motivations of Exocomp Peanut Hamper. He was last seen running for it in the season finale. “A Mathematically Perfect Resolution” allowed the show to both flesh out a previously one-note character, and explore a new corner of the Star Trek world.
Even better, the sparse opening act offered a lengthy showcase for Chris Westlake’s gorgeous score. Star Trek’s music has been as important as its story. Nami Melumad and Westlake are both able to produce virtuoso works on a weekly basis. I can’t wait for a season three soundtrack album, especially since we once again hear the James Horner-parodying Lower DecksMany times throughout the year, Action theme.
If I have a concern, it’s that Lower Decks often feels like it’s designed with lasers to milk my nostalgia glands. I’ll often spend a chunk of each episode clapping like a mad seal at the latest Trek deep cut Mike McMahon and Co. throw at viewers each week. It’s not gratuitous fanservice, but these episodes feel mostly earned. It has had a lot of references, including a lengthy visit to Deep Space Nine.
My heart can’t help but swell when Nana Visitor is (Kira), Armin Shimerman (Quark), JG Hetzler (Martok), Susan Gibney, Leah Brahmas, and George Takei are (Captain Sulu!) And the show has the appropriate respect for Trek MVP Jeffrey Combs to bring him back for a quick visit to Agimus, still trapped in Starfleet’s filing cabinet for self-aware, megalomaniacal computers. I didn’t even mention the extended Initial Contact riff, complete with an appearance by James Cromwell, or the riff on classic TNG episode “Symbiosis” with quite possibly the darkest joke ever seen in a Trek series.
I’m running out of room to heap the usual praise on the cast, all of whom do sterling work on a regular basis. And that’s before we discuss the glorious, last-minute reveal that T’Lyn, the so-called “emotional” Vulcan from last year’s “wej Duj” has transferred to the Cerritos. (Do you want her to join Beta Shift?) I have no idea, but I’m looking forward to seeing how she interacts with the gang now she’s here.)
I’m naturally very excited for Lower Decks’ Season 4 but, by my calculations, the next time we’ll see Mariner and Boimler appear in Strange New Worlds. We already know that Jack Quaid and Tawny Newsome are. , I can’t wait to see them appear on the Enterprise bridge and stare lovingly at Pike’s Peak. My favorite nü-Trek series merging with my second-favorite? Be still my beating heart.
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