With a great intro to the second season Lower decks starts in with a bang…of a sonic shower in an episode that explores the vital differences between an ‘active’ ship like that of the Titan or Enterprise, compared to your average ship of the line like the Cerritos. The irony is, not much other than random character defining moments of danger that are resolved in a short yet intense time, which our friend Boimler discovers first hand.
The Episode itself is almost a sequel to the STNG episodes Darmok and The Most Toys as it brings back both a member of the Tamarian Race who speak in metaphor and one of the collectors (you know the ones who wanted to collect Data). During that part of the story, an automated defense system attempts to purge them resulting in the puppification of one of the crew. Meanwhile, Boimler finds that life on the Titan isn’t quite what he had hoped for when he has to come face to face with the Pakleds and gets an very unexpected reprieve.
Is it a ‘Good’ Episode?
Again, I can not praise this series enough. I love how it explores the assumptions made about how people feel about being stationed on the various ships such as the Enterprise. The assumption is that one ship is better than the other but, when you actually see what certain ships go through on a weekly basis…well..maybe a more relaxed approach is more favorable. We also get some really solid character development for Beckett Mariner as she comes to realize that, maybe, she needs to rely on her friends input from time to time instead of always being in charge.
Overall, yet another very solid episode that continues to be as fun as it is filled with deep Star Trek references that never feel just jammed in for no reason, we even get a great reference to Riker’s transporter clone in a very unexpected way.
If you are not watching this series…you are missing out.
Gleanings, Questions and cool bits: (slight spoilers here)
- We learn that lower decks members shower together ala Starship Troopers.
- There is also an explanation for how various crew members ranks change by accident on these series…heh…street corn.
- Some of the collectibles seen on the station include:
- A Flag from the Terran Empire
- an alien probe from the Original Series
- The Game headset from STNG
- A mars rover
- What appears to be one of Sisko’s baseballs
- an arcade machine
- Riker’s Trombone
- Klingon Weapons
- A salt monster from TOS
- crates of Chateau Picard wine bottles
- Odo’s Bucket
- Kahless’ Fornication Helmet
- Khan’s necklace
- a skeleton of the giant Spock from the Original Animated Series
- Abraham Lincolns skeleton
Thanks for reading the SciFi TV Review, I look forward to discussing the rest of the series with you! Some teasers of next weeks episode below!
For more reviews: check out the weekly series called Key Movies Of My Life that comes out every Thursday and for more Trek goodness check out our Retro TV Reviews here.
As always, please feel free to comment below and share your experiences with these episodes as well. If you just happened by, tell me what you think! Don’t Forget To Follow me if you like the blog!
Late To The Game 8/14/2021
Special Thanks to Memory Alpha as they are one of the best sources for details on Star Trek information available. Although I have a pretty deep knowledge on the subject, they have proven invaluable as a regular resource.
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