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Star Trek Lower Decks (LOW) Season 5

Season 1Season 2Season 3Season 4Season 5

Dos CerritosShades of GreenThe Best Exotic Nanite HotelA Farewell to FarmsStarbase 80?!Of Gods and AnglesFully DilatedUpper Decks

 

Dos Cerritos

Synopsis

"Dos Cerritos"

D'Vana Tendi is on an undercover pirating mission on the ship of a Collector, tricks the man into exposing his hidden control center, takes down the defenses and reveals her true identity. But as her crew pillages the collection, she takes care no one gets killed by them. Meanwhile, the Cerritos investigates a quantum fissure of a kind that has been popping up repeatedly as of late. Suddenly the ship gets pulled into the anomaly. On the other side, the ship is hailed by a second Cerritos. Mariner's parallel universe version named Captain Becky Freeman is in command, and everyone except for Carol Freeman meets their counterpart likewise. The two crews devise a plan to open the rift again with the combined power of four nacelles. Boimler and Rutherford are both working with their parallel universe twins. The other Boimler is self-assured but also a bit arrogant, whereas the second Rutherford is heavily cybernetically enhanced and has erased his Tendi from his memory after she had left to become a full-time pirate. Mariner is increasingly alienated by the authoritarian command style of her counterpart, whereas Becky Freeman misses her time as a loose cannon. When the plan succeeds in the second attempt, the rift re-opens and our Cerritos is about to depart, she grasps the opportunity, stuns Beckett Mariner and switches places with her. Just as her ship is leaving the parallel universe, Mariner can free herself thanks to her voice authorization and notifies the crew of the parallel Cerritos that she is not their captain. Captain Freeman orders the two to beamed to their respective ships again. But she learns the shocking truth about her parallel self, who was transferred to Starbase 80. In the meantime, Tendi and her crew have salvaged an old Orion ship ship, which turns out to be a medical vessel. They successfully defend it against the "Blue Orions" by using laughing gas, rather than deadly violence. As Tendi is back on the homeworld, her sister D'Erika says she has paid back her debt and is free to leave for Starfleet. But then news arrives that the Blue Orions have declared war because of Tendi's "un-pirate-like conduct"...

Commentary

Season 4 ended with Tendi enlisting Orion help for her friends in Starfleet at the price of her having to be at her sister's service to repay her debt. She is a full-time pirate now, with all of its consequences, such as being expected to kill her enemies. We know Tendi would never let it come that, and I asked myself prior to the start of the season how this foreseeable dilemma would be dealt with. The first time in this episode she still gets away with the strange logic that if everyone could tell about the encounter with the pirates they could spread even more fear than if only one survived. It was obvious that this evasiveness could not be the final word on the topic, so it is satisfying that she gets busted after tending to the injured Blue Orion instead of killing him. The outcome is that everyone of her all-female crew is eager to follow in Tendi's footsteps as a successful bloodthirsty pirate to make their non-violent dreams come true. It is something I can't imagine in live-action Trek but that works well in this series.

We also learn in a deep cut that the Blue Orions from TAS: "The Pirates of Orion" are still (or again) supposed to exist, including their different pronunciation as "Or-ee-ons" and their superhero costumes. Other than that, the Orion sub-plot of "Dos Cerritos" is entertaining but not overly exciting though. It pays off in the cliffhanger and is about to become the main plot in the following episode "Shades of Green".

The encounter with the parallel-universe Cerritos begins with the surprise that Mariner (here known as "Becky Freeman") is the captain of that ship and has replaced her mother in the captain's chair. The implications of everyone meeting their counterpart don't seem to be significant at first. Well, "Otherford" is cybernetically enhanced and there is no second Carol Freeman. But other than that, the differences are subtle (oftentimes it's just the uniform color, which is consistently darker in the parallel universe), unlike it would be the case if this were the Mirror Universe or a timeline in which the Borg have assimilated everyone. I cherish the careful and almost subliminal development of the "what if" scenarios. Boimler admires the self-confidence of his bearded other self and at first doesn't mind being patronized by him. He then grows jealous, but I think he also recognizes that he doesn't really want to become a smug person himself. Our Rutherford drowns his sorrow about Tendi's departure in work. He then learns that his counterpart simply erased his memory of his friend, which strikes him as more obviously wrong than his own way of coping with it. And although or just because he accomplishes that "Otherford" becomes sociable again just by enabling his friendship matrix, his takeaway is that there is nothing like switching friendships on or off.

The conflict between Beckett Mariner and Becky Freeman starts off as subtle as well. They try to get along, they want give each other a chance, although they are different. We don't really understand why Becky (with a riding crop as the symbol of power) is so harsh, until it turns out it is a coping mechanism. In a way, she suppresses her lack of discipline by being merciless to her crew - and ultimately merciless to herself. We might say that underneath the callous surface, she wants to have fun and break the rules, that she is essentially still the same as our Mariner. However, our Mariner has has made peace with her demons by now and doesn't need to hide behind anything. The resolution of Becky switching places with her, rather than simply telling everyone that she's had enough, is another thing that wouldn't make sense in live-action but is in line with how things work on Lower Decks. And no, I'm not saying that the series is less realistic because of that; in some ways it even is more consequential or more honest when the story pushes the limits of what may happen, to make a valid point.

The only thing I don't like about the parallel universe encounter is that, with the notable exception of T'Lyn and the above three, everyone else seems to hate their counterpart and eventually many of them get into fights. I think this is uncalled-for. At least, it doesn't make sense to me that all those very different characters wouldn't get along just because of injured vanity or something.

The fifth and last season of Lower Decks starts off with an episode that has a bit of everything I love about the series. A revealing A-plot with a good deal of character development, an entertaining B-plot that unexpectedly becomes more important than it seemed, a decent number of canon references (not yet an overkill) and lots of well-timed jokes. Not quite one of the best episodes of the series, but a very good start.

Annotations

Rating: 7

 

Shades of Green

Synopsis

"Shades of Green"

Stardate 59376.9: The Cerritos is at Targalus IX, a planet recently accepted into the Federation. Boimler is in charge of the two ensigns Mackler and Gorm. Their task is to support the population in getting rid of their money and other treasures that they don't need any longer after the installation of replicators. When Mariner suggests they could have some fun because they are ahead of schedule, Boimler agrees and allows his team to take an hour off. Then, however, Mackler and Gorm are kidnapped by rich people who don't want to lose their wealth and power. Mariner and Boimler pursue them to their house. They find the two ensigns in the basement, and it appears they are dead. The kidnappers are terrified and run away. The ensigns, however, remembered one of Boimler's rules, a "Bointer". They investigated the flora and fauna of the planet, found a species called a coma beetle and used it to give the impression of being dead. On Orion, D'Vana Tendi is worried about the health of D'Erika. She secretly reads her sister's logs and finds out she is pregnant. The Pirate Queen summons the House of Tendi and the rivaling Blue Orions, the House of Azure. She demands them to resolve their conflict in a sailing ship race through the Excellon Nebula. The team to find the hidden treasure and cross the finish line first will win, the losers will be removed from the Syndicate and their wealth given to the winner. During the race, D'Vana is concerned her pregnant sister may take too many risks. She incites a mutiny. But D'Erika was actually protecting D'Vana because her girl would inherit the title of the Mistress of the Winter Constellations, and tradition would require her to be taught by her aunt. The Blue Orions use unfair tactics and make the Tendis' sailing ship crash on an asteroid, with no way to launch it again. As a comet passes by, D'Vana shoots a grapple hook into the comet to pull the ship back into space again. They catch up with the Blue Orions and get hold of the booty. But instead of taking it for her team, D'Vana destroys it, assuming it will be regarded as a tie. The Queen, however, decides that both teams lose. D'Vana returns to Starfleet to Rutherford's delight. And she persuades Captain Freeman to hand over the collected treasures from Targalus IX to her sister, to "improve diplomatic relations".

Commentary

Just as foreshadowed at the end of "Dos Cerritos", the focus shifts to Orion in "Shades of Green". There is a war between the Blue Orions and the House of Tendi. But we never see anything of it except for a simulated sequence, which isn't a bad idea in hindsight. Instead, the Queen of the Syndicate wants the two houses to resolve their conflict in a peaceful (and more profitable) way. The sailing ship race that is to decide about the fate of the houses is a lot of fun.

It makes sense for D'Vana Tendi to be protective of her pregnant sister and it is in character how far she goes, considering how frantically she acted in "Strange Energies" and on a few other occasions. I like the twist that actually D'Erika was worried about her vice versa (without showing it so openly). Still, the rationale that Aunt D'Vana would have to oversee the education of the new Mistress of the Winter Constellations for fourteen years doesn't work as well in the end as it could. D'Vana leaves for Starfleet regardless. So tradition is everything until it is not. Likewise, the importance of wealth and power for the Tendi family changes like every few minutes in this episode. I think it is a tad too fabricated how D'Vana Tendi and her family part on good terms and with a good conscience.

The B-plot is about a planet that gets rid of its money-based economy and enters the post-scarcity age, thanks to replicators provided by the Federation. It is a first time in Star Trek that this transition, as it has been referred to quite a few times, is a part of a story. Although it is exaggerated that the Targalans abolish money in a happy revolution and simply give all of their treasures away, I like how the story shows the implications. Everyone is delighted to be able to get anything the replicator can produce. But those who are wealthy, even if they are not expropriated, lose their status and their political power.

The aspect of Boimler trying to guide his ensigns with "Bointers" doesn't work so well. It is not the first time he is on something like a self-discovery trip and tries out new ways, thinking of his previous phase of "Bold Boimler", for instance. So this time it is the "biography" of a successful leader of away teams, who I think may have purple hair and a beard. Perhaps the "Bointers" will have further significance in the season. In "Shades of Green", it all boils down to the away team tricking their captors into thinking they are dead, all thanks to Bointer #16, which is to examine the flora or fauna for dangerous species and which led them to the discovery of the coma beetle. This is a far-fetched and unsatisfactory reward for the kidnapping story. But at least the armed household robots are funny!

The side plot about Rutherford and T'Lyn is not convincing either. Even though T'Lyn, as a Vulcan, does not socialize the way Tendi would and could never replace her, it would have been nice if the two had established at least a little connection. But Rutherford ignores her most of the time. And T'Lyn makes essentially the same mistake as Data in "Data's Day" when she thinks if something (repairing the shuttle) doesn't make him happy, then the opposite (destroying it) will.

The most important outcome of "Shades of Green" is that Tendi happily returns to her friends, even though the circumstances are a bit awkward. The stories about the Orion sailing ship race and the abolition of capitalism on Targalus IX work just fine. But the motivations and developments of the characters are not as well-conceived as usual.

Annotations

Rating: 5

 

The Best Exotic Nanite Hotel

Synopsis

"The Best Exotic Nanite Hotel"

The mission of the Cerritos is to deal with a nanite infestation on the moon-sized cruise ship Cosmic Duchess. As the five lieutenant JGs prepare to beam down, Commander Ransom requires Boimler for a special mission to find Admiral Milius, who has gone AWOL on the cruise ship. Boimler suspects he was chosen because Ransom deems him expendable. As he, Ransom and Billups follow the leads on the Cosmic Duchess, it seems like his superiors needlessly put him in danger. When the team arrives at the admiral's compound, they are captured by other passengers that apparently work for the admiral. Milius himself tells Boimler that he defected because Starfleet gave him boring missions such as milking space whales, and he thinks that Boimler feels the same. Boimler plays along but then frees his fellow officers. Ransom tells him he was actually chosen for the mission because he is so wiry, ideal to crawl through ducts. In the meantime, Jennifer has taken Boimler's place in the away team. To Mariner's chagrin, the Andorian pretends they are still in a relationship. But Mariner decides to play along after learning that it is Jennifer's last day on the ship anyway before leaving for the USS Manitoba. The team finds the cluster of nanites and manages to confine it, but it grows and breaks free again. They lure the nanites into a theater and unwittingly feed it with lots of energy, upon which they grow to an icosahedron that consumes everything in its way. It turns out Jennifer just wanted to come clean with Mariner, after Mariner has been avoiding her for a year. The two officially break up and devise a plan to stop the huge icosahedron. They get the vibe tubes of Krog, T'Lyn's favorite musician, and let her play the instrument to disrupt the signal that controls the nanites. After the structure has broken down, Rutherford discovers that the signal comes from a miniature Federation vessel from another dimension that was trying to build an interdimensional portal. Admiral Milius returns to duty and agrees to help the tiny ship find a way home.

Commentary

Both plot threads of "The Best Exotic Nanite Hotel" are driven by issues, which I assumed had already been resolved in previous seasons and which I think had better not been revived so late in the series. Boimler's fear of being deemed expendable and misused as a redshirt and his awkwardness on the mission is like a throwback to the first season. It sort of annihilates the character development he has received. It may have been supposed to give the story more of a "Lower Decks" vibe that the young officer is not sure about Commander Ransom's true intentions, but this simply comes across as anachronistic. Jet Manhaver's horrible accident after going on a mission with Ransom is supposed to corroborate the apprehensions but doesn't really help to get across Boimler's alleged trouble. It essentially just gets played for laughs and is the kind of sick humor I don't want to see in the series. Fortunately this remains the only gross joke and the episode doesn't become a second "Mugato, Gumato".

Mariner and Jennifer's silent break-up at the end of season 3 may have called for a resolution of some sorts. I can understand Jennifer, who got ghosted. But it is contrived that she would wait one year and then fabricate an awkward situation, only to make Mariner talk to her. Overall, both character stories feel out of place or time. Both Boimler and Mariner are eventually given half-way satisfactory explanations for their misfortunes, but I was watching much of the episode with a certain discomfort. At least, there is some sort of a moral lesson for Mariner in the end, whereas Boimler learns nothing about his superiors or about himself that he shouldn't already know well.

The story about the admiral who goes AWOL, purportedly because his life in Starfleet was boring, and who then hides in a jungle resort where nothing ever happens is not exactly convincing either. Sorry, I don't buy into it. Aside from Admiral Milius apparently being a homage to Colonel Kurtz of "Apocalypse Now", there is nothing rewarding about it. And the conclusion doesn't make sense either. Milius left because he was ordered to milk space whales, and now that he has returned he can suddenly do what he wants, instead of a court martial?

On the bright side, the episode has some nice action sequences. I like the idea of a huge space resort with all kinds of attractions that don't make sense to be constructed in space and that remind me of totally oversized cruise ships of our time or of boastful places like Dubai. I love that T'Lyn is a fan of Krog's music and can put it to use when she plays the vibe tubes to disrupt the signal. But the absolute highlight for me is the first appearance of the Gallamites ("I don't know what Jadzia ever saw in that man." - "Well, his brains.")!

Aside from these tidbits, "The Best Exotic Nanite Hotel" is a Lower Decks episode of the "nothing special" category that I have seen done better a dozen times before. It isn't a bad episode, but it feels so unmotivated.

Annotations

Rating: 4

 

A Farewell to Farms

Synopsis

"A Farewell to Farms"

Ma'ah has been stripped of his command because his crew mutinied - and because he killed Dorg, the brother of Bargh, the chairman of the Klingon Oversight Council. Now the former warrior works on his family's farm and produces bloodwine together with his brother Malor. Mariner and Boimler travel to Qo'noS and offer Ma'ah their help to regain his command. He is skeptical, but Boimler cites the Ritual of Je'thurgh that may be invoked. Ma'ah grudgingly agrees. The four companions are to endure painstiks up to the highest level, which they survive thanks to Boimler's idea to stay in physical contact. The second test is to catch a giant targ, which succeeds as they grab the best by its legs. The third trial, however, would be to sacrifice a member of their team. Ma'ah volunteers. He has been unenthusiastic because he doesn't want to serve in Bargh's fleet. But Mariner's pal K'orin and Enaj, the other two members of the Oversight Council, approach him, grant him the right to change to another fleet and to make use of Forced Conscription. Ma'ah selects Bargh as a member of his crew, and decides that he should die. Bargh has no choice but to grant Ma'ah a captaincy, only to stab him in the back the next moment. Ma'ah survives and kills the honorless Bargh. However, he doesn't accept a captain's position and chooses to "command" the family's farm truck instead. Mariner's actual mission was to scan a dimensional hole in the Klingon system, which turns out to be artificial. In the meantime on the Cerritos, Gabers Migleemo is excited that the ship is to ferry two of his people's most renowned food critics to their homeworld Klowahka. However, the two other Klowahkans, Gonald and Legnog, blast the meals they are being served aboard, even as members of the Cerritos crew help Migleemo prepare something truly delicious. The food critics decide to have Migleemo arrested for his bad cooking. But Tendi finds out they actually criticized every single meal that they reviewed lately as "bland". Upon arrival on their homeworld, Tendi, Rutherford and Freeman secretly swap the customary amuse-bouche with something unpalatable, which Gonald and Legnog praise. The two have to admit that they lost their sense of taste and just pretend to still do their job, which Dr. Migleemo calls a conversion disorder and for whose cure he offers his help.

Commentary

This week's two plot threads have a lot in common, as members of alien species are struggling to restore their reputation with the help of resourceful Starfleet officers. In both cases our Starfleet crew clashes with a culture that has firm moral concepts but whose proponents have to acknowledge that it is sometimes necessary to think out of the box. Both Ma'ah and Migleemo are unjustly being debased, by other members of their respective species who act against their own ethos and whose hypocrisy is exposed in the end. Although the Klingon part sounds like the much more serious one when just reading the synopsis, it is just as full of jokes and idiosyncrasies as the inherently goofy story about the Klowahkans, who honor food above all and talk about it all the time. Vice versa, being banished from the "Great Seating Chart" seems like the exact Klowahkan equivalent to being dishonored.

Like few other Lower Decks episodes, "A Farewell to Farms" draws more on its guest characters than on Rutherford, Tendi, Boimler and Mariner. This works a bit better than in "A Mathematically Perfect Redemption" but not as wonderfully as in the perhaps unsurpassable "wej Duj". Having to take a back seat is a pity for Boimler, who is still trying to literally grow a beard but becomes a punching ball for the Klingons and enjoys it for reasons that he doesn't state and that I am afraid will remain unexplained. A bit like already last week, he is out of character as if he were on drugs. Anyway, especially Ma'ah is hilarious as always. The way he internalizes Klingon culture while maintaining a universal sense of justice reminds me of Worf. I also like Malor, who is so un-Klingon by traditional standards and who stands with his brother nonetheless (even though or just because he needs a push in this direction). The two Klowahkan food critics Gonald and Legnog are the perhaps most arrogant guest characters of the whole series, for which there is a sad reason. I just love the irony that Migleemo, the psychologist, is the one who can help them overcome their conversion disorder after previously having been humiliated by them.

Summarizing, "A Farewell to Farms" consists of two fine stories. But it is another disservice to Boimler. It is very funny. I paused repeatedly because I had to laugh hard (such as in the scene in the Warrior Pit when Mariner dropped in). Besides that there are many plays on words that simply fall flat, even as I view it a second time. On the other hand, after watching it again I appreciate the jokes that work even more.

Annotations

Rating: 6

 

Starbase 80?!

Synopsis

"Starbase 80?!"

The navigation processor of the Cerritos malfunctions and causes the ship to drop out of warp. The only Starfleat facility within impulse range is the notoriously bad Starbase 80. Mariner is horrified about going back there but Captain Freeman wants her in the team to board the station with her. Starbase 80 uses technology from the 2260's that urgently needs maintenance. As Freeman and Ransom are looking for the chief engineer to obtain a navigation processor, Mariner and her team join station commander Kassia Nox to perform repairs. Soon members of the Cerritos crew begin to act strangely. They become unresponsive, they growl and lick walls. Mariner is afraid the station may be cursed. But the local population remains unaffected. It turns out that usage of their commbadges triggers the effect. Mariner, Kassia and two more of the Starbase 80 crew return to the Cerritos that is swarming with insane crew members by now. They trace the harmful signal to cetacean ops and find that an anaphasic lifeform inhabits one of the dolphins. After everything else has failed, Dr. Horseberry from Starbase 80 knocks out the dolphin, and thereby the parasite, with a dip net. All crew members return to normal. As Freeman and Ransom finally find the chief engineer, who complains about having been abandoned by Starfleet, they make a deal with him to repair the station (and get rid of the bat infestation) in exchange for the navigation processor. The anaphasic lifeform that calls itself Clem remains on Starbase 80 and promises not to harm anyone again.

Commentary

It was a no-brainer for Lower Decks to visit the notorious Starbase 80, which was repeatedly stated to be the worst of Starfleet and to where Mariner was temporarily exiled in LOW: "Trusted Sources". It still gives her nightmares. But what the story makes of this priceless opportunity is underwhelming, to put it mildly.

We only got a glimpse of Starbase 80 in "Trusted Sources". There were the two scruffy pilots with their rusty Type-15 shuttle and the Rolodex guy who was struck by a bat. Everything else was still left to our imagination. Even though there is no reason why those very same people should play a role again on the huge starbase, that would have been a nice touch, for the sake of continuity. Only the bats reappear (well, and we can briefly see one of the shuttle guys); everything and everyone else was extrapolated in an incoherent way, in a way to be outdated, defective, dirty or just weird without a common theme. While I dig the TOS-era interiors and technology, the still 100 years older Enterprise-era uniforms and the Acamarians, for instance, somehow feel out of place.

But I think what bothers me most in terms of lacking consistency is that it doesn't feel like Mariner has really been to Starbase 80 before and is really afraid of it. She doesn't seem to know anyone of the crew. Instead of providing valuable insight, she only mentions problems of the station that are obvious anyway. Aside from that, Mariner has nothing but a vague fear of the starbase being "cursed", which she repeats like 20 times. This is boring and significantly lessens the impact of her apprehension in the story. Compare that to how skillfully her paranoid journey was fleshed out in "Cupid's Errant Arrow"!

Starbase 80 was created with loving attention to detail on the visual side. But the unspecifically cursed place that Mariner is talking of all the time could have been any other station with any other crew. Well, we might see Starbase 80 as a mere backdrop for a more interesting story - if there were one. But I neither care for crew members that mutate to zombies nor for the lame explanation that a neural parasite is responsible for it. There is absolute zero originality in it.

There are a few hilarious jokes, like the reversed gravity plating in the TOS-style engineering, Tendi trying out the whistle of the wall communicator with a big grin of pleasure or the turbolift that misunderstands Freeman's voice commands. The idea that there are no replicators but food vendors on the station is sweet.

I also like the arcade games, although they have no purpose in the story. But overall, the episode is full of references that are more than Easter eggs but that fill in for, well, something that should have had more significance. Dr. Horseberry's being partially Tarchannen has very little impact (it merely serves to set up the running joke of him scanning everyone for Tarchannen DNA). Kassia's being El-Aurian has none at all (except if we choose to count the extra gratuitous mention of Guinan) and is awfully anticlimactic. And as already mentioned, there is no good rationale for the Acamarians on the station (because it has no consequences) or for some of the personnel wearing ancient Earth Starfleet uniforms.

Finally, there is no reason why modern equipment would be required to repair old technology and much less why Freeman and Ransom would have to catch the bats, rather than any of the countless lazy crew members of the starbase. The bat hunt was just included for the sake of being weird and doesn't work for me. Freeman's odd rationale that she does it because her alternate universe self failed the task (which she can't know of) doesn't exactly help me understand it.

Annotations

Rating: 3

 

Of Gods and Angles

Synopsis

"Of Gods and Angles"

Stardate 59482.3: The Cerritos is near the Veraflex Nebula to host peace talks between two species of photonic energy, the Orbs and the Cubes. Mariner overhears how Freeman and Ransom are speaking about Ensign Olly, a descendant of a psychokinetic being known as Zeus, who causes nothing but trouble and whom they want to get rid of. Mariner decides to give Olly a chance and offers to try to bring her in line. When a young Cube named Quadralon goes missing, the two are assigned the investigation. They find that the quarters is devastated and a computer is missing. The ensign jumps to conclusions. She accuses an Orb of spreading anti-Cube propaganda and of murdering Quadralon. Tensions rise between Orbs and Cubes. As the Orbs discover that one of them, Radiara, is missing too, open hostilities break out. Mariner finds the computer in Olly's locker. Olly removed it from the presumed crime scene because she was afraid that someone would put the blame on her because of her psychokinetic powers (which are also the reason why her engineering tasks always fail). Mariner thinks that Olly should use her powers to get the two warring factions to stand down. But after having been temporarily confined, the Orbs and Cubes leave the ship and regroup to one big Orb and one big Cube. They continue their fight in space, also weakening the shields of the Cerritos in the process. Olly now uses her engineering knowledge and proposes a way to adjust the tractor beam to the photonic frequency, which weakens the Cubes and Orbs and also recharges the shields of the Cerritos. After the warring factions have lost much of their energy, they find themselves aboard the ship again - only to be greeted by Quadralon and Radiara, who are in love and who have a common child, SquAaron. They decide to continue the peace talks. Following the example of his alternate universe self, Boimler has been trying to become friends with T'Ana in vain, and he only succeeds when T'Ana successfully removes an energy bolt from his butt that he caught during the fights. Ensign Olly is granted a position in engineering - but not before spending a night in the brig.

Commentary

Last week's "Starbase 80?!" disappointed me because a great premise was made into a thin story. At least, it was still entertaining thanks to some nifty jokes and visual references. I have to raise the rating after watching "Of Gods and Angles" and I feel a bit sorry to have been so harsh.

In other words, "Of Gods and Angles" is still worse in my view. It fails on various levels. The probably most annoying aspect is the design of the main plot. It felt silly right from the start that energy lifeforms would choose two different physical shapes for some reason and would go to war because of that. But I was willing to give it a chance. After all, the baseless conflict between Orbs and Cubes could have been meaningful as an allegory of stupid human racism and as a homage to classic episodes such as "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield". But the symbolism gets exploited ad nauseam. Instead of being insightful, it soon crosses the line to becoming infantile. It ends up as a farce, compared to which "The Outrageous Okona" (with its similar outcome) appears like a serious drama. Yes, I do remember that Lower Decks is a comedy show, but the whole Cube/Orb thing (culminating in the pointless and visually unappealing shoot-out and in the predictable resolution that the two teens ran away because they were in love) is just dumb. The photonic poop dropped by "SquAaron" is like a symbol of everything wrong with the story, although I imagine it could have been a funny in a different context. I may have laughed about a couple of the other Cube/Orb antics, but not about the numerous childish plays on words.

Lower Decks writers have a knack for writing stories for Mariner, building upon her development from a renegade to a responsible officer. They are careful to always keep her in character. Even Mariner's encounter with the allegedly cursed Starbase 80 last week and her fear of a relapse made perfect sense in this regard; it just wasn't developed to a thorough story. It is one of few redeeming qualities of "Of Gods and Angles" how Mariner cares for Ensign Olly, who is much like she herself used to be. Mariner's wry remarks about Olly being like her old self are among the few good jokes of the episode.

Olly is not exactly the most likable character. But it is satisfying that she eventually redeems herself in a classic Star Trek fashion - and lightens up in the process. I only don't think it was a clever idea to fabricate the coincidence of her being aboard, with psychokinetic powers, at the same time as the silly Cubes and Orbs with their similar abilities. Her trouble with being a demigod would have had more of an impact without being overshadowed by something that can't be taken seriously by any means.

While Mariner continues to shine in season 5, Boimler gets further deconstructed. I thought that when he met his allegedly cooler alternate universe self in "Dos Cerritos", he would recognize that being smug isn't his thing. But instead of putting the red PADD aside to be himself again (as Rutherford and Tendi recommend), he continues to imitate the life of the other Boimler for the fifth episode in a row. Just when I think it can't get any worse this time, he begins to suck up to T'Ana in the most awkward way, only because they are friends in the other universe (or so the other Boimler thinks) and she calls him "Flip". In one of the most embarrassing and unfunny scenes of the whole series, Boimler repeatedly talks about "flipping" pages in her bridge book club, and then attempts a backflip. He ends up being attacked by the cat. Boimler is a complete idiot by now. And he is the punching ball all over again he was in season 1. The humiliating way that Boimler eventually gains T'Ana's appreciation is reminiscent of how his being engulfed in slime solved the medical crisis on the ship in "Second Contact".

Well, "Strange Energies" is still the worst LOW episode in my book, but I regret we have a new runner-up.

Annotations

Rating: 2

 

Fully Dilated

Synopsis

"Fully Dilated"

Stardate 59499.6: As the Cerritos is about to close another dimensional fissure, the sensors pick up a Starfleet power signature on the planet Dilmer III, which was apparently left behind by the purple Enterprise-D from the other dimension. In order to clean up the possible technological contamination of the planet in its early industrial age, T'Lyn, Tendi and Mariner beam down in local disguise. Due to a time differential, their mission is scheduled to last a couple of weeks, while only seconds would pass on the Cerritos. Boimler, however, spills his gooey drink across the transporter console. As he and Rutherford are desperately trying to clean the LCARS interface, several months pass on the planet. After destroying evidence of the crashed shuttle from the purple Enterprise-D, Mariner decides to make friends on Dilmer III, which gets her in prison twice. T'Lyn and Tendi, who are both candidates for the position of senior science officer on the Cerritos, compete with their science projects. Tendi secretly reactivates Purple Data's head that she found in the wreckage, while T'Lyn builds a windmill and grows food to sell at the local market. She eventually makes a fortune with natural beauty products. As Boimler's transport signal finally arrives after ten months of planet time and T'Lyn has bailed out Mariner, the three junior officers need to move away from the local population because someone could notice the transport. When they are about to leave the town, a man named Snell, who has been sneaking around all the time and who has seen Data's head, accuses them of being witches. But as he grabs Tendi's satchel to present the evidence to everyone, there is only a giant grape in it instead of Data's talking head that T'Lyn hides underneath her clothes. The three are free to go and are beamed out. Back on the Cerritos, Freeman listens to Data and decides that T'Lyn and Tendi should share the position of senior science officer. Data's head is sent back to his universe through the still open dimensional fissure.

Commentary

It has taken Lower Decks until its fifth and final season, but here is the first time travel episode of the series. At least, "Fully Dilated" is the first episode that features a real temporal phenomenon and not a simulation. And I am sort of relieved the episode title refers to time dilation.

I will still address what I like about "Fully Dilated". But I have to start with Boimler, who has been an annoyance since the beginning of the season. He once again (and quite predictably) acts like a complete idiot when he spills his stupid drink and thereby brings about the whole trouble. Rutherford doesn't look that much better in this story, and the beard he is growing symbolizes that the two are of one mind in their obsession of appearing manly. I don't think it exonerates the two men that Tendi and especially Mariner act like jerks too because the latter can and will argue that they are the victims of Boimler's failure in the first place. Lower Decks is a lot of fun just because the characters are sometimes crazy and maybe also irresponsible. But it could just as well be done without imposing such an obvious agenda on it.

My criticism of the stereotypical gender roles aside, "Fully Dilated" tells a wonderfully classic Star Trek story. It includes vibes from various memorable episodes such as "The City on the Edge of Forever" (Tendi's tinkering), "Time's Arrow" (Data's head), "The Inner Light" (Mariner learning to play the flute - badly), "Blink of an Eye" (the accelerated planet) and several more. It only wouldn't have been necessary to refer to some of them so literally and to sneak in extra gratuitous mentions without story relevance, such as to "Edo-level" punishments or the "Carbon Creek situation". Anyway, I like everything about the alien planet and the way that Mariner, Tendi and T'Lyn adapt to their new life, each in her own way.

Even though the competition between T'Lyn and Tendi may appear as counterproductive and ultimately silly, I think everything is well in character. Actually, it is one of the funniest parts how T'Lyn comes up with one major accomplishment after another without making it a big deal, while Tendi is desperate about keeping up with her science project. Her conversations with Data's head are simply adorable.

Only one thing in the story doesn't make sense. Following Data's recommendation as she says, Freeman decides that Tendi and T'Lyn should share the position of senior science officer. But what could Data have possible told the captain on the two working together, since it is exactly what they never did the entire time he was activated on the planet? In fact, Tendi used to hide the talking head from T'Lyn, so he doesn't know the latter, except perhaps from what Tendi told him. I also think it would have been fitting for Tendi (and Mariner) to have been present when Data was sent back to his universe.

Overall, this could be the most entertaining and most memorable episode of the season, but it comes with a caveat.

Annotations

Rating: 6

 

Upper Decks

Synopsis

"Upper Decks"

The Cerritos is amidst the rings of Bhungar V, where buhgoons, an endangered extremophile species, are licking rocks. A Grazerite scientist comes aboard the ship to study the creatures. As the quarreling ensigns of Beta Shift and Delta Shift drag one of them into the shuttlebay, the buhgoon suddenly cloaks. Ransom tries his best to motivate the ensigns to work together to catch the creature, but he only bores them with his long-winded story. In the meantime, Shaxs is struggling with his violent past in nightmares, T'Ana decides to recalibrate the pain chart in a self-experiment, Billups is taking care of an almost disastrous malfunction in engineering together with one of his ensigns and Captain Freeman works through her tiresome daily schedule with Stevens at her side. They don't know that Clicket ships are lurking in the planet's rings. The insect species is planning to exploit the cloaking ability of the buhgoons. The Grazerite turns out to be a Clicket agent, and soon the ship is swarming with them. Fortunately Ensign Barnes, who is still recovering from her recent transformation to a cavewoman, puts up a good fight. The rivaling ensigns in the shuttlebay also unite against the enemy. Shaxs knocks out Cardassians in his dreams, who are Clickets in reality. And T'Ana turns out to be invulnerable after her pain experiments. Freeman finally defeats the Clickets by complimenting them - remembering that being complimented is what they hate most. Admiral Freeman comes aboard to celebrate her anniversary with her. As Mariner, Boimler, Tendi, Rutherford and T'Lyn enter the crew lounge, they can't imagine they have missed all the chaos around them.

Commentary

The episode title "Upper Decks" was a dead giveaway that the story would be about Captain Freeman and her bridge officers in a reversed analogy to TNG: "Lower Decks". Yet, it surprised me that Tendi, Rutherford, T'Lyn, Boimler and Mariner were not involved at all. The five friends, who are usually the focus of attention, for some reason are completely oblivious of the chaos all around them. Maybe exactly that was supposed to be the punchline or the main takeaway of the episode, but it doesn't work for me for two reasons. Firstly, it is impossible for them to miss an intruder alert (or for everyone else to forget to issue such an alert). Secondly, things that are happening on the Cerritos without being disclosed to them used to be a recurring concept of Lower Decks anyway; it feels like a needless reiteration in the final season.

Anyway, it doesn't seem like a bad idea to give our five friends a short break before the conclusion of the series (just like it was done in TNG's final season). The members of the Cerritos bridge crew have been a bit neglected as of late but are well-established by now, and we should expect them to be able to carry along a story. Sadly the story is a jumbled mess (I actually had trouble even with the usually simple tasks of writing a summary and selecting pictures that represent the episode well). There is no guiding thread at all. I was waiting in vain for Shaxs's, T'Ana's, Billups's, Ransom's and Freeman's plots to fit together and come to fruition in some fashion. When the Clickets have boarded the ship and everyone of the crew (with five notable exceptions) contributes a tiny little bit to the effort to defeat them in a less than exciting finale, it is too little too late. What's more, rather than on character comedy, the writing relies mostly on body humor, which to me is only mildly funny, if at all. I can't remember laughing once; I may have chuckled (or sighed?) a few times.

I am so sorry but the final season of Lower Decks is becoming the clearly weakest one. Only two weeks ago, I complained about "Of Gods and Angles" being unfunny and cringey. "Upper Decks" takes a conceptually different approach but the result is in the same ballpark. The Freeman and Shaxs plots are still halfway amusing and revealing. The one with Ransom is rather dull. The parts about T'Ana (animal abusers might enjoy it though) and Billups (with the ridiculous "AI defense golem") are irritating.

On the positive side, some of the humorous bits such as Winger Bingston Jr.'s tiresome recital and the running gag about the Clickets being forgettable are successful. I also like how Stevens and Admiral Freeman care for Carol and how Nurse Westlake stands up to Dr. T'Ana (he even strokes the "good kitty" in the end), although it was probably tempting to turn him into a wussy. And, well, Boimler is not annoying this time because he appears only briefly and has no chance to screw up.

Annotations

Rating: 2

 


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