Paramount
Every new installment of “Star Trek: Lower Decks” has been a joy to watch, a fact I’ve confirmed through what I call the “wife test”. This test is quite straightforward – would my wife, a casual “Star Trek” enthusiast who has watched a good chunk of the original series and “The Next Generation”, find this humor-filled animated series enjoyable? The humor, after all, is heavily reliant on inside jokes, references, and Easter eggs designed to tickle the fancy of die-hard “Trek” fanatics.
With each passing season, the answer has consistently been a resounding yes. This is where the subtle charm of “Lower Decks” lies. It’s a show that, while promised to be a treat for the well-informed nerds, subtly offers a complete “Star Trek” experience to any fan, regardless of their level of knowledge. As a lifelong fan, I find myself decoding the rapid-fire references and relishing in the show’s attention to the finer details that other series in this universe wouldn’t have the time to delve into. Meanwhile, she’s engrossed in the tales of Boimler, Tendi, Rutherford, and Mariner, the low-ranking (although less so as time goes on) crew members of the USS Cerritos, a relatively unknown and often ignored Starfleet vessel tasked with the mundane missions that the more significant ships bypass.
“Lower Decks” could have easily been a mere joke factory catering to the whims of super-fans. Instead, it manages to do that while also weaving stories that resonate, starring characters who earn our affection and loyalty as much as any live-action series. It’s a perfect blend: a “Star Trek” comedy series that is so in love with “Star Trek” that it can’t help but be “Star Trek”, even when it’s poking fun at “Star Trek”. The wife test confirms that this crew is as important to her as Picard, Data, and Worf are to me.
It’s therefore all the more poignant that the show’s fifth season, which continues to be as clever, humorous, and heartwarming as ever, is its last.
A Star Trek show made by Star Trek nerds
Paramount
The five episodes of “Star Trek: Lower Decks” season 5 provided to critics for review showcase a series still operating at the height of its powers. Once again, each episode is a smart, funny standalone adventure in a new cook or cranny of the “Trek” universe, with one overarching storyline loosely tying the whole thing together. And in this case, that overarching storyline can’t help but feel appropriate for a final season: due to sci-fi shenanigans, every character finds themselves questioning not only their current station in life, and in Starfleet, but also the path not taken. This has always been a show about growth, personal and professional, and this season doubles down on it: How do you choose to improve your life, and how do you avoid self-sabotage?
Of course, all of this is built into the show’s typical format, where the science fiction adventure stories are not only very funny, but plausible as actual “Trek” storylines (albeit from a skewed angle). Season 5 bounces between goofball headiness and surreal parody as it pleases, never losing sight of its characters and never going for the obvious joke. Because why go obvious when you can build entire storylines around obscure references to the oft-forgotten animated “Star Trek” series from the 1970s? (This passed the wife test admirably, because she didn’t even realize it was a reference. Good job, “Lower Decks.”)
Without spoiling anything, season 5 is the right mixture of indulgent and curious with its explorations of the “Trek” universe, answering the questions that have kept fans awake at night for decades (What, exactly, happens to a planet when it joins the Federation and properly becomes a post-scarcity economy?) and delivering the kind of niche story that proper nerds have been dreaming about for ages (the season’s format-breaking fourth episode is a dream come true for a certain flavor of “Next Generation” fan, especially those fond of scripts written by Ronald D. Moore). It’s clear in every moment that “Lower Decks” isn’t just a joke machine, even though the jokes are very good — this is a bunch of “Star Trek” fans using their own “Star Trek” show to answer all the questions they’ve ever had about “Star Trek.”
If any Star Trek show deserved seven seasons, it’s Lower Decks
Paramount
If this review sounds rapturous … Well, that’s because it is. Over five seasons, I have grown to love the “Lower Decks” crew as much as I’ve loved any “Star Trek” crew, which makes the show’s premature cancelation all the more devastating. If any “Trek” series deserved a full seven season run, following in the footsteps of “The Next Generation,” “Deep Space Nine,” and “Voyager,” it’s the one created by folks who clearly understand and appreciate the history that accompanies a “Trek” series reaching seven seasons. Frankly, this show ending now is devastating.
At the same time, we can appreciate that “Lower Decks” never had the opportunity to lose its steam, never delivered a bad season, and never disappointed. It only got better as its creators became more comfortable adding to the universe so they so clearly love. It leaves us wanting more. If the social media posts from cast and crew are any indication, it’s clear that the cancelation wasn’t a planned one, and that everyone involved wanted to make more. And I wish they could’ve made more.
The best “Star Trek” becomes a comfort. We watch it in times of strife and anxiety to feel better about the future, and to imagine ourselves in a world where science, reason, and diplomacy rise above the noise. “Lower Decks” did all of that while also making us laugh. It remains a gift, and one that I’ll cherish forever.
/Film Rating: 8.5 out of 10
“Star Trek: Lower Decks” season 5 premieres October 24, 2024 on Paramount+.
Credit: www.slashfilm.com
