Lower Decks might seem like just another entry into the growing ledger of modern animation shows, but it truly is a love letter to Star Trek. It would’ve been easy to create an animation show with the intention of poking fun or even trashing Star Trek, but the creators and writers of Lower Decks clearly have a strong, nerdy affection for the franchise. Yes, there’s fan service throughout the episodes with references upon references that aren’t necessarily endemic to the plot or characters. But the show doesn’t exist merely for the sake of those references. There’s actually some science fiction in there, which is pleasantly surprising.
We both theorize on what the live-action, Next Generation version of this episode might’ve felt like. Although it coexists nicely in the Star Trek canon, Lower Decks is an animation show first, therefore room must be made for the requisite hijinks and comedy. What if those prerequisites were unnecessary and removed? How interesting would it have been to gain an earnest look-see into the activities of five different alien ships?
Lower Decks “wej Duj” Synopsis:
Boimler tries to find a bridge buddy while the U.S.S. Cerritos crew has down time during a long warp trip.
Amazon
Star Trek is having a bit of a moment pop-culturally. A multitude of shows is scheduled for release with old and new fans waiting anxiously. But there seems to be this inclination to force-fit the narratives of these shows into the preexisting timelines, the space for which is going increasingly snug. The need for fan service referencing is seemingly trumping the expansive and fertile potential of writing for the Star Trek universe.
Instead of mining characters, ships, and plot lines from well-trodden, and frankly stale material, why not inject some novel creativity into the franchise? Is it necessary for every new show to reference and interplay with every old episode?
The holodeck is invoked in this episode, so of course, we pounce on it. Just when we thought we’d get an answer as to how the safety protocols work, the truth is casually ripped away by a vague outcome concerning a tree and its branches. Will we ever attain a measure of clarity on this make-believe issue?
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