A Positive Look At: Star Trek Lower Decks

[Madner Kami]

Alright, but I still say you're missing out. You could be joyfully hyperfixating right now.

Nah, it makes much more fun to hyperfixate on face-masks, during an ongoing global pandemic, that wouldn't be an ongoing global pandemic if people just wore their fucking masks, as they were told to by health-experts for the past (almost) two years.

[Makeshift Python]

Yeah, I like to wait until it's done. If Stargate was still running, I wouldn't have dived in. Lower Decks will be completed in the next few years. When's it set, 2280? That's what I hear. Tbh, that's an interesting time period. Only a few years after the Dominion War and Voyager's return.

The writers set the show at 2380 so that it could take place after right after NEMESIS (2379), and essentially everything else from ENT to VOY and the first ten movies. The only shows set after LD are (for now) DISCO and PICARD. And of course, the Kelvin films are a different quantum reality.

It's essentially a direct sequel to the Berman era in terms of time periods, which allows them to bring back Berman era characters like Riker and Paris.

[Al-1701]

So, this episode had some interesting feline facts. First, we saw a Kzinti in the background in the bar. I think this was also the first time we saw the Doc's tail. While were facial features aren't lynx-like, her short tail is specific trait of the Lyrans from Starfleet Battles.

[Madner Kami]

So, this episode had some interesting feline facts. First, we saw a Kzinti in the background in the bar. I think this was also the first time we saw the Doc's tail. While were facial features aren't lynx-like, her short tail is specific trait of the Lyrans from Starfleet Battles.

I'm fairly certain that she was labeled as a Caitian, which are kinda related to Kzinti (or flat out expy-Kzinti, depending on your point of view).

[TGLS]

So, this episode had some interesting feline facts. First, we saw a Kzinti in the background in the bar. I think this was also the first time we saw the Doc's tail. While were facial features aren't lynx-like, her short tail is specific trait of the Lyrans from Starfleet Battles.

I'm fairly certain that she was labeled as a Caitian, which are kinda related to Kzinti (or flat out expy-Kzinti, depending on your point of view).

I think Caitians were the Felinoid species that M'Ress was (the catwoman bridge furniture from TAS).

youtu.be/Si-ZVWuQDHk

[Madner Kami]

So, this episode had some interesting feline facts. First, we saw a Kzinti in the background in the bar. I think this was also the first time we saw the Doc's tail. While were facial features aren't lynx-like, her short tail is specific trait of the Lyrans from Starfleet Battles.

I'm fairly certain that she was labeled as a Caitian, which are kinda related to Kzinti (or flat out expy-Kzinti, depending on your point of view).

I think Caitians were the Felinoid species that M'Ress was (the catwoman bridge furniture from TAS).

youtu.be/Si-ZVWuQDHk

True.

[Deledrius]

If anything, it's nice to have something that can poke fun at Trek without coming off as disparaging towards the property or its fans. It laughs with us, not at us.

This is it right here. This is basically for fans who love Trek but aren’t above poking fun at it. It comes from a place of love, not hate. If you perceive the show attacking what you love, you probably need to step away. Life’s too short to be so serious about what’s a fictional universe.

Which is why everyone who has seen Galaxy Quest who is a Trek fan considers it a Trek movie. And a damned good one too.

Exactly. Interestingly, I see Galaxy Quest as doing this precisely right, while Lower Decks is fumbling the ball, dropping it on the ground, and then accidentally kicking it out an airlock when it goes to pick it up. There are some crucial, crucial differences.

[Fuzzy Necromancer]

Such as?

[CharlesPhipps]

Exactly. Interestingly, I see Galaxy Quest as doing this precisely right, while Lower Decks is fumbling the ball, dropping it on the ground, and then accidentally kicking it out an airlock when it goes to pick it up. There are some crucial, crucial differences.

I think you'll find that opinion is a minority even among Trek critics. One of the things I enjoyed greatly was all the usual suspects went after Lower Decks with both barrels, only to find their own audience go, "Dude, it's a cartoon. Enjoy yourself."

Lower Decks is by far the least controversial of the NuTrek material and that includes the movies.

Why? Because it's hilarious.

[CmdrKing]

Probably the most consistent theme across all of Streaming Era Trek is taking apart the TNG era shows, looking at the flaws in the morality of both the federation and the shows themselves, and trying to show the character grappling with and overcoming them. But where Discovery and especially Picard are very much taking them to grim conclusions, Lower Decks instead looks at those shortcomings and going "wait, why are we just ignoring this, fuck the rules let's DO SOMETHING" and just have the characters doing good via whacky shenanigans, so it's got a much more lighthearted core and that lets the character beats land a lot better I find. So yeah just... you can nitpick and I get that but on the whole I haven't let any episode smile-free.