Screengrab
The show Star Trek: Lower Decks returns with the episode ‘Strange Energies’, and naturally, it’s all about the classic strange energies that cause problems in every Star Trek show. But the actual storyline is about two parallel ideas, miscommunication and jealousy, and the overreactions when things aren’t going your way. Both plotlines, the Tendi/Rutherford and the Random-god one, have the same underlying ‘point’ to tell.
The episode starts with a fun action scene of Mariner escaping a Cardassian interrogation, which turns out to be an overly complicated exercise holodeck room. Which … tracks honestly, I feel like this sort of thing would be great for a lot of people that don’t like exercise. We also get the return of minor background Andorian crewmember Jennifer (voice of Lauren Lapkus), with maybe a hint of something else to come?
Mariner’s final line of ‘it’s leg day’ is both cheesy and hilarious in its execution, but sometimes that’s what this show really is all about. The rest of her storyline is about the difficulty in her attempts at open pleasantries and support with her mother, with both pretending that the new dynamic isn’t annoying to them. These lies of omission help drive the other piece, Ransom’s jealousy, which is directly tied into the near ship destruction (as per usual).
The gang is involved with another second contact situation, with a little throwaway joke that it’s taking forever for the local alien leader (voice of Randall Park) to pick a communications number because numbers are sacred to them. Mariner’s devil-may-care attitude toward her ‘I’m doing what’s right and not thinking too much about the implications’ approach directly leads to a mysterious ‘sci-fi’ situation where Ransom gets hit by the episode’s ‘strange energies’.
All of Ransom’s god situation was great, from the doctor failing to sedate him to crewman Stevens prostrating himself toward the new godlike being, and especially the ridiculous giant head of Ransom biting the ship. The line ‘Brace for grabbing’ may have been the highlight of the episode, it’s a laugh out loud line. And the solution?
Simply an acknowledgement of the jealousy and miscommunication between the leadership of the ship, and sure, maybe a boulder or two like the reference to original series character Gary Mitchell. And it has one of the great quick gags of the episode when Tendi, sad and despondent, slides down the wall while the giant head is outside, completely unnoticed by her.
Screengrab
But Tendi and Rutherford’s plotline is another one of jealousy and communication — Tendi is jealous of how the memory rebooted Rutherford is successfully dating Ensign Barnes, which he completely failed at in the first episode of the series. Rutherford is still much the same guy, happy, nerdy, and supportive, but these minor changes are the excuse for Tendi to go nuts and try to forcibly ‘fix’ Rutherford’s mind.
Naturally it comes to a ‘head’ (pun intended) when Tendi finally admits she’s worried that the new Rutherford won’t want to be friends anymore, and Rutherford offers the great point that ‘tackling emotional problem with scientific experimentation is what [he] would have done’. So of course they’re still friends. And that helps Tendi realize the truth of her jealousy too, as she whispers to him not to date Barnes.
The final little moment is showing Boimler on the Titan scared out of his mind as they experience ‘gluonic disruption’, a classic sort of technobabble Star Trek is famous for. So it’s a clear setup for Boimler maybe leaving the overly intensive situation and returning to the Cerritos. You never know.
Overall, a lot of great moments and a great follow-up to the continuity already established, making this show perhaps the only modern Star Trek show that handles continuity well. And while I can’t agree with Tendi and Rutherford about pears, I suppose that just means there are more for me.
New episodes of Star Trek: Lower Decks stream Thursdays on Paramount Plus. Use Hotchka’s affiliate link to subscribe.
What did you think of the season premiere? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
Share this post
