Lower Deck Season 5 sets up a proper send off

Key takeaways

• Star Trek: Lower Decks faced fan skepticism, then won over many with its quirky love-letter to the Trek universe.
• Season 5 explores deeper themes and relationships while adding familiar faces for added laughs.
• Although the series ended after season 5, the producer hints at future opportunities for the beloved characters.

When Paramount+ announced that they had brought Rick and Morty Author Mike McMahan to create an animated Star Trek comedy series, fan reactions were mixed, to say the least. Although some were excited to see the first animated Trek series Star Trek: The Animated SeriesOthers doubted that the animated comedy set Star Trek The universe will work. Their suspicions were not unfounded. Although the Star Trek The universe was full of intentional and unintentional comedic moments, with all of the shows in the Trek canon falling solidly into the science-fiction drama category. A Star Trek Comedy was a brand new endeavor that fans weren't sure they wanted.

When the show premiered in 2020, the first few episodes caused an uproar in the fandom. Some fans, however, preferred the casual, irreverent perspective Star Trek Universe, others asserted that McMahon's creations lacked the dignity of the feature Star Trek the universe. While some were happy with the Easter eggs and callbacks, others criticized the show as fan service. But as the series went on, the awkward, clumsy crew of the USS Cerritos and their hijinks grew on many fans. However lower deck It still has its haters, most of whom come to see the show for what it is: a quirky love letter Star Trek the universe.

Now in its fifth and final season, lower deck The establishment continues to live up to its reputation for weaving new adventures Star Trek Canon. It promises more silly plots, but also takes a deep look at Trekverse, the ideals of Starfleet and its new heroes. As the program draws to a close, Star Trek: The Lower Deck faces the difficult task of delivering a work that satisfies the fans who have come to love their characters.

Reunion and it feels so good…for now

The end of Season 4 saw D'Vana Tendi leave Cerritos to return to her life as a pirate on her home world, Orion. No one knew when she would return. In the first two episodes of Season 5, which aired on October 24, Tandy made clear her intention to return to Starfleet, but she did not have a clear path to do so. Back in Cerritos, her friends struggled with her absence – none more so than Rutherford, who was constantly working so she wouldn't have to think about how much she missed her best friend. Fortunately, Tandy makes a deal with her sister, D'Erica, and returns to Cerritos at the end of the season's second episode, “Shades of Green”.

While Tendy's return to his roots brought some fun situations and took a deeper look at Orion culture than any other Trek series, it also set the stage for themes that would continue throughout the season. part of lower deck Brilliance is its ability to show fans another side of Starfleet: what it's like away from the action, in the grind of everyday tasks, for people not on the bridge. That also creates perspective lower deck A perfect way to explore aspects of Starfleet that don't fit into the grand narratives that follow the organization's heroes.

In the third and fourth season. lower deck It did a great job of examining the aspects of Starfleet that aren't so great: what happens to people who make mistakes, who don't fit the mold, who are a little too rebellious. The fifth season delves into the realities of what it means to dedicate one's life to an ideal and what it means to have duty in everything, and how those realities affect relationships.

This group of misfits who have become a family for the first time are separated. They must face what it means for their friendship. Often, they are separated for missions, and their work makes it difficult to find time for each other. And as friends outside of their tight circle begin to transfer to other ships, the lower deckers begin to understand that their little family will have to adapt as their careers progress and they move away from each other. Luckily for fans, the Lower Deckers tackle this new chapter in their lives with their ever-so-chaotic approach to their friendship, and lots of laughs along with heartfelt lessons.

Meeting a familiar lower decker

Another force lower deck It has been on display for four seasons showing fans some of their favorite legacies Star Trek The characters have been around since their onscreen stories ended. Previous seasons have seen Tom Parrish, Kira Nerys, Quark, Rom, Lyta, Tuvok, Martok, and more return to the screen. Season 5 will also feature at least one familiar face: Harry Kim.

Kim's appearance lower deck Not just love for the show Star Trek Canon, but it revels in being hilariously meta. Kim became a bit of a joke within the fandom, as he spent several years on a ship stranded in space without receiving any promotion in any way. Despite demonstrating exemplary skill and commitment to his crew, he became infamously Ensign Harry Kim. Even in a flash-forward at the end Star Trek: VoyagerFans never found out if Kim got that promotion.

With Kim's goggles on in the Season 5 trailer, lower deck Kim is set to reveal whether he got his due. The trailer confirms that at least one Kim has been promoted to lieutenant, but fans still don't know if it's Kim from the Prime universe or another. And since Cerritos has already been in an alternate universe this season, nothing can be ruled out.

Are the lower deckers gone for good?

If there is anything that Paramount+ Star Trek As the universe has taught Trekkies, there's always a chance they'll see their favorite characters again. So, just because lower deck Just because Season 5 is done doesn't mean fans will never see Boimler, Mariner, Tendi, Rutherford, T'Lyn, or other members of the Cerritos crew again. In an interview with TrekMovie.com, McMahon didn't say outright that his lower deckers would return, but he hinted that they might.

“The show is an era for these characters, and we got to experience an era from beginning to end … As the show ends, while it feels final, it also blossoms into these other opportunities that we can either make shows, or we comics. Can do or write books, or fans can totally imagine these characters still doing great Star Trek stuff.

He also promised that the show will end in a satisfying way that will give a proper send off to his beloved characters. Fortunately, fans will have to check out the rest of season five and judge for themselves. New episodes of Star Trek: The Lower Deck Airs every Thursday on Paramount+.

Source: Episodes Star Trek: The Lower Deck Paramount+, at TrekMovie.com