Kayshon, His Eyes Open
In the second episode of Season 2, Kayshon, His Eyes Open, we are treated to two separate story lines with enough Easter eggs and references for even the most insatiable Star Trek fan. First, the Cerritos is called upon to catalogue the collection of a recently deceased member of the Collectors guild. This is at the request of another member of the guild. He wants Starfleet to remove any hazardous pieces of the collection before they take possession.
To expedite this mission, Captain Freeman assigns their new head of security, Lt. Commander Kayshon to lead the away team. Kayshon (Carl Tart) is a Tamarian. You might remember the Tamarians from a Season 5 episode of Star Trek TNG called Darmok. This episode starred the late Paul Warfield as an alien starship captain who spoke in metaphors i.e. “Shaka, When the Walls Fell.” Picard and the alien Captain find themselves stranded on an alien planet. It was up to Picard to decipher the Captain’s language so they could work together to survive.
Differences in Command Style
On the Cerritos, Kayshon was still struggling at times to communicate in Federation Standard and not revert back to Tamarian. He is assigned Mariner, Jet, Tendi and Rutherford on this mission. Mariner and Jet (Marcus Henderson) are highly competitive and have different ways to proceed on a mission. Mariner basically acts first and relies on cleverness, guile and sometimes luck to accomplish her task. No to mention she is still suffering from “Boimler Separation.” Jet is more inclined to consider all options and select the one that is the safest for his crew and himself. This difference usually means Mariner and Jet are butting heads at every turn. Much to the chagrin of Tendi and Rutherford.
Adjusting to the Titan
Meanwhile, Lt. Boimler is still adjusting to life on the Titan where Captain Riker and crew are always seeming to be in some firefight. The crew is used to this and relishes the skirmishes. Boimler is more used to the exploration missions he had on the Cerritos. Regardless, Boimler finds himself assigned to an away team with some of the more gun-ho members of the crew. Their mission is to infiltrate one of the Maruvian mines that are being taken over by the Pacleds and place a tracking device on one of their shuttles. Naturally, this leads to a conflict that will require some creative thinking and a nod to Riker’s past to resolve. Just what Lower Decks is known for.
Good Leadership
Back on the Collectors ship, the infighting by Jet and Mariner continues. It doesn’t help when the ships security system is triggered and Kayshon is zapped by an alien ray. All I can say about that is Kayshon will now be a hit at children’s Birthday Parties. Eventually, it takes Jet and Mariner’s concession of leadership to Tendi and Rutherford to save the crew. Sometimes good leadership is knowing when to let someone else take the wheel. This is echoed by the Captain Freeman’s Federation Evaluation where she is told to stop micro-managing and trust her subordinates. So, its like Mother like Daughter.
Thoughts
This episode was as good as it gets, especially when it comes to Easter Eggs and Nods to Star Trek’s past. Starting with Kayshon and the Pacleds and especially when upon the Alien’s Collector Ship. I found at least 10 different references to Star Trek past on the ship, including TOS, the Animated Series, and TNG. There may have been some I missed but those were the obvious ones. I challenge you to find the 10 and any others I might have missed. (I listed the 10 I saw at the bottom) Don’t peek until you attempt it yourself. One of mine is a guess. But it makes sense.
This was a fun episode and explored concepts of leadership and when to delegate it. I give it a 5 out of 5. Star Trek: Lower Decks can be seen on Paramount+ with a new episode premiering every Thursday during its 10 episode run.
- The Salt Creature: 1st Season, Star Trek TOS, ‘The Man Trap’
- Trombone: Riker’s Musical Instrument of Choice
- A case of Chateau Picard: From the Picard family Winery
- The Vulcan Lirpa (2nd Season, Star Trek TOS, “Amok Time”
- Klingon Weapons including the bat’leth
- Starfleet Female Engineering Uniform i.e. Lt. Uhura
- Khan Noonian Singh’s Necklace
- Giant Skeleton in Starfleet Science Uniform (guess) Spock 2 in the Animated Episode: The Infinite Vulcan
- Skeleton of Abraham Lincoln: 3rd Season, Star Trek TOS, “The Savage Curtain”
- Rock Creature from same Episode who wanted to learn about Good vs. Evil
Before we let you go, we have officially launched our merch store! Check out all of our amazing apparel when you click here and type in GVN15 at checkout for a 15% discount!
Make sure to check out our podcasts each week including Geek Vibes Live, Top 10 with Tia, Wrestling Geeks Alliance and more! For major deals and money off on Amazon, make sure to use our affiliate link!
Senior Writer at GeekVibesNation – I am a 50 something child of the 70’s who admits to being a Star Trek/Star Wars/Comic Book junkie who once dove head first over a cliff (Ok, it was a small hill) to try to rescue his Fantastic Four comic from a watery grave. I am married to a lovely woman who is as crazy as I am and the proud parent of a 18 year old boy with autism. My wife and son are my real heroes.
