Doopler Radar
Imagine if you will, an alien that has the capability to duplicate if embarrassed. Of course, the alien in question finds duplicating embarrassing so they duplicate again. Eventually to the point where you could have a ship full of humiliated aliens. Because of that proclivity, they are know as Dooplers. So the trick is, to avoid anything that might prove to cause a Doopler to duplicate. That was the task Captain Freeman and the Cerritos found themselves in. They were to transport one lone Doopler Ambassador to Starbase 25. Seemed simple enough. However, because of the inherent possibility of Doopler fission, the crew had been walking around on eggshells. Working hard to keep the Doopler Emissary calm and “together.” So far so good.
On the plus side, Starbase 25 was the home of the annual Starfleet Command Conference and it’s legendary after party. Captain Freeman was looking forward to her and her command crew being able to attend that exclusive event for the first time. All they needed to do was get the Doopler Emissary there in one piece. After that, it’s PARTY TIME! But, as luck would have it, as they approached, Captain Freeman was telling the Commander of the Station how difficult it had been pacifying the Doopler, not realizing he had entered the Bridge. Needless to say, finding out he had been a bother to the crew was embarrassing. So, he duplicated and nothing is worse for a Doopler than doing that. So naturally, he did it again…and again…and so on, and so forth. But, we’ll get back to that.
Crashing a Party
Elsewhere, it wasn’t only Captain Freeman who had designs on attending that party. Mariner also wanted to crash that shindig. But how? Come to find out, the solution ALSO involved a duplicate. It appears that Boimler’s Transporter Clone William HAD been invited to the party. However, he and the Titan were on the other side of the universe battling the Paclids. So Mariner schemed that Boimler could go claiming to be William and she could be his plus one! All they needed to do now was sneak off the ship. And as luck would have it, the Doopler problem provided just the cover they needed to override the transporter and go to the party. At least, once they found out where it was being held. It was always a secret.
Rutherford VS. Rutherford Model 2
Back on the ship, Rutherford and Tendi are working on a model of the Cerritos. This was a project that they had been working on for some time now. But as they progress, Rutherford is concerned that his former self was a better engineer than he is now. He apparently had left some notes on the model while working on it that the current Rutherford can’t decipher. And it is driving him crazy that he can’t figure it out. Of course, it doesn’t help that the Dooplers are beginning to encroach on all areas of the ship as they continue to multiply. Soon, Rutherford and Tendi are being driven to higher ground to escape the Doopler flood. All the while Rutherford is having self-esteem issues.
Abandonment Issues
On Starbase 25, Mariner and Boimler arrive only for Mariner to be recognized by an alien that she had encountered before. It seems that she had stranded him on planet Ceti Alpha 4. Which to his way of thinking was WAY worse than Ceti Alpha V (although Khan might disagree). The Alien, whose name is Melvis, pulls a gun on Mariner, claiming to seek revenge. Boimler takes Melvis side claiming that Mariner had stranded him too…on Rubicon 3. Mariner is a bit put off by Boimler taking Melvis side but she apologizes to Melvis anyway and asks him if he knows where the Starfleet Party is. He claims to know and will tell her, IF she agrees to deliver some merchandise for him. A lovely collection of Commander Data bubble bath bottles. Who could say no to that? Although…could some of these actually be Lore, Data’s evil twin? Inquiring Boimler’s want to know.
Car Chase Roll Call
As Mariner and Boimler use a ground vehicle to deliver Melvis’s goods, she complains to him about spilling the beans to Melvis about her stranding him. That was supposed to be just between her and him. Boimler explains that he was just fooling around. Besides, she ALWAYS tells embarrassing things about him. As she responds, the station police attempt to pull them over. Come to find out, Melvis had hidden Klingon Disrupters under the bottles of Data. Have fun in jail he tells her. But this is Mariner. She immediately guns the engines and the chase is on.
The real purpose of this chase is to give Boimler a chance to scream…and announce every establishment or alien race they passed. Casino!, Barbershop!, Fine Men’s Clothing!, Fish People! (Antedians from ST:TNG Episode Manhunt), and Vulcans, Vulcans, Vulcans! They almost run over Captain Christopher Pike in his Wheelchair (He keeps beeping NO!). Even caught a glimpse of alien that looked like Morn from DS9. Eventually, they crash into a now sudsy lake. Full of Data/Lore Bubble Bath. Mariner coms Melvis and threatens to tell the authorities about the disrupters if he doesn’t tell her where the party is. Come to find out, it is in Ballroom Alpha…where ALL parties are held. What the….
No Admittance
Finally, Mariner is going to get to go to the hottest party in Starfleet. Except for one thing. She can’t get in. Lieutenant “William” Boimler is let in but Mariner is not invited because she is just an ensign. Disappointed, she tells Boimler to go on without her. He tells her he doesn’t want to abandon her. She reminds him that he already had once. When he accepted the promotion to the Titan…without telling her. Apparently she was STILL mad about that. He too was disappointed. Disappointed that she didn’t support him in his promotion. Some friend she was…as he left her alone to go to the party, seeing different Captains with their Number Ones.
It’s ok NOT to Finish
Back on the Cerritos, Tendi and Rutherford were trying to make an escape plan from the top of a shuttle as the doopler waves kept coming. Rutherford was still lamenting that he couldn’t seem to finish this model. He just wasn’t as smart as old him. Tendi explained that he didn’t understand. The “Old” Rutherford never finished the model either. Every time they got close to finishing, they would start over. The idea wasn’t to finish the model. As long as they looked like they were busy with it, people left them alone. It was their personal shield from the rest of the crew.
Rutherford finally accepted that he wasn’t any less an engineer than he was before. And they would use the model ship to escape. He opened the model to jettison the tiny warp core., which he then used to blast open a hatch near the shuttle’s roof. He and Tendi leapt to the hatch to escape the Doopler crush. Of course, The Dooplers asked if they had left because of them. Which caused MORE duplication.
Whose Number One?
Mariner found a local bar to drown her sorrows when Boimler returned. When she asked him why he was back, he explained that as awesome as the party was, it wasn’t any fun without her there to share it with him. Awwww… He also apologized for leaving her for the Titan. He didn’t tell her he was leaving because he thought she would try to talk him out of it. But he NEVER meant to hurt her feelings. In fact, he didn’t know that she had any.
Mariner admitted that she does have feelings, she just doesn’t put them on display for everyone. Why she makes an exception for him she doesn’t know. He considered and told her it was because SHE was his Number One. Mariner quickly course corrected him telling him that he is HER Number One and if he isn’t careful, he might get bumped down to Number Two. However, she thanked him for hanging with her.
Dis”CUSSING” Out the Dooplers
Back on the Cerritos, the Doopler problem was nearing critical mass. Finally Captain Freeman blows her stack and tells the Dooplers to basically shut the hell up. Upon hearing that “rude” comment, a pair of the Dooplers recombine. Freeman realizes that instead of being nice to them, they should all give the Dooplers a massive dose of shit. As the crew belittles, ridicules, and gives the Dooplers a HUGE piece of their minds, they steadily recombine until finally, it is just the Emissary again. He has NEVER been so insulted. He is going to his cabin until its time to disembark. Much to the relief of the crew. Now Captain Freeman and crew can attend that party. Except for one small thing…apparently, they weren’t invited. How RUDE!!
Kirk and Spock’s Bar
Back in the Bar, Mariner and Boimler are still bummed about the party but are shocked to learn they were not the first Starfleet Officers to be given the cold shoulder. The Bartender points down at the bar and scratched into the surface are two names: Kirk and Spock. She tells Mariner they also were denied entrance to that years party and they sat right there and drank. Well, Kirk mainly drank while Spock just watched. Probably steepling his fingers and watching the show. Boimler was excited about that being a Geek about Federation History and all.
As they contemplated this, Mariner noticed Captain Freeman and her Senior Staff sitting outside the Bar. She invited them all in to see Kirk and Spock’s Bar. Soon, they were all having a good time, not lamenting not going to the “BIG” Party…at least as much. As they themselves partied, the Doopler Emissary came up to Captain Freeman and thanked her for resolving his issue. He admitted he really needed to toughen up. Then he asked if she knew of a place he could go to relax. She knew just the place. Deny HER entry to a Party will they? She had him beamed right into the StarFleet Party. When one of the officers rudely told him he was not welcome there, you can guess the results.
Time for a Beard
Meanwhile, Tendi and Rutherford had also come down to Starbase 25 to be at the Bar with the others. Tendi presented Rutherford with a NEW Model for them to work on and not finish: Deep Space Nine. Complete with an Ezri and Jadzia Dax. At the Bar, Mariner called Boimler Number One and he accidentally answered her. That was it as far as Mariner was concerned. Boimler was HER Number One. Now he would need to grow a beard. And on the bar, right next to the names Kirk and Spock was carved Mariner and Boimler.
Thoughts
This was another fun Lower Deck’s Episode with the usual callbacks to Star Treks past. I have mentioned a number of them. The Ceti Alpha V reference, which was the planet that Kirk marooned Khan on, before Ceti Alpha VI blew up. The Antedians, the so-called “Fish People” from Star Trek The Next Generations Episode Manhunt. The Data/Lore reference about the Bubble Bath Bottles. The chance encounter with the fellow in the Christopher Pike Wheel Chair from The Menagerie. Even a glimpse of a Morn looking alien during the epic car chase. When combined with the Dooplers who were funny in their own modes of humiliation, it was an enjoyable romp. Although my favorite part was the deeper dive into the Boimler/Mariner dynamic. There is something there, there. Despite how much they both reject the idea as if each of them had cooties. But at least we now know that they each think the other is Number One in their eyes. That’s a start. I give ‘An Embarrassment of Dooplers’ a solid 4 out of 5. This season has been a marvel of consistency thus far. Star Trek: Lower Decks can be seen on Paramount+ with new episodes released each Thursday.
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.
