Review: CBS All-Access- ‘Star Trek: Lower Decks’

CBS All Access has become the home for new and exciting chapters in the iconic Star Trek Universe. From Star Trek Discovery and Star Trek Picard to the upcoming Strange New Worlds, it has continued to explore the galaxy. Now, it has added an animated version to its lineup with Star Trek Lower Decks.

Next Generation Homage

This amusing adaptation has a look much like The Next Generation, with the same style openings and fonts.  However, it mixes humor and a willing embrace of its history to appeal to both adults and children alike.

One need only watch the show opening to see this is not your staid and serious Starfleet. Watch as the good ship USS Cerritos flounders it way through an asteroid field, hits an iceberg and wanders in and out of a battle between the Borg and the Romulans.

Space Visuals

But while it’s humor is evident, the visuals in space and of the ship are quite impressive . It makes for a noticeable dichotomy when mixed with the more cartoon style characters inside the ship. Lower Decks walks a fine line between classic Star Trek cool and cartoon animation and does it well.

The premise of Lower Decks almost brings to mind the passenger accommodations of the Titanic. The senior staff and high ranking officers all reside on the upper decks. Meanwhile, the common folk, the grunts and lower ranking members are in the “Lower Decks.” This includes new Officer wannabes Ensigns Mariner (Tawny Newsome), Boimler (Jack Quaid), Tendi (Noel Wells) and Rutherford (Eugene Cordero). Each have their own personality quirks and expectations of their careers. Added together they make for a fun and likable bunch.

Meet the Lower Deck

Ensign Mariner is irreverent, pushy, strong willed and has a problem with authority. I guess when your parents are an Admiral and the Captain of the Cerritos, you tend to rebel. Her main foil is Ensign   Boimler. He is a by the book, follow regulations to the letter, make no waves serious career officer material. The perfect victim for Mariner’s style of seat of your pants, do first and think later shenanigans. The strange thing is, she knows her stuff. But her knowledge comes from DOING and his comes from study. Sometimes it takes both.

Ensigns Tendi and Rutherford are much more compatible. Both embrace the Starfeet jobs given to them. Tendi is a young medical officer in her first deep space assignment. She wants to take it all in with the exuberance of youthful naivety. Rutherford is a recent Cyborg and a member of the Engineering section. He likes nothing better than to take on menial tasks like cleaning a Jefferies Tube till it’s spotless. Although he also longs for a female companion to share his love of  science and mechanics. Hmmm?

What’s Not to Like

Just like in a regular Star Trek episode, the ship and crew run into various missions that inevitably pit the young Lower Deck dwellers to test themselves and perhaps save the day. All with humor and scattering of enough classic Star Trek references to make a fan smile. When mixed with a dash of irreverence along with an embrace of the past, it makes for an enjoyable tale, 30 minutes at a time.

If you are a Star Trek fan, and are in a holding pattern until Star Trek Discovery Season 3 starts, Lower Decks is a great diversion. I dare you not to smile at the humor and those nods to our favorite Star Trek shows. Star Trek Lower Decks is on CBS All-Access with new episodes shown on Thursday. There are three episodes thus far. Check them out and let us know what YOU think, here at Geek Vibes Nation.

Make sure to check out our podcasts each week including Geek Vibes Live, Top 10 with Tia, Wrestling Geeks Alliance and more!

Martin

Senior Writer at GeekVibesNation – I am a 60 something child of the 70’s who admits to being a Star Trek/Star Wars/Comic Book junkie who once dove headfirst 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 21-year-old young man with autism. My wife and son are my real heroes.