Focusing on the support crew serving on one of Starfleet’s least important ships, the U.S.S. Cerritos, Ensigns Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome, “Space Force”), Brad Boimler (Jack Quaid, “The Boys”), Samanthan Rutherford (Eugene Cordero, “Kong: Skull Island”) and D’Vana Tendi (Noël Wells, “Master of None”) have to keep up with their duties and their social lives, while the ship is being rocked by a multitude of sci-fi anomalies.
In “a worthy return” (IGN), STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS – SEASON TWO follows their adventures as they deal with changes in group dynamics, chasing promotions, and tons of sci-fi missions. Helming the ship is “Captain Carol Freeman” voiced by Dawnn Lewis (“The Rich & the Ruthless”), alongside “Commander Jack Ransom” voiced by Jerry O’Connell (“Billions”); “Lieutenant Shaxs” voiced by Fred Tatasciore (“American Dad!”); “Doctor T’Ana” voiced by Gillian Vigman (“New Girl”); “Lieutenant Billups” voiced by Paul Scheer (“The League”); and “Lieutenant Kayshon” voiced by Carl Tart (“Jimmy Kimmel Live!”).
For in-depth thoughts on Star Trek: Lower Decks – Season Two, please see my colleague Martin Sexton’s reviews from its original streaming release below:
Video Quality
Star Trek: Lower Decks – The Complete Second Season comes to Blu-Ray with a stunning transfer that looks really nice throughout these ten episodes. This is an immaculately clear presentation free of any digital anomalies or debris, which is to be expected from a brand new series. Fine lines and details are crisp and maintained well without any bleeding. There does not appear to be any issues with banding or crush in the deep blacks. Colors are bright and bold with some excellent nuance from episode to episode due to the different environments we get to explore. The series pushes forward even more in this second outing as it gains more confidence on all fronts. While the series looks great on streaming, you have to appreciate the stability that is given to this physical release that showcases the series at its best.
Audio Quality
The Blu-Ray comes with an immersive DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio lossless soundtrack that really springs to life. The show employs an excellent array of environmental effects that are directionally accurate within the mix. Some of these sound effects and various intensive moments provide a nice kick to the low end that is appreciated. Dialogue maintains priority in the track with a crisp, clear presentation in the center speaker that subtly creeps into surrounds during moments where different environments are being engaged. Music is impressively immersive with stings accentuating certain scenes in the rear channels. You could not ask for better from this audio presentation. This release comes with English SDH subtitles along with nine other subtitle language options.
Special Features
- Audio Commentaries
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- Kayshon, His Eyes Open: Creator Mike McMahan and Actors Jack Quaid and Jonathan Frakes
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- An Embarrassment Of Dooplers: Creator Mike McMahan and Actor Jack Quaid
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- Where Pleasant Fountains Lie: Actors Tawny Newsome and Paul Scheer and Writer Garrick Bernard
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- Wej Duj: Creator Mike McMahan, Actor Gabrielle Ruiz and Writer Kathryn Lyn
- Animatics: Each episode gives you a small segment of the episode in which you can compare rough early versions of the animation process with the final version.
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- Strange Energies (0:58)
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- Kayshon, His Eyes Open (1:00)
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- We’ll Always Have Tom Paris (1:03)
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- Mugato, Gumato (1:01)
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- An Embarrassment Of Dooplers (1:00)
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- The Spy Humongous (0:43)
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- Where Pleasant Fountains Lie (0:50)
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- I, Excretus (1:03)
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- Wej Duj (0:51)
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- First First Contact (1:03)
- Easter Eggs: Each episode is given a small segment in which one of the performers and creator Mike McMahan explore the fun treats sprinkled in for fans.
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- Strange Energies (1:01)
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- Kayshon, His Eyes Open (1:31)
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- We’ll Always Have Tom Paris (1:26)
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- Mugato, Gumato (1:03)
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- An Embarrassment Of Dooplers (1:04)
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- The Spy Humongous (1:03)
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- Where Pleasant Fountains Lie (1:01)
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- I, Excretus (1:07)
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- Wej Duj (1:02)
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- First First Contact (1:03)
- A Sound Foundation: A 13-minute featurette in which the creative team discuss the importance of the sound effects in grounding audiences in the future, the Star Trek universe at large, specific eras of the story, and more. The team discusses the challenges that arose from trying to locate and use exact sound files from the past, attempting to approximate the sounds in the modern era, layering the different sound effects, and more.
- Lower Decktionary – Season 2: A great 33-minute featurette in which the cast and creative team discuss the direction of the story in season two, the place of conflict between the characters, the themes they attempt to tackle through comedy, real-world inspirations that are injected into the story, exploring Vulcan versions of the “lower deckers”, the notable character growth and more.
Final Thoughts
Star Trek: Lower Decks grows even stronger in its sophomore outing as it begins to understand what exactly works so well while shaving off the elements that were holding it back a bit. The series is very funny, but it also maintains a heartfelt emotional resonance which ties it to the best elements of the franchise. Passive fans may dismiss this one due to it being animated, but it ranks among the best Star Trek properties on the air right now. CBS Home Entertainment has provided a Blu-Ray for this season that sports a stellar A/V presentation and some really entertaining special features. If you are a fan of Star Trek or just a fan of adult animation in general, this show is worth your time. Recommended
Star Trek: Lower Decks – The Complete Second Season is currently available to purchase on Blu-Ray and DVD.
Note: Images presented in this review are not reflective of the image quality of the Blu-Ray.
Disclaimer: CBS Home Entertainment has supplied a copy of this disc free of charge for review purposes. All opinions in this review are the honest reactions of the author.
Dillon is most comfortable sitting around in a theatre all day watching both big budget and independent movies.
