Loved this episode.
"or one of those sexy people in rompers that murders you just for going on the grass!"
epic
That was DS9.
THEY WENT TO DS9.
This is all I've wanted for the past 21 years.
I actually really liked Mariner this ep. And really liking the friendship between both sets of people atm. Hopefully they don't muddy it all by pairing everyone up romantically
Review by Andrew BloomVIP 9BlockedParentSpoilers2020-09-04T00:45:05Z
[7.3/10] I didn’t like this one as much as the other episodes this season, but it was still solid. The core stories felt a little too generic sitcom-y, but there were enough Trek-y, sci-fi twists to keep things humming along.
The A-story played as a little too standard for my tastes. The basic premise of Boimler being jealous of the guy his girlfriend works with and so trying to be cool to overcompensate is a very tired trope. There’s definitely some yuks to be had from nerd Boimler’s efforts to be cool, but the whole idea made me roll my eyes a bit.
That said, I like the add-on where Mariner is convinced that Lt. Brinson must be some kind of spy/alien/trap in order for a hotshot like her to be attracted to a dork like Boimler. It’s a good excuse for the show to throw in a lot of fun references to episodes past, and Mariner going crazy like that is fairly entertaining.
The resolution put me off a bit though. I do like the twist that Brinson had the same theories about Mariner on the basis that Boimler is a meek mouse, so why would a badass space adventurer ever be friends with her. But the two of them bonding over tales of Boimler’s embarrassment and the discovery that Brinson was only attracted to Boimler because of a pheromone-emitting parasite that had lodged itself in his neck feels a little too mean. I get a kick out of Boimler being the butt of the joke, but I hope Lower Decks doesn’t go so far as to turn him into another Jerry Smith.
The B-story is more solid, albeit a little off the rails. Tendi and Rutheford being so excited about the U.S.S. Vancouver’s tricked out specs, only to learn to appreciate the rickety but endearing qualities of the Cerritos when they think they’ll be pulled away from it is a good arc. Matt Walsh does good work as the “let a tiny bit of power go to your head” office who brags about his grandmother’s neighborly connection to an admiral and reluctantly stuns Rutheford. The two ensign’s excitement over TI-88s and eventual appreciation of their home ship is endearing. On the whole, it’s a good farce.
Plus, the C-story, to the extent you can call it that, is exceedingly fun. Captain Freeman having to figure out one of those classic Star Trek “How can we intervene to save people here when there’s planetary cultural and political opposition?” scenarios is a great setup. Like Mariner’s conspiracy theories, it allows the show to run through a litany of amusing Trek tropes in short order, and the punchline of the “it would evacuate us from our homes!” bit coming down to only two people was a big laugh. Plus we got not one but two Star Trek: Enterprise references, which I wasn’t expecting!
Overall, the A-story here wasn’t as strong as in previous weeks, but the B- and C-stories carried the weight. Still fun!