Lower Decks Season 5 is setting up a proper broadcast

Key takeaways

• Star Trek: Lower Decks met with skepticism from fans and then won over many with its crazy love letter to the Trek universe.
• Season 5 explores deeper themes and relationships while adding familiar faces for more laughs.
• Despite the series ending after season 5, the creator hints at future possibilities for beloved characters.

When Paramount+ announced that they had taken on Rick and Morty writer Mike McMahan to create an animated Star Trek comedy series, fan reactions were mixed to say the least. Although some were excited to see the first animated Trek series since then Star Trek: The Animated Seriesothers were skeptical that an animated comedy takes place in Star Trek the universe would work. Their skepticism was not unfounded. Even if Star Trek universe was filled with intentional and unintentional comedic moments, all shows in the Trek canon fell firmly into the science-fiction drama category. A Star Trek comedy was a completely new venture that fans weren't sure they wanted.

When the show premiered in 2020, the first few episodes caused an uproar in the fandom. Although some fans loved the laid-back, irreverent perspective of Star Trek universe, others insisted that McMahan's creation lacked the dignity that characterizes Star Trek universe. While some were happy with the Easter eggs and callbacks, others criticized the show as fan service. But as the series went on, the awkward, brash crew of the USS Cerritos and their hijackings grew on many fans. Fixed Lower deck still has its haters, many have come to see the show for what it is: a crazy love letter to Star Trek universe.

Now in its fifth and final season, Lower deck continues to live up to its reputation for weaving new adventures into the established Star Trek cannon. It promises more silly shenanigans, but also a deeper look at the Trekverse, the ideals of Starfleet and its budding heroes. As the performance draws to a close, Star Trek: Lower Decks are faced with the difficult task of giving their characters a send-off that satisfies the fans who have come to love them.

Reunited and it feels so good…for now

At the end of Season 4, D'Vana Tendi left the Cerritos family to return to his life as a pirate on his homeworld, Orion. No one knew when or if she would return. In the first two episodes of season 5, which aired on October 24, Tendi made clear her intentions to return to Starfleet, but she had no clear path to make it happen. Back in Cerritos, her friends struggled with her absence – none more so than Rutherford, who worked nonstop so he wouldn't have to think about how much he missed his best friend. Fortunately, Tendi brokered a deal with her sister, D'Erika, and returned to Cerritos at the end of the season's second episode, “Shades of Green”.

While Tendi's return to her roots brought some hilarious circumstances and a deeper look at Orion culture than any other Trek series has offered, it also set the stage for themes that will endure throughout the season. Part of lower deck' brilliance is its ability to show fans the other side of Starfleet: what it's like away from the action, in the day-to-day tasks of the people not on the bridge. That perspective does too Lower deck the perfect medium for exploring aspects of Starfleet that don't fit into the noble stories that follow the organization's heroes.

In the third and fourth seasons, Lower deck did an excellent job of exploring the not-so-noble aspects of Starfleet: what happens to people who make mistakes, who don't fit the mold, who are just a little too rebellious. The fifth season delves into the reality of what it means to dedicate one's life to an ideal and put duty above all, and how these realities affect relationships.

For the first time, this group of misfits, who have become family, are separated. They must realize what this means for their friendship. More often they are separated for assignments, and their work makes it harder to find time for each other. And as friends outside of their inner circle begin to move to other ships, the Lower Deckers begin to understand that their little family will have to adjust as they grow into their careers and grow apart. Luckily for fans, the Lower Deckers meet this new chapter in their lives and friendships with the same chaotic approach they always have, and plenty of laughs accompany the heartfelt lessons.

Meeting with a familiar Lower Decker

Another strength Lower deck has exhibited in its four seasons shows fans what their favorite legacies have Star Trek characters have been going on since their on-screen stories ended. Previous seasons have seen Tom Paris, Kira Nerys, Quark, Rom, Leeta, Tuvok, Martok and more return to the screen. Season 5 will have at least one familiar face as well: Harry Kim.

Kim's appearance in Lower deck shows not only the program's love for Star Trek canon, but the joy it takes to be hilariously meta. Kim became a bit of a joke within the fandom, as he somehow made it through several years on a ship stranded in space without ever getting a promotion. He remained infamously Ensign Harry Kim despite showing exemplary skill and dedication to his crew. Even in the flash-forwards at the end of Star Trek: Voyagerfans never found out if Kim ever got that promotion.

With a bunch of Kims shown in the season 5 trailer, Lower deck will reveal whether Kim ever got his due. The trailer confirms that at least one Kim has been promoted to lieutenant, but fans don't yet know if it's Kim from the Prime Universe or another. And since Cerritos has already been in an alternate universe this season, nothing can be ruled out.

Are the lower decks gone for good?

If it's something like Paramount+ Star Trek universe has taught Trekkies, is that there's always a chance they'll see their favorite characters again. So, just because Lower deck done after Season 5 doesn't necessarily mean fans will never see Boimler, Mariner, Tendi, Rutherford, T'Lyn or other members of the Cerritos team again. In an interview with TrekMovie.com, McMahan didn't directly say that his Lower Deckers would return, but he hinted that they might.

“The show is an era for these characters, and we got to experience an era from start to finish… the way the show ends, while it feels final, it also blossoms into all these other possibilities that we can either do shows, or can we do comics or write books, or fans can just imagine these characters still doing great Star Trek stuff.”

He also promised that the show would end in a satisfying way that gives its beloved characters a proper send off. Fortunately, fans will have to check out the rest of season five and judge for themselves. New episodes of Star Trek: Lower Decks airs on Paramount+ every Thursday.

Source: Episode of Star Trek: Lower Decks on Paramount+, TrekMovie.com