review of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds 2.7
https://paullevinson.blogspot.com/2023/07/star-trek-strange-new-worlds-27-pike.html
Nice! I’ve said it elsewhere, but for all those that liked this episode and haven’t seen LD, a massive part of why this episode is so good, IMO, is that it is in many ways a LD episode. Give it a chance I’d say.
Though I think there’s a lot to be said for how good the fusion of SNW and LD turned out to be.
@maegul Thanks – I think I will (give LD a chance).
Like most Star Trek shows, it took a bit find its own strengths and to settle into its own groove. At 22 minutes an episode, getting through the ground establishing first half season isn’t a big time investment, and by the end of the first season, you’ll know if it’s for you - although it keeps getting stronger and more grounded in its own lore as it goes.
Man, I knew I loved LDS after the first 5 minutes. Show came out the gate running
Question: is all of LD “like that”? I mean with the witty, switched on, humorous-ish characters?
Yes. That is definitely almost all of Lower Decks.
Yes. Also they are genre savvy (alien parasites, evil computers, and other crazy sci-fi nonsense are just routine parts of the job) and reference past series like fans (“That guy’s like a Kirk sundae with Trip Tucker sprinkles” is a direct quote).
It is a light-hearted semi-parody of Star Trek made by people who love Star Trek.
And it’s also a sort of punch-up. The ensigns are doing all the hard work, but the officers get all the credit.
… usually. But then they subvert that sometimes.
I think the episode is generally a good representation of how Lower Decks characters are, yeah.
I was sitting there thinking…
Ive never been a fan of the cartoon shows (ie: Rick and Morty, Simpsons, Bobs Burgers, KOTH etc etc). Not really sure why, and its not like I havent given them a shot, they just never stuck.
Trek is one where i like the genre, and the series have a pretty wide berth of quality. I thought the episode was solid. But I am not sure if the humor would last on me before it becomes…grating.
May give it a shot though after the episode whereas prior I was like “nah no animated trek for me”
The first 3 LD episodes are pretty brutal if you’re not tuned into the frenetic pacing of something like Rick and Morty. I would not put Simpsons, Bobs, KOTH in the same zone. HOWEVER, it’s worth getting tuned into. And if you really want some great info, dig up the old site’s posts by /u/USSBurritoTruck (if they are still there) about Canon Connections especially in Lower Decks, because there’s a TON.
or just search “easter eggs in lower decks S1E4” or whatever. But USSBurritoTruck is the best.
Try starting with season 1 episode 9, Crisis Point and watch forward from there for a few episodes. If you enjoy it, go back and watch the rest.
Thanks. Will do.
That type of humor (that was displayed in the episode, but is fairly prevelent in other shows), which i kinda call “quirky physical humor” in that the characters have no internal filter and just blurt out stuff, do silly things to cause plot level issues and just shrug it with “woopsie” etc kinda wear on me in large doses. In smaller doses, like this one, its fine, but definately not something I will binge or even watch nightly.
Which is also why i think some of the aforementioned shows also didnt stick.
That said, I do like the Orville, so there is that.
The first several episodes of Orville I’ve described as “what if Star Trek had dick jokes and occasionally tapped the well of ex-wife jokes”… but yeah, I loved that too.
Yeah. I mean I’m not against juvenile humor. The Orville definitely hits that chord well. It’s kinda like family guy in space but without the idiocy of Peter griffin.
But a good example was I watched s1e4 moist vessel last night. Beyond the ridiculous plot narrative with mariner the backup narrative was about the green person just not able to control themselves, being entirely in appropriate and rude, then wandering across the room to look at the shiny thing and causing chaos etc etc. this turns into the backup plot of trying to fix everything that could have been prevented with 5 minutes of self control. I finished the episode but it was hard. That type of behavior is no endearing at all to me. In fact it’s kinda exhausting.
Yeah, that’s the worst Tendi gets in the whole series. She usually has excellent self control.
Im gonna start there tonight. I started at S1e4 and was underwhelmed. My rule of thumb is 4 episodes before I quite a show though. So ill stick to that at least and because its ST, it doesnt seem like theres any longer story arcs, mostly neat little 20 minute plot lines.
There are definitely longer story arcs in Lower Decks :)
I think Mariner is a little bit too “too cool for school” and Boimler is a little bit too racist against orions, but it’s still quite accurate to the characters
@PaulLev I’d never seen Strange New Worlds before this episode. Now I wanna watch it. What a great episode!
great review! I was skeptical at first when I began watching lower decks. IMO it’s funny, sometimes. (actually I had to give it another chance) I did end up watching all of the episodes though. SNW is pretty good too. this episode really surprised me. oftentimes I’ll just hit play and mess around on my phone. this time I watched the whole thing. I really enjoyed the references to other characters and humor that played out. I’d have to say it’s probably one of my favorite SNW episodes now.
@livedeified Thanks! It’s also one of my favorite Star Trek episodes, too.
