by Peter N.

Are you a Star Trek fan? No, we’re not going to get into the longstanding Trekkie vs. Trekker debate. I just want to know whether you’d enjoy some good laugh-out-loud fun in the Trek universe. If so, you need to pick up Seasons 1, 2, and 3 of Star Trek: Lower Decks. One of the recent entries in this new golden age of Star Trek, this animated series stars Ensigns Beckett Mariner, Bradward Boimler, D’Vana Tendi, and Samanthan Rutherford aboard the USS Cerritos. In the Star Trek universe, much prestige is held in the name Enterprise. Well, this show isn’t about the prestige of Starfleet, but rather the workhorses behind everything; namely the California Class ships of which the Cerritos is one.

Charged not with the famous first contacts that the Enterprise and other famous ships conduct, the Cerritos and its crew handle second contacts. In other words, follow-up and cleaning up the messes that are left behind by the more famed ships after they’ve left. It isn’t a great job, but the crew takes pride in what they do, even if they get into some weird hi-jinks along the way. They are a ragtag group of rapscallions that somehow get the job done, along with maybe getting terraformed aboard ship or turned into giant killer scorpion creatures.

As a long-standing Trek fan, I wasn’t sure about how I’d like this show when it was first released but it soon became my favorite of the new Star Treks. Created and written by Mike McMahan of Rick and Morty fame, this show is truly a love letter to the franchise. It is filled with humor, adventure, heart, and more than a starbase full of legacy Star Trek references. This show was created by fans for fans!

Pick up Seasons one, two, or three at your local HCLS branch today!

Peter is an adult instructor at the Miller Branch who has too many books in his TBR pile, too many shows and movies to watch, and wishes that Starfleet was real.