Chris Connor reviews the seventh episode of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2…
One of the most hotly anticipated episodes of Strange New Worlds’ second season has been its crossover with the animated series Lower Decks which takes place post-The Next Generation. The episode sees Jack Quaid’s Brad Boimler travelling through a time portal to the events of Strange New Worlds. He and his crewmates have a clear knowledge of how events aboard the Enterprise will pan out with several clear favourites among them including Uhura and Pike.
The fanboy elements and avoidance of details about the future add a sense of comedy throughout as Boimler and latterly Ensign Beckett Mariner adjust to events of a century before and how the legendary crew of Enterprise match their expectations.
The trickiest element of any crossover such as this is balancing elements that make each show distinct and both fans of and newcomers to Lower Decks will find plenty to appreciate with it not relying on a huge amount of prior knowledge, and it may even well lead to an uptake in viewers for Lower Decks. The episode’s premise intelligently allows the crossover and it more than justifies its existence, delivering one of the most fun and humorous episodes of this season blending the best elements of both shows.
While it might be relatively light on plot this episode encapsulates the possibilities of Star Trek and it is remarkable how well the more comedic style of Lower Decks and more philosophical and exploratory nature of Strange New Worlds blend. This comes with the performers from Lower Decks seamlessly transitioning to live action. This continues the experimental nature of Strange New Worlds, never going where fans expect.
The greatest attribute that can be paid to ‘These Old Scientists’ is as an advert for the breadth of Star Trek’s potential in 2023 where an animated show aimed more at adults can sit perfectly alongside a more classical Star Trek series that in its own way is reinventing tried and tested tropes.
Strange New Worlds’ second season continues to deliver, with this episode giving Pike more of a focus in the spotlight and allowing it to feel like an episode of both shows it was a crossover for, no mean feat, far from a throwaway gag it helps deepen the lore and connections both have to the wider Trek universe and we can only hope further crossovers are treated with such focus, fun and wit.
Chris Connor
