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Aaron Tveit spoke with us about the Todd Komarnicki and MGM+ apocalyptic survival series Earth Abides and what attracted him to the series.
Posted in: Paramount+, Review, Star Trek, TV | Tagged: Anson Mount, Ethan Peck, Jack Quaid, lower decks, Rebecca Romijn, Review, star trek, strange new worlds, Tawny Newsome
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds S02E07 Review: Lower Decks Galaxy Quest
Paramount+ dropped the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds & Lower Decks episode "These Old Scientists," with the LD crew definitely taking over.
Paramount+ surprised fans early by dropping the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds crossover episode with Lower Decks in "Those Old Scientists," which sees LD characters Brad Boimler (Jack Quaid) and Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome) make their live-action debut. The episode begins in the animated universe of Lower Decks. The episode begins with the crew of the U.S.S. Cerritos approaching a planet with a portal. As the ensigns Boimler, Mariner, Tendi (Noël Wells), and Rutherford (Eugene Cordero) take a group photo in front of the portal, it triggers the device sucking Boimler by taking him to the live-action universe and in front of the away team of the Enterprise as fans who seen the preview from The Ready Room are already aware. The following contains minor spoilers.
Star Trek: More Lower Decks Than Strange New Worlds
We see the animated version of the Strange New Worlds opening with Anson Mount's voiceover retained, which is a faithful recreation. The animated theme sets the tone for the rest of the episode and leans more on the LD aspects as Quaid's Boimler becomes the character's focus and point of view. There's literally no attempt made to be discreet, and the lack of self-control is on brand with the Mike McMahan series. Since the bulk of the episode shows how much the ensign spends almost the entire episode fanboying the crew members, some, like Ortegas (Melissa Navia), take advantage of his insecurities and playfully get into his head while being reminded at every turn how he shouldn't be violating the temporal prime directive.
Like Star Trek: Lower Decks, there isn't a shortage of Easter Eggs as most SNW crew members are naturally awkward about being around Boimler and the pedestal he puts each of them on. The most annoyed by this is Mount's Pike, who's the only one treating Boimler's situation with the dire seriousness that it deserves – especially when we get a better understanding of just how grave the threat could be. Even when Ethan Peck's Spock is sharing scenes with Quaid, there's so much of a tease of how much Boimler will spill about the legend the Vulcan will become. We get a similar moment between Newsome's Mariner and Celia Rose Gooding's Uhura.
Having Newsome enter in the latter half of the episode cranks the ownership of the crossover completely in LD's favor. Each SNW cast member makes the best of what they're given being on someone else's canvas. Directed by Jonathan Frakes and written by Kathryn Lyn and Bill Wolkoff, who worked on both shows, it felt more like SNW had to go more out of its way to fit into the LD paradigm. "Those Old Scientists" had to play it lightly on the story to focus on the crossover guest stars, and that's okay. It works for what it is with regard to fan-servicing – with some serious vibes that reminded me of 1999's Galaxy Quest along the way. And if you think this episode was something, we have a musical episode coming up. At least no one can blame Star Trek: Strange New Worlds for not "boldly" trying new things.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Season 2 Episode 7: "These Old Scientists"
7.5/10
Directed by Jonathan Frakes and written by Kathryn Lyn and Bill Wolkoff, who worked on both shows, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds S02E07 "Those Old Scientists" felt more like SNW had to go more out of its way to fit into the LD paradigm, playing it lightly on the story to focus on the crossover guest stars, and that’s okay. It works for what it is with regard to fan-servicing - with some serious vibes that reminded me of 1999's Galaxy Quest along the way. And if you think this episode was something, we have a musical episode coming up. At least no one can blame Star Trek: Strange New Worlds for not "boldly" trying new things.
Credits
Director
Jonathan Frakes
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