Everything to Remember from Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 4

Say it with me now: “Lower Decks! Lower Decks! Lower Decks!”

Star Trek: Lower Decks is almost ready to beam up for more hilarious adventures, boldly going where no vessel has gone before. Unfortunately, season 5 will be the show’s last, so we’ll only have 10 more episodes with Starfleet’s horniest (and most prone to almost dying) crew.

To celebrate the animated show’s return, I’ve compiled a list of the most important things to remember from season 4 as we engage warp speed into season 5.

Our Lower Deckers Get a Promotion

In a move I never thought was in the realm of possibility, our Lower Deckers, including newbie T’Lyn (although hers is provisional), get promoted to Lieutenant Junior Grade. Naturally, Boimler, Tendi, and Rutherford are elated. For Boimler, this gets him one step closer to the captain’s chair.

However, this isn’t Mariner’s first promotional rodeo. She’s been promoted and promptly demoted more times than anyone can count. She thrives on chaos and punishment.

That said, this promotion lends itself to new opportunities, such as Boimler leading his first mission (which ends with the appearance of the Cosmic Koala).

We Visit Tendi’s Homeworld

Orion finally makes an appearance on Star Trek: Lower Decks. Season 4 whisks us away to Tendi’s homeworld, where we meet her parents and sister. We also learn that Tendi used to be a badass pirate known as the Mistress of the Winter Constellations. Of course, she strives to conceal her alter ego from the Federation, realizing that an Orion serving as an officer in Starfleet is historical in itself.

The visit to Orion blesses us with a fun “girls’ night” as Tendi, Mariner, and T’Lyn bond (and kick ass). Tendi reconnects with her estranged sister, D’Erika, after the two battle it out in hand-to-hand combat, as family is wont to do.

Plus, Orion plays a pivotal role in the season finale, “Old Friends, New Planets.” But more on that later.

T’Lyn Joins the Gang

We get a new Vulcan aboard the Cerritos in season 4! T’Lyn begrudgingly befriends our core quartet after getting transferred to the Cerritos courtesy of Vulcan High Command. Why? Because her decision-making is influenced by more than logic — she also relies on intuition. And if you rely on anything other than logic, are you really a Vulcan?

T’Lyn goes on quite the emotional arc in season 4, namely grappling with her Bendii Syndrome diagnosis. She questions her decisions and whether she’ll be capable of carrying out her duties once the disease takes hold. After a pep talk from Mariner, though, T’Lyn rediscovers her innate confidence.

By the season’s end, T’Lyn is pretty damn close with the Lower Deckers, particularly Tendi. I wonder if the final season will see our crew trying to find a cure for T’Lyn’s disease…

Boimler Gets to Be Acting Captain

It’s a dream come true for our Boims. Everyone’s favorite Lower Decker with the iconic, unmistakable scream finally gets to sit in the captain’s chair, albeit temporarily. In the season finale, Boimler oversees the Cerritos crew while Captain Freeman sets out to rescue Mariner. He even gets to introduce himself as “Acting Captain Bradward Boimler.” It’s an emotional moment for Boimler and for us as fans.

A Historical Event Takes Place During the Season’s Silliest Episode

In “Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place,” Freeman begins negotiations with Grand Nagus Rom and his wife Leeta for Ferenginar to join the Federation. While said negotiations don’t conclude in the episode, it’s the start of Ferenginar potentially becoming a Federation planet, which is quite historic.

All the while, our crew falls prey to hijinks aplenty on Ferenginar, from Boimler binge-watching the planet’s best trash TV to Tendi and Rutherford posing as a couple to Mariner getting in a bar fight. Oh, and if the episode title seems familiar, that’s because it’s a fun nod to the British spoof Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace.

A Familiar Face Resurfaces

Remember Nick Locarno? First appearing in Star Trek: The Next Generation’s “The First Duty,” the character returns in animated form for the last few episodes of season 4. The series also inserts the cheeky nod that he looks an awful lot like Tom Paris, who’s played by the same actor, Robert Duncan McNeill.

Locarno faces a tragic end, but at least parts of him become a new Class M planet, which the Federation names after him.

Tendi’s Sacrifice and Mariner’s Growth

While Mariner scuffles with Locarno in the season finale, Tendi returns to Orion (see, I told you we’d get back to that) to bargain with her sister for a ship to save Mariner. When that fails, Tendi offers herself — she’ll leave Starfleet and return to Orion if D’Erika lets Freeman take one of Orion’s battleships. D’Erika agrees to this. So, in the final moments of the finale, Tendi bids a tearful farewell to our Lower Deckers before departing for her homeworld. Something tells me she’ll return to Starfleet one way or another, though.

As for Mariner, her seasonal narrative showcases immense development on her part. She goes from shying away from responsibilities to revisiting the source of her behavior and healing from her trauma. She also saves the day in the finale and acknowledges her desire to grow. Who knows? Perhaps we’ll see her captain a vessel one day.

What was your favorite moment from Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4? What do you hope to see in season 5? Join the conversation with other Star Trek fans over at Sideshow Social Network or in side.show/geekgroup, and don’t forget to Let Your Geek Sideshow!