Captain Freeman is receiving a promotion to another ship, and when word leaks (through Mariner), her senior staff aren't happy about being left out of the loop and abandoned. But there's no time to address it, as the starship Archimedes is in danger, and only the Cerritos can rescue them -- through extreme measures. Meanwhile, Boimler craves more of the unknown, Tendi thinks she's being transferred against her wishes, and Rutherford's implants are malfunctioning in a way that leads him to an emotional revelation.
What was so striking about this episode of Lower Decks is that it wasn't actually all that funny. There were the runners of Boimler copying "Captain Picard Day" for Captain Freeman, and of the horny Belugas working in "Cetacean Ops" -- and that was about it. Actually, what was really striking is that this was still a very good episode of Lower Decks. With fewer jokes, the series served up fairly straight Star Trek that in many ways could have worked on just about any of the other series.
There were emotional stakes all over the place, with each of the major characters given a meaningful thread in the story. There was a nice cliffhanger worthy of the live-action Treks -- not just Freeman's arrest, but the tease about Rutherford's buried memories. And there was a lot to feast the eyes upon. The idea of stripping the hull off to save the day is one of those concepts (that often show up in the movies, because they're expensive) that doesn't really feel like it makes sense, but it looks cool. But unlike submerging the Enterprise, or a shuttle chase inside a bigger spaceship, there was actually more to this than "looking cool." Stripping the hull was a moment that brought the characters together and reinforced the Cerritos' reputation as the scrappy ship that gets things done.
We also got some completely unexpected fan service in the return of hot chocolate lover Sonya Gomez, now a captain. It felt like a weirdly specific reference, but paid off in the scene making the point that "it's ok to be awkward; you have a place here too." Gomez was a somewhat Boimler-esque character, come to think of it. Lycia Naff's performance was at times flat, but in some quick Googling, I learned that she has essentially retired from acting since appearing on Star Trek. (She had to be completely floored when she got the phone call for this.) Worth it for the point they were trying to make.
I give "First First Contact" an A-. I really have to say that by "average quality per episode," season two of Lower Decks has to be right up there with the very best seasons in all of Star Trek. That's perhaps an unfair metric for other shows that were making 25+ episodes each year (and necessarily would have stinkers in the bunch) -- but there you have it. I think Lower Decks is top shelf Star Trek, and I'll be eagerly awaiting season three.
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