‘Star Trek: Lower Decks’ Recap – ‘Cupid’s Errant Arrow’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 105 of ‘Star Trek: Lower Decks’.
​
Over the course of the past few weeks, the CBS All Access series, Star Trek: Lower Decks, has done a phenomenal job of dissecting what makes the Star Trek Universe so great. Because it truly celebrates the best parts of the franchise at every single turn and it’s done a phenomenal job of exploring why Starfleet is such an important and magnificent organization and best of all, the show makes us laugh on a consistent basis as well. But while it is quite lovely to examine what makes this franchise so great on a regular basis, the show also clearly understands that a Trek themed comedy needs to just let loose and tell an every day story from time to time, as evidenced by this week’s episode.

Because ‘Cupid’s Errant Arrow’ was an episode that was devoid of any deeper STU analysis. Instead this particular tale was keen to just allow for us to tag along on a joint venture mission between the U.S.S. Cerritos and the U.S.S. Vancouver, as they worked together to demolish a moon that was threatening an entire world. Which makes it sound as though this particular tale didn't have room in the slightest for some every day moments. But with the two bridge crews working on solving bigger problems, that allowed for our favorite ensigns to venture off and do their own thing. Which in turn allowed for us to learn more about what makes them tick and what we learned about them was quite delightful, especially since we came to understand just how loyal these four are to duty and one another. 

Take Tendi and Rutherford for instance, since their journey helped us to learn just how much these two absolutely adore being a part of Starfleet and how much they love being aboard the Cerritos. Because they went the extra mile in this story to get their busted-up California class ship the latest and greatest technology. By working overtime on the Vancouver, and when given the opportunity to transfer there, they absolutely refused. Because they were loyal to Captain Freeman and the ship that started their careers, and there was no way they would turn their back on that, all for a chance to serve aboard a bigger and cooler ship that was filled to the brim with the most wonderful toys. Especially since they stole most of those toys to accomplish their goal, and this unexpected exploration on loyalty didn’t end with a liberation of T88’s.

For Mariner and Boimler’s adventures in this tale helped us to understand how much Mariner cares for dear Bradward (yes, that is his full first name). Because she would not leave his side in this tale, for she was convinced that Boimler’s honey aboard the Vancouver, a Lieutenant Barbara Brinson, was some kind of shape shifting alien. The kind that would either implant something horrible in Bradward’s chest or potentially just suck the life out of him as some aliens are wont to do. And her pursuit of the truth led to some of the most hilarious moments in this tale, since mistakes were made by Boimler and Mariner at every single turn. But in the end, the true surprise in regard to this plot thread, is that Boimler was the one harboring an alien life form after all. The kind that used pheromones to attract dear Barbara.

But what matters more is that Mariner really is a wonderful friend to Brad, and she genuinely will go the extra mile to ensure that he is always safe, and that’s just awesome and uplifting and really in the end, this was quite the wonderful tale. Because the jokes came at us at warp speed in this particular story, and it was also packed with a ridiculous amount of Easter Eggs as well. Because Mariner’s quest to uncover Barbara’s true identity made reference to so many moments from the franchise’s illustrious past and there were one-liners that added to that magic as well and you really cannot go wrong with a story like this. Because this one was just a blast and it just goes to show that Lower Decks can be quite the versatile comedy, and now that we know it can shift gears in this clever manner, it should be interesting to see what kind of episode we get from this series, come next week. Until then.      

---