‘Star Trek: Short Treks’ Season Two Recap

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

'Children of Mars'

I think it is safe to say, that it really is a wonderful time to be a Star Trek fan. For in less than twenty-four hours, the highly anticipated Star Trek: Picard will make its premiere on CBS All Access, giving fans everywhere a fresh new chapter in Jean-Luc Picard’s storied career and life. And later this year we get more Star Trek: Discovery where we will venture to an era of the franchise where no one has gone before, and I have to admit that I’m quite curious as to what Lower Decks will have to offer as well.
 
But while there is plenty of Trek to anticipate in the short and long term, I think we sometimes forget that CBS has been gracious enough to offer up little samples of this saga in between these new shows, by way of Star Trek: Short Treks. And the latest batch of these lovely little vignettes have quietly been working to accomplish something quite special over the past few months. For these little slices of Trek have been slowly bringing us back to the modern era that Picard will revolve around, and the eve of Jean-Luc Picard’s triumphant return to the small screen, seems like the perfect time to revisit what these stories had to offer. So, without further ado, let’s dive right in and celebrate these beautiful and unique stories.
 
‘Q&A’
Now if there’s one thing that the franchise rarely covers, it’s the humble beginnings of some of our favorite characters. But ‘Q&A’ saw an opportunity to change all of that by showing us Ensign Spock’s first day aboard the U.S.S. Enterprise all those years ago and that premise really does make for quite the unique tale. For it was just, fascinating to see this young and eager Vulcan step aboard the ship that would define his career, and it was also nice to gain a little insight on how Number One and Captain Pike molded him into the fine officer we meet when Jim Kirk has taken over command of the ship. But what matters more here is that it handles this journey in fun and silly fashion, keeping with the spirit of The Original Series and while it doesn’t necessarily move any particular plot forward, it is just lovely to be there for such an important moment for such an iconic character.
 
‘The Trouble with Edward’
Let’s be honest, the Tribble is cutest thing that Star Trek has ever introduced to us and I would venture to say that there is no alien species more popular than these little fur-balls, which is amazing when one considers that they have only appeared in a handful of episodes. And that lack of screen time makes them quite the mystery since we know little about them, outside of how they’re pregnant at birth and they hate Klingons. Which is why this particular short immediately appealed to me since it was going to feature these little buggers and while it does indeed offer up an interesting origin story for the modern tribble, along with some disturbing information on how to prepare them for a meal, what makes this short stand out from the rest on this list, is that it is an outright comedy. Because H. Jon Benjamin steals the show as Edward Larkin, thanks to his unique brand of deadpan humor and this story simply keeps you in stitches, thanks to the hilarious and outright over the top moments featured here and honestly, I really enjoyed this one since it brought the fun from beginning to end. 

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'The Trouble with Edward'

​‘Ask Not’
It is no secret that Starfleet officers face incredible odds over the course of their career and in order to prepare for some of the tough situations they may face, they test and test often. Some of these tests we’ve seen on screen, such as the Kobayashi Maru test or the Commander’s exam as seen in The Next Generation. However, this particular short features something slightly different, for in this tale we see Captain Pike pressing a cadet named Thira Sidhu to abandon her integrity to give the captain what he wants. Something she refuses to do, which of course means she gets a passing grade and well, while this short is enjoyable and features more magnificent acting from Anson Mount as Pike, it is sadly the weakest of this particular bunch since it really doesn’t bring anything new or exciting to the table.
 
‘The Girl Who Made the Stars’
I think sometimes in grandiose science fiction tales such as Star Trek, we lose sight of the building blocks that go into creating the wonderful characters we’ve met along the way. Because so many of our Starfleet heroes had parents whose actions and teachings helped mold them into great people and that’s why I was so happy to see this short offer up a tender moment between a young Michael Burnham and her late father. Because this particular tale showed us the bond they shared, and how he worked to inspire his daughter to be fearless in life and achieve wonders along the way and this story really is just quite the treat. For not only is it sweet and uplifting in nature, it’s also an animated feature, one that gives us a beautiful fable involving a young African girl and it also serves as farewell of sorts. For in many ways, this tender moment offers closure and peace when it comes to Michael’s past and that would make sense, since she’s about to embark on a bold new adventure in a future filled with the unknown.
 
‘Ephraim and Dot’
Speaking of farewells, the next short from this season also feels like a unique goodbye in its own right. For ‘Ephraim and Dot’ takes us on a grand journey, one that chronicles the history of the NCC-1701, all because a tiny tardigrade is trying to save her eggs from an unfortunate fate. And the reason I call this a farewell, is simply due to the fact that this feels like a passing of the torch tale. One that highlights the best parts of the older era of Trek as we prepare to enter a bold new one and honestly, it does a fine job of reminding us where we have been and it’s also a cute little animated tale, one where you definitely find yourself rooting for Ephraim to save her babies in the nick of time.
 
‘Children of Mars’
Now of all of the Short Treks released in the past few months, this is the one that I anticipated the most. For this is the one that ties into Star Trek: Picard and it takes us on quite the emotional ride. Wherein a pair of students, who are constantly at odds with one another, find themselves united in disaster. For on this day, which is inferred to be First Contact Day, Mars is attacked by rogue synths and the implications that comes from this are quite powerful. Because this event could relate to why Admiral Picard left Starfleet and it may also offer clues as to the fate of the Federation in Discovery. But more importantly, this is a moment that a fair chunk of fans can relate to since it has echoes of 9/11 and that’s something that I wasn’t expecting to find, but it only adds to the gravity of an incredible event that may change the face of the franchise, forever. 

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