CBS has announced that Star Trek Lower Decks premiers August 6th. The first animated Star Trek series since the 1970s is also the first Trek series to be produced as a comedy. It tells the story of a group of low-ranking crewmembers of the USS Cerritos, which has a mission of second contact with new "new life and new civilization" which had first contact with some other Starfleet ship.The very first trailer that came out did not impress me, but I will give Lower Decks a chance because I have seen every Star Trek episode of every series and it's nice to keep the collection complete. BUT here are some things that will determine whether I keep watching:
- Good continuity. This animated series is clearly intended for young audiences, but I still want stories that are consistent with the rest of Star Trek continuity. Don't break the rules that we know so well.
- Social messages. Star Trek is always (or at least usually) about social messages. I want to see thoughtful morals to the stories. Even South Park has worthwhile "messages" embedded in its juvenile humor.
- Interesting characters. In animation, it is easy to have cardboard cutouts for characters. I want to see some depth, backstories, and something other than slapstick.
- In-Jokes. Yes, I do want to see some references to other incarnations of Star Trek, obvious or even better subtle.
This series is set after the final TNG movie, Star Trek Nemesis, a period of time not addressed in detail on-screen, except for the snippets of back history given in Star Trek Picard. That gives them a little elbow room. I HOPE that in catering to children, they don't forget that they are likely to have their grown-up Trek fans watching, as well.
The series was originally announced as being produced for Nickelodeon, but the latest word is that the ten episodes of the first season will be on CBS All Access now, and will appear on Nik sometime in 2021. A second season of Lower Decks is already in the works. Curiously enough, ten episodes, one a week, take us up right up the premier of the third season of Star Trek Discovery in October.
