Mariner is suspicious of Boimler’s new girlfriend while Tendi and Rutherford grow jealous of a bigger starship’s gear.

Well that was a lot of fun. Lower Decks picks up the old Star Trek trope of a love interest not being who they at first appear to be, and they run with it. Boimler has a new girlfriend, Barb (Gillian Jacobs, ommunity), who he’s head over heels in love with, and he’s clearly punching above his weight. He showers her with affection (and a Geordi La Forge teddy bear) and grows very jealous of her interactions with other crew members.

The trouble is, she’s just too good to be true, and Mariner has realised this. From surgically-altered Cardassisn to Romulan spy, to Suliban or Salt Vampire, she can’t be a real human. And Mariner would know, because she recalls a moment when her colleague was eaten by a shape changer. This follows a beautiful gag where crew members talk about the TNG Enterprise and Data’s evil twin brother – ‘It’s like a new thing every week with those guys!’

So while Mariner tries to discover Barb’s true identity, Rutherford and Tendi nerd out over the cool tech on the USS Vancouver and almost lose sight of their friendship through competitive envy. It’s not the strongest B-plot and arguably could have sat in any episode as a subsidiary thread, but it’s fun. Likewise, the plot about the destruction of the decaying moon is fun without taking over the main story.

Verdict: Confident enough to poke fun at a repeating trope, while also adding something new to the genre, this is a very strong instalment, and those references keep coming thick and fast: ‘…a Kirk sundae, with Trip Tucker sprinkles.’ Tasty! 9/10

Nick Joy