"Mariner" reveal in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 5 debut; "Dos Cerritos"

We finally know why Beckett Mariner doesn't have the last name of Freeman like her parents do: "Mariner" is actually Beckett's middle name, and she uses it to distance herself from her mother. There's that lore question finally answered (in case you have been curious, like I have, for the past 4 seasons). Now, on to discuss the rest of the episode discussion!

Episode summary

"Dos Cerritos" is the first episode of the final season of Star Trek: Lower Decks and intercuts between two concurrent storylines. One focuses on D'Vana Tendi performing one last mission for her family's pirate business, and the other depicts the USS Cerritos working to get home from an alternate universe.

The Orion pirate storyline is mostly about Tendi being uncomfortable with piracy and wanting to complete her missions without killing or maiming anyone. She eventually learns that the three women serving under her are similarly disenchanted with the pirate life, and the four of them work together to acquire an ancient, crashed Orion ship without harming their Blue Orion foes.

Meanwhile, the Cerritos has been pulled into an alternate universe and must contend with an alternate Cerritos, commanded by Captain Becky Freeman. We soon discover that this AU version of Beckett Mariner is a strict, draconian commander, with most of the ship supposedly being brigs.

Tension develops between many of the Prime and AU crewmembers, and parting is not sweet sorrow. Just as the Prime Cerritos is ready to leave, Becky Freeman tries to capture Beckett Mariner and swap places with her. The swap is noticed in the nick of time, and Becky is taken to her ship's brig, while Beckett is safely back with her crew on the Prime Cerritos.

The episode ends with the Lower Deckers (sans Tendi) joking around in the Cerritos bar while Mariner feels more confident that she can be a mentor to a group of ensigns that have been assigned to her. Then, back on Orion, Tendi learns that the Blue Orions have declared war on her family for her "un-pirate-like conduct." As a result, Tendi feels she must stay with her family to help fight.

Interesting details

Part of the enjoyment that Lower Decks offers comes from the little references to other Star Trek productions, as well as other small details that are largely left for the audience to notice. A few that stood out to me were:

1. The uniforms for the AU were all slightly darker. This was a subtle, clever way to tell versions of characters apart visually—especially those who lacked other design variations.
2. The Blue Orions say "Or-ee-on," instead of "Or-aye-on." This is like how the word is pronounced in the Star Trek: The Animated Series episode "The Pirates of Orion," which also features Blue Orion pirates.
3. The "Lower Decks" title in the opening credits now has the blue streaking tail, as seen for the title text in Season 5 of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Seeing as this is Season 5 of Lower Decks, it seems apt.
4. The AU Boimler (who has a beard and seems more successful and at-ease than Prime Boimler) did a reverse-Riker Maneuver out of a chair.
5. AU T'Lyn raises her left eyebrow, whereas Prime T'Lyn raises her right. Both Leonard Nimoy and Ethan Peck raise their right eyebrows as Spock, but Zachary Quinto raises his left. Was this an intentional reference to an alternate universe, or just a coincidence?
6. If Becky Freeman was able to be a captain, just how long has Prime Beckett Mariner been staying a Lower Decker?

Thoughts on the episode

Overall, I found the Cerritos storyline to be more interesting and compelling than Tendi's Orion plot. As is often the case for the series, the jokes were not so much laugh-out-loud hilarious as they were cute and amusing. The bleeped profanity—another mainstay of Lower Decks—was also prevalent in this episode, and rather annoying.

That being said, it was very entertaining to watch the characters interact with their AU counterparts. It helped to highlight the Prime Crew's strengths and flaws, and it may also provide some new motivations and inspirations for various characters this season.