Review: Star Trek: Lower Decks “The Least Dangerous Game”
Overview (Spoilers Below)
On a tropical paradise planet, Mariner questions Commander Ransom on how he structures his away team as they embark on a mission while the home team stays to fix the elevator. Problem is, Billups and Rutherford get into trouble and are nearly incinerated by the local planet’s population before Ransom and Mariner skydive to help save the day.
Boimler makes a bold career decision, to say yes to more activities that he may not be comfortable with. This comes to a head when K’ranch offers Boimler the opportunity to be prey in a big game hunt starring the bulking alien that goes pure Macho Man Randy Savage when it’s hunting season. Fortunately, K’ranch and his people have a catch and release policy when it comes to hunting, so Boimler comes out the other end taking part in new experiences.
Our Take
One aspect of Star Trek: Lower Decks that seems to be often over-looked, especially when comparing the show’s third seasons to seasons prior, is Titmouse’s technical brilliance. The show looks on par in it’s aesthetic to other series like Futurama, Rick and Morty, and others, and it shows in a number of details like lighting/shadowing, luscious backgrounds, and excellent alien character designs. Titmouse is at the head of the game for a reason, these guys can make a show like this and they can also make more gritty examples of adult animation like Beavis and Butt-Head.
As for the plot, this episode feels like it features building blocks for later episodes. I doubt we see the Delanians or K’ranch again, but the lessons learned from both Boimler and Mariner seems like the type of character-building that should pay off more later in the season.
The punchlines to a lot of jokes seem very Star Trek-specific this go-round, but for the most part enough is given back to those who may not be Trekkies that there should be enough to go around.
"There are also other characters that come and go (also owned by the Warner Bros. Discovery conglomerate media company)."
Huh. Is that just referring to other characters from the show itself, or is this implying that the new season is going to have cameos from other WBD IPs