Off the bat, it is strange to jump straight into season 2 of Lower Decks when it really benefits to have that long wait after “No Small Parts“. The season ended with the death of Shaxs, Rutherford’s memories are gone, and a new relationship was established between the captain and Mariner. Also, Boimler skipped out to join the Titan without warning. Now in “Strange Energies”, some time is supposed to have passed to give us the visual that Beckett has been using Boimler’s bunk for storage. Beckett and Carol are best buddies (annoyingly so to both), and Rutherford is out of medical and back on assignment.

Unlike what I’ve said many times before about episodes of Lower Decks, “Strange Energies” feels like something else entirely. That’s not exactly a bad thing, but given that it is written by McMahan I think the easiest comparison would unjustly be Rick and Morty. The episode is fine and it gives us a few moments of character as a majority of Lower Decks has throughout. However, that shift in dynamics we have to deal with creates something of a so-so feeling when watching it. My point is that you can say “Strange Energies” to me six months from now and I’ll have no idea what you are on about.

As I made reference to early in these reviews, we’re back to almost two stories and a third that almost doesn’t matter. The A-story this time around focuses on Mariner and the effect of her relationship with Captain Freeman on the crew, particularly on Jack. Once again it is all character-driven as we’ve seen Ransom as a narcissistic workout addict that begs for the approval of others while also giving off that confident cool guy charm. Meanwhile, the whole “issue” the ship has to deal with boils down to Mariner uncovering a mucky ancient magic-do-da that makes Jack think he’s a god.

Put simply, the B-story is a strange mix of Tendi trying too hard to maintain her friendship with Rutherford and the annoying American writing trope of the will they/won’t they relationships. Calling back to “Second Contact” when Samanthan was going on a date with Barnes, Tendi tries to remind him that he didn’t like her due to ignoring errors on primer buffer panels (the woman is a psycho!), and it is noted he hated pears before and now loves them. It isn’t a bad story to tell, as Tendi goes on a hunt for Rutherford throughout the corridors, but the threat of a relationship beyond friendship is what bores me here.

The C-story more-or-less handles Boimler feeling overwhelmed with his new position on the Titan since it is a Luna-class capital ship, i.e the one they send to deal with business. I don’t mind the story that is being told over this season and how it plays out. Still, we’re in that period of “make me care.” what’s appealing about Lower Decks is that we’re focusing on a crew so insignificant they sleep in a hallway, and we focus on their friendship keeping them together in ridiculous situations. As “Strange Energies” has our crew split up and the only new story being told is Mariner’s, all that typical charm is gone.

It is often said of musicians once they have their first hit that they have to follow that up with a tricky second album, and that’s what we’ve got here. McMahan nailed it with “Second Contact” and capped that story off beautifully with “No Small Parts.” However, he now has to do it all again from the jumping-off point we were left with. This is done almost entirely with the same writing team as before minus Ben Joseph of “Cupid’s Errant Arrow” and with the addition of Kathryn Lyn’s only writing contribution to the franchise before the upcoming season of Strange New Worlds later this year.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t say I loved (underline it, circle it, and give it love hearts) that Keeping Up With the Cardassians segment in the cold open. I might abhor torture and everything they do, which is a sentiment that could be repeated for the Kardashians, but those pale almost snake-like scheming a-moralistic monsters (bloody cardies) are always great fun for a story. It might only be a 2-minute cold open where Mariner is getting her exercise by escaping torture in the Miranda-class MacDuff, but I can’t help wanting more of the Cardassians.

Ultimately, “Strange Energies” offers a decent exploration into the relationship of Mariner and Carol before we return to the customary clashing we’ve had ten episodes of already. That’s where we’re at, trying to get back to where we’re supposed to be to continue the adventure through space with friends. I don’t dislike the first episode of season 2, but it isn’t one that is particularly memorable for any reason. Where “Much Ado About Boimler” and others are fun stories with striking/memorable visuals, “Strange Energies” lets us in on the crew squabbling and Beckett is back to her favorite place.

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Star Trek: Lower Decks "Strange Energies"

6.5

Score

6.5/10

Pros

• It is nice to see Beckett and Carol get along.
• I like seeing a greater focus on T'ana.

Cons

• Nothing particularly memorable.
• We're spending so much time to get back to normal.