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What’s with the weird koala in star trek: lower decks.

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• The smiling koala in Star Trek: Lower Decks is a mysterious entity that appears in the background and is referenced by various characters throughout the series.
• The koala serves as a gatekeeper between life and death, as seen when Lieutenant Junior Grade Brad Boimler encounters it after dying in the latest episode.
• Lower Decks creator Mike McMahan confirms that the series, including the cosmic koala, is canon within the Star Trek universe and incorporates intentional callbacks to Star Trek history.

WARNING: Contains SPOILERS for Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4, episode 3, "In the Cradle of Vexilon." There's a new mysterious entity in Star Trek: Lower Decks , and it's ... a koala? It's a smiling koala, at that, and it seems to know something that it's not sharing. This starry-eyed marsupial can be spotted in the background of the bumper before every Lower Decks episode, after the USS Cerritos whooshes past the Star Trek logo. It appears in the animated opening credits of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2, episode 7 "Those Old Scientists", which crosses over with Lower Decks . In fact, it's referenced at least once a season in Lower Decks , and every character who claims to have seen it has one thing in common.

In Star Trek: Lower Decks season 1 , episode 4, "Moist Vessel", Lieutenant O'Connor (Haley Joel Osment) reveals that the universe is balanced on the back of a smiling koala during his ascension, and Ensign Brad Boimler (Jack Quaid) claims to have seen the koala while unconscious in Lower Decks season 2, episode 10 "First First Contact". In Lower Decks season 3, episode 3 "Mining the Mind's Mines", Lt. Commander Steve Stevens (Ben Rodgers) references the koala after being turned to stone, and in Lower Decks season 3, episode 8 "Crisis Point 2: Paradoxus", a holodeck character invokes the koala in joyous blessings.

Related: Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 4: Cast, Story & Everything We Know

Star Trek: Lower Decks’ Koala Explained

In Star Trek: Lower Decks, the koala is a gatekeeper between life and death. Newly-promoted Lieutenant Junior Grade Brad Boimler meets both the koala and his own demise in Lower Decks season 4, episode 3 "In the Cradle of Vexilon". After dying, he finds himself in a room with a luminous koala, who sends Boimler back to his burned body with an unintelligible phrase. It's not just gibberish, though, because when played backwards, the koala in Lower Decks is actually saying, "It is not your time, Bradward Boimler." Thankfully, Boimler's heroic death and return places him in a long line of Star Trek characters who came back to life .

All the characters who have met the koala or otherwise claim its existence have experienced an event that separates their conscious mind from their physical body, if they have one. Lt. O'Connor's ascension places him beyond both life and death, making him eligible to learn the secrets of the koala. Lt. Commander Stevens' experience with the psychic mines turns his physical body to stone, but his body is restored after returning to the Cerritos; presumably his mind was with the koala. While only a few Star Trek holograms are sentient in the truest sense, Boimler's program follows his own expectations, so draws on his subconscious knowledge.

Yes, Lower Decks’ Koala Is Star Trek Canon

All official Star Trek television series and movies are canon, and that includes Star Trek: Lower Decks and its cosmic koala. Creator Mike McMahan confirmed Lower Decks is canon, with its intentional callbacks to Star Trek history, and Lower Decks' crossover with Star Trek: Strange New Worlds even places it within the live-action timeline. Ultimately, the koala is a nod to the fact that things have always been weird on Star Trek -- just look at all the weird things that happened on Star Trek: Voyager . For now the cosmic koala between life and death is unique to Star Trek: Lower Decks , but there's always a chance it could show up again. Only the koala knows for sure.

Star Trek: Lower Decks season 4 streams Thursdays on Paramount+.

• Star Trek Lower Decks

Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 4 Brings Back The Show's Most Surreal Joke

This article contains  spoilers for the latest episode of "Star Trek: Lower Decks."

The koala is something of a running gag on "Lower Decks," going back to the first season episode "Moist Vessel" (August 27, 2020). In that episode, an officer named Lieutenant O'Connor (Haley Joel Osment) invites Ensign Tendi ( Noël Wells ) to witness the end of a years-long spiritual journey and see him ascend into a higher being. Sadly, Tendi drops O'Connor's ritual gong during his crucial, final ritual and ruins his mandala to catch it. His ascension is stymied. Tendi will spend the bulk of the episode attempting to get back into O'Connor's good graces, something that annoys him immensely. He wanted to be seen as the only "spirituality guy" on the ship, and now that status is ruined.

Later on in the episode, however, O'Connor does end up ascending in the middle of a crisis and somewhat by accident. In a corridor, he suddenly becomes a being of pure light. Arcane symbols appear in the air around him as he transforms. A portal opens up in front of him, and O'Connor sees the face of God.

God is a koala. "Why is it a koala?" he screams in spiritual agony/ecstasy.

"Star Trek" has seen its share of gods in the past — Trelane, Q, Kukulkan, Apollo — but the humanist characters often explain to the grumpy deities that humans no longer need God in its utopian future. More than one god in "Star Trek" has been slapped or punched in the face. "Star Trek," generally speaking, takes place in a post-religious world, at least as far as humans are concerned.

The koala might well be the One True God — one that Boimler briefly sees in the latest episode, "In the Cradle of Vexilon."

Why did the ghost cross the road? To get to The Other Side

In "In the Cradle of Vexilon," the crew of the U.S.S. Cerritos is assigned to improve and upgrade a massive sentient computer, Vexilon, that controls the weather and living conditions of a massive spatial superstructure. The inhabitants of the structure ordinarily devote their lives to aesthetics and art, but their failing computer is interrupting their idyll. While Captain Freeman (Dawnn Lewis) works on debugging the millennia-old machine, Lieutenant Boimler ( Jack Quaid ) learns important lessons about leading his first away mission.

Without giving too much away, Boimler will find himself in close proximity to a fiery explosion. While presumably dead, Boimler finds himself in a small room with little furniture. Then it appears on a chair. The koala! This is only further evidence that not only is there a God in "Star Trek," but that It looks like a cuddly koala. This also backs up a line of dialogue from the episode "First First Contact" (October 14, 2021) when Boimler nearly drowns and claims to have briefly seen a koala while dead.

Additionally, a character named Lieutenant Commander Steve Stevens (Ben Rodgers) briefly dies in "Mining the Mind's Mines" (September 8, 2022), and emerges from his death state claiming he, too, saw a koala. This is now a shared experience. There are a few other references to koalas besides, as when a street preacher bids the koala smile down on others.

The makers of "Lower Decks" are clearly making a cute joke, reducing the Divine into the body of a harmless marsupial that sleeps 18 to 20 hours a day. But at the same time, they are doing something deeply profound. They have transformed "Star Trek" from an atheist universe into one overseen by Providence.

Star Trek and God

As noted above, when "Star Trek" runs into gods, Starfleet officers tend to be dismissive. Kirk explains to Kukulkan in the "Star Trek: The Animated Series" episode "How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth" (October 5, 1974) that humanity has outgrown its need to worship, with Apollo resents having been discarded in the "Original Series" episode "Who Mourns for Adonais?" (September 22, 1967). Other species engage in spiritual practices — the Klingons and the Bajorans have robust spiritual lives — but humans appear to be largely without religion in the future.

Indeed, there is an episode of "Star Trek: Voyager" that is, one might say, explicitly atheist. Neelix (Ethan Phillips) dies in the episode "Mortal Coil" (December 17, 1997), and remains dead for an extended period. Thanks to Borg nanotechnology, however, he is resurrected. Neelix is horrified to learn that he experienced no spiritual visions, and did not meet his loved ones in the afterlife. He becomes despondent over his loss of faith but eventually learns that living is more important. The episode argues that a life without God is better than a death with Him. Heavy stuff.

Of course, this is contradicted by other "Voyager" episodes, such as when B'Elanna Torres (Roxann Dawson) found herself in the Klingon afterlife, or when Harry Kim (Garrett Wang) becomes involved in the thanatological practices of another alien world.

The makers of "Lower Decks" seem to want to keep the spiritual door cracked open, suggesting that the koala — or perhaps Koala — is the Supreme Being waiting on the Other Side. Just like when Captain Archer (Scott Bakula) was asked if he adheres to any faith. Archer smiled and merely said, "I like to keep an open mind."

New episodes of "Star Trek: Lower Decks" premiere Thursdays on Paramount+.

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Published Aug 23, 2022

The Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 2 Primer

Revisit your second contact with the U.S.S. Cerritos ahead of this week’s Season 3 premiere!

StarTrek.com

Second contacts are always exciting, and the second season of Star Trek: Lower Decks was no exception. The show returned with ten hilarious and heartfelt episodes last August, leading up to an exciting season finale that ended with a cliffhanger that left fans eager for more. With the new season just around the corner, let’s recap what happened in Season 2 before the crew of the U.S.S. Cerritos makes their triumphant return. The first season ended with Ensign Mariner deciding to work alongside her mother, Captain Freeman , rather than causing trouble aboard the Cerritos . Just in time, as Mariner’s best friend Ensign Boimler had accepted a promotion and transferred to the U.S.S. Titan under Captain Riker . Elsewhere, Ensign Rutherford lost his memories while saving the Cerritos, but that hasn’t stopped his cheerful spirit — after all, that means he just gets to befriend Ensign Tendi all over again!

Boimler rejoins the Cerritos after the second episode, following an incident that leads to him getting a transporter clone (it happens to the best of us). Mariner and Boimler’s relationship is tense as they work through Mariner’s feelings of abandonment and anger over his promotion. Boimler is still Boims-ing his way through his job, hoping to impress a commanding officer and make his way up the ladder to captain. He even temporarily joins a group of command track ensigns — the Red Shirt Club — in hopes of becoming a captain-like figure. He manages to do so, but by doing things the Boimler way. Mariner and Freeman realize that they’re tenser than ever trying to work in perfect harmony after a mother-daughter miscommunication leads to Ransom almost becoming an evil deity . While Mariner and her mother struggle to connect throughout the season, Mariner also has to learn to drop her defenses and not go at everything on her own. To be the best officer she can be, she’ll need to make allies and trust others. For Tendi and Rutherford… well, they’re always getting into trouble together. Be it trying to save a model Cerritos from an embarrassment of Dooplers to trying to prevent Lt. Billups from losing his virginity (and therefore becoming king of his planet), they’re inseparable. Tendi fears that Rutherford regaining his memories will mean his likes will change and he’ll decide that he no longer likes her, but Rutherford assures her that no matter what, they’ll always be friends. And as long as Rutherford doesn’t probe into how Lt. Shaxs survived the explosion at the end of Season 1, he should be pretty stable.

Starfleet skirmishes with the Pakleds throughout the second season as the aliens attempt to encroach on Federation space. These pesky foes keep the Cerritos on red alert throughout the season, even if they do believe they are tangling with Captain Janeway when Freeman tries to negotiate a truce with them. Be it dealing with miscellaneous space junk that the senior staff keeps around to transporting an evil AI with the voice of Jeffrey Combs to the Daystrom Institute, it’s all in a day’s work for the crew of the Cerritos . But in the finale, they get to take center stage all on their own. While assisting the U.S.S. Archimede s on a first contact mission, Captain Freeman contends with the idea that she might be promoted off the California-class ship to the “big leagues.” Mariner overhears this news and promptly spreads it around the ship, leading to Freeman being confronted by her senior staff . Elsewhere on the ship, Tendi is fleeing from Dr. T’Ana after overhearing the doctor say that she’s not cut out for medical. As interpersonal drama rocks the ship, an unexpected solar flare rocks both the Cerritos and the Archimedes , badly damaging the latter. As the Archimedes plunges towards the planet below, the crew has to figure out a way to save their fellow ship and prevent a planetary disaster!

By removing the ship’s outer hull, the crew navigates the debris field to reach their injured fellow ship in time. Boimler saves the day with help from his friends in Cetacean Ops , while Mariner has to trust her frenemy (and possible crush) Jennifer the Andorian to help navigate the debris field. Rutherford must purge his backup memory drives in order to free up space in his implant to help save the day, and in doing so triggers an unfamiliar memory of two shadowy figures discussing him and his implant. Will that be important for Season 3? We can only speculate! Also, in a near death experience, Boimler sees a koala. We can only assume this is the koala on whose back rests the universe, as seen by an ascending Starfleet officer in Season 1. Bless the koala. Luckily, the Cerritos saves the Archimedes and her crew from crashing into the planet below. As a thank you, Captain Gomez allows Captain Freeman to make First Contact with the planet, marking the first time that the Cerritos has been the ship to initiate contact with a new civilization. Aboard the Cerritos , Tendi finally confronts Dr. T’Ana, who says she’s recommending the Orion for science officer training. “Like Jadzia Dax ,” Tendi exclaims! As Boimler gathers the crew to celebrate Captain Freeman Day, a Starfleet team beams aboard the Cerritos . Assuming they’re here to offer her a promotion, Freeman tells them she’d prefer to remain on her ship. However, they’re not there for her promotion. Instead, Freeman is accused of the destruction of Pakled Planet, which she couldn’t possibly be behind. It’s a set up!!!

Official Trailer | Star Trek: Lower Decks - Season 3

As the crew, including Mariner, watch in horror, their captain is taken away. It’s up to our scrappy crew of ensigns to save the day next season. Will Mariner be reunited with her mom? Will Boimler learn more about that koala? And what was going on with Rutherford’s memories? Share your theories with us @StarTrek on social, and get ready for the premiere of Lower Decks Season 3 later this week!

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Star Trek: Lower Decks streams exclusively on Paramount+ in the U.S. and is distributed by Paramount Global Content Distribution. In Canada, it airs on Bell Media’s CTV Sci-Fi Channel. The series will also be available to stream on Paramount+ in the UK, Canada, Latin America, Australia, Italy, France, the Caribbean, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Ireland and South Korea.

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Let’s not bury the lead: “These Old Scientists” is excellent. It totally capitalizes on the promise of a crossover between Star Trek: Strange New Worlds  and Star Trek: Lower Decks . It is this show’s — and the franchise’s — experimental episode to date (we haven’t even gotten to the Strange New Worlds musical yet!), and this just proves that experimental Trek can also be wildly successful.

During an away mission to investigate a time portal — discovered by the starship Enterprise on a mission to Krulmuth-B   some 120 years earlier — Ensign Brad Boimler (Jack Quaid) accidentally travels back in time to the day the Enterprise crew first visited the planet. Fearing for Boimler’s safety, Ensign Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome) also time travels, and together they must find a way back to the 24 th century without significantly altering their history. Hijinks ensue, and they are wonderful!

Written by Lower Decks alum Kathryn Lyn (with Bill Wolkoff), and expertly directed by Jonathan Frakes, “Those Old Scientists” represents the exciting and authentic integration between the look, the vibes, and the personalities of both shows. At no point does it feel like a Strange New Worlds episode with Lower Decks shoe-horned in, and nor does it feel like a Lower Decks episode just translated to live action. It is authentically both shows at the same time, respecting the core attitudes and ambience of each without negatively impacting the other.

The real triumph is that it’s clear while watching that — in less talented hands (ranging from performers, to writers, costume designer, and the director) — this crossover had the potential to be an absolute disaster . If the performances from either cast didn’t hit just right, this episode would not have landed. If the episode had not included some wonderful character moments and just relied on the crossover gimmick, it would have gotten old fast. And honestly, if the Lower Decks costumes had not translated so well into live action (even the boots!), the whole scenario would not have been believable.

When you actually start to think about how much had to go right in order for this episode to be as good as it is, the more you realize what a stunning achievement it is.

At the core of that achievement, without doubt, is the performance of Jack Quaid as Brad Boimler. He infuses nearly every moment of this episode, both animated and live action, with the ineffable charm of Boimler’s character. He’s a mess; one of the smartest people in the room but still lacking the experience to see past his own foibles. On Lower Decks , he is one of the show’s most expressive characters — who doesn’t love the Boimler scream? — and while that unquestionably works in Lower Decks’s animation, in live action he had to walk a fine line between honoring the character’s zaniness without being completely cartoony.

And while Jack Quaid is far and away the MVP of “Those Old Scientists” — as his near constant presence throughout this episode holds it together magnificently — Tawny Newsome’s performance as Mariner is just as laudable in every way. Newsome totally embodies the Mariner vibe, and it feels completely authentic in live action. Newsome’s magnetic on screen charisma is undeniable, her command of comedy and the Lower Decks style dialogue unparalleled, and I just want more live action Mariner. So much more.

And while Boimler and Mariner’s hijinks on the Enterprise are so much fun, the episode would likely have felt empty if that had been all the focus. Instead, Boimler and Mariner have important roles to play in where the Enterprise crew find themselves, and where they are headed.

The tragedy of Boimler accidentally revealing to Chapel (Jess Bush), who is so uplifted by Spock’s (Ethan Peck) efforts to show emotion, that this is a phase history doesn’t remember is crushing. The moment of joy that Captain Pike (Anson Mount) is afforded knowing how history thinks about him, despite his fate, and Boimler and Mariner encouraging him to seize the moment is profound. Una (Rebecca Romijn) getting the opportunity — in the funniest way possible — to see what impact her actions have had on Starfleet is touching.

Starfleet friends having fun & causing chaos. THANK YOU to everyone at SNW who let us play on their ship!🖖❤️ (cc @jonathansfrakes ) pic.twitter.com/TfSiz8iIZQ — Mike McMahan (@MikeMcMahanTM) July 22, 2023

This episode has laugh out loud hilarious moments (it might be some of the best comedy Star Trek has ever done), it has sweet moments that uplift you, it has sad moments that are full of pathos. And all the way through it is authentically a true integration of Strange New Worlds and Lower Decks . The episode states its intention to be that way up front, giving us the wonderful moment of integrating the Strange New Worlds credits with Lower Decks ’ animation style, and giving the fun scene at the end where the Enterprise crew are animated in Lower Deck fashion.

And even though a lot of the humor of the episode derives from the different styles of the Cerritos and Enterprise crews clashing, the episode’s resolution relies on the Cerritos ensigns becoming a little more Enterprise , and the Enterprise crew becoming a little more Cerritos . The learning and the sharing is what helps save the timeline and get our Cerritos crew back to the 24 th century.

Watching the Enterprise crew nerd out about Captain Archer’s Enterprise NX-01, and realize they were fanboying just as hard as Boimler and Mariner about Pike’s ship and crew? A truly wonderful moment.

OBSERVATION LOUNGE

• In a lovely touch, the Strange New Worlds/Lower Decks mashup opening credits (above) includes the slug monster from the Lower Decks opening credit sequence.
• The mystical Koala of the universe appears in the final seconds of the animated opening credits sequence.
• Jack Quaid and Ethan Peck have excellent chemistry together. Spoimler forever!
• There are a ton of rapid fire Lower Decks style references to Star Trek episodes and characters including Worf, Trelane, “Past Tense,” and the NX-01’s grapplers. It’s very Lower Decks , and translates to live action more successfully than I anticipated.
• The Orion ship design is based off the design of the ship in remastered effects for Star Trek.

The #StarTrek #StrangeNewWorlds crossover with #StarTrekLowerDecks is NOW STREAMING on @ParamountPlus ! And it even has its own special animated title sequence. pic.twitter.com/TvG0UNA14o — Star Trek on Paramount+ (@StarTrekOnPPlus) July 22, 2023

• If I have one tiny criticism about the costuming, it’s that the black shoulders of the Lower Decks uniforms descend a little lower on the arms than felt correct to me — but translating costumes designed for animated not-quite-lifelike proportions to the real world aren’t easy, I’m sure!
• If you squint a bit and look at it sideways, the final scene of the episode gives you all the tenuous canonical reason you need for the existence of shows that “feel” animated and those that “feel” live action in Star Trek . But honestly, if that’s something you need to have a good time — and lighten up!
• Boimler’s poster of Number One features the phrase “Join Starfleet,” and the Paramount+ social media team released a similar poster on June 27 following “Ad Aspera per Aspera.”

• Even though they don’t make it to the live-action portion of the episode, it was wonderful that Tendi (Noel Wells) and Rutherford (Eugene Cordero) made appearances — and Commander Ransom (Jerry O’Connell) too, even if that’s just an excuse for Rebecca Romijn’s real-life husband to complement Number One’s looks.
• The episode’s title comes right from the mouth of Jack Ransom (Jerry O’Connell), back in the  Lower Decks first-season finale, “No Small Parts” — “The TOS era… it’s what I call the 2260s. It stands for ‘Those Old Scientists.'”
• Live-action Boimler’s uniform boots feature the Starfleet delta on their soles, a detail which has been part of the  Lower Decks uniform design since the series debut.

“Those Old Scientists” is a triumph for Strange New Worlds and for the Star Trek franchise. It’s an episode that we should revel in, and enjoy every department being at the absolute top of its game. Jack Quaid and Tawny Newsome are treasures, the Strange New Worlds cast are treasures, and Jonathan Frakes is a treasure who expertly weaved the style of the two shows together. I am going to watch it a hundred times more.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds returns with “Under the Cloak of War” on Thursday, July 27 on Paramount+ in the U.S, the U.K., Australia, Latin America, Brazil, France, Italy, Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

Star Trek: Lower Decks will return for its fourth season on Thursday, September 7 on Paramount+.

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Lower Decks References David Lynch with the Perfect Character

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Star Trek Actors Band Together to Save Lower Decks

This amc fantasy series that is perfect for outlander fans just moved to netflix, rings of power gives a zack snyder justice league actor the justice he deserves, key takeaways.

• The space koala is one of Star Trek: Lower Decks' daffiest running jokes.
• Lower Decks brings the koala back and uses the idea in an intriguing new way.
• Lower Decks' koala homages David Lynch's Twin Peaks in a disturbingly familiar way.

The following contains spoilers from Star Trek: Lower Decks , Season 4, Episode 3 "In the Cradle of Vexilon," now streaming on Paramount+ .

Star Trek and David Lynch don't have many opportunities to cross paths. Star Trek is one of the biggest franchises on the planet, depicting a peaceful and optimistic universe in which the better angels of our nature have prevailed. David Lynch is cinema's foremost surrealist , creating powerful -- and often deeply disturbing -- images of strange realities slithering beneath the surface of common perception. The director has famously eschewed overtly commercial endeavors like Star Trek, and while the sci-fi saga is no stranger to the more unsettling side of the final frontier, it's never come within sniffing distance of the troubling depths Lynch calls home.

Leave it to Star Trek: Lower Decks to change that in a big way. Season 4, Episode 3, "In the Cradle of Vexilon" makes an overt nod to Lynch's groundbreaking television series Twin Peaks . Normally, that wouldn't merit huge attention in such a pop-culture savvy series, but the episode goes further by connecting Lynch's style to Lower Decks' enigmatic "space koala." The pairing is supremely appropriate, while revealing more about the koala's very weird implications for Star Trek as a whole.

RELATED: Star Trek: Lower Decks Supervising Director Reveals How They Animated the USS Voyager

Lower Decks' Space Koala Suggests an Unsettling Canon Universe

Lower Decks is canon, which means it takes place in the same universe as the other Star Trek shows. That takes a particularly weird turn with the space koala, which first appears in Season 1, Episode 4, "Moist Vessel." The thoroughly unpleasant Lt. O'Connor recognizes the creature as he ascends to a higher plane of existence, noting that the entire universe rests on the creature's back. Rather than being comforted, he finds the revelation horrifying.

"Why is he smiling?!" he shrieks as his body and soul become incorporeal. "WHAT DOES HE KNOW?!" The answer never comes, and his empty boots plop ominously to the deck in the wake of his passing. Though it never mentions the director by name, the joke depends on an overtly Lynchian notion: that the human mind is incapable of grasping the totality of the universe, and revelations about its real truths are profoundly disturbing. In this case, that's all bound up in the placid face of a cosmically powerful marsupial, and like Lynch, he's not inclined to share what he knows. Lower Decks has returned to the koala on several occasions, though never so overtly before now.

Boimler claims he saw it after almost drowning in Season 2, Episode 10, "First First Contact," while Lt. Commander Stevens reports seeing a koala on top of a black mountain after being turned to stone in Season 3, Episode 3, "Mining the Mind's Mines." The black mountain also figures prominently in Shaxs' resurrection, which he discloses to Rutherford in Season 2, Episode 3, "We'll Always Have Tom Paris." As with O'Connor's revelation, the details of his experience are disturbing in the extreme. (Though the audience has yet to learn them, getting the gist of it through Rutherford's disquieting reaction.)

RELATED: The Prime Directive Is Important in Star Trek - And So Is Breaking It

Season 4 of Lower Decks Finally Connects The Koala to Lynch

" In the Cradle of Vexilon " hands Boimler another near-death experience, and this time, the viewers get a first-hand look. After heroically aiding Captain Freeman in restoring a malfunctioning god-computer, the freshly minted lieutenant is caught in an explosion. He finds himself in a strange room with a zig-zag pattern on the floor. A stormy black mountain can be seen through a window, and the room's perspective is distorted as if through a fish-eye lens. When Boimler rises to look at the mountain, the koala takes his seat, before telling him "it's not your time Bradward Boimler" in reverse-speak. Boimler promptly wakes up screaming with Dr. T'Ana tending to his injuries.

The scene openly references Twin Peaks, and more specifically the red room, which is an extradimensional space where Kyle MacLachlan's Agent Cooper and others periodically find themselves. They encounter all manner of strange and disturbing beings there, but the most memorable is "The Man from Another Place," played by Michael J. Anderson. Like the koala, he speaks in reverse and his motives remain largely inscrutable. The sequences in the red room are among the most surreal and dreamlike in a series full of oddities. Its status as a meeting place for other planes of existence connects the show's otherwise grounded murder mystery to more cosmic notions.

The tone of the red room sequences also informs Lower Decks , which in turn feeds right back into the mystery of the koala. While The Man from Another Place is apparently benign, his motives can only be inferred, while other entities in the red room are actively terrifying. They include a doppelganger of Agent Cooper -- who takes his place in the real world in the conclusion of the original series -- as well as Twin Peaks's ultimate evil entity BOB. The series invests the seemingly calm façade of the room with sinister undertones, and while Agent Cooper isn't visibly troubled by what he sees there, he would probably be terrified if he understood the full implications.

RELATED: Star Trek: Lower Decks Season Premiere Hints at Another Crossover

The Koala Is Star Trek's Most Lynchian Entity

Lower Decks takes pains to strike the same balance with the koala. His introduction in "Moist Vessel" is admittedly bombastic -- appearing to destroy the last remnants of Lt. O'Connor's sanity, which juxtaposes with the species' cute-and-cuddly reputation. But beyond that, the show has kept him extremely cryptic; his true purpose is unknown, and his placid little face holds unknown cosmic terrors behind it. It's no mistake that Boimler wakes up screaming after his encounter the same way O'Connor did.

It would all just be a grand running joke save for one detail: the koala is canon, which means his status has ramifications for every character in the entire franchise. In that sense, acknowledging Lynch's influence becomes not just a playful pop-culture reference, but an open acknowledgment of the tone they're going for. This is waiting for everyone in the Star Trek universe at some point or another. Lower Decks clearly isn't done with the koala, and whatever comes next is bound to be unsettling. It's clear, however, that David Lynch and Twin Peaks will be pointing the way.

New episodes of Lower Decks stream every Thursday on Paramount+.

• Star Trek: Lower Decks

Black mountain

Boimler looking at the black mountain

The black mountain was, according to Shaxs , a " spiritual battleground " where the soul went after death . There they must fight three faceless apparitions of their father , after which the surviving father makes them eat their heart .

In 2381 , a resurrected Lieutenant Shaxs described his experience at the black mountain to Ensign Sam Rutherford . ( LD : " We'll Always Have Tom Paris ")

Later that year, when Lieutenant Commander Steve Stevens was brain dead for ten minutes after being turned to stone by a psychic mine on Jengus IV , he said that he saw " a koala sitting on a black mount[ain] ". ( LD : " Mining The Mind's Mines ")

Later still, when Lieutenant jg Brad Boimler briefly died after being caught in an explosion from a power relay on Corazonia , he found himself in a mysterious room where the black mountain was visible from the window . ( LD : " In the Cradle of Vexilon ")

When Badgey ascended , he suggested that he would check out the black mountain. ( LD : " A Few Badgeys More ")

The black mountain was also referenced as a place after death in Rick and Morty , on which Mike McMahan works as producer and writer. It was also referenced in kind in "Solar Opposites" where Mike McMahan works as the executive producer and head writer / showrunner.

• 1 Bell Riots
• 2 Obi Ndefo
• 3 Gabriel Bell

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• Paramount/Netflix/Other Streaming Trek
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Let's talk about the Koala

• Thread starter Darth Thanos
• Start date Jul 3, 2023

Darth Thanos

Lieutenant commander.

• Jul 3, 2023

hbquikcomjamesl

Rear admiral.

But only in books by Stephen Goldin.  

F. King Daniel

Fleet admiral.

• Jul 6, 2023

The Universe Koala is to Q what Q is to humanity.  

• Jul 7, 2023

I see someone's been drinking the Cosmic Koal-Aid.  

Lieutenant Junior Grade

• Jul 11, 2023

What I love about it is how it transforms Kirk's death in Generations. His eyes go glassy and enter in to a thousand yard stare. He breathes "Oh my" because... he's just seen the Koala. It all makes sense.  

valkyrie013

Vice Admiral

• Jul 12, 2023

• Aug 1, 2023

The Koala is merely a manifestation of Minooki  

Therin of Andor

• Aug 23, 2023

Voltron64 said: What I love about it is how it transforms Kirk's death in Generations… He breathes "Oh my" because... Click to expand...

137th Gebirg

• Aug 25, 2023

Unnamed Caitian

137th Gebirg said: Yes. Seriously, I don't know what Takei is going to do when the sad day arrives that Shatner passes. He will no longer have any public wall against which to throw all his petty shit. Click to expand...

TimeIsAPredator

• Aug 26, 2023

Unnamed Caitian said: Why do you think Takei (or anyone) will outlive Shatner? Click to expand...

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Recap/Review: ‘Star Trek: Lower Decks’ Reboots The Chaos With “In the Cradle of Vexilon”

| September 14, 2023 | By: Anthony Pascale 20 comments so far

“In the Cradle of Vexilon”

Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 4, Episode 3 – Debuted Thursday, September 14, 2023 Written by Ben Waller Directed by Brandon Williams

Another fun episode explores the implications for the lower deckers’ new positions with some classic Trek themes and motifs.

Freeman is getting some Landru vibes

WARNING: Spoilers below!

“He’s not trying to subjugate anyone?”

The Cerritos has been ordered to Corazonia, a ringworld megastructure with an environment run by an ancient computer named Vexilon. The local population (all artists and poets) love their ancient computer and insist it is benevolent, with “no interest in world domination.” Boimler has been assigned to lead an away team to update an old Starfleet power relay while Captain Freeman checks out Vexilon, who is very nice and apologetic about becoming unpredictable. Ignoring Ransom’s suggestion to bring in engineers, Freeman insists she can handle things alone as she minored in archaic technology back at the Academy. The captain discovers the ringworld’s operating system hasn’t been updated in over six million years (after the original ancient alien designers evolved into fifth-dimensional energy beings, naturally). Using the control panel, she triggers an update, and, of course, Vexilon shuts down. Havoc ensues as clouds turn into icebergs and there’s some “crazy day-night stuff.” Freeman finally calls Billups down but still insists on leading the fix to the frozen supercomputer. Before he can stop her, she puts the computer into “safe mode”—which, as Billups worried, triggers a full reboot. Vexilon informs them it will “re-genesis installation to default settings” complete with miasma, primordial ooze, and lots and lots of lava. Needless to say, this ruins several art classes and poetry readings.

Did you try turning it on and off again?

“It’s not an errand, it’s a mission.”

At the Starfleet power station, newly minted Lt. J.G. Brad Boimler is psyching himself up to lead his first away team of ensigns (Big Merp, Taylor, and Meredith), with T’Lyn along “in case any science stuff happens.” After the Vulcan notes how ensigns under the command of the recently promoted are statistically “more likely to experience death and/or dismemberment,” Brad freaks out, insisting he uninstall all the dangerous power tubes alone. With nothing to do, his team watches as Brad struggles to go solo on a job that clearly requires multiple people. Freeman’s tinkering with Vexilon escalates the chaos outside as Boimler continues to ignore his team and T’Lyn’s protest that “leading by example has proven to be inefficient.” Just as things get “pretty apocalyptic,” Freeman calls to inform Brad he has to reinstall all the power tubes he removed so she can force a restart using power from the station. Brad still insists on doing all the work himself, frantically telling the team it’s “another learning experience,” just as T’Lyn notes a brand new volcano has popped up just beyond the shuttle. Her reaction to the ticking clock of terror-inducing developments is classic Vulcan: “Fascinating.”

Still happy about that promotion, Brad?

“No more mindless, repetitive tasks for us!”

Oblivious to everything happening on the ringworld, the trio of Mariner, Tendi, and Rutherford are assessing life after promotion, not seeing much difference with the big exception of getting access to anomaly storage room, full of all sorts of cool (and dangerous) Easter eggs. But when Lt. Dirk assigns the team the tedious job of sorting through hundreds of isolinear chips to find the single faulty one, the trio starts wondering if they are being hazed. When they find out there is a whole second layer to the scalding hot (and periodically filled with nitrogen gas) chip room, they are sure Dirk is messing with them. Abandoning the chip job, Mariner leads the gang to Dirk’s room for some hazing payback, using stuff from the anomaly room to trap him in a Wadi Chula game along with an annoying Betazoid gift box and “let him marinate in there for a bit.” But after running into Dirk in the corridor and hearing his insistence that chip sorting was critical for the ship and his heartfelt confession that he was afraid to do it due to a past trauma of being trapped in a Wadi game, the gang quickly jumps to some backtracking. Tendi and Sam run off to fix things as Mariner keeps Dirk distracted, forced to listen to a history of Tellarite slop jazz. Apparently, it’s not “how much spit you can get to drip out of the nozzle,” but “it’s really about the brizzles flarps.” Definitely not fascinating.

This group isn’t too excited about promotions either.

“Nobody’s exploding today”

On Corazonia, things finally come to a head. Boimler barely dodges raining lava as he tries to run all the power tubes back to the station. T’Lyn insists he allow the team to assist, but he admits he doesn’t feel he has the right to put what were so recently his fellow ensigns into harm’s way. She assures him he earned his promotion and should trust the ensigns just as Ransom trusted him. Finally, he starts issuing orders to his team to get the job done before they all die. “T’Lyn says I got to put you guys in danger, so let’s do this.” With the job complete, the station powers up, but starts to overheat. Freeman still needs more time, so Brad orders everyone out and this time T’Lyn agrees, telling the ensigns to follow his order. At the last minute, the computer is rebooted and the normal environment returns, so Boimler shuts down the power station… and it explodes, with his limp body landing right in front of his away team outside. He finds himself in an odd room with a mountain along with a spectral Koala before being pulled back to life by Dr. T’Ana, who surprised herself—whatever she did worked. Ransom is there, too, with a helpful “You never forget your first death” as Boimler joins the resurrected character club.

Dr. T’Ana has no time for talk about katras.

On the Cerritos, Rutherford accidentally trips the trap set for Dirk, landing himself in the Wadi game, but he speedruns through, rapidly finishing with ease, even dealing with the annoyance of the “Allamaraine” girl and the foul-mouthed gift box that got pulled in with him. In the chip room, Tendi powers through to find the faulty one and replace it, all without Dirk discovering any of this. In the bar, the trio feels silly for thinking senior officers would mess with them, but it turns out Ransom and Dirk actually were hazing them all along. We see the pair reveling in the fun they have at the expense of new lieutenants. Ensigns no more, but still, lower decks.

Drinking lieutenant tears

One ring to bind them

Three episodes in, and season 4 keeps going strong. “In the Cradle of Vexilon” leans into the character story of the season and mines humor from the ensigns’ promotions. These characters grow and change, but their fundamentals are still there, making all these fun moments organic. Juggling three storylines could have proved cumbersome for the 25-minute runtime, but each was handled well without feeling rushed or short-changed. It helped to leave the mystery ship season arc aside for a week to both reinforce the episodic nature of the show and to allow more time for these three stories. The Boimler storyline benefited from the return of Gabrielle Ruiz as T’Lyn, who helped make him truly accept his promotion and learn to start delegating while adding much of the humor with her deadpan commentary. This is the kind of character-based comedy that the show started to transition to in season 3 and seems to be perfecting in season 4.

Brad is having one of those days

It’s hard to pick a favorite, but seeing Captain Freeman try to do a bit of ancient IT work was a delight, with Dawnn Lewis delivering a standout performance, especially welcome after she had mostly taken a back seat in the first two episodes. Of course, her storyline has nice echoes with the Boimler story with both the Lt. J.G. and the captain herself struggling to delegate and trust their teams—for different reasons. In Boimler’s case, it is a bit of guilt, and with Freeman, it’s all ego. Freeman’s story also offered a bit of commentary on Star Trek tropes with everyone just assuming the computer controlling the planet is determined to turn evil, even though Vexilon was nothing but sweetness and light when functioning properly. Of course, Freeman has reason to be concerned over AIs as she has dealt with Landru, AGIMUS, Badgey, and the season 3 big bad, Admiral Buenamigo’s murderous Texas-class ships. Again, we get subtle character and canon connections woven into some fun meta-humor. Visiting a ringworld megastructure for the first time in the franchise shows how this show can carry on the legacy of Star Trek: The Next Generation , from which it was inspired. And there was a bit of commentary about reliance on technology with the nice (but hapless) Corazonians, who have evolved to just following their artistic pursuits, along with Ransom’s surprisingly astute observations on sculpture and its “amateur lack of focus and balance.” This may be an animated comedy, but there are layers.

They didn’t teach this in Archaic Technology 101 at Starfleet Academy.

The Mariner/Tendi/Rutherford storyline felt a bit disconnected from the intertwined stories on the ringworld, but it was still connected through the theme of the unexpected consequences of being promoted, with Dirk (and, as we learn later, Ransom) ensuring his new Lt. J.G.s still know their place on the lower decks. And when you are looking for classic Lower Decks references, this story leaned into that core competency of the show with plenty of nods and Easter eggs. Pairing two of Trek’s most goofy (and possibly annoying) things together (the Wadi game and Betazoid gift box) was inspired, with the pathos of the gift box’s lament over its simulated “Inner Light” life moving it up to genius.

Please no, stop talking about Tellarite jazz.

Final thoughts

Episode 3 keeps the good times rolling. The fourth season of Lower Decks continues to be a delight with consistent humor, character growth, fun callbacks along with new elements being added to the canon.

Let’s see what happens when I push this button, what could go wrong?

Random stuff

• This is the first script credit for Ben Waller, who has been a writers’ assistant on Lower Decks since season 1.
• This was the directorial debut of Brandon Williams, who joined Lower Decks in season 2 as a storyboard artist.
• The episode did not include the usual opening teaser ahead of the credits.
• Stardate 58759.1.
• Billups has a ferret named Lancelot.
• Tendi says she has resolved conflicts with blindfolded saber fights on Orion.
• After coming out of the Wadi game, the Betazoid gift box got zapped with a Kataan probe , coming out of it talking about an “entire simulated life” and crying over missing his wife.
• Other items in the anomaly storage room include a Klingon bat’leth , Nomad (both of which were seen in the series premiere), a Vulcan lirpa , a hat that “turned Billups into a church tower,” and a spider that can cause your “head to fall off and skitter away” (possibly a reference to The Thing ).
• Betazoid gift boxes are not sentient, but they can pick up phrases. This one learned “eat a bag of Borg d–ks, motherf—ers” from Dr. T’Ana.
• In addition to the callbacks to Shaxs’ death, Boimler’s experience was a nod to the iconic Red Room from Twin Peaks.

No, I haven’t seen Laura Palmer.

Easter egg analysis and more to come

Check back for our full weekly deep dive into the easter eggs and references. And every Friday, the TrekMovie.com All Access Star Trek Podcast  covers the latest news in the Star Trek Universe. The podcast is available on Apple Podcasts ,  Spotify ,  Pocket Casts ,  Stitcher and is part of the TrekMovie Podcast Network.

You were nicer when you were Armin Shimerman

New episodes of  Star  Trek: Lower Decks premiere on Thursdays, streaming on Paramount+ in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, and Europe. It will stream on Paramount+ in S. Korea later in the year. Lower Decks also airs on Thursdays in Canada on CTV Sci-Fi Channel .

Keep up with all the news and reviews from the new Star Trek Universe on TV at TrekMovie.com .

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Honestly I can’t believe they fell for it. First contact with the Wadi was about a decade prior. Which means he was one of these things: a very old looking 20s at the oldest, from the gamma quadrant, or lying. It was obviously the last one but if one of them has considered it for a few seconds they would have figured it out. I know it was not remembering that for the sake of the episode so I’ll get over it, right now it’s bothering me.

Also petty but that’s not how ketracel white works!

That said, I actually enjoyed the stuff with Vexilon more. Vexilon reminds me of myself when I’m having a bad day during a depressive spell. Also the Brad character development was nice. Although I don’t remember him not letting others do tasks being a problem he had before? I guess for the sake of the episode.

😔😔😔 no more dying Brad stop doing this to me.

The wait for agimus continues!

Technically we’ve never seen what ketracel white does to a non-Jem’Hadar, so who knows what the effects could be.

Still amazed how good is Lower Decks. Like Prodigy, I was not very excited to watch this show. So wrong, such a big surprise. Like Prodigy, every new episode is a special treat. Lower Decks is the only new show which truly captures the Berman era heart and spirit. Its not a different era. They just updated the speed and the humor. Its exactly what me as fan sometimes wished for when I was watching STNG in the 90s.

I can’t stop laughing with Dr. T’Ana’s mean attitude. Whatever she is saying, I’m on the floor laughing. Can you imagine how crazy having her as your colleague, or worse, as your Doctor!? The whole character, voice, cat jokes, bad a$$ attitude, brilliant!

Freeman having an ego is in character, but going so far as to tackle the problem herself without delegating is a stretch compared to why Boimler does it.

Otherwise, another fun episode, one that pushes characters forward.

And the episode has both a Kzinti and a Ringworld.

I hope the lack of discourse is down to the message board not working properly…

Great Episode! And a strange new world! Loved it!

“Allamaraine lemon meringue” is an iconic line though. There needs to be a Trek themed restaurant that serves a lemon meringue pie with that name.

The first three episodes have been great, especially the second time around! Thanks for another insightful review. Looking forward to the podcast review!!

Enjoyed this episode. I really feel like they are pulling back on the obvious comedy. We had maybe three outright in-your-face jokes, Ransom on artwork, the eat a bag of borg d***s m**********r, and dead-pan T’lin a couple times, But that’s about it. I really wish there were a few more obvious jokes. I don’t consider the crew running around like their heads are chopped off trying to fix something funny anymore. season 1, yes. But now, it’s just how this crew operates. I wish there was some more laugh-out-loud, spit-my-water comedy. Obviously, comedy is art. And art is subjective. But for me its getting more dramatic than comedic, which is not what the show was sold as to me.

Please tell me they cut Larry Niven at least a small paycheck for this?

Probably not, but I doubt the likes of Halo, Elysium or Star Wars did either, and they all had variations on a ringworld setting.

Yeah, but to have a Ringworld and Kzinti’s both in the same ep? That’s pushing it.

The TAS episode “The Slaver Weapon” was based on Niven’s “The Soft Weapon” and had Kzinti. Niven agreed back then to have Paramount use elements of his Known Space Universe. Perhaps this agreement was far reaching and also included other elements, aka the Ringworld…

When played backwards, what The Koala said was “It’s not your time, Bradward Boimler”

I liked the Boimler/T’Lyn plotline. It was nice to see Boimler grow, and I thought they used the Vulcan character appropriately and not just for laughs.

But hazing! Hazing is a nasty thing to do to anybody, and I hate it that both SNW and LD have now had someone hazing their subordinates. This is supposed to be STAR TREK, damn it! Where’s the “the human race has mostly grown out of being total jerks, though we do still have flaws” ideal?

I’m glad T’Lyn is working out so far. I was so pleased to see a straight man character get introduced, and she was the highlight of wej Duj.

Yes, she’s a delightful addition to the show!

But then, I pretty much always want a Vulcan character. :-)

At least this was pretty minor hazing. They just had to do an unpleasant job. Its not like they were in danger or anything like that, like you hear about with recent incidents of hazing.

I have the distinct feeling that someone pulled that crap on Ransom. Said someone isn’t as good at playing trombone as he likes to think he is.