I thought that was an above-average episode of Lower Decks. However, it felt like it was reaching for greatness, reaching back to several ongoing elements of the show (Badgy, Peanut Hamper, Agimus, etc.), and turning up the action quotient like some of the "feature" episodes of past seasons. Yet it didn't succeed in achieving the heights it had intended.
The ultimate issue here is pacing - something that surprised me, given the show is normally paced quite well, sometimes managing to balance three or four plots within a bite-sized time slot. But here everything feels rushed, with the main characters essentially bystanders as the plot happens. Really, there were two great plots for episodes...but it should have been two, not one. Or they should have done a double-length episode. But as it is, it's just too much packed into too little space.
The "A" plot with Badgey and Rutherford was, I thought, less effective. I know this sounds silly to say about a cartoon character, but Badgey is too much of a cartoon character for this to work properly for me. I did like the conceit that his inner conflicts split off new versions of him as a gag, but it meant that Badgey's "core" remained monomaniacal and boring. Ultimately though, the issue with this plot is that Rutherford didn't win anything - Badgey won, but had a last-minute change of heart when he ascended and saw the koala. This makes for a funny gag, but it means that Rutherford had no real growth due to the trials of the episode - he just kinda fumbled around until events ended.
The "B" plot with Peanut Hamper and Agimus was much, much better. Both of them are actual characters with internal conflicts, which helps (as does having Jeffery Combs back again, of course). There also was something of a "plot twist" here, which was refreshing, as initially it looked like Boimler and Tendi were actually total idiots, and not just pretending to try and get intel. Peanut Hamper deciding to leave Agimus behind and do her own thing seemed true to her character (she never cared about world domination, even if she was selfish), but the twist that she was finally ready to be a decent person (and it somehow rubbed off on Agimus as well) was a nice reinforcement of the core Trekkian ethos. And look, we finally have forward movement on the serialized plot of the season!
The episode is downgraded for no T'Lyn for the second time in a row. Though the Badgey variant who was logical was notably talking exactly like her.
The ultimate issue here is pacing - something that surprised me, given the show is normally paced quite well, sometimes managing to balance three or four plots within a bite-sized time slot. But here everything feels rushed, with the main characters essentially bystanders as the plot happens. Really, there were two great plots for episodes...but it should have been two, not one. Or they should have done a double-length episode. But as it is, it's just too much packed into too little space.
The "A" plot with Badgey and Rutherford was, I thought, less effective. I know this sounds silly to say about a cartoon character, but Badgey is too much of a cartoon character for this to work properly for me. I did like the conceit that his inner conflicts split off new versions of him as a gag, but it meant that Badgey's "core" remained monomaniacal and boring. Ultimately though, the issue with this plot is that Rutherford didn't win anything - Badgey won, but had a last-minute change of heart when he ascended and saw the koala. This makes for a funny gag, but it means that Rutherford had no real growth due to the trials of the episode - he just kinda fumbled around until events ended.
The "B" plot with Peanut Hamper and Agimus was much, much better. Both of them are actual characters with internal conflicts, which helps (as does having Jeffery Combs back again, of course). There also was something of a "plot twist" here, which was refreshing, as initially it looked like Boimler and Tendi were actually total idiots, and not just pretending to try and get intel. Peanut Hamper deciding to leave Agimus behind and do her own thing seemed true to her character (she never cared about world domination, even if she was selfish), but the twist that she was finally ready to be a decent person (and it somehow rubbed off on Agimus as well) was a nice reinforcement of the core Trekkian ethos. And look, we finally have forward movement on the serialized plot of the season!
The episode is downgraded for no T'Lyn for the second time in a row. Though the Badgey variant who was logical was notably talking exactly like her.
