Spoilers Star Trek: Starfleet Academy 1x05 – “Series Acclimation Mil”

[Tuskin38]

was Jake wearing a Bajoran earring?

 

[Campe]

Yes.

 

[CaptainBaldwin91]

The episode I've been most looking forward to and all I can say is; superb! Despite all the rubbish with Kelrec (still not sold on him), this "tribute" or "love note" to DS9 is absolutely fantastic. The scenes with Jake hit me just like The Visitor always does and what a display Cirroc Lofton gave us. The character of Sam is by FAR my favourite and that little scene between her and the Doctor hit me in the heart too. Brilliant episode, solid 10 for me!

 

[Tosk]

So Sisko may have disappeared but he left an undeniable legacy and is remembered by an entire race of people as a religious icon. Absentee fathers don't leave legacies, they leave trauma and heartbreak. They made their decision out of fear and selfishness. So I think the claim that Sisko was a absentee father is dead-set wrong.

I don't think anyone is disputing that Ben did unselfish things and left a legacy.

But he also promised his wife to her face that he'd come back soon.

 

[Fateor]

And yes the Maker insisting the mission be completed immediately is dumb and this is literally pointed out in the episode. They are photonic and would most likely have a different concept of time and cognitive learning. Again, it's pointed out in the episode how unreasonable they are being. So I'm not sure what the actual criticism is here.

I thought it was kind of obvious that was supposed to be a morality test of some kind.

The normal story would have been Sam tells the other organic's about it, and there's this big argument where the Kasq demand the organics either hand Sam back to them or they cut off diplomatic ties.

Only the organics refuse to do that and actively work to protect Sam from the Kasq instead thus proving their willingness to treat photonic beings as more then just tools.

Classic Trek morality test.

 

[F. King Daniel]

I'm not precious about Deep Space Nine, I liked the episode but wasn't blown away. It was the club scene I liked the best. Nostalgic

I assume SAM's masters will be back. It's the Kaylons all over again...

 

[Osol Twist]

was Jake wearing a Bajoran earring?

i don't recognize the style but most likely

 

[Agony_Boothb]

I don't think anyone is disputing that Ben did unselfish things and left a legacy.

But he also promised his wife to her face that he'd come back soon.

No, he said that he might return 'in a year, or maybe yesterday' implying he had no idea when he would back. The Prophets do not experience time in a linear fashion and we have no idea what other missions they had in store for Sisko. Maybe he did return and that fact was covered up. But the point that the episode makes is that it doesn't matter whether or not Sisko physically returned, because how he lived his life left his family feeling loved and safe and inspired and Jake states, he felt that his father was always with him.

 

[Skyshadow]

First post about the new series, I am not in the hate NuTrek camp, trying to give the show a fair go and was excited by the reviews of this episode.

Sadly after watching, my expectations raised and left feeling let down. Where did Sam actually solve any mystery? This just seemed to be an episode to throw in a load of easter eggs as a crossover show to appeal to older fans of DS9. Nothing wrong with that, but the main plot hyped up did not really reveal anything or add anything to the DS9 story, unless I am missing something crucial here.

The less than subtle messages being pushed throughout the series just ruin it for me overall. I do like the Sam character and she has grown on me this episode, so in terms of a standalone episode it is not a total write-off, but so much let the episode down, where taking it out would have let the plot stand on its own.

 

[Detached Nacelle]

I will say this episode was let down by its length, I felt a lot of the SAM comedy was flat and kind of fillery. The character is not quite strong enough to carry an entire episode like this and the stylised elements didn't really do anything for me.

I loved the dinner scene, that's type of comedy that works for me. Reno and the Doctor were a brilliant choice to bring together for this. If Thok had been there it would have been even better but I have no complaints and want more of that.

Despite the amount of SAM being a bit of a detriment, the beauty of this episode was not diminished and I give it a solid 8.

 

[cooleddie74]

Jake didn't look like Tony Todd by his forties?

CANON VIOLATION™ I demand The Hague take up this case right now.

 

[tenmei]

The less than subtle messages being pushed throughout the series just ruin it for me overall.l

Such as?

 

[CT_Phipps]

I think that Sisko should have been revealed to have returned and lived with Kassidy in secret because I never felt he could just go back to being a starship captain (and I think most of the authors of the books agreed). Mind you, I never would have revealed he was Space Mithras (avoiding the more obvious comparison) in the first place.

 

[Tosk]

No, he said that he might return 'in a year, or maybe yesterday' implying he had no idea when he would back.

Yes, he was vague on the when. "It's hard to say. Maybe a year, maybe yesterday. But I will be back."

Maybe he did return and that fact was covered up.

Which is how I will view it.

 

[Starflight]

Unfortunately, didn't enjoy this one at all. YMMV obviously but I just cannot stand the constant self-referencing and fawning over past work anymore, we've had nearly ten years of it at this point and I'm sick to frigging death of it. The thing that made Academy feel fresher than its sister shows so far is that it seemed interested in charting its own course without the baggage of 60 years of prior fiction, but this week we're back to the usual CBS-era trope of wallowing in callbacks and easter eggs, with all characters in-universe having apparently watched Star Trek to a greater or lesser extent. Not quite Matalas level here, but a huge, unwelcome step toward it.

I was really looking forward to a Sam-centric episode since she's my favourite of the cadets, but this plot didn't serve her well IMO. The B-plot with Ake and all the scenes with the other cadets were pure timewasting. The only good thing I can say about this one is that I still really like Sam, and Kerrice Brooks' performance was a bright spot in a truly dull script. Picardo and Notaro were fun at the dinner scene too, and Lofton's brief performance was strong.

Hope we're back on track next week.

 

[NX_01]

No, he said that he might return 'in a year, or maybe yesterday' implying he had no idea when he would back. The Prophets do not experience time in a linear fashion and we have no idea what other missions they had in store for Sisko. Maybe he did return and that fact was covered up. But the point that the episode makes is that it doesn't matter whether or not Sisko physically returned, because how he lived his life left his family feeling loved and safe and inspired and Jake states, he felt that his father was always with him.

There was also his wife waiting for him, as well as his child, growing up without father. It's not up to Jake alone to make this up for everyone invloved. So I agree that this is not the best way in my eyes to follow up on a 30 year old story.

 

[thribs]

Jake didn't look like Tony Todd by his forties?

CANON VIOLATION™ I demand The Hague take up this case right now.

He’s dead sadly. That would have been a fun cameo

 

[Agony_Boothb]

Yes, he was vague on the when. "It's hard to say. Maybe a year, maybe yesterday. But I will be back."


Which is how I will view it.

Yeah and he couldn't say when. Your initial comment stated that sisko said he would be back 'soon' which is not accurate.

 

[Greg Cox]

Yeah because Starfleet Cadets have never gotten into fights before. The episode literally mentions Sisko's own confrontation with Solok which resulted in an unsanctioned wrestling match. Kirk also regularly got the shit kicked out of him by Finnegan. Neither incidents resulted in anyone getting expelled or hit with assault charges.

This is where I point out, once again, that even the sainted Jean-Luc Picard got stabbed in a bar fight when he was a cocky young cadet.

That Starfleet cadets sometimes behave rashly and immaturely is old news at this point . . . .

I harp on this because I still remember some folks clutching their pearls over the bar fight in the 2009 reboot movie. "But Starfleet cadets would never behave like that! They're best of the best of evolved humans in a utopian future!"

Never mind "Shore Leave," "Tapestry," or even "The Trouble with Tribbles."

 

[PT109]

Sisko may have disappeared but he left an undeniable legacy and is remembered by an entire race of people as a religious icon. Absentee fathers don't leave legacies, they leave trauma and heartbreak. They made their decision out of fear and selfishness. So I think the claim that Sisko was a absentee father is dead-set wrong.

Beautifully stated. You nailed what I was feeling. I thought that intent came through clearly in the writing. Ben’s fate, and Jake’s acceptance of his father’s sacrifice, were handled in a poignant, grounded way that contrasts sharply with the lifetime of unresolved trauma Jake carries in “The Visitor.” And honestly, the fact that the resolution had Brooks’s blessing is more than enough for me. I really appreciated getting to see a Jake who’s genuinely at peace with the legacy his father left behind.

For anyone looking for a more direct return, Brooks’s final lines about understanding divine law through love read to me like fatherly guidance aimed at a son coming to grips with the nature of his own extraordinary existence. Anslem wasn’t presented as an ordinary book, after all...