My Review of "Lower Decks: Season 4"

Lower Decks: Season 4 has finally finished airing in 2023. It was quite a season and continues with the quality of the show that we know and love. Though I think I got lost a little more often than the previous seasons. I can tell they're really finding their feet and knowing more of their audience. Unfortunately I'm not totally their target audience.

The season starts off where I didn't think they'd actually go. The crew gets promoted. They're all moving out of the lower decks but I guess this should eventually happen if you've been working in a somewhat military organization. This kind of splits of the gang and lets them have their own kind of adventures but you can tell they all miss each other.

A consistent denominator of each of the episodes is that we always want to see the lower decks gang back together. It's kind of a fraternity or sorority that the group has built that we're all part of. They really do a great job in keeping us as part of the group. As the audience members we get this sneak peak into each of their adventures.

We also get more back story behind Tendi which will blossom into a bigger story later on. I like this build up that they did in exploring her race and the hilarious contrast in demeanor she has with the rest of the lower deck and her family. It's such a stark difference that you can't help but laugh at the innovative ways where she will shock us into seeing who she really is.

Mariner remains the same old mariner but in this case the crew knows what she's up to. She can't really get away with her old antics anymore. I love how the crew will not let her slip back into her old ways. They're all working together to help her grow to become a more mature person. She also learns more about herself. This ultimately helps the story progress as we see her ambitions change and see more of what she wants in life.

The whole cast and crew are quite consistent with their characters and I didn't see a crazy evolution as to who they were. That's a great thing because they developed their characters so well in the last three seasons that I would hate for them to ruin what they've become.

This season has a big mystery where there is some mysterious ship that is gobbling up other ships. We don't know anything about it but in the end it seems a bit of an abrupt reveal. Admittedly closer to the end I didn't understand a lot of the references they were making. There was a ton of homages and references to previous Star Trek shows that I had never seen. I'm not the biggest Star Trek fan so I always get lost when they start talking about previous shows.

That's one of the drawbacks for me but big pro for a lot of Star Trek fans. This show is a love letter to Star Trek fans and I don't know all the lore or watched much of the shows. Casual viewers will be lost, like me. That's quite alright though. The main characters are still the focal point of the show. They are still lovable and charismatic as ever.

Overall, the character development and the sheer amicability of each of the main characters drives this show. There's such a sense of family and love in this show that you can't help but love it. Though you have to see this show from the very beginning in order to appreciate it. You will be utterly lost if you start this season with no knowledge of anything. I have to give this season a 7.5 out of 10. I can't wait for the next season.