Star Trek: Lower Decks (animated series)

Goodshape

Star Trek: Lower Decks has been confirmed as an animated comedy series from Rick and Morty head writer, Mike McMahon.

deadline.com wrote:

The expansion of CBS All Access’ Star Trek universe continues with a two-season order to Star Trek: Lower Decks, a half-hour adult animated comedy series from Rick and Morty head writer and executive producer Mike McMahan, a long-time Star Trek fan. Star Trek: Lower Decks, which will focus on the support crew serving on one of Starfleet’s least important ships.

....

“Mike won our hearts with his first sentence: ‘I want to do a show about the people who put the yellow cartridge in the food replicator so a banana can come out the other end.’

Interesting! https://deadline.com/2018/10/star-trek-lower-decks-animated-series-rick-and-morty-mike-mcmahan-alex-kurtzman-cbs-all-access-1202489207/

Inviere

Colour me not at all interested in a Star Trek themed adult comedy animated show How have we gone from Darmok and Jalad, to this level??

ozmo

Goodshape wrote: »

...focus on the support crew serving on one of Starfleet’s least important ships

Could they have made it sound any less interesting...


Every confidence in them though... i think.

BopNiblets

Chief OBrien would be excited
http://chiefobrienatwork.com/post/106684455801/episode-1-r%C3%A9sum%C3%A9-builder-read-the-next-episode

Goodshape

Meh, I think it sounds great. There's plenty of room for comedy (and other genres) in Star Trek.

Inviere

Goodshape wrote: »

Meh, I think it sounds great. There's plenty of room for comedy (and other genres) in Star Trek.

It was never the defining factor though, nor should it be. Star Trek is about exploring the human condition, and while it can do that and make us laugh a little at the same time, I do feel the 'core' of Star Trek will be lost in this animated show. Queue the "if only the live actions shows were this funny!" reviews...

Inviere

Ensign Turkin - "Man, this ship is boring as fuuuck. When I signed up I thought I'd be blowing Romulans outta the stars, sticking Bat'leth's in the bellies of Klingons, and pulling the plug on the Borg."

Lieutenant Tyler - "Steady Ensign, you keep pulling your own plug on that top bunk and you won't have to worry about the Borg...resistance is not futile when it comes to masturbation y'know"

Insert laughter track.

Bleugh.

Goodshape

Inviere wrote: »

It was never the defining factor though, nor should it be. Star Trek is about exploring the human condition

I mean there's room for both. It's a big universe.

Inviere

Goodshape wrote: »

I mean there's room for both. It's a big universe.

I meant that Star Trek was never defined by comedy. Sure, there were humorous moments in many many episodes, but they were mere accompaniments to a broader picture. This sounds like a real lowering of the bar. Granted I personally have a tough time reconciling comedy in sci-fi shows for some weird reason, I feel it rarely works (for me)...and when it does, it has to be the defining signature of the show ala Red Dwarf (comedy first, everything else second). I've tried and failed more than once to enjoy The Orville, because the humor in it isn't my cup of tea, and I feel this won't be any different.

AMKC

Why could they not just have it as an animated series? Why does it have to be a comedy series?

A lower decks series is good. They should drop the comedy part.

Kiith

Rick and Morty is absolutely brilliant, so colour me excited for this.

_Kaiser_

Just like discovery season 2, this sounds more like an attempt to ape the success of The Orville than anything else.

No interest myself. It's another indicator that CBS and the current production staff haven't a clue what draws people to Trek in the first place

Evade

Why? Just why?



A serious lower decks series could be so good and since it's animated they could jump all over the timeline and show us iconic events from the non main cast junior officers and enlisted perspective as well as original stories. Wolf 359 from the perspective of a security team on the Melbourne. Science team on the Equinox struggling with the morality of what they're doing. A couple of crewman on the NX-01 wondering exactly how much crack Archer is smoking.



But no we get Star Trek: Wubalubadubdub. I like Rick and Morty but if that's what I want to watch I'll go watch that.

AtomicHorror

Hard pass.

pixelburp

Well, I can't abide Rick & Morty at all so that's not off to a good start. I dunno, a Trek comedy? The franchise has had comedic adaptations before, either the intermittent comedy episodes (such as the Ferenghi DS9 stories), or via off brand interpretations such as Galaxy Quest and The Orville - but those were deliberate parodies, mocking from the outside - an out and out comedy feels redundant.

Between this and the supposed 'Starfleet Academy' teen show also planned, feels like CBS are trying a shotgun tactic with Trek. Adapt every genre, as a Trek show.

Goodshape

Inviere wrote: »

It was never the defining factor though, nor should it be. Star Trek is about exploring the human condition, and while it can do that and make us laugh a little at the same time, I do feel the 'core' of Star Trek will be lost in this animated show.

Yeah but this is the third new show announced so far, as well as a (possibly ongoing) movie series. They don't all need stick to the "core values". A little 30 minute aminated comedy on the side could be just fine.

Plus I've enjoyed an awful lot of comedy, often animated, inspired heavily by Star Trek. Something that also actually is Star Trek could be just fine

Inviere

Goodshape wrote: »

They don't all need stick to the "core values". A little 30 minute aminated comedy on the side could be just fine.

I think they should, without core values, it loses its identity. Your a fan of the Star Wars Holiday Special I take it? A show has to be defined by something, be it the setting, the characters, the tone, whatever...more shows than not seem to break down when they move too far from their initial identity. Stargate suffered hugely moving away from action/comedy to something more dour and serious. Star Wars too in the above mentioned travesty. Very very few shows can survive fundamental transitions, Star Trek isn’t one of them.

Agent Coulson

Starts August 6th on CBS All Access.

Stark

The animation looks like it could be even worse than the original animated series with their skin coloured eyeballs.

AMKC

Agent Coulson wrote: »

Starts August 6th on CBS All Access.

[IMG]https://pmcdeadline2.files.wordpress.com/2020/07/star-trek-lower-decks-teaser-art-finní al_lr.jpg?w=357&h=626[/IMG]

Well that looks like ship you would not want to have a crash landing in unless you done it upside down or get caught in any bad planetary storms or even solar storm that could rip the nacelles and deflector dish off it, otherwise at least the saucer looks familiar to us. What is the ship again? Is it a cargo ship?At least it is something to look forward to do and only a couple of months away. A trailer can not be to far away.

pixelburp

Really don't like the art style of the characters, hasn't grown on me at all. And that's kind of a big hurdle to get over with any animated comedy. Will give the trailer a go when it pops up, if only to get a sense of what KIND of comedy it'll be. That's the really big tell.

Inviere

Stark wrote: »

The animation looks like it could be even worse than the original animated series with their skin coloured eyeballs.

I've four episodes to go and then I'm finished the (original) animated series. Good Lord it's an excruciating watch, I'll probably never rewatch it again after this.

AMKC

So there is a trailer for this out now. It's on You Tube if someone wants to paste it here. I on mobile and no idea how to from it. Its actually quiet funny in parts and the ship itself from some angles does not look too bad.

Sonics2k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V3RkBKedKWw

Stark

Okay not as bad as I expected. Found myself laughing a few times during the trailer. Will give it a go when it comes out.

Evade

It looks bad but that might just be joke over saturation in the trailer. It's set around 2380 if the stardate at the start is correct.

pixelburp

A couple of the jokes made me laugh, I can't deny but watching it in action it reminds that this is a weird fit. Nothing about the Trek universe ever screamed comedy and that's a hurdle. Even if the final product is genuinely funny I'd be surprised if it lasted past a single season.

Edit: it also seems weird we've got a full trailer for this, yet still starved for detail or new footage of Discovery

Greyjoy

The trailer was a little hit & miss but it did get a couple of chuckles out of me. Having said that the design of the ship, the Cerritos is god-awful. With the saucer so far above the nacelles it looks awkward. It doesn't pass the 'swoosh test' (if you had a model in your hands could you imagine 'swooshing' it through the air).

_Kaiser_

Nah, looks like a bunch of juvenile teenagers and "hilarious" antics. Pass!

TheValeyard

I'll give it a go. It's got some of the Rick n Morty team on board.


Ship looks weird though. But it's a cartoon.

Evade

pixelburp wrote: »

Edit: it also seems weird we've got a full trailer for this, yet still starved for detail or new footage of Discovery

It's almost certainly easier to produce an animated series at the minute than a live action one.