Where I am right now in the real world is such that I could use … I dono, somehow low-stakes but fun? I get that good scifi is sometimes high stakes / somebody might die / high drama entertainment, but sometimes something that’s more … down-to-earth is good. I think that scifi has spent too much time lately trying to be intense, but hey I’m just a rando on the internet so what do I know?

I still adore Capt Ake. I don’t think that Capt Ake had the actual plan that they implemented in her mind. She was expecting them to settle this “their way” or I guess “her way” which she was trying to imprint upon Starfleet. She figured that the Vitus Reflux spores would be really funny. And they had no way of knowing one critical piece of information, which was how to get into Kelrec’s hidey closet, and I’m imagining that she was probably totally surprised and delighted as to how they fit things together into a proper workable plan. And this is kinda how you get people to grow? If they don’t have the complete plan right away (hacking their computer during exam week is a bad idea) but look like they just need a poke in the right direction, don’t give them a plan, give them a poke.

Likewise, Capt Ake didn’t go to Kelrec for the first prank, she went there once it was clear that he was acting as ringleader.

“Leadership, according to Capt Ake” is clearly a book. It’s a different, more eccentric book than “Leadership, according to Capt Picard” but no less useful.

I was spoilered that Thok and Reno were going to be a thing but the scene where they show it had me dying with giggles. “It’ll brie allright?” And then also Thok’s earlier “They shenanned once, they’ll shenann again” shows either that one of them has been encouraging the other or that they are two peas in a very bad pod.

Also, I am glad that we can welcome Darem into the ranks of disaster bisexuals without quite as much need for subtext as … well, Kirk or Riker.

I think it’s funny that Thok can’t just say “there will be tryouts for Calica” without tossing in a mini speech about how lucky they will be to live until tomorrow or stopping a potential fisticuffs by saying that no blood shall be shed without her permission. And then returning it to the end with the line about meditating on decapitation. Her over-the-top “RELEASE THE DRONES” and everything.

I love the extra bits of silly Klingon lore. Klingons loving blood in their cuisine … yeah, that is saying what was logically there the whole time. But then the “what is this gagh doing in my aO’mat Gri?” joke.

And it was really funny to have the quality of the Mugato mascot costume be … at about the level of the actual Mugato costume in TOS.

With the Romulan cadet Dzolo from the War College, Genesis, and Capt Ake, you have three very small and unassuming women being very spicy. I also love that B’Avi stood up with the same sort of Vulcan “have you prepared new insults for me?” energy that baby Spock was on the receiving end of in the 2009 Star Trek.

Oh and they put everybody in the underwear without nearly the same energy as the decom room on NX-01 or Star Trek Into Darkness.

There’s a little bit of Starship Troopers, the movie, in here. Enough to maybe even be a bit intentional? Same mixed-gender showers, recruiting video, etc. Even the tryouts for Calica felt like they were channeling it. And … just like I hope people are getting the intention of Trek trying to show what a better future might be like, I am hoping that the writers knew what Paul Verhoeven was trying to show in that movie.

This supports the War College vs Starfleet Academy thing that I was hoping to see. The ending with both the notion that you can use empathy to win without combat as well as Capt Ake’s follow-on to Caleb’s question about what to do when somebody does want the fear. Also Jay-Den being a pacifist.

There’s a lot of speeding-up here, e.g. Darem could have been a little more show and a little less tell, but also it’s a short season? Clearly making room for whatever the Caleb / Tarima story is going to be.

So, yeah, it’s accidentally what I wanted right now, so I’m still having fun watching it.