The literal 'Straight Sentient' to a four pack of 'Crazy Beings'. Because of this she can so easily play off any of them and not break either character. Could be fun when T'Lyn has to deal with her 'Vulcan Seven Year Itch' and they can flip the roles with the Warp Core Four having to save T'Lyn from repeated 'bad decisions'.
I wanted her as a regular since the moment she told the other Vulcans her 'I don´t give a shit' line in the very Vulcan way of saying it...loved that moment.
A friend of mine observed that what's making T'Lyn work so damn well is that she's incredibly Vulcan, like, everything about her is steeped in Vulcanness... but at the same time, you can tell that she's Vulcan in a way that does not fit in with other Vulcans. This is a lot more subtle on the Cerritos than it was on the Sh'vahl; on the Sh'vahl it was obvious she was a maverick, but on the Cerritos the interplay is a lot more nuanced. It's a hard line to walk and they're managing it.
Yes I felt that too. She actually shows a lot of emotion (especially when Boimler momentarily died and she briefly showed shock and concern so strong that it was the Vulcan equivalent of curling up on the floor bawling), but it is muted by the fact that everyone around her is a bouncing-off-the-walls hyperactive crazy person. So she comes across as restrained even though she's the Vulcan version of season 1 Mariner.
@@JasCeeGee She's not only displayed enough impulsiveness for Tendi to comment on it in two different episodes, she displayed significant non-Vulcan facial emotions while Bomiler was flying through the air after the 200 year old NX-class building blew up in episode 3. If anything I'd say she's had even *more* emotional responses than when we saw her last. The only facial expressions we saw during her first appearance were two very slight smiles. And of course an extremely bitter and sarcastic, "live long and prosper, sir".
I think the great thing with the girl's trip is they have TOS trio synergy. Tendi is McCoy if he were chipper rather than sardonic, but she represents emotion and passion, T'Lynn is Spock's logic and reason position, and you have Mariner as Kirk mediating between the two, spirit of adventure.
Hot take: - Tendi is Spock, blinded to her own raw charisma by her love of pure science - Mariner is the gruff McCoy who will save your butt no matter what - T'Lyn has the most renegade "Big Kirk Energy" out of the bunch
@CantankerousDave I see your point, but I think Spock would also be considered to have big Kirk energy according to Vulcan standards. He wasn't even forced to join Starfleet.
@@SoHBetaSword Yeah, then it's impossible to misrepresent or use misleadingly if you cite your sources or the Federation hears you and pulls out the receipts..
@@SoHBetaSword He could have been some kind of micromanager that just wanted to give then his sensor readings and send the Cerritos on it's way. I once had a manager who didn't want me looking up the transmission fluid specifications for a Toyota after replacing the oil cooler lines. She wanted me to ask her.
I'm suprised you didn't mention the crayon drawing of Tendi and her sister in the raven ship. I thought it was both cute and that it showed how long Tendi had been dreaming of joining starfleet.
I think Shaxs getting thrown by the Chalnoth is also a "Worf always gets his butt kicked" reference. The setup just feels very similar to all the times Worf ran at an alien and gets tossed aside.
The whole Twain bit is a massive brick of gold plated latinum for me! Time's Arrow is one of my all time favorite TNG episodes. Lower Decks just keeps getting better and better
Yeah that whole thing was a good example of taking a silly idea and charging headlong into it without shame… Which, if you think about it, that is what “Lower Decks” is. I’ll be laughing over that “why am I wearing this hair-hat” line for a while
T'Lyn continues to be my new favorite character. Also great to see Lower Decks getting to flesh out an established species rather than just revisiting well established ones like the Klingons or creating new ones for the show.
@@thomashelmka6438 Hey, they never said the Vulcans have no feelings, just that they have them well under control! In fact, when you remember the throwback Vulcans in TOS, their emotions are probably stronger than human ones, that's why they're so frightening! "Aesthetically pleasing", right? Seems like T'Lyn is into men, more's the pity 😜😜
This was hands down one of my favorite episodes of the series. The gag with Mariner getting hit in the shoulder with a thrown knife in the same spot was way funnier than it should be, and the Orion interrogation drinking game was perfect. It’s always fun seeing a character that’s usually so wholesome, kind, and chill just going balls out take no prisoners aggressive.
I think you might have missed a reference: The Bonsai might actually be the same as the one Boimler got from the replicator in "We'll Always Have Tom Paris" - interestingly also an episode where Tendi and Mariner encounter Orions.
This is the same energy as the Klingon barge of the dead say "if you can read this you are dead", or the portal in the SNW crossover being "it's a time portal".
Im having a hard time deciding if I prefer the Mariner gets stabbed in the shoulder joke or the T'lyn commenting on how hot Orions are joke. They were both hilarious to me.
For some reason Tendi's dad's name being B'rt, which I'm assuming is just the Orion version of "Bert", gave me a chuckle. No idea why, it's just a funny sounding name. 😄
T'lyn has been a fantastic addition. Her deadpan delivery just makes her the perfect traditional straight man to the rest of the comedy, making her hilarious
The Orion interrogation drinking game might have been my favorite thing this episode. It was so fun to see meek, mild Tendi just to all out badass from nowhere!
One line that I feel doesn't get enough respect is the Orion Lower Decker describing their ship as being just "pirate adjacent." That had me on the floor.
I enjoyed that almost everything on Orion was some shade of green, even the atmosphere. Also quite pleased to see the harpsichord getting repped here and in the episode, need to keep those babies alive.
"I said NO! MR RUTHERFORD!" ... The whole episode was hilarious but for some reason this hit me as the funniest line of the whole thing. Maybe it was the delivery but I blew coffee out my nose. 🙀 😂😭🤣 Bonsai note: Saying it's not so easy growing bonsais is something of an understatement. It took me over a dozen tries to successfully get one to make it. I have a North American Elm that is about 4 years old and about a foot tall. At that age they're naturally about 20 feet tall. 😳 😻
Ever since the SNW crossover episode, I'm unable to avoid imagining Boimler and Mariner as their "real life" counterparts in each of the scenes where they're acting ridiculous, and it's amazing. 😆
@@kadria8338 I know, that would have been amazing! Even if it was just the SNW crew looking through the portal and seeing Tendi and Rutherford on the other side as live actors before the camera switches and we enter the LD universe.
@@kadria8338Same, but the episode was packed to the gills as it was. It would’ve been fun to see Tendi’s interactions with both the Starfleet crew and the Orion scientists, though.
What I've noticed is that each time it's a "lower decks" pair, a male and a female 'alien' lower class crew member, bantering and goofing around and being competitive yet ultimately supportive with each other. Boimler and Mariner, as they would be in other empires/races/etc.
I've got a line that you didn't mention that I think deserved another "Up", and it was easy to miss if you didn't have the captioning on. In the "Hump Dungeon" when the madame, Ingreeta confronts Tendi she says: "You can't come into my SCENTUARY and insult me." That's right, she didn't say "sanctuary", she actually said "scentuary". That's gotta deserve an "Up"!
T'Lyn is a great adition to the cast. She's like Andy Griffith. She observes and comments on the crazy, nutty, crew of the Cerritos. (BTW, she was considered the nutty one on her Vulcan ship.) Her low key comments are hilarious in contrast to the humans. (The crew is still hilarious, but T'Lyn is a big plus.)
The thing I love is that she's _still_ a loose cannon, even by the Cerritos' standards. Her solution of "Let's merge all the Twovixes into a Megablob" was something I would have expected from Mariner or maybe Rutherford. And in this week's episode she was ready to jump in to intervene with D'Erika until Mariner called her off as the voice of reason. I don't think we've ever seen a Vulcan this headstrong and reckless, and I am _here_ for her.
@@GSBarlev I honestly don't know if she _meant_ to create the megablob, or just tried to transport the Tuvixes into a holding cell and didn't realize the flower was already somehow wired into the transporter. Either way, it's hilarious.
I will say this, as someone who's only recently started watching Lower Decks weekly (or at all really) I will admit the writing for this episode was terrific. So many deadpan jokes and responses from several characters, and the overall jokes to overall comedy ratio was damn good this episode. I felt the season opener was a bit to joke heavy personally but still in context that might be why the show works so well. For me T'Linn is one of the standouts - she is so perfectly Vulcan but yet you can sense underneath she "gets" things even when she acts like she doesn't? If you know what I mean. Also, yeah, Orion! So cool to finally see their home world and the show even making fun of the whole Orion life style stuff (to a degree) and sorta commenting on that social structure a bit.
This season of Lower Decks is becoming the best season yet. Which is going to be difficult to be since season 3 was almost a homerun, besides that mathematically perfect redemption episode.
This was an absolutely hilarious episode. Love to see more of Tendi’s backstory, I just straight up knew Mariner was gonna get hit with that knife again 😂
I need to give you a huge thank you, Seán. On a basic level I knew pianos and harpsichords were different (for one thing, they’re two different words, and B] if a harpsichord was the same as a piano, they’d call it a piano. My logic is unassailable) but I never took the time to understand why. Now I do and it’s all thanks to you. My life is, genuinely, a tiny bit richer now. LLAP 🖖🏼
When you mentioned the pheromone spray, you didn't say anything about the TNG episode "Genesis" where Picard used one of those sprayers to lure prehistoric Worf away from sickbay
Tendi showed she was bad ass when she was part of Commander Ransom's extraction team. I also loved Mariner was willing to sacrifice herself so Tendi and T'Lyn could escape the welcome guards.
Debra Wilson is a legend. You forgot to mention her biggest most well know role as a cast member of MAD TV and she played the Jedi Cere in Jedi Fallen Order.
The Orions actually went after the mysterious ship to plunder it, as opposed to the Klingons and Romulans, which the mysterious ship went after. Hilarious episode... 😏
As a proper geek who also happens to be a professional classical pianist, with an especial love for Herr Mozart, and more than a passing acquaintance with the history of the development of the instrument (and its kin)... not only did I love the appearance in the episode, but also the fact that they acknowledged how bloody difficult it is to play! I think it's been somewhat if not fully canonically established that most humans in this era do get decent arts training, unlike today, so it's not uncommon for string quartets to pop up in ten forward. So it wouldn't have been completely out of character or unbelievable for Boimler and Rutherford to actually have had training and be able to play decently well. And they must have SOME experience because they did start with a recognizable tune (Mozart Sonata for Two Pianos, which he composed for he and his sister to perform together) which you could NOT do if you didn't know how to play at least a little. So I'm going to fanwank that they have piano training, and that's how they know this tune, but they'd never played harpsichords, and the different size keys and different keybed depth and the fact that you feel the 'ping' of the pluck was just really difficult for them haha. But of course, I mean, at the same time, DOWN, because Mozart wrote it for 2 pianos. No need to put it on harpsichord. Other than for the necessity of pandering to an audience who doesn't know their music history and needs to hear a harpsichord as a cue for "old music". Mozart did play harpsichord (and it was still standard in orchestras of the time) but he composed for the piano. (They could have gone really authentic and had Viennese action fortepianos, which have a lighter and even a more harpsichord-like sound than the heavier London fortepianos of the time and of course than modern pianos). But I digress. I appreciated that the episode acknowledged that playing an instrument is hard, which too often is a tv trope in the other direction. And I really appreciated that you, Sean, not only appreciated the harpsichord, but KNOW THE DIFFERENCE! :D This gave me an EXTRA level of geeking out with this Ups and Downs episode! :D :D
I liked how the Orions had various skin tones. It’s a clever way to make all the different shades of green that different series depicted. And it gives the Orions much needed diversity. Great job!
The best part of this was listening to you put on an American southern accent. Just the fact that you did better than Nicolas Cage in Con-Air gets you an "up" from me.
The knife hitting Mariner joke, is like watching the coyote fall off the cliff repeatedly in Road Runner Looney tunes, yet comes back over and over. Pure humor gag.
On your point about N'yal (sp?), he explained he hadn't been the same since Tendi's sister left him and that's when he gave himself over to the pheromone dungeon queen. Tendi was likely recalling how he was PRIOR to the breakup.
Just a note on the Raven-class ship, according to Rick Sternbach, and a couple of other sources, while the overall shape was based on the Danube-class Runabouts, they were supposed to be about twice as long/tall/wide as the Danubes.
I didn't know that, but the design certainly gave me the same feel as the Danube Runabout, from the first moment I saw it. Felt like a giant, longer range Runabout.
Add this, you're right, this "girls trip" was just so much fun. The three characters-and their voice actresses just meshed perfectly. I hope there's more of this stuff.Cheers.
That giant silhouette you pointed out behind the Raven-Class ship looks a lot like a Karemma ship (also seen as various other alien ships in DS9, Voyager and Enterprise). Also, I thought the Raven-Class bridge was a neat fusion of both the Raven set in “Dark Frontier” and the wrecked version seen in “The Raven”.
The Nausican Time Portal from Sean's favourite, record breaking, episode of Star Trek, the Crossover Episode... Appears on screen, covered in junk, just as the ladies climb the entrance to overlook the junkyard. Left-hand side of the screen, scrolls by quick. Which kinda makes sense, since the last ones to "Discover It" was the Orions, with Tendy's Grandmother being on that mission. After they return from their visit to see Pike, I'm sure the rings were somehow pegged for collection, now that it is rendered innert. How Sean missed it... I don't know... He... Should have a tingly feeling in the general presence of ANY reference or item from that episode... I'm surprised he can breathe!
There's actually the portrait of the Orion Captain from TAS "The Pirates of Orion" on the bottle of liquor they were drinking in the bar, plus the symbol that dude had on his chest in that episode.
Whoot! I think my personal theory just got vindicated; Tendi is a 'squib', a female Orion without pheromones. Though apparently she also doesn't need them, as she's been known to dominate males without them, having them fall to the ground 'Stricken',. Now that's some serious personal presence if true. Go Green Girl!
I thought dialogue from past seasons established Tendi wears special deodorant that neutralizes her pheromones so her "stank" doesn't lead to her taking control of her crewmates?
@@generalilbis I think that was a comic thing. I don't recall anything from the actual episodes, other than Tendi shying away or getting defensive whenever things like that are mentioned. Example when they're playing Dom-Jot with the Naussicans, and Mariner asks if she could 'spritz it a bit' if needed and Tendi gets rather defensive and says, "I'm not that kind of Orion". Ambiguous, yes, but could be either ethical or biological in reference, hence the theory.
In the Northern Hemisphere of Earth, Orion is the master of the winter constellations. Am I the only one who thinks the little ship is similar to the time pod Matt Frewer flew in TNG?
We finally got some good T'lyn this episode. She "lost all control" again. Did you notice the shuttle didn't land strait and had to level itself out. I think Tendi was a little nervous. I, almost, wish that the boys were fighting over the bottle the entire time.
Yes, I do recall that the right strut hit first just slightly before the left one. I thought at the time that the animators are being pretty thorough with small details.
In the first episode of Lower Decks when Mariner was giving a tour of the ship to Tendi and they were in the holo deck, Tendi call up an Orion city to see, so we have seen a part of the planet before.
Just another proper & delightful edition of Ups & Downs there. Sean, you and all the team are yourselves a part of the legacy. Years from now we’ll be referencing your work. Great fun and insights as always. What a way to keep hope alive!
Mariner getting stabbed thrice was so funny 🤣🤣 Also I'm enjoying Tylin and her growing relationship with the group I hope she stays a permanent part of the group.
Lower Decks does the same to the Orions DS9 did to the Ferengi, finally some more cultural context for a side species and it turns out great. Love the orion centered episodes, Tendi growed to my favourite character of the series.
I've learned a lot about harpsicords in this video. Also Tendi to me is the second crewmember on the Cerritos to downplay/break from their family legacy, the first being Billups
The Chalnoth South, I think it's a backhanded shout out (intended or not) to the Ninth Doctor exchange "If you're alien, how come it sounds like you're from the North?" "Lots of planets have a north!"
The techie wotsit on Rutherfords shelf very much looks like the tractor beam that Wesley made in TNG S1E2 The Naked now (10m:35s in) which was later used as a force field in the same episode 😊
That's what I thought too. I just reviewed the TNG episode for a direct comparison - the LD rendering looks like it was meant to be a representation of Wesley's device.
T'Lyn has been such a great addition to the Lower Decks crew.
It's amazing how fast she fits right in with the foursome.
The literal 'Straight Sentient' to a four pack of 'Crazy Beings'. Because of this she can so easily play off any of them and not break either character. Could be fun when T'Lyn has to deal with her 'Vulcan Seven Year Itch' and they can flip the roles with the Warp Core Four having to save T'Lyn from repeated 'bad decisions'.
She's as much a part of the group she can be while still being vulcan
I ship her with boymler
I wanted her as a regular since the moment she told the other Vulcans her 'I don´t give a shit' line in the very Vulcan way of saying it...loved that moment.
A friend of mine observed that what's making T'Lyn work so damn well is that she's incredibly Vulcan, like, everything about her is steeped in Vulcanness... but at the same time, you can tell that she's Vulcan in a way that does not fit in with other Vulcans. This is a lot more subtle on the Cerritos than it was on the Sh'vahl; on the Sh'vahl it was obvious she was a maverick, but on the Cerritos the interplay is a lot more nuanced.
It's a hard line to walk and they're managing it.
Honestely, she seem to me like a yonger version of T'pol...and I love it!
Yes I felt that too. She actually shows a lot of emotion (especially when Boimler momentarily died and she briefly showed shock and concern so strong that it was the Vulcan equivalent of curling up on the floor bawling), but it is muted by the fact that everyone around her is a bouncing-off-the-walls hyperactive crazy person. So she comes across as restrained even though she's the Vulcan version of season 1 Mariner.
Since she’s been on the Cerritos, I don’t think she’s had the emotional responses that caused her Vulcan commanders to send her to Star Fleet.
@@JasCeeGee She's not only displayed enough impulsiveness for Tendi to comment on it in two different episodes, she displayed significant non-Vulcan facial emotions while Bomiler was flying through the air after the 200 year old NX-class building blew up in episode 3.
If anything I'd say she's had even *more* emotional responses than when we saw her last. The only facial expressions we saw during her first appearance were two very slight smiles. And of course an extremely bitter and sarcastic, "live long and prosper, sir".
The line I laughed the most at was “Why is Starfleet so obsessed with scanning?” It just hit me the right way.
Because we like to learn stuff... duh! lol 😂
I think the great thing with the girl's trip is they have TOS trio synergy. Tendi is McCoy if he were chipper rather than sardonic, but she represents emotion and passion, T'Lynn is Spock's logic and reason position, and you have Mariner as Kirk mediating between the two, spirit of adventure.
Hot take:
- Tendi is Spock, blinded to her own raw charisma by her love of pure science
- Mariner is the gruff McCoy who will save your butt no matter what
- T'Lyn has the most renegade "Big Kirk Energy" out of the bunch
@@GSBarlev I can see T'Lyn being viewed by fellow Vulcans as having "Big Kirk Energy." And she did find the green fellas aesthetically pleasing.
Tendi = Kirk
T'Lyn = Spock
Mariner = McCoy
@CantankerousDave I see your point, but I think Spock would also be considered to have big Kirk energy according to Vulcan standards. He wasn't even forced to join Starfleet.
@@CantankerousDaveT'Lyn's dead pan delivery of that line is what makes her a great character.
"We don't trust Star Fleet data. It's too nuanced and thorough." was the best line in this episode.
Yeah, I thought like this,.
He was mad because the Scans would be too accurate - I mean, wouldn'T that be better than less-accurate scanms?
@@SoHBetaSword Yeah, then it's impossible to misrepresent or use misleadingly if you cite your sources or the Federation hears you and pulls out the receipts..
@@SoHBetaSword He could have been some kind of micromanager that just wanted to give then his sensor readings and send the Cerritos on it's way. I once had a manager who didn't want me looking up the transmission fluid specifications for a Toyota after replacing the oil cooler lines. She wanted me to ask her.
Sounds like Boimler's reports.
Well at least he enjoyed a light earthy snack and some mist to go along with it.
Hail to the MIstress of Winter Constellations!
… As a knife flies past a head and sinks into Mariner’s shoulder …
Loved this bit of dialog.
D'Vana: Who wants to hotwire a stolen ship?
T'Lyn: I do not.
Mariner: Oh, STOP, STOP, STOP. We're In!
That was the perfect summation of all three characters in three lines 😆
Loved it. Laugh out loud moment.
My favourite moment. So good.
I'm suprised you didn't mention the crayon drawing of Tendi and her sister in the raven ship. I thought it was both cute and that it showed how long Tendi had been dreaming of joining starfleet.
we need a screen shot of that
Who else immediately rewound because they thought they missed something when the down counter went from 0 to 2 lol
Guilty. 😂
Yes 😂but to compensate this, they added no more down, when the real second down came
I did it and then came here to see if anybody commented on it.
@@normalfamily8196 But the “2” did shift ever so slightly to the left.
Guilty as well.
I think Shaxs getting thrown by the Chalnoth is also a "Worf always gets his butt kicked" reference. The setup just feels very similar to all the times Worf ran at an alien and gets tossed aside.
💯
The whole Twain bit is a massive brick of gold plated latinum for me! Time's Arrow is one of my all time favorite TNG episodes. Lower Decks just keeps getting better and better
Yeah that whole thing was a good example of taking a silly idea and charging headlong into it without shame…
Which, if you think about it, that is what “Lower Decks” is.
I’ll be laughing over that “why am I wearing this hair-hat” line for a while
Lower Decks takes the dumbest shit Star Trek has ever done and just runs head first with it.
T'Lyn continues to be my new favorite character.
Also great to see Lower Decks getting to flesh out an established species rather than just revisiting well established ones like the Klingons or creating new ones for the show.
My favorite bit was how they added a grainy film texture to the Mark Twain simulation, mimicking the film quality of Time's Arrow.
“He is aesthetically pleasing.”
T’lyn enjoying the girls trip in spite of being a Vulcan.
Weyoun: Would this be more aesthetically pleasing if it were blue?
I love the consistency that she is Vulcan but also, under the stoicism, someone who knows what she likes, is sassy, and even impulsive
LMFAO Her old crew would be like she is a slave to her passions flying off the handle most illogical
For Sure! but at the same time I imagine all the Vulcans taking a long second look because they do appreciate beauty!@@jlalejos
@@thomashelmka6438 Hey, they never said the Vulcans have no feelings, just that they have them well under control! In fact, when you remember the throwback Vulcans in TOS, their emotions are probably stronger than human ones, that's why they're so frightening!
"Aesthetically pleasing", right? Seems like T'Lyn is into men, more's the pity 😜😜
This was hands down one of my favorite episodes of the series. The gag with Mariner getting hit in the shoulder with a thrown knife in the same spot was way funnier than it should be, and the Orion interrogation drinking game was perfect. It’s always fun seeing a character that’s usually so wholesome, kind, and chill just going balls out take no prisoners aggressive.
I think the reason why Mariner was kept getting hit in the same spot by the knives was the Koala was probably bored
That, or Q wanted to get back at her for mouthing off at him back in the first season.
Remember the previous episode where Mariner ops for a less "stabby" solution? Definitely cosmic koala revenge for that
Gotta love how in-sync T'Lyn and Becket are, makes sense as T'Lyn was kind of the Becket of her ship.
I loved all the Tendi lore in this episode. This was a fun episode. Hail to the MIstress of Winter Constellations!
I also loved that blink & you'll miss it reaction of the Orion captain to that title in the crossover episode.
I think you might have missed a reference:
The Bonsai might actually be the same as the one Boimler got from the replicator in "We'll Always Have Tom Paris" - interestingly also an episode where Tendi and Mariner encounter Orions.
Also seen in Migleemo's office in Crisis Point
You missed an easter egg: When the gang is carried by the men on that golder chair...thing, the inscription reads "This is a very fancy chair"
This is the same energy as the Klingon barge of the dead say "if you can read this you are dead", or the portal in the SNW crossover being "it's a time portal".
Im having a hard time deciding if I prefer the Mariner gets stabbed in the shoulder joke or the T'lyn commenting on how hot Orions are joke. They were both hilarious to me.
How could you skip over T'lyn getting ready to throw hands when Tendi's sister disparaged science? Mariner saved a life that day.
She actually might've. Aren't Vulcans supposed to have three times human strength?
@@BrasswatchmanYes. Yes, they do.
The Kung Fu Hustle gag with Mariner and the knives just about killed me with laughter.
So that what's
@@penegakkeadilanpembasmikej5022the greatest kung fu movie parody.... That and Shoulin Soccer.
For some reason Tendi's dad's name being B'rt, which I'm assuming is just the Orion version of "Bert", gave me a chuckle. No idea why, it's just a funny sounding name. 😄
"bert"😂
"bert"😂
Part of it is absolutely that her mom got all the honorifics: "The Warrior Queen Shona."
I loved this. Blessed wife guy.
Yep. Burt/Bert, Erica, Niall/Neil/Neill, Ivana... I giggled every time.
I’m glad they better illuminated Orion society. T’Lyn also keeps impressing me.
T'lyn has been a fantastic addition. Her deadpan delivery just makes her the perfect traditional straight man to the rest of the comedy, making her hilarious
The Orion interrogation drinking game might have been my favorite thing this episode. It was so fun to see meek, mild Tendi just to all out badass from nowhere!
One line that I feel doesn't get enough respect is the Orion Lower Decker describing their ship as being just "pirate adjacent." That had me on the floor.
The twain stuff had me on the floor dying. Especially the Captain. Excellent episode !!!
I enjoyed that almost everything on Orion was some shade of green, even the atmosphere. Also quite pleased to see the harpsichord getting repped here and in the episode, need to keep those babies alive.
"I said NO! MR RUTHERFORD!" ... The whole episode was hilarious but for some reason this hit me as the funniest line of the whole thing. Maybe it was the delivery but I blew coffee out my nose. 🙀 😂😭🤣
Bonsai note: Saying it's not so easy growing bonsais is something of an understatement. It took me over a dozen tries to successfully get one to make it. I have a North American Elm that is about 4 years old and about a foot tall. At that age they're naturally about 20 feet tall. 😳 😻
Ever since the SNW crossover episode, I'm unable to avoid imagining Boimler and Mariner as their "real life" counterparts in each of the scenes where they're acting ridiculous, and it's amazing. 😆
I'd have loved to see Noel Wells as "real life" Tendi (and Eugene Cordero as real-life Rutherford!)
@@kadria8338 I know, that would have been amazing! Even if it was just the SNW crew looking through the portal and seeing Tendi and Rutherford on the other side as live actors before the camera switches and we enter the LD universe.
but considering how tall Jack Quaid is in real life, that means Shaxs must be about 7’.
@@kadria8338Same, but the episode was packed to the gills as it was. It would’ve been fun to see Tendi’s interactions with both the Starfleet crew and the Orion scientists, though.
@@MrARock001
That's actually what I was expecting them to do! 😢
Okay Sean the costume is absolutely great. I didn't know that I needed to see you as Mark Twain but I will be taking this memory with me to my grave.
Are we going to acknowledge the 'oops' of going from zero downs, directly to showing 2 downs?
I love this series by whatculture, so I am willing to.
Thank you! I was questioning my memory, which isn't something I want to do at my age!
Also it seems a little off center
I mde one myself. I intended to say I was willing to ignore it. At my age, I did have to rewind to double check. :-)
I rewound about a minute past it because I thought I had missed something the way Sean speaks a bit fast when he's excited... 🤣
I’m glad to see I wasn’t the only one a tad confused about that little slip up 😅
Anyone else notice each ship before it was destroyed the crew were having an offhand conversation about taking over the ship
What I've noticed is that each time it's a "lower decks" pair, a male and a female 'alien' lower class crew member, bantering and goofing around and being competitive yet ultimately supportive with each other. Boimler and Mariner, as they would be in other empires/races/etc.
Foreshadowing
I've got a line that you didn't mention that I think deserved another "Up", and it was easy to miss if you didn't have the captioning on. In the "Hump Dungeon" when the madame, Ingreeta confronts Tendi she says: "You can't come into my SCENTUARY and insult me." That's right, she didn't say "sanctuary", she actually said "scentuary". That's gotta deserve an "Up"!
This episode of TrekCulture gets an up
I loved this episode. It hit me like a blade to the shoulder. And another one. And another one.
Tendí has become an amazing character and love the look into Orion.
Honestly feel like this has been the best season yet of Lower Decks, all 4 so far have been bloody brilliant!
T'Lyn is a great adition to the cast. She's like Andy Griffith. She observes and comments on the crazy, nutty, crew of the Cerritos. (BTW, she was considered the nutty one on her Vulcan ship.) Her low key comments are hilarious in contrast to the humans. (The crew is still hilarious, but T'Lyn is a big plus.)
The thing I love is that she's _still_ a loose cannon, even by the Cerritos' standards. Her solution of "Let's merge all the Twovixes into a Megablob" was something I would have expected from Mariner or maybe Rutherford.
And in this week's episode she was ready to jump in to intervene with D'Erika until Mariner called her off as the voice of reason.
I don't think we've ever seen a Vulcan this headstrong and reckless, and I am _here_ for her.
T’yln is best girl. There is a reason I have crushes on Vulcans.
@@GSBarlev I honestly don't know if she _meant_ to create the megablob, or just tried to transport the Tuvixes into a holding cell and didn't realize the flower was already somehow wired into the transporter. Either way, it's hilarious.
T'Lyn was rocking that Orion casual wear. Great constract to her attitude.
I will say this, as someone who's only recently started watching Lower Decks weekly (or at all really) I will admit the writing for this episode was terrific. So many deadpan jokes and responses from several characters, and the overall jokes to overall comedy ratio was damn good this episode. I felt the season opener was a bit to joke heavy personally but still in context that might be why the show works so well. For me T'Linn is one of the standouts - she is so perfectly Vulcan but yet you can sense underneath she "gets" things even when she acts like she doesn't? If you know what I mean. Also, yeah, Orion! So cool to finally see their home world and the show even making fun of the whole Orion life style stuff (to a degree) and sorta commenting on that social structure a bit.
"almost as many stitches as Mariner."
I snorted lol 🤣😂
This season of Lower Decks is becoming the best season yet. Which is going to be difficult to be since season 3 was almost a homerun, besides that mathematically perfect redemption episode.
In her own vulcan way T'lyn is a real good friend.
This was an absolutely hilarious episode. Love to see more of Tendi’s backstory, I just straight up knew Mariner was gonna get hit with that knife again 😂
And when she hid for that third one, we knew it was still gonna hit her and we all wanted it to :)
Finally someone brought up Ursula!
My husband and I discussed it as soon as she appeared on screen.
I loved this episode. Definitely my favorite of the season so far. The girls trio works so well together.
Lower Decks is getting better and better. This episode had me laughing so much.
The whole Starfleet pheromones myth had me ROLLING🤣🤣🤣
This was easily one of my top 5 eps of Lower Decks it was a blast
Let's not forget the time Tendi kicked butt for a whole black ops mission by accident. She knows how to kick butt
I need to give you a huge thank you, Seán. On a basic level I knew pianos and harpsichords were different (for one thing, they’re two different words, and B] if a harpsichord was the same as a piano, they’d call it a piano. My logic is unassailable) but I never took the time to understand why. Now I do and it’s all thanks to you. My life is, genuinely, a tiny bit richer now. LLAP 🖖🏼
When you mentioned the pheromone spray, you didn't say anything about the TNG episode "Genesis" where Picard used one of those sprayers to lure prehistoric Worf away from sickbay
We don't talk about Genesis. Or Spock's Brain. Or Threshold.
@@jasonwalker9471 Somehow, I'm hearing your comment to the tune of "We Don't Talk About Bruno"
Tendi showed she was bad ass when she was part of Commander Ransom's extraction team. I also loved Mariner was willing to sacrifice herself so Tendi and T'Lyn could escape the welcome guards.
Yeah Mariner has taken a chill pill this season
I love how chill Mariner takes literally everything 😂
Every time Sean did his Southern accent I instantly thought of Harry Connick Jr's "Reverend" exaggerated Southern accent in Independence Day.
Debra Wilson is a legend. You forgot to mention her biggest most well know role as a cast member of MAD TV and she played the Jedi Cere in Jedi Fallen Order.
I can't even begin to explain how much I love this episode.
The Orions actually went after the mysterious ship to plunder it, as opposed to the Klingons and Romulans, which the mysterious ship went after. Hilarious episode... 😏
I am giving this episode of Ups and Downs a latinum up for Seán Twain
I told myself "If he's about to come back dressed as Twain I'm going to lose it". And I was right.
As a proper geek who also happens to be a professional classical pianist, with an especial love for Herr Mozart, and more than a passing acquaintance with the history of the development of the instrument (and its kin)... not only did I love the appearance in the episode, but also the fact that they acknowledged how bloody difficult it is to play! I think it's been somewhat if not fully canonically established that most humans in this era do get decent arts training, unlike today, so it's not uncommon for string quartets to pop up in ten forward. So it wouldn't have been completely out of character or unbelievable for Boimler and Rutherford to actually have had training and be able to play decently well. And they must have SOME experience because they did start with a recognizable tune (Mozart Sonata for Two Pianos, which he composed for he and his sister to perform together) which you could NOT do if you didn't know how to play at least a little. So I'm going to fanwank that they have piano training, and that's how they know this tune, but they'd never played harpsichords, and the different size keys and different keybed depth and the fact that you feel the 'ping' of the pluck was just really difficult for them haha.
But of course, I mean, at the same time, DOWN, because Mozart wrote it for 2 pianos. No need to put it on harpsichord. Other than for the necessity of pandering to an audience who doesn't know their music history and needs to hear a harpsichord as a cue for "old music". Mozart did play harpsichord (and it was still standard in orchestras of the time) but he composed for the piano. (They could have gone really authentic and had Viennese action fortepianos, which have a lighter and even a more harpsichord-like sound than the heavier London fortepianos of the time and of course than modern pianos).
But I digress.
I appreciated that the episode acknowledged that playing an instrument is hard, which too often is a tv trope in the other direction.
And I really appreciated that you, Sean, not only appreciated the harpsichord, but KNOW THE DIFFERENCE! :D This gave me an EXTRA level of geeking out with this Ups and Downs episode! :D :D
Did anyone else catch that “Tickle the ivories” is a 20th century American expression, not 18th century Austrian.
@@levijkGood catch!
The background for Sean's Mark Twain bit looked like the background for the Mozart bit. Basically a masterful combination of both.
Mariner getting those knife wounds had big "Brett getting shot repeatedly in 'Archer' " energy for me. I was definitely here for it XD
You got me with the Mark Twain outfit, well done 😂
That was my *Latium Up* of the week for my "Ups & Downs From Ups & Downs."
Your 19th century southern gentleman accent is brilliant! I was literally doubled over with laughter.
*Picard in dress uniform. His hands clapping*
I liked how the Orions had various skin tones. It’s a clever way to make all the different shades of green that different series depicted. And it gives the Orions much needed diversity. Great job!
Why have you never mentioned, during the opening sequence, you can HEAR the whale probe before the Cerritos takes off
I only noticed it in this episode myself 😂
I thought it was the crystalline entity, but you're totally right!
Did you not see the Ups & Downs for S04E01 then? Totally mentioned it right there... :P
Also the first time I focused on that.
Each season, a new ship or entity has been added to that part of the opening credits.
The best part of this was listening to you put on an American southern accent. Just the fact that you did better than Nicolas Cage in Con-Air gets you an "up" from me.
The knife hitting Mariner joke, is like watching the coyote fall off the cliff repeatedly in Road Runner Looney tunes, yet comes back over and over. Pure humor gag.
On your point about N'yal (sp?), he explained he hadn't been the same since Tendi's sister left him and that's when he gave himself over to the pheromone dungeon queen. Tendi was likely recalling how he was PRIOR to the breakup.
That, or maybe she was more worried about the potential for Wedding Drama.
Just a note on the Raven-class ship, according to Rick Sternbach, and a couple of other sources, while the overall shape was based on the Danube-class Runabouts, they were supposed to be about twice as long/tall/wide as the Danubes.
I didn't know that, but the design certainly gave me the same feel as the Danube Runabout, from the first moment I saw it. Felt like a giant, longer range Runabout.
20:32 Mozart was also involved in the development of the modern Piano because Hapsicords weren't enough for some of his plays.
Add this, you're right, this "girls trip" was just so much fun. The three characters-and their voice actresses just meshed perfectly. I hope there's more of this stuff.Cheers.
Beam me down to the Paradise City where the Girls are Green, and the Grass is Pretty.
That giant silhouette you pointed out behind the Raven-Class ship looks a lot like a Karemma ship (also seen as various other alien ships in DS9, Voyager and Enterprise). Also, I thought the Raven-Class bridge was a neat fusion of both the Raven set in “Dark Frontier” and the wrecked version seen in “The Raven”.
The Nausican Time Portal from Sean's favourite, record breaking, episode of Star Trek, the Crossover Episode... Appears on screen, covered in junk, just as the ladies climb the entrance to overlook the junkyard. Left-hand side of the screen, scrolls by quick. Which kinda makes sense, since the last ones to "Discover It" was the Orions, with Tendy's Grandmother being on that mission. After they return from their visit to see Pike, I'm sure the rings were somehow pegged for collection, now that it is rendered innert.
How Sean missed it... I don't know... He... Should have a tingly feeling in the general presence of ANY reference or item from that episode... I'm surprised he can breathe!
Good catch!!
The Chalnok eating the bonsai and chugging the mist water was a big up for me.
There's actually the portrait of the Orion Captain from TAS "The Pirates of Orion" on the bottle of liquor they were drinking in the bar, plus the symbol that dude had on his chest in that episode.
Whoot! I think my personal theory just got vindicated; Tendi is a 'squib', a female Orion without pheromones. Though apparently she also doesn't need them, as she's been known to dominate males without them, having them fall to the ground 'Stricken',. Now that's some serious personal presence if true. Go Green Girl!
I thought dialogue from past seasons established Tendi wears special deodorant that neutralizes her pheromones so her "stank" doesn't lead to her taking control of her crewmates?
@@generalilbis I think that was a comic thing. I don't recall anything from the actual episodes, other than Tendi shying away or getting defensive whenever things like that are mentioned. Example when they're playing Dom-Jot with the Naussicans, and Mariner asks if she could 'spritz it a bit' if needed and Tendi gets rather defensive and says, "I'm not that kind of Orion". Ambiguous, yes, but could be either ethical or biological in reference, hence the theory.
Who needs pheromones when you've got a reputation?
@@robgraham5320 Also Enterprise establishes that only some Orion can produce these pheromones, and that it only works on heterosexual males.
@@fenrisvermundr2516 Thanks for the info, it's been a while since I've seen ST:E.
In the Northern Hemisphere of Earth, Orion is the master of the winter constellations.
Am I the only one who thinks the little ship is similar to the time pod Matt Frewer flew in TNG?
Lower Decks is finally my favorite series ! No other Star Trek series has captivated me so much
Am I the only one who wants an entire episode of Tendi's chidlhood?
We finally got some good T'lyn this episode. She "lost all control" again.
Did you notice the shuttle didn't land strait and had to level itself out. I think Tendi was a little nervous.
I, almost, wish that the boys were fighting over the bottle the entire time.
Yes, I do recall that the right strut hit first just slightly before the left one. I thought at the time that the animators are being pretty thorough with small details.
One of my favourite episodes of the series!! I had to go back and watch it again because i laughed so much!
In the first episode of Lower Decks when Mariner was giving a tour of the ship to Tendi and they were in the holo deck, Tendi call up an Orion city to see, so we have seen a part of the planet before.
Just another proper & delightful edition of Ups & Downs there. Sean, you and all the team are yourselves a part of the legacy. Years from now we’ll be referencing your work. Great fun and insights as always. What a way to keep hope alive!
That "techie whatsit" on Rutherford's shelf is the miniature tractor beam that Wesley built in The Naked Now.
I have lived my fullest life now that I have seen Sean Twain speak...❤❤❤❤
Yes, but I think he meant "rail splitter" (i.e. Abe Lincoln) rather than "railroad breaker."
I laughed when I realized the O'Ryan people live on an Emerald Planet.
LOL - I see what you did there! 😂
Mariner getting stabbed thrice was so funny 🤣🤣
Also I'm enjoying Tylin and her growing relationship with the group
I hope she stays a permanent part of the group.
She was stabbed 4 times, don't forget the daddy/daughter dagger dance.
@@Trikeboy2 Yeah it's 4
Would have lost it had they shown how the fourth stabbing occurred.
@@JasCeeGee Nah, see, then they would've violated the Rule of Threes. They used the gag the exact right number of times and no more.
Lower Decks does the same to the Orions DS9 did to the Ferengi, finally some more cultural context for a side species and it turns out great. Love the orion centered episodes, Tendi growed to my favourite character of the series.
Seán you might have to do a retrospective Ups and Downs of Time’s Arrow so we can get some more Twain action
I've learned a lot about harpsicords in this video. Also Tendi to me is the second crewmember on the Cerritos to downplay/break from their family legacy, the first being Billups
The Chalnoth South, I think it's a backhanded shout out (intended or not) to the Ninth Doctor exchange "If you're alien, how come it sounds like you're from the North?" "Lots of planets have a north!"
The techie wotsit on Rutherfords shelf very much looks like the tractor beam that Wesley made in TNG S1E2 The Naked now (10m:35s in) which was later used as a force field in the same episode 😊
I came here to point this out.
So did I.
That's what I thought too. I just reviewed the TNG episode for a direct comparison - the LD rendering looks like it was meant to be a representation of Wesley's device.
Tendi: "-and wear our belly-dancing outfits."
T'Lyn, immediately: "May I accompany you?"
THANKS for this!!!!!! I'm glad I wasn't the only one in stitches!!!