Recap / Star Trek: Lower Decks S2E03 "We'll Always Have Tom Paris"

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Mariner and Tendi team up for a mission to retrieve an heirloom for Dr. T'Ana, but accidentally break it and need to find a way to fix it before they have to hand it over. Meanwhile, the Cerritos is visited by Lieutenant Tom Paris of the U.S.S. Voyager, much to the excitement of Boimler, who is hoping to meet him. And Rutherford is haunted by the mystery of Lt. Shaxs, who is Back from the Dead.

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Tropes featured in this episode:

• Air-Vent Passageway: Boimler heads into the Jefferies tubes to bypass the doors, which refuse to recognize him.
• Alien Arts Are Appreciated: Tendi is a huge fan of Klingon acid punk.
• All for Nothing: All of Beckett and Tendi's time and effort trying to fix T'Ana's broken Caitian libido post was for nothing, as the doctor was more interested in the box that it was shipped in.
• All Girls Want Bad Boys: Mariner will date anything, as long as it can be characterized as "bad".
• Anti-Climax: Mariner attempting to ram the Cerritos simply causes the shuttle to harmlessly bounce off the ship's deflector shields (it's even subtitled as "small 'plink!'" on the DVD release), to Freeman's bewilderment.
  Freeman: Damage report?
  Bridge Lieutenant: None.
  Freeman: That was weird...
• Back from the Dead: Shaxs is revealed to be alive following his Heroic Sacrifice at the end of Season One. You don't want to know how he came back, but it's somehow related to the Black Mountain.
• Be Careful What You Wish For:
  • Rutherford is desperate to find out how Shaxs came back from the dead, even after the Lt. warns him that it will break his brain and change his entire perception of the universe. Turns out that he wasn't exaggerating...
  • Boimler is desperate to meet Lt. Tom Paris. But when he finally reaches the bridge, he's such a mess that Paris thinks he's a Kazon warrior and beats the crap out of him. (On the other hand, Boimler thinks that the black eye is better than an autograph, and Tom took him out for drinks to apologize.)
• Big Stupid Doodoohead: Even when Tendi tries to act like an ultra-aggressive Orion gangster, her worst insult is still calling her uncle a jerkface.
• Bizarre Alien Biology: Caitians go into what is obviously heat once a year, along with several other hormonal imbalances.
• Broken Treasure: The entire plot of Mariner and Tendi is them trying to fix the Caitian libido post after Mariner accidentally breaks it. Ultimately, it turns out that Dr. T'Ana had no interest in the post and only wanted the box so she could play "If I fits, I sits".
• Butt-Monkey: Poor Boimler in spades. The computer refuses to recognize him, he's nearly killed multiple times in the Jefferies tubes, and when he finally catches up to Tom Paris, Paris attacks him on the spot, mistaking him for a Kazon in his disheveled, filthy state. At least Paris offers to get him a drink after the misunderstanding.
• Call-Back:
  • When discussing how Shaxs came back from the dead, Mariner and Boimler reel off a Long List of excuses seen throughout the franchise:
    • A "transporter pattern-buffer thing" (TNG: "Lonely Among Us")
    • A restored katra (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock)
    • Revived by the Genesis device (same as above)
    • A "Mirror Universe switcheroo" (DISCO: "What’s Past is Prologue")
    • Rebuilt by the Borg (VOY: "Mortal Coil")
    • A future offspring from an alternate timeline (TNG: "Redemption")
    • Trapped in the Nexus (Star Trek: Generations)
  • One of the undead Shaxses in Rutherford's Nightmare Sequence is dressed like Professor Moriarty (TNG: "Elementary, Dear Data"). Another claims that he was revived by a microscopic civilization (like the Terratins from "The Terratin Incident"). Yet another exclaims "What was the deal with T'Pol's hair for that one year?"
  • Boimler squees over Tom Paris, citing his favourite holodeck programs "Fair Haven" and "The Adventures of Captain Proton". Mariner also mentions the time that he turned into a salamander.
  • Paris himself attacks Boimler, mistaking him for a Kazon.
  • Some of the neon signs visible on Qualor 2 are advertisements for Quark's Bar and the Vic Fontaine lounge, as well as the Zebulon Sisters.
  • Shaxs once again calls Rutherford "Baby Bear," as he has since the latter temporarily joined the security team.
  • To get money to fix the libido post, Mariner and Tendi visit Starbase Earhart, where Ensign Jean-Luc Picard was stationed and also had a nasty run-in with Nausicaans over a game of dom-jot.
• Canon Immigrant: The concept that only some Orion women exude mind-control pheromones was previously established in the Novelverse's Enterprise range.
• Commonality Connection: Mariner and Tendi get into an extended argument when they each realize how little the other knows about them. Then they figure out that, despite being outwardly gregarious and friendly, they are both very reserved and careful about how much of their pasts and their feelings they allow others to see.
• A Day in the Limelight: This is the first time that we see what Tendi's life was like before Starfleet, along with some more of her personal interests and the foundation of her insecurities.
• Does This Remind You of Anything?: Tendi induces a temporary skin color change in Mariner so she looks like an Orion. After the novelty of going undercover wears off, Mariner comments that it's a little uncomfortable and asks Tendi not to take any pictures. When it wears off at an inopportune moment, the locals form an angry mob, accusing her of wearing "false green". In essence, it's an alien version of Blackface.
• Dyson Sphere: One of the hypothetical explanation ls Rutherford imagines for Shaxs coming back is a microscopic civilization converting his body into a tiny Dyson sphere.
• Fantastic Racism:
  • Tendi really suffers from this because most humans just think of Orions as thieves and pirates. It doesn't help that Tendi's fear of losing friends causes that stereotype to flourish.
  • Mariner has to disguise herself as an Orion when she goes to meet Tendi's relatives, because Tendi warns her that she'll be killed for being a human.
• The Friends Who Never Hang: This episode heavily lampshades the fact that normally, Mariner is paired with Boimler while Tendi is with Rutherford, making this the first episode where Tendi and Mariner are doing a mission together that's just the two of them. Doubles as a Girl's Night Out Episode.
• Furry Reminder: T'Ana is a talking cat. Of course she wants a box to play in.
• Go Mad from the Revelation: Rutherford is clearly disturbed by whatever he finds out from Shaxs.
• Got Me Doing It: Mariner initially dismisses Boimler's explanation that referring to Voyager as simply "VOY" saves time. But while discussing how bridge crew members always somehow come Back from the Dead she says "VOY" herself and admits Boimler was right, it does save a ton of time.
• Has a Type: After falling hard for Tendi's cousin, Mariner confirms that she's dated bad boys, bad girls, bad gender-nonbinary babes, ruthless alien masterminds, and bad Bynars.
• Hearing Voices: Boimler's Tom Paris plate starts talking to him when he's trapped in a tube filling with gas, and lampshades how concerning that is.
• He Is Not My Boyfriend: Mariner insists to Tendi that she and Boimler are just friends and she considers him more of a pet than a romantic interest.
• Here We Go Again!: Boimler has finally fixed the problem locking him out of every room, only for the brig door to seemingly refuse him access. Tendi then points out that it's just a slitted wall panel, and Boimler admits that he may have a concussion from Paris thrashing him earlier.
• Hero Worship: Boimler is a huge fanboy of Tom Paris and the rest of the Voyager crew.
• Honor Before Reason: Boimler refuses to just correct the mistake with his user profile that is denying him access to the ship, instead trying to bypass the doors entirely. He only gets it fixed after managing to work his way to the Bridge and getting a beating from Tom Paris because he looks like a Kazon.
• I Have Many Names: Tendi had quite the reputation before joining Starfleet. One of her monikers is "Mistress of the Winter Constellations".
• Implausible Deniability: Mariner claims she ended up ramming the shuttle because a bee flew into her face to Ransom, but the commander doesn't buy it, who questions how a bee manages to get into the shuttle while in space.
• It's All My Fault: Rutherford's memories might be spotty, but he does remember Shaxs's Heroic Sacrifice and blames himself for it. Shaxs assures him that it is not his fault.
• Last-Name Basis: This is given a lampshade when Mariner is shocked to hear Tendi's first name, having never heard her first name over the course of their duties and just assumed that she had Only One Name like Odo.
• Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Tendi picks Mariner to accompany her and they openly discuss how previous episodes always have Tendi hanging out with Rutherford and Mariner with Boimler, then stating that going on a mission together is "long overdue" and a "glaring oversight."
• Limited Advancement Opportunities: Lieutenant Tom Paris, who spent seven years in the Delta Quadrant and lived to tell the tale, has only advanced from Lieutenant junior grade since the last episode of Voyager (about 2 years)— despite Captain Janeway having been canonically promoted to Vice Admiral within a year of arriving home. Of course, jokes abound that she was Kicked Upstairs, which you wouldn't do to a lieutenant. VOY was also notorious for how Ensign Harry Kim was treated as a senior officer despite his lack of promotion. And lastly, Paris's demotion for gross insubordination, not to mention his criminal record, could realistically put a damper on his career.
• Mythology Gag:
  • The episode's title is a play on the TNG episode "We'll Always Have Paris", itself a nod to a famous line from Casablanca.
  • Star Trek's sliding doors inspired the automatic ones that we take for granted at supermarkets today, but on-set they were partially operated by hand to avoid distractions during scenes, and the blooper reels are full of actors running into them because they didn't open properly or closed too early. This "feature" of their operation becomes canonized as part of Boimler's travails, in that the doors open in response to specific people rather than motion-detection or another automatic mechanism.
  • Boimler refers to the U.S.S. Voyager as "Voy", referring to the show's production code "VOY".
• My Species Doth Protest Too Much: Tendi finally resorts to being a stereotypical Orion pirate woman to try to get her cousin to fix the libido post, and is clearly embarrassed by it the entire time.
• Oh, Crap!: Tendi freaks out when she and Mariner damage T'Ana's libido post.
• Oh, No... Not Again!: Boimler when it appears that he is again out of the system at the end and the doors won't open for him. Thankfully he just ran into a wall with a seam in it and he's able to go through the doorway.
• Pet the Dog: Mariner insists on taking the fall for the damaged libido post, so Tendi won't damage her own career opportunities for failing an assignment given to her by T'Ana.
• Queer Establishing Moment: Mariner is revealed to be pansexual when she discusses her dating habits, mentioning "bad girls", "bad gender non-binary babes", and "bad Bynars"^note Bynars are canonically genderless as being among those she has dated.
• Ramming Always Works: Played with. Mariner sets a collision course for the Cerritos at full speed, only to bounce off the ship's shields, denting the unshielded shuttlecraft. However, Mariner never expected to do any damage to the Cerritos; she merely wanted an excuse for the damage to the mating post.
• Refuge in Audacity: Mariner excuses her ramming into the Cerritos's shield by a bee flying into her eye. She's flying a shuttlecraft through space.
• Rousing Speech: Boimler gets some encouragement from his Tom Paris plate when he hits his nadir.
  Boimler: Oh, no, no, no. This can't be happening. First I get kicked off the Titan. Then the Cerritos doesn't even know me anymore? Where do I belong? (cries)
  Paris: Aw. Come on, Brad. This is your home. You're right where you belong.
  Boimler: Then why am I gonna die in a Jefferies tube?
  Paris: You're not. You are Brad Boimler. And you've been in tougher spots than this. Now open up a panel and start figuring out a solution.
  Boimler: (sniffling) You're right. Thanks, Tom Paris.
  Paris: I am a little worried about the fumes in here though. You know, since you're talking to a plate.
  Boimler: I don't know. I kinda like 'em. (laughs)
• Skin-Tone Disguise: Tendi temporarily changes Mariner's skin color to green so that she will blend in with the Orion pirates. The other Orions accuse her of wearing "false green" when it wears off at an inopportune moment.
• So You Were Saying...?: Rutherford is about to ask Shaxs how he came back to life when another officer bluntly asks the same question, causing him to be demoted and reassigned. Shaxs then asks Rutherford what he wanted to ask.
• Technobabble: Boimler clarifies that Tom Paris "turning into a salamander" was nothing more than a "celerity-induced accelerated somatic mutation rate." This doubles as a Genius Bonus, since the above translates as "high speed caused him to rapidly change shape"... which is accurate to the episode in question!
• Tempting Fate: Boimler's path to the bridge takes him through the impulse manifolds, which he confidently states won't be in use. Meanwhile, Tom Paris decides to take the Cerritos for a test drive, nearly frying Boimler.
• Theme Tune Cameo: Boimler can be heard humming the Voyager theme at one point.
• These Are Things Man Was Not Meant to Know: The secret of Shaxs's resurrection is something that the rest of the bridge crew wants to keep secret, because it's so horrible that it fundamentally changes your view of reality.
• Thousand-Yard Stare: Rutherford gets this once Shax tells him about his death, haunting him. Shax himself also has this while he is eating.
• Throw the Dog a Bone: Boimler is treated like an intruder by the ship, nearly killed twice in his trip through the Jefferies tubes, and finally gets the crap beaten out of him by Tom Paris because he looks like a Kazon after the ordeal. On the plus side, he's actually happy to have been beaten up by the Tom Paris, and gets to have drinks with him as an apology.
• Unusually Uninteresting Sight: No one on the Cerritos except Rutherford and Lt. Cody react to Shaxs coming Back from the Dead. Even Boimler and Mariner don't think that it's that big of a deal. This could be seen as Self-Deprecation on incidents where main cast Star Trek characters come back from the dead.
• Warrior Heaven: The first and only part of Shaxs' resurrection story we get to hear is that he went to a spiritual battleground called the Black Mountain where he had to fight three faceless apparitions of his father.
• What the Hell, Hero?: Tendi points out that Mariner has a lot more leeway in making mistakes because, as an Orion, Tendi had a hard time even getting into Starfleet Academy and routinely faces prejudice and bigoted slights.

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