Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5, Episode 5 - “Starbase 80?!“Star Trek: Lower Decksjust confirmed thatStar Trek: EnterpriseandStar Trek: The Original Series’eras never went away, even though the animated comedy is set in the late 24th century ofStar Trek: The Next Generation. In its fifth and final season on Paramount+, Star Trek: Lower Deckssees the USS Cerritos investigating rifts in space that are gateways to alternateStar Trektimelines. However, inStar Trek: Lower Decksseason 5, episode 5, a navigational computer malfunction forces the Cerritos to dock at the dreaded Starbase 80 for repairs.
AlthoughStar Trek: The Original Seriesbegan the nearly-60-year-old franchise,Star Trek: Enterprisewas retconned as a prequel predating the five-year mission of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) by over a hundred years. Set in the mid-22nd century,Star Trek: Enterpriseestablished that Captain Jonathan Archer (Scott Bakula) was the firstCaptain of the Enterprise, commanding the heretofore unheard of NX-01. Archer’s pioneering missions set the stage for key events such as the establishment of Starfleet’s Prime Directive and thefounding of the United Federation of Planets.
Enterprise & TOS Eras Continue In Star Trek: Lower Decks’ Starbase 80
Starbase 80 Is A Relic Of Starfleet’s Past
Star Trek: Lower Decksseason 5is marching toward the 25th century, butthe 22nd century ofStar Trek: Enterpriseand the 23rd century ofStar Trek: The Original Seriesare preserved in Starbase 80. The oldest and least desirable space station controlled by the Federation, Starbase 80 was built at some point in the 23rd century and hasn’t had an upgrade of its systems since the mid-2260s. Hence. Starbase 80 was constructed sometime betweenEnterpriseandTOS, and it’s a storehouse of both eras' technology and paraphernalia.
Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5 Cast Guide: Who Voices Each Character In The Final Season
Meet the Lower Deckers and bridge crew of the USS Cerritos as Star Trek: Lower Decks warps into its fifth and final season on Paramount+.
Starbase 80’s personnel like Commander Kassia Nox (Nicole Byer) and Chief Engineer Gene Jakobowski wear blue jumpsuits just like thecast ofStar Trek: Enterprise, while Starbase 80 is infested with Pyrithian bats like the kind Dr. Phlox (John Billingsley) kept in his NX-01 sickbay. Meanwhile, Starbase 80 itself is a relic from the 23rd century, with wall comminicators, turbo lifts that use twist handles, and a nearly identiical bridge to Captain Kirk’s Constitution Class USS Enterprise.Starbase 80 is a dilapidated hodgepodge ofEnterpriseandTOS,but it’s also retro cool as Kassia Nox says.
Why Star Trek Still Has Nostalgia For Star Trek’s Enterprise & TOS Eras
Starfleet’s Past Inspires The Starfleet Heroes Of Today
Star Trekis constantly creating new series exploring different timelines, and even alternate realities, but as a shared universe,Star Trek: The Original Seriesremains the franchise’s prime touchstone. Captain Kirk’s show and movies created all of the core tropes ofStar Trek, and everything that followed has been variations ofKirk’s Starship Enterprise and its original five-year mission. This includesStar Trek: Enterprise. But Kirk and Archer now symbolize a bygone era ofStar Trekthat has grown even more inspirational and feeds nostalgia.
Starbase 80 is a throwback to that wilder era of Star Trek.
Star Trek: Voyager’sCaptain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) explained the appeal of the 23rd centurywhen Kirk and his cohorts"were a different breed of Starfleet officer… They were a little slower to invoke the Prime Directive and a little quicker to pull their phasers.“Captain Archer’s crew were even raweras they took their first steps journeying into a dangerous galaxy filled with enemies.Star Trek: Lower Decks' era is more complicated but also set in a more defined and ordered galaxty compared to what Kirk and Archer faced. Starbase 80 is a throwback to that wilder era ofStar Trek.
