Upper Decks (episode)

Real world article

(written from a production point of view)

The Lower Deckers have a pumpkin carving party.

Summary

Teaser

While USS Cerritos is in orbit, alongside a buhgoon feeding ground near Bhungar V, Lieutenant junior grades Brad Boimler, D'Vana Tendi, Sam Rutherford, and T'Lyn are carving Jack-o'-lanterns in preparation for Halloween, and are soon joined by Beckett Mariner, though she is covered in paint. Upon being asked, Mariner tells them that during her recent away mission to Malman V, they were accidentally trapped within a painting when a local of the planet, taking pictures of the landscape, accidentally trapped the away team, forcing the team to figure out a way to escape. Being told that nothing happened on the Cerritos while she was away, she mentions that on other ships, it tends to be the bridge crew who tend to get in trouble most of the time, rather than random lower decks officers.

Later, eager to stay out of sight from the bridge officers, and avoid work, Mariner and Boimler ponder how they seem to be the "stars of the show" while the commanders "fade into the background." As they say this, they hide from the line of sight as Captain Carol Freeman and Lieutenant commander Steve Stevens walk by. Stevens tells Freeman that they have a very busy schedule for the day, and Freeman replies that she never seems to get a day off. She reminds Stevens that she needs a couple hours for herself that night, and Stevens tells her that they better get started on the schedule, since it's so full. Freeman and Stevens enter the Cerritos conference room, and Freeman replies that nothing would get done without the bridge crew.

Act One

In the conference room, Commander Jack Ransom briefs Freeman about a Zerta pathogen that transformed Ensign Barnes has been contained to the ship's fourth deck. Chief medical officer T'Ana describes Barnes' transformation as a futuristic cavewoman who could read minds, but was scared of fire, and was able to get her to stop attacking people using a candle. Freeman then tells her that she's received a few complaints about T'Ana's pain management, and asks her to brush up on her anesthetics. When Freeman asks about any updates from Security, both Shaxs and Kayshon reply that while everything is normal, Starfleet received some reports of increased communication from the Clickets. Counselor Dr. Gabers Migleemo reminds Freeman that they are the insectoid species that hate being complimented, and they share a laugh over what the Clickets could be upset about. Freeman asks Shaxs to keep her updated on the situation, though Shaxs is seemingly distracted and disturbed by something. Shaxs then immediately requests to have the day off, and when Freeman grants it, he runs from the room. Ransom then turns his attention to the buhgoons outside the ship, and hopes the Starfleet ecologist will be able to figure it out. Upon asking for a status update from Engineering, Lieutenant Commander Andy Billups tells her that his team refreshed the Cordry rocks in the bridge's ceiling panels. With nothing else to report, they all put a hand in the center of the table, and conclude their briefing with a cheer.

Freeman and Stevens then leave the meeting to attend a sousaphone recital by Barnes, who despite being affected by her recent transformation, hasn't lost her talent with the sousaphone.

"First officer's log: When a specialist visits the ship, I like to make sure they feel like they have our full support. While scientists can be high-maintanence, it's usually getting out lower decks to work with each other that can be the tricky part."

Meanwhile, Ransom welcomes the ecologist aboard the Cerritos, and tells him they are at work to get a buhgoon for him to examine, comparing them to "space cows," though the ecologist is not fond of the comparison. The two enter the hangar, where they see a team of ensigns consisting of both Beta shift and Delta shift, struggling to get a buhgoon into the hangar. As the ensigns argue, Ransom tries to tell them that their arguing is slowing them down. Ensign Karavitus blames an ensign for being too gentle with the buhgoon, when Ensign Moxy accidentally brings in a small asteroid into the hangar with a tractor beam. Thankfully, no one is hurt, and the asteroid lures the buhgoon into the hangar. While Delta shift celebrates this, the buhgoon suddenly demonstrates a natural cloaking ability, and begins to cause a ruckus in the hangar. As Delta shift argues amongst themselves about how to solve the situation, Ransom gets their attention, and begins to tell an incredibly long story, which eventually bores the ensigns.

In his quarters, Shaxs is struggling with visions he has familiarity with, though he notes in his personal log that they are far stronger than before. While trying to write off the visions, he finds himself having a flashback to his time in the Bajoran Resistance during the Battle of Tempasa. Upon seeing a bomb in a nearby artifact, he tries to throw the bomb away, only for it to explode shortly after throwing it. Shaxs finds himself face to face with a version of himself he is unable to control, and enters a deep state of meditation to regain control. While the vision of himself taunts him that meditation won't hurt him, Shaxs's pagh leaves his body, and engages in combat with the vision.

In engineering, Billups is approached by Ensign Meredith who reports a nonfuntional indicator light behind a panel, and Billups gives her permission to fix it. Upon removing the panel inquestion however, they are both horrified to realize the problem is far more severe, as the ship's retrofitted canisters, overdue for replacement, have begun overheating. As the canisters are filled with energized plasma, Billups tells the ensign that they have to disable the power source for the canisters, or an overload could cascade into the warp core. While Meredith is a bit nervous to help, Billups encourages her that since she spotted the problem, this could be a good learning experience for her.

In sickbay, T'Ana is trying to focus on her work, but the criticism she received during the staff briefing is on her mind. Nurse Westlake notices her mood, and attempts to figure out what's wrong. After T'Ana tells him about what Freeman said about her anesthesia shortcomings, he tells her that she's not good at handling pain, likely because as a Caitian, she has a higher tolerance for pain than others. Westlake offers to refill the anesthesia hyposprays, though T'Ana decides a better idea would be to update the pain chart. She straps herself into a biobed, and orders Westlake to inflict pain on her, much to his discomfort.

Freeman sticks to her schedule, attending Barnes' recital, a crewman's fertility event, and a one-man show by Winger Bingston, Jr. though she is trying hard to get some time for herself.

Meanwhile, a Clicket starship has spotted the Cerritos in the buhgoon feeding ground.

Act Two

"First officer's log, supplemental. What should have been a pretty straightforward creature study has gone a little sideways. Usually, my expert guidance cuts through any crew conflict, but, occasionally, I have to resort to Plan B."

Back in the hangar, the asteroid that Moxy brought into the ship has lured in more buhgoons than they anticipated, while the cloaked buhgoon continues to cause havok in the hangar, making the ecologist unable to get a proper scan of the creatures. With the chaos still unfolding around them, Ransom gets their attention again, claiming to have a plan. He lifts up a large crate comparing it to the buhgoon, and lifts another crate in his other hand, comparing it to the cloaking ability it has. He begins lifting both crates, confusing the ensigns, as he tells them to believe in the power of exercise, since physical fitness clears the mind. Realizing that Ransom is merely working out, the ensigns try to go about settling down the buhgoons in their own ways.

In engineering, the problem with the canisters is quickly accelerating. Billups finds that some of the work he did is not as thorough as his normal work, and he wonders if he was perhaps distracted during a visit from his mother. Meredith wonders if they have to shut down a coil relay that Billups has designated a problem, but Billups tells her that because the relay was once used by Bynars, it activates an AI defense golem to prevent tampering. As he explains what that is, a monstrous figure materializes from a nearby LCARS display, and grabs Billups. Billups tells her that it's up to Meredith to save the ship, and while he fights the golem, trying to prevent it from eating him, he tells her force a reboot by holding down the relay's power button, while also telling a sad story from her childhood, demonstrating human emotion.

In sickbay, T'Ana is getting frustrated that she's not been overwhelmed with pain. Westlake, clearly uncomfortable with the methods she's suggestion, including using a device used for slicing atoms, reluctantly zaps her with the device while she revels in the pain.

Shaxs continues his meditation while his pagh manages to break the neck of the vision he's in combat with. The vision taunts him still, asking him what he would do against all his victims. In the vision, dozens of Cardassian soldiers rise up around him and approach him. Shaxs calls them occupiers and fights off any soldier that gets close, one by one.

In the hangar, Ransom continues to work out while the ensigns and ecologist struggle with the buhgoons, with the ecologist getting hit hard by one, and sent to the ground. The ecologist runs out of the hangar and into Freeman and Stevens. Seeing him, Freeman asks if his research is going well, but when he turns to face her, it's revealed that his skin is little more than a disguise, and a clicket named Zurkel materializes before them. Zurkel demands the buhgoons, as they are interested in harvesting the creatures for their cloaking organs, leading Stevens to realize that the buhgoons are only agitated due to the presence of the Clickets. Zurkel then signals several Clickets to beam to the Cerritos, and target the senior staff. Ransom, tired from his workout, is napping in the hangar, while Delta shift continues to struggle with the buhgoons.

In sickbay, Westlake is still utilizing various methods of inflicting pain on T'Ana when the Clickets infiltrate the room.

In his quarters, Shaxs is approached by three Clickets while still in deep meditation.

Act Three

The Cerritos is approached by three Clicket vessels, while Zurkel tells Freeman that while the Clickets are often ignored, when they are able to cloak their ships, they will be able to spread out all over the quadrant. Freeman, seemingly struggling to remember how she knows about the CLickets, angers Zurkel, who remembers her well. As Zurkel raises a knife to stab Freeman, Barnes knocks Zurkel out with her sousaphone. Freeman thanks Barnes, and orders Stevens to his feet as they have to repel the Clicket invaders, though he says that's not on her schedule.

In engineering, the situation is deteriorating, and Meredith has seemingly trapped Billups in a large glass tube, that is filling with coolant gas. She apologizes. believing the entire situation is her fault after finding that light, and Billups brushes it off, saying that they otherwise would have never found the problems that needed fixing. Meredith is eager to get him out of the tube, but he is unwilling to let the coolant flood the room. Unwilling to let him die, she grabs a nearby axe, and begins to swing at the glass tube, telling him that they are in this together, and breaks him out. Billups instructs her that they need to decouple the deuterium conduits before the thermal blankets push the valve blocks into the adjustment coils. Meredith tells him she will deactivate the magnetic constrictors while he cycles the reactor conduits, all while the warp core begins to overheat.

In the hangar, Ensign Federov is about to ask Ransom for guidance, when he notices a Clicket infiltrator about to stab Ransom, who is still sleeping. Beta and Delta shift quickly rally and confront the Clicket, and working together, they quickly incapacitate the Clicket. As they celebrate, they both agree that while the two shifts had their differences, they could both agree that Ransom is among the worst officers they could work for. Federov theorizes that Ransom actually likes the animosity between Beta and Delta shift, and that he gets power trip from it. Karavitus then suggests putting aside their differences and working together to bring the buhgoons under control to spite Ransom, which they all agree to.

Meanwhile, Freeman, Barnes, and Stevens are trying to get to the bridge, but are confronted by a large group of Clickets. Barnes continues to use her sousaphone to fight back against the Clickets, but the sousaphone eventually gets shot from her hand. The Clicket threatens them, saying if they take another step, they'll feel "pain like you've never felt before." Unbeknownst to him, they are outside sickbay, and T'Ana, covered in bandages, emerges in an angry yell, startling the Clicket, who shoots her. She falls to the ground, and is surprised that T'Ana is still alive, despite his weapon being set to kill. She then immediately jumps at him, and begins ferociously tearing at him, allowing Freeman, Barnes, and Stevens to get to the bridge. While the Clicket gets an opportunity to reach for his weapon again, Bingston is able to prevent this.

In his quarters, the Clickets are approaching Shaxs, still in deep meditation. In his vision, Shaxs has breaking the necks of Cardassian soldiers, one by one, and eventually stands atop a pile of bodies. His pagh returns to his body, as the Clickets rush at him, but Shaxs begins to fight them off, while still in meditation., as he continues to see Cardassians in his visions. After dealing with the rest of the Cardassians, he embraces his other self, and manages to crunch its back, finally defeating it. He awakens from his meditation, and sees that he has defeated a group of four Clicket intruders, and apologizes to them all.

Freeman, Barnes, and Stevens reach the bridge, where a Clicket Captain tells them that his infiltrators have taken over every deck. Remembering them finally, Freeman agrees that she has no control over the Cerritos, and commends the captain for his successful invasion. The compliment distresses the Clicket Captain, and Freeman continues to give them compliments. Stevens broadcasts her complements shipwide, affecting every Clicket infiltrator, and it gets to the point where the captain orders an emergency transport, and retreat from the Cerritos. The infiltrators are beamed from the ship, and the vessels flee.

In the hangar, Beta and Delta shift have managed to regain control of the buhgoons, now that the Clickets are gone, and the two teams reconcile over their earlier discourse, and decide to go to the bar together, leaving Ransom, still sleeping in the hangar, however as they leave, Ransom wakes up, and mutters to himself, "Works every time." While he begins to record another entry in his log, Ensign Moxy comes up from behind him, startling him. Moxy admits that she knows he only pretends to be an idiot to trick them into getting along, but assures Ransom that she thinks the behavior is cute, and that even if she told the secret, since the crew believed him to be a "doofus", no one would believe her.

In engineering, Billups and Meredith have managed to fix every problem they came across, and the warp core is back to functioning normally. Meredith admits that while the day was both scary and weird, it was a good learning experience for her. She thanks him, calling him "Andarithio," though he tells her that first names are only allowed to be used when they are on the brink of death, and she leaves to dismantle an electric face. A cadet then approaches Billups and reports that he found a burned-out indicator light above a door, and asks if Billups could help with a repair. Billups responds, "Let's do this."

Freeman and Stevens are walking through the hallway, and Freeman asks what is next on the schedule. Stevens tells her that there's nothing left, though she believes that with the Clicket invasion, they are behind schedule, and she confirms this, noting a crew meeting in the holodeck they'd not yet attended. Stevens reminds her that she requested time off, and she tells him that it's her anniversary and she wanted to have a call with Admiral Alonzo Freeman. Stevens encourages her to do so, but Freeman says that as inconsequential as crew meetings can be, they are an important part of her job, and that Alonzo would understand. As they approach a nearby turbolift, the doors open to reveal that Admiral Freeman has actually come to the Cerritos, formally dressed, and holding a bouquet of flowers. The two embrace, and Admiral Freeman tells her that Stevens reached out to him a month prior to help set aside time for them to have a romantic dinner together. The two enter a holodeck, with a program placing them in Paris, and the two sit at a table. As they sit, Alonzo asks Carol how her day was, and she responds, that it was no different than usual, before the two kiss.

In the ship's lounge Shaxs is sitting with T'Ana, Westlake, and Migleemo, and Migleemo asks why he left in such a hurry that morning. Shaxs answers that he was having trouble with an astral projection of his unresolved rage from the Occupation of Bajor, and Migleemo offers therapy to help give him more "weapons" for his metaphysical battles. Enthusiastic about this, Shaxs agrees to attend, accidentally knocking over a bowl of hot chowder onto T'Ana's chest, making her screech in pain. Finally taking a hint, she agrees to stock up more on pain medication. Mariner, Boimler, Tendi, Rutherford, and T'Lyn enter the bar, and Tendi believes she overheard someone mentioning invaders, and wonders if they missed something. Boimler says "No way. Nothing ever happens if we're not involved." Outside the bar, Kayshon is escorting a Clicket with a sousaphone over its head, and a small group of buhgoons. T'Lyn suggests that the senior officers have their own adventures when they're not being observed by them, but Mariner quickly dismisses this notion. Tendi then mentions that she saw Admiral Freeman in the hall with Captain Freeman, which Rutherford confirms he saw as well, though Mariner doesn't believe them. T'Lyn says she saw the two of them getting trapped in a painting, getting Mariner's attention, before she says she made a joke at her expense.

Log entries

Unknown?

Memorable quotes

"Will someone please explain why we are mutilating gourds?"
"It's an ancient Earth tradition for a holiday called Halloween. Jack-o'-lanterns were supposed to keep demons from entering your home."
"Huh. I thought they were just spooky and fun."
"Is it sad that Tendi known more of our history than we do?"
"Oh yeah."

- T'Lyn, Tendi, Boimler and Rutherford

"That reminds me, Dr. T'Ana, we've had some complaints about your pain management."
"Who squealed?!"
"Just please brush up on your anesthetics."

- Freeman and T'Ana

"My team refreshed all the Cordry rocks in the ceiling panels in the bridge."
"Ugh, hate those things! They always fall out and hit me on the head when we take damage."

- Billups and Ransom

"Chief engineer's log. I had a bagel for breakfast, and it gave me a tummy ache, but I'm feeling better. Anyway, nothing engineering-wise to report. Okay, bye!"

- Billups

"Chief medical officer's *bleep* log. I should be focusing on my work, but I got some constructive criticism in the staff briefing that's got me in a *bleep* mood."

- T'Ana

"Ah, for *bleep* sake, I haven't been overwhelmed with pain yet! We need to up the ante!"
"But this is used to slice atoms!"
"Yeah, mother*bleep*, just zap me with that mother*bleep* thing!!!"

- T'Ana and Westlake

"Oh, your face fell off. Do you need medical assistance?"

- Freeman

"I'm sorry, sir. I never should have messed with that light."
"If you hadn't, we wouldn't have found all that stuff to fix."
"You've gotta let me get you out of there."
"No. You'd let all the coolant out. It's okay. This is how all engineers want to go. At work, in a tube."
"I can't let that happen!"

- Meredith and Billups

"That was set to kill!"
"SO AM I!"

- A Clicket invader and T'Ana, after the doctor is unharmed by a disruptor shot

"My infiltrators have taken over every deck, captain. You have no power over my warriors."
"The Clickets. You're right, I don't. I guess I have to compliment you on a successful invasion."
"What did you say?"
"You're amazing at subterfuge!"
"Stop."
"What's happening?"
"You see? This is why you pay attention in the morning briefing. Clickets can't stand being complimented."
"Your kind words burn me."
"It's not my fault your species evolved a fight-or-flight response to being praised."
"I'll kill you!"
"You're handsome! You've got amazing breath! I love your work. I'm impressed with your whole vibe! At the end of the day you're a captain doing his best to watch out for his crew, AND I RESPECT THAT!"
"Aah! Emergency transport! Everyone out of there, now!"

- Zurkel, unconventionally defeated by Freeman, confusing Barnes

"What a bunch of weirdos."

- Freeman, unimpressed by the Clickets

"First officer's log. As usual, my grasp of the lower-decker mind has proven to- oh! Uh, carry on, Ensign."
"I know you just pretend to be an idiot to trick us into getting along."
"Are you gonna tell anyone?"
"No. I think it's cute. Plus, everyone thinks you're a doofus. Nobody would believe me."
"'Cause I'm just that good at the job."

- Ransom and Moxy

"Happy anniversary. How was your day?"
"Alien invaders, chaos in engineering, Shaxs fighting demons, you know, just the usual."
"Hmm, glad to hear you had it easy."

- Alonzo Freeman and Carol Freeman

"OW! *bleep*, that chowder's hot! ... Okay, fine. I get it. We can stock up on pain meds."
"That's a good kitty."
"Ah, shut up."

- T'Ana and Westlake

Background information

Title

The title refers to the fact that this episode focuses on the senior officers -- the upper deckers in other words -- rather than focusing on the lower deckers like usual.
- In essence, this episode is an inverse to TNG: "Lower Decks".

Continuity

The lower deckers mention V'ger and the events of Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
Ransom and Billups discuss the Cordry rocks being refreshed in the ceiling panels of the bridge which always fall out and hit Ransom in the head when the ship takes damage. This is presumably a reference to TNG: "Yesterday's Enterprise" when rocks were mysteriously a part of the debris that fell on the bridge of the USS Enterprise-C and killed Captain Rachel Garrett.
The Battle of Tempasa is likely a reference to Kira Nerys and the Shakaar resistance cell's – which Shaxs was a part of – raid of the Cardassian base in Tempasa and which was previously mentioned in DS9: "Ties of Blood and Water".
Bingston mentions Geordi La Forge and Ro Laren getting stuck out of phase in TNG: "The Next Phase".
Zurkel mentions the previous encounter that the USS Cerritos had with the Clickets in "Veritas".