Warning: SPOILERS for Star Trek: Lower Decks season 1 finale, "No Small Parts".
Star Trek: Lower Decks season 1's epic finale ended with a massive surprise crossover appearance by Star Trek: The Next Generation fan favorites and a big paradigm shift for the Lower Deckers of the U.S.S. Cerritos. Written by series creator Mike McMahon, Star Trek: Lower Decks' season 1 finale, "No Small Parts", paid off the season-long arcs involving the rebellious Ensign Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome) and the eager-to-please Ensign Brad Boimler (Jack Quaid). Best of all, TNG's Jonathan Frakes and Deanna Troi reprised their roles as Captain Will Riker and Commander Deanna Troi, who rode to the Cerritos' rescue aboard the U.S.S. Titan.
The Cerritos was nearly destroyed by Pakleds, who annihilated the U.S.S. Solvang to steal its technology, and they intended to do the same to Captain Carol Freeman's (Dawnn Lewis) starship. Ambushed and completely outmatched by the Pakleds' hybrid vessels, Freeman turned to her daughter Mariner to come up with a plan to save the ship. With the help of Ensign Sam Rutherford (Eugene Cordero) and his sentient (and homicidal) holograph helper avatar Badgey (Jack McBrayer), Mariner's plan was to deliver a virus that would cripple the Pakled ship. Security Chief Lt. Shaxs (Fred Tatasciore) took Rutherford to the Pakled ship and sacrificed his own life so that Sam could deliver the virus and escape the exploding enemy vessel. When three more Pakled ships showed up to destroy the Cerritos, Captain Riker and the Titan arrived for the timely rescue and sent the Pakled ships packing.
The relentlessly fast-paced and irreverent Star Trek: Lower Decks maintains an episodic format like TNG but the characters don't remain static. Similar to the serialized series like Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Discovery, Lower Decks' heroes have arcs and they grew and changed throughout season 1. Star Trek: Lower Decks season 1 concluded with several big changes to the show that promise even more surprises in store for Star Trek: Lower Decks season 2.
Riker, Troi & The U.S.S. Titan Rescue The Cerritos
The appearance of Riker, Troi, and the Titan was a huge and welcome surprise that definitively establishes Star Trek: Lower Decks as canonically part of Star Trek's 24th-century TNG era. Furthermore, it was the first time Trekkers actually got to see the U.S.S. Titan in action as well as Captain Riker in command of his own starship. 2002's Star Trek: Nemesis ended with Riker and Troi leaving the U.S.S. Enterprise-E and Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) behind, but their guest spots in Star Trek: Picard took place years after the Troi-Rikers left the Titan. Although there were non-canonical Star Trek novels published about them, for 18 years, fans could only imagine seeing the exploits of Captain Riker and the Titan.
The Titan saving the day also paid off a previous reference to Riker's starship in Star Trek: Lower Decks episode 6, "Terminal Provocations", when the Cerritos transferred their worst officer, Ensign Fletcher (Tim Robinson), to the Titan, who was promptly fired. Amusingly, Star Trek: Lower Decks also established that Riker goes way back with Captain Freeman and Beckett Mariner; Carol was the young Will's mentor in Starfleet and Riker returned the favor and became Beckett's cha'DIch (Klingon for 'mentor'). In fact, Mariner learned many of her bad habits from Riker, like her penchant for hoarding contraband - which ended up being a deciding factor in fighting off the Pakleds who beamed aboard the Cerritos.
The Secret That Mariner Is Freeman's Daughter Is Out (& What It Means)
In Star Trek: Lower Decks season 1, Freeman and Mariner mutually agreed to keep the fact that they're mother and daughter a secret from the crew of the Cerritos. Mariner wanted the freedom being a lowly Ensign affords her to "fly under the radar" and break rules while Freeman didn't want people to know that the most "criminally insubordinate" Starfleet officer in the fleet was her baby girl. But protecting Mariner put Carol at odds with Beckett, who saw her mother as overbearing. Mariner eventually realized her mom was really looking out for her all along when she created and played the villain in a holodeck movie called Crisis Point: The Rise of Vindicta as a form of therapy in Star Trek: Lower Decks episode 9.
However, Boimler discovered Mariner's secret that she's really "Starfleet royalty" (Beckett's father is also an Admiral) and Bradward inadvertently outed the truth to the whole crew. As Beckett feared, she began to be treated differently once people knew she was the Captain's daughter, which led to Mariner considering taking a transfer to the U.S.S. Sacramento, a promotion that Boimler coveted. But after Mariner saved the Cerritos from the Pakleds, Beckett and Carol finally agreed to work together since Mariner can "solve problems" in ways other Starfleet Officers bound by regulations can't. Going forward, Mariner will have Captain Freeman's blessing and protection even though Carol knows Beckett's methods will "p*** her off". It remains to be seen if Mariner and Freeman's promising new pact will indeed work out for them in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 2.
Lt. Shaxs Died Saving The Cerritos
Lt. Shaxs' noble sacrifice to save Rutherford and the Cerritos was the Star Trek franchise's latest homage to Spock's (Leonard Nimoy) iconic death in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and "the needs of the many" being more important than "the needs of the few". Spock's famous line was even quoted by Ensign D'vana Tendi (Noel Wells) and they had similar funerals. Shaxs was a gruff and amusing background character who got relatively little screen time in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 1, and he was definitely a different and more aggressive breed of Bajoran than what fans are familiar with on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
While Shaxs was mostly known for being frustrated he couldn't always open fire with phasers or eject the warp core to solve every problem, the Bajoran never hesitated to make sure Rutherford could get to and from the Pakled ship, even though it meant he would lose his own life in the process. Sadly, Lt. Shaxs heroically died and became one with the Prophets without knowing that Dr. T'Ana (Gillian Vigman) was romantically interested in him. Not only will the Cerritos need a new Security Chief in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 2, but Shaxs' death echoes how the Enterprise-D's Security Chief, Tasha Yar (Denise Crosby), also didn't make it through TNG season 1. (Mariner even referenced Yar's death when she threatened to feed Boimler to an Armus, which is the alien that killed Tasha).
Star Trek TOS & TNG Callbacks
Star Trek: Lower Decks' finale was typically packed with references to TOS and TNG. The Cerritos opened the episode by making the Second Contact with the planet Beta III, which was last seen in the TOS season 1 episode "Return of the Archons". Apparently, Starfleet hadn't been to Beta III in a century and the Cerritos' crew was dismayed to learn that the people went right back to worshipping the evil sentient computer Landru, completely undoing how Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) and the crew of the Enterprise helped them in TOS. Commander Jack Ransom (Jerry O'Connell) also revealed that he coined the term "TOS", which is short for "those old scientists" like Spock and Scotty (James Doohan).
The villains in "No Small Parts" were the Pakleds, an intellectually-challenged race known for stealing technology from other aliens . The Pakleds debuted in the TNG season 2 episode "Samaritan Snare" and they would later pop up in several DS9 episodes. Star Trek: Lower Decks' season 1 finale also featured an Exocomp Starfleet officer named Peanut Hamper, who was assigned to Sickbay and was mentored by Ensign Tendi. However, Peanut Hamper committed mutiny and beamed herself off of the Cerritos rather than do her duty to save the ship by carrying the virus to the Pakleds. The Exocomp was introduced in the TNG season 6 episode "The Quality of Life".
All Of The Lower Deckers Got What They Wanted
While Mariner got to remain a Lower Decker who is free to do whatever she wants aboard the Cerritos, Boimler shocked her by accepting a promotion to the Titan. Essentially, Riker poached Boimler, who is now a Lieutenant, junior-grade. Boimler had spent all of Star Trek: Lower Decks season 1 desperately craving a promotion and recognition from his captain and he got his greatest wish. Brad is even happy to leave the Cerritos behind since all of the dangerous experiences he survived at Mariner's side makes him a big deal among the Lower Deckers aboard the Titan.
Meanwhile, Mariner is furious at Boimler's betrayal after everything she did for him. Boimler now being part of the Titan's bridge crew likely means fans will see more of Captain Riker in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 2. It remains to be seen if Bradward will somehow screw up and be sent back to the Cerritos or if Lt. Boimler will get to be in command of Mariner, which would only infuriate Beckett further.
Rutherford helped save the Cerritos and was able to return from the Pakled's exploding vessel, thanks to Lt. Shaxs, but Sam had to lose his cybernetic implant, which also left him with amnesia. However, in Rutherford's typically enthusiastic way, having no memory doesn't seem to bother him. As Tendi says, it only means that they can learn to be best friends all over again. Tendi and Rutherford can also continue their mutual love affair with the Cerritos after its rebuilt and relaunched in Star Trek: Lower Decks season 2.