Star Trek: Lower Decksbrilliantly foreshadowed that Captain Carol Freeman (Dawnn Lewis) would end up in the same place in two separate universes at the end of season 5.Star Trek: Lower Deckshas ended on Paramount+, but not before a revolutionary season 5 that opened up exploration ofStar Trek’s Multiverse. The Defiant Class starship Anaximander, led by Captain William Boimler (Jack Quaid), delved into alternate realities, with the USS Cerritos savingStar Trek’s Prime Timelinefrom being erased from the Multiverse.
Star Trek: Lower Decksseason 5also introduced Starbase 80, the oldest and least desirable outpost operated by the United Federation of Planets. Starbase 80’s Commander Kassia Nox (Nicole Byer) tried to convey the positive aspects of the dilapidated space station inStar Trek: Lower Decksseason 5, episode 5, “Starbase 80?!”, but Lieutenant Beckett Mariner (Tawny Newsome) dreaded the station from her brief banishment there. However,Starbase 80 received a new significance and destiny - and so did Captain Carol Freeman- at theend ofStar Trek: Lower Decksseason 5.
Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 5’s Premiere Foreshadowed Captain Freeman Going To Starbase 80
Lower Decks' Finale Reframes Starbase 80 As The New Deep Space Nine
Star Trek: Lower Decksseason 5’s premiere, “Dos Cerritos,” saw the USS Cerritos cross over into an alternate timeline, and introduced the curveball that their USS Cerritos is commanded byCaptain Becky Freeman,not her mother, Captain Carol Freeman. “Dos Cerritos” eventually revealed thatthe alt-Captain Freeman was sent to Starbase 80 after too many errors, and her daughter took over the Captain’s chair in her place. It wasn’t obvious at the time, butStar Trek: Lower Decksset the stage for the Prime Timeline’s Captain Freeman’s next mission.
As a reward for savingStar Trek’s Prime Timeline,Captain Freeman was transferred to Starbase 80 at the end ofStar Trek: Lower Decksseason 5. However, unlike in the alternate reality, this was no punishment for Carol. Captain Freeman was tasked with the crucial mission of overseeing Starbase 80 andStarfleet’s exploration of the Multiverse. It’s a fitting new role for Carol, who had outgrown commanding her California Class starship and was ready for a greater challenge and responsibility.
Captain Freeman Made The USS Cerritos Great In Star Trek: Lower Decks
The Cerritos Is The Enterprise Of The California Class
Captain Carol Freeman may have been a disaster in the alternate reality ofStar Trek: Lower Decksseason 5’s premiere, but the Prime Timeline’s Captain Freeman was a rising star in Starfleet. Freeman felt she was better than the California Class starship Starfleet assigned to her, but to Carol’s credit,she dedicated herself to proving her ship and her crew were the best Starfleet had to offer. Her daughter, Lt. Beckett Mariner, didn’t always make it easy, but Captain Freeman’s tireless efforts eventually garnered the respect she deserved.
The Cerritos was a true hero ship under Captain Freeman.
InStar Trek: Lower Decksseason 3, Mariner and her friends learned thatthe other California Class starships in Starfleet envied the USS Cerritos, which gained the reputation of"the USS Enterprise of the California Class.“Captain Freeman’s Cerritos stopped the Pakleds and later, saved the galaxy from disgraced ex-Starfleet Academy cadet Nicholas Locarno (Robert Duncan McNeill) and the soliton wave that nearly engulfed the Prime timeline inStar Trek: Lower Decks' finale. The Cerritos was a true hero ship under Captain Freeman.
While Starbase 80 was punishment for Captain Freeman in one reality, it’s a bold new opportunity to make a Muliversal difference for Captain Freeman in the Prime timeline.Star Trek: Lower Decksseason 5 had a bold master plan going into its final season on Paramount+, and, upon a rewatch, it’s eye-opening to see how ingeniously showrunner Mike McMahan and his creative team mapped out the most ambitious and fan-rewarding season ofStar Trek: Lower Decks.
