Absolutely certain I'd hate Star Trek: Starfleet Academy, I couldn't blame myself. Episode 1, "Kids These Days," left a poor first impression, with these kids being the issue. There's an undeniable youthful, performatively quirky vibe to this YA adaptation of the long-rumored idea of a series or movie centered around Starfleet Academy, and it seemed too young and smug for my tastes, even in Episode 2, "Beta Test," the second half of the two-part premiere. However, my reservations gradually diminished.
Sure, the awkwardness didn't entirely vanish, but it became more tolerable. Part of this was due to solid core dynamics, plenty of action, and decent humor. I know it sounds like faint praise, but I mean it seriously. There's a good show here with an intriguing premise and unique characters - not to mention the always-excellent Holly Hunter - but you just have to get past a layer of performatively hip silliness to appreciate it.
Consider the opening scenes. They're not exactly egregious, but they're more functional than anything else, designed to introduce the leads and a villain with a moral conundrum bolted on top for some seriousness. In short: Alisha and Caleb are Federation prisoners, on trial for aiding and abetting a villain named Nus Braka in theft and the death of a Starfleet captain. Alisha and Caleb only helped because they were starving, but the law is the law, so Alisha is sentenced to 15 years in prison, and Caleb becomes a ward of the Federation.
We're meant to understand that this is the kindest option, but it doesn't sit well with Nahla Ake, who's handing out the sentence. She eventually resigns from Starfleet, and fifteen years later, when she's asked to become the chancellor of Starfleet Academy, Caleb - who has grown into a huge but deeply resentful anti-establishment bad boy archetype - is her first port of call. He's her chance for redemption, an opportunity to redress some of the wrongs committed by an imperfect institution.
But it means Caleb is going to school. Only then might he discover what happened to his mother - she's played by Tatiana Maslany, so of course she's still alive and has recently escaped from prison, apparently with Nus Braka - and find a purpose beyond just being a rabble-rouser. But can he accept authority? Can he get on with his fellow cadets? Can he let go of his lingering mistrust and cynicism? These are questions for subsequent episodes to answer. But I suspect yes, yes, and yes, in case you were wondering.
In these initial two episodes, the core cast is admittedly thinly sketched, but there are quite a few of them, and one expects several individual episodes will delve into their personal backstories and quirks. For now, though, they’re mostly reduced to their key characteristic or how they relate to Caleb.
For instance, he has a nemesis roommate in the form of Darem Reymi, a Khonian, though their mutual respect for each other is bound to grow down the line. Jay-Den Kraag is a Klingon, but dreams of being a healer rather than a warrior. Sam is a hologram with an enigmatic presence. Genesis Lythe is a potential love interest, and Tarima Sadal, who doesn't show up until Episode 2 and occupies a big chunk of it, is a Betazoid and daughter of an important dignitary – and also, of course, a love interest.
There are officers too, including the Doctor from Star Trek: Voyager, Jett Reno from Star Trek: Discovery, a brilliantly funny Gina Yashere as Jem’Hadar/Klingon Lura Thok, who is completely slathered in prosthetics and makeup but is instantly recognizable thanks to her distinctive voice. And, of course, Ake herself, who can’t stop breaking most of the Federation’s rules, especially anything pertaining to Caleb, but also offers an interesting viewpoint of the Federation pre- and post-Burn thanks to her Lanthanite DNA allowing her to have lived to hundreds of years old.
Don’t get me wrong – all of these characters need more specific focus. But that should hopefully come with time. Defining everything in terms of how it affects Caleb isn’t a strategy for long-term success, I don’t think. If Episode 1 is more of a Discovery-style action-focused episode about the cadets having to come together to repel an attack by Nus Braka’s pirates, Episode 2 is more of a classic Star Trek deal with a delegation of Betazoids venturing to the Academy to discuss terms of re-entry into the Federation after years of isolationism. Both modes are compelling for different reasons and clunky for others, but I do enjoy that the show can obviously do both.
Hunter and Paul Giamatti, who plays Nus Braka, have great hero and villain chemistry, and I strongly suspect that Braka is going to be a recurring bad guy. He also gives Caleb a clue about how to track his mother, which he picks up on in the second episode and is only made possible through an alliance with the Betazoids. This ties everything together fairly well but does, again, make everything a bit too Caleb-centric. He’s obviously the main character, but Trek always works best as an ensemble, so subsequent episodes need to split their attention more evenly.
But the fact that I’m immediately interested in these characters and their dynamics despite being mostly one-note for now speaks pretty well of Starfleet Academy overall. So I’m happy to give it a chance. Hopefully, a few more people do the same.
