This week the animated comedy Star Trek: Lower Decks moves into the second half of the fourth season with a visit to an iconic Trek location. We have details and the first images.
Return to Ferenginar in “Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place”
The sixth episode of season 4 is called “Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place,” a play on the title of the cult British comedy Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace. The episode was written by Cullen Crawford and directed by Brandon Williams. It arrives on Paramount+ on Thursday, October 5.
Synopsis:
The Cerritos visits the Ferengi homeworld.
The visit to the Ferengi homeworld Feringinar also appears to include two familiar characters. While they weren’t identified in the official captions, one of the new images appears to show Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’s Grand Nagus Rom (Max Grodénchik) and his wife Leeta (Chase Masterson).
Ferenginar is also famous for how it is always raining, which can be seen in a couple of images of the four main lower deckers visiting the planet…

Jack Quaid as Boimler, Noël Wells as D’Vana Tendi, Eugene Cordero as Rutherford and Tawny Newsome as Beckett Mariner (Paramount+)

Jack Quaid as Brad Boimler, Noël Wells as D’Vana Tendi, Eugene Cordero as Rutherford and Tawny Newsome (Paramount+)
The Ferengi theme is also apparent on the USS Cerritos. Another official image shows Captain Freeman with a Starfleet admiral getting ready for some Ferengi guests, including laying out a favorite Ferengi snack, tube grubs. The cheese platter shaped like a starship is also a nice touch.
More new images:

L-R Noël Wells as DVana Tendi and Eugene Cordero as Rutherford in episode 6, season 4 of Lower Decks streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Paramount+

L-R Jerry OConnell as Jack Ransom and Jack Quaid as Boimler in episode 6, season 4 of Lower Decks streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Paramount+

L-R Tawny Newsome as Mariner and Jack Quaid as Boimler in episode 6, season 4 of Lower Decks streaming on Paramount+, 2023. Photo Credit: Paramount+
Keep up with news for the Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.com.
Looking forward to it!
Nagus Rom and Leeta !!!
Trek loves nostalgia
Stop. Please. We know how much you hate nostalgia and references to previous Trek. You don’t have to repeat it ad nauseam.
Them repeating that comment ad nauseam is their own brand of nostalgia.
When Trek stops repeating it ad nauseum then I will. That’s all Trek does and it’s training fans to expect and want it all the more.
No, it’s just the whiney people like you that don’t like it. We get it, you don’t like it. Then stop watching so we don’t have to listen to you complain I’m every post. What do you do? Copy and paste?
Feh. Speaking on behalf of “whiney people” (by which I mean equestrians), at least we have taste.
BwaHahahahaha… sure. Whatever makes you sleep at night!
So do a lot of fans, so that’s good.
We’d have to see the episode before saying if it’s just nostalgia, Trek does have a nostalgia problem but I think it would be even worse to declare going to known locations and seeing the people you’d expect to be there as off limits in the Trek universe now.
Technically, anytime Paramount makes new Star Trek it’s cashing in on nostalgia. It’s only a problem if the show is firmly stuck in the past and has nothing new to offer when it revisits old characters and places. But when we are talking about an old franchise that is still going with unbroken continuity and big gaps of time that haven’t been explored yet, that’s not the same thing as studios reviving the likes of Mad About You or Murphy Brown for a grab for wayward eyeballs and more of the same. This is a rich tapestry with different interconnected time periods and worlds and characters to weave in and out of and explore. What happens in one series can and does affect another.
Putting so many TOS characters in SNW is a nostalgia play for attention, but setting aside how that’s not a dirty word, the show is working to develop them in a very different setting. No one would accuse SNW of being TOS in a shinier suit. Uhura alone is more of a character in 20 SNW episodes than she got to be after 79 and 6 movies before that.
Picard S3 crossed the line at times, but moreso with having a few too many Easter eggs and the Moriarty cameo in particular, but if they had brought back the TNG cast and characters like Ro for no reason other than publicity points, then I’d be annoyed. They didn’t, so I’m not, and these shows are but one part of a franchise that has two more Discovery spinoffs in SFA and the S31 movie coming. The franchise is taking a very balanced approach in its deployment of legacy characters and storylines.
I would say SNW can sometimes be TOS in a shinier suit. I love the show, but I do think it’s potential is hindered by how much it plays into TOS (and Discovery) rather than be it’s own thing. I do think the show would spend less time giving us TOS set up and more time going to interesting locations.
Most episodes of SNW have been a take on a Trek trope, but often going at them sideways. It’s not exactly Farscape wacky, but it’s felt fresh to me. If anything, the refrain that the show doesn’t explore enough strange new worlds has some validity, which also sets it apart from the older Trek shows.
I call it *continuity*. YMMV.
How come TNG, DS9, VOY managed seven seasons without constantly referring to previous Trek?
I have a feeling you will be bringing this up for as long as all those shows ran too.
We get it. But you keep watching it anyway so can’t be that bad.
And didn’t characters from the old shows appear in others too?
Well, VOYAGER managed to overuse the Borg to the point of exhaustion, so I’m not sure that’s a creative yardstick to be using in this case. In any event, though, that’s an entirely inapt comparison. You can justly level that criticism at STRANGE NEW WORLDS or PICARD, but LOWER DECKS is by definition a comedy, if not a full-blown parody, and much of the humor derives from making fun of tropes and story beats that, for all of our love for this franchise, we all acknowledge are pretty silly. It’s just not the same thing at all.
Because they were the previous Trek.
oh please. you know very well that “previous Trek” also existed for all those shows too.
Emily you repeat this ad naseum. Seriously. But other people said it, you keep watching the shows anyway so it can’t be that bad, right?
And yes the old shows had tons of fan service too. But yes, I agree not on this level. I have written entire essays you have completely ignored so I won’t say anymore than EVERY franchise today works on nostalgia. I wish people stop acting like it’s only Star Trek. They know they have to get people to pay for these shows today. In America, TOS, TNG, DS9, VOY and ENT were all free. These new shows aren’t, are now being seen by waaaay less people on a fledgling streaming site and they are doing everything to get former fans a reason to sign up; and yes nostalgia is always the easiest way to go. That’s just how it is. But you will be repeating the same thing like a stubborn child so I don’t why I bother responding.
Based on all the replies to you, it seems to be a common refrain.
I realise that everything else in entertainment trades on nostalgia, but not to the extent of Picard S3 and Lower Decks. The more you do it, the harder it is for you to stop doing it because it trains fans to expect it.
For crying out loud, we’re not pets begging for people food at the table.
Yes, to that extent and more. Ahsoka is getting criticized for basically being an entire season of memberberries from The Clone Wars and especially Rebels. It’s basically a sequel to that show and 90% of that show has legacy characters populating it and obviously is based around a hugely popular character in the fanbase. So once again, please stop pretending only Star Trek is doing it or at a deeper level. In fact, EVERY Star Wars show so far minus Mandalorian starred a legacy character, correct, from Obi Wan to Boboa Fett. Hell EVERY major character in both the OT and PT has shown up in all the shows with the exception of Han Solo and Jar Jar Binks so far.
And hardcore fans will watch anything with the words ‘Star Trek’ in the title. Again, this has been stated constantly, it’s more for casual fans to tune in. And most of them still weren’t watching a cartoon made for kids at midnight even with Janeway in it….but we all were lol. None of this is black or white. Yes some will gravitate to a show if a legacy character is in it, it doesn’t mean that alone will keep them watching if the show/movie itself is still not compelling enough.
And the Academy show will take place in the 32nd century, so you don’t have to worry about Spock or Riker showing up there.
There has never been a Star Trek show like Lower Decks. It’s a 24th century show with new characters and a heightened animated reality. It is specifically made to be able make references both familiar and obscure with an irreverent comedic bent. It’s frankly rather obtuse and obsessive to fixate on and deride the show for having a nostalgic aspect to any of its storytelling when it’s so fiercely different. It’s not even a complaint about the quality of any of the actual artistry, it’s just whining that you don’t like revisiting anything or anyone we’ve seen before. You use the word “nostalgia” like it’s a slur, when it’s not. If my grandmother says she’s nostalgic about someone lovely from her past I don’t smack her across the face and shout, “Think about someone new, you tired old hack!” At least, I don’t do that anymore.
Doctor Who and Star Wars fans fixate on ridiculous things too, but it’s a privilege that people take for granted. Honestly, the things people will complain about while getting to brand enjoy new stories in a 56 year-old franchise with a rich and unbroken continuity. Oh how fans of Firefly, Farscape, The Expanse, Blake’s 7, Lost in Space, Battlestar Galactica, The Dead Zone or The Sarah Connor Chronicles must wish to be able to have “problems” as serious as… checking up on Rom and Leeta after 24 years.
I very much grok this. I’m as critical of the stretches of mediocrity that can dominate this franchise as anyone, but the young’uns around here probably can’t ever properly appreciate the miracle of its continued existence as those of us who fell in love with TOS after its cancellation, and with only the faintest hope that it might defy the odds and naysayers and be brought somehow, in whatever format. And the truth is, if history repeats itself much of the current output will eventually look better to many fans (and future fans) than it does now, as was eventually the case with VOYAGER and ENTERPRISE. Great post.
Thank you. I regret the typos, I use my phone too much.
That’s a little related to why I sometimes harp on how Discovery and Picard went TV-MA with the sex and violence. It’s as valid a creative decision as any, and obviously most of the fan base is older and used to mature content. But there’s something very special about being introduced to Star Trek as a kid and watching with family. I know I love Star Trek now because it instilled wonder and joy in me as a child and happy memories with family, and I would never begrudge anyone’s similar feelings of nostalgia, because I’m not THAT crass. I worry that this generation of kids missed out on being able to love Discovery or see Picard because the shows were not geared for them at all. But it is all part of one big canvas which people have been adding to almost nonstop for 60 years. That’s absolutely bonkers and a helluva thing to take for granted!
That’s actually bad. Constant nostalgia is a problem, but I do think the state Trek is in right now (with a dozen foundational species that essentially have zero lore to them) comes from the lack of going back to old species to round them out more. The fact that Lower Decks is the first show out of 10 to go to Orion, a planet of a species we know from the pilot in the 60’s, is actually not a good thing.
When you build a world, sometimes the world you’ve built gets revisited. A returning character isn’t, in and of itself, nostalgia.
Now, I’m not going to watch it, so I’m not going to find out if it’s simply nostalgia for the sake of nostalgia (or if it’s actually nostalgia at all!) But at least a couple of your comments have indicated that you’re smart enough to understand what a lazy criticism this is. I’m not going to tell you to “do better” because a) I’m an adult, b) (presumably) you’re an adult, and c) this is a Star Trek comment section, so it’s definitely not a place for doing better. But. C’mon.
Fans often misuse the word nostalgia. The legacy characters are a part of the trek universe. They are Star Trek. It makes sense they will pop up since they are a part of the universe. They are still part of the story. I don’t see it as a trip down memory lane or a yearning for the old days. We are checking in on these characters from the last time we saw them. If it works story wise, then I’m in. Mike does a great job balancing new stories and legacy characters.
Wonder if we will see Moogie!
Moogie was Moopsied.
She and Zek were heading off to Risa last time we saw them.
Best episode title ever.
“You and he were……buddies, weren’t you?”
“I do not believe that any form of life, be it human, animal or plant should be hurt in the making of a television programme, so I personally feel very bad about the cat we killed.”
In light of the pretty successful SNW crossover I decided to give this show another shot, and am currently midway through the second season. The style is still too frenetic for my tastes, and it’s not nearly as laugh-out-loud-funny as I’d like it to be. But as a loving sendup of all the franchise tropes that have accumulated over the past half-century like a freeway pileup it at least frequently makes me smile, at a time in my life when I’ve needed to smile. Overall, I’m glad it’s around.
I’m happy to hear you’re giving it another chance and enjoying it more Michael. It makes me smile all the time too and why I love it so much. Hopefully you’ll get to love it more as you watch.
Trust me, it was partly on your recommendation that I went back and gave it a second look at all. I only wish it were half as brilliant , even at its best, as the Trek-themed FUTURAMA episode “Where No Fan Has Gone Before.” Now THAT was a loving sendup that also managed to be side-splittingly funny.
Wow dude, that’s very kind of you to say. I’m flattered. I know I always speak very highly of the show (but never had an issue with anyone who don’ t like it), for me I really love (and miss) the slice of life stories the show tells with some laughs with it. And grown to love all the characters. Tendi especially is so adorable to watch. And I’m T’Lyn this season too. The show isn’t perfect but it really has its heart in the right place and why it has been embraced by fandom. Anthony and Laurie adores it. I always love listening to their reviews on the podcast.
I have never seen that episode of Futurama (but I only watched the first few episodes of the original show). But I’m going to find that episode now and give it a watch!
I’ll be interested to read your reaction. The author, David Goodman, went on to write “biographies” of James Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard, as well as gigs on ENT and THE ORVILLE. His nerd credentials are as burnished as those for anyone working on LOWER DECKS, and in both cases the love for the franchise clearly shines through, but IMO his script for FUTURAMA is much funnier than anything I’ve seen on LDS so far. Actually, he’d be a natural to work on that show, and I’m guessing there’s a story out there as to why he isn’t.
I finally went and watched that Futurama episode and you were absolutely right, it was done SO well. My favorite line was from Fry, “They made 79 episodes, about 30 of them were actually good.” And so many fun tropes all us super fans know by heart. It was great most of the TOS cast was involved (I assumed Dohan was speaking Welhsie’s lines but not sure). I actually watched the new Very Short Treks and LDS episodes and then Futurama back to back, the amount of parody all three had was pretty crazy. LDS even managed parody Star Trek and fandom as a franchise this episode the hardest it ever has so far with a defunct real life location, which I won’t say due to spoilers. And it was funny both VST and Futurama had the same joke about Sulu’s abs. I honestly didn’t know that was a thing until now. It was always his ‘Oh my’ phrase that gets redone every.single.time.
Yep, really fun and just a great send up of all of TOS weirdness in the best way possible.
Oh man, that Futurama episode is the perfect loving send-up of Star Trek. Clever, silly and equal parts irreverent and besotted. The TOS cast is so good in it too.
In contrast, when Family Guy did their TNG reunion I felt gross for having even watched it.
Yeah I watched it and it was really clever and funny.
I didn’t hate the TNG reunion in Family Guy but never loved it either.
Great to see Rom and Leeta are back. The last couple episodes have been my favorites of the season, and a return of beloved DS9 characters is just the thing to keep that momentum rolling.
Has it been confirmed yet that Max Grodénchik and Chase Masterson are reprising their roles?
OMG, I can’t wait!! This sounds like it’s going to be a lot of fun, especially after the visit to Orion!
One thing I’ve thought about…will Nog die in the Star Trek universe? How are they going to address that with these characters? Will they even mention Nog?
Unless Ferengi are immortal, Nog is going to die in the Star Trek universe at some point. However, he doesn’t have to be dead yet just because the actor playing him has died. I don’t expect the producers to recast the character but they can leave Nog’s fate open.
If they want to mention Nog but not kill the character they could say he’s serving far away on some other Starfleet vessel.
Captain Nog of the USS Defiant is on a secret mission in the Gamma Quadrant…
Wow that’s actually a great question. It never occurred to me Nog could be referenced. But I assume the character will still be alive in this time period regardless of the actor’s passing just like we know Odo is still alive and was addressed as such in Picard last season even though Rene Auberjonois also passed away. So I don’t see any difference although they may find a small way to make a tribute to him in the episode though.
Can’t wait!!! Rom and Leeta are back! 👍
I can’t wait! I can’t wait for the return of Brunt. (Since I know she’s in the comments of this one, no, it’s not nostalgia, I’m joking and just being gay.)