TL;DR – There were many things I was expecting when I sat down to watch this episode today, but I did not expect to find myself openly weeping, and I am just as surprised about that as you are, dear reader.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ service that airs this series.

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy – Series Acclimation Mil Review –

Oh … wow … I was not ready for this episode when I pressed play. I was not prepared for it to show the strength of the Starfleet Academy premise with a sheer gumption that is commendable. I was also not ready for it to show such love to Deep Space Nine that it evoked an emotional response so profound that it caught me off guard. Well, with that in mind, let’s dive into the episode to see what it holds.  

So, to set the scene, Series Acclimation Mil or SAM (Kerrice Brooks) is the only photonic member of the Academy, as her home planet, Kasq, has sent her to learn about organic beings and potentially be a bridge between those two worlds, an emissary. When her Makers (Chiwetel Ejiofor) insisted she take the class “Confronting the Unexplainable” or they would remove her from the Academy, SAM was stuck. The professor, Illa (Tawny Newsome), would not let her join this late into the semester, but she will be taken away from everything she loves if she doesn’t get in, which is when SAM stumbles upon the legend of The Sisko (Avery Brooks). No one knows for sure what happened to him after the incident in the Fire Caves, but SAM will find out; she has to. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

The Style

The first thing I was not prepared for was the way they chose to present the style of the episode. It is presented almost like SAM is creating a documentary of her life, and maybe she is in-character, so technically, all the fourth-wall breaks are not technically fourth-wall breaks if you think about it a touch too long, which I may have. But that style of introducing all these drawn-on elements and HUD Displays is a profoundly effective technique of bringing you into the world of this character that has been predominantly played for comedic effect so far in the series.

We have seen Star Trek take a stab at a documentary style quite recently in Strange New Worlds’ What is Starfleet? Which played everything so straight down the line that it felt almost disingenuous to the scenario. But here, they nearly always play it for laughs, while keeping a strong undercurrent of growth. This combination works so well because it complements that central premise of the show and also because Kerrice Brooks has the strength and charisma to play a character that is almost a metaphoric [and literal] ball of energy without losing that momentum for even a second. It also helps that the style they pick gives me hints of films from the 1990s, like 10 Things I Hate About You, giving the episode both a fresh and also a slightly nostalgic feel, which is essential as we will see. Though if there is one criticism I would make about this episode, it is that the side plot between Nahla Ake (Holly Hunter) and Kelrec (Raoul Bhaneja) was fine, but didn’t need to be here and could have been lifted out as a whole and added into literally any other episode and would have worked better there.  

The School

I will admit that I have been a bit nervous about this series because I was not sure the situation and scenario would gel with Star Trek. Indeed, there were some rough moments in Kids These Days, Beta Test, and Vitus Reflux that did give me pause as to whether they could pull it off. But I also felt that about Lower Decks and Prodigy when they first started, and look how well they turned out. Well, last week’s Vox in Excelso showed me they had skin in the game, and this week’s episode revealed that this scenario of focusing on Academy students can be used to create some of the best that Trek can do.  

This is a scenario that can give you an interesting juxtapositional axis to play a story off from different angles. The significant gaps between the cadets and the professors provide both sides with blind gaps which can be used to tell interesting stories. The Doctor (Robert Picardo) is there to hand out his wisdom, but also, we see he is dealing with real pain. Illa feels like this stubborn, obstinate force, but she is really giving SAM a chance to learn in their own way. Indeed, it even feels like they nailed the tone of even some of the sillier aspects of the show, such as the feud between the Academy and the War College. Shout out to the nice War Academy guy for being nice.

The Sisko

Which now brings us to the central mystery this episode is exploring: What happened to Benjamin Sisko? I am on the record with how much I love DS9. I mean, I wrote a whole article about Why I Love Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. However, other than lifting and overusing Section 31, it has always felt like DS9 has always been the middle child of the 90s Star Trek era. People have been happy to pull things from TNG and Voyager, but other than some love from Lower Decks in Hear All, Trust Nothing, it does not get a lot of play. Which is why I was completely not ready for how much love this episode showed the series.

This episode explores the legacy of DS9 with a sheer gusto that should be commended. It is an intensity that matches the main character’s drive to find the answer to the secret of The Emissary. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but when they went to the Sisko museum, and you saw the deep cut references, you could feel that the writers understood the assignment. What I was not prepared for was the visceral emotional reaction that occurred when they brought Cirroc Lofton back as Jake Sisko. I don’t know why I didn’t expect it, but I didn’t; it was an emotional whiplash that hit each time. There was a care and distinction to his portrayal that profoundly moved me. It elevates the episode from a simple love letter into a partial continuation and spiritual sequel. It even elevates Muse, generally considered one of the poorer episodes of DS9, by recontextualising its weaker ending.

Recommendation

In the end, do we recommend Star Trek: Starfleet Academy – Series Acclimation Mil? Absolutely. This is one of the best episodes of Star Trek in an age. Kirsten Beyer and Tawny Newsome brought care and dedication to this episode that touched my heart, and I will be continually grateful for it. It also gives me great hope for the future of this series. Have you watched Star Trek: Starfleet Academy – Series Acclimation Mil? Let us know what you thought of the new series in the comments below.

By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Bluesky at @Tldrmovrev, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System.

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Credits – All images were created by the cast, crew, and production companies of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy
Directed by – Larry Teng
Written by – Kirsten Beyer & Tawny Newsome
Created by – Gaia Violo
Based On – Star Trek created by Gene Roddenberry
Production/Distribution Companies – Secret Hideout, Warm Blood Sunday, Roddenberry Entertainment, CBS Studios & Paramount+
Starring – Holly Hunter, Sandro Rosta, Karim Diané, Kerrice Brooks, George Hawkins, Bella Shepard, Zoë Steiner, Stephen Colbert, Tig Notaro, & Robert Picardo
With – Chiwetel Ejiofor, Cirroc Lofton, Raoul Bhaneja, Tawny Newsome, Romeo Carere, Alexander Eling, Dale Whibley, & Avery Brooks
And – Cecilia Lee, & Darius “Jackie Cox” Rose