Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 4 Episode 6 Review: Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place
Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 4 Episode 6, “Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place,” is a delightfully high-energy episode that makes Star Trek history and explores new relationship territory. The episode title is also a cheeky nod to the short-lived British (and hilarious) horror parody Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace. While the outing itself doesn’t reference the series, it’s still a nice tip of the hat.
The main arc takes our lieutenant junior grades (no T’Lyn, though, who shone brightly in last week’s episode) to Ferenginar, where they’re to embark on a tour of the attractions for Starfleet’s logs. Meanwhile, Captain Freeman meets with Rom and Leeta for a historic move to bring the Ferengi into the Federation. Both arcs are equally strong in their own right.
BOIMLER: This kind of hacky, lowest common denominator schlock won’t work on me … but I better watch so officers who aren’t as resilient as I am will know what to avoid.
However, this reviewer couldn’t help being more drawn to the Ferenginar antics (despite the narrative gravity of the Rom/Leeta arc). The Tendi/Rutherford storyline, in particular, feels like an acknowledgment of those who want this romantic pairing while perhaps stating it might not happen.
Mike McMahan teased this episode’s plot last year and mentioned that romance among our crew, typically in relation to each other, won’t be a focus. Totally understandable. He even recognized the undeniable chemistry between them. That said, his quote about shippers potentially not wanting them together after watching this episode is off the mark. If anything, most folks might be even more resolved to see something develop between them.
Their palpable connection is largely thanks to Noël Wells and Eugene Cordero’s nuanced, charming performances. It’s challenging to sell that kind of chemistry solely through voice work, but they knock it out of the park. Tendi and Rutherford are adorably awkward in this episode.
POC & DAR: COP LANDLORDS: You just surrendered your deposit … and your life.
Tendiford aside, Boimler and Mariner’s arcs are also a blast. Boimler discovering “trash TV” and commercials could be an entire episode in the same vein as Rick and Morty‘s “Interdimensional Cable.” How fun would it be to have Boimler mine the depths of Ferengi TV?
Meanwhile, Mariner’s story perfectly encapsulates her immense growth, especially under Ransom’s mentorship. For the first time, she has a mentor who genuinely cares about her career progression in Starfleet. Naturally, she tries to revert to her old, chaotic ways (although Mariner will inherently remain at least somewhat chaotic — it’s in her DNA) to avoid her feelings. However, wreaking havoc isn’t as fulfilling as it used to be.
Tawny Newsome is the voice for Mariner, imbuing her with complexity, heart, and roguish charisma. While we need to spend more time with Mariner as she figures out why she’s frustrated, “Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place” gives us a great jumping-off point.
MARINER: Wow! Aw, it’s like what Heaven would look like if God was stupid.
Captain Freeman proves why she’s in charge of the Cerritos by displaying her knack for skillful negotiation, immense wit, and respect for different cultures. The outing adds the fun detail of Rom’s love for baseball, a nice throwback to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Here’s hoping we get more Ferengi action, particularly as they move toward joining the Federation, in future Lower Decks episodes.
Overall, “Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place” is a fast-paced comedic gem, packed to the brim with the show’s signature breathless zaniness and hilarious storylines. It’s easily one of the series’ strongest showings.
Oh, and long live Tendiford. (Sorry, not sorry.)
Stray Observations:
- “Parth Ferengi’s Heart Place” brings us a mini Deep Space Nine reunion, with Max Grodénchik reprising his role as Rom and Chase Masterson returning as Leeta.
- The Genesis Device first appeared in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Another version of it popped up in Star Trek: Picard Season 3.
- “Butt-ass” is my new favorite insult. Thanks, Mariner.
- Which is better: Slug-o or Slurm? I’ll let Lower Decks and Futurama fans weigh in.
- There’s nothing quite like a Boimler scream — in this quadrant or the next.
- “Poc & Dar: Cop Landlords” needs to be a real spin-off. I’d pay a boatload of latinum to bring that to fruition.
- Listen, the creative team specifically crafted this episode to torment Tendiford shippers. By “torment Tendiford shippers,” I mean me.
What did you think of this episode of Star Trek: Lower Decks? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Star Trek: Lower Decks streams new episodes every Thursday on Paramount+.
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Melody McCune
Melody loves TV. Maybe too much. Besides being a Senior Writer for Tell-Tale TV, she's the Managing Editor for Geek Girl Authority, an Independent Contractor for Sideshow Collectibles, and a Senior Writer for Eulalie Magazine. Additionally, she has bylines in Culturess, Widget, and inkMend on Medium. To top it all off, she's a critic for Rotten Tomatoes and CherryPicks.