Five Years After Star Trek: Discovery, The Return of the Klingons May Not Mean What You Expect

Warning: SPOILERS for the Season 5 Finale of Star Trek: Lower Decks – “The New Next Generation”

The thrilling season 5 finale of Star Trek: Lower Decks, titled “The New Next Generation,”marks a dramatic return of the Klingons styled after those from Star Trek: Discovery, a move that has intrigued fans of both series. Introduced in 2017, Star Trek: Discovery modernized the visual portrayal of Klingons, making notable changes to their appearance that diverged from the iconic smooth-headed look of Klingons seen in Star Trek: The Original Series. By employing advanced makeup and design techniques, the series crafted a more alien yet strikingly profound depiction of Klingons, showcasing their evolution as a species within the franchise.

In the previous episode of the season, “Fissure Quest,”the USS Cerritos crew faces a catastrophic threat as a dimensional rift endangers the entirety of the Star Trek multiverse. Captain William Boimler, portrayed by Jack Quaid, attempts to safeguard the Prime Universe by redirecting a destructive beam of soliton radiation, betting on Lieutenant Brad Boimler and his team’s ability to counteract it. This climactic setup leads to an extraordinary event in the finale: the soliton beam’s entry into the Prime Universe triggers a Schrödinger field, resulting in the transformation of anything caught within it into divergent versions from the multiverse.

Reviving Discovery’s Klingons in Lower Decks

A Long-Awaited Return of Discovery Klingons

The finale of Star Trek: Lower Decks ingeniously reintroduces Klingons from Star Trek: Discovery through the narrative device of the Schrödinger probability field. As the USS Cerritos and USS Enterprise-E navigate the unstable dimensional rift, a group of Klingons becomes enveloped in the field, transforming into the distinctive hairless, blue-tinted Klingons reminiscent of Star Trek: Discovery. Concurrently, their ship, a Bird of Prey, also morphs into a variant design from the earlier series. Tragically, Relga’s fleet ultimately meets destruction, reverting to Proto-Klingon forms.

This depiction not only marks the first appearance of the Discovery era Klingons since the season 2 finale of Star Trek: Discovery in 2019, but also reignites discussion among fans. The departure from the traditional Klingon aesthetic received mixed responses, leading Star Trek: Discovery to pivot away from them following its transition to the 32nd century. In contrast, Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, set in the mid-23rd century, has opted for the more familiar designs from the The Next Generation era, indicating the existence of multiple Klingon versions intermingled within the Star Trek timeline.

The Implications of Klingons in Lower Decks’ Multiverse

Klingon Canon in Star Trek’s Prime Universe

Worf and a Discovery style Klingon in Star Trek

The incorporation of Star Trek: Discovery-style Klingons into the narrative of Star Trek: Lower Decks underlines a crucial point: these Klingons remain canonical within the Prime Universe. The transformative power of the Schrödinger probability field illustrates how various iterations of characters and starships can coexist within the Star Trek multiverse. As the USS Cerritos adapts designs of existing Federation starship classes—like the Sovereign and Galaxy class—this significant event affirms the accepted notion that Discovery’s Klingons are indeed part of the broader timeline.

The transformation of Klingons may suggest a different timeline where the Star Trek: Discovery-style Klingons evolved to dominate in the 24th century, overshadowing their less-ridged counterparts. This renewed perspective on Klingon representation acknowledges the historical shifts in their portrayal across the franchise, illustrating the depth and complexity of their cultural evolution. The reimagining of Klingons in Star Trek: Discovery offered a fresh take yet aligned with existing lore; Star Trek: Lower Decks cleverly affirms that every depiction of Klingons holds a place in the franchise’s expansive universe.

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