In this review of Star Trek: Lower Decks #9, Tendi freaks out about her massive student loan debt (to a Ferengi of course), while readers are treated to a wild sequence only possible in this series.
Star Trek: Lower Decks #9
Written by: Tim Sheridan
Art and Main Cover by: Vernon Smith
Variant Cover: Jack Lawrence
Page Count: 28 pages
Release Date: July 9, 2025
This review contains spoilers
Star Trek: Lower Decks #9 begins with a riff on the movie “Groundhog Day”, as Lieutenant D’Vana Tendi appears to relive her day on the U.S.S. Cerritos over and over again with differing results, but it’s really just stress-induced night terrors impacting both her sleeping and waking lives. She orders the computer to delete any new subspace messages without reading them, which does not go unnoticed.
Tendi’s erratic behavior has drawn the attention of both her friends and the senior officers, as the quality of her work dips. Tendi really wants to sleep, but is afraid of what waits for her there when she does.
After dozing off in the middle of a presentation, Captain Freeman orders Tendi to undergo therapy, but when that doesn’t work, a frustrated Rutherford calls Tendi’s bluff by threatening to read aloud the deleted messages if she doesn’t come clean.
Tendi relents, explaining that she wanted different life from other Orions (including her wealthy family), so when applied to Starfleet Academy, she also decided to pay her own way rather than using her family’s ill-gotten gains (read: pirate booty). Unfortunately, she made an even worse decision by taking out a loan with a Ferengi trader named Glom.
Tendi agreed to Glom’s terms, unaware that there was no Starfleet signing bonus from which she was to make the repayment. Over the years Tendi forgot about Glom, but a few weeks ago Glom finally tracked her down on the U.S.S. Cerritos, notifying Tendi that her debt was going to be sent to a notorious Ferengi collection agency.
With Tendi’s friends up to speed, the discussion descends into chaotic rambling and Tendi freaks out, provoking a gross-out scene that is thankfully interrupted by a red alert. The Cerritos detects an approaching fleet of Ferengi ships lead by Daimon Glom.
Unaware of the circumstances behind this encounter, Captain Freeman and Commander Ransom open a (mostly confusing) dialogue with Glom, but Tendi arrives on the bridge and comes clean, admitting that she took out the loan, and tries to negotiate with Glom, despite the iron-clad contract.
Star Trek: Lower Decks #9 ends with an enraged Glom demanding either immediate repayment or to prepare for the U.S.S. Cerritos to be destroyed.
Analysis
Star Trek: Lower Decks #9 is a weird story (which is a strange thing to say, because all Star Trek: Lower Decks stories are inherently weird). The script cleverly reimagines our current student loan debt crisis for Tendi in the 24th Century, complete with all of the dread and anxiety it can cause (although being targeted heavily armed Ferengi starship is probably its own level of concern).
Unfolding the story from Tendi’s point of view; with her hopes, fears and aspirations on full display further enriches her character development beyond what was shown in the animated series. Tendi’s love of science and minutiae as well as her easy going nature already made her endearing, but her insecurity and denial add another level of relatability.
The fact that Orion females have historically been portrayed in Star Trek as either vicious, seductive manipulators, or ruthless pirates makes Tendi’s story a refreshing counter to that stereotype. Tendi’s decision to forge her own path is not a rejection of her family, just their way of life, (as was seen recently on the animated series).
While writer Tim Sheridan peppers his script with the typical Lower Decks-style antics and rapid-fire banter, his adding of unnecessary gross-out gags is extremely off-putting for an otherwise enjoyable story, (Star Trek: Lower Decks #9 truly goes where no Star Trek story has gone before).
Without going into too much detail (you’re welcome), the gross-out elements in question are part of Tendi’s official duties in Star Trek: Lower Decks #9, as Tendi’s frazzled subconscious takes (fecal) matters into their own hands with an unusual cry for help, among other admittedly creative vulgar images.
Artist Vernon Smith does a good job with Sheridan’s wild script, (even the gross-out scenes), adding his own artistic touches to the animated series art style, including the cute Doctor Moopsy sequence, some comedically exaggerated character poses, Tendi’s increasingly frantic facial expressions (that extreme eye close-up), and the impressive cinematic wide shot of Tendi and her friends on page 15.
Also of note, eagle-eyed readers will find some familiar faces on page 17 (in the flashback panel of Tendi’s arrival at Starfleet Academy). Whether they were scripted or Smith’s idea, it is a clever assortment of characters to be found in the same scene.
Final Thoughts
Star Trek: Lower Decks #9 provides a fascinating character study, a relatable story and solid art, but the unfortunate inclusion of multiple gross-out scenes might turn off some readers.
