‘Star Trek: Prodigy’ 2×09 Review: “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1”

Brett Gray as Dal, Jason Mantzoukas as Jankom Pog, Angus Imrie as Zero, and Rylee Alazraqui as Rok-Tahk in Star Trek: Prodigy 2x09 "The Devourer of All Things, Part 1."

We’ve finally reached our destination in Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1.” Just who is our crew going to meet? What is this thing pursuing them? Will they ever find Chakotay? Some of these questions get answered. Let’s dig into my review of Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1.”

Jason Mantzoukas as Jankom Pog in Star Trek: Prodigy 2x09 "The Devourer of All Things, Part 1." — CBS Studios

For the Kids

There’s something very charming in Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1” with the triumphant return of Wil Wheaton as Wesley Crusher. First of all, I joined Rok-Tahk in fangirling over Wesley. Wesley is such a fun addition to this show, and his enthusiasm is wonderfully charming. Rok-Tahk sees who she wants to be in Wesley, and it’s sweet and, really, very realistic to watch her fangirl over him. More on Wil’s return to Star Trek in a moment.

Additionally, in Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1” we learn that Murf is a bit of a potty mouth! I love that Wesley can understand him and all his vulgarity. Perhaps it’s better that we haven’t figured out a Murf translator yet. Learning that Murf is so vulgar made me think of him as Star Trek’s variation on the classic video game character Q*bert but with thumbs! I know that would have amused me as a kid and still does as an adult. There’s more action than life lessons in this episode, which gives Star Trek: Prodigy some balance. Not everything can be didactic all the time.

Wil Wheaton as Wesley Crusher in Star Trek: Prodigy 2x09 "The Devourer of All Things, Part 1." — CBS Studios

For the Adults

Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1” brings back the Travelers and gives Wesley Crusher a proper return. Wil’s all-too-brief appearance in Star Trek: Picard season 2 was fine, but it just didn’t feel right. Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1” is the appearance that Wesley and Wil deserve. When Wesley showed up, it marked the first audible scream for me in this first watch-through of the series. They let Wil go full fanboy, and I honestly love it. I’m so happy that Wil got this opportunity to have a real role in this new era of Star Trek.

But speaking of full fangirl flail, the music in these scenes feels like Nami Melumad is doing her best impersonation of John Williams’ Indiana Jones score. I am a big fan of Nami’s work in Star Trek. I appreciate the homage she gives John in this scene; it is incredibly appropriate in both theme and tone for Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1.”

Finally, we’ve got some fun things for the grown-up Trek fans in the room. Janeway pulling the whole “I’m losing signal” trick made me laugh out loud. It’s like something out of a fanfic, and yet I loved every second of it. Also, as I’ve not made mention of it yet in my reviews, big shout out to Ronny Cox for reprising his role of Jellico all these years later. It amazes me how many legacy characters Star Trek: Prodigy has worked in this season. And yet, none of it feels forced or performative.

Finally, I know everyone reading this joined me in another full fangirl flail during Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1” when you realized we were in Gary Seven’s office in Star Trek: The Original Series 2×26 “Assignment Earth.” I could not have loved that more.

Brett Gray as Dal, Rylee Alazraqui as Rok-Tahk, and Angus Imrie as Zero in Star Trek: Prodigy 2x09 "The Devourer of All Things, Part 1." — CBS Studios

Final Thoughts

In closing, I find it interesting that Gwyn says, “It’s not about the journey, it’s the destination,” in the opening to Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1.” That seems to be the opposite of the phrasing I’ve heard before. And yet, it fits for this episode. The destination is what matters in Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of All Things, Part 1.” The destination brings us to one of our big threats this season—the Loom! The Loom is apparently a timeline-eating dragon thing that looks and sounds vaguely like a neon Demogorgon. It’s creepy and truly menacing, apropos for the tenor of the season.

Before I wrap, I must make mention of Janeway’s three rules for captaining a starship. Keep your shirt tucked in. Always go down with the ship. Never leave a crewmember behind. Those could be translated as, “Be professional. Never give up. Stay together.” It’s that last one that rings true for our young crew right now. Heed Wesley’s words, kids. You’ll need each other if we’re going to survive this one.

What did you think of Star Trek: Prodigy 2×09 “The Devourer of all Things, Part 1” Leave me a comment, and let’s talk Trek.

All episodes of Star Trek: Prodigy season 2 are streaming now on Netflix.

The Nerdy Blogger

Ashley Thomas is The Nerdy Blogger. She holds a B. A. in English Literature from Maryville College in Maryville, Tennessee (c/o 2007) and completed her M. A. in Literature and Language, concentrating in Imaginative Literature at Signum University in Summer 2017. Ashley blogs, reads, writes (for fun and for hire), and spends time with her husband, Ryan, and their two cat-monsters, Oliver and Nynaeve. She and Ryan reside in Charlotte, North Carolina with a large quantity of board games, comic books, and polyhedral dice. She would like to be Brienne of Tarth, Leslie Knope, and Sylvia Tilly when she grows up.