Wow! Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Season 1 Episode 5 “Series Acclimation Mil” boldly goes in a direction that I don’t think anyone saw coming. We are diving deep into Star Trek lore while also experimenting with a new narrative form. There are all kinds of crazy things happening in this episode, so let’s hit the bar with “Series Acclimation Mil.” Be advised: massive spoilers are ahead!
Different Sort of Narration
In all my many years of watching Star Trek, I cannot recall an episode narrated in quite this manner. Written by Kirsten Beyer & Tawny Newsome, two of the most knowledgeable Trek writers in the franchise’s history, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Season 1, Episode 5, “Series Acclimation Mil,” breaks new ground.
Sure, we’ve had Captain’s Logs and Chief Medical Officer’s Logs, etc., but having the inner monologue of a character is new, especially when that character is photonic. But it’s more than just an inner monologue; the episode’s ending effectively makes this the Star Trek version of Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume. More on this in a moment.
Moreover, what impressed me the most about this episode is that we get the inner monologue of a being that isn’t human. The cartoonish effects, the stylized text, and humor we see in this narrative form nods to Ms. Marvel to me, and I am HERE FOR IT. Further, did anyone else notice that they use the Dr. Seuss font in several of the thought bubbles? Is this a playful nod to Green Eggs and Ham? I am SAM. SAM I am.
I love SAM. SAM’s exuberance is charming, and her zest for life is inspiring. Kerrice Brooks is an absolute ray of sunshine, and I LOVE that “Series Acclimation Mil” allows her to showcase her dance moves, her joy, and that million bars of gold-pressed latinum smile. Watching her gain knowledge in the classroom, but also learn about “organics,” is something I will enjoy for the rest of the series.
Check out our review of Starfleet Academy episode 1!
Finding Yourself, Finding Meaning
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Season 1 Episode 5 “Series Acclimation Mil” has SAM ask many questions that young folks, and let’s be real, adults, ask of themselves too. “How do I become what my makers need me to be?” could just as easily be, “How can I measure up to what my parents expect from me?” Measuring up to impossible standards, regardless of who sets them, is a daunting task.
But in the end, it’s not about meeting someone else’s standards; it’s about loving yourself exactly where you’re at. That’s not to the detriment of personal betterment either. No one knows you better than you, so you work towards the goals that you want to achieve.
The metaphor SAM gives of her love of the theremin is perfect. The sound created with the theremin is incorporeal, just like she is, and yet, they both make their own music. SAM answers the question correctly at the end—how does the music make you feel? It’s not irrelevant. It has its own meaning for her, whether it does for her makers or not. Learning to feel that meaning helps build a bridge between SAM’s organic peers and her photonic culture; they find common ground.
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The Kids are Away, The Adults Can Play
While SAM is doing some photonic soul searching, the faculty are taking Chancellor Kelrec out on a practice date with a soup ritual that involves megaphones, secrets, musical performances, and a blobfish that doubles as a whoopee cushion. Sounds weird, but it’s just par for the course in “Series Acclimation Mil.”
There’s some great humor here, but it also gives opportunity for us as viewers to get some character development and growth with our adult characters. Each of our players here is wonderful in their own right, but per usual, it’s Tig Notaro’s Jett Reno who solicits the most laughs from me. Tig’s deadpan delivery is absolutely perfect. “Fortunately, I’m hilarious,” says Jett. Indeed, you are, my friend.
But even among all this humor, we cut deep to an underlying theme. Chancellor Ake says, “If you make a judgment without context, then you’ll have a hell of a time getting people to trust you,” in response to Chancellor Kelrec’s distrust of her. That’s a good word. Do we have the full context? Did we ask the right questions? Or are we just assuming things and putting up walls where we may not need them? As the old adage says, “When you assume…”, well, you know the rest.
Read our review of Starfleet Academy episode 3!
Thank You, Avery
Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Season 1 Episode 5 “Series Acclimation Mil” pays homage that is long overdue to Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, in particular, Captain Sisko, as portrayed by Avery Brooks. While the crux of the story circles around SAM processing her role as an emissary for her people, it also gives meta-acknowledgement of the importance of Avery Brooks as Captain Sisko.
Avery Brooks brought Captain Sisko to life in a time of television history where the majority of black men on TV were portrayed as gang members, drug dealers, and criminals. In contrast, Sisko is a commander of a space station. He is a widowed single father to a young black man, but even more than that, he is kind, gentle, present, and caring towards his son. Sisko leads his crew with distinction, tenacity, and wisdom.
He bears the mantle of leadership both in Starfleet and as the emissary of Bajor with dignity. Plus, with Avery’s deep, sexy voice and sharp good looks, Captain Sisko is the full package. This unbelievably positive portrayal of a black man in 90s television media was practically unheard of in its time, and is still not seen nearly as often as it should be today. His performance and presence are nothing less than monumental.
You Can’t Destroy an Idea
However, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine has hardly been given its proper due in modern Trek. Except for the field trip to Deep Space Nine in Star Trek: Lower Decks Season 3 Episode 6 “Hear All, Trust Nothing,” the series is largely a footnote to modern Trek. Further, Yvette Blackmon Tom of the SyFy Sistas podcast pointed out in their Picard recap that Picard used Deep Space Nine stories, characters, and concepts as a backdrop, and literally put the heads of DS9 characters on spikes.
That’s pretty damning, and she’s right. “Series Acclimation Mil” feels like Tawny and Kirsten correcting this travesty. From the triumphant return of Cirroc Lofton as Jake Sisko, to this heart-warming epilogue to Benjamin Sisko’s story, this feels like the perfect way to cement the Siskos in Star Trek canon.
Raise your hand if you got teary-eyed at the end with the closing monologue. I sure did. It is as much an homage to Benjamin Sisko as it is to Avery Brooks, and frankly, it’s long overdue. I’m so grateful that this absurd omission has now been corrected.
I can’t say it better than the closing acknowledgement of the episode: Thank you, Avery.
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Final Thoughts
Finally, Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Season 1 Episode 5 “Series Acclimation Mil” has proven to be my favorite episode thus far this season. With the love letter to Deep Space Nine, and the long overdue justice given to Benjamin Sisko, and really, Avery Brooks, this one really hit me in the feels.
There are a few things I’d like to note that I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention. The first is Professor Isla DAX? Played by Tawny Newsome, aka Beckett Mariner from Star Trek: Lower Decks, who also happens to be a massive DS9 fan?! Oh, heck yeah, I’m making myself a Dax descendant if I’m her. Second, I am a white girl of very European pale/blonde origin, but when I heard hologram Jake Sisko say, “Hey, sis,” to SAM, I shouted and teared up.
It is so heart-warming to hear black cultural slang spoken between two black individuals in a science fiction show set 1000 years in the future. That is something that wouldn’t have flown in Deep Space Nine’s day, and though it is not my culture or heritage, I felt myself cheering along with those who would find deep affirmation in that simple, two-word sentence.
A Mentor for the Ages
Finally, SAM’s ultimate choice to stay at the Academy, despite the wishes of her makers, shows that she truly understands what it means to be an emissary. It’s not just acquiring knowledge. It’s learning the culture. As Dax says to her, “He [Sisko] loved people who got into trouble for the right reasons.” As the late, great Representative John Lewis called it, “good trouble.”
SAM’s final words in her “prayer” to Benjamin Sisko, acknowledging that even though she’s 800 years after his time, his life, his courage, and fortitude inspire her to be exactly who she’s supposed to be. She says, “I can live with that,” which are all but Sisko’s words in his closing monologue in Deep Space Nine’s “In the Pale Moonlight.” The difference here? No “Computer—erase personal log.”
What do you think of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy Aeason 1 Episode 5 “Series Acclimation Mil”? Leave me a comment and let’s talk Trek.
The next episode of Star Trek: Starfleet Academy will air on February 12, 2026, on Paramount+.
