Starfleet Academy’s “The Life of the Stars” in Review
In this episode, one character returns to campus after receiving medical treatment, one character has to return home for treatment, and another has to face a difficult truth and make a major decision. Which character is most transformed by the circumstances in this episode?
Log Entry
The Doctor records a personal log entry in which he muses about how time affects organic beings differently from non-organic beings like himself. Tarima Sadal returns to campus after weeks of treatment on Betazed following the events aboard the USS Miyazaki. She has been fitted with a new evolved neuro-inhibitor to control her intense telepathic abilities. She is not returning to the War College but transferring to Starfleet Academy, as The Doctor believes she would not survive another episode.
Jett Reno is captaining the other cadets on the USS Athena’s bridge while they appear to fly the ship through an asteroid field. It’s not going well and she tells the cadets they need to work together. When this doesn’t happen, it turns out the cadets have been doing a simulation, which they have failed.
In a classroom, SAM mentions that Tarima has been assigned to cohabit with herself and Genesis Lythe. Caleb realises Tarima is now at Starfleet Academy but she doesn’t seem interested in talking to him. The cadets are introduced to a new instructor, Sylvia Tilly, who previously served on the USS Discovery with Jett Reno. Tilly begins to teach theatre to the class in her own unique way.
SAM is still glitching after her ordeal on the Miyazaki. However, she’s hiding this from everyone, including Tarima.
Tilly reports to Ake and Reno, catching up with Reno, and the three of them share a drink. Ake is concerned that it’s too much, too soon for the cadets. She tells Tilly to supervise them.
Caleb tries to engage Tarima in conversation. However, she refuses to speak to him.
In Tilly’s class, Jay-Den Kraag talks about Klingon opera. As Jay-Den has a cold, Tilly excuses him from her class. SAM suggests a 20th century play called Our Town. Tilly likes the idea and casts Caleb and Genesis as mother and child. While discussing the play, SAM collapses, so Tilly calls for The Doctor.
SAM wakes up in sickbay. Her program has been failing ever since the events on the Miyazaki, weeks ago. Since The Doctor is unsure how to fix her, SAM asks to return to her homeworld, Kasq, to find help to fix her program. Ake arranges for herself and The Doctor to take SAM there.
Based on SAM’s rapid departure, Genesis and Tarima deduce her situation must be an emergency. Tarima asks Genesis to swap parts in the play but Genesis refuses, leaving Tarima with the role SAM was due to play. When the cadets and Tilly go through the play again, Tarima has to be prompted to read her part.
Ake, SAM and The Doctor are meanwhile aboard a shuttle to Kasq. SAM explains Kasq’s history and, when The Doctor asks how the Kasqians would perceive him, she assures him he would make a very good mentor. She experiences another overload and he advises her to rest.
Having received a strange message from Tarima, Caleb meets with her. She intoxicatedly tells Caleb about her new inhibitor. When she tries to instigate intimacy, Caleb refuses due because she’s drunk. Tarima goes to her room, where Genesis gives her a bed to sleep off her drunkenness.
On Kasq, the Kasqians, who have heard of The Doctor, propose resetting SAM’s program. SAM goes ahead with the operation.
Back at the Academy, Tilly takes another class on the play. Tarima is distracted. Tilly notices this and challenges her. An upset Tarima tells Tilly she feels like a ghost but Tilly assures her she’s not.
SAM is terminated by her noncorporeal makers. While her classmates remember her and read the play, The Doctor admits the reason he kept SAM at arm’s length is that she reminds him of a daughter he lost when he had a holographic family on Voyager. The Kasqians decide to rebuild her program, now with childhood memories, and The Doctor agrees to parent and mentor SAM.
The cadets finish reading the play. Ake thanks Tilly for her work with the cadets. When SAM returns, they welcome her back. SAM hugs all her classmates, including Tarima.
Status Report
A highlight of this episode is the reintroduction of Sylvia Tilly from Star Trek: Discovery. Her appearance here will likely make more sense to anyone who’s watched Discovery. Both the character overall and the fact she has found what she wants to do in her life are lovable. The way she’s able to connect with the cadets to help them and yet still enforce her authority, like she does when she confronts Tarima, are likewise admirable. Her teaching style comes across very well in the performance of Mary Wiseman as Tilly.
Harking back to the Voyager episode “Real Life” provides an emotionally resonant and believable basis to finally establish why The Doctor has been ignoring SAM since the beginning of the series. It’s heartbreaking and humanises his character but cleverly motivates him to help her. How much loss has The Doctor experienced over the centuries of his existence? His fear of getting hurt again if he loses SAM makes him a more sympathetic character. It’s not that he particularly wants to be the parent and mentor SAM needs but that he needs to be that mentor and parent. By doing so, The Doctor finds meaning in his existence. It’s a classic plot point, giving characters what they need rather than what they want. Robert Picardo delivers on this with his excellent performance, giving a masterclass in evoking emotion. Hopefully we will see more of The Doctor and his evolving relationship with SAM as the show continues.
