As someone whose attention span has been obliterated by the internet and video games, I loved Star Trek: Short Treks. The idea behind it is to explore strange and more imaginative stories within the Trek universe that might not work as episodes of an ongoing series. They all function as standalone tales, come in at about ten to twenty minutes long and feature a variety of genres and styles.
Now, the six-episode second season of Short Treks is available to watch for free on CBS.com, CBS mobile apps and on YouTube. The release comes as the show picks up an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Short Form Comedy or Drama Series, with CBS wanting to get as many eyes as possible on it in hopes of scoring that award.
All the episodes are worth watching, too, though my picks are: “The Trouble with Edward,” which brings back the classic Original Series‘ Tribbles; “The Girl Who Made the Stars,” a beautiful Pixar-like animated short about an African children’s fable and “Ephraim and Dot,” another animated feature about a tardigrade that features a ton of cool references to The Original Series, including audio of Kirk meeting Khan.
Sadly, only the second season is available, meaning that my absolute favorite Short Trek isn’t included. That’s the sublime “Calypso,” a love story between a man and a computer on an abandoned ship as they drift through the cosmos together. It’s a really nice, compact and touching tale – and looks amazing.
I really hope Star Trek: Short Treks gets a third season, as it’s great to see what writers and directors do when they’re not constrained by fitting into the season-long plot arc. Alex Kurtzman mentioned recently that they have ideas for a musical episode and a black-and-white short as well, so fingers crossed they make it to our screens.