With Star Trek on the precipice of a new chapter, as the Kurtzman era apparently comes to an end, you’d think the Paramount flagship franchise would be looking only to the future. But the next Star Trek show – Starfleet Academy – has already proved itself heavily invested in honoring the past. Not only does Robert Picardo’s Doctor return, but there are tributes throughout it to classic characters like Wesley Crusher and Admiral (yes, Admiral) Harry Kim.
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Now, another new clip – released ahead of the show’s double-episode release on January 15 – has confirmed another deep-cut callback that honors an all-too-overlooked character from The Next Generation (and Voyager) who earned the deepest respect of Captain Picard: Mr Boothby. And it’s the kind of reference that absolutely helps set Starfleet Academy on the right path as it begins its (at least) 2-year mission.
How Starfleet Academy Honors TNG’s Mr Boothby (And Why)
In the recently released Starfleet Academy clip, Gina Yashere’s ferocious teacher/drill master Commander Lura Thok prepares to put her young charges through some physical combat training, reveling in trying to frighten them. Despite being a Klingon/Jem’Hadar hybrid, Lura Thok plays the role of militaristic comedy relief for the most part, and it’s a good insight into the character. But more importantly, as the scene pulls away from the students, we see that the lesson takes place in Boothby Memorial Park, a brilliant reference to one of Star Trek’s most quietly important characters. Here’s the clip:
Introduced in The Next Generation Season 4 episode “Final Mission,” Boothby is first mentioned when an injured Captain Jean-Luc Picard tells Wesley Crusher to seek out Boothby, whom he called “one of the wisest men [he] ever knew,” confirming Boothby is the Starfleet groundskeeper. Obviously, it says everything about Picard that he would measure Boothby’s value to him by wisdom and not rank or power, and that all of those years later, he still held the man in such high esteem. So too do the creatives behind Starfleet Academy, clearly – and rightfully so.
Boothby was only ever mentioned and appeared fleetingly in The Next Generation, but his importance can’t be overstated, given his role in shaping the young Picard. The long-overlooked mentor was played by Ray Walston, who died in January 2001, a little over 25 years ago. After The Next Generation, Boothby returned (sort of) in Voyager twice, touching the early lives of both Chakotay (as his boxing coach) and Janeway, and then also appearing in the form of an alien duplicate, and later, as a hologram. More recently, he also appeared in the background of Lower Decks, but none of his appearances after The Next Generation fully honored him, and Starfleet Academy’s tribute is both fitting and timely.
Starfleet Academy is released on Thursday Jan 15 on Paramount+. You can read my 3.5 star review of it here. What do you think? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
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