Vitus Reflux
Daram and Genesis battle each other to be the best and address their parental issues. Meanwhile, Caleb learns more about being a team and takes time to talk to Tarima about her decision to join the War College. And the cadets try out for the Calica team.
Warning: Spoilers below
Up Before the Sun
The episode starts with Daram getting up before his roommates for his workout routine. It looks like he’s completed all his exercises in his room without waking up his roommates until Caleb wakes up and gives him the finger. Daram heads out for a more strenuous workout when he runs into Genesis. She’s been up longer than him and has already completed a workout. While all this is going on, Daram is sending a personal message to his parents and it’s clear there are issues between what they expect and what he’s able to deliver.
John Medland/Paramount+
The cadets head to calisthenics class where they share time with the War College cadets. Commander Throk is using her half-Klingon, half Jem’Hadar methods to encourage the cadets. Genesis and Daram are two of the best, but Caleb shines against the War College’s best in rope climbing. This upsets some War College cadets who throw a ball at Caleb’s head. The cadets get into an argument before the instructors diffuse it. From there, Throk encourages her cadets to join the Starfleet Calica team.
Prank War Begins
The Starfleet cadets are showering after PT class when they are suddenly transported to different parts of the Academy. It’s an embarrassing situation that leaves many of them in precarious positions. The War College cadets announce they conducted the prank and will continue to do what they want, when they want.
John Medland/Paramount+
The Starfleet cadets head to the Chancellor’s office where to discuss the issue. They want to hit back and point out the prank was original and had been taken from a previous Starfleet class from before “The Burn.” Chancellor Ake points out they know a weakness of their opponents, so they need to be patient and encourages them to focus on a botany project. This comes after she and Throk watched the new Starfleet promotional video which looked a lot like the Starship Troopers promotional videos (Would you like to know more?)
Calica Tryouts
Many of the Starfleet Academy cadets, including Caleb, Daram, Genesis, and Sam try out for Calica. All four make the team along with another cadet named Okam who becomes the mascot, the last line of defense in the game (don’t ask me why the mascot is playing, but the rules still make far more sense than Quidditch in Harry Potter). Daram and Genesis have a head-to-head run to see who is captain. Daram uses Genesis’ parental issues against her and wins the captaincy.
John Medland/Paramount+
He’s carried out on the shoulders of some of his friends until a new video plays in the Academy quad. The video shows some of the worst moments from Calica tryouts in the same vein as the odd Starfleet promotional video seen earlier. It’s clear the War College has struck again, so Daram challenges the War College Calica team to a game in the Atrium that night. How will this affect the prank war?
Calica Game
The cadets face off in the Calica game and it’s clear Starfleet is in over its head. The team has never played together before this game. Damar is not doing a good job leading his team. His strategy keeps failing and he refuses to change it. Genesis is mad at him but shows up to help her team. She keeps encouraging him to change his strategy but he keeps fighting her. The game is the first team to four, and the War College quickly jumps up 3-0 on the Starfleet team. This leads to Damar lashing out and getting disqualified for a round. Genesis comes up with a new plan that works and Starfleet scores to avoid the sweep. That’s when they are caught by instructors Throk and Reno.
John Medland/Paramount+
The Calica team is punished with 30 hours of menial labor. Chancellor Ake encourages them to be patient and focus on their botany project. That’s when the team realizes they can use these plants to their advantage. Meanwhile, Damar talks to Reno about his device to message his parents as he hasn’t received a message from them. Reno tells him about the importance of not focusing on a message from someone who isn’t there for him and instead focus on someone who is there for him, like his classmate who showed up for Calica despite being mad about him using her issues against her.
Damar also realizes that Throk and Reno are in a relationship and Reno demonstrates how she shows up for Throk, like “leaving a starship on the edge of creation to join the Academy. It gives Damar a lot to consider.
Prank War Ends
Chancellor Ake has been dropping hints this entire episode about what the Starfleet Academy cadets could do to not only hit back at the War College but end the prank war. They realize the botany project they’ve been working on can cause massive issues if planted in the War College dorms. They use cloning technology to get Admiral Krennic, the War College Chancellor’s, eye for retinal scan. The team then sneaks into the War College dorms to plant their prank. Tarima notices Caleb and they discuss her decision to join the War College. She shares her feelings with him and then sets off the alarms. Fortunately, Damar was still around and helped Caleb escape, showing how the pair make a good team despite their inability to get along.
John Medland/Paramount+
The next morning, the plant starts screaming and chases the War College cadets from their dorm rooms. The War College cadets announce plans to retaliate, but Krennic steps in and tells them the plant is a protected species and therefore can’t be touched. Starfleet has won and the War College yields. Krennic says they learned from the best, and Caleb deduces the iconic prank the War College copied was carried out by Ake. She teaches him the importance of using patience and empathy and that not every opponent will be an enemy. Valuable lessons for the cadets.
What’s Next?
This episode felt more like a teen drama than either of the first two. While the first two episodes focused on character development while building to a larger story, this episode was strictly character development. Still, it’s a sports episode, but it delivered what it needed. Given how much of the series will be in one place rather than exploring the galaxy, there will need to be a lot of stronger character development. I’m good with a few of these episodes, but I like Star Trek better when the character development lends to a stronger story arc for the entire show and not just the characters. It also managed to avoid the Discovery trap of characters having to pause for exposition at the most critical times. It’s a vast improvement in story writing over Discovery.
Check out Star Trek: Starfleet Academy streaming exclusively on Paramount Plus.
Article Written By: Jeremy Brown for Stelmach Brown Media 2026
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