After four years on the air and 50 episodes under its belt, "Star Trek: Lower Decks" finally signs off this week with a series finale that's as epic and exciting as anything the series has ever done. "Lower Decks" has had a rocky road to its moment of triumph; the show's adult humor and gentle ribbing of past "Trek" properties rubbed some traditionalists the wrong way before it even started, and many fans spent its first few seasons judging whether or not the show had properly proven itself as a piece of "Trek" canon.

But "Lower Decks" never wanted to be just like other "Star Trek" shows. The series is wackier than most of its predecessors, and lighter, too. In most cases, it forgoes Gene Roddenberry-style moralizing in favor of fun, bite-sized escapades, jokey commentary on the vast world of "Star Trek," and adventures that specifically benefit from its animated medium.