An Embarrassment Of Dooplers (episode)
Mariner and Boimler try to track down the location of a legendary Starfleet party while the bridge crew deals with an insecure alien diplomat.

Summary

Act One 
"Captain's log, Stardate 58053.9. The Cerritos is escorting a Doopler emissary to Starbase 25 for trade negotiations. Dooplers are a species which involuntarily duplicate as an emotional defense mechanism. We've been walking on eggshells the entire trip."

Captain Carol Freeman and her senior officers, with uneasy smiles on their faces, are having a nice dinner with the Doopler emissary in the conference room. He thanks Freeman for her hospitality, and her efforts to prevent him from duplicating. As he says this, he accidentally drops his fork, and is seemingly embarrassed, but before anything can happen Commander Jack Ransom throws his own fork over his shoulder to the floor, and everyone laughs off the incident. The emissary excuses himself to prepare for their arrival at the station, and the senior officers breathe a sigh of relief, Ransom noting the extreme stress of the task at hand for the past week. However, as they'll be in time for the Command Conference at Starbase 25, and the legendary after-party, Freeman believe that the efforts will be worth the trip. She'll be the only  captain present, due to the previous battle with the Pakleds.

In the cargo bays, Ensigns Beckett Mariner and Brad Boimler are stacking crates, and unhappy about the fact that they won't get a chance to attend the party. Boimler begins to reminisce about his time on the , and Mariner notes how if he were still there, he'd likely be guaranteed an invite to the party. Boimler begrudgingly notes how his transporter duplicate, William Boimler, is probably going to be there, which gives Mariner an idea. As the Titan is preoccupied with Pakleds on the other side of the system, Boimler could go in his duplicate's place with Mariner as his guest, and no one would know the difference.

In the lounge, Ensigns D'Vana Tendi and Sam Rutherford are building a working kit model of the Cerritos, and note the small details included in the model. Rutherford notes how much work they got done before he lost his memory but starts to get confused when he finds what appear to be instructions that were etched into the parts of the model by himself prior to his memory loss. He doesn't know what they mean but is confident that they can still finish the model.

The Cerritos arrives to Starbase 25 and is greeted by Captain John Anderson, who asks how their trip was. Freeman notes how exhausting it was to accommodate the Doopler emissary, but as she talks about the strenuous nature of the trip, the Doopler emissary walks onto the bridge, and overhears her talking about his "fragile" emotions. Freeman tries to recover, but the emissary believes he was a bad guest and as he begins to panic, he starts to spontaneously duplicate. Unable to stop him from "dooplercating", Anderson denies her permission to dock at the station, unwilling to risk the station getting overrun with Dooplers. 

At their bunks, Boimler asks Mariner if they should be in their skants for the party, but Mariner declines, saying no one wears them anymore. They then get a ship-wide message from the bridge that the Dooplers are duplicating, and that if they see them, to just smile and look away, before the Dooplers realize she's telling the whole ship about what's going on, further exacerbating the problem. Realizing the chaos is a perfect distraction, Mariner and Boimler sneak off the Cerritos to attend the party.

Mariner and Boimler beam over to Starbase 25, and Mariner notes how the location of the party is usually kept secret, but since she used to live on the station, she knows her way around. As she leads Boimler through the station, a mysterious Tellarite notices her onboard, and contacts someone that "Becky" is back.

Act Two 
Boimler and Mariner enter a shop and are immediately confronted by a Mizarian named Malvus, who holds them at gunpoint. Malvus is angered that Mariner had stranded him on Ceti Alpha IV, but Mariner denies that she strands anyone, causing Boimler to note a couple instances that she stranded him on Rubicun III and Axilus. As Malvus and Boimler relate on how hard it is to work with Mariner, she interjects and asks Malvus for help, as she believes he knows where the party is. Malvus agrees to provide them with the location if they assist him in moving a few crates of merchandise, consisting of bubble bath mix in bottles shaped like Lieutenant Commander Data. Boimler wonders if one bottle he examines with a smirking Data isn't actually a Lore bottle, but Malvus simply agrees that a couple of them may be Lores.

Back in the lounge, Rutherford and Tendi are still struggling with the finishing the model of the Cerritos and are a bit baffled that it's taking them so long to finish, unsure what they're doing wrong. Rutherford's instructions that he wrote in the past are also further confusing him. As they try and figure it out, Shaxs enters the lounge with a large mass of the Doopler emissary (who is still dooplercating) and orders all the officers to clear the room, saying the room is needed for emergency Doopler holding. As the emissary continues to multiply, Rutherford and Tendi rush out of the lounge to look for a quieter place to finish the model, which further embarrasses the emissary.

On the bridge, Freeman is trying her best to calm the emissary down, saying that he doesn't need to feel embarrassed, but this makes the emissary believe more that there is a reason to feel embarrassed. Freeman realizes that whatever she says doesn't help calm him down, and decides not to say anything more, leading the emissary to believe she's giving them the silent treatment, once again intensifying the situation.

In the turbolift, Rutherford is starting to get frustrated with the model, since the model's power is wired wrong, and Tendi suggests that perhaps they should put it away for the time being. Rutherford declines, intent on finishing it, but the turbolift opens up into a corridor that is full of the rapidly duplicating Dooplers. Realizing that they're in their way, the Dooplers continue multiply at a rapid pace.

On Starbase 25, Mariner and Boimler are driving the merchandise to storage. Mariner is frustrated with Boimler that he told Malvus that she abandoned him on accident, noting that the incident was private between the two of them, when suddenly they're pulled over by the station's security. Mariner contacts Malvus, who reveals that he set them up, and that there are stolen Klingon disruptors hidden beneath the bubble bath. Boimler suggests telling the officers the truth, but Mariner knows that the security teams on the station are corrupt, and that they will coerce a confession out of them regardless of the circumstances. However, Mariner also knows that they are not very good drivers, and speeds away, driving through a casino, barbershop, and a clothing shop. Mariner drives through the promenade, avoiding civilians and shop stands, while Boimler screams in terror. Mariner eventually makes a maneuver to suddenly reverse, causing one of the security karts to crash. Mariner drives up a flight of stairs, and crashes into a hangar, with one kart still in pursuit.

Back on the Cerritos, Tendi and Rutherford have been cornered in the repair bay by the Dooplers, and climb the shuttlecraft, Sequoia to escape the large mass. As they climb up, the Dooplers start to push the shuttlecraft towards the ceiling, and Rutherford notes a maintenance hatch that they can escape through, Tendi reminds him that it was sealed off months ago, and Rutherford replies that he didn't remember it was. He starts to show frustration that he doesn't feel himself since he's so behind in his friendship with Tendi and can't even remember what his notes mean with the model, saying it feels like he's competing with his own ghost.

On the station, Boimler and Mariner crash into an aviary and manage to elude the security karts still chasing them. However, after the last one crashes, Mariner nearly hits an old groundskeeper, but swerving, hits a rock instead, causing them to crash into a lake.

Act Three 
Mariner and Boimler wade out of the lake, which is now full of bubble bath mix, and the upset Boimler says that they will likely be getting arrested, but Mariner contacts Malvus and demands he tell them where the party is, threatening to expose that the disruptors belong to him. He is confused by this, as Mariner would be arrested with him, but Mariner points out that they'd be put in the same cell together. Intimidated by this, Malvus finally reveals that the party is in Ballroom Alpha; Mariner notes with annoyance that every big party is held there, and that it's not even a secret.

Mariner and Boimler make their way to the party, and an insectoid bouncer asks for their name. Boimler poses as his duplicate aboard the Titan, and the bouncer lets him in, but prevents Mariner from joining him, noting that as she serves on a  starship, she's not allowed in. Mariner is frustrated that she isn't allowed in, but relents, saying she will find ways to occupy herself. Boimler is unsure about going in without her, and she tells him to just go in without her, bringing up how he basically did the same thing when he transferred to the Titan. Realizing that Mariner is still upset that he accepted his promotion, they get into an argument as Boimler didn't know she was still angry with him. Mariner replies that she's been waiting for him to apologize to her for weeks. Boimler angrily says that he earned his promotion, and leaves, angry that Mariner is making it about herself. The bouncer approaches Mariner and attempts to show some sympathy but is just brushed off by Mariner.

Boimler enters the ballroom and is astounded by the sight. All around him, famous Starfleet captains, such as Captain Shelby and Captain Exley are socializing, but Boimler quickly realizes that as incredible as the party is, it just isn't fun without Mariner.

Back on the Cerritos, Rutherford believes he's just going to have to get used to the fact that he was a better engineer before his injury, and Tendi tells him that he never finished the model at all before his injury, as they always stopped at the warp core before starting over. She tells him that whenever they worked on the model, people would leave them alone, allowing them to enjoy enjoy their time together with no interruptions. This makes Rutherford realize that the notes he left on the model parts are nonsense instructions simply meant to make the build process slower, making him find confidence once again. Rutherford then gets the idea to detonate the model's warp core, as a make-shift explosive, to open the hatch above them and escape the Dooplers. As they escape, the Dooplers lament that Tendi and Rutherford don't like them. 

Meanwhile, Mariner is having a few drinks at a bar, when Boimler enters, orders a prune juice spritz and sits next to her. Mariner is confused why he's there, and Boimler admits that while the party was everything, he thought it would be, without Mariner there to make fun of famous admirals, it wasn't as good. Boimler then apologizes to her for transferring to the Titan without saying goodbye, and that he was concerned that Mariner would have tried to talk him out of it. Mariner and he begin to reconcile, and as they enjoy their time together, Mariner thanks him for leaving the party to hang out with her instead and apologizes that she ruined the party for him. Boimler tries to write it off that the party isn't as special as they make it out to be, but both know that to be wrong.

On the bridge of the Cerritos, the Dooplers continue to multiply, much to the frustration of Freeman. Losing her patience, Freeman angrily berates the Dooplers, saying that they are too easily upset. As she angrily says this, one pair of Dooplers get angry, and recombine. Realizing that embarrassment is what makes the Dooplers lose control of their multiplying, and getting angry gives the control back, Freeman orders the crew to insult and scold the Dooplers. The crew immediately go on the offensive, making the Dooplers recombine rapidly until they recombine completely on the bridge. The emissary, furious at the way he's been treated, leaves the bridge for his quarters. The bridge officers breathe a sigh of relief, and Freeman calls Ransom, Shaxs, and Dr. T'Ana to get ready for the party.

Back on the station, the bartender tells the downcast Mariner and Boimler to cheer up, noting that they're not the first people to try and crash the party going on. She then taps a spot on the bartop, and Mariner and Boimler are astonished to see that both James T. Kirk and Spock visited the bar as well in the past and carved their names into the counter. The bartender tells them that the two tried to crash the party in the 2260s and ended up in her bar (with Kirk doing most of the drinking). Star-struck that two legends shared the same barstools that they now sit in, Mariner and Boimler cheer up, realizing that the bar is more historic than most realize.

Freeman and her bridge officers approach the bouncer at the party and are prevented entry. She is shocked to hear that she's not on the list, and she angrily tries to get the attention of Anderson to vouch for her, but he ignores her. Ransom suggests that they should probably just leave, but Freeman stands up for her ship, noting that despite the fact that their ship is not as important in status, they are still Starfleet, and still important; they're the best at what they do, and will be entering the party.

Later, a disappointed Freeman and her bridge officers, having ultimately been denied entry, are sitting on some steps outside the bar in which Mariner and Boimler are drinking and having krada leg skewers from the nearby Mr. Krada Leg. Mariner notices them and invites them to enter "Kirk's old bar" with her and Boimler. Pleased with the invitation, Freeman accepts. At that moment, the Doopler emissary approaches Freeman and thanks her for her help in recombining him, noting that he needs to work on his confidence. As his meeting doesn't start for another hour, he asks if she knows a calm place where he could relax. With a devious look, Freeman says she does and contacts the Cerritos Transporter room 2.

Freeman has the Doopler emissary beamed directly into Ballroom Alpha, where the party is still going. Having been transported right next to Anderson, he gets offended by the sudden beam in, tells the emissary that the party is private, causing the emissary to become embarrassed, and once more starts to dooplercate, filling the entire room in a matter of moments.

Back at the bar, Tendi gives Rutherford a new model kit of Deep Space 9. Rutherford is ecstatic that it comes with both Jadzia and Ezri Dax, and they promise never to finish it. Freeman approaches Mariner and Boimler, and says that everything worked out, noting that the people she actually loves to socialize with are there, and Mariner calls it the best party in the quadrant, before coercing Boimler to say that he's her Number One. Mariner drags Boimler away in an armlock, teasing him about being her sidekick and will have to grow a beard, while the amused Freeman enjoys her drink, and notes that both Mariner and Boimler have carved their names right next to those of Kirk and Spock on the counter.

On the outside, constant, multiple flashes of dooplercation light can be seen coming from what is presumably Ballroom Alpha on the starbase.

Log entries 
 Captain's log, USS Cerritos, 2381

Memorable quotes 
"After a long day of working on the ship, nothing relaxes me like building a smaller version of the ship."
 - Tendi

"Your boyfriend has it right."
"Ugh!"
"Not my boyfriend."
 - Malvus, Boimler and Mariner

"There's no need to feel embarrassed."
"Thank you, you're very kind. Wait! That's what someone says when there is a reason to be embarrassed!"
"Okay, I'm just not gonna say anything. We can just be silent."
"… She's giving us the silent treatment! THAT'S EVEN WORSE!"
 - Freeman and the Doopler emissary

"Okay, I'm sorry I left you on Ceti Alpha. I really thought there was life there."
 - Mariner

"I'll send you the location, but you still owe me."
"I owe a foot up your ass!"
 - Malvus and Mariner

"Your pagh is weak, and it disgusts me!"
"I don't even know what that is, but I don't like your tone!"
 - Shaxs and the Doopler emissary

"Okona is in there?!"
"He's the DJ."
"What? He's not even Starfleet! This is outrageous!"
 - Freeman and the Bouncer

"Our ship might not be the biggest, and we might do the missions nobody else wants, but we are still Starfleet. My crew deals with just as much  as Picard's or any other. We might be California-class, but we are the best at what we do. I'm Captain Carol Freeman, this is my crew, and you are letting us into that party!"
 - Freeman to the Bouncer

"Boimler's my number one, now he has to grow a beard!"
- Mariner

Background information

Title
 The title was announced on StarTrek.com via their ongoing LD Season 2 photogallery on .

Continuity

 This is the second episode of the series to not include a teaser before the opening titles, after Season 1's .
 In the barbershop Mariner and Boimler drive through, three Bolian barbers are seen. This continues the tradition of Bolian barbers, after V'Sal and Mot on  (the joke, of course, being that Bolians are generally bald).
 This episode reveals that Starbase 25 has a  franchise making it the third establishment to appear after the one on Qualor II in  and the one on Freecloud in .
 The bouncer who wouldn't let Freeman and her bridge officers into the party, along with a bartender and server seen working inside the party are the same species as Em/3/Green from .
 This episode featured the return of two "legacy" characters from , who had non-speaking, in-person appearances: Shelby from , and Thadiun Okona from . 
 Thadiun Okona is seen holding a piece of hardware nearly identical to the damaged guidance system he brought aboard the  during his original appearance.
 Shelby's alien first officer resembles the  of the Kelpiens.
 "Kirk's old bar" had numerous images or portraits of various characters, including those of Arex and M'Ress, appearing on the wall, with many images replicating or resembling frames taken from the episodes in which they originally appeared. 

 Also present in "Kirk's old bar" were a jukebox and a model of Zefram Cochrane's Phoenix from  and , as well as models of the doomsday machine from  and the Guardian of Forever from .

Links and references

Starring
 Tawny Newsome as Beckett Mariner
 Jack Quaid as Bradward Boimler
 Noël Wells as
 D'Vana Tendi
 Tellarite
 Eugene Cordero as Sam Rutherford
 Dawnn Lewis as Carol Freeman
 Jerry O'Connell as Jack Ransom
 Fred Tatasciore as
 Shaxs
 Bouncer
 Klingon
 Gillian Vigman as
 T'Ana
 Aurelian female
 Model ship's computer

Guest cast
 Tom Kenny as
 John Anderson
 Malvus
 Richard Kind as Doopler emissary(s)
 Jenifer Lewis as alien bartender
 Paul Scheer as
 
 Groundskeeper
 Starfleet Captain

Characters with unidentified voices
 Antedian bystander
 Vulcan male on starship

Background characters
USS Cerritos
 Barnes
 
 Migleemo
 Alien ops ens
 Human cmd lt cmdr
 Human ops ens
 Kzinti cmd officer

Starbase 25
 Abaddon 
 Apollo 
 Arex 
 Ruth Bonaventure 
 Data 
 Duur 
 Amelia Earhart 
 Exley
 Galt 
 James T. Kirk 
 Magda Kovacs 
 Lokai 
 Lore 
 Maab 
 Eve McHuron 
 M'Ress 
 Thadiun Okona
 Ruk 
 Shahna 
 Shelby
 Spock 
 Tamoon 
 Andorians
 Antedians
 Apergosians
 Aquamarine-skinned alien
 Arcadians
 Aurelian males
 Bajorans
 Benzite
 Bolians
 Bzzit Khaht 
 Em/3/Green's species' bartender
 Em/3/Green's species' server
 Evora
 Ferengi
 Gorn
 Mother Horta 
 Humans
 Klingon in barbershop
 Klingons in casino
 Klingons on promenade
 Lurians
  
 Purple-skinned alien
 Starfleet afterparty attendees
 Exley's number one
 Shelby's number one
 Admiral
 Captain
 Station security officers
 Talosian observers 
 Taurus II anthropoids 
 Taxors
 Vulcan female on starship
 Vulcans on Starbase

References
2260-something; 2378; admiral; aeroshuttle; afterparty; Andorian; Andorian battle cruiser (unnamed); Andorian starship; Antedian; Apergosian; Arcadian; Aurelian; avian; aviary; Axilus; Bajoran; Ballroom Alpha; bar; barbershop; bartender; Battle of Kalla; Benzite; black market; blond;  (aka "Clone Boimler"); Bolian; bouncer; bubble bath; ; capital ship; captain; captain's party; cargo; casino; cell; Centauri IV; ; Ceti Alpha IV (aka ); Ceti Alpha V; Coalition of Madena species; combadge; Command Conference; commander; crew; criminal; dabo;  (unnamed 1 and 2); date; ; ; Deep Space 9; defense mechanism; deflector shields; Delta Quadrant; DJ; doctor; Doopler; dooplercating; drinking; dying; Em/3/Green's species; emissary; ensign; ; eyepatch; face; Ferengi; field distortion amplifier 88; fish people; friend; ; ghost; gods; Gorn; groundskeeper; guest; harmonic dampeners; history; ice cream cone; jerk; jukebox; kart; "Kirk's old bar"; Klingon; Klingon disruptor; Kzinti; lieutenant; lieutenant commander; life; light cruiser; limited edition; list; ; ; Lurian; madam; maintenance hatch; Malvus' Goods; manifold; Maquis raider (unnamed); ; Migleemo's species; Mizarian; model; Mr. Krada Leg; name; number one; number two; pagh; Pakleds; pal;  (unnamed 1 and 2); party; pee; penal colony; people; Personal Access Display Device; phase inverter; ; pointy-eared; prune juice spritz; ; ; reecon converter; replication; Rubicun III; sales pitch; Sequoia; shield emitters; ; silent treatment; skant; Slattery; sliders; Soong-type android; Starbase 25; ; stardate; Starfleet; Starfleet insignia; Starfleet uniform (2350s-2370s); Starfleet uniform (2370s-early 2380s); Starfleet uniform (early 2380s); station security; Taxor; Tellarite; temporal anomaly; Thai iced tea; three-dimensional chess; three-eyed cephalopod; ; tone; toy; transporter clone; tribble; Trill; tulox shifter; Verma; ; Vulcan; Vulcan starship; waiter; wall-mounted fish; water; weapon; wheelchair; worship

Bar gallery references 
Abaddon's species; abductor aliens; Apollo's temple; Bajoran lightship; Balok's puppet; Bzzit Khaht; Caitian; Capellan; Cheron native; ; Edosian; Ekos; ; Greek god; Guardian of Forever; Horta; ; Mudd's women; Phoenix; planet killer; Pollux IV; salt vampire; spacesuit; Talosian; Taurus II anthropoid; Trelane's house; visor; ;

Meta references
bleep

External links
 
 
 

de:Die Doopler-Verwirrung