A Porg parent scares his son with some frightening truths, and a team of Kaean colonists investigate the suitability of a recently unoccupied planet. This story poses the question: "Why, with so many opportunities for intelligent life in even a single galaxy, are there so few space-faring species?" And it posits an answer.

Filter Dregs is an exploration of the concept of the Great Filter, which is the obstacle that limits the number of enduring, space-colonizing civilizations. It was written by Eric Carter and Jason Bane, and drawn and painted entirely by Anthony Cournoyer.