WHY WE LIKE IT: All the whale stuff.
WHY WE DON'T: Are we sure the title matches the episode?
REVIEW: "Observer's Paradox" plays like an episode of Lower Decks, and even references the USS Cerritos as "another" dysfunctional crew. It's definitely a comedy episode - focusing on Murf tends to do that - and rewards obsessed fans who will recognize the various references to older episodes. We have amusing interrogation scenes edited like those in TNG's Coming of Age. We have a humpback whale crew member called Gillian (the name of the marine biologist in ST IV). And everything seems to hinge on a spiral map that Voyager fans will recognize as the CHAH-mooz-ee from Tattoo, a road map through the stars... and to Chakotay's space-time location?
It's rather amusing that of all the characters aboard the Voyager-A, the Temporal Cold War Mystery Figure (who may or may not be Chakotay) decided to give the message to Murf, who has yet to be successfully translated. They try, and you at first think it'll work, but the universal translator throws up feedback and aphasic speech. Rok is still sidelined - by choice - but that's because they want a reason to bring her in. That reason is that Gwyn still stands a good chance to be erased from the timeline and she's family. So it's Rok who figures out that Murf's species evolved in water and that his speech perhaps needs that medium. It all comes down to the whale having the proper language context to understand SOMEthing, and we start to make headway (though I doubt they'll ever let Murf say more than beeps and squeals, as it's part of his cuteness). But watch out, once in the whale's (very deep!) habitat, he shows he has a mermaid form! In a way, he's the Phlox of the show, with lots of crazy biological secrets to reveal. Who's complaining.
The clues lead Gwyn to make a leap of faith and use her temporal stabilizer to... what? I thought it would be crossing over into other timelines (à la Seven, once upon a time), but she only goes to that strange liminal space where the Mysterious Figure once brought her. Find me before the others do, it says. The kids' quest starts to congeal (and no Ma'jel, it seems, as the Vulcan is quick to walk away). The adults have more dramatic moments, though I love the Doctor getting in the kids' way ("State the nature of mentorship emergency."). Janeway has to collapse the time anomaly and potentially say goodbye to Chakotay forever. Given her Voyager record, I was SURE she was going to disobey orders (the rest of the crew almost seems to do that "go to hell" thing at one point), but no. I guess she's grown.
LESSON: Know your Star Trek lore and you can go anywhere.
REWATCHABILITY - Medium-High: A fun and funny episode hinging on Murf, which I'm sure would surprise Past Siskoid, who thought maybe he was just a cutesy implant for the kiddies.
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