A fissure to an alternate universe expels debris that crashes on a planet with a pre-warp society. Mariner, Tendi, and T'Lyn are sent on a mission to contain any cultural contamination... but they also must contend with a time dilation effect that makes a week pass on the planet as only one second passes on the orbiting ship. When a transporter, uh, accident delays their retrieval, the three must set up more permanently on the planet. Mariner wants to seize the opportunity to improve herself, while Tendi tries to bolster her credentials to become chief science officer aboard the Cerritos -- with help from an unexpected source.
This episode really had it all. Star Trek doesn't really have a more classic formula than going undercover in a more primitive alien society, and seeing a Lower Decks take on that is just rife with comic potential. Combining that with the concept of time dilation is fun too -- but doing that so Mariner could chase an "Inner Light"-style moment of self-revelation (and have her explicitly label it as such) was just next level hilarious. The reference comedy did nothing to undermine that previous all-time great Star Trek episode... and even paid off in a semi-serious way as Mariner actually did learn a lesson hidden in plain sight.
Great as that was, though, the episode will ultimately be remembered as the one featuring Brent Spiner voicing Purple Data's Head. It would have been enough just to have Lower Decks log another cameo appearance from yet another legacy Star Trek actor. (It's had so many great ones!) But Spiner really gets a meaty role! Not only does he recapture the comic naivete of early Next Gen Data in his vocal performance, he's actually central to the other big character story at play in the episode: Tendi's jealousy of (and competition with) T'Lyn. Data's impartial (and famously emotionless) perspective on the situation is exactly what Tendi needs to hear -- even if, of course, she can't hear it at first. But everything ends happily with a sweet moral about friendship and communication.
Yup -- I really couldn't ask for more. I'd call this another grade A episode in a season that's served up a few already. I still wish Lower Decks wasn't going out... but at least it's going out on top.
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