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| Seven of Nine, alone on Voyager... |
When Voyager enters an enormous nebula, radiation results in burns to the skin of every member of the crew. They reverse course and escape within a few minutes... But even that much exposure is enough to kill at least one person.
Only two members of the crew are unaffected: The Doctor, because he's a hologram; and Seven, who is protected by her Borg implants. The Doctor recommends putting the crew into stasis units, which will protect them as they cross the nebula, while he and Seven run the ship. With no viable options, Janeway agrees - but not before making it clear to Seven that the Doctor is in command.
It's a month-long trip, a long time for a former Borg drone to have no contact save with a hologram. After ten days, Seven becomes irritable. Then the nebula begins affecting ship's systems - Including the neural gel packs that power the ship's computer and, finally, the Doctor's mobile emitter. The Doctor has to confine himself to sick bay to protect his program, leaving Seven entirely alone.
As the ship's systems continue to deteriorate, Seven begins to find it harder and harder to function effectively. And that's when Trajis (Wade Williams), a predatory alien determined to be the first to cross the nebula, comes onto Voyager under the pretense of a friendly exchange of needed parts...
CHARACTERS
Capt. Janeway: When Chakotay expresses concerns about Seven being one of only two people in charge of the crew's welfare, Janeway insists that she trusts Seven. She acknowledges that the former Borg has displayed an "insolent attitude" and that she has disobeyed orders in the past, but says that she believes that Seven "wants to do right by us." She does make very clear to Seven that the Doctor is the one in command, however, on the basis of both his rank as Chief Medical Officer and his grounding in Starfleet protocols and procedures.
Seven of Nine: As a former member of a Collective, isolation is something Seven is simply not equipped to deal with. She reveals that when she was with the Borg, she was once cut off from contact and alone. Only for a short period, but it was enough for her to panic - and I suspect the fear of doing so again hangs over her as she comes ever closer to losing control. Jeri Ryan has been good all season, but this episode demands more of her than has been the case - And she delivers in a big way, anchoring the episode and making Seven fully sympathetic even when she's at her most irritable.
The Doctor: After his mobile emitter becomes unreliable, he continues to make himself useful. While isolated in sick bay, he makes repairs so that he can aid Seven when he's needed. He also studies the degradation of the ship's neural gel packs, which gives him insight into why Seven experiences increasing difficulty with her own duties. He continues to try to instruct her on effective interaction with the human crew, and is irritated by her lack of cooperation with that.
THOUGHTS
There have been more than a couple of occasions in which Season Four has felt like "The Seven of Nine Show." One actually is that, an episode centered entirely around Seven. Once the situation has been set up, virtually every moment is seen from her viewpoint. If Seven didn't work as a character, this episode wouldn't work at all.
Fortunately, Seven has been one of the show's consistently strongest elements since her introduction, something that continues to be the case here. Jeri Taylor's script (from a story idea by James Swallow) is tightly-paced, with new complications revealed at just the right pace to raise tension throughout. Kenneth Biller puts down his writer's pen and steps into the director's chair - and does a wonderful job behind the camera.
The episode is all about Seven's increasing feelings of isolation, and the visual element reinforces that constantly. We see Seven drinking a nutrient mix in the Mess Hall. Then the camera cuts to a wide shot of the large room, with Seven far back in frame - emphasizing how small and alone she is in this big, empty space. There are multiple shots like this, starting close on Seven and pulling back to show how alone she is in the ship's rooms, halls, and corridors. By the time she begins to break down, the sense of just how alone she is has become oppressive for us, as well.
I can't come up with any negatives here. The performances of Jeri Ryan and Robert Picardo are superb, the technical elements are brought off wonderfully in service of an extremely well-structured and well-paced script, and the tension increases steadily throughout. I'd rank this among the best episodes of the season.
Overall Rating: 9/10.
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