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| Neelix comforts Tuvok, recovering from a serious brain injury. |
Original Air Date: Nov. 3, 1999. Teleplay by: Robert Doherty. Story by: André Bormanis. Directed by: Roxann Dawson.
THE PLOT:
Tuvok and Neelix are returning to Voyager from a diplomatic mission to the Kesat, an actual friendly race. The negotiations went well, and the flight back is uneventful enough for Neelix to become bored and for Tuvok to become annoyed with him. But when Tuvok goes to the back of the shuttle, he discovers that a cloaked alien is downloading tactical data. He scans the alien - and is struck by a weapon that knocks him into a coma.
Neelix gets Tuvok back to Voyager, and the Doctor quickly stabilizes him. However, there was deep damage to the Vulcan's mental synapses. Even when he regains consciousness, his memories are scrambled and he's prone to emotional outbursts. Neelix, feeling responsible for Tuvok, takes charge of his rehabilitation, and Tuvok clings to him like a child to a parent.
Janeway contacts the Kesat to see if they have more information. Naroq (Mark Moses), an investigator, tells them about a race known as the Ba'Neth. Incidents involving the Ba'Neth are so rare that the Kesat regard them as "UFO stories," but the pattern matches what happened to Tuvok - an infiltration of a ship in that section of space, the download of data, and an attack from a weapon that scrambles mental synapses. With a fresh scene to investigate and a little help from Seven, Naroq finds conclusive proof that they exist, and he enthusiastically agrees to help Voyager track down the subject of his long-time obsession.
If Voyager is able to get information on the weapon, the Doctor may be able to restore Tuvok to normal. But as Tuvok settles into a new life, helping Neelix in the galley while enjoying "fun" in a way that he never previously allowed himself, he begins to question whether he really wants to go back to the way he was.
CHARACTERS:
Capt. Janeway: She's intently focused on the hunt for the Ba"Neth, and she wants her old friend back to being himself. Still, she pays attention to the well-being of the recovering Tuvok. When Naroq's questioning of him gets a little too intense, she stops him from pushing too hard. Still, she keeps prompting Tuvok, gently but persistently, for whatever he can remember.
Neelix: When the teaser showed him inflicting unwanted "fun" on Tuvok, I worried that Voyager was dipping back into the aggravating pattern of Neelix bullying the Vulcan with good cheer. Thankfully, this is restricted to the opening. As soon as Tuvok gets attacked, Neelix rushes to his aid. As he works with Tuvok, there's an element of the protectiveness we saw in his shielding of Naomi Wildman in Once Upon a Time. This time, he doesn't take that too far. When he tries to dissuade questioning of Tuvok, it's in a soft-spoken manner that never tips into the inappropriate. Actor Ethan Phillips is excellent throughout, and he's particularly good near the end - first when he listens to Tuvok's fears about returning to his former self, then in his tentative interaction with the restored Tuvok in the final scene.
Tuvok: The teaser and tag show his normal persona, with his usual dry reserve as he "tolerates" Neelix. In between those two scenes, he's allowed to emote in ways the role rarely allows: cowering under a table during an attack, or anxiously hovering as crew members sample the desserts he's made, or grinning while listening to jazz music. Tim Russ is very good throughout, seeming to enjoy the chance to showcase his range. There's also a slight but noticeable difference in the restored Tuvok's deliveries in his last scene versus his deliveries in the teaser. It's as if he's feeling his way through this return to his normal persona. The episode ends with him extending an olive branch to Neelix... in a low-key manner, of course.
Seven of Nine: When Naroq captures a fuzzy outline of a Ba'Neth in a recording of the attack on Tuvok, she steps in to greatly enhance the image. Naroq protests at first, afraid of losing the visual that he's gained, but then is amazed at the results she achieves and never questions her again. She also provides some support to Neelix when he becomes frustrated at the pace of Tuvok's recovery, in a well-written scene between two character who rarely get direct interaction.
THOUGHTS:
I did not have particularly high expectation of Riddles. Previous episodes by writers Robert Doherty (teleplay) and Andre Bormanis (story) have been hit-and-miss, a fairly even spread of good and bad episodes. I don't dread seeing either writer's name, but neither do I particularly look forward to it. We're also inching into the midseason, which usually heralds a shift to throwaways.
So I was pleasantly surprised when this ended up being really good!
There are obvious parallels between Tuvok's rehabilitation and the recovery of people who have suffered severe strokes or brain injuries. Tuvok's manner will seem familiar to anyone who has had a family member with a severe stroke: Nonverbal at first, then halting and emotional, with significant personality changes. This being a single episode story, Tuvok's recovery is remarkably fast, with him going from comatose to active in a matter of days instead of months, but the actual pattern is reasonably well rendered.
Wisely, the episode keeps it focus on the interactions of Tuvok and Neelix, with the script recognizing that the character scenes are more interesting than the (somewhat X Files inspired) alien plot. The Ba'Neth thread remains a subplot, though it's efficiently woven into the whole. The Ba'Neth are the reason for Tuvok's condition; a Ba'Neth attack prompts the recovering Tuvok to speak his first words since waking; and Tuvok's recovery of memories leads directly to Voyager finding the aliens at the end. Also, rather than just cut from Janeway's harsh-but-fair negotiations with them to Tuvok's operation, the episode returns to the Tuvok/Neelix interactions to deal with the emotional repercussions of returning the Vulcan to his old self. The way the "A" and "B" Plots feed each other keeps it all feeling of a piece, which isn't always the case with Trek.
Where the episode soars is in the scenes between Tuvok and Neelix. Tuvok's new appreciation for less "ordered" music and desserts seems to clearly be something that was always a facet of him, just one that he kept hidden underneath layers of stoicism. The open friendship Neelix shares with Tuvok brings him joy... but (arguably unlike early series Neelix) he isn't selfish enough to interfere with the restoration of the Vulcan's original personality. All of their character beats are convincing, and Russ and Phillips hit every note perfectly.
OVERALL:
Riddles surprised me. This was an episode I knew nothing about and expected nothing of, and I ended up thoroughly absorbed. It's an actor's showcase for Ethan Phillips and Tim Russ, and it's a smartly structured script in general.
Overall Rating: 8/10.
Previous Episode: Alice
Next Episode: Dragon's Teeth
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