1-11. State of Flux.

THE PLOT

While collecting edible roots on an uninhabited planet, Voyager detects a Kazon ship in orbit. They retrieve the landing party and escape. But shortly after, they receive a distress call from the same ship.

The distress call is genuine. An explosion devastated the ship. The Kazon closest to the explosion are found fused with the surrounding metal, while the sole survivor has undergone a cellular mutation. Most disturbing is the source of the explosion - a power source that appears to be Federation technology. This leaves three possibilities: a previous Starfleet vessel was drawn to the Delta Quadrant; the power source just happens to be similar to Federation tech; or - most disturbing of all, and most likely - someone aboard Voyager has been secretly dealing with the Kazon!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Janeway: Largely in a reactive role this week, responding to situations as they emerge. She does get an excellent scene when speaking with an aggressive Kazon captain over the viewscreen. When he tries to intimidate her, she gives a response worthy of Sisko: "I don't like bullies, and I don't like threats, and I don't like you... You can try and stop us from getting at the truth, but I promise you that if you do, I will respond with all the 'unique technologies' at my command." Kate Mulgrew seems to relish this "tough guy" moment, though I hope such scenes are not overused in the future. Part of the reason it works so well here is that it's a slightly different note for the character, which makes it more effective than if this were her default way of dealing with things.

Chakotay: Some time prior to the events of Caretaker, he had a relationship with Seska. It ended when they mutually agreed it could never work out... but now, far from home and with limited options, Seska is openly interested in rekindling their old relationship, and Chakotay is at least considering that offer. He is protective of Seska when she falls under suspicion, and tries to read her every action after that in her favor. There is also some lingering feeling of divide in him between himself and Janeway. Speaking to Tuvok of his time in the Maquis, he wonders: If Tuvok was working for Janeway, and if Seska had her own agenda, then "who was working for (him)?" Given some decent material for a change, Robert Beltran actually does a good job. Now if only that could happen more often...

Tuvok: Bluntly lays out the possibilities to Janeway, emphasizing the likelihood of a traitor on board. He carries out his investigation dispassionately and thoroughly, giving both Seska and Carey (who was passed over for promotion in favor of Torres) an equal level of suspicion. When Chakotay asks him about how he reconciles Vulcan honesty with his necessary deceptions - both against Chakotay when pretending to be a member of the Maquis and against the suspects in his investigations - he gives an answer worthy of an attorney, and admits that however composed he may be when executing these deceptions, he does find them difficult.

Seska: As much as this is Chakotay's episode, this is also her episode. Martha Hackett's Seska has been visible in the background of multiple episodes this season. She was the Maquis officer who made a thinly-veiled offer to side with Chakotay in any shipwide rebellion against Janeway, and she was the driving force behind Torres' decision to defy Janeway's orders in Prime Factors. She has never been satisfied with Janeway as captain, and openly refers to Janeway as a fool at one point in this episode. When Chakotay pulls her from Engineering while she's under suspicion in order to protect her, she lashes out at him for it. She insists she is loyal to Chakotay, but she does believe that Voyager would be best served dealing with some of the more powerful aliens they encounter to make alliances - and, to be honest, it's hard to argue the basic point.


THOUGHTS

What's this? Two good episodes in a row? And an episode in which Chakotay is something other than a Native American cliche or a walking mannequin? Am I watching the right show?

State of Flux is only marginally successful as a mystery. After all, there are really only two suspects, only one of whom has ever really been given any interesting characterization, so it's not too hard to guess who's going to be guilty. But as a character piece, it works very well. It's also a nicely risky piece in a first season that mostly has avoided real risk. Both of the suspects are recurring characters. Whichever of the two ends up being guilty, the only barely-established dynamic of the series will be shifted somewhat. That's inherently interesting, and not the sort of thing I tend to expect from Voyager. It's more the sort of thing you normally see in Deep Space 9.

Character work remains strong, with the characterizations of the normally-bland Chakotay and the always-interesting Seska particularly sharp. The return of the Kazon, and the defection of one of the Voyager crew, are strong signs of continuity in a show that frankly needs a lot more of that sort of thing. There's also a real sense that the events of this episode will receive some follow-up (they demand follow-up), which is encouraging for the series' future.


Overall Rating: 8/10.

Previous Episode: Prime Factors
Next Episode: Heroes and Demons

Search Amazon.com for Star Trek: Voyager




Review Index

1-10. Prime Factors.

THE PLOT

Voyager is hailed by the Sikarians, a race renowned in the Delta Quadrant for their hospitality. The Sikarians are "a well-traveled people," and have heard stories about this starship stranded far from home. Gath (Ronald Guttman), their leader, offers the ship an extended vacation on the Sikarian homeworld, an offer which Janeway eagerly accepts.

On Sikarias, Harry catches the eye of Eudana (Yvonne Suthor), a fellow scientist who is enchanted by Harry's story of how the ship came to the Delta Quadrant. Seeking some alone time with Harry, Eudana takes him through a platform to a planet roughly 40,000 light years away. Harry becomes extremely excited once he realizes what has happened. With this technology, they could potentially return home - or at the very least, shave decades off their journey!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Janeway: It would be an understatement to say that I disagree with Janeway's postion about dealing with Jaret (Andrew Hill Newman). Tuvok's position seems the correct one to me: Since Jaret is the one compromising his planet's laws, Janeway is not actually breaking any Starfleet regulations. It may not be fully above-board, but in an emergency situation (which, the light tone of most of this series notwithstanding, Voyager's situation is), it would have to be seen as an acceptable compromise. And I suspect Starfleet would be happy enough with intelligence about the Delta Quadrant to overlook a slight bending of the rules. In the same situation, Kirk or Sisko would barely hesitate, and I suspect even Picard would only spare a moment or two of angst before acting.

That said, Kate Mulgrew's performance is simply outstanding. This is the most emotional we've seen Janeway, and Mulgrew seems to enjoy the opportunity to really show the captain as a full human being. The pleasant flirting she enjoys with Gath early in the episode shows Janeway more relaxed than we've ever seen her. When she wrestles the dilemma of maintaining rigid Starfleet principles, even in the face of a chance to get home, there is genuine anguish in her face and voice. Her fury at Gath, when she realizes he's been manipulating her. The deep personal hurt she feels when the betrayal of her officers comes to light. There are a lot of emotional moments in this script for Janeway, and Mulgrew nails every single one of them, without once sacrificing her character's innate authority. It's great work, up there with some of the best performances by Patrick Stewart or Avery Brooks in their respective series.

Torres: An excellent episode for Roxann Biggs-Dawson, whose B'Elanna really comes to life here. I was happy to see that Torres was reluctant to really join in the conspiracy. She may still identify herself as Maquis, but she has reason to feel loyalty to Janeway. It's good to see that being a factor, as her sense of responsibility to the captain who has placed so much trust in her is tested by her old shipmates. It would have been nice to have had Chakotay in the mix somewhere, so that all of the major Maquis characters were involved in the plot. Then again, post-Parallax, Chakotay has arguably more of a walking mannequin than Harry Kim. Biggs-Dawson does an excellent job showing Torres, torn between loyalty to Janeway and to her desire to get people like Carey (Josh Clark) and Seska (Martha Hackett) back home. Her final confession to Janeway, in which she takes responsibility while refusing to name those who helped her, is a wonderful scene, with outstanding performances by every actor in the room.

Tuvok: Bringing us to the third actor in the room. Tim Russ' Tuvok has been presented as a confidante to Janeway, the person on the ship she most trusts. Yet while people like Tom Paris and Harry Kim retain full loyalty to Janeway (Paris insisting that all information be taken to the captain), Tuvok goes against her orders. He does this with full expectation of losing his Starfleet commission, but he considers the logic of the situation clear.

He has dual motivations. He genuinely disagrees with Janeway, feeling that since they aren't actively breaking any Starfleet regulations by dealing with Jaret, that it makes sense to take advantage of what he has to offer. At the same time, he sees Janeway's anguish as she wrestles with this decision, knows how much getting the crew home means to her, and wants to get that chance for her even when she doesn't approve of the method. The final scene between Janeway and Tuvok is probably the episode's best out of many good scenes, as Janeway reprimands Tuvok by observing that logic can be used "to justify anything. That's its power and its flaw," and makes clear to him that he should not use logic to justify disobeying orders ever again.

Harry Kim: Harry, Harry... Give the very pretty girl a good time on Alastria first, then ask her all those questions about the platform. It's not like she'll forget the answers in the meanwhile, and she'll be a whole lot happier. Then again, Harry Kim is the guy who managed to fall out of a gondola in the holodeck. Garrett Wang does better in this episode than previous ones at least, a lot less wooden. His friendship with Tom shows again, when Tom firmly tells Harry to go straight to the captain with Jaret's illicit offer, not giving Seska, Carey, and B'Elanna a chance to pull Harry into their subterfuge.


THOUGHTS

Prime Factors is the first episode since Parallax in which this crew actually feels fragmented. The Maquis officers want to get back home to rejoin the fight, particularly the Bajoran Seska. The Starfleet officers just want to get back to their families. "I have a wife and two kids," Carey complains. "I don't want them to grow up without a father." Faced with the opportunity to get home - or at least, far closer to home than they've been - they are willing to act, even without Janeway's approval.

Which points to one of the reasons this episode works so well. Even though it's the second "Voyager might have a chance to get home" show in ten episodes, it has the crew reacting as people in a genuinely desperate situation should react. Janeway refuses to bend the rules for the technology... but she doesn't do so easily, genuinely wrestling over the decision. Faced with such an opportunity, the crew doesn't simply accept Janeway's orders, with several crew members - including Janeway's closest friend on the ship - acting against her will.

The way the conspiracy builds is extremely well-portrayed. B'Elanna doesn't want to act against Janeway, but Seska and Carey's initial suggestions to examine the problem "theoretically" seem innocent. If Janeway succeeds in gaining the technology, it gets them a head start; if she fails, then there's at least no harm in the exercise. When the offer from Jaret comes, and Janeway's negotiations with Gath fail, it becomes a relatively short step to move from theory to action. And in the face of Seska's worries about the Cardassians and Carey's concerns about his family, it becomes impossible for B'Elanna to stand up for a (fairly dubious) principle over their lives.

Characterization, which is generally this series' weakness, is excellent in this episode. Janeway, Torres, Tuvok, Seska, and Carey all are shown in three dimensions. Even Harry is easier to take than usual, and Tom - though barely in the episode - gets a nice moment with Harry. More scripts like this one, and I'll have to recosider naming Voyager as my least favorite Trek show. Put another way: I may disagree with Janeway here, but at least I can see her position - as opposed to Time and Again, in which her pro-genocidal argument was the stuff of pure nonsense.

A very good episode all around. That said, if there's another "the crew might gain real progress toward home" episode anytime soon, it should be one that at least ends with them having made some progress. There's only so many times they can be presented with chances that turn into nothing before that becomes an exhausted story prospect, and in my opinion the writers are already treading close to that line. It works here because of the character work and performances... but it should be a while before we see it trotted out again.


Overall Rating: 9/10.

Previous Episode: Emanations

Next Episode: State of Flux

Search Amazon.com for Star Trek: Voyager




Review Index

1-03. Parallax.

THE PLOT

As Voyager begins its long journey, the first major issues facing the ship become apparent. What would be routine maintenance between visits to Starbases has now become the only possible repairs. The replicators have failed, requiring an alternative food source. And the Caretaker's abduction of Voyager caused several deaths on board, leaving the ship with multiple officer vacancies. Janeway is determined to fill these positions with whomever is "next in line," meaning a Starfleet officer, while Chakotay is equally determined to see some of these positions filled by Maquis crew members, in order to integrate the two crews - which rapidly creates conflict between the captain and her new first officer, particularly when Chakotay recommends Torres as chief engineer.

The interpersonal conflicts take a back seat, however, when the ship encounters a singularity. Seeing another ship caught within the event horizon, Janeway orders an attempted rescue. When the rescue goes wrong, she decides to find a nearby settlement that Neelix recommends in order to come back with help. But attempts to move away from the black hole fail. Every time they leave it behind, they find themselves right back where they started!


CHARACTERS

Capt. Janeway: Despite her good faith gesture of making Chakotay her second-in-command, she genuinely does seem biased against the Maquis crew members. She resists Chakotay's attempts to integrate the two crews by filling some officer vacancies with Maquis crew members, clinging to protocols that effectively mean that none of them will ever gain seniority sufficient to become officers, regardless of ability. Her science background shows itself as she and Torres work out the mechanics of the singularity, and that seems to break through her stubbornness regarding Torres. But there's no indication that this break in Janeway's rigidity will apply to any other Maquis crew members, so here's the question I'm left with: If being the sole "token Maquis" officer is offensive to Chakotay, is it really that much better to be one of two tokens?

Chakotay: Works very hard to balance being Janeway's first officer against protecting the interests of his old Maquis crew members. When Janeway tries to effectively block any of the Maquis from advancing to officer status, Chakotay declares that he "will not be your token Maquis!" He fights hard to secure Torres the post of Chief Engineer, a fight he wins despite Janeway's stubbornness and Torres' temper. Really, based on this episode, Chakotay seems an altogether stronger and more reasonable leader than Janeway does.

The Doctor: Though Caretaker established Robert Picardo's holographic doctor, it didn't really have time to do much of anything with him. Parallax remedies this, giving him much more to do and even some characterization. The doctor has been programmed with the sum total of modern medical knowledge, to make him able to deal with any medical crisis that might arise. In effect, he is "the embodiment of modern medicine." As such, the rather routine daily medical issues the current situation calls on him to deal with leave him feeling resentful over the waste of his skills. He visibly softens when Kes treats him compassionately, though at this point Kes is the only person on board treating him as anything other than a computer program.

Kes: When she and Neelix crash the briefing for senior officers, Kes almost instantly shows her value, coming up with a suggestion for food supplies that is both practical and workable given the ship's current situation. She also shows empathy in her dealings with the holographic doctor, and these two characters and actors show signs of making a good team in the future.

Torres: Though she has difficulty keeping her temper in check, the crisis surrounding the singularity gives her a chance to show her engineering skills. Her quick grasp of the temporal mechanics impresses Janeway, which in turn secures her promotion to chief engineer. Some of the bonding between Torres and Janeway near the end comes across a bit forced (particularly when they complete each other's sentences while puzzling out the temporal anomaly), but it's still a quite reasonable episode for a character who was developed in only the broadest terms in the pilot.


THOUGHTS

OK, so you don't have to be Stephen Hawking to pick apart the science surrounding the black hole. A crack in an event horizon that the ship can just fly through? Really? Disney's The Black Hole is practically A Brief History of Time by comparison.

And truly... So what? It's an episode of Star Trek: Voyager. Go in accepting that any "science" presented is ludicrous, and you're probably going to be a lot better off. The key question has nothing to do with plausibility, but with entertainment value. I enjoyed watching Parallax, and can just about squint my way around the unconvincing science to enjoy some pretty good character interplay.

Characterization is much stronger here than it was in Caretaker, with Brannon Braga's script giving focus to some of those the pilot left undeveloped. Chakotay benefits the most, as we see him calmly yet forcefully protecting the interests of his people, even as a working relationship with Janeway is advanced. The doctor and Torres were also largely undeveloped by the pilot, and both of them also get strong moments here.

The story is ridiculous, but it is well-paced. The threat and the character material are well-mixed, with the character interplay remaining at the episode's fore throughout, but not at the expense of the story. Overall, a good show.


Overall Rating: 7/10.

Previous Episode: Caretaker

Next Episode: Time and Again

Search Amazon.com for Star Trek: Voyager




Review Index