2.9 prototype

What is the ‘thing’ that has been beamed into engineering? As the show opens, we see a crackly black and white image of Torres, Janeway and Tuvok discussing whether to try to feed it power or deactivate it. Against Tuvok’s better judgement, Kim pumps some power into it, and, still through its eyes, we see it scan the room until it is looking at itself in a monitor – it’s a humanoid-shaped ‘robot’. Nice scene. Torres takes a personal interest in getting it working again; she succeeds. She learns that the bot was made by the ‘builders’, humanoids who were at war with another race. The builders are now dead, and the bot asks her to build more power units, so their race can ‘procreate’. But Janeway refuses, believing this to be a violation of the prime directive. However, the bot kidnaps Torres and takes her back to his ship. Their superior weaponry forces Torres to agree to build the unit. As she finishes, another robot ship, manned by a hostile group, begins to attack, and Torres learns that this other group was built, similarly, by humanoids that were at war and are now dead. It turns out that the war had ended, and when the humanoids went to turn off the mechanized warriors, who were no longer of use, the warriors saw them as the enemy and wiped them out. Now, by allowing this group to reproduce, Torres has upset the balance and created a very powerful and lethal killing group. She ‘kills’ her creation just before Voyager uses the distraction of the battle to beam her out. Great concept – captivating show.

2.8 resistance

An away team is interrupted while obtaining a needed item for the warp engines; Tuvok and Torres are captured by this suspicious police state race called the Mochra, and Janeway is sheltered by an old man (Joel Gray) who believes she is his daughter. She tries to extricate herself from him, but begins to get drawn in by the sadness of his life. When she goes on a rescue mission, he proves useful, for a while, and she uses her charm to masquerade as a lady of the evening to get inside the prison. In the course of the struggle, Janeway rescues Tuvok and Torres, and the old man kills the evil leader (who was responsible for the killing of his real wife and daughter), but is then shot by guards. Not one of my favorite episodes, it seems to move slowly and seem kind of boring. Gray’s quirky performance may or may not elicit sympathy. The title may also refer to Janeway’s attempt to resist being drawn into the emotional sadness, which she does not.

But there is one redeeming factor – an A-1 nit: when Joel Gray dies, his head falls to the left and he does a death stare. In the next scene, his head is facing to the right! Either that was a continuity problem, or this race does a strange after-death rigor-mortis head flop.

2.7 maneuvers

Voyager investigates a signal from a Federation beacon, hoping it is a probe sent from the Alpha quadrant, but it is a trap set by the Kaizon Nistra sect – with the help of their new technical advisor, Seska (who deserted to the Kaizon a few episodes ago). With a clever attack the Kaizon steal transporter technology. Chakotay feels responsible and steals a shuttlecraft to go on a solo kamikaze mission to recapture the technology. He does, but is captured – his automated beacon telling Voyager not to rescue him almost convinces Janeway, but a couple of passionate speeches by Torres change her mind. Unable to beam Chakotay out, Janeway instead beams the leaders of the various Kaizon sects in, and holds them hostage until Chakotay is returned. Chakotay is put on report, and hopes his problems with Seska are over, until, in the final scene, an automated message from Seska informs Chakotay that she stole some of his DNA while he was a captive, and she has now impregnated herself and is carrying his baby. Good episode, although Chakotay’s reasons for so obviously defying orders seems out of character with all of his other behavior, including his very strident attitude toward any subordinates who have attempted to do the same thing.

2.6 cold fire

The trail to the second ‘caretaker’, who has the power to send Voyager back to the alpha quadrant, leads to an array similar but smaller to the original, and a community of Ocampa (same as Kes). These Ocampa, along with their caretaker Sisteria (who remains hidden), have developed their psychic powers. Their leader wants Kes to join them, and for good reason; Sisteria blames Voyager for killing the first caretaker and plans to destroy the ship. Sisteria appears in the form of a little girl and starts suspending bleeding (but unharmed) members of the crew in mid air, including Janeway, but Kes uses her rapidly developing powers to stop her. Tuvok traps her behind a force field, but Janeway insists on letting her be free, at which she realizes that she was probably wrong about Voyager killing the other caretaker. Unfortunately, she leaves, once again meaning that Voyager is still stranded in the delta quadrant and the show must go on.

2.5 tattoo

While Chakotay and his away team investigate a storm-ravaged rainforested planet, Chakotay flashes back to a trip he made as a disgruntled teen, into the rainforest with his father, searching for their ancestors. At that time, they found the ‘sky-spirits’, which meant so much to his father, but nothing to him. He was about to leave the tribe and join Starfleet. But after his father died, he took up the cause and bore the tattoo his father did. Here, in this unlikely place, he discovers the real ‘sky spirits’, the aliens that visited earth and shared genetic info with indigenous people. He understands the full picture, and he is finally able to make spiritual contact with his father.

Meanwhile, the doctor is showing no compassion for sick people in pain. Kes is appalled and suggests that he should know what it feels like to be sick. The doctor complies and gives himself a 29 hour flu, but when hour 30 comes and he is still very sick, he begins to feel lost, helpless, like he is fading away – just what he needed, and all because Kes reprogrammed the flu to run a bit longer than the doc expected.

2.4 persistence of vision

Janeway’s normally tame holo-novel turns lurid, as the male professes his love for her and kisses her. She leaves the holodeck, but begins to see items and characters from the holo-novel in real life. Soon, all members of the crew are experiencing hallucinations which make them into zombies, all but Kes and the doctor. It’s up to Kes to use her rapidly developing powers to fight off the alien responsible and save the ship. Some of the hallucinations are interesting. It makes me wonder if some of the other famous incidents where members of expeditions went stir crazy might also have been caused by aliens.

2.3 parturition

Another episode title designed to expand your vocabulary. Tom Paris is infatuated with Kes, and, although Kes has no interest in him and is completely dedicated to Neelix, this doesn’t stop Neelix from having another fit of jealousy which culminates in a pasta-covered brawl. But Janeway assigns the two on a shuttlecraft mission to a mysterious planet in an attempt to replenish their dwindling food supplies. No food is found, but an egg hatches a half-reptile, half humanoid cute little thing that is going to grow up to be a big thing. While Paris wants to leave it, concerned that the mother will soon be back, Neelix insists on caring for it and waiting to ensure that the hatchling won’t be rejected. This little incident bonds the two, the hatchling is not rejected, and they beam out just in time. Just before beaming out, Paris makes a very well-written speech about his feelings for Kes and how he would never do anything about it because he respects Neelix, and how all Neelix has to do is look in Kes’ eyes and he can see he has nothing to worry about. It’s a great speech, and Neelix is finally convinced; the three of them leave the transporter room arm in arm. That speech should stop any further jealous Neelix rages for at least four episodes.

My general nit with this episode and others is: I am in amazement that Neelix can serve a single lunch special and expect the crew (which are made up of varying species from all over the galaxy) to eat it. You can’t even get people on one planet (earth) to agree on what to eat! I am also amazed that Kes and Neelix can sit down to dinner and eat the same foods, as they are from very different species.