VOY: “Vis a Vis”

Date: November 30, 2020

Season 4, Episode 20

Musical Accompaniment: I am now into the last of the ‘Songs that start with the letter D’ on my 4-star list, so we’ve got a bit of Reel Big Fish, Bling 182, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Minus the Bear, and The Beatles.

Interstellar News: Today did not feel like a Monday, but it’s at least the last one of the semester and it was also payday.

TL;DR: Paris has been working in the holodeck on a car and the EMH reams him for shirking his sickbay responsibilities. Suddenly a ship approaches Voyager. It’s using a coaxial warp drive and it’s in trouble. Paris saves the day and it’s captain, Steth, beams aboard. Paris helps with repairs but it’s clear Steth is not who he seems. Paris and Torres have a huge fight then Steth swaps bodies with Paris and sends him on his way in Steth’s ship. “Paris” fakes it with everyone on board while “Steth” wakes up to the Benthan authorities and the real Steth, who has also had their body swapped. “Paris” can’t keep up the facade for very long, however, and he gets drunk and has an altercation with Seven. He then takes over Janeway and escapes in a shuttle while “Steth” convinces Chakotay he’s really Paris and they go after “Paris”. Tom, Steth, and Janeway are all able to be put back in their bodies while Steth promises to return the other alien body if they can. Paris finishes the car and shows Torres, who he then makes up with.

Favorite Quote:

Torres: So this is where you’ve been hiding? A garage.

Paris: It’s more than just a garage. This is a monument to hundreds and hundreds of hours that I probably should have spent with you.

Torres: Probably?

Paris: Definitely.

I really do love their relationship, they’re so snarky to each other and it’s wonderful.

“If I were worrying about danger I wouldn’t have become a test pilot.”: This was an okay episode. Paris is being an idiot again and certainly doesn’t know how to have an “adult” conversation with his partner. He finally is able to make it up at the end where he tries to let Torres in. I do like that Paris has an affinity for “older” technology and that it’s an old fix that helps with this new technology. The same way that the Doctor nerds out when he meets another hologram in the wild, Paris gets super excited about a new method of traveling through space. When the alien inhabiting Steth takes over Paris, it’s far worse than Paris has ever been as far as the creep factor. I was also pretty sure that Starfleet replicators only replicated synthetic alcohol, so that was also strange to see Paris drunk and surly. I knew he had taken over Janeway’s body as soon as it happened, but it was still a nice reveal. It’s some good acting by Paris, who really plays the asshole very well, but otherwise it’s just a very meh episode. Oh, and the car was very nice for a “cam-a-ro”… hehe. 5 teeny, tiny, stuffed animal otters for this one.

TA Out!