Date: December 11, 2020

Season 5, Episode 6

Musical Accompaniment: In remembrance of my favorite concert at Madison Square Garden, which was this day last year, I’m listening to Billy Joel all evening.

Interstellar News: It’s the eleventh day of by birthday month and my birthday is tomorrow!

TL;DR: Kim and Chakotay traverse through the snow and ice to find Voyager and change the timeline. 15 years in their past, Voyager put together the quantum slipstream drive as we saw in “Hope and Fear” but there was an issue so Chakotay and Kim were ahead in a shuttle to help guide Voyager. Unfortunately Kim made a mistake and while he and Chakotay got back to the AQ, Voyager was lost and crashed. The story unfolds that they both are on the run from the Federation (who had given up the search) and they stole a Borg component so they can send a message to Seven in the past and avoid the accident. They restore the EMH so he can help with Seven’s autopsy but Kim’s calculation doesn’t work. Kim realizes, at the very last second, he needs to dissipate the slipstream… and it works. The shuttle and Voyager come out of the slipstream, but Kim of the past is confused because he didn’t send anything to Seven. Kim of the future sent a video explaining his actions, they dismantle the drive, and they are at least 10 years closer to home.

Favorite Quotes:

Doctor’s Orders: “Obviously the Borg can’t hold their liquor.”

Tuvok: Mr. Neelix, you are an unending source of astonishment.

Neelix: Why, thank you, Mister Vulcan.

Tuvok being super sassy and sarcastic and Neelix thinking it’s a compliment.

Janeway’s Jam: “My advice in making sense of temporal paradoxes is simple. Don’t even try.”

“To aid an honorable thief, or to spend eternity in cybernetic oblivion? Let’s tempt fate.”: For a time travel episode, I actually enjoyed this. We get future Kim who is super cynical and he’s just trying to undo the biggest mistake of his life. He was so eager to get home that he thought he had the answer for everything and spent 15 years trying to rectify his mistake. Chakotay had moved on in some ways, I mean he did find love again, but ultimately he was always trying to be there for the crew even when they were long gone. This episode did a great job of being in the future and then showing the flashbacks of what happened before the fateful trip. I love drunk Seven… a lot, distraught Paris, and the Doctor in both the past and future. It absolutely makes sense that Kim’s first goal was to simply get Voyager home without crashing but he finally understood that there were no short cuts and he was just going to have them drop out of the slipstream no matter where it put them. It was better to be alive and in the DQ, together, than only two of them alive in the AQ. Let this be a lesson to everyone that you really have to be sure. It’s better to be right and alive than to cut corners. 8 promotions for Kim, who was totally confused by the message from his future self.

TA Out!

Date: December 9, 2020

Season 5, Episode 5

Musical Accompaniment: Songs that start with ‘J’ and ‘K’, because the J list is super small (only 22 songs).

Interstellar News: It’s the ninth day of my birthday month and I have NINE new sunflower cream cheese flavors to try!

TL;DR: Naomi Wildman enjoys the stories of Flotter and Trevis in the holodeck while her mother is on an away mission with Tuvok and Paris. The away team encounters an ion storm and needs an emergency landing, which lands them under some rock and Ensign Wildman is hurt. Neelix is tasked with keeping Naomi occupied, but Naomi is a clever girl and knows something is amiss. Neelix also remembers the trauma of losing his own family and wants to keep Naomi from that pain. Naomi finds out the truth, Neelix explains why he was not forthcoming, and they decide to stick together. Tuvok writes a goodbye message for his family while Paris records one for Torres and Samantha leaves one for Naomi, but then they are saved at the last minute. The episode ends with the Wildmans, Neelix, and Janeway on the holodeck about the enjoy time with Flotter and Trevis.

Favorite Quote:

Neelix: Do you miss your parents?

Seven of Nine: I barely remember them.

Neelix: Maybe that’s a blessing.

Seven of Nine: I adapted. The child Naomi will adapt as well.

Neelix: Borg wisdom.

Seven is totally correct here, children are very resilient.

“You have been an exemplary mother to Naomi, and she is in the hands of people you trust. She will survive and prosper, no matter what becomes of us.”: This was a very good episode for something that could be a very real issue with having a parent on a starship, but there are still some issues with it. Let’s start with the issues. Anything could happen on an away mission, especially one in the Delta Quadrant, so it makes more sense for everyone to already have their goodbye message recorded before they leave. I refuse to believe Tuvok doesn’t make one every week. I also refuse to believe that Samantha hadn’t had “the talk” with Naomi yet or that she didn’t have a plan for what would happen if she passed. One of the first things my parents did after I was born was update their will and include my godparents as my guardians should both of my parents pass before I was 18. While we’re on the subject, her goodbye message didn’t include anything for her husband… what’s up with that? Also Paris doesn’t, and still hasn’t, told Torres he loves her and their relationship seems to have fallen to the back burner.

Now for the good. The holodeck program is delightful and a wonderful way for a child to experience a story. I love that it’s something Kim and Janeway talk about fondly and it reminds me of the way Ron talks about the wizard bedtime stories to Harry and Herminoe in Harry Potter. Tuvok also does some amazing counseling here when Samantha is worried about how Naomi will be without her. Naomi is the star of this episode, though. She’s excellent in the holodeck and continues to think about how to solve the problems in the story, she’s not as sensitive as Neelix thinks. She also does great with the Doctor, even though you can tell she’d rather be elsewhere than school, she listens to Neelix, and she’s super dramatic about Seven of Nine and it’s fabulous. As I said earlier it was a great episode to highlight a real situation (potentially losing a parent), but the execution didn’t make it all the way through for me. 7 otters using blotters at their jobs as potters for this episode.

TA Out!

Date: December 8, 2020

Season 5, Episode 4

Musical Accompaniment: Songs that start with “I”, we’re really trucking through!

Interstellar News: This morning was hectic and this evening has been not great.

TL;DR: Voyager finds a station that looks an awful lot like Starfleet headquarters but turns out to be a simulation run by Species 8472. Chakotay infiltrates and meets Boothby and a woman named Archer who fancies him. He goes on a date with Archer while the EMH and Seven work on some nanoprobe torpedoes, just in case, but then Chakotay is found out and captured. It turns out the 8472 thinks the Federation wants to invade fluidic space when, in reality, they have no idea 8472 exists. The sides decide to meet and exchange information and set aside misconceptions. They avoid a military conflict and Boothby promises to talk to his superiors about abandoning the need for war with the Federation.

Favorite Quote:

Paris: Do you always arm yourself before a first date?

Kim: You’ve never had a date with species 8472.

Paris: Personally, I don’t go out with girls from other galaxies.

Kim: You’re a true explorer, Chakotay.

Paris: Is she cute?

Chakotay: In her human form, anyway.

Kim: I’ve always wondered what it would be like to date an alien.

Chakotay: I’ll take notes.

This whole conversation is wholesome and adorable, given that his mission is dangerous.

“You picked a lousy time for an ethical debate.”: I actually really enjoyed this episode. Chakotay is very good at undercover work and he flirts like he breathes with Archer, who is clearly digging him. Janeway is on top of things, as usual, from checking to make sure none of her crew is 8472 in disguise (anyone getting flashbacks to the changelings in DS9?) to getting ready for battle but also not forgetting diplomacy first. She’s likely remembering the alien who just wanted to get home on top of her training and she’s also trying to set an example for Seven that not all aliens of the same species are alike. This is such a great example of how two sides just clearly came up with the wrong idea about the other and that talking about it openly and honestly helped resolve a conflict before it really started. This absolutely happens in real life when you don’t talk to the people involved. I get complaints about classes all the time but the students almost never tell the instructor, which is the only person who matters in making change.

The others all get to play wonderful roles in this. Seven is still mad at8472 for kicking Borg ass, the Doctor makes good points about weapons being used as deterrents, and Kim and Paris help Chakotay and sound the alarm when he’s in trouble. My biggest problem with this whole episode is this. In order for 8472 to attack the Federation, they need to get to the Alpha Quadrant. I assume they have a plan to do so. SO WHY DOESN’T JANEWAY ASK THEM FOR HELP IN GETTING HOME?!?!?! 8 puppies peacefully sleeping for this episode, it really was a lot of fun.

TA Out!

Date: December 7, 2020

Season 5, Episodes 2 and 3

Musical Accompaniment: Finally onto songs that begin with the letter ‘H’

Interstellar News: It’s the seventh day of my birthday month! Getting closer to the big day.

“Drone” in TL;DR: Seven, the Doctor, Paris, and Torres are on a shuttle to complete a survey of a nebula when they need an emergency beam out. Due to the interference the patterns get mixed and the Doctor’s mobile emitter is damaged and then fused with Borg technology. Voyager monitors the growth of the nebula while Mulchaey goes to the science lab and is attacked by the emitter/Borg fusion. Seven’s nanoprobes and the Doctor’s emitter have taken DNA from Mulchaey and created a maturation chamber, complete with a Borg fetus. Janeway refuses to kill it and it grows into a 29th century Borg who decides to call himself ‘One’. Seven, Neelix, and the Doctor all help One adjust to life on Voyager and he assimilates an incredible amount of knowledge. He accidentally summons a Borg sphere, but agrees to help Voyager stop it. He does so by beaming over and navigating the Sphere into the nebula. He’s greatly damaged and refuses to allow the Doctor to fix him, as that would but Voyager in danger and he really shouldn’t exist anyway, and he succumbs to his injuries.

Favorite Quote:

Seven of Nine: I am to instruct the drone in the ways of humanity?

Janeway: Think of it as first contact, and you are our ambassador.

Janeway’s just making people ambassadors left and right and promoting everyone but Kim.

“You are experiencing an emotion. Anxiety. It is only temporary.”: So Janeway won’t murder a fetus that could make the Borg unstoppable, but she’s totally fine with killing Tuvix… right. This is basically the abortion/adoption episode and it doesn’t even try to hide it. One finds out he’s an accident (on “unexpected”), the Doctor likens himself as the father and Seven as the mother, Janeway calling it murder, and even asking about his “real” parents… the Borg. I will say there are a lot of great lines in this episode. The Doctor calling the Borg party poopers, Janeway wanting to come clean to One before he finds out things on his own, and the ending where Seven repeats that One is hurting her but he closes with “you will adapt” is just wholesome and adorable and heartbreaking all at the same time. I am fascinated by the technology and think this was a good use of the “transporter as a plot device”, but the message behind the whole episode leaves me feeling yuck. 4 cups of cold apple cider for this one, mostly for the fantastic dialogue.

“Extreme Risk” in TL;DR: Torres is in the holodeck and disengages safety protocols but Chakotay calls her to the bridge. One of Voyager’s probes is picked up by a Malon vessel, so they stick it in a gas giant and the Malons are destroyed. Paris puts forth a new shuttle design and plan and they all get to it, though Torres is distracted. Paris questions Torres about it but she won’t open up, then she goes to another holodeck program where she fights a Cardassian and disengages the safety protocols again. Voyager encounters another Malon ship at the planet who believe it’s their fault for the other ship’s demise. Seven discovers the Malon are also building a new shuttle and it will be ready before theirs, so they have a space race. The Malon try to scare off Voyager, Torres tries to fix a flaw but disengages safety protocols and gets knocked out, but Chakotay saves her in time. Janeway questions Torres, who denies everything so she’s thrown off the shuttle project. Chakotay has Torres accompany him to the holodeck where he forces her to relive a Maquis battle, and she finally tells him the truth, she feels numb and like she’s lost all of her family.  The Malon launch their craft while Paris, Kim, Seven, and Torres launch the new shuttle. Torres becomes MacGuyver and they get the probe.

Favorite Quote:

Paris: Well, if we can’t transport it out, we’ll just have to fly in and grab it.

Tuvok: Perhaps you weren’t paying attention when the Malon freighter imploded.

I absolutely love sassy Tuvok.

“In the future, if you come across anything that bears the insignia of the U.S.S. Voyager, head in the other direction.”: This is a great episode that highlights how people deal with grief differently and everyone does so at their own pace. Torres is devastated at the loss of the Maquis and reliving all of the bad times in her life. Turning the safeties off in the holodeck to feel the rush is the same as when people cut themselves to feel something better, but they have to keep doing so to get that feeling again. The biggest problem with both of those solutions is that it’s just plugging one hole after the other instead of figuring out where the leak is coming from in the first place. It’s awful that Voyager doesn’t have a true ship’s counselor, though Chakotay does a damn good job here. He knows how to handle Torres, though that should never be tried in real life with anyone ever. Everyone knows something is wrong with Torres as soon as she isn’t enthusiastic about the new shuttle project, we all know she loves a good geek out. I wish I knew why she went to Neelix and if she ever actually caught back up with him after she was starting to feel more like herself. I love the bit about making a new shuttle, racing with the Malons, and Torres getting her mojo back because she realizes what’s important. However, Chakotay should have never let her go, even though she did save the day in the most impressive way possible. 7 bottles of dark beer for this one.

TA Out!