Craggus’ Trek Trek:
Now, Voyager! Vol 21
Craggus’ Trek Trek Now Voyager Vol 21 sees Voyager end as it lived, inconsistently and not quite living up to its full potential.
Star Trek Voyager S7E18: Human Error
Proof, if proof were needed, that Star Trek Picard did nothing new with the characters it plundered from the back catalogue as we see here that Raffi wasn’t even the first relationSHIP Seven of Nine embarked on despite there being zero chemistry or character development leading up to it. Instead, Seven of Nine does the creepy thing that Geordi LaForge (and Reginald Barclay once upon a time) did in TNG but somehow, it’s treated sympathetically here, perhaps because she gets instant karma in the form of debilitating Borgan failure. It’s told against the backdrop of Voyager accidentally straying into an interplanetary firing range, something which really should have been the A-story while Seven’s sexual (chemistry-less) awakening was as far in the background as human error-ly possible.
Star Trek Voyager S7E19: Q2
Following on from Human Error’s reprise of TNG classic holo-creeping, Voyager seeks inspiration from its forebear once again as it does a teen-focused reimagining of classic Next Generation outing Q-less. There’s fun in seeing just how much worse the omnipotence of a Q can be in the hands of a solipsistic and narcissistic teenager and, of course, the casting of John de Lancie’s real-life son is inspired. After all, how else would Q envisage his offspring except as a mini-him? It’s just a shame that Q’s last live-action (until Star Trek Picard season 2 premieres at least) appearance ends up reprising his previous adventure almost beat for beat, right down to the self-sacrificing redemption in the final act.
Star Trek Voyager S7E20: Author Author
This messy but earnest culmination of the holographic rights arc also continues Voyager’s TNG tribute act as the Doctor’s holo-literary ambitions land him firmly in Measure Of A Man territory. It never reaches the heights of that courtroom drama, mainly because it only tangentially touches on the fundamental existential rights of sentient beings in favour of an underpowered entertainment in-joke about IP and creative rights. Still, it’s also the episode that gives us our final taste of the trope that ended up becoming a weird indictment of Voyager’s characters: they were always more interesting, engaging and entertaining when they weren’t actually being themselves.
Star Trek Voyager S7E21: Friendship One
With holographic rights having been brought to a close, the series embarks on a couple of episodes that examine the concept of historic guilt and ancestral culpability, with this episode being the stronger of the two stories. The consequences of naïve space exploration centuries beforehand are played out in very contemporary style and, unfortunately for one-time rival Chief Engineer Lieutenant Carey, the crew of the Voyager finally come up against an enemy that prefers to act on their threats instead of just pontificate. It’s a dark-hearted episode with some terrific drama that’s a little bit let down by its literal sunny ending. Pour one out for Joe. 🥃
Star Trek Voyager S7E22: Natural Law
Continuing the allegorical theme of ancestral culpability, there’s a distinct anti-colonialism flavour to this serviceable Star Trek episode that’s dragged down by a clear last-minute rush to get the characters of Seven of Nine and Chakotay to spend some time together in order to prop up their otherwise inert and unconvincing romance. It’s a nice exploration of conservation versus exploitation but it’s all a little too twee and resolved a little too easily to really stick in the mind. A sub-plot about Paris getting a speeding ticket in the Delta Flyer amusingly distracts from the fact that Voyager loses another shuttle in this episode, bringing their total to eleven.
Star Trek Voyager S7E23: Homestead
A celebration of First Contact Day heralds the crew’s last [physical] contact with Neelix as the series – in an act of narrative cowardice – opts to leave the character behind in the Delta Quadrant. The story in which he departs feels very much like the kind of classic Doctor Who story which would be written for a companion to depart and while the discovery of a Talaxian colony so very far from their galactic home feels a little convenient, director LeVar Burton keeps the well-worn story lively and prevents the tale of peaceful settlers threatened by ruthless miners. it from lapsing into cliche. And, while the focus is understandably on Ethan Phillips, this episode also marks the last time we get to see Scarlett Pomers’ Naomi Wildman. Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone? Whatever you think of the character, Ethan Phillips’ performances were a highlight of Star Trek Voyager and you have to applaud the creative decision of introducing – and keeping – a character whose defining attribute is relentless kindness. His final departure scene, as he walks towards the shuttle bay down corridors lined by his crewmates and friends, is possibly one of – if not the – finest and most moving character departures in Star Trek history.
Star Trek Voyager S7E24: Renaissance Man
Having spent its twilight episodes homaging TNG episodes, it’s perhaps fitting that the penultimate episode of Star Trek Voyager reaches even further back to tip the hat to the OG Star Trek itself as it playfully reimagines the body-swap shenanigans of Turnabout Intruder. It’s not unusual for an episode centring on The Doctor to provide a showcase for a member of the cast’s versatility but what’s unusual here is that it’s not Robert Picardo in the spotlight but the rest of the cast as they all get a turn at giving us their best impression of the Doctor posing as them. There are elements of a heist set-up in the Overlooker plot to steal Voyager’s warp core but the tone is never anything but light as the series rewards itself and the viewers with a jolly romp before the big finale.
Star Trek Voyager S7E25: Endgame
70,000 light-years, seven years and 170 episodes bring us to the slightly anticlimactic sight of Voyager already having reached Earth. Not only that, but we’re ten years on from Voyager’s triumphant return home. It’s a very curious way to begin the finale of a series whose premise has very much been about the journey, not the destination. The future, we learn, has not been entirely kind to our heroic crew. Chakotay and Seven are dead and the ageing process has been particularly cruel to Tom Paris, who seems to have accrued two or three years for every year his crewmates have endured. Regret weighs heavily on Admiral Janeway’s shoulders and given the only thing standing in her way is a set of inconvenient regulations, there’s really only one way this is going to shake out. Given the time travel underpinnings, it’s little wonder Endgame plays out like a little bit like a multi-Doctor Doctor Who story especially once Admiral Janeway and Captain Janeway come face to face and start sniping at each other. While slow to start, the story soon picks up momentum up to the point where it becomes so frenetically paced that it doesn’t pause to catch breath or – crucially – provide many opportunities to properly say goodbye to the characters. There’s a definite sense of business-as-usual and despite the big Borg MacGuffinry at the heart of the story, the stakes rarely feel higher than any other Borg story and even the ultimate homecoming lacks the emotional punch it should have thanks to it already having happened once. Still, that being said, it’s still a darn good adventure story and a solid if unspectacular capstone for Berman era Star Trek’s most “unfulfilled potential” series.
