****
This is a story that only gets stronger the more desperate everyone gets, from guest star Kurtwood Smith to Chakotay, who almost gets points as lead character to Tuvok bonding with Seven to Janeway with an awesome one-liner to close out the experience.
"Year of Hell" is essential viewing for Voyager, and it's a rare two-part episode in the franchise where the conclusion is completely worthy of the set-up, not to mention the story continuing seamlessly from one half to the next, without need for significant tinkering on what exactly you're supposed to be caring about.
Whereas there are more clear standout characters in this half, it's still an ensemble effort, and therefore most clearly enjoyed for all of them. If you're a fan of this series, you have to see this one.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Notable guest-stars:
Kurtwood Smith
Memory Alpha summary.
The internet’s only comprehensive fan source for the complete film and television experience.
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Voyager 4x8 "Year of Hell, Part 1"
****
Two-part episodes are always a big deal in Star Trek, especially if they aren't a season finale/premiere, since that's what's most typical. Voyager started to make an art-form of it in the third season, but the best ones are in the fourth.
"Year of Hell" is the story that most fans expected the whole series to look like, and so if you're wondering what that would have actually been like, look no further.
Based on aliens first referenced in the third season episode "Before and After," this is the epic story of everything that could possibly go wrong, the ship and the crew completely degenerating, and not because of any enemy that has a particular problem with Voyager itself, but rather a regional problem that the series premise always had as a possibility, moreso than any other Star Trek crew might have expected, except maybe Enterprise.
It's Voyager as an opera. It's the later "Course: Oblivion" played out, and is uniquely effective, even if there's a reset bottom by necessity waiting at the end, BattleStar Galactica by way of Star Trek, why this was never done before and why even the third season of Enterprise waited until the end of the Xindi arc to finally duplicate it.
The weight of Janeway's command is a key element of the story, although this time it's nothing of the decisions she has to make (only the ones she has to make), as close as this series will ever get to a movie, and in fact the first time Voyager makes its own surrogate movies, when it became possible for Star Trek to present this kind of experience in its TV incarnations, which led to the epic Dominion War in Deep Space Nine and plenty more in Enterprise.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Notable guest-stars:
Kurtwood Smith
Memory Alpha summary.
Two-part episodes are always a big deal in Star Trek, especially if they aren't a season finale/premiere, since that's what's most typical. Voyager started to make an art-form of it in the third season, but the best ones are in the fourth.
"Year of Hell" is the story that most fans expected the whole series to look like, and so if you're wondering what that would have actually been like, look no further.
Based on aliens first referenced in the third season episode "Before and After," this is the epic story of everything that could possibly go wrong, the ship and the crew completely degenerating, and not because of any enemy that has a particular problem with Voyager itself, but rather a regional problem that the series premise always had as a possibility, moreso than any other Star Trek crew might have expected, except maybe Enterprise.
It's Voyager as an opera. It's the later "Course: Oblivion" played out, and is uniquely effective, even if there's a reset bottom by necessity waiting at the end, BattleStar Galactica by way of Star Trek, why this was never done before and why even the third season of Enterprise waited until the end of the Xindi arc to finally duplicate it.
The weight of Janeway's command is a key element of the story, although this time it's nothing of the decisions she has to make (only the ones she has to make), as close as this series will ever get to a movie, and in fact the first time Voyager makes its own surrogate movies, when it became possible for Star Trek to present this kind of experience in its TV incarnations, which led to the epic Dominion War in Deep Space Nine and plenty more in Enterprise.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Notable guest-stars:
Kurtwood Smith
Memory Alpha summary.
Voyager 4x7 "Scientific Method"
*
"Scientific Method" is definitely one of those episodes you'd better at least like Star Trek to enjoy, because it was a story that could have been told in any of the series, and in fact was in most of them.
That being said, it's still worth a look, if only for that reason, for comparison by how Voyager tells this particular one, versus how it was done in, say, Next Generation ("Clues," for one), because it's fun to watch (hey, you'll watch a thousand crimes on a given CSI, but you won't do the same for Star Trek?), as aliens experiment on our crew, who tries to figures just what the heck is going on, and how to stop it.
I imagine that the show's creators were looking for exactly this kind of episode at this point in the season (otherwise, presumably they wouldn't have made it). Because at the heart of the TV franchise is exploration of wacky alien cultures, and sometimes the results are fairly typical.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Memory Alpha summary.
"Scientific Method" is definitely one of those episodes you'd better at least like Star Trek to enjoy, because it was a story that could have been told in any of the series, and in fact was in most of them.
That being said, it's still worth a look, if only for that reason, for comparison by how Voyager tells this particular one, versus how it was done in, say, Next Generation ("Clues," for one), because it's fun to watch (hey, you'll watch a thousand crimes on a given CSI, but you won't do the same for Star Trek?), as aliens experiment on our crew, who tries to figures just what the heck is going on, and how to stop it.
I imagine that the show's creators were looking for exactly this kind of episode at this point in the season (otherwise, presumably they wouldn't have made it). Because at the heart of the TV franchise is exploration of wacky alien cultures, and sometimes the results are fairly typical.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Memory Alpha summary.
Voyager 4x6 "The Raven"
**
For any of you cynics out there who started to believe that Seven of Nine came to unfairly dominate Voyager, it may be worth noting that her first true spotlight episode came a half dozen episodes into her first season, and it happened to be a strong character entry that delved into her background.
It's true. The things that were most fascinating to the writers early on about Seven (as opposed to what was fascinating to costume designers) were her development as an individual, and how exactly she'd become a drone in the Borg Collective in the first place. And it's really quite interesting, because just a season later, the title craft would be seen in action, and the exact circumstances that led it (and Seven) to this point in the first place.
I used to try and argue that Voyager was far better at multi-episode story arcs than it was given credit for, but I guess what fans actually wanted was a series like BattleStar Galactica, which pleased a small but vocal audience when BattleStar Galactica finally happened.
"The Raven" is the kind of episode that helps define what exactly the creators of Voyager thought would be interesting to do in the vein of what fans wanted, even if it wasn't exactly what they wanted (but then, small audiences can like whatever they want to).
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Memory Alpha summary.
For any of you cynics out there who started to believe that Seven of Nine came to unfairly dominate Voyager, it may be worth noting that her first true spotlight episode came a half dozen episodes into her first season, and it happened to be a strong character entry that delved into her background.
It's true. The things that were most fascinating to the writers early on about Seven (as opposed to what was fascinating to costume designers) were her development as an individual, and how exactly she'd become a drone in the Borg Collective in the first place. And it's really quite interesting, because just a season later, the title craft would be seen in action, and the exact circumstances that led it (and Seven) to this point in the first place.
I used to try and argue that Voyager was far better at multi-episode story arcs than it was given credit for, but I guess what fans actually wanted was a series like BattleStar Galactica, which pleased a small but vocal audience when BattleStar Galactica finally happened.
"The Raven" is the kind of episode that helps define what exactly the creators of Voyager thought would be interesting to do in the vein of what fans wanted, even if it wasn't exactly what they wanted (but then, small audiences can like whatever they want to).
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Memory Alpha summary.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Voyager 4x5 "Revulsion"
**
The nature of the Doctor as an artificial life-form was a dominant feature of not only the character but the series, something some fans liked to compare with Data from Next Generation. Yet I would argue that Voyager did more to seriously explore this than its predecessor, making it one of the elements I like to point to when trying to make the argument that the series deserves more respect than it generally gets.
In this episode, the Doctor runs into a Delta Quadrant hologram who metaphorically suggests that he could stand to get a little more respect from his own crew, because in the worst case scenario he could easily become taken for granted (and become homicidal!).
"Revulsion" is certainly episodic, not planting any obvious seeds for future stories, but it's a good reminder of what you can expect from even the most average Doctor entry. In short, he's another key member of the Voyager ensemble, easily the one the show's creators tended to support most consistently.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Notable guest-stars:
Leland Orser
Memory Alpha summary.
The nature of the Doctor as an artificial life-form was a dominant feature of not only the character but the series, something some fans liked to compare with Data from Next Generation. Yet I would argue that Voyager did more to seriously explore this than its predecessor, making it one of the elements I like to point to when trying to make the argument that the series deserves more respect than it generally gets.
In this episode, the Doctor runs into a Delta Quadrant hologram who metaphorically suggests that he could stand to get a little more respect from his own crew, because in the worst case scenario he could easily become taken for granted (and become homicidal!).
"Revulsion" is certainly episodic, not planting any obvious seeds for future stories, but it's a good reminder of what you can expect from even the most average Doctor entry. In short, he's another key member of the Voyager ensemble, easily the one the show's creators tended to support most consistently.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Notable guest-stars:
Leland Orser
Memory Alpha summary.
Voyager 4x4 "Nemesis"
*
Chakotay eventually became such an underrated character that his role was completely downplayed by fans, creators, and perhaps even actor Robert Beltram.
Yet like B'Elanna Torres he was always a go-to character for spotlight episodes, which is more evident in the early season. "Nemesis" is one of those transition episodes, where his dominant appearances become a little more random, relying more on the idea of the character than anything he might be able to say in the story itself, much less the fate of the crew's journey.
I would almost rate this as a franchise episode rather than a character episode, because it's a fairly generic experience, yet believing in the character of Chakotay, I will choose the distinction of character as a reason to watch this one, even though it does nothing more than use him as the lead.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Memory Alpha summary.
Chakotay eventually became such an underrated character that his role was completely downplayed by fans, creators, and perhaps even actor Robert Beltram.
Yet like B'Elanna Torres he was always a go-to character for spotlight episodes, which is more evident in the early season. "Nemesis" is one of those transition episodes, where his dominant appearances become a little more random, relying more on the idea of the character than anything he might be able to say in the story itself, much less the fate of the crew's journey.
I would almost rate this as a franchise episode rather than a character episode, because it's a fairly generic experience, yet believing in the character of Chakotay, I will choose the distinction of character as a reason to watch this one, even though it does nothing more than use him as the lead.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Memory Alpha summary.
Voyager 4x3 "Day of Honor"
*
Any episode of Voyager that spotlights B'Elanna Torres is sure to be a standout in some regard, usually (thanks to the always exceptional Roxanne Dawson) for the character herself, because she is more often than not tied up in her own personal journey.
This one has her experiencing a really bad day, which for B'Elanna is virtually a daily occurrence, certainly in the early seasons, yet it's a transitional moment, thanks to the fact that she finally finds herself willing to consider Tom Paris as a serious romantic interest, a development that dominates her role for the remainder of the series.
If you want to like the series, then watching any episode featuring B'Elanna will help you with that. She was consistently one of the most compelling characters on the show.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Memory Alpha Summary.
Any episode of Voyager that spotlights B'Elanna Torres is sure to be a standout in some regard, usually (thanks to the always exceptional Roxanne Dawson) for the character herself, because she is more often than not tied up in her own personal journey.
This one has her experiencing a really bad day, which for B'Elanna is virtually a daily occurrence, certainly in the early seasons, yet it's a transitional moment, thanks to the fact that she finally finds herself willing to consider Tom Paris as a serious romantic interest, a development that dominates her role for the remainder of the series.
If you want to like the series, then watching any episode featuring B'Elanna will help you with that. She was consistently one of the most compelling characters on the show.
Franchise * Series * Essential * Character
Memory Alpha Summary.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
