Story: State of Flux
Written By: Chris Abbott
Series: Star Trek: Voyager
Year: 1995
I think I just noticed one of the fundamental flaws of this particular series. Technobabble. It is always noted as one of the issues with the later Treks, but this episode had a moment that really pointed it out to me. When on the Kazon ship, there is some piece of machinery that uses some kind of particle or something that means ONLY the Federation use it. That’s how they determine it must be Starfleet. That it uses some similar kind of particles (or something). So some confusing technobabble explains that this must be Starfleet, whereas no one in this completely different quadrant could have POSSIBLY come up with something similar. Ridiculous.
You know what would have worked better and been a more striking image? Show the goddamn machine on this Kazon ship with a fucking Starfleet emblem on it! That would have made a hell of a lot more sense than the technobabble.
Beyond that this episode is actually kinda good. It deals with a spy on Voyager, and it turns out that it is the Bajoran Maquis member, and former lover of Chakotay, Seska. Then comes the big bombshell for Chakotay and the rest of the Maquis members of Voyager: she isn’t Bajoran…she is Cardassian.
Seska is actually an interesting villain for Voyager. I don’t really have any idea how her storyline in the show plays out, and I’m going to avoid finding out before watching the episodes, but I’m sure it disappears in favor of the Borg storylines that start up later.
NEXT TIME: Holo-Beowulf
Written By: Chris Abbott
Series: Star Trek: Voyager
Year: 1995
I think I just noticed one of the fundamental flaws of this particular series. Technobabble. It is always noted as one of the issues with the later Treks, but this episode had a moment that really pointed it out to me. When on the Kazon ship, there is some piece of machinery that uses some kind of particle or something that means ONLY the Federation use it. That’s how they determine it must be Starfleet. That it uses some similar kind of particles (or something). So some confusing technobabble explains that this must be Starfleet, whereas no one in this completely different quadrant could have POSSIBLY come up with something similar. Ridiculous.
Beyond that this episode is actually kinda good. It deals with a spy on Voyager, and it turns out that it is the Bajoran Maquis member, and former lover of Chakotay, Seska. Then comes the big bombshell for Chakotay and the rest of the Maquis members of Voyager: she isn’t Bajoran…she is Cardassian.
Seska is actually an interesting villain for Voyager. I don’t really have any idea how her storyline in the show plays out, and I’m going to avoid finding out before watching the episodes, but I’m sure it disappears in favor of the Borg storylines that start up later.
NEXT TIME: Holo-Beowulf