star trek voyager episode initiations cast

Initiations (episode)

• View history
• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 1.6 Act Five
• 2 Memorable quotes
• 3.1 Story development
• 3.3 Production
• 3.4 First airing and reception
• 3.5 Continuity
• 3.6 Video and DVD releases
• 4.1 Starring
• 4.2 Also starring
• 4.3 Guest Stars
• 4.4 Co-Star
• 4.5 Uncredited co-stars
• 4.6 Stunt doubles
• 4.7 Photo double
• 4.8 Stand-ins
• 4.9 References
• 4.10 External links

Summary [ ]

Commander Chakotay has asked Captain Janeway for the use of a Type 8 shuttlecraft so that he can perform a ritual on the anniversary of his father's death. While praying to speak to his father, the shuttlecraft drifts into Kazon-Ogla space . The main Kazon ship picks the shuttlecraft up on their scanners, and sends a young Kazon boy called Kar to destroy it and thus earn his Ogla name.

The commander is still in the middle of his ritual when the shuttle is rocked by phaser fire. After the shuttle's computer identifies the attacking vessel as Kazon, Chakotay hails the ship and tries to convince the pilot to cease firing on him. A young Kazon boy appears on the shuttle's viewer. " You are in Kazon-Ogla space, Federation . " Chakotay tells him that he is no threat and will leave. When told by the boy that no one who violates Kazon space simply leaves, Chakotay calls him "son" and remarks that his starship is only a few light years away. " I am not your son, Federation. I am your executioner! ", the Kazon youth states right before recommencing fire on Chakotay's shuttle.

Act One [ ]

After Chakotay warns the Kazon vessel a few times to stand down or risk destruction by his weapons, the ship continues its attack. Chakotay then outmaneuvers the small Kazon ship which Kar is on and fires phasers , disrupting the ship's engine core. With only thirty seconds left before the Kazon ship explodes, Chakotay scans the ship and finds one life sign. He locks on and beams aboard the survivor, who is revealed as Kar.

Unfortunately the battle has disabled the long range communications, lateral sensor array , and aft shields of the shuttle, so Chakotay starts flying to rendezvous with Voyager . Later, Kar wakes and is bound. He expresses disbelief that Chakotay did not kill him. " I'm not in the habit of killing children ", Chakotay says. He is confused about Kar's lack of gratitude. The shuttle then runs into the ship of First Maje Razik . Chakotay hails them and lets them know he has Kar aboard. The Kazon ship begins tractoring the shuttle in. Chakotay tries to escape but the shuttle's engines aren't nearly powerful enough. Kar looks on with fear and pleads with Chakotay to kill him because " there are worse things than dying in battle. "

Act Two [ ]

Voyager is in orbit of a planet gathering supplies and Captain Janeway is talking with Neelix in her ready room about the fact that he was left out the ship's recent holodeck defense simulations. She asks him to join her on the bridge to provide support. The bridge reports that the mission is going well, but when Ensign Harry Kim tries to hail Chakotay, he can get no response from the first officer . Janeway recalls all away teams and tells Paris to set course for Chakotay's last known position.

On the Kazon ship, Chakotay and Kar are dragged into a large room under guard. Chakotay demands to know why Kar is being guarded with him as a prisoner, but gets no response from Haliz , the First Maje's second in command. Kar begins berating Chakotay and threatening him, in an attempt to impress Haliz , but after no response, Kar demands to see Razik and is struck to the floor. Chakotay sees this and also demands to see him. Chakotay tells Kar it's because he is obviously the leader, whereupon Kar walks around the room pointing out Razik's trophies, such as a piece of a Nistrim hull from a destroyed ship and a bracelet belonging to a Kazon who killed Kar's brother – Jal Kinell , who Kar notes " earned his Ogla name by dying bravely in battle. " But, as Kar ruefully notes, he will not be able to earn his name in life or in death – and he has Chakotay to thank .

Razik himself then arrives and confronts Kar. Kar protests his loss was not his fault, but Razik berates him for making excuses and then forgives him, an act which obviously distresses Kar. Razik tells Chakotay he doomed Kar to disgrace by not allowing him to earn his name in life or death. Chakotay apologizes for that and for violating Kazon-Ogla space. He says there was no map marking this as their territory. Razik says maps are useless because the boundaries change every day. He goes on to explain that any uniform represents a threat to them because of their history of throwing off their oppressors . He then announces that the execution is scheduled for that night.

Act Three [ ]

When Voyager arrives at Chakotay's last known location, they discover metallic debris which could have come from a Starfleet shuttlecraft. Janeway orders it beamed aboard so B'Elanna Torres can analyze it. Paris asks if they're assuming Chakotay's shuttle was destroyed but Janeway rejects that assumption. Tuvok then locates an ion trail leading away from the debris site and they set course to follow.

Razik, Chakotay, and several Kazon children are present in the same audience room. Chakotay greets the children and repeats his messages about his peaceful intentions, but when Razik asks the children who would be willing to kill Chakotay, they all volunteer. Razik mocks Chakotay's attempts at reconciliation and then has a group bring Kar in. He repeats Kar's fate to not have a name, and then offers Chakotay a weapon, telling him that if he kills Kar, he is free to go. Chakotay seems to consider following through, but then he drops the weapon and takes Razik hostage, demanding to be set free. Razik tells everyone to let him run, and then Kar decides to join Chakotay in running.

They depart from the ship in the shuttle but come under fire quickly despite Kar trying to help Chakotay disable the ship's weapons. Kar keeps giving Chakotay information that would let him attack the Kazon, but Chakotay insists he's not going to start killing people. He asks the computer to locate a place to set down and the computer locates a nearby Class M moon. Kar tells Chakotay it is Tarok , used by the Ogla for training. Just then the shuttle's rear shields buckle and the shuttle is in danger of being destroyed. Chakotay says transporting to the moon is risky because of the distance. Then the shuttle is destroyed while falling towards the moon's atmosphere .

Just as Torres confirms that the debris they picked up is from a Kazon ship, the ion trail Voyager has been following dissipates. Voyager locates more debris, and when it is beamed aboard, it is showing markings that clearly identify it as being from Chakotay's shuttle.

Act Four [ ]

Chakotay and Kar regain consciousness on the surface of the moon. Kar again lays into Chakotay for not fighting, and Chakotay tells him that if all he's going to do is reiterate how much he doesn't like Chakotay, he should stay quiet. But Kar speaks up to save Chakotay from a hidden weapon; he reveals that, as a training site, the moon is littered with hidden weaponry, such as deadly disruptor snares , so Chakotay will have to follow Kar.

On Voyager , The Doctor confirms through a viewscreen in the briefing room that there is no organic material that would indicate Chakotay was killed in the shuttle explosion. Janeway mentions that there is a Class M moon nearby he may have beamed to, but there seems to be a lot of hidden weaponry. Kes and Neelix immediately recognize it as a Kazon training site. The energy from the weaponry is disrupting sensors and communication with the surface, so Captain Janeway requests Kes and Tuvok accompany her on a trip to the surface and leaves Paris in command of the ship while they try to find a way to cut through the interference.

On the surface, Chakotay and Kar have found a cave to spend the night in. Chakotay uses his tricorder to set up a homing beacon amid more banter from Kar about his wanting to kill Chakotay and steal his technology to make his name with the Kazon. Chakotay brushes off his posturing, comparing his efforts to earn his Starfleet uniform to Kar's efforts to earn his name. Kar rejects the comparison, and Chakotay suggests they attempt to get some sleep.

Sometime later Kar, unable to sleep, turns off the tricorder's homing beacon then takes his weapon and aims it at a sleeping Chakotay. Despite the perfect chance to kill Chakotay, Kar finds he cannot go through with it. He then returns the weapon and reactivates the beacon.

Act Five [ ]

In orbit, a Kazon vessel hails Voyager . Paris explains their presence and that they're looking for a missing crewman. Razik tells him that they killed Chakotay, by name, after he kidnapped a Kazon boy and asks them to leave. Neelix expresses disbelief at the lack of an attack, prompting the Kazon to threaten violence, but Neelix points out that it would be a massive risk to the Kazon security if a battle were waged near their training base, and that blowing up the weapons on the surface would be hideously expensive. The Kazon agree to allow Voyager to continue searching.

On the surface, Janeway and her team are following a trail when Razik, Haliz, and two other Kazon intercept them and say they are here to help due to the danger of the environment.

Back in the cave, Chakotay (who was actually awake) confronts Kar about his inability to kill him, saying he thinks Kar is realizing Chakotay is not his enemy. Chakotay asks Kar if he could go to another Kazon sect (of which Kar says there are eighteen at last check), but Kar says they would cut off his fingers and call him a goven , a word meaning an outcast. He also rejects going with Chakotay because it would mean leaving his home. Chakotay asks why the uniform causes such hatred and Kar briefly indicates the Kazon used to be all but slaves to the Trabe before they revolted 26 years prior . Then Chakotay's tricorder begins to signal that the others are close.

At the same time, Voyager breaks through the interference and Janeway asks if they can get a lock on Chakotay, Paris says they're working on it. The Kazon trick them and they end up caught in a force field, though Kes identifies the power source and they work on getting a phaser to punch through the field. In the cave, Chakotay tells Kar he's going to help him get his name and when Voyager contacts him, he tells them to prepare for a code white resuscitation, then reassures Kar that he can be revived as long as it is shortly after he is killed.

When the Kazon arrive, Kar has Chakotay at gunpoint. He tells Razik he wants to earn his name, but then declares that Chakotay is not his enemy and shoots Razik. Haliz is then First Maje, and he grants Kar a name, Jal Karden . They allow Voyager to depart, but not before Karden tells Chakotay that the next time they meet he won't hesitate to kill him. Chakotay understands. Chakotay, along with the away team, are beamed aboard Voyager .

In his quarters on Voyager , Chakotay sits on the floor with his medicine bundle unraveled. He holds up a stone with a CHAH-mooz-ee emblazoned on it, along with an akoonah and a blackbird 's wing laying in front of him. Chakotay then begins to pray to his father.

Memorable quotes [ ]

" Look, son. My starship is only a few light years away. " " I am not your son, Federation . I am your executioner! "

" Computer, damage report. " " Long-range communications, lateral sensor array, and aft shields are off-line. " " Great! "

" You should have let me die. " " I'm not in the habit of killing children. "

" And now Mr. Neelix, please join me on the bridge. " " Yes, sir. I mean, ma'am. Captain. "

" Why are you so eager for me to kill you? "

" Well, you just saved my life. Twice more and we'll be even. "

" Don't worry, captain. You can count on me to keep those nefarious Kazon at bay! "

" Get him something to eat. The execution is tonight. "

" You tell this Jal Razik that Federation Commander Chakotay demands to see him! "

" I'm afraid you would not score well on our training exercises. "

" What's so different about us? Aside from the fact that I keep saving your life and you keep threatening to kill me. "

" Why did you save him? It's a very ineffective way of waging war. "

" My people taught me a man does not own land. "

" You would rather die in your sleep, a wrinkled old man? " " Sounds about right. "

" You won't stop me from earning my name, Federation. " " Not Federation! Chakotay. That's my name. "

Background information [ ]

Story development [ ].

• This was the first episode for Star Trek: Voyager that executive story editor Kenneth Biller wrote alone, he having helped with the writing of the episodes " Elogium ", " Faces ", " Jetrel " and " Twisted ". This episode is not, however, the first for which he alone wrote the teleplay; he previously wrote the scripts for both "Faces" and "Twisted" by himself. In other words, this episode was the first for which he alone not only penned the script but also came up with the story idea.
• While working on this episode, Ken Biller described the story as "the Kazon put a hit out on Chakotay." ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 3 , p. 50)
• The episode was partly written as an attempt to remedy the fact that Voyager 's producers felt Chakotay had been underused in the first season . ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 6 )
• Another of the motives that Ken Biller, in particular, had for writing this episode was to give Chakotay some more action scenes, similar to how the character had been portrayed in " Caretaker ". " He's like a real action hero in the pilot, " Biller remarked, " and I think we need to give him some action stories–which I'm hoping to do in 'Initiations'. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 3 , p. 52)
• After Ken Biller turned in his first draft of this episode's script, executive producer Jeri Taylor wrote extensive notes on it. Another production staffer who was not completely happy with the installment's original script draft was Michael Piller , who was about to return to Voyager as an executive producer after having taken an extended vacation in which he had both co-created and co-executive produced the short-lived television series Legend . ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 76)
• Dissatisfied with the first draft of this episode's teleplay, Michael Piller offered to subsequently help Ken Biller with the writing of the episode. As such, the development of this episode involved an early instance of Piller acting on a crusade he had taken upon himself – specifically, to motivate the writing of Voyager 's second season. He called Biller on his own car phone and commented at length that, despite having been intended as an allegory to in-fighting Los Angeles street gangs, the Kazon were "coming across as kind of warmed-over Klingons ." Piller ended the call by telling Biller, " I want you to stop, don't write anything today, leave the office and go find some gang members or find a policeman who can take you to see some gang members. I'll talk to you about it tomorrow and see what you find out from the street. " Although Biller subsequently did not strictly adhere to this advice – thereafter having no direct contact with gang members – he did discover the book Monster: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member , written in prison by Sanyika "Monster" Shakur . This publication gave Biller useful insights into gang culture and peer pressure, inspiring the writing of this episode's second draft. Michael Piller commented, " Here we were, on the first day of prep and Ken started rewriting that script based on my feelings that we had to get to the guts of what drove the Kazon and they had to be different from Romulans and Cardassians and Klingons. " Piller concluded, " It was a choice of settling, or doing what I considered excellent work. The bottom line is we had a better show, because Ken did research. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, pp. 76 & 77)
• While developing this episode, Ken Biller also wrote an elaborate sociological backstory for the Kazon, such as their history and customs. The episodes that the article benefited included not only this one but also " Alliances ", a later episode of the second season (a season that is, in and of itself, Kazon-centric). Michael Piller commented, " That document came out of the research that Ken did for 'Initiations.' He felt it would be valuable – because we were going to invest a whole season into these guys – to provide writers with a clear backstory so everybody would be working from the same page. I think it influenced the season greatly. It was an enormous contribution. " Of the document, Jeri Taylor said, " It was quite thoughtful and very well worked out, and [the Kazon] looked quite interesting in that paper. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages )
• This episode's story itself was a problematic one for director Winrich Kolbe . He explained, " Storywise it was not the most interesting show I've ever done. It was a push. My problem with the Chakotay character was that I wanted to forget the Indian aspect and make him the Maquis that he was supposed to be. I knew Chakotay would have to eventually cooperate on the ship, but I hoped he would do it unwillingly most of the time. I talked to the writers about it, why we weren't playing that conflict. They went with the Indian thing, which was kind of intriguing, but in my opinion, never paid off because it was done too subtly. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 15 )
• This episode's final script draft was submitted on 10 July 1995 . [1]
• Aron Eisenberg (Kar) is much better known for his role as the Ferengi Nog on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . He was cast in this episode after a difficult casting process. Jeri Taylor recalled, " We gave ourselves a very difficult task by writing a part for a fourteen-year-old young man. We ended up casting Aron Eisenberg, who plays Nog on Deep Space Nine […] Aron is a wonderful actor, and we cast him because the boys that we read were simply not able to bring to it the richness and the depth that we wanted. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages ) Eisenberg himself commented, " I think some people out there have the misconception that they just gave me the part, which is not true; I actually had to audition for it. They couldn't find a kid to come up to the level that Kar needed to come up to, and they couldn't find an adult that looked young enough to play the kid. Finally they said, 'What about Aron, let's get him to audition,' and I was obviously what they were looking for, because I got the part. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 14 ) Eisenberg also remembered, " I auditioned for Kar. I think they were having trouble finding somebody that looked young enough that could handle the role, or that could handle the role. I was told Rick [Berman] said, 'Well what about Aron?' I think they wanted to bring me in for an audition for a long time, but because of Nog, they said, 'No. He's too known as Nog.' So they brought me in for the audition, I read for it, and I got it. I really had to read for it. They just didn't assume I would be able to do it. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 70)
• Although he alone put a lot of effort into his performance in this episode, Aron Eisenberg was also coached – to a debatable extent – by fellow DS9 actor Max Grodénchik . " I worked very hard on that episode, " Eisenberg later remembered. " Max was there to help me as my acting coach ("He did totally the opposite of everything I said and it turned out brilliantly!" jokes Grodénchik). " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 14 ) Eisenberg also said of his DS9 co-star, " He helped me work on that script a lot, but he said, 'You did nothing that I told you to do.' Max said that everything he said for me to do, I threw out the door, and I did something else. I disagree. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 19 )
• Before performing in this installment, Aron Eisenberg was already familiar with some of the other people who worked on the episode. " I knew most of the crew, because they used to work on Deep Space Nine when Next Generation was on, " Eisenberg explained. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 70) He additionally related, " Actually, the crew on ST:VOY was originally the ST:DS9 crew, so I pretty much knew the people, like Marvin Rush the DP [director of photography], and I also knew the director [Winrich Kolbe] who had worked on ST:DS9. I didn't really know the cast, but I worked mostly with [Chakotay actor] Robert Beltran . " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 14 )
• As his role in this episode is significantly different from the Star Trek character he usually played, Aron Eisenberg felt that he didn't have to consciously differ the two roles. " It was the other extreme of Nog, " Eisenberg said of Kar. " I wasn't worried at all about having Nog come out, because I knew Nog's character, I knew all his idiosyncrasies. This is a completely different character. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 70)
• During the making of this episode, Aron Eisenberg had an encounter with Patrick Stewart that was apparently pleasant for both actors. Eisenberg recalled, " I got to meet Patrick Stewart. When I went into looping, I met him and he gave me a compliment. He was really a nice guy. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 70)
• Aron Eisenberg's experience of acting in "Initiations" was generally very pleasant and, ultimately, he was thankful for the role of Kar. Shortly after he worked on the episode, Eisenberg noted, " I got to work on Star Trek: Voyager this past season, which was even more of a plus [than the merits of portraying Nog on DS9]. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 14 ) Eisenberg further explained, " I was so lucky to have that part. It was so much fun. I had such a blast working on that show […] It was finally something really meaty that I had, and something that I didn't ever think I'd get to play, because of being short or looking younger. I never thought I'd be able to play a character where he's really trying to kill someone. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 70)
• Aron Eisenberg also enjoyed featuring on the Star Trek series that was running concurrently with a series that was in the same franchise but with which he was much more familiar. He admitted, " I now feel that I have something extra that the other actors don't have: the opportunity of being on the other show, and getting the whole spectrum. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 14 ) Eisenberg also observed, " It's like one huge family with two separate entities. It was fun to go to both and feel like I've been both places in Star Trek . I'll forever have that niche, that I got to be on both shows. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 70)
• Another of this episode's highlights for Aron Eisenberg was working with Robert Beltran. At the 2001 Galaxy Ball charity Star Trek convention – organized by Beltran – Eisenberg was asked to name his favorite Voyager actor and replied, " This is gonna sound like brown-nosing, but Robert Beltran. We had such fun on the episode 'Initiations.' " ( Star Trek Magazine issue 89, p. 30) Eisenberg elaborated, " Me and Robert [Beltran] were just goofing around the whole time. It's funny, you know, you've got such an intense role, and yet we're laughing and having a good time. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 70) In summation, Eisenberg noted, " We had a wonderful time. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 14 ) For his part, Beltran said of their relationship, " Aron and I had a lot of fun. He's a very funny guy. It was like working with Don Rickles , because he's very quick-witted and not afraid to cut you down. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 7 ) In addition, Beltran remarked, " We both had a good time. Aron's a lot of fun to work with. He's a very funny man, with a lot of talent. He's got a wide range and he can do a lot of things. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5|99)
• This episode is the first in a triumvirate of Season 2 Chakotay-centric episodes that Robert Beltran enjoyed (the others being " Tattoo " and " Maneuvers "). Beltran remarked, " I thought those three were really fine scripts. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 99) Although Beltran was appreciative of this episode's plot, he wanted the influence that his character of Chakotay had on Kar to be gentler than he imagined the episode's audience would want. Beltran said of 'Initiations', " I enjoyed that one very much because there was a nice moral at the end of the story. For me, it was an interesting acting exercise. When I was reading the script, I felt that the audience would want me to act a little mad. But I wanted to bring that in and check that at every turn. Instead of just physically reprimanding him, I wanted Chakotay to face [the Kazon boy] with a little more patience and little more tenderness, and try to change him that way. Of course, Chakotay's plan didn't quite work in the end. But it was a fun relationship between Chakotay and the Kazon boy [Kar] and it revealed a lot about Chakotay. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 20 )
• Robert Beltran believed that this episode did a good job of encapsulating Chakotay's persona. " It summed up in one episode basically what Chakotay is about as a person, " the actor commented. " It started off with him on a vision quest, on a journey to connect with his father. He's then faced with a crisis and he deals with it as if nothing else exists but how are we going to solve the problem. He comes face to face with a person who tried to kill him, and yet he doesn't harbor hatred. He realizes the kid comes from a different culture and is a little troubled. I think that episode showed that he's willing to accept and embrace people. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 7 )
• Aron Eisenberg ultimately thought his own performance here was very successful, such as with Voyager 's team of writer-producers. " They were really happy with it, " he recalled. " I felt very fortunate, because I was fairly muscular, which was good for a warrior kid. It was really weird to see my asset – being older and looking younger and even muscular – which is not going to work in the real world, but was certainly perfect for this character. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 14 ) Eisenberg also noted, " I was really proud of it. They were really proud of it, the producers and everybody. It made me feel good to know that I came in and was able to do it. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 70)
• Aron Eisenberg and Patrick Kilpatrick ( Razik ) later appeared together in the DS9 episode " The Siege of AR-558 ", also directed by Winrich Kolbe.

Production [ ]

• This was actually the first episode produced for the second season . The previous episode, " The 37's ", was filmed as part of the first season .
• Voyager 's production team were highly affected by the extreme changes to this episode's story, as they necessitated alterations in set design and shooting schedules. Michael Piller recalled, " Basically they had to change the whole thing overnight. By the time that week was over the production people were beside themselves. I was called into a meeting and told 'You basically threw this entire unit into chaos.' I said 'I did it because the script wasn't good enough and we had to make the show better.' […] The unit–all the people that sit in production meetings making plans, designing sets–suffered probably for weeks because I was disruptive. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 77)
• The filming of this episode began on 11 July, 1995 . ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 8 )

A moment from this episode's location shoot

• The outdoor scenes of this episode were shot on location at Vasquez Rocks Natural Area Park . [2] Restricted by union rules to only use locations within a radius of 37 miles from Paramount studios, the producers were careful to avoid showing the most well known of the location's jagged peaks. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, pp. 77-78)

First airing and reception [ ]

• This episode achieved a Nielsen rating of 5.9 million homes, and a 10% share. [3] (X) The installment also achieved an NTI (National Television Index) rating of 8.3. ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 11 , p. 14)
• In common with " Non Sequitur ", the reason why this episode aired when it did was to capitalize on the location work involved in the installment, because – of the first six episodes in the season's final airing order – three (" Projections ", " Elogium " and " Twisted ") were bottle shows held over from the previous season. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 76)
• In the lead-up to this episode's VHS release, Star Trek Magazine reviewer Stuart Clark wrote a review of this episode, mentioning his opinion of Aron Eisenberg's appearance as Kar. Remarked Clark, " Viewers with good hearing will certainly recognise the young Kazon […] Here, he's in a very different role but plays it just as convincingly. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 12 , p. 62)
• Cinefantastique gave this installment 2 and a half out of 4 stars. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 77) Thomas Doherty, one of the magazine's writers, criticized the appearance of Aaron Eisenberg in the role of Kar as "confusing" and wasn't any fonder of the episode's portrayal of Chakotay. " In 'Initiations', he behaved like a patient high school counselor towards a young warrior who insulted and repeatedly tried to kill him, " Doherty complained. " One longed for him to display Kirk 's regressive machismo and deck the brat. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 27, No. 4/5, pp. 65 & 66)
• The unauthorized reference book Delta Quadrant (p. 69) scored the episode 7 out of 10.
• Regarding her opinion of this episode in general, Jeri Taylor noted, " I thought it was reasonably successful. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages )
• Ultimately, the recognizability of Aron Eisenberg proved to be too obvious to many fans. The actor himself offered, " On the Internet people say, 'I could tell it was his voice.' I say, 'Come on people, it's the same person.' " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 76) Jeri Taylor explained, " More people were aware of [Eisenberg's DS9 role] than I would have thought. He didn't look anything the same, but he has a very distinctive voice. It broke the suspension of disbelief and made people say not, 'Oh, there's a young man in pain,' but, 'Oh, it's Nog from Deep Space Nine .' As soon as the mind is doing that, it's not involved in the story […] We got the good actor, but we got a recognizable one. " ( Captains' Logs Supplemental - The Unauthorized Guide to the New Trek Voyages ) Additionally, Taylor admitted, " We thought that because he was so heavily prosthetized in this show and in DS9 that he wouldn't look anything like he did, but he does have a distinctive voice. People who know both shows picked up on that. Some thought it was cool that we were doing an homage to DS9. " Michael Piller commented, " We made a very big mistake in casting Aron Eisenberg because his voice is so recognizable that it took anybody watching both shows out of the episode. His performance was wonderful, but I think it was just a casting mistake. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 78)
• Perhaps partly due to this issue, Aron Eisenberg doubted that he would reprise his role of Kar in Star Trek: Voyager , despite having a desire to do so. He said, "Voyager is going in one direction, and I don't think Kar is going to meet them somewhere else, which is unfortunate. It was a fun character. I always hope to play it again. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 28, No. 4/5, p. 70)

Continuity [ ]

• This is the third episode in which Voyager encounters the Kazon after " Caretaker " and " State of Flux ", and the second in which it encounters the Kazon-Ogla sect after " Caretaker ".
• The new TR-590 Tricorder X and the redesigned type 2 phaser appear for the first time in this episode, although how Voyager was able to procure these newer models when it was cut off from the Federation was never explained.
• This is the first episode in which a shuttlecraft from Voyager is confirmed destroyed. Voyager would go on to lose 11 shuttles over the course of the series.
• Chakotay 's medicine bundle is lost in this episode, either destroyed along with his shuttle or pillaged by the Kazon-Ogla . Upon returning to Voyager , he uses what must be another replicated medicine bundle.
• This is the first episode to show Tom Paris in command of Voyager in the absence of Janeway, Chakotay and Tuvok.

Video and DVD releases [ ]

• UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 2.1, 26 February 1996
• As part of the VOY Season 2 DVD collection

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway

Also starring [ ]

• Robert Beltran as Commander Chakotay
• Roxann Biggs-Dawson as Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres
• Jennifer Lien as Kes
• Robert Duncan McNeill as Lieutenant Tom Paris
• Ethan Phillips as Neelix
• Robert Picardo as The Doctor
• Tim Russ as Lieutenant Tuvok
• Garrett Wang as Ensign Harry Kim

Guest Stars [ ]

• Aron Eisenberg as Kar
• Patrick Kilpatrick as Razik
• Tim deZarn as Haliz

Co-Star [ ]

• Majel Barrett as Computer Voice

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• Steve Crawford as Kazon-Ogla guard
• Christine Delgado as Susan Nicoletti
• Heather Ferguson as command officer
• Kazon-Ogla guard
• Operations officer
• Robert Godinez as Kazon-Ogla boy
• James Hartman as Kazon-Ogla boy
• Stan Ivar as Mark Johnson (photo)
• Julie Jiang as operations lieutenant junior grade
• Jordan Monheim as sciences officer
• Louis Ortiz as Culhane
• John Parsons as Michael Parsons
• Rob Plaza as operations officer
• Regina Richardson as operations officer
• Phillip Riddick as Kazon-Ogla boy
• Daunette Saunders as operations officer
• Mark Smith as Kazon-Ogla guard
• Rod Wallace as operations officer
• Jeff Witzke as operations officer
• Unknown actor as Kazon-Ogla guard #3 (voice)
• Unknown actor as Kazon-Ogla guard #2 (voice)

Stunt doubles [ ]

• David Balcorta as stunt double for Robert Beltran
• Tom Morga as stunt double for Patrick Kilpatrick

Photo double [ ]

• Unknown actor – photo double for Robert Beltran

Stand-ins [ ]

• Chris Blackwood – stand-in for Aron Eisenberg
• Michael Braveheart – stand-in for Robert Beltran and Patrick Kilpatrick
• Steve Crawford – stand-in for Tim deZarn
• Debbie David – stand-in for Robert Duncan McNeill
• Heather Ferguson – stand-in for Roxann Biggs-Dawson
• Ken Gruz – stand-in for Tim deZarn
• Sue Henley – stand-in for Kate Mulgrew
• Susan Lewis – stand-in for Roxann Biggs-Dawson
• Maggie – stand-in for Robert Godinez, James Hartman and Phillip Riddick
• John Parsons – stand-in for Patrick Kilpatrick
• Brian Paxton – stand-in for Tim deZarn
• Lemuel Perry – stand-in for Tim Russ
• Richard Sarstedt – stand-in for Robert Beltran and Robert Picardo
• Jennifer Somers – stand-in for Jennifer Lien
• Simon Stotler – stand-in for Ethan Phillips
• John Tampoya – stand-in for Garrett Wang

References [ ]

2346 ; 2359 ; 2370 ; adventurer ; A-koo-chee-moya ; alloy ; anniversary ; Ayala ; Ayala's sons ; bearing ; biomagnetic trap ; booby trap ; bracelet ; brain dead ; Calogan dog ; Chakotay's tribe ; chef ; child ; class M ; code white resuscitation ; dampening field ; defense simulation ; Delta Quadrant ; disruptor snare ; duranium ; electroceramic ; engine core ; engine power ; escape pod ; executioner ; explorer ; expression ; Federation ; Federation uniform ; flight plan ; force field ; goven ; guide ; heart ; holodeck ; Human expression ; Jal ; Kar's spacecraft ; Kazon carrier vessel ; Kazon-Nistrim ; Kazon-Ogla ; Kazon-Ogla space ( Ogla space , Kazon-Ogla territory ); Kazon-Relora ; Kazon fighter (aka Kazon spacecraft , Kazon vessel ); Kazon frigate ; Kazon warrior ; kilometer ; Kinell ; Kinell's slayer ; Kolopak ; lateral sensor array ; leader ; logic ; long-range communications ; long-range sensors ; magnesite ; markings ; medicine bundle ; meter ; micro-generator ; Mollie ; morale officer ; navigational scan ; pakra ; path ; phaser ; plaxan sensor ; polyduranide ; proton discharger ; radiothermic interference ; revolt ; skin ; slayer ; son ; strategist ; Starfleet uniform ; strategist ; system with Kazon-Ogla moon ; Talaxian ; Tarok ; Tarok's primary ; Trabe ; Trabe homeworld ; tractor beam ; tractor force ; training exercise ; transporter ; transporter lock ; trespassing ( trespasser ); tricorder ; tunic ; surrender ; Type 8 shuttlecraft ( unnamed ); wrinkle

External links [ ]

• " Initiations " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• " Initiations " at Wikipedia
• "Intiations" at StarTrek.com
• " Initiations " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
• " Initiations " at the Internet Movie Database
• 2 ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

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Where culture goes POP!

Star Trek: Voyager (1995) – The 37s, and Initiations

Captain’s log: stardate 48975.1

Jerit Taylor and Brannon Braga pen the season opener for the second season of Voyager. The episode debuted on  28 August 1995, and took on a mystery that used to boggle many a mind.

Strangeness rears its head when the starship, still trying to find its way home, comes across a 1936 Ford truck floating in the Delta Quadrant. This in turn leads them to a planet where Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) and the rest, discover several humans from Earth cryogenically frozen, including Amelia Earhart (Sharon Lawrence).

Who froze them? and why?

Earhart and Janeway are kindred spirits, and it’s nice to see that they have a few moments together throughout the story. The crew also has to wrestle with the decision of whether or not to stay on the planet once the 37s and the inhabitants of the planet are revealed.

The episode features the first depiction of a Federation starship landing on the surface of the planet. It was designed to be part of the first season, as indicated by the stardate, but production was evidently delayed, and it was repositioned as the season two opener.

And while there are similarities between this episode and the close of the second season of The Next Generation with The Neutral Zone, this one seems to work a bit better, and the thawed humans in this story are definitely more interesting.

Captain’s log: stardate 49005.3

Kenneth Biller wrote this episode that debuted on 4 September, 1995. The story lets Robert Beltran’s Chakotay take center stage when he is captured (eventually) by a young Kazon, Kar (Aron Eisenberg – on a break from playing Nog on Deep Space Nine) who is going through a coming of age ritual.

The pair are both caught up in rituals as the episode begins, one of remembrance, one coming of age, but both of a spiritual nature as defined by their cultures, and while the Kazon may be different, Chakotay, even as he is seized by the Kazon, realizes that the young Kazon is not so dissimilar.

The duo may never get to their respective homes, even as Voyager attempts to track down their lost first officer.

While the Kazon haven’t always been my favorite alien species seen in Trek, they are actually rounded out fairly nicely in this episode, and Kar serves as a nice counterpoint to Eisenberg’s Nog.

Next week the Human Adventure continues as I dive into season four of Deep Space Nine, and continue the journey home with Voyager season two with The Complete Series for both classic shows, now available on DVD from Paramount Pictures.

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Initiations

Stardate: 49005.3 While performing a ritual to honor the anniversary of his father's death, Chakotay's shuttlecraft unknowingly violates Kazon-Ogla space. He becomes the target of Kar, a young Kazon boy undergoing a manhood ritual to earn his warrior name and place among his people.

Aron Eisenberg

Patrick Kilpatrick

Tim De Zarn

Majel Barrett Roddenberry

Cast appearances.

Kate Mulgrew

Robert Beltran

Roxann Dawson

Jennifer Lien

Robert Duncan McNeill

Ethan Phillips

Robert Picardo

Garrett Wang

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Star Trek: Voyager – Initiations (Review)

This September and October, we’re taking a look at the jam-packed 1994 to 1995 season of Star Trek , including Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and  Star Trek: Voyager . Check back daily for the latest review.

Broadcast as the second episode of the second season, Initiations was the first episode produced as part of the second season of Star Trek: Voyager . As three of the four shows carried over from the first season – Projections , Elogium and Twisted – were essentially budget-saving bottle shows, the plan was to shuffle some location-heavy episodes into the broadcast order to offer something a bit more exciting and engaging.

Initiations also marked the return of producer Michael Piller to the fold. Piller had left Voyager mid-way through the first season to work on another science-fiction show for UPN. After Legend was cancelled, Piller returned to work on Voyager and found himself presiding over a very troubled second season. The second season of Voyager would be the last time that Piller was actively involved in a season of Star Trek , and so it feels like a pretty momentous occasion for the franchise.

While not spectacular, and suffering from some lingering Kazon-related problems, Initiations is still an effective forty-five minutes of television.

Stargazing…

The Kazon were originally envisioned as a metaphor for Los Angeles street gangs. As Michael Piller explained to Cinefantastique :

The Kazon were intended to be [like] Los Angeles street gangs. We were living in a time still under the influence of the riots in Los Angeles that terrified us all. It seemed to me an extraordinarily interesting idea to have an area of space that was ruled by anarchy, not just anarchy, but young anarchy. My original vision for the Kazon was that none of them would live beyond the age of twenty because they killed each other off in these continuing battles for territory and superiority. Youth was all they knew. When we got there, we were surrounded by these wild, young, street-gang kind of people who were not technically superior to us. But through their massive numbers and ruthlessness, they became extraordinarily difficult for us to deal with.

However, that metaphor never quite worked.

It’s weird how comfortable Janeway is with Paris sitting in her chair…

On a basic level, Star Trek: Voyager was a product of the mid-nineties. It was being produced in a culture that was still unsure how to respond to gangland violence. The Los Angeles riots had left a considerable scar on popular consciousness, and the issue of the city’s gangs quickly became racially charged. It is very hard to find a depiction of street gangs in mainstream nineties television that doesn’t come with uncomfortable racial baggage. Even Star Trek: Deep Space Nine had struggled when trying to deal with the issue through metaphor in The Abandoned .

While the idea of treating the Kazon like street gangs was questionable, the execution was somewhat flawed. Unable to find young actors capable of carrying off these sorts of roles, Voyager typically cast its major Kazon characters as older males. Coupled with their tendency towards violence and their forehead ridges, the Kazon very much seemed like a cheap knock-off of the Klingons. Given that Deep Space Nine was about to kick off a major arc with actual Klingons, this was not ideal for Voyager .

A Maj-or problem…

Discussing the production of Initiations with Cinefantastique , Piller conceded the similarities:

These guys are supposed to be based on this anarchy that comes with street gangs. All these sects are broken off from a common goal. They are now fighting each other over the same kinds of things that L.A. street gangs are fighting over and yet they are coming across as kind of warmed-over Klingons. All this sort of deep warrior, honor stuff is getting tiresome.

As such, Piller took an active hand in trying to get Initiations back into shape.

Kids these days…

That involved trying to push the Kazon back into the mold of the street gangs instead of simply “warmed-over Klingons.” He instructed Kenneth Biller to try and spend some time in downtown Los Angeles, talking with police officers and gang members. While Biller didn’t follow that advice, he did re-work the script to emphasise the elements drawn from Los Angeles street gang culture. The result is that Initiations feels a lot closer to Michael Piller’s original concept for the Kazon, even if that concept remains vaguely troubling.

Initiations spends a lot of time with Kazon youth. Chakotay estimates Kar’s age as about thirteen. While the production team cast twenty-six-year-old Deep Space Nine veteran Aron Eisenberg in the role, the focus on a young is clearly an attempt to evoke the relatively young age of street gang members. Indeed, there’s a scene with young actors playing young Kazon that underscores this point, suggesting that the Kazon are taught to kill from a young age. The eponymous “initiation” – which amounts to little more than “blood in” – and the idea of “earning” a name underscore these similarities.

Spectre of a gun…

As with a lot of nineties pop culture dealing with issues like gangs, there’s a sense of sensationalism in Initiations . The nineties saw an explosion in urban mythology surrounding the street gangs – including various brutal initiations and cruel schemes . Watching the episode – as with most of the other Kazon episodes – it’s hard to imagine what Kazon society must look like. Based on what we see, all the Kazon do is wander from star system to star system trying to murder one another. There’s no wider context for their actions, no exploration of what their culture is actually about.

Despite the fact that the Kazon operate ships that can cross significant distances, there’s no justification for why they are always so resource-starved and desperate. The Kazon should at least be able to transport water across the stars, even if they don’t seem to settle on many of the resource-rich planets that Voyager has encountered on its travels. Initiations carefully codes the Kazon as African-American, offering a history that includes slavery and oppression.

Piecing it all together…

Discussing the Trabe, Kar tells Chakotay, “They had everything, we had nothing, until we took it from them in the revolt, twenty six years ago.” This is a statement that immediately evokes the African-American experience in the United States – and some uncomfortable white anxieties about that experience. Media coverage of the Los Angeles riots were racially loaded – focusing on violence committed by black residents of the city against white law enforcement officials . (While more than half of the arrests made were Latino, prompting Joan Petersilia to observe, “This was clearly not a black riot. It was a minority riot.” )

With this racial element in play, the Los Angeles riots sparked fears among the white middle-class residents of the city. It’s hard not to contextualise the Kazon in light of that sensationalism and uncertainty. Initiations certainly plays into those issues, given the obvious parallels between Kazon history and the history of African-Americans in the United States – to say nothing of comments given by Michael Piller in various interviews.

A rocky relationship…

Unfortunately, this is a very superficial (and racially-charged) way of looking at the Los Angeles street gang issue. While African-Americans have a long history of being abused and oppressed – with slavery standing as perhaps the most obvious example – the riots of 1992 and the emergence of gang culture were not simply a response to historical inequity. They were a result of contemporary pressures rooted in those historical inequalities.

Initiations takes pains to code the Kazon as African-American and as gang members, but with no real insight beyond the obvious. The Kazon are just a curiosity for the audience to gaze at as Voyager travels through their space. In many respects, Voyager feels like a science-fiction throwback – and the handling of the Kazon is certainly part of it. Trying to link gang violence to historical slavery feels like a decision to glosses over a century of history and also avoids any probing examination of modern culture.

A stunning entrance…

That said, Initiations does use the Kazon to make some interesting points. The episode is anchored in moral relativism – the idea that the Federation cannot seek to impose its own values and cultural norms on a civilisation that it believes to be barbaric. Chakotay is appalled by the way that the Kazon raise their young, but he also accepts that it is not his place to impose his own morality on them. This doesn’t mean that he has to partake in their rituals – he refuses to kill Kar – but it does mean he can respect Kar’s own beliefs.

In a confrontation with Chakotay, Razik explains that Voyager’s very presence is a threat to the Kazon. “You may not think you’re at war with us, Federation Commander Chakotay, but everything you are is a threat to us,” he informs Chakotay. “The Kazon fought long and hard for their independence from uniforms like yours.” The victims of self-righteous oppression, the Kazon are understandably uneasy at the prospect of being told how to live their lives by a society that deems itself superior. “Your uniforms, your laws, your technology. You are not welcome here.”

Kar-ry on…

Razik is dealing direction with what he sees as Federation imperialism; he is wary of how foreign values could corrupt and weaken Federation culture. It’s to the credit of Initiations that the episode allows some support for his position. It is quite telling that, for all their advanced technology, Janeway and the away team still walk into a simple trap set by the Kazon. Their technology makes them complacent and over-confident. Janeway doesn’t even feel the need to let Razik lead the way.

The episode doesn’t end with Chakotay convincing Kar to adopt a Federation perspective. As much as Chakotay tries to use his advanced technology to manufacture a happy ending that will satisfy everybody – to the point where he is willing to die to help Kar – things don’t play out as he expects. Kar brutally murders Razik. Kar is almost killed for this crime, but is spared when he swears fidelity to the new Maj. Kar has committed himself to a life of bloodshed and brutality; Razik is dead. This is not a happy ending, at least not from a Federation perspective.

The way of the gun…

It’s a surprisingly effective way of closing out the episode, one which allows the Kazon a bit more integrity than the other stories focusing on these Delta Quadrant aliens. It clever avoids playing to stereotypes of the “noble savage” or any of the other problems that  Star Trek occasionally has with its proud warrior races; the Kazon teach their children to kill, they lie and manipulate and scheme. At the same time, the episode also accepts that there are important moral questions about trying to impose your worldview on other cultures.

In this respect, building Initiations around Chakotay is a very clever decision. Chakotay is a character with whom Voyager has a great deal of trouble; it’s very easy to pander to stereotypes while writing Chakotay. Episodes like The Cloud and Cathexis and Tattoo seem downright exploitative in their use of Chakotay’s Native American heritage. Putting Chakotay in an episode with the Kazon could easily be a massive disaster. However, Initiations wisely steers clear of most of the new age mysticism that has plagued Chakotay’s character.

Shattered expectations…

Instead it finds a way to focus on Chakotay’s Native American origins without turning him into a walking stereotype. Having Razik accuse Chakotay of cultural imperialism is a rather wonderful twist. More than any other member of the main cast, Chakotay can empathise with fear and distrust of those in uniforms. Given the history of Native Americans and also the history of Chakotay’s colony in the DMZ, the character has reason to be wary of outsiders trying to impose their own philosophy on indigenous people – and so accusing Chakotay of that sort of conduct is delicious.

Many of the show’s stronger Chakotay stories are built around this clever juxtaposition of imperialism and expansionism against his own heritage and origin. In the fourth season, the underrated episode Nemesis throws Chakotay into a war not too dissimilar to Vietnam, where Chakotay stands in for the minorities recruited for Vietnam – soldiers effectively fighting an ideological war for a nation that treated them as second-class citizens.

Looks like somebody had a hit on the Nog-gin…

And so Initiations manages to tie all this discussion of perceived Federation imperialism back to Chakotay’s origins and perspective. Having Chakotay – wearing a Starfleet uniform – accused of cultural imperialism is an effective image. It’s a nice way of underscoring how the attitudes of Star Trek as a franchise have evolved over the past few decades. Kirk would not have hesitated to bring the entire Kazon culture crashing down, accepting his own moral authority as unquestionable. Chakotay is a product of a different set of experiences.

When Kar accuses Chakotay of attempting to claim Kazon space, he is infuriated. “Let me tell you something,” he begins. “I have no interest in your territory or anybody else’s. My people taught me a man does not own land. He doesn’t own anything but the courage and loyalty in his heart. That’s where my power comes from.” It’s a cliché speech, but it’s effective. It does a nice job of tying Chakotay’s character origins into the more advanced philosophical outlook of the nineties Star Trek franchise. While Kirk seemed to be trying to expand the Federation’s sphere of influence, Voyager is not on a mission to annex territory or stake claims.

Isn’t it a bit weird we never really meet a female Kazon outside of a group shot in Caretaker?

Initiations had a rather painful gestation process. Michael Piller had returned to Voyager after the cancellation of Legends , and found the writing room in disarray. As he explained to Cinefantastique , he was unsatisfied with the episodes carried over from the first season:

“I felt the four shows from last year were very average shows,” said executive producer Michael Piller. “Of the first three new scripts, the first was already in prep and there were serious problems with the other two. We had to move the number two show to number four and the number three to number two, so we were already having script problems at the beginning of this season. We had no stories in development. We had the first three scripts, one other script, and then nothing after that. We had several nuggets — little threads of stories some of which were okay and some of which were not — but there was clearly a lack of development. I don’t know, I guess I was responding emotionally to a difficult circumstance and I just rolled up my sleeves and said ‘I’m going to throw myself into this body and soul.’ I know what I think makes a TV show work and what makes Star Trek work. The problem is when you are in prep there is a time limit. And when there are 26 shows and no stories in development, there is a voice inside of me that says, ‘Get going!!’ I was willing to be the guy who says ‘It’s not good enough’ and Jeri was very upset that I would take that role, that I would be willing to be a bad guy if that’s what it took to get the things moving here again.”

Piller adopted the same curt no-nonsense approach he had taken on The Next Generation , trying to whip that show into shape.

“Warmed over Klingons? What do you mean? Our hairstyles are completely different!”

As he confessed, this did not earn him many friends. Initiations was a painful process for all involved, although Piller argued that it did produce a better episode in the end:

Remembered Piller, “Basically they had to change the whole thing overnight. By the time that week was over the production people were beside themselves. I said ‘I did it because the script wasn’t good enough and we had to make the show better.’ As I said, I was extremely disruptive. The unit — all the people that sit in production meetings making plans, designing sets — suffered probably for weeks because I was disruptive, but it was a choice of settling, or doing what I considered excellent work. The bottom line is we had a better show, because Ken did research. If you want to look at a success story this year, all you have to do is look at Ken Biller’s work during the last 12 months and see how strong a writer he has become as a result of moving from what we were doing before to writing provocative, thought-provoking material.”

While Piller’s perfectionist approach had helped to save The Next Generation , turning around the quality of the show almost overnight, it did not work the same way on Voyager .

Kar drives home a point…

Piller was a producer who could be difficult at times. Even the writers who have nothing but affection for Michael Piller will concede that he could be a bit rough at times. Ronald D. Moore and Ira Steven Behr have both talked about Piller’s lack of skill at sugar-coating his opinion. (Recalling one script meeting on the In Memoriam feature, Moore remembers Piller’s opening line: “I don’t do good notes, so let’s get straight to the bad…” )

Piller’s lack of delicacy had caused no shortage of controversy on  The Next Generation ; by the end of the third season (in the wake of an infamous  “how to write a teleplay” memo), the more experienced writers – including Melinda Snodgrass, Richard Manning and Hans Beimler – had resigned from staff. There was a massive overhaul of the writing staff on The Next Generation between the third and fourth seasons.

Alliances…

However, the situation on Voyager was a lot different than on The Next Generation . Piller was no longer dealing with relative newcomers working on a show that was floundering from a creative standpoint. Quite a lot of the staff on Voyager had been working on the franchise since The Next Generation . Voyager was a high-profile show at UPN, the only show from the network’s first evening broadcast to return from a second season. The staff probably felt quite comfortable on the prestigious assignment.

In contrast, Michael Piller had been going through a bit of a rough patch with Star Trek . He was not involved in the production of Star Trek: Generations . He had officially handed over the reigns on Deep Space Nine to Ira Steven Behr, another veteran of the third season of The Next Generation . He had left during the first season of Voyager to launch  Legend , his own science-fiction show on UPN; he was returning following the cancellation of that show. It is easy to see how Piller’s return might have ruffled some of the wrong feathers, and why the second season of Voyager would wind up as his last season of televised Star Trek .

“Stick close, I think I saw a Gorn around here…”

Still, all of that lies ahead. As the first script of the show’s second season, Initiations works quite well. It’s not a bold season premiere, but it is a reasonable well-constructed hour of television. Chakotay feels like more of a character here than he has since Caretaker . Indeed, Robert Beltran does quite a nice job with the snarky and sarcastic version of Chakotay we haven’t seen since Caretaker . Although quite similar to Riker, “wry Chakotay” is a much more interesting character than “generically mystical Chakotay.”

The episode also moves relatively quickly, benefiting from a reasonably tight script. Although it certainly doesn’t compare to the action sequences from The Way of the Warrior , there are some nice space action sequences on display. The production design is pretty great; the location work at the Vasquez Rocks (from  Arena , among others) feels like a throwback to good old pulpy Star Trek . It’s nice to get a glimpse of Chakotay as an action hero, especially since “rebel hero Chakotay” is generally downplayed so the show can focus on “stereotypically Native American Chakotay.”

To be fair, most other initiates probably aren’t asked to kill a member of the regular cast of a long-running television show in its second season…

Initiations is not a classic, but it’s a solidly-constructed episode. It’s a lot tighter and more effective than most Voyager scripts to this point. While The 37’s tried and failed to kick off the second season with bold statement of intent, Initiations adopts and accomplishes a much more basic objective: it assures us that the show can produce well-made Star Trek .

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Filed under: Voyager | Tagged: chakotay , initiations , Jeri Taylor , kar , kazon , kazon oogla , kenneth biller , legend , Michael Piller , star trek , star trek: voyager , voyager |

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Recap / Star Trek Voyager S 2 E 2 "Initiations"

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Alone in a shuttlecraft to perform a Native American ritual in memory of his father, Chakotay is attacked by a Kazon-Ogla ship manned by a teenager, Kar, who must kill an enemy to earn his Ogla name in a rite of passage. Chakotay manages to outfight the Kazon and hit the ship's engines. Before the ship can explode, he beams Kar into his own shuttle and subdues him. While returning to Voyager , Chakotay finds a Kazon ship and hails them, letting them know he has one of their own aboard. The ship begins tractoring the shuttlecraft in, in spite of Chakotay's efforts to escape. He's surprised that Kar seems equally worried about returning to his people.

Chakotay is taken prisoner by the Kazon, but so is Kar. The Kazon teen explains that he was supposed to kill his enemy or die trying. The leader of the Kazon, First Maje Razik, appears, and Kar tries to protest that his failure was not his fault. Razik forgives Kar, which distresses Kar even more for good cause. Kar is scheduled to be executed that night. After Kar is taken away, Razik explains to Chakotay that he is a prisoner because anyone in uniform entering Kazon-Olga space is an enemy to them. Meanwhile, on Voyager , the crew notice Chakotay's absence and begin tracking him down.

Razik brings Chakotay into a large gathering room, where he meets several Kazon children who are being indoctrinated into their warrior culture. Chakotay gives them a friendly greeting, hoping to give them a positive first impression of Starfleet, but when Razik asks which of them would like to kill Chakotay, they all instantly volunteer. Razik then has Kar brought in and insists that Chakotay be the one to execute him. Instead, Chakotay takes Razik hostage and demands his shuttlecraft. Kar gets the drop on Razik's second in command, Haliz, and joins him. They board Chakotay's shuttlecraft and crash land on a moon, Tarok, where the Kazon use for training. They camp out in some caves, and during the night, Kar contemplates killing Chakotay but does not go through with it.

After awakening, Chakotay confronts Kar on not killing him, and Kar admits that Chakotay is no longer his enemy. He explains that the Kazon-Olga hate men in uniform so much because they only recently freed themselves from slavery to the Trabe. However, Chakotay says that he's willing to allow Kar to temporarily kill him to earn his name once Voyager shows up and can revive him.

Voyager catches up to Chakotay's last known location and hails Razik's ship. He claims that he killed Chakotay, but Neelix correctly deduces that Razik did not do so and is unwilling to attack them so close to the Kazon training moon, forcing Razik to concede and allow the crew to beam down and search for Chakotay. On the moon's surface, Razik and a group of Kazon arrive, claiming to want to help. However, they quickly trick the crew into a forcefield trap and then run off to pursue Chakotay and Kar alone.

When Razik and company find the pair, Kar is holding Chakotay at phaserpoint. However, Kar then states that Chakotay is not his enemy; Razik is. He shoots and kills Razik, then surrenders to Haliz, proclaiming him the new First Maje. Haliz accepts Kar's actions and his Olga name: Jal Karden. Chakotay is allowed to leave, but the newly named Jal Karden tells him that he will kill him if he ever sees him again. Chakotay says he understands and beams away. Back on the ship, Chakotay performs his ritual asking for his father's spirit to watch over him and Karden.

This episode provides examples of:

• A Day in the Limelight : A Chakotay episode.
• A Real Man Is a Killer / Rite of Passage : Kar must kill an enemy to take on a full Kazon-Ogla name.
• Artistic License – Religion : The pakra ritual is entirely fictional, being more akin to Asian ancestor worship. They did get right the fact that a proper vision quest requires isolation, unlike what was shown in "The Cloud".
• Attack Pattern Alpha : Evasive Pattern Theta-2.
• Battle Trophy : Trophies adorn the walls of the Kazon vessel. Kar even proudly shows off a trophy that belonged to his dead brother, killed by another Kazon to earn his name .
• Booby Trap : "A proton beam. They're hidden everywhere, along with biomagnetic traps and disruptor snares."
• Book Ends : Chakotay performing the pakra . At the end of the episode, he prays for Kar as well.
• Child Soldier : Kazon children fight as soon as they're old enough to defend their siblings.
• Come with Me If You Want to Live : After taking Razik as a Human Shield , Chakotay offers Kar a chance to come with him. Figuring he can't get any more disgraced than he is now, Kar does so.
• Commander Crash : Chakotay loses his first shuttle. It won't be the last.
• Commercial Break Cliffhanger : The shuttle is Coming in Hot and they're too far away from the surface for safe transport. Chakotay and Kar transport anyway, and survive thanks to a combination of Exact Words and Plot Armor .
• Continuity Nod : After last episode's demonstration of Voyager's surface landing ability, it's pointed out that the moon's surface is too fragile to take its weight this time.
• Conveniently Close Planet : There's an M Class moon nearby, which unfortunately is a Kazon Death Course .
• Curb-Stomp Battle : Chakotay's shuttle takes multiple hits from Kar's ship with no effect, then destroys it with one shot.
• The battle with Kar knocks out communications on Chakotay's shuttle, so he can't call Voyager. Chakotay has a Not So Stoic moment at this news.
• The ' radiothermic interference ' prevents Voyager from warning the away team that Razik is about to pay a visit.
• Deadly Training Area : The Kazon train their young warriors on planets rigged with booby traps .
• Death Is Cheap : So Kar will earn his name, Chakotay tells Kar to shoot him, then Voyager will beam him up so he can be revived. Kar decides to Take a Third Option .
• Deliberate Values Dissonance : Chakotay tries to reason with the Kazon, but his Thou Shalt Not Kill values don't sit well with their A Real Man Is a Killer values.
• Disappointed in You : Kar just gasps a Little "No" when Razik says he forgives him.
• Don't Call Me "Sir" : Neelix has to Verbal Backspace after calling Janeway sir...ma'am...captain!
• Enemy Mine : Kar and Chakotay, eventually becoming Fire Forged Friends .
• Fate Worse than Death : Kar pleads with Chakotay to kill him, rather than face disgrace. "Because there are worse things than being killed by your enemy."
• Fingore : If Kar is captured by another clan after becoming an outcast, they cut off a finger. And there's more clans than he has fingers because their number changes every day .
• The Trabe are discussed, and Razik suggests Janeway form an alliance with the Kazon .
• Neelix is annoyed he wasn't given a chance to take part in Voyager's holodeck defense simulation. His desire to be in Security is a Running Gag in later seasons.
• Get Out! : After being accepted back into the Kazon-Ogla, Karden formally tells Chakotay and the other Voyager crewmembers to get the hell out of their territory. No one argues.
• Chakotay tries to show the Kazon children he's not a threat. However when Razik offers them the opportunity to kill Chakotay, they all reach for the weapon he's offering.
• Razik offers to help the away team find Chakotay. They're suspicious, but fall into a trap anyway .
• I Owe You My Life : Despite being an Ungrateful Bastard for most of the episode, Kar refuses to kill Chakotay when he has the chance.
• Ironic Echo : "In battle, there are no second chances."
• It's the Only Way : After a Commercial Break Cliffhanger , Chakotay and Kar wake up on the surface of the moon. Chakotay: The computer said that transport wasn't recommended. It didn't say it was impossible.
• Kar points his weapon at Chakotay while he's asleep, but can't pull the trigger. The next day Chakotay reveals he was awake the whole time.
• After Kar kills Razik, he drops the weapon and offers his life or loyalty to Haliz. First Maje Haliz accepts his loyalty.
• Klingon Promotion : Invoked by Kar when he kills Razik, making Haliz the First Maje.
• Last-Second Word Swap : Janeway assures Neelix that his meals are getting to be... (eats something and reconsiders ) almost certainly a highlight of every day.
• Long List : Janeway interrupts Neelix when he starts listing his many roles on Voyager.
• Lotus Position : Chakotay performing the pakra ritual on the floor of the shuttle. Good thing it's not a Levitating Lotus Position , because he's hit by a Screen Shake .
• The Main Characters Do Everything : Janeway and Tuvok go on the away mission, leaving... Tom and Neelix in charge ? In fairness, they do quite well.
• Make an Example of Them : To demonstrate to the other Kazon children what happens to those who fail to kill their enemies, Razik hands Chakotay a weapon and tells him to shoot Kar.
• Moving the Goalposts : Chakotay says that if he knew this was territory claimed by the Kazon-Ogla, he would have avoided it. Razik says their territorial claims change every day.
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished : Chakotay refuses to let Kar blow up with his ship, but Kar isn't grateful because he is now disgraced for being taken alive. Then when it appears Kar was killed in battle , Kar complains because they were 'killed' while running away. Even Chakotay loses his temper at this point .
• No Kill Like Over Kill : Razik threatens to activate the Self-Destruct Mechanism on all the weapons in the Death Course , killing everyone on the moon's surface. However Neelix realises he's bluffing, because the cost of replacing all those weapons would bankrupt the Kazon-Ogla, weakening them against their enemies.
• "Not So Different" Remark : Kar: I should respect you because you wear that uniform? Chakotay: Your name, my uniform. Not much difference. We both have to earn them. Kar: You're saying that my name and your uniform mean the same thing, but you're wrong. Chakotay: Why? What's so different about us, aside from the fact that I keep saving your life and you keep threatening to kill me?
• Not So Stoic : Chakotay loses his temper several times as Kar's attitude and opposing values rub against his.
• Chakotay snaps at Kar that land isn't worth fighting for, which is an odd statement for an ex-Maquis guerrilla. His reaction makes more sense after we discover in "Tattoo" that as a teenager Chakotay rejected his father's ideals of a spiritual connection to the land, and joined Starfleet instead. His father was later killed defending their land against the Cardassians.
• Kar calling Chakotay 'Federation', and forcing him to constantly defend their values, would also remind Chakotay of how he deserted from Starfleet over the Federation's decision not to defend the Maquis colonies.
• Chakotay offers Kar a place on Voyager, which Kar rejects because he will just end up dying far from home. Cue Reaction Shot from Chakotay.
• Old-School Dogfighting : Chakotay takes out Kar's ship by looping over the top of it.
• Only One Name : The second name has to be earned the hard way.
• Out-of-Character Alert : Razik gives Voyager permission to leave their territory without trouble if they do so right away. Neelix points out how unusual such reasonableness is for the Kazon, and this would only happen if Chakotay was Not Quite Dead .
• Phlebotinum Breakdown : Voyager can't just scan the moon and beam Chakotay up because of radiothermic interference from the concealed weaponry in the Death Course . Of course the transport/communication problems are sorted out in time to beam everyone up at the end.
• Plot Hole : Chakotay doesn't have his medicine bundle when he beams down to the moon, yet it's shown to be intact at the end of the episode. Perhaps it was retrieved along with the wreckage of the shuttle?
• Proud Warrior Race : The Kazon-Ogla, though it's largely deconstructed. Chakotay makes no secret of the fact that the Kazons' method of raising young men disgusts him, in a way that has rarely if ever been aimed at, say, the Klingons.
• Reaction Shot : On Janeway every time she thinks Chakotay's shuttle might have been destroyed.
• Red Alert : Chakotay orders Voyager to be ready for a Code White resuscitation.
• Rite-of-Passage Name Change : Every Kazon has to go through an initiation to earn their name. Once Kar proves himself, he declares himself Jal Karden.
• Rule of Threes : After Kar stops Chakotay from walking into a Booby Trap , Chakotay says "Well, it looks like you just saved my life. Twice more and we'll be even. " Kar forgoes two further opportunities to kill Chakotay.
• At the end of the episode Chakotay uses Kar's new name, Karden, in his prayer.
• Scenery Porn : The out-of-control shuttle spinning towards the moon that's orbiting a gas giant.
• Schmuck Bait : Haliz insists they go one way. Tuvok insists they go another way. Razik agrees with Tuvok, saying Haliz is trying to misdirect them. The away team proceed in a single group and all get trapped under the same forcefield. Razik rightly shows his contempt.
• Science-Fiction Writers Have No Sense of Scale : Just how much of that moon was covered by booby traps anyway?
• Shoot Your Mate : Played straight for once when Razik gives Chakotay a phaser to shoot Kar in exchange for his life . The weapon must work, because Chakotay uses it to take Razik hostage and free Kar instead. Razik was trying to demonstrate that an enemy you don't kill will kill you instead, so it makes sense he'd give Chakotay a working phaser.
• Space "X" : "He'd rather die than run like a Calogan dog with you, Federation."
• The Spartan Way : "For the Kazon, live ammunition is a very effective teaching tool."
• Standard Female Grab Area : Gender-Inverted Trope when Razik hauls the disgraced Kar around like this.
• Took a Level in Badass : Neelix faces down the Kazon-Ogla and wants in on tactical training. This is Character Development from last year when Starfleet's Bold Explorer recklessness only exasperated him.
• Unwanted Rescue : Kar is not pleased to be alive.
• Vision Quest : Chakotay borrows a shuttle so he can perform a Native American ritual to commemorate his father that requires solitude.
• Worldbuilding : We get more insight into the Kazon than just Gangbangers IN SPACE!
• Wouldn't Hurt a Child : Chakotay's explanation of why he didn't let 13 year-old Kar die. Averted with Razik (see Make an Example of Them ).
• You Have Failed Me : Razik to Kar after he fails his Rite of Passage .
• Star Trek: Voyager S2 E1: "The 37's"
• Recap/Star Trek: Voyager
• Star Trek Voyager S 2 E 3 "Projections"

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Star Trek: Voyager – Season 2, Episode 2

Initiations, where to watch, star trek: voyager — season 2, episode 2.

Watch Star Trek: Voyager — Season 2, Episode 2 with a subscription on Paramount+, or buy it on Fandango at Home, Prime Video.

More Like This

Cast & crew.

Kate Mulgrew

Capt. Kathryn Janeway

Robert Beltran

Roxann Dawson

B'Elanna Torres

Robert Duncan McNeill

Jennifer Lien

Ethan Phillips

Episode Info

Initiations (Star Trek: Voyager)

" Initiations " is the second episode of the second season, and eighteenth episode overall of the American science fiction television program Star Trek: Voyager . The episode originally aired on September 4, 1995, and tells the story of Commander Chakotay 's capture at the hands of a young Kazon . Originally intended to open the second season, "Initiations" was bumped to second by " The 37's ". [4]

External links

To better utilize the character, this is one of several second-season episodes that focuses on Chakotay. It was written with a mind to recall the action story of Chakotay from the pilot . Writer Kenneth Biller extensively rewrote the episode after input from series co-creators Jeri Taylor and Michael Piller ; whereas the Kazon originally came across as too much like the Klingons , Biller's research helped emphasize their more street-gang nature. This substantial rewrite of the episode required an overhaul of production work already invested in the episode.

Aron Eisenberg guest starred as Kar, the young Kazon warrior. Though his performance was lauded, executive producers found Eisenberg too recognizable from his recurring role on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . Mixed reviews noted the familiarity of both Eisenberg and the shooting location of Vasquez Rocks .

The episode aired on UPN on September 4, 1995. [5]

To commemorate the anniversary of his father's death, Commander Chakotay ( Robert Beltran ) takes a shuttlecraft to perform the pakra ceremony. Inadvertently straying into Kazon -Ogla space, he is attacked by a young Kazon, Kar ( Aron Eisenberg ), on his first mission. Chakotay destroys Kar's vessel, then beams him aboard.

Captured by a Kazon vessel soon thereafter, Chakotay learns from Kar that Kazon earn their titles through conquest or death, and he has robbed Kar of that opportunity by saving him. The vessel's commander Razik ( Patrick Kilpatrick ) speaks with Chakotay, explaining his disservice to Kar and that the young Kazon is scheduled for execution. When later presented with a weapon to kill Kar as a lesson to other Kazon youth, Chakotay holds Razik hostage in exchange for his shuttle. Kar, seeing no future or opportunities with the Ogla, flees with Chakotay. Unable to elude the Kazon, Chakotay beams himself and Kar to a nearby Class-M moon , a Kazon training ground. Kar, having eschewed an opportunity to kill Chakotay in his sleep, later explains how he has no options open to him and admits that Chakotay may be his only friend now.

Meanwhile, having tracked the shuttle's probable course, Captain Janeway ( Kate Mulgrew ), Lieutenant Tuvok ( Tim Russ ), and Kes ( Jennifer Lien ) proceed to the moon's surface to rescue Chakotay. On the moon, they meet up with Razik and his men who offer to lead the away team to Chakotay. When Chakotay and Kar detect their approach, Chakotay offers to help Kar earn his name by becoming his prisoner. Coordinating with Voyager to prepare for resuscitation , Chakotay tells Kar to shoot him; Kar instead shoots Razik, earning his Ogla name of Jal Karden and promoting Razik's second-in-command, Haliz ( Tim de Zarn ). The Ogla allow the Voyager crew to leave, with Karden's promise that he will kill Chakotay if they meet again. Later, when performing his pakra ceremony aboard Voyager , Chakotay prays to his father to watch over Karden.

"Initiations" is Kenneth Biller 's first solo writing credit on Star Trek: Voyager ; he summarized the episode as "the Kazon put a hit out on Chakotay". [6] The Chakotay-focused episode was meant to correct what co-creator and executive producer Jeri Taylor felt was an underutilization of the character in the first season. [7] Biller felt the character needed more action stories as shown in the pilot , and wrote "Initiations" to address that. [6] Producer Winrich Kolbe did not care for the aspects of Chakotay's character that the episode played up; where the episode focused on his Native American heritage, Kolbe felt it should have emphasized his Maquis aspects. [8]

Executive producer Michael Piller was displeased with the depiction of the Kazon in Biller's first draft of the episode; where they were supposed to be analogous to street gangs in Los Angeles , they were instead "coming across as warmed-over Klingons ." In addition to Jeri Taylor's already extensive notes on the draft, Piller suggested Biller get in touch with actual gang members or a police officer who could better clue the writer into street gang culture for the episode. Instead, Biller picked up a copy of Monsta , a book by convicted murderer and former gang member "Monsta" Cody. The book's insight into gang life and culture was a guiding light for Biller's second draft, which he worked up with Piller, endeavoring to set the Kazon apart "from Romulans , Cardassians , and Klingons." [9]

The final draft of the episode was submitted on July 10, 1995. [10]

Playing a recurring character on sister series Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , guest star Aron Eisenberg (Kar) quelled rumors that he was given the part simply because of his Star Trek heritage. He emphasized that he read for the part like any other actor, and felt that he was chosen because the Voyager crew could not find a child actor who could meet muster, nor an adult actor who looked young enough for the part. In an interview with Star Trek: The Official Monthly Magazine , Eisenberg felt that he worked very hard on the episode, and that his musculature was a boon to playing "a warrior kid." Fellow DS9 actor Max Grodénchik was his acting coach for "Initiations". [3] [11] On Kar, Eisenberg played the character on the other end of the spectrum from his Nog character, so much so that he wasn't worried about any of Nog's characterizations or idiosyncrasies showing through. [3]

Eisenberg fondly recalled working on "Initiations" both because of his familiarity with much of the crew who had previously worked on Deep Space Nine , as well as the opportunity to "goof around" with Robert Beltran ( Chakotay ) on set. He would later say to Cinefantastique that he "had a blast" working on the episode, especially the opportunity to play someone "really trying to kill someone." [12] Beltran would later compare the fun they had on set as akin to working with Don Rickles and that Eisenberg was "very quick-witted and not afraid to cut you down." [13]

Co-creator and executive producer Michael Piller called the casting of Eisenberg a "big mistake". Because Eisenberg also played the recurring Ferengi character Nog on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine , and though he was under heavy prosthetics , his voice was too recognizable to fans of both shows. Piller praised his performance, but felt it was a casting mistake to crossover the actor in both shows. [3] Fellow co-creator and executive producer Jeri Taylor echoed Piller's sentiments saying that though Eisenberg was the best actor that auditioned for the part, he was too recognizable as Nog and distracted the viewers. [14] As for Eisenberg himself, he dismissed the people on the Internet saying he was too recognizable saying, " ' Come on people, it's the same person.' I was really proud of it." [3]

Biller and Piller's dramatic second draft changes required changes in the episode's sets and shooting schedule , what Piller described as "[having] to change the whole thing overnight." The chaos of the changes prompted a meeting with Piller and the production staff where he defended the upheaval as response to improving the script and overall episode. [9]

In Robert Beltran 's portrayal of Chakotay in the episode, the actor bucked what he felt was viewers' expectations. Instead of playing a "mad" Chakotay, he toned it down and made it more of about trying (and failing) to change Kar through kindness and tenderness. [15]

Cinefantastique ' s Dale Kutzera gave the episode 2.5 out of 4 stars in his review, saying that the episode failed to define the Kazon as an enemy. Kutzera's suspension of disbelief was rocked by the casting of Aron Eisenberg (who Kutzera felt was too synonymous with his Star Trek: Deep Space Nine character, Nog ), and the reuse of the immediately-identifiable Vasquez Rocks shooting location. [3] In his book Delta Quadrant: The unofficial guide to Voyager, David McIntee also lamented Eisenberg's recognizability from his other Star Trek series. For the episode itself, McIntee felt the first half has some interesting potential in the culture clashes presented, but that it fell too hard on the "enemies-must-team-up-to-survive" cliché; he gave the episode a 7 out of 10, calling it "watchable, and occasionally quite strong." [2] Reviewers Lance Parkin and Mark Jones point out continuity errors (Chakotay's medicine bundle should have been destroyed with the shuttle but is then seen again in the final scene), but thought the episode was an "efficient piece of storytelling" though occasionally formulaic. [16]

Robert Beltran ( Chakotay ) said that "Initiations" "summed up in one episode basically what Chakotay is about as a person," [13] and that it was one of three Chakotay-centric episodes (including " Tattoo " and " Maneuvers ") he really enjoyed. [17] Jeri Taylor called the episode "reasonably successful." [14]

Related Research Articles

Chakotay is a fictional character who appears in each of the seven seasons of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager . Portrayed by Robert Beltran, he was First Officer aboard the Starfleet starship USS Voyager , and later promoted to Captain in command of the USS Protostar in Star Trek: Prodigy . The character was suggested at an early stage of the development of the series. He is the first Native American main character in the Star Trek franchise. This was a deliberate move by the producers of the series, who sought to provide an inspiration as with Uhura in Star Trek: The Original Series for African Americans. To develop the character, the producers sought the assistance of Jamake Highwater who falsely claimed to be Native American. Despite first being named as a Sioux, and later a Hopi, Chakotay was given no tribal affiliation at the start of the series, something that was later resolved in the episode "Tattoo".

Kes is a fictional character on the American science fiction television show Star Trek: Voyager . She is portrayed by actress Jennifer Lien. Set in the 24th century of the Star Trek universe, the series follows the crew of the starship USS Voyager , stranded far from home and struggling to get back to Earth. Kes is a member of the Ocampa who joins the crew in the series' premiere episode along with her Talaxian boyfriend, Neelix. She subsequently works as the Doctor's medical assistant and develops her mental abilities with Tuvok's assistance.

Lieutenant Thomas Eugene "Tom" Paris is a fictional character in the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager and is portrayed by Robert Duncan McNeill. Paris is the chief helmsman, as well as a temporary auxiliary medic, of the USS Voyager , a Starfleet ship that was stranded in the Delta Quadrant by an alien entity known as the Caretaker.

The Kazon are a fictional alien race in the Star Trek franchise. Developed by Star Trek: Voyager series' co-creators Rick Berman, Michael Piller, and Jeri Taylor, the Kazon serve as the primary antagonists during the show's first two seasons. They are represented as a nomadic species divided into eighteen separate sects, and characterized by their reliance on violence. A patriarchal society, the Kazon have a low opinion of women, and place pride in men becoming warriors and proving themselves in battle. The Kazon storylines frequently revolve around the attempts of Jal Culluh and his Kazon sect to steal technology from the USS Voyager , with the assistance of former Voyager ensign Seska. During the second season, the Voyager crew uncover more about the alien species' history and culture through a temporary truce. In their final major appearance, the Kazon successfully commandeer Voyager , but are eventually forced to surrender and retreat. The alien species have minor cameo appearances and references in the show's subsequent seasons, and have also been included in Star Trek Online and novels set in the Star Trek universe .

" Tuvix " is the 40th episode of the science fiction television program Star Trek: Voyager . The episode originally aired on May 6, 1996, and tells the story of Tuvok and Neelix being merged into a unique third character named Tuvix.

The Vidiians are a fictional alien race in the Star Trek franchise. Developed by Star Trek: Voyager series' co-creators Rick Berman, Michael Piller, and Jeri Taylor, they serve as recurring antagonists during the show's first two seasons. They are represented as a nomadic species suffering from a pandemic known as the Phage , which destroys their tissue. A society with highly developed medical technology, the Vidiians harvest organs from corpses and living beings to stall the progression of the Phage, and experiment on other alien species in an attempt to develop a cure. Vidiian storylines frequently revolve around the aliens' attempts to take its Voyager crew members' organs, though a Vidiian scientist named Danara Pel serves as a love interest for The Doctor. The alien species have made minor appearances in the show's subsequent seasons, and have been included in novels set in the Star Trek universe .

" State of Flux " is the eleventh episode of Star Trek: Voyager , which was a science fiction television show that ran from 1995-2001. Recurring Voyager characters Seska and Lt. Carey star, along with the show's main cast, in an episode that sees the return of the Kazon aliens previously introduced in "Caretaker".

Aron Eisenberg was an American actor and podcaster known for his role as Nog on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine .

" The 37's " is the first episode of the second season, and seventeenth episode overall, of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager . Due to differing release schedules, it was also released as the final episode of the first season in other countries. The episode aired August 28, 1995, on the UPN network. Directed by James L. Conway, it was written by producers Jeri Taylor and Brannon Braga. It was originally intended to be a two-part episode to bridge between the first and second seasons, and was subsequently re-written to be a single part. Due to late changes to the final act of the episode, special effects shots of the settlers' cities could not be completed, with which Braga and series creator Michael Piller were unhappy.

" Faces " is an episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager . Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet and Maquis crew of the starship USS Voyager after they are stranded in the Delta Quadrant, far from the rest of the Federation. The 14th episode of the first season, first broadcast by UPN on May 8, 1995, "Faces", was developed from a story by Jonathan Glassner and Kenneth Biller. Biller also wrote the teleplay, which was directed by Winrich Kolbe.

" Basics " comprises the 42nd and 43rd episodes of the American science fiction television Star Trek: Voyager , the cliffhanger between the second season and the third season.

" Projections " is the 19th episode of the American science fiction television program Star Trek: Voyager . Originally slated for the first season, the episode originally aired on UPN on September 11, 1995, and tells the story of Voyager 's holographic doctor having an identity crisis on the holodeck regarding whether he or the world around him is the illusion.

" Elogium " is the fourth episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager , the 20th episode overall. The episode first aired on the UPN network on September 18, 1995. The story was written by freelancers Jimmy Diggs and Steve J. Kay, based on Diggs' experience while serving in the United States Navy. It was rewritten by executive producer Jeri Taylor and guest writer Kenneth Biller.

" Tattoo " is the 25th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager , the ninth episode of the second season.

" Maneuvers " is the 27th episode of Star Trek: Voyager , and the 11th episode in the second season. In this science fiction television show, the spacecraft USS Voyager encounters the Kazon and former crew member that defected, Seska. The episode features many scenes with Chakotay, Seska, and various guest stars in the role of the Kazon. It also features several special effect sequences with various spacecraft.

" Prototype " is the 29th episode of science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager , and the 13th episode in the second season. It was written by Nicholas Corea and directed by Jonathan Frakes. This episode was broadcast on UPN Network on January 15, 1996. In this episode, the crew of spaceship making their way back to Earth have an encounter with a race of warring robotic life forms.

" Resolutions " is the 41st episode of the science fiction television program Star Trek: Voyager . The episode originally aired on May 13, 1996. The series follows the adventures of the Federation starship Voyager during its journey home to Earth, having been stranded tens of thousands of light-years away. This episode focuses on the relationship between Captain Janeway and First Officer Chakotay, who have been left on a planet after contracting a virus, and the rest of the crew search for a cure under Tuvok's command.

Ensign Harry S. L. Kim is a fictional character who appeared in each of the seven seasons of the American television series Star Trek: Voyager . Portrayed by Garrett Wang, he is the Operations Officer aboard the Starfleet starship USS Voyager .

• 1 2 McIntee, David (2000). "Second Season". Delta Quadrant: The unofficial guide to Voyager . London , UK: Virgin Publishing Ltd. pp.   67–69. ISBN   0-7535-0436-7 .
• 1 2 3 4 5 6 Kutzera, Dale (November 1996). "Voyager Episode Guide". Cinefantastique . 28 (4/5). Forest Park, Illinois , USA: 77–78. ISSN   0145-6032 . Initiations
• ↑ Dillard, J. M. ; Sackett, Susan (1996). Star Trek: Where No One Has Gone Before . Pocket Books . p.   217 . ISBN   978-0-671-00206-0 .
• ↑ "Star Trek: Voyager" . TVGuide.com . Retrieved 2021-02-25 .
• 1 2 Nemecek, Larry (August 1995). "Ken Biller: Executive Story Editor". The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine (3). New York , New York , USA: Starlog Group, Inc.: 50–52. ISSN   1079-3658 .
• ↑ "Fine Tuning in Store for New Season". Star Trek: The Official Monthly Magazine . 1 (6). London , England : Titan Books Limited: 10–11. August 1995. ISSN   1357-3888 .
• ↑ Spelling, Ian (February 1998). "Winrich Kolbe". The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine (15). New York , New York , USA: Starlog Group, Inc.: 12. ISSN   1079-3658 .
• 1 2 Kutzera, Dale (November 1996). "Delta Quadrant Shakedown Cruise: Star Trek Voyager". Cinefantastique . 28 (4/5). Forest Park, Illinois , USA: 76–77. ISSN   0145-6032 . Michael Piller gave the writing staff a much needed shake-up during second season.
• ↑ "Taylor, J. Mss" . Indiana University . Archived from the original on 2012-12-05 . Retrieved 2014-01-05 .
• ↑ "I Was a Teenage Ferengi". Star Trek: The Official Monthly Magazine . 1 (14). London , England : Titan Books Limited: 57. April 1996. ISSN   1357-3888 .
• ↑ Kaplan, Anna L. (November 1996). "Nog, Space Cadet". Cinefantastique . 28 (4/5). Forest Park, Illinois , USA: 68–70. ISSN   0145-6032 . Aron Eisenberg enjoys taking his character where no Ferengi has gone before, the Starfleet Academy
• 1 2 Spelling, Ian (June 1996). "Winrich Kolbe". The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine (7). New York , New York , USA: Starlog Group, Inc.: 17. ISSN   1079-3658 .
• 1 2 Gross, Edward; Altman, Mark A. (1996). " Voyager: Season Two Episode Guide". Captains' Logs Supplemental . London , England : Little, Brown and Company . p.   154 . ISBN   0-316-88354-9 .
• ↑ "Beltran's Best". Star Trek: The Official Monthly Magazine . 1 (20). London , England : Titan Books Limited: 34. October 1996. ISSN   1357-3888 .
• ↑ Jones, Mark; Parkin, Lance (2003). Beyond the Final Frontier: An Unauthorised Review of the Trek Universe on Television and Film . London: Contender Books. p.   283. ISBN   978-1-84357-080-6 .
• ↑ Kaplan, Anna L. (November 1996). "Commander Chakotay". Cinefantastique . 28 (4/5). Forest Park, Illinois , USA: 99–100. ISSN   0145-6032 . Robert Beltran on the continued development of the Native American Maquis Captain.
• "Initiations" at Wayback Machine (archived from the original at StarTrek.com)
• "Initiations" at Memory Alpha

One Star Trek: The Original Series Episode Had The Cast Swimming In Their Sweat

Vasquez Rocks is located in the northern part of Los Angeles County about 25 minutes away from Downtown L.A. via the 14 freeway. It's close enough to the city to be easily accessed by car, but far away enough to look like a remote wilderness. The park's celebrated rock formations look eerie, ancient, and alien from certain angles, making it a popular place for film and TV productions going back to the 1930s.

Trekkies likely recognize Vasquez Rocks as an oft-reused filming location, serving as a variety of alien worlds for various "Star Trek" projects . The park was featured in the "Original Series" episodes "Shore Leave" (December 29, 1966), "Arena" (January 19, 1967), "The Alternative Factor" (March 30, 1967), and "Friday's Child" (December 1, 1967). Later, Vasquez Rocks would serve as Vulcan "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" and "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home," released in 1983 and 1984 respectively.

Fans of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" would recognize Vasquez Rocks from the episode "Who Watches the Watchers?" (October 16, 1989), and the park would later be seen playing alien worlds in the "Star Trek: Voyager" episodes "Initiations" (September 4, 1995) and "Gravity" (February 3, 1999). It was in the "Enterprise" episode "Unexpected" (October 12, 2001). "Star Trek" characters wouldn't visit Vasquez Rocks on Earth — that is, the park wouldn't play itself — until the "Star Trek: Picard" episodes "Maps and Legends" and "The End is the Beginning," both from 2020. No natural monument is more closely tied to the franchise.

And what was shooting at Vasquez Rocks like? Horrible. In a 2013 interview with StarTrek.com , actor Michael Dante recalled playing the part of Maab in "Friday's Child," and he only remembered that Vasquez Rocks reached 117 degrees the day of filming.

Michael Dante vs. Vasquez Rocks

"Friday's Child" sees Captain Kirk (William Shatner) traveling to the planet Capella IV to negotiate a mining contract with the violent, but honorable, locals. Kirk has to convince the Capellans to give their ore to the Federation and not to a visiting Klingon (Tige Andrews) who would use it for nefarious purposes. During the negotiations, a civil war breaks out, with Maab (Dante) killing the Capellan leader and usurping the throne. Maab also wants to kill the pregnant queen Eleen (Julie Newmar) , forcing Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley) to protect her. The episode features a lot of outdoor fighting, silly regal costumes, and over-the-top acting. Eleen eventually names her child after Kirk and McCoy.

Dante had to wear an outsize blonde wig to play Maab, as well as an uncomfortable-looking headpiece that covered his neck and ears (see above). The regal costumes looked to be made of disused theatre curtains and wool. As itchy as they appear, however, Dante said they were also filled with sweat:

"The weather [stands out]. It was 117 degrees at Vasquez Rocks, where we were filming. The outfits we had, they couldn't breathe. There weren't any openings in the clothing. They were all tight, with boots. I was 180 pounds at that time — and I'm still 180 pounds, which I'm very proud of — but I lost seven pounds in one day. I literally lost muscle. I looked at myself in the mirror when I got home and I said, 'I can't believe what happened.'"

Sweating too much doesn't actually reduce muscle mass, but one can indeed lose several pounds of water a day if they don't rehydrate in a hot climate. Keep the canteen full, kids.

As one can see in the above picture, Dante also had to wear giant furry boots, which are not ideal for desert hiking. What's more, the boots he wore weren't porous or vented, allowing them to catch every drop of Dante's sweat. "It was just so hot. The water was oozing out of us. Every time I'd take a step in my boots, there'd be a swooshing sound, and that was perspiration that went down to my boots," he recalled.

"Friday's Child" was written by longtime "Star Trek" luminary D.C. Fontana, who said that she wanted to write a character like Eleen who didn't want to have children. Such a conceit would have been novel on 1960s TV, and Fontana's script was kept largely intact for filming. Other writers added the Klingon character, but Eleen remained the same. Weirdly, there is a dark moment in "Friday's Child" when Dr. McCoy realizes that he needs to be more forceful and angry with Eleen in order to gain her respect. Her species values aggression, and McCoy was too gentle. To show his strength, he smacks Eleen across the face. It might be the only instance in "Star Trek" of a main character punching a pregnant woman. Perhaps ickily, it worked.

Regardless, Datne said he has rewatched his episode since the 1960s and feels that, dramatically, it holds up pretty well. He was told "Star Trek" was just a Western in space , and he played Maab accordingly. Dante retired from acting in the late 1980s and hosted a syndicated interview radio show from 1995 until 2007. He is still alive and well at 92. 

8 Alpha Quadrant Things Star Trek: Voyager Found In Delta Quadrant

• Star Trek: Voyager finds familiar things from the Alpha Quadrant in the Delta Quadrant, sparking important questions and connections.
• Encounter with Ferengi negotiators leads Voyager crew to stop their interference in a pre-warp civilization for profits.
• Janeway and crew discover humans abducted by aliens in the 1930s living in the Delta Quadrant, including Amelia Earhart.

For a show with the conceit of being so far from home, Star Trek: Voyager found a surprising number of things in the Delta Quadrant that originated in the Alpha Quadrant, including several from Earth itself. The USS Voyager, commanded by Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew), and Commander Chakotay's (Robert Beltran) Maquis raider Val Jean were both brought to the Delta Quadrant in 2371 by the Caretaker (Basil Langton). After Janeway destroyed the Caretaker's array to save the Ocampa , Voyager and the Val Jean were left without a ticket back to the Alpha Quadrant, and banded together to make the long journey.

Finding something familiar in an otherwise totally alien corner of the galaxy brought a sense of familiarity to the USS Voyager crew and viewers at home alike, but the presence of something from the Alpha Quadrant in the Delta Quadrant inevitably raised important questions , like how familiar people and objects traveled 70,000 light years from home in the first place, and whether the find could lead Captain Kathryn Janeway towards a quicker path home to Earth.

Star Trek: Voyagers 20 Best Episodes Ranked

A pair of ferengi negotiators, arridor and kol, star trek: voyager season 3, episode 5 "false profits".

The USS Voyager encounters a pair of Ferengi negotiators, Arridor (Dan Shor) and Kol (Leslie Jordan), who claim to be the prophesied Great Sages of the Takarians, a society with Bronze Age level technology. The Ferengi have no Prime Directive to deter them from interfering with the Takarians' development , so they're performing "miracles" with a standard replicator to reap the monetary benefits of the Takarians' worship. Voyager's crew know the Ferengi reputation well enough to know they're no Sages, so they must figure out how to put a stop to Arridor and Kol's grift.

"False Profits" serves as a Star Trek sequel episode to Star Trek: The Next Generation season 3, episode 8 "The Price", as Voyager catches up with Arridor and Kol (formerly played by J. R. Quinonez) seven years after their Delta Quadrant arrival. The Ferengi took a test flight through the supposedly stable wormhole near Barzan II, which was supposed to emerge in the Gamma Quadrant, but instead stranded the Ferengi in the Delta Quadrant, where they made the best of their situation as only Ferengi can.

Star Trek: Voyager Season 3, Episode 23 "Distant Origin"

"Distant Origin" opens on Forra Gegen (Henry Woronicz), a scientist who discovers that his people, the Voth, share certain genetic similarities with the humans aboard the USS Voyager. While this confirms Gegen's theory that the Voth are the descendants of a species brought to their homeworld millions of years ago , religious leader Minister Odala (Concetta Tomei) refuses to accept the truth. Even with Commander Chakotay present as a living specimen of humanity, Odala pushes Gegen to recant, because Gegen's theory goes against the Voth Doctrine that keeps Odala in power.

After meeting Gegen's assistant, Tova Veer (Christopher Liam Moore), Janeway and the Doctor use the holodeck as a research guide to extrapolate how hadrosaurs might look in the 24th century if they'd been able to evolve into a humanoid form with comparable intelligence. The result resembles Veer, so Janeway and the Doctor conclude, like Gegen, that the Voth evolved from hadrosaurs into a highly advanced species on Earth , then fled to the Delta Quadrant in spacefaring vessels instead of being wiped out with the other dinosaurs.

The Friendship One Probe

Star trek: voyager season 7, episode 21 "friendship one".

By Star Trek: Voyager season 7 , the USS Voyager is in regular contact with Starfleet Command, and Starfleet gives Voyager a mission to retrieve a 21st-century Earth probe, Friendship One . The probe proves difficult to find, but once discovered on an alien planet suffering devastating climate collapse, the implications of Friendship One's launch become clear. Besides the irreversible damage to the planet's climate, the inhabitants are all suffering from radiation sickness, and bear understandable hostility towards Earth, because the aliens believe humans orchestrated their destruction with the Friendship One probe.

The United Earth Space Probe Agency was one of the early names for the organization the USS Enterprise belongs to in the Star Trek: The Original Series episode, "Charlie X".

Friendship One was launched in 2067 by the United Earth Space Probe Agency with the intention of making friends with whomever found it, as the name implies. Although Friendship One, the 400-year-old Earth probe, traveled for centuries carrying messages of peace, musical recordings, and ways to translate languages, the people who discovered Friendship One in the Delta Quadrant took a greater interest in the antimatter it used to travel across space. Without the proper knowledge of its use, antimatter proved devastating to the planet and its people, resulting in death and disease for generations.

Dreadnought, a Cardassian Missile

Star trek: voyager season 2, episode 17 "dreadnought".

The USS Voyager discovers a dangerously powerful, self-guided Cardassian missile in the Delta Quadrant, which Lt. B'Elanna Torres (Roxann Dawson) recognizes as one nicknamed "Dreadnought" . When B'Elanna was with the Maquis, Torres had actually reprogrammed the missile herself, with the intention of turning the Cardassians' own weapon against them. Without a Cardassian target in sight, the artificially intelligent Cardassian Dreadnought targets a heavily-populated Class-M planet , Rakosa V. B'Elanna determines she must be the one to keep Dreadnought from hurting anyone else, and boards the missile to convince it to stand down.

While no concrete reason is given for exactly how the Dreadnought wound up in the Delta Quadrant, its last known location in the Alpha Quadrant was the Badlands, the same rough patch of space where Voyager and the Val Jean, Chakotay's Maquis raider, fatefully met. Because of this, Torres theorizes that Dreadnought arrived in the Delta Quadrant the same way that Voyager and the Val Jean did , courtesy of the Caretaker.

Star Trek: Voyagers BElanna Is More Klingon Than TNGs Worf Ever Was

A klingon d-7 class cruiser, complete with klingons, star trek: voyager, season 7, episode 14 "prophecy".

The USS Voyager certainly never expected to find a Klingon ship in the Delta Quadrant, but more surprising is the fact that the crew of the Klingon D-7 Class Cruiser believes their savior, the prophesied kuvah'magh, is aboard Voyager . Janeway assures the Klingon captain, Kohlar (Wren T. Brown), that the Federation and Klingon Empire have been allies for the past 80 years, and offers Voyager's own half-Klingon, Lt. B'Elanna Torres, as proof their societies are working together now. The kuvah'magh is Torres' unborn daughter, who does save the Klingons, but not the way they expected.

Centuries ago, Kohlar's great-grandfather set off on a quest to find the kuvah'magh, and the Klingon D-7 Cruiser became a generation ship that is now crewed by the descendants of its original crew . The quest begun by Kohlar's great-grandfather brought Kohlar and his crew to the Delta Quadrant after four generations of searching. Whether B'Elanna's child is actually the kuvah'magh or not, Kohlar desperately wants the baby to be their savior, so that his people may finally rest.

Amelia Earhart

Star trek: voyager season 2, episode 1 "the 37s".

The discovery of a 1936 Ford truck, seemingly disconnected from any parent vehicle, leads the USS Voyager to a nearby Class-L planet, where they find eight humans who have been in cryo-stasis since they were abducted by aliens in the 1930s. Among them are one of Janeway's personal heroes, legendary American aviator Amelia Earhart (Sharon Lawrence) , who disappeared without a trace while attempting to fly around the world, and Earhart's navigator, Fred Noonan (David Graf). Earhart and the other preserved humans are known by the planet's inhabitants as "The 37s", and revered as sacred.

Originally thought to be aliens, the natives of the unnamed planet are the descendants of humans. A species called the Briori abducted the natives' ancestors, along with Earhart and the other 37s, from Earth centuries earlier , and took them to the Delta Quadrant. Once held as slaves, the humans who weren't in stasis revolted to free themselves from the Briori, and developed a thriving, Earth-like civilization in the Delta Quadrant. Voyager's crew consider staying with the humans in their little slice of home, while Janeway also offers a ride back to Earth to anyone who wants it, including Amelia Earhart.

The USS Equinox

Star trek: voyager season 5, episode 26 & season 6, episode 1 "equinox".

The crew of the USS Voyager believe they're the only Starfleet vessel in the Delta Quadrant until they find the USS Equinox, five years into their journey home. Captain Rudolph Ransom (John Savage) and the Equinox crew have had a harder time in the Delta Quadrant than Voyager, with more damage, fewer starting resources, and fewer opportunities to make friends along the way. Ransom's survival tactics include sacrificing innocent nucleogenic life forms for a more efficient form of fuel, which Janeway finds hard to stomach, and decides that Ransom needs to be held accountable for defying Federation ideals, regardless of how badly the Equinox is damaged.

Although Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) suggests that the Equinox might be in the Delta Quadrant on a rescue mission to find Voyager, the USS Equinox's specs don't fit the profile of a starship that would be assigned to a long-range mission. The explanation of how the Equinox arrived in the Delta Quadrant in the first place seems fairly simple, because Captain Ransom tells Janeway that the Equinox was also abducted by the Caretaker , just like Voyager, but the Equinox has only been in the Delta Quadrant for 2 years, and Janeway destroyed the Caretaker's array 5 years earlier.

Seven of Nine

Debuts in star trek: voyager season 4, episode 1 "scorpion, part 2".

When Captain Kathryn Janeway allies with the Borg in order to secure safe passage across Borg space, Janeway refuses the cursory assimilation that the Borg want to use to communicate with Janeway and Voyager's crew, and instead requests a speaker for the Borg, citing the existence of Locutus (Patrick Stewart) as precedent. Seven of Nine , Tertiary Adjunct of Unimatrix 01, is selected as the Borg drone to act as liaison between the Collective and Voyager, likely because Seven of Nine had once been a member of Species 5168, like most of Voyager's crew -- in other words, human.

Voyager season 5, episodes 15 & 16, "Dark Frontier" provides even more detail of the Hansens' fateful journey.

After Seven's link with the Collective is severed, more information about Seven's human origin comes to light. In Voyager season 4, episode 6 "The Raven", when Voyager nears the Hansens' ship, the USS Raven, memories of Seven's early life surface, revealing that Seven had been six-year-old human Annika Hansen , the daughter of Magnus Hansen (Kirk Baily) and Erin Hansen (Laura Stepp), Federation scientists who were studying the Borg when they were assimilated. Voyager season 5, episodes 15 & 16, "Dark Frontier" provides even more detail of the Hansens' fateful journey, showing the Raven arriving in the Delta Quadrant by following a Borg Cube through a transwarp conduit.

10 Ways USS Voyager Changed In Star Treks Delta Quadrant

Star Trek: Voyager links back to the greater Star Trek universe with people and starships from the Alpha Quadrant. Connections to the familiar were especially important early on, because Voyager 's place in the Star Trek franchise was established and aided by the legitimacy these finds offered. Later, when the USS Voyager used the Hirogen communications array to communicate with Starfleet Command, links back to the Alpha Quadrant were plentiful again, not only to prove that the USS Voyager was closer to home, but to help Star Trek: Voyager maintain connections to Star Trek and carry the franchise in its final years.

Star Trek: Voyager is available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek: Voyager

Cast Jennifer Lien, Garrett Wang, Tim Russ, Robert Duncan McNeill, Roxann Dawson, Robert Beltran, Kate Mulgrew, Jeri Ryan, Ethan Phillips, Robert Picardo

Release Date May 23, 1995

Genres Sci-Fi, Adventure

Network UPN

Streaming Service(s) Paramount+

Franchise(s) Star Trek

Writers Michael Piller, Rick Berman

Showrunner Kenneth Biller, Jeri Taylor, Michael Piller, Brannon Braga

Rating TV-PG

Screen Rant

Star trek: voyager & ds9 crossed over in the mirror universe.

Despite being stuck in the Delta Quadrant, a Star Trek: Voyager crew member briefly crossed over into the Mirror Universe to join the DS9 cast.

• Star Trek: Voyager and Deep Space Nine crossed over within the Mirror Universe, bringing the shows together across vast cosmic distances.
• The crossovers featuring characters like Tuvok and Doctor Zimmerman added depth to the interconnected Star Trek universe.
• Despite differing tones, Voyager and DS9 remain beloved shows, delighting audiences through streaming platforms today.

Despite being separated by thousands of light years, Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine crossed over inside the Mirror Universe. Voyager and Deep Space Nine were very different in tone, due to the differing approaches of the shows' respective producers, Brannon Braga and Ira Steven Behr. Where DS9 was a serialized drama that tackled huge themes, Voyager embraced a traditional episodic approach that could sometimes feel disposable and regressive . Despite their differences in tone, DS9 and Voyager are two beloved Star Trek TV shows that still delight audiences to this day via streaming, which is a testament to the versatility and timelessness of the franchise.

As the USS Voyager was stranded in the Delta Quadrant, it was hard, but not impossible, for Star Trek: Voyager to cross over into Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 's Alpha and Gamma Quadrant settings. In fact, there was a surprising number of Star Trek characters who guested on Voyager from Captain Hikaru Sulu (George Takei) to Commander William T. Riker (Jonathan Frakes). Creative approaches such as intervention by Q (John de Lancie), glimpses of Starfleet's attempts to locate the missing USS Voyager, and even the Mirror Universe allowed Star Trek: Voyager to crossover with its 1990s contemporaries, including Star Trek: Deep Space Nine .

Every 1990s Era Star Trek Crossover

Star trek: voyager’s tuvok crossed over with ds9’s mirror universe, star trek: deep space nine, season 3, episode 19, "through the looking glass".

In Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 3, episode 19, "Through the Looking Glass", Commander Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks) is captured and taken to the Mirror Universe by "Smiley" O'Brien (Colm Meaney). The Rebellion in the Mirror Universe wanted Prime Sisko to convince the ex-wife of his Terran counterpart to join the resistance against the Klingon-Cardassian Alliance . As Sisko is taken to the Terran Rebellion's enclave, he meets the Mirror Universe variants of his DS9 crew mates. In the same scene Sisko also meets the Mirror Universe version of Star Trek: Voyager 's Lt. Tuvok (Tim Russ), leading a more logic-driven faction of the Rebellion.

Mirror Tuvok is the only Mirror Universe variant of a Star Trek: Voyager character that has appeared on TV.

Tuvok was included in "Through the Looking Glass" at the request of Rick Berman , who presumably wanted to strengthen the links between Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager . DS9 season 3 and Voyager season 1 aired concurrently with each other, and "Through the Looking Glass" aired on April 17, 1995, a week when there was no new episode of Voyager . In this gap between "State of Flux" and "Heroes and Demons", therefore, a brief crossover between Voyager and DS9 was a good way to keep the fledgling Star Trek show in the minds of the audience.

Every Voyager & DS9 Star Trek Crossover

"Through the Looking Glass" isn't the only crossover between Star Trek: Voyager and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . The Voyager pilot "Caretaker" features the USS Voyager depart from Deep Space Nine to search for the missing Tuvok and the Maquis ship, the Valjean in the Badlands. As with McCoy and Picard in the previous Star Trek pilots, DS9 's Quark (Armin Shimerman) appeared in "Caretaker" to pass the baton to Voyager . In a scene that demonstrated how green the young Ensign Harry Kim (Garrett Wang) was, he almost falls for one of Quark's latest scams, until he's rescued by Lt. Tom Paris (Robert Duncan McNeill).

Gul Evek (Richard Poe) and Morn (Mark Allen Shepherd) are the two other Star Trek: Deep Space Nine characters that appear in the Star Trek: Voyager pilot.

A version of Star Trek: Voyager 's Doctor (Robert Picardo) appeared in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 5, episode 16, "Doctor Bashir, I Presume" alongside his creator Dr. Lewis Zimmerman (also Picardo). Technically, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine marks the first real appearance by the EMH's creator, who had previously appeared in Voyager as a holographic replica. The real Zimmerman would later appear in Star Trek: Voyager season 6, episode 24, "Life Line", which also featured Lt. Reginald Barclay (Dwight Schultz) and Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis) further strengthening the bonds between different corners of the Star Trek universe.

All episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager are available to stream on Paramount+.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

*Availability in US

Not available

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, also known as DS9, is the fourth series in the long-running Sci-Fi franchise, Star Trek. DS9 was created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller, and stars Avery Brooks, René Auberjonois, Terry Farrell, and Cirroc Lofton. This particular series follows a group of individuals in a space station near a planet called Bajor.

Star Trek: Voyager

The fifth entry in the Star Trek franchise, Star Trek: Voyager, is a sci-fi series that sees the crew of the USS Voyager on a long journey back to their home after finding themselves stranded at the far ends of the Milky Way Galaxy. Led by Captain Kathryn Janeway, the series follows the crew as they embark through truly uncharted areas of space, with new species, friends, foes, and mysteries to solve as they wrestle with the politics of a crew in a situation they've never faced before.