Mark Watches ‘Voyager’: S02E08 – Persistence of Vision

In the eighth episode of the second season of Voyager, THIS IS A LOT. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Star Trek. 

Trigger Warning: For extensive talk of unreality and hallucinations.

This is one of those Star Trek episodes that I normally designate as An Experience and not much more, but there’s something about Jeri Taylor’s script that haunts me. Nothing is erased by the end of this story, and what these people witnessed might actually play a part in future storylines! Plus, Taylor just goes IN. She figures out what would most distract or disrupt these characters, and then she RUINS THEM.

And up until that point where “Persistence of Vision” just goes completely ridiculous, the episode does follow a fairly predictable path. Well, somewhat. I’m used to the Trek canon giving us a story where one person on a ship experiences a weird thing that no one else does. In Janeway’s case, that’s the bizarre glimpses of her holonovel story, WHICH I WILL MAINTAIN IS ONE OF THE MOST FASCINATING THINGS IN THIS ENTIRE FICTIONAL UNIVERSE. Y’all, hundreds of years in the future, self-insert fanfiction and roleplaying is still alive and well, and it’s goddamn beautiful that this is a MEDICALLY PRESCRIBED STRESS REDUCTION TECHNIQUE. Anyway, while Janeway tries to use her Jane Eyre-esque story to relax, the characters in her holonovel start to appear outside the holodeck.

CUE THE CREEPY EXPERIENCES. CUE JANEWAY FREAKING OUT. CUE SHENANIGANS. I admit I was entertained by this episode, even if it wasn’t the most groundbreaking story I’d seen. Once Kes was able to see Beatrice, though, I began to see “Persistence of Vision” as something more than just the Experience. I’m glad that we’ve got another update on Kes’s abilities, though I’d like to see her get her own story that is based solely on that. (NO MORE LOVE TRIANGLES.) The telepathic nature of the Bothan’s attack was fascinating, too, but even then, the script still stuck to a familiar pattern.

I suppose that even in the end, it still does. But getting to see what it Taylor came up with to unravel these characters was by far the best thing in “Persistence of Vision.” Sometimes, it was obvious. I understood why Tom Paris was waylaid by his awful, unsupportive father, or why Harry obsessed over his fianceé. But there’s a depth to what B’Elanna, Tuvok, and Janeway experience that utterly surprised me. Janeway missed her husband and her dog, yet why was she tormented by images from her holonovel? BECAUSE SHE WAS FEELING GUILTY THAT THIS CONSTITUTED HER BEING UNFAITHFUL TO HER HUSBAND. Oh my god, I had never even considered this as a possibility. Yet it’s something that eats away at Janeway, despite that she’s able to resist it for so long.

Then there’s Tuvok, who I expected to be the only person immune to the Bothan’s powers. However, even his logical mind can’t resist the pull of his wife. TELL ME HE DOESN’T HAVE EMOTIONS AGAIN, HE TOTALLY DOES. Also: Oh my god, I hope we somehow see more of T’Pel. Please?

And look, it’s not that I’m surprised that B’Elanna is attracted to Chakotay. I’m not! It makes a lot of sense, given how close they were. I just did not expect that attraction to be so intense. (What was Chakotay seeing, by the way?) And if the final scene is any indication, B’Elanna can’t ignore this any longer. SO WHEN IS IT GONNA HAPPEN. IS THIS A REAL THING. I’M COOL WITH IT.

I must also give props to Jennifer Lien, whose performance here is SO GODDAMN GOOD. I already want to see her telepathically battling aliens week after week, y’all. Kes ends up being the one to save everyone, though some credit goes to the Doctor for helping Kes stay grounded as she fought the unnamed Bothan. As for the Bothan? Well, we’re given another ambiguous ending, though I felt less critical of it than recent episodes. This could have been a diplomatic mission and a learning opportunity, but the Bothan attack prevented that from happening. Thus, it all ends as a mystery. Nothing was exchanged between the Bothan and the Federation, and hopefully, if there’s another contact with them, it doesn’t go this terribly.

The video for “Persistence of Vision” can be downloaded here for $0.99.

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