{"id":5676,"date":"2016-07-05T13:00:48","date_gmt":"2016-07-05T20:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=5676"},"modified":"2016-07-04T00:44:35","modified_gmt":"2016-07-04T07:44:35","slug":"mark-watches-voyager-s02e14-alliances","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2016\/07\/mark-watches-voyager-s02e14-alliances\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘Voyager’: S02E14 – Alliances"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the fourteenth episode of the second season of\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>, Janeway tries a new plan to guarantee the safety of the ship, but it doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t go well. AT ALL. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Star Trek<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Trigger Warning: For talk of sexual assault, oppression, slavery.<\/b><\/p>\n

THIS WAS SO GOOD, OH MY GOD. Just in terms of how\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0experimented with what stories it could tell, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Alliances\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is a fine achievement, a chance for the writers to examine how Starfleet regulations might make little sense in the Delta Quadrant. Plus, the episode never hides from how deeply uncomfortable and tense this entire experience is. There are no easy answers, and one plot is left entirely unaddressed. EVERYTHING IS HAPPENING ALL OF THE TIME, AND I LOVE IT.<\/p>\n

A Maquis Way of Thinking<\/b><\/p>\n

It made total sense to me that Chakotay was the one to bring up the issue of flexibility to Janeway. If anyone had to try to survive in a hostile world while breaking the rules, the Maquis certainly understand that. At the same time, the show doesn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t back away from showing the visceral reaction that people like Janeway and Kim have. Both of these characters represent Starfleet\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s finest, as well as people who are\u00c2\u00a0devoted<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0to upholding the values and protocol of the organization. Therefore, the very idea of forming an alliance with a Kazon sect is pretty much heresy to them.<\/p>\n

And yet, what are they supposed to do? The Kazon attack that opens this episode is BAD, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, and\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t sustain repeated attacks like it indefinitely. Thus, Chakotay\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s idea isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t the worst thing ever. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s just\u00c2\u00a0uncomfortable<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Ideas and Execution<\/b><\/p>\n

I wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t surprised that Kim objected to the plan. And I wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t surprised that Chakotay objected to contacting Seska, and let me just briefly talk about how fucked up it is that Janeway dismisses this so quickly. SHE STOLE HIS DNA. DOES NO ONE REMEMBER THIS??? Seska only announced it in front of everyone! And yet, the show completely ignores it, not just in that scene, but in the one where Seska tells Culluh she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s carrying his child. UM, SHE IS NOT. SHE DEFINITELY IS NOT. THAT IS WRONG. SHE ASSAULTED HIM. So it feels weird that Janeway talks about Chakotay getting his hands dirty when that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not actually what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s happening here. I get that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s smart that they reach out to Seska and Culluh, but the exchange could have been pulled off better.<\/p>\n

Regardless, I think \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Alliances\u00e2\u20ac\u009d does the best job so far in showing us the different sects of the Kazon. The show just gradually moved in that direction, so we were always\u00c2\u00a0told<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0about it. Here, though, the five sects seem drastically different from one another, and it helps to create an atmosphere of impossibility. Indeed, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Alliance\u00e2\u20ac\u009d needed this to work! Janeway\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s final monologue depended on it. After the first negotiations fell through, I figured that the show would have the\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0ally with\u00c2\u00a0someone<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0to make it through the rest of this season. That was the easiest solution, and I also assumed that it would be Culluh\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s tribe.<\/p>\n

Yet being allies is easier said than done, and this whole episode is one horrific example of why Janeway was right to assume that getting involved was a mistake. Culluh\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s greed and misogyny distracts him, so much so that he pushes Janeway too far and the talks fall apart. Meanwhile, Neelix is kidnapped before he can even\u00c2\u00a0begin<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0talking with the maje he sought out. The Kazon are fiercely competitive, quick to violence, and territorial. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not saying that this was a na\u00c3\u00afve attempt, and I admire that all of these people\u00c2\u00a0tried<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0to broker peace.<\/p>\n

However, let\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s examine what happens with the Trabe. Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a group who largely appear willing to seek peace, and it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in their best interest to. We learn that the Trabe brutally oppressed and enslaved the Kazon decades earlier, which is why the Kazon hate them so much. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a lot of willingness on the part of the\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0crew to speak of forgiveness or to absolve the current Trabe people of responsibility, which felt SUPER weird. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not how this works??? The current Trabe society absolutely benefits from what the previous generation did. Regardless, I wondered if this could be a chance for a REAL peace accord. Part of me was eager to see it because I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really care for the Kazon. I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t find them to be that compelling, and if this gave this plot closure? THEN YES. GO THROUGH WITH IT.<\/p>\n

Even though they offered their good will and their good faith, the\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0crew were STILL screwed in the end. I DID NOT SEE THAT DOUBLE CROSS COMING AT ALL. But Janeway\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s point was made: getting involved in the affairs of these groups was a bad, bad idea. Thus, the end of this episode gives us\u00c2\u00a0no<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0closure. The team are right back where they started at, and I imagine that the Kazon will be even\u00c2\u00a0more<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0pissed at them. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s going to be an endless cat-and-mouse game, isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t it?<\/p>\n

That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a bold story choice, but I dig it. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s satisfying, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. You know what else is? TUVOK GIVING JANEWAY ADVICE AND USING FLOWERS TO MAKE HIS POINT. This show needs a 200% increase in these scenes.<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Alliances\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded\u00c2\u00a0here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n

– I am now on Patreon<\/a>! There are various levels of support, from $1 up to whatever you want! You’ll get to read a private blog, extra reviews, and other such rewards.<\/b>
\n– I\u00c2\u00a0will be at numerous conventions in 2016! Check the full list of events on my Tour Dates \/ Appearances page.<\/a>
\n– My Master Schedule<\/a> is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often.\u00c2\u00a0My next Double Features for Mark Watches have been announced here.<\/a>
\n<\/b>-\u00c2\u00a0 Mark Does Stuff is on Facebook!<\/a>\u00c2\u00a0I’ve got a community page up that I’m running. Guaranteed shenanigans!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"