In the first episode of the first season of\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>, everything is Hell. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Star Trek<\/i>.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n
At times, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Basics, Part II\u00e2\u20ac\u009d feels overloaded and overwhelming, but as a whole, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a strong opening to the third season, one that establishes that the\u00c2\u00a0Voyager\u00c2\u00a0<\/i>crew grows closer together through every experience. LET\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S DISCUSS.<\/p>\n
On the Planet<\/b><\/p>\n
We never discover the name of this planet, nor the name of the species or people that the crew interacts with, but I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t think that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s as important as the experience. This specific plot shows us how this crew copes with something otherworldly and horrible. What are their strengths? Their weaknesses? What entertainment value can be derived from their struggles? A lot, apparently, as I\u00c2\u00a0did<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0find myself transfixed by most of what occurred here. But I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m gonna start out by saying that Neelix fucked up. Royally. And I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m still blown away by the fact that he vocalized his theory that the bones at the opening of the cave were likely meant to dissuade people from disturbing them. AND THEN HE STILL ORDERED HOGAN TO DISTURB THEM. HOW CAN YOU BE SO AWARE AND SO UNAWARE AT THE SAME TIME.<\/p>\n
RIP Hogan. You probably deserved better.<\/p>\n
From this point on, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Basics, Part II\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is literally one disaster after another. Hogan is consumed. Then Kes and Neelix are kidnapped. Then Samantha\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s baby gets sicker and sicker. Then the planet\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s surface hates\u00c2\u00a0everyone<\/i>, then ALL MOUNTAINS BECOME FIRE MOUNTAINS, and these poor people do not get a break for a good half hour straight. I found similarities between this storyline and \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Resolutions\u00e2\u20ac\u009d from last season, so the whole trope of the crew surviving in a strange place wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t exactly the most riveting part of this episode. I just liked how relentless this all ways. The same goes for the trope of the crew being forced to interact with a primitive people who don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t speak a translatable language. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Darmok\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is a much better example of what kind of story can be told. Still, it was fun seeing how creative these people got, especially that bit about using hair to start a fire. I NEVER WOULD HAVE THOUGHT OF THAT.<\/p>\n
Recapturing\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n
The best parts of this episode, though, follow the other plot concerning the\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0itself. Tom Paris gets to shine a bit as he schemes with the Talaxians to disable the photon weapon systems. But the plan relies entirely on the work of the Doctor and, unknown to Paris, Lon Suder. Never would I have assumed that Suder and the Doctor\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d get their own episode, AND IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S SO GOOD. First, we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve got the Doctor panicking because he isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t programmed to be an insurgent. YES.\u00c2\u00a0YES<\/i>. THIS IS VERY GOOD. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s something I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d never thought about before!<\/p>\n
Yet that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s precisely why this part of the episode is so exciting. Once Suder meets up with the Doctor, we are forced to consider an awful reality:\u00c2\u00a0What if Suder has to kill some of the Kazon to help take back the ship<\/i>? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a disturbing thing because Suder\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s entire characterization beyond his first appearance has relied on the fact that through Tuvok\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s training and mind meld, he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s managed to keep his violent tendencies at bay. Even more tragically ironic, he had\u00c2\u00a0just<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0hoped that he could do something for\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0to help out. And here it is: possibly battle the Kazon to save everyone.<\/p>\n
Aside from this being an illuminating study of Suder, though, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s an episode that requires the audience to consider the cost of violence in general. If we swap out Suder with any other character, I bet this episode would not look the same. There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d be no rumination on this theme. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s important, though, because then\u00c2\u00a0every<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0death at Suder\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s hand becomes something sad instead of a normal part of the action. When he kills, we don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t feel victorious. When he defends himself and guns down a huge number of Kazon, we don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t celebrate. We see his horrified face slip into numbness; he can no longer keep his violent side deep within him anymore, even if it was all done for the greater good. And when Suder is shot and killed while doing what the Doctor cannot, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a miserable tragedy. He finally found a way to contribute to\u00c2\u00a0Voyager<\/i>, and it cost him his life.<\/p>\n
This episode has a huge bodycount, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. Suder, Hogan, that unnamed crew member, and SESKA. That one surprised me, too. Is the Doctor going to tell Chakotay that he\u00c2\u00a0doesn<\/i>\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t<\/i>\u00c2\u00a0have a son??? THAT SEEMS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT. Perhaps that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ll make him feel better, but it could also make him feel\u00c2\u00a0worse<\/i>. He pursued a son that wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t even his.<\/p>\n
Whew, what an opening. I definitely enjoyed it, and I am thrilled for more adventures in SEASON 3. I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122M ALREADY AT SEASON 3.<\/p>\n
The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Basics, Part II\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here 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> In the first episode of the first season of\u00c2\u00a0Voyager, everything is Hell. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0Star Trek.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[614,656],"tags":[615],"class_list":["post-5772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-star-trek","category-voyager","tag-mark-watches-star-trek"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5772","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5772"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5772\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5772"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5772"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5772"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\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\u00a0Mark 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":"