"Parallax", while certainly not as exciting as "Caretaker", was a fairly well-written second episode for the series. Already, we're starting to see the dissonance between the Maquis and Starfleet crews. It was inevitable, and a little predictable, but at least the story makes sense so far.
My thoughts on...
THE PLOT
Hurrah, we see the first episode that reminds me of a good ol' story straight out of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Now, granted, I dig the technobabble because I want to major in Physics in college, but this was great. I'm a black hole fangirl. The science, as usual, was a little out there, but hey, it's Star Trek.
Even moreso than the paradox of one Voyager being the reflection of the other -- but really the Voyager was the reflection -- this mission forced the crew to work together. Chakotay and Janeway made an effort to work together in the face of adversity, and even the hotheaded B'Elanna Torres proved her worth in working through what could have proved disastrous for the crew. We saw some good indications in this episode that the crew won't always get along (i.e. the two Maquis revealing to Chakotay their interest in taking over the ship, B'Elanna's struggle with Starfleet, the lack of trust between certain crewpeople) but also that they'll eventually pull through like all casts of Star Trek: As a family.
THE CHARACTERS
This was an excellent episode for some basic personality layout, a peek into the pasts of a couple major characters, and how they work with others -- or don't.
We start to see the value of Neelix and Kes early in the episode. Neelix stands in series, it seems, as an outsider not only with a Federation crew, but at the same time in the Delta Quadrant. This is true despite the fact that he is of the Delta. Nevertheless, he and Kes add a lighthearted feel to the show in the face of what is no doubt peril for the rest of the crew.
Also shown are newer sides of major characters. Chakotay is revealed to have, despite his loyalty to the Maquis, a newfound loyalty to Janeway. He respects her position, albeit sometimes reluctantly, it seems. Even Janeway herself seems to harbour a reluctance to fully trust the former Maquis, just as they cannot trust her Starfleet crew. These extra dimensions give me a little more hope for the series. Bad writing can be excused, but flat characters can't. So far, so good.
What I hope to see more of is the Doctor! He's so funny and Ethan Phillips is a great actor. The whole "shrinking down" effect of the quantum singularity added an interesting twist to the plot, but I felt it didn't do much for the story or the character. Hopefully we'll see the Doctor shine a little brighter in the future. I'm sure hoping so!
THE VISUALS
Like most of Star Trek, this was a ship-based episode... Well, ship-and-black-hole. It was needed for furthering character development, and that's good. Nonetheless, we got to see more of U.S.S. Voyager, including a better look at Sick Bay, quarters on board, and an engineering section that wasn't going up in smoke and flames.
The quantum singularity -- very cool. I wish I had this season on DVD so I could have seen it better, but 'Trek's been making cool space effects since TMP.
The only other visual that stuck out to me was the Type-8 shuttlecraft that made its first appearance. I actually like the design of the shuttle better than the Voyager herself, but I've always been partial to those cute little shuttles and runabouts. Looks pretty standard on the inside; maybe a little cramped. Hate to be stuck in there more than half an hour!
THE SHINING STARS
Kate Mulgrew, Robert Beltran, and Ethan Phillips I really felt shone in this episode. They all performed admirably with their characters and added a depth to the great dialogue and writing of "Parallax". I can't wait to see more of the Doctor. He's brilliant, funny, and witty.
Honourable mention goes to Roxann Biggs-Dawson as B'Elanna Torres. She did a wonderful job in her scenes. I especially loved the interaction between Torres and Janeway.
This was a great second episode, and has kept me sufficiently hooked on Voyager. I'd like to see some more of the Delta Quadrant, so hopefully exploring "new life and new civilization" is in store for us. Here's setting a course for the third episode!
Questions, comments, critiques, give 'em to me. Please comment or follow!
Monday, May 17, 2010
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Blogging Voyager: Caretaker (1x01/02)
After watching the first episode of Star Trek: Voyager, all I can say is.. WOW! I'm excited to watch this!
I already knew the basic premise, with the crew of the Voyager trying to get home from the Delta Quadrant, but it was nice to finally see the first episode all the way through. A very impressive pilot, with great graphics, some very interesting characters, and even a ship that I'll say is pretty darn cool.
My thoughts on...
THE SHIP
Everyone knows that the ships are a vital part of Star Trek. They're famous for having big guns, great speed, and sleek designs. I'm not crazy about the Voyager's design, but it looks good on the inside. It has a different feel than the other ships (Like the Enterprise D and E, and even the original NCC-1701 and the rest of Kirk's ships) and it has a feel of somewhere between the "D" and the NX-01 (from ENT). It's pretty typical, with a Sick Bay, Transporter Room, bridge, and all that. I like the effect of the warp nacelles rising up every time the ship goes to warp; very sleek. Can't wait to see more!
THE VISUAL EFFECTS
Wow, for a '90's show, I'm impressed! Sure, the ships blew up the way ships always blow up (it seems they've been using the same effect since TWOK) but it doesn't make it any less spectacular. I wish they would have elaborated on passing through the anomaly in the Badlands that sent both ships into the Delta Quadrant, but at least it looked cool.
The sets for the Caretaker array and the Ocampa planet were awesome! I hope I will see more beautiful scenery in the future of this show.
THE PLOT
At first, I was a little skeptical about how good this show could be. Ship gets thrown thousands of light-years from home, crew has to find a way back, yadda yadda yadda... But now I'm a little more hopeful. The addition of the (former?) Maquis crewmembers into the ship, along with all the tensions that come with that, will be interesting for subplots.
For this episode, specifically, the story of the Caretaker kept me guessing and was actually rather heartbreaking at the end. The Ocampa story line seemed a little overused for Star Trek but nice anyways. Wonderful writing at the end with Janeway finally making the tough decision of destroying the array to spare the Ocampa while sacrificing the few over the many. Again, typically Star Trek, but that's why we love it.
THE CREW
Well, more like "the motely crew", but an interesting bunch nonetheless. Let's take a look at who's who on the U.S.S. Voyager...
- Capt. Kathryn Janeway :: Hurrah, a female captain! Call me a feminist, but I loved seeing a tough chick in the captain's chair. She's not as rock-solid "I'M THE CAPTAIN" like the other main captains in Star Trek but she knows what she's doing. She's a great leader who cares deeply for her crew. And 75 years from Earth.. Well, she'll have to give them all the encouragement she can.
- Cmdr. Chakotay :: My first thought was, "Does this guy have a first name?" There wasn't much for Chakotay concerning character development in this pilot, but I'm confident I'll see more later in the series. I want to see how this ex-Maquis does as Janeway's XO, considering his issues with Tom Paris... among other Starfleet.
- Lt. Tuvok :: HURRAH!!! A VULCAN!! I love this Chief of Security already. Seems like he's been in Starfleet quite a while, so I'm interested to find out more about him. Similar to the Archer-T'Pol relationship, he seems to provide an invaluble counsel to Janeway. Let's see more of the Vulcan!
- Lt. Tom Paris :: He's cocky, he's a smart-aleck, he's a jerk.. But he's adorable and a great character. I love seeing crewmembers that maybe aren't the nicest people but are the best at what they're doing and, when push comes to shove, get the job done. Paris is that guy.
- Lt. B'elanna Torres :: She's a Maquis and half-Klingon. Like Chakotay, not much was revealed about her, but I'll be interested to see where they go with Torres as a character.
- Ensign Harry Kim :: He's a young, innocent Ensign who just went through hell on his first mission. Looks like the chief of Ops is going to have to grow up fast! He's got good character, judging by his interactions with the crew (specifically Paris & Janeway), but I wouldn't be surprised by anything with Kim. Anything could happen.
- Neelix :: A little weird, a little creepy, but all-around an adorable character. Every series has had a crewmember to break up the monotony, give us all a little laugh, and Neelix is that character. I just hope he doesn't turn out to be an annoying pest by the end of the season.
- Kes :: I fail to see why she's on the ship, other than her relationship (right?) with Neelix. But I suppose I'll have to wait to see what she contributes!
All in all, I'm looking forward to watching the rest of the series. This was off to a very good start. I'm excited to see where they go with the crew of the Voyager... Let's set a course for "Episode 2"!
I already knew the basic premise, with the crew of the Voyager trying to get home from the Delta Quadrant, but it was nice to finally see the first episode all the way through. A very impressive pilot, with great graphics, some very interesting characters, and even a ship that I'll say is pretty darn cool.
My thoughts on...
THE SHIP
Everyone knows that the ships are a vital part of Star Trek. They're famous for having big guns, great speed, and sleek designs. I'm not crazy about the Voyager's design, but it looks good on the inside. It has a different feel than the other ships (Like the Enterprise D and E, and even the original NCC-1701 and the rest of Kirk's ships) and it has a feel of somewhere between the "D" and the NX-01 (from ENT). It's pretty typical, with a Sick Bay, Transporter Room, bridge, and all that. I like the effect of the warp nacelles rising up every time the ship goes to warp; very sleek. Can't wait to see more!
THE VISUAL EFFECTS
Wow, for a '90's show, I'm impressed! Sure, the ships blew up the way ships always blow up (it seems they've been using the same effect since TWOK) but it doesn't make it any less spectacular. I wish they would have elaborated on passing through the anomaly in the Badlands that sent both ships into the Delta Quadrant, but at least it looked cool.
The sets for the Caretaker array and the Ocampa planet were awesome! I hope I will see more beautiful scenery in the future of this show.
THE PLOT
At first, I was a little skeptical about how good this show could be. Ship gets thrown thousands of light-years from home, crew has to find a way back, yadda yadda yadda... But now I'm a little more hopeful. The addition of the (former?) Maquis crewmembers into the ship, along with all the tensions that come with that, will be interesting for subplots.
For this episode, specifically, the story of the Caretaker kept me guessing and was actually rather heartbreaking at the end. The Ocampa story line seemed a little overused for Star Trek but nice anyways. Wonderful writing at the end with Janeway finally making the tough decision of destroying the array to spare the Ocampa while sacrificing the few over the many. Again, typically Star Trek, but that's why we love it.
THE CREW
Well, more like "the motely crew", but an interesting bunch nonetheless. Let's take a look at who's who on the U.S.S. Voyager...
- Capt. Kathryn Janeway :: Hurrah, a female captain! Call me a feminist, but I loved seeing a tough chick in the captain's chair. She's not as rock-solid "I'M THE CAPTAIN" like the other main captains in Star Trek but she knows what she's doing. She's a great leader who cares deeply for her crew. And 75 years from Earth.. Well, she'll have to give them all the encouragement she can.
- Cmdr. Chakotay :: My first thought was, "Does this guy have a first name?" There wasn't much for Chakotay concerning character development in this pilot, but I'm confident I'll see more later in the series. I want to see how this ex-Maquis does as Janeway's XO, considering his issues with Tom Paris... among other Starfleet.
- Lt. Tuvok :: HURRAH!!! A VULCAN!! I love this Chief of Security already. Seems like he's been in Starfleet quite a while, so I'm interested to find out more about him. Similar to the Archer-T'Pol relationship, he seems to provide an invaluble counsel to Janeway. Let's see more of the Vulcan!
- Lt. Tom Paris :: He's cocky, he's a smart-aleck, he's a jerk.. But he's adorable and a great character. I love seeing crewmembers that maybe aren't the nicest people but are the best at what they're doing and, when push comes to shove, get the job done. Paris is that guy.
- Lt. B'elanna Torres :: She's a Maquis and half-Klingon. Like Chakotay, not much was revealed about her, but I'll be interested to see where they go with Torres as a character.
- Ensign Harry Kim :: He's a young, innocent Ensign who just went through hell on his first mission. Looks like the chief of Ops is going to have to grow up fast! He's got good character, judging by his interactions with the crew (specifically Paris & Janeway), but I wouldn't be surprised by anything with Kim. Anything could happen.
- Neelix :: A little weird, a little creepy, but all-around an adorable character. Every series has had a crewmember to break up the monotony, give us all a little laugh, and Neelix is that character. I just hope he doesn't turn out to be an annoying pest by the end of the season.
- Kes :: I fail to see why she's on the ship, other than her relationship (right?) with Neelix. But I suppose I'll have to wait to see what she contributes!
All in all, I'm looking forward to watching the rest of the series. This was off to a very good start. I'm excited to see where they go with the crew of the Voyager... Let's set a course for "Episode 2"!
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Blogging Voyager: Introduction
All right, now I realize it would make the most sense for me to start blogging about The Original Series, since it came first, or Enterprise, since it's the first chronologically, but what's the fun in that? It's predictable! Besides, I've never watched Voyager all the way through, so I figured I should start at the beginning and just work my way through all seven seasons.
I always hesitated in watching this series, since I've heard it's the weakest. Then again, I loved Enterprise, and it's not too popular among Trekkies, so I knew I had to give Voyager the chance I gave Archer's crew.
Without further ado, I'll start "Blogging Voyager". Only seven seasons to go!
I always hesitated in watching this series, since I've heard it's the weakest. Then again, I loved Enterprise, and it's not too popular among Trekkies, so I knew I had to give Voyager the chance I gave Archer's crew.
Without further ado, I'll start "Blogging Voyager". Only seven seasons to go!
Boldly Going...
Hello, readers! First of all, a sincere "thank-you" to anyone who's reading this blog, because it means I'm starting to have some followers! So, right now, click that lovely "follow" button, stick this in your Bookmarks/Favourites, and get ready to read.
First of all, there's not mmuch to know about this blog, except that it's going to be about Star Trek. That's a pretty obvious one, though. I take requests, so if there's anything you'd like me to review, as long as it's Star Trek related, I'll do it! I even can give a pretty good critique of any fanart or fanfiction, if that's what you'd like.
I don't really have any limits on what I review. However, my reviews are clean. I don't swear on or off the internet, and any racy material will be reviewed tactfully. (This is for my comfort more than yours, just saying.)
Please feel free to post whatever comments you like. Suggestions, tips, give 'em to me.
And you can call me Christine! Not much else to know about me. ;3
First of all, there's not mmuch to know about this blog, except that it's going to be about Star Trek. That's a pretty obvious one, though. I take requests, so if there's anything you'd like me to review, as long as it's Star Trek related, I'll do it! I even can give a pretty good critique of any fanart or fanfiction, if that's what you'd like.
I don't really have any limits on what I review. However, my reviews are clean. I don't swear on or off the internet, and any racy material will be reviewed tactfully. (This is for my comfort more than yours, just saying.)
Please feel free to post whatever comments you like. Suggestions, tips, give 'em to me.
And you can call me Christine! Not much else to know about me. ;3
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