[.ca] Star Trek Voyager: Season 1

From Amazon.com:
Star Trek: Voyager began life in 1995 with some truly fascinating prospects in its two-hour pilot episode. Opening in the 24th century, a setting contemporary with that of Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and carrying over story elements from each of those series, "Caretaker" finds Starfleet Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) stepping into the middle of Federation troubles with the Maquis, an army of rebels violently resisting the interplanetary organization's treaty with the brutal Cardassians. In the process, both Voyager and the Maquis ship under surveillance are accidentally catapulted out of the galaxy's Alpha Quadrant (the familiar stomping grounds of Starfleet personnel) by a benign but dying being called the Caretaker. Voyager ends up in the unexplored Delta Quadrant, some 70,000 light years away. So much seemed dramatically promising in this debut, especially the unwieldy alliance of Starfleet regulars and hostile Maquis, and the likelihood that a lifetime spent in isolation, trying to get home, would lead to the development of a self-contained society on the ship, yet Voyager never entirely made up its mind what it was supposed to be about. The curiously cheesy sets and fascinating, progressive management style of Janeway (half mommy, half taskmaster) were also new developments in Star Trek culture. As the 16-episode season continued, character backstories were developed in such episodes as "The Cloud" (arguably the best episode of the season), "Eye of the Needle" (underscoring Janeway and the crew's sadness), "State of Flux" (in which a search for a traitor reveals a past romance between Commander Chakotay, played by Robert Beltran, and sexy Bajoran engineer Seska, played by Martha Hackett), and "Jetrel" (which explores the character of Neelix, the Talaxian played by Ethan Phillips, during a parable about scientific ethics and moral responsibility). Among other notable episodes, "Phage" strikes a nice balance among character development, story hook, and moral and emotional conflict when Neelix is literally robbed of his lungs by the Vidiians, a once-civilized people who are combating a deadly disease called the Phage by stealing organs. (The disease would return in "Faces," a fine showcase for Roxann Biggs-Dawson as Chief Engineer B'Elanna Torres.) "Emanations" stirred controversy among the series' producers and some fans for its philosophical look at death, and "Time and Again" is a unique time-travel story in which Janeway and Tom Paris (Robert Duncan McNeill) get caught in a subspace fracture that places them just hours before they know a planet is going to be destroyed. In "Prime Factors," latent tensions among Voyager personnel erupts into serious conflict, an issue revisited in the season finale, "Learning Curve." Despite a pat ending that resolves the Maquis conflict much too easily, the episode drives home the fact that Voyager and its crew are all alone, making the most of a difficult predicament. --Tom Keogh and Jeff Shannon

The Least Trek of the Lot....:
I love Gene Roddenberry's creation, STAR TREK. I was one of those tuned in at the beginning in 1966, and stayed with it through the doubts of "Next Generation" (original fans were crying, "Gene, how COULD you?") and I love "Deep Space Nine." With all that, yes, I watched "Voyager." For three seasons, I tuned in and watched. The pilot started with a great premise, and I kept waiting for it to figure out where it was going. It never really did. The series hyped the idea that this ship would have a woman as captain. (So what? Across space, on B5, there were lots of those, plus ace women fighter pilots.) The original decision which mired Voyager in the Delta Quardrant seemed too politically correct, but I knew it was a plot device and let it ride. However, I completely lost faith with Janeway and crew when she put the entire SHIP AND CREW in jeopardy in order to rescue 1 infant who may or may not have been sired by her second-in-command. Even Troi (TNG) came to the realization when she earned her command rank that sometimes people have to die for the greater good. Spock said best in "Wrath of Khan" when he told Kirk, simply, "The needs of the many outweight the needs of the few, or the one." (Janeway take note.) Rick Berman and Michael Pillar didn't have any trouble with this concept in either "Next Gen" or "Deep Space Nine." I'd still like to know what happened at the highest level. The series as a whole seemed way too politically correct to be considered a part of the overall Trek Universe. It all starts with the writing. This series didn't have it. The storylines seemed contrived, the dialogue trite, and no matter how good a cast is, without consistently good scripts, there's no where to take the show. Side note: this is the only entry into the Star Trek Universe not blesses with an appearance by Majel Barrett Roddenberry. I honestly kept waiting for Q to whisk Lwxanna Troi up and off to set Janeway straight. Too bad it didn't happen. If you must watch "Voyager," seasons one had some good moments. Frankly, though, you might want to consider any of the other Trek series (I recommend "Deep Space Nine") or wander over to "Babylon 5."

Excellent Packaging:
This is some of the best packaging I have seen for a highly commercial product. I am a Graphic Designer and Art Director and can tell that some thought went into it. The simplicity is wonderful. The plastic is a perfect solution and a refreshing change from the typical black (good package design is about using materials well). It also allows for each season to have a completely different and all-encomapassing color. The simple disc design is classy and effective. Granted, some good liner notes and inserts would have been nice. But that is a different issue. The content of the DVD's is, of course, excellent. I have been a fan since the show started, and finally being able to watch the episodes whenever I want is wonderful. I enjoyed each season (and took each one with a grain of salt) but this first one has something special about it. Everything seems fresh and exciting. Worth the money.

My favourite Star Trek:
I happily admit this is my favourite Star Trek series. I think that the manuscripts have a subtlety, that the other series lack. Much of it boils down to the characters of Janeway and the Hologram. Janeway is caught in an impossible situation: a routine mission turns into a desperate attempt to get home. The mere presence of the Voyager in the Delta Quadrant upsets the fragile stability of the region. Instead of causing good, Janeway has to work on limiting the damage they cause. Several times she has to make painful decisions, decisions that are not right or wrong, they are rather based on convenience. Star Trek has come a long way from Kirk! Secondly, the Hologram is a particularly strong character. He desperately wants to be a human, but lacks the capability. The one time he has the chance, Janeway takes it away from him. Again, a strong development from Spock and Data. I also like many of the minor character, especially Chicote. At last a Native is allowed into the Star Trek universe. And he carries his own luggage. Many of the stories are based on human falliability, they lack the grandeur and paraphernalia of, say TSG, but I think that that is where their charm is.

Just Fun!:
I have never been a watcher of star trek episodes, but Voyager really caught my attention... but it was later in the series so i missed out on the beginning. I enjoy these dvd's because I am now caught up on what I missed, and its nice to see how a show has grown and improved over the years. Nothing starts out perfect, but I find it very enjoyable and I look forward to the rest of the series on DVD.

Condensing The Facts:
Paramount gave little thought to Voyager maintaining the Star Trek franchise. It was treated as the "Money Making Monster" that 'Star Trek' has become. Greed relentlessy dictacted the direction Voyager would take - AUTO DESTRUCT! * It's all but impossible not to compare it to the other Star Trek series. Voyager is the worst of them all. Deep Space Nine is by far the best! * Voyager dwells too much on their return home and give it a "Lost In Space" feel - corny, stupid, dull and overly dependent on the special effects, i.e. read that as 'weak story'. * The characters weren't quite 'real' and as they developed the writers put the wrong people in certain situations Ex. Janeway would head missions just like Kirk did, a blatant abuse of protocol. Sometimes Tuvok (a full Vulcan) would be the most emotional character! Most of the rest of the cast would move from overwhelming a story to just 'disappearing'. The ensemble cast element rarely existed and when it did the actors were most likely 'out of character'. For the sake of screen time? * There were some fine episodes (none that I can think of in Season 1) but even most of my favorites wouldn't make my best of list against Next Generation, DS9 or even some of the Original series! * Being Star Trek you would expect nothing short of great packaging (consensus says no) but Paramount is just peddling something the fans are so addicted to that they will buy it in droves, no matter the packing or... * High price for a short season, which is also one of the worst as far as stories go. It makes Next Generations' season one look brilliant (it wasn't). * The sad truth is the market was prepared for the onslaught of sales of a so-so series at a very high price with the poorest of packaging and the extreme hard core fans have left everyone else wondering why? Save your money, watch the reruns.