[.ca] Star Trek Voyager: Season 3

From Amazon.com:
After proving its long-term potential in season 2, Star Trek: Voyager served up some of the best episodes in its entire seven-year history. The second-season cliffhanger was intelligently resolved in "Basics, Pt. II," and the fan-favorite "Flashback" placed Tuvok (Tim Russ) aboard the U.S.S. Excelsior from Star Trek VI, under the command of Capt. Sulu (Star Trek alumnus George Takei). It was a brilliant example of interseries plotting, just as "False Profits" was a Ferengi-based sequel to the NextGen episode "The Price." The two-part time-travel scenario of "Future's End" is a Voyager highlight, with clear echoes (including dialogue lifted verbatim!) of Star Trek's classic "The City on the Edge of Forever," featuring delightful guest performances by actress-comedienne Sarah Silverman and Ed Begley Jr. Character-wise, the season belonged to Kes (Jennifer Lien, whose tenure on the series was now near its end), Neelix (Ethan Phillips), and the Doctor (Robert Picardo), who shined (respectively) in "Warlord," "Fair Trade," and the surprisingly touching "Real Life" (the latter directed by "Potsie" himself, Happy Days veteran Anson Williams). By infecting B'Elanna (Roxanne Dawson) with a fellow officer's "Blood Fever," Voyager delved into the turbulent Vulcan ritual of Pon Farr, while the cliffhanger "Scorpion" introduced the relentless, Borg-destroying villains of Species 8472, which would pose a continuing threat in subsequent episodes. Season 3 had a few clunkers (the guilty pleasure "Macrocosm" puts Janeway in stripped-down "Ripley" mode against invading macro-viruses, and Ensign Kim is an awkward "Favorite Son" to a bevy of babes), but for every misstep there's a strong science-fiction concept, like the highly-evolved Hadrosaurs in "Distant Origin," which doubles as a compelling indictment of institutionalized repression. Overall, this is rock-solid Trek, and the DVD features are equally engaging, albeit growing more perfunctory (especially the season 3 summary) with each full-season release. Don't forget the Easter eggs hidden on the special-features menus, however; they contain some of the set's happiest surprises. --Jeff Shannon

Good... yet... somewhat incomplete.:
I jumped in on this series only recently, forming a new appreciation for the details that makes it unique-- i.e. the crew interaction and character development that sets it apart from The Next Generation and gives the series a flavor of its own. The overall fast-paced, high-speed inertia that viewers were thrust into early in on the series is continued in this season. Stories continued to be both intruiging and amazing.. however.. in some ways, I felt slightly unsatisfied at the end of many episodes. While the stories slightly helped develop each character a little more deeply... it seems like there was a little less attention to detail in this season. Some parts seemed forced and rushed (especially some deaths early on in the season, which left me somewhat unsatisfied because I felt many of those characters deserved a little more detail in the end than what they were given). Some episodes seemed to leave out minor details or skip over things that could have been explored even further. Some even left me thinking, "Wait... is that it? It can't be.. there HAS to be more!" However, as far as strengths go, this season continued to build my admiration in Janeway as a (fictional) superb leader who I wish I could have known and worked for. And some of the other major details (especially some that linked the series to previous movies and series) were extremely enjoyable, especially since they brought back to light things I may have thought about while watching Star Trek in the past. Besides, seeing Sulu in Star Trek is always cool. =)

Best Series:
I am 15 years old and i was introduced to the star trek world through Voyager I have a feeling that if it were TNG or DS9 that i had come across that i would not like Star Trek as much as i do now so i strongly suggest that you buy this DVD series becouse as far as i'm concerned Voyager is the best series "Live Long and Prosper"

VOYAGER FINDS ITS WINGS:
In the STAR TREK Universe of series, the third season historically sets the pace for the most enduring stories of the run of the show. STAR TREK: VOYAGER Season Three doesn't disappoint. Featuring such landmark episodes that eventually lead up to their epic first confrontation with the TREK Universe's most sinister enemies: The Borg. Season Three finally proves that Janeway's crew has the mettle to stand up to any of the other crews in Roddenbery's legacy, even more so since they face the perilous unknown of the Delta Quadrant. This is exactly what was always intended for STAR TREK...a ship out in space, searching the unknown and expanding on the human condition. It never hurt that along the way in Season Three the VOYAGER has some of the most exciting moments in sci-fi adventure ever on television! Season Three sets the tone for the future of the TREK francise and for the eventual climatic introduction of one of the most intriguing characters ever to appear in any STAR TREK series...prepare for Season Four!

Season Three is where Voyager went GOOD to GREAT STAR TREK!:
The first two seasons of Voyager had some great episodes but the show didn't seem to be going anywhere and once season three began, the show started to become old and worn out like the 1960's Enterprise. After the Kazon left the show Voyager started to get better I believe. The series started going on weekly adventures and it was fun. Some of my favorite episodes came out of season three like "Flashback", "Q and the Grey", and "Unity." My most favorites have to be "Blood Fever" where things heat up between Paris and Torres and we learn more about the Vulcan's, also a great Borg episode called "Scorpion, part I" which is considered one of Voyager's greatest episodes. There isn't really any awful episodes in season three but there is a share of weak and very forgettable episodes like "False Profits", "Rise" and a few others. Other then just a few weak episodes, this season was a great season which was the start of a long streak of great Trek seasons. If you like good Sci-Fi get these DVD's!!!

The suggested retail price?!?:
Please note that my poor rating is directed at the greedy money gluttons at Paramount for a retail price of $129.99! That is double to triple the average cost for a season of a TV show DVD set. I know Voyager had higher production costs than most shows, but come on! The amount of people that would buy it would make up for that. It's exactly because of that fact that they DO know how many folks must have this, that they feel they can get away with charging this much. I walked into Best Buy intent on purchasing this, shook my head in disbelief, and ended up getting season three of Futurama for $40.99 instead (yes, I know it's just a cartoon). I mean, I like the Ferengi but I don't like getting stiffed by Hew-mons acting like them. Kudos to Amazon for selling it for $39.00 less. I'll still probably get a used set here or try and get one cheap on EBay. Did seasons 1 and 2 cost $129.99 when they first came out? I wish that people would send a message to Paramount Home Video by not buying season three (at least not at the full retail price), then just maybe they won't try and charge $149.99 when season four comes out. As for season three itself, as others have stated, I feel the show had finally come into its own. My two favorite episodes are "Worst Case Scenario" and "Scorpion Part 1". Unfortunately by the time season three started most Trek fans had sworn off the show forever (including a few friends of mine that HAD been life long Trek fans) thanks to some very weak and some VERY stupid first and second season episodes.