star trek voyager scorpion part 1 full episode

Scorpion (episode)

• View history
• 1.2 Act One
• 1.3 Act Two
• 1.4 Act Three
• 1.5 Act Four
• 1.6 Act Five
• 2 Memorable quotes
• 3.1 Title, story, and script
• 3.2 Cast and characters
• 3.3 Production
• 3.4 Effects
• 3.5.1 Holographic Leonardo da Vinci
• 3.6 Reception
• 3.7 Home video releases
• 4.1 Starring
• 4.2 Also starring
• 4.3 Special guest star
• 4.4 Uncredited co-stars
• 4.5 Stunt double
• 4.6 Stand-ins
• 4.7 References
• 4.8 External links

Summary [ ]

Resistance is not futile

In a region of space , two Borg cubes advance on their next intended targets for assimilation . Their hail is cut off abruptly as energy beams lash out at the cubes, which are instantly destroyed.

Act One [ ]

On one of the USS Voyager 's holodecks , Captain Kathryn Janeway is running a Leonardo da Vinci holo-program , conversing with a Leonardo hologram in a simulation of the historical figure's workshop. As Janeway convinces the hologram to take her on as a student, she receives an urgent hail from Commander Chakotay , who urges her to go to engineering to take a look at something.

There, Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres explains that the long-range probe they sent out months ago has stopped transmitting. However, she was able to catch the last few seconds of telemetry, which show a Borg drone 's face staring into the viewscreen . Janeway quickly realizes the implication: after nearly three years in the Delta Quadrant, Voyager is finally approaching Borg space.

Chakotay demonstrates a diagram of the Northwest Passage

Janeway immediately calls a meeting of the senior staff and explains that it is unknown how many Borg vessels are out there but that their space appears to be vast, including thousands of star systems . Voyager is no doubt entering the heart of Borg territory and, unfortunately, there seems to be no way around it. However, there might be a way through it. Chakotay explains that, before the probe was disabled, it detected a narrow corridor of space devoid of Borg activity – which members of the crew nicknamed "the Northwest Passage ". Navigating through it, however, may prove complicated, as the passage is filled with intense gravimetric distortions , probably caused by a string of quantum singularities . The crew are left with no choice, though, but to go through the passage.

All over the ship, preparations are finalized. In engineering, the warp drive is checked, yet again. Tuvok goes through weapons checks with his security officers . Chakotay and Kim review planned tactical options in case the Borg invade the ship.

One of Kes' premonitions

While The Doctor and Kes examine the Borg drone corpse the crew discovered three months earlier looking for possible ways to protect the crew from being assimilated. The Doctor has found that the Borg assimilate by injecting the victim with nanoprobes which quickly take over the bloodstream and suggests a defense which would involve fighting against the infection before it can spread. Kes suddenly experiences a vivid vision of dismembered Borg drone corpses, piled up on one another. She has no idea what this means but it disturbs her greatly. She experiences these and other frightening visions for the next two hours; visions of dead drones and Voyager 's destruction haunt her mind. Tuvok, who is Kes' mentor in honing her telepathic abilities, is informed of this development. While he discusses Kes' predicament with Janeway and Chakotay on the bridge , the ship begins to tremble. Kim reports that long-range sensors detect transwarp signatures 5.8 light-years away closing from behind. Before they know it, fifteen Borg vessels are rapidly closing on them from 2.1 light-years away. Subspace turbulence forces Voyager out of warp.

Fifteen cubes bear down on Voyager

Much to everyone's surprise, the enormous vessels do not attack, merely racing past Voyager . One cube slows and scans the ship, then speeds up to rejoin the others. The subspace turbulence affecting Voyager dissipates. The crew is at a loss to explain their unusually good fortune.

Act Two [ ]

Kim confirms there's no damage, and systems are coming back online. Janeway orders the ship to resume course while she reviews the Starfleet database for data on previous Borg encounters. Chakotay interrupts her later to inform her the passage is still clear then, seeing she hasn't eaten, offers to eat with her. She declines, then explains she has been seeking useful information on the Borg from the logs of other Starfleet commanders but has gotten nothing. Although she knew when Voyager first started its journey back to the Alpha Quadrant they would eventually hit Borg territory and everyone has tried to prepare themselves for the challenge, she asks about what happens if the danger is too large; do they press on or retreat to friendly territory, permanently abandoning the journey home. Chatokay gently assures her that he and everyone else will support her and that she is not alone. Janeway says that she cannot imagine a day without him – though just three years ago, she didn't even know his name. While they are talking, Tuvok hails her to the bridge.

There, he and Kim report that the Borg cubes have suddenly stopped 5.2 light years away, for an undetermined reason. Janeway orders Paris to take Voyager to the coordinates of the dormant Borg ships at warp 2. The crew then finds that every one of the fifteen cubes has been destroyed – with only a few life signs remaining. Tuvok detects two residual weapons' signatures in the debris: one Borg and the other of unknown origin. Astonished, Paris asks the question that everyone else is wondering: who could bring such devastation to the Borg?

Act Three [ ]

" Who could do this to the Borg? "

The idea of someone more powerful than the Borg seems rather incredible. Kim thinks they might have found an ally but Chakotay warns not to jump to conclusions. While scanning the vicinity for other vessels, the bridge officers detect a biomass attached to one of the Borg ships. They confirm that it is organic but do not receive a response when they send out a standard greeting. They try to beam it away from the ship, but cannot get a lock on it and a tractor beam also doesn't seem to have an effect. They realize that whatever is attached to the Borg cube is impervious to their technology. Janeway orders Chakotay to lead an away team to the cube to take a short-range scan of this biomass.

Voyager discovers a peculiar vessel

The vessel "docked" to the remnant of a Borg cube

Tuvok and Kim join Chakotay on the away team and beam aboard the cube. As they look around, they find nothing but dead drones scattered amid the wreckage. As they move on, they find a pile of dismembered Borg corpses reminiscent of the visions Kes had earlier. They continue forward to the object and find that it has created a gaping hole in the cube's hull and fused onto it. Interestingly, there is a Borg unsuccessfully continuing to attempt to assimilate it. Scans reveal it to be an organic-based vessel with high concentration of antimatter particles, possibly a warp core . Chakotay and Tuvok board the ship to investigate while Kim accesses a Borg distribution node to download their tactical database.

The dead, infected drone

In Voyager 's sickbay , Kes is carrying a tray when she is suddenly overwhelmed by visions of Kim screaming in abject agony. She collapses, frantically warning that the away team is in grave danger and that they need to leave the cube immediately.

On the Borg ship, Kim calls the other two officers to his position, as he has detected something that is biological in the vicinity but does not appear to be Borg. Just then, Janeway hails and tells them to prepare for immediate return to Voyager . The unknown life form suddenly tears through a wall of the cube, entering a corridor where the away team is. Immediately, it attacks nearby drones, swiping them before turning to Kim and attacking him. Kim collapses, screaming in excruciating pain, just as he had in Kes' vision. The creature moves to finish him but, just then, the away team is beamed back aboard Voyager .

Voyager spirals up of control

On the bridge, Paris reports that the alien ship is detaching and powering up, apparently readying to fire a weapon. Kes, who is also on the bridge, experiences another vision of the pilot on that bio-ship communicating with her. Janeway orders Paris to take them out of the area at maximum warp. As Voyager moves away, the bio-ship fires, not landing a direct hit but Voyager loses control. Paris is able to jump to warp speed, and the bio-ship does not give chase. An alarm-stricken Kes tells Janeway that it is not the Borg that they should be worried about but this new species. Kes informs the captain that the creature told her, " The weak will perish. "

Act Four [ ]

Kim is being ravaged by the alien's attack

As Janeway enters sickbay, she is horrified to view Harry Kim's condition. The Doctor tells her that the alien cells are consuming his body from the inside out, while he is conscious. He shows her the scan of the alien cells which contain more than a hundred times the DNA of a Human cell. It would take him years to decipher it. The Doctor is unable to sedate Harry as anything that penetrates this species' cell-membrane – biological, chemical or technological – is instantly destroyed. Janeway realizes that this is probably why the Borg cannot assimilate the species. The Doctor, however, believes that Borg technology holds the key to saving Kim, as he hopes to unleash an army of modified Borg nanoprobes into Kim's bloodstream , designed to target and eradicate the infection. He has successfully managed to dissect a nanoprobe, access its recoding mechanism and reprogram the probe to emit the same electrochemical signature as the alien cells. That way, the probe can do its work without being detected. The Doctor is not certain he will be able to modify enough nanoprobes in time to save Harry.

The Doctor presents his solution to the Captain

On the bridge, Tuvok and Torres show Chakotay a part of the tactical data Kim retrieved from the cube. According to it, the aliens – designated by the Borg as Species 8472 – have engaged the Borg twelve times in the last five months and, each time, the Borg have been defeated swiftly. The bridge officers also finally determine that Species 8472 comes from the Northwest Passage – which would explain why it is a region devoid of Borg activity. While discussing this, Tuvok detects 133 bio-ships coming from a quantum singularity. A grim-faced Janeway watches the visual as it shows hundreds of the aliens' ships streaming forth from quantum singularities in the Northwest Passage.

Kes notifies the captain that the aliens have been communicating with her further. Their new messages are even more frightening than the first; she feels malevolence and cold hatred. Kes says that what they are doing is carrying out an invasion and that they intend to destroy everything. Voyager is taken 5 light-years away at maximum warp to wait.

Chakotay and Janeway discuss their next move. The Northwest Passage is no longer an option as a route through Borg space. Now, the choice is between facing the Borg in their space or staying behind and giving up hope of ever returning home. Chakotay reminds Janeway that just because they're turning around doesn't mean they won't find another way home, but Janeway still can't bring herself to tell the crew they're remaining in the Delta Quadrant and is desperate for another choice between permanent isolation or almost certain death. She decides to get some sleep and see how she feels with a clear head, as she hasn't slept for 2 days.

Janeway however can't bring herself to rest and heads to the da Vinci holodeck simulation, the decision she must make weighs heavily on her mind. She tells Leonardo her problem (as a metaphor) and he suggests she journey with him to church and make an appeal to God. This suddenly gives Janeway an idea… she could do a deal with the "devil".

Act Five [ ]

In the briefing room, Janeway outlines her plan: an alliance with the Borg , against their new enemy. Voyager 's crew will offer the Borg a way to defeat their enemy and, in return, the Borg will grant them safe passage through their space. Janeway references The Doctor's findings regarding the nanoprobes, which she believes can be used as a biological weapon against Species 8472. The officers are incredulous at her suggestion of teaming up with such an entity. Janeway is adamant that her stratagem will work, however. She has The Doctor save all of the research regarding the nanoprobes in his holomatrix . She also explains that, if the Borg threaten Voyager in any way, the crew will simply erase The Doctor's program.

After everyone else leaves, Chakotay – who has remained rather quiet throughout the meeting – tells Janeway that he believes that what she proposes is far too dangerous. Illustrating his reasoning by citing a parable of the scorpion that allowed itself to die rather than overcome its deadly nature, he argues that her plan is a huge mistake, as she is underestimating the true evil of the Borg. He explains that no amount of diplomacy, reasoning and incentive-providing will ever change what the Borg are. They have no guarantee that the Borg will actually keep their hands off them after they acquire the information. He also wonders how much Voyager 's safety is ultimately worth, that Janeway is willing to give advantage to a species guilty of murdering billions; they would essentially be giving the Borg the means to assimilate yet another species, just to get themselves home. But Janeway is convinced that they will be able to keep the Borg at bay with the bargaining chip they have. She furthermore believes that helping to assimilate Species 8472 might actually not be such a bad idea, given the malevolence they have expressed towards the entire galaxy. Chakotay, however, remains steadfast in his objection to her plan accusing her of being so blinded by her desire to go home that she is closing herself to all other options. Janeway asks him to trust her, firmly stating that the time for debate is over as she has made her decision. Chakotay reluctantly agrees that, as her first officer, he will comply with her orders but makes it clear she does not have his support. With misty eyes, Janeway says she guesses that she is alone after all. She dismisses him sadly but her resolve is unshaken.

Voyager arrives at an assimilated system. Several Borg cubes are in the area, and one of them seizes the ship in a tractor beam. Janeway notifies the Collective that she has tactical information about Species 8472. She offers to negotiate for it but the Collective refuses. Janeway has Torres transmit (to the cubes) a sample of the research, showing the 8472 cells being destroyed by the Borg nanoprobes. The captain declares that this is a sample of the data and threatens to destroy it, if the Collective does not listen to what she has to say. There is a long pause. She again offers to negotiate but, as she speaks, she is transported to the cube, finding herself on a catwalk spanning the vessel's vast interior.

Janeway negotiates with the Collective

The Collective instructs her to state her demands. She states that there is only one demand: safe passage through Borg space in exchange for the data. Once her ship is past Borg territory, she will give them their research. The Collective does not accept because their space is vast and her passage would take too long. They demand the technology immediately. Janeway refuses because if she gives the data to them right away, they would assimilate Voyager . The Collective explains that Species 8472 has to be stopped and the Collective's survival is Voyager 's survival. Janeway then comes up with a plan: they would collaborate – as Voyager traverses Borg space – in order to craft a bio-weapon using the data. She is in the middle of outlining this plan when the cube is violently shaken.

Voyager and the cube escape the planet, but only just

On Voyager 's bridge, Tuvok informs Chakotay that a quantum singularity has opened 20,000 kilometers away and that more bio-ships are coming through. The cube's shields are weakening but not enough to beam Janeway back to Voyager . Nine bio-ships converge in a star pattern and head toward the assimilated planet . They destroy the planet and all the Borg cubes in the vicinity, except for the one holding Janeway and Voyager . The remaining cube hurtles away at high warp, just ahead of the explosion, with Voyager still held firmly in its tractor beam.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Memorable quotes [ ]

" We are the Borg. Existence as you know it is over. We will add your biological and technological distinctiveness to our own. Resistance is fu… "

" Better to ride the rapids than face the Hive. "

" Think good thoughts. "

" In their collective state, the Borg are utterly without mercy, driven by one will alone: the will to conquer. They are beyond redemption, beyond reason. "

" It is my opinion that the Borg are as close to pure evil as any race we've ever encountered. "

" It's nothing to be ashamed about, echoing the greats. Ensign Hickman in astrophysics does a passable Janeway." " If we manage to survive the next few days, I'm going to have a chat with Ensign Hickman. Imitating the captain – surely that violates some kind of Starfleet protocol."

"Three years ago, I didn't even know your name. Today I can't imagine a day without you. "

" We might have just found our ticket through Borg space: an ally. " " Let's not jump to conclusions. "

" A skeletal lock, huh? We'll have to add that one to the transporter manual. "

" The weak will perish! "

" They have an extraordinary immune response. Anything that penetrates the cell membrane, chemical, biological, technological, it's all instantly destroyed. That's why the Borg can't assimilate them. " " Resistance in this case is far from futile. "

" Fight it, Harry! That's an order! "

" There are times, Caterina, when I find myself transfixed by a shadow on the wall, or the splashing of water against a stone. I stare at it, the hours pass, the world around me drops away… replaced by worlds being created and destroyed by my imagination. "

" There's a path before me… the only way home. And on either side, mortal enemies bent on destroying each other. If I attempt to pass through them… I'll be destroyed as well. But if I turn around… that would end all hope of ever getting home. "

" What if I made an appeal… to the Devil? "

" The Borg aren't exactly known for their diplomacy. Can we really expect them to cooperate with us? " " Normally, the answer would be no, but if what I've learned from the aliens is true, the Borg are losing this conflict. "

" There's a story I heard as a child, a parable, and I never forgot it. A scorpion was walking along the bank of a river, wondering how to get to the other side. Suddenly, he saw a fox. He asked the fox to take him on his back across the river. The fox said 'No. If I do that, you'll sting me and I'll drown.' The scorpion assured him, 'If I did that, we'd both drown.' So, the fox thought about it, and finally agreed. So, the scorpion climbed up on his back, and the fox began to swim, but halfway across the river, the scorpion stung him. As the poison filled his veins, the fox turned to the scorpion and said, 'Why did you do that? Now you'll drown too.' 'I couldn't help it,' said the scorpion, 'it's my nature'. "

" We'd be giving an advantage to a race guilty of murdering billions. We'd be helping the Borg assimilate yet another species just to get ourselves back home. It's wrong! "

Background information [ ]

Title, story, and script [ ].

• "Scorpion" takes its name from the parable Chakotay shares with Janeway after briefing the crew on her plan to form a temporary alliance with the Borg. The parable is most commonly known as The Scorpion and the Frog , but for unknown reasons Chakotay's version substitutes a fox for the frog. The Italian dub keeps the frog in the story.
• Even before it was firmly decided that the Borg would reappear in Star Trek: Voyager (as the series' team of writer-producers were considering if they should, following the defeat of the Borg and their queen in the film Star Trek: First Contact ), Brannon Braga had come up with one of the story points of this episode. He noted, " I think it would be cool if the USS Voyager came upon a Borg graveyard, and basically, they're all dead. Obviously, somehow they'll come back to life. I just think it's a cool setting, and it's an interesting pay off to the movie. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 24 , p. 37) Evidently, however, the cause of the destruction thereafter changed from being the Borg's defeat in First Contact to Species 8472.
• This installment was not the first choice for the finale of Star Trek: Voyager 's third season , a fact that even CGI Effects Director Ron Thornton became aware of (despite his purview being quite different from that of Voyager 's writing staff). ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 16 , p. 37) Originally, " Year of Hell " was planned to be Voyager 's third season finale but, with the choice made to shake up the cast in Season 4 , this episode was the result. ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 34 , p. 12; Delta Quadrant , p. 207) This episode also replaced an undeveloped story idea that featured biomimetic lifeforms , doppelgängers of the Voyager crew, arriving at Earth to much enthusiastic furore before then causing havoc on the planet; although Joe Menosky and Brannon Braga started to collaborate on scripting that plot, dissatisfaction with the writing of the teleplay resulted in the writing duo instead turning their attentions to the "Scorpion" project. The same aliens who appeared in the unfinished script ultimately featured in Season 4's " Demon " and the fifth season installment " Course: Oblivion ". ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 31, No. 11, p. 49)
• Brannon Braga's initial idea for this episode was originally influenced by two then-recent Borg-related Star Trek productions: the film Star Trek: First Contact (which Braga himself had co-written) and the earlier third season Voyager installment " Unity ". Braga recalled, " Late one night I was sitting in front of the TV and I saw a promotion for Voyager on the air on UPN . I saw an image of a Borg corpse from the show we were doing, 'Unity'. It struck me then and there that First Contact had come and gone. It was time to deliver the Borg in a big way, at which point we threw out the cliffhanger we were working on at that time, and came up with 'Scorpion I' and 'II'. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 75) Years later, however, Braga hesitantly recounted that the moment of inspiration had come when he " was sitting at home, late one night, and I was watching a video tape of one of our episodes; it had a Borg mummy in it or something. " ("Braving the Unknown: Season 4", VOY Season 4 DVD ) Regardless of how exactly he saw footage from "Unity" at the time he had the thought for this episode, he clarified, " All we had planned for the Borg was that 'Unity' episode […] I thought, we can't just do 'Unity'. It's not enough. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 75)
• Voyager co-creator and Executive Producer Jeri Taylor credited Brannon Braga, who Taylor considered to be a highly inventive writer generally, with the idea for Species 8472. ("Braving the Unknown: Season Three", VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
• Although the concept of a Borg graveyard had unsuccessfully been considered for "Unity", the reason – according to Brannon Braga – that the idea was included in this episode was "not because we were dying to do a Borg graveyard." Braga further explained, " It's kind of an image that we had held over, but it fits into the events of the story perfectly. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 17)
• The sequence wherein multiple Borg cubes pass by Voyager was part of an attempt, made by Brannon Braga and Joe Menosky, to feature memorable, large-scale images in the two-parters that were included (at least partly, as in the case of the "Scorpion" two-parter) in Star Trek: Voyager 's fourth season. Menosky explained, " We made a conscious effort to put back [in] amazing images that are memorable, and that the character stuff works in and around, things like from 'Scorpion Part I', little Voyager with 15 Borg cubes blasting by. I loved looking at that […] A big part of this is not just visual effects but images. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 75)
• A starship battle in Borg subspace tunnels was temporarily considered for inclusion in this episode. The idea was discussed before being dismissed. ( Star Trek: Action! , p. 7) Similarly, the idea of having the Borg use quantum slipstream drive was also contemplated. " We were going to have the Borg ships raising slipstreams and have big fights in those slipstreams, " Brannon Braga reflected, " But we had too many ideas for that episode and some just didn't make it. " ( Star Trek: Action! , p. 42)
• The holographic Leonardo da Vinci was added to the story at the request of Janeway actress Kate Mulgrew . Although she twice (on separate occasions) referred to the idea as having been her own, Mulgrew also indicated a lesser degree of personal involvement in the character's conception by saying, " I helped come up with the idea. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 46 , p. 26; Star Trek Monthly  issue 33 , p. 23; The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 14 , p. 33) Leonardo actor John Rhys-Davies offered, " The whole thing was Kate's baby and she had done a lot of research into it. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 58 , p. 40) Mulgrew's inspiration for the character was that it would give Janeway someone creative to confide in. ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 4; The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 14 , pp. 33-34) Concerning exactly how she made her contribution to this character concept, Mulgrew offered, " I think it was Brannon Braga who asked, 'Where did art most notoriously meet science in history?' And I said, 'With Leonardo da Vinci.' He said, 'Exactly.' " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 14 , p. 34)
• During the scripting process, the members of Species 8472 were at one point described as being fourteen feet tall. The script, while being written, was very vague about most of the aliens' other details. Concept artist Steve Burg recounted, " It just said, 'A great beast of some sort blasts through the wall, kills two of the Borg and hits Harry, knocking him out.' " ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 2 , p. 28)
• The final draft of this episode's script was submitted on 26 February 1997 . This document refers to Species 8472 as being at least ten feet tall and wearing an alien breathing apparatus aboard the Borg cube. [1]

Cast and characters [ ]

• Kate Mulgrew liked many aspects of this episode, citing it as one of her eight favorite installments of Star Trek: Voyager 's third season. For example, Mulgrew was highly proud of having come up with the idea of a holographic Leonardo da Vinci. " For me, 'Scorpion' introduced another element of Janeway that I loved, " Mulgrew explained, " and that was Leonardo da Vinci. " The actress went on to state that, because she had assisted with the conceptual development of the Leonardo hologram, she was "very pleased." ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 14 , pp. 32 & 33) Mulgrew not only thought that the character concept was "a really good idea" but also believed the holographic program "makes sense." ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 33 , p. 23) Additionally, the actress was delighted by how this episode initiates the bond between her character of Janeway and the Leonardo hologram. " They begin an extraordinary relationship on the holodeck, " Mulgrew enthused. ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 4)
• Without auditioning for the role of the holographic Leonardo da Vinci, John Rhys-Davies was offered the part by Star Trek: Voyager 's producers. Having been a long-term Star Trek fan, he was delighted to accept the offer. ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 58 , p. 38) Kate Mulgrew enjoyed working on this episode with the actor. Shortly following the completion of her work on the episode, Mulgrew stated, " John Rhys-Davies is just perfect for it. We had a very good time working together. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 14 , p. 34)
• Both Kate Mulgrew and Joe Menosky noticed that, by this point in the third season, the character of Janeway and the persona of the actress playing her were seeming to gravitate more towards one another and that this development appeared to be benefiting the portrayal of the Starfleet captain. Menosky commented, " In 'Scorpion Part I' [Janeway] was becoming a little more risk taking, and edgy, and frankly, a little bit more like Kate Mulgrew. I've always said, even Jeri Taylor used to always say, 'if Captain Janeway were only more like Kate, we would have a much better captain on our hands.' For whatever reason, our writing and Kate's kind of freewheeling personality seemed to come together a bit more, at the end of the [third] season. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 30, No. 9/10, p. 86) Mulgrew herself remarked that, particularly "towards the end of the season," she made some "very important breakthroughs" with becoming "much more relaxed and more allied with Janeway". ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 33 , p. 23)
• Jeri Taylor was impressed by the acting, in this episode, of both Kate Mulgrew and Chakotay actor Robert Beltran . " Weren't they good? " Taylor rhetorically asked. " I felt that the actors more than rose to the occasion. They really liked the idea of that conflict [between Janeway and Chakotay] and how it would test their friendship, and they really poured themselves into it. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 113)
• Kim actor Garrett Wang liked how this episode introduced a new, villainous alien species. He observed, " All of a sudden, now you have an enemy which is even more… fearful than the Borg, an enemy that can single-handedly take out the Borg. 'Who could that be?!', you know? Up 'til that point, I mean, the Borg was the end-all, be-all of enemies, you know? Nobody could defeat – and then, now, you've got, 'Who are these guys?!', you know? […] So that episode, to me, was… I loved it because it introduced, you know, a 'new villain.' The sci-fi fan in me really enjoyed working on that episode, for that. " ("Braving the Unknown: Season Three", VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
• Garrett Wang was less pleased, however, about having to play the out-of-action Kim. " I mean, I wasn't too happy that, most of the episode, I was on a bio-bed with green goop on my face, " Wang remarked, before loudly echoing of the writers (wearing a big grin on his face), " 'Who else but Kim needs to be tortured in the bio-bed?', you know? No one else, just Kim. " ("Braving the Unknown: Season Three", VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
• This episode marks the final appearance of Jennifer Lien ( Kes ) as a regular cast member.

Production [ ]

• The makeup appliances for the holographic Leonardo da Vinci, as created for this episode, consisted of a beard, mustache and eyebrows as well as a nose that was styled in much the same way as Leonardo's was. ( Star Trek: Aliens & Artifacts , p. 169)
• Director David Livingston appreciated the fact that, for this episode, Species 8472 was scripted to appear for merely a few brief moments, giving only fleeting glimpses of the species. " It was kind of played a little bit like Alien , " Livingston remarked, " where you don't really get a huge look at it, which, to me, is always the best way to portray these things. If you look at them too long and too closely, they start to fall apart a bit. " ("Braving the Unknown: Season Three", VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
• According to the unauthorized reference book Delta Quadrant (p. 188), the Borg costumes in this episode were reused from Star Trek: First Contact , as were "much of the Borg's furnishings."
• After Garrett Wang portrayed a reaction to seeing the approach of the massed Borg cubes that fly by Voyager , his fellow actors jokingly mimicked him. Wang commented, " I notice onscreen on my sensors that all these Borg cubes are coming upon us, but they don't even stop for us […] And my lines are like, 'Captain, I'm reading one – no, three – no, five – no, seven Borg cubes.' And the way I said it, I said, 'Capt-taiiiin…' " Wang laughed. He then continued, " I really extended out the 'Captain.' So from then on, [Robert] Beltran and [Robert Duncan] McNeill would always go, 'Cap-taiiiin…' " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 106 , p. 40)
• Visual Effects Producer Dan Curry acted as second unit director on this installment. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96) As such, he was involved in the directing of the scene wherein an away team from Voyager passes the pile of Borg corpses aboard a Borg cube. The heap of deceased drones was not an on-set element, however. Recalling the filming of the scene, Curry said, " The actors knew where to look, on stage, so they would walk around and say, 'Okay, it's up there.' " ("Red Alert: Amazing Visual Effects", VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
• Visual Effects Supervisor Ronald B. Moore worked on the filming of the scene in which a member of Species 8472 bursts into a corridor, attacks Kim and then hurries away. Ron Thornton enthused of this scene, " Ron Moore and the live-action guys did such a great job of shooting the live action that it had a massive amount of drama–the wall suddenly blows out, so we could make the creature come in. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 16 , p. 38)
• Performing the scene wherein Janeway speaks with the Borg Collective while aboard one of the Borg cubes represented a scary challenge for Kate Mulgrew, who consequently had to do several takes of the scene. To aid her performance, Mulgrew imagined she was in an extremely contained space, surrounded by hordes of serial killers. ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 4; The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 14 , p. 33) This footage was filmed by Dan Curry's second unit team. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96) " They put you on the stage with just a blue screen behind you, and they say, 'This is the Borg hive. You are surrounded by them. You can go four inches this way. You can go two inches this way, and forward no more than an inch and a half, " Mulgrew told an audience at the Pasadena Grand Slam Convention on Friday 21 March 1997 , " and meanwhile you play the three-page scene, and you are jeopardizing not only yourself, but the assimilation of your entire species […] I played the scene with so much quiet that I scared myself! " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 4)

Effects [ ]

• Although Visual Effects Supervisor Ron Moore usually used a mixture of effects methods, the visual effects of this episode were virtually all CGI. This method of effects was costly but a saving of finances enabled the profuse usage of CGI here; Jeri Taylor noted that, for this episode, the production crew of Star Trek: Voyager had "some extra money saved so we [could] go all out." ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 31 , pp. 27 & 13) Both David Livingston and Senior Supervising Visual Effects Animator Adam "Mojo" Lebowitz appreciated the fact that this episode allowed for more digital effects than usual. " [It] really, really pushed the envelope, " noted Lebowitz. " It had an incredible amount of complicated effects work, stuff that would have probably been prohibitively expensive to have done with miniatures. That might have been one of the first shows where you can really say that without CGI they couldn't have done it. It was really a compliment that they even wrote an episode like that. I think it showed that they were finally having some confidence in the work that was being done, and they decided to really push it. I was really happy that they were finally writing episodes knowing that this stuff can be done more effectively now. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 58 , p. 44) In agreement, Livingston noted, " That was fun, because we got to deal with CGI figures. " ("Braving the Unknown: Season Three", VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
• The effects in this episode (in particular, the creation of Species 8472) were influenced by the success of effects in the earlier third season episode " Macrocosm ", particularly the computer-generated design of the macrovirus . ("Red Alert: Amazing Visual Effects", VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
• Despite this episode's script being sparse on details regarding Species 8472, the episode's visual effects artists were able to glean some information about the aliens from their involvement in the story. Dan Curry noted, " We had a script for a very vicious alien creature that had to be so powerful and so fearsome that it was able to chop up and destroy the Borg. " The aliens were then designed – for their debut appearance in this episode – by Curry, Steve Burg and CGI animator John Teska . ("The Birth of Species 8472", VOY Season 4 DVD special features)
• Meanwhile, Adam Lebowitz worked on the CGI Species 8472 bio-ships , the Borg cubes and Voyager . Ron Moore and coordinator Cheryl Gluckstern devised the two different forms of energy beam that the bio-ships' weapons fire: the style that is emitted from the single bio-ship that Voyager initially comes across, and the more concentrated blast that is fired by the formation of bio-ships. Recalling the creation of the latter style of blast, Moore said, " I wanted to do something that was a little bit different than Star Wars ' Death Star. I thought it was more interesting if they could share the strength of each and then create this monster beam. " The beams were visualized by Greg Rainoff at Digital Magic , using Harry animation. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 95)
• The teaser of this episode involved a lot of work for CGI supplier Foundation Imaging . Ron Thornton explained, " We originally built the Borg Cube for an earlier episode [i.e. 'Unity'], but we really had to trick it out for this one, because in the first few seconds, two Borg Cubes are blown up, so we had to create a lot of pieces for each explosion. " Using a studio model and motion-control photography rather than CGI would have made the sequence somewhat easier and less time-consuming, as Foundation would not have had to deal with the painstaking task of crafting the explosions. ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 16 , p. 38)
• During the creation of the sequence wherein Voyager is passed by an armada of Borg cubes, the visual effects team were not entirely certain how big to make the effect. " Initially when we did that shot, " Ron Moore recalled, " we thought it was a little bit over-the-top. The idea is that these Borg cubes are really, really big, and whatever drive they're using is throwing out some kind of electromagnetic field that's kicking the Voyager around. So we did a second softer version, and we looked at it and looked at it, and finally the decision was made to go back to the original. It's a lot more fun. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96) Visualizing this sequence with such traditional effects methods as a model and motion-control photography would have been problematic. " The mount would have given us a problem, " Ron Moore explained. " We could have done a side mount, maybe, but it would have been a lot more subtle. " In other words, what the effects team veered away from, when it came time to create the sequence. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, pp. 95-96)

Ronald B. Moore and Paul Hill work on this episode in the edit bay at Digital Magic

• The green-tinged polaron beam that is utilized by one of the Borg cubes to scan Voyager 's bridge was actually rendered CGI by Digital Magic. Ron Moore said of this effect, " The thing that was important to me was that it would look like it was dimensional, when the light would hit the face, and then you'd see it in the background. We played with it in the edit bay. A lot of times with CGI this works out better, because there's a lot of freedom in the edit bay. Something like the scanning beam works until you make it too heavy, and you can't see through it. It's very subtle. With Paul Hill in the edit bay, we laid down one of the passes bright, another one with a little green in it, and we plugged in the flat fan-like surface as it went across. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96)

The pile of Borg action figures

• The pile of dismembered Borg seen on the disabled cube was actually a twelve-inch pile of Playmates Toys action figures. Dan Curry recalled, " We didn't have the budget or the time to create full-scale body chunks, because of the cost and time it would take to do that. So, I asked our licensing department for a bunch of Borg toy action figures […] And kudos to the person who sculpted those toys, because the detail – especially the facial detail – was so good that I was able to take the toy action figures, cut them up with a Dremel cutting tool, and then I stacked them up with hot glue and shot them at home against a little blue screen cove. " To complete the scene in which the away team members from Voyager pass the pile of corpses, the live-action footage that Dan Curry had already shot of the actors was composited together with the Borg drone models. Curry remarked, " By compositing the stack of action figures, it looked very real. And the toy faces were sculpted so well that I was able to do close-ups on a [tiny] head, […] filling the TV screen with them, and they looked very good. Of course, it was in kind of a smoky environment, but um… So, the toys served us well and saved the production company lots of money. " ("Red Alert: Amazing Visual Effects", VOY Season 3 DVD special features) Ron Moore commented, " That was something we all knew immediately was perfect for Dan […] He really had a lot of fun painting it, showing it to everybody. He'd come in and tell us, 'It's real disgusting now,' and he had a big smile on. It was great. We used it in a couple of shots, one with our crew, and one without. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96)
• While Chakotay, Tuvok, and Harry Kim are exploring a Borg cube, they encounter a Borg drone repeatedly trying, unsuccessfully, to assimilate the Species 8472 bio-ship attached to the cube. For a single shot in this scene, Industrial Light & Magic assisted with the inclusion of some Borg assimilation tubules that extend from the drone's fingers. Ron Moore stated, " Since ILM had done the tubules for the last feature, First Contact , [Producer] Peter Lauritson set it up so that they would go ahead and give us those tubules again for the show. We added the electricity. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96)
• The look of the Species 8472 infection that can be seen on both the infected Borg corpse and Harry Kim, while he is also stricken with the condition, was created by Greg Rainoff using Harry animation. " The idea was that they wanted to show that even though the Borg was dead, whatever these aliens had done to him was still at work, " Ron Moore revealed. " Later when we see Kim in sickbay, it's the same thing. If you look closely, you'll see that these veins are growing bigger and leaning just a little bit. We wanted to tie those two [effects] together. Greg on the [Harry] actually painted them on. He would paint one vein a little longer, then do an effect to reveal it so it looked like it was growing. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96)

An enhanced photograph (showing the Orion Nebula ) that was used for this episode

• To depict a red nebula near the Borg colony world that is destroyed by a formation of bio-ships in the episode's conclusion, an image of the Orion Nebula – captured by the Hubble Space Telescope – was modified and composited together with the effects footage. ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 31 , p. 29)
• Although Foundation Imaging worked extensively on this episode, the company had no input on the interior Borg cube matte shot in the episode's final scene. [2] (X) The shot used recycled footage from Star Trek: First Contact . Ron Moore remembered, " We picked some pieces out of the Borg collective that was used in the feature [film] […] We took certain frames and had them re-rendered, or re-shot by Illusion Arts so we'd have nice clean frames. All of them in the feature were moving, so they had a little bit of a [motion] blur to them. So we picked frames, had them give them to us clean without the blur, then Dan went in and painted the bridge. " Subsequently, Janeway was super-imposed into the shot, using the second-unit footage that Dan Curry had taken of actress Kate Mulgrew. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96)
• The creation of the CGI for this episode took a total of about six weeks. [3] (X)
• Jeri Taylor and Voyager 's other producers were extremely satisfied with the visual effects of this episode. Shortly after working on Voyager 's third season, Jeri Taylor said of this installment, " That was one of our experiments with computer-generated graphics. We're more and more happy with the kinds of things we're able to get with CGI, and fortunately for a price we can afford. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 113) The visual effects artists themselves were pleased with their work on this episode. Ron Moore noted, " We were very proud of it. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96)

Continuity and trivia [ ]

• This episode references Star Trek episodes from both Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . Janeway mentions Q and his act of introducing the Enterprise to the Borg, as depicted in TNG : " Q Who ", and the Battle of Wolf 359, as depicted in DS9 : " Emissary ".
• This episode has one of the shortest teasers in Star Trek , at just under twenty seconds and with only a single (unfinished) line of dialogue spoken by the Borg.
• This is the last of three episodes of Voyager 's third season to feature the Borg; other than "Unity", their third season appearances also include the final scene of " Blood Fever ". As noted in the script of this episode, the Borg body parts here came from "the Borg corpse last seen in 'Unity,' which has been dissected." Another link between those two episodes is that Brannon Braga intended for the revelation, in this episode, that Species 8472 was overpowering the Borg to account for the condition of a disabled Borg cube that Voyager comes across in "Unity". ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 17)
• This episode marks the third time in Star Trek that an end-of-season cliffhanger story revolved around the Borg, the previous occasions being TNG : " The Best of Both Worlds " and TNG : " Descent ". Coincidentally, the former of those two episodes was at the end of TNG's third season , just as this episode is at the end of Voyager 's third season.
• In TNG : " The Best of Both Worlds, Part II ", that series' hero ship, the USS Enterprise -D , comes across a fleet of destroyed and damaged Starfleet ships, having been decimated by the Borg (at the Battle of Wolf 359 , which is referenced in this episode). Likewise, in this episode, the series' hero ship, Voyager , comes across a fleet of destroyed and damaged Borg ships, having been decimated by Species 8472. While the former scene is commonly referred to as the "graveyard scene," the script of this episode refers to the site of the latter scene as a "cemetery of decimated ships" and "a graveyard of debris".
• The assimilation tubules that appear in this episode previously appeared in Star Trek: First Contact . In fact, the script of this episode notes that the tubules were "seen in 'First Contact,' when the N.D. was stabbed in the neck". In an audio commentary for that film, recorded by Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore , Braga comments, " A lot of stuff we established in here involving tubules, and maybe even nanoprobes , we would go on to use a lot in Voyager because the Borg became a big part of that show. " This episode was, however, the first episode to establish the concept of Borg nanoprobes, nanotechnology having been briefly referenced in the Borg-related episodes "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II" (in particular, nanites ) and " Descent, Part II " (specifically, nano-cortical fibers ).
• This episode marks the beginning of a development of tension in the relationship between Janeway and Chakotay that culminates in the latter character considering mutiny in the season 6 premiere, " Equinox, Part II ". Kate Mulgrew was thankful for the introduction of this tension, describing it as "a very good thing to have." ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 33 , p. 22) Shortly after completing her work on this episode, the actress commented, " There's some real heat between them, especially after the events of 'Scorpion, Part I'. It will take some time before Janeway and Chakotay can re-establish the kind of intimacy and trust they had. In the meantime, though, the tension will give the relationship a wonderful new dynamic. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 14 , p. 32)
• After being introduced in this episode, Species 8472 appeared in both Seasons 4 and 5 . Their fourth season appearances are the concluding part of this episode's two-parter and " Prey ", whereas their Season 5 appearances are " In the Flesh " and (in a holophoto ) " Someone to Watch Over Me ".
• When Janeway references Captain Amasov in this episode, it is an in-joke reference to Isaac Asimov , famous 20th century science-fiction writer, cybernetics supporter, and friend of Gene Roddenberry .

Holographic Leonardo da Vinci [ ]

• The holographic Leonardo da Vinci, following his debut appearance here, featured in the fourth season episode " Concerning Flight ". The holographic recreation of his workshop appears not only in that episode but also in the Season 4 installments " The Raven ", " Scientific Method ", and " The Omega Directive ".
• The robot that the holographic Leonardo is working on, in this episode, is based on a real work that Leonardo created. Although the final drawings of the robot are lost (if they ever existed), preliminary sketches have been input into computer simulations that confirm that the sketches were indeed meant to be of a mechanical man. While the sketches were known of, it was not until the 1950s that a professor from the University of California realized what they were meant to be. (For more information, see Leonardo's robot at Wikipedia or Lodestar's Lair .)
• Janeway points out to Leonardo: " Someone once said… all invention is but an extension of the body of man… " This "someone" is Marshall McLuhan , popular for his studies in media theory. One of his theses is that all media are just extensions of our Human bodies; for example, a radio is an extension of the ear and binoculars are an extension of our eyes. This theory directly relates to the character of the Borg.
• A few words of Italian are spoken on the holodeck. The term " Esatto " (meaning "exactly") is used twice: first by Leonardo da Vinci, upon confirming for Janeway that all he received in return for painting the Cardinal's nephew was the Cardinal's gratitude, and secondly by Janeway, when Leonardo responds to her suggestion of gliding like a hawk rather than flapping like a sparrow. In an example of Italian profanity , he finally swears, " Che cazzo! " (literally translated as " What the fuck! "), when his Arm of Hephaestus snaps a cog. The episode's script does not specify the translations of these terms, but does indicate to the reader that Leonardo's expletive is "cursing". Additionally, Leonardo addresses Kathryn Janeway using the Italian version of her first name, "Caterina".

Reception [ ]

• During her appearance at the 1997 Grand Slam Convention, Kate Mulgrew declared this episode would be "shocking, unpredictable, mesmerizing, and terrifying." ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 4) She also said of this installment, " It is going to be a marvelous episode. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 16)
• However, Kate Mulgrew was admittedly unsure, initially, how the two-part "Scorpion" story line would be resolved. " Frankly, I don't know what's going to happen, " she confessed, at the 1997 convention. " I don't know how they are going to rectify this cliffhanger. It's pretty scary. " A particular aspect that Mulgrew was uncertain would return was the character of Leonardo da Vinci, though the actress hoped he would have "longevity and tenure on the series." ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 4) Mulgrew also wished that the Leonardo hologram would return in the fourth season and that there would be another occasion where Janeway's adoption of "knowledge and psychological tools" from Leonardo would be shown. ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 14 , p. 34)
• Brannon Braga was ultimately very pleased with this episode. " I think it's just classic Star Trek," he enthused, shortly prior to the episode's initial airing. " It's a show with a lot of action, a great new alien race, and lots of Borg, but it's also got a real moral dilemma in it. " Braga continued by wordily explaining that the dilemma he referred to was, specifically, the question of forming an alliance with the Borg, who he referred to as "the Devil," just as Janeway does in this episode. Braga concluded, " It's a very interesting show. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 18) He also included this episode among a few examples of third season Voyager installments that he thought were good (the other episodes being " Distant Origin " and "Unity"). ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 29 , p. 13)
• Jeri Taylor was also highly satisfied with this episode, citing it as one of the highlights of Star Trek: Voyager 's third season and referring to it as "simply smashing." ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 31 , p. 11)
• One particular scene that was very popular among the producers was the one in which Janeway realizes Chakotay does not agree with her. " I think it's one of the best scenes we've ever had, " Jeri Taylor raved. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 113) Brannon Braga similarly enthused that the same scene was "a great scene". ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 28 , p. 18)
• So pleased was Ronald B. Moore with this episode's effects that he gave some thought to nominating it for an Emmy Award . " This will be the one I'm putting up for Emmy [consideration] this year, " Moore declared, as Visual Effects Coordinator Mitch Suskin began to work on the effects of " Scorpion, Part II ". ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 96) Ultimately, though, this episode was not nominated for an Emmy.
• An accurate summary of this episode leaked onto the Internet prior to the episode's broadcast. This did not, however, displease Brannon Braga, who merely expressed extreme gratitude that the episode had generated fan interest (even if obsessive) and implied that he thought such interest was harmless as "it's not like people are selling stuff." ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, pp. 101 & 107)
• This episode achieved a Nielsen rating of 5.6 million homes, and an 8% share. [4] (X) At the time, this episode was estimated to have had 7.86 million viewers. It was number 62 of prime time television episodes in its week of first broadcast. Jeri Taylor said of the episode's high number of viewers, " It was very gratifying. I think that they were very comparable with our ratings for ' Future's End, Part II ' which is the highest I think we had all year. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 107) Actually, together with the first part of the "Future's End" two-parter – namely, " Future's End " (which had an identical Nielsen rating to this installment but a slightly higher share percentage) – this episode was only the third most watched installment of Star Trek: Voyager 's third season (on first airing), behind both "Future's End, Part II" and " Basics, Part II ". (Contrary to Jeri Taylor's beliefs, the most watched episode of the season was "Basics, Part II", not "Future's End, Part II".) [5] (X) Taylor also said of this episode's ratings, " Our numbers at the end of the year and for the season finale exceeded our numbers last year, so there looks to be an upward kind of trend. " ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 31 , p. 13) This is technically an accurate statement, as this installment's Nielsen rating was higher than that of the second season finale " Basics, Part I ", although both episodes had the same share percentage. [6] (X)
• One of the viewers who watched this episode when it aired in the United States of America was Bryan Fuller . Viewing the episode shortly after being hired to join Voyager 's writing staff (beginning in the fourth season), Fuller was amazed by this episode's production values and was duly excited by the prospect of writing for the series. ( Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 2, Issue 2 , p. 67)
• In the United Kingdom , this episode – upon its first broadcast in September 1997 – was the highest-rated program on Sky One during that entire month, with nearly five million viewers. ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 34 , p. 7)
• One fan criticism aimed at this episode was that many aspects of it looked like "rip-offs" of certain elements from Babylon 5 . These likenesses included, from this installment, Species 8472 and their bio-ships as well as the quantum singularities used as interdimensional rifts, as compared to the Shadow creatures, Vorlon ships and the Shadow phase-in effect from Babylon 5 . Adam Lebowitz responded to these criticisms, saying, " At no point when we were working on 'Scorpion' did *any* of us here at Foundation notice similarities between it and B5. " [7]
• Cinefantastique rated this episode 3 and a half out of 4 stars. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 113)
• Star Trek Monthly scored this episode 4 out of 5 stars, defined as " Trill -powered viewing". ( Star Trek Monthly  issue 32 , p. 93)
• Writer K. Stoddard Hayes clearly holds this episode in high regard. In Star Trek Magazine  issue 179 (p. 18), she describes the moment when a fleet of Borg cubes regardlessly passes by Voyager , en route for another target, as "an astonishing twist" and comments, " Out of the stunned silence on the bridge, Paris murmurs what we are all thinking: 'Who could do this to the Borg?' " Hayes also remarks that Janeway later "embarks on her most remarkable partnership yet," regarding the captain's deal with the Borg.
• The unauthorized reference book Delta Quadrant (p. 190) gives this installment a rating of 10 out of 10.
• The book Star Trek 101 (p. 175), by Terry J. Erdmann and Paula M. Block , lists this episode and the concluding part of its two-parter as being, together, one of the "Ten Essential Episodes" from Star Trek: Voyager .
• Following this episode's first airing, rumors circulated that two particular members of Voyager 's main cast – namely, Garrett Wang and Kes actress Jennifer Lien – would be written out of the series at the start of the fourth season. The fact that this third season finale concludes with a cliffhanger ending in which Kim is apparently near death made Garrett Wang seem more doomed for departure than Lien did. However, it was Lien alone who left the series following this season finale (specifically, in Season 4's second installment, " The Gift "). ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine  issue 17 , p. 37)

Home video releases [ ]

• UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 3.13, 20 October 1997
• Released on 24 September 1999 as part of the Japanese LaserDisc set Star Trek: Voyager - Third Season Vol. 2
• In feature-length form, as part of the UK VHS collection Star Trek: Voyager - Movies : Volume 2 (with "Year of Hell"), catalog number VHR 5072, 18 September 2000
• As part of the VOY Season 3 DVD collection
• As part of the Star Trek: Fan Collective - Borg collection

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

• Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway

Also starring [ ]

• Robert Beltran as Commander Chakotay
• Roxann Dawson as Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres
• Jennifer Lien as Kes
• Robert Duncan McNeill as Lieutenant Tom Paris
• Ethan Phillips as Neelix
• Robert Picardo as The Doctor
• Tim Russ as Lieutenant Tuvok
• Garrett Wang as Ensign Harry Kim

Special guest star [ ]

• John Rhys-Davies as Leonardo da Vinci

Uncredited co-stars [ ]

• Patrick Barnitt as Borg drone
• Michael Beebe as Murphy
• Jeff Cadiente as Borg drone
• Cullen Chambers as operations officer
• John Copage as sciences officer
• Tarik Ergin as Ayala
• Caroline Gibson as operations officer
• Grace Harrell as operations officer
• Sue Henley as Brooks
• Kerry Hoyt as Fitzpatrick
• Charles Imoto as operations officer
• Julie Jiang as operations lieutenant junior grade
• Zach LeBeau as Larson
• Susan Lewis as operations officer
• Rad Milo as operations officer
• Tom Morga as Borg drone
• Trina Mortley as sciences officer
• Borg drone (probe analyzer)
• Borg drone (victim)
• Alexander Xavier Ponce-Bonano as Borg drone
• Keith Rayve as command officer
• Craig Reed as Borg drone
• Joey Sakata as operations officer
• Richard Sarstedt as William McKenzie
• Lydia Shiferaw as command officer
• Jennifer Somers as sciences officer
• Deborah Stiles as command officer
• Infected Borg drone
• Kashimuro Nozawa
• Voice of the Borg
• Species 8472 invader
• Species 8472 pilot

Stunt double [ ]

• Peter Lai as stunt double for Garrett Wang

Stand-ins [ ]

• Sue Henley – stand-in for Kate Mulgrew
• Susan Lewis – stand-in for Roxann Dawson
• Lemuel Perry – stand-in for Tim Russ
• J.R. Quinonez – stand-in for Robert Picardo and utility stand-in
• Keith Rayve – stand-in for Robert Duncan McNeill
• Joey Sakata – stand-in for Garrett Wang
• Richard Sarstedt – stand-in for Robert Beltran and John Rhys-Davies
• Jennifer Somers – stand-in for Jennifer Lien
• John Tampoya – stand-in for Garrett Wang
• Trevor Janes – stand-in for Ethan Phillips and utility stand-in
• Unknown actor – hand double for John Rhys-Davies

References [ ]

2370 ; abbot ; access point ; Achilles ; alloy ; amusement ; Antimatter ; " Arm of Hephaestus, The "; Amasov ; assimilation ; assimilation tubule ; astrophysics lab ; Battle of Wolf 359 ; binary matrix ; biological weapon ; biomass ; bioreading ; bio-ship ; Borg ; Borg Collective ; Borg cube ( unnamed 1 , 2 , 3 , and 4 ); Borg space ; Breen ; bronzetto ; cardinal ; Catarina ; cell ; cell membrane ; cellular structure ; chapel ; classified ; " clean bill of health "; conduit ; da Vinci's Cardinal and his nephew ; decompression cycle ; destroyed Borg planet ; Delta Quadrant ; devil ; disruptor beam ; distribution node ; dissection ; DNA ; dozen ; electrodynamic fluid ; emergency power ; Endeavour , USS ; Enterprise -D, USS ; evasive maneuvers ; fear ; first Borg star ; flattery ; flock ; fluidic space ; flying machine ; goose grease ; gravimetric distortions ; heart ; Hephaestus ; Hercules ; Hickman ; holodeck ; horse ; imitation ; inflection ; interdimensional rift ; intuition ; Italian ; Leonardo da Vinci's workshop ; life sign ; line of fire ; maestro ; meter ; micron ; microscopic level ; monk ; nanoprobe ; near miss ; neuropeptide ; " Northwest Passage "; oak ; omen ; organic ; organic-based vessel ; organic conduit ; parable ; particle ; Picard, Jean-Luc ; polaron beam ; prayer ; premonition ; protective shielding ; Q ; red alert ; safe passage ; Santa Croce ; scudi ; sedative ; short range scan ; skeletal lock ; solar system ; smiling ; space ; space-dwelling organism ; Species 8472 ; Species 8472 bio-ship ; square millimeter ; standard greeting ; Starfleet database ; Starfleet protocol ; starling ; submicron subspace turbulence ; System D43119 ; System D43119 star ; tactical alert ; tactical database ; telepathic species ; telepathy ; transwarp ; transporter lock ; transwarp signature ; traveler's inn ; vision ; weapon of mass destruction ; weapon signature ; Wolf 359

External links [ ]

• "Scorpion, Part I" at StarTrek.com
• " Scorpion " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• " Scorpion " at Wikipedia
• " Scorpion " at the Internet Movie Database
• " "Scorpion, Part I" " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
• 2 ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Star Trek: Voyager

Scorpion Part 1

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Leonardo da Vinci

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• Next Generation

Scorpion, Part 1 Star Trek: Voyager – Season Three --> Scorpion, Part 1

Voyager comes face-to-face with the Borg, only to learn that the seemingly unstoppable cybernetic race is being decimated by a powerful enemy from another realm: Species 8472.

Scorpion, Part I

Upon entering Borg space, Voyager encounters an alien race even more powerful than the Borg and bent on destroying all life in the galaxy, leading Captain Janeway to enter into an alliance with the Borg in order to defeat them.

In this episode of the podcast, Wes and Clay discuss “Scorpion, Part I” and how it’s the “Aliens” to “Alien” of Star Trek. Plus! The guys chat about aging CGI,

• Post author By Wes
• Post date 10/24/2023

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Welcome, fellow Star Trek enthusiasts! I’m Wes, and alongside my astute co-host, Clay, we’re here to venture into the dramatic season finale of Star Trek: Voyager’s third season with “Scorpion, Part 1.” Aired on May 21, 1997, and helmed by the combined creative forces of writers Brannon Braga and Joe Menosky, with David Livingston in the director’s chair, this episode thrusts us into a multi-dimensional conflict, where the crew of Voyager find themselves precariously balanced between the formidable Borg and a mysterious new alien species.

“Scorpion, Part 1” graces us with a tantalizing storyline where the Borg, the epitome of space-borne terror, appear vulnerable in the face of an even more potent adversary. Here, Clay and I delve deep, scrutinizing how CGI, despite being revolutionary at the time, can age rather unfavorably. Some scenes, vibrant and futuristic then, now reveal the limitations of late ’90s computer graphics. We further venture into the episode’s attempt to “one-up” the Borg . While an ambitious endeavor, it does raise questions about diminishing the intimidation factor of Star Trek’s most iconic antagonists.

Diving further into the character dynamics, the palpable hostile tensions between Chakotay and Janeway act as a catalyst for a rich discussion. Their differing leadership philosophies, especially in the face of unprecedented threats, underscore broader themes about duty, loyalty, and the challenges of command. We also draw parallels between “Scorpion” and the legendary “The Best of Both Worlds” from The Next Generation . While both episodes are pivotal in their respective series, we weigh the plusses and minuses of such comparisons, considering their context, stakes, and narrative impact.

Rounding off our discourse, we can’t help but express a sigh of relief and accomplishment at completing another season of Voyager. Each episode has been a journey, some stellar and others a bit astray, but all contributing to the “ Tapestry ” of this Trek iteration.

In summation, “The Pensky Podcast” is your gateway to nuanced, thought-provoking discussions on every twist and turn of the Star Trek universe. Eager for more stellar conversations? Our Patreon page promises a wormhole of additional content and deeper dives. Set a course for discovery and join our exploration!

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Star Trek: Voyager's Janeway Becoming Ripley From Alien Explained By Producer

• Captain Janeway's "Ripley" moments in "Macrocosm" left a notable impact on Star Trek: Voyager.
• Brannon Braga didn't intend to copy Alien with "Macrocosm," instead wanting to create a dialogue-light episode.
• "Macrocosm" allowed Janeway to showcase new action-hero qualities while retaining her core characteristics.

Star Trek: Voyager 's Executive Producer Brannon Braga explained his real inspiration behind the episode where Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) becomes Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) from Alien . Although both Voyager and Alien are science fiction, there are a lot of differences between the Star Trek and Alien franchises. While Alien focuses on blending horror and suspense with its sci-fi elements, Star Trek almost always takes a more optimistic approach to the future. However, there are occasionally Star Trek episodes that take on more of a horror twist .

One such episode was Voyager season 3, episode 12, "Macrocosm," where an alien virus managed to take over the USS Voyager, mutating to grow at least a meter in length and then proceeding to make Voyager 's cast of characters very sick. As the lone un-infected, Captain Janeway was forced to mount a guerrilla attack on the viruses while the Doctor (Robert Picardo) worked on finding a cure. Along with similar premises, "Macrocosm" seemed to take a lot of influence from Alien , especially in how it portrayed Janeway as its heroine.

Every Upcoming Star Trek Movie & TV Show

Star trek: voyagers janeway alien episode explained by executive producer, braga's intention wasn't actually to copy alien.

Despite Janeway's crusade against the viruses in "Macrocosm" often being compared to Ellen Ripley, Brannon Braga, who wrote the episode's story, claimed it wasn't his intention to create a tribute to Alien . In an interview with Cinefantastique around the time of the episode's release, Braga stated that "Macrocosm" actually rose out of a desire to do a solo character story with very little dialogue , and implied that any comparisons between Janeway and Ripley were completely unintentional. Read Braga's full quote below:

"Sometimes Star Trek can be a little high-and-mighty, talky, moralistic. Sometimes it's just time to have fun. The intention actually began, on my part, to do an episode with no dialogue. I wanted to just do a purely cinematic episode with Janeway and a bunch of weird creatures, these macroviruses, viruses as life-sized creatures. Unfortunately it was impossible to do, and I ended up having to put a couple of acts of dialogue in. I just wanted to do something that felt and looked and smelled differently than most shows. It was not an attempt to make Janeway look like Ripley."

Despite Braga's protestations, it is hard not to see the numerous similarities between Janeway and Sigourney Weaver's iconic Alien role in "Macrocosm." Stripped down to her uniform's undershirt and equipped with a large phaser rifle for defense, Janeway embodied the recognizable sci-fi "final girl" aesthetic popularized by Weaver's portrayal of Ripley in the first Alien film from 1979 . Given what a recognizable character Ripley is thanks to Alien 's popularity, it's no wonder that "Macrocosm" became such a memorable episode of Voyager after it aired.

Why Captain Janeways Ripley Moments In Star Trek: Voyager Are Still So Popular

"macrocosm's" version of janeway is still extremely well-liked.

Despite not being one of Voyager 's most popular episodes, Janeway's "Ripley" scenes in "Macrocosm" left an indelible mark on the series. This is likely due to what a departure Janeway's actions and aesthetic were from how she was usually portrayed on Voyager . "Macrocosm" allowed Janeway to be a true action hero , showing that she was able to handle more than just the scientific and diplomatic aspects of being a Captain.

However, Janeway never lost what made her such a popular character in the first place, including her stubborn determination and fierce loyalty to her crew. Her nearly single-handed defeat of the macrovirus perfectly demonstrated how far she was willing to go to make sure everyone under her protection was safe. The macrovirus itself also likely contributed to the episode's popularity , and demonstrated its longevity when it was brought back as part of Star Trek: Lower Decks ' tribute episode to Voyager , "Two-vix." Lower Decks helped remind audiences just how iconic "Macrocosm" was for Star Trek: Voyager season 3.

Source: Cinefantastique , Vol. 29

Star Trek: Voyager is available to stream on Paramount+ Alien is available to stream on Hulu

Star Trek: Voyager

The fifth entry in the Star Trek franchise, Star Trek: Voyager, is a sci-fi series that sees the crew of the USS Voyager on a long journey back to their home after finding themselves stranded at the far ends of the Milky Way Galaxy. Led by Captain Kathryn Janeway, the series follows the crew as they embark through truly uncharted areas of space, with new species, friends, foes, and mysteries to solve as they wrestle with the politics of a crew in a situation they've never faced before.

Cast Jennifer Lien, Garrett Wang, Tim Russ, Robert Duncan McNeill, Roxann Dawson, Robert Beltran, Kate Mulgrew, Jeri Ryan, Ethan Phillips, Robert Picardo

Release Date May 23, 1995

Genres Sci-Fi, Adventure

Network UPN

Streaming Service(s) Paramount+

Franchise(s) Star Trek

Writers Kenneth Biller, Jeri Taylor, Michael Piller, Brannon Braga

Showrunner Kenneth Biller, Jeri Taylor, Michael Piller, Brannon Braga

Rating TV-PG

Where To Watch Paramount+

Alien (1979)

Alien is a sci-fi horror-thriller by director Ridley Scott that follows the crew of a spaceship known as the Nostromo. After the staff of the merchant's vessel perceives an unknown transmission as a distress call, its landing on the source moon finds one of the crew members attacked by a mysterious lifeform, and they soon realize that its life cycle has merely begun.

Director Ridley Scott

Release Date June 22, 1979

Studio(s) 20th Century Fox

Distributor(s) 20th Century Fox

Writers Dan O'Bannon

Cast John Hurt, Sigourney Weaver, Yaphet Kotto, Veronica Cartwright, Tom Skerritt, Ian Holm, Harry Dean Stanton

Runtime 117 minutes

Genres Sci-Fi, Thriller, Horror

Franchise(s) Alien

Sequel(s) Alien: Covenant, Aliens, Prometheus, Alien Resurrection, Alien 3

Budget $11 million

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Jonathan Frakes Sees Opportunities With Streaming Star Trek Movies, Weighs In On “Filler Episodes”

| April 25, 2024 | By: Laurie Ulster 69 comments so far

Earlier this week, TrekMovie’s All Access Star Trek podcast team spoke to director and Star Trek: The Next Generation (and Picard ) star Jonathan Frakes along with Deep Space Nine star Armin Shimerman, DS9 guest star Kitty Swink, and television writer/producer Juan Carlos Coto, brother of late  Enterprise  writer/producer Manny Coto. They had all gathered together to talk about the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network and their team Trek Against Pancreatic Cancer for the Purple Stride walk this Saturday, April 27th. During the wide-ranging chat, Frakes weighed in some some of the latest Star Trek news.

Frakes talks Lower Decks and 2-hour streaming movie format

Jonathan Frakes had some thoughts regarding the future of Lower Decks , reacting to the recent news that the upcoming fifth season of the animated series will be its last . He directed the Lower Decks / Strange New Worlds “Those Old Scientists” crossover, and when asked if he thought there could be another crossover episode, he saw it as a possibility:

“I think the show did so well. You know, [co-showrunner] Akiva [Goldsman] would would certainly take the swing like that. I think [co-showrunner] Henry Alonso Myers would too. I’m not sure how Paramount Plus or Alex [Kurtzman] would feel about it, but it worked.”

After some talk about whether or not Lower Decks could be revived like Prodigy was on Netflix, Frakes brought up that a new format could offer possibilities:

“I do know that there’s a lot of positive energy around the Michelle Yeoh Section 31 movie. So that 2-hour format is now on the table for Star Trek going forward.”

Frakes agreed that in addition to  Lower Decks , this format could also be a home for Terry Matalas’ Star Trek: Legacy pitch for a spin-off of the third season of Picard. When asked, Frakes said “of course” Matalas has spoken to him about Legacy . If Legacy did transform into a streaming movie, Frakes doesn’t expect he would direct, predicting Terry would “hire himself” to helm it as he did for the season 3 finale.

Jonathan Frakes in season 2 of  Lower Decks

Frakes weighs in on “filler episodes”

One of the recent hot topics around Star Trek centers around comments from executive producer Alex Kurtzman about how the modern streaming era of 10-episode seasons forces them to “really make sure that every story counts,” noting he has talked to writers who worked on earlier incarnations of Trek with 26-episode seasons who lamented having to do “filler episodes.” When the subject of filler episodes was brought up, Frakes said of TNG:

“The only filler I thought was real was when they clearly did a clip show [“Shades of Gray”]. That was a piece of shit.”

Frakes agreed with Juan Carlos Coto (a writer and showrunner on the ABC series 9-1-1 ) who said filler episodes were “never intentional.” They pointed out that budgets get spent at the beginning and end of seasons, so “in the middle, there’s a lot of talking.” As Frakes admitted, some of the best material had to be saved for the right time:

“We made 26 episodes a year, they had a set budget for the year and you split it up 26 ways or however they saw fit… and you got to save stuff for the cliffhanger… Like ‘Best of Both Worlds,’ Picard is Locutus and we’re about to fucking blow up the ship and kill him.”

Shelby (Elizabeth Dennehy) and Riker (Jonathan Frakes) in the final moments of “Best of Both Worlds” season 3 cliffhanger finale

If you can, please join Purple Stride, donate to the cause, or both. If you can’t, please spread the word via social media and word of mouth. For more info visit the Trek Against Pancreatic Cancer participation and donation page

Listen to the full podcast…

Find more stories about the Star Trek Universe at TrekMovie.

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Imagine Deep Space Nine, with 10 episodes per season and how forced and unrealistic many of the storylines and character developments would look.

Cheers to the “filler” episodes !

“Duet”, probably the best episode of Season 1, was a filler episode.

I don’t really count that as “filler”, since it advanced the evolution of Kira’s character. Now, “Looking for Par’Mach…” is filler. Sure, we get to see more Klingon culture, but I could do without the BDSM implications of said culture.

But it the moment dax and word became a couple so not a ‘filler’ ep

I think “Duet” is a bottle episode, but not a filler episode. But we are having a hard time defining filler episodes here at TrekMovie for that reason! “Duet” was a really important episode for Kira’s character that changed her in some way, and was, I’m guessing, a story they really wanted to do. I love “Explorers,” but that strikes me as more of a DS9 filler than “Duet.”

Bottle shows are money savers. Filler shows go back to the writer’s room.

You have to cram 26 episodes into a season. Episodes are being broken while others are being written while others episodes are in pre-production while others are being filmed while others are in various stages of post production. It’s the I Love Lucy chocolate assembly line. You need ideas. At times, any ideas. Some will work well, some will fail, some will have done better if more time, but we can’t worry about that now because we need to keep moving.

If season 1 of DS9 were ten episodes, instead of eighteen, we probably would have lost Q-Less, Move Along Home, and Dramatis Personae off the bat. Duet would have been kept. There would have been more time for the writers to write and write well. We may have gotten other gems that there was never time to develop.

DS9 did an amazing job later in its run running a tight ship with 26 episodes, far more than the other shows, and shorter seasons would have been sad for us – I’d have preferred 52 episodes a season, but the producers would have died. It’s about balance.

Duet was one of my favourite episodes of DS9, filler or bottle or whateverI don’t care it was a high point of the show.

Absolutely. DS9 for me still the number 1 Star Trek show. And it is because of these long story arcs and filler episodes.

Every episode is so thoughtful. This is why my expectations are higher watching the new shows, specially Discovery and Picard.

Great script. Brilliant character development. Connections. Issues. Actors. Producers. The whole thing is truly a masterpiece.

Yes to both points. TBH I don’t mind a more serialized approach like Discovery and Picard, but the so-called “filler” episodes do add a lot to the characters and world-building they can do. Yes, some of them aren’t great, but I’d gladly take that along with the great episodes that can stem from the “filler.”

And I really do think Lower Decks could thrive with a movie format, or even just hour-long specials similar to South Park.

I like the idea of multi-episode streaming movies, viewed online. What are the current series long shows like Discovery, if not that? Multi-part shows, streamed online over 8-10 weeks, loosely or tightly inter-connected. SNW’s breaks that mold a little bit with more seeming stand-alone episodes, albeit connected by the underlying plot threads – Pikes knowledge of his demise, for example.

It’s frequently commented that many seasons of the current shows feel stretched. Movie format suits the kind of storytelling modern Trek wants to do (which is emulate modern action movies).

I love this man so much and hope to see him back as Riker again someday. I would love a Legacy TV movie.

And I agree with him, I don’t look as most shows making filler episodes. As long as they give us good stories and character development I will watch them all. It doesn’t mean every episode is great of course but every viewer will judge it on their own. What people consider filler to them will be an impactful episode to others.

All I know is while none of these shows are perfect I watch TNG, TOS and Enterprise religiously and those shows have way more solid episodes than bad ones in my book.

Everything he touches, turns out amazing.

Thunderbirds has entered the chat, LOL!

I was going to leave it as a snarky comment, but come on. Everyone loves Frakes.

Best episodes. First Contact. Hope Frakes and Ira Steven Behr could direct Berman era movies.

I would love for Behr to be involved again on some level with Star Trek. Still one of the best writers to ‘this day! He and Frakes teaming up to do a movie would be amazing!

If he comes back, will be for the Return of the Sisko! :D I am an optimist. Really hope Avery is just having fun just waiting for the right time and the right script.

Yes totally agree!!! That would be fantastic.

Yep fully agree. The way people view an episode is always different. And yeah there have been tons of ‘filler’ episodes that have become pretty iconic in their own right.

The classic shows have all generally aged well because there are so many episodes and you get such a wide range of stories and character driven episodes fans have gotten to appreciate that sadly the new shows rarely have time for and never get to focus on secondary characters.

People have been complaining about the extreme lack of character development of the Discovery bridge crew for five seasons now. With more episodes and not about the galaxy being in jeopardy every season maybe we could’ve gotten at least a few Detmer or Owo focused stories.

And it’s just fun to turn on a random TOS or VOY episode that is really harder to do with the new stuff.

And yes Frakes is amazing! He embodies the Star Trek spirit like no other!

Yes this is it exactly! The ‘filler’ episodes gave us a wide range of character development this new stuff just does a passing glance at because it’s too serialized and plot driven. In the golden era of Trek you got both. DS9 hello?

Those shows can really slow down and give us some great stuff. One of my favorite Enterprise episodes is Shuttlepod One. I adore it because you get real insight into Reed and Trip. It’s no way an episode like that could ever be made today because they don’t have the room and there isn’t enough shooting or explosions.

BTW, a little off topic but have you been watching this season of Discovery at all? Any thoughts? I don’t think I’ve seen a single post from you about any of the season or episodes so far.

I just watched the first episode of the season a week ago. It was OK but just not for me. I really only watched it because it connected to The Chase, one of my favorites.

I said I would try and watch the next episode but no motivation. Discovery just isn’t for me I guess. I still haven’t finished watching seasons 3 and 4 either lol.

But I hear others are really enjoying it though. Good for them. 😊

How about yourself dear? Maybe I might try it again later when it’s over and if I hear good things about the ending.If not, no bother. I haven’t looked in any of the threads on this board discussing the season.

I am enjoying it for the most part: certainly more than I thought I would lol.

But it’s still Discovery and there are still scenes of people discussing their feelings or just a lot of back and forth discussions that feel pretty aimless or just there to pad the episode. I really didn’t like the last episode at all but the one before that one was great and felt like the type of story you would get out of a Berman era show.

So it’s up and down but I do think a lot people are liking it overall including this board which says a lot lol.

I’m still a little nervous it may not stick to landing by the end but we only have 5 more episodes and then the show is done for good. Wow.

Good to know. I do know the show is trying to connect more to classic Star Trek like TNG and DS9. That’s a big positive at least and maybe why more people are excited about it right now. But are a lot of people watching it this season? No one I know online is really talking about it as much like before but maybe just where I lurk on social media.

Hopefully it will end well for its fans.

Yeah that seems to be a topic in a number of places and if a lot of people are watching the season since discussion over it seems to be generally down this season. The only answer real answer I have is I have no clue.

But it was cancelled for a reason, maybe a lot of people were already watching it less in season 4 like yourself. If that’s true not a shock less are watching it now. It’s going to take more than latching your season to a 30 year old TNG episode to get those people back if they already left

Well regardless who is watching I do hope they are enjoying it. I may try and give it another chance at some point.

Oh however I have started watching Prodigy for the first time and you were so right! That show is phenomenal!! I just thought I was too old for it but it’s so much fun and loving Janeway with the new characters!

I’m on episode 9 now but can’t wait to finish it. I’m really excited when the real Janeway shows up but Hologram Janeway is so much fun too. The new characters really feel fleshed out as well and loving the storyline. This feels like Star Trek of old again. I’m so happy you and others convinced me to watch it.

I really can’t wait for season 2 seeing how great season 1 is so far. 😊

Wow that’s amazing news! 😀

I’m so happy to hear that. Yeah Prodigy is great. It doesn’t mean everyone loves it and it obviously didn’t get that many viewers (but I think due to calling it a kids show and why people like you stayed away) but the show just has so much heart and why I love it.

This is the show I’m most excited to see again and can’t wait to see the kids on the Voyager A with Admiral Janeway and the Doctor.

And see there is something you like in NuTrek after all!

Haha indeed!

Prodigy does an amazing job with its characters and manage to tell fun and interesting stories. I thought I wasn’t going to like Dal or Gwynn much and they became very lovable once I realize everything they been through and becoming more of a team. Jangom Pog cracks me up and Rok is adorable.

I also love it has a strong connection to Voyager. I’m very excited to have the real Janeway back too. It’s proof I shouldn’t judge something until I see it but I never thought it was bad just not for me.

That’s great to hear, Legacy. I was similarly surprised upon first viewing of PRO, at the quality of the show’s writing, visuals and overall Trek ‘feel.’ It’s a rare example of modern Trek done Right.

So true Danpaine. There is so much of NuTrek I feel they either get wrong or too focused on action and big stakes instead of just telling a solid story which Prodigy really seems to do.

I don’t need another story about trying to destroy the galaxy. This show is more my speed and makes this old bird really appreciate the Star Trek I fell in love with again.

Get ready for the next 11 episodes. You will be surprised how great is Prodigy. Can’t wait to watch Season 2 on Netflix.

I’m going to watch the next few episodes this weekend. It’s only gotten stronger. And I peeped ahead with some of the surprises and happy Captain Jelico and the Xindi makes an appearance. I know just small cameos but still happy to see them back. I don’t know what happens next in the story so can’t wait!

Will season 2 come out this year? I really hope so now. We need more quality Trek like this show.

It’s been confirmed by Netflix it will debut this year at least but zero word on when.

So great to hear! Without a doubt this show has a new fan and I’ll be watching season 2 the day it drops!

I truly can’t wait now and nearly done with season 1. 🙂

Yes you are so right! I just finished episode 14 this weekend and it’s just so much fun. I was excited to see Admiral Janeway back and shrieked when the Xindi appeared lol. One of my favorite species in Star Trek.

The story just feels so well thought out and loving how they are handling all the characters in it. I’m going to try and finish the rest of it by this weekend.

I can’t believe I didn’t bother to watch this until now.

Great to see more Prodigy love. It’s my favorite of the new shows. I love how it walks the line of being a very unique take on the franchise, while capturing the heart and soul of the older shows. The serialized story works well as a connective tissue and giving their adventure long-term stakes, but having done a rewatch in a random order made me realize just how well a lot of the episodes work on their own (once you get past the initial part connecting to the main story).

Now I just need Netflix to hurry up and release it, lol.

Yes I really appreciate how the episodes still feel very episodic but the main story connects very well. That was the problem I had with Discovery and Picard. I felt the serialized story fell apart halfway through but there are not enough episodic stories to keep me invested.

Right now Prodigy is doing both. I’m very surprised how solid the story telling is here.

I watched the silver age of Star Trek as a kid. Now that I’m older, I appreciate the hard work that the great Rick Berman, Brannon Braga, Michael Piller, and others did. They worked tirelessly around the clock to bring the audiences the best stories and best productions they could with what they had. I don’t use or believe in “filler episodes. ”

If I was going to use that concept, I would use it to describe Disco, Picard, and SNW. These three shows have a beginning and end but nothing substantial in the middle….it’s like they are filling in stuff to get to the end.

I so agree with you dear. I really appreciate all the amazing shows we got in the 90s. It was such a great time to be a fan and I been watching Trek since the 60s. So many great stories and characters.

I think people like Berman, Piller, Moore, Braga etc gets more praise today to see how many quality stories they produced with half the time and money these new shows gets now (and still nowhere as compelling or thoughtful as we got back then).

I did really enjoy Picard season 3 but it’s still not nearly as good as TNG was but it at least tried to be.

Season 3 was more like an extended TNG movie to me and it was a lot better than 3 of the 4 TNG movies with a much better send off for every character than Nemesis.

Yeah I loved the send off they got in season 3. It’s just a much more and satisfying ending than what we got in Nemesis.

I just loved the last episode so much and will always feel special to me. It was a great Trek season overall even if it still wasn’t perfect.

Yes fully agree season 3 felt like a movie and gave us some great drama and twists. I actually like most of the TNG movies minus Generations (hated how it killed Kirk) but they are below the TOS movies but still far above the JJ reboot movies for me. I barely even count those as canon, but my opinion only of course.

Even though I liked it more than others, Nemesis was a real let down as well so it was nice to give them a better ending on this show.

Did Frakes threw some shade towards Kurtzman about crossover episodes? or am I misunderstanding his comments there. In any case I am also of the camp that apart from clip shows, which should never exist, fillers can be the best episodes of any series. I mean I rewatch the “filler” episodes much more, episodes like “Duet” from DS9, “Timeless” from Voyager, “The Inner Light” from TNG. Even in other series for example like Stargate or Farscape I usually prefer the excellent filler episodes rather than the ongoing serial ones. Or in the X-Files. I think that show had some phenomenal “filler” episodes.

I agree with pretty much everything except calling Timeless a filler episode. It was anything but because that was Voyager’s 100th episode and was supposedly one of the most expensive to shoot that year.

And you can’t bring Geordie on and call it that. 😉

Thanks for clearing that up actually, I knew Takei’s episode “Flashback” was an anniversary episode but didn’t realize till now that “Timeless” was actually the 100th episode.

If you go to a Star Trek Jeopardy special event, you will beat everyone. Totally forgot Timeless was the 100th episode, which by the way, it was one of my favorite VOY episodes.

“ If you go to a Star Trek Jeopardy special event, you will beat everyone.”

Unless it involves correctly spelling the given name of the D’s chief engineer.

Lol thanks but there are plenty of things I don’t remember and Timeless was a big deal at the time. And I listen to The Delta Flyers which did an amazing job going through the entire show and Timeless was one they really discussed in-depth.

I think Frakes did indeed throw Kurtzman under a bus there. “Those Old Scientists” is receiving a lot of accolades, so that tracks.

If Duet and (in particular) TIL are “filler” episodes, the term is meaningless.

“Filler” and “bottle episode” are getting used interchangeably lately. The Inner Light I’d say is neither. Duet is definitely a bottle episode.

YASSSS!!! Filler and bottle are getting bandied about nilly-willy.I said this when Battlestar started on SciFi and people griped about the short seasons. Even in the best of 22-26 episode seasons, I’ve always said there’s room to cut 12 hours of filler, whether it’s an entire episode or just meandering subplots.

Standalone EPs on ‘x files’ became more effective than the on the going alien invasion arc

DS9’s “Far Beyond the Stars” was a filler, and it’s still one of the best episodes of television ever. So don’t tell me that filler episodes can’t be great.

I disagree about “Far Beyond the Stars” was a filler. That was not cheap with the new sets and everything. I think a DS9 filler episode is more like “Rivals.” That one was very bad.

Sorry, friend, but “Far Beyond the Stars” was NOT a filler episode. That goddamn thing MEANT something. Filler episodes are just fluff… like the one where Quark gets the sex change.

“Far Beyond the Stars” was absolutely not filler but an AMAZING episode, unexpected, thought provoking, and considered by many to be one of the best episode of DS9.

I always welcome reading about an interview with Frakes, he’s a gem of the franchise. And I say let the films come. More opportunities to bring in variety (and hopefully quality) as to content, writers, directors. If one sucks they can move on to another in a different direction. Good interview.

It really depends on the episode in question. If the “filler” serves to advance the story or the evolution of the characters, then what could be seen as a “filler” isn’t really a “filler”, if that makes any sense. Ultimately, it all depends on the budget.

I’m glad that Frakes is basically the unofficial spokesman for all things ‘Trek, as far as the live aspects of the franchise. BTW, does LeVar Burton and any other ‘Trek alumni do work for the franchise, either in front of the camera or behind the scenes?

Not that I’m aware of. Robert Duncan McNeill was in talks to direct for “Discovery,” but the push for more diverse directors (women and POC) meant he wasn’t what they were looking for. He didn’t seem to have hard feelings about it from the interview I read over at Trekcore. A shame — I always thought he was a great director and it would’ve been interesting to see what he brought to the table. (Then again, I’m biased as I share a birthday with Robbie and saw great potential in the Tom Paris character before TPTB milk-toasted him.)

Roxann Dawson is another Trek actor/director whose name I see pop up on the odd TV drama from time to time, too. No idea why she hasn’t done any modern Trek or if she was even interested in doing so.

As for LeVar Burton I VAGUELY recall he was a bit vocal about where Star Trek was going during his “Enterprise” directing days and has been critical of the franchise’s direction since. Maybe he just wasn’t interested.

If Legacy gets green-lit, it will probably be a series of movies. I LOVED PICS3, but nostalgia can only get you so far. I don’t know if Par+ wants to pay the TNG cast the big bucks. I’d encourage everyone to watch the HECK out of the S31 movie. If Par+ sees good viewership, they’ll make more of them.

YES – back in 1990 I saw George Takei at a convention in Boston; we all agreed Star Trek V (released months earlier) was not very good but George asked us to keep going to see it and buy the VHS when it came out — it was a way to send a message to Paramount we wanted MORE Star Trek.

Respectfully of course, I don’t feel it’s the consumer’s job to ‘watch the heck’ out of something, hoping more product will be made as a result. If the Sec. 31 film is good enough to deserve another watch, then I will. If it’s bad or mediocre I’m not going to revisit it. Simple. It’s their job to properly entertain us, we’re the ones paying the bill every month.

No one does ‘filler’ EPs if they can help it. Mr frakes was right about “shades of grey’, knocked together to get TNG s2 over and done with.

LOVE Jonathan Frakes. Would love to meet him!

Fun discussion topic — not looking for arguments but suppose it’s inevitable here, LOL. There are many definitions of ‘filler episode.’

As a discussion point, regardless if an episode is considered good/great/bad, what are some examples (in any Trek series) that you consider to be a ‘filler’ episode and why?

Discussion topic :)

‘filler’ and ‘bottle episodes’ are two different things. Yes, a bottle episode CAN be filler but often is NOT. Filler is just filler — can be beloved, but still filler.

Screen Rant

Kurtwood smith's 4 star trek roles explained.

Kurtwood Smith is best known for RoboCop and That '70s Show, but the actor also played four different Star Trek characters between 1991 and 2020.

Best known for his roles in RoboCop and That '70s Show , Kurtwood Smith has played four different characters in Star Trek movies and TV shows. Smith's breakthrough movie role was Clarence Boddicker opposite Star Trek into Darkness ' Peter Weller as Alex Murphy/RoboCop in Paul Verhoeven's brutal sci-fi satire. After RoboCop , Kurtwood Smith went on to star in an eclectic collection of movies from Rambo III to Dead Poet's Society . In tandem with his movie career, Kurtwood Smith made many guest appearances on popular shows such as The X-Files , 3rd Rock from the Sun , and two Star Trek TV shows .

In 1998, Kurtwood Smith was cast as Red Forman in That '70s Show , starring in 200 episodes of the nostalgic sitcom. One of Kurtwood Smith's That '70s Show co-stars was Don Stark, who is best known to Star Trek fans as the actor who played Nicky the Nose in 1996's Star Trek: First Contact . Kurtwood Smith starred in another of the best Star Trek movies , Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , after working with the movie's director, Nicholas Meyer on the espionage thriller, Company Business . Kurtwood Smith's casting in Star Trek 6 began a connection between the actor and the franchise that continued into the 2020s.

12 Star Trek Actors Who Appeared On The X-Files

Federation president in star trek vi: the undiscovered country.

Kurtwood Smith's first Star Trek role was as the Federation President in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country . The Federation President's species was given as Efrosian in some publicity materials for Star Trek 6 , but was never confirmed on-screen . With his cranial ridges, long white hair and whiskery beard, Kurtwood Smith cuts quite a figure as the head of the United Federation of Planets. Smith discussed his role as the Federation President in The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 18 , way back in 1998:

"It wasn't really an acting role. I had to achieve a quick sense of presence and then be shot at. I also had that scene in the office with all the boys [....] I was pleased to be a part of it. "

The President was targeted for assassination as part of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country 's vast Khitomer conspiracy to derail peace talks with the Klingon Empire. Thankfully, the crews of the USS Enterprise and USS Excelsior discover the truth about the conspiracy in time to stop the attempt on the President's life. Captain Montgomery Scott (James Doohan) killed the assassin, restoring order to the peace conference. It may have been a small role for Kurtwood Smith, but despite his lack of screentime, the President who oversaw the Klingon peace process is a hugely important character in Star Trek 's fictional history .

The small black glasses the Federation President wears during the rescue operation scene in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country were supposed to denote that the character was blind, but the fact was never mentioned in dialog.

Thrax in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Season 5, Episode 8, "Things Past"

Kurtwood Smith played Thrax, the Cardassian predecessor of Constable Odo (Rene Auberjonois) from when Deep Space Nine was Terok Nor . Thrax appears in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 5, episode 8, "Things Past", in which a freak runabout accident created a telepathic link between Odo, Captain Benjamin Sisko (Avery Brooks), Lt. Commander Jadzia Dax (Terry Farrell) and Elim Garak (Andrew Robinson). The link takes them back to a dark moment from Odo's past, during which Thrax ordered the execution of three innocent Bajorans who had been accused of attempting to murder Gul Dukat (Marc Alaimo).

"Things Past" was the second time that Kurtwood Smith had worked with Rene Auberjonois on Star Trek , after they shared a scene together as the Federation President and Colonel West in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country .

At the end of "Things Past", it was revealed that it wasn't Thrax who ordered the execution, but Odo. Kurtwood Smith was, therefore, playing quite a complicated character in the episode. Thrax was essentially an amalgam of the original Cardassian security officer, and Odo's own guilt. In a 2017 interview with the official Star Trek website , Kurtwood Smith reflected on the duality of his Star Trek: Deep Space Nine role, saying:

"[Thrax] was a character within a character, and he was also a mirror of Rene's character from a different time. I loved the depth of it. I always liked the size of the characters on Star Trek . It reminds me of when I used to do a lot of Shakespeare, back when I was first coming up. It has that feel about it, you know, because you've got all this stuff on, and you're dealing with enhanced language. They’re just very fun, complicated characters."

10 Star Trek Actors Who Appeared In Shakespeare

Annorax in star trek: voyager, season 4, episodes 8 & 9, "year of hell".

Annorax is Kurtwood Smith's biggest Star Trek role to date, appearing in the epic Star Trek: Voyager two-parter, "Year of Hell". Annorax was a temporal scientist who had built a devastating weapon that could remove elements from the space-time continuum. Using his weapon, Annorax set about restoring the glory of the Krenim Imperium, which had been devastated by a war with the Rilnar. Star Trek: Voyager 's Krenim villains were so powerful that, in multiple alternate timelines, they destroyed Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) and the majority of the USS Voyager crew.

To prepare for the role of Annorax, Kurtwood Smith watched Star Trek: Voyager episodes to see what was expected of the show's guest performers.

Annorax was a tyrant, but he was also a tragic figure, as his temporal weapon had accidentally destroyed a Krenim colony, killing his wife. However, having nothing left drove Annorax to more and more extreme measures as he struggled to reorganize the flow of history in his favor. It's a compelling performance from Kurtwood Smith and his scenes with his former Zoot Suit co-star Robert Beltran as Commander Chakotay are some of the standout moments from the Star Trek: Voyager two-parter . Kurtwood Smith discussed how Thrax in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine influenced his portrayal of Thrax in The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine , saying that:

" I guess the producers liked what I did on Deep Space Nine , and asked me to come back, which was fine with me. [...] Because Thrax was actually in the imagination of another character […] he wasn't quite as interesting to play as Annorax. He didn't have nearly as much to do. "

Imperium Magistrate Clar in Star Trek: Lower Decks, Season 1, Episode 8, "Veritas"

Imperium Magistrate Clar was a much lighter Star Trek role for Kurtwood Smith, as the character featured in the animated comedy series Star Trek: Lower Decks . In "Veritas", the Lower Deckers are seemingly put on trial by Imperium Magistrate Clar as he interrogates them about the USS Cerritos' senior staff. However, Clar isn't putting the crew of the USS Cerritos on trial, he's instead honoring them according to his planet's traditions . However, Jack Quaid's Boimler and his fellow Lower Deckers torpedo the whole ceremony by misunderstanding Clar's line of questioning, which is designed to show them all as infallible heroes.

The design of the alien courtroom is reminiscent of the Klingon court in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , a nod to Kurtwood Smith's first Star Trek appearance.

While it's a voice performance, Kurtwood Smith is clearly having fun in the role of Imperium Magistrate Clar, perhaps delighting in sending up his previous villain roles. Just as Annorax in Star Trek: Voyager was Kurtwood Smith's last Star Trek role before That '70s Show , Clar was his last role before That '90s Show . Hopefully, Kurtwood Smith can return to Star Trek once That '90s Show season 2 drops on Netflix later in the year.

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country is streaming on Max.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

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Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, also known as DS9, is the fourth series in the long-running Sci-Fi franchise, Star Trek. DS9 was created by Rick Berman and Michael Piller, and stars Avery Brooks, René Auberjonois, Terry Farrell, and Cirroc Lofton. This particular series follows a group of individuals in a space station near a planet called Bajor.

Star Trek Voyager

The fifth entry in the Star Trek franchise, Star Trek: Voyager, is a sci-fi series that sees the crew of the USS Voyager on a long journey back to their home after finding themselves stranded at the far ends of the Milky Way Galaxy. Led by Captain Kathryn Janeway, the series follows the crew as they embark through truly uncharted areas of space, with new species, friends, foes, and mysteries to solve as they wrestle with the politics of a crew in a situation they've never faced before.

Star Trek Lower Decks

The animated comedy series Star Trek: Lower Decks follows the support crew on one of Starfleet’s least significant ships, the U.S.S. Cerritos, in 2380. Ensigns Mariner (Tawny Newsome), Boimler (Jack Quaid), Rutherford (Eugene Cordero), and Tendi (Noël Wells) have to keep up with their duties and their social lives often. At the same time, the ship is being rocked by a multitude of sci-fi anomalies.