Voyager Revisited

Hugo Award-winner Frank Wu comes back to the podcast to talk about another big story featuring the Borg Queen. We discuss the merits of Seven’s love interest, the advisability of getting assimilated on purpose, and (our favorite subject) why Harry Kim keeps getting dissed. Even the Borg Queen zings him. Host Jean MacDonald with Frank Wu.

In the latest of our two-part Voyager stories, we spend quality time with the Borg Queen and returning podcast guest Tammy Coron. We discuss about Seven’s childhood and why the promise of connection in the collective would be so seductive. And we rank the mother figures in Seven’s life. (Her dad gets a failing grade.) Host Jean MacDonald with Tammy Coron.

Jeff Gamet, tech journalist, podcaster, and big fan of Star Trek, returns to Voyager Revisited to discuss The Killing Game, a two-part story from Season 4 that lets us really get to know those scary Delta Quadrant bad guys, the Hirogen. It’s another great two-parter, in which we see our crew used as playthings for the Hirogen, whose only purpose is to hunt. Janeway is a French Underground leader, Seven is a torch singer, and Neelix is a badass Klingon, thanks to the holodeck. But we reserve our highest praise for Harry Kim, who had to heroically manage the ship and outwit the Hirogen. That guy deserves a promotion. Host Jean MacDonald with Jeff Gamet.

Don’t be alarmed! This is not a temporal incursion. Year of Hell is one of the most admired episodes of Voyager. One year ago, on episode 19 of this podcast, software developer and podcaster Tammy Coron was our guest. We were six months into the pandemic, and Year of Hell really struck home for both of us. Tammy’s situation especially, being flung into a pandemic with an unexpectedly extended family, was akin to Captain Janeway’s challenges in the Delta Quadrant. And like Janeway, we don’t know how long it will take, but we are still on a mission to see everyone through. We’re re-releasing this episode so that it’s in chronological order with the rest of the two-parters.. Enjoy this for the first time, enjoy a relisten, or skip to the next podcast episode, which will be all about the scary Hirogen. Host Jean MacDonald with Tammy Coron.

John Chidgey, engineer, podcaster, and big fan of Seven of Nine, returns to Voyager Revisited to discuss Scorpion, the two-part story that concludes Season 3 and opens Season 4. Scorpion is best known for the introduction of Seven, but on this rewatch, we notice that Seven doesn’t even appear until Part 2, and that the strain in the working relationship between Janeway and Chakotay is a key part of this story. Host Jean MacDonald with John Chidgey.

We are covering all the two-part stories in Voyager. They are all excellent. The Voyager crew return to Earth. But wait, it’s 1996 Earth. It’s Future’s End, and if it weren’t such fun, time travel would give us a headache. We get to watch our crew explore SoCal wearing a variety of late 20th-century outfits and hairstyles, teaming up with geek girl Sarah Silverman to battle hippie-turned-tech mogul Ed Begley, Jr. Returning to the podcast is James Dempsey, who knows a thing or two about moving to California to work for a cutting-edge technology empire. Host Jean MacDonald with James Dempsey.

We are covering all the two-part stories in Voyager. They are all excellent. We’ve already done Caretaker (“Invitation to a Holographic Hoedown”). Next up is Basics, in which the Kazon, under Seska’s treacherous leadership, take over Voyager, maroon the crew on a primitive planet, and find that they are no match for a hologram and sociopath. Casey Liss of The Accidental Tech Podcast joins us for this classic Star Trek action adventure story. Host Jean MacDonald with Casey Liss.

We’re celebrating the 30th anniversary Star Trek IV: The Undiscovered Country this week on The Incomparable network. Have a listen to not one but two panels, on the mothership episode and on Random Trek. Then come back here for the two podcasters missing from those panels as we take a deeper dive into the Vulcan who was missing from the film, Voyager’s own Tuvok. Flashback (S3E2) was itself a 30th anniversary homage to the original series. Tuvok returns to the Excelsior, serving under Captain Sulu, and turns out it’s Tuvok who served Sulu that iconic cup of tea from Star Trek VI opening scene. James Thomson, regular panelist at The Incomparable and developer of famous software programs, is our guest. Host Jean MacDonald with James Thomson.

Psychotherapist and host of a weekly tech and culture show, Georgia Dow talks about the mental health consequences for the Voyager crew as they travel through a large swath of space empty of stars, planets, and other ships. In “Night,” Janeway obsessively dwells on her decision that stranded Voyager in the Delta quadrant four years earlier. The rest of the crew also experiences the deleterious effects of nothing new to see or do, ranging from constant bickering to panic attacks. Host Jean MacDonald with Georgia Dow.

Podcaster and comic con host Moisés Chiullán returns to the podcast for a romance-themed episode inspired by Valentine’s Day. We watch the classic episode “Resolutions” which finds Janeway and Chakotay stranded on a planet together, possibly for the rest of their lives, left to fend for themselves. They do have prefab housing, scientific equipment, a replicator and other tech, but only each other (and one inconvenient monkey) for company. Meanwhile, the rest of the crew hates Acting Captain Tuvok for leaving the pair behind, even though he is totally right. Host Jean MacDonald with Moisés Chiullán.