Star Trek: Scorpion

Episode: "Scorpion"

Series: Star Trek: Voyager

Season 3, Episode 26

Original Air Date: May 21, 1997

via Memory Alpha

There's a new bully in town.  15 Borg cubes zoom past Voyager, evidently in too much of a hurry to assimilate our heroes.  Not long after, the crew happen upon the same cubes, completely destroyed.  What could be so powerful that it could so easily overwhelm the irresistible force of the Borg?  Species 8472, that's who.  The Doctor invents a nanoprobe that could be used to combat the new enemy.  Janeway hatches a bold plan: give the nanoprobe tech to the Borg in exchange for safe passage through their territory.  

Yup, "Scorpion" is quite a story.  For many, it is Voyager's very best.  The Janeway proposal presents a Trek dilemma of the highest order and the resulting tension between the Captain and Chakotay brings extra weight to an already solid season-ending cliffhanger.

Thoughts on Season Three

General Impressions

Voyager found more sure footing in its third season.  While quality is still uneven, the disastrous offerings of early Season 2 seem distant memories.  The show still feels like DS9's awkward younger sibling but the best episodes are satisfying.

Favorite Episode: "Distant Origin"

I can understand how one might prefer "Scorpion" if they like lots of action and a fast pace.  But if anything, Forra Gegen's trial over his assertion that his people, the Voths, descend from Earth's dinosaurs feels even more poignant now than it would have in 1997.  Plus, using the holodeck to extrapolate how that evolution might have occurred is one of the coolest applications of the technology to that point, even if it does feel quite a lot like 2020s AI in hindsight.

Least Favorite Episode: "Macrocosm"

This choice is actually a reflection of the series's improved quality in Season 3.  "Macrocosm" really isn't so bad, just not my cup of tea.  Compared to the disastrous lows of Season 2, "Macrocosm" is pretty good.  

In an Aliens send up, Janeway prowls the corridors in a tank top with a big gun, hunting the overgrown micro-organisms that have infected the rest of the crew with a debilitating disease.  I'm not keen on horror movies so this one didn't do it for me.  But it's not terrible.

Favorite Recurring Character: Rain Robinson

via Movie and TV Wiki

Because of the nature of Voyager's broader epic, recurring characters are rare compared with other series.  This time, I'll take Rain Robinson (Sarah Silverman), the scientist caught in the middle of Voyager's cat-and-mouse chase with the evil Henry Starling (Ed Begley, Jr.) in the two-part "Future's End."  She's also a low-grade love interest for Tom Paris.  

Favorite Blast from the Past: Sulu

Overall, I was underwhelmed by "Flashback," the big nostalgia offering to help celebrate Star Trek's 30th anniversary.  But I still love Sulu.  It's always good to see him in the Captain's chair and who wouldn't be drawn in by that low, resonant voice.  You get Janice Rand and Kang in the episode, too, but Sulu's the star.

Favorite Guest Actor, One-Shot: Giusseppina Pentangelli

via Memory Alpha

A fictitious 22nd century opera diva, Pentangelli (Carole Davis) was Mimi to The Doctor's Rodolfo in the latter's La Boheme holodeck program.  Davis barely gets any screen time at all but she makes the most of it.  The singing voice is her own, too.  The character would have been well worth bringing back but alas, "The Swarm" is her only appearance.  

Onward

Big changes are coming and right soon.  We'll gain a principal character and the narrative impact is seismic.  We'll lose one, too - one of my favorites.  Stay tuned.