voyager episode flashback

Flashback (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 Introductory details
3.2 Story and script
3.3 Cast and characters
3.5 Wardrobe
3.6 Production
3.7 Effects
3.8 Reception
3.9 Continuity
3.10 Apocrypha
3.11 Video and DVD releases
4.1 Starring
4.2 Also starring
4.3 Guest Stars
4.4 Uncredited co-stars
4.5 Stunt doubles
4.6 References
4.7 External links

Summary [ ]

In the USS Voyager 's mess hall , Neelix is trying to tempt a reluctant Lieutenant Tuvok into sampling a new juice blend that Neelix has concocted. Eventually, Tuvok gingerly samples the beverage and, to Neelix's delight, he finds the drink to be "impressive." After heading into the kitchen with the intention of serving seasoned Porakan eggs for Tuvok's breakfast , Neelix begins explaining the method of the food preparation, a Talaxian mealtime tradition, but the Vulcan is unwilling to hear about the effort put into preparing the eggs , and an unexpected fire suddenly ruins them. Neelix quickly extinguishes the blaze, which Tuvok suggests may have been caused by a thermal surge due to Engineering making adjustments to the plasma conduits , in order to accommodate a new energy source. An audio call from Captain Janeway summons the pair to the bridge .

Neelix and the bridge officers lengthily and with some enthusiasm discuss how they will store and use the sirillium after they have gathered it. Once the ship arrives at its temporary destination, the anomaly (which Kim describes as a class 17 nebula ) is displayed on the viewscreen but, as the crew discuss the anomaly, Tuvok seems disoriented and his hand quivers. Even though an unaware Janeway issues him an order related to the nebula , Tuvok does not respond. The bridge officers subsequently notice his behavior. He confusedly admits that he is feeling dizzy and disoriented, and his request to report to sickbay is granted. En route, Tuvok experiences a flashback of himself as a child; the boy holds the hand of a terrified girl hanging from a cliff but he is unable to hold on to her, so she plummets to her death. In a state of extreme distress, Tuvok stumbles into Voyager 's sickbay, where Kes is on duty, and collapses on the floor.

Act One [ ]

Tuvok, now conscious, relates his vision of the girl hanging from the cliff. Though the episode seemed real, he does not recall it having actually happened. The Doctor offers several possible explanations, including a hallucination or repressed memory of some sort. The Doctor releases Tuvok, but first gives him a neurocortical monitor to record his brain patterns and to alert sickbay in case the symptoms recur. Tuvok approves of this "wise precaution".

In engineering, Ensign Harry Kim explains that his sensor sweeps haven't turned up anything that would affect Tuvok or Voyager . Tuvok suggests to Lt. B'Elanna Torres that, due to being close to Klingon space, Voyager conduct a tachyon sweep of the nebula to reveal any cloaked ships that could be responsible for the symptoms. But, of course, Voyager is in the Delta Quadrant , nowhere near Klingon space, so his remark puzzles Janeway and the other officers present. As he stares at the sensor display of the nebula, Tuvok experiences another flashback, and once again the little girl slips from his youthful grasp and falls to her death from the cliff.

" Damage report! "

In sickbay, The Doctor suggests that a mind meld between the patient and a family member to bring Tuvok's repressed memory to the conscious mind may fix the problem. Being the closest thing Tuvok has to family on Voyager , Captain Janeway agrees to a mind meld with Tuvok. However, instead of accessing the memory of the girl and the cliff, Janeway and Tuvok find themselves on the USS Excelsior eighty years in the past . The Excelsior is engaged in battle with a Klingon vessel. Captain Hikaru Sulu suddenly steps out of the dense smoke.

Act Two [ ]

As Sulu barks orders to his crew and Commander Janice Rand reads a damage report, Janeway and Tuvok (who is crouched over the body of Lieutenant Dimitri Valtane ) are confused why they're suddenly on the Excelsior rather than the precipice with the little girl. Tuvok reports that the ship is in a battle with the Klingons, and that the battle was precipitated by an incident that occurred three days earlier…

Going back in time to the common quarters he shares with Valtane and two other officers on Deck 7, now Ensign Tuvok finishes preparing a blend of Vulcan tea for Captain Sulu, of whom he's noticed that he likes to have a cup of tea in the morning. The others are getting ready to go on duty as part of the gamma shift . Having entered and asked about the tea, Commander Rand jokingly accuses him of trying to get a quick promotion, which Tuvok denies. She then gives him a message from his father serving on the USS Yorktown and leaves to report to the bridge. After she's gone, Janeway remarks to Tuvok " You've never brought me tea. "

" Outstanding! I may have to give you a promotion. "

Later, Tuvok serves the tea to Captain Sulu, who declares it to be outstanding and also jokes about Tuvok trying to get a promotion. When Tuvok denies this, Sulu tells his junior officer that he's got to learn how to appreciate a joke, and says he knows that Vulcans do have a sense of humor. As she follows Tuvok across the bridge to his post, Janeway remarks that Sulu doesn't look anything like his portrait at Starfleet Headquarters ; Tuvok explains that 23rd century holographic imagers had a less accurate resolution than the technology that would be developed in the 24th century. Janeway notices that Tuvok's post is a science station. Tuvok confirms that he served on the ship as one of several junior science officers, causing Janeway to ask why his service record doesn't mention his service on the Excelsior . Tuvok isn't keen to talk about it, but confirms this was his first deep-space assignment after graduating Starfleet Academy at the age of 29. Janeway asks if they're about to battle the Klingons, but Tuvok tells her that the Klingon moon Praxis (which had served as a major source of energy for the Klingon home world) is about to explode. Janeway remembers that the destruction of Praxis had a lasting effect on the Alpha Quadrant , including leading to the first-ever Federation-Klingon Peace Treaty .

Just then, the ship starts to shake as the subspace shock wave from Praxis approaches the ship. Captain Sulu orders shields up, but Excelsior still shudders through the wave, sending the crew flying. Helmsman Lieutenant Commander Lojur tries to maneuver the ship, but the helm won't respond; Sulu orders him to use the starboard thrusters to turn the ship into the wave. Once it passes, Sulu starts to investigate while Tuvok tells Janeway that they were warned off by the Klingons and continued their survey mission. However two days later, two Starfleet officers were arrested for the assassination of the Klingon Chancellor . Captain Sulu felt an intense loyalty to both officers having served with them for many years. The two then go forward to the point where Captain Sulu (against orders) begins to plan a rescue of James Kirk and Leonard McCoy .

As currently illustrated in his memory, Tuvok tells Janeway that while the rest of the crew were happy to follow the captain in his defiance of Starfleet's orders, he wasn't. He then argues with Sulu that as Starfleet officers, they are under obligation to follow any and all orders. Sulu finds Tuvok's declaration to be rather bold for someone who has had an entire two months of space duty. Rand, having served with Sulu, Kirk, and McCoy on USS Enterprise as a yeoman , is aghast at Tuvok's behavior and chides him for questioning the captain's decision. She attempts to relieve him of duty while apologizing to the captain, but Sulu motions to her that it's okay. Sulu tells Tuvok that while he's technically right, he also couldn't be more wrong. He explains that when you serve with people for long enough, a strong bond and a sense of family can form. Having served with Kirk and McCoy for so many years and owing his life to them a dozen times over, regardless of Starfleet's orders he's going to help his friends, " let the regulations be damned. " Tuvok believes this to be a most illogical line of reasoning; Sulu tells Tuvok he " better believe it, " and orders Excelsior to warp speed. Janeway tells Tuvok that he did the right thing, but Tuvok now feels that he may have been wrong to question Captain Sulu's orders.

Sulu decides to take Excelsior through the Azure Nebula to conceal their entry into Klingon space. When it appears on the viewscreen , Janeway notices that it appears almost identical to the nebula encountered on Voyager . Suddenly Tuvok starts to have a panic attack as the memory resurfaces, this time with Janeway seeing the incident with the girl on the cliff, and the meld is broken as The Doctor scrambles to help him.

Act Three [ ]

Tuvok lies unconscious in sickbay. The Doctor warns him that if the repressed memory keeps resurfacing, he could experience brain death from synaptic pathway degradation. As Tuvok needs to be left to rest, Janeway decides to conduct her own research.

Later, Ensign Kim brings Janeway a comparison between the Azure Nebula and the one Voyager has just encountered in her ready room . Although both contain sirillium and are visually similar, the two are actually quite different; the Azure Nebula is a class 11 nebula while the one Voyager has encountered is a class 17. Having talked with The Doctor, Kim suggests that Tuvok's memories of the Excelsior were just triggered by how similar the two nebulas look, but this still brings up the question of where the memory of the little girl fits in, as it is so far removed from Tuvok's service with Captain Sulu. Janeway had decided to check Sulu's logs for some clues about the nebula but has come up with nothing, as Sulu omitted the trip through the nebula in his logs, except for a brief, cryptic remark about the Excelsior suffering damage from a gaseous anomaly and requiring repairs. Kim is surprised to hear about this clear breach of protocol, but Janeway reminds him of the differences between starships from Sulu's era and their own, and most importantly, how it was a different breed of Starfleet officers who served on them. The technology wasn't as advanced, the Federation constantly on the verge of war with the Klingons, the Romulans ' covert activities, and their ships were only half as fast. Despite all this, and noting that the officers of the time would have been very quickly booted out of the Starfleet of the present, Janeway expresses a desire to have served even once with officers like Kirk and Sulu.

The Doctor revives Tuvok, who completes the story of the interrupted mind meld. The Excelsior was ambushed by Klingons and forced to abort the rescue mission, but this still has no connection to the repressed memory. Tuvok attempts another mind meld with Janeway, but once again they find themselves on the Excelsior over Valtane's body. Now convinced that this isn't a coincidence but something that happened on the Excelsior is causing Tuvok's illness, Janeway and Tuvok go back to when the ship was in the nebula.

Having estimated that their path through the nebula would take five hours, Sulu decided that gamma shift needed to get some rest. However back in their crew quarters, Lieutenant Valtane, Tuvok's bunkmate, wants to talk about the situation. While Valtane admires Sulu, Tuvok doesn't and makes no secret of the fact that he dislikes Humans and their flippancy with emotions. The Vulcan explains that he only joined Starfleet under pressure from his parents, and that he planned to resign his Starfleet commission once the ship's survey mission is over. As Valtane goes to sleep, Janeway asks Tuvok if he really meant what he said. Tuvok says that he did at this point in his life, admitting that his opinions on Humans and Starfleet were biased due to the fact he hadn't voluntarily chosen to join the service. After resigning, he returned to Vulcan and started to study kolinahr to purge his emotions. However, six years into his studies he underwent pon farr and took T'Pel as a mate and began raising children, whereupon he understood his parents' decision to send him to Starfleet Academy, and that there was actually a lot he could learn if he allowed himself to do so. Tuvok therefore rejoined Starfleet in order to expand his knowledge of the galaxy , and to learn from Humans and other species. Suddenly, the ship trembles and Sulu calls for a red alert . As he and the other officers quickly get up to return to their stations, Tuvok explains to Janeway that a Klingon ship had decloaked in the nebula and began firing concussive charges across their bow.

Act Four [ ]

USS Excelsior and Kang's cruiser faceoff

The Excelsior and Kang's K't'inga -class cruiser

On the bridge of the Excelsior , Sulu finds the captain of the battle cruiser is none other than Kang , who congratulates Sulu for his well-deserved captaincy, and in a thinly-veiled threat advises Sulu to "not let it end prematurely". Sulu, of course, lies about his rescue mission, claiming they got lost inside the nebula while surveying it due to a navigational system malfunction. Kang insists on escorting the Excelsior back to Federation space, so Sulu plays along while looking for a way to lose him.

With Kang's forward disruptors trained on them, Sulu asks Tuvok about the nebula's composition. On the mention of sirillium gas, Tuvok confirms that it's highly combustible and when asked on how they can ignite it, suggests modulating a positron beam to a subspace frequency, which would cause a thermochemical reaction. " Like tossing a match into a pool of gasoline , " enthuses Sulu, but not wanting to destroy them, asks if Kang's shields would withstand the blast. Tuvok says they would, but their sensors and weapon systems would be disrupted for several seconds. This is enough for Sulu, who has his solution. He instructs Tuvok to prepare the beam and when they exit the nebula first, to fire on Sulu's command.

As they clear the nebula, the "match" is ignited, disabling Kang's ship with the resulting explosion, and the Excelsior quickly resumes its course at maximum warp to Qo'noS . However, three Klingon battle cruisers intercept the Excelsior and begin firing torpedoes at it. Tuvok gets an alert and warns Valtane that his console is about to explode due to a plasma conduit rupture behind it, but Valtane tarries and doesn't leave his station in time; he takes the full force of the blast. Calling in the medical emergency to sickbay, Tuvok kneels next to Voltane, who calls Tuvok's name with his dying breath. Suddenly, the "memory" of the girl on the cliff resurfaces.

In Voyager 's sickbay, Tuvok's memory engrams are destabilizing and The Doctor attempts to terminate the mind meld, but is unable to. Tuvok's brain damage is accelerating and he will be brain-dead within twenty minutes if the mind meld continues.

" Who the hell are you?! "

Janeway tells Tuvok that the death of Valtane is connected to the repressed memory, however Tuvok winces as he realizes that something has gone wrong with the mind meld. Sulu is looking around, but when he turns in their direction, he can actually see Janeway on his bridge.

Act Five [ ]

The young Kathryn Janeway in the flashback

Sulu calls for an intruder alert as Tuvok offers to break the mind meld, warning Janeway that if his brain is fatally damaged that she will suffer brain damage as well. Janeway declines, as she feels that they are very close to the truth. Excelsior 's security officers arrive and arrest the two, as they realize that Janeway's presence will stop the memory from following its proper course so she will need to appear inconspicuous among the crew of the Excelsior .

Going back in time to the moment Tuvok was preparing Sulu's Vulcan tea, Tuvok performs a nerve pinch on Rand and the two help themselves to her uniform, so that Janeway will more likely escape notice of Sulu and his officers.

Meanwhile, The Doctor fits a cortical stimulator on Tuvok to bring him out of the meld with bursts of thoron radiation . This exposes a virus masquerading as one of Tuvok's memory engrams, and The Doctor increases the amount of radiation to kill the virus.

On the Excelsior bridge, Rand's absence is noticed but before Sulu can investigate further, the Klingons attack and Valtane once again dies after his console explodes. Janeway asks Tuvok to concentrate, to bring them to the precipice with the girl. Meanwhile, the virus in Tuvok's brain migrates to the captain's, and accordingly, Janeway experiences her version of Tuvok's flashback, seeing herself as a child in Tuvok's place. The Doctor fits a stimulator on Janeway and irradiates her brain, causing the virus to move again, and now Tuvok's flashback recurs. As the virus begins to die, The Doctor once again increases the amount of radiation to eighty kilodynes . The flashback recurs now with a young Valtane hanging on to the girl, and then again and again with other children – presumably the other hosts the virus has infected in its lifetime.

It turns out that the virus feeds on neural peptides and bypasses the immune system of its host by disguising itself as a memory engram – the false memory of the girl falling from the cliff, so traumatic that the mind would repress it, thus ensuring that it would not be detected living in the brain of the host. Tuvok concludes that Valtane, as he lay dying, infected him with the virus, the same way the virus infected the captain as Tuvok's mind began to degrade. Kes wonders whether the girl ever really existed, and in response The Doctor surmises that the memory has been passed on so many times, that there is no way of knowing the true history behind the memory of the fall or if the girl even ever existed.

Leaving sickbay, Janeway asks if Excelsior managed to rescue Kirk and McCoy. Tuvok tells her that the ship was forced to abandon the rescue mission. However, like many times previously in their careers, Kirk and McCoy provided their own means of escape, and both the Excelsior and Captain Sulu and the starship Enterprise, under Captain Kirk himself, ended up playing a pivotal role in the following events at Khitomer . Janeway notes that Tuvok sounds almost nostalgic about those days. Tuvok reminds her he doesn't feel nostalgia, however as he remembers those events and meeting Kirk, McCoy, and Spock , he is glad that he was a part of them. Janeway remarks that, in a funny way, she feels like she was a part of it as well. Tuvok responds that perhaps, she can be nostalgic for both of them.

Memorable quotes [ ]

" I am not Human. " " No kidding. "

" Structure. Logic. Function. Control. The structure cannot stand without a foundation. Logic is the foundation of function. Function is the essence of control. I am in control. I am in control. "

" Mr. Tuvok, if you're going to remain on my ship, you're going to have learn how to appreciate a joke. And don't tell me Vulcans don't have a sense of humor; because I know better . "

" Ensign, do you know this woman? "

" You'll find that more happens on the bridge of a starship than just carrying out orders and observing regulations. There is a sense of loyalty to the men and women you serve with. A sense of family. Those two men on trial… I served with them for a long time. I owe them my life a dozen times over. And right now they're in trouble and I'm going to help them; let the regulations be damned. " " Sir, that is a most illogical line of reasoning. " " You better believe it. Helm, engage! "

" Mr. Neelix, I would prefer not to hear the life history of my breakfast. "

" Mr. Sulu, I see they have finally given you the captaincy you deserve. " " Thank you, Kang. " " Do not let it end prematurely. "

" Nice to see you again, Kang. " " Grr… "

" As a Starfleet officer, it is my duty to formally protest. " " Tuvok! "

" I don't know what happened to you, but there can be any number of explanations – hallucination, telepathic communication from another race, repressed memory, momentary contact with a parallel reality… take your pick. The universe is such a strange place. "

" All right, Gamma Shift. Time to defend the Federation against gaseous anomalies. "

" Seal that conduit! "

" Who knows what goes on in a Vulcan's mind. "

" I've observed that Captain Sulu drinks a cup of tea each morning. I thought he might enjoy a Vulcan blend. " " Oh, I see. Trying to make lieutenant in your first month? I wish I'd have thought of that when I was your age. Took me three years just to make ensign. " " I assure you I have no ulterior motive. " " Whatever you say, ensign. See you on the bridge. " " You've never brought me tea. "

" It would seem that Captain Sulu decided not to enter that journey into his official log. The day's entry makes some cryptic remark about the ship being damaged in a gaseous anomaly and needing repairs, but… nothing else. " " You mean, he falsified his logs? " " It was a very different time, Mister Kim. Captain Sulu, Captain Kirk, Doctor McCoy. They all belonged to a different breed of Starfleet officers. Imagine the era they lived in: the Alpha Quadrant still largely unexplored… Humanity on the verge of war with the Klingons, Romulans hiding behind every nebula. Even the technology we take for granted was still in its early stages: no plasma weapons, no multi-phasic shields… Their ships were half as fast. " " No replicators. No holodecks. You know, ever since I took Starfleet history at the Academy, I've always wondered what it would be like to live in those days. " " Space must have seemed a whole lot bigger back then. It's not surprising they had to bend the rules a little. They were a little slower to invoke the Prime Directive, and a little quicker to pull their phasers. Of course, the whole bunch of them would be booted out of Starfleet today. But I have to admit: I would have loved to ride shotgun at least once with a group of officers like that. "

" Whew… Vulcans! You guys need to relax. "

" Who the hell are you? "

" We could have just asked her. " " Asking female officers for their clothing could lead to misunderstanding. "

" Memory is a tricky thing. "

" I'm curious: did the Excelsior ever save Kirk and McCoy? " " Not directly. We were forced to retreat back to Federation space – as usual, Captain Kirk provided his own means of escape… But we did play an important role at the subsequent battle at Khitomer. " " Mr. Tuvok, if I didn't know you better, I'd say you miss those days on the Excelsior . "

" But there are times when I think back to those days of meeting Kirk, Spock and the others, and I am pleased that I was part of it. " " In a funny way, I feel like I was a part of it, too. " " Then perhaps you can be nostalgic for both of us. "

" Tuvok! Please, Tuvok! Don't let me fall! "

Background information [ ]

Introductory details [ ].

"Flashback" was Star Trek: Voyager 's tribute both to the films starring the cast of Star Trek: The Original Series and to Star Trek 's 30th anniversary , recreating many scenes from the feature film Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country .
This episode was written and produced after UPN declared that, as they had done with the first and second seasons of Star Trek: Voyager , they would air four episodes produced at the end of the series' second season as part of its third season . ( Star Trek Monthly issue 15 ) This episode was, in production order, the third of the four that were written and produced during the second season of Star Trek: Voyager but intentionally included in the third season, the other episodes being " Sacred Ground ", " False Profits ", and " Basics, Part II ".

Story and script [ ]

With the date of Star Trek 's 30th anniversary located early in Voyager 's third season, the studio executives at Paramount Pictures requested a Voyager episode that would tie into and serve as an homage to Star Trek: The Original Series , thereby fitting the occasion. ( Star Trek Monthly issue 15 ) " We already had on hand the story premise of a memory problem for Tuvok that Janeway saves him from, " writer and supervising producer Brannon Braga recalled, " and when the request came down from the studio for a 30th anniversary show, that seemed like a natural to get us back into that era without yet another time travel plot. " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) Braga also stated, " We thought, [the event was] a perfect opportunity to use the sci-fi gimmick, mind melding, and go to save Tuvok from a psychic trauma. And back [in] time, that was what we were going to do [originally]. We were going to see Janeway's first commission. It was going to be more about Janeway and that relationship. We just used that story as a departure and it worked very nicely. But the gag was always the same, to do a time travel story without doing time travel, by doing a meld. " It was after deciding on this plot device that the writers chose to go back to the Excelsior , posting Tuvok aboard that ship. The memory virus was another part of the original story idea. Laughing, Braga noted, " It [was] always in there. It's always the idea that repressed memories could possibly be the result of alien inhibition. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 87)
In an uncredited capacity, Juliann Medina had some input into this episode's story. ( Beyond the Final Frontier , p. 296, et al.)
The episode's first draft script was issued on 15 March 1996 . The teleplay's final draft was submitted on 26 of that month.
Brannon Braga originally wrote a scene in which Nyota Uhura , via viewscreen, provided some necessary plot points from the bridge of the USS Enterprise -A . Actress Nichelle Nichols declined her invitation to appear in the episode, however, due to the limitedness of her part. ( Star Trek Monthly issue 18 ) Sulu actor George Takei referred to Uhura's part of the installment as "a nice little scene" and clarified, " She would have communicated with me, as Uhura to Tuvok, over the viewscreen. I pleaded with her on the phone to do it because it would have been wonderful to have her back as well. She felt the part did not do her justice, so she passed on doing it. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 ) Brannon Braga remarked, " I would have liked to have had Uhura, but we had to write […] her out. We couldn't make a deal with her. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 88) Partly due to the scene's deletion, the episode ended up being approximately five minutes too short, so two additional scenes were written to fill up the rest of the episode's duration: an extension of Tuvok's breakfast with Neelix, and the Keethera scene between Tuvok and Kes. ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) The removal of the Uhura scene was done after 26 March, as evidenced by the cast list in the episode's final draft script, which includes Uhura among the episode's characters.
The episode was originally to have started with the log entry that, in the episode's final version, immediately follows the breakfast scene.
According to George Takei, Tuvok actor Tim Russ made some changes to the script, immediately eliciting the writers to correct some discrepancies. ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 ) Takei explained, " He made script changes that made Tuvok's behavior consistent with Vulcan culture where the writers had been derelict. For example, the script suggested that Tuvok had an affair with a non-Vulcan before his pon farr . He made sure that was corrected. " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 22 ) Additionally, Russ inadvertently drove Brannon Braga to include more about Tuvok's backstory in the episode than had originally been scripted, being particularly instrumental in the writing of what Tuvok says to Janeway while in his bunk aboard the Excelsior . " Initially that whole speech wasn't in there, a page and a half of dialogue, " Russ revealed. " She asked me, 'What made you come back to Starfleet?' and [Braga] had written some line which really wasn't consistent with Vulcan character. I said, 'Brannon, the line itself doesn't work.' So I said, 'Give him a real reason why he came back to Starfleet.' I expected a paragraph, and I ended up getting a page and a half of dialogue. Things like that do make a difference. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 100)

Cast and characters [ ]

Cast members were generally impressed by the script. George Takei described the episode's bridging of the generations as "a very imaginative" and "clever" concept, and further enthused, " I thought […] they did an absolutely wonderful job of bridging the generations, of making Captain Sulu, Tuvok and Janeway all organic parts of the same episode. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features; Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 89; The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 ) Likewise, Tuvok actor Tim Russ commented, " I thought it was a blast when I first heard about it, really a great idea. How do you tie in to the old series when you're in the Delta Quadrant? So, it was just a kick to find out. " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) He also remarked, " I thought it was a piece of genius, story-wise […] [It] is a coup d'etat , story-wise, because nobody would see it coming. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features) Russ also liked how the episode's depiction of the Excelsior differed from Star Trek VI , saying, " I really appreciated the clever aspect of the storyline being placed inside a part of the ship from a certain angle that we never saw in the original film. Being able to play that out and being tied to that story so directly was great. " ( Star Trek: Voyager Companion (p. ? )) Russ elaborated, " It was a brilliant story to tie into the bridge of the USS Excelsior in that film, having not seen that part of the ship and having me on it […] It was fabulous. " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 25 , p. 12) Janice Rand actress Grace Lee Whitney offered, " It was just a great episode. " [1]
George Takei originally learned of his forthcoming appearance in this episode via a phone call in January 1996, from a male fan who was also a friend of the actor. The friendly fan congratulated Takei for the fact he was about to make a guest appearance on Star Trek: Voyager , news that the fan had learned on the Internet but which Takei was not yet aware of. He dismissed the information as an untrue rumor but, after he ended his call with the curious fan, Takei called his agent, who also knew nothing about the upcoming episode. About a fortnight afterwards, Takei was guest-starring on the Nickelodeon TV series Space Cases , on location in Montreal, when (one day, after shooting) his agent called him back with confirmation of the claim. Takei's agent continued by detailing the offer to him. ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features; Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ; The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 )
Writing on the episode began only after George Takei accepted the invitation to appear. Brannon Braga recalled, " When George Takei was contacted and agreed to do it the writing took off. " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )
George Takei initially hoped that his guest spot on the series would allow him to work with the entire cast of Star Trek: Voyager , particularly with Kim actor Garrett Wang . " When my agent confirmed for me that I was doing a guest shot on Voyager , " Takei remembered, " I was looking forward to working with the entire cast, because I've been watching the series and the only one I knew was Garrett Wang […] My only disappointment was that it was working with just Kate [Mulgrew] and Tim. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
However, another regret for George Takei was that, due to Star Trek VI having been produced five years earlier (i.e., in 1991 ), the actors from that movie had changed so much that the original shots of them from the film could not be utilized and, generally, recreated scenes instead had to be filmed anew. ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features)

David Livingston and George Takei on the Excelsior Bridge set of this episode

Both Brannon Braga and director David Livingston were very pleased that George Takei decided to participate in the episode. " It's very exciting, " Livingston said, midway through filming, " to have someone from Classic Star Trek to come in and do the show. George is wonderful–with his energy and enthusiasm, I feel like an old man around him! He's incredible, and his spirit infuses everything! He's wonderful as the captain. He's got this power that's terrific, and that wonderful voice of his! " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) For his part, Braga enthused, " George was great. He is Sulu. He's got that great booming voice, and bombastic demeanor. I liked him. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 88)
Tuvok actor Tim Russ also immensely enjoyed the opportunity to work with George Takei. Russ later commented, " Working with George on the bridge, as Sulu's character, and having him aboard as a guest was wonderful, not only from a nostalgic standpoint but also because he's a very good actor, a very wonderful personality, very warm, very giving, very easy to work with, and we had a good time, and some good laughs. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features) Russ also stated that he found working with Takei was "a rush," "a great honor and fun," "a thrill," and "extraordinary." ( Star Trek: Voyager Companion (p. ? ); ( Star Trek Monthly issue 25 , p. 12; Star Trek Monthly issue 41 , p. 28)
Tim Russ found that this episode's production period was very tiring. " That was one hell of a show to shoot – it was absolutely exhausting, " declared Russ. ( Star Trek Monthly issue 41 , p. 28) On the other hand, he also enjoyed the making of the episode, particularly shooting the back-and-forth scenes of the outing (with Tuvok dividing his attention between interacting with Janeway in the present and with his own memories of life aboard the Excelsior ), which he found to be "fascinating". ( Star Trek Monthly issue 25 , p. 12) He also said, " It was very interesting and a lot of fun to do that episode. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 88)
A specific aspect of this production that thrilled Tim Russ was how closely it related to TOS, he having been a fan of that series for many years. He noted, " To be able to get so close again to the original series after having enjoyed it so much when I was younger was just fantastic. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 ) In fact, George Takei was very impressed by how aware Russ was of the Star Trek canon , as the latter actor repeatedly reminded Takei of things he had done in TOS that he had forgotten about. " It was kind of an eerie feeling, " related Takei. " He's very Vulcan in that respect. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 101) Indeed, Takei was especially impressed by how knowledgeable Russ was about Vulcans, commenting, " I was impressed by how Tim has totally, completely and organically absorbed in his Vulcan heritage – the culture, the persona, the physiognomy, and the psyche of a Vulcan […] I was very impressed by him, as an actor who makes a full and total commitment. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features) In summation, Takei noted, " I enjoyed working with Tim. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 )
George Takei actually enjoyed working not only with Tim Russ but also with Kate Mulgrew. Regarding the pair of Voyager actors, Takei enthused, " It was really great working with the two of them, because they are very, very professional. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 88) About Mulgrew particularly, Takei declared, " Kate was wonderful […] She was very pleased that we were doing the episode and she made me feel very welcome on the set […] [She] played her part with great gravity and also, in her moments with Tuvok, great tenderness. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 )
George Takei's belief that Kate Mulgrew enjoyed this episode was true to life. Mulgrew cited this as one of her favorite eight installments from Star Trek: Voyager 's third season, describing it as "quite good." Similarly, Takei's positive impression of their relationship was mutual. Mulgrew remarked, " George Takei was a pleasure. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 14 , p. 32) The actress also commented, " I was so impressed with George. He was fabulous to work with, very, very erudite and gentlemanly. He was full of anecdotes about the original show and full of lessons for me as an actor on a Star Trek show. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 )
Having previously worked together on Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , this episode reunited George Takei with Grace Lee Whitney (Janice Rand), Jeremy Roberts ( Dimitri Valtane ), Boris Krutonog ( Excelsior helmsman Lojur ), and even some extras. David Livingston stated, " We brought back the actors that we could from Star Trek VI […] It was kind of surrealistic in a way because the actors were sort of picking up where they left off several years ago in a feature film and now they're doing a TV show. So that was fun, and great to work with George Takei and Grace Whitney and Boris Krutonog and whoever else we got from the original cast. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
George Takei was amazed by the attention to detail involved in recreating the scenes from Star Trek VI , particularly the use of the other performers. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 88) He reminisced, " The Voyager behind-the-scenes people did an outstanding job of recreating those sequences from Star Trek VI […] [Rehiring some of the same performers] really lent to the verisimilitude of those scenes, which were based on scenes we had shot five years earlier. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 ) Citing one particular scene, Takei noted, " The recreation of the first explosion scene, the Praxis scene from Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country ; movement for movement, throw for throw, and all of the principal actors in that scene. Some had left the industry – one came back from Portland, Oregon, or some place like that, he told me, that he was no longer pursuing a career, but Paramount came after him. So, their integrity and the tremendous research they did in finding all the actors was very impressive. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
As with George Takei, news that Grace Lee Whitney would be appearing in this episode was made available on the Internet before she even knew about the upcoming episode herself. At one point, Whitney met with Brannon Braga in his office and he advised her of some rewrites and script changes. ( Star Trek Monthly issue 16 ) Whitney appreciated the largeness of her role in this episode. " This is really great for me because I really have dialogue, " she said, " I have had an attitude, a purpose. I'm a lieutenant commander and I tell the ensign what to do! " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) Prior to filming on the set, Whitney was introduced to Voyager 's cast and crew. She was excited to meet them and vice versa. ( Star Trek Monthly issue 16 ) Whitney was also pleased to be working with George Takei again. Likening the episode to their work on Star Trek VI , Whitney stated, " To be back on the bridge with George, it's just deja vu. When you watch the monitor of us working, you can hardly tell the difference. " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )
During production, Grace Lee Whitney's eldest of two sons, Scott Dweck , was proud to visit the set. ( Star Trek Monthly issue 19 ) He himself had, in common with his mother, made previous appearances in Star Trek .
Having worked with Grace Lee Whitney not only on Star Trek VI but also on the original Star Trek series decades beforehand, George Takei experienced a sense of nostalgia while working on a bridge set with her again for this episode. Midway through production, Takei enthused, " It's a glorious, glorious feeling to be in that circular configuration with Gracie there. And it's a funny thing–it doesn't feel like it's been 30 years when you're in that setting. It feels like it was just yesterday. Thomas Wolfe was wrong: you can indeed go home again, and it is so sweet! " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) Throughout the filming of this particular episode, Whitney's enthusiasm was evident to Takei. " Grace Lee was on cloud nine the whole time, " he offered. " She's normally effervescent, and she was like an agitated champagne bottle on the set, spilling and bubbling all over the place. She had some wonderful things to do in the episode, and I was happy to have her beside me. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 )
Kate Mulgrew, David Livingston, and Brannon Braga also enjoyed working with Grace Lee Whitney. Comparing her to George Takei, Mulgrew noted, " I didn't have quite as much dialogue with Grace Lee, but I was quite impressed with her as well. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 ) " Grace was great, " Livingston said, " a den mother but still with that Starfleet control and attitude. " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) Similarly, Braga noted, " It was delightful having Grace. She added a nice Star Trek touch. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 88)
For her part, Grace Lee Whitney enjoyed guest-starring alongside regulars Tim Russ and Kate Mulgrew. Whitney reminisced, " Kate (Mulgrew) was amazing and Tim (Russ) told me that he'd just loved me as a kid, and here we were working together. It was great. " [2]
Jeremy Roberts was thrilled to be invited to reprise his role of Valtane in this episode. The actor explained, " I was very surprised to get the call. After Star Trek VI I figured that was it, I was lucky to be in one. Of course, now I'm not too thrilled about dying in this one! In 1991 I was sitting there looking at George Takei and thinking, 'I'm part of it! All right !' And when it's over, that's it; I got pictures, that was enough for me. Then they call and say, 'You want to do it again?' I'm there ! " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )
Despite hobbling due to having recently pulled an Achilles tendon while playing basketball (a five-week old injury whose cast was effectively covered, during filming on the episode, with a black stocking), Boris Krutonog found that, as the Excelsior helmsman, he was able to appreciate appearing in Star Trek more in this case than he had done during production on Star Trek VI . He explained, " I was born in Russia , and there was no Star Trek in Russia […] So I started to realize the importance of Star Trek after Star Trek VI. Back then it was just another movie, but this–this is fun! And a piece of history! " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )
As of this episode, Michael Ansara ( Kang ) has played the same character on three different live-action Star Trek series. The only other actors to do so are Jonathan Frakes ( Commander William T. Riker ), Marina Sirtis ( Counselor Deanna Troi ), Armin Shimerman ( Quark ), John de Lancie ( Q ), Richard Poe ( Gul Evek ), Patrick Stewart ( Captain Jean-Luc Picard ), Michael Dorn ( Worf ) and LeVar Burton ( Geordi La Forge ).
Michael Ansara previously played Kang in both the TOS : third season episode " Day of the Dove " and the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine second season episode " Blood Oath ". The scripted scene description for when Kang first appears in this episode reads, " A Klingon named Kang appears (as seen in the Deep Space Nine episode "Blood Oath," but he should look younger here). " Besides his appearances as Kang, Ansara also played Jeyal in the DS9 episode " The Muse ".

During production, an adjustment is made to the ceiling of the Excelsior bridge set

This episode required that the Excelsior bridge, in the same configuration from Star Trek VI , be recreated. However, rebuilding the set was initially hampered by difficulties. Production designer Richard James recalled, " I said, 'This is a really neat script but, you know when you have a bridge, you usually have three months to build it and half a million dollars, and I've got to recreate something that's already been seen by millions of people.' " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 25 , p. 30) David Livingston further explained, " Richard James, our production designer, showed me the original plans of the bridge and I said, 'Build it!' and he said 'I don't know if they're going to let me!'–not enough money and not enough time. So they asked if I could shoot with just half of it. Well, no, there's three shooting days, explosions, people moving all around… how do you shoot on half a set? " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )
Although the Excelsior bridge had taken the film crew of Star Trek VI twelve weeks to build from scratch, Richard James and the rest of the art department, as well as the construction and production departments, were tasked with reconstructing the same bridge set in less than two weeks. James proudly recalled, " We scurried in a mad dash and were able to recreate that set. Everybody was amazed when they came in […] We were able to recreate that bridge and probably did it in less than 10 days. And we did a three hundred and 60 degree set. It was not like on the [episode] " Relics ", where we just created a few walls and used blue screen to accomplish the total look. This was a full set. My carpenters and prop makers just did a tremendous job. " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 25 , p. 30) David Livingston enthused, " It was wonderful how fast they were able to put that bridge together […] I don't know how they did it, but the art department, construction department and the production department all got together and found the money to do it. They had to work a couple of weekends, but they pulled it together and it's amazing. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 10 )
Due to the severe time crunch, however, some elements of the set were necessarily made simpler. Scenic art supervisor Michael Okuda (yet another production staffer who worked on Star Trek VI ) acknowledged, " Some things had to be simplified, but I think everyone's got a lot to be proud of. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features) Similarly, Richard James stated, " We eliminated a few details that were subtle, and I don't think anybody missed them. " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 25 , p. 30)
Only a tiny portion of the original Excelsior bridge set survived in storage, having been cannibalized for DS9 (notably, for use on the SS Xhosa ) or Star Trek Generations , or else simply destroyed. However, the main viewscreen, the ops and conn consoles, as well as the aft bridge alcove and the consoles on either side of it had all been kept in storage. ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) Richard James remembered, " What we did was we tried to find if any of [the original Excelsior bridge set] existed from old feature stock. There were a couple of walls that were still in existence that Star Trek: Deep Space Nine had modified into a Klingon set wall. They let me use those. I thought it was a help, but actually, as it turned out, we could have just built it from scratch. Anyway, we did incorporate those walls. " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 25 , p. 30)
The Excelsior bridge's graphics that were available from storage included virtually all the upper-level graphics and half the mid-level displays. Scenic artists Wendy Drapanas and Jim Magdaleno digitized much of Michael Okuda's art from Star Trek VI , producing it much quicker than it had originally been done. Okuda stated, " Wendy Drapanas and Jim Magdaleno again recreated all the backlits, because – even though the set existed – there was a great deal of work to be done. " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )
All the tape loops of sensor images used in Star Trek VI were found, fairly intact, in storage. These loops were then displayed on twenty-five video "computer monitors" on the reconstructed Excelsior bridge set. Monitors were loaned from both DS9 and Star Trek: First Contact , in a concerted effort to help produce this anniversary installment of Voyager . Finally, the positions and exact timings of the loops were intricately matched with footage from Star Trek VI . Video supervisor Denise Okuda recalled, " Michael and I sat in front of our laserdisk ST:VI at home and tried frame by frame to match it. There were inconsistencies in the film due to editing, but we tried to match as much as possible the location and position of the monitors. The only downside is that our taped displays today are around 5-10 minutes long to give the video operators a break, but the tapes from ST:VI are a maximum of 12 minutes. " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ; Star Trek Monthly issue 22 ) For his part, Michael Okuda stated, " Our video operator, Ben Betts, put in an amazing number of hours along with Denise [Okuda], to recreate as much as possible all the video monitors we had on the set. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
The bridge of Kang's battle cruiser was an oft-reused generic Klingon bridge set, which went on to serve as the bridge of the IKS Rotarran on DS9. ( Delta Quadrant , p. 132)
George Takei was impressed by the sets of this episode. He remarked, " The sets looked great. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 ) Of the Excelsior bridge specifically, Takei recalled, " The set was new. Once we got into it, it felt like we had been working yesterday on the film version. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 88)

Wardrobe [ ]

Shortly after he started to become involved with this episode, George Takei found that his captain's costume from Star Trek VI no longer fit him. " It was funny, but they dragged out a costume that, they told me, was the same one I wore as Captain Sulu in the movie, " Takei recalled. " I tried to put it on and I was very shocked at the cheap material that they had used. The fabric had somehow shrunk. The pants didn't fit! " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 )
Remarking on how his own 23rd century uniform felt, Tim Russ stated, " Like a rug: thick and heavy, all wool. The shirt underneath is Lycra, but they're generally much harder to get in and out of. " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )
Grace Lee Whitney had her costume fitting for the episode on Wednesday, 27 March, 1996. ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )

Production [ ]

Filming on this episode started on 27 March 1996 . ( Information from Larry Nemecek ) It was also Grace Lee Whitney's first day of working on the episode, she having been informed of the episode perhaps only a week and a half before the start date. ( Star Trek Monthly issue 16 ) Following a meeting with the producers to collect a script on Thursday 28 March and attending the long-planned Novacon IV convention (at which Robert Picardo also guested) in Tysons Corner, Virginia during the upcoming weekend, Whitney returned to the Paramount lot on her birthday of Monday, 1 April, for a 4:15 am makeup call. ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ; Star Trek Monthly issue 16 )
Although the Excelsior scenes in Star Trek VI had taken less than a week to film, the equivalent scenes of this episode required three days of filming on the ship's bridge (i.e., George Takei attended filming on three days), and another two days for the scenes set in the officers' bunkroom. ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )
While most of the scenes aboard the Excelsior had to be filmed anew, David Livingston found that filming scenes that were "sort of continuations of the feature film […] was a real challenge and really fun to do." ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features) In fact, Livingston recreated some of the same camera angles that director Nicholas Meyer had used in Star Trek VI . " We couldn't recreate some of them, " Livingston admitted, " because we didn't have enough time and the wherewithal to do so, but we did match some of the same angles. Some I did differently because by necessity it had to fit into the story we were telling, but I thought it would be fun for the fans to see some of the same camera angles. So the people who know Star Trek VI should get a big kick out of it. I am. " Furthermore, several visual effects shots, together with the shot of Sulu's teacup shattering, were reused directly from the film. ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) Despite these reused camera angles and footage, the episode does not credit Nicholas Meyer.
David Livingston employed, in this episode, a filming technique whereby a continual shot moves all the way around a character. The episode's first scene in which this camera move is incorporated involves Tuvok in a turbolift , en route to sickbay during the teaser, in which the technique is used only once, with the camera revolving on a horizontal axis. The second time the technique is used is in the scene wherein Tuvok collapses in engineering, in which the camera rotates on a vertical axis while hovering on a close-up of Tuvok. Livingston commented, " We did 360s stuff […] If you want to, you can sort of do that on Star Trek . Sometimes, they look at you askance. But, God, if you can't do it on a science fiction show with people wearing screwy make-up, where else are you going to do it? So, to me, it's play and you might as well go for it because, if you don't, you're going to regret it later. Try not to be boring, that's the main thing, try not to be boring. So, making 360s around a character who's going nuts? That makes sense to me. That's not boring, I hope. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
One of two reasons (the other being a scene deletion) why this episode was, at one point, not long enough was that David Livingston employed a characteristically fast-paced style in creating the episode's action. " We were just over 5 minutes short, " he noted, before saying in reference to the producers, " I had warned them, but I guess they wanted to wait and see how much. " Of the two scenes that were duly added to the episode, Livingston remarked, " The Neelix scene has a good drive, but the Kes scene is very slowly paced to milk it for every frame we could get out of it! " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) In order to film the latter scene, it took "about six takes" for Tim Russ to balance the Keethera while keeping his eyes closed. [3] (X)
In the episode's first view of Sulu, the character emerges from smoke and assumes an heroic stance. David Livingston recalled, " I wanted to, for the audience's delight and hopefully surprise, I wanted to do a really cool reveal of Sulu, because we didn't really know where we were initially. So what we did was – the ship was in distress, so that's always a justification for me to have liquid nitrogen pouring out of somewhere – so what we did was, on the ship, we created this big wall of liquid nitrogen, put the camera really low, and then had George walk through it in this very heroic pose and it was a great reveal of him. It surprised the audience and made him look really, really cool, so that was fun. " ( Flashback to "Flashback", VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
The last day of this episode's production period was 4 April 1996 . ( Information from Larry Nemecek )

Effects [ ]

The visual effects shots that had originally been created for Star Trek VI and were reused in this episode were exterior shots of the Excelsior and the shock wave from the explosion of Praxis. The exterior views that are not taken from Star Trek VI , however, show a slightly different ship; the Excelsior 's warp nacelles have the typical blue glow in the new footage but not in the original.
The model used for Kang's battle cruiser was the last reuse of the K't'inga -class model , which had been used in Star Trek VI to represent Kronos One .

A temporary composite of the elements in the Klingon-explosion scene

The shot of the Excelsior emerging from the nebula and causing an explosion that disables the pursuing Klingon ship was created by filming the motion-control studio models, detonations that were shot with a Photo-Sonics camera – pointing straight up and running at 360 frames per second, rather than the typical 24 – and an element to show clouds billowing apart. Of the explosions, visual effects producer Dan Curry explained, " If you have a small explosion happen in real time, it may occur like pfft! and it's over. But if you take a special camera that runs film at very high speed, […] it stretches time. So, an explosion that in real life may take a split-second can be stretched out into several seconds, so it looks vast. And by shooting it straight up, it gives the illusion that it's happening in space without gravity, because all the parts of the explosion fall equally around the lens, so there's no apparent arc from gravity, so that we will accept that it happens in space. " Of the cloud-like element, Dan Curry said, " What that was was a four-inch deep, four-by-four-foot vat, lined with black velvet and filled up with vapors of liquid nitrogen, which stay in the vat because they're heavier than air because they're so cold. Then, [visual effects supervisor] Ron Moore took a piece of cardboard, or sometimes he used a Dust-Off can, and just [put] a little puff of air down, which would push the liquid nitrogen apart, and then it would billow back in. And because it's so cold and the way the vapors move, it moves very slowly so it looks huge, even though it's a very tiny thing. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features)

Reception [ ]

The writing of this episode prevented an idea similar to the installment's premise from being included in Marvel Comics ' run of Star Trek: Voyager comics . Shortly thereafter, writer Laurie S. Sutton remarked, " The only challenge [of writing Marvel's Voyager comics] is to write a story to get [ Voyager 's crew] home and then bring them back without it being disappointing like, 'They've got to get back and–aw, darn, they're back in the Delta Quadrant. Well, better luck next time!' As a matter of fact, I have some ideas for those kind of stories […] Apparently, Paramount has already beaten me to it […] because I wanted to do a story where Voyager gets literally thrown back into the Alpha Quadrant, but back in time where they meet Captain Sulu. Well, they're doing a Sulu story, so I went, 'Aw, phooey!' " A similar incident had occurred with " Basics, Part I ". ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 )
According to Grace Lee Whitney, when Brannon Braga advised her of script revisions, her first concern was how much she could tell the fans of Star Trek . Although Whitney believed that the episode could not have been possible without fan support, Braga's reply was for her to tell the fans nothing. ( Star Trek Monthly issue 16 )
Even before she began performing in the episode, Whitney had a chance to gauge audience reaction to it during the Novacon IV convention, held in the weekend prior to production. " I lifted up the script at the convention, " she recalled, " and the fans just went crazy. " Remarking on the episode itself, she said, " It's wonderful for the show; it keeps the fans interested, and it's a great tie-in for the anniversary […] George has a wonderful speech about the family of the Enterprise sticking together, which Tuvok just can't understand. The fans will love it! " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 )
Although Nichelle Nichols declined to appear in this installment, two of George Takei's compatriots from the original Star Trek series – namely, James Doohan and Walter Koenig – were very happy for Takei to appear on Voyager . He revealed, " Jimmy and Walter were both delighted for me. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 88)
George Takei, who had fought long and hard for a Captain Sulu series to be greenlighted, hoped that the success of this episode might finally grant him that wish. " This could be the first early warning sign! " Takei remarked. " Sometimes they use episodes as a pilot before they commit to a series, so – knock on wood! " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 22 ) Indeed, Internet rumor suggested that this episode would serve as the pilot for a new Captain Sulu spin-off series, entitled Star Trek: The Adventures of Captain Sulu . " It was right about 'Flashback' happening, so who knows? " Takei remarked, laughing. ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 ) According to Grace Lee Whitney, the possibility of this episode leading to a Captain Sulu miniseries was not fantastical. She said of the installment, " They told us it was a (backdoor) pilot for (an Excelsior) mini-series. " [4]
The date on which this episode first aired was three days after Star Trek 's 30th anniversary. The episode achieved a Nielsen rating of 5.2 million homes, and an 8% share. [5] (X)
Although no new Star Trek series with Sulu in command was ultimately commissioned (due to a lack of popularity for the idea), executive producer Rick Berman described this episode as "absolutely delightful." ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 109 , p. 14) He also commented that this installment (in common with " Trials and Tribble-ations ", Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 's own 30th anniversary offering) was "a lot of fun and […] did very well in the ratings." ( Star Trek Monthly issue 24 )
On the other hand, Brannon Braga ultimately believed this episode was of lesser quality than "Trials and Tribble-ations". Of this episode in particular, he said, " It was a nice little tribute, not as good as 'Trials and Tribble-ations' from Deep Space Nine . It was OK. I just think they came up with a better idea. " ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 88)
This episode's successful viewer response made sense to Tim Russ. After praising the installment as "a killer episode," he added, " It was so right, in terms of the 30th anniversary of Star Trek . " Contrasting the experience of watching this episode with the enjoyment he got from appearing in it, Russ declared, " I think fans of the original series watching 'Flashback' get a different but similar kind of thrill. " ( The Official Star Trek: Voyager Magazine issue 9 )
Cinefantastique rated this episode 2 and a half out of 4 stars. ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 87)
Star Trek Magazine scored this episode 2 out of 5 stars, defined as "Impulse Power only". Additionally, Lou Anders , a writer of the magazine, wrote a review of the installment, commenting, " 'Flashback' contains many interesting elements, such as the revelation that Tuvok has had two Starfleet careers. The performances are good, and it is a genuine pleasure to see George Takei, as superb as always, reprise his role as the popular original series character […] One wishes that he was given more to do in the episode. Unfortunately, the plot is slow, and Sulu's impromptu rescue attempt seems too poorly thought out and too uncharacteristically reckless to be believable. " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 23 , pp. 58 & 59)
The unauthorized reference book Delta Quadrant (p. 135) gives this installment a rating of 8 out of 10.
The book Star Trek 101 (p. 175), by Terry J. Erdmann and Paula M. Block , lists this episode as one of "Ten Essential Episodes" from Star Trek: Voyager .
In a 1998 interview, George Takei expressed an interest in making a return appearance on Voyager . " [I] would love to do the show again, " he reckoned. " Maybe I could work with the entire cast the second time around. " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 42 , p. 41)

Continuity [ ]

In this episode, Tuvok states that two days after the explosion of Praxis, two Federation officers were arrested for the assassination of Gorkon. However, in Star Trek VI , Spock says that a Federation starship monitored an explosion on Praxis two months ago. He makes that statement before Enterprise is sent to rendezvous with Kronos One , so at least two months elapse between the explosion and Gorkon's death.
Prior to this episode, a Captain Sulu is mentioned by Chakotay in the Season 2 episode " Tattoo " and, in the later second season episode " Alliances ", Tuvok references Spock 's initially controversial recommendation for an alliance between the Federation and the Klingon Empire, as depicted in Star Trek VI . In the latter episode, Tuvok mentions that he himself "spoke out against such a coalition," placing him at the time when the film is set, as this episode continues to do.
Tim Russ thought the way in which this story places Tuvok on the bridge of the Excelsior was foolproof, in regard to continuity. " Nobody could question it, " he said. " The timeline was consistent so nobody could say, 'Hey, he couldn't possibly, blah-blah,' or, 'No, we didn't see that, blah-de-blah' – they couldn't say it; it worked perfectly. So, I thought that was the coolest thing, because they make sure the fans don't catch anything. That's always a neat trick. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features)
Tim Russ also liked how this episode provided much continuity for Tuvok that the actor could later draw on. Russ commented, " The whole story becoming a back-story for Tuvok… I thought was great. It tightens the relationship between he and the captain, and it exposes to the people of the audience what this character is all about, where he comes from. Because before that, we didn't have a history for him. And after that, we had a history for him. Now he's got a back-story, now he becomes a little bit more complete , as a person. Now, if he does something three episodes down the line, ah well, that's because so-and-so was established way-back-when. And that's always beneficial when you're playing the character as you have something to grab onto. So, 'I can use this, because we learned this.' We know where he came from, we understand what happened and now, you can use that as a motivational factor down the line. So it's always good to have that. " ( Flashback to "Flashback" , VOY Season 3 DVD special features) Russ also enthused, " It was a great back story for Tuvok, about why he joined Starfleet, when he got married, why and how, and why he left and then came back to Starfleet. All that information is valuable, just to create more layers of history for this character. " ( Star Trek Monthly issue 25 , p. 12)
Momentarily confused of when he is, Tuvok suggests a tachyon sweep for cloaked Klingon ships, at the time being adversaries of the Federation. Voyager 's crew didn't know that by sheer coincidence, the Federation and the Klingon Empire were currently engaged in another war , soon to be ended by a cease fire .
At the end of the third season, Tim Russ cited this episode as one of four or five installments (in the first three seasons) in which Tuvok's "defenses have been breached" and "his control has been taken away or lost", other such episodes being " Cathexis " and " Meld ". ( Cinefantastique , Vol. 29, No. 6/7, p. 100) Following the production of Voyager 's fourth season, Russ similarly observed that – in common with "Meld" – this installment "really pushed the envelope with how outside forces affect Tuvok's character and what happens." ( Star Trek Monthly issue 41 , p. 28)
At one point before or during production, Brannon Braga cryptically told Grace Lee Whitney that her character of Janice Rand might later be brought back to the series. The actress fondly recalled, " Brannon Braga was very cute with his remark: We're not killing you off, Grace, so we can bring you back! " ( Star Trek: Communicator issue 108 ) This Voyager episode is, however, the only one in which Rand appears.
Neither Sulu nor Janice Rand appear in "Trials and Tribble-ations". In fact, George Takei is the only regular cast member from Star Trek: The Original Series who does not feature in that episode of DS9. This is due to Takei having not appeared in the original " The Trouble with Tribbles " (during which the DS9 episode is set), and Whitney had left the series the previous season. Thus, their appearances in Flashback allowed all the main Original Series cast members to appear in a 30th anniversary episode.
Tuvok mentions having thought about talking to "one of the other Vulcans on the ship", establishing that the Voyager crew comprises at least three Vulcans. One of these Vulcans, Vorik , later appeared in " Fair Trade ".

Apocrypha [ ]

The novelization of Flashback (written by Diane Carey ) includes several additional elements, the most prominent subplot being Kes succumbing to Tuvok's hallucinations as his own telepathic barriers begin to collapse, causing Tuvok to unintentionally assault Kes and cause her to take on the role of the girl in his hallucination. This continues to such an extent that Kes attempts to attack Tom Paris and B'Elanna Torres as they conduct a survey of the nebula in a shuttle, motivated by Tuvok's 'transferred' memory of the attack on Excelsior , until the repressed memory is treated and the virus is removed.
At one point, Sulu tells Tuvok that he knows Vulcans have a sense of humor. He could be referring to a brief exchange that took place on the bridge in TOS : " The Corbomite Maneuver "; a young officer, Lieutenant Dave Bailey , defends raising his voice in excitement as the natural result of having "a Human thing called an adrenaline gland". In response, Spock dryly observes that such an organ could prove inconvenient, and wonders whether the lieutenant should consider having it removed. Sulu then advised Bailey that an attempt to "cross brains" with Spock, a Vulcan, was doomed to failure: "he'll cut you to pieces every time".
The episode implies that Starfleet crew members sleep in their uniforms, as observed during a scene where both Tuvok and his bunk mate Dimitri Valtane lay down to sleep in their bunks fully dressed including the outer red jacket tunics and still wearing boots. In the film Star Trek VI , crew members are contradictorily seen sleeping in night clothes, perhaps implying that Tuvok's memory is faulty in this regard.

Video and DVD releases [ ]

UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video ): Volume 3.1, 13 January 1997
As part of the VOY Season 3 DVD collection
As part of the Star Trek: Fan Collective - Captain's Log collection

Links and references [ ]

Starring [ ].

Kate Mulgrew as Captain Kathryn Janeway

Also starring [ ]

Robert Beltran as Commander Chakotay
Roxann Biggs-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

Guest Stars [ ]

Grace Lee Whitney as Janice Rand
Jeremy Roberts as Dimitri Valtane
Boris Krutonog as Lojur
Michael Ansara as " Kang "
George Takei as "Captain Sulu "

Stunt doubles [ ]

Tom Morga as stunt double for Jeremy Roberts
Unknown stunt performer as stunt double for George Takei

References [ ]

47 ; 23rd century ; 2264 ; 2289 ; 2293 ; 2349 ; ability ; acid ; accusation ; adrenaline ; all hands ; Alpha Quadrant ; antibody ; argon ; Azure Nebula ; battle cruiser, Klingon ; battle stations ; bearing ; beats per minute ; Beta Quadrant ; blood factor ; Bolian ; brain damage ; brain death ( brain dead ); brig ; bunk mate ; Bussard collector ; captaincy ; career ; cartilage ; class 17 nebula ( unnamed }; class 11 nebula ; coma ; conduit ; cooking ; cortical stimulator ; cordrazine ; crew quarters ; crustacean ; cryostatic chamber ; cup ; " curry favor "; damage ; damage report ; day ; deflector shield ; degree ; department head ; dill weed ; dizziness ; dozen ; emotional response ; encephalographic profile ; Enterprise -A, USS ; anthraxic citrus peel ; Excelsior , USS ; Excelsior -class ; Excelsior class decks ; Federation ; Federation space ; fluorine ; freedom ; garnish ; gaseous anomaly ; gasoline ; Golwat ; hallucination ; heart ; heart rate ; helium ; hippocampus ; holodeck ; Human ; hydrogen ; ice cream scoop ; Intrepid class decks ; intruder alert ; junior science officer ; Kang ; Kang's battle cruiser (2293) ; Keethera ; Khitomer ; kilodyne ; Kirk, James T. ; Klingon battle cruisers ; Klingon Empire ; Klingon space ; Kolinahr ; K't'inga -class ; lobotomy ; logic ; loyalty ; mark ; McCoy, Leonard ; memory virus ; milligram ; Milky Way Galaxy ; mind meld ; minute ; Mister Vulcan ; multiphasic shields ; murder ; Neelix' mother ; neural pattern ; neural structure ; neurocortical monitor ; neuroelectricity ; nostalgia ; orange juice ; oxygen ; panic attack ; papalla seed extract ; panic attack ; pantry ; parallel reality ; parboiling ; parietal bone ; parts per million ; peptide ; percent ; plasma conduit ; pon farr ; Porakan eggs ; Porakas IV ; Porakas IV sector ; positron beam ; Praxis ; precipice ; Prime Directive ; pyllora ; Qo'noS ; red alert ; rengazo ; replicator ; repressed memory ; replicator ; rescue mission ; Romulans ; sense of humor ; shotgun ; sirillium ; space duty ; Spock ; Starfleet Academy ; Starfleet Headquarters ; Starfleet Regulations ; state of mind ; storage bay ; subspace frequency ; subspace shock wave ; survey mission ; synaptic pathway ; tachyon sweep ; Talax ; tea ; telepathy ; thermal array ; theta-xenon ; thoron radiation ; tissue ; T'lokan schism ; T'Meni ; touch (aka hint ); tongue ; T'Pel ; traumatic memory ; trial ; turbolift ; Tuvok's father ; vital signs ; Vulcan (planet); Vulcan (species); Vulcan nerve pinch ; vulture ; Wyoming , USS ; year ; Yorktown , USS

External links [ ]

"Flashback" at StarTrek.com
" Flashback " at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
" Flashback " at Wikipedia
" "Flashback" " at MissionLogPodcast.com , a Roddenberry Star Trek podcast
3 ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Voyager 'Flashback' - How A Star Trek Episode Almost Launched A New Series

During its seven season run, "Star Trek: Voyager" boldly pushed the boundaries of the franchise's narrative to places few "Star Trek" series had gone before. That's true in virtually every sense of the concept, as the bulk of the series was actually set in quadrants of the final frontier almost entirely unexplored by Federation starships. In exploring those places, "Voyager" was one of the more thrillingly original offerings in the entire "Star Trek" franchise .

As with every addition to the "Star Trek" franchise, "Voyager" was, of course, wholly indebted to the groundbreaking original series. During one Season 3 episode in particular, Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) and crew paid homage and then some to the O.G. ranks when they had a first-hand encounter with a U.S.S. Enterprise alum, Captain Hikaro Kato Sulu (George Takai). Their paths crossed in an episode titled "Flashback," which found Voyager's Vulcan crew member Lieutenant Tuvok (Tim Russ) engaging in a mind-meld with Janeway before eventually reliving his own time serving on the U.S.S. Excelsior under Capt. Sulu himself.

Joining Takei on the bridge of the Excelsior was another Enterprise alum, Commander Janice Rand, who was played by Grace Lee Whitney since the first season of "Star Trek." According to comments made by the actor in a 2011 interview with StarTrek.com , "Flashback" was originally eyed as a backdoor pilot for more adventures with the Excelsior crew. Unfortunately, the spin-off never materialized, with the one-off "Voyager" episode marking one of Rand's final appearances in the role.

The Sulu-centric Voyager episode nearly opened the door to a bold new Star Trek world

As noted in the interview, 1996's "Flashback" episode of "Star Trek: Voyager" was undertaken as part of the 30th anniversary celebration of the original series' debut, with "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" paying tribute to Captain James T. Kirk and company via a Tribble-centric episode the same year. As for Tuvok's and Captain Janeway's encounter with Captain Sulu and Commander Rand, it occurred largely in the mind of Tuvok as he fought off a damaging virus that created a troubling false memory – one that true Trekkers know coincided with the events of 1991's "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country."

Fondly recounting the experience in the same StarTrek.com interview, Grace Lee Whitney said, "It was just a great episode. Kate (Mulgrew) was amazing and Tim (Russ) told me that he'd just loved me as a kid, and here we were working together. It was great." She goes on to add, "They [producers] told us it was a [backdoor] pilot for [an Excelsior] miniseries." Unfortunately, Whitney claims producers couldn't generate enough interest to get the miniseries off the ground. Likewise, her own idea to bring original "Star Trek" players back to "Voyager" every few months or so also fell on deaf ears.

Given how much fun Whitney, George Takai, and the "Voyager" crew were clearly having in "Flashback," that dashed miniseries feels like a legit missed opportunity for "Star Trek" bosses. Nonetheless, as a one-off, one could easily rank "Flashback" among the best of the 168 "Voyager" episodes that made it to air.

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Published Sep 11, 2014

Throwback to Voyager's "Flashback"

It was January of 1996 and Star Trek ’s 30th anniversary loomed large. Paramount Pictures knew they wanted to celebrate the landmark anniversary, but how? The answer turned out to be “ Flashback ,” which aired on September 11, 1996, and was the second episode of Star Trek: Voyager ’s third season – though it was actually filmed at the end of season two and banked; Deep Space Nine tipped its cap to Trek ’s 30th anniversary as well with the episode “ Trials and Tribble-ations ,” which aired in November, 1996.

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Jeremy Roberts

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Captain Janeway and her crew aboard the starship Voyager had been stranded in the Delta Quadrant for three years. With little hope of getting home anytime soon, the crew had resigned themselves to the fate of their voyage. But then something happened. Commander Tuvok, the ships security officer, started to experience vivid flashbacks of his days as a Starfleet Cadet.

Enlisting the aid of the Doctor, a holographic medical officer, Tuvok begins to explore the memories of his past, which take him back to the days of the U.S.S. Excelsior and a mission to prevent a civil war on the planet Tzenketh. As Tuvok’s memories become clearer, he begins to realize that the mission was a set-up and that he was being used as a pawn in a much larger game.

Tuvok’s investigation leads him to a member of the Excelsior crew, Captain Sulu. As they uncover the conspiracy, they come to realize that the Tzenketh mission was part of a larger plan by the Cardassians to manipulate Starfleet for their own purposes. With the help of a newly acquired Cardassian ship, they are able to travel to Tzenketh and uncover the truth.

Back on Voyager, Captain Janeway must find a way to reconcile her ship’s mission with the mission on Tzenketh. With Tuvok’s help, she comes up with a plan to help the Tzenkeths gain independence from the Cardassians while still honoring Starfleet’s orders.

Tuvok, Captain Janeway, and the crew of the Voyager find themselves in a difficult position-one that will require them to draw on all of their courage, ingenuity, and strength in order to succeed. With a little luck, they may be able to succeed in their mission and get one step closer to getting home.

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Recap / Star Trek Voyager S 3 E 2 "Flashback"

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This was Voyager 's Milestone Celebration for the 30th Anniversary of Star Trek , along with Deep Space Nine 's "Trials and Tribble-ations". Besides George Takei reprising his role as Hikaru Sulu, it also features Grace Lee Whitney reprising hers as Janice Rand, now a Commander and Sulu's first officer.

This episode contains the following tropes:

Big "NO!" : As the girl falls, leading to a montage of "No!" at the end.
Big "OMG!" : George Takei hams it up for all its worth.
Bizarre Alien Biology : Bolians have cartilagenous tongues that allow them to withstand even Neelix's cooking.
The Cameo : George Takei and Grace Lee Whitney . Kang from " Day of the Dove " and " Blood Oath ", also makes an appearance.
Captain Smooth and Sergeant Rough : Sulu and Rand — when Tuvok protests the rescue mission, Rand orders him relieved of duty, but Sulu instead gives him a calm lecture on how loyalty to one's friends can go beyond regulations.
A rather big one: While Valtane is shown to have been killed during Excelsior's ill-fated rescue attempt, he's quite clearly shown alive and well during the send off of Excelsior's bridge crew at the end of Star Trek VI (The Hand Wave explanation is that Valtane was clinically dead, enough to cause the parasite to seek a new host, but was subsequently revived successfully).
Also, Tuvok indicates that the battle, which resulted from Sulu's attempt to rescue Kirk and McCoy when they were arrested for killing the Klingon Chancellor, happened just a few days after Praxis exploded, even though Star Trek VI had established that it was a few months between when Praxis exploded and the Chancellor's assassination. (And given everything that had to happen in the meantime — the opening of peace negotiations between two former sworn enemies; the planning of the peace conference; the conspiracy against it — there is no way it could have been only two days.) However, this can be explained as part of Tuvok's damaged memories.
Janeway says that holodecks didn't exist in Kirk's era. The Animated Series episode " The Practical Joker " showed Kirk's Enterprise having one, though called a Rec Room.
Based on the timing of Star Trek VI , it doesn't seem likely that there was time for Sulu's attempted rescue mission, given the scene where Sulu is awoken by a crewman with a message from Starfleet asking about the whereabouts of the Enterprise, and especially given the damage sustained in combat with Kang's vessel, which, for obvious reasons, went unmentioned in the film.
Cordon Bleugh Chef : Neelix's specific characterization as this type of chef gets center-stage in the prologue. Tuvok expresses doubt that Neelix will be able to make something appetizing yet admits that the fruit juice he made is "impressive." Despite Neelix's reputation as a Lethal Chef , he's actually a good chef, it's just that his tastes only rarely coincide with those from the Alpha Quadrant. Played with in regard to Tuvok's breakfast, which a power fluctuation to the burner incinerates.
Dynamic Entry : Sulu emerging from the smoke on the bridge.
The episode has quite the insight on Tuvok's history, but let's be real here, you're here to see Sulu. Specifically, Sulu being the badass Captain again in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country .
The repressed memory of the girl on the cliff is clearly just there to create a reason why Janeway and Tuvok would need to explore Tuvok's memories.
Expansion Pack Past : There is absolutely no hint that Tuvok had any long past career in Starfleet prior to this episode. The story has to jump through quite a few hoops to reconcile things like how somebody can have been part of the events of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country while still only being a Lieutenant 80 years later (turns out Tuvok resigned and later came back to Starfleet, and that he's simply older than he looks ).
Explosive Instrumentation : For once an explanation is given when Tuvok detects a ruptured plasma conduit behind the console. Dmitri, however, doesn't heed his warning and gets killed.
Fake Memories : The memory of the little girl falling off a cliff is most likely that, since the Doctor comments that the virus posing as a memory engram has been transmitted so many times, it's difficult to tell what the original memory was.
Fan of the Past : For once, not Paris, but Janeway, who provides some very interesting Worldbuilding in one scene where she paints the crew of Star Trek: The Original Series like old folk heroes. Janeway: It was a very different time, Mr. Kim. Captain Sulu, Captain Kirk, Doctor McCoy. They all belonged to a different breed of Starfleet officer. Imagine the era they lived in. The Alpha Quadrant still largely unexplored. Humanity on verge of war with Klingons. Romulans hiding behind every nebula. Even the technology we take for granted was still in its early stages. No plasma weapons, no multiphasic shields. Their ships were half as fast. Harry Kim: No replicators. No holodecks. You know, ever since I took Starfleet History at the Academy, I always wondered what it would be like to live in those days. Janeway: Space must have seemed a whole lot bigger back then. It's not surprising they had to bend the rules a little. They were a little slower to invoke the Prime Directive and a little quicker to pull their phasers. Of course, the whole bunch of them would be booted out of Starfleet today. But I have to admit, I would have loved to ride shotgun at least once with a group of officers like that.
Flashback Echo : The Negative Space Wedgie in the present reminds Tuvok of the Negative Space Wedgie in the past, triggering the repressed memory.
Flashback Within a Flashback : Sort of. Tuvok's first flashback to the Excelsior occurs in the middle of their battle with the Klingons and Valtane's death, then flashes back further to show how the entire mess started.
Former Teen Rebel : Tuvok resented being forced into Starfleet by his own parents and resigned his commission. Becoming a parent himself changed his attitude, and he decided to give Starfleet another go.
Friendly Enemy : Kang and Sulu have this vibe.
Funny Background Event : Moments after Rand jokes that Tuvok was looking for a promotion by serving Captain Sulu tea, Sulu makes the same joke on the bridge. Rand has a huge smirk on her face during this conversation, implying she tipped off Sulu and they're engaging in a little friendly hazing.
The Gadfly : Sulu and Rand pretend that Tuvok is after a promotion by preparing tea for the captain. Janeway feigns an indignant "You never made me tea!"
Good Old Ways : Janeway and Harry express disapproval and envy over the Gunboat Diplomacy of Kirk's era.
Hero of Another Story : This episode fills in the gaps of what Captain Sulu and the Excelsior were doing during the bulk of Star Trek VI , and Sulu intended to mount a rescue of Kirk and McCoy from Rura Penthe before being sidetracked in a confrontation with a Klingon cruiser.
Humans Are Superior : Lampshaded when Ensign Tuvok expresses his annoyance over the human superiority complex. Tuvok: Ever since I entered the Academy, I've had to endure the egocentric nature of humanity. You believe that everyone in the galaxy should be like you; that we should all share your sense of humour and your human values.
Improvised Weapon : Excelsior ignites the sirillium to knock out the Klingon cruiser escorting it from the nebula.
Interquel : The lone crossover between the TOS cast and Voyager's.
Layman's Terms : Tuvok: If we modulated a positron beam to a subspace frequency , it would trigger a thermochemical reaction in the sirillium. Sulu: Like tossing a match into a pool of gasoline.
Limited Advancement Opportunities : Tuvok was an Ensign on the Excelsior 80 years prior and only a Lieutenant in the present day. It's explained that Tuvok was pushed into Starfleet by his father and after minimal service gladly resigned his commission after his first assignment. It was decades later and starting his own family that made him reconsider, and he returned to Starfleet to set an example.
Literal Cliff Hanger : The repressed memory.
Loafing in Full Costume : Tuvok, Valtane, and several others from Gamma Shift sleep in their uniforms before the battle, though this can be Hand Waved by them being in a state of battle-readiness.
Lower-Deck Episode : With the events of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country in the background.
Memory Trigger : Voyager 's encounter with the nebula triggers Tuvok's memory of the Excelsior and the Fake Memories of the falling girl. As commented by Harry Kim, the visual similarities between the nebulas encountered by Voyager and Excelsior were enough to trigger Tuvok's Trauma Button .
Mood Whiplash : Janeway and Tuvok join in a mind meld in the serenity of Sickbay, only to find themselves on the bridge of a Starfleet vessel on Red Alert .
Mugged for Disguise : Captain Janeway does this to Commander Janice Rand in order to pose as a member of the Excelsior crew, with help from Tuvok giving Rand a Vulcan neck pinch.
Mythology Gag : Tuvok made the cup of tea that gets broken in the explosion of Praxis.
No Sense of Humor : Ensign Tuvok, having not yet mastered the art of Deadpan Snarkery . Lampshaded by his original captain: Sulu: Mister Tuvok, if you're going to remain on my ship, you're going to have to learn how to appreciate a joke. And don't tell me Vulcans don't have a sense of humour, because I know better.
Nostalgia Filter : Denied by Tuvok. He suggests that Janeway be nostalgic for both of them.
Older Than They Look : Vulcans had long been established to live several hundred years and maintain a youthful appearance , but this episode is the first to indicate Tuvok is actually much older than he seems as he was an ensign on the Excelsior about 80 years prior.
Oven Logic : Neelix says that injecting sirillium into his thermal array could "improve cooking time". Torres counters that it will probably blow up his kitchen.
The Power of Trust : A mindmeld to uncover a suppressed memory is typically performed with a family member, as the level of intimacy involved requires that it be someone the person trusts implicitly. As Tuvok has no relatives aboard Voyager , he asks Janeway to do it, as he trusts her more than anyone else.
Pseudo-Crisis : Tuvok's mind is breaking down along with the fourth wall; Sulu sees Janeway on his bridge and has them hauled off to the brig. Next scene, they've just moved back to an earlier part of Tuvok's memories so they can steal Rand's uniform.
Real Life Writes the Plot : This episode centers around Sulu and the USS Excelsior in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country because "The Trouble With Tribbles", which DS9 based their anniversary episode around, was one of several season 2 episodes of TOS which George Takei (Sulu) wasn't present for.
Rebuilt Set : From Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , of course.
Red Herring : The nebula has nothing to do with what's wrong with Tuvok, except for triggering his memory.
Repressed Memories : This episode is triggered by Tuvok apparently having one of these.
Riddle for the Ages : Where did the virus come from? Was the girl real or imaginary? The Doctor commented that the virus has been transmitted so many times, it's difficult to tell what the original memory was. Kes : What about the girl? Did she ever really exist, or did the organism invent the memory? EMH : Memory is a tricky thing. If it was a real event, it's been buried and copied and twisted so many times, there's no way to tell what really happened.
Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right! : Captain Sulu to Ensign Tuvok, when the latter questioned his decision to violate orders and try and rescue Kirk and McCoy. Sulu: Ensign, you're absolutely right. But you're also absolutely wrong . You'll find that more happens on the bridge of a starship than just carrying out orders and observing regulations. There is a sense of loyalty to the men and women you serve with . A sense of family . Those two men on trial, I served with them for a long time. I owe them my life a dozen times over , and right now they're in trouble, and I'm going to help them. Let the regulations be damned . Tuvok: Sir, that is a most illogical line of reasoning. Sulu: You better believe it.
Space Clouds : Nebulas may all look alike, but they're not the same.
Strange Minds Think Alike : When Ensign Tuvok makes a cup of tea for the captain, Commander Rand asks if he's planning to make Lieutenant. Tuvok sternly denies an ulterior motive. When Captain Sulu samples the tea, he declares it outstanding and says, "I must give you a promotion".
Survival Mantra : The keethara ritual. Tuvok: Structure, logic, function, control. A structure cannot stand without a foundation. Logic is the foundation of function. Function is the essence of control. I am in control.
Take Off Your Clothes : Lampshaded by Tuvok, when Rand is Mugged for Disguise ; he points out that just asking a female officer for her clothes might lead to misunderstanding.
Trauma Button : The virus uses this to hide within its host, creating a false memory so traumatic that the host's mind would repress it into a part of the brain that the conscious mind would want to avoid at all costs. Unfortunately for the virus, doing this with a Vulcan can literally kill them due to their unique neurology.
Troubled Backstory Flashback : In a sense. Tuvok's time on Excelsior was not a happy time for him, though he concedes it was probably colored by the fact he didn't want to be there in the first place.
In the absence of a family member, Tuvok chooses Janeway to undergo the Mind Meld with him, as he trusts her the most. Janeway was already eager to volunteer, as Tuvok has been repeatedly stated to be her oldest friend.
Sulu decides on Honor Before Reason when he disobeys Starfleet orders to rescue his Kirk and McCoy.
Unreliable Narrator : Sulu's Captain's Log has no mention of their battle with the Klingons or an unauthorised rescue mission.
You Can See Me? : As the mind meld breaks down, Captain Sulu suddenly demands to know who Janeway is, and calls Security to throw them in the brig. Janeway has to steal Rand's uniform when Tuvok restarts the memory so she'll fit in on the bridge.
You Never Did That for Me : Janeway says this of Tuvok when she sees his younger self serving tea to Captain Sulu.
Your Mind Makes It Real : Vulcan mental trauma leads to brain damage if untreated.
Star Trek: Voyager S2 E26, S3 E1: "Basics"
Recap/Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek Voyager S 3 E 3 "The Chute"

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Star Trek: Voyager

Mind melding with Tuvok causes Captain Janeway to relive her tour of duty with Capt. Sulu and Cmdr. Rand.

George Takei

Michael Ansara

Jeremy Roberts

Boris Lee Krutonog

Grace Lee Whitney

Cast appearances.

Kate Mulgrew

Robert Beltran

Roxann Dawson

Jennifer Lien

Robert Duncan McNeill

Ethan Phillips

Robert Picardo

Garrett Wang

Episode discussion.

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Star Trek Voyager: An Episode Roadmap

Our viewing guide for Star Trek Voyager, if you want to get going quickly...

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This article originally ran on Den of Geek UK .

Maps To TV Shows: Is there a popular show you’d really like to watch but you just don’t have time to wade through years of it all at once? Do you just want to know why that one character keeps turning up on Tumblr? Do the fans all tell you ‘season one is a bit iffy but stick with it, it gets great!’, leaving you with absolutely zero desire ever to watch the boring/silly/just plain weird season one? Then Maps To TV Shows is for you!

In these articles, we’ll outline routes through popular TV shows focusing on particular characters, story arcs or episode types. Are you really into the Klingon episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation ? Do you want to get the overall gist of the aliens arc on The X-Files ? Or perhaps you’d rather avoid aliens and watch the highlights of their Monsters of the Week? Do you just want to know who that guy dressed like Constantine is? In these articles, we’ll provide you with a series of routes through long-running shows designed for new viewers so that you can tailor your journey through the very best TV has to offer. While skipping most of season one. It gets better.

N.B. Since part of the aim of these articles is to encourage new viewers, spoilers will be kept to a minimum. However, be aware that due to the nature of the piece, certain elements of world-building, bad guy-revelation, late character arrivals etc. will be spoiled, and looking at the details of one suggested ‘route’ may spoil another.

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Poor Voyager is probably Star Trek ’s least loved child overall. It competes with Enterprise for the dubious honour of the title Least Popular Series of Star Trek , and unlike Enterprise , it is rarely defended on the grounds of trying to do something interesting at some point its run or just starting to get good when it got cancelled. It also produced the only episode seriously considered as a rival to Spock’s Brain for the position of Worst Episode of Star Trek Ever Made, and the fact it later produced two episodes that might be said to be even worse doesn’t really help its case.

Watch Star Trek: Voyager on Amazon Prime

However, Voyager is my personal favorite series of Star Trek . For all its many flaws, it offered a likeable set of characters who often didn’t seem to be taking any of it too seriously. It is, to date, the only Star Trek series with a female captain in the starring role, and for those of us of the feminine persuasion, that’s a draw (plus Kate Mulgrew’s Janeway is her own breed of awesome, even if she seems to change her mind about the Prime Directive from week to week). It boasted two talented actors in Robert Picardo and Jeri Ryan and made use of them – too much, perhaps, but if you’ve got it, flaunt it. The rest of the crew were also good actors when given good material, and pleasant company to be in on a weekly basis.

When I was growing up, we watched Voyager as a family (two teenagers, two parents) and everyone was able to enjoy it equally, while its episodic nature, so frustrating to those who preferred Deep Space Nine ’s more arc-based structure, was perfect for the four of us to relax with from week to week without worrying if we missed an episode. I also watched it with friends from school, and again, being able to jump around the series picking whichever episode we felt like watching without explaining a complicated arc to someone who hadn’t seen it before was a bonus. It’s purely a matter of personal taste, but some of us actually like episodic television.

I’m pretty sure I’ll never convince Voyager ’s detractors to see it in a fresh light, but for anyone who’d like to give the show a go to see if it was really as bad as all that, these suggested routes through the series may help. Alternatively, if you’re curious to see why the show has such a bad reputation (or if you hate Voyager and want to revel in how right you feel you are), there is a hate-watch route and for all that I love it, it had to be said, Voyager did produce some real stinkers in its day. Entertaining stinkers in some cases, at least!

Route 1: Honestly, this show is really good

There are a few of us for whom Voyager is our favourite series of Star Trek , and hopefully these episodes will show you why. Even season two produced some gems among what was, overall, a rather dull experience (one of Voyager ’s problems was that the first series featured the usual teething troubles, and the second series was really quite bad, which presumably put off a lot of viewers).

Season One:

Eye Of The Needle

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Caretaker is one of Star Trek ’s best pilots; many were disappointed with the show because they felt its promise was not followed up on (those of us who started watching later in its run were less likely to be disappointed, of course). To describe what makes Eye Of The Needle great would be to spoil it so we won’t, while Faces features some fine character work from Roxann Dawson as B’Elanna Torres. Add Ex Post Facto , a fairly bland but quite fun episode, if you like whodunnits.

Season Two:

Tuvok’s dark side was always worth seeing and it comes out the strongest in Meld , while ‘the holographic doctor falls in love’ is a much better episode than it sounds in Lifesigns , which explores illness and self-confidence, among other things. Death Wish is probably the best Q episode in all of Star Trek , while Deadlock toys with being really quite brutal for a moment (before pulling back – this is still Star Trek , after all). If you enjoy more experimental episodes, add The Thaw , which appears on some people’s ‘best of’ lists and others’ ‘worst of’ – it’s certainly an acquired taste but it’s genuinely creepy (on purpose) and please note, its virtual world pre-dates The Matrix . Tuvix is also rather controversial, but raises some interesting issues and features some good performances.

Season Three:

Future’s End Parts 1&2

Before And After

Scorpion Part 1

The Chute features energetic performances from Robert Duncan McNeil and Garrett Wang, and some lovely cinematography in a fairly intense story. Future’s End is good time travel-based fun while Before And After features a teaser for one of the series’ best stories, season four’s Year Of Hell . The first two-parter to feature the Borg, Scorpion Part 1, was really excellent – the Borg were rather over-used later in the series, but in this initial appearance, they are as terrifying and as impressive as ever. Add Basics Part 2 for a great performance (as always) from Brad Dourif. Add Macrocosm if Die Hard on Voyager with giant bugs, starring Janeway in a vest, is your particular cup of tea.

Season Four:

Scorpion Part 2

Year Of Hell Parts 1&2

Message In A Bottle

Living Witness

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Hope And Fear

Season four was Voyager ’s strongest season overall and included of its best overall episodes – Scorpion Part 2 , Year Of Hell (in which the use of the reset button is entirely justified) and Living Witness , an exploration of the nature of history which also finds time for the always enjoyable Alternate Evil Crew trope. Much of the season was dedicated to developing new character Seven of Nine, somewhat to the detriment of the other regulars at times, but Seven is a genuinely fascinating character and most of the episodes exploring her slow transition back to humanity were good hours, One among them. Voyager didn’t have much of an arc plot, but season four also saw major developments in what arcs it did have, particularly in the hilarious Message In A Bottle . Add The Killing Game Parts 1&2 for a story that doesn’t make much sense if you look at it too closely, but it isn’t half fun to watch.

Season Five:

Counterpoint

Latent Image

Bride Of Chaotica!

Someone To Watch Over Me

Equinox Part 1

Unintentional hilarity aside, Voyager often did comedy really quite well, and Bride Of Chaotica! is surely its funniest hour. Timeless , the show’s 100th episode, is excellent, Drone is less about the Borg than you might think, while Counterpoint and Latent Image are strong, bittersweet instalments. The season once again goes out with a strong cliffhanger in Equinox Part 1 .

Season Six:

Equinox Part 2

Blink Of An Eye

Equinox Part 2 continues Voyager ’s tradition of providing mostly satisfying resolutions to cliffhangers, while Riddles and Memorial once again give the cast a chance to shine with dramatic material. Add Muse for some fun meta-fiction.

Season Seven:

Body And Soul

Workforce Parts 1&2

Author, Author

Body And Soul and most of Author, Author continue Voyager ’s strong set of light-hearted episodes, while Lineage is one of its best character pieces as well as a nice little science fiction story, and a perfect bookend to season one’s Faces . Add Endgame for a finale that does the job well enough, though it included some serious misfires that mean it would be left off most people’s Best Of lists.

Route 2: Crossovers and connections

Voyager is, so far, the latest-set Star Trek series – only the Next Generation feature film Nemesis (plus the odd time travel story) is set further in the future. As a series, then, it offers conclusions rather than foundations for later series. There’s still some crossover fun to be had, though.

As is usually the case, the pilot episode features as appearance from a regular character from another series of Star Trek , in this case, Deep Space Nine ’s Quark (logically enough, as the ship sets off from Deep Space Nine). Add Eye Of The Needle for a rare appearance of a Romulan in the Delta Quadrant.

Projections

Star Trek: The Next Generation ’s Reg Barclay made a number of appearances on Voyager , beginning with Projections . Death Wish also features a very brief (one-line) cameo from another Next Generation regular.

False Profits

Flashback is Voyager ’s celebratory episode marking 30 years of Star Trek , and it lives in the shadow of Deep Space Nine ’s spectacular Trials and Tribble-ations , but is decent enough itself, featuring appearances from Original Series characters Hikaru Sulu and Janice Rand. False Profits is a direct sequel to Next Generation episode The Price .

There were no crossovers as such in season four, but Message In A Bottle and Hunters refer to events from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine .

Voyager ’s 100th episode features a cameo from The Next Generation ’s Levar Burton, who also directed.

Pathfinder , featuring Barclay and another Next Generation character, Deanna Troi, was the beginning of a new plot development that would see Barclay and other Alpha Quadrant characters appearing more regularly, including in Life Line .

As in season six, we get a couple more forays into the Alpha Quadrant, mostly featuring Barclay.

Route 3: The shipping news

As ever, romance is not entirely Star Trek ’s forte, but Voyager did manage to produce one of its better-realised romantic couplings, as well as a relationship or two that had audiences rooting for further developments (and, it has to be said, some less successful efforts….).

State Of Flux

Faces lays the groundwork for Voyager ’s most successful romantic pairing, while Caretaker and The Cloud feature both the early stable relationship of Neelix and Kes and the quick establishment of a relationship and a dynamic between Janeway and Chakotay that had large numbers of fans hoping for further romantic developments between them. State Of Flux focuses on one of Chakotay’s more tumultuous romantic entanglements.

Non Sequitur

Parturition

Resolutions

Elogium is pretty terrible, but it’s one of the more significant Neelix/Kes episodes, though Tuvix is much better. Parturition is even worse, largely because it focuses on the early Neelix/Kes/Paris love triangle (though on the plus side, it features an actual food fight). Non Sequitur features one of Harry Kim’s least disastrous romantic interludes, while Resolutions is the only episode that properly addresses the Janeway/Chakotay connection that was so popular among fans. Technically, Threshold , an episode so bad it was later written out of Star Trek canon, features two regular characters having sex with each other (and babies, even). It’s not exactly romantic, though – but earlier scenes do play up the Paris/Kes and (more briefly) Paris/Torres ships in a more serious way, before it all goes totally bonkers. Add Persistence Of Vision for visuals on B’Elanna’s sexual fantasies.

The Q And The Grey

Blood Fever

Harry finds a woman who is a) not real and b) prefers a Vulcan over him in Alter Ego , so his romantic prospects continue to worsen. The Q And The Grey suggests that Janeway’s pulling power is really quite extraordinary and Coda plays up the Janeway/Chakotay relationship a little, though by Unity he’s gone off her and started pursuing Borg. Blood Fever properly kicks off the Paris/Torres relationship, but Displaced features a rather more nuanced look at that pairing. Add The Chute if you’re a fan of slash fiction (all potential subtext, this being 1990s Star Trek ) and Remember for B’Elanna experiencing someone else’s romantic relationship. Favorite Son features another of Harry Kim’s doomed romances, but it’s not worth watching for that reason. Or any reason, really, except to laugh at rather than with it.

Day Of Honor

The Killing Game Parts 1&2

Unforgettable

This is Paris and Torres’ season as far as romance goes, though Chakotay gets it on with Virginia Madsen in Unforgettable . Add The Gift for the resolution of Kes’s relationships, and Waking Moments for a glimpse into Harry Kim’s romantic fantasies.

Nothing Human

Romance for Chakotay in Timeless , Janeway in Counterpoint , Janeway’s ancestor in 11:59 , Tuvok (well, romantic feelings directed at Tuvok) in Gravity and unrequited love for the Doctor in Someone To Watch Over Me . Nothing Human is probably the best episode for Paris/Torres in this season; in Extreme Risk , B’Elanna’s friend and former crush actually does more to help her than her boyfriend. Add Course: Oblivion for more romantic scenes.

Ashes To Ashes

Alice (along with, to an extent, Memorial ) is the main Paris/Torres episode from this season. Theoretically, Fair Haven and Spirit Folk are romantic episodes, but that’s no reason to watch quite possibly the worst episodes of any series of Star Trek ever made. Ashes To Ashes is rather nonsensical, but as Kim’s annual doomed romances go, it’s a sight better than Favorite Son or The Disease .

Human Error

Natural Law

Making up for lost time and tying off some loose ends, romance was everywhere in season seven, for Paris and Torres ( Drive , Lineage , Prophecy , Workforce , Endgame ), Janeway ( Shattered , which revisits Janeway/Chakotay briefly, and Workforce ), the Doctor ( Body And Soul , Endgame ) and Neelix ( Homestead) . The main relationship highlighted in Human Error and Natural Law and also concluded in Endgame was, shall we say, not very popular, but if it has any fans, those are the episodes to watch.

Route 4: OK, this might be why Voyager isn’t everyone’s favourite…

Like all series of Star Trek , Voyager also produced some entertainingly bad stinkers that are truly entertaining when hate-watched with friends. Maybe even a higher than usual number. We’ve still avoided the truly dull episodes for the most part, though – these are terrible in a hilarious and sometimes spectacular way.

It’s a classic Voyager quote – “There’s coffee in that nebula!” – but that doesn’t make The Cloud any good. It does, however, make it entertaining. Parallax and Learning Curve are pretty bad too, but also very dull ( Learning Curve is worth watching only for the equally classic line “Get the cheese to sickbay!”).

It’s tempting, even as a fan, to say ‘all of it’, but some season two episodes are actually quite good (see above) while most of the rest are deathly dull. However, Elogium features space sperm trying to have sex with the ship, Twisted has everyone get lost on Deck 6 (a normal day for some of us who are navigationally challenged) and Parturition features two senior officers having a food fight in the mess hall. For some people, add The Thaw , which is Voyager ’s equivalent of Marmite.

And then there’s Threshold . Threshold , frequently derided as the worst episode of Star Trek ever made, is truly glorious in its awfulness. One of the tragedies of the episode is that Robert Duncan McNeil puts in a really passionate performance and some of the material, if attached to a different story, would be some really nice body horror stuff. But all you have to do is read a summary of the events of the episode (including impossible speeds, a shuttle that turns into the Infinite Improbability Drive from The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy , crew members turning into giant lizard-slug-things, and giant lizard sex) to see how stupendously ridiculous, but importantly also truly entertaining in its own special way, it is. If you haven’t heard of it, though, skip the online summaries and just watch it, preferably with a very large drink in hand, and let the B movie daftness wash over you. It’s so, so very awful, I think I kinda love it.

Favourite Son

Nothing can quite compare to the high/low that was Threshold , but The Q And The Grey follows up one of the best Q episodes with one of the daftest, Blood Fever demonstrates that the practicalities of ponn farr were probably best left behind in the 1960s, and Favorite Son is… well it’s nearly as ridiculous as Threshold , actually, but not quite so spectacularly entertaining, as Harry Kim falls for a lure so transparent only someone as stupid as the Cat from Red Dwarf (in series six’ Psirens , when the same trick is tried on him) could be expected to fall for it.

Season Four is Voyager ’s strongest season overall, and its mis-fires tend to be dull or dubious rather than entertainingly hilarious, though if you enjoy ridiculous ‘science’, you might enjoy Demon .

Once Upon A Time

The Disease

Once Upon A Time ’s main plot is just a bit dull, but it features one of those horrifying children’s holodeck programmes also sometimes seen on The Next Generation . The Disease is another Harry Kim romance episode. It is, in its defense, slightly better than Favorite Son .

Spirit Folk

Everyone talks about Threshold , but for me, these are by far the worst episodes of Voyager , and probably of all of Star Trek (yes, including Spock’s Brain ). Offensive on every level, especially if you have Irish ancestry, and don’t even think about the practicalities of the captain retiring to a private room with a holographic character, on a holodeck – that is, a small, square room with no real walls, furniture etc. in it, that could easily malfunction at any moment – still also inhabited by other people, to have sex. Ew.

Prophecy revolves around a Klingon messianic prophecy, while Q2 features Q’s teenage son (played by John de Lancie’s real life son Keegan, who is a perfectly good actor, but the material is cringe-inducing). ‘Nuff said.

Route 5: Time travel

In season three, Captain Janeway expressed her extreme dislike of time travel and time paradoxes. She might as well have been a horror movie character saying “I’ll be right back.”

Time And Again

Time And Again is by the numbers but perfectly serviceable Star Trek , while Eye Of The Needle is Voyager ’s first really classic episode – perhaps that’s why they decided to feature the wonders of time travel quite so often in later years.

Technically there are no real time travel episodes in this season, though a couple of characters appear out of time in Death Wish .

Some of the Voyager crew’s ongoing problems with time travel are kicked off in Future’s End , while Before And After is a rather good backwards episode. Flashback , as the title implies, features flashbacks, though not actual time travel.

Add The Killing Game for a holodeck-based episode in which much of the crew believe they are people living in Earth’s past.

Timeless Relativity

Like Year Of Hell , Timeless is a really great episode, and things aren’t entirely re-set by the end (only mostly). Relativity is also good fun and features a visual homage to classic Powell and Pressburger film A Matter Of Life And Death . 11:59 is composed primarily of extensive flashbacks to the past, but not actual time travel.

Blink Of An Eye is more about time differential than time travel, but it represents this season’s game of playing with the fourth dimension.

Shattered uses a rather dubious time-related incident to revisit some of the show’s highlights and point to its future, while Endgame , like The Next Generation finale All Good Things , shows us a possible future for the crew, but by the end of the episode, everything may have changed.

Juliette Harrisson | @ClassicalJG

Juliette Harrisson is a writer and historian, and a lifelong Trekkie whose childhood heroes were JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis. She runs a YouTube channel called…

When Tuvok begins to suffer from a mental breakdown, triggered by a suppressed memory, a mind-meld with Janeway takes him back to his tour of duty with Captain Sulu aboard the USS Excelsior.

In this episode of the podcast, Wes and Clay discuss “Flashback” and the ghost that is Sulu. Plus! The guys chat about cavemen losing their grip, sycophantic tea, and Tuvok’s sabbatical hijinks.

Post author By Wes
Post date 01/17/2023

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Like Eddie Money said, you wanna go back and do it all over but you can’t go back. We know. In “Flashback” Tuvok experiences the titular adventure as he flashes back to his time aboard a familiar ship with a familiar captain. Living up to Trials and Tribble-ations is no small task. Will Star Trek: Voyager manage to do it with an homage to The Undiscovered Country ?

The Wikipedia plot summary for “Flashback”:

As Voyager monitors a nebula with large quantities of the power source sirillium, Tuvok finds his hands shaking, and requests permission to go to sickbay . En route, he experiences a flashback that involves him trying to pull a young girl off a cliff to safety. The girl ends up falling, horrifying young Tuvok. Eventually, he arrives in sickbay, and collapses, convulsing on the floor.

In sickbay, Tuvok describes the memory, but insists the events he “remembered” never occurred. With no clear cause of his symptoms, he is dismissed with a device to monitor his readings in case such an event occurs again. That night, he attempts to build a “structure of harmony” in an effort to aid his meditation, but cannot stop the structure from collapsing. After a visit from Kes , he attempts again.

The next morning, he notes he had spent fourteen hours meditating, and still had no idea what the cause of the problem was. Ensign Kim could not find anything unusual with the nebula they were near, but Tuvok suggests they scan it for Klingon activity. B’Elanna Torres reminds him that the Klingon Empire is on the other side of the galaxy. Moments later, Tuvok sees the mental image again, and collapses once more.

In sickbay, the Doctor suggests the problem is a repressed memory , which in Vulcans can cause brain damage due to the conflict between the conscious and unconscious minds. The only possible course of action is to initiate a mind meld – normally undertaken with a family member. Tuvok explains he would go to one of the Vulcans on board but he feels Janeway is the best choice to assist him in locating and reintegrating the memory. During the meld she would be an outside observer of the memories, unnoticed by anyone but Tuvok. It’s a “Flashback”!

When Tuvok initiates the mind meld, he attempts to take them to the cliff in his memory, but instead they appear on the USS Excelsior , under attack by the Klingons. Explaining the attack, the memory moves once more, to three days before, when Praxis exploded . After learning about how Captain Kirk and Dr. McCoy were placed on trial for the assassination of the Klingon Chancellor, Captain Sulu attempted a rescue mission, which Tuvok was the only Excelsior crew member to protest.

In an effort to avoid confrontation with the Klingons, Sulu ordered an approach path through a nebula remarkably similar to the one Voyager was observing in the Delta Quadrant – the appearance causing Tuvok to recall the repressed memory once more, breaking the mind meld.

After a period of recovery for Tuvok, during which Janeway and Kim comment on the differences between Starfleet of the 23rd century and the 24th, they try the mind meld again – appearing once more on the Excelsior . After a discussion about Tuvok’s motivations for joining Starfleet , a small Klingon attack began. After Sulu claimed their navigational equipment had malfunctioned, Kang insisted upon escorting the Excelsior back to Federation space, to help them from getting lost again. Sulu agreed, but on the way out of the nebula they were in, came up with a plan to disable the Klingon ship by igniting the sirillium that was also present in that nebula. After this succeeded, they set course once more for Qo’noS , before being attacked again by three Klingon battlecruisers – an attack that killed Lieutenant Dimitri Valtane. As Tuvok watched Valtane die, the memory appeared once more, and in sickbay, the neural engrams destabilize, preventing the meld from being broken. On the Excelsior , Sulu could suddenly see Janeway, who was supposed to merely be an observer. In an effort to blend into the memories, Tuvok takes Janeway to a time where she can steal Commander Janice Rand ‘s uniform. In sickbay, the Doctor and Kes notice an irregularity in the memories, and deduced they were not in fact memories, but instead a virus. Using thoron radiation, they begin to kill the virus.

On the Excelsior , the attack occurs once more, and Valtane dies when a plasma conduit behind his console explodes. The image of the girl on the cliff appears, but this time, it is Janeway who is letting the girl fall. As the Doctor continues the efforts to kill the virus, it tracks back, changing to Valtane, and then an endless stream of other children. Eventually, it dies, and Tuvok breaks the meld.

In sickbay, the Doctor and Kes explain what must have happened: the virus thrived on neural peptides, and hid itself by creating the false memory that the person bearing it would repress, so the virus could live in secret, and migrate from person to person as its hosts died.

Walking down a corridor, Janeway suggests that Tuvok missed those days, a suggestion Tuvok rejects. However, he admits that he is pleased to have been a part of them, and having experienced the memories, Janeway says she feels she was a part of them as well. As a result, Tuvok suggests that she could feel nostalgic for the both of them.

Cast & crew
User reviews
Episode aired Oct 9, 1996

Robert Beltran and Roxann Dawson in Star Trek: Voyager (1995)

Lieutenant Torres starts having vivid dreams about another life, another love, and another planet. Lieutenant Torres starts having vivid dreams about another life, another love, and another planet. Lieutenant Torres starts having vivid dreams about another life, another love, and another planet.

Winrich Kolbe
Gene Roddenberry
Rick Berman
Michael Piller
Kate Mulgrew
Robert Beltran
Roxann Dawson
7 User reviews
6 Critic reviews

Athena Massey, Eve Brenner, and Roxann Dawson in Star Trek: Voyager (1995)

Capt. Kathryn Janeway

Cmdr. Chakotay

Lt. B'Elanna Torres
(as Roxann Biggs-Dawson)

Lt. Tom Paris

Ensign Harry Kim

Jora Mirell
(as Eve H. Brenner)

Science Division Officer
(uncredited)
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

Trivia Charles Espen, Dathan, played another character in the Star Trek franchise. In The Next Generation he was a Klingon named Divok in s1e6 Rightful Heir.
Goofs When Jor Brel passes his musical instrument on to Janeway, he holds its neck in his left hand, thus placing it into Janeway's right; however, when the camera switches - virtually in mid-sentence - the instrument has turned 180 degrees, and she now holds the neck in her left hand.

[B'Elanna has told Chakotay of her recurrent dreams, causing her to oversleep]

Commander Chakotay : So I assume I won't have to write up a report on your chronic oversleeping?

Lieutenant B'Elanna Torres : If you say a word about this to anyone...

Commander Chakotay : I know. You'll rip my heart out and eat it raw. Your secret's safe with me.

Connections Referenced in Star Trek: Lower Decks: Kayshon, His Eyes Open (2021)
Soundtracks Star Trek: Voyager - Main Title (uncredited) Written by Jerry Goldsmith Performed by Jay Chattaway

User reviews 7

CharoleaWood
Apr 23, 2023
October 9, 1996 (United States)
United States
Official site
Paramount Studios - 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA (Studio)
Paramount Television
See more company credits at IMDbPro

Technical specs

Runtime 46 minutes
Dolby Digital

voyager episode flashback

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Flashback (episode)

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Voyager 'Flashback' - How A Star Trek Episode Almost Launched A New Series

The Sulu-centric Voyager episode nearly opened the door to a bold new Star Trek world

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Recap / Star Trek Voyager S 3 E 2 "Flashback"

This episode contains the following tropes:

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Robert Beltran

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Robert Duncan McNeill

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Star Trek Voyager: An Episode Roadmap

Watch Star Trek: Voyager on Amazon Prime

Route 1: Honestly, this show is really good

Season One:

Season Two:

Season Three:

Season Four:

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Season Five:

Season Six:

Season Seven:

Route 2: Crossovers and connections

Route 3: The shipping news

Route 4: OK, this might be why Voyager isn’t everyone’s favourite…

Route 5: Time travel

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