Voyager Flashback: Basics, Part II

The third season of Star Trek: Voyager began, in Star Trek tradition, by wrapping up the previous season's cliffhanger -- with "Basics, Part II."

Marooned on a primitive world after the Kazon commandeer Voyager, the crew struggles to survive against deadly predators, indigenous humanoids, and volcanic activity. Meanwhile, Tom Paris plans a rescue with the help of the Talaxians. But it will only work if the Doctor and Lon Suder, still on Voyager, can pave the way.

Because writer-producer Michael Piller was leaving the show, he was, in his own words, a "lame duck" who couldn't really assert his way on this script. So "Basics, Part II" ended up quite different from the episode it might have been. The remaining writers were keen to tie off loose story threads once and for all, so this episode sees the death of both Lon Suder and Seska, and the unlikely revelation that Seska's baby isn't Chakotay's after all.

While I agree that the Kazon as a whole were a well long-drained of what little was there, having Seska get randomly taken out, practically off-screen, by an attack that kills no one else on the bridge, is a major letdown for the cunning villain the series has made her out to be so far. None of the writers wanted anything to do with another baby on Voyager, but Piller's instinct to kill the baby (essentially, as moral come-uppance for Seska's villainy) was nixed by other producers Jeri Taylor and Rick Berman as too dark and violent.

Getting all that business done, plus killing Suder (who Taylor and Berman also did not want to keep around), getting the ship back, and delivering some season-opener action, really doesn't leave room for anything else in this episode. So interesting questions about how the Prime Directive might apply to the planet's natives go unexplored. Scenes about "roughing it" on the planet are rushed -- and fall a little flat for me anyway, coming right on the heels of "Resolutions," which had more time to delve into similar themes. No effort is made to understand the language of the natives, though they clearly have one.

Still, for all those weaknesses, I think there's plenty in this episode that's fairly strong. Brad Dourif's final appearance as Suder is excellent. Might I have preferred the show keep him around, Deep Space Nine like, to attempt a full and long-term redemption from murderer to hero? Sure. But dying for something greater than himself is a fitting end as well, and we're certainly shown along the way that this is a sacrifice. Suder has changed, whether you think he can be forgiven for what he did in the past or not, and he is absolutely tortured at the prospect of backsliding into the person he was.

Someone else who has changed is the Doctor. Seska has missed out on a year-and-then-some of his personal growth, and underestimates his capabilities. Much is made of the fact that he lies (well) to her face. But more significant here is his journey in this episode, from misinterpreting Suder's concerns to ultimately giving an earnest pep talk before his final sacrifice. That last scene is, legitimately, the most moving moment in the episode: a truly effective "captain's speech" that gets the job done. The Doctor and Suder make quite an interesting pairing as two characters who can't/won't kill people, thrust into a situation where they must. And actors Robert Picardo and Brad Dourif play well off one another too.

Clearly, a lot of money was spent on this episode. When it comes to the multiple days of filming on location with a large percentage of the cast (plus background performers), they clearly got bang for the buck. The CG is more hit and miss. The rushing lava is good enough for the time, but the giant eel monster seems to have just been beyond the reach of mid-90s television; obscuring the creature's details in darkness seems smart, but the shadows really don't fall on it realistically.

Other observations:

• I wish they hadn't killed Hogan in the opening scenes of the episode. They were already going to be killing Seska and Suder, and there aren't that many semi-recurring minor characters around to be offing like this just to make us care more.

• If the Doctor's innocent question about crew complement reveals Suder's presence, it seems unthinkable that Seska wouldn't have figured it out before him.

• Paris' plan requires that a system be disabled in Engineering. How did he think the Doctor was going to pull that off?

• The makeup on the primitive aliens doesn't really cover all we see of their very human chests.

The cliffhanger resolution here is a bit rushed, which is not unusual for Star Trek. But I'd give "Basics, Part II" a good enough B.