Voyager tries to help some victims of the Borg but they have a hidden agenda, putting Tom and B'Elanna in danger.
I was never the biggest fan of The Next Generation's Klingon episodes - they just weren't to my personal taste - but I've always found Voyager's episodes exploring B'Elanna's complicated feelings about her Klingon heritage to be much more interesting. Raised by her Klingon mother after her human father left them and bullied by humans as a child, B'Elanna's struggle to reconcile how she feels about all the different parts of her heritage is something that feels very real and relatable.
This isn't really a Klingon episode, though, despite the title, because this episode is first and foremost The One Where Tom and B'Elanna Get Together. Star Trek's track record with romantic relationships back in the 90s was a bit patchy, with the movies and much later sequel series sorting out The Next Generation's various pairings, though Deep Space Nine did a bit better. But Tom and B'Elanna's romance and relationship is probably one of the best written and most satisfying of the romantic pairings in this era of Star Trek. Maybe they don't quite have the years of yearning of Riker and Troi or Crusher and Picard, and their relationship was less dramatic than anyone on Deep Space Nine, but it was sweet and fun to watch.
Tom and B'Elanna's relationship is also one of Voyager's most effective slow-burn storylines. Back in seasons 1 and 2, B'Elanna had a one-sided crush on Chakotay and Paris was supposedly a great womaniser who was primarily into Kes (honestly, we never saw all that much evidence of all this womanising apart from one murder mystery and a few references to offscreen dates with the Delaney sisters). But Tom and B'Elanna had demonstrated some good chemistry with each other way back in season 1's 'Faces,' and throughout season 3 their growing closeness and Tom's increasing attempts to woo B'Elanna had been spotlighted in several episodes.
This episode is the culmination of that storyline, and since it had been clearly established in season 3 that Tom was keen to start something with B'Elanna and it was she who was more hesitant, it makes sense that it focuses on B'Elanna and her feelings. For much of the episode, a first time viewer probably has no idea where the story is going, since although Paris is heavily featured, it focuses on B'Elanna having a comically terrible day, in which she not only has to eject the warp core, but also loses yet another shuttlecraft and ends up floating in space with little hope of rescue, running out of oxygen.
Eventually, we realise what we're watching as Tom and B'Elanna end up in mortal danger and Torres starts re-evaluating her feelings. Throwing them out into space and making them think they're about to die is a pretty classic way to resolve this kind of romantic storyline. It may not be a ground-breaking idea for a romantic conclusion but hey, if it ain't broke, don't fix it - it works!
If the episode has a weak spot it's probably the Caatati storyline, which paints refugees as dishonest thieves preying on Voyager's good will. This is not a particularly good look! On the plus side they are incredibly slimy and unlikeable as antagonists, so dramatically speaking, they do work.
Bits 'n' pieces
- The shipping news: This is literally the most romantic episode of the entire show. Season 2's 'Resolutions' offers some stiff competition, and there are episodes from later seasons that also tell romance-related stories that I won't spoil, but if you're looking for a solid romantic story about a popular couple, this is the one to watch!
- There's a whole bunch of innuendo around the whole floating in space connected to each other situation, which is quite risqué for 1990s Star Trek!
- Alongside the episode's A plot (B'Elanna and Tom) and B plot (the Caatati), there is a sort of C plot involving Seven of Nine rubbing people up the wrong way (B'Elanna again), getting yelled at by the Caatati about being Borg, and generally settling in. It's a good idea to bed in the new character, though it is on the verge of distracting from the main storyline.
- Paris reaching out to Seven because he knows what it's like for people to react to your past is very sweet. If he wasn't about to get together with B'Elanna they might have made a good couple.
- Shuttlecraft count: Tom and B'Elanna's shuttle blows up quite dramatically!
Shuttlecraft count: -5
- Fun fact: Roxann Dawson was pregnant while filming this episode but hardly anyone knew except for Robbie McNeill, so he kept asking for breaks during the long hours they were suspended from wires in their spacesuit costumes so that she wouldn't have to tell anyone. This story makes me go "awwwww!"
Quotes
B'Elanna: Heartwarming.
Neelix: Call me names, insult me, question my parentage!
(This isn't actually true, she defeated Vorik in 'Blood Fever')
Tom: We all have a past, what matters is now.
Tom: I'm glad the last thing I'll see, is you.
Tom: You picked a great time to tell me.
I like Tom and B'Elanna as a couple, and I'm a sucker for a sweet romantic episode. Four out of four oxygen-tube-related innuendoes.
Juliette Harrisson is a writer and content creator. Check out her books here, or her Patreon here.
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