*NOW VOYAGER*
The Official Newsletter of the Kate Mulgrew Appreciation Society *
Volume III Number 3


*ALL ABOUT NOW VOYAGER*

	Greetings from the Kate Mulgrew Appreciation Society. KMAS Inc., a
Maryland non-profit corporation, is Kate Mulgrew's official fan club. You
can reach us at P.O. Box 34745, Bethesda, MD 20827-4745, or online at
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Pictures.


*PHOTOS AND ART CREDITS*

1--Illustration © Chris King, 1997.
2, 5, 14, 32--Illustrations © Deborah Rush, 1996 & 1997.
7--Illustration © Emily Friedman, 1997.
9,13--Illustrations © Jennifer Pelland, 1997.
10--Illustration © Holly Triplett, 1996.
12--Illustration © Nancy Molik, 1996.
16-17--Photos © Mike Topf, 1997.
18-19--Photos © Mary Taylor, 1997.
20-21--Photos courtesy Joan Mulgrew.
24-27--Photos courtesy Winrich Kolbe.


*KMAS, INC. BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND STAFF*

Michelle Erica Green, president.
Joan Testin, vice president.
Lauren Baum, treasurer.
Anne Davenport, membership secretary.
Mary Taylor, business secretary.
Paul Anderson, assistant secretary.
Barbe Smith, charity coordinator.
Peter Castillo, legal advisor.
Jeanne Donnelly, corporate advisor.
Jennifer Pelland, electronic listserv owner.
Michael Pantiuk & Cheryl Zenor, web page designers.
Anna Shuford, membership director.
Beth Schuman & Nancy Molik, convention coordinators.


*REVIEWZZZZZZZZ*

CODA

	If only this episode had aired about a year ago--or even six months ago.
At that point, I would have seen it as a real gift, as some indication that
one of the most important character relationships on Voyager wasn't being
neglected or trashed. Now it's like finding a lost, unopened love letter
after the divorce.
	It's hard to concentrate on any but the emotional aspects of "Coda." The
story was serviceable, even inventive, though it recycled many familiar
Star Trek themes. There's still some lingering question about which scenes
were hallucinations and which were not. Obviously each of Janeway's
"deaths" were not real, but at least one resuscitation scene may have been
authentic. When Chakotay, after trying desperately to revive her, took her
all-but-expired body in his arms and sobbed, "Kathryn!" (thus melting the
hearts of even some jaded fans), he may have been doing so in reality. One
could work out a timeline of actual events that includes that scene, and
I'd be inclined to think that was what was intended.
	Broadway stalwart Len Cariou did a fine, chilling job as the alien in
disguise, and reminded me very little of the stifling, distant, patronizing
father in Mosaic, which was all to the good. The least comfortable part of
"Coda" and of some recent episodes have been their references to that
novel. They appear mostly as distracting, incongruous details such as
tennis rackets, and offer nothing much besides a reminder of a version of
Janeway that I can't reconcile in the least with Kate Mulgrew's much more
attractive performance.
	But the important part... It's hard to deny, after seeing it on screen so
clearly, that Chakotay is in love with his captain. He reacts to her death
much more profoundly, and physically, than as a bereaved friend. It's
equally clear that although she doesn't completely reciprocate his
feelings, she sympathizes with them and feels a deep attachment for him.
Why she doesn't reciprocate is the great unsolved mystery of Voyager. I
hear a lot of justifications and preaching about how a woman can't bestow
her affections as freely as a man and I simply don't accept that--still, in
the 24th century? The dramatic and romantic tension between these
characters doesn't betray much forethought. It's gone up, down and sideways
too many times.
	As a fan, I simultaneously groaned and sighed at such clichéd romanticisms
as "Breathe, Kathryn, breathe!" while Chakotay pressed his lips to
Janeway's. It's on a par with the idyllic desert island of "Resolutions."
Obvious, hokey--and a hell of a lot of fun. And the actors really made
something of it. That same edgy romantic tension that keeps me tearing my
hair lent a lot of resonance to Chakotay's actions. He never could embrace
Janeway and let out his feelings before, so he does so in grief instead of
joy. Robert Beltran usually keeps Chakotay on a tight leash, so to see him
weep and rage has  that  much  more impact.   I  was  reminded during this
episode, by nearly every performance, of just how talented Voyager's acting
ensemble is. When they get good material, they do it full justice, and they
can lift mediocrity up into fine entertainment. Just for a moment there,
"Coda" touched a real vein of emotion, and revived a lot of good memories.
I hope it's more than a temporary new lease on life.

--L.R. Bowen

	The first thing I noticed when I watched "Coda" was that Chakotay called
Janeway Kathryn 16 times, 3 of them in front of Tuvok and the doctor, and
that he referred to her as Kathryn Janeway another 3 times...Okay, I'll be
honest, that wasn't the first thing I noticed. It actually took several
viewings to get an accurate count, because even when I was replaying those
scenes, I'd get so caught up in what was happening that I'd lose track. The
last time, I sat with a pencil and a pad in my hands, and that was how I
made the final tally.
	So what was the first thing I noticed? Simply that it worked. It was an
old familiar story, by Trek standards. The purists can and probably will
enumerate the many times in which those dreaded temporal anomalies show up
and people get caught in them, or the ones where nasty aliens pretend to be
someone familiar while invading the minds and hearts of our heroes and
drawing them toward certain doom. Yes, it has been done before--but it
worked. When I considered my inability to count Kathryns, I realized that I
could not prevent my emotions from pulling me into the story.
	Right from the start, seeing Janeway and Chakotay at ease together and
bantering comfortably about the Voyager talent show, I was disarmed. Then
came the sudden descent into peril, and two close friends were shifting
gears seamlessly to become a competent command team again. (If that's not
the perfect illustration of how I envision Janeway and Chakotay's
relationship, I don't know what is-well, maybe I do know.) Next, the
looping, with each loop more emotionally fraught than the last. By the time
Chakotay was clutching Janeway's lifeless body in his arms and imploring
her not to die on him, tears splashing unnoticed off his chin, I neither
knew nor cared that this scenario had been done before, because what set it
apart from any previous episode for me was the emotions of the crew:
Chakotay, completely distraught in one scenario, standing in stony silence
in the next; the doctor, his voice betraying the same tenderness with which
he once addressed Denara Pel; Harry, overwhelmed; Tom, intent on holding
himself together; Neelix, stunned into rare silence; B'Elanna, ennobled by
her grief; Kes, disbelieving, searching desperately for answers; Tuvok,
stoic, but with an expression of shattered loss in his eyes... And beside
them at every moment, Janeway, as vulnerable and afraid as we've ever seen
her, yet never for a moment willing to give in, to stop fighting. These are
the charactersI love, and that's why "Coda" worked so well.
	There's something about an "It's a wonderful life" story; it's fascinating
to see how your own death might affect your colleagues, your loved ones.
It's equally fascinating to imagine that death is nothing more than a
change in consciousness, that the dead can and do coexist with the living,
that they retain an awareness of the world they've left behind. I found it
striking that at first Janeway's intent was to communicate with her crew
and to suggest scientific possibilities to them; that's her usual role, to
lead and to inspire. Later, when she had accepted her own death, she wanted
not to retain her captaincy, but simply to comfort them. Her maternal
concern for the crew has been evident from the beginning, and it's one of
the reasons I love her so much, because she herself is so unafraid to love
them. These visions may have existed nowhere but in her own mind, while in
reality the doctor worked over her nearly lifeless body, but it was
nevertheless a journey of discovery for Kathryn Janeway, and a reminder of
how much these characters mean to me.
	Oh, and that perfect illustration of Janeway and Chakotay's relationship?
The final scene, of course...

--Diane Nichols

	I was ecstatically happy for the hour I watched this episode, but in a
way, I feel as manipulated by "Coda" as Janeway did by the evil alien
impersonating her father. I saw characters I once knew and loved,
miraculously returned to life, telling me to believe in them. Like
"Resistance" and "Resolutions" did last season, "Coda" served as a reminder
not only of how gripping Voyager can be, but how dreadfully dull it is 9
weeks out of 10. An episode like this only shows up how hollow the show is
week after week.
	I have to hand it to Jeri Taylor--even when the script went over the top,
she knew she could count on Kate Mulgrew and Robert Beltran to make it
work. The chemistry between them is so potent that they could be reading
the phone book and the words would seem rife not just with innuendo, but
with affection, humor, warmth. I've been asking all season what happened to
the Janeway and Chakotay of "Resolutions," and there they were--better,
because they were working together. I don't give a crap about temporal
anomalies or evil aliens unless there's a human story making them matter;
this episode was about love and committment, which are usually dirty words
on Trek. The dynamic between Janeway and Chakotay provides enough emotional
involvement to drive this series, but it's squandered to the point that,
when we finally get an episode like this which picks up on "The Cloud" and
"Dreadnought" and "Future's End I," conscious effort is needed to remember
it.
	I don't mean it as criticism when I say that the best plotting in "Coda"
was recycled from TNG--the time loop like the one that kept making the
Enterprise explode for Picard, the scene of attending one's own funeral
like the one for Geordi and Ro. The plot itself is irrelevant when the
characterization works. Mulgrew was marvelous, surprisingly strong and
understated in an episode which could easily have made Janeway look like a
damsel in distress. This seemed like Taylor's apology for "Persistence of
Vision," with Janeway refusing to listen to an evil alien impersonating a
loved one. It also made me feel better about the much-criticized Mosaic,
since she didn't bow down to Daddy's wishes. Beltran was a tad hyperbolic
sobbing over Kathryn, but that hardly mattered; Chakotay is so riddled with
inconsistent feelings that he's hard to recognize from week to week.
	The sad truth is that all these characters are creatures of commercialism,
whose mannerisms change wildly depending on the demands of individual
episodes (this week we get a warm, sensitive B'Elanna admitting that
Janeway changed her life; next week we get the third straight time she'll
have intimate relations while out of her mind). I love Kathryn Janeway, but
she has no soul. She should have told the alien impersonating her father
that; maybe he would have gone away sooner. Soon Janeway will undoubtedly
pick up a phaser rifle again and tell Chakotay to go the hell skiing
without her. I'm expecting this episode to produce an explosion of fan
fiction like "Resolutions" did, so maybe I'll spend the next few Wednesday
nights reading about Janeway and Chakotay on that moonlight boat ride,
instead of watching pon farr and Borg rear their ugly heads.

--Sara Unger

	"Coda" is definitely the best J/C episode we have seen all season, and I
found it absolutely enthralling from start to finish. The acting was first
rate, if slightly melodramatic...but then again, this is the kind of story
that just cries out (pun intended) for a little overkill.
	The initial scene in the shuttle shows the characters I fell in love with
long ago, but who seem to have gotten lost of late. The easy banter between
the two typifies the comfortable relationship one would think they have
fallen into. I mean, come on, these people have been together for 3 years
now. The jokes, easy laughter, comfortable postures--all beautiful touches.

	The only problem I had with this episode was the fact that Janeway didn't
fight enough when Kes was trying to contact her. If it had been me in that
briefing room, I would have dove across the table passing through every
person in there until they all stood up and looked at each other in
amazement. When Kes and Tuvok were doing their mind meld, I wanted Janeway
to scream, pass through them, run around the room, ANYTHING other than
sitting there idly watching!
	For J/Cers, this episode is bound to cause many a viewer (including
myself) to swoon. We have seen so little of their off-duty relationship
since "Resolutions" that it seems to have been all but forgotten. I am
happy that their friendship has grown, but it sure would have been nice to
see it develop over time, instead of having it thrown at us all at once. It
makes perfect sense that they become good friends, if not more. Janeway got
to see first-hand the depth of Chakotay's feelings for her. The death scene
on the planet was played out beautifully. I had a lump in my throat when he
was talking to the ship telling them the captain was dead. The pain, the
tears, that half-numb gaze, all while Janeway looked on--wow! The
euthanasia scene was also a clever twist, expertly played by both actors.
	I can't quite figure out what to make of the final scene in Janeway's
ready room. The rose is an intimate gesture to be sure, and Janeway now
knows without a doubt that his feelings for her are very strong--and very
close to the surface. This is the first acknowledgment we have seen from
her regarding Chakotay. For once, she didn't get right back to business.
Whether or not the invitation for the boat ride was meant to be a date or
just a get together between good friends is inconsequential, really. It was
handled in such a casual manner that it's hard to tell, but a moonlight
boat ride is not the place to remind someone about "parameters." Either
way, it's a good start to a mutual relationship between the two. It's about
bloody time we see Janeway "hanging out" with people and forming some close
relationships. This issue of her emotional needs must be addressed. The
Janeway that I see is a moral, intelligent, and unashamedly compassionate
individual. A person like this couldn't possibly carry the burden of
command without some deeply meaningful relationships to lean on. I, for
one, am heartened by the one we saw in "Coda."

--Beth Schuman

	I had to watch this episode three times before I could bring myself to
write a review, and I wanted to like it, I really did. Whenever I need to
be reminded of who Captain Janeway really is, I return to Season One for a
refresher course. This is where her identity became cemented in my mind,
and it clashes horribly with the canon filtered in from Mosaic during
Season Three. While I can accept toughness, because we've all seen what
Janeway can do with a gun in her hand, I have a hard time swallowing this
"Daddy" business. We are supposed to believe that Janeway was close to her
father as a child, and to accept that she spent months of grief in bed. So,
if all that is true, then how can we explain her extreme lack of emotional
involvement with his ghost? Janeway is anything but distant from her crew,
and we saw what it meant to her when no one stayed behind in "The 37s." We
know the woman has a heart along with a deep well of emotions. But dear old
Dad had absolutely no impact on his 'little bird.'
	"Coda" could have been an extremely good episode if it wasn't marred by
melodramatic performances and recycled storylines. For TNG aficionados,
this must have been painful to watch. Since I entered the Trek universe
during the last few seasons of TNG, I cannot quote you chapter and verse
from the episode bible, but when the words 'time loop' came up, I started
groaning. This entire premise could have been so much more effective if the
episode had gone along without the it. We really would have thought Janeway
was dead until much later when the alien came crawling through the wall. I
think they tipped their hand way too soon on this one. Time loops and
ghosts don't mesh, so it was almost like two episodes were grafted together
to make "Coda." In addition, I was reminded of the alien from "Persistence
of Vision," and that was a nightmare unto itself.
	So what about Janeway? Were we really treated to any major character
development here? Did anyone believe that the J/C relationship had advanced
a notch or two in temperature, or was it all just a dream? As Chakotay told
Seska in "State of Flux," I have a hard time knowing what is real and what
isn't. Most of the scenes were sucked out of Janeway's head, so we saw her
perception of things. While that is interesting, it still doesn't tell us
how Chakotay really feels or whether Torres and Kim mean what they said.
Was Chakotay actually crying over her dead body? Did he really use CPR on
her? Did they joke about dying swans? And why on earth would Janeway be
thinking about time loops when we know she hates them ("Future's End")? I
also wonder about the Vidiians being in her thoughts. After all, this must
have been at the surface of her mind when they crashed, or how else would
the alien have picked up on this? Perhaps she was hoping that the phage
would overtake Tuvok so she didn't have to listen to Vulcan poetry on
Talent Night!
	Much of what I enjoyed here was visual: the expressions on everyone's
faces at the memorial service, the tears falling off of Chakotay's face as
he pronounced the captain dead, and J/C with their arms wrapped around one
another when they resuscitated the captain. Although some of these scenes
were hallucinations, they still felt real to me, and that's what matters.
None of Chakotay's overemoting and gasping for air had any emotional
impact, and I cringed during the various death scenes. They were brutal and
unnecessary. We all know that the doctor has developed compassion and would
never treat Janeway in this fashion. Once again, this would have been far
more chilling and effective if the characterizations rang true. For
example, the  shuttle  scene  was  among  the  best in the episode, because
the captain and first officer were behaving normally. I can excuse the fact
that they shouldn't be together on an away mission because they make such a
great team.
	In fact, seeing them try to work out the time loop problem was the best
part of the entire episode. I love seeing Janeway at her scientific best,
and she was in fine form during this segment. She was even smart enough to
doubt the alien, which probably accounts for the emotional distance I
sensed in her. When she uttered "Daddy," some might say that it showed her
vulnerable side, and I don't disagree with that statement. I just wish we
could have seen a little more of the close father-daughter relationship
we've heard so much about. Maybe Eddie the admiral was miscast, or maybe it
was the lame dialogue they had foisted on them, but this matchup didn't
work. In my opinion, "Coda" did not help Janeway's character. While we saw
a bit more range than they've given us in a long time, there was no real
moral dilemma or character testing situation to develop her further.

--Elizabeth Klisiewicz

	"Coda"! How do I love thee? Let me count the ways...1 talent show, 2
shuttle crashes, 3 temporal loops, 1 rose, 1 bottle of champagne, 19
"Kathryns" (yes, I counted!), lip contact...so it was CPR. The touchy-feely
meter went off the boards with this episode!
	There were so many things I loved about "Coda" that it's hard to know
where to begin. I think my favorite scene in this entire episode had to be
the very first scene in the shuttlecraft. It was fabulous to see the name
'Sacajawea' on the side. For those non history buffs among you, Sacajawea
was the Native American guide--another female leader, by the way--that led
Lewis and Clark in their historic expedition. J: "C'mon, Chakotay, there
must be some talent you have that people would enjoy. Maybe I could stand
with an apple on my head and you could phaser it off." C: "Sounds great."
[insert that wonderful grin here] "If I miss, I get to be captain." THIS is
the J/C I want to see. THIS is the J/C that we've hardly seen since TPTB
seemingly forgot that "Resolutions" ever happened. Wait--I know--the whole
thing was a temporal shift, right? Wrong. It DID happen, and regardless of
how intimate things were or weren't between the Captain and First Officer,
an obvious camaraderie was forged on New Earth. There's now a very relaxed
friendship here, and that terrifies me. Why? Because I know that in next
week's episode, it will be all but forgotten again.
	I have no desire to see the off-duty details of Kathryn & Chakotay's love
life. All I ask is for a little bit of continuity. I don't care that we've
seen countless temporal anomalies, to me a plot is a plot is a plot. It's
the characters I tune in to see week after week. They fascinate me and I
love watching them grow and adjust to whatever the Delta Quadrant hurls
their way. But please, don't cheapen what has happened by stringing us
along and then ripping our hearts out.
	Sorry, I do tend to get a bit possessive, don't I? The fact that Chakotay
called her "Kathryn" in front of other crew members tells me that there is
a secure relationship here and that they are adult enough to separate work
from their private lives. And that's as it should be. All the naysayers
that have insisted a shipboard romance would diminish Janeway's ability to
command are out in left field on this one. I've said it all along...the
captain needs a place to unwind in her off hours and it seems to me she's
found it, as well as someone to do her unwinding with! Computer, load
program "Janeway, Lake George." Oh -- and don't forget the champagne!

--Becky Olsen

	Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't this supposed to be a moving, romantic
episode? Hmmm...guess something was lost in the editing process. This
episode struck me as nothing more than (at least) two recycled ST:TNG
plotlines, smashed together by someone who has a thing for Janeway and
Chakotay but can't write anything too blatant or she'll get in trouble with
the highers up. Oh yeah, Jeri Taylor wrote it. That explains a lot.
	The two TNG episodes I'm referring to, of course, are the shows where the
Enterprise is caught in a repeating time loop ("Cause and Effect") and
where Ro and LaForge "die" ("The Next Phase") but in reality are
phase-shifted and invisible to the rest of the crew. The fact that those
episodes were better written and better acted only made "Coda" seem all the
more trite. Did the director tell Mulgrew and Beltran to overdo it? This
was a non-stop melodrama-coaster, from Chakotay yelling "breathe!" as he
administered bad CPR to Janeway (never bend your elbows when performing
CPR!) to Janeway imitating orgasm in every death scene (and there were
plenty). I know some people found this moving, but the only moving I did
was to groan in agony or laugh hysterically. The actor playing Janeway's
father wasn't much better. He looked like he was doing a read-through, not
a final performance. He only got passably good at the end when he started
to act menacing.
	One major problem I had was when they had Janeway, a Midwesterner, call
her father "Daddy." I'm sorry, but that's infantilizing. Midwesterners
don't do that. I didn't think anybody but southern belles did it, but an
email discussion with friends proved that it's more wide-spread than that.
Luckily, my Midwestern friends confirmed that in that part of the country,
"daddy" is a term reserved for the very young. Once again, Janeway has to
be "softened" so she won't offend the anti-woman segment of the audience.
	One scene that was quite noticeably missing was any reaction from Tom.
B'Elanna and Harry got speeches at the memorial service, Kes and Tuvok got
a scene in Tuvok's quarters, and Chakotay got that moment of supreme
overacting over her corpse, but where was Tom's grief? Of all the people on
this ship, he has the most to thank her for, and therefore the most to lose
with her gone. Neelix didn't have a reaction scene either, and that also
struck me as odd. The Doctor...well, him getting to kill her seemed to be a
rather extreme over-dramatization of the current doctor-assisted-suicide
issue, which irked me, but at least he got some screen time to deal with
Janeway's death. Paris and Neelix should have been granted the same
courtesy.
	All right, I will concede that I thought that the idea of the alien
sucking the dead into his matrix so he could eat them was rather creepy.
Interesting concept...but then why didn't Janeway demand to know if all her
other dead crewmates were trapped in his matrix? Janeway's always been very
protective of the well-being of her crew, so why not take a couple of
moments to demand to know if he's taken all her other dead crew off to be
his food? That really bothered me. It seemed painfully out of character for
her, but then again, this entire season has seemed out of character for
Janeway.
	Next week, pon farr meets blood fever...looks yummy, sounds awful. Think
I'll be blind drunk for that one.

--Jennifer Pelland (Siubhan)

	I enjoyed this episode a great deal upon first viewing. The first half
kept me guessing, and I was wrong each time. This is not a usual happening
with Trek, so I was pleased. I am usually fascinated by time warp/loop
plots. I was very happy to see Captain Janeway and Commander Chakotay being
relaxed and comfortable with one another. This is an element that has been
sorely missed since "Resolutions" last season. I hope that this trend
continues, as it makes for much more interesting viewing than the Cold Fish
and Wooden Man routine we've seen between them of late. That, of course, is
no comment on Kate or Robert, but on the writing of the relationship
between Janeway and Chakotay. This is the way they should have been
behaving with one another all along!
	So we have the Captain and the First Officer stranded on a planet again,
only this time it's a hostile planet and the Captain is mortally wounded.
This didn't bother me, either, though I must admit to not being terribly
worried about Janeway's eventual well-being! It wasn't until the
"consciousness" appeared that I started thinking that this was all to
familiar. I don't know why for sure, but it reminded me of "Cathexis," in
which it was Chakotay's consciousness floating around the ship (though his
was invisible). I was actually surprised that Janeway didn't remember this
incident and try and inhabit the body of one of the crew members as
Chakotay had done.
	When Janeway's "father" arrived, all I could think was "Persistence of
Vision." I just could not shake the feeling that the man portraying her
father carried the same feel as the man portraying Paris' father. The other
thing that really bothered me was yet another alien take-over episode. The
initial setup would have worked wonderfully well with Janeway just having
some kind of near death experience, maybe some soul searching that resulted
in character growth. I'm sure there are those who would have found that
angle overdone as well, but at least it would have been an opportunity to
explore Janeway's character more deeply.
	I had a very hard time getting past the PoV feel. As it was, we got
another alien using whatevertactics it could to try and coerce her into
submitting to him. I loved that she didn't! And his message to her about
standing by in loneliness while the people around her and the people she
loved moved on with their lives was definitely one Janeway needed to hear.
I thought the finest part of this episode was the final scene with Janeway
and Chakotay celebrating life together. I choose to take this to mean that
she got the message that she is only wasting precious time by not moving on
in her life, but I suppose the fact of the matter is that it remains to be
seen if that is true or not.
	This was another great Kate episode. Her performance was terrific. I also
thought that this was the best Robert Beltran has looked since "Caretaker,"
too. This is the Chakotay that I had hoped we would see throughout this
series. I just hope that the writers hear that enough so that it sinks in
and they keep it up! Overall I enjoyed this episode, though, I feel
somewhat disappointed in it. Something about the manipulation  by  the
alien  left  me  feeling  manipulated as well. I do not for a minute think
that what was being presented to us were Janeway's inner fears/thoughts
used by the alien. None of the little scenarios used by the alien rang
true, even to Janeway's fears. No wonder the alien was not successful in
convincing her. She's a strong woman, a Star Fleet Captain, and she's not
going to go along because someone says she should. The scenarios used to
try and convince her were almost insulting.

--Siobhan Wolf

	All I can say about this episode is that I LOVED IT!!!!! It had both an
intriguing storyline and tons of wonderful J/C moments. The story about the
alien and the time loops was quite good, used to explore the relationships
Janeway has built over the past two years. We saw Torres and how she had
matured due to the responsibilities Janeway entrusted to her. We see how
everyone is affected and how Janeway is as well. There was sadness all
around both Starfleet and Maquis. I was happy to see that there was no
acrimony between the two groups about who was going to be captain now that
Janeway is dead. Of course, since she was hallucinating, this could all be
wishful thinking on her part and may actually be the furthest thing from
the truth. But I don't think so.
	The usage of the temporal loop was tricky and well-used to keep the viewer
guessing as to what really happened and what Janeway hallucinated. I almost
believed that she had died. And I really liked how both she and Chakotay
immediately realized that they were in some sort of time loop and didn't
keep repeating their mistakes like Picard and his crew did in "Cause and
Effect." That was another reason why I liked the time loop, since they took
a familiar plot device and put a new twist on it. I was surprised when
those two immediately realized what had happened since I was expecting them
to repeat the loop several times before they caught on.
	Now to the good stuff. Being a J/C fan since day one, I am always on the
lookout for scenes where we get indications of the status of their personal
relationship. Last season, we got "Resolutions" and Chakotay's Angry
Warrior Speech which was, in my opinion, a thinly veiled way of telling her
that he loves her. After all, it wasn't exactly your standard Captain/First
Officer talk. And now this season, we had some stuff in "Future's End" and
finally "Coda." First, we had the relaxed conversation in the shuttle about
Talent Night. Then, we had the tortured cry "KATHRYN!" This was followed by
his extreme concern as she lay there unconscious as he was frantically
working to revive her. Of course, when in one iteration of the time loop,
she dies, he holds her lifeless body to his chest and cries out his grief.
Then in the end, she issues an invitation to share a bottle of champagne
and a moonlight sail on Lake George. Call me crazy but this sounds like a
date! Mulgrew's performance in this scene was wonderful and portrayed
Janeway's euphoria at having cheated death beautifully. And let us not
forget the rose! It was lovely but thecolor was all wrong. It should have
been red or some other color fraught with romantic meaning.
	In the final analysis, this was an excellent episode. The story held
together, the plot device used was not a repeat from a previous episode,
and the relationship between Janeway and Chakotay was moved forward from
where it was in"Resolutions."

--Shalini Gupta

BLOOD FEVER

	"Bodice-ripping, crotch-dripping..." Oh, whoops, that was
"sweat-dripping." The Lurid UPN Preview strikes again. But unlike the
previous worst examples, the preview for "Blood Fever" was reasonably
accurate. When I think of what could have been done with the basic theme of
raging pon farr and hot Klingon babes--no, sorry, I can't think of anything
tasteful and interesting in that vein. This episode is notable mostly for
being a set-up for some of the least attractive character moments in the
entire run of Voyager. I don't care to see both Tuvok and the doctor acting
as pimps for crewmembers, and I don't care to see yet another female
crewmember out of her mind and crazy for sex. Poor Tom Paris. His reaction
to B'Elanna's biting and mauling was at least plausible, though he was
given some terrible dialog. "This isn't about the gun, this is about sex.
But that's not going to happen right now." Not even Robbie McNeill could
save that line.
	There were a few good hoots in "Blood Fever," but most of them were
unintentional. And it's ruined Vulcan mating practices for all time as a
serious subject for Star Trek. Oddly, the character damage to Tom and
B'Elanna is redeemable, as both were acting under compulsion or delusion
(nearly mandatory for Voyager) but the peripheral characters suffered the
most, either from not doing much while all this was raging around them, or
by pandering to the general uneasy prurience. Janeway was reduced to a
bemused bystander who can't keep one nutso ensign from disabling the whole
ship, and Chakotay didn't do much better despite handling a tense situation
with the underground aliens. As I mentioned, the pimping was inappropriate
for this kind of show, and even more so for the characters involved.
Probably the worst since "Threshold", though not hitting quite so low a
note.

--L.R. Bowen

	Forget what you know about pon farr. Battles to the death? Return trips to
the homeworld? Not here, sorry. This new generation of Trek writers seems
convinced that TOS canon should be ignored, so they expect viewers to do
the same. Oh, and along with forgetting canon, pretend that you have the IQ
of a chimp. OK? All set? Now you can enjoy the episode.
	"Blood Fever" was a sweaty excursion into the seamy underside of
unrestrained, instinctual behavior. Instead of presenting us with something
we could swallow, like Tuvok accidentally going into pon farr, we get to
watch engineer Vorick do the Vulcan mating dance. TPTB have apparently
phasered all the interesting peripheral characters so they can cast Jeri
Taylor's son. Do the words 'dull as dishwater' mean anything to you? People
like Martha Hackett and Brad Dourif breathed fire into their roles, because
they had interesting characters to work with. Vorick's deep, affected sighs
were almost as bad as Chakotay's 'breathe, dammit's in "Coda." But let's
not spend too much time picking on Alexander Enberg, because he did the
best he could with mediocre material. I am extremely surprised that Lisa
Klink's name appeared on the teleplay; she has always impressed me with her
sensitive, character driven writing. There was some extremely witty
dialogue on the part of the doctor, and a few good lines between Paris and
Torres. This was also Andrew Robinson's directing debut on Voyager, but
there is nothing notable to report. He didn't detract from the story, but
then, there wasn't much story to speak of.
	To be fair, I should also compliment Robert Duncan McNeill and Roxann
Dawson. Roxann was superb in showing off B'Elanna's alter ego, and it makes
a nice bookend to the first season episode "Faces." I also appreciated the
sensitivity that Paris showed towards Torres, and Robbie deserves the
credit for this. I am not entirely happy with the way they have turned
Paris into a white knight, but he is still one of the better written
characters on Voyager.
	Best scenes: Neelix falling down the cliff, Torres breaking Vorick's jaw,
Torres besting Vorick in the fight (too bad she didn't off him), Torres
biting Paris in the face, Torres and Paris on the turbolift, and those
tight, tight gray uniforms. More, I say! Worst scenes: The Doctor and
Vorick on the holodeck discussing an energy construct for a mate, Tuvok
ordering Paris to do B'Elanna, and any scene with Vorick in it. By the way,
how can one person disable all those systems without someone knowing about
it? Phaser him, please!
	Once I checked my brain at the door, I managed to enjoy this. Don't look
too closely at that swiss cheese they call a plot, and you'll be happy you
watched too.

--Elizabeth Klisiewicz

	In "Blood Fever," Tom Paris gets trapped in a cave with an extremely eager
B'Elanna Torres, something the rest of us can only fantasize about.
Although obviously tempted (which can't be all that comfortable in tight
spandex), he resists her advances. There are a number of reasons for doing
so. They need to concentrate on getting out of there and finding the rest
of the away team. They can't be sure the Lichen People aren't watching. It
would also be conceivable for Paris to be concerned that Torres is Klingon
enough to interpret a single act of sex as requiring a lifetime commitment.

	Instead, he phrases his objections in terms of what she'll think of
herself, and him, in the morning. I don't see why she should hate herself
for pursuing the most obvious solution to her problem. Torres and Paris are
mature adults who know and trust each other. Torres is certainly under the
influence of Vorik's "mating bond," something both parties are aware of,
but it's not a case of mind control--she's still herself, and still capable
of rejecting poor Vorik. Her physical need is perfectly real, regardless of
its origins. Paris's response is altogether too reminiscent of the
old-fashioned ideology under which a man can't sleep with a woman he
respects and a woman isn't supposed to show any interest. I think the
doctor was criticizing the wrong person about harboring Victorian
attitudes.
	Paris's assumption that he knows better than Torres what she really wants
is somewhat understandable while she's under alien influence, but it's
jarring in the final turbolift scene. There's a power dynamic in the
Torres/Paris relationship that I'm not very comfortable with. He's seen her
in very revealing situations, particularly in "Faces," but he hasn't
revealed that much of himself. I hope that if the relationship gets closer
he'll be more open with her than he has been to date.
	Aside from the sexual politics, my main problems with the episode are that
Tuvok once again appears grossly incompetent and Chakotay is rather too
willing to disclose information to the Lichen People, about whom he knows
nothing. The pacing is off, too--the ending seems very rushed and the final
fight trivial, especially in contrast to "Amok Time." Nonetheless, the
episode is entertaining to watch and provides a good introduction for the
Borg.

--Jenny Loehlin

	I can't believe this show got a TV-PG rating; naked wrestling would have
been less degrading than this. If the gender roles were reversed--if Tom
were female and B'Elanna were male--I don't think anyone would have had
trouble noticing the gleeful justification of sexual harrassment. Did Tuvok
really order Paris to prong Torres? Were Tuvok really so interested in
preserving Vulcan privacy, seems to me he'd have volunteered to do the job
himself...though it would have been simpler if he just took care of Vorick
in the first place. And Tuvok agreed with Vorick that it would be logical
for Torres to marry him once Vorick forced the meld which set off her pon
farr...do Vulcans also believe that if a man rapes a woman, it is logical
for her to marry him? I've never been a fan of violent Vulcan and Klingon
mating rituals on Trek, but this is a new low.
	This was a big episode for Roxann Dawson, written to show off her Klingon
character--but all it really did was to reduce her to buff babe status. If
they wanted to give her a challenge, they should have kept her in
engineering, dealt with her Klingon side on the job like in "Parallax." Now
I suspect she will always be Tommy the Stud's love interest, the way I was
once afraid they were going to make her Chakotay the Stud's love interest.
There is not going to be a need to take her character seriously. Janeway
will get the role of the chaste, serious, maternal female leader, and
Torres will be the emotional, unpredictable, fiesty sexual woman. I thought
Roxann was overacting, and her heavy breathing got on my nerves, but I
blame the director--every chance he had to film her heaving chest, he did.
	This was even a rotten Janeway episode. Once again, she looked humorless
and uptight when confronted with a situation that demanded compassion and
warmth to ease the tension. Not that I ever believed in the tension, since
I was certain it would have a "This never happened" ending like
"Persistence of Vision," "Fascination," etc.--and sure enough, B'Elanna had
Yar's exact line to Data from "The Naked Now." I saw more chemistry between
Tom and Neelix than between Tom and B'Elanna in this episode. I'd expect
Tom to put out to save the life of anyone on the ship, because he's
basically a good guy and doesn't take sex overly seriously, but I believed
his reluctance all too well. I got the feeling that Tom was just in the
lucky place, and it could easily have been Harry or Chak in Torres'
clutches.
	But I was most upset about the trashing of Vulcan and Klingon culture and
ritual during this episode. They didn't have time for bells and incense
like they did during "Amok Time," and Torres doesn't know the stuff Worf
always recites before having sex, but fifteen seconds of violent combat as
a substitute for a life bond was a major copout. I always thought the point
of pon farr was that it WASN'T just a mindless mating rut. The whole reason
for the bond is that it's mental and spiritual as well as physical. So the
Doc playing Holopimp was ludicrous--at least it didn't work!--but the idea
that either Torres or Vorick could snap out of their lustful ways by
slapping someone around was grotesque. Sex equals violence, and when you
take the mating drive away from its Vulcan spiritual significance, it
translates just as mindless need to get laid.
	I guess Torres is every boy's dream girl, who needs it so bad that she'll
do it anywhere with anyone. She's already done so many men in fantasy on
the show that I have a hard time believing she can be faithful to Tom even
if he can be faithful to her. If these characters need diseases and mind
control in order to make love, they also need therapy. I'm surprised the
Doc hasn't noticed.

--Sara Unger

	The preview for "Blood Fever" certainly didn't lie--this was as close to
an episode of "Melrose Place" as I hope we'll ever get. I'm not saying that
I don't like the idea of a Paris/Torres relationship, but this concept
totally takes me aback. The very idea of 'we must have sex or I'll die' is
so far from the views and motives of TOS that it makes me cringe. Yes, I
know that the Vulcan mating cycle was introduced back in the first series,
but there are huge differences between "Amok Time" and "Blood Fever."
	First off, "Amok Time"'s story concept was much better. With his life on
the line, Spock must return home to mate. After the plot for this episode
was revealed, it was carried out logically ('scuse the pun) and in a way
that kept the audience interested. Fans care about Spock; they don't know
for sure what's going to happen to him, and therefore they wonder as they
watch. One of the remarkable qualities about Gene Roddenberry was that he
had the ability to bring out the magic in writing that compelled fans to
question 'the heavy topics' through the interaction of characters they
loved.
	Now for "Blood Fever." Since Vorick is 70,000 light years from home, he
obviously can't return...unless he flies at warp ten, turns into a
salamander, kidnaps B'Elanna, and mates with her. [Slap! Sorry, I had to
suggest the idea!] B'Elanna's his obvious choice for a mate; he's been
giving her signs almost since we first met him. However, B'Elanna suddenly
having pon farr simply because of contact with Vorick--well, that's where
the episode failed IMO. It's a lousy excuse for the P/T action. As for
those ugly gargoyle-like people and the B-plot in general, the writers
could've done without it. They really didn't have a purpose; take them out
and you still have the basic concept of the story!
	This episode did have some strong points. The first one is the fighting
scene. It is the best way for Vorick and B'Elanna to end this 'chemical
imbalance.' And besides, the fight was pretty darn good! We haven't seen
good ol' dirty combat like that for quite some time. What a great fix!
Next, kudos to the actors and actresses, especially Roxann Dawson and
Robbie McNeil. They did a superb job of delivering their lines, and deserve
great praise for their work in this one.

--Charlynn Kate Smith

	It happens to almost everyone, the urge to mate. Whether it's for
expressing love, giving and receiving pleasure, procreation, or just
indulging in a little lust is up to the individuals involved. In the world
of Star Trek, it's a physiological occurrence for alien species as well.
Pon farr is especially interesting because of its highly emotional effect
on people who take great pride in their unemotional approach to life. This
would have been a good opportunity to explore the more domestic side of
Voyager's predicament--life is going to go on whether they're halfway
across the galaxy or not, and that's going to have consequences for
everyone which could lead to tragedy if they don't take care of their
needs. Unfortunately, TPTB chose to give us a more base view of things.
	It's hard to say, based on this episode, whether pon farr is just
something embarrassing or whether it's an important part of Vulcan ritual
and tradition. I sort of got the impression it was both. The previews
indicated a more tawdry story than what I think we got. They were in a
unique situation with B'Elanna having been affected, but I was surprised at
how casually Vorick and Tuvok were able to discuss the pon farr with
others. It was Tuvok's reluctance to discuss the situation with the doctor
that made me realize just how private it's supposed to be. That discomfort
disappeared suddenly enough once he reached B'Elanna on the planet, where
he proceeded to talk about it in front of her--and Chakotay and Paris. But
he could barely deal with the doctor earlier? I can only imagine how
B'Elanna felt being told, in front of her boss and co-worker, that she'd
been infected with an insatiable urge to have sex and that she'd die if she
didn't "get help." I know I was embarrassed, especially when Tuvok
practically ordered Tom to go...you know.
	I'm not quite sure what to make of the Doctor's holodeck solution to
Vorick's situation, other than to be disgusted at the suggestion that it's
healthy to relieve one's physical needs with a computer construct. The way
I understood it, Vulcans need to make a mental connection with their mates
during pon farr--how was he supposed to mind meld with a hologram?
Obviously there's ritual involved, or Vorick wouldn't have declared his
intent to mate with B'Elanna and battle his opponent...so where was it? The
ritual, I mean. Oh--maybe it was that mating brawl, the one that ended so
conveniently when Torres KO'd Vorick, thus ending the blood fever. If
relieving pon farr was as simple as meditation or giving into anger or
passion or the need to do something physically strenuous, why not have
Vorick wrestle a holocharacter and let Torres dig herself and Paris out of
the rockfall? Rather than focusing on the mental impact of the crew's
involuntary exile or the intricacies of Vulcan physiology and ritual, this
episode turned into exactly what the previews promised: a sweaty,
cloth-ripping, heavy-breathing, neck-biting, sexual cliche that exploited
Klingon and Vulcan sexual response and made both look like something from a
side show.
	Story aside, I thought there was some terrific acting in there. Roxann
Dawson for one. She did a fabulous job giving us a glimpse into the battle
going on within Torres and her monumental efforts to control it. I hope
that some day Torres can experience love without it being forced upon her
by an outside influence. Robert Duncan McNeill for another. I believed in
his struggle as well Tom Paris he can be incredibly sweet and compassionate
when he wants to be and I've grown to really like him. The doctor's catalog
of mating practices was amusing in a sick sort of way and I loved the look
Janeway gave him. That scene was just begging for another crack about
mating behavior (as in Elogium) but all we got was Cold Janeway who didn't
seem to care that two of her crew were suffering. Nice to see some friendly
aliens for a change.
	There is a bright side to all this--we learned a couple lessons this week.
Doctors, remember that it's NEVER safe to release a patient with even a
trace of hormonal imbalance. And everyone, if an emotional Vulcan ever
tries to hit on you, run away. Very fast.

--Meredith Antonelli

UNITY

	I suppose it was inevitable that sooner or later TPTB would give Chakotay
a Babe of the Week in the hope of convincing us that he actually has
balls--I still don't believe it, but I guess he must have a penis or he
wouldn't have been thinking with it instead of with his brain. I'm
surprised the writers settled for Barbie of Borg, who's so similar to what
we've seen before--a cross between Kathryn and Seska--but it makes a
certain amount of sense, given the one-dimensionality of Chakotay's
interests; falling all over any long-haired alpha female around is one of
his trademarks. Despite her femme-fatale use of sexuality, I really liked
Riley. She's smart, she's survived adversity, she's a natural leader, a
science officer, devoted to her people, aggressive, resourceful,
sympathetic, and she knows how to have a good time. Reminded me of Janeway
on a good day. In fact, like Chakotay, for a moment I liked Riley better.
	And that's what I hated about "Unity." Not just that Chakotay forsakes his
only consistent character point--his professional and personal devotion to
Janeway--for a younger version of The True Meaning of Peace, but because it
made sense that he would. "Unity" makes Voyager look rotten. The ship's
been in space for years now, but, Chakotay's claim notwithstanding, we
don't have any real sense that it's a community. I can see where a
collective would be attractive to someone who's been stuck on Janeway's
crew, where the captain holes up painting and practicing tennis in her
ready room instead of making friends, where the junior officers are only
now getting around to socializing--largely because of alien holodeck
manipulation and sex diseases. Voyager's got the most depressing crew I've
ever seen, and Janeway's the worst--plus, as captain, she's the cause. We
should have seen episodes by now showing Janeway so happy and so skilled at
her job that we wouldn't stop to wonder whether that was enough to fulfill
her. Instead, we've gotten several episodes where she mooned over Mark, a
few shows where she had dilemmas about her role as captain, a couple where
she challenged her scientific principles. I have no idea what this woman
stands for, not even what makes her happy. I look at her marching around
with her big phaser rifle, giving inconsistent orders, denying herself
friends and lovers, sighing to Q that she'd like to have a child, and I
think, this is supposed to be a role model for women?
	If the goal of this season was to turn Janeway into a gun-toting automaton
and stop J/C speculation by convincing viewers that she's undeserving of
Chakotay's devotion because she can't reciprocate it--well, it worked. And
if the goal of "Unity" was to convince viewers that Chakotay's a rebel
without a clue who'll roll over and turn blue for any woman who can say
"That's an order, Commander"--well, it worked! I believe that this Janeway
and Chakotay have no romantic future together. Unfortunately, I'm also
convinced that they're a shallow, unhappy, incompetent command team.

--Sara Unger

	Voyager's new and improved third season makes it very difficult to review
the show without breaking into mad laughter or throwing something at the
screen. Besides violating classic Trek canon, they also seem bent on
trashing all the characters and making them into stiff, stupid and
unlikable remnants of their former selves. Luckily, Janeway and Torres
seemed to escape from Ken Biller's misogynistic meanderings during this
outing. Instead, 'Elvis' Chakotay went off on one of his boneheaded jaunts
with his gelled hair, testosterone, and stupid cells jacked up to their
very highest level. "Unity" fell into the classic hurt/comfort ravine that
is revered by fanfic writers and reviled by those who call themselves
professionals.
	My overall feeling was that I liked this episode, except for one very
important thing: the Riley/Chakotay connection. What's a viewer to think?
If there had been some kind of resolution between Janeway and Chakotay,
then I would have no qualms about giving "Unity" a complete thumb's up. I
also want to point out that it would have worked just fine if we hadn't
just viewed Chakotay clutching a very dead Janeway to his breast only two
weeks ago in "Coda." His overly dramatic heaving and crying in that episode
led the viewer to think that something was still simmering between them, at
least from Janeway's point of view. It also didn't help when they went off
on their "moonlight sail" on the holodeck.
	So, Chakotay appears to be a totally fickle cad, incapable of thinking for
himself and drawn like a magnet to the nearest Janeway clone. After getting
burned by Seska, you think he would be slow to trust another woman. But he
goes to this planet, and voila, he wakes up and seems instantly drawn to
Riley. Later, in one of the episode's truly awful scenes, we get to see
Chakotay kiss his own hand. This is just another example of a dysfunctional
Trek relationship. If Chakotay was drawn to Riley, why didn't he just kiss
her for real? On the other hand, while I was viewing this scene, I couldn't
help but think of those ads about safe sex where they say that you not only
sleep with your current partner, but everyone else they've been with too.
Not only was he with Riley, but he was humping the minds of the rest of the
collective as well--talk about a gang bang.
	Based on the fact that we know the Borg messed with his mind, there is the
distinct possibility that they did something to him while he was sleeping
to make him act like such a jerk. If Biller and company had incorporated
this idea, it would have been far more insidious and logical then the end
result we got. Also, why didn't the Doctor insist on examining Chakotay as
soon as he arrived back on Voyager with Riley? Are we supposed to believe
that he accepted the word of some former Borg, the Federation's deadliest
enemy, that Chakotay is completely healed? I know, I know, this is one of
those dinky little plot holes that I'm supposed to forget about because it
would completely blow the rest of the story out of the water. OK, never
mind then.
	The two guest stars were excellent, and I could not help but be drawn to
Riley Frazier and her Romulan friend. The framework of the planet also
provided an interesting backdrop. Although we learned some new information
about the Borg, it's still hard to determine whether any link remains
between these Borg and their counterparts floating about in First Contact.
	Beltran and Mulgrew were well utilized throughout the episode, even if
Chakotay looked like he was about to say "Doh" by the end. I especially
liked the visuals we got in the briefing room scene between J/C and Riley.
Chakotay never took his eyes off of Riley for a moment, and his obsession
with his new inamorata was duly noted by Janeway. The camera work was
delicate, and I liked the way Janeway's eyes flicked between the two of
them during their dialogue, as well as her subtle comment about Chakotay's
newfound connection to the collective. Chakotay had his back to her during
most of the scene, including the part where he looked out at the star
field. This bit was very Janeway, and was actually a nice role reversal for
them.
	The camera work was quite good. McNeill likes to use extreme closeups,
especially during times of emotional tension. The very last scene in
Sickbay also had a very interesting camera shot that reminded me of the one
in "Sacred Ground" with Janeway. We are a distance away and the camera
slowly moves towards the characters. Technobabble is swirling about
Chakotay's head with abandon as they discuss his link, and he looks
confused and lost. The expression on his face is priceless--he looks like a
little boy who screwed up and never seems to learn his lesson. This is the
second time he was fooled by a woman, and he really should know better.
Besides covering their duplicity, it is also entirely possible that the
Borg plumbed the rather shallow depths of Chak's psyche and quickly figured
out what made him tick. By using Riley as bait, they were able to
manipulate Chakotay into betraying his crew.
	This is a very interesting idea, and one which would have pushed this
episode into the realm of greatness. It also makes me wonder if there is
still something buried inside Chakotay that can be activated by some future
encounter with the Borg. Too bad he wasn't able to turn things around and
find out a few things about their technology while they were joined. Just
goes to show what happens when you're ruled by your hormones. I'm willing
to bet that Janeway would have figured out a thing or two. I also liked how
they paired Torres and Chakotay on the shuttle towards the end. Torres is
someone Chakotay is extremely close to, and he even managed to betray her,
one of his oldest friends. To me, this says that he was being manipulated,
and it makes his connection to Riley seem a little less odious.
	"Unity" was provocative, decently written and well directed. It certainly
is not in the upper echelon of Borg episodes like "Best of Both Worlds,"
but it's far better than the tripe we've been treated to lately on Voyager.
Besides, the musical score was wonderful.

--Elizabeth Klisiewicz

	Frankly, if I were a redshirt and somebody ordered me to land a
shuttlecraft on an alien planet in response to a distress signal, I would
seriously consider mutiny. They don't seem to cover the real hazards in
Starfleet survival training.
	The episode improves considerably after the clichéd beginning. The Borg
are the Borg, not some interchangeable menace of the week. We learn about
some of the positive aspects of being assimilated, and see a type of
situation in which constructing a collective mind might seem like a good
idea. Perhaps we're seeing history repeat itself. Will the initial
cooperative continue to dominate the new collective, creating a kinder,
gentler Borg? The ending is appropriately ambiguous--Voyager is not going
to stick around to find out.
	Chakotay's involvement with Riley Frasier is problematic. There's an
effort to establish common ground between them, but the chemistry just
doesn't work. Chakotay ordinarily seems fairly reserved, private; it
doesn't seem plausible that he'd agree to what is in effect group sex on
such short acquaintance. It's been established that he's not as suspicious
as one would expect someone of his background to be, but there are quite a
few red flags here. Her initial story is rather farfetched and lacking
details. If she was in stasis, how does she know how long ago it was? Soon
it becomes clear that she is attracted to him and thus has a motive for
trying to keep him on the planet. Why doesn't he ask more questions? As a
former member of the Maquis, one wouldn't really expect him to trust her
just because she's Starfleet, especially since she doesn't have
identification and doesn't indicate her rank or, initially, the name of her
ship.
	Janeway and Chakotay interact well, on the whole. There's a lot of mutual
respect and understanding. She's supportive of him; he feels free to
express his views but accepts her authority. If she feels jealousy, she's
not going to reveal it too plainly--appropriate, though not necessarily in
character, because she's generally pretty open about her feelings. The one
scene where she's slinking around his shoulders is awkward, though--it
emphasizes the difference in their heights too much, and the physical
closeness doesn't fit with the conversation they're having.

--Jennifer Loehlin

	Sweeps month can get pretty peculiar. I'd just washed my brain out with
soap after "Blood Fever" and was prepared to dislike "Unity." And then I
sat down to one of the best Voyager episodes ever. A happy surprise, and
almost more so for being a surprise. A colony of ex-Borg, trying to build a
new life-and partly succeeding. But still the call of the collective mind,
the warmth and comfort of subsumation in the huge mass of life and
consciousness. The true salient characteristic of the Borg isn't their
cybernetic implants-it's their unity. This tied in beautifully with First
Contact which had a strong minor theme of Picard's lifelong, unbreakable
tie to the Borg. "I hear them calling me..." he said at one point, and it's
not at all clear that Chakotay won't find that siren voice in his dreams
again. The machine parts can be surgically removed, but that hardly matters
in the end. The ex-Borg found the memory of the mental tie too strong. The
woman Chakotay grew so close to may become another Borg Queen, founding and
maintaining her own collective race.
	Was Chakotay foolish or loose to become intimate with Riley? I don't think
so. This wasn't casual sex. He was powerfully moved by an incredible
emotional experience, and had become one with her in spirit already, as
well as with the other members of the group. It wasn't love on her
part--more like strong attraction and need, coupled with the mind link, and
it wasn't love on his, though he felt very close to her, though the
immediate circumstances were artificial. Frankly, if any one of the group
had expressed an attraction to him at that point, when he could feel it
directly, he might have been tempted. He's much more open and vulnerable
than his captain, and more willing to trust people. He's run into trouble
before through his lack of suspicion, as he pointed out himself. But
Janeway knows that's one of his virtues as well as a liability. In some
ways, he's innocent. That others take advantage of that quality doesn't
mean his conduct is reprehensible. He was in character, and sympathetically
so, although his judgment didn't prove infallible.
	And the ex-Borg never registered as evil. They truly didn't realize how
profoundly they longed for the collective mind. When they used Chakotay as
a focus for their connection, they got in deeper than they intended. He
couldn't pick up on malicious intent when there was none. They were pawns
almost as much as he was, still bound to a way of life they thought they
despised. This story was real tragedy, with a sad inevitability to the
outcome. Only one fatal flaw in their character, the addiction to the
mental link, and with all their other advantages, they couldn't overcome
it. Riley was an admirable woman, but she was willing, even eager, to throw
away her individuality in order to gain harmony with others.
	Janeway came across better than she has for months. Her decisions and
reactions every step of the way made utter sense, and her ethical
consideration for those of the ex-Borg not participating in the decision to
reactivate the mental link was just right. She made her opposition clear
but not stiff, and in her presence, Chakotay seemed to realize the terrible
danger of the proposed course. Although still under the spell to some
extent, which Janeway sensed, he could pull far enough away from Riley to
come to the same conclusion as the captain. He wasn't helpless, even with
the voice calling to him. Only when the group grew desperate in forcing him
to do their will was he overcome, and then he gave in to something he
wanted and feared at the same time. The last scene in Sickbay, with
everyone discussing his brain chemistry and prognosis while he sat silently
on a bed with his feet dangling was a lovely visual description of his
feelings. Janeway, with her exquisite sensitivity, dismissed them all to
speak to him alone. This is the connection that really matters to him in
the end, one he could never cast off. Their relationship can survive a lot,
and has. The bond came across reasonably well this time, even with
Chakotay's "unfaithfulness" to a tie that's mostly on his side anyway, but
if it ever truly breaks down, that's the last time I'll watch Voyager.

--L.R. Bowen

DARKLING

	February sweeps are here, and the networks are attempting to bombard us
with their best programming in hopes that we'll boost their ratings. All I
have to say is, if this is the best that Paramount has to offer us, then
Voyager is in real trouble.
	"Darkling" is a coming of age story for both Kes and the Doctor. In Kes's
case, she has shed her mate along with her childish garments and has
graduated to skintight jumpsuits and handsome aliens of the week. The
changes are superficial, because Kes is acting even more childish than she
did as a one year old. It might be true that her affairs are no one else's
business, but when she insists on acting like a willful teenager, it's no
wonder that all her shipboard parents become overprotective. In the
Doctor's case, he is spreading his wings a bit and is trying new
personalities on for size.
	While this is an interesting concept, it's not enough to sustain an
episode for an entire hour. I did like the continuity from Fair Trade, as
the Voyager crew continues to explore the Nechrid Expanse and seeks
navigational aid from any willing alien race along the way. And, I also
liked the mention of an asteroid belt, because that is what we're supposed
to see next week in "Rise." Finally, I adored Kathryn Janeway here, even if
she has been relegated to the role of Kes's mother.
	If not for the acting talents of Picardo and Lien, "Darkling"'s writers
would flunk their exam in Screenwriting 101. They've also chosen to revisit
the Skintight Wardrobe Room which I'd hoped was locked for all eternity.
Gratuitous violence, sex and skimpy costumes might be palatable if there
was even the semblance of a good story here, but "Darkling" proves that
Menosky, Braga and the rest of the writing staff are running out of
creative steam.

--Elizabeth Klisiewicz

	I liked this episode from the alien's tall tale at the beginning to the
doctor's renewed Hippocratic Oath at the end. The two stories were well
balanced and interesting--Kes growing up and wanting to explore her world
and the Doctor's personality "enhancements." I'd heard it was coming but I
was surprised at how abruptly the breakup between Kes and Neelix was
handled. There should have been an entire scene about it instead of that
throw-away line.
	It was important to the story because it set up everything Kes
did--wanting to experience more of life, asking how much more there was,
staying up late and leaving work until the last minute, indulging in a
little crush with an alien--it sounded just like what humans go through
except we don't tend to fall for aliens unless they're on television or in
the movies. Her new outfits are...interesting, but I don't care for what
amounts to bodystockings.
	I loved the scene between Janeway and Kes in the ready room. I love the
little tidbits we discover about the characters in scenes like
this--Janeway used to procrastinate, she sees herself at a crossroads (I
hope we learn more about this), she's willing to help Kes ask the right
questions but isn't going to hold her back. I love this Janeway. And I
really like this Kes too. Janeway gave her the respect she deserved while
the doctor made her sound like a wayward teenage girl sneaking around,
kissing boys when her parents' backs were turned.
	I saw it as a lingering part of his experiments with personality
subroutines and evidence that something was going wrong. Everyone's got a
dark side. It's an important part of each of us, as long as we don't let it
take over our lives. But what if it could? Would it consume us like it used
to with Suder or like it did with the doctor? Would we even be aware that
it's taking us over or would we be oblivious until it's too late? Suder
knew, but he was trying to overcome it. The doctor was going for
self-improvement but he never had a chance to realize how badly it had
backfired. He attempted murder and then mutilated the holocharacters--that
empty torso and Byron's bulging forehead were awful, but they showed how
twisted the doctor had become. Bob Picardo gave another excellent
performance, taking us slowly through the changes going on in the doctor's
programming as the subroutines interacted in ways he'd never expected. Just
enough here and there to clue us in that something was wrong until he shut
down and his counterpart took over. His facial expressions were eerie.
	Torres didn't come across nearly as stand-offish as she sometimes does. In
fact, I think everyone did a good job. Even Chakotay, who makes a good
personal leaning post. It was very nice to see Sue Henley too! The aliens
were interesting people and I wouldn't mind seeing more of them. People who
travel for the joy of exploration--sounds a little like another group of
people we know.

--Meredith Antonelli

	This seems to be the month when all the actors are finally sinking to the
rotten level of the material they're given to work with. We had Kate
Mulgrew and Robert Beltran having histrionics in "Coda," Roxann Dawson and
Robbie McNeill making fools of themselves in "Blood Fever," and here even
the usually reliable Bob Picardo demonstrates that he's just as capable of
giving an over-the-top, not-even-funny performance. I might have liked his
glee as a bad guy better if this had not been one of the most tasteless
scripts ever--I can't say THE most tasteless, not after "Blood Fever"s
justifications for misogyny, but that scene with Torres paralyzed in
sickbay certainly came close.
	To be fair, this was a superlative Janeway episode--in fact she was the
only character I liked at all. The tenor of her negotiations with the
aliens was superb, as we realized she was just humoring the guy who was
exaggerating to her, and I enjoyed her informed curiosity about Kes' new
boyfriend. The ready room scene with her and Kes was just lovely, as are
almost all Janeway-Kes scenes; this one was less mother-daughterish than
those in "Elogium" and "Tuvix," and made me really feel for Janeway at the
prospect that she might lose one of her very few friends. Janeway is
apparently the only person on the ship who doesn't feel so proprietary
about Kes that she has to act like a patriarch. Thank god she's in command.
	As for the men in this episode, one came off worse than the next. Neelix
was absent, which was not his fault since we never got to witness his
breakup with Kes--are the producers really so chicken about emotional
intimacy that they can't even show it ending? Tuvok was damned offensive
lecturing her like Daddy Dearest, and the Doc...well, even his good side
was only interested in her as someone in need of his guidance and
possessiveness. His nasty side was absolutely awful; if I were Torres I
wouldn't go to Sickbay again if my life depended on it. They're doing an
interesting job turning her from a very strong woman into the kind of woman
who'll scream about a Borg and get stuck in the role of potential rape
victim. She jerks back and forth between anger and absurd vulnerability,
not the real kind of growth I hoped her relationship with Paris would make
possible. I forgot. This is Trek. Love is violence, and emotion is
darkness.

--Sara Unger

RISE

	I know people are going to disagree with me on this one, but "Rise" was
one of the better entries during February sweeps. How could it not be, when
all we have to compare it to are episodes like "Blood Fever" or "Darkling"?
I didn't even let the sight of Brannon Braga's name make me flinch, or the
fact that it focused on two of my least favorite characters--Neelix and
Tuvok. Because, quite frankly, it contained some nice character work, and
it's about time.
	Tim Russ was excellent, and there were times when I wanted to smack him
one for his condescending attitude, but let's face it--he's Vulcan, and
this is the way that Vulcans act. I don't know if anyone noticed that
Neelix appeared in a rather tight jumpsuit this week, but it was a far cry
from his usual outlandish garb. I can't say that the sight of Ethan
Phillips as Neelix does anything for me, but I'm glad to see that they're
balancing the scales a little bit. Neelix was actually pretty likable, and
I appreciated the fact that he came through for Tuvok and befriended the
young woman. The plot was as thin as the ionosphere they were shooting for,
but it didn't matter, because the actors carried this one through to the
end.
	I also wanted to mention that ending Kes and Neelix's relationship was a
good move, because there was never anything there to begin with.     I
should also point out that just about everyone has managed to find a
romantic interest this season--except for our dear Captain Janeway. There
have been many essays on this subject, but I still think that isolating
herself from everyone is a BIG mistake. Jeri Taylor had a golden
opportunity to do something different, and she blew it. She should never
have thrown "Resolutions" at us if she didn't intend to follow through with
it. Surely they could have resolved something on screen, or done something
on the loneliness of command. Anyway, this viewer is disappointed in the
writers, but I guess I never expected anything anyway.
	In summary, while Neelix doesn't play well as the hero type, it was still
nice to see him cast in something other than an idiotic light. His
interactions with Tim Russ were well done and believable, and I think they
managed to take a few steps forward in their character development. Decent
work.

--Elizabeth Klisiewicz

	So, this is the conclusion of February sweeps. Thank the animal guides,
it's over! "Rise" certainly wasn't the worst episode, but it just doesn't
seem worthy of a sweeps month. It was quite predictable, had a minimum
amount of action that barely kept my interest, and--most
importantly--lacked a moral.
	First the ranting. Why exactly was this episode written? The writers must
be running out of gas. Paramount executives, give TPTB some vacationing
time so they can clear their minds of cliché and mediocre storylines. The
closest thing I can find to a moral is from the interaction between Neelix
and Tuvok. Is the point about staying true to who you are and always giving
your best? Haven't we heard that before.
	Now, here's why I did like "Rise" to some degree: character interaction.
Neelix and Tuvok are like The Odd Couple of Voyager. I don't think they
have any more than a couple things in common ("Tuvix" notwithstanding).
It's about time someone else tells Tuvok the truth about himself more
explicitly than Chakotay did in "Twisted." I'm not much of a Tuvok fan, so
I smiled the entire time Neelix told him off. The closing scene was also
humorous, proving Tuvok wrong. And I'm all smiles for the fact that Neelix
wasn't portrayed as a fool in this episode. The poor guy has managed to do
some clumsy act nine episodes out of ten. I'm glad that he's finally had
his chance to prove himself and succeed.

--Charlynn Kate Smith

	This episode is a good example of why I think Trek should be about
relationships first and action second. Voyager blasting asteroids into bits
to save a planet's population is okay but on Trek, we already know the
outcome of most crises. It's how the characters work together to solve
problems that makes it so unique and appealing. And it's always interesting
when opposites like Tuvok and Neelix are involved.
	I knew it was too good to be true when Neelix said he knew about tethers
but I got excited that maybe he being honest this time. He hasn't shown a
real aptitude for anything other than bending the rules and blowing the
truth out of proportion since he came aboard Voyager so it wasn't
surprising that he had no actual experience with the technology; I was just
surprised that he was able to do as much with it as he did. How'dhe learn
all that from working with models? And if he could figure it out, why
couldn't Tuvok? Everyone else on Voyager seems to have interchangeable
jobs.
	Neelix had a good point when he reminded Tuvok that it was imporant to
help keep spirits up and he did well handling the aliens' anxiety over
their situation. But Tuvok was right. Morale was secondary to getting them
out of there safely and if Neelix hadn't spent so much time talking, they
might have had the third oxygen tank working and the other repairs
completed. He misrepresented his abilities and endangered everyone on that
away mission. As a Starfleet trainee, Neelix should be subject to the
standards of behavior expected of any Starfleet cadet. Tuvok didn't give
the Maquis in Learning Curve as much leeway as he gave Neelix in this
episode, and they hadn't volunteered for anything.
	I liked seeing them clash. In a way, both of them were correct--Neelix was
being his usual overly ebullient self and Tuvok was being very Vulcan. And
never the twain shall meet, it seems. Neelix has always shown a remarkable
lack of respect for Vulcan ways. He might do well to give Tuvok a little
slack, but it would be wrong to assume that the emotional approach to life
that humans and Talaxians and Ocampans and other aliens share is superior
to the stoicism and logic that Vulcans use. Perhaps it gives us insight
that Vulcans don't share, but as an emotional species, we'll never know
otherwise. Maybe Tuvok needs to bend a little too, especially if he's going
to work effectively with emotional beings but a dangerous away mission
isn't the place to start. Unless you're dealing with a stubborn Talaxian
who's giving you no other choice. I have a feeling those two could end up
being a very good team.
	I loved Janeway in this--she looked like she was enjoying her job for once
and I was cheering her on when she called "battle stations." I just wish
there had been more of her and less of the aliens. They left a lot to be
desired. With the exception of the woman, they looked like people who were
uncomfortable in front of a camera and were more of a distraction than
anything, especially on the bridge. Overall though, I enjoyed the episode.
Neelix's enthusiasm is refreshing among a group of people who sometimes
seem to forget that it's okay to laugh, and he was right about looking on
the roof, and he saved Tuvok's life, but I think he deserved something a
lot more strict than a commendation.

--Meredith Antonelli


*THE FUNNY PAGES*

[Diane Nichols delivered the following to us...]

DEAR NOW VOYAGER,

	It has come to my attention that certain episodes of my life and that of
Commander Chakotay have been bandied about rather freely in the recent
past, and that members of your organization have been among the biggest
bandiers. I would like to take a moment to refute the allegations made by
some of your more vocal members. Let me start by saying that I had NO idea
Chakotay was the type to kiss and tell. Even when we assimilated him, it
was not immediately apparent that this might be the case--all I got from
him, to be honest, was that he talks to some wolf and to his dead father,
and, frankly, I wasn't worried much about what either of them might have to
say about me. HE was a bit worried about Dad, but my feeling is that the
man is dead and it's time Chakotay figured that out and got on with his
life.
	Now, as to the idea that I took him away from Captain Janeway. After a
thorough exploration of his inner psyche, I can assure you that aside from
several naughty dreams--I particularly liked the one where they get naked
on the bridge while the disapproving Vulcan and various other interested
crew members watch--there has been absolutely nothing going on between
Chakotay and Janeway, unless you count one bathtub, one back rub, and one
episode of cowering under a table during a plasma storm. It's not that he
wouldn't LIKE for something to happen there. He's depressingly devoted to
her, and seems to feel a certain smug satisfaction in the idea of remaining
at her side helping to make her burdens lighter until such time as she
wakes up and notices that she's in a partnership with one helluva hunk. He
spends way too much time remembering silly offhand remarks she's made to
him about mating behavior, if you ask me. But aside from all that, there
really was no question that he was being unfaithful to Janeway, so those of
you who like to call me an alien space babe should just get over it. For
one thing, I'm not even an alien, I'm from Texas, for cryin' out loud! And,
Borg Babe doesn't cut it, either, since of course I Am Not A Borg. In the
interests of scientific accuracy, perhaps you all could refer to me as a
formerly Borg, now human Babe. I don't mind being called a Babe. In Texas,
that's a compliment.
	As to The Incident itself, I make no apologies for it. I'd been on that
planet for what seemed like eons with a bunch of wonderful former Borg who,
dearly though I love them all, just do not get me excited in any personal
way. When I was presented with a human male in the prime of life who not
only has all his own limbs but also happens to be what my granny would have
called "one fine lookin' galoot"--well, can you blame me for wanting to
play cowboys and Indians with him? I didn't think so. Heck, if he hadn't
already had that nasty injury, I'd have been sorely tempted to bonk him
over the head with something myself, just so I could suggest linking with
him!
	And that link. Well, I know you're all curious about it. Way TOO curious,
to my way of thinking. Lots of you want to know if the whole darn
cooperative--ummm--took part in the festivities. The answer to that is "of
course not"! We are a highly enlightened group, and having all been Borg
before, we recognize that there are certain things which are best done
privately. We would NEVER eavesdrop on each other in that way. Besides, I
told them all to butt out because I saw him first! I think Orem was
disappointed, but he'll get over it.
	Last, and far from least, I understand that Chakotay has been implying to
anyone who will listen that maybe my principles will fall sway to the heady
delight of being linked with my little group of Klingons, Romulans and
other miscellaneous species, and that we will become less interested in
living in peace and harmony and more interested in conquering the Delta
Quadrant, if not the entire universe. Now, I'm THRILLED to think that he
finds me capable of such a feat, but I feel sure it's just his guilty
conscience and his dreary devotion to that captain of his that makes him
believe that. I can assure him, and all of you Now Voyagers, that I have no
designs whatsoever on the Delta Quadrant--too many Kazon--and I don't want
Voyager either. I was a Science Officer, remember, not on a command track
at all.
	Thank you for your time. I am enclosing a check to join Kate Mulgrew's fan
club. I adore your newsletter, especially the fanfic.

		Yours sincerely,
		(Dr.) Riley Frasier


TOP 10 WAYS JERI TAYLOR REJECTED KILLING JANEWAY IN "CODA"
by Susan Johnson

10. Strangled by her own ponytail.
9.	Tripped over her high heels while carrying oversized phaser rifle;
tragic accidental misfire.
8.	Talent Night I: Put an apple on her head for Chakotay to shoot off; he
aimed straight for her temple.
7. Talent Night II: Got Neelix to dance the pas de deux from Swan Lake with
her; he dropped her, and she broke her neck.
6.	Victim of her own self-destruct order.
5.	Seska killed her in a fit of jealousy over Chakotay.
4.	Torres killed her in a fit of jealousy over Chakotay.
3.	Paris killed her in a fit of jealousy over Chakotay.
2.	Revenge of the Salamander Babies.
1.	Too much sex and champagne following CPR.


TOP 10 CHAKOTAY TALENT NIGHT PERFORMANCES
by Susan Johnson

10. Carving rocks.
9.	Carving headboards.
8.	Wrecking shuttles.
7.	Reciting the Preamble to the U.S. Constitution, Shatner-style.
6.	Fondling the tresses of any long-haired women around.
5.	Playing the stooge in Tuvok's latest spy plot.
4.	Marlon Brando impersonations--SESKAAAAAAAAAAAA!
3.	Modeling loincloths.
2.	Making up ancient legends to impress women.
1.	Showing off the rest of his tattoos.


A VOYAGER ALPHABET
by Sheena Ainsbury

A is for Alpha Quadrant where Voyager is from
B is for B'Elanna, the half-Klingon
C is for Chakotay, whom I'd like to tame...
D is for the Doctor, who can't find a name.
E is for Engineering where they have all the fun, but
F for frustrated when they can't get it done!
G is for Grief when they count up the cost,
H as in Harry, whose bound to get lost!
I is for Isolation, yet more to come
J is for Janeway, Kathryn to some.
K is for Kes, some think she's sweet,
L for Leola Root which Neelix loves to eat!
M for Maquis, a large part of the crew,
N is for Neelix, morale officer, too.
O for Ocampa, an alien race,
P is for Paris, the man not the place...
Q is for Q the omnipotent beings
R for RED ALERT, they've spotted Vidiians!
S is for Sickbay where the Doctor resides,
T is for Tuvok, his emotions he hides.
U is for Us - the fans on this trip
on V as in Voyager, our favourite ship.
W is the Wormhole they desperately seek,
X is for xenophobes, aliens make them freak!
Y is for YES, we want more J/C
Z we're in dreamland, where with them we'll be...


*KATEWATCH*

CREATION
11 JANUARY 1997, PORTLAND, OR

	Kate Mulgrew appeared at the Portland airport Holiday Inn on Saturday,
January 11, 1997. Now Voyagers on the scene included Beth Shuman, Dottie
Ronhovde, Judy Stapler and me. The convention itself was a typical Creation
con in terms of programming, with music videos, auction, contests, news,
previews and the like, but the organization left much to be desired.
Despite the operational difficulties, the convention was a success because
of Kate. As always, Kate was generous, open, charming and very funny. She
came onstage to a standing ovation from the huge crowd. When Kate could
speak over the din, she started by talking about how beautiful Portland is,
but then admitted that she'd only seen it from the air. Portland from the
air, though, is spectacular, with gorgeous mountains and scenery. Kate
talked about how although she is doing a lot of traveling, because of her
work schedule, she is in and out of places without having a chance to see
much of them and said that when Voyager is done, she wants to travel. She's
going to be on a plane to Istanbul.
	After that introduction, Kate talked for quite some time, 15-20 minutes
without taking questions. She repeated some comments made at earlier
conventions with some changes and embellishments, remarking on her fellow
cast members and how much she loves them. Kate talked about what it was
like working long hours late at night being the only woman on the bridge
with a bunch of men. The impression is that adult men after midnight are
not altogether different from the little boys they once were. She spoke of
spitballs and constant attempts to make her lose control. I can't remember
the exact phrasing she used, but I do recall wetting one's pants being
mentioned. She also did a hysterical pantomime of the mooning the boys do;
unfortunately, those of us with cameras didn't react fast enough, although
I suppose Kate would not be precisely thrilled to have photos of her
engaging in that particular maneuver. We nearly fell out of our chairs
laughing.
	Mentioning her co-workers individually, she noted that they are all
wonderful people and wonderful to work with. Roxann Dawson she considers to
be brilliant, Tim Russ, of course, is a "dead man." Kate spent some time
telling about the feud with Tim, including Tim's predilection for appearing
naked on the set. She told of a time when she had lines to say to Tuvok
when Tim was not required to be on camera. Tim was not dressed, and Kate
simply could not speak her dialogue to Tuvok while Tim was standing there
informally. So she insisted that he get in uniform, but did not want him to
go back to his trailer because they would have been there longer. She
wanted the uniform brought to Tim on the set; he could change in the
turbolift. So he did, but took forever, and she demanded to know what was
taking so long. The delay had something to do with having to put the boots
on before the uniform and Tim's failure to put the uniform on over the
boots.
	Jennifer Lien is a bibliophile, always with her nose in a book. She reads
a lot of classics. Kate said that she would like the opportunity to get to
know Jennifer better. Robert Beltran she described (after using such words
as divine and attractive) as a very good man, a very spiritual man. Robbie
McNeill is fun and always trying to crack her up, and Garrett Wang is
always making faces. She has a lot of respect for all her fellow cast
members, but my impression is that the one she perhaps holds in the highest
esteem in terms of acting skills and preparedness is Bob Picardo.
	Talking about Voyager and its situation, Kate noted that even though the
crew is not happy to be far from home, they are Starfleet and they are
explorers, and they find joy in discovering what is out in the Delta
Quadrant. Kate also discussed the hair issue (which I think she really is
quite tired of), her Catholic background, her two boys (also noting in
connection with the behavior of the boys on the set that she really does
understand boys of all ages), her passion for the role, and the
relationship of Captain Janeway with Commander Chakotay. Kate does not seem
to have become any more enamored of J/C as the series develops; she sees
the relationship developing as a passionate friendship, very intimate, very
spiritual, but without sex. Kate made the "Red Alert! Commander to the
ready room" joke she has made before, and it's always funny.
	More seriously, Kate talked about the issue of Captain Janeway and
sexuality and mentioned the loneliness of command issue, but with a new
twist. She drew everyone's attention to the rather large numbers of girls
and young women in the audience and pointed out that Captain Janeway is a
role model to these girls, and she wants to provide an example of a
dedicated officer to these young women. The unspoken assumption is that so
many girls get sidetracked from their goals, and Captain Janeway should
provide a model of dedication, professionalism and morality to these girls.
If Janeway were to start sleeping around the way that Kirk did, it would be
hard for her to provide a good example. There is no doubt that Kate Mulgrew
and Captain Kathryn do provide a very positive role model for girls and
young women. There were many, many teenage and college women in that
audience, and several told Kate that they were going into one or another
branch of the sciences partly because of Captain Janeway. Kate seemed to
have a strong rapport with these young women and takes them and their goals
very seriously, and my own view is that girls need role models like Captain
Janeway. I don't think that it is impossible for Captain Janeway to have a
committed relationship and still be a role model to young women, but alien
of the week relationships would play havoc with the credibility of the
character.
	After speaking for a time, Kate asked the audience for questions.
Unfortunately, Creation had set up only one microphone, and that was
located on the far edge of the stage from our seats on the side. Thus, for
most of the rest of her appearance, Kate stayed on that side of the stage,
usually facing in the direction of the person asking the question. She made
a real effort to walk around the stage a bit, but with the mike located as
it was, the situation was less than optimal.
	Someone asked if she did her own stunts, and Kate replied that she tries
to do as many of them as possible. She seemed rather proud that she is in
good shape (as she should be), and said that in "Macrocosm," she did all
but the roll-over-the-table stunt in the mess hall. She tried, but that was
a hard one and was very dangerous.
	Somehow the discussion turned to reproduction. A fan asked if Captain
Janeway would have a baby, and another audience member shouted out that
she'd had three of them with Mr. Paris. Kate disputed that those offspring
were babies but said that she thought that eventually, the show would have
to deal with Captain Janeway and reproduction because that is what the
demographic requires. Many in the audience expressed an opinion otherwise,
and Kate pointed out that the groans and moans and denials were coming from
the women, but that the male audience wanted to see stories of this sort.
She explained that the audience is something like 75% male (although I have
seen figures that put the audience at about 50-50) and that stories have to
be done to appeal to that demographic. She was asked whether we’d see more
of Ensign Wildman's baby, and she said yes, but explained that shooting
with babies was very difficult and expensive because they are allowed on
camera under the lights for only a few seconds. Kate did mention that she'd
like to do an episode where Janeway has to take care of Ensign Wildman's
baby and becomes attached to her and has difficulty in giving her back to
her mother.
	An audience member wanted to know what it was like working with John De
Lancie, and as always, Kate talked about how she and John are very close
friends. She loved working on "The Q and the Grey," but she wanted to know
how well the Civil War setting worked for us. The audience seemed mostly
favorable, but Kate mentioned that the Civil War was a controversial
technique. I do not recall exactly how the question came up, but Kate not
only said that Janeway didn't have sex with Q, and that it would never
happen. Speaking of things that will never happen, in response to a
question about when we would see Captain Janeway in a swimsuit on the
holodeck, Kate said a very emphatic "NEVER."
	Someone asked if Voyager would encounter the Borg, and she said that they
already had, not realizing that we haven't seen that episode yet. She did
not give any real spoilers but did note that these Borg are different and
that the story is very interesting. Overall, Kate was extremely careful to
avoid spoilers about upcoming episodes. Kate mentioned that she really
loves the makeup for the show and thinks very highly of Michael Westmore
and his ability to come up with new aliens. She loves being in makeup and
watching the aliens being created. An audience member asked Kate which
episodes she felt best showed who Captain Janeway is, and she said
"Resistance" because it shows Janeway's humanity, and "Death Wish" and
"Tuvix" because they show the tough choices Janeway is forced to make.
	Several fans asked questions that were a bit on the obnoxious side, but
Kate very charmingly deflected such questions. She was also very kind in
dealing with a fan presentation that became very long and drawn out. It's
too bad that Creation's security did not prevent the incident from
occurring, but I have a lot of respect for the way Kate handled it. Every
so often, Kate would say hello to someone in the audience, looking straight
at them. I was blown away when she said hello in my direction, not
realizing that she was talking to me, having recognized me from being in
the front row at three conventions and from Chicago, until Beth said,
"Isn't she looking at you?" I had somehow become distracted, so you can how
dumb I felt. Later, as we passed through the autograph line, Kate asked if
I'd heard her say hello to me. I am not certain of what I said except yes,
I had, and thanks. I immediately had a paranoid fit that she would think I
was a little on the less than swift side. When Kate was on stage and looked
over at me, I just couldn't believe that she'd been talking to me and
thought she was talking to someone behind me, so I didn't want to make a
fool of myself and wave or say anything. But Kate was very gracious to us,
and as Creation shoved Beth and me out of the room where Kate was
autographing, Kate called after us, "Thank you for coming, ladies," and we
thanked her for being there. I hope we didn't sound too dumb; we were so in
awe that Kate recognized us that finding words that didn't sound too
fannish was hard. I won't ever forget how sweet and kind and gracious Kate
was. Now that she recognizes me, though, I will always have to be on my
best behavior at conventions where Kate appears!
	My respect for Kate Mulgrew increases at each appearance, but not so my res
pect for Creation. The stage and dealers' room were in separate buildings,
and on the first day, the people running the convention were not clear as
to the location of the dealers' room. There seemed to be long lines through
most of the day. The venue is quite large, and most of the seats were
filled. Convention security seemed to be non-existent, which was a real
problem when Kate was on stage. Crowds of rude and rowdy young people
congregated on either side of the stage and kept shouting out questions and
comments to Kate while she was on stage. One young woman in particular was
a real problem on the side of the stage near our seats, but there were
noisy audience members on the other side of the stage. These people mobbed
Kate when she left the stage, something I have never seen happen at a
convention. Although there was a man who appeared to be acting as
bodyguard, even he seemed at a loss concerning how to handle the people who
would not let Kate leave the room.
	Another problem involved the autograph session. Holders of Golden Circle
tickets also were given numbered autograph tickets, and I at least was
under the impression that we would be called to the autograph session in
some sort of rational order. To the contrary, following a long and
unexplained wait after Kate finished her talk, we were called to line up en
masse, with no organization, a basic mob scene. Fortunately, things went
smoothly after that, although Creation suddenly seemed to find their
security people, who pushed us through the room where Kate was signing as
fast as we (and she) could move. I later discovered the reason for the
delay; Creation had Kate sign a stack of photos before we were allowed in.
It is simply too bad that they did not tell us what was going on or
approximately how long the wait would be. Once we were able to see Kate
again for a brief moment, the wait became inconsequential. Yet not even the
emcee knew what was going on.

--Mary Taylor

	Kate snuck out into the audience during the pre-show video. Creation
showed their wonderful "Sloop John B." Voyager video, which always brings
the house down. But once the crowd realized Kate was RIGHT THERE, they all
started screaming, so the video was halted and she was brought on stage.
	Kate started with an interesting monologue in which she recapped each
season so far. The first year was nerve-wracking, in her opinion. She says
she felt under great scrutiny and was nervous at first. She put in 85 hours
a week that season. She cracked everybody up when she said that it was a
good thing she didn't come into the world of Trek with any preconceived
notions, because if she had been deeply familiar with the whole phenomenon,
she would have "taken to liquor." Kate said, "All I remember the first
season is, "Will I survive, God?" I have tried to be a good Roman Catholic.
I prayed a lot, but I worked my...as you can see, there is very little
left." At this point she showed us her behind.
	In describing the second season, she said it dealt with defining Janeway,
and addressing her sexuality. "The dynamics have changed tremendously.
What's good for the goose ain't necessarily what's good for the gander.
Quite aside from the fact that I am still of childbearing years, I do not
believe it is appropriate for this captain to be gratifying her needs in
this manner. We have a different viewership now. In a way, I am responsible
for your watching what this captain is doing. I can't be jumping around
planets making love to strange aliens." Kate is very aware of the impact
that Janeway is having on young women, and she takes it very seriously.
Their impressions and perceptions seem to be utmost in her mind. She
reiterated her negative feelings on the J/C issue and stated that she would
like a very profound, intense, and complex relationship which transcends
sex. She said this has to be handled delicately, and will most likely be
done by mystery rather than fact, but that the audience must be appeased.
	Season Three so far is trying to figure out where Voyager is. Kate feels
that being in the Delta Quadrant is a very difficult thing the writers have
to contend with. She also feels the captain can only act within certain
parameters, but does want the other characters to start forming
relationships. It's time we saw some friendships. Perhaps they should spend
more time in the mess hall and make meals a regular thing--besides, Kate
thinks it's about time we saw Janeway eat something. Kate reiterated how
blessed she feels to portray a leader who "never drops her knickers, who
never begs, who never has to say she's sorry."
	She mentioned her great love for the other actors on the show. She really
seems to admire Roxann's deep spiritual life, her intellect, and her
talent, and referred to her as a true Renaissance woman. Bob Picardo is the
resident genius, and she loves his character of The Doctor because he is
"Everyman and yet he is not human, so he is deeply forgiven for any of his
flaws." Great stuff.
	One of the funniest parts of Kate's speech was when she feigned
complaining about the bad men on the Bridge. She feels she should be made a
saint for putting up with them as they become more and more naughty. "They
wait for my nice big close-up at 2:00 in the morning. You have no idea what
they're doing behind that camera. You innocent viewers think, 'Aren't they
lovely? They're standing there on the Bridge together fighting the good
fight." No, they're throwing spitballs at me; they are mooning me!" She had
the audience cracking up as she acted out the various antics of her fellow
actors. Kate also says that she gets concerned, just like a captain would,
that some of her crew don't get the good stories that they need,
particularly Roxann and Robert Beltran.
	She was asked what it was like being on Rosie O'Donnell's show, and said
Rosie was quite gracious and outrageous. However, she did say that her son
was mortified when the camera swung around to him! She was asked which
episodes show the best possible Janeway. She responded that she loves it
when Janeway is in a moral dilemma. She likes tough choices and epic
topics, hence her choices, "Death Wish," "Resistance," and "Tuvix.". One of
the stranger comments made to Kate was by one individual who lived way out
in the boonies, who said something like seeing Kate was better than looking
at a goat. Kate cracked up and admitted that she took that as a very high
compliment. Kate handled fewer questions in Portland than I have seen her
take before, but her speech at the beginning was very nice. I really
enjoyed hearing her unsolicited opinions on a wide range of subjects. It
was wonderful to hear her feelings on the first two seasons in retrospect.
Portland was a little--how shall I put it--different. It was a little
unorganized, perhaps a little unruly, but it was a heck of a lot of fun.
Perhaps it was just that laid-back vibe that fostered the more humorous
side of Kate to emerge. She was very funny, wickedly so at times, as she
engaged in playful banter with members of the audience. I loved it, and
just hope that Kate enjoyed it as much as we all did.

--Beth Schuman

INFINITE VISIONS
1 MARCH 1997, ORLANDO, FL

	This was my first real convention.  The guests included David Prowse
(Darth Vader), Richard Hatch of Battlestar Galactica, and first Terry
Farrell and then Nana Visitor of DS9. But both women cancelled, so Robert
Duncan McNeill took their place. I met so many members of Now Voyager and
Robbie's fan club. I was able to spend time with him while he was signing
autographs. I met a boy who told me that he had sent a homemade model of
Voyager to Kate, and I met Becky Olsen from Now Voyager and Pam Buickel
from RanDoM Flight. The best part, though, was the Q and A. Since there
were only a handful of us at the con, he paid close attention to the
questions.
	Someone asked about Tom Paris marrying Janeway. "Kate's fan club is here,
and I don't think that they would like it if she was to have a relationship
with Tom Paris--although I would, but my wife wouldn't let me," he joked.
He did mention his own fan club, but said that, no matter were they go,
Kate's fan club is the loudest. I was blushing when he said that. Someone
asked him whether he would have a relationship with B'Elanna; he said that
next season they would have more involment with each other, but he kept
looking at the few of us Now Voyager people when the subject of Janeway's
love life came up--he said he won't be directing that show when the time
comes! He talked about directing "Unity" and said he had wondered whether
Chakotay should have done more with Riley, but the producers said no,
Janeway's fans would be too mad.
	A kid asked him where were the bathrooms on the ship? Robbie said, "Well,
we'll have to do a show with me in the bathroom." He did say that they had
just finished for the season, and the cliffhanger was the crew asking for
the Borg's help. In one show, Martha Hackett will return. I think Robbie
was surprised to know that the people in the autograph line knew more than
he did. He said that he'll have to contact us for information on the show.
He did say that Kate will be involved with the crew more, and that each of
them will have a relationship. And there will be more alien races. He asked
us which was our favorite show. I said "Macrocosm," but then everyone said
the one he directed, which was "Sacred Ground."
	We made Robbie blush when a girl asked him if was into Star Trek as a kid
and he said he was a big fan of Lost in Space. He was speechless when June
Lockhart, who was at the convention, came up on stage and gave him a hug.
As this was my real first convention, I was pleased to say that I have meet
people from all over Florida and the nation in Orlando.

--Monique Harrell


*ONCE IN LOVE WITH JANEWAY*

KATE'S BABY PICTURES
Courtesy Her Mother

SOME GUSHY KATE QUOTES FROM AOL
Reproduced With Permission

	Why do I like this actress so much? Because ever since I can remember
watching TV she has portrayed strong, independent characters. Because you
can look at her on screen and see an actress who takes her job seriously.
Because when I had the opportunity to see her in person, I found her to be
a warm, caring, funny and considerate person-never condescending to the
overzealous fans who asked her stupid or terribly personal questions.
	I love her on Voyager because I am a female officer and I strive to run my
unit with the efficiency and passion that the character she portrays runs
her ship.  For that reason alone, she is my idol, the other reasons are
just extra.

--Annmarie (Anriebear)

	I think Kate has had one kind of impact or another on all of us, whether
it is her compelling presence that gives us so much enjoyment, or the
character she portrays who gives us such a wonderful role model, or the
person she is that inspires us to be whatever it is we want to be. I have
had the privilege of seeing her on two or three talk shows and on each, she
has been charming, witty, and unfailingly gracious. So many times when
stars are seen in their off-screen personas, they display traits that
disillusion and subsequently detract from a character they play on the
screen. I'm glad to say that so far, Kate has only made me admire her more.

	Ahhh, there's the word I've been looking for: "compelling." That's what
Kate is. That's why you can't see anyone else in a scene she's in. That's
why your eyes are drawn to her on the bridge, in the Ready Room, in
Sickbay, in Engineering, in the corridor--wherever she is.

--Sally (ILuvKate)

	Okay.  I might as well get this out. WARNING: This is verrry verrry sappy,
so don't read if you don't like stuff like that. Pooh, FEEL FREE to put
this in
Now Voyager.
	Kate Mulgrew changed my life...literally. About a year ago, I was in a
major deep funk.  I had no friends, bad grades, no life. Then in early
March, I watched my first Voyager episode. It was love at first sight. I
was totally amazed! Here was this woman, strong and competent, yet still so
feminine. And although I didn't know it right then, I subconciously vowed
to be just be JUST LIKE her. The positiveness I felt in Voyager eventually
spilled over to other areas of my life.  Now I am an A honor roll student,
have lots andlots of friends, and I am generally happy.

--Andrea (Sugarcool)


*KATHRYN  JANEWAY,  FEMINIST  HEROINE*

HELP, I'M IN LOVE WITH A HOLOGRAM
by Michelle Erica Green

	It is with great embarrassment and chagrin that I admit that lately,
Voyager has been making me cry. God, I hate when television does that to
me--it's not like Star Trek is King Lear or Romeo and Juliet. If anything,
it's more like the time I cried when Dusty said goodbye to Sue Ellen on
Dallas--hey, I was only thirteen. But you're probably saying, "Gack!", and
I agree. Why do I let TV do this to me?
	In particular, why do I let a show like Voyager get to me? My favorite
episodes are either hackneyed space opera or cheap melodrama. When I'm
thinking clearly, I can state unequivocally that "Coda" was hyperbolic
cliché--recycling plots from three TNG episodes, using preposterous devices
to wrench emotions from the audience. I mean, CPR as a excuse to get
Janeway and Chakotay liplocked? Showing the captain dying, over and over,
so we'd realize how much we love her? Giving Torres and Kim speeches to hit
us over the head with it? Give me a break!
	So why did Robert Beltran sobbing, "Kathryn! You can't die!" get to me? I
think I was ironically moved by the tear-jerking itself, a big change from
the action-adventure sex-and-violence we've been getting on Voyager lately.
"Coda" might have been transparent scenery-chewing, but it was also a
serious response by an executive producer to something she knew a segment
of the audience had been begging for--a segment which usually gets ignored,
since the network and most of the production staff has no use for it.
"Coda" was an episode for women and over-30s...people who think powerful
emotions and committed relationships have a place in a science fiction
show, who think that the relationships and emotions are in fact what make
the show interesting. I was moved by Chakotay, but I was also moved by Jeri
Taylor. I would like to apologize to her, because lately it's become
apparent just what she's up against if she wants Janeway to have any
integrity in the face of network narrow-mindedness. I have not always been
kind to Taylor on these pages, because I didn't think she was creating the
kind of character I'd hoped to see Janeway become. I don't need a Janeway
who's perfect, but I wanted a heroine, someone strong and smart and
consistent--something which is rare for any TV show. Even if Taylor could
envision a woman of the future unfettered by the prejudices of the present,
I doubt she could get such a character on prime time.
	In particular, I am ashamed of the way I attacked Janeway's holonovel. I
still hate it--can't stand the suggestion that a starship captain prefers
emotional interaction with fake men to real people--but maybe that was all
hitting a little close to home. We watch these episodes, we know these
characters aren't real. What the heck are we doing getting emotionally
involved with them? That's almost as pathetic as falling in love with a
hologram!
	Part of what makes me upset is disgust with myself for believing in these
characters, forgetting that they're as insubstantial as the cardboard
standup versions of them for sale at conventions--commercial concerns. I
cried over "Unity" too--the furious kind of tears you shed when you feel
utterly betrayed and you blame yourself for not seeing it coming. It's one
thing to be manipulated by one's own feelings for a character, quite
another to be jerked around by a network. The only thing that really
surprises me about "Unity" is that they didn't do it before. I don't mean
running into the Borg--that was inevitable, since Trek always recycles
successful marketing devices. I mean I'm surprised they didn't give
Chakotay a space babe. Every other man on the crew has gotten one, even
Tuvok, and given that they've had Chakotay mooning over Good Girl Janeway,
they needed Bad Girl Riley to point out all the reasons that frigidity is
more admirable than mature sexuality. They created him as a unique
man--introspective, spiritual, in touch with his feelings, not in the least
a stereotypical action dude. Of course they couldn't keep him that way; as
one of Voyager's writers put it, a man like that is "castrated" in the
science fiction universe. Especially if he serves under a woman. So they
fixed him. Made him over into a Kirk-Riker without the strength or
charisma.
	Why should I care if they demolished a TV character? I guess William
Shatner was right--I should get a life, me and all the people who've been
writing to and about the show in anger lately, demanding to know how the
writers could put in mindless action and sex in place of the characters we
love, placing ratings above any sense of artistry. Nonetheless, I'm going
to try to explain: the feelings I'm talking about--my feelings for Janeway
and Chakotay, and Kirk and Kira and the rest of them--are real feelings.
I'd like to pretend that it's the community of fans and not the characters
themselves who matter to me, but that's only partly true. While sharing
fandom definitely plays a large role in our enjoyment of it, and makes it
more interactive, we love fictional characters. Not because we don't have
lives, but because they offer us something. In the case of Janeway, for
some of us it was her strength, for some, her career success. For some it
was probably the way she negtiates in a nightgown. It's the same reason
people have been reading biographies and going to the theater for
centuries. We need icons, people to look up to. Who can blame us for
wanting to take Voyager seriously?
	Falling for a fictional construct isn't really all that different from
having a crush on a live person, except that it's even more one-sided. It's
only slightly less reality-based than pining after a sports star, a writer,
or the head of your company, and in many ways it's safer and more
rewarding. This is embarrassing and a little scary to admit...but you know
what I'm talking about or you wouldn't be reading this newsletter. Even the
people who are here for love of Kate Mulgrew, who wouldn't care about
Voyager if she weren't on it, are admiring a character rather than
interacting with a person. That's difficult to admit too--maybe especially
for me. While the person we see briefly at an event is much closer to The
Real Kate than any character she plays on television, that's a performance,
too. Improvised instead of scripted, but hardly an open book. Sure, Trek
actors talk about their own work and their own kids, but we're still seeing
personas, some carefully selected anecdotes and publicity plugs. Maybe Kate
Mulgrew is closer to Earth than Kathryn Janeway, but a lot of what we're
seeing is still what we project onto her. What we want her to be. It must
be a terrible responsibility for her to try to live up to that, just as it
must be a terrible responsibility for Jeri Taylor to try to write a Janeway
who lives up to the conflicting and contradictory demands put on her.
	I keep Voyager episodes I want to save forever on high-quality tapes, and
mediocre ones on cheap tapes ("Threshold," for instance, is on a Price Club
generic, while "The Cloud" is on a deluxe Maxell hi-fi). I have "Twisted"
on a good tape, and recently it occurred to me to wonder why, since it
seems to be universally reviled as a Really Bad Episode. I rewatched it,
and realized that I had saved it for one line, spoken by Chakotay--the old
Chakotay, the real Chakotay. He said, "I've always believed that what you
gain in love is greater than what you risk." That could be a fan's motto,
banal as it is.


"YOU LIKE THAT SHOW?"
by L.R. Bowen

	Yes, damn it, we do, and sometimes it's hard to explain why, even to
ourselves. That snide comment comes from all sides, even committed
Trekkies, and it's gained justification in recent months that could make us
hang our heads in shame. Many of us have defected, or divorced ourselves,
to judge from our complaints and the plunging ratings. We Voyager fans are
a mixed lot; some are old Trekkers who watched Kirk and Spock and never
really left. Many started with Picard and went on to Sisko. Some discovered
Janeway and a whole universe with her. We had such hopes, once. We were
still in the flush of new love. It had to wear off sometime.
	Not that the show itself isn't to blame for the criticisms. Many of them
are unfortunately just. We've fallen in love with an entity who has plenty
of problems and character deficiencies. It's easy to love someone who never
gets into trouble and never gets drunk and breaks up the furniture, and
never gets pissy and juvenile and insulting. But it's also easy to take a
stable, reliable entity for granted. We can't take Voyager for granted. We
never know what it's going to pull next. We've gotten to a state of
wariness, of mistrust, of calling ourselves idiots for having fallen so
hard in the first place. What did we ever see in it besides the reflection
of our own fond fantasies, we wonder? We tried to help mold it as it grew,
as much as we could with letters and reviews and even tirades. We thought
we saw potential.
	And it was there, though it's been largely squandered. All the best
opportunities for character growth and connection, whether through conflict
or through shared happiness, have been frittered away. What happened to the
Starfleet/Maquis conflict, which at first seemed to be the core of the
show? What happened to the conspicuously tattered nobility of Tom Paris?
What happened to the fiery (as opposed to randy) Klingon side of B'Elanna
Torres? What happened to the electrically edgy relationship between
Chakotay and Paris? What happened to the Kathryn Janeway who could make
friendly jokes on the bridge, touch and hug her crewmembers without a trace
of self-consciousness, tell off Chakotay with panache and then admit he had
been right without losing a gram of her authority?
	They still exist, in a way, through the medium of fan fiction. We take
those parts of the canon that we liked the best, the parts that seemed
right from the beginning and then slipped away, and we build on them and
amplify them to remind ourselves that they existed at all. But that doesn't
last. Sooner or later, we realize that the people we're writing about
aren't behaving the way we would like them to behave. No matter how vivid,
fan fiction isn't canon. Only the broadcast show is. It's in full-impact
color and motion and audio, and it's the only common ground all fans have.
So we have to go back to it, eventually. We have to deal with all the
wasted opportunities and idiocies and perversions of the vision, and try to
make them right. We have to find context for them, since the show's failed
to do so. Who can explain why Janeway has never responded to Chakotay's
obvious attraction to her? Write a story. Maybe the prospect frightens her
because she's loved and lost before. Maybe she's afraid Tuvok and Tom would
be jealous. Maybe she likes B'Elanna better. Anything, so long as it makes
sense of something that feels like a gaping omission.
	Did anyone ask us to take this show so much to heart? Judging from their
reactions to "rabid fans", most of the producers, writers and actors of
Voyager don't really know what our fussing is about. It's only TV, they
say. Don't get upset about it; don't worry about the constant Yet Another
Trek Inconsistencies, don't worry if a beloved character starts acting like
an evil changeling of herself. It's only a show. It exists to sell cars and
pizza and launch new networks. So they say, and from their point of view,
that's absolutely correct. American television production is not about art
or ethics or theology/cosmology or genuine emotion. It's a huge business of
copyright and cross-marketing. We're supposed to consume it and find it
mildly agreeable and buy the ancillary product lines, but true passion is
embarrassing and inconvenient. We are not supposed to care about it more
than the creators do; we are not supposed to make it part of our souls.
Well, sorry.
	We do care. We let something undefinable get under our skins, and it might
be there for life. Who can say what it is? The occasional flash of
brilliance in the writing? The almost uniformly wonderful acting ensemble?
The fact that a group of literate, intelligent, caring people are fans
right along with us and understand that elusive fascination? Love is blind,
and in this case, possibly brain-dead. But let Chakotay toil with hands and
medkit and sheer desperate grief to bring it back to life, and we can feel
it revive. Maybe just a thready pulse, but enough.


*THE KATE MULGREW FILM FESTIVAL COLUMN*

DEMOLITION DAY
by Kathy Altom

	Argh. The world through the eyes--make that the fantasies--of
thirteen-year-old boys. Where's my virtual age machine? I need to lose some
years. One of the boys is being harassed by a principal for blowing up the
restroom. All right, set that dial. Thirty years ago my father gave me a
chemistry set and proceeded to lock up over half the chemicals so I could
safely play with it alone. A challenge! ... Now he's screaming at me about
how I could have been hurt. Like I'm so stupid that I didn't go hide behind
the metal filing cabinet since I was TRYING to blow up the lab. I think
I've got it, back to the movie, but not without a good book to read at the
same time.
	The foolish FBI agents--after all, they are adults--killed all of the
terrorists who planted a homemade nuclear bomb in Los Angeles. Three boys
find the bomb but fail to notice that its timer is running. They won't give
up their shot at power by just notifying the authorities that they found a
bomb when instead they can blackmail the city into closing school.
	Oh, finally, there's Kate. She's the mother of one of the boys. Oops,
she's off to the beauty parlor while her son plots to blackmail the U.S.
government into doing something worthwhile, if only he can think of
anything worthwhile. Now the FBI's at Kate's house. Her son is wanted by
the FBI. She's playing an adolescent boy's idea of an hysterical mother.
It's a terrible role, but Kate's a master. I wonder what her kids think of
this role? (Let's not forget that actors have to work in order to get work,
not to mention eat.)
	Finally, the chase scene, it must be almost over. The FBI can't catch
three boys on bicycles. In the end, the boys save the day, in spite of the
bungling adults, and all is forgiven because now they're heroes. So, they
seize their opportunity to be world- class jerks as well. Who puts up money
to make this sort of garbage?


FATAL FRIENDSHIP
by Nancy Molik

	Yet again, Lifetime managed to dig up a television movie starring our
Kate. I turned it on preparing for the same thing that I've been seeing
recently in those movies, i.e. Kate playing the cold, snobby wife or
ex-wife of the main character. The first scene she was in reminded me very
much of the opening scene of Danielle Steele's Daddy, and I was sure that
it was just a matter of time before her character, Sue Bradley, either left
her husband Mike, played by Kevin Dobson, or killed him. Soon, though, it
became apparent that her supporting role in the movie was exactly that: a
wife concerned about the welfare of her husband, her family, and their best
friends.
	 The premise: two best friends and their families have a typical
white-picket-fence relationship. The two grew up together, were on the ball
team together in school, and now they go on vacation together and spend
weekends together, families and all. Things are fine until a series of
murders leads Mike to suspect that best friend Hank, played wonderfully by
Gerald McRaney, is working more than just 9 to 5. And then the fun begins.
It's made obvious from early on that Hank IS the one responsible for the
deaths; but the reasons, which were only a partial surprise, aren't given
until the very end.
	It was a nice change of roles for Kate from what I've seen; she plays
the-woman-next-door very convincingly. Her scenes with Dobson are warm and
passionate without being over the top, and her scenes with Hank and his
wife, played by TNG regular Patti Yasutake, are effective in their
simplicity. In this movie, we get no glitz, very little glamour, but quite
a bit of heart, and it's easy to believe that these people might just live
across the street. It suits Kate very well, and so while the ending was
depressing, I came away satisfied knowing that Kate can play roles other
than just the Ice Queen that she's played quite often in the past in TV
movies and can play them expertly.


*THE PEOPLE PAGE*

WINRICH KOLBE
By Beth Schuman

The director of "Caretaker," "Resistance," "Remember," and several other
Voyager episodes, as well as many TNG and DS9 shows, including the highly
acclaimed TNG finale "All Good Things...," Rick Kolbe is currently working
on Millennium among other projects. Beth talked to him last month on the
phone, after meeting him at a couple of conventions which he attended with
Kate.

NV: How did you get interested in directing and what do you like most about
it as a career?

RK: What intrigues me about it? Power! <laughs> No, actually, I like
storytelling. The visual storytelling that a director goes through, in
addition to the emotional storytelling, is much more rewarding than writing
a story. Writing, to me, is an exercise in futility. I don't have the
patience. Whereas if I have a good script, I can dive into it, totally
immerse myself into it, and then tell the story on the screen. That, to me,
is fantastic. That's a rush. There's also disappointments in there, because
you might not be able to ever get your head into a story because it's a
shitty story. But if you have a good story and you really can immerse
yourself, and I basically go under, the world is gone to me, that is a very
gratifying experience.

I studied architecture before I came to Los Angeles. But when I came to Los
Angeles, I just couldn't see myself doing architecture. So I switched over
to film and graduated from UCLA in 1971. I got into Universal as a
production assistant, and later on as an associate producer. I did the long
form for McCloud, Six Million Dollar Man, Quincy, and then in '77, I
directed my first episode of Hardy Boys. After I finished Battlestar
Galactica in 1978, I left Universal and started directing full time.

NV: You have said that you don't consider yourself an action director, per
se. You're more interested in the character-driven stories?

RK: Yeah, character or maybe suspense. I really don'