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 EPISODE REVIEWS | ||
 | "Worst
Case Scenario" - Week of May 12th - May 16th File Photo
|| Airdate: May 14th,
1997 Written by:
Kenneth Biller Directed by:
Alexander Singer In Short: A
brilliantly played out episode that entertains and deals with the
crew interaction beautifully. Brief Summary:
When Torres discovers a holo-novel based on a possible mutiny by
the Maquis members of the crew, Tuvok and Paris decide to
collaborate to finish writing the unfinished story. But before
Seska left Voyager, she had discovered that program and altered
it to trap the participants, kill them, and destroy Voyager. Review Kenneth Biller can
add "Worst Case Scenario" to the short list of
"reset-button episodes" that have performed
wonderfully! Not only does this story present the writer with the
chance to shake-up the status-quo (much like TNG's "All Good
Things"), but it keeps us compelled with excitement and
manages to deal with a side of Voyager rarely shown anymore. The meat of the
plot is centered around the different perspectives of the various
participants, and is exciting from the start. Granted we are
pretty much aware from the beginning that the first few minutes
are taking place on the holo-deck, but the excitement is still
there. It was also innovative to see how the story changes based
on Paris's participation as opposed to B'Leanna's. I also liked
how Biller treated the holo-novel from the third person
perspective. The way it enthralled each crew member uniquely was
interesting, as well as Janeway's light-hearted response towards
the program's existence and Tuvok's unwillingness to complete it.
It was at the
conference meeting alluded to above that we really began to see
how the crew has "meshed together" as Tuvok described.
Everyone seemed to treat the "worst case scenario" with
jest, as if the idea of mutiny really was extremely distant.
Regardless, however, I can't help but think this episode has set
the stage for serious consideration on the part of some of the
Maquis and Chakotay. The remaining
element to introduce after Tuvok admitted authorship, was how the
holo-novel would present a "real" danger to the ship
and crew. Even though Biller used the traditional "hostile
force takes control and disables the safeties" strategy, the
use of Seska was clever and worked very well considering Seska
was an integral part of the early Vger days. It was quite amusing
how Seska programmed the scenario to "torture" the
participants, particularly Tuvok. The Doctor's scene was
particularly funny, and although this show had many great scenes,
this one stands out. My only
disappointment is a minor one; that is the predictability of
solution. When Janeway inquired as to whether the narrative
protocols were still open, I saw immediately what she was going
to do. However, this really didn't bother me because it was
perfectly credible and utilized well. Everyone saw the episode,
so I won't summarize the steps taken by our FL (fearless leader),
but I felt genuinely entertained and not at all like her ultimate
solution was predictable. Even though the ending was fine, Tuvok
would've earned more respect from me if he had shot Seska after
raising the phaser level; it should have been easy for him to
theorize that the program would end following her death. Tuvok's
gall in this maneuver intrigued me until he turned the phaser
over to Seska. Oh well, we can't have everything! That about sums it
up for me. The core of this show revolved simply around the plot.
Nothing much deeper occurred, except for the quiet reassurance of
Vger's internal cohesion. Some Shorter
Takes: - Wouldn't ya
think after so many holo-takeovers in Starfleet history that
disabling the safeties would have become a bit more difficult? - Seska's ability
to tie in all the ships' major systems to create a
"real" disaster seemed a little too much. - The opening
minutes of the show did manage to confuse me, but once Chakotay
referred to B'Leanna as an "Ensign," I got the message.
(Then I went back in my mind and found all the other signs, hehe)
Writing:
Creative, fun, demonstrated brilliant usage of Vger
"lore" as it were; I think the "reset-button"
signs are merely a cover for a possible future story... Directing:
Same old same old. I liked the opening point of view, but I think
that's more or less the way it was written. Acting:
Paris gets some good time here, but ya know, the best acting in
my opinion came from Robert Picardo's brief appearances. The
Doc's more like "Bones" everyday! Rating: 9
out of 10 Quote: "Ahh.... this
should do the trick... twenty C-C's of NITRIC ACID!" ...... "It's been a
pleasure treating you and I hope you won't hesitate to call
again!" -The Doctor is
delightful as usual as he devilishly terrorizes Tuvok and Paris Next Week:
Ahh yes boys and girls... "Scorpion" is here! From the moment I read the full
episode synopsis back in EARLY March, I knew this one was going
to be a blast! Last week's TV Guide only tantalized me further,
and from the trailer this one looks like it's really gonna
ROCK! The alien ships look much better than I envisioned them,
and the aliens themselves look VERY cool! I'm ready to be
assimilated into what could possibly be the best Borg show since
that old TNG show... what was it called...by Michael
Piller..hmmm.... :-) Discuss This Episode and/or Review in
the Fan Comm Link Discussion Board!
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