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Living Witness File Photo || Mission Log A Living Thing (it's alive, it's alive!)
Airdate: April 29, 1998 Written by: Jimmy Diggs, Joe Menosky, and Brannon Braga (teleplay); Brannon Braga (story) Directed by: I'm Sure He's a Good Person In short: A Voyager episode with a great gimmick and a compelling story -a true rarity Brief Summary: The doctor, or at least his new backup copy, must face the music for what the USS Voyager did over 700 years after it passed by a planet Review: I knew this one would be good. Two months ago when I read about it over at Mike Jonas's, I said to myself. "Oooh, I better not miss this one," and indeed I did not, even though I had a 25 page history paper due the next day. I tell you these details of my personal life because devoting an hour to Voyager when I had a paper due should have predisposed me against the show, but it didn't, because "Living Witness" was a fun and provocative hour to watch, having as I said above a great gimmick but also a great deal of meaning, something Voyager in a year of gimmicks really has not achieved since "Nemesis." As much as the gimmick factor potentially brings an episode down a peg by making it seem contrived, it also has the potential to raise the episode up a level. Even though it wasn't a great episode, I remember TNG's "Clues," solely because the gimmick it involved gave the episode such a different feel that I'll never forget it. If done right, the gimmick can sell the show so well that you forget plot contrivances, like the "backup copy" issue in this episode. It's such a great idea that you can forgive the writers if they must force the issue to make it work. Another TNG episode whose name currently escapes me involved the crew beng mindwiped and sent to attack another species' base as part of a ruse. Nevermind that such a ruse was ridiculous; the episode was a great ride. Fortunately, little forcing of the issue was needed here, since the premise was such that any plot problems could be attributed to "historical inaccuracies." And boy did they run with the "inaccuracies." I do believe that the Voyager troupe does a much better job with acting when they are evil... could they be chafing under Starfleet and Berman imposed acting regulations after all these years? It was great to see Tuvok with one really wicked as well as just plain bad@$$ grin, but best of all, I think, these opening sequences had tension. I mean great tension, in that it wasn't just mysterious, but exciting as well. How would the pseudo-history resolve itself? I was on the edge of my seat. More than just a gimmick, the opening was also an involving, intelligently written plot, something Voyager needs more of. The gimmick that held the above gimmick was the "Voyager museum." I'll say upfront that I wished the pseudo-history had explained how the museum wound up with a photon torpedo for crying out loud, but as I premise I thought it was just wonderful. How do the planets that Voyager visit view it? It was a premise just full of potential, and they ran with it. I first, I was dismayed that it would be a race relations plot, as Trek has done so many of them before. But then I thought about it... consider the all too typical situation in Bosnia, where only ten years ago these people lived peacefully. Once Yugoslavia broke down, the ethnicities reasserted themselves by doing what? Falling back on history. Not religion, not skin color. History. Serbs for instance were angry over Kosovo because it held great historical significance to them. History more than anything else (well, a high 15-24 male population with nothing to do also) is the fundamental key to ethnic difficulties all over the world today. So, using the interpretation of history and how it plays into modern problems was such a simple yet brilliant idea. It was chock full of chewy noogat issues, stated throughout the show. Is there such a thing as historical truth? Or is it just interpretation, and if so, does it matter what reading is maintained by what group? The Doc was right; espousing the actual truth would rock the boat so much that it would risk lives... should that matter? Or should higher, long term goals take priority? A most intriguing question, I think. and is there such a thing as "blame" in history? Can we blame ourselves for the sins of our fathers? What if, as in this episode, both sides are at fault, but one side came out victoriouis? When does accountability set in? Should it? I love shows like this. So intriguing that I wished they had gone further. For instance.. what if the society was generally speaking racially harmonious, and the rediscovery of the Doc caused a renewal of tensions? That would have made hisguilt all the more stronger. But, in saying that I realize that had that path been taken, it would have been hard to have the "happily ever after" ending that actually worked, not only because it gave the Doctor a nice epilogue, but it also had the great twist of making the episode itself just another matter of intrepretation that worked almost as well as it did in DS9's "Far Beyond the Stars." Of course, naysayers are wont to attack the show no matter what it. By naysayers I mean Usenet B5ers who claim the episode ripped off their "The Deconstruction of Falling Stars." This coming from fans of the show that makes taking ideas from Bester and Tolkien an everyday event. I say they're just jealous because "Witness" was a better hour, since it took the issue of historical intrepretation and gave it modern relevance, instead of playing an intergalactic game of "Whisper" were the truth becomes more and more diluted between each person that hears it. Suffice it to say that episodes concerning historical intrepretation have been done many times before and B5 is nowhere near the first. It is the first show, however, to blatantly ripoff post apocalyptic stories about medieval monks. Just had to get that in... Was "Living" a perfect hour? By no means. I wish, for instance, that the curator Quarren's struggle with the truth had been better highlighted, instead of just made so to advance the plot. But it heartened me greatly, because it showed that Braga can come up with an idea that can be presented in an interesting way while having an actual message. I'll remember how impressive the story, but also how impressive the message was also. Maybe the Braga era won't be so bad... Some short takes: -This backup copy issue... who really cares, you know? -I loved the curator mentioning the scene's "graphic content"... he he, a little warning for parents there - The actor who played Quarren, Henry ICan'tSpellHisLastName, was Dino Doc in last year's "Distant Origin," and a rather contrived gimmick story but also one with a powerful message as this episode had. Hire him back for some more, he's obviously good luck. - Some have said the musuem was somehow the Holocaust musuem. No, I don't think so, and I think it is a shame that we cannot study history without everything breaking down into Hitler, Hitler, Hitler. Even if we ran with that idea, the episode never denied that a great loss of life occurred, just that both sides were to blame. That's obviously not the case with the Holocaust. Didn't you just love that interrogation scene? Optic nerves dissolving, that's a new one! -Oh, and the fight scene between all the male crewmembers was great too. "Hedgehog." "If you would pay attention to your console instead of chasing the ladies..." And Tom WAS exactly like he usually is! Quote: "No one behaved like this... well, except for Mr Paris." - Doc, pointing out one point the historian got right. Rating: A Next week: A bad episode, see my review... Discuss This Episode and/or Review in the Fan Comm Link Discussion Board! | |||
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