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Meld

Production Number: 133 (STV216)
Original air date: 2/05/96

Written by: Michael Piller (Teleplay);
Michael Sussman (Story)
Directed by: Cliff Bole

One crewman murders another, leading Tuvok to attempt an understanding of violent impulses through a mind-meld on "Star Trek: Voyager" airing Monday, February 5 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET/PT) on UPN.

Guest Stars:

Special Guest Star: Brad Dourif as Ensign Suder

Angela Dohrman as Ricky

Simon Billig as Hogan

The Author's Keyboard:

Michael Sussman:
"Meld" was my first professional sale. During the summer of '95, I interned with the "Voyager" writing staff and got an inside look at how the show works. During a meeting, I heard Michael Piller say he wanted to do a show about Tuvok and "random violence." That was all he said, but it got me thinking...
After many weeks, I finally came up with an idea I liked, and pitched it to Michael. I called it "Genocide". It was about a racist alien who is brought aboard Voyager. In an effort to find out who this alien was and what he wanted, Tuvok volunteers to mind-meld with him. The meld triggers Tuvok's primal Vulcan rage, and he ends up expressing deeply repressed racist feelings toward his fellow crewmembers. The alien, meanwhile, has seen into Tuvok's mind, and he teases Tuvok with the knowledge that the Vulcan despises humans as much as he does. Tuvok finally flips out, channeling his hate at the alien, and chases him all through the ship in a hunt to the death. Tuvok kills him... thus satisfying the killing impulse. He tenders his resignation, but Janeway turns it down. The show ends with Tuvok going into a deep meditation to put his rage back in the bottle...
As you can see, it was very different from the final episode! When another show fell through, Piller ended up writing the script for "Meld" in about a week. The alien ended up becoming Suder, the Maquis who goes "postal"; I wish I could take credit for the Maquis angle, but that was Michael's idea! It was a great way to jump into the story by having the killer already aboard the ship, without too much explanation as to how he got there.
Overall, I was very pleased by the fan reaction to this "inexpensive bottle show." I'm a long-time fan myself, and I know that in the end, it's what the fans and the viewers think that really matters.

"Meld" - When a crew member is murdered, Tuvok's investigation leads to another crewman, Ensign Suder, who finally admits he is the perpetrator. Vulcan instincts prohibit Tuvok from determining a logical motive for committing such a crime, so he attempts to understand the violent impulses of a criminal by performing a mind-meld on Suder--with deadly results, on "Star Trek: Voyager" airing MONDAY, FEB. 5 (8:00-9:00 p.m., ET/PT) on UPN.

When Tuvok removes himself from duty, The Doctor must initiate treatment which removes Tuvok's emotional suppression abilities. Meanwhile, Chakotay puts Paris on report for running an illegal gambling operation and Neelix embraces his role as the ship's Morale Officer.