"Flashback" | |
---|---|
Star Trek: Voyager episode | |
Episode no. | Season 3 Episode 2 |
Directed by | David Livingston |
Written by | Brannon Braga |
Featured music | David Bell |
Cinematography by | Marvin V. Rush |
Production code | 145 |
Original air date | September 11, 1996 |
Running time | 45 minutes |
Guest appearances | |
| |
"Flashback" is the 44th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager airing on the UPN network. It is the second episode of the third season.
The series follows the adventures of the Federation starship Voyager during its journey home to Earth, having been stranded tens of thousands of light-years away. In this episode, Captain Janeway must help Lt. Tuvok delve into his past to understand a memory triggered by the sight of a spatial phenomenon.
This episode was produced along with Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 's "Trials and Tribble-ations" as part of the Star Trek franchise's 30th anniversary, with both series featuring characters from Star Trek: The Original Series ; Hikaru Sulu (George Takei) and Janice Rand (Grace Lee Whitney) appear in this episode. Both characters appear by means of a flashback by Tuvok, taking place during the events depicted in the film Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country .
The episode was premiered the evening of August 9, 1996, at a convention held at the Britannia Hotel in Birmingham City Centre. The presentation was played from VHS tape. [1]
Investigating a nebula, Tuvok experiences a flashback of attempting to rescue a young girl off a cliff, then collapses. In Sickbay, he insists the cliff memory never occurred. The Doctor suggests the problem is a repressed memory, which in Vulcans can cause brain damage due to the conflict between the conscious and unconscious minds. He suggests Tuvok initiate a mind meld with a close friend to locate and reintegrate the memory – Janeway volunteers.
Tuvok initiates multiple mind melds, but instead of the cliff memory they appear in his memories aboard the USS Excelsior serving under Captain Sulu. In several instances the cliff memory resurfaces, rendering Tuvok unconscious. In one instance of the cliff memory, it is not a young Tuvok failing to rescue the girl, but a young Janeway. In Sickbay, the Doctor and Kes deduce the cliff flashback is a false memory created by a virus, and the virus has moved from Tuvok to Janeway. They kill the virus with thoron radiation.
Walking down a corridor, Janeway suggests that Tuvok missed those days serving under Sulu. Tuvok rejects this, but suggests that she could feel nostalgic for the both of them.
This episode features The Original Series actors George Takei, Michael Ansara, and Grace Lee Whitney. [2]
In an example of discontinuity, the character of Lieutenant Dimitri Valtane, who appears in both this Voyager episode shot in 1996 and the 1991 feature film Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, is shown to still be alive at the end of the feature film, in direct contradiction with the episode's depiction of events. Valtane is shown to have died in "Flashback", prior to the feature film's concluding scene in which the USS Excelsior captain and crew bid farewell to the USS Enterprise crew.
This episode was shot as a part of Season Two, but it was carried over and aired in Season Three.
In 2015, a Star Trek: Voyager binge-watching guide by W.I.R.E.D. suggested this episode could not be skipped. [3]
In 2016, The Hollywood Reporter rated "Flashback" the 86th best episode of all Star Trek episodes. [4]
In 2017, Den of Geek included this on their abbreviated watch guide for Star Trek: Voyager, picking out this episode on their cross-overs roadmap, noting The Original Series characters Hikaru Sulu, Kang and Janice Rand. [5]
This episode may have been a response to the rumor mill's reports that fans might see a series following Sulu as he commands USS Excelsior, a ship that was previously featured in the film Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991). [6]
In 2017, Den of Geek noted this episode on their Star Trek: Voyager watching guide, pointing out this episode for its connections to other media in the Star Trek universe. [7]
In July 2019, Screen Rant ranked "Flashback" as one of the top five episodes of the series. [8]
In 2021, The Digital Fix said that it was appealing to see Takei reprise his character Sulu in this episode for the 30th anniversary. [9]
A novel version of "Flashback" was written by Diane Carey, based on the Brannon Braga screenplay. [10]
The episode was premiered at the fan-run not-for-profit UK convention "Delta Quadrant" held at the Britannia Hotel in Birmingham City Centre in August 1996. [1] The episode was first shown during the evening of August 9, 1996, from a VHS video cassette in the care of the convention's organiser Bob Hollocks. [1]
"Flashback" was released on LaserDisc in Japan on June 25, 1999, as part of the 3rd season vol.1 set. [11]
This episode was released with "Basics, Part II" on VHS in the United Kingdom, on one cassette, Star Trek: Voyager 3.1 - Basics, Part II/Flashback. [12]
"Flashback" was released on DVD on July 6, 2004, as part of Star Trek Voyager: Complete Third Season, with Dolby 5.1 surround audio. [13] [14]
Tuvok is a fictional character in the Star Trek media franchise and a main character in the television series Star Trek: Voyager. Tuvok is a Vulcan who serves as the ship's second officer, Chief of Security, and Chief Tactical Officer. He was portrayed by Tim Russ throughout the show's run from 1995 to 2001, as well as in subsequent portrayals.
Hikaru Kato Sulu is a fictional character in the Star Trek media franchise. A member of the crew in the original Star Trek series, Sulu also appears in the animated Star Trek series, in the first six Star Trek movies, in one episode of Star Trek: Voyager, and in several books, comics, and video games. Originally known simply as "Sulu", his first name, "Hikaru", appeared in a 1981 novel well over a decade after the original series had ended.
"Caretaker" is the series premiere of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager. It was first broadcast as a double-length episode on January 16, 1995, as the first telecast of the fledgling United Paramount Network (UPN). It was later split into two parts for syndication, but released in its original one-episode format on DVD and streaming services. Set in the 24th century, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet and Maquis crew of the starship USS Voyager after they are stranded in the Delta Quadrant far from the rest of the Federation.
"The Raven" is the 74th episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the sixth episode of the fourth season. The episode was directed by LeVar Burton, and was broadcast on UPN in October 1997.
"Relativity" is the 118th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager airing on the UPN network. It is the 24th episode of the fifth season.
"Blink of an Eye" is the twelfth episode from the sixth season of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, 132nd episode overall. The show is set in the 24th century of the Star Trek universe, aboard the USS Voyager spaceship on a decades long journey back to Earth.
"Repression" is the 150th episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, and the fourth episode of the seventh season of the series. It revisits potential conflict between Starfleet and Maquis crew members explored in "Worst Case Scenario" at the end of season three.
"Eye of the Needle" is the seventh episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager. The screenplay was written by Bill Dial and Jeri Taylor based on a story by Hilary Bader, and it was directed by Winrich Kolbe.
"Unimatrix Zero" is a two-part episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the cliffhanger between 26th episode of the sixth season and the first episode of the seventh season. Starfleet's USS Voyager, stranded on the other side of the Galaxy, once again encounters a race of cybernetic organisms called the Borg as the ship journeys back to Earth.
"Basics" comprises the 42nd and 43rd episodes of the science fiction television Star Trek: Voyager, the cliffhanger between the second season and the third season.
"Future's End" is a two-part episode from the third season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, the eighth and ninth of the season and the 50th and 51st overall. "Future's End" made its debut on American television in November 1996 on the UPN network in two separate broadcasts, on November 6 and 13, 1996.
"Shattered" is the 157th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, aired on the UPN network. It is the 10th episode of the seventh season.
"Prophecy" is the 160th episode of the TV series Star Trek: Voyager, the 14th episode of the seventh season. It deals with Klingon religious beliefs and stem cells. Starship Voyager, making its way home after being flung to the other side of the galaxy, encounters an old Klingon starship.
"Twisted" is the 22nd episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the sixth episode in the second season. Set in the 24th century, the Starfleet ship U.S.S. Voyager is stranded in the Delta Quadrant on the opposite side of the Galaxy from Earth in the Alpha Quadrant. In this episode, a spacial anomaly distorts the ship and the crew must work through their relationships amidst difficult and constantly changing surroundings.
"Workforce" is a two-part episode from the seventh and final season of the TV series Star Trek: Voyager. Part one was directed by Allan Kroeker, and part two by Roxann Dawson. The crew of the USS Voyager finds themselves working on a planet, but troubling memories are resurfacing.
"The Killing Game" is a two-part episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, the 18th and 19th episodes of the fourth season. It is set in the 24th century aboard a starship returning to Earth after having been stranded on the other side of the Galaxy.
"Before and After" is the 63rd episode of the science-fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, and the 21st episode of the third season. It foreshadows events seen in a later episode, "Year of Hell". The episode debuted on UPN on April 9, 1997. This episode is focused on the alien and crew member Kes, played by actress Jennifer Lien, in a plot involving a complicated time travel paradox with the USS Voyager. In this science fiction show, the USS Voyager is a 24th century star ship stranded on the other side of the Galaxy as Earth, and must make its way back over what may be decades with motley collection of Starfleet, Maquis, and aliens as crew.
"Prey" is the 84th episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, the 16th episode of the fourth season, and the second episode of the Hirogen story arc. The episode centers upon a member of Species 8472, who escapes capture by the Hirogen, and boards Voyager. This results not only in an uneasy alliance between the Voyager crew and the Hirogen hunting the alien, but tension between Janeway and Seven, who harbor different ideas about how to resolve the situation.
"Scorpion" is a two-part episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager that served as the last episode of its third season and the first episode of its fourth season. "Scorpion" introduced the Borg drone Seven of Nine and Species 8472 to the series.