Phage (Star Trek: Voyager)

Last updated
"Phage"
Star Trek: Voyager episode
Episode no.Season 1
Episode 5
Directed by Winrich Kolbe
Story byTimothy De Haas
Teleplay by Brannon Braga
Skye Dent
Featured music Dennis McCarthy
Production code105
Original air dateFebruary 6, 1995 (1995-02-06)
Guest appearances
  • Cully Fredricksen - Dereth
  • Stephen Rappaport - Motura
  • Martha Hackett - Seska
Episode chronology
← Previous
"Time and Again"		Next →
"The Cloud"
Star Trek: Voyager season 1
List of episodes

"Phage" is the 5th episode of the first season of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager . The episode originally aired on February 6, 1995, on the UPN network, and was directed by Winrich Kolbe. 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.

Contents

Voyager's crew beams deep into a planet they hope is rich in fuel for their resource-deprived spacecraft, but they are thwarted when aliens steal a crew member's lungs. [1]

This episode aired on the United Paramount Network (UPN) on February 6, 1995. [2]

Plot

An away team is beamed into a network of caverns in a planetoid to search for dilithium deposits. In the course of the search, Neelix is attacked by a previously undetected alien and left in a state of shock. He is beamed directly to the ship's sickbay where it is discovered that his lungs have been transported out of his body. The Emergency Medical Hologram keeps him alive by projecting a pair of holographic lungs into his torso using the sickbay's holographic emitters. As a result, Neelix must remain absolutely motionless, able only to talk, for the rest of his life or until his lungs are recovered.

Another away mission is quickly organized to find the perpetrator and retrieve Neelix's lungs. They return to the planetoid and discover an alien facility behind sophisticated cloaking technology, and conclude that the facility is being used to store organic material, particularly respiratory organs. The aliens escape the planetoid on a ship, and Voyager goes in pursuit. Eventually Voyager catches up with them and captures the two alien life forms aboard the ship. An interrogation reveals that they are Vidiians, an alien race that have been suffering for generations from an incurable disease called the Phage. The Vidiians harvest organs from other races to replace their own in an attempt to outpace the degeneration caused by the Phage.

It transpires that Neelix's lungs have already been transplanted into one of the aliens, and Captain Kathryn Janeway's ethical obligations force her to let them go rather than condemn the alien to death by retrieving the lungs. In response to her leniency, the aliens offer to help Neelix, and provide the expertise necessary to perform a transplant from another crew member, a procedure which the Medical Hologram originally considered impossible due to anatomical incompatibility. Neelix receives a donor lung from his partner, Kes.

Reception

Reviewers Lance Parkin and Mark Jones found Neelix (played by Ethan Phillips) "too irritating" to care whether he died or not, but revelled in the performance of Robert Picardo as the holographic Doctor. [3] The story is similar to that of "Spock's Brain", an episode from the original series in which aliens harvest Spock's brain. [3]

In 2004 the website Trek Today called the episode "Voyager's first really successful issue-oriented episode, "Phage" had everything going for it - terrific characterization, a frightening new alien adversary, a complex decision on the part of the captain." [4]

In 2016, Empire ranked this the 44th best out of the top 50 episodes of all 700-plus Star Trek television episodes. [5]

In 2021, Nerdist said this was one of the top ten Star Trek episodes with first alien contact, praising the disgusting Vidiians as the best enemy alien species of the early seasons. [6]

Video releases

This episode was released on LaserDisc in Germany in 1996, paired with "The Cloud" for 49 DEM. [7] 1st Season Vol. 3 included "Phage" with the German language title Transplantationen and "The Cloud" as Der Mysteriöse Nebel on a single double sided 12" LaserDisc, with a German audio Dolby Surround soundtrack. [7]

See also

Related Research Articles

The Doctor (<i>Star Trek: Voyager</i>) Fictional character from Star Trek: Voyager

The Doctor, an Emergency Medical Hologram, is a fictional character portrayed by actor Robert Picardo on the television series Star Trek: Voyager, which aired on UPN between 1995 and 2001. He is an artificial intelligence manifesting as a holographic projection, designed to act as a short-term supplement to the medical staff of a starship during emergency situations. However, when the starship Voyager is stranded on the far side of the galaxy with no surviving medical personnel, he is forced to act as the ship's chief medical officer for several years. In an example of the Star Trek franchise's exploration of artificial intelligence, a simple software program becomes a major character in the show.

Kes (<i>Star Trek</i>) Star Trek character

Kes is a fictional character on the American science fiction television show Star Trek: Voyager. She is portrayed by actress Jennifer Lien. Set in the 24th century of the Star Trek universe, the series follows the crew of the starship USS Voyager, stranded far from home and struggling to get back to Earth. Kes is a member of the Ocampa who joins the crew in the series' premiere episode along with her Talaxian boyfriend, Neelix. She subsequently works as the Doctor's medical assistant and develops her mental abilities with Tuvok's assistance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Paris</span> Fictional character from Star Trek

Lieutenant Thomas Eugene "Tom" Paris is a fictional character in the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager and is portrayed by Robert Duncan McNeill. Paris is the chief helmsman, as well as a temporary auxiliary medic, of the USS Voyager, a Starfleet ship that was stranded in the Delta Quadrant by an alien entity known as the Caretaker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kazon</span> Fictional species portrayed as interstellar gangsters in Star Trek: Voyager

The Kazon are a fictional alien race in the Star Trek franchise. Developed by Star Trek: Voyager series' co-creators Rick Berman, Michael Piller, and Jeri Taylor, the Kazon serve as the primary antagonists during the show's first two seasons. They are represented as a nomadic species divided into eighteen separate sects, and characterized by their reliance on violence. A patriarchal society, the Kazon have a low opinion of women, and place pride in men becoming warriors and proving themselves in battle. The Kazon storylines frequently revolve around the attempts of Jal Culluh and his Kazon sect to steal technology from the USS Voyager, with the assistance of former Voyager ensign Seska. During the second season, the Voyager crew uncover more about the alien species' history and culture through a temporary truce. In their final major appearance, the Kazon successfully commandeer Voyager, but are eventually forced to surrender and retreat. The alien species have minor cameo appearances and references in the show's subsequent seasons, and have also been included in Star Trek Online and novels set in the Star Trek universe.

"Someone to Watch Over Me" is the 116th episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, the 21st episode of the fifth season. It was directed by cast member Robert Duncan McNeil.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vidiians</span> Fictional alien race in the Star Trek franchise

The Vidiians are a fictional alien race in the Star Trek franchise. Developed by Star Trek: Voyager series' co-creators Rick Berman, Michael Piller, and Jeri Taylor, they serve as recurring antagonists during the show's first two seasons. They are represented as a nomadic species suffering from a pandemic known as the Phage, which destroys their tissue. A society with highly developed medical technology, the Vidiians harvest organs from corpses and living beings to stall the progression of the Phage, and experiment on other alien species in an attempt to develop a cure. Vidiian storylines frequently revolve around the aliens' attempts to take its Voyager crew members' organs, though a Vidiian scientist named Danara Pel serves as a love interest for The Doctor. The alien species have made minor appearances in the show's subsequent seasons, and have been included in novels set in the Star Trek universe.

"State of Flux" is the eleventh episode of Star Trek: Voyager, which was a science fiction television show that ran from 1995-2001. Recurring Voyager characters Seska and Lt. Carey star, along with the show's main cast, in an episode that sees the return of the Kazon aliens previously introduced in "Caretaker".

"The Cloud" is the sixth episode of the television series Star Trek: Voyager. It was first aired on February 13, 1995. The teleplay was written by Tom Szolosi and Michael Piller, based on a story by Brannon Braga, and directed by David Livingston.

Basics (<i>Star Trek: Voyager</i>) 26th episode of the second season and 1st episode of the third season of Star Trek: Voyager

"Basics" comprises the 42nd and 43rd episodes of the American science fiction television Star Trek: Voyager, the cliffhanger between the second season and the third season.

"Jetrel" is the 15th episode of the first season of Star Trek: Voyager. Neelix has mixed feelings as he encounters a former enemy of his alien race.

"Projections" is the 19th episode of the American science fiction television program Star Trek: Voyager. Originally slated for the first season, the episode originally aired on UPN on September 11, 1995, and tells the story of Voyager's holographic doctor having an identity crisis on the holodeck regarding whether he or the world around him is the illusion.

"Repentance" is the 159th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager airing on the UPN network. It is the 13th episode of the seventh season.

"Bride of Chaotica!" is the 106th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager airing on the UPN network, the 12th episode of the fifth season. The episode originally aired on January 27, 1999. The episode largely takes place on the holodeck, which is running a holo-program in black and white instead of the usual color. This was because of a small fire to the Bridge set that had occurred while the episode was in production; as a result the Bridge scenes were shot weeks later after the set was repaired and scenes that were originally set for the Bridge were either entirely rewritten or set on a different part of the ship. The episode satirizes numerous elements of the classic 1936 film serial Flash Gordon and classic 1939 film serial Buck Rogers.

"Twisted" is the 22nd episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the sixth episode in the second season. Set in the 24th century, on a Starfleet ship stranded on the opposite side of the Galaxy from Earth, They must spend several decades to get back because their Warp drive is too slow to get back to Earth. In this episode, the spaceship encounters a sort of anomaly in space that distorts the ship, while some aliens that Voyager took on board work through their relationship amidst the difficult surroundings.

"Lifesigns" is the 35th episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the 19th episode of the second season. It has an average fan rating of 4.2/5 on the official Star Trek website as of September, 2009.

"Warlord" is the 52nd episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the tenth episode of the third season. This is a science fiction television episode, part of the Star Trek franchise, that aired on UPN on November 20, 1996. This is the story of USS Voyager, a Federation starship stranded in the Delta Quadrant with a motley crew of Star Trek aliens, Maquis, and Starfleet. In this chapter the crew encounters the Ilari aliens, which commandeer Kes's body during political struggles on their homeworld. The crew works with factions of the aliens as Kes struggles to maintain control of her mind.

"Macrocosm" is the 54th episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the 12th episode of the third season. The title borrows the philosophical term macrocosm, definable as a larger world that mirrors what exists in a miniature world, or microcosm.

"Coda" is the 57th episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the 15th episode of the third season. This science fiction television show episode focuses on the characters Janeway and Chakotay of the Federation spacecraft USS Voyager. In the 24th century, a spaceship Captain and first officer are traveling by shuttlecraft back to USS Voyager when they have an incident.

"Once Upon a Time" is the 99th episode of the science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, the fifth episode of the fifth season.

"Night" is the 95th episode of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, the first episode of the fifth season.

References

  1. ↑ Paul Ruditis (2003). Star Trek Voyager Companion. Simon and Schuster. p. 18. ISBN   9780743417518.
  2. ↑ "Star Trek: Voyager". TVGuide.com. Retrieved 2021-02-25.
  3. 1 2 Jones, Mark; Parkin, Lance (2003). Beyond the Final Frontier: An Unauthorised Review of the Trek Universe on Television and Film. London: Contender Books. p. 276. ISBN   978-1-84357-080-6.
  4. ↑ "Star Trek Voyager: Phage" . Retrieved 13 January 2004.
  5. ↑ "The 50 best Star Trek episodes ever". Empire. 2016-07-27. Retrieved 2019-06-29.
  6. ↑ "10 Perfect STAR TREK Episodes to Watch on First Contact Day". Nerdist. Retrieved 2021-04-07.
  7. 1 2 "LaserDisc Database - Star Trek Voyager: 1st Season vol.3 [PLTGB 35211]". www.lddb.com. Retrieved 2021-02-25.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.