NOW VOYAGER

The Official Newsletter of the Kate Mulgrew Appreciation Society
*            Volume I Number 6

[Photo of Kate at Four Captains Dinner]

THE BUZZ

	Happy holiday season, folks!  This issue marks the conclusion of Volume I
(people keep asking me when we get Volume II Number 1, so I figured I'd let
you all know that).  We put the first issue together in February but didn't
actually get it to people until March last year, so we've been working at a
pretty fast clip to get six issues done in 1995; next year and henceforth
they'll be out the end of January, March, May, July, September, and
November, barring some weird situation like UPN changing the schedule
again!
	If anyone had told me when I started this newsletter that I'd do a
Christmas issue, I would have screamed--a nice Jewish girl like me?--but
that's what this installment turned out to be.  (We refer to #1 as "the
we-love-Janeway issue," #2 as "the feminist issue," #3 as "the issue with
all the trivia," #4 as "the first-season wrap-up issue," and #5 as "the J/C
issue," so since we've inadvertently been doing theme issues, what the
hell.)  We got a couple of fantastic Christmas-related stories and a review
of Roots: The Gift, so it just seemed meant to be.
	Plus we're giving you Robert Beltran as a present.  Becky, our intrepid
membership secretary, managed to snag an interview with him at Vulkon after
pulling on some connections.  Sometimes people ask me whether it's worth
all the work putting this newsletter out, and I can say conclusively: yes,
because people send me photos like the drool-inducing 8x10 of Robert
Beltran and the classy pictures of the four captains at the gala in Dallas,
which are in this issue for everyone's enjoyment.  On this page, for we
present a contrast in styles.  Kate is looking elegant and lovely as she
speaks before a high-paying crowd in Dallas, while Robert is wearing a "You
want me to sign a lizard?" expression in the autograph line in Ft.
Lauderdale (note the Now Voyager business card barely visible on the table
in front of him...thank you, Diane, for publicizing us...)
	Next issue we have an interview with Robert Picardo, whom many Now Voyager
members were privileged to see at Farpoint in Baltimore last month; he was
charming and hilarious, and we've delighted that he spoke to one of our
freelancers.  We're also expecting reports from visitors to the set and
con-goers around the country, and (now that she's gotten The Tattooed One
out of her system) our membership secretary will be hard at work on our
membership directory.  So we have lots of good stuff coming up!

Michelle

[Photo of Robert Beltran at Vulkon]
	


ALL ABOUT NOW VOYAGER

Welcome to the officially sanctioned Kate Mulgrew Appreciation Society.
This newsletter is published bimonthly by Michelle Erica Green and Paul
Anderson, 8114 Inverness Ridge Road, Potomac, MD 20854.  You can reach us
online at tigger@cais.com or thepooh@aol.com.  Send SASE for information or
$5 for sample issue, or e-mail us for the electronic edition.  Current
yearly dues, $25/U.S., $32/Canada-Mexico, $40/Overseas (U.S. funds only),
are subject to change without notice as rising printing and mailing costs
affect our ability to produce this newsletter.

This is a not-for-profit, amateur publication and is not intended to
infringe upon the rights of Paramount Pictures or any other broadcasting or
motion picture corporation.  All material herein is copyrighted by the
authors, except for the copyrights, trademarks, and patents of Paramount
Pictures and its licensees.  You may not reproduce any part of this
newsletter without written permission of the editors and/or writers.  If
you received this newsletter electronically, you may not forward it,
excerpt any part of it, post the illustrations, nor disseminate it in any
other manner without permission of the editors.

The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the editorial
staff, Kate Mulgrew, or Paramount Pictures.

Look for Now Voyager on the World Wide Web at:
http://umbc8.umbc.edu/~mpanti1/kate/kate.html.


REVIEWZZZZZZZZ

PROJECTIONS

	Really good episodes of Star Trek usually have one of three effects on me:
they make me cry, think, or laugh out loud. So far this season, we've had
one of each. The crew's loyalty to their Captain in "The 37s" brought a
tear to my eye; Chakotay's reaction to the Kazon initation ritual made me
think. "Projections" made me laugh out loud.
	This stands out among Voyager episodes so far in that it could only have
been a Voyager episode. This scenario would never have worked on any of the
other Trek series--you'd never see anyone on TNG attack an enemy with a
wire whisk or whack someone with a frying pan. Nor would you ever have a
crewmember attempt to delete his or her mates with a voice command, or
kneel down and give a long treatise about flesh and blood vs. light and
energy. At last, we're beginning to see scenes writen solely for these
characters, even if they were only part of the Doc's holographic delusion.
	Self-reflexivity has never been one of Trek's strong points, but Voyager
seems to dwell on its own nature frequently. The, "Oh, look! Another
nebula!" discussions in "The Cloud" signalled the beginning of this trend;
"Projections" brings it up again by telling us the Voyager is really just a
holographic simulation and that our heroes aren't lost in space at all. The
flashback to "Caretaker" was a brilliant self-reflexive touch that
definitely made me giggle--and think.
	As usual, Robert Picardo was a hoot as the Holodoc, complemented well by
Dwight Schultz's Barclay. I was skeptical when I heard he was going to do a
Voyager guest shot; Barclay was never one of my favorite characters. But
watching Barclay and the Doc together had me in stitches; a couple of
walking neuroses discuss the nature of existence. Wonderful stuff!
	Finally, "Projections" actually ended, it didn't just stop, as so many of
its predecessors have. Most of the loose threads were tied up neatly, and
there was even time for a final smirk at the Holodoc, reminiscent of so
many last-joke-on-the-Bridge scenes from the original series. This is great
stuff; I hope the rest of the season shapes up this well and continues to
make me laugh, cry, and think.

--Laura A. Williams

	In a word, the holodeck is the living embodiment of that most heinous of
literary crimes--the plot contrivance. Much like the "imaginary stories" of
the early Superman comic book days, the holodeck lets the writers get away
with anything and without paying the price. Characters die and come back to
life. Holocharacters both can and cannot hurt you. Laws of nature work and
do not work. In the holodeck, the hero can win, even while the villain is
winning. The only losers are the audience.
	Nevertheless, in "Projections," the holodeck idea works--perhaps because
the doctor is a hologram, the holographic world is something that we can
suddenly identify with. Because he has become important to us, the phony,
Alice-In-Wonderland world takes on meaning. Chakotay is speaking for the
audience when he says of the Holodoctor, "he's our friend and we want him
back." Modeled after the spirit of some of the better TOS episodes,
"Projections" begins with the quality of a genteel nightmare and never
loses it. Even the levity of Neelix's appearance and the comedy of Dwight
Schultz serve only to put an edge on the Holodoc's journey to holohell, in
large part due to excellent acting on the part of all and Picardo in
particular.
	If the last two episodes seemed to drag in comparison to what we've gotten
used to, "Projections" more than made up for it. It seems as though the
writers were told that everybody' would need to be in this episode and
everything needs to be on fast forward. Paris and Kim, B'Elanna and
Janeway, Neelix and Kes, Chakotay and Barclay all whirl around the doctor
like leaves in an autumn gale. He's confused--we're confused, and when
Janeway tells the computer to end the simulations and disappears
herself--well, it's quite a moment.
	For those who remember him from the good old days of The A-Team, it's
always a pleasure to see Schultz (a.k.a.Mad Dog Murdoch). The scene where
he slaps Zimmerman and gets slapped back is high comedy on the part of both
actors. Barclay's initial urge to escalate the slap and then backing down
and trying to be reasonable is a classic; another victim of the Troi
sensitivity training course.
	Kes' part in the drama is particularly well handled, for it plays off of a
certain unconscious coyness that has become part of her character. I for
one was fooled in the end [before the real end] when her seemingly innocent
banter about the doctor's calling her beautiful ends up sending him back
into the nightmare. Kate Mulgrew played her role with tremendous subtlety.
There's a vaguely dreamlike quality to the captain throughout the episode.
She is Janeway, and yet... At the end, I felt somewhat like Barclay in
TNG's "Ship In A Bottle," wanting to say: "Computer, end program," just to
make sure.
	And why destroy the ship? Actually, I feel that even this is more than
just a plot contrivance to add a little dramatic tension to the plot. There
is a nihilistic quality to the holodoctor that has shown up more than once.
Note his continuing concern that the crew might forget to shut him off in a
hopeless catastrophe. Note the constant need to remain busy. The Holodoctor
has a definite sense of loneliness, a feeling of being set apart in every
measurable sense leading to rather petty attempts to define a personal
territory. His entire world, from first memories onward, center on Voyager,
and yet he does not have any real place there. Turned off and on at the
whim of others, his existence is played out in a world over which he has no
control. That others might share those feelings of powerlessness would
never occur to him. For all of us, the frustration born of being born into
a universe we did not plan is simply part of being alive (one we usually
avoid thinking about). For the Holodoctor, that sense of frustration will
always be too large to ignore. His constant complaining over trifles is a
refection of this hopeless constant battle. He wastes most of his mental
energy dealing with it, with nothing left over to cope with smaller things
such as a messy sickbay or being handed the wrong type of tricorder.

[Projections photo]

	Through the illusion of Barclay, "Zimmerman" has his first taste of the
power he perceives in his human shipmates, and like most sips of power, the
temptation is to drink too deeply. I could almost feel his satisfaction at
being able to delete Paris from the malfunctioning 'simulation.' Going on
to delete Kim was hardly a surprise. Is it really all that amazing that a
thinking being, bedeviled with constant thoughts of personal helplessness,
would turn to thoughts of destroying the very universe in which he feels
imprisoned?
	Of course, nothing is resolved. The dilemma of the Holodoctor's
reality/unreality is far too profitable to let it find a peaceful end. Like
Mr. Spock, the duality of the doctor's nature will remain tantalizing and
forever beyond solution. For Spock the temptation to draw inward was always
the danger. For the doctor, the temptation is simply to take advantage of
the Captain's kind offer to allow him to shut himself off. In the end [the
real end] it is Kes who makes him wonder again if his definitions of
himself are real, if the luxury of self-control might not be the real
illusion. The thorny, confusing and frustratingly beautiful world that Kes
represents is almost certainly as bad as the eternal loneliness of
remaining an emergency program.
	Hence, Star Trek continues to pave the way toward a heightened moral
awareness of the rights and problems of artificial life forms. Data
presented the most superficial kind of concerns. Ultimately we should and
we will get beyond the basic problem of recognizing the thought processes,
the life behind the metal or synthetic skin. Beyond that are questions as
old as civilized thought, played out again in minds that are mirrors of our
own. For those minds the questions will be no easier or less disturbing,
the questions that try an algorithm's soul. To be or to recompile? That is
the question.

--Richard Hanson

	Simply put, this was an excellent episode! It had everything, a tight
story, good acting, and great characterization! When Brannon Braga is good,
he is really good!
	The story had a mysterious beginning and kept me guessing as to what was
going on. There were no wasted scenes. Everything contributed to the sense
of confusion and paranoia. That people we have come to know and admire
might all be holographic projections is not a pleasing thought. I just hope
that the producers don't use the old "it was all a dream" trick to get out
of actually getting the ship home. The episode made for an excellent
mystery; time went very fast, and the ending was shocking to me. I could
not tell who was real and who was not. So when the Doc is lying in sickbay
and it turns out to be another simulation, I was aghast.
	The characterization was quite good. The Doctor was very real and chock
full of personality. He of course was his usual sardonic self; his comment
about Janeway's compassion was hilarious. We get to see a bit more of
Chakotay's philosophy about people, he was quite compelling in his defense
of the Doctor as a living being even if a hologram. Neelix is absolutely
hilarious in this episode. When the Doctor is transferred to the mess hall,
he finds Neelix fighting the Kazon and screaming "Take that, you Kazon
pusshog." This is the absolute funniest line in the entire show, but he is
not just used for comic relief: he shows himself to be an effective
fighter. The other characters don't have as much to do in this episode.
	Picardo did an excellent job of showing the Doctor's confusion about what
was going on. He hinted at the Doctor's desire to be human. Dwight Schultz
was quite good as the holographic Barclay. showing how Barclay would act
without the nervous tics and stammering. But he still retained that special
endearing quality that makes me adore Barclay, warts and all.
	Now to a pet peeve of mine: Janeway's hair. The producers have been
playing around with various styles. When we saw "Caretaker" she had reddish
blonde hair pulled back in a tight bun. Now in the recreation of these
scenes, Janeway had her current hair style, the bigger bun. You know what I
think? Her hair is a changeling. Every morning, she gets up and puts the
gelatinous glob on top of her head and tells it, "Today, I want a slightly
larger bun with light brown hair.".
	Overall, an excellent episode. If the writers can keep this up, the show
will pull up from the quality of the first season.

--Shalini Gupta

	"Projections" is another well written holographic doctor episode. There is
no doubt in my mind that the Doc is one of the favorite characters of the
writers. Going within his holographic program and creating a "holographic
delusion" storyline reminds me of some of the episodes from TNG with Data
in the holodeck. There is little doubt that the Doc and Robert Picardo are
quickly becoming as dear to Voyager writers and fans as did Data and Brent
Spiner.
	This episode brings the viewer along through the twists and turns of an
apparent fatal attack on the ship and abandonment of the crew. We are sad
with the Doctor's apparent situation being the only crewmember unable to
leave the ship; we feel the loss of his friends and colleagues. Picardo
does an excellent job of portraying the usually gruff doctor's melancholy
acceptance of his situation.
	The rest of the cast and crew are of only minor importance in this
episode. This practice of single character focus in an episode is one that
I find a bit overdone; I would much rather see the character developement
played out in relation to the other characters rather than by focusing
solely on one character. Picardo is a fine actor, and his scenes and
episodes are always superb; however, I think he has gotten far more
attention and screen time than some of the other characters. Since the
beginning of this new season, we have learned little in regards to the
backgrounds of the people aboard the starship. I had hoped that in the
early second season episodes we would begin to get filled in much more than
we have.
	The plot in "Projections" kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat. I
was fooled by the "false resolution" even though I am usually able to catch
that convention when it comes down. The action and suspense was well done
and the acting was fine. The only thing that let me down about this episode
is that the rest of the crew doesn't get this great of attention from the
writers.

--Siobhan Wolf

ELOGUIM

	First reaction: The most jaw-droppingly amazing episode in the history of
the franchise. Two plotlines for the price of one, linked by the, um, most
powerful of natural urges. Chakotay spots two hapless crewmembers liplocked
in the turbolift, gets his panties in a wad, and tries to get the captain
to declare a "no kissing" rule. Can you spot the hidden motive in the
flirtatious First Officer's fussiness? Janeway cops to the challenge and
chirps coyly about crew cohabitation while batting her baby blues--on the
bridge! Chew on that, Chakotay!
	The Voyager looks for a hazard to charge into, and finds a giant blob of
ejaculate in space. Sets the tone! So they swim around in that for a while,
pretending not to notice the obvious--golly, what are those little wiggly
things? Meanwhile, Kes gets hungry and wants to make babies! Neelix
envisions dirty diapers. They ask a Vulcan and a hologram for advice, but
Kes decides that her career as a medical
trainee/horticulturalist/telepath/assistant cook/pilot distraction must
come first. Still, Janeway discusses the birds and the bees in a
head-to-head over steaming soup bowls! Chakotay blows hard to cool his off.
Does he regret having broached the subject at all? No, he's getting warmer,
and uses the phrase "sexual attraction" wherever possible for the rest of
the episode!
	Voyager wriggles out of an embarrassing predicament by catering to the
perverse whims of the biggest flying gonad you ever saw.  Check it out, if
only to hear Tuvok say, "Captain, we appear to have lost our sex appeal."
Janeway demonstrates she's not afraid of harassment lawsuits, and Chakotay
seems a lot more cheerful than he was in the teaser! What's his next move?
Looking for that "Naked Now" virus?  Rigging the turbolift to get stuck
between decks? Tune in for the next arousing episode of "Soap Trek:
Voyeur"!

[Eloguim photo]

	Considered reaction:  A curious property of Voyager episodes is that they
frequently seem better on second viewing. To my surprise, "Eloguim" fell
into that category. It would have been difficult to do a show on sexuality
without that comedic element, which is overdone and takes the immediate
focus. But the exploration of parenthood, so often divorced from sexuality
on TV, has a depth unprecedented on Star Trek. Kes undergoes a frightening
physical change when she enters her fertile period, and must make a
momentous decision while her body is in turmoil. She is unprepared, as is
Neelix, the prospective father; as one Net poster put it, she faces teenage
pregnancy and menopause at the same time--either she has a child while
still a child herself, or never reproduces at all. Ocampan physiology has
been contrived for plot purposes and the biological implications do not
stand up to logic, but the dilemma has resonance for women in all stages of
life.
	Jennifer Lien does a wonderful job with scenes ranging from incoherent
panic to slapstick to aching indecision. Kes is at first certain she wants
a child, and Janeway has werewithal not to interfere in the decision.
Neelix has doubts about fatherhood and discusses them with Tuvok. The
contrast of the bubbly Talaxian with the reserved Vulcan, grieving for his
distant children, made an extraordinarily moving scene. Each man speaks of
fatherhood in his own way. Tuvok sees it as a great responsibility with
rewards beyond those of logic. Neelix thinks of passing on his knowledge to
a son, is reminded that he may have a daughter, and falls in love with her
before she exists. His disappointment at Kes' decision not to conceive
shows that he has realized the great potential of parenthood.
	The captain has concerns about the quality of life for children on a
starship, but has begun to think of Voyager's journey as long-term,
although she declares her intention to get home before her lover gives her
up for dead. That has the ring of bravado, and is a poignant reminder that
as far as anyone in the Alpha Quadrant knows, the crew of the Voyager are
indeed dead. Their lives must re-form around the idea that they may be
spent in space.
	The often-hinted attraction between Janeway and Chakotay became far more
obvious with this episode. What had been a gentle tap on the shoulder is
now a baseball bat to the noggin. Every scene between captain and first
officer rippled with innuendo, some of it in the script, but mostly in the
details of performance. Each seemed aware of the pitfalls of romance on the
bridge, but could not help the looks and smiles, nor resist the spontaneous
question and the suggestive quip. It is to be hoped that after dropping
this bombshell, the producers will be willing to let the thread develop
naturally. Artificially forcing the two apart or throwing them together in
some contrived fashion would be a mistake. The potential for a well-handled
relationship between these characters is breathtaking. The rules of command
protocol, the natural opposition of the Starfleet regular and the Maquis
rebel, the different styles and personalities of the captain and first
officer war against a manifestly powerful physical attraction and a deep
respect for each other's abilities and integrity. The dance of courtship
should take a long time. I hope.

--L.R. Bowen

	I don't get it. For days now I've been overhearing fans talk about all the
innuendo in this episode. I was shocked once I looked up the word
"innuendo" and forced myself to understand what it means. You really want
me to believe that this episode was about something other than a race of
space-dwelling life-forms who wanted to show their affection for each other
and for the Voyager? I just don't get it.
	Let's take a closer look at "Eloguim." Perhaps I can convince you of its
total innocence. Take the incident in the turbolift. A fresh-faced young
officer shows camaraderie for his crewmate by giving her a little peck.
Chakotay, our fine, upstanding First Officer, observes the display of
admiration and worries that it was indiscreet. He expresses his concerns to
the Captain, who tells him people will eventually "pair off" during their
long journey. The moral Chakotay voices his reticence about this sort of
coupling, and asks the Captain if she will participate in any
extracurricular activity. It is a question born of idle curiosity;
Chakotay, upright man that he is, would never extend such an invitation to
her himself. And when his eyes flicker from her face to her hair and back
again, he is searching for an honest, guileless response. He is in no way
wondering how to free the tresses and cause them to fall around her
shoulders. In response, Janeway reaffirms her devotion to Mark and gives
her first officer a look of profound respect and trust as the conversation
ends. No innuendo there, obviously.
	Together in Janeway's ready room, the two command officers discuss the
possiblity of having children aboard the Voyager. Chakotay seizes on the
idea with enthusiasm, noting that eventually they will need replacement
crew on the ship. What a practical man! He has the best interests of the
crew at heart, as always, never once wondering about his own status as a
potential genetic donor. Janeway wonders aloud what life for a child on the
Voyager would be like, stating the needs for schools and child care and the
massive commitment they would have to make. She looks to her First Officer
for support and guidance, without the slightest hint of speculation as to
his fitness to be the father of her children.
	Chakotay's discussion of "sexual rivals" has sparked some debate. Clearly
he is merely stating his opinion about the behavior of the space-dwelling
life-forms, nothing more. Surely he does not feel like a sexual rival
himself at this point. And if he did feel likesomeone's rival, for whose
attention would he be competing? Seska is long gone, and we know he is far
too virtuous to want to pursue a social relationship with his captain.
Furthermore, I do not believe he is going to roll over and turn blue at any
time in the near future.
	Finally, Janeway's comment about mating advice to Chakotay is an honest
evaluation of his knowledge of xenobiology, and a promise that in the
future all questions about the reproductive behaviors of various races will
be referred to him. Janeway makes the statement with surprised delight at
the discovery of Chakotay's hidden talents. His sweet, ingenuous, almost
bashfully childlike smile confirms the innocence of the exchange.
	I will agree, however, that there were tense moments in the episode when I
thought perhaps there was something more going on than meets the eye. The
Doctor's discussion with Kes, for example, while he massaged her feet. That
was pretty racy, wasn't it?

--Laura A. Williams

[Eloguim photo]

	With any group that fins itself lost and faced with the prospect of a
lifetime to reach home, the problem of mortality and procreation must
become a factor. Though it may be unlikely that many of the Voyager crew
have come to terms with the prospect of their own mortality at this time,
it is certain that thoughts of companionship and procreation have surfaced.
"Eloguim" does an excellent job of exploring the dilemma faced by Captain
Janeway and crew and the moral and ethical ramifications the dilemma
entails.
	Jennifer Lien does an incredible job portraying Kes' life changes and the
accompanying problems she faces because of them. It is great to see Kes
having a full range of emotions rather than the oft-seen placidity. The
alien characters are overdue for more depth. Thankfully, we also get to see
Neelix in a role other than that of the clown. His scene with Tuvok is
touching and adds a richness to his character that has been missing.
	Paralleling the mating behavior inside the ship with the mating behavior
going on with the space beings works very well. It is good to see Chakotay
getting some more screen time and a more significant role. It is ironic in
some ways that the former Maquis is the one to bring to the Captain a
concern for creating regulations about fraternization. Janeway comes
through as a true feminist heroine when she informs her First Officer that
she cannot dictate reproductive decisions to the members of her crew.
Throughout the episode, Kate Mulgrew holds her own with her portrayal of
Janeway. She has established her leadership role firmly yet with
sensitivity.
	I think this episode should be looked at as one of the bright spots of
this second season. I hope to see the writers continue this all-inclusive
use of cast and crew in episodes to come. The treatment of moral and
ethical issues has to surface if this series is going to stand up to its
predecessors; I believe "Eloguim" is a great start.

--Siobhan Wolf

	"Kes is in heat! She must have a child! Who is the father?" Sounds like an
episode of Melrose Place, doesn't it? This is what the folks who put
together the next-week-on-Voyager previews gave us to work with for
"Eloguim", and it didn't sound promising. For one thing, when Trek writers
are given women characters to work with, their first thought seems to be
"let's write them storylines about getting pregnant!" Come on, guys, you're
writing for the supposedly egalitarian 24th century, not an Afterschool
Special. The fact that women have uteruses (or other equivalent
reproductive organs) doesn't mean you have to bring it up every other
minute...how many episodes have there been about men and their prostates?
Sometimes it makes me wish there were a few guys from "Alien Nation" on
board. Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised. It was a well-written episode,
with interesting plots with wide ramifications and thoughtful discussions
about the practical considerations of being on a 75 year journey, which
it's high time they started dealing with.
	In a nutshell, Kes prematurely goes through the Ocampan equivalent of puber
ty (the eloguim) due to particle-of-the-week influence and must have a
child now if she is ever going to. Neelix reluctantly decides to become the
father (and subsequently gets kind of excited about it) but Kes then
realizes she's acting rashly and decides against it. The B plot was a
ship-in-jeopardy about a bunch of plankton that think Voyager is real hot
stuff and begin attaching themselves to it as they would to a potential
mate. Voyager escapes using tactics any gorilla knows, and life goes on.
	There were many other finer points to sink our teeth into. For the J/C
crowd, myself included, this episode almost triggered a meltdown. As they
discuss what they should do about crew fraternization and the possibility
of the need for procreation to provide replacement crew, the old sexual
tension gets thicker than pea soup (great for keeping warm on cold Alaskan
nights). And that look he gave her when he asked if she would pair off with
anyone? I thought my heart might just stop. Also we learned quite a bit
more about Tuvok's family during a great exchange between him and Neelix
concerning parenthood... seems he has three sons and a daughter. They
wisely avoided dragging Paris and his raging libido into it, and the scene
where Holodoc was massaging Kes' feet was priceless (if you have to ask,
don't).
	The question of how the Ocampa managed not to die out if each woman can
only bear one child came up frequently on the Net and I wondered that
myself...the only thing I can come up with is that multiple births are the
norm, and Kes was going to surprise poor old Neelix. I honestly think the
writers just didn't think of it. And once again, we see that Kate doesn't
feel she has to act ramrod stiff and distant in order to be an effective
captain...thank God. Hairstyle Alert: It seems Ensign Wildman and Kate go
to the same hairdresser! Is this the new Federation fad? Buns of steel?

[Eloguim photo]

	Best Trek Moment: Tuvok and Neelix discussing the differences in rearing a
daughter versus a son. Memorable Quote: Tuvok: "It seems we have lost our
sex appeal." Sexually Slanted Line O' the Episode: Auuggh! Too many
possibilities! I'm going with Janeway to Chakotay (who else): "The next
time I need advice on mating behavior, Commander, I'll know where to turn."
How about some field research, nudge nudge wink wink.

--Lori Summers

	The idea of writing an episode around a particular theme is not a new idea
with Voyager. This particular episode, like certain Sesame Streets, is
brought to you by the letter 'P'--P for Procreation, that is. While it's
true that a long voyage in space, like all long voyages, conjures images of
pairing off and all that such activity might entail, we're in deep space
now--please add a healthy dose of Alien to the recipe and stir until the
plot thickens.
	Kes faces a dilemma which adds one more sadness to an already heavy lot.
Here she is, a short-lived Ocampan, only one of her kind within a parsec,
etc. Her best friend is a holographic projection, and her consort looks
like a cross between Rick Moranis and a porcupine. She's doomed to die
young, and now we learn that she has only one shot at passing the genetic
baton. When is someone going to cut Kes a break? Maybe Ocampans find
looking like something out of The Exorcist physically exciting. Personally,
I found that moment when Kes came running to Janeway in sickbay just a
little frightening; I wasn't sure whether Kes was going to embrace the
captain or just eat her. To whom does this frightened, lonely girl have to
turn for advice concerning her future? The irony of the Holodoctor being
her only refuge has got to be just as intentional as Neelix needing to have
a man-to-man with Papa Tuvok.
	And what about Tuvok? It's obviously turning into a tradition to have sage
commentary on the human condition dished up by wise men with pointy ears.
In an age of rampant overpopulation, is it mere chance that Tuvok thinks
most parents shouldn't be parents? If the ever so calculating Vulcans could
come to such a conclusion, what the heck are we doing wrong? Best line of
the show...Tuvok, "We seem to have lost our sex appeal."
	It did get lost in there, didn't it? Anyone who still believes that sex
and romance are inseparable should be locked in a room and forced to watch
'Eloguim.' 'P' is for 'Problem.' From Kes' dilemma to the Ensign's
apologetic announcement, there is not one uplifting commentary on this
fundamental biological act, unless it is the wonder of what is happening
all around the ship itself, out there in the cold vacuum of space. Through
it all, Voyager is surrounded (smacked around a bit) by the mystery of
birth. Though the captain and crew are plagued by the practical problem of
the drive to procreate, they are simultaneously trying to avoid harming
that fundamental mystery being acted out all around them. 'P' is also for
'Primal,' it would seem.
	And so from Janeway's plaintive hope that Mark will not give her up for
dead to Kes' sticky, sweaty problem to the miracle of the space creatures
to that last sad announcement of the Ensign's, this show revolves around
the inevitable drive of all living things to recreate themselves regardless
of the difficulties involved. No story like this can ever be made neat and
tidy. Certainly Kes and Neelix come to some higher level of understanding,
Chakotay gets to cast knowing glances in Janeway's general direction, and
the space creatures are left unharmed. But Tuvok is also there to remind us
that at best the process cannot be handled rationally and the ensign is
there to remind us of what lies at one end of that process. It is an
endless problem that will rear up to confront the crew again as it has
confronted all living things since the beginning of life. For not being
preachy, for not being conveniently neat and tidy, we owe the writers a
debt of gratitude. After all, life is neither neat nor tidy.

--Richard Hanson

	This episode was fantastic from the opening scene in the turbolift to
Janeway's remark about "mating behavior"; I was in bliss. Poor
Chakotay--lighten up and give those poor lovestruck crewmembers a break.
There's precious little else to do seventy years from home. Fraternization
policy indeed. Just watch Janeway and Chakotay play tag with their
eyes--one stares intently at the other, then looks away lest they get
caught. And just what does he find so fascinationg about her hair? Perhaps
he's wondering how best to remove the pins so it cascades over her... Never
mind. I can't wait to see if and how he reacts to her haircut next week in
"Parturition"!
	"Mr. Paris, roll the ship." Oh, Lord, I was in hysterics! Maybe if Voyager
had mated with the lifeform, they could have had little Voyagers to replace
the shuttles they seem determined to blow up every other week. No? Just a
thought. This entire show was worth watching just to see Robert Beltran
grin. I'm hopeless, I know; as infectious as the smile is though, I hope
they don't overuse it. It's such a treat when it appears unexpectedly. Jeri
Taylor--keep 'em coming, and if you need more story ideas, "roll the ship"
and call me!

--Becky Olsen

	"Elogium" is a flawed show, but one which deals with interesting
questions--and contains some very entertaining moments. The most obvious
problems are, as so often, scientific. Voyager encounters a most improbable
herd of critters, moving through the near-vacuum of space by means of
flagellation at speeds of up to 3000 kilometers per second and apparently
subsisting on space dust. There's one big one and a whole bunch of little
ones; Janeway refers to the big one as "he," but analogies to Terran
insects suggest it might well be a "she."  Kes' race, the Ocampa, are
revealed to produce only one child per woman per lifetime, through a rather
lengthy and complicated mating process. You don't have to have a math
degree to figure out that this would lead to extinction, especially since
we've seen the Ocampa and they do not seem to have a predominantly female
population. On the human reproductive front, Ensign Wildman claims to have
discovered only a few days ago a pregnancy which presumably began before
Voyager's current mission. Either there's been a decline in
pregnancy-testing technology since the late twentieth century, or Voyager
has been out there for a much shorter period of time than we think, or
Ensign Wildman's husband ought to insist on a DNA test if Voyager ever gets
back to Federation space.
	The show is thought- as well as nitpick-provoking, however.  Due to the
effects of the space worms on Kes's system, she and Neelix are faced with
the necessity of deciding on very short notice whether or not they wish to
have a child. Their struggles, together and separately, with this decision
are plausible and moving, though the resolution at the end of the show is a
little cheap. Janeway and Chakotay also muse on the question of
reproduction, an obvious and difficult issue on a ship which is not
designed for families but may not return home before all the biological
clocks aboard have run down.  (Chakotay's about-face on the issue is, to be
sure, a little awkward).  Ensign Wildman's situation, being alone and
pregnant with a child whose father may never learn of its existence, is a
poignant one.  This is not generic space opera; the writers are considering
the implications of Voyager's specific situation (which I for one continue
to find a very interesting and moving one).
	For the numerous fans who like to speculate about a possible romantic
involvement between the captain and her first officer, "Eloguim" is great
fun.  The teaser earns its name with a splendid little exchange in which
Janeway voices the opinion that the crew are likely to begin to pair off
and Chakotay rather cheekily asks, "Including you?" The resolution of the
space-worm problem by means of Voyager's rolling over and turning blue also
results in a couple of memorable lines. Despite its acknowledged (and
irritating) flaws, "Elogium" effectively combines serious issues, humor,
and sex.

--Jennifer Loehlin

	I was really dreading this episode. The teaser made it sound like Kes was
going into heat and then schtupping most of the men on the ship. Instead,
it turned into a pretty decent episode that dealt with a lot of important
issues surrounding the decision of whether or not to have children. On top
of which Jennifer Lien turned in a dynamite performance which transformed
many potentially awkward moments into intense dramatic scenes.
	As a woman who is child-free by choice, I was very worried that this
episode might turn into a "all women want children" story, which is
patently untrue. So when Tuvok told Neelix that one shouldn't become a
parent unless one really wants to, I was overjoyed. For once, a mainstream
television show has validated being child-free as a positive choice and not
a regrettable twist of fate. And when Kes decided not to have a child after
all, effectively overcoming her "biological clock," I was even happier. But
still, I did want someone to be pregnant. I didn't want Voyager to dodge
the issue completely. And somebody is. And she's a single parent. Let's
just hope that the show follows through on this plot thread. I want to see
a baby.
	I was a little put off by the whole "space swarm" plot. It was interesting
until they started calling the big creature "he" which just didn't make
sense. Queen bees are significantly larger than their drones. Eggs are
significantly larger than sperm. If anything, that large one was female. I
actually thought it made more sense to postulate that it was the mother and
the others were her children, so when they kept talking about the large one
as "he" I found it rather annoying. Gender dimorphism doesn't always result
in larger males.
	Now, I do have one major nit to pick. It's this "one chance to have a
baby" thing--if every Ocampan woman only has one chance to have a child,
and they're not prone to multiple births (Kes said nothing to support
that), then the population of the Ocampa should be shrinking constantly.
Even if you postulate a society with more women than men that allows for
polygamy, there will be less and less Ocampa every generation until they
just disappear. Somehow this seems to be evolutionarily maladaptive. But
overall, I was very impressed with this episode. The teasers promised
something awful, but in the end, they pulled through and delivered a well
constructed, interesting, challenging episode.

--Jennifer Pelland (Siubhan)

[Eloguim photo]

NON SEQUITUR

	Most people have had dreams where reality and the dream state become
overlapped, usually just before wakefulness. It's an odd moment when one
has to come to grips with hard facts and let go of the more pliable world
of dreams. I find it interesting that Harry's dream world begins where most
people's ends. Other than that, there's not a lot that I can say in a
positive sense about this episode.
	In the midst of a largely throwaway story, we see that there is an alien
race that thinks nothing of messing with the time stream, but is moralistic
enough to chase after victims and make sure they're okay. Maybe if they
just stopped messing with the time stream...but no. I wonder if all their
guardians pose as bad imitations of French restauranteers complete with
campy joie de vivre cliches. Perhaps their only experience of humanity has
come from viewing American Movie Classics. We see that the writers also
thought the Tom Paris character deserved some extra development--he still
does. We see that someone actually bought into the superficial, "I just
want my lover to be like all the other men," female role played to far
better effect in a plethora of SF movies. And sadly, we also see that
rising young Starfleet officers kiss up to management with all the natural
talent we would expect at any 20th century advertising agency.
	The very evening I saw this episode I had a dream. It started out with my
being sure I heard the voice of Katharine Hepburn telling me she was
pulling alongside my shuttlecraft, but it drifted off into something very
different, and a little frightening. I found myself in a chamber lined with
television screens and a voice came out of nowhere that said: "I am the
demon Azathoth, Lord of creative programming and parking permits. I am
greatly displeased with the last episode of Voyager. I regret that I
created the minds that created it. I think I'm going to destroy the whole
thing and do reruns of Three's Company in its place."
	At this I was sore afraid and fell down on my knees. "Oh Lord," said I.
"Far be it from thee to destroy an excellent program just because of one
below-average show. Garret Wang is a fine actor and character development
is an important part of creative television."
	"That's not character development!!" bellowed Azathoth, "that's most of
the cast taking the week off and leaving the kid holding the bag. And what
a pathetic storyline. As if we haven't put up with enough time distortions
already."
	Azathoth definitely had something here. One has to wonder how far one can
stray from the constraints of a set plot to develop its characters. The
subject of time has been woefully overdone on the screen (largely by
Paramount), and the most astute viewer would be sorely pressed to locate
one new comment on the subject. If it is true that Art is a mirror placed
before reality, then what we see in this week's mirror is the immortal
ability of mankind to rummage through the trashbin for a source of
creativity. Of course, Star Trek takes liberties with our sense of time and
place and plot--most television shows do. But only a foolish writer
believes that anything goes simply because the world they're describing is
science fiction, or that the viewers will continue to put up with the same
plot dressed up in new disguises. It seems clear that "Non Sequitur" was
put together hastily and wastefully.

--Richard Hanson

	Alternate realities can be fascinating explorations of "what if," a way to
see familiar characters under different circumstances, a treat for the
actors, a dilemma of conflicting alternatives. "Non Sequitur" wasted all
these opportunities. Its greatest flaw was the almost total exclusion of
the regulars in order to showcase Harry Kim.
	Garrett Wang doesn't quite have the chops to keep all the scenes
involving, and the writing lacked snap. His dilemma was shallow, not
conveying any sense of urgency. If he had left well enough alone and had
displayed a little more resourcefulness, he could have lived happily in the
alternate reality with very little on his conscience. The only reasons
given for restoring the "correct" state of things were the fact that a
friend of his had taken his place and was now lost with the Voyager, and
that Tom Paris had missed the bus from DS9 and was now fulfilling his
destiny as a drunkard.
	Neither of these functioned as much of a motivation, due to limp dialogue
and limper performances. The plot holes overall were depressingly numerous,
the resolution a technobabble snoozer, and Harry's big love scene almost
entirely unerotic. The one surprise was the alien cappucino man keeping an
eye on Harry's misadventures. But what the heck is "Vulcan mocha"? Probably
just sounds cool, like "French toast."  Star Trek Law of Fictional Physics
#57: Temporal anomalies, wherever encountered, lead directly to San
Francisco. But darn it all, you can't see the Transamerica Pyramid from the
Mission District. I don't care how many earthquakes they've had in three
hundred years. If you're going to set all those episodes in S.F., go down
to Triple A and get a map, for pete's sake.

--L.R. Bowen

[Twisted photo]

TWISTED

	"Some day my prince will come..." C'mon, be honest. Didn't anyone else
expect Chakotay to kiss Janeway to awaken her from the evil spell? Barring
a reenactment of "Sleeping Beauty," I expected the closing scene from The
Wizard of Oz: Janeway awakens, sits up and says "It was all a dream. And
you were there--and you--all of you were there!" The only person missing
was Neelix, who would've made a great Toto!
	Simply another fun episode. Doc as bartender? This was redeemed only by
the fact that he spent much of the episode fending off the advances of
Sandrine. I must admit, I'd rather see her chase him than poor Harry Kim.
The scene in the corridor between Chakotay and Neelix was priceless. Having
spent the previous two days in a room full of 1500 predominantly female
Chakotay fans, I nearly choked when Neelix said, "Come now, a handsome man
like yourself?" and speculated on Chakotay's romantic past! It was very big
 time when Chakotay expounded on his philosophy of love (you know
me--a J/C fan to the end!) I loved the blatant relief on his face when
Janeway was "cured." And no, I didn't think for a minute that there was
anything remotely suspicious about B'Elanna holding his hand near the end.
Cripes--they all thought they were going to die. My husband (who swears he
doesn't like the show, but I know better) lost his cool when Tuvok came
suspiciously close to reaching for Janeway. From the other room I heard,
"No! You're a Vulcan, for god's sake..." Ahh..the emotions that are stirred
by these little episodes!
	In this one episode we got so much. We had Chakotay taking control of the
ship in Janeway's absence, doing things his way. We also had a bit of
clearing of the air between Chakotay and Tuvok. I suppose confession is
good for the soul, but where was the group hug? Alas, we still didn't get
to see B'Elanna's spirit guide or hear Chakotay utter the three forbidden
words to the captain... Ah, well...there's always fan fiction!

--Becky Olsen

	From the previews, "Twisted" looked like it had potential. It could have
been a kind of trippy mind-bending funhouse like "Frame of Mind" or
"Phantasms." Well...it wasn't. In fact, this episode sucked, not to put too
fine a point on it. And that's from a loyal Voyager fan...oh well, they
can't all be good. Remember TNG's "Shades of Gray?" Anyway, "Twisted" had a
boring, inexplicable plot full of holes that somehow degenerated into a
stomach-churning love-in. During a surprise birthday party for Kes, which
was sort of fun, especially seeing Doc Holodeck in a beret as the bartender
at Sandrine's, the ship encounters a ring-shaped spatial distortion anomoly
thingy...which right away introduces Plot Hole #1: if it's a ring, why not
fly straight up and go around it? Trek writers are forever forgetting that
space is three-dimensional. If the anomoly surrounded them completely, then
it must have been a sphere, not a ring...and it's not as if the sphere is
an alien concept to them...the Tholian Web was spherical, the Dyson sphere
was...well, you get the idea. They're familiar with the concept. Anyway, it
starts twisting the ship around, although not randomly and bizarrely as you
might expect, but neatly transposing decks and quarters in a perfectly
orderly fashion so that they appear normal on first inspection...
	Plot Hole #2. The entire first half of the episode drags by like the
Bataan Death March as crew members wander around the ship saying variations
on lines like "I thought this was Deck 5!" and "I'm trying to get to
Engineering." Janeway is injured by the distortion after a completely
random revelation to Harry in the Jeffries tube about how great she thinks
he is, and they essentially end up with no other choice but to wait it out
and hope they survive, which of course works...I guess there's something to
be said for the old laissez-faire approach. At one point they reconstruct a
picture of the twisted ship, which is convoluted like a Dali painting,
bringing up Plot Hole #3...
	...the schematic appears all twisty but the actual ship around them always
looks normal except for misplaced rooms. As if that weren't bad enough,
while the crew waits for the distortion to pass through them in the
holodeck, they suddenly start confessing their true feelings to each other
and it's just disgusting. I have nothing against emotions nor the
expression of them, but I came out of that sequence feeling like I'd just
been smothered head to toe in whipped cream. And then, to add insult to
injury, they drug out the oldest cliche in the book, the old "someone was
trying to communicate with us" bit, in a vain effort to engender a
cliffhanger feel. All in all probably the weakest episode so far. They
might have saved it with really cool special effects, but no such luck.
Just some fuzzy process shots and film warping that were all too
reminiscent of a "Wayne's World" dream sequence. And in the teaser when
Tuvok's comm signal began distorting, all I could think was "I'm tripping,
I'm tripping..."
	Enough already with the Neelix/Kes/Paris love triangle...and it looks like
that's all coming to a head next week. Not even any material for us J/C
folks to cling to. One bright spot: I always have wondered how Tuvok really
felt about Chakotay becoming first officer instead of him. And the saving
grace for me was the sight of the Big C's big gorgeous grin during the
birthday party. Sigh, swoon.

--Lori Sommers

	"Twisted" started out with promise. The storyline, yet another space
anomaly-cum-life form plot, takes the viewer along right up until the
ending. It fell flat for me when B'Elanna announced that information had
been downloaded into the computer. Janeway concludes that the life-form
must have been trying to communicate with them. That goes without saying.
The writers let both the viewer and Kate Mulgrew down in giving Janeway
that line; had this been TNG, Picard would have figured out what the
message had been.
	This pattern concerns me. It is the same problem I saw in "Initiations"
and "Projections". Maybe the story is drawn out a bit too much throughout
the hour, and the development of the plot leading up to the climax needs to
be speeeded up just a bit. For me it is not an acceptable solution to hurry
the ending to solve it. The cast was given a lot to work with in this
episode. I think the writers left them hanging. I hope this is not a trend
that continues.

--Siobhan Wolf

	I liked "Twisted" right up until the last two minutes. So--it was an
alien-human information transfer and someone did a major DL/UL on Voyager's
computers?  Sigh.  If the writers couldn't drag a more convincing
explanation for the physical manifestations out of their tired brains than
that, I wish they'd've left it at "subspace anomaly."  And I suppose we'll
never hear another word about the information they're supposed to havegotte
n dumped on them, either.
	Up until then, though, the episode presented an interesting problem--a
birthday party that slowly turns into a funhouse adventure where no one can
find their way to their duty stations.  Tuvok looks particularly chagrined
about losing the bridge.  The premise is a ready-made excuse for another
set of "everyone wander around with tricorders and chat" scenes. The
Captain praises Kim, who looks extremely pleased but also surprised (don't
these people get fitness reports?). Neelix again acts as the voice of the
audience when he starts elaborately praising Chakotay's effect on women.
(Having just attended Vulkon, I can guarantee Robert Beltran has that
effect--so I guess it's safe to assume that women in the Star Trek universe
aren't immune to his charms.) But Chakotay refuses to be flattered and
stops Neelix's more elaborate flights of fancy by simply turning toward him
and looking down his nose. Since he's a good foot taller than Neelix, the
effect is almost one of stepping on the little man.
	The only scene I really didn't like was the flare-up from Chakotay when
Tuvok started talking about having the captain's confidence. I can't see a
man of Chakotay's experience losing his temper like that.  Folks resort to
shouting when they either have inadequate training or are extremely
insecure, neither of which really describes Chakotay most of the time. I
just wish the writers would figure out who he is and keep him in character.
	Then, of course, we have the all-prepare-for-probable-death scene. Too
many people blunted the effect. But that little bit of business with Tuvok
sliding his hand down the chair arm toward the Janeway's shoulder was
beautiful. We really should start touchy-feely counts for other characters.
Chakotay and Paris both seem to be getting into the act--and even Tuvok if
we count intent.  The fact that others are joining into the touching does
much to ease my most severe criticism of Janeway--that she can't keep her
hands to herself. If 24th century culture permits this sort of touching,
than I'll accept it from her.

--Barbara Leflar Jackson

[Parturition photo]

	This episode blew me away!  The very idea of the Voyager twisting and
twirling out of shape, causing the crew to become hopelessly lost, boggles
the mind.
	The surprise birthday party for Kes was alternately funny and touching.
Seeing Doc as the barkeep was a scream!  The blue birthday cake Neelix
baked looked soooo delicious--bet everyone wished they could have had a
piece before duty called!  Still, why does Neelix have to be so jealous?
Every time another man even smiles at Kes he gets hot and bothered.  Chill
out, already!
	What happened to Janeway was really scary.  First her arm flexed around
like rubber, then she couldn't hear or see straight.  Kate's customary
excellent performance made me all but feel Janeway's pain.
	All in all another perfect example of how Voyager is the best thing UPN
has going for it.

--Roger Hurst

[Parturition photo]

PARTURITION

	Any television anthology series can do a story on how being stressed can
bring people together...how the very things that seem to drive us apart can
function in a way to bring us closer. But Voyager went a bit farther than
that this week... It made a point of showing how an act of compassion for
something outside of ourselves can serve to unite us, even transform us.
	Neelix's jealousy over Kes has become a stock feature of Voyager--ditto
Tom Paris' failure complex. So far, the only thing that's saved Paris from
becoming the caricature that is Neelix is a lack of air time. Finally the
writers ask the question that most of us started asking long ago: Can this
be all there is to a character? More constructively, and more to the point,
how do these characters move beyond the realm of knee-jerk predictability?
At first glance, the story wouldn't seem to serve as an opportunity for
change. Paris and Neelix already despise one another. Add to this the
effects of a shuttle crash and a toxic atmosphere. Doesn't sound nice, does
it?
	Best line? When Paris and Neelix show up in the Captain's ready room,
pasta stains and all, and admit they're having unresolvable personality
conflicts--"Solve them," says Janeway, with that calm intimidating tone
that still takes me by surprise every time she pulls it. Kirk just never
sounded that threatening! Too busy emoting, I guess. Honorable mention? The
holodoctor: "I'm a doctor, not a voyeur." This may be getting out of hand.
Chakotay is beginning to assert a calmly nasty sense of humor with Tuvok.
One of these days I fully expect the Vulcan to say something like, "I know
it is not logical, Commander, but I want to smack you sooo bad!"
	But I digress. While Chakotay pokes fun at Tuvok and Kes gets the Ocampan
variation on the vapors upon learning that the menfolk are starting to
fight over her--while B'Ellana mutters Klingon curses over the transporters
and Janeway pretends she doesn't have a new hairdo--Neelix and Paris are
giving one another a rash down on Hell over a newborn whatsit? In the
process they're finding something inside themselves and inside each other
that they can respect. This is where they both have to have the courage and
the need to move away from the stereotypical characters they were: an act
of compassion toward something else.
	For Voyager, this is how the journey began and how it continues. The
voyage started when the captain chose to put the good of the Ocampans ahead
sending themselves back home. Poetically, every decision since then has
echoed that first critical act. Compassion sets the stage for the destiny
of the ship, and for each member of the crew. Even in the very end, Neelix
and Paris wait, risking their own safety. Will the mother accept her
offspring? Neelix says it best when he said that he chose his own friends.
Compassion requires choice and the requisite courage to make the choice.
	I'm sure that many will consider this a rather foolish episode. The food
fight in the galley, the alien offspring looking like a cross between the
Alien and something out of the Muppets. Undoubtedly, the decisions of Paris
and Neelix are foolish enough in the light of, say, Vulcan debit/credit
logic, but even Tuvok has admitted that some important things are
stubbornly illogical--even Spock would grant that in the end, logic alone
is not enough. It is compassion that creates the essence of Voyager,
transforming a short mission into an epic odyssey. For Neelix and Paris, it
creates a life beyond mere kneejerk reactions to emotional threats and the
memories of failures past.
	With any luck, the writers will not forget what they have done. Jealousy
and bitterness are both selfish emotions, and it isn't faith that gives us
the courage to leap beyond them. It's love and concern...simple human
compassion. Once qualities like this sneak into the soul, one can never
again go back to being quite so shallow. Neelix and Paris, in their effort
to save the life of the newborn, recognize their essential goodness. It's
that recognition that brings them together as friends. So Voyager continues
on in the same fashion that it began. Compassion leads the way.

--Richard Hanson

	"Parturition" is another great episode. Kudos to the writers this time and
to the directing of Jonathan Frakes. This episode was fun from beginning to
end with a little seriousness thrown in for good measure. I am glad to see
that the use of humor which this cast does so well is being put to good
use.
	Again we see Kes with a full range of emotions. We also get to see yet
another side to both Paris and Neelix. Though I cannot for a moment imagine
why, it is very clear that Kes is truly in love with Neelix. That Tom Paris
respects that and struggles with his own feelings rather than acting them
out gives us wonderful tension-filled scenes the likes of which I would
love to see more of.
	This new reptilian/humaniod species is intriguing. Though there may be
some question about the quality of the special effects with the baby and
its hatching, it is wonderful to see a Delta Quadrant species that does not
look like a human with either feathers instead of hair or different ears.
It is too bad that the contact was so limited, but I hope that we will see
this species again at a future time. I have often felt, while watching this
series, that the Delta Quadrant feels pretty empty. I hope that we will
continue to see an expanding range of alien life forms in physical bodies.
	Overall this was a very enjoyable episode. I do hope that it has finally
put an end to Neelix's jealousy of Paris. The writers would do well to
continue pushing this new relationship as well as deepening other
combinations of relationships throughout the crew.

--Siobhan Wolf


KATHRYN JANEWAY, FEMINIST HEROINE

*I have no idea whether Jim considers himself a feminist or not; I didn't
ask.  All I know is that he can write for this column any time!*

WHERE THE BOYS ARE:  ONE MALE PERSPECTIVE ON CAPTAIN JANEWAY
By Jim Ogilvie (doczim@inforamp.net)

	When Star Trek: Voyager was announced as the latest series, there was a
great deal of attention paid to one of the newest twists in this newest
Star Trek spinoff.  Voyager would be the first Star Trek series to feature
a female in the starring role--Kate Mulgrew, playing the role of Captain
Kathryn Janeway.
	For the first time, a female captain of a starship is boldly going where
no one has gone before. Since Voyager has aired, there has been some debate
and a lot of public opinion as to the logic behind putting a female Captain
in charge of this mission. As one might expect, women in general seem to
feel that it is about time that a female Captain was running the show. The
male perspective, however, seems curiously muted. I hope to change that
with some thoughts of my own on the subject.
	First, a little history. It should be no surprise to anyone who has
followed the Star Trek legacy that Captain Janeway is not the first female
to be given command of a starship. In fact, the captain of the U.S.S.
Enterprise-C was Rachel Garrett (TNG, "Yesterday's Enterprise"). Geordi
LaForge's mother, Silva, was captain of the U.S.S. Hera (TNG, "Interface");
rumors are persistent that Janeway will find the lost captain and her ship
in the Delta Quadrant during an episode of Voyager at some point in time.
In fact, the youngest person ever to make the rank of captain was a woman,
Tryla Scott (TNG's "Conspiracy").  And finally, we all know that there are
several female Starfleet admirals who are women, the most famous likely
being Admiral Alynna Necheyev.
	In each of these cases, these fine women command figures have appeared in
only brief moments throughout the Star Trek timeline. As such, Voyager is
our first opportunity to observe  the  command  style of a woman who also
happens to be one of finest Starfleet captains ever to command a starship.
	As a male watching Voyager, I am aware of two things: First, there are men
that watch Star Trek regularly who are having a difficult time warming up
to the idea of a female captain. I attribute this mostly to the idea that a
minority of these men believe that a female captain is a guarantee that the
action factor in Voyager will be diminished.  Also, this minority of men
believe that the rough-tough Delta Quadrant needs to be commanded by a
rough-tough Kirk-like captain. These are the minority of people whom you
see on the Internet talking about the Janeway voice, the Janeway hair, in
the rather mean-spirited and tasteless fashion that all too often
accompanies anonymous online communications.
	The second thing that I am aware of is that I am really enjoying Kate
Mulgrew in her portrayal of Kathryn Janeway. Speaking as a male and Star
Trek fan, I can tell you that I do believe it is time for a female captain.
Not because it is simply fair, and that it is "her turn," but because it
makes the best of sense. Star Trek teaches us that in the 24th century,
gender bias lines (amongst humans at least) have all but vanished. We have
seen several male captains in both long and short term recurring roles
within the Star Trek universe. This move really does follow a clear logic.
	Captain Janeway is of course, a culmination of two very special people.
The first is Kate Mulgrew, a very gifted actress who devotes an absurd
amount of personal energy to the role of Janeway. Her life consists of
being a single parent, and the star of a successful major television
series. Each element of her personal life, of course, is highly
demanding--yet she manages to balance it, somehow. The character herself as
created by the producers and scripted by the writers is the other special
person that we see each week as that special combination of the creative
talents behind Star Trek.
	One only need watch Voyager for a brief period of time to realize that
Kate knows and understands Kathryn Janeway. The captain is a complex person
with exceptional leadership qualities. Above all, Janeway knows when to be
hard, when to be soft, and when a little of both is required in tandem.
This above all may be the single most important reason why the Janeway
character might not appeal to that minority of men which I spoke about
earlier. Janeway is compassionate, and we all know the stereotypical cliché
that pegs men as unable to show their feelings.
	Janeway exhibits an extraordinary amount of compassion when it comes to
considering the future of her crew. Unlike many other Starfleet officers
before her, Janeway is confronted with a unique situation and therefore
must address each crew-related situation from a different perspective. The
Captain is now responsible for making decisions regarding the future of her
crew, family issues, having children, leaving the ship to colonize other
worlds in the Delta Quadrant, etc.   She simply cannot, and does not, play
this mission "by the book."
	So then--how do men feel about Janeway? I think it is safe to say that
most men who watch Voyager feel as I do. That is, Janeway is a fabulous
character, and represents all that is best and wonderful in a Starfleet
officer, and yes, all that is best in women. I fear that any perceived lack
of vocal enthusiasm from men on the subject of Janeway comes from the tired
old stereotype that I mentioned before. But again, I hasten to add that
this silence shouldn't be construed as anything negative at all.
	Personally, I believe that Janeway is the most "real" Star Trek character
to ever be developed. The creators have written her that way, and Kate
Mulgrew makes Janeway truly happen.
	Something happens to me when I watch Janeway that I like to call
"Janegrewitis" (Jayne-Groo-Eye-Tis). I define it is the state which occurs
when watching a highly talented, intelligent, attractive and dedicated
actress do her finest work, in a genre that I have enjoyed for years. What
more could one ask for?
	I expect most of the other men watching Voyager experience Janegrewitis on
a regular basis, and just like me, aren't the least bit interested in a
cure.

[Drawing of Janeway]


THE KATE MULGREW FILM FESTIVAL COLUMN

[Photo of Kate Mulgrew and Avery Brooks]

ROOTS:  THE GIFT
by DeAnn G. Rossetti

	If you've ever wondered what Kate would be like playing a villain, look no
further than Roots: The Gift, a 1988 made-for-TV Christmas movie sequel to
Alex Haley's monumentally successful miniseries Roots. In this "freedom
triumphs over evil" tale, we have the joy of watching several Trek regulars
in antebellum period costume, including LeVar Burton (TNG's Geordi LaForge)
reprising his role as Kunta Kinte, a proud African slave, Avery Brooks
(DS9's Captain Sisko) as "Mr. Cletus Moyer, a free man of color with papers
of manumission," Tim Russ as a dandified house slave--good rehearsal for
Tuvok's iron dignity--and our beloved Kate as Hattie Carraway, a bounty
hunter who tracks down runaway slaves and turns them over to white
plantation owners for a fee which she shares with her pack of pretty-boy
thugs. Roots: The Gift almost feels like a mirror universe Trek episode; it
makes one desperately wish that Janeway and Sisko could have shared the
screen for a few minutes in "Caretaker." Captain Kate is clearly a leader
here, while Brooks' quiet, menacing intensity is unforgettable.
	Kate proves the truism that if you are going to vamp, you have to have the
proper clothes, as she arrives on the scene wearing a tricorn hat with a
white ostrich plume, leather trousers complete with a dueling pistol tucked
into the wasteband, a buccaneer-style shirt, a brown velvet cape, and
knee-high leather boots; the outfit bespeaks an Errol Flynn movie or a turn
as the fifth Musketeer more than it does 18th-century Virginia, but that's
showbiz for you! The story thus far has been a gutwrenching clip from the
first installment of the original miniseries, during which we witness
Burton's Kunta Kinte whipped until he's half-dead, yet still refusing to
adopt a slaver's nickname as his own. "Your name is Toby!" the slaver
hollers, as we hear the bullwhip smack across Kinte's back. "Say your
name!" "Kunta Kinte" whispers the slave, until finally he succumbs and
mutters "Toby" just before they cut him down from the whipping post, where
the marvelous Louis Gossett, Jr, playing the born-into-slavery Fiddler,
washes Kinte's face as he cries, saying "Don't you never mind what some
white man call you; your name be Kunta Kinte; always will be."
	It's Christmas time in old Virginie, and all is not well down on the farm.
Fiddler and Kinte are the property of a rich plantation owner played by
Jerry Hardin, the original Deep Throat from The X-Files, who treats them
like children but isn't nearly as abusive as his neighboring landowner, who
just happens to have a son (Shaun Cassidy, whose southern drawl is about as
pronounced as Howard Stern's) whose education "up Nawth" has turned him
into an abolitionist. The son works with the Underground Railroad to
smuggle slaves to the Northern states. Kinte and Fiddler are on their way
home from working the tobacco fields when they meet a well-dressed black
man with perfect enunciation and a fine horse, who asks them for a drink of
water. When asked why he isn't a slave, Moyer tells Fiddler that he was
freed by his master, and produces papers to prove it.
	Shortly thereafter, a band of riders chase him down in an open field like
an animal, and viewers are treated to their first look at Kate in full
Carraway regalia, rolling her tongue around a whiskey-soaked
Kentucky-bluegrass southern drawl. Sweeping her plumed hat over her heart
theatrically, Carraway declares, "This man is accused of sedition and
incitement to insurrection, Sir. He is no longer a 'free man of color'.
He's a captive with a price on his head for helping slaves escape. He's now
retired, aren't you, Mister Moy-ah?" She flashes a devastatingly wicked
smile that belies the seriousness of the scene.
	The next sequence is designed to show how utterly dehumanizing life was
for slaves living on plantations; the children are allowed to use Kinte and
others as camels for their Christmas Nativity play; whenever there is an
uprising or rumors of one, several slaves are hanged from trees to set an
example; clergy are sent into the slave quarters to preach to the slaves
that their lot is "God's will"; and one slaveowner notes that it is better
to hang pregnant female slaves only after they've given birth, otherwise
it's "too much of a waste." In case the viewer has somehow failed to get
the message, the abolitionist's 6-year-old sister gives a speech about how
wrong it is to humiliate slaves as she brings a gift of food to Kinte, in
thanks for his being her camel; she has already promised not to use the
crop or reins on him. If this sounds condescending to slave and viewer
alike, it must be written off to the TV penchant for heavy-handed
exposition which reduces the audience to its lowest common denominator.
	We soon discover that Kate was right about Avery:  Moyer was indeed
supposed to meet with the abolitionists, who were to give him a map with
'safe places' outlined on it, and Moyer was then to lead a group of slaves
on a midnight riverboat ride to freedom. Predictably, Kinte persuades
Fiddler to take up the torch, literally and figuratively, to help the
slaves escape--but not before we experience a delicious scene between
Carraway and Moyer discussing life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Moyeris seated in a locked stable with an iron collar ringed with cow
bells locked around his neck. Carraway comes in, squats in front of Moyer,
and unlocks the collar while looking him over. "You're a strong man, Cletus
Moy-ah. The chase was hard and the pay is good...I don't give a damn about
them...planter aristocracy. Come the revolution, I will make sure they have
more than they ever bargained for; with a thousand like you, I could cause
quite a stir."
	Moyer, who looks shocked as she offers him snuff, responds that she should
do something now to help the slaves. "Chasing 'em down and bringing 'em
back is more lucrative," she responds. When Moyer (picture Brooks doing his
sternest Sisko look) reminds her that there is more to life than financial
gain, she responds, "You're a man, that's easy for you to say! I chose
adventure and I pay my own way! The alternative is there [gesture toward
the plantation mansion], where I could spend the rest of my life fluttering
fans, swooning--no better than a concubine. Do you see me happy behind a
fluttering fan, Mr. Moyer?" End of discussion! The collision of racial and
gender issues, as well as the shocking chemistry between Brooks and
Mulgrew, makes this scene dangerously amoral, a powerful contrast with the
rest of the pat assumptions of the film.
	Russ is at his unflappable, poker-faced best playing a slave slapped by
his master, and, instead of getting angry or hurt, looking bewildered,
rather like Spock about to say "fascinating." Fiddler and Kinte giggle when
they see Russ' character, whose 'head servant' is outfitted in a fancy
frock coat; his solemn stature and frou-frou accoutrement make an
interesting contrast. Moyer meets a tragic end, a flaw for the show which
really needed Brooks' acting to anchor the latter half when Fiddler and
Kinte make a noble sacrifice to help other slaves escape. But the final
scene with Kate in a standoff with Shaun Cassidy packs power nonetheless.
There they stand, guns aimed at one another, each determined to bring home
the two rebels--one for the money, the other for moral reasons. Kate's
parting shot makes all the heavy-handed stuff worthwhile--she scintillates
with arched-brow wit and style, and her character doesn't change a bit for
all the film's platitudes.
	For a bad guy she's darned good, y'all. Hence, I recommend this video for
rental on a cold night, preferably during the Christmas season, just for
fun. Think of it as a time capsule, and watch our Captain at work, honing
those wiles that she'll never get to use on board the Voyager. Gracious!
What would Chakotay do with Janeway if she had that drawl as thick as
molasses in wintertime?

[Drawing of Kate Mulgrew and Avery Brooks]

[Cartoon]


THE FUNNY PAGES

WARGAMES
by Alanna Whitestar

	There's no question, Kathryn Janeway thought, shaking her head in dismay
over the multiple padds strewn across her desk. Crew efficiency has
definitely gone down in the past few months. It's a sure sign boredom has
set in, and that could be sudden death if a Kazon fleet shows up. The door
chime interrupted her ruminations.
	"Come," she called, then smiled to see her First Officer appear in the
doorway. "Sit down, Commander; I was just getting ready to call you."
	"About...?"
	Janeway gestured silently at her desk, grimacing slightly. "You should
know; you prepared these reports."
	"That's what I was coming to see you about," Chakotay replied, a sudden
gleam appearing in his eye. "I have a proposal to make that I think will
bring some of those numbers up."
	"Go on," the captain encouraged.
	"In a word, wargames."
	"Commander, we're already running simulations..."
	"This would be different. We'd use both holodecks: one for a crew from
Voyager; the other...for me and a crew of Maquis. I promise you, the
officers you choose will get an excellent education in non-Federation
tactics."
	Staring at him thoughtfully, Janeway realized there was something she was
missing here. Despite their differences, both had worked diligently to
integrate the two crews. He wouldn't suggest an idea with the potentialfor
re-opening the rift they'd fought to close, unless...  Slowly she smiled.
	"You," she said, pointing a finger at him, "are looking for a chance to
show off. Just what makes you think you won't learn something from this
exercise?"
	"Federation tactics are fairly standardized..." he began with a
deprecating wave of his hand.
	"If you believe that, Commander, you obviously didn't get much of a
challenge in the Demilitarized Zone. I know one or two tricks that will
make you eat those words."
	"I take it, then, that you intend to command Voyager in the first
simulation?" His Cheshire grin was definitely showing signs of canary
feathers around the edges.
	"I wouldn't miss this for the world. Who will be on your crew?"
	"B'Elanna, naturally; Dalby at Tactical; and...Ensign Henrickson at Ops, I
think. She was fairly new to the Maquis, didn't get a chance to see much
action. I'll be piloting, of course."
	"Of course," Janeway echoed, then couldn't resist adding, "You're sure you
wouldn't prefer Tuvok at tactical?"
	Chakotay's grimace at her barb only briefly disturbed his smile. "Quite
sure, thanks. And your crew?"
	"Ensign Kim; he definitely needs more combat experience. Ensign Wildman at
Tactical. I've considered promoting her to lieutenant j.g.; we'll see how
he does under...unusual combat conditions. Lieutenant Carey at the
engineering station; and Tom Paris." She paused for a moment, trying to
anticipate his response to her next question. "Would you object to Tuvok
arbitrating?"
	The commander shook his head. "No. Whatever else he is, he's a Vulcan, and
Vulcans pride themselves on their capacity for dispassionate observation.
But...Tom Paris? I would've thought Lieutenant Anders needed more
training."
	"She does, and she'll get her chance. But I think Mr. Paris needs to learn
some of the maneuvers I have in mind."
	Chakotay laughed. "Now who wants to show off?"
	"I never show off, Commander. Janeway's effort at making a serious retort
was undermined by the eagerness in her voice. "Did you have a particular
scenario in mind?"
	"Actually, I do. But I thought I'd let it be a surprise."
	"Uh huh. I take it you'll be flying your old ship. She was pretty well
armed and shielded, as I recall. Not exactly a standard Maquis fighter."
	He shrugged off the compliment. "I made a few special modifications."
Suddenly the gleam in his eye brightened. "Are you interested in raising
the stakes a little?"
	Arching an eyebrow at him in return, she asked, "What did you have in mind?"
	"Allow me to program in a few additional modifications to my ship. You
won't know what they are until I choose to employ them."
	"An interesting idea," she mused. "All right; when do you want to begin?"
	"How about 2000 hours?"
	"That's not much notice--but then, the Kazon would give even less. Four
hours from now it is, then. And Commander...you'd better be on your toes. I
intend to give you the ride of your life."
	"We'll see, Captain; we'll see." And with a quick chortle he left, all but
rubbing his hands in gleeful anticipation.
	The Maquis ship rocked to a phaser blast mere seconds after the simulation
began. "Doesn't waste much time, does she?" Chakotay remarked. Another hit
underscored his words. "Right. Laying in a course: heading 259, mark 4;
speed, warp 2.
	B'Elanna scanned the nav chart that appeared suddenly on her console.
That'll take us...into the Badlands?!"
	"I've always wondered whether Voyager could have followed us in there,"
Chakotay replied, grinning fiercely. "Dalby, launch two photon torpedoes at
them, then try to maintain a phaser lock. I'm initiating evasive pattern
Omicron Three. Mark!"
	On Voyager's bridge, Janeway's expression mirrored that of her First
Officer. "Any damage from those torpedoes, Ensign Kim?"
	"Negative, Captain. Shields are still at 100%."
	"Very well. It looks like the commander wants to play tag. Mr. Paris, I'm
going to let you indulge yourself. Stay glued to his 6 o'clock position
until further notice."
	The young pilot snorted. "No problem, Captain."
	Janeway immediately regretted her remark. "Don't be too cocky,
Lieutenant," she snapped. "Threading through those plasma storms is not
going to be easy. I know Voyager can handle it, but I don't want you
pushing your luck. Ensign Wildman, keep our phasers trained on the Maquis
ship at all times. Fire when you've got a clear shot. Mr. Kim, we'll need
to keep our shields at maximum while in the Badlands. Let me know if they
go below 75%."
	There was a chorus of "Aye, Captain"s from the two ensigns as Janeway
settled back in her command chair. "Hang on, gentlemen; I think we're in
for a rocky ride."
	Slowing to impulse, the Maquis ship was the first to enter the Badlands.
Twisted ropes of highly charged plasma emitted constant waves of
electromagnetic distortion and energy discharges.
	"Can't you give some of those storms a wider berth, Chakotay? You're not
allowing yourself much of a margin for error," B'Elanna grunted as the tiny
vessel bucked and heaved.
	"Where's your...sense of...adventure, Torres?" Gasping, he slewed the ship
away from a plasma column that suddenly appeared in their path. "How are
the engines holding up?"
	"You've got full impulse power, but you're taking your chances, bouncing
them around like this," she replied. "Why didn't you program us new engines
while you were at it?"
	"That would be cheating. Damn! I didn't think Paris was this good. All
right, Mr. Smart- Aleck, try this."
	Chakotay would have been pleased to see that Tom's face had lost its usual
cocky grin. The pilot's intense concentration could be seen in the thin
line of his lips and his furrowed brow. His world had shrunk to the control
panel and the viewscreen; nothing else mattered. "The Indian's better than
I thought," he said tightly, then started as a familiar hand lightly
clasped his shoulder.
	"You're doing fine, Mr. Paris. But let's spice things up just a little
bit. Initiate pattern Delta Theta Five."
	Paris activated the programmed pattern, then frowned. "Captain?"
	"It's called heading him off at the pass, Lieutenant."
	"Commander," Crewman Dalby called. "Voyager's changed course; she's..."
	"Right at my 11 o'clock; I see her. Going to pattern Gamma Four. Mark!"
The inertial dampers threatened to go offline as the new course flung them
out of Voyager's path. "Time to get the hell out of Dodge, people.
Henrickson, get our first little surprise ready to use as soon as we've
cleared the Badlands. B'Elanna, I'll need warp three."
	"You've got it, Chakotay," Torres replied, her hands darting over the
engineering console.
	On Voyager's bridge, Ensign Kim suddenly spotted an anomalous reading
coming from the other ship. Moments later it was clear just what the
anomaly was. "Captain," he called. "The Maquis ship...she's cloaking!"
	"Increase viewscreen magnification by 75%!" Janeway snapped in reply,
looking for tell-tale distortions in the star field that would mark the
presence of their adversary.
	"Captain," Lieutenant Carey called. "I think I can modify the main sensor
dish to emit a coherent beam of low-level chronoton particles." His fair
skin blushed as Janeway turned to him, eyebrows raised in question.
"I...read a paper about it before we left. The theory was that a cloaked
ship is not just visually disguised, it's also just a few microseconds
removed from us in time."
	"So the chronoton particles would illuminate it in our time reference. Do
it, Lieutenant." Janeway turned back toward the conn, drumming her fingers
on the small tactical display. "Mr. Paris, so far Chakotay has been
controlling the pace of this little game. Let's see if we can turn the
tables on him. Initiate pattern Theta Alpha Three."
	"Aye, Cap...wait; our shields are going down!"
	"What! How?"
	"The prefix code. He's using the prefix code to lower our shields! That
son of a bandersnatch; there's no way the Maquis would have access to that
code."
	"Of course, they also didn't have cloaking devices. I wonder just how many
other variables he's programmed? Explosions interrupted her thoughts,
rocking the bridge and forcing her to grab the back of the pilot's chair to
stay on her feet. "Well, there's another one: he shouldn't be able to fire
his weapons without decloaking.  Report!"

[Cartoon]

	A   flurry   of  replies  came  from  all  directions  at  once.    Heavy
damage to engineering decks 8 through 11. Twenty reports of injuries; no
casualties. "Warp engines are still online, Captain, but just barely."
Suddenly the distorted outline of a ship appeared on the viewscreen.
Wildman's voice cut through the chaotic sound of multiple alarms. "I've got
them, Captain!"
	"Fire all phasers!"
	The lights flickered on the Maquis bridge as the ship rocked from the
impact. Sparks flew from several panels and B'Elanna yelled in frustration.
"Damn it! How the hell are they tracking us?"
	Henrickson answered her question. "Just after we fired we passed through a
low-level chronoton beam. That's got to be it."
	"A what?!"
	"Something Carey knows that you don't, B'Elanna?" Chakotay glanced wryly
at the chief engineer, who was swearing softly in an obscure Klingon
dialect. "Well, that element of surprise is gone. De-cloak, Dalby; we can
do without the energy drain. I'm coming about; ready two photon torpedoes
and fire when we're within range."
	"Our shields are down to 80%, Commander," Dalby warned. "And theirs are at
zero. So, despite Voyager's greater firepower, I'd say we're about even.
Now it all comes down to tactics."
	The next hour reminded Janeway of the brief time she'd spent with the
uncle who'd taught her to fly a World War I-era biplane. There was the same
sense of exuberance and challenge she'd felt while dogfighting with him
above the New England landscape. First one, then the other would have the
advantage, until eventually they both ran out of fuel and were forced to
land.
	In this case, it was Commander Chakotay who eventually
surrendered--although not before trying a last-ditch self-destruct attempt.
But with the Maquis vessel's shields gone, it was easy to beam her crew to
Voyager, then simply back away to watch the fireworks. It was unfortunate,
though, that Janeway's plan to follow the simulation to its logical
conclusion by throwing the Maquis in the brig was thwarted when Tuvok ended
the program. The Vulcan security officer met them outside holodeck one and
waited until Janeway had dismissed everyone but her First Officer.
	"Well, Mr. Tuvok? How did we do?"
	"I will not have my full report until tomorrow morning, Captain. However,
my first impression is that you both had an inordinately good time." A
single raised eyebrow dared them to refute him.
	The captain threw a knowing glance at Chakotay, then drew herself up and
became serious. "I believe it was a successful training mission. Don't you
agree, Commander?" Without giving him a chance to reply, she continued, "I
look forward to seeing your report at 0800 tomorrow, Lieutenant. That will
be all."
	As Tuvok turned away, Janeway had to cover her mouth and bite down hard on
her tongue to keep from dissolving into giggles. She managed to hold on
until the Vulcan had entered the turbolift, but seeing Chakotay's shoulders
shaking as he tried to refrain from laughing was too much. Exchanging the
slightly guilty glances of errant schoolchildren, Voyager's Captain and
First Officer let all the tension from the simulation dissolve itself in
laughter.
	Because Tuvok was right; it had been fun.

ACQUISITION
by L.R. Bowen

	"So you've made a leveraged buyout and pulled a hostile takeover on me,
Ms. Janeway?" The CEO of Maquis, Ltd., yanked his tie askew and paced to
the window of his new owner's palatial corner office. Thirty stories below,
the scurrying ants of downtown traffic were treated to a glare from his
fiery brown eyes.
	Kathryn Janeway shifted in her chair, the leather upholstery yielding,
then leaned forward and laced her fingers over the desk blotter, her
coiffed hair and Cartier earrings reflected in the polished rosewood
expanse. "Mr. Chakotay, Starfleet Intl. has done you a favor. Kazon
Enterprises is cutting into the market share. Together we have a fighting
chance. You were able to torpedo their local branch with that kamikaze
marketing campaign, but the fallout destroyed your bottom line. You lost
your office lease; ML is out on the street. If we hadn't bailed you out,
you'd have had to liquidate your assets, lay off all your people. I know
they've been with you for years, and are loyal in a way seldom seen in this
era of downsizing."
	"Am I supposed to believe they'll find places in this organization?"
Chakotay whirled and strode to the desk, his big frame impressive in Ralph
Lauren charcoal pinstripes. "I've trained them from the beginnings of their
careers. I'm an entrepreneur--some would even say a rebel--and I do things
my own way. SFI is hidebound and traditional. I bailed as soon as I had
enough in investments to bankroll ML. I swore I'd always be my own boss,
and I don't care if I have to start over again in a two-room office with
one fax line and a rebuilt Mac Classic. My people will follow me."
	"It's a big chilly world out there, Mr. Chakotay." Janeway rose and sat on
the edge of the desk, her short-skirted Donna Karan suit setting off her
slim waist and long legs. "There's a vacuum in venture capital, and with
your record, backers could be light-years apart. I'm prepared to offer you
an executive vice presidency, reporting directly to me, and some very
attractive stock options. Since George Cavit's untimely death in the crash
of the company Learjet, there's been a void in the hierarchy. You could
step right in."
	"Wouldn't your securities chief have something to say about that? It's
common knowledge you've been grooming him for the front office. And maybe
to fill more than a management void." Chakotay leaned over and put his
hands on the desk. The fire in his eyes ignited something in her; his
handsome face was so close that Janeway caught the scent of Obsession
aftershave. She involuntarily dropped her eyes to his firm, sensual lips,
and his moody scowl gave way to a dazzling grin. Stop that, she told
herself. If you let your mind run on about that Soloflex-toned body, that
perfect natural tan, that Sassoon haircut, you'll stop thinking like the
U.S. division head of a huge multinational firm--and start thinking like a
woman.
	But it was too late. Chakotay was too quick for her, and had caught the
meaning of her glance the moment before she had herself. When she met his
eyes again, mere inches from hers, they were warmer than a Club Med
sunrise. "Tuvok's a team player," she said hastily. "He'll understand that
this merger depends on the good will of everyone involved--"
	"I'm not a team player," said Chakotay, casting a look over her that had
her flushing to the Hermes scarf tucked into her neckline. "I'm a lone
wolf. But the corporate wilderness is no place to be lonely." He raised his
left hand to touch her hair, and the gold Rolex on his wrist flashed in the
light from the window. "All right, I'll come on board. But I've got one
condition."
	"Yes," Janeway breathed. It was an answer as well as a question.
	"Make those options for preferred stock, and vest them all
immediately...and I'm yours." He winked at her, picked up his Louis Vuitton
attaché case, and blew past the reception desk before she could respond.
	"Damn," she said to herself. "He didn't even ask about the dental plan."

[Janeway/Chakotay photo]

IS THAT MY ANIMAL GUIDE IN YOUR POCKET, OR ARE YOU JUST HAPPY TO SEE ME?

*Janeway must have ordered all her officers to touch one another so it's
not so obvious when she does it; the shipwide Touchy-Feely Count for
"Twisted" was so high that the Voyager Voyeurs reported different numbers.
TFCC at press time (this season's score in brackets):*

Kes:  11 (8) [blame Eloguim for her ascendance]
Chakotay: 11 (1) [lately Janeway touches his chair more than him]
Paris: 10 (2) [ditto; think it's his aftershave or what?]
Kim:  7 (1) [one of the bright spots of this mission...]
Neelix:  6 (2) [must be something he put in the food]
Torres: 4 [must be a Klingon thing]
Doc:  3 (2) ["Computer, delete Janeway"]
Tuvok: 2 [ohhh, but wasn't that sweet in Twisted?]


VOYAGER PEOPLE

ROBERT BELTRAN
by Becky Olsen

	*Michelle gushed over Kate last issue, so indulge me. I was fortunate
enough to speak briefly with Robert Beltran following an exhausting
afternoon, the first day of his very first con appearance. He professed
nervousness but quickly overcame it, speaking for an hour and forty-five
minutes, then signing autographs for another one and a half hours. He is
warm, gracious, and has a charming sense of humor. I have included along
with the text of my interview the best of the con comments.  Some were said
very tongue-in-cheek, so please take them in the spirit in which they were
intended!
	I owe a great debt to the people who enabled me to write this. David--not
many husbands would go to such lengths to set up a meeting between his wife
and another man! Thanks to Ridge and Heather for the contacts, and to
Michelle for vouching for my character.  Diane and the RBLS got me through
in one piece! Lastly a big thank you to Robert for sharing his time,
talents and energy.*

NV:  Hi! I'm Becky Olsen, I'm with Kate Mulgrew's fan club. It's nice to
meet you.

RB: Hi, Becky.

NV:  I will try to ask some things that don't double up on what everyone
else has asked you--which is basically most of my interview!  Did any of
the cast members give you any advice before you came here?

RB:  The advice a lot of them said was, basically, just be yourself.

NV:  Have a good time?  Enjoy it?

RB:  Yeah!

NV: How do you perceive Chakotay? Do you have an agenda for him in your
mind, or is it just strictly from script to script?

RB: I try to keep it script to script, and I do have the luxury of being
able to call on Jeri Taylor or Michael Piller or Rick Berman and tell them
any problems that I may have with the script; and they have been very, very
open to suggestions. But I prefer to prepare for this--for the
character--week by week, because there just may be some things that they
have me do that I may not like or agree with, and it just shows that we may
not always be on the same track. It can cause a lot of unnecessary stress
if you're constantly battling for one way for the character. I feel that
they have a much larger picture of who they want Chakotay to be than I do.
They're writing the stories, and I think they're doing fine so far.

NV: There's been some criticism and comments about some of the scenes in
"Initiations" where Chakotay is suddenly so attached to the Starfleet
uniform. What was your feeling about that?

RB: Well...he is attached to Starfleet. The fact that he left Starfleet to
go back home and fight with the Maquis doesn't mean he is against the
Federation. I think he is still tied to the Federation emotionally, so the
fine line that he has to walk is keeping his Maquis people happy within the
confines of the Federation system.

NV: How does Chakotay's medicine bundle keep itself afloat in space? It's
been transported from the Maquis ship to Voyager, from the blown-up shuttle
in "Initiations" and it suddenly is back on Voyager. How does it get there?


RB: (laughs) Umm...shields at ninety percent? I don't know!
NV: Scary, isn't it? This is the kind of things fans sit at home and think
about!

RB: I haven't really considered that. It's a good question. I had it on the
shuttle for "Initiations," now--I can't remember--no, the shuttle wasn't
blown up, or was it?

NV: Yes.

RB: It was blown up. So what happened to the medicine bundle?  Good question. I think what it does...you know that feather?
  Yeah. If there's any problem, the feather just kind
of gets going and takes the bundle where it needs to go. Always back to the
ship. Yep. That's right. Maybe I replicated it, I don't know.

NV: That's been suggested. I don't think that fits with Chakotay's
spirituality, though. Do you watch the finished episodes?

RB: Yeah.

NV: Is it painful?

RB:  Sometimes.

NV: Are you a great critic of yourself?

RB: Yes. Yes. Actually, I try to watch the dailies--just key scenes,
because I'm still finding out how to play this particular style. You
know--this "Star Trek" style. I'm still trying to get comfortable with it,
and so when I get a chance to watch dailies or a finished episode, I learn
a lot about what I can do, what I can't do; what's available to me, what's
not...just kind of piece my character in here and how he fits with the
whole style. Like everybody else is doing.

NV: Was it difficult to make the transition to a weekly series? I know
you've done series before, but...

RB: I've never done one that lasted more than thirteen episodes. It's not
difficult. I mean--it allows me a chance to continue working in a medium,
television, that offers me a lot of exposure, and a decent character to
play within that framework.

NV: Has it kept you so busy that...do you still have time for your theater
group?

RB: I have to delegate a lot. But, yeah...while we're shooting it does take
a lot of time. If a couple of episodes can go by where I'm not that key in
the stories, then that gives me a lot of time. It just depends a lot on how
much they focus on Chakotay.

NV: One last question that I have been begged to ask: what time of day were
you born?

RB: I was born at 11:32 or 11:34 p.m. on a Thursday night.  [Note to club
astrologers, for whom Becky and Michelle take no responsibility: if
Robert's birthday really is November 19, that means he was either born in
1953 or 1959; draw your own conclusions when you do his chart!]

NV: Any last words for your fans?

RB: Just that I really appreciate this. They've made this first convention
for me really special and a lot of fun. And I appreciate all of the
scrutiny they give the show and the care that they seem to put into keeping
it honest. And the fans, maybe they don't realize this, but they are taken
very seriously by Rick Berman and everyone else. So there is concern about
how the fans are going to be reacting about certain things, so it's nice to
have them involved and scrutinizing the show the way they do, so it's good.

NV: Thank you. I appreciate your talking with us.

RB: You're welcome. Thank you.

[Awesome photo of Robert Beltran]

BEST OF THE BELTRAN CON COMMENTS

Becky culled these from three hours of tape and I added a couple.  My
personal favorite was Robert's imitation of William Shatner, but the
audience favorites were the questions he refused to answer: his age, his
social availability, and whether he wears boxers or briefs!  Very first
question, wondering whether Beltran thinks the relationship between Janeway
and Chakotay will blossom into romance :

RB: If it happened, the whole Maquis question would be settled...I would
eventually be sitting in the other chair... That was a...bad
joke. But, if that's where the writers want to go with it...I don't know.
We have a long way to go if this thing's going to last a few years.

Asked the inevitable question about Genevieve Bujold, after revealing that
he pursued the part of Chakotay so that he could work with her:

RB: Do you think anything I say here will ever get back to her?  Something
happened with Genevieve, I don't know, I don't know! Don't quote me!
But--Kate Mulgrew came on, and....you mustn't infer anything when I say
'Kate Mulgrew' and smile, OK? Please?  When Kate came on,
the whole show came together. She's every bit as much an actress, equal to
Genevieve, and she's got a personality and presence about her that
permeates the set.

Question from Now Voyager member about what it's like playing a man who
serves under a woman:

RB: What's it like playing a man who serves under a woman?  All of us guys
know that's a silly question. We know...you  know...Why do we continue
playing this game? I don't know...I don't mind it one bit!  The thing about having a
woman captain isn't a problem unless they're incompetent, right? And
Captain Janeway is not incompetent, right? So Chakotay liked Janeway,
Chakotay appreciated Janeway!

Favorite episode so far:

RB: I liked the first episode after "Caretaker" ["Parallax"].  Because I
thought that it set the boundaries as far as where Chakotay stands in this
Federation/Maquis union. And so it was nice for me to be able to set that
foundation for my character.

What does he think of the Internet?

RB: I'm not on the Internet and I don't know what to think of it. I suppose
it's fine. I suppose it could be abused like anything else. I think it's
fine until it reaches out to hurt us...Garrett Wang comes in to work some
mornings and says  'Hey Robert!  Hey man, you should see
what they say about you, man!'  I had a lot of energy when I was, how old
is he, 25, but Garrett is hopeless...

About the antics on the set of the Bridge:

RB:  Well, Kate'll be over here cracking up about something Tim said, and
Garrett will lean over and say something to me, and I'll say, "Hey! Shut
up! I have seven lines of technobabble to get through!" And they'll all
shut up because otherwise they know they'll be there all night waiting for
me to get my technobabble.
Question about the presumed guilt or innocence of O.J. Simpson:

RB: That is not for you or I to judge, we are not the twelve people who
will stand in judgement.  One of the reasons I've taken to Star
Trek, honestly, is that I like the ideals it tries to uphold. You know,
we're not causing revolutions or changing worlds...but I think for
entertainment and television, I think we hit close to the Greek ideal which
is to educate and to entertain. Any time you can get that combination, then
I feel it's worthwhile. And I like what the Federation stands for, because
it gels with the way that I've grown up and what I believe America should
be and I find we've got to not let the media sway us.

Revealing that he's the seventh of ten children in his family:

RB:  My mother is probably the only woman who could play the captain of the
Voyager besides Kate...

What does the tattoo mean?

RB:   'Three wives, too
many children.'

Asked for the names of his favorite actresses:

RB:  Kate Mulgrew! Roxann Biggs-Dawson! Jennifer Lien! ...I don't think you
can get three better actresses on any show on TV.  Individually I have a
great crush on all of them.  Luckily they're all attached. I would be
walking around going  'Is she here yet?'

Question about Chakotay's position on the ship:

RB: I'm the first officer, Janeway's Federation, we're doing Federation
rules...for now.  Don't mess--don't messwith the Maquis. If there had
been maybe five more guys on board our ship, man, we could've taken them.


Question  about Chakotay being in an awkward position, having to
answer to Janeway and not being in charge anymore:

RB: Well, if you had a chance to have meetings with Captain Janeway,
wouldn't you? Who do I want to talk to...Tuvok?  'Hey, Tuvy, baby...'

Question about Chakotay being a religious character and how comfortable
Beltran is with that:

RB: It's interesting. When you start bringing someone's religion into a TV
show that's watched by millions of Americans and other people, there's some
close things that you have to watch. I didn't grow up with a Native
American religious experience. My father's side of the family was Catholic,
my mother's side was an offshoot of the Pentecostal Church, the Apostolics.
My background is a little bit more orthodox Christian. So when I'm playing
a person who's a different religion, I just make sure they don't ridicule
or belittle mine. I think everybody's religion is worthy of respect and
that's all I expect from them.

Question about how Beltran assesses Chakotay's new position as Voyager's
resident expert on mating behavior:

RB: Well, he's a very experienced man, Chakotay......so I think he's
coming from a sincere and knowledgeable place...I think, better him to have
a strong point of view about this than, say, Harry Kim!  Or Tuvok. Tuvok,
we'd all be holding hands, no further. I don't know how much that's going
to be used in upcoming episodes. It's better than doing scenes on the
bridge, you know, looking at strange anomalies coming at you.

	
KATEWATCH

STAR TREK GALA
23 SEPTEMBER 1995, DALLAS, TEXAS
By Sue Harke

	A special event happened at the Apparel Mart: William Shatner, Jonathan
Frakes, Avery Brooks, and Kate Mulgrew were all here for a black tie
fundraising event for The Science Place. Tickets prices ranged from $1,000
each for dinner with one of the celebrities to $50 in the nosebleed section
which required binoculars to see the actors when not on stage. Because of
large theater-sized TV screens, there were no poor viewing areas when the
luminaries were speaking.
	The event was sponsored by Paramount, UPN Channel 21 (Dallas), the Science
Place, and Incredible Universe. It was a black tie event with live music
and dancing till midnight after a presentation to the celebrities. Members
of local Star Trek fan clubs--USS Joshua, USS Lancelot, and the
Dallas--served as volunteers dressed in Star Trek costumes. As a member of
the Joshua, I was able to attend. During the short presentations, no flash
photography was allowed. Luckily I came prepared! I had an autofocus camera
with a 70mm - 210mm lens, fast film, and a good position from a second
story balcony to take photos.
	Kate Mulgrew spoke first. She talked about her desire to learn more about
science to better perform her role as Captain Janeway. She spoke of an
experience during her visit to Washington, D.C., when she was asked to
speak to 17 science scholarship winners. She spoke about one young lady in
particular. It seems this student was adamant about studying science, but
her parents opposed it; they didn't believe she would succeed. She refused
to give in. This discussion continued until one day a new TV show
aired--Star Trek: Voyager, with a woman Captain! Her parent gave up and
said, "She wins."  The student had received a scholarship to MIT to study
physics. This story gave Kate a greater desire to learn about science and
to be a role model for those who want to study science.
	Next Avery Brooks spoke. He was a dynamic speaker and talked about the
advice his wife gave him when everything seemed to be going wrong. He was
undecided on whether to audition for the role of Sisko, his wife said
"Don't say no." Next he was late in delivering a tape, traffic was bad. He
called his wife and said he couldn't make it on time. She said, "Don't say
no." He spoke of other experiences with the same answer.
	Next Jonathan Frakes spoke. He commented that his father was a college
English professor. His father has noticed that many students were
ill-prepared for college-level classes in English because of a poor
background in reading and literature. Frakes then told a story I've heard
him tell at a convention. He likes to enter via the dealer room to see what
legal or illegal merchandise is being sold. During one convention during
the early years of The Next Generation he saw a dealer selling action
figures. His sales must have been slow because he had a sign that said,
"Buy any figure, get Riker free."
	Next William Shatner spoke. He had just gotten back from Africa a few
hours earlier. He told a science-related story about an elephant and a hut
he'd stayed in. I don't recall the exact details about the story, but it
was humorous and well told.
	Finally, all four celebrities and one representative from each sponsoring
organization came on stage. Each celebrity was presented with a piece of a
four-part puzzle from a high-level sponsoring representative. As each
celebrity received their piece of the puzzle, it was combined with the
other parts to form a picture that represented the spirit of Star Trek.
	I  talked to Kate for about 90 seconds. The management tried very hard
(and succeeded) in keeping us away from the stars so that the people who
paid $1000 to see them could have their attention. We were not allowed to
ask for any autographs. But an unusal situation came up and I had
information that Kate wanted to hear. It seems that Ian Spelling, who
writes the High Trek column, and Kate are friends. Ian's son, Max, was born
the week before the event. I spoke to Ian on Saturday before I left; he
said that he'd recently finished an article for Voyager magazine about
Kate, and that Kate wanted to know when the baby was born.
	I tried working through the event management to get a message to Kate--no
success. But she happened to walk out to take a cigarette break and I
walked up to her and said, "Greetings from Michelle Green and your fan
club! I wanted to tell you Ian Spelling's son was born two days ago." I
passed along a congratulations card for her to sign for him, which the
management returned to me.

[Photo of Kate Mulgrew, Avery Brooks, Jonathan Frakes, and William Shatner
at the gala]

TAKE A CHANCE WITH THE STARS
SEPTEMBER 30, 1995, LOS ANGELES
By Gary D. Labin

	I will not soon forget the fabulous evening that I spent last month at the
American Cancer Society's "Take a Chance With the Stars," an evening of
charity gambling to raise money to fight cancer. I have often thought that
it would be a dream come true to meet Kate Mulgrew in person, and on
September 30 I actually had a chance to do just that. Ms. Mulgrew was one
of the hosts of the event, and after her introductory remarks she went on
to sign autographs and take pictures with those present.
	As I was waiting in the long line to meet Ms. Mulgrew, I was quite
nervous, wondering what I should say to her and whether I would make a fool
of myself. Well, my time soon came and when I was standing on the other
side of the table from Kate, I was even more stunned at her radiance,
beauty, and charm. Her smile was warm enough to melt a glacier, and all I
could think was, "Wow! This is really her! It's Captain Janeway!"
	Before I asked her to autograph a couple of things I had brought, I told
her what a wonderful actress I thought she was and that I was a member of
her fan club based in Maryland. She kindly said something to the effect of,
"That's great! Thank you very much, I appreciate all your support" (I was
too excited then to remember exactly what she said). Then, she autographed
one of my Voyager novels and a picture of herself from a science fiction
magazine. There were many people eager to meet her, so I had to move along,
and I really didn't get to spend more than half a minute in the presence of
"Captain Janeway," but I will always recall those precious 30 seconds as a
wonderful experience.
	Kate Mulgrew was not the only Star Trek star at the event; I also met
several others. I'm sure some of you are interested in how some of these
other Star Trek actors act in real life, so let me briefly summarize the
experiences I had with each of the aforementioned people:
	While we played cards, I spoke with Garrett Wang (VOY's Harry Kim) about
the past week's episode, where Kim returns to Earth. He was amicable and
not at all taken with himself. His girlfriend was there, and when I told
him to say hi to Libby for me, he humorously said, "Shhh...my girlfriend
gets jealous..."
	Like his character on Voyager, Robert Picardo (VOY's Holodoctor) had a
very businesslike, clinical demeanor. I think I saw him smile only once.
That isn't to say he wasn't pleasant, just that in comparison to Kate
Mulgrew's glowing personality, he seemed to be pretty solemn.
	Ethan Phillips (VOY's Neelix) and I chatted about the episode where his
character almost became a father. He said he wished it had ended
differently and expressed hope that it will happen sometime in the future.

	Armin Shimerman (DS9's Quark) seemed to be an all-around nice guy. I
played some blackjack with him (he was the dealer) and we talked about
Quark and DS9. He seemed really down to Earth, and quite unlike the
character that he plays. I also chatted with Cirroc Lofton (DS9's Jake
Sisko), who seemed to be a funny guy; as we played cards, he said, "We're
playing for latinum, and after this hand I'm gonna start up a game of
Damjat."
	In real life Majel Barrett Roddenberry (TOS's Nurse Chapel, TNG and DS9's
Lwaxana Troi) was much like the character she played on Next Generation.
She had an aristocratic air, yet was quite witty. I asked her if she was
reading minds with her Betazed powers and she said, "Yes, but I'll spare
you embarrassment and nottell everyone around what you're thinking about."
	Nichelle Nichols (TOS's Uhura) didn't sign autographs; I don't know why
not. Personally, I was quite surprised that she was there, since Ms.
Barrett was too; I guess I wrongly assumed they didn't like each other,
after hearing about the contents of Ms. Nichols' autobiography! I overheard
a curious conversation between Nichelle Nichols and Ethan Phillips. He
approached her and said, "Wow, Ms. Nichols, I was a great admirer of your
work on the original series, it's nice to finally meet you!" I found this
to be quite interesting because I guess I just assumed that all Star Trek
actors past and present knew each other, but evidently that's not the case.

	Of all the Trek stars there, Walter Koenig (TOS's Chekov) was the only one
I'd classify as unfriendly. The first thing he did when he entered the room
was approach me and bluntly ask, "Where are the sodas?" No "hello" or
"excuse me," just a demanding question. Later, I approached him for an
autograph (not seeing that he had a drink in his hand at the time) and he
just turned around and held the drink up to my face and grunted.
	Well, I know I had a blast at the event, and I hope you got a little
flavor of that exciting night by reading my report. I can't express how
much of a thrill it was to meet Kate Mulgrew, and anyone who's reading this
magazine also shares my admiration of Ms. Mulgrew greatly. I wholeheartedly
suggest that if you can go next year, do so, you'll have a great time while
benefitting a very worthwhile charitable cause at the same time.

[Photo of Gary with Kate]


BOOKS, COMICS, CARDS, AND AUDIO

*The new series of Voyager trading cards is out!  Anyone want to trade?*

INCIDENT AT ARBUK by John Greggory Betancourt; Pocket Books 1995.

	Voyager novel #5 is a very good read, a huge step forward in the evolution
of the Voyager novels. Betancourt has three things going for him: he can
write, he knows his Trek, and he's got a very good handle on the Voyager
characters. Neelix comes through very well as do Paris and Janeway, and the
author's take on Tuvok suffering the aftereffects of a mind-meld with an
alien who had been dosed with psychidelic drugs is priceless.
	The plot isn't all that original; Voyager finds a mysterious device and
the alien that goes with it, and gets drawn into somebody else's conflict.
It's been done before, but at least it's not the anomaly of the week with
the situation resolved by new technobabble.
	The alien is a well-presented non-humanoid with a coherent and internally
consistent culture. The portrayals of both Tuvok and Neelix interacting
with the culture are nicely done. There's also a subplot concerning Neelix
dealing with a threat to his role as Voyager's chef de cuisine, which is
simply good fun!
While this isn't a profound book, or one with a blockbuster page-turner of
a plot, its a good solid enjoyable offering by a writer who shows great
promise, and a refreshing knowledge of the Star Trek universe, not just the
Voyager Writers' Guide. This guy's a Trekker. Going out on a limb, I think
that Betancourt may become to the Voyager novels what Peter David is to the
TNG ones.

--Virginia Boehm Worthen


COPYRIGHT VIOLATION CORNER

*Two Christmas stories--Voyager variations on 'Gift of the Magi' and 'It's
a Wonderful Life.' by our two favorite enterprising women.   You know the
disclaimers by now. Enjoy!*

HAIR OF THE DOG
by Kit Montana

	It was a gradual thing that would have gone unnoticed to most.
	He first noticed it the Thursday before last at the engineering status
meeting. Her demeanor, as always, was perfect--attentive, intense,
interested. But for a few moments, when he cast a quick glance at her to
gauge her reaction to something Torres had said, he saw something
unfamiliar, almost extrinsic, in her eyes.
	He gave it a few seconds' thought, then dismissed it, thinking it was some
trick of light, or even his imagination. But later that same evening at
dinner, he noticed a slight droop of her shoulders, and the food on her
plate remained unfinished. Granted, it had been a particularly trying day,
with one of the gelpacs developing a leak, and an unexplained power loss in
stellar cartography, but Captain Janeway had always taken minor obstacles
such as these in stride. Indeed, she seemed to enjoy the challenges each
day brought. Her step had a spring to it, her eyes a sparkle, when there
was a problem to overcome.
	Still, until this morning, he had decided these were anomalies. He had to
call her name twice to get her attention on the bridge, and the embarrassed
look she gave him made him realize she hadn't heard a thing he'd said.
	These were little things; things that would have gone unnoticed.
	If he hadn't been looking for them.
	Chakotay had no doubt that Kathryn Janeway loved being captain of USS
Voyager. One look on her face when she stepped off the turbolift at the
beginning of duty--whether that "day" began at 0700 or 2200 -- made it
clear that command of this ship brought her a joy few could even imagine.
She reveled in the responsibility, in the authority, in the freedom. She
was the ship's benevolent despot, with control over its operation and
function and population. A new system to be installed? She made the final
decision. A change in course, a mission to be undertaken? Janeway decided.
An argument that developed into a fistfight? Voyager's captain was the jury
and the judge to mete out the punishment.
	Still, command wasn't something she took lightly; no one in his or her
right mind would.
	So at first he thought the eternal pressures of her position were
beginning to weigh her down, that she needed a break from the
24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week grind. He consulted with Neelix to arrange
special events--a masquerade ball, a concert, a rolling poker game--and
there was little doubt the captain enjoyed them all, participating with
unexpected gusto. But still, the occasional shadow fell over her face when
she thought no one looking.
	Perhaps, he thought, she needs some liberty--she needs to take off her
boots and run barefoot through the grass on some sun-flooded planet. He set
Harry Kim to work to search one out. It took a week, but a class M planet
was located. Void of animal life, lush with blue-green vegetation, Janeway
finally gave in to her first officer's badgering and took a day off to
visit the planet. She came back, face flushed with pleasure, arms full of
flowering plants for transplantation in the hydroponic gardens and full of
stories about unique geological formations.
	And for a while, the shadows abated...

	Chakotay walked into the Captain's ready room unannounced, as he always
did for their regular 0700 meeting. As was often the case, Janeway was
standing at the window, "counting stars," as she put it. In one hand she
held her ubiquitous cup of coffee; in the other was a framed photograph. He
stood for nearly half a minute, waiting for her to turn, before he realized
he hadn't heard her come in. He cleared his throat.
	She jumped, splashing coffee on her uniform and dropping the photograph,
and, unexpectedly, shattering the glass fronting the picture. Chakotay
stepped forward quick to help her. "This glass shouldn't have broken," he
exclaimed.
	Janeway squatted down to pick some of the shards from carpet. "It's an
antique -- or rather, it was an antique. Original glass. My mother gave it
to me one Christmas years ago."
	She spoke without inflection as she piled the fragments on the face of the
photograph, standing up to place it on the desk carelessly as if its
destruction were of little concern to her. It wasn't until then that
Chakotay noticed it was the picture of her dog and Mark.
	"I'm sorry," he said, gently. "Would you like me to get it repaired?"
	Janeway cast it a brief glance. "No, no. It's not that important. Shall we
get to it? I have Kes coming in at 0800 ... "
 	She moved to sit behind the desk and motioned to a chair. He stood rooted
to the spot until she looked up.
	"What is it?" she asked.
	He hesitated, and then spoke. "Let me ask the same of you--what is it?"
	She looked puzzled for a moment, and then blushed slightly. "You embarrass me, Commander. I thought my shield was impenetrable."
	He gave her a slight smile. "It is--to most; to almost all."
	She matched his smile and motioned him to the chair. "All right --true
confessions." She took a sip of coffee to give herself a moment to gather
her thoughts, to balance what she was going to say.
	"This time of year...my family always got together for Christmas. We had a
strict rule. If it were humanly possible, you came home for Christmas."
Janeway took another sip of her coffee.
	"This will be the first Christmas in years that I won't be home. I'm just
a little...well...homesick." She looked at the photograph, and then gave
him a sad smile.
	"It's not like we don't all wish we could go home."
	They sat in silence for a few moments, and then Janeway sat forward in her
chair. "Right, now, about our energy consumption. I think we did pretty
well last week, maybe we should consider increasing the replicator
rations... "

	Some time between inspecting the navigational array off the starboard
nacelle and counseling a straggling crew member, Chakotay found time to
visit the Doctor. It wasn't a long consultation, but he left with a smile
and a look of determination. He tapped his comm badge.	
	"Mr. Paris, at your convenience, I'd like to see you in my quarters."
	Paris, lining up a perfect shot at the pool table at Sandrine's, wondered
what he'd done now.

	"Why me?"
	Paris' voice was tinged with dismay, almost whiny. Chakotay found it
difficult not to smile.
	"Because you're...experienced in matters like this. Besides, you're the
only one on the ship who has lengthy brig experience; you'll know what to
expect if you get caught."
	Paris' mouth fell open.
	"Thanks a lot ! You don't think that's a good reason for me not to do
this? I've done my time."
	Chakotay chuckled, then got serious. "So who do you want me to trust this
to? Tuvok? Harry? B'Elanna? You know she can't keep a secret worth a damn."
The first officer clapped a hand on the young lieutenant's shoulder. "You
should be happy I have such faith in you!"
	Paris shook his head. "All right. I'll do it. But where do I look?"
	Chakotay thought for a moment, and then snapped his fingers. "Her civilian
clothes. She's hardly had a chance to put them on since her mission
started. Be sure to vacuum the floor and the chairs, but I think her
clothes are our best bet."
	Paris shook his head again. "I could be courtmartialed for this."
	Chakotay grinned. "Trust me, Paris. I won't let anything happen to you.
We're in this together."
	"That's what I'm afraid of," said the pilot, grimly.

	Tom Paris tried to look nonchalant as he walked down the corridor towards
the Captain's cabin. He'd slipped the tiny power vacuum up the sleeve of
his shirt to hide it, but he still felt a jolt of fear every time he passed
someone in the passageway.
	Relax, he told himself. Relax. Chakotay will keep her busy. They'll be in
Sandrine's for an hour yet...
	Getting in was a snap. Earlier in the day, with Chakotay's help, he'd
circumvented the security access codes in the computer to allow him into
Janeway's quarters. He closed the door behind him and secured it--although
the only person who might want to get in would be Janeway herself, and it
might be a little suspicious if she found her own door locked against her.
	Paris pulled out the vacuum and thumbed it on. It worked virtually without
sound as it sucked up dust and minute particles from the carpet and
furniture. As he worked, he looked around him, trying to figure out where
Janeway might store her non-uniform clothing.
	When he was done with the floor and furniture, he flicked the vacuum off
and opened her closet. Not unexpectedly, it was immaculately arranged,
uniforms hanging straight, boots shined with the toes lined up. And tucked
far to the right, just as neatly aligned, were her liberty clothes. Rather
than pull them out--and risk the possibility of putting them back
incorrectly--Paris slid into the closet and turned on the vacuum. As he ran
it over the material, her scent rose up around him. It took all of his will
toslow his pounding heart. Even when she wasn't here, she was watching
over him.

	Ta da, he thought, if I get out of this I'm never going to help Chakotay
with any of his hair-brained schemes again...
	He stepped out of the closet and tucked the vacuum back up his sleeve.
With a jolt, he realized he had only minutes left before the time he'd
agreed upon with Chakotay. And what if the Captain hadn't wanted to stay
for the whole pool tournament?
	Paris' heart began to pound again, and he opened the door to Janeway's
quarters--and looked straight into the surprised face of
his Captain and the panicked face of his first officer.
	Janeway placed a hand on Paris' chest and forced him back into the room.
She crossed her arms, her lips pressed together in a hard straight line.
	"So?" she asked.
	Lie! screamed a voice in Paris' head. Tell her you were walking by and in
a moment of whimsy was wondering if the Captain wanted to watch the pool
tournament, and when you rang the chime you thought she'd said come in and
the door was open...or tell her you were going to visit Jenny Delaney and
took a wrong turn into Janeway's quarters...or...Ta da. Caught. He was
caught. And there was no way he was going to lie to her; if he learned
anything in his life, he learned never to lie again. But the truth was as
impossible as a lie.
	"Uh," said Paris.
	Fury jumped into Janeway's eye. "Mr. Paris, I want to know right now what
you were doing in my quarters," she snapped.
	Paris' eyes slipped to Chakotay's face. The first officer stood frozen,
helpless.
	Unexpectedly, Paris pulled his shoulders back and stood at attention.
"Ma'am, I am sorry to inform you I cannot tell you why I was in your
quarters."
	Chakotay winced. Bad to terrible to impossible in three seconds flat.
Janeway face flushed with anger. "You cannot tell..." she stopped, choking
with the intensity of her anger.
	Chakotay reached forward and grabbed Paris' arm, none too gently. "I'll
secure him in his quarters," he said quickly with a touch of hardness in
his voice. "We can deal with him tomorrow morning."
	Janeway waved her hand, dismissing them both. Anger--but also
disappointment and sadness--were reflected in her face as the two men
hurried out the door.

	Chakotay sat on Paris' bed, hands hanging between his knees, shoulders
drooping, as Paris ranted.
	"Courtmartialed! I'm going to be courtmartialed for this!" Paris paced
around his quarters like an animal caged. "This may be a record, you know.
How many Starfleet officers do you know that get courtmartialed twice in
their career?"
	He stopped his pacing and addressed the wall.
	"Do you suppose this will get me in the Guinness Book of Galactic
Records?" he asked, bitterly.
	"You won't get court martialed," Chakotay said miserably. "I'll tell her I
ordered you to do it."
	Paris turned around and looked at the first officer.
	"You would do that for me?" he said finally.
	Chakotay looked up. "Of course. It's the truth."
	Paris sat down next to him. "Yeah. But... " The lieutenant handed Chakotay
the vacuum. "Let's not have all this be for nothing. I'm pretty sure I saw
some when I was going over her clothes."
	Chakotay cradled the slim machine in his hands. "Thanks."
	"And -- uh -- you didn't order me to do this. I wanted to. Honest. Just
stick up for me tomorrow. She listens to you; she won't courtmartial me,"
said Paris with a sigh. "And let's face it, Voyager is short on pilots. The
ship needs me. What can she do to me?"
	Chakotay's shoulders drooped even lower. "Tom, believe me, my intentions
were good ..."
	Paris gave him a wry smile. "I know. But I want you to remember something.
You owe me. Again. And I keep track... "

	It was an unheard of punishment for such a serious crime.
	The bridge officers weren't privy to the specifics of the "discussion"
that went on in the Captain's ready room between Janeway and Chakotay, but
they knew it was spirited. The conversation rose and fell for more than two
hours as Paris sat staring straight ahead at his pilot's console.
	His day had started with an audience with the Captain and Chakotay where
he'd again refused to tell why he had been in her quarters. Paris could
tell that the night--and the fact that nothing was amiss in her
quarters--had cooled the Captain's anger; he hoped that this, and her
innate compassion, would allow her to go easy on him.
	He'd been summarily dismissed while his fate was determined. And when it
was decided, they called him back in.
	Six months' holodeck privileges revoked. Six months' replicator rations
revoked. Six months' extra duty. And when he wasn't on duty, he was
confined to quarters.
	For six months.
	But it wasn't a courtmartial. It wouldn't even go into his permanent
record. In six months it would be over.
	It was almost, thought Paris, worth it.

	It was to Paris' credit that he never brought that fateful night up to
Chakotay once during the month that followed. Chakotay, for his part, found
numerous reasons to release Paris from the confines of his quarters--an
errand to be run to sickbay, tests that had to be done in the hydroponic
gardens, maintenance that needed to be performed on holodeck two. Harry Kim
was assigned to this last task as well, to Paris' gratitude.
	The days passed. Star system were mapped. Class M planets explored.
Anniversaries and promotions and birthdays celebrated. Poker games played
and billiard tournaments held. There was even a marriage, with a huge
reception afterward.
	And all without the exuberant, flirting presence of Lieutenant (junior
grade) Thomas Eugene Paris of Starfleet.
	
	"You want me to what?" asked Janeway, her face full of surprise.
	"Just for an hour, Captain. He's been a model officer. And I know he
deeply regrets what he did," said Chakotay.
	And you have no idea how much I regret it, thought Chakotay.
	Janeway sat, closing the book she'd been reading and placing it in her
lap. "I had no idea you and Mr. Paris were so close, Commander," she said
with a touch of amusement. "And to be honest, I have a feeling Mr. Paris
may not want to attend my Christmas party. After all, I'll be there, and I
was the one who put him in hack."
	Chakotay thought quickly. Paris absent from the Captain's Christmas party
was unthinkable. What could he say to persuade her to bend the rules to
allow Paris to attend, if only for a hour?
	He leaned over and put a hand on her shoulder.
	"Please. An hour. I think it'll mean more to him than you know."
	Janeway was so startled she was speechless.
	"Er, alright, Chakotay, if you think so," she said finally. "But only an
hour. It's important to maintain discipline. I'm sure you appreciate how
important that is."
	Chakotay sighed inwardly. "Absolutely, Captain."
	
	The Captain held her Christmas party in Sandrine's. Paris's favorite
holographic characters were invited as well--a decision made by Chakotay.
	By 2000, the party was in full swing. To accommodate the entire crew,
Janeway had ordered a special duty rotation so that over the course of the
evening everyone aboard would have a chance to stop in and sample some of
Neelix's holiday fare. The result was that the party never lost its
freshness, with people moving in and out, some in liberty attire, some in
uniform, some exhausted from hours of dancing, some just starting out. It
wasn't long before the entire room was littered with festoons of colored
ribbon and torn wrapping paper as the crew began exchanging gifts.
	And the Captain held court, drinking champagne--from her high color and
laughter, there could be little doubt it was the real thing.
	Paris came in, still in uniform, just as Janeway was beginning to open her
Christmas presents. She caught his eye and gave him a slight nod. He nodded
back and made his way to the bar, leaning against it and sipping beer from
a frosty glass, never taking his eyes off his Captain.
	Her mountain of gifts were mostly amusing tokens--a handmade cushion for
the Captain's bridge chair, a "bun warmer" for her hair, a lurid
pseudo-Victorian novel written by the entire engineering department--but a
few were so touching Paris imagined there were tears in the Captain's eyes.
Replicants of the Captain's pips and medals framed in a small case for her
wall. A hand-carved model of Voyager. And last, a piece of antique glass
cut to fit the photograph of Mark and her dog.
	"Speech!" shouted someone to Janeway from the back of the bar.
	"Speech! Speech!"
	Paris took a sip of his beer. Ten minutes more and he'd have to go back to
his quarters.
	Janeway stood, smiling, to thank her crew, but before she could start, Kes
came in, clutching a blanket to her chest. All eyes turned to her.
	"Sorry to be so late, Captain," said the petite Ocampa. "But there's one
last present for you."
	Kes placed the blanket into the Captain's arms, and folded back a
corner--to reveal a squirming strawberry-blonde Golden Retriever puppy, so
young its eyes were still closed.
	"Oh...my."
	Janeway brought the bundle of softness up to her face to rub its silky
head against her cheek. A tiny pink tongue lapped her nose.
	Silence filled the bar.
	Janeway looked up to find the Doctor and Chakotay standing in front of her.
	"How?" she asked. "How did you do this?"
	"She's a clone of your dog," said the Doctor. "There's some genetic drift,
but we were able to control it fairly well. I don't think you'll notice the
difference--"
	"How?" asked Janeway of Chakotay, interrupting the Doctor.
	Chakotay smiled warmly. "We were able to find some dog hairs with the
follicles on them to get the DNA. Kes and the Doctor cloned her. She's
still on the bottle, but Kes said she'd take care of her while you're on
duty."
	Janeway buried her face into the soft fur, breathing in the puppy's
sour-sweet scent. It smelled of home.
	"Thank you," she said, looking up into her first officer's face, her own
suffused with emotion. "You have no idea... "
	Chakotay shook his head. "Don't thank me. You should thank Tom. He was the
one who got the dog hair from your clothes--I think you remember when he
did that."
	Janeway turned quickly, to find Paris standing behind her.
	"Merry Christmas, Captain." He put his half-finished beer down on a nearby
table. "I wish I could stay, but my hour's up."
	She placed a hand on his arm, caught between heaven and hell.
	"Tom, I don't know what to say." She swallowed hard, trying to clear the
lump in her throat. "This is the best present I've ever gotten."
	She swallowed again. "Maybe the most costly one, too."	
	Paris looked at the squirming puppy she clutched in her arms, and then
into the tearful face of the woman who had set him free from a lifetime of
humiliation and self-pity. Hell, he'd probably have ended up a drunk in
some bar if it weren't for her.
	Six months of bad food and long hours of work and no entertainment?
	He smiled at her broadly.
	"It was nothing, ma'am."

THE END


THE ROAD NOT TAKEN
by Barbe Smith

	Kes paced around her room--the presence was overwhelming yet she could not
define the where or why of it. She'd sensed things before, but never
anything this powerful. It was down time for the main crew and she hated to
disturb the Captain for a sensation, but the imminence of disaster weighed
on her like an anchor. Knowing that she would realize no peace until she
shared her burden, Kes sped down the hall into the turbolift.
	"Captain's Quarters!"

	The large dog delighted in the appearance of her master. Unfortunately,
the joyous reunion interrupted the Golden Retriever's romp in the creek and
Kathryn Janeway found herself being bowled over by a wet and very muddy
dog. Mark doubled over at the sight of his oh-so-proper fiancee struggling
to maintain her dignity beneath such an ebullient (and filthy) welcome. All
semblance of composure was lost as his laughter reached her ears. Catching
him offguard she yanked him to the ground beside her where she and the dog
turned their enthusiasm to him and his spotless white shirt!
	As Mark and Kathryn caught their breaths and gazed at the cloudless sky, a
cherub fluttered into view. This was a new touch to the scene, but there
was something rather peculiar about it.
	"How sweet, how romantic...I think I'm going to be ill!" the Cherub sneered.
	The voice penetrated the last of Janeway's sleep-befuddled haze and she sat up with a bolt:
	"What?!"
	Sure enough, as her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she caught sight of a
chubby, winged creature flitting through her cabin. The ludicrous vision
was further compounded by its unusual features--the face bore the sneering
appearance of the infamous Q!
	Janeway was hard put not to giggle even as she began to comprehend the
serious jeopardy that confronted her ship and crew. The amusement faded
from her voice as she demanded:
	"What are you doing here, Q?--I thought you preferred annoying Captain Picard."
	"My dear lady...the Enterprise has been far too boring lately and here you
are: lost in the far reaches of space, short on energy and supplies,
feuding crewmen. Why, it's everything I could possibly wish for in
entertainment. I am curious though, in the midst of all these interesting
crises, you spend endless hours dreaming of a particularly uncolorful male
and a canine. You have the greatest adventure that any mortal could desire
yet you pine for what you left behind? Incredible!"
	Janeway's mind had been racing over anything she had ever heard about the
Continuum. Q's misdeeds were widely known--avenues to thwart him were not.
The need to be cautious tempered her words and kept her voice pleasant and
even: "Q, is this merely a social call or is there some point to this
visit?"
	At that moment that Kes found herself at the Captain's door. The sense of
superior power nearly knocked her back but she struggled against the
suffocating sensation in order to warn Janeway. At the door's chime, the
Captain looked questioningly at Q. Her instinct was to warn the visitor
away but Q controlled the cards in this game.
	"Oh let her in. It's merely that Ocampa girl coming to warn you about my
arrival. While this angel routine is appropriate to my role here, it is a
bit too confining. I believe I'll find something more comfortable."
	As the Captain bid Kes enter, she found herself staring at an
average-sized human male in a Starfleet Captain's attire. Confused, Kes
looked to Janeway for an explanation.
	"Kes, may I introduce you to Q--he is a member of the Q Continuum, an
omnipotent species which has a unusual preoccupation with human behavior."
	"Nicely put, Captain," Q spoke up briskly and turned his attention to the
Ocampan. "Now Kes, if you would be so kind as to inform the others, I am
going to borrow the Captain for a while. I promise that I will return her
to you when I'm finished, but for now I'm in a rush and don't want to spend
time on explanations, especially with one of those interminably logical
Vulcans. Come along Captain, I believe the show is about to begin..."
	With a snap of his fingers Q and Captain Janeway vanished. Temporarily
frozen from the shock of this extraordinary encounter, Kes took a moment to
register what had happened. Attempting to pull herself together, she dashed
to Janeway's comm panel:
	"Commander Chakotay, Lt. Tuvok, please come quickly! The Captain has been
abducted!"
				
	It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust to the blackness. Captain
Janeway was alone in a huge theater where ancient cartoons raced across the
screen. After hundreds of years, Wile E. Coyote was still unsuccessful in
his quest to catch the Road Runner...and of Q there was no sign.
	Kathryn Janeway possessed a nature that embraced the new, the unknown. But
as she waited alone for whatever this whimsical and sadistic creature had
to throw her way, she had to breathe deeply to keep panic from paralyzing
her. Using all her Starfleet training, she assured herself that she was
prepared for anything.
	"Popcorn?" Well, apparently almost anything. Q's sudden reappearance in
the midst of her meditation startled her into a jerk of surprise that
knocked his arm, sending hot and buttery kernals flying everywhere.
	"Apparently not," Q quipped. "Oh well, I'd hate to see you choke on it
anyway...this film is reputed to be quite a tear-jerker."
	"And that movie might be?" Janeway probed.
	"You may have heard of it. It's entitled 'It's a Wonderful Life.' Many
Terrans consider it Classic Cinema."
	"Yes...I have heard of it. But, if I may ask, why is it that you kidnapped
me from my ship to view an old vid?"
	"Shhh, Captain I must request that you be quiet. I'm confident that you've
never seen this particular version and I'm told that the director is quite
the genius. Now...settle down," Q saw more questions about to tumble from
Janeway's lips and firmly laid a finger against them "You will understand
in time, my good Captain..."
 	As the film credits rolled, Q sank back with a sigh of satisfaction. The
scratchy images of the old cinema tumbled by lazily as Janeway's attention
was grabbed by the actors' names--these were her colleagues and relatives!
With the final fanfare and "Directed by Q" emblazoned fullscreen, the
Captain braced herself for the next part of the performance...

 	"Shields up, Red Alert! The Maquis ship knows she's trapped and will be
throwing everything she's got left at us. Lieutenant, I want you to take us
within transport distance so we can get Tuvok out of there."
	Within moments, the Betazoid officer responded: "Captain, we're within
transport range and we've located Lt. Tuvok's signal."
	Janeway paced Voyager's bridge: "All right, drop shields and transport
Tuvok on my mark." She gazed at the screen where the renegade vessel was
crumpling under Cardassian fire: "Now!"
	Her reunion with her security chief was brief; they wasted no time in
moving back from the action. The mission had gone smoothly thanks to the
Vulcan's secret transmissions of the Maquis ship's whereabouts. It still
puzzled her that the Cardassians had also known the coordinates of the
ship's location, but it was safe to assume that they had also made use of
intelligence resources.
	Meanwhile, the Maquis ship lay still and deadly quiet. Starfleet had given
orders that this ship was to be left to Cardassian jurisdiction. The
thought turned Janeway's stomach. Knowing that many of these rebels were
merely fighting for their homeland's freedom, the Federation might have
offered some leniency. The Cardassians would show no such mercy. However,
Admiral Nucheyev had made it clear that fragile relations with Cardassia
must be strengthened. So it was that the Captain turned away from the scene
before her and issued orders to take them back to Federation space.

	Onboard the Maquis vessel, B'Elanna Torres exploded in rage as Seska
calmly boasted her Cardassian heritage. With a deep Klingon howl, Torres
lunged and locked her hands around Seska's throat. She jerked in disbelief
as phasers suddenly sliced into her from all sides. In her last moments she
knew that indeed, they had failed. As her lifeforce ebbed, her last sight
was of a defeated yet unrepentant Chakotay being dragged away by his
most-hated enemy.

	"Poor B'Elanna," whispered Janeway, "to die so needlessly..."
	"Ah, but Captain, she died an honorable death by Klingon standards. You
should see what's going to happen to her in this universe. Ooops, the
Continuum becomes really annoyed at me when I start divulging secrets about
your future."
	Janeway recoiled from the thought that she had saved B'Elanna from an
honorable death only to face some wretched future. "And Chakotay?" 	
	"Don't worry Captain, everything will work out. Now, will you be quiet or
will I have to call the usher?"
	Seeing that Q would no longer be forthcoming with answers, Janeway leaned
back into her chair. There was a certain fascination with viewing 'what
might have been' but she couldn't help but wonder about the motive behind
this production.

 	"A daughter! How wonderful!"
	"Yes, Admiral, my first. After having the two boys, I never expected to be
dealing with hair ribbons, but Mark and I are thrilled. However, I think I
may request an extended leave from space duty this time. After all those
years in space, I'd like to take a little time on earth to enjoy my
family."
	"I understand Kathryn. We can certainly use your assistance at the
Academy. But you know when you are ready, there will be a starship waiting
for you..."
	Kathryn looked at her husband and sleeping infant daughter. The thought of leaving them behind for even a moment was inconceivable now, but there was that adventurer part in her that she knew could never be stifled for long.
	The Golden Retriever raced into the room and launched onto the bed. The
three year-old twins came chasing behind. "Jim, Tom, take it easy. Bear is
going to have puppies and can't be rushing about as she used to."
	"Mom, can we keep the puppies, please?" Janeway no longer remembered a
time when there hadn't been babies and puppies wreaking havoc in her
life--but she would choose it no other way.
	"We'll talk about it later, boys. Right now your mother and new sister
need their rest." Hearing Dad's no-nonsense tone, the boys exited quickly,
stopping only to plant a wet kiss on their mother's cheek.
	Kathryn and Mark laughed at their boys' antics then glanced down at the
new perfection that was in their keeping. What more was there that they
could ask for in life?

	Janeway tried to ignore the tears trickling down her cheeks. After all,
there was no way of knowing that this scenario was how her life would have
truly turned out, if not for her decision to pursue the Maquis into the
storms of the Badlands.
	"Q, stop this. If I recall properly, the intent of the original movie was
to point out how much worse things turned out without the man's existence.
This has only shown me how poor a choice I made!"
	"Yes, but Captain, we are talking reality here. In movies, it can be made
very tidy and convenient but human life is so much more complex.
However...to be fair, if you'd like I'll snap my fingers and you can choose
that other life right now. No one will ever know and you'll have what you
want. Or...if you prefer, you can have what's hidden behind Curtain Number
Three..."  	
	Q was game show master now, and a scantily clad woman was waving her hand
in front of a garishly festooned curtain labelled #3 while another caressed
the movie screen.  "What's it to be, my lady?"
	Janeway's heart was thudding in her ears as the voices and images hammered
on every side. Finally she burst out: "I'd like to see the rest of the
movie!"
	"Sensible choice, Captain." In an instant, the curtains and women
disappeared, and the reel began anew...

	 The years rolled by and Janeway's career blossomed. First steps were
replaced by first kisses in her children's lives while Kathryn and her
husband danced the delicate ballet of negotiating time together. The years
of raising their family were over too soon, and it was in wonder that
Admiral Kathryn Janeway watched her daughter Margaret take her place on the
transporter pad which would beam her to her first deep space assignment on
Voyager A.
	"Meg, are you sure you remembered everything? How about the hologram of
the family I gave you?" Margaret Janeway rolled her eyes at her father. She
would never have thought that her unflappable mother would come this
unhinged. She stepped off the pad to give the fretting Admiral one last
hug.
	"I'll be fine, Mother. Really I will..."
	It was a coup of sorts that a newly-commissioned ensign was assigned to
this prestigious position, but First Officer Harry Kim had followed the
academic track of his former captain's daughter. He knew that she would be
a crack candidate for the science officer vacancy onboard the ship.
	Kathryn was so proud that her daughter had chosen this path. The boys had
chosen other career directions. Jim was involved in the oceangraphic
program in Newfoundland while Tom was teaching philosophy at UCLA. Still,
from the moment that Meg had first toddled onboard her mother's ship,
Kathryn knew that she was hooked. Now, the circle was complete and it was
her turn to bid her daughter goodbye while she remained earthbound.
	
	The news of the Cardassian action took Starfleet by surprise. Relations
had been rocky over the years, but they had held nonetheless. This latest
action was a major setback, and the top brass were squabbling amongst
themselves over the best course of action.
	"The colonies were completely wiped out?" Admiral Schoefield still doubted
the information.
	Admiral Picard responded. "Unfortunately, our sources are impeccable on
this, Bob. All former colonies on Cardassian-held lands have been
eradicated. Any citizen even remotely connected to Maquis activity has been
summarily executed. Our ships have made long-range passes--there is not a
humanoid life sign to be found on those planets."
	Schoefield let fly a string of profanities. His colleagues nodded in
agreement. "Why the hell is this happening after all this time? The Maquis
haven't been a real threat since Kathryn here took her crew after them
twenty-odd years ago."
	Jean-Luc Picard again had the most to offer: "It seems that a new
generation of Maquis has arisen. A former leader, Chakotay, apparently
broke out of a Cardassian work camp not too long ago, and together with Tom
Paris has rebuilt the cadre. The Cardassians have come down hard to prevent
further trouble from the group."
	The group of admirals all thought with embarassment of Paris' part in
this. They'd been quite fond of his father; now they would be in the
uncomfortable role of dealing with his son's traitorous behavior.
	Admiral Janeway's voice pierced through the muttering: "So, what is to be
our part in this? Are we to turn a blind eye to the massacre and discuss
the weather next time we convene with Cardassian delegates?"
	Picard ran his hand over his scalp and wearily responded: "I think that is
our only possible recourse. Federation leaders have decided that after all
this time, the matter of the colonies has become an internal one. In their
estimation, the Prime Directive prohibits a stronger solution. As
distasteful as the thought may be, I fear we may have to live with it."
	"And if Maquis ships request assistance?" Schoefield inquired.
	"We will provide emergency medical and technical aid only, but asylum will
be denied. The Maquis will fight alone on this..."
	The finality of Picard's remarks left nothing more to be said and the
Admirals dispersed. Several of the officers left the meeting with a heavy
heart. Janeway remembered how the colonists had wanted only to stay close
to the land that bound them spiritually. Now, the land was purged and their
spirits would never find the peace they had so desired. The Federation had
traded them like pawns for the price of a shaky treaty. The contest was
over now and it was the colonists who had lost everything.

	Admiral Janeway's hand trembled as she hit the key to end the last
transmission. The news she had always dreaded had come: her daughter and
other members of an away team, including the XO, were missing. Their
shuttle had failed to reach its assigned rendezvous point some eighteen
hours ago. Recalling all those moments on Voyager when situations had
appeared insurmountable, when the crew had pulled off some miracle, Janeway
strove to hold on to hope. But Maquis raids were escalating and Cardassians
were attacking anything in their space. The shuttle had chosen a dangerous
site to run astray.
	Some hours passed. Close to exhaustion with fists clenched so tightly she
no longer felt any sensation, Janeway stared blankly at her viewscreen,
willing it to bring her encouraging news. The message, when it came, was
not what she expected. "Admiral Janeway? We've received a transmission from
a Captain Chakotay. He is demanding that he meet with you, and you alone,
to negotiate the release of Starfleet personnel. He claims that you two
have a prior relationship and he trusts no one else. What should I
respond?"
	Janeway remembered back to their previous meeting. She had stared at him
across viewscreens, demanding that he surrender his vessel. Despite such
overwhelming odds against him, she had secretly admired his firm refusal
and his warning to stay clear of what was a personal matter with the
Cardassians. Her role in the battle that day could hardly have endeared her
to him. Was that what this was all about?
	"Lieutenant, make arrangements for my transport. And inform Commander
Tuvok of my plans, I believe he may be interested in serving as my aide."
	"But Admiral, you can't trust them. You'll very likely be walking into a
trap..."
	"I'm well aware of that, Lieutenant. Carry out my orders!"
	"Aye, Admiral!"
	The coordinates were laid in and within a few days, Tuvok and Janeway
found themselves awaiting their host on a barren asteroid at the Badlands'
fringe. It was some time before they became aware of the other inhabitants.
	"Admiral! I appreciate your coming." Janeway swallowed a gasp of shock at
the hideous figure that emerged from the shadows. The voice she remembered
as Chakotay's, but there was little left of the handsome features with the
distinctive tattoo. The formerly burly frame was grotesquely crippled.
	Ignoring the flash of revulsion and pity, Janeway addressed the rebel
leader:  "Captain, we've come as requested. Now, where are our people and
are they well?"
	A laugh from off to the right broke into the tense arena. "Man, I can tell
why my father liked her so much! She has a gift for getting right to the
point." Tom Paris came forward disruptor hanging loosely but menacingly on
his hip.
	 "Admiral," he said, bowing slightly, "I'm afraid that Commander Kim made
an ill-advised move to escape; as a result, he is no longer with us. But
the rest of our guests are fine, for the moment. What we need is someone
who will hear our concerns and carry them to Starfleet. This seemed the
only way to attract someone's attention!"
	Chakotay glared Paris into a sullen silence, then gestured for the two
Starfleet officers to follow him into a nearby cave. Meg Janeway started at
the sudden appearance of her mother. Janeway could see she was frightened,
but as her gaze met her mother's she gave her a valiant wink.

	The film suddenly flickered out. Janeway turned on the 'director' and
lashed out:
	"What is this? You've brought me this far only to torture me as to the
outcome?"
	"Why, Captain, I only thought that since it's growing late you might want
to be re-joining your crew. After all, there is only one way that this film
could end. I'm sure you know that."
	"Q, what are you talking about? There are several possibilities and I'd
like to know how it turns out. I have to..."
	Q's humoring sigh echoed in the empty theatre."Very well, if you insist."
	An usher hastily replaced the reel and the tape slowly rolled.

	"So, this was a trap? You have no intentions of negotiating anything."
Janeway had considered this could happen but could not hide her
disappointment as her hands were bound behind her.
	Tuvok spoke up: "Sir, I must inform you that our movements are being
carefully monitored. The crew has orders to move on this place at the first
indication of hostile fire or if we have not returned by 0900 hours."
	Chakotay's bark of laughter hinted at insanity: "Let them come, nothing
can hurt me any longer. The Maquis is growing and will survive with or
without me. But, before I go, I wanted you to feel what I felt to be
betrayed and left to die. To survive hell, to return to your homeland to
find it is no more. My people demand vengeance and I will destroy as many
Cardassians and Starfleet officers as it takes to find peace. And, as you
came here uninvited, you will be first."
	Tuvok's eyebrow twitched for a moment then settled into resignation as the
disruptor blast knocked him back.
	"Feel that pain? That's nothing. This time you will feel the fury of a
million fires, then you will die."
	Janeway closed her eyes against the sight. Tuvok stoically held his
screams but could not prevent the stench of his searing flesh. She only
opened her eyes as she heard her daughter's squeal of fright. The disruptor
was now trained in her direction.
	"No, Stop. Please! Kill me instead." The Admiral knew she sounded
hysterical, but struggled to break through to this madman.
	"Sorry, Ma'am," Paris drawled, "but he's been planning this for quite some
time. It's the least he can do for all the help you gave him twenty-six
years ago!"
	Janeway had loosened her bonds and frantically grabbed for anything she
could use as a projectile. She had to block Chakotay's shot. As he slowly
exerted pressure on the trigger, she let fly with a large rock, deflecting
his aim and causing the beam to hit Tom Paris in the head. He died
instantly.
	Chakotay's rage filled the cavern and he advanced on Janeway's daughter
screaming in his native tongue. As his weapon's beam glowed fiercely, the
Admiral tackled him and they scuffled until only one of the trio
remained...

	The funeral was a simple affair in keeping with her lifestyle. Mark was
inconsolable at the loss. It seemed incredible that only a few week's ago
the whole family had shared a rare skiing vacation. Now, he would never see
her again.
	Starfleet was well-represented and supportive, but he wished he could
scream at them to leave him alone--they had taken a part of his soul and he
could not easily forgive that. But, he did all that was expected of him
then made his adieux and headed to the hospital.
	"Hi honey, how are you feeling today?"
	The figure on the hospital bed was shrouded. The doctors had expected the
bandages to be removed by now, but their patient's recovery was slowed by
the trauma she had undergone. Mark gently took her hand and stroked it,
trying to break through the nightmares which haunted even her waking
moments. He braced himself, prepared to recount the scene that had just
been played. The question was feeble but not long in coming: "How did it go
today, was it nice?"
	"Yes, Kathryn, it was everything that Meg could have wished for..."

	Fade to black.
	"Brilliant, simply brilliant. Bravo, bravissimo!" Q was on his feet
applauding loudly.
	Captain Janeway slowly emerged from her fog, almost pinching herself to
insure that she was truly in this time, this place. In the end, Q had made
his point. All this time, she had dreamt of the life left behind as the
ideal, forgetting that misfortune and quirks of fate are omnipresent. As
she turned to thank her 'angel' she found herself centerstage in her own
ready room, surrounded by concerned and mystified bridge officers.
	"Captain, are you okay?" Ensign Kim was the first to find his voice.
	"Yes, gentlemen," she responded looking over each of her friends with
fondness, "I couldn't be better. Now, if you can hold your questions until
morning, I believe I have a few more hours rest before my watch. If you'll
excuse me?"
	Tuvok escorted the Captain to her quarters in the event that Q might make
another appearance. As the turbolift preceded on it's way, a sudden loud
clank grabbed their attention.
	"I cannot fathom what manner of sound that could have been," Tuvok
wondered aloud, "that did not have the harmonics of any known metal onboard
Voyager."
	Janeway found herself stifling giggles for the second time that night. She
suspected that her security chief would be questioning her sanity
especially when she noted:  "I think a very big angel just received his
wings!"
	Back in her cabin, she spotted one of her books laying open on her desk.
The events of this night finally rooted in her soul as she read the last
lines of a favorite poem by Robert Frost:

	"I shall be telling this with a sigh
   Somewhere ages and ages hence:
	 Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
   I took the one less traveled by,
	 And that has made all the difference."

THE END


WE ARE FAMILY

Other Star Trek fan clubs you might want to know about!  Send SASE for
information:

VULCAN INSIDERS/HARRY KIM INSIDERS
Official Tim Russ/Tuvok Fan Club
P.O. Box 8248
Long Beach, CA 90808

Official Garrett Wang/Harry Kim Fan Club
P.O. Box 13767
Sacramento, CA 95853-3767

RANDOM FLIGHT
Official Robert Duncan McNeill/Tom Paris Fan Club
c/o Brenda Antrim
P.O. Box 3583
Abilene, TX 79604
bantrim@delphi.com

FIRST OFFICER'S LOG
Robert Beltran/Chakotay Fan Club
c/o Kim de la Fuente
6123 Halifax Drive
New Port Richey, FL 24653-6030
kamala1@aol.com

EPIC
Official Ethan Phillips/Neelix Fan Club
c/o Joe Christiano and Rande Goodwin
P.O. Box 4818
Waterbury, Connecticut 06704

RBD FAN CLUB
Official Roxann Biggs-Dawson/B'Elanna Torres Fan Club
1630 Ft. Campbell Blvd
Suite 143
Clarksvile TN 37042

ROBERT PICARDO FAN CLUB
Robert Picardo/The Doctor Fan Club
c/o Tracey Ledel, RNC
Box 373
1277 Linda Mar Shopping Center
Pacifica, CA 94044

THE DOCTOR'S EXCHANGE
Official Alexander Siddig/Dr. Bashir Fan Club
c/o Joan Marie Verba
P. O. Box 1363
Minnetonka, MN 55345-0363
verba001@maroon.tc.umn.edu

ENVY
Nana Visitor/Major Kira Fan Club
c/o Kimberley Junius
P.O. Box 1926
Upland, CA 91785-1926
bajorfemme@aol.com

OASIS
Official Armin Shimerman/Quark Fan Club
c/o Kathy Bayne
26 Dogwood Street
Jersey City, NJ 07305
kathybayne@aol.com

THE LAST OUTPOST
Star Trek Club of Hawaii
c/o Mark Wilson
P.O. Box 31261
Honolulu, HI 96820
73502.226@compuserve.com


CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE DEPARTMENT

Kate:  See you in Denver in April, hopefully!
Robert:  Thanks so much for sharing your time and talent with us.
Bob:  We're still trying to stop laughing from the floor show...
Heather Koons:  WE'LL MISS YOU!  *sob*
Elaine Karolczak: Thanks so much for the photos!
BGHelpers:  Thanks for dealing with the endless inquiries!
Becky:  *shriek of envy*  And God punished your computer...
Jan and Barbe:  WE WANT MORE STORIES!  Thanks much!
Alanna:  O Warrior Queen, we salute you, as does Bob Picardo!
Siubhan:  I owe you more favors than I can ever hope to repay!
Maryann:  I owe you video of anything!  ANYTHING!
Laura B:  And I owe you scans of anything!  ANYTHING!
Anne:  So glad we met!  And thanks for all the art!
RBLS:  We love every one of you!  We must gather again soon!

Below:  Our lovely membership secretary, Becky Olsen, exhibits her best
"I've got my arm around Robert Beltran!" smile...

[Photo of Becky and Robert Beltran]


PHOTO CREDITS

1--Photos by Sue Harke, Jennifer Pelland.
2--Photo courtesy Becky Olsen.
2--Illustration © Jennifer Pelland.
3-10--Photos © Paramount Pictures 1995.
11--Illustration © Kate Scally.
12--Photo © ABC-TV.
13--Illustration © Anne Davenport.
14--Illustration © Anne Davenport.
15--Illustration © Yul Tolbert, Timeliketoons Inc.
16--Photo © Paramount Pictures 1995.
18--Photo courtesy Robert Beltran.
20-21--Photos by Sue Harke, Gary Labin.
28--Illustration © Anne Davenport.
It is illegal to reproduce or scan art from this newsletter.


[Drawing]

Now Voyager
c/o Michelle Green and Paul Anderson					
8114 Inverness Ridge Road
Potomac, MD 20854-4013						FIRST CLASS

    Source: geocities.com/televisioncity/station/1965/archive