This episode introduced us to the organ-stealing Vidiians, with one of them firing on Neelix, taking his lungs while part of an away team transported to a planetoid in the hopes they might produce an energy source. Doctor develops a breakthrough procedure, inventing a machine that produces "holo-lungs" for Neelix so he will survive, stemming from holograph technology. While Neelix feels imprisoned and depressed while harnessed in the holo-lung machine, Janeway has the Voyager follow after the Vidiian vessel in the hopes of securing Neelix's stolen organs so that he will be restored to normal. The Vidiian ship retreats inside an asteroid as these mirrors mask its location, with the Voyager cautiously following them, eventually using minimum phaser fire to produce a ricochet effect which will reveal where they're hiding. One of my favorite character relationship developments on the show is Doctor and Kes; at first, Kes staying at Neelix's side while he's in the holo-lung machine, and serving also as a support system for the Doctor as he adapts to the lifeforms on board the Voyager, she a source of encouragement for him as he evolves with all the new experiences that arrive in his Sickbay. Here in this episode, the groundwork for their ongoing friendship is laid
she agrees happily to become his medical assistant and learn from him (so much medical knowledge is incorporated into his programming, and his creator developed him to adopt experiences to further evolve him) because Tom Paris is just not cut out for the Sickbay. The Vidiian couple, ravaged by the Phage (a flesh/organ/cell eating disease that deteriorates the body of their species), are eventually transported to the Voyager
Kate Mulgrew once again just kills it with her reactions to their horrible situation, feeling pity and remorse for their condition but rage at how Neelix was attacked and raped of his lungs. How the Vidiian couple lament of their disease, how they were an artistic and scientific species reduced to organ stealing because their bodies deteriorate due to the Phage is just heart-wrenching; Janeway can barely look at them without wanting to break down into tears because of the agony and empathy she feels for them. Their genius, especially in regards to their medical knowledge, can be of use to Neelix, resulting in a pat, happy ending because of a diagnosis that doesn't correspond with Doctor's
that a lung from Kes could be transplanted to Neelix and made compatible. The annoyance of Neelix's stay in Sickbay for Doctor is quite amusing, and the way the direction conveys the entrapment within the confines of the holo-lung machine is superbly claustrophobic
the whole ordeal certainly builds sympathy for Neelix's plight. The makeup effects for the Phage victims is gruesome...the makeup department did a good job of provoking a response concerning their flesh/body debilitating and ravaging Phage.
Review of Phage
