As the episode opens one could be forgiven for thinking you were on the wrong channel as a scene from what appears to be an old black and white science fiction comes on to the screen. It turns out this is just Tom and Harry's latest holodeck program. It turns out the holodeck has become more popular than ever since Voyager entered a strange void which will take two years to cross and in that time there will be nothing visible outside in the blackness. As they go deeper into the void crew morale is diminishing, not helped by the fact that Captain Janeway is hardly seen as she sits in her quarters mulling over the decision she made four years ago which trapped them all in the Delta Quadrant. They find a radiation source so decide to investigate; once near the source they are attacked by an unseen enemy which drains Voyager's power. Several aliens beam aboard and one is captured. Just when it looks like Voyager might be defeated another ship arrives and chases off the attackers. This ship is the source of the radiation that was detected earlier. When Janeway hears his offer of help by showing them the whereabouts of a vortex out of the void she is left with a problem; taking the help would shave two years off their journey but their assistant is dumping radioactive waste that is killing the natives of the void. Wanting to help her crew and the local aliens she comes up with a plan to stay behind and destroy the vortex after Voyager enters it however the crew refuse to leave her behind come up with an alternate plan.
This episode was a good start to the fifth series; the environmental message that wasn't too heavy handed. Controller Emck the polluting alien was of the villain-of-the-week variety but that didn't matter as this episode was all about how the crew of Voyager sticks together in a crisis and makes the right decision even though it is likely to make life harder for them.
This episode was a good start to the fifth series; the environmental message that wasn't too heavy handed. Controller Emck the polluting alien was of the villain-of-the-week variety but that didn't matter as this episode was all about how the crew of Voyager sticks together in a crisis and makes the right decision even though it is likely to make life harder for them.