How about Guinea Pig Theatre?
No? Okay then...
INITIAL VIEWER EXPERIENCE
Fake or not, those are the ugliest feet I have ever seen...Aw, we're replacing that pool hall with Club Med...another rescue mission...Gee, I WONDER why Kes is acting so strangely...great outfit...I love it when people take over worlds and then gloat about it...Kes can be impressive when she wants...Eeew, don't kiss Tuvok!..Everyone to the rescue!..Just how much time does Kes spend with Tuvok every day?
PLOT
Neelix is showing off his Talaxian vacation holodeck program which Kim and Paris turn into Club Med with a few fruit drinks and the The Budweiser Girls. [I've been wondering where they went.] Everyone in the audience must realize we're going to be seeing the beach thing a lot more in the future.
A nearby ship is in distress, and Voyager, led by the resourceful Mr. Kim, beams three survivors to sickbay. One of them, Tieren, is dying, much to the distress of his wife, Nori. The Doctor tries hard, but Tieren dies.
Voyager goes to return Nori and her traveling companion, Arden, to their homeworld, Illari. It turns out Nori is the cousin to the ruler of Illari, the Artark. Kes comforts the widow and her friend very well...a little too well. She also crabs at Neelix and tells him he's too controlling. At last, they have a real relationship!
[Julia Houston here. I've just been through the edenic fantasy realm of the Nexus, where muscle-bound studs catered to my every whim, somebody paid me for writing this page, and Harry Kim was a fully realized character. Anyway, it's allowed me to travel back in time to this age of primitive Voyager understanding and tell you that Kes' words to Neelix actually seem to be from the heart. The relationship coolly endures a few more episodes, then dies quietly. Well, I hope you'll forgive me for returning to the Nexus, where someone has found a way to make chocolate beer.]
When Voyager beams up a representative of the Artark, Kes shoots him, knocks out Janeway, knocks off a disposable crewman, and beams into a shuttle with Nori and Aden. Those on the bridge try to stop her, but of course they can't. [Can anyone remember an episode where they actually managed to keep someone from beaming off the ship?] The shuttle escapes and Kes -- who's really Tieren, because Tieren possessed her right before he died, so I'll call her/him "Kes/Tieren" -- flies the ship to Illari. There, s/he beams aboard the leader of her/his forces. This guy's not too happy with his commander's new look, but Kes/Tieren puts the whammy on him, making his strange nose tubes bleed. They prepare to attack.
Voyager hosts Demmas, the son of the Artark, who provides the necessary exposition that Tieren was the Artark two centuries ago. Tieren was a great warlord, but in peacetime he decided to follow Stalin's example of leadership, becoming so paranoid and tyrannical that his people overthrew him [Perot supporters take heed!]. Demmas explains that Tieren has doubtlessly found some way of overcoming Kes. Neelix is relieved to know his girl hasn't really been the one treating him so poorly, but then is bummed when Demmas explains that Kes is dead. Janeway refuses to accept that [You go, girl!] and calls for alternatives.
Voyager reaches the imperial palace and finds their abandoned shuttle, but a detection grid has gone up, leaving them unable to interfere as Kes/Tieren and company march into the palace and kill the Artark right in front of his younger son, Ameron (but don't feel too sorry for him yet).
Kes/Tieren sensuously slips the symbol of rulership, the Talisman, around her/his neck and triumphs, not caring that her/his wife Nori looks pretty dismayed by the whole thing. Kes/Tieren decides to settle in, and smashes all the finery of the throne room so it can have tasteful decorations, like a big mirror and a huge portrait of Tieren.
Kes/Tieren grabs a plant, but then savors it rather than smashing it. This and a headache are the first signs that not all is peaceful in Kes/Tieren's head.
Kes/Tieren makes nice-nice with Nori, and Ameron is brought in just before we get a replay of the kiss in DS9's "Indiscretion." Kes/Tieren offers Ameron power in return for his hand in marriage, and the little creep gives it some serious thought.
Demmus proves he's not a dummass by deciding to stay on Voyager and tries to talk Janeway into attacking. The Doctor has examined Tieren's old host body, however, and has figured out the process used to transport Tieren's consciousness into Kes. [It's an awful lot like the device used in DS9's "The Passenger" -- more on that later.] The Doctor has already rigged up a synaptic stimulator stick-up which will suck Tieren out of Kes after someone sticks it to Kes's face. Tuvok volunteers to try it.
Tieren's physician finishes fixing up Kes's body so that Tieren can transfer again, and urges Tieren to do so soon, because Kes's body isn't suiting him well. Ha! says Kes/Tieren, this little girl doesn't scare ME! Kes/Tieren likes all the fun things s/he can do with Kes' mental abilities. Then, in a nicely creepy scene, s/he demonstrates these abilities by sniffing out Tuvok, who's disguised as a servant. Tuvok gets the stick-up on Kes/Tieren's face, but it doesn't stay there long enough. Kes/Tieren is unharmed, and Tuvok is taken away.
Kes/Tieren interrogates Tuvok, tapping into his mind and putting on sexy moves. Tuvok says he's never sexually desired Kes, and when Kes/Tieren tries a lip-lock, Tuvok grabs her/his face and tries to help Kes gain control. It almost works, but then Tieren yells so loud that Tuvok flies across the room, the best Voyager fall since Paris pushed Chakotay on the bridge.
Janeway and company plan an attack when Tuvok doesn't come back. Neelix volunteers to come along. The fearless Kim has figured out that the Illari detection grid weakens every ten hours...and you know what that means.
Rather interestingly, because it's such a Star Trek cliché to turn immediately to the rescue attempt once a weakness has been found, Kes/Tieren now contacts Voyager and says s/he knows all about the flaws in the detection grid. Kes/Tieren's fleet is poised to attack Voyager if it doesn't leave. Voyager retreats, and Kes/Tieren doesn't pursue them with her/his fleet. Everyone in the palace seems disturbed by this, and by Kes/Tieren's continuing headaches.
Left alone, the little dictator falls asleep, and Kes confronts Tieren in her mind. The two struggle. Kes says she's not going to let Tieren stay in her body without a really big security deposit, and Tieren says she's a little slip of a girl and he doesn't give a damn what she wants. Kes seems to grow more powerful during the exchange as Tieren weakens.
Tieren's physician brings him round and insists that Tieren leave Kes's body. Instead, Kes/Tieren kills the guy and announces her/his marriage to Ameron at an impromptu kegger, telling Nori she wants all three of the them to be very close. Yet another slightly perverted moment is interrupted, however, with news that Voyager has returned with Demmas' fleet. Despite Kes/Tieren's insistence that this isn't going to rain on her/his parade, no one feels like partying. Now Kes/Tieren really starts to lose control, running around once again looking for a hidden Tuvok who isn't there.
Paris gets Tuvok out of stir.
The Voyager crew and Demmas' people attack the throne room. Neelix stuns Kes' body and applies the stick-up, but Kes, herself again, knows that Tieren transferred at the last second to Ameron. She puts the stick-up on him, and Tieren is defeated.
In Tuvok's quarters, Kes explains that she's very disturbed by recent events and that nothing feels right. Tuvok tells her that in time she will be okay, though she will never again be the same.
[Whew. For some reason, this summary was particularly hard to do. Might have been all those Kes/Tierens.]
CHARACTER
Kes is the main figure here, obviously, and she does a real good job playing a bad person, rivaling even Troi in "Powerplay." She is particularly good in the scene where she confronts Tieren in her mind. There's her sweet pixie exterior standing in her quarters on one side, and Tieren standing in his throne room on the other. At first she seems quite outmatched. But then her voice starts to grate a bit, and her face screws up like an obnoxious stalker's, and Tieren starts to look worried. She seems quite formidable. This isn't exactly new. We found out Kes is tougher than she looks in "Persistence of Vision." But she's better at it here.
THOUGHT
In fact, I think Kes's deceptive exterior, and Neelix's long speech about wanting in on the rescue party, are trying to show us something. People have been complaining about Neelix since the show started, primarily about how annoying he is and how hard he is to take seriously. And notice that while Kes isn't annoying, people are always underestimating her. Neither Kes nor Neelix conforms to our notions of what Starfleet officers are, and yet both of them do make excellent additions to the crew. They serve as a warning to us, and to the Voyager crew, not to be deceived by appearances while they are so far from home.
The Borg are great in that they look as horrible as they are, but I also love it when pretty things can be dangerous, ugly things useful, and so on. Kes looks like a little girl and Neelix looks like...Gee, what does he look like?...like a Talaxian game show host, but I think we should realize things wouldn't be so great for us if we seriously irked one of them off.
Along that line, perhaps the best moment for the Kes/Tieren portrayal occurs right as Kes is starting to conquer Tieren mentally. Kes/Tieren is snarling out some orders, and suddenly announces in a truly vindictive tone that everyone should have a garden. The order sounds cruel because of the way it's expressed, but -- as Tieren's supporters show in their surprise -- the order is actually beneficial and, well, sweet. If a snarl can hide sweetness, the reverse is true as well.
Tieren, who presents us with your basic meglomaniacal dictator/sexual dominator, has such a cliched character that it actually allows for a small point. During his speech about how Kes isn't a threat, he triumphantly recounts memories from his horrible childhood, playing directly into modern psychological theory. However, when Kes confronts him, he tries to use it on her and Kes doesn't buy it. Perhaps voicing modern disgust at such psychological theories, she says that his childhood doesn't excuse what a big jerk he is.
SPECTACLE
Not much done with S/X, but interesting stuff in the costumes and sets.
Sets first. It's that scene where Kes confronts Tieren again. He is in his throne room, talking to her. We see her back. When she speaks, the camera cuts to her bedroom set, and we see the back of him. As they speak at first, the camera keeps these cuts even, suggesting a sort of half-and-half room. As Kes gets more strident, the camera begins to pan around her set, suggesting that it's growing in size. The camera backs up into Tieren's set, making it seem to shrink. Kes starts walking forward at the very end, getting right up into Tieren's face while crossing into Tieren's set, suggesting that she is invading his territory. Nicely done.
As for costumes, let's first talk about those black leather, spike-healed boots Kes wears. My knee-jerk reaction to the boots was, "Oh, Pluhleeze. A guy would never wear those, even if he were in Kes's body." But then I got to thinking...they did look pretty wicked, and we know from Tieren's portrait that he thinks himself a very dashing figure. We know from his sexual attitude that he is enjoying the novelty of his female orientation. Perhaps he is just reveling in the whole thing. The boots also, it must be admitted, add height. Tieren seems like the type of person who wouldn't enjoy being shorter than everyone else.
There was no such struggle in deciding that I love the servants' outfits at the palace. Their faces are covered by a thick mesh. When Kes/Tieren and company storm the palace, servants are killed. Later, Kes/Tieren tells Nori they'll have to get some new servants as though s/he's ordering drapes. The servants' face coverings nicely underscore how cheap life is not only in Kes/Tieren's eyes, but in Illari society. We can therefore more easily accept that Demmas would willingly shoot Kes/Tieren if given the chance, that the planet so readily falls into a civil war, and that Ameron would betray his brother.
DICTION
Torres adds her own addition to Club Med: a towel boy. Her drapes a white towel around her neck and she says, "Thank you." The tone is perfect.
"Every citizen must have a garden." -- Kes/Tieren.
"Demmas has decided to remain on Voyager." -- Janeway's log.
SONG
Score always excellent. Kes gets her own threatening music.
And now for the Star Trek baggage...
STAR TREK ELEMENTS WE (OR I, ANWAY) LOVE
I can hear people now starting up arguments about the Prime Directive. It's important to remember that Illari is a warp-capable society and therefore not subject to the full effect of the directive. Voyager is involved through no fault of its own and then continues to help at the direct request of the official and legal ruler to the planet. QED
I have to admit, as long as they're done well, I like character-possession stories. How about having Kim possessed by some whiskey-swilling guy who thinks it's sexy to burp at women? [You got a better idea?]
STAR TREK ELEMENTS WE (OR I, ANYWAY) HATE
I don't like it when we see something that's exactly like what we've seen before, especially when no one comments on it. The Doctor is supposed to know everything Starfleet Medical does, so that should cover Bashir's discovery of conscious-transferring technology in "The Passenger." It's true the technology itself is set up a little differently, but, come on, guys.
Don't know why, but that conference table bothers me.
Well, that wraps this one up!
Star Trek Voyager Reviews
Or go ahead to ST Voyager Reviews - Unity.
Or go back to ST Voyager Reviews - Future's End.