STAR TREK VOYAGER
SEASON FIVE

"Return to the Collective"

The Delta Quadrant is about to become an even more deadly place for the crew of the USS Voyager.

Night
Voyager comes to the aid of a warring species as Captain Janeway reflects on the decisions she has made during their time in the Delta Quadrant and their outcomes.

Drone
A transporter accident merges some of Seven Of Nine's Borg nanoprobes with the Doctor's 29th Century holo-emitter to create a 29th Century super-Borg.

Extreme Risk
In order to retrieve a probe stuck in a hazardous atmosphere, Tom Paris designs a new type of shuttlecraft named the 'Delta Flyer'. Torres begins to exhibit reckless behaviour by engaging in dangerous holodeck programs.

In the Flesh
The crew of Voyager discover a simulation of Starfleet Headquarters being run by Species 8472 being used to practice launching an assault on the Alpha Quadrant. With the aid of regular doses of drugs, Species 8472 are able to shape-shift into human form.

Once Upon A Time
While Voyager searches for the crew of the crashed Delta Flyer carrying Tuvok, Paris and Ensign Wildman, Neelix must keep Naomi occupied. When it is discovered that Samantha is badly injured, he must decide how much he should tell her daughter.

Timeless
Voyager uses new quantum slipstream technology in an attempt to get home, but a miscalculation causes the ship to crash into an ice planet. Fifteen years later, the sole survivors, Chakotay and Kim, steal the Delta Flyer in an attempt to send a message back in time and avert the disaster, however, Captain Geordi LaForge is determined to stop them at all costs.

Infinite Regress
After encountering a piece of Borg technology known as a Vinculum which connects drone's minds together, Seven of Nine begins exhibiting the personalities of people that she assimilated as a member of the collective. Soon, they become so strong that they may overwhelm Seven's own personality.

Nothing Human
When an alien attaches itself to B'Elanna's nervous system, the Doctor enlists the help of a holographic recreation of the Cardassian Dr. Crell Mossett. She refuses all treatment when the Bajoran crew informs her that this doctor was responsible for sadistic war crimes during the occupation.

Thirty Days
When Voyager encounters a planet entirely of water they discover that the forcefield maintaining its integrity is breaking down. Tom Paris directly disobeys orders in an attempt to save the planet, which results in him being demoted to Ensign and placed in the brig for thirty days.

Counterpoint
While travelling through Devore space, Captain Janeway must hide all telepaths on board in transporter stasis, as telepathy is illegal under Devore law. After Voyager is repeatedly searched, the leader of the investigations requests asylum and wishes to defect.

Latent Image
The Doctor discovers that his short-term memory has been altered with some events being deleted, so he launches an investigation into whom or what could be responsible. When he sets a trap and the culprit is caught, he is shocked at who it is and why they're doing it.

Bride of Chaotica
Photonic energy life forms mistake the characters in Tom's holonovel for real people. The holodeck characters interpret this as an attack, and soon Dr. Chaotica tries to wipe them out. The only person that can stop him is Captain Janeway in the role of Queen Arachnia of the Spider People.

Gravity
When Tuvok, Paris and the Doctor are pulled into a planet by its intense gravity and crash, they wait to be rescued. From their perspective, many weeks have passed with no contact from Voyager, while on board, only a few hours have passed as they plan a rescue attempt.

Bliss
The discovery of a wormhole leading directly to Earth elates the crew beyond belief, but Seven Of Nine remains unconvinced that this is real. To help her cause, she recruits Naomi Wildman, the Doctor and an alien pilot named Qatai to stop the ship from entering.

Dark Frontier (Part 1 & 2)
After defeating a Borg ship, Captain Janeway decides to launch an attack to steal a trans-warp coil to shorten Voyager's journey home. The Borg detects her plan, and access Seven Of Nine's neural transceiver to deliver an ultimatum: re-join the collective or the ship and its crew will be assimilated. If she agrees, the ship will be guaranteed safe passage through Borg space.

The Disease
Without medical clearance, Kim becomes involved in a love affair with a member of the Varo species. Problems arise when they become biochemically interdependent after the incident.

Course: Oblivion
After Paris and Torres tie the knot, the ship and its crew start to disintegrate on the molecular level.

The Fight
While boxing on the holodeck, Chakotay is contacted by a telepathic species. However, prolonged communication may leave him insane or brain dead.

Think Tank
Voyager is ambushed by a race known as the Hazari with no way of escape. Soon, an alien 'Think Tank' arrives with an answer to the ship's problem and all they ask in return is Seven of Nine.

Juggernaut
After encountering a damaged Malon freighter, a repair crew from Voyager tries to contain a toxic chemical leak that threatens a nearby-inhabited planet. Before they embark on the mission, two crewmen from the ship warn them about the 'Angel of Decay' that wreaks havoc on board the ship.

Someone to Watch Over Me
The Doctor tries to introduce Seven of Nine to the concept of dating. After a disastrous first date the Doctor personally guides her, but he soon realises that he is falling in love with her.

11:59
Captain Janeway relates the story of her distant ancestor Shannon O'Donnell during the construction of the Millennium Gate on Earth during New Year's Eve 1999. She must convince the last holdout, local bookstore owner Henry Janeway to approve the plan.

Relativity
When Voyager is destroyed 500 years into the future, Captain Braxton of the 29th Century Timeship Relativity contacts Seven of Nine to travel back in time and discover who planted the 'temporal disruptor.' However, she must do this without being discovered by the past Janeway.

Warhead
After Kim beams an alien missile onboard Voyager it links up to the Doctor's systems and requests that it is allowed to complete its mission of mass destruction.

Equinox (Part 1)
Voyager encounters another Federation Starship, the Equinox commanded by Captain Ransom, which was also abducted by the Caretaker. However, the Doctor exposes a terrible secret, and Captain Ransom steals Voyager's technology along with Seven of Nine and the Doctor as hostages.

Travelling at warp speed into its fifth season, Star Trek Voyager continues to produce great science fiction television.

After the introduction of the Borg and Seven of Nine in season four, Voyager became a more action driven series. Now under the constant treat of attack and assimilation from numerous different species as well as the Borg, the creative team behind the show had the chance to really push the show on and in part, they succeeded. The fifth run of the show contained some of the best standalone episodes of the entire seven-seasons. These were character driven shows that pushed the members of the crew to their limits, with the writers even succeeding in making Harry Kim a more interesting character.

The first of the season's standout episodes was 'Extreme Risk'. Fundamentally a B'Elanna Torres featured show, dealing with her emotional problems because of her Klingon side, we also get to see the construction of the Delta Flyer. This was Voyager answer to the USS Defiant on DS9. It might not have been as powerful or aggressive but it still made a major impact on Voyager. The episode gave Roxann Dawson and Robert Duncan McNeill the chance to shine, as this showed B'Elanna and Tom Paris at their best and worst.

Next we have 'Thirty Days', another strong episode for Robert Duncan McNeill as Tom Paris. Fans may argue that Paris has never really lived up to his rebellious nature that saw him imprisoned in the very first episode but this show outlined what the character was all about. Told in flashback as he writes a letter to his father, we find that Tom has disregarded the Prime Directive and a direct order from his Captain, leading to him nearly starting a civil war. As well as been a strong character driven episode this was also a visually stunning one, as Voyager discovers a world totally made of water.

Marking the show's 100th episode, 'Timeless' sees Voyager try and make a bid to get home, with disastrous consequences. Dealing with time travel and changing the past, this show is the best Harry Kim episode you will ever see. The concept is excellent, dealing with guilt and a catastrophic mistake that cost the crew their lives and Kim and Chakotay years of torment. This is Voyager at its best and proves (for only one episode) that Harry Kim wasn't that much of a waste of space.

'Bride of Chaotica' was an instant fan favourite and it is easy to see why. Taking its influence from science fiction serials such as Buck Rodgers and Flash Gordon, the cast and crew look like they had real fun making this show. Based on Tom Paris's holonovel 'Captain Proton', we find the crew fighting to save the ship from inside the novel as alien life forms make the simulation real. This is a comedic triumph for the series and one of the highlights of Voyager's entire run.

Other highlights include 'Think Tank', that sees a guess appearance by Seinfeld's Jason Alexander, 'Course: Oblivion' which follows up on an earlier season episode, the excellent 'Someone to watch over me' that highlights the talents of Jeri Ryan and Robert Picardo and 'Relativity' which continues a 29th Century storyline.

The major highlight of the season has to be 'Dark Frontier'. This is the first appearance of the Borg Queen since Star Trek First Contact and boy does she make an impact. Played brilliantly by Susanna Thompson (taking over from Alice Krige), the Queen is calculative and seductive drawing you and Seven of Nine into her way of thinking. The visuals on this episode are outstanding, as we finally get to see the Borg Unimatrix first hand. This is a standout show for Jeri Ryan and her character as we get to find out more about Seven's parents and how she became a Borg, making this outstanding science fiction and a classic Star Trek episode.

The fifth season of Star Trek Voyager may not be as outstanding as season four but there are many standout episodes to enjoy. The characters are now second nature to the cast, making the ensemble work together splendidly and this reflects in the quality of the performances and the stories they are trying to tell. Science Fiction television doesn't get much better than Star Trek on top of its game and some episodes from season five of Voyager prove this.