Bliss

[Sisko4Life]

Bliss is one of my favorite Voyager episodes, and is doing well on the Hurt / Heal game- much better than I thought it would do. The idea of a space dwelling beast is quite cool, and Qatai gives the Captain Ahab connection. Aside from the Seven of Nine saving the day syndrome, I think there is one thing that holds this episode back from being one of the greats: the Teaser. I think the audience is given too much information in the teaser and it kills the suspense of the episode. We see Qatai flying towards the beast yelling "what's wrong? You can't read my thoughts?" and that basically gives away the entire episode. I think the teaser should have just been the shuttle scene where they return to Voyager with the news of a wormhole. From then on, everything about the episode I can remember becomes that much better. The hallucinations, Voyager entering a large unknown mouth, and the ominous transmission with Qatai as first contact is better if that is our first time seeing him also. The suspense is there if we are kept in the dark like Seven of Nine rather than already knowing that they are heading into their doom...

Any thoughts on this?

 

[Finn]

That's a good point. Ah well.

But again, we all knew they weren't getting home anyway. We could have been left wondering if some kind of alien attacks at the last minute, someone from Alpha Quadrant shows up, or something would happen.

 

[B_L_T]

I think this was a very good episode. I think I am a minority in this, but I do like Naomi, and I liked seeing her as a major part in an episode. I also liked seeing everyone's ideas of what they wanted: Tom with his test pilot letter, B'Elanna thinking the maquis were still alive, Neelix becoming an ambasador and so on. I hope in the end he got his beast

 

[propita]

I noted that what everyone wanted could only be achieved in the AQ (except, of course for Seven and Naomi who had no real knowledge of the AQ).

But, ws this really what they wanted, or was this somehow created. Janeway really happy that Mark's engagement failed? When she was willing to go back in time to make Seven and Chak "happy"? Chak really happy about getting a professorship? Although, for one always "contrary," this would mean he belonged somewhere.

I figure that the creature itself put ideas into their minds, so that what they wanted could only be found in the AQ. So, B'Elanna's greatest desire couldn't be Tom (though it was), because he was right there--she wouldn't have to go to the AQ to get him. So the creature 'made' her greatest desire to be something else, something only in the AQ.

Janeway and Chak? Personally, I still think the greatest desire for each of them was the other--but again, they wouldn't need to go to the AQ for that, they could just find a way to make that work in the DQ.

Anyway, the idea was good. I just think the creature had more input on the desires.

 

[Renvar]

The teaser scene was a bit of a giveaway, but in my opinion it's not that bad. Instead it gave the story a feeling like a horror movie, when a character is walking into the house where the axe-murderer lies in wait. The audience knows that the protagonist is in danger, and they feel compelled to find out how or if they can avoid it. The only problem with it is that it exaggerates the Seven savior routine that's been a recurring story angle.

 

[Sisko4Life]

Yeah, I guess you can look at it that way. More horror and less suspense. The inside of the beast wasn't very pretty... and seeing it through the windows and viewscreen in the ship while everyone was unconscious... horrific. One of the questions I ask myself is why Qatai seems so surprised to find a way out when he's been hunting the thing for 40 years? Surely he must have found a way out before... Maybe he was just seizing the opportunity of Voyager's weaponry.

 

[Akiraprise]

Bliss is one of my favorite episodes too. I like the Seven and Naomi scenes, and how they were the only ones not affected by the monster because they really don't want to go to Earth. It's not their home, Voyager is.

 

[Renvar]

Yeah, I guess you can look at it that way. More horror and less suspense. The inside of the beast wasn't very pretty... and seeing it through the windows and viewscreen in the ship while everyone was unconscious... horrific. One of the questions I ask myself is why Qatai seems so surprised to find a way out when he's been hunting the thing for 40 years? Surely he must have found a way out before... Maybe he was just seizing the opportunity of Voyager's weaponry.

I agree; he seemed like the type to take advantage of any opportunity that passed his way. His adamant proclamation of destroying the creature to escape seemed like nothing more than an incentive to fulfill his goals, rather than to save their necks.

For some reason, I always seem to like eps with spaceborne creatures. "Galaxy's Child", "The Loss", "Tin Man", "The Cloud", and this episode all rank among my favorites.