Essential Voyager viewing for books?

[seigezunt]

I know, I know, but I'm curious.

I'm catching up on my years of not watching post-TNG Trek, partly out of interest in the novels. I started watching ENT to get some references in Ex Machina, and am enjoying it. I started watching DS9, and just finished that, loving it so much I will likely read the relaunch.

I'm hitting a hurdle at Voyager. I'm finding it pretty, well, unbearable.

So, with a mind to skipping around, is there any essential Voyager eps to get the Post-NEM fiction?

 

[ronny]

The episode that jumps out to me the most is "Prophecy", season 7 episode 14. I'm not sure how much to say with out going into spoiler territory since I'm not sure what you've read. I'll ponder this some more but that's the only espisode that I'm thinking is "critical". Of course everything is explained in the books but obviously seeing the episodes helps as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Thrawn]

Definitely Prophecy, and also to get the rest of the Klingon thing, you should also see Barge Of The Dead beforehand.

You also probably want to hit up Scorpion and The Gift, to see Seven arrive and Kes leave. Following that, if you want to read Christopher's excellent Myriad Universes entry, I'd recommend following up on Species 8472 by watching Prey and In The Flesh.

You probably also want the 3 Q episodes, because those are referenced a lot, and Unimatrix Zero and the finale, to follow up on the Borg.

And something with the Hirogen. They appear in Prey, which I listed above, but I also recommend The Killing Game 2-parter, because it's awesome.

 

[LightningStorm]

So I decided to compile a complete list of what I think is necessary and why: Since the list is long, I put an asterisk (*) by the ones I think are MOST important where the others are less important but I think still good to have seen to really keep up with the VOY-R

Season 1
*Caretaker - Series Premier
Phage - Learn about the Vidiians
State of Flux - Seska

Season 2
*Tattoo - Chakotay
Cold Fire - Caretaker Species
Lifesigns - The Doctor's development
Tuvix - not so much the relaunch, but for discussions that continually appear on TBBS
*Resolutions - Janeway/Chakotay
Basics Part 1 - Seska

Season 3
Basics Part 2 - Seska
Futures End 1&2 - Don't really need this but I think it's a good episode.
*The Q and the Grey - Janeway and Q
Coda - Janeway dies (this is not a spoiler)
Unity - Chakotay's experience with a Borg collective mind
Distant Origin - Not terribly important now, but I have a nagging feeling it will be later.
*Scorpion part 1 - Borg Alliance

Season 4
*Scorpion part 2 - Seven of Nine
*The Gift - Seven and Kes
*Day of Honor - B'Elanna
The Raven - Seven of Nine
Message in a Bottle - first contact with the alpha quadrant
The omega Directive - Important for something in the Destiny Trilogy
Living Witness - not even slightly important but one of the best voyager episodes.
*Hope and Fear - Slipstream Drive

Season 5
*In the Flesh - for an event in Unworthy
Timeless - More slipstream stuff

Season 6
*Barge of the Dead - B'Elanna
The Voyager Conspiracy - Not necessary specifically, but it's a good way to recap the past 5 seasons.
*Pathfinder - Barclay
Blink of an Eye - Doctor has lots of growth here
Collective - Icheb
Child's Play - Icheb
Unimatrix Zero Part 1 - More for TNG relaunch specifically: Greater Than the Sum

Season 7
Unimatrix Zero Part 2 - More for TNG relaunch specifically: Greater Than the Sum
*Prophecy - Probably the most important episode for the relaunch
*Homestead - Neelix
*Endgame - Series Finale

 

[Thrawn]

^ That's a really, really great list. I can't think of anything you missed except maybe the Q episodes, which are referenced in the TNG relaunch if nothing else, and have the benefit of also being pretty awesome.

 

[seigezunt]

So I decided to compile a complete list of what I think is necessary and why...

Thank you.

You have saved me a lot of pain.

 

[JoeP]

Me too. I'm looking to start Full Circle and Unworthy soon, and it's been a while since I've seen Voyager. This list ROCKS.

 

[ronny]

*Prophecy - Probably the most important episode for the relaunch

Well I got the top one right.

I was thinking about this last night and was going to add Homestead but after looking at the LightningStorm list, which is a great list BTW, I've come to the conclusion I was being way to restrictive in my thinking. I was thinking of adding a couple of episodes but they fell into the "not needed for the relaunch but good episodes" catagory and I didn't want to turn this in to a "What's your favorite Voyager episode?" thread so I stopped myself.

 

[LightningStorm]

Thanks everyone.

Futures End 1&2 - Don't really need this but I think it's a good episode.

Also I am going to amend this part, as actually being important, I forgot something important occurs with the Doctor in these episodes that is the crux of his character from this point on.

Spoiler: Future's End

His mobile emitter!

 

[mackula]

Having read Full Circle and mostly thru Unworthy, great list.

 

[Steve Roby]

And something with the Hirogen. They appear in Prey, which I listed above, but I also recommend The Killing Game 2-parter, because it's awesome.

Really? I found it almost unwatchable.

My list of essential Voyager episodes would be somewhat shorter than LightningStorm's, but it does cover a lot of the stuff someone reading the books might want to be familiar with.

 

[J47]

Thanks everyone.

Futures End 1&2 - Don't really need this but I think it's a good episode.

Also I am going to amend this part, as actually being important, I forgot something important occurs with the Doctor in these episodes that is the crux of his character from this point on.

Spoiler: Future's End

His mobile emitter!

Spoiler: Future's End

I don't know if I'd say the episode is really "essential" just based on that. There's really nothing SO important about the way he gets it - merely knowing that it's a piece of 29th Century tech that fell into Voyager's hands is enough, IMO. Still a good episode, though.

Great list - I would leave out "Coda" though - not only because I don't think it's an "essential" episode, but also because it's one of the show's worst outings IMO. Just read Mosaic.

I also agree with making sure you check out both "Death Wish" and "Q2." The former is one of the best Q episodes ever, IMO, and "Q2" is revisited in the TNG Relaunch.

If you are going to do the whole Voyager relaunch, finally I would add "Author, Author" for some important Doctor developments (although the episode itself is pretty meh).