How would you change the show?

[Danja]

Seven's outfit was one giant step BACKWARD for Trek kind... Troi in uniform, then Kira and Dax wearing standard uniforms as well, followed in shirt order by Janeway and B'Elanna... we think Trek has turned a corner regarding how Trek clothes its women. Then, Seven shows up, and nope, we're not there yet. T'Pol is more of the same, later.

Burnham and Tilly wear standard uniforms, though. So there's hope.

I would hope so (they're both Starfleet).

 

[Oddish]

There's no reason why Seven couldn't have worn civilian clothes like Kes's: flattering, but not torso-squeezingly tight.

 

[at Quark's]

There's no reason why Seven couldn't have worn civilian clothes like Kes's: flattering, but not torso-squeezingly tight.

I would have loved to see the writers' meeting, trying to come up with at least a remotely plausible sounding in-universe explanation for her impossible outfit, finally giving up ('ah well, ***** it, let's just hope there'll be no outcry on this ')

 

[fireproof78]

I would hope so (they're both Starfleet).

So was Troi in TNG...

There's no reason why Seven couldn't have worn civilian clothes like Kes's: flattering, but not torso-squeezingly tight.

Indeed.

 

[Vale]

• Have the aeroshuttle from the beginning and never bother with the Delta Flyer.
• Have the Maquis integration take most of the first season, rather than everyone being assimilated into Starfleet by the second episode (minus a few lines of dialogue here and there). They start off in "civilian" roles and have to work their way into the ship's hierarchy.
• Alternate episodes from the Starfleet and Maquis perspectives. This could give a type of "Lower Decks" perspective.
• Get rid of Kes.
• Get rid of Chakotay.
• Change Neelix to be more Quark-like and less twee. Write him so, at least early on, the crew can't be sure if he won't sell them out to the highest bidders.
• Have the ship not be utterly pristine and unmodified from its stock state every episode. Damage carries over, modifications are more frequent, rooms change function.
• Remember that the ship has two warp cores and two navigational deflectors.
• Completely redesign Paris to make him less of an insufferable twat. He doesn't have to pass "witty" comments on everything that happens on the bridge.
• Have Torres end up with Kim rather than Paris. Never bought that relationship for a second, but Torres and Kim had that rapport early in season one that was utterly forgotten later on.
• Seven of Nine needs completely re-engineering from the ground up, instead of being the walking talking deus-ex-machina that she was allowed to be.

 

[Oddish]

Those are some interesting ideas.

Get rid of Kes.
• Get rid of Chakotay.

Eliminated? Or never there to begin with?

Have the ship not be utterly pristine and unmodified from its stock state every episode. Damage carries over, modifications are more frequent, rooms change function.
• Remember that the ship has two warp cores and two navigational deflectors.

Maybe it could lose a core at some point, creating a new sense of urgency... no more backup warp engine.

Have Torres end up with Kim rather than Paris. Never bought that relationship for a second, but Torres and Kim had that rapport early in season one that was utterly forgotten later on.

Kim certainly deserved better than he got. Worf was unlucky in love. O'Brien was unlucky in everything except love. Harry was unlucky in everything.

 

[Danja]

• Have the Maquis integration take most of the first season, rather than everyone being assimilated into Starfleet by the second episode (minus a few lines of dialogue here and there). They start off in "civilian" roles and have to work their way into the ship's hierarchy.

You're assuming everyone is just going to go merrily along with the whole thing.

You're assuming that everyone is going to WANT to be in Starfleet.

• Get rid of Kes.

YES! She was warmed-over Troi!

• Have Torres end up with Kim rather than Paris. Never bought that relationship for a second, but Torres and Kim had that rapport early in season one that was utterly forgotten later on.

What would she see in him?

It's quite a jump to go from "nice guy" to "great in bed".

• Seven of Nine needs completely re-engineering from the ground up, instead of being the walking talking deus-ex-machina that she was allowed to be.

What woud you do with her?

 

[Oddish]

What would she see in him?

It's quite a jump to go from "nice guy" to "great in bed".

Trustworthy, loyal to a fault, helpful... well, basically the whole Boy Scout code except for "reverent" (this being a secular fandom). Also reliable, intelligent, capable, creative, musically gifted, a great friend, and a great dad*. And I assume he's good-looking; since males are not my preference I can't be sure.

Only downsides seem to be "snores", which I think the EMH could cure, and "keeps his quarters too hot", and having someone to cuddle up with might fix that.


*As stated by Linnis in "Before and After".

 

[Farscape One]

I've thought about this, and only read a few of the posts... the thread is so long.

I think I can solve almost all the problems with one thing.

Keep the same head writer for the series... or at least most of its run.

What's the one thing that really separates DS9 from the other Berman era shows? It basically had only one changing of the guard with head writer, which was Michael Piller handing the reigns to Ira Steven Behr. Having a stable vision helps the staff overall with focus, goal attainment, and keeping inconsistencies down to a minimal. It obviously helps that the DS9 group of writers seemed more character focused than the others, but even if you take that out of the equation, I still say stable leadership really keeps the ship afloat and steady on all fronts.

 

[Vale]

Eliminated? Or never there to begin with?

Kes never needed to be there at all. The relationship she had with Neelix is weird; borderline creepy looking back with present-day hindsight. And she's just a boring character... there's nothing there to hook the audience. She's a goody-two-shoes with no life experience and vague mental powers. She's like an Enid Blyton character has come to life.

Chakotay... I feel bad about Chakotay because he could have been good, and he has some flashes of it in early episodes, like when he's dealing with Maquis crew members chafing under Starfleet regulations etc. But he's so woefully underutilised. Perhaps include him early on but if you're not going to use him for anything else let him go out in a blaze of glory with a heroic sacrifice?

Maybe it could lose a core at some point, creating a new sense of urgency... no more backup warp engine.

Yes exactly. The journey costs them something. The ship gains some new technologies and capabilities, fine, but losing existing ones, even if only for several episodes at a stretch, would have been nice to see. A friend of mine suggested that a good idea for Voyager would have been if the ship had started off more like a Galaxy class, but during the course of being stranded in the delta quadrant they lost their saucer section. Think about what that would mean – no holodecks, much more limited crew facilities, you're stuck using your backup bridge, sickbays, and living quarters. Everything is more cramped. You've lost your main shuttlebay. What cargo and resources did you lose? What are the long-term implications of running your ship in this configuration? You've got your weapons and your warp drive, but suddenly everything is lot less luxurious, and you've got to start making hard decisions immediately.

You're assuming everyone is just going to go merrily along with the whole thing.

You're assuming that everyone is going to WANT to be in Starfleet.

Actually I'm not – if Maquis members wanted to remain as civilians or do something else then that would be great to see too. Let's see how Voyager copes with having people present who don't want to be in the ship's hierarchy, as opposed to the Enterprise-D which carried around dozens of civilians with scarcely a worry or angry word despite whatever dangerous situation they put them in. How do they work together?

What if the Maquis ship isn't destroyed? What if, instead of the Kazon, the people we have to worry about are the Maquis, dogging and attempting to steal technology and resources from and spreading lies about "the Feds"? What if the Equinox was actually the Maquis ship that survived the events of "Caretaker"?

What would she see in him?

It's quite a jump to go from "nice guy" to "great in bed".

I honestly wonder the same thing about Paris. They certainly seemed to be building some sort of relationship early on between B'Elanna and Harry, starting with when they were held by the Ocampa in "Caretaker" (remember when she nicknamed him "Starfleet" for a bit? That was kind of cute). But then I liked B'Elanna's early character when she was simultaneously outwardly aggressive but inwardly shy and unsure of herself, before she became "generically feisty".

Also, I just don't like Paris at all really, and he was overexposed whereas Kim was underutilised. I gather that we're supposed to root for him as the All-American Hero of the crew but his continual smugness just sets my teeth on edge.

What woud you do with her?

Not have every second episode revolve around her, or have her muscle in on other character's episodes (her speech at the end of "One Small Step", ostensibly a Chakotay episode, was one moment that stands out particularly for me in a recent rewatch – it's not always all about you, Seven). Have her general Borginess reduced – instead of having her be a walking encyclopaedia of all Borg knowledge continually opining about what the Borg would do instead, have only occasional flashes. Have her stop continually referring to herself as a Borg. Have her lose Borg abilities over time as her implants are removed gradually during the course of a season or two, rather than after two or three episodes. Have her have to transition from regenerating in a cargo bay to having to sleep and eat, and fashion her own quarters. Not have her wear a ridiculous catsuit.

 

[Oddish]

She's like an Enid Blyton character has come to life.

There's a name I haven't seen in awhile... my sister had a real thing for her books. Think she might have gotten me into one series... it was about 40 years ago, so might have been a different author. Did she write the __________ of Adventure series?

Perhaps include him early on but if you're not going to use him for anything else let him go out in a blaze of glory with a heroic sacrifice?

I agree, then. Eliminating Kes, Harry, and Chakotay over the series would have given the journey some real teeth. A bit of Game of Thrones-style "no one is safe" vibe... and, more energy could be focused on the characters they were developing.

I gather that we're supposed to root for him as the All-American Hero of the crew but his continual smugness just sets my teeth on edge.

I might think that, if those things weren't counterbalanced by his sensitivity, very human insecurity, and ability to discuss his feelings frankly. Tom Paris had a moderate amount of growth on his journey, and with more competent writers, he might have grown a lot.

Have her lose Borg abilities over time as her implants are removed gradually during the course of a season or two, rather than after two or three episodes. Have her have to transition from regenerating in a cargo bay to having to sleep and eat, and fashion her own quarters. Not have her wear a ridiculous catsuit.

I like this, especially the catsuit bit. While Seven developed a lot, this might have added a new dimension to her growth.

 

[Vale]

There's a name I haven't seen in awhile... my sister had a real thing for her books. Think she might have gotten me into one series... it was about 40 years ago, so might have been a different author. Did she write the __________ of Adventure series?

Yes. And The Famous Five, and the Secret series.

I agree, then. Eliminating Kes, Harry, and Chakotay over the series would have given the journey some real teeth. A bit of Game of Thrones-style "no one is safe" vibe... and, more energy could be focused on the characters they were developing.

Also, let's see some issues of what happens if they lose too many crew members. What happens if there aren't enough people to run the ship? Would certain departments have to close and certain capabilities be lost? Do they invite more people to travel with them? Hire people? Figure out if there's some way they can create emergency holograms for other roles?

I might think that, if those things weren't counterbalanced by his sensitivity, very human insecurity, and ability to discuss his feelings frankly. Tom Paris had a moderate amount of growth on his journey, and with more competent writers, he might have grown a lot.

I found Paris's emotional moments to be over-earnest. It's one extreme to the other. And always an undercurrent of "but what about me" self-pity. Also, just once I'd have liked Janeway to snap "we don't need to hear about him being a 'friendly fellow' or a 'welcoming sort' or a 'talkative chap' this time, thank you, Mr Paris" the moment they stopped talking to someone on the main viewscreen.

 

[Oddish]

Now I remember... the kids were Ok, but I thought Kiki the parrot was awesome.

Also, let's see some issues of what happens if they lose too many crew members. What happens if there aren't enough people to run the ship? Would certain departments have to close and certain capabilities be lost? Do they invite more people to travel with them? Hire people? Figure out if there's some way they can create emergency holograms for other roles?

I like the idea of bringing in new crew members. And also starting in on going intergenerational. It won't produce new crew per se, but on a 70-year journey, you have to think long term: even Harry would have been 92 years old by the time the ship got home.

 

[Vale]

I like the idea of bringing in new crew members. And also starting in on going intergenerational. It won't produce new crew per se, but on a 70-year journey, you have to think long term: even Harry would have been 92 years old by the time the ship got home.

Exactly! And that's something to think about – what if Voyager HADN'T made it home after seven years? What if it had had to slog it out the long way round? Never mind what state the ship would be in after 70 years, what about the crew!? While humans seem to routinely live to be well over 100 in the 24th century, how could the ship function when the youngest original crew members are in their late 90s? How much would they tolerate a doddering Janeway in her dotage still trying to get the ship home? Would Janeway even want to still be in command, assuming she were still alive at 100+? What's the succession plan? Is the crew sufficiently large to maintain a breeding population? After ten years or so would Janeway have to order crew members to start having children just to ensure there were enough people to keep the ship going? Would the EMH set up a "breeding facility" to artificially grow new crew from the DNA of the existing crew?

While the current crew of Voyager has that connection to Earth and strong desire to return home, would the same be true of new recruits? Or people born to the existing crew, who've never seen the Federation? One of the things Voyager touched on in the episode "Bliss" was that Seven of Nine and Naomi Wildman weren't fooled by the telepathic pitcher plant's visions of returning to Federation space because they hadn't got an emotional connection to it. At what point does an ageing crew, or a crew with a reduced desire to return home, decide to find a convenient planet and set up a permanent home? All good questions that the show barely touched on.

Hell, why not have a whole season of Voyager: The Next Generation, where it really is the next generation of the ship's crew, the children of and new recruits by the old crew?

 

[Danja]

Have her general Borginess reduced – instead of having her be a walking encyclopaedia of all Borg knowledge continually opining about what the Borg would do instead, have only occasional flashes.

For eighteen years, the Borg was her world. The Borg RAISED her. The Borg are always going to be a part of her.

She has PTSD. The Borg are all-consuming.

Have her stop continually referring to herself as a Borg. Have her lose Borg abilities over time as her implants are removed gradually during the course of a season or two, rather than after two or three episodes.

You're going to get your wish in Picard S2 (she's stripped of her external implants).

 

[Oddish]

Regarding Voyager continuity, I don't think force or artificial growth would be required. Janeway would more likely utilize quiet persuasion, mostly with crew who were on the fence about such things. A couple would get married, then another, then two. A child would be born, then three, then five. Neelix would be running a daycare. Tuvok would be teaching high school. By journey's end, I think that Ensign Vorik would probably be running the ship, since he was a fairly young Vulcan (about T'Pol's age, 60-70). He'd be in his 130's which is not much older than me in human years.

Most of the humans would have likely retired. Janeway and Chakotay would be dead or on their 110's. Tuvok, 110 at the start, would be 180 or so. And B'Elanna's status depends on how long half-Klingons live. We do know that Klingons live longer than humans, after all.

 

[Vale]

By journey's end, I think that Ensign Vorik would probably be running the ship, since he was a fairly young Vulcan (about T'Pol's age, 60-70). He'd be in his 130's which is not much older than me in human years.

Vorik's probably younger than that. VOY: "Blood Fever" is his first pon farr. Based on the ages of Spock's and Tuvok's first pon farrs it seems that it typically happens for Vulcan males during their mid to late 30s, so Vorik is likely 35-40 when we first see him.

 

[Oddish]

Then he'd be 110 or so, or about Tuvok's age.

 

[JeremyLH]

Others have already posted many of the same changes I would have made but here goes anyway:

Start the series off with a different pilot episode. Find another way to strand the ship in the delta quadrant.

Don't use the Kes character or the Ocampa at all. Cast Jennifer Lien as a different character, possibly a human crew member, and give her no prior background or relationship with Neelix.

Recast Chakotay. Drop all the generic native American stuff from his character. Give his ancestry an actual real native American tribe but also give him a Roman Catholic background. Make him considerably more competent and more believable as the captain of his own ship (and not a complete chump) and actually have him make right decisions more often than not. When he and Janeway disagree, have him actually be right as often as not. Drop all hints of love affairs between him and other characters. Possibly give him a love interest back home.

Make Neelix more savvy and not a buffoon. Give him real skills and real connections that actually make him actually necessary to the crew. Keep him a 'wild card' for the first few seasons and someone that Janeway worries about selling the ship out to the highest bidder (as another poster put it) for a good while. Have his loyalty to the crew develop along with his relationship to Naomi Wildman. Have him actually be a fantastic cook.

Have Neelix and Tuvok slowly develop into a believable 'best buddies' and genuine friendship relationship. Have both equally irritate the other in ways that the audience can identify with either character. (From what I understand, the writers originally intended the Neelix/Tuvok relationship to mirror the Spock/Bones relationship. They just couldn't do it right because of the way that Neelix was written. I like this idea and would keep it. I would fix the problem by revamping the Neelix character in the ways stated above).

Make Janeway a solid character that doesn't change from episode to episode. Drop her blind adherence to the Prime Directive in some episodes and keep the part of her that's willing to compromise for the sake of the crew.

Have Seven dress more 'normal.' Maybe put her in a football jersey with 07 as the number and let down her hair. Have her develop into a real, dedicated musician. Have her learn to not just sing but also play multiple instruments including piano, guitar, bowed instruments and saxophone. Make her a fan of pretty much all musical genres, including some weird ones like Klingon Black Metal.

Replace Harry with a human character that fills the same purpose on the ship but is more confident, more competent, has more personality and is also a considerably skilled musician (more so than Harry). Have a real friendship develop between him and Seven born out of mutual respect and shared interests. Have the two form an art rock band together. Have him more so than the doctor serve as Seven's connection to the rest of the crew.

Keep Harry on as Tom Paris's best friend but give him a different role on the ship and regulate him to a background character. Give him a promotion at some point.

Keep the doctor more or less the same but much less pervy.

Replace the Kazon with something more advanced and more similar to the Cardassians in appearance and have Seska hook up with them instead.

Do something with the borg baby instead of having it just evaporate into thin air. Or never introduce it into the series to begin with.

In later seasons, use the borg less and species 8472 more. Not necessarily as villains though.

Drop all holodeck episodes.

Threshold, Demon (and the follow up episode), Fury, the episode where the mysterious woman falls for Chakotay, the episode where a dead crew member comes back as an alien (and most other episodes where Harry is a main character) and all time travel episodes that end with 'never actually happened' all never happened. These episodes don't get made.

The episode where Seven is playing around in the holodeck and has to use a metronome to play the piano doesn't happen either. The scene from that episode where she toasts Torres's child happens in another episode and 'IRL,' not on the holodeck.

The Tuvix episode never happens. (Not a particular bad episode but the concept only works so long as one of the characters involved holds contempt for the other involved character).

End Game never happens.

Give the series a proper ending and home coming. Maybe involve species 8472 in how they finally get home.

If it were on another station and not UPN, I would have made it more serialized and the entire series would have ran more like 'a year in Hell' instead just a couple of episodes.

 

[Oddish]

Threshold, Demon (and the follow up episode), Fury, the episode where the mysterious woman falls for Chakotay, the episode where a dead crew member comes back as an alien (and most other episodes where Harry is a main character) and all time travel episodes that end with 'never actually happened' all never happened. These episodes don't get made.

Keep "Year of Hell" and it's a deal. I still cry at the end of that one.

something with the borg baby instead of having it just evaporate into thin air. Or never introduce it into the series to begin with.

Not much necessary. A 10s scene where Voyager is in space next to a generic alien ship, and cut to the doc in Sickbay watching a baby carrier disappear. This and a log by Janeway: "we found the baby's people and returned her home".

Keep Harry on as Tom Paris's best friend but give him a different role on the ship and [relegate] him to a background character. Give him a promotion at some point.

As an ensign, he should have been a lower decker anyway. Maybe they could have him start popping up as senior staff meetings after he gets that promotion.

Make Janeway a solid character that doesn't change from episode to episode.

And give her strengths and weaknesses, instead of having the intelligence of Albert Einstein, the leadership of Chester Nimitz, the charisma of a cult leader, and the fighting ability of John J. Rambo. There's a reason why I call her the Chuck Norris of Star Trek; it's not completely complimentary.

From what I understand, the writers originally intended the Neelix/Tuvok relationship to mirror the Spock/Bones relationship.

Or shades of Quark and Odo, maybe?