Repressed memories..

[Refuge]

'Retrospect'.

Kovin didn't stand a chance. The Doctor playing at psycho analysis. Janeway giving Seven yet another second chance after she hit Kovin (imagine if it were a male punching a female), B'Ellana amused, and Seven coming off the insubordination in 'Prey'. Pure idiocy to have given Seven such responsibility and the ego of the Doctor. Do no harm?

Two in a row for not liking Seven.

 

[DamarsKanar]

Yeah poor Kovin! But I do feel sorry for Seven here in the sense that she is pretty screwed up mentally from all the combination of Borg implants and confusing humanity resurfacing - it's hardly surprising that she would get confused, be easily deceived, struggle between reality and fantasy. I blame the Doc here.

 

[Refuge]

The Doctor got too carried away: "When Kovin gets what he deserves, you're going to feel much better." He drove a crusade, though felt remorse in the end. It was an alarming example of persecution.

 

[DamarsKanar]

Definitely a disturbing turn for the Doctor, though I'm glad this was recognised at the end (with his request to have his subroutines deleted) and he felt perhaps that his 'help others' complex was out of control - to the extent it could cause serious harm. A good example of a potentially good trait used for ill.

Though I know some people do feel like there is some ambiguity there at the end, that perhaps Kovin wasn't so innocent after all, or at least it is never absolutely confirmed.

 

[Prax]

I get really mad at Janeway when she scowls at Seven at the end. Seven didn't do anything wrong. We don't actually know if Kovin committed the theft or not, right?

 

[Refuge]

It was a little vague, in that her nanoprobes could have regenerated by a 'theron' blast in a simulation. It didn't definitively prove Kovan was at fault but coupled with Seven's repressed memories from the trauma of her assimilation, they felt they should've given Kovan the benefit of the doubt.

Seven by that stage was swept away with believing these things had definitely happened to her.

 

[DamarsKanar]

I view it was a cautionary tale about the justice system and ensuring due process and reasonable doubt and innocence until guilt is proven. As well as a cautionary tale about repressed memories, a topical issue when the episode was made. And from Seven's point of view, kind of a psychological horror tale of the confusion of reality and nightmare after trauma.

 

[Refuge]

Well said.