OITNB is over for the season, now it's finally time to get back to Voyager, and tonight was a 3 episode night.
Rise
I don't hate this episode but it is dull for the most part. The best parts of it is the interplay between Neelix and Tuvok and Neelix's blow up in the end. I'm really happy to see Neelix finally step up to Tuvok and he had every right to do it here. Other than that, this episode featuring Astroids should have been more exciting but it wasn't.
Favorite Son
This episode is also really dull. In fact, I don't remember much of it other than Kim being controlled by some aliens and firing phasers at a race which was thought to be peaceful. They weren't, but it was still a surprising scene. Also, I guess the Terminator from T3: Rise of the Machines was in this episode. I did not know that.
Before and After
This is the episode I wanted to talk about in this set of three. I'm a huge fan of Kes on the series, and this episode made me realize that very fact many years ago. If Warlord allowed Lien to branch out, this episode allowed her to Branch out and fly as Kes, a strong, but calm and confident young woman who as we see from this episode has lived a full and happy life.
I love the concept of Time Travel here and it's never been duplicated since. Using the Krenim as a preview to what is to come with the Year of Hell as the device to start Kes's backward timeshifting was brilliant, and gave us one of the best stories Voyager has ever done. In fact, I think this is a top 5 episode for me. It definitely is my favorite Kes episode of the series and it's such a shame Lien is being kicked off in like 6 episodes. If they had written Kes this way throughout, it would have been such a great strong character.
Oh, and I can't finish without talking about the new Look. I love this look so much. In fact, for the longest time, I've wanted an avatar with a smiling Kes with the long hair. Now might not be appropriate because of the legal trouble Lien has gotten herself into, but I choose to remember Lien with this look and how she acted in this episode. We got a strong character, full of energy and life, and like I said, it was one of the best episodes Voyager ever did. It's a shame Janeway didn't listen to her though. It could have prevented the entire Year of Hell, but then there goes the drama.